Today's mentions:
1.se-
e.g:
(1)segment (n.) a part of something that is different from or affected differently from the whole in some way
(2)sentimental (adj.) someone who is
sentimental is easily affected by emotions such as love, sympathy,
sadness etc, often in a way that seems silly to other people
(3)severe (adj.) severe problems, injuries, illnesses etc are very bad or very serious
2. Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a people who inhabited Great Britain from the 5th century. They comprised people from Germanic tribes who migrated to the island from continental Europe, their descendants, and indigenous British groups who adopted some aspects of Anglo-Saxon culture and language. The Anglo-Saxon period denotes the period of British history between about 450 and 1066, after their initial settlement, and up until the Norman conquest.
The Anglo-Saxon period includes the creation of an English nation, with many of the aspects that survive today including regional government of shires and hundreds; the re-establishment of Christianity; a flowering in literature and language; and the establishment of charters and law.The term Anglo-Saxon is also popularly used for the language, in scholarly use more usually called Old English, that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons in England and eastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century.
The history of the Anglo-Saxons is the history of a cultural identity, and how this developed from divergent groups, grew with the adoption of Christianity, was used in the establishment of various kingdoms, and, in the face of a threat from Danish settlers, re-established itself as one identity until after the Norman Conquest.The outward appearance of Anglo-Saxon culture can be seen in the material culture of buildings, dress styles, illuminated texts and grave goods. Behind the symbolic nature of these cultural emblems there are strong elements of tribal and lordship ties, and an elite that became kings who developed burhs, and saw themselves and their people in Biblical terms. Above all, as Helena Hamerow has observed, "local and extended kin groups remained...the essential unit of production throughout the Anglo-Saxon period".The effects persist even in the 21st century as according to a study published in March 2015, the genetic make up of British populations today shows traces of the political units in the early Anglo-Saxon period.
Use of the term Anglo-Saxon assumes that the words Angles, Saxons or Anglo-Saxon have the same meaning in all the sources. Assigning ethnic labels such as "Anglo-Saxon" is fraught with difficulties, and the term itself only began to be used in the 8th century to distinguish "Germanic" groups in Britain from those on the continent. Catherine Hills summarised the views of many modern scholars that attitudes towards Anglo-Saxons and hence the interpretation of their culture and history have been "more contingent on contemporary political and religious theology as on any kind of evidence."
3.platitude (n.)
a statement that has been made many times before and is not interesting or clever - used to show disapproval
4.trivial (adj.)
not serious, important, or valuable
5.abolitionist (n.)
someone who wants to end a system or law
6.shopliftng (adj.)
the crime of stealing things from shops, for example by hiding them in a bag or under your clothes
Today's mentions:
1.Lucifer
Lucifer is the King James Version rendering of the Hebrew word הֵילֵל in Isaiah 14:12. This word, transliterated hêlêlor heylel,occurs only once in the Hebrew Bible and according to the KJV based Strong's Concordance means "shining one, light bearer".The word Lucifer is taken from the Latin Vulgate,which translates הֵילֵל as lucifer, meaning "the morning star, the planet Venus", or, as an adjective, "light-bringing".The Septuagint renders הֵילֵל in Greek as ἑωσφόρος (heōsphoros),a name, literally "bringer of dawn", for the morning star.
Later Christian tradition came to use the Latin word for "morning star", lucifer, as a proper name ("Lucifer") for the devil; as he was before his fall.As a result, "'Lucifer' has become a by-word for Satan/the Devil in the church and in popular literature", as in Dante Alighieri's Inferno and John Milton's Paradise Lost.
However, the Latin word never came to be used almost exclusively, as in
English, in this way, and was applied to others also, including Jesus.The image of a morning star fallen from the sky is generally believed among scholars to have a parallel in Canaanite mythology.
However, according to both Christianand Jewish exegesis, in the Book of Isaiah, chapter 14, the King of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar II, conqueror of Jerusalem, is condemned in a prophetic vision by the prophet Isaiah and is called the "Morning Ha" (planet Venus). In this chapter the Hebrew text says הֵילֵל בֶּן-שָׁחַר (Helel ben Shaḥar, "shining one, son of the morning"). "Helel ben Shaḥar" may refer to the Morning Star, but the text in Isaiah 14 gives no indication that Helel was a star or planet.
2. John Milton
John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse.
Milton's poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a
passion for freedom and self-determination, and the urgent issues and
political turbulence of his day. Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and
Italian, he achieved international renown within his lifetime, and his
celebrated Areopagitica (1644)—written in condemnation of pre-publication censorship—is among history's most influential and impassioned defences of free speech and freedom of the press.
William Hayley's 1796 biography called him the "greatest English author",and he remains generally regarded "as one of the preeminent writers in the English language",though critical reception has oscillated in the centuries since his death (often on account of his republicanism). Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost
as "a poem which...with respect to design may claim the first place,
and with respect to performance, the second, among the productions of
the human mind", though he (a Tory and recipient of royal patronage) described Milton's politics as those of an "acrimonious and surly republican".
3.Delilah
Delilah is a character in the Hebrew bible Book of Judges, where she is the "woman in the valley of Sorek" whom Samson loved, and who was his downfall. Her figure, one of several dangerous temptresses in the Hebrew Bible,
has become emblematic: "Samson loved Delilah, she betrayed him, and,
what is worse, she did it for money," Madlyn Kahr begins her study of
the Delilah motif in European painting.
The story of Samson in Judges 13–16 portrays a man who was given
great strength by God but who ultimately loses his strength when Delilah
allows the Philistines to shave his hair during his slumber (Judges 16:19). Samson was born into an Israelite family, the son of Manoah and his wife who is never named. Both are visited by the Angel of the Lord and told that their child will be a Nazirite from birth.
4.Satan
Satan is a figure appearing in the texts of the Abrahamic religions who brings evil and temptation, and is known as the deceiver who leads humanity astray. Some religious groups teach that he originated as an angel who fell out of favor with God, seducing humanity into the ways of sin, and who has power in the fallen world. In the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, Satan is primarily an accuser and adversary, a decidedly malevolent entity, also called the devil, who possesses demonic qualities.
In Theistic Satanism, Satan is considered a positive force and deity who is either worshipped or revered. In LaVeyan Satanism, Satan is regarded as holding virtuous characteristics.
5.Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consisted of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. A second edition followed in 1674, arranged into twelve books (in the manner of Virgil's Aeneid) with minor revisions throughout and a note on the versification.It is considered by critics to be Milton's major work, and it helped
solidify his reputation as one of the greatest English poets of his
time.
The poem concerns the Biblical story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Milton's purpose, stated in Book I, is to "justify the ways of God to men".
Today's Words:
1. Saint Peter
Saint Peter also known as Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simōn, according to the New Testament, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, leaders of the early Christian Church. The Roman Catholic Church considers him to be the first Pope, ordained by Jesus in the "Rock of My Church" dialogue in Matthew 16:18. The ancient Christian churches all venerate Peter as a major saint and associate him with founding the Church of Antioch and later the Church in Rome, but differ about the authority of his various successors in present-day Christianity.
The New Testament indicates that Peter was the son of John (or Jonah or Jona) and was from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee or Gaulanitis. His brother Andrew was also an apostle. According to New Testament accounts, Peter was one of twelve apostles chosen by Jesus from his first disciples.
Originally a fisherman, he played a leadership role and was with Jesus
during events witnessed by only a few apostles, such as the Transfiguration. According to the gospels, Peter confessed Jesus as the Messiah, was part of Jesus's inner circle, thrice denied Jesus,and preached on the day of Pentecost.
According to Christian tradition, Peter was crucified in Rome under Emperor Nero Augustus Caesar.
It is traditionally held that he was crucified upside down at his own
request, since he saw himself unworthy to be crucified in the same way
as Jesus. Tradition holds that he was crucified at the site of the Clementine Chapel. His remains are said to be those contained in the underground Confessio of St. Peter's Basilica, where Pope Paul VI announced in 1968 the excavated discovery of a first-century Roman cemetery. Every June 29 since 1736, a statue of Saint Peter in St. Peter's Basilica is adorned with papal tiara, ring of the fisherman, and papal vestments, as part of the celebration of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. According to Catholic doctrine, the direct papal successor to Saint Peter is Pope Francis.
Two general epistles in the New Testament are ascribed to Peter; however, some biblical scholars reject the Petrine authorship of both. The Gospel of Mark
was traditionally thought to show the influence of Peter's preaching
and eyewitness memories. Several other books bearing his name – the Acts of Peter, Gospel of Peter, Preaching of Peter, Apocalypse of Peter, and Judgment of Peter – are considered by Christian churches as apocryphal.
2. Stephen Crane
Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an
American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his
short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism and Impressionism. He is recognized by modern critics as one of the most innovative writers of his generation.
The ninth surviving child of Protestant Methodist
parents, Crane began writing at the age of four and had published
several articles by the age of 16. Having little interest in university
studies, he left college in 1891 to work as a reporter and writer.
Crane's first novel was the 1893 Bowery tale Maggie: A Girl of the Streets,
generally considered by critics to be the first work of American
literary Naturalism. He won international acclaim in 1895 for his Civil War novel The Red Badge of Courage, which he wrote without having any battle experience.
In 1896, Crane endured a highly publicized scandal after appearing as
a witness in the trial of a suspected prostitute, an acquaintance named
Dora Clark. Late that year he accepted an offer to travel to Cuba as a war correspondent. As he waited in Jacksonville, Florida, for passage, he met Cora Taylor, with whom he began a lasting relationship. En route to Cuba, Crane's vessel the SS Commodore, sank off the coast of Florida, leaving him and others adrift for 30 hours in a dinghy.Crane described the ordeal in "The Open Boat".
During the final years of his life, he covered conflicts in Greece
(accompanied by Cora, recognized as the first woman war correspondent)
and later lived in England with her. He was befriended by writers such as Joseph Conrad and H. G. Wells. Plagued by financial difficulties and ill health, Crane died of tuberculosis in a Black Forest sanatorium in Germany at the age of 28.
At the time of his death, Crane was considered an important figure in
American literature. After he was nearly forgotten for two decades,
critics revived interest in his life and work. Crane's writing is
characterized by vivid intensity, distinctive dialects, and irony. Common themes involve fear, spiritual crises and social isolation. Although recognized primarily for The Red Badge of Courage,
which has become an American classic, Crane is also known for his
poetry, journalism, and short stories such as "The Open Boat", "The Blue Hotel", "The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky", and The Monster. His writing made a deep impression on 20th-century writers, most prominent among them Ernest Hemingway, and is thought to have inspired the Modernists and the Imagists.
3.Pope Saint John Paul II
Pope Saint John Paul II served as Pope from 1978 to 2005.
He was one of the most travelled world leaders in history, visiting 129 countries during his pontificate. As part of his special emphasis on the universal call to holiness, he beatified 1,340 people and canonised 483 saints, more than the combined tally of his predecessors during the preceding five centuries. By the time of his death, he had named most of the College of Cardinals, consecrated or co-consecrated a large number of the world's bishops, and ordained many priests.[10] A key goal of his papacy was to transform and reposition the Catholic Church. His wish was "to place his Church at the heart of a new religious alliance that would bring together Jews, Muslims and Christians in a great religious armada".
He was the second longest-serving pope in modern history after Pope Pius IX, who served for nearly 32 years from 1846 to 1878. Born in Poland, John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope since the Dutch Pope Adrian VI, who served from 1522 to 1523. John Paul II's cause for canonisation commenced in 2005 one month after his death with the traditional five-year waiting period waived. On 19 December 2009, John Paul II was proclaimed Venerable by his successor Pope Benedict XVI and was beatified on 1 May 2011 (Divine Mercy Sunday) after the Congregation for the Causes of Saints attributed one miracle to his intercession, the healing of a French nun from Parkinson's disease. A second miracle attributed to John Paul II's intercession was approved on 2 July 2013, and confirmed by Pope Francis two days later (two miracles must be attributed to a person's intercession to be declared a saint). John Paul II was canonised on 27 April 2014 (again Divine Mercy Sunday), together with Pope John XXIII. On 11 September 2014, Pope Francis added John Paul II's optional memorial feast day to the worldwide General Roman Calendar of saints, in response to worldwide requests.It is traditional to celebrate saints' feast days on the anniversary of their deaths, but that of John Paul II (22 October) is celebrated on the anniversary of his papal inauguration
Today's mention:
1. Orpheus and Eurydice
The ancient legend of Orpheus and Eurydice concerns the fateful love of Orpheus of Thrace, son of Apollo and the muse Calliope, for the beautiful Eurydice (from Eurudike,
"she whose justice extends widely"). It may be a late addition to the
Orpheus myths, as the latter cult-title suggests those attached to Persephone. It may have been derived from a legend in which Orpheus travels to Tartarus and charms the goddess Hecate.
2. Psalm 23
In the 23rd Psalm (Greek numbering: Psalm 22) in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, the writer describes God as his Shepherd. The text, beloved by Jews and Christians alike, is often alluded to in popular media and has been set to music many times.
3.Seven deadly sins
The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a Western religious grouping and classification of vices.This grouping emerged in the fourth century AD and was used for
Christian ethical education and for confession. According to the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, a mortal
or deadly sin is believed to destroy the life of grace and charity
within a person. Though the sins have fluctuated over time, the
currently recognized list includes pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth. There is a parallel tradition of seven virtues.
The tradition of seven deadly sins as we know it today originated with the desert fathers, specifically Evagrius Ponticus. Evagrius identified seven or eight evil thoughts or spirits that one needed to overcome Evagrius' pupil John Cassian brought that tradition to Europe with his book The Institutes.The idea of seven basic vices or sins was fundamental to Catholic
confessional practices as evidence in penitential manuals as well as
sermons like "The Parson's Tale" from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This connection is also clear in how Dante's Purgatory
is arranged according to the seven deadly sins. The concept of seven
deadly sins was used throughout the medieval Christian world to teach
young people how to avoid evil and embrace the good as is evident in
treatises, paintings, sculpture decorations on churches.Works like Peter Brueghel the Elder's prints of the Seven Deadly Sins as well as Edmund Spencer's The Faerie Queene show the continuity of this tradition into the modern era. A commonly used mnemonic acronym to remember the seven deadly sins is "SALIGIA," based on the first letters in Latin of the seven deadly sins: superbia, avaritia, luxuria, invidia, gula, ira, acedia.
Today's words:
1.To be, or not to be...
"To be, or not to be..." is the opening phrase of a soliloquy in the "Nunnery Scene" of William Shakespeare's play Hamlet.
In the speech, a despondent Prince Hamlet contemplates death and suicide.
He bemoans the pains and unfairness of life but acknowledges the
alternative might be still worse. The speech functions within the play
to explain Hamlet's hesitation to directly and immediately avenge his father's murder (discovered in Act I) on his uncle, stepfather, and new king Claudius. Claudius and his minister Polonius are preparing to eavesdrop on Hamlet's interaction with Ophelia
2.CP Value (Cost-Performance)
A ratio of whether or not and how much profit will result from an investment. It is calculated by taking the net present value of expected future cash flows from the investment and dividing by the investment's original cost. A ratio above one indicates that the investment will be profitable while a ratio below one means that it will not. A cost-benefit ratio is also called a profitability index
3. fragmentary (adj.) consisting of many different small parts
4.3D- (Dirty, Dangerous and Demeaning)
Dirty, Dangerous and Demeaning (often Dirty, Dangerous and Demanding or Dirty, Dangerous and Difficult), also known as the 3Ds, is an American neologism derived from an Asian concept, and refers to certain kinds of labor often performed by unionized blue-collar workers.
The term originated from the Japanese expression 3K: kitanai, kiken, kitsui (respectively 汚い "dirty", 危険 "dangerous", きつい "demanding"), and has subsequently gained widespread use, particularly regarding labor done by migrant workers.
Typically, any task, regardless of industry, can qualify as a 3D job.
These jobs can bring higher wages due to a shortage of willing
qualified individuals and in many world regions are filled by migrant
workers looking for higher wages.
Today's mentions:
1. Frailty, thy name is woman
(Quote)
Heaven and earth,
Must I remember? Why, she would hang on him
As if increase of appetite had grown
By what it fed on, and yet, within a month—
Let me not think on't—Frailty, thy name is woman!—
------
"______, thy name is ______" is a snowclone used to indicate the completeness with which something or somebody (indicated by the second part) embodies a particular quality (indicated by the first part), usually a negative one.
2. Gospel
A gospel is an account describing the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The most widely known examples are the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John which are included in the New Testament, but the term is also used to refer to apocryphal gospels, non-canonical gospels, Jewish-Christian gospels, and gnostic gospels.
Christianity places a high value on the four canonical gospels, which it considers to be a revelation from God and central to its belief system.
Christianity traditionally teaches that the four canonical gospels are
an accurate and authoritative representation of the life of Jesus,
but many scholars and historians, as well as liberal churches, note
that much of that which is contained in the gospels is not historically
reliable. This position however, requires a liberal view of Biblical inerrancy. For example, professor of religion Linda Woodhead
notes some scholarship reinforces the claim that "the gospels' birth
and resurrection narratives can be explained as attempts to fit Jesus’s
life into the logic of Jewish expectation".However, New Testament scholar N. T. Wright
holds firmly to the historical authenticity of the death and
resurrection of Jesus, stating that of the whole Bible, this is the
story with the most overwhelming historical evidence.
Today's mentions:
1. Blessed Virgin Mary
Roman Catholic veneration of Mary, Mother of Jesus includes prayer, pious acts, visual arts, poetry and music devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary.Popes have encouraged it, while also taking steps to reform some manifestations of it.The Holy See has insisted on the importance of distinguishing "true
from false devotion, and authentic doctrine from its deformations by
excess or defect".There are significantly more titles, feasts and venerative Marian
practices among Roman Catholics than in other Christian traditions.
Belief in the incarnation of God the Son through Mary is the basis for calling her the Mother of God. This expression is found in prayers such as the Sub tuum praesidium dated from the third or no later than the fourth century, and was declared a dogma at the Council of Ephesus in 431. At the Second Vatican Council and in Pope John Paul II's encyclical Redemptoris Mater, she is spoken of also as Mother of the Church.
Growth of Roman Catholic veneration of Mary and Mariology has often come, not from official declarations, but from Marian writings of the saints, popular devotion, and at times reported Marian apparitions. The Holy See approves only a select few as worthy of belief, the latest being at diocesan level as far back as 1665.
Further pious veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary encouraged by Popes are exhibited in the Canonical coronations granted to popular Marian images venerated in a particular locality all over the world, while Marian Movements and Societies with millions of members have arisen from belief in events such as Akita, Fátima and Lourdes and other reasons.
2.Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English writer and social critic.
He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is
regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era.His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by
the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a
literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.
Born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison.
Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20
years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and
non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an
indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's
rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens's literary success began with the 1836 serial publication of The Pickwick Papers.
Within a few years he had become an international literary celebrity,
famous for his humour, satire, and keen observation of character and
society. His novels, most published in monthly or weekly instalments,
pioneered the serial publication of narrative fiction, which became the dominant Victorian mode for novel publication.The instalment format allowed Dickens to evaluate his audience's
reaction, and he often modified his plot and character development based
on such feedback. For example, when his wife's chiropodist expressed distress at the way Miss Mowcher in David Copperfield seemed to reflect her disabilities, Dickens improved the character with positive features.His plots were carefully constructed, and he often wove elements from topical events into his narratives.Masses of the illiterate poor chipped in ha'pennies to have each new monthly episode read to them, opening up and inspiring a new class of readers.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities,
set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction.
Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian
is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his
writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive
characters.
3.Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve, according to the creation myths of the Abrahamic religions,were the first man and woman. The story of Adam and Eve is central to the belief that God created human beings to live in a paradise
on earth, although they fell away from that state and formed the
present world full of suffering and injustice. It provides the basis for
the belief that humanity is in essence a single family, with everyone
descended from a single pair of original ancestors.It also provides much of the scriptural basis for the doctrines of the fall of man and original Sin, important beliefs in Christianity, although not generally shared by Judaism or Islam.
In the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, chapters one through five, there are two creation narratives with two distinct perspectives. In the first, Adam and Eve are not referenced by name. Instead, God created humankind in God's image and instructed them to multiply and to be stewards over everything else that God had made. In the second narrative, God fashions Adam from dust and places him in the Garden of Eden. Adam is told that he can till the ground and eat freely of all the trees in the garden, except for a tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
of which he is prohibited from eating. Subsequently, Eve is created
from one of Adam's ribs to be Adam's companion. However, a serpent
tricks Eve into eating fruit from the forbidden tree, and she gives
some of the fruit to Adam. God curses the serpent and the ground. God
prophetically tells the woman and the man what will be the consequences
of their sin of disobeying God. Then he banishes 'the man' from the
Garden of Eden.
The story underwent extensive elaboration in later Abrahamic
traditions, and it has been extensively analyzed by modern biblical
scholars. Interpretations and beliefs regarding Adam and Eve and the
story revolving around them vary across religions and sects. The story
of Adam and Eve is often depicted in religious art, and it has had an
important influence in literature and poetry.
There is no physical evidence that Adam and Eve ever actually existed, and their existence is incompatible with human evolutionary genetics.
Today's mentions
1.O Captain! My Captain!
"O Captain! My Captain!" is an extended metaphor poem written in 1865 by Walt Whitman, about the death of American president Abraham Lincoln. The poem was first published in the pamphlet Sequel to Drum-Taps which assembled 18 poems regarding the American Civil War, including another Lincoln elegy, "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd". It was included in Whitman's comprehensive collection Leaves of Grass beginning with its fourth edition published in 1867.
2.Walt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism,
incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most
influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse.His work was very controversial in its time, particularly his poetry collection Leaves of Grass, which was described as obscene for its overt sexuality.
Born in Huntington on Long Island,
Whitman worked as a journalist, a teacher, a government clerk, and—in
addition to publishing his poetry—was a volunteer nurse during the American Civil War. Early in his career, he also produced a temperance novel, Franklin Evans (1842). Whitman's major work, Leaves of Grass, was first published in 1855 with his own money. The work was an attempt at reaching out to the common person with an American epic. He continued expanding and revising it until his death in 1892. After a stroke towards the end of his life, he moved to Camden, New Jersey, where his health further declined. When he died at age 72, his funeral became a public spectacle.
Whitman's sexuality is often discussed alongside his poetry. Though
biographers continue to debate his sexuality, he is usually described as
either homosexual or bisexual
in his feelings and attractions. However, there is disagreement among
biographers as to whether Whitman had actual sexual experiences with
men.
Whitman was concerned with politics throughout his life. He supported the Wilmot Proviso
and opposed the extension of slavery generally. His poetry presented an
egalitarian view of the races, though his attitude in life reflected
many of the racial prejudices common to nineteenth-century America and
his opposition to slavery was not necessarily based on belief in the
equality of races per se. At one point he called for the abolition of slavery, but later he saw the abolitionist movement as a threat to democracy.
3.Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. Lincoln led the United States through its Civil War—its bloodiest war and its greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis.In doing so, he preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government, and modernized the economy.
Born in Hodgenville, Kentucky, Lincoln grew up on the western frontier in Kentucky and Indiana. Largely self-educated, he became a lawyer in Illinois, a Whig Party leader, and a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, in which he served for twelve years. Elected to the United States House of Representatives
in 1846, Lincoln promoted rapid modernization of the economy through
banks, tariffs, and railroads. Because he had originally agreed not to
run for a second term in Congress, and because his opposition to the Mexican–American War was unpopular among Illinois voters, Lincoln returned to Springfield and resumed his successful law practice. Reentering politics in 1854, he became a leader in building the new Republican Party, which had a statewide majority in Illinois. In 1858, while taking part in a series of highly publicized debates with his opponent and rival, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, Lincoln spoke out against the expansion of slavery, but lost the U.S. Senate race to Douglas.
In 1860, Lincoln secured the Republican Party presidential nomination
as a moderate from a swing state. With very little support in the
slaveholding states of the South, he swept the North and was elected president in 1860. His victory prompted seven southern slave states to form the Confederate States of America before he moved into the White House
- no compromise or reconciliation was found regarding slavery and
secession. Subsequently, on April 12, 1861, a Confederate attack on Fort Sumter inspired the North to enthusiastically rally behind the Union
in a declaration of war. As the leader of the moderate faction of the
Republican Party, Lincoln confronted Radical Republicans, who demanded
harsher treatment of the South, War Democrats, who called for more compromise, anti-war Democrats (called Copperheads),
who despised him, and irreconcilable secessionists, who plotted his
assassination. Politically, Lincoln fought back by pitting his opponents
against each other, by carefully planned political patronage, and by appealing to the American people with his powers of oratory. His Gettysburg Address became an iconic endorsement of the principles of nationalism, republicanism, equal rights, liberty, and democracy.
Lincoln initially concentrated on the military and political
dimensions of the war. His primary goal was to reunite the nation. He
suspended habeas corpus, leading to the controversial ex parte Merryman decision, and he averted potential British intervention in the war by defusing the Trent Affair
in late 1861. Lincoln closely supervised the war effort, especially the
selection of top generals, including his most successful general, Ulysses S. Grant.
He also made major decisions on Union war strategy, including a naval
blockade that shut down the South's normal trade, moves to take control
of Kentucky and Tennessee, and using gunboats to gain control of the
southern river system. Lincoln tried repeatedly to capture the
Confederate capital at Richmond;
each time a general failed, Lincoln substituted another, until finally
Grant succeeded. As the war progressed, his complex moves toward ending
slavery began with the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863; subsequently, Lincoln used the U.S. Army to protect escaped slaves, encouraged the border states to outlaw slavery, and pushed through Congress the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which permanently outlawed slavery.
An exceptionally astute politician deeply involved with power issues
in each state, Lincoln reached out to the War Democrats and managed his
own re-election campaign in the 1864 presidential election. Anticipating the war's conclusion, Lincoln pushed a moderate view of Reconstruction,
seeking to reunite the nation speedily through a policy of generous
reconciliation in the face of lingering and bitter divisiveness. On
April 14, 1865, five days after the April 9th surrender of Confederate
commanding general Robert E. Lee, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathizer.
Lincoln has been consistently ranked both by scholars and the public as one of the three greatest U.S. presidents.
4. NATO phonetic alphabet
The International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet, commonly known as the NATO phonetic alphabet and also known as the ICAO radiotelephonic, phonetic or spelling alphabet and the ITU radiotelephonic or phonetic alphabet, is the most widely used radiotelephonic spelling alphabet. Although often called "phonetic alphabets", spelling alphabets are not associated with phonetic transcription systems such as the International Phonetic Alphabet. Instead, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) alphabet assigned code words acrophonically to the letters of the English alphabet
so that critical combinations of letters and numbers can be pronounced
and understood by those who transmit and receive voice messages by radio
or telephone regardless of language barriers or the presence of
transmission static.
The 26 code words in the NATO phonetic alphabet are assigned to the 26 letters of the English alphabet in alphabetical order
as follows: Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel,
India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo,
Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu.
