A lesson from Internet Communications

Have you ever regretted sending or forwarding an email to others, especially if the email contains some information that you thought would be useful to others but later you found out it would not. If your answer is “yes”, then please share with me your solution for fixing the problem. Otherwise, I have experienced a small incident that could be of interest to you.

I learned a valuable lesson about email communication topic this morning.  I found an article “NGÔN NGỮ CHỈ CHỎ, Ráng nhớ để biết và tránh nhửng hiểu lầm đáng tiếc” on the Cao Bach Hac Vietnamese blogger. This article gave some basic definitions and pictures of how one might use their hands for bad language in some countries.  It also reminded readers to remember these meaningful definitions and avoid using them, especially when communicating with people from other countries.  I sent a copy of this article to my families and friends without realize that this article could cause a huge misunderstanding and mislead them in communication. And then I had a miserable day.  Instead of receiving any thank you letters from my family about the article, I got an earful from uncles, aunties, and sisters about my use of language.

First, my sister called and with an angry voice she asked, “Are you mad at me? Why did you send me the email about bad language?” I was confused and shocked by her accusing me of bad language. After a few seconds I realized that the email that I sent last night had caused a huge misunderstanding between my sister and me.  I had to explain to my sister that my main goal for sending the article is to help my family to avoid any wrong communications or implication with people from other countries by incorrect use of their fingers or hands. Sometimes, without knowing it, what one considers good turns out to be bad in another country or culture.  For example: in United State when a person gives you a thumbs up that means good but in Thailand it is considered  bad language. Therefore a thumbs up will never be used in Thailand to avoid any fights. When a person holds his/her fingers up to indicate two or five, that jesture will be considered bad language in Australia and Greece.  My sister understood my points only after I explained these ideas to her.

 However, the battle of misunderstanding about this article was not over yet. At least five similar emails from my aunts and uncles were waiting for me in my mail-box. Each person had chosen different words to complain about from my email but they all had the same opinion. To avoid any more headaches from the rest of my family, I had to send a clarification email to everyone on the mailing list. The email contained my intention and goals for sending the article. I also informed them that I was not trying  to offend  anyone in particular nor I was trying  to learn any bad language, and lastly, I requested them not to misconstrue  my idea any further. I assured them that I had no intention to mislead them in anyway. Also, I apologized to them for any inconveniences that my email had caused.  I had to write this email in Vietnamese, otherwise my families would complain that I did not respect them. For Vietnamese people, nothing can repair the problem if one is accused of not respecting one’s the elders.

 After this apology, I hoped that the complaining about my email would  stop and my mistake would be forgiven. I have learned that words can be twitched around and caused huge misunderstandings for others.  I must be careful what I say or send to others. Sometimes a good thought or advice can become a nightmare, especially if one lives in another culture. Wars can start if words are incorrectly used. For the rest of my life, I will never forget this experience nor my innocent mistake.   I want to share this story with you so you can learn from my small error.

Memory of Thanksgiving

This year, my Thanksgiving holiday weekend was more relaxing than last year’s because I didn’t have to prepare the family’s dinner myself this time.  On Thanksgiving Day, my entire family was gathered on my younger sister’s little farm.  That morning, I arrived at my sister’s house earlier than my other family members to help my sister to prepare the dinner.  We divided cooking tasks into two parts; my younger sister was in charge of all the main and desert dishes, and all the side and appetizer dishes were my responsibility. My sister marinated the twenty-five pound--turkey while I cleaned up, cut the potatoes into small pieces and boiled them to make mashed potato and potato salad. After we completed these tasks, my sister prepared the stuffing and I washed cucumbers, carrots, lettuces and fruits, and then cut them into small pieces to prepare the salad dish.  I prepared the cranberry sauce: first I washed cranberries, and then I heated a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, and dissolved some sugar in a glass of orange juice. I added the cranberries and cook them until the cranberries started to pop. This took me about 10 minutes. I then poured the sauce—which thickens as it cools— in a bowl. /Here’s an interesting fact: Cranberry sauce thickens as it cools.   I washed green beans to make green bean casserole and then I prepared the coleslaw dishes.   We finished preparing the Thanksgiving dinner around two thirty that evening. My sister’s guests and family members arrived while my sister and I were setting up the table.  We began to sit down to eat at around 4PM.  After the dinner, everyone went down to the family room and played games such as domino, bingo, video games, and ping-pong until midnight. Guests and half my family members had gone home, my sister and I cleaned the house until five AM on Friday morning and then we immediately went shopping (without sleeping!) from six in the morning to three o’clock that evening.  The weather was warm and nice, but I was too tired to enjoy it.  I slept from five-to-five on Saturday.

On Sunday morning, my family and I went to church from nine until noon. After that, I went to the Home Depot store to buy some white paint to paint all the doors inside the house. I began to paint from 3PM until 5AM on Monday morning (again without sleeping!), and then I went to school. 

Memory of Christmas

My holiday this year was more relaxing than last year because I didn’t have to prepare and host large family dinners.  Every year before, I had to cook dinner for 20 people and clean up before and after Christmas and New Year parties.
 Three days before Christmas, the house was always spotless and organized before my family members arrived.  All guest bedrooms were clean and ready to use.  The Christmas tree was put up in the family room, and decorated with lights and ornaments.  All Christmas gifts were wrapped and placed under the tree. Christmas lights were hung around the house.  Games were set on the table and computer. New movies were rented ahead of time.   The oven was on half of the day and warm, fresh bread, cakes and cookies were put on plates and in jars.  Foods were stocked in the freezer, refrigerator and on shelves.       My sisters, brothers and nephews arrived the day before Christmas.  The house was crowed, noisey, and filled with laughs and screams by children and their parents.  My uncle was always laughing and saying, “Let children have some fun; after all it’s the holiday” and my sisters replied, “Ok uncle.”  After the dinner we went to church and got home around 11PM so the children could go to bed before midnight.
On Christmas day, I got up earlier than the rest of my family’s members, prepared breakfast and set the table.  My uncle usually came down the stairs around six o’clock and opened the front door to pick up the newspaper.  Then he poured himself a small cup of hot coffee and sat at the head of the dining table to read the news. The smell of coffee and food woke the rest of my family up.  Children ran down stairs and my uncle said “Good morning everyone and how was your sleep?  Everyone please sit down for breakfast.”  After breakfast the whole family sat in front of the Christmas tree, ate cookies, drank tea and opened gifts.  My nephews were happy when they got the gifts, which were on their lists.  My sisters and brothers exchanged gifts as well.  I always surprised my family with the gifts that they wanted.  I was happy to see their smiley faces and eyes lighting up, and it was like music to my ears when they said, “How did you know I needed this” after they opened their gift.  I usually replied, “A little bird told me, and it was on the Santa Claus list.”   We laughed because my youngest nephew thought that his gifts were sent to him by Santa Claus.   My uncle was always the last person to open his gifts.  My nephews, and youngest brother and sister took turns to bring gifts to their great uncle.  I waited until everyone opened and put their gifts away before I let them vote for the best family’s holiday plan.   My uncle only voted when there was a tie .  As a result, the family’s holiday plan was different for each year. 
The family’s holiday plan for last year was: we would spend the rest of Christmas day at home.  For the next two days, my uncle, brothers and oldest nephew would be skiing on Loveland Pass.  My nephew had never skied before therefore, he needed to learn it.  My two nephews, sisters and I would go after Christmas shopping.  We needed to burn some fat after we ate all the sweet foods, and also needed buy some extra, beverages and foods for the New Year celebration.   My sister and I would work on the dinner menu for the New Year party. My whole family would visit the Denver Zoo, and Museum of Nature and Science on the 28^th and 29^Th.  We watched movies, played games and shared some family’s memory stories at home on the 31th and New Year’s Day. The 30^th would be the family’s floating day.   Everybody was happy with this plan; the tough part of my holiday was done. 
I had to cook Christmas dinner for the whole family and guests. , My uncle and sisters were invited to join us around 3:30.  Both my sisters had to help me in the kitchen, so I divided cooking tasks into three parts.  My youngest sister was responsible for cleaning breakfast dishes, washing vegetable and fruits, and cutting them.   My younger sister was responsible for all side dishes, such as mashed potatoes, potato salad, and egg nog.  I was responsible for ham, roast chickens, and soup.  Meanwhile, my brothers helped set the dinner table, arranged the flowers, candles, wines, and chairs.   My uncle babysat my three nephews, so he usually told them stories to keep them quiet and motivated until their nap time.    
When our guests arrived, my brothers always opened the front door and greeted them, and then showed them to the dining table. My uncle usually shook hands and welcomed our guests in the dining room.  I was always the last one to meet my family’s guests because I had to make sure all the foods were properly brought to the dining table before I joined my family for dinner.   My uncle and sisters shared with our guests the memories about their last year’s holidays while we ate deserts.   Some guests stayed behind to play games with my uncle and brothers until midnight.  My nephews showed their Christmas gifts to our guests’ children.   My sisters and I cleaned up and washed dishes until eight that evening.  We were exhausted and tired; however, the smile on my uncle and family member’s face warmed our hearts and we enjoyed it.   
This year, my sisters and brother came home on the day after Christmas: we went out to a Chinese restaurant for dinner, we exchanged and opened gifts, and we talked for a few hours and then went home. Surely, there was no cooking and cleaning up after dinner, and also there was no laughing and cheering at my home either.    My Christmas this year was relaxing but also short.  I hope your Christmas day is more enjoyable than mine.

Remembering of My Grandmother

Everyone has their own personal moon, a special part of their life that touches their very soul.  This moon always shines on their faces; it’s always there in time of trouble, ready to listen. Sometimes the clouds try to hide it, but the moon is still there, penetrating the blanket to the faces below. In my life, this special noon is my grandmother.

My grandmother was more than just a traditional Vietnamese grandmother to me – she was the mother I never really had. Like the moon, her presence was constant; she was always there when I needed her.  She instilled in me important family values, giving me direction as a light on my path, guiding my feet.  Shaping me like a lump of clay into refined worked of art.  She radiated her joy and happiness through her smiles, lighting my dark world, never withholding her love from me. She always sang me to sleep, staying by my side like a beam of light on my pillow. When I was sick, she took good care of me and poured out her blessings. When I was upset, she comforted me with soothing words carried the wind.

But one day, her light dimmed like the fading light of sunset and it became a cold winter night. She knew that her time on earth was setting and that her light would soon disappear.  So she called all of her children to her side and imparted on as her last words, “ Cac con phai thuong yeu nhau va giup do lan nhau” which means “ my chidren must love and care for each other.” Everyone quietly, looked at each other and said, “we promise.”  Then, my grandma said to me “Con phai hua voi ba mot deu.” which means “ you must promise me one thing ..”, I quietly gazed on her face and she said, “ con phai di hoc, hoc cho gioi va vao dai hoc de lam hanh dien gia dinh” which means “ you must go to school, study hard and go to college, so that you can make the family happy and proud of you.”  I looked straight into her eyes and said “I promise.” She said, “Chau ngoan cua ba” which mean “that’s my grandchild!” and the n she closed her eyes, never to open them again.
After all these years, I am still working on my promise.  The day, when I graduate from Colorado State University will be the happiness of my life, because I will have finished my promise to my grandma. I can still see her radiating light. I know she is still somewhere out there, helping me to focus on school and fulfill my promise to her. As long as the moon still shines on my face the memory of my “mother” will always last in my heart.

Self Evaluation Paper

This is my self-evaluation paper.  I am going to explain how my writing has changed since the first day of class to the last essay, and also some of my strengths and weaknesses as a writer. 

Before I enrolled into Eng121 course, I knew how to write an essay, but my strengths were limited. My first and second essays were improperly punctuated, had a weak body structure, and fused sentences.  Even though I tried my best but sometimes I could not succeed in getting my point across clearly. I have a many weaknesses; one of them is the language barrier because my first language is Vietnamese therefore, sometime it could be difficult for me to understanding English. I found it quite frustrating when I have a lot of spelling problem and limitation of vocabulary to express my thought or feeling correctly.

Through this English class and personal reading experiences I have gained an appreciation for literature and have been able to relate to each experience by responding with understanding, sensitivity, and insight. My English improved dramatically through reading many journal entries, essays and novel,   and various open class discussions.  I learned many new words, idioms, grammar structures and expressions in this class. The course deals with reading, writing, and teaching how to use grammar properly, my vocabulary has definitely increased.  I also have gained the knowledge that correcting each draft brings my paper one step closer to constructing a well-organized and perfect.  My first strong point as a student in English class was critically evaluating a novel or an article that we had previously read.  I felt that I excelled the most in those assignments because expressing my opinion on paper along with critiquing was one of my better strengths. My second strong point was participating in open class discussions; I tried to firmly explain my opinions to my classmates without disrespecting their own beliefs. One of my favorite assignments was when we had the opportunity to pick an article out of a nationally known newspaper or website of our choice, read and critically analyze it; this assignment introduced to the class how to begin a critical review of an article or an essay. I received a high grade on the assignment and have enjoyed the lessons ever since. 

My plan for self improvement is that I will continue to read and practice my writing essay skills.   Hopefully, one day I will achieve my personal goals as a writer and have better communication skills. 

Health Care Reform - Position Paper

Health Care Reform in United State

There are many Americans that do not have health care in the United States. To be exact forty-five million Americans are uninsured. Health care should not only be offered, but affordable for all.  Some of the biggest problems with our health care system right now are the unbearable cost of insurance premiums, denial of services due to costs or loss of coverage because of lay off or changing of jobs. Thousands of families, who live at low-income jobs, can’t afford health care and also thousands of students in college who fear sickness or injury because health care is unaffordable for them at this time. Families exhaust their savings trying to provide medical expenses for disabled relatives. Ultimately, if current trends continue, the question is not should everyone have health care, but will anyone have health care. There is no easy way to solve the growing health care problem in this country.

Health care economic system presents many challenges for consumer.  This paper addresses and discusses the reasons why United State should have a universal healthcare system, and reveal the issue behind Americans faces without a universal plan.  My argument is based on these major issues: the people involved and their experiences, a variety of groups' opinions, the political background, issues of cost, and comparisons. After taking into account these arguments, the readers should have a full understanding of why we should or should not adopt the universal healthcare system.  Currently, Managed care is the most common form of health insurance in the United States, and provides more a cost efficient coverage than paying a fee-for-service charge but also a very complicated system.  The advantages of managed care to the consumer are 75 to 80 percent medical expenses covered and 20 to 25 percent deductible. The consumers under managed care coverage would only need to make their monthly premium payment and co- payments. Managed care makes health care more affordable to the consumers. The disadvantages of it would be the consumers only able to see caregivers affiliated with the managed care organization, having to pay co-pay every visit, rising premiums, under treatment, and too much red tape to get necessary treatments.

     There are so many problems with our society’s health care. Everyone wants to find a solution, but no one has been able to come up with one yet. Many different things have been tried, but none have put a cease to the exorbitant costs, which most believe to be the main problem.

There are five issues when it comes to the health care cost rising. The first is prescription drugs, second is the increase of technology advances, third is the aging population, fourth is cost of hospital services and doctor fees, and fifth the increase of fear in medical litigations against doctors malpractice.  In order to prove the above issues of increases, the story starts with Vui Nguyen, my family’s friend who was sick with a terminal illness, Lung cancer.  The cost of different type of scans and other tests, CT scan (computed tomography), PET scan (positron emission tomography), MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), and Bronchoscopy to diagnose and confirm her cancer was 20000 dollars. The cost of chemotherapeutic drugs to treat her cancer was 3000 dollars per day.  According to the Controversies in Lung Cancer guide book an estimate of the cost of common chemotherapeutic drugs in Lung cancer was 2889 dollars per dose [1]. Tim Bonfield, the author of Hospital Costs Stays Vary Widely article, said that the Average hospital charges for stay can range from $4,600 to more than $11,000 per day [2].  Vui’s health insurance would compensate 80 percent and she paid 20 percent of her medical cost; “I feel lucky to have a good health insurance plan” she said.   Sometime hospital and doctor fees are not easy for consumer to understand and swallow, and rising faster than ever before.  This issue has been discovered by Michael Finney, the author of Financial Nightmare Of Hidden Hospital Fees article, “Don was thrown from his bike and knocked unconscious. He eventually ended up inside an ambulance where he received care and made phone calls canceling that night's dinner plans. After a few tests, some cuts and bruises were attended too, and he was on his way. The real hurt came when he received the hospital bill.  “For the two hours and forty-five minutes I was there, the bill was $24,000 some odd dollars. And I just couldn't understand it.” There were charges for supplies, EKG and the like, all expensive, but understandable. Then there is this, "trauma activation" - that's being ready for Don's arrival. A cost of $12,420. The hospital says "the activation fee is not a time or resource-based fee." Don has insurance. So the bill is discounted, then his company pays its share. Still Don has a bill of $6,000. The hospital, however, is offering a generous repayment plan.” [3] Citizens with insurance are affected because they must pay overpriced hospital fees.

What happen to people who are uninsured or underinsured? They will require pay up-front 80 percent of all the service frees. This story was public on The Shocking Truth About Upfront Hospital Fees article by Sid Kirchheimer, “After Dave Williams learned in April that the mass in his neck was malignant, his doctor referred him to a local cancer center. At his appointment, he was stunned at what he heard. “They said, ‘We’re looking at $30,000 worth of treatment, and we need $20,000 upfront,’ ” says Williams, 62, of Beeville, Texas. “I said, ‘I don’t have that kind of money.’ ” For the retired landscape designer, the hospital’s demand was an especially heavy blow, since he had recently paid off $273,000 in out-of-pocket costs for his ex-wife’s care for ovarian cancer (his employer-sponsored health plan refused to cover her because she had cancer when he enrolled). “I became poor trying to save her, but she died,” says Williams, who now lives in a trailer on a friend’s property. In his case, he applied for “charity care” at other hospitals but was rejected because he has saved about $10,000 in a 401(k). “They all asked for a lot of money, upfront, before they would do anything to help me,” says Williams, who is still exploring his options.”  [4] These showed the differences in prices between the costs in hospital admissions for people with fee-for-service plans and those without insurance.

 It is hard to imagine life without health insurance; especially, if you have any type of medical problem that requires treatment.  Doctors, physicians and surgeons are only willing to put out a big effort if you have insurance and money to go under extensive medical treatment.  Example: what happens if you or members of your family have a terminal illness and requires an operation or surgery, but does not have health insurance to cover the procedure? What happens if a lack of medical insurance prevents you or your family from seeing a doctor, which could result in health problems that had not been identified but could have been treated before they became life threatening? These situations may seem far-fetched, but they could happen to people who lack health coverage every day.

Ten years ago, as a college student I had to pinch pennies to make it through school; therefore, every last penny counts when my financial situation was tied. I did not have enough left to pay for health insurance. My health insurance would cost 250 dollars per month. Unlike most college students I was over the age of 23 and could not be covered by my parents insurance.  During the last semester of my senior year I noticed that my stomach hurt after each meal but I hid from my family and avoided to see doctor because I did not have enough money to pay for any service.  My health condition continued to get worst until few weeks after my graduation and luckily by that time I found a part time job in the research center at Colorado State University; during the lab experiment I almost collapsed and decided to see the doctor to check out my health problem.  At the doctor office, a nurse collected my blood, ran some tests and reports my test result back to the doctor who reviewed and called the hospital; set up an appointment for my colon or colorectal surgery for the next morning.  How scared and panicked I was while the doctor was unhappy with my diagnostic results and said “your health situation could be prevented early, and why didn’t you come in for check up when you first noticed of the problem.” Quickly a thought and question went through my mind, how bad was it and how could I pay for this surgery?  I was not paid any attention to the doctor’s criticized complaint about my reason for not seeing him earlier to prevent this situation.   Finally I calmed down and told the doctor that I did not have health insurance because I only worked part time.  He said, “You can have out-patient hospital surgery, hospital have a loan program and you could sign up and pay back the loan later.”  I did not have any other choice, followed the doctor’s advice by borrowing 27 thousand dollars and having my colon surgery with out-patient hospital surgery option.  While researching health care information to support my thesis of why should we have universal healthcare system in America, I realized that all my pains throughout 4 months of college could be avoided if I had health insurance to explore the problem earlier. I believe a single payer health care system or national health care system would provide a number of benefits. It would cut the overall costs of health care and decrease the amount of major diseases.

The current status of health care in United State is inefficient and change is needed but there are conflicting opinions on how drastic the change should be. From a political standpoint, democrats believes that health care is a basic right and should be guaranteed to every American; while republicans feels that it is difficult enough to pay their current health care plan premiums and to try create a plan to compensate for everyone.  Individuals’ views to this are a hot topic and an issue that will be heavily discussed on the next few years.  There are many reasons why health care system should or should not be changed.  The main concern that everyone heads toward is money, and wants to save money just in different ways.

Last week, President Obama signed health care reform into law. The goals of health care reform are to cut medical costs, make the delivery of health care more efficiently, and to promote preventive medicine, and expand primary care for everybody.  The new bill requires all Americans be covered by health insurance, and also is the first major change in the United States insurance system in decades. Insurers will be no longer allowed to deny coverage to individuals with pre-existing conditions; and young adults will be able to stay on their parents’ plans until the age of 26. These changes must be managed to insure that high quality care remains at the forefront of medical care.   While these changes are positive in many ways, but also create concerns among both the health care consumer and provider. One problem with implementing the Universal Health Care system is the issue of fairness of payment from each individual. For instance, there is a man who works out regularly, eats healthy, doesn’t drink or smoke and a man who smokes, drinks and is obese; are they expected to pay or be taxed the same for the same care? What about the difference in gender? Is a man more susceptible to injury or disease than woman? How do Americans pay for health care?

Everyone has an opinion on health care. One thing is clear of how we want to have a better health care system which is cost effective to the nation.   In my opinion, I think health insurance is one of the nation top problems, the premiums are rising and many small businesses just cannot afford it. Many Americans end up not having health insurance. We need to find some way to make sure that every citizen of the United States is able to have affordable healthcare for themselves, and their families.  I believe our country could benefit greatly from a universal health care program, if given the proper time to develop a comprehensive plan. However, if a weak plan is implemented too early, a new problem could develop that is far more a problem than the one we face now.   I also think the cost of health care would be reduced if we apply home care program where patients don’t have to stay in hospital, prevent insurers from overcharging doctors for their malpractice insurance, compare hospitals and doctors prices before arrive at their office but this would require the detailed publication of cost from both hospitals and doctors, and travel oversea for any diagnosis or surgery.  According to the Healthcare Fees article, “A hip replacement in the US can cost upwards of $43,000. Overseas it can cost as little as $7,100.” [5]

Work Cited

1.       Controversies in Lung Cancer book: Copy of text (http://books.google.com/books?id=nrgM-L7oytQC&pg=PA510&dq=lung+cancer+medicine+cost&hl=en&ei=Ofu0S7OcEdHdnAf21N2KDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CEYQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=lung%20cancer%20medicine%20cost&f=false )

2.       Hospital costs, stays vary widely. Copy of text: http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1999/03/28/loc_hospital_costs_stays.html

3.       Financial Nightmare Of Hidden Hospital Fees.  http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/7_on_your_side&id=3527613

4.       The Shocking Truth About Upfront Hospital Fees, Copy of text (http://bulletin.aarp.org/yourhealth/caregiving/articles/cash_before_care_0.html)

5.       Healthcare Fees: http://www.healthcarefees.com/

References:
http://pc.patientadvocate.org/briefs.php
http://www.aetna.com/about/aoti/aetna_perspective/uninsured_college_students.html
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/OnCall/story?id=6986420&page=1

Response paper- “Now What?” essay, from The New Yorker

The “Now What?” essay begins with a public memory and history of President Lyndon Johnson signed Medicare into law on July 30, 1965.  It describes what kind of issues President Lyndon Johnson faced after he signed the bill and his resolution to overcome any difficulty for the bill to survive.   Soon after Medicare bill passed into law the American Medical Association waged a war trying to stop the program and doctors weren’t to give up the fight again the socialized medicine.  Ten thousand physician members of the Ohio Medical Association declared that it would refuse Medicare. Many hospitals, especially in the South, were segregated and the law required them to integrate in order to receive Medicare dollars. Alabama’s Governor George Wallace was among those who encouraged resistance. Two months before coverage was to begin, half the hospitals in a dozen Southern states had still refused to meet Medicare certification.  Hundreds of thousands of elderly and black patients would have found their hospitals and doctors’ offices closed to them. Johnson recognized the threat and outsmarted his challengers by sweet-talk and compromised with the doctors, giving the A.M.A a seat on the advisory council that oversaw rules and working with it on a series of thirty “improving” amendments to the legislation. President Johnson was not compromised with the hospitals, however Medicare became possible because hospitals decided to abandon segregation rather than lose federal dollars.

This essay also points out some of the problem that President Obama will be facing after he signed health reform into law last week. Even though this bill could prove as historic as Medicare but it battle has just begun.  History could be repeated itself; however, this time the environment and situation are different because both the A.M.A and hospital associations were support of the legislation, the public was dropped and most insurers favored the bill. President Obama’s opponents come from party politics. Conservatives are casting the November midterm elections as a vote on revoking the health reform law, and also may take advantage of the administrative difficulties of creating state insurance exchanges and insistence that health reform is unaffordable. If they regain the power then the health reform would be banded. The best way to protect reform is to prove the doubters wrong.  The cost of insurance has increased dramatically over the past decades, far exceeding the general rate of inflation in most years.  According to Atul Gawande, “In 1965, health care consumed just six per cent of U.S. economic output; today, the figure is eighteen per cent. Nearly all the gains that wage earners made over the past three decades have gone to paying for health care. Its costs are curtailing all other investments in the economy, and, if they continue to rise as they have been doing—twice as fast as inflation—the reform’s subsidies not to mention America’s prosperity will indeed prove unsustainable. The reform package emerged with a clear recognition of what is driving costs up: a system that pays for the quantity of care rather than the value of it. This can’t continue.”  The health reform bill only survives and resistance is defeated if our local communities and clinicians would be participated.

Atul Gawande’s essay on the health care reform law is targeted everyone in United State.  People with or without health insurance is favored the bill and wondering what will be the next step? Can the bill survive? How can we pay for it?  Insurance companies and doctors will find a way to work around and fight against the bill because it will cut into their profits.  Obama administration and democrats hopefully would work together to find  resolution to defeat their challengers and protect the bill to win the November Midterm election; while republicans would be used every parliamentary tool available to try to revoke health care bill and  regain the power of the house.  Why I am not surprised to see this battle between two political parties because Politicians on both sides will do anything to secure contributions and funding.  The main thing that both sides head towards is money and wants to save money just in different ways. Most conservatives are against this reform because they are rich and don’t want pay more taxes to fund this plan.

Everyone in America wants to be healthy, but it is very difficult when many Americans cannot afford health insurance. The Health Care system is believed by most people as a need for change because of the problems that the system faces today cannot be handled. Every month, 2 million Americans lose their insurance. 37 million Americans have no insurance and another 22 million have poor coverage. Losing or changing a job often means losing insurance.  Becoming ill or living with a chronic medical condition means losing insurance coverage or not being able to obtain it.  Long-term care coverage is inadequate.  Families exhaust their savings trying to provide medical expenses for disabled relatives.   Problems like these are issues that politicians are constantly working to come up with a solution but no one has been able to create with a perfect one yet. President Obama proposed Universal health care plan to revolutionize medical health insurance which basic health needs can be paid by a single government payer. The goals of this system are to cut medical costs, make the delivery of health care more efficient, and to promote preventive medicine, health, and primary care. While these changes are positive in many ways, they are also creating concerns among both the health care consumer and provider.

In my opinion, I think that increase in medical proceedings is one of the most important factors of health care crisis. However, our current health system is based on money. Health Insurance is one of the nation top problems, the cost is rising for premiums, and many businesses just cannot afford it.  Most employees rely on their employers to provide them with health insurance; however, most employers are hiring part time employees, therefore not qualified for benefits, like health insurance. From this problem a majority of Americans on nationwide basis do not have health insurance. This brought up a huge issue at congressional debates, but little is done about it. We need to find some way to make sure that every citizen of the United States is able to have affordable healthcare for themselves, and their families.

Through some examples and evidences that Atul Gawande presented in her essay I learned that health care is a very unpopular issue, as fixing it would require taxing on wealthy and an issue that many governments cannot afford to touch. It is also not as easy as the political experts might have you believe or issue driven as the media might try to convince you. It’s a difficult plan with far reaching consequences that must be weighed.  Health care reform has been addressed and recognized of these issues. The current party in power finds it difficult to pass unpopular legislation that it could be held accountable for.  The fight over health care reform shows, the political atmosphere of 2010 resembles neither 1965. 

With healthcare reform passed last week, the next big legislative battle will be over financial regulation reform. This is hot political topic and an issue that will be heavily discussed for the next few months. From the politicians point, there are two ways of viewing the health care reform cost issue.  One, Mr. Obama opponents remains of the insistence that health-care reform is unaffordable to win the Midterm election to regain the power of the house, and the other, Obama administration must defeat their doubters and protect the reform.  From my point of view, Republicans are not backing up President Obama with healthcare reform because they think that healthcare is a Democratic issue, but they are wrong. Healthcare is a nationwide issue. It seems that Republicans currently in Congress could not come up with any plan to resolve healthcare problem; but will not stop fighting and preventing Democrats and President Obama from having a political victory of healthcare reform even though it already has been passed. Republicans are satisfied with the way healthcare is now, they just want to use the health care reform cost issue as a tool to achieve their goal of win the Midterm election. The good news is that American realizes the cost of insurance having increased dramatically over the past fourth decades.  The current state of health care in America is inefficient or useless and change is needed but there are conflicting opinions on how drastic the change should be.  Many people believe that the bill will be a good thing and help many Americans stay healthy; while some believe the bill will not improve anything except wasting money and the cost to maintain the reform is too high.    When it comes to the U.S government it is no surprise that the cost of healthcare has been an upfront issue.

Everyone has an opinion and regardless of which side you take, one thing is clear; we want to have a better health care system which is costly efficient to the nation.  The goal of “Now what” essay is to provide an overview of some of the different ideas and the readers can form their own opinion on the new battle of health care reform and how it can be defeated.  It is our responsibility to ensure that our legislatures work on behalf of us not on the insurance and pharmaceutical companies’ side. I believe our country could benefit greatly from a universal health care program, if given the proper time to develop a comprehensive plan. However, if a weak plan is implemented too early, a new problem could develop that is far more a problem than the one we face now.

Words cited:

1.       Now What?, Copy  of essay ( http://www.newyorker.com/talk/comment/2010/04/05/100405taco_talk_gawande?printable=true)

References:

2.       http://www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/2009/02/health_in_crisis.html

3.       http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1828&dat=19860710&id=_E0gAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tKYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6606,4525903

4.       http://moneywatch.bnet.com/economic-news/blog/maximum-utility/who-benefits-from-health-care-reform/539/

Frankenstein -Literary Analysis Paper

Knowledge

The word “knowledge” was recurring many times throughout Frankenstein novel and attracted or forced the reader to find out the true definition of it.  Curiously, I decided to look up the definition of knowledge from the Webster's Dictionary.  It defines, “Knowledge: n. Understanding gained by actual experience; range of information; clear perception of truth; something learned and kept in the mind.” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)   I realized this word is very straightforward, but has many useful and different meanings to all of us. It is also powerful tool to determine and control the result of our judgment. “Knowledge consists in recognizing the difference between good and bad decisions”.  (Knowledge Intellectual understanding)  This statement seems to be one of the simple answers to the question of ‘what is knowledge?’ 

            Knowledge can be powerful if we use it wisely and properly, but its unwisely use may convey a harmless rumor or cause awful consequences. The novel, Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, was an interesting story with many comparisons of the great powers in life. It contains many themes of our society today. It contrasts science and literary, technology and human, life and death, and most importantly knowledge and ignorance.  It presents knowledge in both negative and positive ways.

In Frankenstein novel, three characters were used to search for one thing in common or important to them, the knowledge. Sadly the results of their search were completely different than they expected or anticipated.  Walton, blinded by his ambition, believed that search for knowledge of the route to the North Pole would bring fame to his name, but learned that he has ended up only with the danger to the  lives of his crew. Frankenstein, driven by his passion and unable to accept his own limitations, learned that this passion for knowledge harms his judgment, and the excess of his action leads to shocking consequences. The creature, driven by unhappiness, believed that knowledge would be the answer to his pain but only found that it increased his unhappiness and sadness.  Through each of these characters examples of successful and unsuccessful pursuit of knowledge, there is a tragic dignity in their sacrifices, suggesting that sometimes taking pride of aspiration would end tragically. 

Marry Shelly introducing the concept of knowledge to the reader for the first time was in a letter of Captain Walton written to his sister, Margaret Saville.  In this letter, Robert Walton described his desire for knowledge of discover native territory: “One man’s life or death was but a small price to pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which I sought for the dominion I should acquire and transmit over the elemental foes of our race.” (Shelly, Letter 4, p.16) This statement showed that in Walton’s mind this achievement of knowledge was a top priority, above life or death.  He was willing to die or risk everything in the name of discovery and to be recognized among those who are famous.  It also explained that the risks of search for knowledge of Robert were too dangerous to ignore and costly to human life. As the leader of a group, he will be responsible for the lives of other men; if he were make a ruthless decision in his pursuit of glory and knowledge, he would endanger those men. However, he was blinded by his obsession of knowledge to realize or disregard this sacrifice.  After listening to Walton’s goal of knowledge, Frankenstein apparently worried that Walton could sacrifice his life if he continues the journey; therefore, he decided to share his own advice. Walton remembered the most valuable piece of advice from Victor to him, "You seek for knowledge and wisdom, as I once did; and I ardently hope that the gratification of your wishes may not be a serpent to sting you, as mine has been." (Shelly, Letter 4, p.17)  Frankenstein was giving Walton a caution message because he did not want Captain Walton to follow in his footsteps of miserable and misfortunes by using knowledge in the negative way. Especially, Walton was pursuing a mission that could ruin his life or kill his crew.  Frankenstein was reflecting on his past when he shares his guidance of knowledge to Walton. He was thinking about his mistake and how different his life would be if he were not creating the monster. He was passing this helpful knowledge onto Walton, hoping that Walton would learn from his mistake or it would help Walton to understand the power of using knowledge unreasonably. Surely, Walton was able to learn from Frankenstein‘s advice and thus prevent his crew from enduring cruel death by turning back and leaving his ambition behind.  “I cannot lead them unwillingly to danger, and must return.”  (Shelly, Walton, in CONTINUATION, p. 161) Walton was a seeker who learned the limits of seeking.

            There are two sources for gaining of knowledge. One is through reading books and education, and the other through discovering from experience and practice.  This theory has been proved and supported by many examples in Frankenstein Novel.  From his early age, Victor Frankenstein had a desire and thirst for knowledge.  Frankenstein said of his own voice, “I was capable of a more intense application, and was more deeply smitten with the thirst for knowledge.” (Shelly, Chapter 2 – paragraph 1, p 22)   He was a curious boy who wanted to figure out the mysteries of creating life, and became increasingly obsessed with "natural philosophy"; he read book by Cornelius Agrippa, a sixteenth-century scholar of the occult sciences.  He studied the outdated findings of the alchemists Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albertus Magnus with passion.  With all of the knowledge he had gained about nature and mysteries of the natural world as a child and through his readings and lessons Frankenstein's obsession of unnatural science continued and grew stronger.  At that moment Victor Frankenstein understood what his destiny of how to be a scientist and to create something that the world has never seen before.  He was truly showing his awful need for scientific freedom and the chance for new discoveries.   Frankenstein’s important goal was desired for knowledge of how to create a life from non-life.  This ambition became his strength and weakness that were more or less the same things, and were both linked together. To achieve this desire, he decided to study how the human body built, and pursuit to create unnatural human or scientific knowledge by attending college.  While he prepared to leave home for attending University of Ingolstadt, his mother died.  He was suffered and felt lonely due to the lost of his mother; therefore, he planned to uncover the mystery of life.  He said, “I ardently desired the acquisition of knowledge.” (Shelly, chapter 3 p.26)  He conducted his experiments on creating of life from non-life alone by following the example of the ancient alchemists.  Clearly Victor's search for knowledge has driven him over the edge. He brought himself out of a safe and normal society and put himself in danger. Victor's knowledge, once a gift, had quickly turned into an undeniable crisis for him and for all of close society. Victor was so obsessed with bringing the creature to life that he failed to think of the possible consequences; he had never thought about the result of his goal and his responsibility if his dream would fail. He did not recognize that knowledge of natural sciences is the price of his entire life. This was his weakness or bad judgment. At the end, he was struggled to face the consequences of his own creation.

I learned a lot from reading this story about a mad scientist who created life out of death; especially, how the pursuit of knowledge that always comes at a cost or can either lead to destruction or wisdom. Sometimes the pursuit of knowledge would require a higher price than we imagine or predict.  The pursuit of knowledge was at Victor Frankenstein‘s mind, as his attempt to surge beyond accepted human limits and access to secret of life.  Eventually it led him to create the monster and to his death.   He successfully created a creature that had the ability to live and respond, but he had no real knowledge of what could happen when he made a bad decision.  Instead of taking responsibility on guiding the creature to become good person he abandoned it. The creature spent its life learning about human, how to take care of himself and take revenge on Frankenstein for having created and abandoned it. The creature destroyed his creator’s closest friend and family members due to two reasons; Victor did not comply with his demand; and the creature wanted Victor to understand his feelings of lonely; the feelings of having nobody to love or no one to be love. When his family was ruined, Victor decided to leave Geneva and all the painful memories behind him to chase and kill the monster, because he was mad at the creature for having destroying his life.  Finally, Victor died to escape his despair and remorse from his creation.  Victor Frankenstein's suffering was the result of his search for knowledge and its use as a tool to show that he could do better than God.  “The pursuit of knowledge is not necessarily an evil thing, but it can cause destruction when it is pursued beyond natural limits. Victor Frankenstein becomes a slave to his passion for learning in more than one way; first his life is controlled by his obsession to create life, and later he becomes a slave to the monster he has created.” (The Concepts of Knowledge and Happiness in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, p.1) This statement showed that there always a high price to pay or sacrifice for scientist who went too far in his pursuit of knowledge. Victor Frankenstein did not realize and consider his pursuit for knowledge would haunt and control his life until it became too late.

Obviously, the monster journey of discovery of knowledge was different than his creator.  The creature was created through an experience of a brilliant scientist and immediately rejected by his creator.  He has never been properly taught of how to survive around human and to distinguish between rights from wrong.  His pursuit to educate himself was the only way available to him. He was created as a grown man but has mind of a child.  He was curious about human life such as communication, feeling, behavior, and respect for each other.   First, he relied on his natural instincts to survive by collecting food and warming himself by abandoned fire pits. Eventually, he strived for more; therefore, he decided to learn how to speak, read and express feeling by observing and watching the families that lived in the cottages.  To achieve his goal of communication with human, he needs to learn the basic knowledge of the language.  He said, “I ought not to make the attempt until I had first become master of their language, which knowledge might enable me to make them overlook the deformity of my figure, for with this also the contrast perpetually presented to my eyes had made me acquainted.” (Shelly, Chapter 12, p. 80)  Through hard works, the creature has accomplished his goal eventually. However, this wishing to be more like humans costs the monster his happiness. As the creature admired human’s graceful minds and beautiful physical figures and was shocked by his ugliness when he caught sight of his reflection in a pool of water.  After realizing he was horribly different from human beings.  Painfully the monster cried and spoke of sadness for his investigation of knowledge.  He said, “I cannot describe to you the agony that these reflections inflicted upon me; I tried to dispel them, but sorrow only increased with knowledge.” (Shelly, chapter 13, p. 87) and “Of what a strange nature is knowledge! It clings to the mind, when it has once seized on it, like a lichen on the rock.”  (Shelly, Chapter 13, p. 87)  This knowledge took away the creature hope for happiness and filled his heart with hatefulness and bitterness.  He decided to take revenge on his creator because he was angry and blamed his creator for having brought him to life as a monster.   This revenge was taken over the creature’s mind, leaving him unable to made wise judgments.  Many innocent lives were destroyed due to the creature attempted to ruin his creator life.  Narrow-minded, the creature thought he would be happy when other people live was ruined; knowledge would bring him happiness and community acceptance.  However, at the end, the monster realized his revenge still did not satisfy his own natural desires and knowledge only increased his sadness and unhappiness.  Admittedly, he was the victim of his wrong doing: “You, who call Frankenstein your friend, seem to have knowledge of my crimes and his misfortunes.” (Shelly, Walton, In Continuation, p. 165)  The creature was unusually minded; his actions were motivated by spirit, pure and simple.  His hunger for his created reason drove him to search for knowledge of his origins and existence on this world.

The references of unruly knowledge are spread throughout the book; it may not all be totally relevant to any sort of social importance but it still provided strong mean to the story.  This theme is strengthened by Shelley's impressive and innovative style. It presented through a perfectly planned and laid out narrative from the perspectives of Walton, the Monster, and Victor, all of whom consistently contribute to the theme of knowledge. 

             Frankenstein is a tale about man's obsession to acquire knowledge at all costs.  Mary Shelly provides examples of the different ways to gain knowledge and explores how characters are successful and unsuccessful in their quest for knowledge.  The book Frankenstein shows a man's life that is ruined by his thirst for knowledge.  It is a great example of what happens when people take science too far, without considering the consequences of their actions.   I learned a lot from reading this chilling story.  I have to take a moment and ask myself, when I am working in the area of technology, whose interests do I have in mind? How will these developments affect society?  What harm could my creation cause?  One most important question I ask myself is how much am I willing to sacrifice in return for knowledge?

                                

Works Cited and References

1.      The new Merriam-Webster Dictionary

2.      Knowledge Intellectual understanding (electronic copy of text: http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/knowledge)

3.      The Concepts Of Knowledge And Happiness In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (electronic copy of text:  http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Concepts-Knowledge-Happiness-Mary-Shelleys-Frankenstein/21088)

4.      Shelley, Mary (2008) Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus (Electronic copy of text: http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/s/shelley/mary/s53f/

5.      Science Mysteries (electronic copy of text: http://www.world-mysteries.com/sci_knowledge.htm)

Frankenstein - Close-Analysis

Written Assignment:

Close-analysis Paper: For this paper, look closely at a single passage from Frankenstein. You don't need to refer to anything outside the scope of the sentence(s) you choose. Depth and clarity is more important here than breadth or comprehensiveness. However, if you want to draw connections between two or more passages, feel free, but don't end up saying too little about too many things. In general, I find the shorter the passage you choose, the more careful your analysis will be. And don't worry about using your analysis to make more far-reaching remarks about the novel as a whole (that's what the next paper will be for).

While I would ask that you revise (so your language is as clear as possible), this is not a formal essay, so don't worry about having an introductory paragraph, thesis statement, etc. Instead, dive right in and analyze. Leave no stones unturned. Ask questions. Answer questions. Consider the various definitions of words. Go out on a limb. Have fun. Shoot for about 500 words, but don't get too caught up on the length of your work. Choose a passage and write until you feel like you've said all there is to be said about it. Note: You will use this close-analysis as the basis for your next paper. Submit your completed assignment to the assignment Dropbox by the scheduled due date.

“We were brought up together; there was not quite a year difference in our ages. I need not say that we were strangers to any species of disunion or dispute. Harmony was the soul of our companionship, and the diversity and contrast that subsisted in our characters drew us nearer together. Elizabeth was of a calmer and more concentrated disposition; but, with my entire ardor, I was capable of a more intense application and was more deeply smitten the thirst for knowledge. She busied herself with following the aerial creations of the poets; and in the majestic and wondrous  scenes which surrounded our Swiss home —the sublime  shapes of the mountains, the changes of the seasons, tempest and calm, the silence of winter, and the life and turbulence  of our Alpine summers—she found ample scope for admiration and delight. While my companion contemplated with a serious and satisfied spirit the magnificent appearances of things, I delighted in investigating their causes. The world was to me a secret which I desired to divine. Curiosity, earnest research to learn the hidden laws of nature, gladness akin to rapture, as they were unfolded to me, are among the earliest sensations I can remember.” (Shelley,  p. 22 (Chapter 2 – Paragraph 1) 

            In this passage, the background of young life of the main character, Victor Frankenstein and his adopted sister and also future bride, Elizabeth Lavenza are discussed. Victor Frankenstein has led a blessed life. He grew up surrounded by people who loved him. Elizabeth had a zeal for life itself. Victor and she grew up together as best friends.  “We were brought up together;” he said.  This friendship not only complements each other’s lives but it was also an integral part of their lives.  He also described the perfect serenity of his relationship with his beloved sister as inseparable companions. This kind of relationship was mutual between the both of them and perfectly fine for them to have this kind of relationship in the family because they were not related by blood.

            As a child, Victor was extraordinarily intelligent, with a powerful aptitude for the sciences; he seems destined to bring great things both to himself and the family name.

He became increasingly fascinated by the mysteries of the natural world, and was  the kind of person who  communicated  himself intensely to only few people. His pursuit of knowledge eventually leads him to try to create the monster. He was a stubborn and curious boy who wanted to figure out the  mysteries of  creating life. He was the scientific. While Elizabeth was soothed, gentle and literary; she was fascinated  in the study of poems and poetry.  It was in their personal relationships that the reader encountered the first clear difference between the characters.  The characters of Elizabeth provided great support to the passive women theme. As well, the consistently visual and beautiful settings add a whole other dimension to the topic of nature. Victor, all of whom consistently contribute to the idea of dangerous knowledge. With all of the knowledge he had gained about nature as a child and through his readings and lessons, the search for even more knowledge drove him to insanity. 

            Two characters have opposite childhoods, which contribute to their educations, ambitions and shape their viewpoints of life. Frankenstein’s important goal was to pursuit of a forbidden quest, an irrepressible desire to push back the boundaries of current human knowledge; especially the creation of life from non-life. His ambition or ultimate goal was to move beyond which was well known, both in terms of their family and the boundaries of science. Victor has always been egotistical. He worried about fame and glory.  At his early age, he became interested in natural philosophy or science and  never learned to be happy with limited resources.  On the other hand, Elizabeth was comforting and soothing qualities of nature .   She was humble and cared for everyone without any discrimination and self-satisfaction.  Shelly described Elizabeth character through Victor voice, “Elizabeth was a calmer and more concentrated disposition.” Though it was probably not the strongest theme of the novel, it could be seen that female roles in the novel Frankenstein are anything but practical.  It was interesting to note how the characters differ in their reaction to their despair; Elizabeth was behaved inactive but her lover, Victor, active manner.  Shelley really had important things to say with the introduction of such obviously passive women, making this idea the closest to any sort of social commentary.

            By contrast, the female characters in the Shelly’s novel generally lack any determination to move beyond the realm of the family. Elizabeth, as Victor comments, “busied herself with…the aerial creations of the poets; and in the majestic and wondrous scenes that surrounded our Swiss home”  Elizabeth in most other respects seems to be a satirical portrayal.  She is the idealized woman of the nineteenth-century, ‘submissive, supportive and beautiful’.  In that century, men are represented as complex decision makers rather than the female characters.  Society of the day saw women as powerless.

            Education today has become the desire for both men and women;  where men and women are schooled at the same facilities and taught the same subjects, especially science no longer exclusive to man, contrarily to the type of education that Frankenstein obtained.  Mary Shelley gave an example in this passage as to how the educations of men and women differ; the readers also could see the differences in the education which each gender is privileged to. Victor saw the world around him through a different lens than Elizabeth, as he explains:  While my companion contemplated with a serious and satisfied spirit the magnificent appearances of things, I delighted in investigating their causes.  With these two characters put into view, it was easy to see how significant female character is truly reflected in the novel.

            Gradually, the readers were introduced to all aspects of Victor’s character that would lead  his action to down fall. Victor Frankenstein told readers that he is enticed by world and won’t give up on his dream of being successful in science.  This ambition or dream became his strength and weakness.  His strength and weakness were more or less the same thing; they were both linked together. His strength was his determination to succeed in creating life and desire to understand  and explore some of the deepest mysteries of the human condition. Victor became so obsessed with bringing a creature to life that he failed to think of the possible consequences;  he had never thought about the result of his ambition and his responsibility if his dream would failed.  He did not recognize that knowledge of natural sciences is the price of his entire life.  This was also his weakness. To achieve this ambition,  he has risked everything and ignored his family advices to create the monster, therefore,  he did not realize this raw ambition led to the destruction  of his family and himself;  it was like a madness that blinds men to dangers of their actions.  This point of views helps towards the realism of the novel; and characterization enable the reader to interact with the characters and feel sympathy. 

            Frankly, I feel quite sorry for him but also sympathize with him.  As a child, I had a different point of view about nature, science, and life. Today, I realize scientists can be motivated in several ways.  One is a desire to understand why the world is as we see it and how it came to be; this exhibits a strong curiosity about reality; the other is the recognition by their desire to apply scientific knowledge for the benefit of people's health and nature.

             Marry Shelley, established the relationship between the scientist and nature as a harmony one.  She wrote, in the voice of her character, Victor Frankenstein, "The world was to him a secret which he desired to divine. Curiosity, earnest research to learn the hidden laws of nature, gladness akin to rapture, as they were unfolded to him, are among the earliest sensations he can remember.”   He had this ardent desire to learn about life, and to find the answers.  Science gave him his success, and that success gave him power over life.

            Throughout history, humans have had a thirst for knowledge and development. From the very beginning of humankind, the discoveries made by our race have shaped our futures forever. We have always wanted to know why things happen, and to push the boundaries of what's possible.  Passion is another important point Frankenstein brings up. Almost every major character had an obsession that he or she allowed to drive their existence. The novel puts forth the opinion from an early age, Frankenstein had a desire and thirst for knowledge. The novel also clearly presents the main character, Frankenstein, as the most classically educated one in the novel; and displays the struggles he copes with because of his mental acuity and desire for knowledge.  Frankenstein said of his own education, “I was capable of a more intense application, and was more deeply smitten with the thirst for knowledge.”

           

            Knowledge in itself is a powerful tool of unimaginable capabilities if used by someone who does not fully understand its full potential; if used unwisely may convey a harmless rumor or cause the beginning of a war. If used properly  it is may establish new opportunities or receive commendations for having just means of applying it. The novel, Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, is a riveting story with many comparisons of the great powers in life. Being one of the greatest gothic novels ever to be written, it contains many themes of today. It contrasts science and literary, nature and unnatural, life and death, and most importantly knowledge and stupidity. The pursuit of knowledge is at the  Frankenstein‘s mind, as his attempts to surge beyond accepted human limits and access to secret of life. 

            In this passage, I came to understand why Victor becomes obsessed with his search for knowledge and he decides to take upon the responsibility of delving into classical books that challenge his thoughts on life. At the moment he understood what his destiny of how to be a scientist and to create something that the world has never seen before. He was truly showing his dire need for scientific freedom and the chance for new discoveries. He has only one goal in his mind of ability of creating his beast with the knowledge. This knowledge was also his downfall. Instead of using it in a positive way, which he may thought he was doing at the time, he decided to gamble and used it very negatively by creating a monster. This monster would lead to the loss of his loved ones and eventually himself.   Without a question, Shelly is positing a morality of science, that  is a necessary limit not on what humankind should know.

            The story of Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, focuses on the outcome of one man's idealistic motives and desires of dabbling with nature, which result in the creation of horrific creature. Even though Victor Frankenstein was doomed to failure from his initial desire to  build the creature,  but his spirit was not failed. The reason, Victor’s knowledge is still positive because his failures allow others to learn from him. If he were not the one to make this mistake, someone else would, and they would suffer the same consequences.  People learn from Victor that an overwhelming sense of hubris that breaks the golden mean is recipe for calamity. The development of knowledge, no matter what its restrictions was better than ignorance because it helped the characters grow and explore.

            Mary Shelley's novel portrays many different possible ideas that are relevant in society today.  Many unpredictable behaviors happen in Frankenstein that provides the readers encounter with that would not happen in everyday life, yet can still be relevant in today's world. Frankenstein introduces unexpected events and creates a sense of relentless horror for the readers. Shelley gives her audience a taste of unimaginable happenings that can occur from something as harmless as the dream of a man. Noticeable from beginning to end are the themes man's appetite for absolute knowledge and the disaster this appetite can hold. Victor's thirst for knowledge started as a young child and only became greater as he was introduced to new teachings.

            I learned a lot of from reading this story about a mad scientist who created life out of death. I have to take a moment and ask myself, when I am experimenting in the realm of science and technology, whose interests do I have in mind? How will these advancements affect society, and most of all, what harm could my creation cause? 

            As a whole, this passage contains elements of many of the themes of the novel: friendship, relationship,  knowledge and glory, and overreaching ambition of mankind. I believe Shelley intended Frankenstein to show how this thirst for knowledge can go too far. Dangerous knowledge, nature, and passive women all played huge roles as motifs in Frankenstein. This novel is a great example of what happens when people take science too far, without considering the consequences of their actions. The deep moral issue of the 'science' used in Frankenstein has a huge effect on what the readers think of Frankenstein. We must realize that humans have limits. A ravenous ambition and our personal fantasy are something that does not harmonize with reality, and therefore is extinguished by it.