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African Cultural Retention, 2008.
This paper explores the question: Are African Americans destroying African culture?
765 words (approx. 3.1 pages), 4 sources, APA, $ 27.95
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Abstract
This paper explains that African culture retention is noticeable in many aspects of the American lifestyle. The author points out that the African heritage for U.S. blacks survived the vicious system of slavery, despite attempts to remove remnants of African culture from the slaves and to instill a European/white culture so that they could be more accepting of their situation. The paper relates that some distorted cultural practices such as violence, sometimes labeled as "African", are not even remotely related to any kind of link with the cultural diversity of the African continent. The author concludes that the issue of African cultural retention and the destruction of the African-American society is so intertwined that it is sometimes hard to examine them separately.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Tenets of African Culture In the United States
Conclusion
From the Paper
"The retention component has also been used to damage the influence of African culture; for example acts of violence or family structure, and or social interactions have sometimes been linked to the African culture, or the travesty of slavery, or even more so, the cultural practices in Africa concerning relationships, marriage, and relationships. Liberating African American cultural identity will show that the African influence or content of this identity, although not in a pure form, offers a significant amount of positive influences."
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Persian Influence on Islamic Civilization, 2008.
This paper is a theoretical, descriptive and analytical historical review pf the major aspects of the Persian (modern Iran) influence on the Islamic civilization.
1,650 words (approx. 6.6 pages), 8 sources, MLA, $ 53.95
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Abstract
This paper explains that the Persian Empire created great civilizations before the rise of Islam. The author points out that the Persian presence within the Islamic populace influenced many core aspects of the Muslim society: the realm and formation of government, architecture, music, medicine, linguistics, literature, clothing and fashion and other areas of cultural, economical, political and social significance. The paper states that, unlike general notions perpetrated by Western civilizations, the Islamic civilization, which was a global civilization that integrated individuals of diverse ethnic backgrounds who worked together to create knowledge within the arts and sciences, was not marred with war and terrorism. The author believes that the modern view of the Persian Empire is marred with subjective criticisms and linkages between Iran and terrorism.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Persian Culture; How is this Influence Explained: A General Overview
Figure 1: Iran's Cultural Dimensions
Scientific Contribution to Islamic Civilization: The Influence of the Persian Empire, Especially in the Field of Medicine
Figure 2: An Overview of the Persian Influence on Islamic Scientific Processes (Using an Input/Output Model)
Conclusion: State-Sponsored Terrorism and Iran
From the Paper
"Fields of medicine strongly influenced by Iranian scientist include but are not limited to physiology, biochemistry, immunology, and molecular biology. There influence has been likened to changes in the understanding of medicine that took place between prehistoric times to the present, this is a rather profound statement, since "the torch of medicine was in the hands of Muslims in historical periods from ancient Athens to the Renaissance", but Iranian scientist have still managed to make remarkable progress in medicine. Scientist form the Persian sphere have had such a profound impact on Islamic medical research, that many medical scientist considered authorities in the field have evolved in the Islamic Civilization, but are Persian. Nabipour highlighted a few renowned scientists such as Rhazes (865 - 925 A.D.)who has one of the most authoritative books on smallpox and measles."
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Immigrants in Toronto, 2008.
This paper provides a report on immigrants in Toronto and discusses the suburbanization of immigration.
1,191 words (approx. 4.8 pages), 4 sources, MLA, $ 40.95
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Abstract
In this article, the writer provides a comparison and contrast of two distinct Toronto electoral districts; one in the downtown core that has served as a traditional immigration reception area, and one in the suburbs. The writer points out that their social compositions is important for what it reveals the changing ethnic demographics of Canadian society. The writer looks at how these changes are shaping the urban landscape of the major cities. This essay argues that a comparative analysis of these two districts reveals the suburbanization of immigration in Canada, as now established immigrants seek to migrate internally within the city from the downtown to the suburbs. The writer maintains that this intra-migration is complemented by direct settlement of new immigrants from abroad into Toronto's suburbs, effectively bypassing neighbourhoods such as the famous Kensington Market that were defined by successive waves of immigration for much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Outline:
Introduction
Social Composition: A Comparative Analysis of the Numbers
Ethnic Groups and Visible Minorities in the Landscape
Commentary
From the Paper
"Thus, it may be argued that many of the visible signs of immigrant presence in this area are remnants of past settlement, and that the former immigrant settlers in this district have moved elsewhere in Toronto. Indeed, the fact that the Italian population in York West is more than double that of "Little Italy" suggests that many former Italian immigrants and/or their children may have moved from the downtown to the suburbs. In contrast to "Little Italy" which seems to be a "shell" of its former self, the Chinatown neighbourhood of Trinity-Spadina reveals how dominant this one ethnic group is in the visible landscape of the district; a visual dominance that reflects its 52.2 percent of the district's visible minority population."
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Slavery, Stereotypes and Society, 2008.
A critical analysis of the adaptive flexibility model in its application to the African-Caribbean family.
1,931 words (approx. 7.7 pages), 4 sources, APA, $ 61.95
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Abstract
The paper critically examines the adaptive flexibility model and argues that while this model possesses strengths, the model is flawed to the extent that it diminishes the radical impact of slavery upon the social and cultural development of the African-Caribbean family. The paper contends that a more balanced analysis would recognize both the reality of the impact of slavery upon later generations of African-Caribbeans, as well as the capacity of these families to define their own lives, often in resistance to this oppression.
Outline:
Introduction
Revisionism and the Adaptive Flexibility Model
From the Paper
"It is significant that even today scholarly research on the African Caribbean family focuses to an extraordinary degree upon the impact of slavery on this population. Much of the early history of the Caribbean is defined by its economic role as the largest English, and for a brief period the largest world, producer of sugar (Floyd 1981, p.38). To harvest the sugar cane, the English planters found that they needed far more field workers than could be obtained from the deported criminal classes of Britain and Ireland."
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The Chumash: Seafarers of Southern California, 2007.
A study of the Chumash, a seafaring Native American tribe of Southern California and their possible connection with ancient Polynesian seafarers.
1,760 words (approx. 7.0 pages), 10 sources, APA, $ 56.95
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Abstract
This paper examines the Native American tribe of Southern California, the Chumash, one of the few New World peoples who regularly navigated the ocean. The paper points out that they built plank canoes, unlike most other North American native tribes whose canoes were of an unsophisticated hollowed-out tree trunk design. Only Polynesian seafarers from the distant South Pacific were thought to use similar plank boats to explore and colonize the various islands of the Pacific over a thousand or more years ago. The paper draws a possible connection between the two peoples according to both linguistic and archaeological evidence. From a purely linguistic standpoint, the Chumash word for plank canoe, "tomolo", may be derived from the Polynesian word "tumu-raa'au", referring to the wooden plank boats used by Polynesian explorers. The paper concludes that these findings regarding the Chumash wood plank canoe may open the door to seeing Native American culture in a whole new light, and even call into question old orthodoxies about migration patterns.
From the Paper
"Due to the vast size of the area that eventually became known as California, there were at one time or another dozens of small Native American tribes who inhabited the region, differing widely in language, culture and lifestyle, due to the great variety of environmental conditions they found themselves in (desert, mountain, seacoast, etc.) The Chumash are a Native American tribe who historically made their home along the southern coastal regions of California, stretching roughly from the vicinity of what is now Santa Barbara in the north down to Ventura in the south, but (to a lesser degree) even extending as far south as what is now Malibu ("Chumash.") They also lived on the three largest of the Channel Islands: Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel. The Channel Islands, located about 20 miles off the coast near present day Santa Barbara, are the largest offshore islands on the West Coast of North America ("Channel Islands.") This offshore presence was unique to the Chumash among California Indian tribes and will have a central place in the subsequent examination of their seafaring abilities and possible trans-Pacific origins."
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Learning and Tolerating the Homeless Culture, 2007.
A discussion of cultural and social differences.
1,804 words (approx. 7.2 pages), 7 sources, APA, $ 58.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses a series of conversations the writer recently had with a homeless person. The paper explains how these interactions provided an opportunity for learning about someone else's culture, an opportunity to understand individual as well as cultural differences, an opportunity to enjoy shared experiences, and a chance to grasp the day-to-day exigencies of this individual's life. The paper further explores a number of themes - culture shock, stereotyping and various theoretical concepts. In conclusion, the paper shows that people who are different from ourselves may seem frightening at first glance, but their humanity becomes more and more undeniable the more we allow ourselves to understand and appreciate the cultures within which they operate.
From the Paper
"To begin with, this writer conducted a series of sit-down interviews with a homeless person residing in the local community. Initially, the contact was strictly visual as the writer sought to gain a sense of the man and a sense of what his state of mind was. Not long thereafter, however, a verbal line of communication was opened - largely because I offered to buy him a cup of coffee and because I made it clear to him that his life story was of interest to me. During the course of our conversation at the local Starbucks, I became self-conscious and vaguely uncomfortable - not least of all because a number of people took to staring at the odd couple in their midst."
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Archaeoastronomy, 2007.
This paper discuses archaeoastronomy using sites from Mesoamerica as examples.
1,050 words (approx. 4.2 pages), 7 sources, MLA, $ 36.95
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Abstract
This paper explains that archaeoastronomy is the study of the astronomical practices, celestial lore, mythologies, religions and world-views of all ancient cultures. The author points out that many of the great monuments and ceremonial constructions of early civilizations, such as the Great Pyramid at Giza in Egypt, were astronomically aligned. The paper relates that many of the major structures of Mesoamerica have been found to have an astronomical connection. The author states that the astronomical knowledge of these ancient people from different parts of the world were not connected in any known way yet they undertook some similar approaches to studying the skies and to building monumental structures with astronomical purposes. The paper examines the Mesoamerican sites of the Olmec, the Teotihuacan, the Toltec, the Mayan, the Zapotec and the Aztec civilizations.
From the Paper
"The links between the Olmec and the later Maya are numerous, and some believe that the Olmec may have been Maya speakers. Olmec emerged around 1,500 B.C. and came to dominate most of Mesoamerica. Olmec-style monumental art and architecture developed in the northwestern and southeastern edges of the lowlands. Much of this monumental art shows squat figures topped by rounded hats as a key feature of this art. In the southern lowlands during the Classic period, progressive growth and increasing complexity were the norm."
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Cultural Anthropology Critique, 2008.
This paper provides a critique of three articles: Richa Nagar's "Exploring Methodological Borderlands through Oral Narratives", Faranak Miraftab's "Can You Belly Dance?" and Oyeronke Oyewumi's "Visualizing the Body: Western Theories and African Subjects".
1,522 words (approx. 6.1 pages), 3 sources, APA, $ 50.95
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Abstract
This critical review comments on the themes, methodological challenges, suggestions and perspectives in the three articles: Nagar's "Exploring Methodological Borderlands through Oral Narratives", Miraftab's "Can you Belly Dance?" and Oyewumi's "Visualizing the Body: Western Theories and African Subjects". The writer maintains that these articles all fall within the tradition of feminist contributions to the re-evaluation of difficult challenges that arise within the fields of social anthropology and ethnography. Each adopts a very different approach, but all are thought-provoking, especially because none of the authors is a typical social anthropologist. The writer concludes that all three articles offer different insights and advice. However, the three are welcome voices, in that they smash the typical stereotype of white, Western, usually male cultural anthropologists.
From the Paper
"This traditional situation is subverted by the women researchers in these three articles. For example, Nagar is a young, unmarried woman, from a lower-middle class Hindu family in India, who has affiliations with Western universities, as well as a white boyfriend in the USA. She is multilingual, well educated and a part of the elite in the sense of being globally mobile and funded to do research. In that sense, she is entirely different from the people she researches. On the other hand, when she researches the Asian community of Dar Es Salaam, she has sufficient common ground with some of them - e.g. being Asian, being Hindu, sharing languages, ability to adopt approved clothing styles, such as salwaar kameez, or a sari, depending on context - that she can frequently be accepted by these communities as an insider. This positions her vis-a-vis the communities she studies in an utterly different position than if she had been a white, American man, who quite obviously could not simply don a sari and blend into a social group of Asians in Dar es Salaam! This unusual situation on the one hand puts her in a much less powerful - for example, the American male would probably not be sexually propositioned by an interviewee. However, her entree into these communities must surely enable her to gain more understanding of the communities."
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Culture and Immigration in Canada, 2008.
This paper discusses the different views of Himani Bannerji and Neil Bissoondath relating to the Canadian approach to immigration.
1,072 words (approx. 4.3 pages), 2 sources, MLA, $ 37.95
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Abstract
In this article, the writer looks at the approaches taken by Himani Bannerji and Neil Bissoondath when discussing the Canadian model vis-a-vis immigration. In comparing and contrasting the two, the writer notes that it becomes evident that Bannerji, while she may very well have solid grounds for her vehement stance with regards to Canada and its treatment of new immigrants, is also guilty of being very selective in terms of how she defines the Canadian society of which she is a part. On the other hand, the writer points out that Bissoondath offers a rebuke that, because of its moderate tone and use of example strikes a chord with the reader; more than that, he explains how Canadian approaches to culture institutionalize incompetence and make race a criterion in matters where it should have no place. The writer maintains that in the end, Neil Bissoondath's belief that Canadian multiculturalism encourages omission and self-deception is a stirring critique that resonates.
From the Paper
"At this point, a number of things must be said. First of all, being designated a "visible minority" in Canada does not necessarily have the pejorative connotation Bannerji applies to it. For one thing, "visible minorities" are viewed favorably for affirmative action programs in both the workplace and in post-secondary institutions; secondly, given the aggressive, interventionist nature of Canadian multicultural policies (something Neil Bissoondath will discuss later), it is difficult to countenance the idea that being designated a minority in Canada makes one automatically marginalized - or subject to special "control" by the state. After all, Canada has some of the strongest anti-discrimination and workplace harassment laws in the world; therefore, if anything, being designated a "visible minority" grants someone protection from abuse and (if the wording of federal hiring policies is to be taken seriously) a "leg up" in the scramble for society's spoils."
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Literary Symbolism in Novels of Exile, 2008.
A review of the books "A Bend in the River" by V.S. Naipaul and "The Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys.
1,396 words (approx. 5.6 pages), 2 sources, MLA, $ 46.95
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Abstract
This paper analyzes the symbolism behind two distinct novels that deal with issues of exile, political strife and social turmoil - V.S. Naipaul's "A Bend in the River" and "The Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys. The paper explains how both books utilize nature in many ways as an association and correlation to the themes in their respective novels. The paper also looks at how there is a sense of duality in both books, as nature can depict a tide of change in addition to a resistance by a people to maintain tradition and a way of life that is invaded by unnatural intruders. The paper also discusses how the interpretation of literary symbols in classic novels has always been imperative to understanding the full scope of an author's message. Additionally, the paper shows that both Naipual and Rhys utilize nature to formulate strong symbolic meanings and associate them to the domination of European culture and the notion that colonization fragments Africa from its way of life.
From the Paper
"Naipaul's main character Salim in A Bend in the River takes a ritual journey through Africa which is loaded with numerous metaphors and 'coming of age' events. Salim's realization of the neurosis during colonization and the indigenous social conflict is especially realized when he travels outside of Africa. In his education, he encounters a great deal of realities that shape his perception of Westernization and he quickly begins to realize the pending abomination that is to result from Western influence in his homeland. To further indicate this importance, Naipaul utilizes water to paint a picture of stillness and change. This duality extends to the natural resources that surround the river, similar to the journey of Conrad in The Heart of Darkness. The contrast here is not the personal battle against Africa, Salim is more cognizant of his native surroundings and understands the futility and destruction that will be realized with the synthesis of two conflicting ideologies."
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