Abstract This paper reviews the novel "Brick Lane" by Monica Ali. This is the story of a Bengali woman who grows up surrounded by superstition and the belief in fate. The paper describes her development as she raises her own family in London and attempts to shed her superstitious belief system.
From the Paper "Learning from her sister that their mother chose suicide, Nazneen becomes able to embrace her strength. In her new found freedom, Nazneen has defied fate and made her own choices, and has not been punished or met death over it. Living in London has expanded her thinking, and her perspectives shift as she sheds her superstitious upbringing It has become clear to her that when a person depends solely on Fate, she possesses no power of her own to change anything. Her husband, as a highly educated man, could not make a happy life for himself where so much autonomy of choice keeps him confused and angry. In India, where there was not as much freedom and wealth, people are forced to rely on fate and their religious beliefs to be able to handle the rough parts of their lives. We can assume Nazneen's children will decide their own fates as they grow up, following their mother's example. Nazneen overcomes incredibly deep programming to make this major shift in her life, but she is happy, and dances in her autonomy."
Abstract This paper examines the book "Clay v. United States: Muhammad Ali Objects to War", written by Suzanne Freedman. It outlines reasons Ali refused to be drafted, the actual court process and the impact the courts decision had on the nation.
From the Paper "The problem with the United States is that it always seems to become involved in events in which it has no place to be in. The Government seems to stick their nose where it doesn?t belong all too often. For many Americans one of these cases happened when the U.S. became involved in the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War was the first war that the U.S. was involved in that the general public did not agree to support or condemn it. The book Clay v. United States: Muhammad Ali Objects to War, written by Suzanne Freedman, describes one of the problems created by this "split" in the American public, the draft. For the entirety of the war there was always skeptics about what the U.S. was actually doing there. The Selective Service Act outraged many of Americans because of the opinion of the war. To show their disapproval of the war many refused to be drafted. Cassius Clay, a.k.a. Muhammad Ali, was one of these people but for different reasons."
Abstract In this article, the writer discusses the life of Muhammad Ali. The writer looks at how Ali influenced other African Americans of his time. By learning how he has accomplished this, the writer shows through the lens of history how he was perceived in this great academy of athletes in American sports tradition, who fought for race rights in America.
Abstract This paper explains that the British comedy "The Ali G Show" revolves around four interviews by three different characters played by the Baron Cohen: Ali G, Borat and Bruno. The author points out that each of the characters come from different countries, have different cultural backgrounds and interests and usually target different aspects of the American society. The paper relates that the goal of the show is to emphasize different underlying traits of the American society and how the influences of the American modern culture are impacting the rest of the world.
From the Paper "This brings us back to Ali G, the character coagulating the entire show. As a hip hop TV show host, I think that Ali G wants to bring together the stereotypes that the other two characters have sought and met throughout the US and summarize the cultural impact of the US culture as simply a culture of ignorant hip-hopers. Ali G is a "completely illiterate, wannabe gangsta, from this streets of Stains, England" who discovers America by being ignorant. By this, Cohen plays into bringing forth the ignorant characteristics of the Americans themselves, in his view. "
Abstract According to Maya Angelou's "Champion of the World," Joe Louis became an icon because he changed the concept of what it meant to be an American and for many he represented the American Dream. Similarly, Mohammed Ali achieved greatness and managed to overcome many of the obstacles facing him during this uneasy and turbulent period in American history to become such an American icon. This paper provides an analysis and a comparison of these two individuals and what factors contributed to their success and the part they played in providing role models for American children. A summary of the research is provided in the conclusion.
From the Paper "The period during which Joe Louis and Mohammed Ali rose to fame was a difficult time for blacks in general (Stone 2000:100). During this period in American history, many white Americans actually believed that "separate but equal" facilities for African-Americans were appropriate and equitable. In this America, African-Americans were not only different, they were not entitled to use the same restrooms, the same drinking fountains, indeed the same schools as whites because they were inferior to whites. However, Joe Louis and Mohammed Ali served as clear examples that this was simply not the case."
An analysis of Jeannette Walls' "The Glass Castle", Ayaan Hirsi Ali's "Infidel" and Maxine Hong Kingston's "The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts".
Abstract The paper attempts to show how Jeannette Walls' "The Glass Castle", Ayaan Hirsi Ali's "Infidel" and Maxine Hong Kingston's "The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts" all convey that the personal lives of women in the 20th and 21st centuries can have profound implications for the entire human race. The paper first describes Walls' experiences growing up with two nomadic parents whose unconventional lifestyle frequently put their children's well being into danger. The paper then discusses the gender issues in Kingston's "The Woman Warrior" and the difficult childhood in sub-Saharan Africa under the Muslim tradition for the females in Ali's "Infidel". The paper emphasizes how one's class, ethnicity and religious background are not mere traits, but strands that link us to a wider socio-political spectrum. The paper concludes that parents indeed play a major role in shaping our identity.
Outline:
A Rootless Childhood: Jeannette Walls's The Glass Castle
Our Parents' Stories: Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior
Battling Tradition: Ayaan Hirsi Ali's Infidel
Conclusion
From the Paper "How much of an effect do our parents really have on our development as individuals when we are growing up? Are different styles of parenting specific to different cultures? Are women treated in a more oppressive manner by their parents in traditional cultures, as opposed to more developed nations, such as the United States of America? These are some of the questions I found myself asking this past semester after reading three memoirs of growing up under conditions that might be subtly described as "less than normal." Jeannette Walls's book The Glass Castle addresses the author's experiences growing up with two nomadic parents - an alcoholic father and a schoolteacher-turned-painter mother - whose unconventional lifestyle frequently puts their children's well being into danger. But our parents do more than merely teach us morals in our first few years of life; they also tie us to a larger history. The struggle with tradition and one's personal history comes to the forefront in two other family memoirs, Ayaan Hirsi Ali's Infidel and Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts."
Abstract This paper examines the life and career of Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammed Ali. By exploring several sources, including Jose Torres' "Sting Like a Bee", the paper shows how Ali influenced the sport of boxing and American society as a whole in the 1960s. The paper also touches on the racial element.
Paper Outline:
The Early Years
On the Road To Glory (1950s)
On the Road to Glory (1960s)
Works Cited
From the Paper "In fact, if we look at Clay's image and impact upon the boxing world and American society during this period, it is highly likely that many people regarded him as a serious threat to the status quo, and the very fabric of the "American" way of life. Within this context, we can argue that Clay probably served as an inspirational and positive role model for other young men of color who wanted to believe that they could overcome any obstacle in life and achieve their dreams - what ever they may be."
From the Paper "Pakistan came into being in 1947. The area was part of India until that time. It had been invaded by many Asian peoples through the centuries, with the Muslims arriving in waves from the early 1000s to the 1500s. The British took control over the whole subcontinent in the 1700s. The primarily Muslim areas of India gained independence in 1947 as Pakistan, which then was divided into two widely separated sections (the eastern section would become independent as Bangladesh in 1971). Fighting broke out almost immediately between Muslims and Hindus, and some 7 million Muslims fled from India to Pakistan, while about 6 million Hindus left Pakistan for India. Pakistan is an Islamic republic whose civilian government was ousted in 1977 by a military group, but civilian rule was returned in 1988 (Young students Learning Library, 1996)."
Abstract This paper discusses Saladin's characteristic strengths and weaknesses as described and exemplified in the book, "Saladin" by Tariq Ali. The paper places and explores the book within the context of his time.
From the Paper "The way that people understand the values, morals and goals of their society is called social knowledge. The ways in which these are defined are important because people base their identity on this information and society becomes endangered when these are disrupted. This social knowledge represents a kind of authority that justifies the actions of a society as well as compelling its members to assent to it. The personal strengths and weaknesses of Saladin are important to an understanding of the man ..."
Tags: Saladin, Arabs, medieval, Crusade, Jerusalem, social knowledge
An examination of the social and political themes in the writings of Palestinian poet Taha Muhammad Ali, Israeli poet Aharon Shabtai and Turkish poet Ozkan Mert.
Abstract This paper discusses contemporary Middle Eastern writers and the way that they typically approach social and political themes in their writings. The paper specifically focuses on Palestinian poet Taha Muhammad Ali, the Israeli poet Aharon Shabtai, and the Turkish poet Ozkan Mert, and how they each give voice to the suffering and protests they feel in their poetry, attempting to redeem their negative sentiments and experiences through language and art.
From the Paper "As I see it, the relationship art and the world's social and political scenes has always been a difficult one. The language of poetry may seem to many a force that, in a way, alienates the reader from the immediate experience of reality. The words seem to clinch the meaning behind the state or the event described and then to reveal it entirely differently to the audience. Nevertheless, good poetry is like a transparent veil, through which we can see directly into the heart of things. It is very hard to state just exactly the limit between description and creation in a work of art. Even when art talks about well known events or feelings, it always seems to have much more than a descriptive value, reaching somewhere behind what is immediately known and always disclosing a secret. In many of their works, the Middle Eastern writers are concerned with the exact same thing: when they write about war or murder, they show us the unknown sides of these events. The attempt to voice these atrocities gives birth to an aesthetics which is all the more bemusing as it tears open the inside of crime, sin, hatred and the feelings they compel us to experience. Moreover, no matter its subject art is always the creation of beauty. As Muhammad Ali put it, "art is worthless unless it plants a measure of splendor in people's hearts" (Lehrer), that is, art can awaken and teach emotion and beauty."
From the Paper "Ali ibn Abi Talib was the cousin and the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, married to Muhammad's daughter Fatima. As a boy Ali, who was much younger than the Prophet, lived in Muhammad's house and was practically adopted by him. At the death of the Prophet the confusion over the succession (al-khilafah, hence the "caliphate") to the leadership was heavily debated. Ali's claims, based on his double relationship to the Prophet, were supported by many. But the leadership was given to Muhammad's father-in law, supported by Muhammad's wife A'isha. After two more successors, Ali ibn Abi Talib was declared caliph. But his rule was brief and when he was assassinated those who seized power began the line of the Umayyad caliphs.
The followers of Ali (the shi'ah of Ali) remained faithful and most did not recognize the Umayyad line. This difference.."
Abstract This paper explains that, within Chapter 10 of Ama Ata Aidoo's "Changes, A Love Story", Aidoo's focuses on polygamy as a literary theme relates to the impending second marriage of handsome and charismatic Ali, whose Muslim faith allows polygamy and Esi, a recently divorced Christian woman who has left her unhappy marriage to her first husband, Oko, and is asked, within this chapter, to become Ali's second and current wife. The author points out that Aidoo implies the hurtfulness and, in this case, the deceitfulness of African polygamy as a practice not only for the second wife but also for the first. The paper relates that Chapter 20 stresses, implicitly yet very powerfully, the way Esi is hurt and neglected within her polygamous marriage; there is not enough of the man's attention to share equally, even if the wives lack for nothing materially.
From the Paper "As a consolation gesture for his ongoing neglect, Ali surprised his nearly forgotten second wife with a flashy new, very expensive maroon sports car. The car, as Esi sees immediately, is both a consolation prize for his continued absences, and a bribe so that Esi will continue to tolerate them. This latest gift tells Esi that this, like all Ali's presents, have been used to pacify her, substituting his physical presence and the attention and emotional support she never receives from him. Ali's strategy for keeping two wives happy at once has been to shower Esi with gifts, since he has not being able to be in two places, with two wives, at once, clearly a serious drawback of modern-day African polygamy."
Tags: muslim, second, christian, attention, material
Abstract This paper explains that Islam draws no difference between religious and secular life; thus, sharia includes not only holy rites but also many features of everyday life. The author describes Noble Drew Ali, born Timothy Drew in North Carolina in 1886, who founded the Moorish Science Temple of America, one group of which had the leadership from Elijah Muhammadhb and became the Nation of Islam. The paper relates that, in the present day, the Tablighi Jama'at is the major Islamic movement in relation to both the number of campaigners and geographical spread and plays a major part in publicizing Islamic consciousness and awareness at the ground level.
Table of Contents
Shari'ah
Umma
Noble Drew Ali Warith al-Din Muhammad
Kunta Kinte
Tablighis Movement
Elijah Muhammad
From the Paper "Elijah Muhammad from 1897-1975 was the head of the Nation of Islam also known as Black Muslims during their time of maximum growth in the mid-20th century. Elijah Mohammad was born on October 7, 1897 near Sandersville in Georgia. His parents were also slaves who worked on cotton plantation as sharecroppers and his father was also a considered as a Baptist preacher. As a child Elijah worked in the fields and on the railroad, but he left home at age 16 to tour and work at unusual jobs. He settled down in Detroit in the year 1923 and was working on a Chevrolet assembly line. Later in Chicago, away from aggressive Muslim factions in Detroit, Muhammad formed what quickly became the most significant center of the movement."
Tags: awareness, external-ritual, punishment, heritage, group
Abstract This paper takes a look at the accomplishments of the Black Muslims offering an alternative to the peaceful, pacifistic teachings of leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. The author of this paper shows that the Nation of Islam has played a major role in shaping the ideas and destinies of those of African descent, regardless of their religion.
From the Paper "Brooklyn Congressman Major R. Owens, referring mainly to Black Muslims, in 1994, stated, ?There are a lot of frustrated, angry, bitter people who are looking for a leader. In some cases they are looking for something to hate.?[1] This sentiment strongly reflects the origins and ideas of Islamic African-Americans throughout their existence. Members of The Nation of Islam, and its factions, believe strongly in black pride, nationalism, and separation."
Abstract This paper examines the work and enduring contributions of this 10th- and 11th-century Iranian Islamic philosopher and physician, Abu Ali al-Husayn ibn Abd Allah ibn Sina (Avicenna). It details his medical career and examines his work "The Canon of Medicine," used in the Middle East and in Europe as a medical textbook as it is a systematic classification and summary of medical and pharmaceutical knowledge up to and including Avicenna's time. It also details Avicenna's best-known philosophical work "Kitab ash-Shifa" or "The Book of Healing" and looks at some of the same issues as does the Canon, although from a metaphysical as opposed to more purely physical perspective. Avicenna was a great man who helped to create a spirit of enterprise and innovation within the practice of medicine at the heart of modern Western medical philosophy.
From the Paper "Although his name is relatively unknown in the West, Avicenna ? or Abu Ali al-Husayn ibn Abd Allah ibn Sina to give him his Arabic name ? made substantial contributions to medicine, many of which would find their way into Western practice and remain influential well through the Renaissance and into the first years of the modernist world. This paper examines the work and enduring contributions of this 10th- and 11th-century Iranian Islamic philosopher and physician.
Born near Bukhoro (now in Uzbekistan) as the son of a government official, Avicenna studied medicine and philosophy in his natal town. Because his parents? house was a meeting place for intellectuals, he was able to profit from the teachings of (and conversations with) masters in many different disciplines. He was surrounded from birth with the learning and the questions of his age, and so his later accomplishments should not be entirely surprising."
