Implementing The Learning Organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Implementing The Learning Organization - Essay Example One of the key components of a Learning Organization is a commitment to lifelong learning (Stinson, Pearson, & Lucas, 2006, p. 309). The rapid pace of change in technology, medicine, and education demands that a successful organization places a value on learning and makes adequate time for it to take place. Placing learning at the forefront of an organization's priorities characterizes it as a Learning Organization. At Booz Allen, a strategy consulting firm, they have a program called Discover Booz Allen. Senior executives have informal chats with junior colleagues on management techniques and insights into career success throughout a yearlong immersion process (Holistic approach to learning, 2006, p. 28). According to Stinson et al. (2006) to facilitate this type of learning, "[...] learning time must be protected" (p. 311). This commitment to learning creates an atmosphere for the successful Learning Organization to cultivate the key disciplines that are at the heart of the philoso phy. The Learning Organization revolves around the principles of not just what we learn, but how we learn. To motivate people to learn in this new environment, the needs of the organization need to be kept central to the process. A common shared vision among all members is the ability to envision a mutual goal which provides the framework, force, and energy for all learning to take place (Kezar, 2005, p.12). This vision is not a strategic plan or management mission statement. It is a vision that is created by the mutual understanding of all the members of the group, and contributes to the picture of the future of the organization (Giesecke & McNeil, 2004, p. 58). In this way each individual member of the group will be able to incorporate the vision into their daily activities. When there is a common view of the future and a mutual understanding of the purpose of the organization, learning can begin to take place. Though learning takes place at the individual level, it is team learning that is most effective. According to Senge (1990), 'Team learning is vital because teams, not individuals, are the fundamental learning unit in modern organizations. . . unless teams can learn, the organization cannot learn" (as cited in Stinson et al., 2006, p. 311). In the team environment, individuals must put aside assumptions and previously held notions and be open to new ideas as more creativity can come from a team than can be generated by the individuals (Giesecke & McNeil, 2004, p. 58). Within the structure of the team, each member must be open to self-examination and begin the process of critically evaluating what they believe to be true. Through the discipline of mental models, the individual turns inward and begins as Stinson et al. (2006) states, "learning to unearth our internal pictures of the world, to bring them to the surface and hold them up rigorously to scrutiny" (p. 310). This is an ongoing process that that is a part of lifelong learning. It is the understanding of our own vision and views, yet takes into account that others may have alternative views that are valid, valuable, and can contribute to the shared vision (Kezar, 2005, p. 19). Only when the limitations and barriers to learning are broken can true

High Renaissance and Baroque Period Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

High Renaissance and Baroque Period Art - Essay Example Ugolino Martelli. 1535 has a background with a balcony and two other windows. The interesting point is the fact that he used the same points to draw pillars and what looks like a balcony in Portrait of Bartolomeo Panciatichi. 1540. The material used in this painting was tempera on wood which was a mixture of pigment with egg yolk.In these three paintings, other parallels can be drawn. They are all holding books. The two young boys have marble skin and exquisite black clothes showing the richness of their families. Third-dimensional background for three other paintings. Their eyes are not looking in the same direction. This artist was chosen of the Italian Renaissance as a portrait artist who could not paint exact likeness because he had to flatter his subjects. (Haughton 233) The next period in art history, the Spanish Baroque period allowed its artists to paint more realistically. Two portraits have been chosen and one large paintingDiego Velasquez, Portrait of Juan de Pareja, 1650 has far more freedom than Bronzino in his work. He was the court's principal painter and considered a diplomat as he traveled for the king. This painting was chosen to compare first to the Portrait of the Young Man. When Velasquez was in Rome to paint the Pope Innocent X, he wanted to practice, he did a life portrait from his assistant, slave, mulatto painter Juan de Pareja." (Rousseau 1) There is such realism in his facial expression, the sweat on his face, the hole in his painter's smock, the beard, the bushy hair.

Representation Of Consciousness In To The Lighthouse English Literature Essay

Representation Of Consciousness In To The Lighthouse English Literature Essay This paper examines the view that consciousness is a key theme in To the Lighthouse  [1]  and is used to explore the nature of reality both as it relates to the subjective world of individuals and the objective world that society agrees on. Further, that Mr and Mrs Ramsay appear to represent the two aspects, Mr Ramsay objective and Mrs Ramsay subjective and that Lily Briscoes character is used to resolve the question of how one person can make sense of these apparently conflicting internal and external views of reality. In a sense, the end of the book when Lily has her vision could be read as her solving Mr Ramsays life work into subject and object and the nature of reality. (p.26) In many ways Woolfs style is stream of consciousness; lots of thoughts presented without clear distinctions between them or who is having them. Sometimes we see the characters through their own eyes, sometimes one character is thinking about another one, and sometimes the author appears to be making her own comment on a character without being absolutely sure of her facts about them. We see how internal struggles impact outward actions and affect the way characters perceive each other. Woolf uses her authorial voice in the way she frames and selects certain aspects of her characters that she would like us to see and not others. If a stream of consciousness technique had been used throughout however, this would not have been so obvious. As Ayers puts it: To the Lighthouse presents the consciousness of various characters in an idiom which sometimes is borrowed from the minds and voices of the characters, and at other times is cast in a narrative voice which is independent of the character(s) even while it narrates according to their thought and knowledge. This means there is still an authorial voice present  [3]   She selectively dips in and out of her characters thoughts, into the mind of another character, and back again. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the lines separating narrator and author, and narrator and character, are, in most cases, very obscure. In some instances, therefore, it is vital to see, to feel, the various ways the author places the narrator, since the position the reader feels will often establish for him the narrators location in the setting; and this not only firmly identifies him but also clarifies his relationship to the action.  [4]   All her characters speak in the same idiom, they can not really be differentiated by the words they use. They are not thinking off the top of their heads; their thoughts are articulated in a highly formulated prose. Mr Ramsay is characterised by the omniscient narrator in terms of rational facts and outward reality: What he said was true. It was always true. He was incapable of untruth; never tampered with a fact; never altered a disagreeable word to suit the pleasure or convenience of any mortal being, least of all his own childrenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (p.4) Later on in the first section the same argument about whether it will be fine enough to go to the Lighthouse tomorrow is continued, but this time we are taken into the consciousness of Mr Ramsay and see that his view of reality is, after all, coloured by passion. But it is a passion for the absolute as it affects his family. He wants their internal reality to match the external world: The extraordinary irrationality of her remark, the folly of womens minds enraged himà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and now she flew in the face of facts, made his children hope what was utterly out of the question, in effect, told lies. (p.36) More is revealed about how him, however, when we are shown Mrs Ramsays perceptions. Mrs Ramsay is depicted as the opposite of her husband, relying on her feelings and intuition to unite people  [5]  : To pursue truth with such astonishing lack of consideration for other peoples feelings, to rend the thin veils of civilization so wantonly, so brutally, was to her so horrible an outrage of human decency. (p.37) Three consciousnesses are used in this example to show that reality is not just what is out there in the physical world, but that there is also an inner reality of feeling, which cannot be separated from external pressures. In each example above, the sense of reality shifts slightly, as does the readers perception of each characters consciousness. This sense of shifts in consciousness and reality is set up from the first page: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦James Ramsay, sitting on the floor cutting out pictures from the illustrated catalogue of the Army and Navy Stores, endowed the picture of a refrigerator as his mother spoke with heavenly bliss. It was fringed with joyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦though he appeared the image of stark and uncompromising severity, with his high forehead and his fierce blue eyesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦so that his mother, watching himà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦imagined him all red and ermine on the Bench or directing a stern and momentous enterprise in some crisis of public affairs. (pp.3-4) The omniscient narrator shows us James sitting on the floor, dips into his consciousness to tell us how he is feeling, goes back out again to describe what he looks like then goes into his mothers imagination as she looks at him. Auerbach  [6]  calls this the multipersonal representation of consciousness and Nussbaum  [7]  tells us the reader isà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦constantly made aware of the richness of consciousness, and of the tremendous gap between what we are in and to ourselves, and the part of the self that enters the interpersonal world. None of the characters are shown to the reader with absolute clarity, as seen through a photographers lens, but as perceived by human consciousness; glimpses caught and revelations made. Woolf is trying to show life as it is lived. Not as a neatly packaged event with well understood motives and defined beginnings and endings, but as a series of perceptions and small moments of understanding which constantly shift over time according to the influence of those people around us. Characters are shown trying to deal with the conflict between their own internal reality, their consciousness or state of being, and the external reality, the real world with its expectations of how things are, as generated by society and the way nature is real independent of any human force on it. James thinks things that a six year old boy would not actually be thinking. Woolf takes James simple hate of his father thwarting him and uses highly stylised and metaphorical language comprised of grammatically precise sentences  [8]  to explain how he feels about his father disrupting his relationship with his mother. he hated him for the exaltation and sublimity of his gesturesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦but most of all he hated the twang and twitter of his fathers emotion which, vibrating round them, disturbed the perfect simplicity and good sense of his relations with his mother. (p.42) In this case, James consciousness is not hazy at all; it is sharp and focused, but the language used forces the reader to the conclusion that this perception is given to him by the narrator for her own purposes, to heighten the tension and create an atmosphere of instant hatred. That it does not accurately describe the words that a boy of James age would use does not necessarily mean that it is not truthful, that it does not accurately convey his feelings. That the voice of the narrator is mixed with James highlights the difficulty of reconciling an internal reality with an external codified and recognised one. This constant shifting in narrative voices also highlights the difficulties of ever knowing all of another person, which Love has presented as a problem: The difficulty with the Ramsays, in short, is this: People who seem to know one another do not truly know one another. They have a certain tense harmony and union, but even as they are united, they are discordant within themselves and with one another. Knowledge is unknowing; harmony contains disharmony  [9]   But much of what Woolf seems to be saying with her characters is that they do not actually know themselves fully. Just as there is no one reality, no meaning of life, there is no one unwavering internal core of self knowledge and belief; it is constantly changing with external influences. Even when Lily Briscoe has her vision it is acknowledged as fleeting, as a small part of life: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦she looked at her canvas; it was blurred. With a sudden intensity, as if she saw it clear for a second, she drew a line there, in the centre. It was done; it was finished. Yes, she thought, laying down her brush in extreme fatigue, I have had my vision. (p.242) Lily could be read as a combination of both Mr and Mrs Ramsay as she wants to get beyond her inner reality, typified by Mrs Ramsay and represent it through her art, in an outward way. This is what Mr Ramsay does, although he uses words rather than art and does not have to struggle in the same way that Lily does to give herself permission to paint. His internal struggle is more of the nature of knowing he is not quite the Great Man he would like to be, but he does know that it is his right to be one, whereas Lily feels that the mere act of painting and expecting to be taken seriously as an artist is something she has to fight for, she is aware of her own inadequacy, her insignificance. (p.22) Ayers sees To the Lighthouse as having a pessimistic conclusion because Lilys painting is destined to be confined to a future attic  [10]  but it could also be interpreted as being positive on the individual scale as Lily does have her vision; she comes to an understanding of life and her place in it that does not depend on being shown in an art gallery of the (male) establishment. So there is more than a [tentative suggestion of] the importance of art in transfiguring the moment  [11]  because that transfiguration takes place on an individual basis. Lily has achieved her own personal unity in the face of opposing, controlling forces and expectations such as Mr Ramsays greatness and his demands for sympathy, George Tansleys remembered women cant paint, cant write (p.184) and Mrs Ramsays reverence for men and her role as the familys emotional centre. In that moment she reconciled the internal and external, the subjective and objective. Woolf it seems is saying that it is only on this fleeting moment-to-moment basis that life can be understood but that these moments build on top of each other to provide fresh versions of reality, which can in turn be renegotiated and perceived.

JUVENILE LAW :: essays research papers

ARE YOU A JUVENILE OR AN ADULT?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Mo. Laws make this question very complicated. Some times we might think we are juvenile’s, but by law we can be and treated as an adult. At age 13, you can go to some health clinics and get some medical treatments and testing done without your parents permission, such as pregnancy, alcohol/drug, and sexual transmitted diseases. Most of the time, if you are under 18, you need your parents permission, unless you are married, or in the military. At 15 1/2, you can get a special permit to drive with a legal guardian, but if you break a traffic law you are considered an adult. But at 16, you can get your own drivers license. If you are under 18 and even at age 12, you can be considered an adult if you commit a serious crime, such as killing, drug related. rape, repeated offenses, or stealing a car. If you are under 18, and are picked up by a police officer and taken to juvenile court, a juvenile officer will decide how to handle your case. Then a juvenile judge hears the evidence with you and your parents. The judge studies the whole complete picture of you, and your whole life and everything in and around you, and your crime, and then decides as to whether or not your case will be held in Juvenile Court or in a Adult Court. If your case is held in Juvenile Court and you are found guilty, and since he has made a complete study of you and your case, he will be the one to decide how and what will happen to you. If you are tried as an adult and found guilty, naturally the punishment will be more severe such as:

The Historical Biography of Martin Luther

It is obviously important to note that society has evolved and that the issues of the sixteenth century although dictated by time are not all that different than what our schools face today. There may not have been a separation of church and state but there was a need for educational reformation. â€Å"It is sometimes forgotten that the Reformation was as much concerned with school as it was with church and home. Appreciating the role of education in directing church and society back to the source of the Christian faith, the reformers were committed to the schooling of the young. (Faber, 1998) There is no doubt that Martin Luther appreciated the structured approach of schools since one of his first official acts as a reformer was an attempt to convert existing monasteries schools. â€Å"For Luther, of course, education was grounded in the study of Scripture, a study that was to take place both within homes and schools. Committed by the First Amendment to separation of church and state and to freedom of religious expression, pluralistic America of the twenty- first century is very different from Luther†s Germany of the sixteenth century. (Harran, 2004) Many of the underlying foundation of the modern public schools systems around the world owe a great deal to the sixteenth century Reformation and Martin Luther. â€Å"In home, school, church, and community, fostering that awareness and understanding is the purpose of education and the responsibility of educators. No challenge is more urgent than empowering young people courageously to step into the stream of human events, refusing to stand upon the shore as bystanders. (Harran, 2004) Who better to use as a scholar for this particular work. I believe that Martin Luther would agree with the notion that our graduates should not only have a desire for collaboration, but should also strive to develop the bonds within a school†s collaborative learning environment. Luther lived in a time where only the wealthy or well connected received an education. This class isolationism went against the philosophies of today where diversity and interdependent social cultures strive to exist. In opposition to those who saw education as the privilege of only a few, Luther argued vociferously for compulsory education for all, recognizing the value of each individual before God. In an age in which only a few could afford to attend school and women received little if any education, Luther eloquently argued for expanding educational opportunities. † (Harran, 2004) Luther believed that a universal educational opportunity offered more to society and that mass education would be more advantageous because of the fact that it offered more collaborative opportunities. In the words of Martin Luther, â€Å"My dear sirs, if we have to spend such large sums every year on guns, roads, bridges, dams and countless similar items to insure the temporal peace and prosperity of a city, why should not much more be devoted to the poor neglected youth? † (Harran, 2004) Luther believed that society would benefit if more individuals were given the opportunity to improve themselves and he also seemed to understand that this process should include more collaborative educational methods. I also agree with the idea of collaborative educational methods and goals. I also believe that as teachers, we should promote the idea of students working together so they can learn from one another and at the same time extend their willingness and ability to interact and learning outside of the classroom. Today†s kids need PDA†s and other technology just to keep up with their own and friend†s busy schedules. Between commuting, extra curricular activities and homework, students may find that it is hard to coordinate with their peers. That is why we as teachers must create scenarios that promote togetherness through properly applying classroom settings, the use of technology and sound planning to eliminate the barriers of collaboration. It is a teachers responsibility to create an atmosphere that provides a comfortable setting for contribution by all, enable collaboration without regard to time or place and to help students learn from each other no matter what their diverse backgrounds might be. Luther was an advocate of a well conceived educational process. Writing in times far different than ours, Luther underscored the importance of a curriculum that truly engages young people and that inspires them to a genuine love of learning in all its many forms. † (Harran, 2004) This atmosphere can only occur if the teachers and administrative entities support critical self-reflection by the teachers. Teachers can only provide curriculums that engage if they themselves are up to date in their personal reflections and educations. I also agree with the fact that self awareness, professional development and personal achievement by teachers are areas that are critical to the success of the entire educational process. Professional development for example can be considered important in the realm of critical self-reflection because it is a vital piece of the teaching puzzle. Teachers who evaluate their needs and performance can use professional development opportunities to stay current with the new or available practices in teaching, learning and presentation. Consider that a large number of math teachers simply place far too much influence and credence on outdated text books and techniques. â€Å"Even while educators work to reduce the dominance of text-based learning in mathematics classrooms, publishers and teachers need to explore new modes of publication that will enable good innovative ideas to enter expeditiously into typical classroom practice. † (National Research Council 1989, p. 67) Self reflection will provide opportunities to change. Martin Luther and his reformers were the most social conscious individuals of their time. The reformations that he promoted were basically social justice reformations. Luther believed that the existing class system was not fair and that all classes should receive the opportunity for an education. â€Å"Not only would the state benefit from a reformed education, but also – and especially – the church. † (Faber, 1998) In the sixteenth century, those who could not read or write were forced to learn their religious scriptures form the religiously factions thus putting the poor and uneducated at a distinct disadvantage. Luther promoted that all individuals be educated and therefore eliminate those social injustices. Similar to the unfair class separation of Luther†s times, I believe we must address the social injustices of our times. â€Å"Schools in the United States face a multiplicity of challenges, from gaining adequate funds to hiring well-qualified and dedicated teachers to meeting the ever-increasing obligations of state-mandated testing to determining policy about such complex issues as bi-lingual education. † (Harran, 2004) We today face the distinction of having schools in poor urban areas that have no books, are literally unsafe, have no clean running water and certainly few to no good teachers while less than a mile down there could be an affluent school with a plethora of extras and well manicured lawns. Social justice always boils down to the haves and the have not†s. Consider the differentiation with the technology have line today. Schools that can afford new technology have it in abundance and every child has access to the internet and other educational tools. But, in our urban communities there are whole high schools that may only have five or six computers and those are for administrative applications. Today we are more adept at working with the special needs of race, ethnicity, class, cultural and linguistic diversity, religion, gender, sexuality and special needs. In Martin Luther†s sixteenth century, diversity was focused more on the differences between rich and poor and religious preference was a one way street. So when he wrote or worked to reform the system, he was trying to incorporate those who were considered to be the minorities of their time. Yet, whether the differences were color or religion is not relevant. The key is that there was a need for reform with the existing process just like we have a need for change in our modern day educational process. â€Å"The need for educational reform was urgent at the beginning of the sixteenth century. At that time there existed no school system as such, and teaching was often limited to the children of wealthy merchants and city rulers. In many places the Roman Catholic church supervised the training of the youth in monasteries, cloisters, and other church-run institutions. But these were falling into disrepute and disrepair, as the populace reacted against the corruption and abuses among the clergy. † (Faber, 1998) Today, research covering the effects of diversity in the classroom show how and why effective teaching can be linked to the ability of instructors to incorporate diversity into their classrooms. These studies repeatedly show that there is a direct correlation between a child†s attitude towards his or her race and ethnic grouping and other cultural groups from as early as the preschool years. In other words, young children develop their stereotypes in the classroom or in the home environment at very early ages. Teachers can therefore help reduce or hopefully even eliminate negative stereotypes by being diversity conscious themselves. Through the use of culturally sensitive class initiatives for example, teachers have an opportunity to establish more positive examples for their students. â€Å"Researchers agree that new models of professional development are needed, and that such models must include a focus on the development of local cultures of interest if they are to be sustainable. (Swan, Vargas, & Holmes, 2004) In conclusion, this paper was on Martin Luther and also my interpretations of his views on the treatise of scholarship and education. From Luther†s point of view, this report attempted to propose possible reforms in the area of curriculum. The report was formatted in the form of an action plan that articulated my personal philosophies of teaching and identified with Martin Luther as my selected scholar. Issues addressed were the educational and conceptual frameworks of collaboration, social justice, diversity and critical self-reflection. Obviously Martin Luther appreciated the structured approach of schools since one of his first official acts as a reformer was to convert existing monasteries into schools. This may even be the underlying foundation of all modern public schools systems around the world. Who could be a better scholar for this particular project. â€Å"There is no denying the huge gap between the sixteenth century and the twenty- first. Luther†s Germany was overwhelmingly Christian; he could look to the state to further the agenda of Christian education, although he insisted that the responsibility for education was not solely, or even primarily, the responsibility of government. We live in a very different world from that of Luther. The United States is rich in cultural and religious diversity, and, from an early age, children experience that diversity and multiplicity of religious traditions and values in school and community. † (Harran, 2004)

Critical Analysis on a Tale of Two Cities

Chelsey Cardwell Dual Credit English 1/3/12 Mr. Burns A Literary Analysis of A Tale of Two Cities I. Introduction Charles Dickens’ twelfth novel, A Tale of Two Cities, was written to show all of the good and evil that was present during the French Revolution. He uses the two main cities, London and Paris, to represent this, and then ties in a love story with many different symbols of good and evil such as Darnay and Carton, Madame Defarge and Miss Pross. In his novel, Dickens also shows both sides of the revolution with the peasants and the aristocracy. He expresses how they are both evil although the peasants are the people who we would be accustomed to feel pity for. An example of this is when the Marquis runs over a peasant boy in the streets and only fears that his horses might have been hurt. Monsieur Defarge runs to Gaspard (the father of the child) and says â€Å"Be brave man, my Gaspard! It is better for the poor plaything to die so, than to live. It has died in a moment without pain. Could it have lived an hour as happily† (102)? This is a heart wrenching quote that allows the reader to understand just how atrocious the peasant’s lives were; that is was a relief for a child to die quickly than to live out their life as a peasant being stepped on by the aristocracy. Dickens’ novel, although challenging to some, has a great message of hope and positive change with an enjoyable depiction of true events during the French Revolution. II. Themes The most obvious theme seen throughout the book is the idea, and need for transformation. The repetition of the words â€Å"recalled to life† presents most of the change that occurs. This theme applies to Doctor Manette, who is recalled to life when Mr. Lorry and Lucie bring him home from prison and cure his unhealthy mind, giving him another chance at having a life with his beloved daughter. Carton is also recalled to life, for example he describes himself to Lucie as â€Å"self-flung away, wasted, drunken, poor creature of misuse,† and Lucie replies by asking Carton if she can recall him to a better ways (â€Å"Overview† par 3). Carton sacrifices himself to allow Lucie to be happy. He says â€Å"It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; It is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known† (360). At the end of the novel, the narrator describes what Carton’s last words would have been. He tells how Carton envisioned Lucie having a son and naming him after Carton, he says, â€Å"I see him winning it (his name) so well, that my name is made illustrious there by the light of his. I see blots threw upon it, faded away† (360). He knows this child will live the life he should have, and in a way continue to redeem Carton for wasting his own life. Roger Cly is also seen within this theme; â€Å"Cly’s death and burial as an Old Bailey Spy, complete with an enraged London mob, is a fraud, a means of his escaping England with John Barsard. Cly, too, then, is â€Å"buried† and resurrected† (â€Å"Themes and Construction† par 4). Transformation is also evident throughout France because of the strict, evil aristocracy. The peasants believe revolting will give them the change they want, although it only makes the situation worse. Another important theme within the novel is revenge. Dickens creates entire chapters on the Marquis to show how horrid the aristocracy was, and yet he also condemns the peasants for revolting to it. Near the end of the novel, Dickens says, â€Å"Sow the same seed of rapacious licence and oppression over again, and it will surely yield the same fruit according to its kind† (355). This shows his idea that if they continue teaching their generations the same beliefs that they have, a greater change will never be obtained. Another example of the unruly people is when the do the Carmagnole around Lucie as she waits for the imprisoned Darnay to hopefully catch a glance of her. The Carmagnole was known as the dance of the revolution that was very wild and grotesque, which was headed by The Vengeance; this showed the deranged, mad actions of the peasants. Revenge is also what drives both sides of the novel (the love story and the revolution). The peasants are constantly trying to revolt against the higher-ups for revenge for their treatment. On the love side, Lucie and Darnay would have lived happily ever after had Madame Defarge not had Darnay charged and sentenced to death for revenge of her slain family by Darnay’s family. Madame Defarge’s best friend’s name is even The Vengeance, which shows how vengeful that particular group of peasants really was. Madame Defarge says, â€Å"Let me but lift my finger! She seemed to raise it, and to let it fall with a rattle on the ledge before her (Lucie), as if the axe had dropped† (325). She will not stop and be satisfied with the death of the last member of the family who killed her family; she vows to get Lucie also. When she attempts to carry out her promise, she loses her life in a tussle with Miss Pross; her incurable desire for revenge brought her own death upon her. Imprisonment is another obvious theme within the novel. Dickens begins his novel with Doctor Manette being finally released from his imprisonment. Darnay is also later imprisoned many times, and is eventually sentenced to the fate of the Guillotine. In a sense, Carton is also imprisoned but it is an internal conflict within himself rather than a physical imprisonment. He is ultimately set free by giving up his own life so that Darnay and Lucie can live theirs out together. Imprisonment also coincides with the theme of family. The importance of family is implied with the reuniting of Lucie and her long lost father. Doctor Manette was locked away for some time, and he was unable to recognize his own daughter. When Monsieur Defarge begins to question Lucie’s father, he answers with a voice that Dickens describes as â€Å"lost the life and resonance of the human voice, that it affected the senses like a once beautiful colour faded away into a poor, weak stain† (37), and the love and realization of his only family member left is what brings him out of this trance like state. Lucie marries Darnay and the hope at a long happy family is given, until Darnay’s life is to be taken. Carton realizes Lucie will only be happy with her family, and he loves her and knows she does not deserve to be without her family again, so he decides to switch places with Darnay. Class is also an evident theme within the novel that is shown mostly within the violence between the aristocracy and the peasants. The aristocracy is so arrogant, that they have no other care in the world other than themselves. The Monseigneur sees himself so highly that he must have four men to serve him his chocolate, the narrator tells the extent of this by saying, â€Å" Deep would have been the blot upon his escutcheon if his chocolate had been ignobly waited on by only three men; he must have died of two† (96). On the other side, the peasants are so low that when an innocent child is killed in the streets, the aristocracy doesn’t care, and the child’s father is told to be happy that the child is gone to a better place and doesn’t have to live the life they are living (102). III. Symbolism Dickens uses many examples of symbolism throughout his novel, many being quite evident to the reader. When wine is spilled on the streets and all of the peasants rush to it to drink all that they can, a man writes the word blood on the wall, which is exactly what the wine stood for, all the blood that will be spilled in result of the revolution. The owner of the wine shop looks at him and says, â€Å"What now? Are you a subject for the mad hospital† (29)? The owner is calling the peasant crazy for writing it, which makes him a symbol for all the crazy peasants who cause the spill of blood later on in these exact same streets. Blood is also symbolized after the reading of the old letter written by Doctor Manette, the court room is described by giving off â€Å"a sound of craving and eagerness that had nothing articulate in it but blood† (317). This exemplifies how everyone wanted the blood shed of Darnay after such evidence was found coming from Doctor Manette. Symbolism is also used with Dickens decision in use of characters. Madame Defarge and Miss Pross symbolize good and evil, and this is also shown with the families they live within. The two cities referred to in the title of the book, London and Paris are symbolized within Darnay and Carton. Darnay is the civilized London, and Carton being the corrupt Paris. Carton receives a chance at redeeming himself and making everything change for the better, which is exactly what Paris needs, and is what the peasants are all revolting for. He also uses this aspect of good and evil within the opening lines of the book, â€Å"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness† (1), by beginning the book with these lines, Dickens is foreshadowing all of the dark and light events that will come about during the book. More symbolism within the characters is evident when Carton is awaiting his death and he meets his love match. This was symbolic to him in that he has done the right thing and has redeemed himself of his wasted life. Dickens narrates in the novel that the ones watching Carton die thought him to look â€Å"sublime and prophetic† (359). He was ready and content with his decision. Another example of this is Madame Defarge’s knitting. Greek Mythology links knitting to vengefulness and fate; the goddess (Nemesis) of indignation against evil deeds and undeserved fortune is the category Madame Defarge falls into (â€Å"Nemesis† par. 1). The Golden Thread is also a symbol; it is referring to Lucie because she weaves herself through people’s lives and brings them into a chance at having a better future (her father, and Carton). The Marquis is a symbol of corrupt France. â€Å"It appeared, under the circumstances, rather agreeable to him to see the common people dispersed before his horses, and often barely escaping from being run down† (101). He obviously enjoys the torment and fear of the peasants and has no sympathy for them at all, which is symbolic of the whole French aristocracy’s feelings. They viewed the peasants â€Å"as if they had been mere rats come out of their holes† (102). Another very important symbol dealing with the revolution is the Guillotine. â€Å"All the devouring and insatiate Monsters imagined since imagination could record itself, are fused in the one realization, Guillotine† (355). This is how Dickens describes the guillotine to show how appalling and evil of a symbol it stood as during this time. The guillotine was also referred to in the novel as the â€Å"sharp female newly-born† (241) showing its popular role in the revolution. IV. Irony Dickens uses many different examples of dramatic, verbal, and situational irony to add excitement to his novel. Verbal irony is evident as the book progresses. It is discovered that Jerry Cruncher is not an honest tradesman, but a sneaky resurrection man. He ruins his honesty title by lying to his son about his job and saying that he is only going fishing. The verbal irony within this is when Jerry is called â€Å"an honest tradesman† (155). Dramatic irony is shown when Carton trades places with Darnay. It is ironic because we know what has happened and no one else is yet aware, and then everyone but Darnay’s family believes he is really put to death. The Vengeance says, â€Å"Evermonde will be despatched in a wink, and she not here! (357). She, along with everyone else, believes the Evermonde family is about to be finally vanquished. Situational irony occurs when an old letter written by Doctor Manette is brought into Darnay’s trial, it is a written account of how the Evermondes raped and killed a helpless woman and her family which is evidence condemning Darnay’s name. It is never expected that Doctor Manette could be used against Darnay because he has accomplished so much to help him. â€Å"And all the worse for the doomed man, that the denouncer was a well-known citizen, his own attached friend, the father of his wife† (318). Another example of situational irony is Doctor Manette becoming the father-in-law of a member of the family who almost took his life away from him forever. V. Characterization Dickens depicts his characters well, and spends line upon line describing them to allow the reader to gather the image he wants them to see. Sydney Carton is the most dynamic, and the author shows this by writing how his thoughts clear and he decides to trade places with Darnay out of his love for Lucie and want for her to keep her family together that she so strongly needs after her growing up an orphan. Doctor Manette is shown as a man of mystery in the beginning of the story, â€Å"every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other† (10). He is a mystery to Lucie and Mr. Lorry, and then Dickens brings him out of his shell by giving him a relationship with Lucie. With the characters Carton and Doctor Manette, the author shows us how vital relationships are, and how they can affect a person and their actions. Dickens doesn’t characterize Lucie and Darnay very much, but in a sense he has no need to because the other characters control their fate. Dickens chose Madame Defarge to depict the revolution; and it is her vengeful attitude is what brings her to her death, when she goes after Lucie and is shot during a fight with Mrs. Pross (352). VI. Point of View Dickens wrote A Tale of Two Cities in third person omniscient, and he reveals thoughts, emotions, and reasons for each characters actions along with historical text which adds much spice to the novel. By choosing to write in third person omniscient he keeps established, clear motives and does not keep the writer in the dark about anything which keeps them itching to read further. This also adds much effect on the book when Carton surprisingly buys drugs and exchanges places with Darnay. VII. Conclusion A Tale of Two Cities is a novel that has thrived throughout the years, and is so appealing because it is a mixture of true historical events entwined within a love story. Dickens was a very talented writer, but it is best for a reader to do prior research before they engulf in the task of reading the novel because Dickens uses so many words to describe one person, place, or thing which makes it difficult for many readers to keep their mind within the book. For example, in the very first chapter of the book, Dickens uses two and a half pages just to tell about France and England rather just coming out with what was going on at the time. Works Cited Atsma, Aaron J. â€Å"NEMESIS : Greek Goddess of Retribution & Indignation | Mythology, W/ Pictures. † THEOI GREEK MYTHOLOGY, Exploring Mythology & the Greek Gods in Classical Literature & Art. Theoi Project, 13 Oct. 2000. Web. 27 Dec. 2011. . Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. 1859. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice Hall, 2005. Print.