Class distinictions in pygmalion Essay Example For Students

Class distinictions in pygmalion Essay ?Class Distinctions in PygmalionPygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw, is a thrilling dramain which a scientist of phonetics tries to transform acockney speaking Covent Garden flower girl into a woman aspoised and well-spoken as a duchess. The play considerssome of the illusions of the class distinctions. This isrepresented by the characters, their situations, and theirEliza Doolittle starts out as a sassy, smart-mouthedflower girl with disgraceful English. See goes to seeProfessor Higgins to see if he will teach her to speakproperly and act more like a lady. This also would requireher to become a high-classed member of society. I want to be a lady in a flower shop stead of sellin atthe corner of Tottenham Court Road. But they wont takeme unless I can talk more genteel. He said he couldteach me. Well, here I am ready to pay himnot askingany favorand he treats me zif I was dirt. (1160)That was the flower girl, Eliza Doolittle, talking toColonel Pickering about how she want to become a la dy andhow Mr. Higgins refused to help her because she belongs tothe lower-classed section of society. Later she finallyconvinces Mr. Higgins to help her, but to him she is just anMr. Higgins is a high-classed professor of phonetics. He believes in concepts like visible speech, and used allmanners of recording and photographic material to documenthis phonetic subjects. This reduces people and theirdialects into what he sees as easily understandable units. However, he is also a very eccentric man. He goes in theopposite direction from the rest of society for mostmatters. He is also very impatient with high society, eventhough he is a member of it. But even more then the highsociety, he treats the lower end of society with even lessrespect. Pickering: shall we ask this baggage to sit down,or shall we throw her out of the window (1160). That wasMr. Higgins talking to Colonel Pickering about ElizaDoolittle. He talks to her with attitude and continuouslymakes rude comments just like that one towards her. He actsvery rudely towards her because he feels that she is just anexperiment of phonetics and sometimes he shows that heEliza Doolittle and Mr. Higgins are in a situation. Eliza wants to become a lady and Mr. Higgins is trying toturn her into one. In order for Higgins to transform Elizainto a lady he must teach her to speak and act properly. They accomplish this after a couple months, but somethingstill wasnt right. She still had that low class attitudeand it was noticeable. In order for her to become a reallady, she had to become a member of high society. Playing! The hardest job I ever tackled: make nomistake about that, mother. But you have no idea howfrightfully interesting it is to take a human being andchange her into a quite different human being bycreating a new speech for her. Its filling up thedeepest gulf that separates class from class and soulThat was Mr. Higgins talking to his mom. What he meant bysaying that was that teaching her to speak properly w ouldend the difference between the classes. However, he alsohas a long while until she is finally and completely a lady. This play also has lots of aphoristic comments. Theseare short, pointed sentences expressing a wise or clever Would the world ever have been made if its maker hadbeen afraid of making trouble? Making life means makingtrouble. Theres only one way of escaping trouble; andthats killing things. Cowards, you notice, are alwaysshrieking to have troublesome people killed (1199). .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .postImageUrl , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:hover , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:visited , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:active { border:0!important; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:active , .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7 .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u9616bffa6db43792b871e77d84a127d7:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: There are a lot many descriptions for the word dialectic EssayThat was Mrs. Higgins talking to Liza. This comment thatshe made was definitely an aphorism. This is because shewas making a wise observation on trouble in life. She issaying that all parts of life including all social classeshave some trouble in them, but that is what makes it life. Without trouble life would be boring and pointless. The fact that Pygmalion contains illusions of classdistinctions is clearly shown through the characters, theirsituations, and their aphoristic comments. In Elizas questto become a lady she had to deal with many social classproblems, however, she overcomes them with the help of Hr. Higgins and becomes a high class lady. Bibliography:

Sonnet 18 Essays (636 words) - Sonnet 18, Couplet,

Sonnet 18 "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?" William Shakespeare (1564-1616), English poet and playwright, recognized in much of the world as the greatest of all dramatists, is perhaps the most famous writer in the history of English literature. By writing plays, Shakespeare earned recognition from his late 16th and early 17th century contemporaries, but he may have looked to poetry for enduring fame. His poetic achievements include a series of 154 sonnets. Many of the sonnets he wrote contain lines as well known as any in his plays. One of the perennial themes of Western literature?the brevity of life?is given poignantly personal and highly original expression in many of these poems. Shakespeare's sonnets are arranged with three quatrains (4 lines) and a couplet (2 lines). This development was sufficiently original for the form to become known as the Shakespearean sonnet, which employs a rhyme scheme of abab cdcd efef gg. The poet is challenged to express his profound emotions and thoughts on life, death, war, and history in the condensed fourteen lines. Sonnet 18 comes from The Sonnets of Shakespeare printed in 1609: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date. Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimmed; And every fair form fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature's changing course, untrimmed. But thy eternal summer shall not fade, Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st. So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee." Shakespeare begins the poem with a question that proposes a comparison between his beloved and a summer season. Summer is chosen because it is the loveliest and the most pleasant season due to England's cold weather. In the second line the comparison embarks to favor his beloved: his beloved is more beautiful and less extreme than summer. The reasons for his adoration are given in the next four lines, which describe the less pleasant aspects of summer: The wind impairs the beauty of summer, and summer is too brief. The splendor of summer is affected by the intensity of the sunlight, and as the season changes, summer becomes less beautiful. Here Shakespeare uses the word fair with a double connotation, the clear and sunny weather and the pleasing appearance of a beautiful woman, indicating that any beauty will fade one day. Starting from the ninth line Shakespeare shifts his tone with a great passion: "Thy eternal summer shall not fade." She, unlike summer, will never deteriorate. Summer has by now become the summer of life and beauty. In the next three lines the poet's assurance becomes even firmer with promises that his beloved will neither become less beautiful nor even die, because she is immortalized through his poetry. Line ten and eleven give an answer in comparison with line six and seven: The summer's fair declines, but the fairness of his beloved will be everlasting. The summer's sun dims, but the life and beauty of his beloved will be eternal. In line twelve the "eternal lines to time" not only refers to lines of poetry but also implies lines of shape, the shape of beauty. Because of the eternal lines of the poem, the life and beauty of his beloved will thrive and flourish. The poem finishes with a triumphant couplet, which explains and summarizes the theme: poetry gives timeless life to beauty. In the poem "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" Shakespeare compares the summer's imperfection with his beloved's perfection. The poet employs the step-by- step arguments, to reach the conclusion: poetry is immortal and makes beauty immortal. According to Shakespeare, the grace and effectiveness of the art of poetry is superior to nature, and thus makes it timeless and eternal, just like his beloved.

The Anti War Movement Of The Vietnam War Essays - Free Essays

The Anti War Movement Of The Vietnam War Essays - Free Essays The Anti War Movement Of The Vietnam War The Anti-War Movement J,J,J,J, United States participation in the Vietnam War was a subject of much debate among the American public. While many Americans supported the United States involvement in the War, in agreement with the Government that American assistance was needed in order to stop the spread of Communism, other people felt that it was immoral for the United States to involve itself in another country's internal matters. The antiwar movement against Vietnam in the US from 1965-1971 was the most significant movement of its kind in the nation's history. Anti-war protesters were not confined to the young, radicals, intellectuals, and the disaffected. By 1968, [they] included many powerful individuals within the business and financial communities, the media, and the government itself ( McMahon 466). Also by 68, protesters numbered almost seven million, with more than half being white youths in the college. Students for a Democratic Society, (SDS), announced its opposition of the Vietnam War publicly in 1965. In a public announcement, they state their reasons for disagreement. We feel that the war is immoral at its root, that it is fought alongside a regime with no claim to represent its people, and that it is foreclosing the hope of making America a decent and truly democratic society.We are anxious to help and to change our country; we refuse to destroy someone elses country (McMahon 467). The SDS was not alone in their opposition. Civil-Rights leader, Martin Luther King, Jr., declared his opposition in 1967. He stated many reasons. it became clear to me that the war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at home. It was sending their sons and brothers and their husbands to fight and dieAs I walked among the desperate, rejected and angry young men, I have told them that Molotov cocktails and rifles would not solve their problemsBut, they asked, what about VietnamTheir questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today my own government (McMahon 471). One aspect of the anti-war movement were teach-ins. Teach-ins were mass public demonstrations, usually held in the spring and fall seasons. These well-publicized rallies made the antiwar effort more respectable. The White House was plagued by two wars: the war in Vietnam and the war at home. In October 1967, protesters marched on the Pentagon. This was one of the most significant events of the antiwar movement. Although the marchers were unable to get into the Pentagon, this demonstration had a direct influence on the redirection of American policy in Vietnam. The antiwar effort crippled Johnson's presidency. In 1968 he announced that he would not be running for re-election. The antiwar movement inadvertently helped Richard Nixon win the election. Once elected, Nixon was bothered with the antiwar movement. He was convinced that it prolonged the war. He could not understand how the current generation of young people could include brave young marines, hippies and draft-card burners. In May 1970, Nixon ordered an attack on Cambodian sanctuaries to destroy communist command-and-supply buildings. He also tried to contain the protest that he knew his action would provoke. His hopes of controlling the rally failed when poorly trained National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University, on May 4. This made the expected protests much worse than anyone in Washington could have foreseen. The wave of demonstrations on hundreds of college campuses paralyzed America's higher-education system. The Kent State tragedy ignited a nationwide campus disaster. Between May 4 and May 8, campuses experienced an average of 100 demonstrations a day, 350 campus strikes, 536 colleges shut down, and 73 colleges reported significant violence in their protests. On that weekend, 100,000 people gathered to protest in Washington. By May 12, over 150 colleges were on strike (Internet source). The overwhelming response to the invasion of Cambodia and the Kent State crisis soon became too much for President Nixon. On December 15, Nixon announced his intention to withdraw fifty thousand troops from Vietnam in 1970 Among the most convincing theories of the movement were that it

How to Write a Good Counteroffer Email

How to Write a Good Counteroffer Email Congrats! You got the job and it’s time for negotiations. You know you have to counter the first offer- that’s just good business sense. But perhaps you’re worried about being too aggressive and possibly losing the opportunity. You shouldn’t be. First, do your homework. Some companies are not willing to consider counteroffers. Maybe they have an established salary range that they’ve already maxed out for you. If you’re pressing forward, here are a few tips and strategies to help you get closer to the compensation you want.1. Think before you write.You’re not happy with the compensation package, and they seem open to negotiation. Do some research- find out what the average salary is for your equivalent position in that area. See what other commensurate companies are offering in the way of benefits and salary. Consider the whole package, including any relocation costs, sick days, vacation, family leave, telecommuting, etc.2. Know your va lue.Do some market research to determine what you should be making, given your skills and experience. Craft your best argument for a higher final offer. You’ll want to sell yourself with clear intel and reasons behind you for why you deserve a bump before signing. Look at local salary surveys, calculators, recruiters, colleagues, mentors, even LinkedIn groups and online research.3. Get time on your side.Buy yourself a couple of days â€Å"to think about the offer.† Don’t forget to emphasize your enthusiasm about the position so they don’t think you’ve lost interest. Show yourself to be thoughtful, not impulsive or anxious.4. Don’t be greedy.Don’t ask for more than is reasonable. If you ask for something within normal range, and you’re prepared to defend your ask, then don’t stand down and cave immediately. Let the process work as it should. And if you’re given what you ask, take it. Don’t try to then ask fo r even more.5. Go for it!Type your counter letter up in a standard business letter format. Put the employer’s information and your contact information in the header. Address the letter to your employer. Write an intro that emphasizes your interest and provides reasons why you’re excited and you think you’d be a good fit. Kill them with kindness. Then, in the body, include a short paragraph for every point of the original offer you wish to counter. Make sure to have done your homework and include appropriate reasons for why this is deserved. Then write a polite conclusion reemphasizing your keenness on the position and your respect for the company and their process. Offer, if you like, to meet in person to discuss. Sign it: â€Å"Respectfully yours.† And wait!6. Be ready to walk away.Don’t bluff. The last thing you want to do is put a number on the table and have them refuse to negotiate at all. If you say â€Å"I can’t work here for any les s than x,† and they don’t offer you x, then you have to be prepared to turn down the opportunity. If they are being completely unreasonable (i.e. they don’t have an established salary policy and are just playing hardball for no reason), then you might want to do this anyway.7. Be professional.Keep it classy and keep your tone measured and professional. Back up all of your asks with good solid reasons. Say ‘no’ nicely and learn to hear ‘no’ without going ballistic. Be as assertive as you need to be without becoming aggressive. Don’t be threatening, and don’t take things personally. It’s business, and a perfectly normal process.8. Listen more than you talk.If your process advances to face-to-face negotiations, pay attention to their body language and yours. Be commanding, but not pugnacious. Keep your mouth shut and be strong. The person who talks first often is the one who walks away from negotiations with the lesser end of the stick. And keep personal sob stories about finances to yourself.9. Get it in writing.If you succeed at getting a higher offer, make sure to get it in writing before you sign anything!

Acute Pancreatits Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Acute Pancreatits - Research Paper Example However, a study made by Thisted, et.al ( 2005 ) concluded that statins do not have a causative affect to pancreatitis, in fact â€Å"may even indicate a mild protective effect†. Pancreatitis also affect the young population but mostly caused by genetic disorders. Children can receive the sickness from the following causes: Kawasaki disease (rare disease in children that inflates red blood cells), Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (the body produces toxic substances that destroy red blood cells), Reye Syndrome (Brain damage as well as intestinal malfunctions linked to children who took aspirin to cure chicken pox and related sicknesses), Mumps, abdominal trauma, certain medications, cystic fibrosis (inherited disease; causes thick mucus to clog lungs and the digestive tract), and viruses. People with acute pancreatitis exhibit symptoms that are very evident in the afflicted patient. According to studies made by Praganov and Foramark ( 2006), the most common sign of acute pancreatitis manifested by 95% of the afflicted is pain which radiates from the back to the shoulder blades. Some of the symptoms include jaundice (skin or eyes turn yellow due to bilirubin left by dead red blood cells), fever, sweating, anxiety, abdominal pains, and nausea. Other possible symptoms of the disease are swelling of the abdomen, abdominal indigestion, hiccups, rashes, and gaseousness. However, it is always advisable to consult a physician since other diseases such as Hepatitis and pancreatic cancer can manifest the same symptoms. In succeeding discussions, this report would also discuss the various tests needed by a doctor to correctly diagnose acute pancreatitis. Technically, the pathophysiology of pancreatitis is not fully understood. It is a common clinical condition with varying severity; it can be mild or lethal to the victim. The earliest

Since the title is too long I will put it into instructions field as a Essay

Since the title is too long I will put it into instructions field as a file - Essay Example pecific aspects of the ECHR which have been violated in the case of her son Abel such that an application may be prepared by her, in order to petition for a court hearing before the European Council. Amy Hart is entitled to apply for such a hearing based on the following: â€Å"Article 34 – Individual applications: The Court may receive applications from any person, non-governmental organization or group of individuals claiming to be the victim of a violation by one of the High Contracting Parties of the rights set forth in the Convention or the protocols thereto. The High Contracting Parties undertake not to hinder in any way the effective exercise of this right†(ECHR, 2007). For thousands of years, kingdoms and governments all over the world, have been involved in information extraction techniques that have served only to degrade, humiliate, harm or kill human beings. As medical knowledge and our understanding of the human body has advanced, so has the human propensity to abuse that knowledge. In an age of heightened terrorism awareness, countries in almost every part of the globe have found themselves the focus of news broadcasts exposing detailed reports and photographs of human degradation in the name of anti-terrorism. The problem of terrorism has single handedly given rise to an equally malignant problem and that is the moral decay of democracies and dictatorships alike to the point of justifying the most heinous of human degradation and humiliation. While admittedly, terrorism is itself a monumental problem on a global scale at this point in time, it is also important to realize that tactics which violate human rights such as acts of torture and a bandon of due process only add to the overall problem at hand. The following is an accurate definition as recognized by international law, on what classifies as terrorism: â€Å"Efforts in the United Nations to achieve by consensus a comprehensive definition of terrorism have been pursued since 1996. (2)

“Complete, trusting surrender to God” Essay Example for Free

â€Å"Complete, trusting surrender to God† Essay Although the Qur’an, its sacred text, was only revealed to their Prophet Muhammad more than five centuries after the death of Christ, Muslims trace the beginnings of Islam to the time of Abraham. According to them, the series of revelations of the Qur’an which started in 610 CE in a cave in Mount Hira, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, marked only the renaissance of a religion which sank into insignificance when the people of Mecca rejected the monotheism preached by Abraham. The Islamic claim further states that being the original religion, it provided the foundations for the development of Judaism and Christianity. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Since the time of the first revelation in Mount Hira, Islam has rapidly grown to become the second-largest religious denomination in the world, next only to Christianity, claiming a following of almost twenty percent of the world’s population. However, its growth has been temporarily slowed down, particularly in the United States, by the effects of the American war against terrorism which is evidently directed against Muslims. This U. S. -orchestrated anti-terrorism war, coupled with the dearth of knowledge about Islam, has severely alienated the Muslims from the rest of the non-Muslim world. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Yusuf (n. d. ) said that majority of the Muslims are convinced that while the U. S. government has been blaming terrorism on Islam for years, it was the 9/11 incident which dealt the most telling blow on the credibility and reputation of their religion. This was because the international media was able to depict that many Muslims around the world rejoiced after that incident. The truth is, however, that majority of the Muslim world was saddened by that incident and the repercussions it caused. They would like to tell the world that terrorism is not an official policy of Islam and that, in fact, Muslims also consider terrorists as enemies of their religion. He laments the fact that When a crazy Christian does something terrible, everyone in the West knows it is the actions of a mad man because they have some knowledge of the core beliefs and ethics of Christianity. When a mad Muslim does something evil or foolish they assume it is from the religion of Islam, not because they hate us but because they have never been told by a Muslim what the teachings of Islam are all about. Muslims are also complaining about the way non-Muslims always confuse them with Arabs. According to them, while most Arabs are Muslims, less than 20% of Muslims have Arab blood. (Almuslimin. org) Allah is the only authority of this religion. Muhammad was only the messenger and prophet with whom he entrusted the sacred texts called the Qur’an in a series of revelations and who, three years after the first revelation occurred, preached them to the people according to his instruction and his will. However, Muhammad was the role model for all Muslims. His life story and his sayings were saved in the Hadith for every Muslim to learn from and emulate. The central teachings of Islam are oneness of God and of humanity; prophethood and the compass of Islam; human relationship to the divine; belief in the unseen life; and belief in the Last Judgment. (Fisher, 2005. Islam) Islam teaches that there is only one God. This is why the first words spoken to a Muslim infant are the words of the Shahadah – â€Å"la ilaha ill-Allah Muhammad-un Rasulu-llah† (â€Å"There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God†). God may be called by many names, but all the attributes assigned to those different names make up the totality of the One God. They contend that there must be absolute unity among all men of all races because they are all brothers under the one God, and no one race should consider itself the chosen race. Islam teaches that the individual should be one with God, therefore his or her thoughts and deeds should always be inspired by God. This oneness of God and of humanity was very emphatically expressed by Abu Hashim Madami, an Indian Sufi sage, when he said that â€Å"There is only one thing to be gained in life, and that is to remember God with each breath; and there is only one loss in life, and that is the breath drawn without the remembrance of God. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 373) All the prophets from Abraham to Jesus Christ are honored, but they maintain that Muhammad was the last prophet sent by God with the final message. This means, therefore, that the Qur’an sums up all the messages from God so Islam should include all religions, including Christianity and Judaism which also trace their roots to Abraham. They believe that God created the universe for a purpose and set down laws to govern everything. For this reason, man could live in peace only if he recognizes these laws and abide by them. They accept the existence of the angels, especially Gabriel, whom they credit with bringing the messages of God. They believe that Satan exists just as they believe that there are saints. For them, the Last Judgment means that dead Muslims are allowed some rest before being raised from the grave for the final reckoning, after which the sinners and the unbelievers are sent to hell. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Their basic practices consist of what they call the Five Pillars of Islam, namely: Beliefs and witness; Daily prayers; Zakat; Fasting; and Hajj. Every Muslim, without resorting to the use of force or intimidation, are obliged to spread the words of Islam so that other people may know about it, understand it, and use the knowledge to guide them in choosing their faith. Prayers should be recited five times a day while facing the direction of Mecca. It is believed that requiring every Muslim to face Mecca symbolizes unity among the devotees of Islam around the world, while the daily prayer emphasizes Islam’s teaching that every Muslim should remember God everyday of his or her life. Zakat, the third pillar, means â€Å"spiritual tithing and almsgiving. † Muslims are enjoined to help the poor by donating part of their annual income to charities of their choice. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, channels its contribution through the Islamic Relief Organization which aids people around the world regardless of their religion. Every year, the first Qur’anic revelation is celebrated with a month-long fasting called Ramadan. All able Muslims are required to abstain from â€Å"food, drink, sexual intercourse, and smoking† from dawn to dusk. Although fasting during Ramadan is an obligation, fasting, per se, is advised from time to time because it provides an individual with â€Å"a Transparent Soul to Transcend, a Clear Mind to think and a Light Body to move and act. † The last Pillar – the hajj – is a pilgrimage which is expected of every Muslim who is financially and physically capable even only once during their lifetime. Their pilgrimage destination is Mecca, where their holiest sanctuary, the Ka’bah, is located. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Muhammad, whose name was taken from the Arabic word hamada which means â€Å"to praise, to glorify,† was born in Mecca, Western Arabia, in 570 CE to Abd bin Al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. (Kikim Media. n. d. ) His parents were believed to be descendants of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian slave who mothered Abraham’s son, Ishmael. The story goes that Abraham fled to Mecca with Hagar and Ishmael after his wife, Sarah, also gave birth to a baby boy (Isaac) and became extremely jealous of Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham later built the Ka’bah, Islam’s holiest sanctuary and now the destination of pilgrims during the hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, with the assistance of his son, Ishmael. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) The birth, life, and death of Muhammad impacted the world of Islam differently. His birth in 570 CE also signaled the rebirth of Islam which sank into obscurity for centuries when the people of Mecca rejected Abraham’s monotheistic Qur’an religion. His life as a preacher which began three years after the start of the revelations resulted to a rejuvenated Muslim world. The flight of the Muslims to Medina (or the hijrah) which he orchestrated in order for them to escape persecution from the hands of the Qurayshites of Mecca was what strengthened Islam as soon as they had settled in Medina. This later enabled them to raise a strong army to capture Mecca from the Qurayshites. However, while he re-established Mecca as the holy sanctuary of Islam, Muhammad himself chose to live in Medina. While his birth signaled the rebirth of Islam and his life rejuvenated their religion, his death in 632 CE in Medina caused a split in the Muslim world between what we now call the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims because of the issue of succession. Most of the surviving Muslims believed that although Muhammad was able to tell his followers what to do after his death, he failed to appoint his successor. Thus, the majority decided to settle the issue of succession by election. However, there was a minority group who insisted that it was not true that Muhammad did not name his successor because of a report that some weeks before he died, Muhammad held his son-in-law ‘Ali’s hand and uttered the following words: â€Å"Whoever I protect, ‘Ali is also his protector. O God, be a friend to whoever is his friend and an enemy to whoever is his enemy. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 380) The issue of succession was ultimately decided according to the wishes of the majority – by election – but the two factions have never reconciled up to this day. The Shi’a Muslims now form the majority faction in Iran, while the Sunnis are the majority in â€Å"Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, northern African countries, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asian countries of the former Soviet Union, and Indonesia. † (page 378) Their place of worship is called a mosque. When I interviewed Bonsan Go, a student from Indonesia, he described a basic mosque as A square building with a small box-type space in front which serves as an extension. It has a dome on the center-top of the main building and a turret or a small ornamented tower or a tower-shaped projection on another building. Inside, you will fine a division (usually a length of fabric) which separates men from the women. There are no tables, chairs, or figurines inside the mosque. I thought, maybe, Mr. Go described a traditional mosque which used to be an Islamic architecture with a dome and one or two minarets. However, the more recent ones especially those constructed in the United States have chosen to go without the dome and the minarets. The more modern mosques have also done away with the curtain-like division which separates the men from the women. I have located one such mosque in Urbana, Illinois. A photo of this mosque is shown below: This is the Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center at 106 S. Lincoln, Urbana, Illinois. It is unmistakably an Islamic architecture with the arches found in front, but without the dome and minarets of olden mosques. Their website (http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) announces that the mosque holds congregational prayers five times during the day, the first session being at 5:45 in the morning and the last at 7:30 in the evening. The center also offers Arabic classes and is open to visitors any day. CIMIC Newsletter is published bimonthly. In my interview with Bonsan Go, I was able to gain some insights on how a lay Muslim understands and practices Islam. About the hajj, Mr. Go describes it as the â€Å"symbol of unity between the Muslim Ummah and the Oneness of Mankind. † According to him, this has to be done at least once in a lifetime and is very important because it is one of the five pillars of Islam. He said that the hajj is obligatory for all Muslims who can afford it financially and physically. It is also important that the money spent for the hajj comes from hard work and not from corruption. He also talked about the Sunnis and Shi’ites. He described the Sunnis as following the teachings of Muhammad, imitating his every actions and words while the Shi’ites believe that Hadhrat Ali was the real successor to Muhammad because he belonged to the family of Muhammad. He further said that the Shi’ites call their leader an imam while the Sunnis call their leader a caliph, just like they do in Indonesia where the great majority of the Muslims are Sunnis. On the question of marriage, he said that a Muslim is not obliged to have several wives. However, once a man decides to do so, he can only marry as much as four times and he is required to treat all of them equally and see to it that all his wives maintain harmonious relationships all around. The Muslims, according Mr. Go, have never worshipped Muhammad. It is Allah that they give praise to. He considers it very disturbing that most people tend to equate the position of Muhammad with the one who created him. He said that to worship Muhammad instead of Allah is considered a great sin in Islam. On jihad, this was what he said: â€Å"Jihad is not a declaration of war against the enemies of Islam but a striving and a struggle in the path of God. Commitment to God involves commitment to sacrifice one’s time, energy and wealth to promote the right cause. It may be necessary at times to give one’s life in order to preserve TRUTH. † Before we parted ways, he told me that he is deeply saddened by the war on terror being waged by the United States and is targeted at Muslims. He said that the U. S. government has categorized all Muslims as terrorists and as such, must not be trusted. He said that the claim that Islam, as a religion, supports the activities of terrorists is definitely not true because even a Muslim like him hates terrorists. In the study of the beliefs and teachings of Islam and Christianity, Fisher (2005) has shown us the similarities between the two religions. They are both monotheistic, they have their own prophets (Jesus and Muhammad), and both religions trace their roots to Abraham. Islam and Christianity teach their followers to treat their fellowmen with fairness and both religions profess anti-violence sentiments. The Muslims are making this especially clear at every opportunity, enough reason for them to feel very badly towards the U. S. -led anti-terror war. The central beliefs of Islam are also very identical to the central beliefs of Christianity: they both believe in the brotherhood of men, in the angels, saints, even in Satan, and in the Last Judgment. If a split occurred between the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims after the death of Muhammad, a great schism likewise rocked the Christian world when the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church parted ways in 1054. Sadly, however, Fisher has also shown us that both Islam and Christianity have chosen the options of wars of aggression and occupations during the early days for the purpose of spreading their doctrines and widen their spheres of influence. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam) However, if Fisher (2005) has shown that Islam and Christianity have many similarities, they also differ in some aspects. The first difference is rather basic. While Islam revolves around Allah as its God and only authority, Christianity, as a faith, is based â€Å"on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus. † Muslims disagree with Christians in this regard. They do not believe that Jesus is a son of God. To them, Jesus, like Muhammad, was only a prophet and messenger of God. Another glaring difference between the two religions occurred in connection with the death of Jesus and Muhammad. While Muhammad died peacefully in his bed because of some illness, his death divided the Muslim world into the Shi’a and the Sunni Muslims. Jesus, on the other hand, died a violent death (he was tortured and crucified), but his death strengthened and unified his people. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam). References Almuslimin. org. (n. d. ). Who Is Muhammad? (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from:http://drupalmalaysia. org/Islam/Muhammad) CIMIC. (n. d. ). Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) Fisher, M. P. (2005). Christianity. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp. 284-361). Prentice-Hall. Fisher, M. P. (2005). Islam. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp, 362-416). Prentice-Hall. Kikim Media. (n. d. ). The Life of Muhammad. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. pbs. org/muhammad/timeline. html. shtml) Yusuf, S. H. (n. d. ). A Time for Introspection. (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from: http://www. masud. co. uk/ISLAM/misc/shhamza_sep11. htm) .