Abstract "There can be little question that William Byrd was one of America earliest writers and in later generations one of its most controversial. The following paper examines the secret diary of William Byrd of Westover as it was written in the period 1709-12. Specifically, the paper examines the text in light of his own situation during these years--he was still a relatively young man at the time--as well as what factors might have prompted him to write as he did. Beyond that, the paper briefly catalogues the major themes of Byrd's diary, the literary style employed and a key issue raised by the diary entries. In the end, it is fair to conclude that Byrd's writings are a window into the attitudes informing the actions of eighteenth century country gentlemen.
Abstract This paper analyzes the autobiographical diary of Anne Frank, entitled, "The Diary of a Young Girl." The paper specifically focuses on Anne Frank's voice and her tone throughout the diary. It looks at the way that her style changed over the course of the time that she was writing in her diary. The paper discusses the significance of these changes in voice and tone and how they correspond to what was happening in the world at the time.
From the Paper "Significantly Anne's fifteenth birthday is only two months away from her last letter to Kitty, to her people, to the world. Anne went the path of the righteous, the path of self improvement, growth, faith:" People who have religion should be glad, for not everyone has the gift of believing in heavenly things... It isn't the fear of G-d but the upholding of one's own honour and conscience."
"If you visit Anne Frank museum in Amsterdam, just listen and you will hear her laughter, her whisper, her joy of first love. You will hear the Gestapo stepping with their heavy dirty boots into a pure sweet life. A "Little bundle of contradictions" , who did so well in perfecting her traits, and returned her pure soul to her Creator."
This paper reviews Lady Murasaki's "Court Diary", a lady in waiting in the court of the Japanese court from 1007 to 1010 A.D., which discusses the social and cultural influence of Confucianism and Buddhism on ancient Japan.
1,905 words (approx. 7.6 pages), 0 sources, 2005, $ 60.95
Abstract This paper explains that Lady Murasaki wrote her "Court Diary during the period in which Bushido was a code and way of life for Samurai men and was influenced by Zen and Confucianism. The author points out that in Lady Murasaki's "Court Diary", it is obvious that Buddhism and Buddhist metaphysics are very much a part of Japanese court life; however, what is not so obvious is that Chinese Confucianism also had become part of 10th century Japan's Imperial court. The paper relates that the notion of impermanence is an extremely salient characteristic throughout the Diary; she writes that all things are ephemeral, reflecting on the aesthetics of the period, which were based on the beauty of impermanence.
From the Paper "Confucianism influenced the Chinese attitude toward life, set the patterns of living and standards of social value, and provided the background for Chinese political theories and institutions. It eventually spread from China to Korea, from Korea to Japan where it was first brought to around the fifth century. Confucius had a great impact on the Japanese civilization. His teachings relating to ethics, honor, social responsibility, familial obligations, ancestor worship, and observation of rites and historical precedence provide the glue that gives the Japanese civilization continuity and durability."
Abstract This paper discusses evidence and details of the court trial against James Maybrick. The author draws particular attention to the "The Diary of Jack the Ripper", a diary that reveals to the world the identity, motive and method of the infamous killer known as Jack the Ripper.
From the Paper ?The crowded courtroom fell silent as the attorney for the defense approached the panel of jurors and prepared to deliver his closing argument. The hushed silence seemed to hang suspended in the heavy atmosphere of anticipation as he reached the front of the courtroom and turned to face the jurors. The tension in the air intensified as he paused momentarily to gather his thoughts before delivering the final climatic words that would mark both his final plea for a verdict of innocent and the end of a long and somewhat bizarre trial. The verdict of innocent for which he argued would not determine the fate of the defendant, for James Maybrick had gone to his grave over a century before the evidence identifying him as London's elusive East End killer known as Jack the Ripper came to light.?
Abstract This paper analyzes Samuel Pepys? "Diary" and shows how we can learn a great deal about the author himself and even more about the times in which he lived. It provides a biography of Pepys' life from his humble background to becoming a member of Parliament and an insight into life in 17th century London especially during the Great Fire of London in 1666. It discusses how, although the diary gives a marvelous window into the 17th century, it is also a marvelous window into the 21st century as well, for Pepys's observations about human nature and the ways in which cities have their own life remain strikingly trenchant in today's world as well. Pepys was writing at the beginning of the modern age, that time in which the same kind of examination of the self that we believe to be essential today, was coming into vogue and he still provides for us an excellent example of how to go about creating that examined life that is the only one worth living.
From the Paper "Even though this diary was meant to be a private one, we can interpret it as an exemplar not only of Pepys's own style and experiences, but as an exemplar of the literary trends and modes of his era. The self-consciousness that he exhibits, his ability to step back and view with a great deal of objectivity himself and his world, were emerging as tropes within the novel as well as the dairy of his time as the conventions of the modern novel were just then being developed. Indeed, the self-referentialty of this kind of diary would become a mark of much of the finest literature that would be written over the next century."
Tags: london, fire, parliament, human, nature, literature, royal, society
Abstract This essay examines forensic evidence gathered about the James Maybrick diary, and establishes that the empirical evidence available does not support any claims of authenticity. The diary is a fake, and there is no proof that James Maybrick was "Jack the Ripper."
Abstract This essay compares and contrasts two works of literature written during the Holocaust. Two diaries, one written by Elie Wiesel and the other by Chaim A. Kaplan, are examined from their differing approaches to a shared horrific experience. The paper further explains that the authors both needed the diaries to survive the war to act as testimonies of their trials. The paper describes the two authors' backgrounds as contributing to their different approaches to the tragedy of the Holocaust. Finally, the author views these two works as being of tremendous historical value.
From the Paper "Kaplan seems ready to place blame upon virtually every group within and without Europe, for the historical and political forces he deemed responsible for his experiences. At times he condemns the ancient prophets for bringing down the wrath of heaven; he also expresses anger towards the Jewish police in the Ghettos; he also identifies what he calls the "conspiracy of silence" among Western leaders who allow Jewish persecution to continue. Similarly, Wiesel is not content to merely blame the Germans for what he was forced to endure. Wiesel takes great care, within the pages of Night, to illustrate the notion that the evil he felt and witness was not merely limited to the soldiers who inflicted the various forms of torture and death upon those in the Holocaust; instead, he sees the historical circumstances as having brought out the evil in everyone. He documents the terrible selfishness that conditions within Auschwitz awakened within the prisoners: "Here, every man has to fight for himself and not think of anyone else. . . . Here, there are no fathers, no brothers, no friends. Everyone lives and dies for himself alone." (Wiesel, 70-1). "
Tags:Diary, testimony, survival, World, War, II, Shoah
Abstract This paper explains that Anne Frank in her bibliography "Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl", being a typical teenage girl, was incredibly emotional. The author points out that the circumstance in which she recorded these sentiments was such that they were always overshadowed by her immense fear. The paper relates that, in the first few diary entries written in the Annex, although slightly afraid, Frank does not realize the true level of danger she is in and therefore fills page after page with detailed but mundane descriptions of daily life in the Annex. The author then explains that, as Frank matures, she begins to empathize with the apprehensiveness felt by the adults and, as a result, her fear begins to increase. The paper stresses that, in a child's mind, death is not a feasible occurrence; therefore, she can allow herself to believe that she does not fear it.
From the Paper 'In this entry, as well as many others, she discusses her constant fears of being caught by the Germans while hiding in the secret annex with her family. This entry is especially powerful because it sheds light on the fact that, in such small cramped conditions, there is little to do but let your mind wander. When put in a situation where you can not talk or laugh too loudly for fear of capture, all that one is left with is his or her thoughts and for a young girl, this can cause immense fright. As she points out on this same page of her diary, everything she says or does leads her back to thoughts of fear."
Abstract This paper discusses the book "The Diary of a Young Girl" which contains excerpts of Anne Frank's diary, written between the years 1942 and 1944, two years before she died. The author summarizes the book which has since been translated into thirty languages and adapted into a play, a motion picture as well as a television series. The paper relates Anne's history and background as well as her journal entries about her frustration at not being taken seriously by her family, her personal goals, and later, her views on the Holocaust. The author also examines the historical relevance of the book in particular as a document that serves as a personal witness to the mass annihilation of Jews throughout Europe.
Outline:
Introduction
Synopsis
Historical Relevance
Other Observations and Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
From the Paper "In January 1933, Adolf Hitler, leader of the German National Socialist Workers' Party (the Nazis), was appointed chancellor of Germany. Hitler brought to his position a vicious anti-Semitism that found its expression through stringent anti-Jewish policies and, eventually, the mass extermination of Jews in concentration camps. Aware of Hitler's rising power and its future implications for Jews, Otto Frank arranged for his family to leave Frankfurt for Holland in the summer of 1933. He established a food products business in Amsterdam, and the next few years of Anne's life continued without remarkable incidence."
An examination of the book "A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on her Diary, 1785-1812" by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich which describes the life of women in this period in Northern New England.
Abstract This paper examines the lives of women in colonial America by studying this unique work which is written in diary form by a woman named Martha Ballard. The aim of the author of this book was to show historians that information about women in this period does exist, as they are often over-looked in history books. This paper shows how this book is a rich source of the personal and social struggles of women in this era.
From the Paper "Laurel Thatcher Ulrich's strips away the justification that historians often call on to validate their disregard of women's lives in colonial America, which the essential documents do not exist. Perceptively creatively combing through household inventories, account book, court files, indentures, captivity recounting and men's diaries. The author shows the complex richness and truth of women role and lets the modern reader listen to women voices from their oral traditions. Ulrich is immersed in the homely information of the colonial life. She shows a genuine appreciation of colonial society imparting the multiple contradictions of its patriarchal, hierarchical and common values, its religiosity and earthiness."
Abstract The paper shows how the author of the book, ?The Motorcycle Diaries? was a famous revolutionary leader of the left wing in Cuba and one of the supporters of Castro during his revolutionary struggle for government. The writer examines how the book reflex his early life and how this influence the type of leader he became.
From the Paper "During the 1950s, he traveled throughout North America on a motorcycle along with one of his friends. This book gives a detailed account of his journey. They explored almost all of the North America on an old fashioned Norton motorcycle. During the journey they faced a lots of hurdles, experienced some memorable moments and went through lots of hassles. As they traveled through different parts of South America, they met a wide range of people belonging to considerably different cultures and having significantly different attitudes. A couple of years after this wonderful journey, Ernesto Che Guevara became actively involved in the Cuban revolution and soon emerged as a left wing militant. He was always in a habit of writing down the major events of everyday in a diary. "The Motorcycle Diaries" is in fact a collection from his diaries that he wrote during his journey on the motorcycle. This book is a good source of information about the South American environment."
Tags: cuba, castro, revolutionary, leader, south, america
Abstract This paper is a discussion of the use of diaries in the classroom as an aid to the professional development of the teacher. Specifically, it focuses on the recording and analysis of the teacher's in-class dialogue as a means of understanding the individual's style, strengths and weaknesses.
From the Paper "Diary studies is a relatively recent field within the study of educational theory and methodology. In 1975, Joan Rubin inspired other educators to consider a number of different language learning strategies, including using diaries. Kathleen M. Bailey, David Nunan, and others then led the way in exploring the use of diaries by students, teachers, researchers, and classroom observers. They noted that diaries can be useful both in enhancing the learning experience for the student and in improving the effectiveness of the teacher's work.
For students, keeping a regular diary of the classroom experience can serve a number of purposes. First, it can help reinforce material covered in class by having information reformulated into the student's own words, assuring a deeper level of comprehension. Carl W. Walley (1991, Spring) contends that student diaries can be useful tools as soon as students learn to write, helping them to articulate lessons learned in class and to frame learning within their own individual context (p. 152)."
Abstract This paper shows, through news reports and other information about terrorist activities, that fictional accounts such as "The Turner Diaries" do affect what individuals think about terrorism. The writer claims that books of this nature give individuals ideas about how they may commit terrorist acts in the future.
From the Paper "In order to understand the effect that books such as The Turner Diaries and other fictional accounts of terrorism have on individuals, it is important to understand exactly what The Turner Diaries are. The Turner Diaries were originally published in 1978. The novel discusses a violent overthrow of the federal government and a systematic killing of nonwhites and Jewish individuals. The intent of this is to establish an "Aryan" world, which meant that no one else could exist in it except for the individuals who deemed that killing the other nationalities was necessary (Shinbaum, 1996). While the book is fictional, many of the deas in it would technically work, and these are the kinds of things that interest those who are considering terrorism. Unfortunately, many of these people try out these ideas on unfortunate and unsuspecting individuals in this country (Flakus, 1997)."
Abstract This essay will examine both Carrol's book and Scott Kalvert's movie and compare and contrast the two. What will be demonstrated is that, although the movie is well-made in that it tells Carrol's story, the power of the diary in the novel as an expressive tool and framing device, which gives testimony to the best and darkest of youthful experiences, is lost in the movie and this lessens the impact and immediacy of Carrol's experiences. Moreover, the movie in turn makes its depictions too broadly and morally; this is a change from the subtle narrative strategy of Carroll, whose power of characterization is the ambiguity of human interaction.
Abstract This essay will examine The Diary of Anne Frank, and argue that this piece of writing contains evidence of a young girl's profound search for meaning and for understanding.
