Introduction to Santería :: Santeria

Introduction to Santerà ­a Santerà ­a, sometimes referred to as La Regla Lucunmi, originated in West Africa in what are now Nigeria and Benin. Santerà ­a is, however, not purely a West African religion; it has many ties to European Catholicism. Because of this correlation, there is no exact year for the formation of this religion. The closest date available for the founding of Santerà ­a is between the 1700's to about 1870 – the period of the slave trade. The slave trade brought many people that practiced this particular religion to the shores of Cuba, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Trinidad as well as many other Caribbean countries. Not only were the slaves' bodies brought over. Their souls, culture, and religion were brought to the Americas as well. In the early years, when the slaves had just begun arriving, there was a great deal of pressure placed on them, by the European plantation owners and missionaries, to convert to Catholicism. Despite these attempts by the plantation owners, Santerà ­a was still openly practiced, and the number of practitioners was increasing. Since in performing openly their religion many harsh beatings and punishments were administered, the religious followers tended to incorporate many Catholic elements into their religion. One factor that helped to make the two religions look similar to the plantation owners was that many of the orishas, the primary gods, shared many of the same physical characteristics that the Catholic saints possessed. This made the slaves appear to be practicing Catholicism although they were practicing their native, African religions. Believers of Santerà ­a place their faith in the orishas. The orishas are not as powerful or as omnipotent as their predominant God, Olodumare, or Olorun. Olorun is the source of ashe, the spiritual energy that makes up the entire universe, all life and all things material. The orishas are the spirits or gods that interact with humans by controlling nature and attending to the daily needs of the religion's followers. They are approachable and can be counted on to come to the aid of followers by guiding them to a better life, materially as well as spiritually. In other words, they are emissaries of God. Furthermore, each orisha possesses a distinct personality. Communication between orishas and humankind is accomplished through ritual, prayer, divination and offerings (ebo). Depending on the particular orisha that they wish to please, santeros use certain colors and certain animals and play particular drumbeats during their rituals. The music is of great importance because it helps to coax the orisha into "mounting" or possessing the priest.

Commentary on my creative writing piece focusing on The Dubliners Essay

After completing my story, I thought I would say how the story that I had written related to the story ‘The Dubliners’. The story that I wrote, I related to the theme of paralysis and the risk of death, a vision of the future and also a little about money, which is used in The Dubliners. I chose this viewpoint on the story as I thought it would relate well to the background I was using. Especially the theme of death would work well, as death is a very common situation so it helped when I dramatised the theme. Also I decided to use the times of today, as I thought it would be more easier to relate to ‘The Dubliners’ using a situation in a lower/ middle class background, but using a cultural difference. I also decided to use third person narrative, as I thought it would be clearer in third person. I did try to use first person, but I had a bit of difficulty in putting a point across, so I decided to use third person, as I found it much more flowing to do. I decided to start off with a line, which explained the background so the story would be easier to understand, as I used a different culture. If I had gone straight into a story, the story may have been hard to understand. I included a little introduction to the character and the backgrounds, so the reader would notice what culture I was trying to show and how I was trying to relate it to The Dubliners. I think the introduction to the character and the culture, is a very important thing in my story. This was only in the beginning, but when I used a little climax. I used a twist in the middle of my story, to make sure the reader would be more interested and engaged to read on. The method I used was an everyday experience, which seemed like a big thing. This helped me to use the theme of vision of the future, with the character knowing there would be more trouble. The ending I used both of the themes of death and vision of future. I think death was a very important in the whole story, which showed the theme of paralysis. I used the theme of vision of future, as the character had death on their mind through the whole story, and this helped to use the theme of death. I think I can relate this to The Dubliners, as the theme of paralysis and the theme of death and darkness is used very often. I chose to end the story in this way as it dramatises the themes in which that I used. Also I used description, with a stressful atmosphere used. I think this ending suits the culture in which I wrote the story about. As it is believed that shootings are made in this background a lot. This I thought would be the best way to end my story. I think I thought about my main character quite a lot, especially with the culture to take in account. Also, the use of the characters pride and making the character emotional about death and escape. This helped me to explain how the character was feeling. I think I used the character well in the situation, because the background and culture is like real life. I have read and researched situation like this and deaths are always happening. This is why it was important, that I made sure the character, language and the actions were correct. This in my opinion was the best thing to do was research a little about the background, also things such as drugs, typical backgrounds, and even clothing I researched so I made sure the situation was just like real life and not something in reality. I used the background and the subject matter as it all related to one thing. Especially the setting and atmosphere, which all related to death. I used the subject of stress in my story as well, the whole theme of stress, occurred to me as a good way in which to escape or a good way to look for escape. Stress can usually consist of anger and frustration, which is how it is related to The Dubliners. These emotions are shown within my story and also The Dubliners. The language I used in my story was descriptive and also gave good and relevant information, when was needed. As I used a different content of language, I had to explain what some words meant. Also I think my story would sound effective if it was to be read out loud, as the situation is real and can happen in life. Maybe in some cases people can relate to this kind of story, as it can also send a message across about gangs, firearms, drugs, and also maybe drinking. After writing this story I think that this has many themes which could be related to the story, The Dubliners. As you can see I have included themes such as death, escape, darkness and also vision for the future. I think these themes helped me to relate the story with the best use, as cultural I was not sure on which to write a story about, that is why I used a different culture, in which I found more interesting to write about.

John Donne Essay

John Donne’s Valediction Forbidding Mourning is a poem stressing the aspect of love through the use of various metaphors and allusions. Donne’s main influences being utilized in the poem are created from the 17th century metaphysical poetry. The poem in essence is a farewell speech, as is written in the beginning lines. These lines suggest a quiet departure and the syntax of the poem and the meter follow through with traditional rhythm. The speaker does not want a teary goodbye as is read with ‘no tear-floods’. Donne’s alliteration throughout lines 5-8 also give the reader a sense of movement and accenting of the farewell with the phrase, â€Å"twere profanation †¦to tell the laity† in which the ‘t’ sound becomes prevalent and its poignancy points toward an emphasis on the farewell motif of the poem and how the lovers cope with this departure. The purpose of the speaker is to comfort the reader, or the lover in a time of parting. The speaker then requests of the lover that the two part ways calmly and quietly and thus eliminate tears and protests of the departing. The speaker further insists that to part ways in such a platonic fashion alludes to their love being holy. This love however develops beyond the boundaries of the spiritual and is also referenced as being a physical and sexual love. Thus, the poem’s focus is a transformation of the different loves shared by the speaker and the lover and the celebration the two have in these loves which are refined as line 17 points out. The secret that the metaphysical writing gives the reader is that the lovers are so in tune with each other that they are assured, according to the speaker, a happy reunion. It is the sharing of the goodbye that is endearing in the poem, and the way in which Donne analyzes this farewell is also intriguing. Donne’s metaphysics speaks towards the couple’s soul, and it’s joining after being split. This then is a merriment of earthly love or ‘religion of love’. The love being elevated in the poem, is enhanced by the device of metaphor as Donne writes that the love spoken about in the poem is a sacred love. The narrator describes this love as being breed from confidence in love, which gives the two a strength during the parting. Thus, the two are able to endure a brief span of time in which their love will connect them (Nutt 2005). This endurance is made possible by the speaker by emphasizing that the two share a single soul and thus any illusion of division by space, time or distance is inconsequential. This is the extended metaphor of Donne’s poem. The metaphysical conceit in A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning is the comparison of the two unlikely objects of the lovers’ relationship and their two souls being the feet of a drawing compass as seen in the final stanzas. The allusion to feet of a compass, is a metaphor of direction in which love points toward the right direction and the love of the two lovers is merely a circle that has no end, thus, a farewell is of no consequence since it ends and begins in the same instant. Therefore, although the two lovers will be geographically apart from each other, the speaker believes that this will only strengthen their love since the lovers will remain faithful to each other during this separation, thus bringing trust into the equation of Donne’s metaphysics. Another key metaphor used by Donne is that of gold being beaten thin so that it expands and this comparison is made between the love expanding between the two lovers and not breaking (Beliles 1999). Thus, Donne’s use of metaphor through metaphysical aspirations is the main creative elements in his poem. Work Cited Beliles, D. B. Theoretically-Informed Criticism of Donne’s Love Poetry: Towards A Pluralist Hermeneutics of Faith. New York: Peter Lang Publishing, Inc. , 1999. Donne, J. Poems of John Donne. vol I. E. K. Chambers, ed. London, Lawrence & Bullen, 1896. 51-52. Nutt, J. John Donne: The Poems (Analyzing Text). Palgrave Macmillan. New York, 2005.

The Decline of Rome essays

The Decline of Rome essays The Roman Empire stood in great power for many decades. For an extensive period of time Rome was considered the center of civilization. For the empire was beautiful and attracted many invaders, the walls surrounding the empire and of course the powerful army served as protective forces against the invaders Some people believed that the Roman Empire would last forever. The fall of the eastern half of Rome was a result of major political, military, economic, and social problems. The western half lived on throughout the Byzantine Empire. The downfall of these four key aspects of Roman society destroyed the fabric of the great Roman Civilization. The various political problems that accursed in Rome were related to the fact that there was no law of succession to the throne. In the absence of a law of succession to the throne, in the most powerful military leader declared himself Emperor of Rome. An example of this is Julius Caesar, declared himself dictator after great military conquest. Caesar was a great leader for Rome, but there were Emperors that were given the title that were incapable of the responsibilities. Neros rule led to military rebellion and opened the path to widespread disruption. The empire was overextended. Rome controlled so much of the world that the majority of the Roman legion was composed of soldiers whose roots were not based in Roman culture. As a result, the quality of the Roman soldier became poor. These long-term military causes were threatening to Rome. There were consequences causes that would arise if Rome were to be attacked. The impoverished state of the Western Empire resulted in a weak m ilitary. The soldiers were no longer loyal to the army and their emperor. There were very few that would risk their lives for the empire. Now there were many foreign soldiers who served for pay. This made it that much harder to be able to hold a large army. There was not the type of ...

Oft, Often, and Oftentimes

Oft, Often, and Oftentimes Oft, Often, and Oftentimes Oft, Often, and Oftentimes By Mark Nichol What is the difference between often and oftentimes, and is oft a word? The short answers are that there is no difference, and yes. These three adverbs all stem from the Old English (and Middle English) term oft, meaning â€Å"frequently.† The longer variants developed in the 1300s. Just as often is an extended alteration of oft (likely invented to ease the transition to a word beginning with a vowel), oftentimes derived from ofttimes. That last word is all but unknown in Modern English, and even oft is rare but survives in a saying from William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, â€Å"The evil that men do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones.† It is also used in combination with verbs in constructions such as oft-praised and oft-told. Often and oftentimes are interchangeable, but the more archaic-sounding latter word is less economical and has an obsolete taint equivalent to that of the superfluous -st ending in words such as amidst and amongst or the extraneous first syllable of upon. (Interestingly, against differs from its cousins amidst and amongst in that the truncated form again is not a variation but a word with a distinct meaning.) The antonym seldom, meaning â€Å"rarely,† which also comes from Old English, originally had a compound -times form as well (though it was hyphenated), and seldhweanne (â€Å"seldwhen†) and seldsiene (â€Å"seldseen†) were part of the word-hoard, though only the latter word evolved into a later form (seldom-seen). (The variant seld-shown appeared in Shakespeare.) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:What Is Irony? (With Examples)Do you "orient" yourself, or "orientate" yourself?5 Tips to Understand Hyphenated Words

Information Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Information Policy - Essay Example However, domain shutdowns and three strike rule have helped reduce cases of piracy. The problem is on peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing sites where privacy is a thorny issue. How can P2P sites be checked for copyright issues without violating privacy? Indeed, top level domains are critical infrastructure that facilitate access to government services. The shutdown of such sites can cripple countries and states. However, some large sites such as Google have a lot of users, more than even the populations of most countries. Do you believe that the shutdown of a site such as Google can cripple the internet? The issue of sites such as pirate bay’s continued existence is as a result of reluctance in the copyright enforcement agencies such as the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The ICE only redirects traffic from the site by changing the domain access of a site to a different site without the pirated material (DeNardis, 2015). This temporary shutdown contributes to the continued existence of sites such as Pirate Bay. The ICE should improve their information technology skills so that they can track the physical address of the servers used to carry out piracy. Additionally, the ICE should confiscate all servers and any materials used to carry out piracy, and arrest and prosecute the copyright violators. Although closing down domains and arresting individuals who download copyright materials will not completely stop piracy, it will helping reduce its occurrence. However, it needs improvement as indicated above. What are the better ways, from your perspective, which can reduce copyrights and trademarks violations, or do you believe that the war against piracy can never be

Humanities 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Humanities 2 - Essay Example It is, hence, easy to understand how opera was developed in order to satisfy the Baroque contemporary requirements. To demonstrate this, the opera contains several elements that express Baroque cultural values and this paper will cite them. In order to understand the relationship of the opera to the Baroque artistic style, it is important to explain what it is all about. Here, Guisepi's work becomes helpful. He explained that the term literally means "irregular" and was applied to the dynamic and undisciplined artistic creativity that "grew out of the Catholic pomp and confidence accompanying the Counter-Reformation." Rome is central to this musical development wherein many musicians converge in order to study or find work in numerous choirs and for families like Colonna and Borghese (Sabene 2011). It would then come to symbolize the power of the European monarchies as Baroque gained prominence and popularity. These developments led to a kind of artistic style that is unbridled and s ought to impress and awe. Opera was an inevitable offshoot of this environment since, along with visual art, the Church and rich Roman families and nobles commissioned musical pieces as well. The sheer pomp and pageantry of the Baroque society, particularly of its festivities and celebrations, called for a type of music that would similarly reflect it and its grand events. Stone recounted an account of one important celebration, which could provide an idea of what this point means - the public performance arranged by Medina Coeli in celebration of the birthday of the Queen back in 1696: Before the Royal Palace a huge amphitheater was built on which was performed Scarlatti's cantata Il Trionfo dell Stagioni (The Triumph of the Seasons). This was a performance of Mahlerian proportions with 150 instrumentalists and a chorus of 50; the whole construction was illuminated by some 900 torches and lanterns†¦ In these events the entire community was brought together, not as equal specta tors, but as participants in a celebration of hierarchy, which sought, to image power relations of that society (89). Combination of Art Essentially, what makes the opera Baroque in style is the idea that it combines all music and art forms together. First, it is based "on the linking of text to music such that the music followed and augmented the natural speech flow" (Modern Baroque Opera Newsletter 2004). Then, it would utilize and integrate other forms of art such as literature, drama, painting and elaborate stage settings (Guisepi). No wonder many people and music enthusiasts even today refer to it as one of the most exciting artifact of European art and culture. Opera implies a certain grandness that can only be equated with the powers of the European monarchs and the magnificence of the Christian God. The construction of elaborate opera houses depicted the dynamics of grandeur that characterize the opera. Opera houses in many Italian cities demonstrate this such as the La Scal a in Milan and in other countries as well as like the Paris Opera in France with its ornate ceiling and general architecture considered as a masterpiece of the French Baroque. The cavernous and ornate architecture sought to highlight the drama and grandeur of each performance as with the other elements integrated in the whole experience. It is perhaps safe to say that opera or experiencing the opera is incomplete without the imposing Baroque magnificence of these buildings. The Margravial Opera House in Germany is an