The employment of women in industry during the First World War Essay Example for Free

The employment of women in industry during the First World War Essay Use Source G and your own knowledge to explain why some men opposed the employment of women in industry during the First World War. Source G is a personal account written by a women worker, which demonstrates the prejudice that women were shown in the work place during the First World War. It describes scenes of resentment from the womens male colleagues and made it harder for women to do a good job, over and over again the foreman gave the wrong or incomplete directions. There are many reasons why some men may have opposed the work of women in industry during the First World War however I think that one of the main reasons was for fear of loosing their own jobs or receiving less pay at the end of the war because women may have done a good or better job than them in their absence. Trade unions were one of the reasons why some men opposed the work of women in industry during the First World War. The government had to make sure that the factories could keep up with the needs of the war. Lloyd George was concerned about the issue of demarcation which was when only skilled workers could do certain jobs. Demarcation meant that there was not enough production in certain areas. In March 1915, Lloyd George developed the Treasury Agreement. This Agreement allowed specialised work could be done by semi skilled or even unskilled workers. He also promised the unions that this change was only a temporary arrangement until the end of the war. He also agreed that the workers doing the skilled jobs would be paid the same regardless if they were skilled or unskilled. He also banned strikes and the workers could be fined for going on strike or missing days of work. If the worker wanted to leave and find a job elsewhere, they had to inform the employer and the employer had to issue them with a leaving certificate. Without this certificate they would have to wait six weeks before they could get another job. Up until this time, trade unions were mainly made up of men however in 1914 there were 357,000 female members and this increased to more than 1 million members in 1918. I think the reason why so many men opposed women working in industry is that the trade unions thought Lloyd George was trying to lower the mens wage during the First World War. During the First World War many men were afraid of being paid less or even loosing their jobs. They thought this because women were willing to be paid less for doing the same job as they had done. They were afraid that after the war their employers would pay them the same as the women or even give their jobs to the women. Unskilled workers were allowed do skilled workers jobs by the end of the war and they were afraid that this low paid work for skilled work was going to continue after the war. This idea is shown in Source G because it says none of the men spoke to me for a long time, and would give me no help as to where to find things. My drawer was nailed up but the men, and oil was poured over everything in it through the crack. This suggests that the men felt threatened by the woman and wanted to make it as difficult for her as they possibly could. In source D it also shows a picture of unhappy women in the work place. It also has a board in the background that said when the boys come back we are not going to keep you any longer girls, suggesting that they were not wanted there and were just filling in the vacancies until the war was over and the men could return to their own jobs. I think that this is the other reason why some men opposed the work of women in industry during the First World War. Not all men opposed the work of women during the First World War. Many men supported it as they were pleased about the effort the women made and believed that without their help there would not be enough production of munitions to feed the needs of the war. Some of the men that supported women working were the husbands of those who were employed in industry. This meant that they were bringing more money home to the family which was much needed during the First World War. Others supported it because they believed in equality for both men and women and this was a way of proving that women could do the same work as men if they were given the same opportunities. This idea is shown in Source E where there is a poster from the government asking women to help in munitions. If women were not wanted to work they would not have advertised for their help. In Source C, which is written by an owner of a factory, he says women prefer factory life. The children are better off than before, this suggests that he thinks that women who worked not only helped themselves but also it helped their families. There were a lot of good things that came out of women working in industry during the First World War. Overall there were many reasons why some men opposed the work of women in industry during the First World War but I think that fear of loosing jobs and dilution of their standards when they returned were the main reasons. Men also realised that women were doing a good thing and helping the war effort.

Nicholas Lezards Quote on Atonement Essay Example for Free

Nicholas Lezards Quote on Atonement Essay â€Å"†¦the novel is itself the act of atonement that Briony Tallis needs to perform; yet we are very much in the land of the unreliable narrator, where evasion and mendacity both shadow and undermine the story that is told† (Nicholas Lezard). Discuss this criticism of Atonement. When one reaches atonement, it means that they feel forgiven, regardless whether they are actually absolved for an offence or not. In Atonement, a novel of drama, war and romance, the author Ian McEwan characterizes the main character, Briony, as a very self-centered person. McEwan’s novel is self-referential when it is implied that the novel is one Briony wrote in order to reach atonement. Nicholas Lezard, critic for the Guardian, says that Briony’s atonement and ‘the truth’ of her story is weakened by Ian McEwan’s characterization of her as an unreliable person. However, some may argue that the novel Briony wrote was a good way to atone for her crime. In the end of the McEwan’s novel, Briony shows that she believes she had done the best she could have to reach atonement. When talking about the final draft of her novel she says â€Å"I’ve regarded it as my duty to disguise nothing – the names, the places, the exact circumstances – I put it all there as a matter of a historical record† (McEwan 349). This makes the reader believe she is being entirely honest. In addition to this, Briony, being a well-known published writer at the age of 77, decides to use her passion, her talent, to become part of her atonement. Although Briony can’t publish her novel until after the death of Lola and Paul Marshall because of her fear of litigation as well as the power and wealth the couple have and will use to protect their names. â€Å"The Marshalls have been active about the courts since the late forties, defending their good names with a most expensive ferocity† (McEwan 349). Her inability to do anything more at this stage of her life makes readers feel sympathy for Briony and want to believe everything that she claims to be true. For these reasons many readers may well believe that Briony had done respectably the best she could have to reach atonement. On the other hand many may agree with Lezard and feel that Briony’s fictional happy ending to her story is a final attempt to evade the guilt she feels. Briony’s medical condition and the fact that she is dying, as a result draws attention away from her desperation to relieve her guilt. â€Å"It is only in this last version that my lovers end well, standing side by side on a South London pavement as I walk away. All the preceding drafts were pitiless† (McEwan 350). This makes the reader question how much more of what actually happened was changed in Briony’s story. Briony even calls herself an â€Å"unreliable witness† (McEwan 338) of the events that occurred which she then wrote about. This also puts the reader in a position to not want to trust anything Briony says. She also says that she likes to think that Robbie and Cecilia’s happy ending wasn’t â€Å"weakness or evasion, but a final act of kindness† (McEwan 351), which contradicts to her claim of having the novel published as a historical record, enforcing to the reader her untrustworthiness. These are a few of the reasons for which Briony can be seen as an unreliable person. Aside from her desperation and lies as a result of her coming closer to death, there are other ways in which McEwan characterizes Briony to be unreliable and wanting to partially avoid blame for her committed crime. Briony, the protagonist, wrote her entire novel with an omniscient 3rd person narrator, which as a result distances Briony from the reader and draws some attention away from her offence. Another effect that this has is that it suggests to the reader that the events that occurred happened exactly as they are described, when that is not the case. Should the novel have been written in 1st person from Briony’s point of view, the reader would have seen Briony as an arrogant and not believed her story so easily. Briony on page 350 then clearly states that she made of part of her story when she says When I am dead, and the Marshalls are dead, and the novel is finally published, we will only exist through my inventions (McEwan). McEwan’s characterization of her as a self-centered and unreliable person is consistent from when Briony is 13 years old up to when she is 77. On page 336, Briony says â€Å"However withered, I still feel myself to be exactly the same person I’ve always been† (McEwan), which to the reader signifies that Briony has not matured as a person and still may think like she did when she was a child, making the same mistakes without realizing them. A clear example of the same mistakes Briony makes as an adult, is how she is jealous of her older cousin at the age of 77, the same feeling she had as a child. On page 341, Briony also says, â€Å"I’ve always been good at not thinking about the things that are really troubling me† (McEwan), which has the same effect of characterizing her as unreliable. Briony tries to do good by trying to atone with the novel she wrote, although on page 340, she says, â€Å"If I really cared so much about the facts, I should have written a different kind of book. But my work was done. There would be no further drafts† (McEwan 340), which then makes it very clear to the reader that Briony’s story cannot be trusted. The entire novel is damaged and cannot be believed as a result of Briony’s unreliability. Although Briony’s attempt to atone may seem justifiable to some, it is more reasonable to say that McEwan’s novel of Atonement is reduced from the story of a girl committing a crime and separating two lovers, down to the fantasy world of Briony Tallis blended in with some facts of events she witnessed. The novel being self-referential when it is revealed that Briony wrote it in order to reach atonement, leaves the reader with a very strong impression of Briony as a very unreliable, self-centered person, which then undermines the entire story.

The issue of poverty in Vietnam

The issue of poverty in Vietnam Whenever we talk about beggar, this always link us the problem of poverty. It has been an important issue in Vietnam for years. Currently, there is still a large number of people lives social bottom life. This is particularly noticeable in the background of strong stratification when the income gap between rich and poor start getting bigger and bigger. The process has a dynamic character; the poor are getting poorer and the rich even richer. Moreover, it can create some illegal acts in humanity. In this essay I have considered the following issues: cause of beggary, children as beggars, and its effect to the society. The theme of the essay, which I focused on, was the problem of beggary in Vietnam. The study of which I have highlighted the main groups of poor people especially children being abused for begging act. Body I. Cause of beggary Its very hard to give specific reason or establish any reason for the organization of beggary, as is the case with a crime. There can be a set of causes, including inability to physical, mental derangement, or society, poverty, the custom of giving, unemployment, the collapse of the family business , whether alone or in combination could create a situation that can cause beggary. Although the underlying cause in each case is the familys poverty or underemployment when the family is not in a position to support and disabled people, but at the same time, there are no security measures from the social forces them to beg. a) Economic reasons: The three main causes of economic poverty, job loss or lack of employment and business income. Poverty: One of the major factors that force people to make a miserable beggary. It does not mean that enough to support themselves or their families, many people resort to begging. Unemployment: But poverty alone cannot be held responsible because all those living in poverty are not used to beggary. The lucrative business: Because of easy profits and income from begging, some people can earn enough to make it as a career instead of doing honest labor. Not only that, many people make it as business and exploit others by investing some money in this business. There are group activities in large cities, which force many children to this job. And in the next part I will discuss more about it. b) Social causes: Among the social causes of family disorganization, lack of parental control, disorganized communities, breaking joint family system and social custom. Disorganized family: Family is part of the relationship of our society, which affect our patterns of behavior and activities. Any disruption in our home state, especially in the case of a poor one leads to a breakdown of the family, which do arise in beggary. Lack of Parental Control: The parents do not have the industrial center of control necessary for their children, but mothers also often go to factories to work. As a result children can switch to energy in any direction. If they fall into bad company, they can develop love of travel, can lead to beggary. c) Biological Cause: Among the biological causes may be addressed to illness, physical disability or mental disability and old age. Disability or illness: The physical disabilities such as blindness, deafness or acquired in the beginning had this effect lot of people to beg as economic conditions of their families so as not to afford the maintenance of the disabled. Lack of spirit: There are people who lack mental or insane and unable to earn any living and they are forced to beg. Other reason: Among other reasons may be mentioned those forced to beg. When someone is executed beggary. There are orphans and waifs and touch those who deliberately maimed or deformed to have a guardian or other person can earn their living. Many parents also trade on the normal weaknesses of their children by using this additional source of income. II. Children as beggars 1. What cause children to go on the street? In this part I want to discuss the main features of social work with street children. In Vietnam, there are more than 1700 children under 18 are homeless and living on the street in 2010 (tien phong newspaper, 2010 http://www.tienphong.vn/Thoi-Su/523066/Tre-lang-thang-duong-pho-Rui-ro-nhieu-nguy-co-lam.html). This is mainly orphans; children left without parental care, children runaways. The situation of homeless children is especially painful. Among them there are children-fugitives children run away from home or from an educational institution due to break ties with parents emerged of heavy conflict with teachers, tutors, peers, the deformation value orientation and other reasons that led to a crisis of relations. Rarely, the cause of juvenile runaways presence of mental illness can lead the child to become beggar. Delivered in nursing homes, other institutions of social rehabilitation of such children often commit recidivist runaways. Among many reasons, the loss of family ties or conflicting with family relationships, violent, aggressive, ill-treatment by parents. The reason for the shock of children by the divorce of their parent or a single parent remarries, primarily residing with a child. Additional risk factor was the position and the school, which distanced itself from the teens with a difficult life. Coagulation outside the classroom work in educational institutions, the disappearance of childrens organizations impoverishes recreational activities of children, their upbringing and development. In some cases, children escape from the house a consequence of the pedagogical helplessness of parents, their distorted view of the limits of autonomy of children, lack of control over their pastime. Concerns adults only meet the challenge of natural and material requirements, violation of mutual understanding and trust between children and parents. Strengthening parents employment, forced to combine several jobs to ensure the existence of family members also leads to an increase in child neglect, increase the risk of their escape from the house. Dramatically on the rise of social maladjustment of children: The early alcoholism and drug addiction, vagrancy, immorality teenagers, prostitution, illegal actions. Child runaways become easy prey for criminal organizations, juvenile crime is known for his cruelty and cynicism. Almost all children runaways have lag in mental, physical and intellectual development, weakened health. Sometimes, they are suffering from chronic diseases, feeli ng its uselessness, these teens often prone to suicidal acts. Creating an integrated system of prevention and rehabilitation of socially maladjusted children and adolescents, which include and children a fugitive, is now a problem of national importance. 2. When children become victims of the beggars group. Have you ever wonder why there are many kids beggars on the street? If yes, maybe my story here happens to many others too. When you go to Pham Ngu Lao Street in Dict.1, you will easily being followed by some kid beggar carry a child on the shoulder. To me that picture is very painful and of course for the first few times, I just did as most of people seeing that will do, I gave them money. But one day after giving money, I try to find what that little girl going to do with the money and I saw her run to one woman sit near that and give her money, the money that I just gave her. And for awhile, I read on newspaper, there are like mafia beggars in Vietnam. They hire kids, kidnap some of them and turn them to beggars. In order to go the street and beg for money, all of the kids have to go through the training. The first is a prepared speech when people concern, such as Live in the middle of Vietnam, father just died, they have illness, or little brother or sister needs to be taken care of. The following is to the movements. Kneeling bow is one way, emaciated stinking body rust on others to get in a terrorist .Another way is keep following one person until he has to give them some money. Among the children day after day are probably living in the corner of the street and beg for money now, not because they have miserable life but because they just fell in the trap of beggar business and become a professional beggar. They have been deprived to self love, self-esteem and love when people step into the street beggars. In return, they are taught to be tough bottles, cruel and torment each other hand to contribute. III. Effect of beggars to the society Beggars tend to present a negative image of a particular location. The presence of beggars were seen as manifestations of larger social ills or issues and may cause others to avoid the beggar-area population The effects of street beggars cannot be overemphasized. Beggars into health risk because many of them can transmit infectious diseases in society. Some dealers and armed robbers abducted therefore constitute security risks in society. Looking at the effects of street beggars, I think the governments of the countries in the world have to hold big responsibility about it, no matter where it is, commonly reducing poverty in their country which is one of the factors causing it. The government should increase efforts to control traffic accidents which are making many people disabled. The medical establishment should be improved so that children will not be attacked by patients before and after birth. Above all, the Government should build a special village to beg than to let them roam the streets. IV. Conclusion As can be seen from all the above facts, people with no fixed income or even see beggary is a business- this is a problem whose solution is the mass of the nuances that require special attention. In Vietnam, beggary still legal, even though the government tries to tell everyone that they cannot make children to go on the street and beg for money. The abstract has been investigated not only the essence of social work, but the underlying reasons for the formation of the problem. For all these reasons, we can conclude: the most important in solving this problem is to overcome the systemic crisis in the country, to carry out social policies that would be aimed at ensuring normal living conditions for the majority of the population, especially the so-called most unprotected.

Graduation Speech: You ALL Have What it Takes :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

The past three years I sat over on my left, drenched in this scorching gym, playing Pomp and Circumstance on my tenor saxophone until I thought my lungs were going to explode. Well, we had to stay and watch the rest of the graduation, during which I would usually space out, and sometimes think to myself "It is taking so long to get up on that stage." Lots of us felt this way even last week, bombarded with the last group of projects and assignments that seem to cram themselves into an astonishingly small amount of time. Finally, the Class of 2012 is about to enter what some fool once called the real world. Shockingly enough, classmates, from what I've heard, the real world looks almost the same as the one here. There are things to like and dislike, freedoms and restrictions you might grumble over, and people of integrity and deceit. But we will not be surrounded by three-foot slabs of brick everyday. And if upon leaving you find people trying to make houses out of mud and sticks, it is not a Western Civ movie. You are probably staring at very poor people, so help them out. Before going any further, I strongly advise all my classmates to thank their families tonight. This is our class's last night together, but quite soon it will be our last night as a member of our parent's permanent households. I am going to take my opportunity right here. Mom and Dad, Tom and Jess, thanks for all the encouragement, support, and most important love and affection you have shown me every day. Without you, I am quite sure I would not be standing here and quite possibly might not have graduated tonight. Because of my great family, I have successfully overcome all sorts of downturns in eighteen short years. I figured I would not shy away from saying this in front of a crowd if I wrote it down in my speech, so, to my family—I love you. To succeed in this "real world," we all need to develop our own unique niche. I say this, but I realize it must be done in actions, not words. I confess I have no idea what mine will be. I have not even figured out what general area of interest I wish to explore. This indecision, which I am not alone in experiencing, is made all the more complicated by the era we are entering. Graduation Speech: You ALL Have What it Takes :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address The past three years I sat over on my left, drenched in this scorching gym, playing Pomp and Circumstance on my tenor saxophone until I thought my lungs were going to explode. Well, we had to stay and watch the rest of the graduation, during which I would usually space out, and sometimes think to myself "It is taking so long to get up on that stage." Lots of us felt this way even last week, bombarded with the last group of projects and assignments that seem to cram themselves into an astonishingly small amount of time. Finally, the Class of 2012 is about to enter what some fool once called the real world. Shockingly enough, classmates, from what I've heard, the real world looks almost the same as the one here. There are things to like and dislike, freedoms and restrictions you might grumble over, and people of integrity and deceit. But we will not be surrounded by three-foot slabs of brick everyday. And if upon leaving you find people trying to make houses out of mud and sticks, it is not a Western Civ movie. You are probably staring at very poor people, so help them out. Before going any further, I strongly advise all my classmates to thank their families tonight. This is our class's last night together, but quite soon it will be our last night as a member of our parent's permanent households. I am going to take my opportunity right here. Mom and Dad, Tom and Jess, thanks for all the encouragement, support, and most important love and affection you have shown me every day. Without you, I am quite sure I would not be standing here and quite possibly might not have graduated tonight. Because of my great family, I have successfully overcome all sorts of downturns in eighteen short years. I figured I would not shy away from saying this in front of a crowd if I wrote it down in my speech, so, to my family—I love you. To succeed in this "real world," we all need to develop our own unique niche. I say this, but I realize it must be done in actions, not words. I confess I have no idea what mine will be. I have not even figured out what general area of interest I wish to explore. This indecision, which I am not alone in experiencing, is made all the more complicated by the era we are entering.

The Indignity of the Church :: Essays Papers

The Indignity of the Church In the article â€Å"The Priest Scandal†, by Carol Cannon expresses her views in the American Journalism Review regarding the scandals within the Catholic Church. She continues to explain how the Catholic Church has been trying to keep the whole issue hidden from society. Carol Cannon makes a point how the media has struggled with pursuing this issue for many years, while America wasn’t ready to hear the truth on such a controversial topic. Carol Cannon is writing to many different groups. Catholics are probably going to be the most interested, but since this issue is so huge it affects many different audiences and ages. Cannon’s article on sexual child abuse by priests, is written through the use of logic, credibility and emotions. She displays a clear topic and supports with using reason along with values and beliefs. The claims that Cannon makes are logical because many priests have come forwards or been charged with child molestation. Cannon makes logical claims by issuing persuasive arguments on the issue that child molestation by priests has been covered up for years. She has been reporting on the issue of pedophilia by Church officials for more than 13 years. Cannon uses evidence to support her claim. She has a combination of evidence, some which of were interviews of children who were sexual molested by priests. Cannon, along with others has also been granted permission to explore archives where the priest’s cases have been taken to court. Cannon’s examples are convincing through her arguments. She also has credible sources of other journalists that wrote on the same topic as she did. Cannons argument appeal to everyday common sense because the issue has become such a big deal to Americans. The media has also played a large part in the growth of this topic. When reporters were told to pick another topic the news media didn’t listen and were heard. Since the issue of child molestation has been around for awhile, the public knows of the issue and has a stance on it. The structure of the article has much to do on the argument of the topic. The author starts out with her credibility and then a short narrative which is an attention getter.

Magnets :: essays research papers

Diamagnetics was discovered by Michael Faraday in 1846, but no one at the time thought that it could lead to any appreciable effects. William Thomson (Lord Kelvin), referring to levitation as the problem of "Mohamet’s coffin," had this to say: "It will obably be impossible ever to observe this phenomenon, on account of the difficulty of getting a magnet strong enough, and a diamagnetic substance sufficiently light, as the [magnetic] forces are excessively feeble." Fields strong enough to lift diamagnetic materials became available during the mid-20th century. In 1939, Werner Braunbeck levitated small beads of graphite in a vertical electromagnet. Graphite has the largest ratio c /r known for diamagnetics (8x10-5 m3/g); today, this experiment can be repeated using just a strong permanent magnet, such as one made of neodymium, iron and boron. Leaving aside superconductors (which are ideal diamagnetics), first levitated by Arkadiev in 1947, it took another fifty y rs to rediscover the possible levitation of conventional, room-temperature materials. In 1991, Eric Beaugnon and Robert Tournier magnetically lifted water and a number of organic substances. They were soon followed by others, who levitated liquid hydrog and helium and frog eggs. At the same time, Jan Kees Maan rediscovered diamagnetic levitation at the University of Nijmegen, in collaboration with Humberto Carmona and Peter Main of Nottingham University in England. In their experiments, they levitated ractically everything at hand, from pieces of cheese and pizza to living creatures including frogs and a mouse. Remarkably, the magnetic fields employed in these experiments had already been available already for several decades and, at perhaps half a d en laboratories in the world, it would have taken only an hour of work to implement room-temperature levitation. Nevertheless, even physicists who used strong magnetic fields every day in their research did not recognize the possibility. If you were to tell to a child playing with a horseshoe magnet and pieces of iron that his uncle has a much bigger magnet that can lift everything and everybody, the child would probably believe you and might even ask for a ride on the magnet. If a phy cist were to say such a thing, he or she (armed with knowledge and experience) would probably smile condescendingly. The physicist would know that only a very few materials, such as iron or nickel, are strongly magnetic. The rest of the world’s material are not; or to be precise, the rest of the world is a billion (109) times less magnetic.

Discuss how the following stories from the gothic tradition create suspense and which is the more successful? Essay

The short story is an ideal form for writers who want to create a sense of terror or horror. Discuss how the following stories from the gothic tradition create suspense and which is the more successful? The first gothic Novel was written by Horace Walpole and was called ‘The Castle of Otrando.’ It was written in 1764 and after this gothic literacy exploded and became very popular. The imaginative stories often lacked any real worth but were published world wide to satisfy the public. They were bought by a lot of young women. The excitement and fantasy of the stories added interest to the otherwise boring lives of these Victorian women. The main features of Gothic stories are ruined buildings and graveyards, a foreign setting, a solitary character, a persecuted heroine, mysterious disappearances and supernatural occurrences, insanity, sexuality, pathetic fallacy, exaggerating language, multiple narrators and a use of horror or horror. Stories usually contain quite a few of these but not all of them. These ideas were wild and exotic to the Victorian people. Many had never travelled abroad and insanity was a major fear during these times. Gothic short stories use horror or horror to frighten the audience and keep them reading. Horror and horror are both related to fright but they are different things. Horror is more a build up of fear and usually only hints at alarming things and lets you imagination do the rest until you are terrified of what is going to happen. Horror is about what you have seen and can relate to a past experience you have seen. Horror is more shocking and is what you can see at that moment. Both lead to a different effect in gothic short stories. The first of the stories I am considering is ‘The Madman’s Manuscript,’ by Charles Dickens. The story is written in the form of an embedded narrative. The man, Mr Pickman, cannot sleep and he reads the tale of a madman in an asylum. The horror of the story already begins to build as the ‘strange handwriting,’ and ‘soiled and blotted,’ paper is described. This gives you a sense that there is something not right about this man. Mr Pickmans fear is obvious as the title ‘gave him a sudden start.’ During the Victorian ages, when this story was written, people had a fascination with insanity as there was no cure and it was dangerous and unpredictable. This story takes advantage of the fear. The manuscript becomes hysterical and this plays on the idea of insanity making you lose control. The opening word,’ yes- a madman’s!’ builds the horror as you are aware of this mans condition. The words in the first paragraph, like ‘roused the horror,’ ‘blood hissing and tingling through my veins,’ ‘my knees knocked together with fright,’ and ‘the glare of a madman’s eye,’ emphasise the tone and describe the madman’s fear of insanity and increase the tension as you begin to feel his fright. The tone of the story changes as in the second paragraph, as the man’s past is described. He is from a family of insanity and he fears throughout his lie that he shall also become insane. ‘I knew that madness was mixed up with my very blood, and the marrow of my bones.’ Words like ‘cowered, screamed and crouched,’ help you experience this mans visions and fears and increase the tension as you realize he is turning mad and it is only a matter of time. As the dreaded madness finally comes upon our main character, the tone changes again as the madman is happy about his freedom from the fear, ‘at last it came upon me, and I wondered how I could ever have feared it.’ He describes how happy his life is as he hides his insanity and enjoys life. He fears his friends finding out his secret but finds it amusing ‘to think how pale he (his friend) would have turned, and how fast he would have run, if he had known that the dear friend†¦ was a madman with all the power.’ The madman felt in control of his life at this point and ‘it was a merry life!’ He becomes rich and continues to hide his insanity from the world as he wishes to marry a beautiful young woman. He is not pleased with the fact that the girl, who he marries, does not love him and wishes to be with another man, she is typical of a gothic story as she is beautiful, helpless and persecuted but as we are not really given any ideas of her character or her name, it is hard to sympathise with her. When the madman discovers his wife’s true feelings his is driven to pity ‘the wretched life to which her cold and selfish relations had doomed her,’ and we begin to fear for the girl as he talks about her death. He fears her giving birth ‘to some ill-fated being, destined to hand down madness to its offspring.’ The final line of this paragraph shocks us as he ‘resolved to kill her.’ He talks about the many ways in which he wants to kill his wife and we fear for her safety and the viciousness of the madman as he discussed the many cruel ways of killing her like poison, drowning or fire. The attempted killing of the girl is described in great detail as it builds the horror and tension of the scene. The man is also cunning as when she awakes and begins to scream he hides his insanity and instead lets the house believe it is she who is mad. The horror increases in the story as the mans insanity increases and he goes ‘into the open fields†¦ and laughed till the air resounded with my shouts.’ The girl dies the next day and he pretends to mourn his loss even though he had killed her. The man becomes restless and he ‘felt that before long my secret must be known.’ The horror of what he will do next returns. This is increased as he describes his struggle as, ‘I ground my teeth, and struck my feet upon the floor, and drove my nails into my hands. I kept it down.’ When the man’s brother-in-law visits him and he kills him, his secret is found out and the man is locked up in an asylum. The description of the ‘grey cell where the sunlight seldom comes,’ adds to the horror of the story as the place is described as a prison and many people would fear turning mad like this man and ending up in this horrible place. The note at the end speaks about how perhaps the man was driven mad by the fear of insanity, rather than it being inherited. The sensationalist language throughout the piece adds to the horror as the situation is exaggerated and seems worse than it is. The second story is ‘Strange Events in the Life of Schalken the Painter,’ by J.S. Le Fanu. This story focuses more on terror as we do not discover what happens to our heroine during her marriage. The foreign setting of Holland made the story more exciting to the Victorian readers as this was a strange, exotic place where they had never been. The story is again set in the embedded narrative. The narrator heard the story of Schalken after he saw a painting by him in the house of Captain Vandal, a man he once visited. The story is told to the man by the Captain. Schalken is a young man working for Gerard Douw. He worked hard for his master as he was in love with Douw’s niece, Rose Velderkaust. Schalken was ‘a poor man,’ and his love for Rose makes us feel sympathy for him. He works hard for her and we want him to be rewarded for his hard work with her hand in marriage. The scene is set for the arrival of the mysterious stranger. The silence and darkness gives an eerie and sinister atmosphere. The ‘short, sudden laugh,’ breaks this atmosphere and the terror at what it could be builds. The dark description of the mysterious man and the fact that the man’s face is not seen makes the man peculiar and we wonder who he could be. As the man disappears and cannot be seen walking away from the building, it is suggested that this man could be supernatural. When the man reappears the next day, his strange image is continued. He gives Schalken some jewellery to be valued and his wealth is shown. He asks Douw if he can have Rose’s hand in marriage and the painter accepts. The stranger keeps his face hidden and words like ‘mysterious,’ and ‘unexpected,’ build terror as we don’t know who this man is. When we finally hear the description of the man, it is gruesome. His face is ‘coloured with the bluish leaden hue,’ and he has ‘two lone, discoloured fangs.’ This gives us the impression he is a vampire and there is something paranormal about him. Rose’s shock and fright at the man adds to the terror as the reader knows she must marry him. Rose is forced to marry the cruel and ugly man. She then seems to disappear and although Gerard Douw tries to search for her and her husband, he cannot find them. The mystery of this adds to the terror of the story. One night Rose rushes into the room and her typical gothic heroine image is gone. She is no longer beautiful and virginal but ‘wild and haggard.’ er The The shock of Douw and Shalken is obvious and we are terrified at the state of the girl. She is described in a way that makes her seem almost insane, which would petrify the Victorian public. She demands not to be left alone and says ‘I am lost forever if you do!’ The almost supernatural occurrence if a shadowy figure adds to the terror as you are unsure why the girl is in a panic and what is happening. When the clergyman arrives he is unsympathetic and you fear all hope is lost for the girl. As Douw leaves to get another candle the girl screams for him not to leave but it is too late. The door swings shut and they could not get it open again. The girl shrieks. This story is more terrifying than ‘The Madman’s Manuscript,’ as there is no description of the girl’s death and you are left to imagine what is happening to her. The shrieks stop and a ‘light step is heard crossing the floor, as if from the bed to the window,’ and we think perhaps Rose has escaped but ‘no trace of Rose was ever found.’ The mystery of her death leaves you wondering where she is and if she survived. The final part of the story is set years ahead of the rest of the story and we are given the sense that Schalken never forgot Rose. Schalken has a vision about Rose and her husband and it again we feel there is something supernatural about the story. There are no explanations given for the disappearance or his vision and it lets you imagine what you think has happened. Both stories create tension and suspense. ‘The Madman’s manuscript,’ creates horror and is more visual than ‘Strange events in the life of Schalken the Painter,’ but it is not successful in maintaining suspense. The story is very extravagant and it is difficult to sympathise with the characters. The suspense is built up in ‘Strange events in the life of Schalken the Painter,’ as it is mysterious with strange characters and Schalken, the hero with whom we can easily sympathise. The sense of something supernatural makes the story seem even more exotic and unrealistic and the use of terror makes the story more enjoyable, in my opinion, as you use your imagination to think about what has happened to the characters. For these reasons, I feel ‘Strange events in the life of Schalken the Painter,’ uses terror better than ‘The Madman’s manuscript.’