The Radical Republican Party of the Reconstruction Era Essay -- Carpetb

During the Reconstruction Era of the Civil War, a two new political groups began to form. The Radical Republican Party gained some of its greatest members, two groups of people from opposite sides of the country (Hodges 1). The carpetbaggers and scalawags joined forces to reconstruct the South, but they were met with controversy and criticism because of their radical worldview (Hodges 1). The carpetbaggers and scalawags’ goals were met with controversy then, but the group can be attributed with one of the first Civil Rights attempts within the South among other great achievements (Coleman â€Å"Affect on Reconstruction† 1). The Radical Republican Party encompassed both the carpetbaggers and the scalawags (Hodges 1). The carpetbaggers were newly joined members of the Republican Party that moved from the North to the South to make money from the South’s poverty and in turn help begin the Reconstruction in the South (Hodges 1; Muhammad 1). The â€Å"carpetbagger† label could encompass any well educated member of the middle class (â€Å"Carpetbaggers and Scalawags† 2). During the Reconstruction Era, large numbers of people were traveling from the North to the South (Muhammad 1). Since there was such a large number of people traveling during that time, a cheap way to carry luggage was in high demand (Muhammad 1). So â€Å"carpetbags†, which where made from old carpets, were manufactured (Muhammad 1). This bag held the owner’s only possessions, specifically for the carpetbaggers as they headed south (Muhammad 1). On the other hand, scalawags were Southerners who disliked secession or had fought for the Union Army (Hodges 1). The â€Å"scalawag† label encompassed wealthy southern landowners, displaced carpetbaggers, black freedman, former Whigs, poor S... ...a of Arkansas History and Culture. The Central Arkansas Library System. October 26 2011. February 5 2014. Harris, Rodney. â€Å"Minstrels [Political Faction].† The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. The Central Arkansas Library System. October 26 2011. February 5 2014. Hodges, Mary Frances. â€Å"Carpetbaggers and Scalawags.† The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. The Central Arkansas Library System. October 26 2011. January 30 2014. Muhammad, Brian. â€Å"Carpetbaggers in Reconstruction: Definition, Lesson & Quiz.† Education Portal. January 30 2014. Richards, Adam. â€Å"Scalawags in the Civil War: Definition, Lesson, & Quiz.† Education Portal. January 30 2014. Sansing, David G. â€Å"Adelbert Ames: Twenty-seventh and Thirtieth Governor of Mississippi: 1868-1870; 1874-1876.† Mississippi History NOW. Mississippi Historical Society. December 2003. February 5 2014.

 “Hawk Roosting” and “Golden Retrievals” Essay

In the two poems Ted Hughes’s, â€Å"Hawk Roosting,† and Mark Doty’s, â€Å"Golden Retrievals†, the writers use tone and visual imagery to present the animals’ unique point of view in the poems. The tone of â€Å"Hawk Roosting† is powerful, sinister, and arrogant compared to the lighthearted, playful tone that is set in â€Å"Golden Retrievals.† The hawk’s monologue in â€Å"Hawk Roosting† shows how the Hawk sees the world with such power and a sense of ownership as he tells the reader that he â€Å"kills where [he pleases] because it is all [his]† (line 14), in difference the k-9 in â€Å"Golden Retrievals† who sees it in a playful and distracted manner. The egoistic narrator in â€Å"Hawk Roosting† is a hawk that uses imagery make the reader envision the world from his eyes. The reader can imagine the narrator’s â€Å"each feather/ hooked head and/ feet locked upon the rough bark† (4, 9, 11). The wording seen during the course of the poem â€Å"Hawk roosting† creates an image for the role that the Hawk thinks he plays in the world. The Hawk views the world from â€Å"the top of the wood† and as the Hawk is able to fly he â€Å"the earth’s face [is] upward for [his] inspection† (8) showing his excellent view of his surroundings and how he views the world as his own. In â€Å"Golden Retrievals† the distracted narrator paints a picture in the reader’s mind of how many objects he encounters and allows the reader to imagine the dog constantly chasing after a new object on a daily basis. He â€Å"sniff[s] the wind, then/ [is] off again† (4-5) while the owner is â€Å"sunk in the past, half [their] walk,/ thinking of what [the owner] never can bring back† (7-8). In contrast to the Hawk, the Golden retriever is much more of a carefree character. The wording used in this poem is much more energetic than the diction seen in â€Å"Hawk Roosting.† The narrator speaks of things that remind the reader of dogs and their nature such as â€Å"Fetch, Balls and sticks, [Bunnies], a squirrel†. Hughes uses a dark tone to portray the hawk as a very powerful, wild, and sinister animal. The Hawk states, â€Å"There is no sophistry in my body:/ My manners are tearing all heads-† (15-16) showing how he views himself as a ruthless king of the earth and the â€Å"whole of Creation† (10). In opposition  to Hughes, Doty uses a more playful and distracted tone to depict a character who is concerned with fetching and is easily distracted because â€Å"Balls and sticks capture [his] attention/seconds at a time†(1-2). The Dog views himself as a friend to its owner, and although the Dog is distracted with running, chasing squirrels, and fetching, the Dog also is aware of its owner Doty uses the playful thoughts of a dog while Hughes contrasts with the stark thoughts of a commanding hawk. These opposing characterizations help the narrators convey very different animalistic perspectives of the world. While the Hawk views the world with ownership, the Dog is easily di stracted by passing objects and enjoys the little things in life.

What Is an Autobiography (And How to Write Yours)

Your life story, or autobiography, should contain the basic framework that any essay should have, with four basic elements. Begin with an introduction that includes a thesis statement, followed by a body containing at least several paragraphs, if not several chapters. To complete the autobiography, youll need a strong conclusion, all the while crafting an interesting narrative with a theme. Did You Know? The word autobiography  literally means SELF (auto), LIFE (bio), WRITING (graph). Or, in other words, an autobiography is the story of someones life written or otherwise told by that person. When writing your autobiography, find out what makes your family or your experience unique and build a narrative around that. Doing some research and taking detailed notes can help you discover the essence of what your narrative should be and craft a story that others will want to read. Research Your Background Just like the biography of a famous person, your autobiography should include things like the time and place of your birth, an overview of your personality, your likes and dislikes, and the special events that shaped your life. Your first step is to gather background detail. Some things to consider: What is interesting about the region where you were born?How does your family history relate to the history of that region?Did your family come to that region for a reason? It might be tempting to start your story with I was born in Dayton, Ohio..., but that is not really where your story begins. Its better to start with an experience. You may wish to start with something like why you were born where you were and how your familys experience led to your birth. If your narrative centers more around a pivotal moment in your life, give the reader a glimpse into that moment. Think about how your favorite movie or novel begins, and look for inspiration from other stories when thinking about how to start your own. Think About Your Childhood You may not have had the most interesting childhood in the world, but everyone has had a few memorable experiences. Highlight the best parts when you can. If you live in a big city, for instance, you should realize that many people who grew up in the country have never ridden a subway, walked to school, ridden in a taxi, or walked to a store a few blocks away. On the other hand, if you grew up in the country you should consider that many people who grew up in the suburbs or inner city have never eaten food straight from a garden, camped in their backyards, fed chickens on a working farm, watched their parents canning food, or been to a county fair or a small-town festival. Something about your childhood will always seem unique to others. You just have to step outside your life for a moment and address the readers as if they knew nothing about your region and culture. Pick moments that will best illustrate the goal of your narrative, and symbolism within your life. Consider Your Culture Your culture is your overall way of life, including the customs that come from your familys values and beliefs. Culture includes the holidays you observe, the customs you practice, the foods you eat, the clothes you wear, the games you play, the special phrases you use, the language you speak, and the rituals you practice. As you write your autobiography, think about the ways that your family celebrated or observed certain days, events, and months, and tell your audience about special moments. Consider these questions: What was the most special gift you ever received? What was the event or occasion surrounding that gift?Is there a certain food that you identify with a certain day of the year?Is there an outfit that you wear only during a special event? Think honestly about your experiences, too. Dont just focus on the best parts of your memories; think about the details within those times. While Christmas morning may be a magical memory, you might also consider the scene around you. Include details like your mother making breakfast, your father spilling his coffee, someone upset over relatives coming into town, and other small details like that. Understanding the full experience of positives and negatives helps you paint a better picture for the reader and lead to a stronger and more interesting narrative. Learn to tie together all the interesting elements of your life story and craft them into an engaging essay. Establish the Theme Once you have taken a look at your own life from an outsider’s point of view, you will be able to select the most interesting elements from your notes to establish a theme. What was the most interesting thing you came up with in your research? Was it the history of your family and your region? Here is an example of how you can turn that into a theme: Today, the plains and low hills of southeastern Ohio make the perfect setting for large cracker box-shaped farmhouses surrounded by miles of corn rows. Many of the farming families in this region descended from the Irish settlers who came rolling in on covered wagons in the 1830s to find work building canals and railways. My ancestors were among those settlers. A little bit of research can make your own personal story come to life as a part of history, and historical details can help a reader better understand your unique situation.  In the body  of your narrative, you can explain how your family’s favorite meals, holiday celebrations, and work habits relate to Ohio history. One Day as a Theme You also can take an ordinary day in your life and turn it into a theme. Think about the routines you followed as a child and as an adult. Even a mundane activity like household chores can be a source of inspiration. For example, if you grew up on a farm, you know the difference between the smell of hay and wheat, and certainly that of pig manure and cow manure—because you had to shovel one or all of these at some point. City people probably don’t even know there is a difference. Describing the subtle differences of each and comparing the scents to other scents can help the reader imagine the situation more clearly. If you grew up in the city, you how the personality of the city changes from day to night because you probably had to walk to most places. You know the electricity-charged atmosphere of the daylight  hours when the streets bustle with people and the mystery of the night when the shops are closed and the streets are quiet. Think about the smells and sounds you experienced as you went through an ordinary day and explain how that day relates to your life experience in your county or your city: Most people don’t think of spiders when they bite into a tomato, but I do. Growing up in southern Ohio, I spent many summer afternoons picking baskets of tomatoes that would be canned or frozen and preserved for cold winter’s dinners. I loved the results of my labors, but I’ll never forget the sight of the enormous, black and white, scary-looking spiders that lived in the plants and created zigzag designs on their webs. In fact, those spiders, with their artistic web creations, inspired my interest in bugs and shaped my career in science. One Event as a Theme Perhaps one event or one day of your life made such a big impact that it could be used as a theme. The end or beginning of the life of another can affect our thoughts and actions for a long time: I was 12 years old when my mother passed away. By the time I was 15, I had become an expert in dodging bill collectors, recycling hand-me-down  jeans, and stretching a single meal’s worth of ground beef into two family dinners. Although I was a child when I lost my mother, I was never able to  mourn or to let myself become too absorbed in thoughts of personal loss. The fortitude I developed at a young age was the driving force that would see me through many other challenges. Writing the Essay Whether you determine that your life story is best summed up by a single event, a single characteristic, or a single day, you can use that one element as a theme. You will define this theme in your  introductory paragraph. Create an outline with several events or activities that relate back to your central theme and turn those into subtopics (body paragraphs) of your story. Finally, tie up all your experiences in a summary that restates and explains the overriding theme of your life.