Summary:  criticism of Barack Obama

The first text is called “Obama battered by criticism as anniversary approaches” and was published by the “guardian “.  First of all, you can say, that almost the half of Americans says that Obama has failed to achieve his promises (Washington Post Poll). For instance the Fox News accuses Barack Obama of endangering America. Obama goes in desistance in terms of confrontational relationships to other countries on the globe. Moreover, he announces to close the Guantánamo Bay prison, by what hardened criminal could change to a prison in downtown in a state and that could be a danger. The Fox News claims that Barack might not be a real American. Another point of criticism is Obama’s demand for more troops to fight against the Taliban. Through the increase of troops in Afghanistan, some people say, that Barack will be the “new war president” after Bush and that would not fit to his promises. But on the other hand there is also positive criticism. The Pew Research Centre published a poll, which shows, that 84% of Democratic Party voters (liberal) claim that Obama is doing his job very well.  Another text by the guardian is called “Barack Obama’s dangerous second year” and says that many people expect more from Obama than he is doing currently. Obama has to find ways to get Americans to feel emotionally vested in universal healthcare and also in other social reforms. In the last Text “King’s dream meets Obama’s reality“, which was also published by the guardian, are again positive aspects of criticism. For instance the race relationships are now better than they were two years ago and the African-American prospects for the future is more positive than in the last 25 years.

The Celtic Tiger

The line graph “Who shot the tiger”, which was published by the Central Statistics Office Ireland/ Central Bank of Ireland, is about the change of the gross domestic product of Ireland in the last 25 years. On the x- axis is a timeline from 1985 to 2010 and on the y-axis are the numbers from -12 to + 12, which describe the change in percentage. From 1985 to 1987 the GDP raises from 0 up to 4, but after that it falls again to circa 2 in 1988. Than the GDP changes up to 6 in year in 1990, but then it falls again to 2 in year 1991 and increases just a little bit up to 3 in year 1993. From that point the graph swells to 6, but falls than again, that it reaches in year 1995  again 0. And now it happens what is called the Celtic Tiger. Through capital investment, pro business government and costs of labour, which are lower than in other European countries, the graph rushes from zero up to circa 10 in only two years. After that it falls just a little bit and increases again up to 10. But in 2000 the GDP drops rapidly to nearly less than 4 and in 2002 the graph also raises just a little bit to 6. But in year 2007 the gross domestic product changes fatally and falls down to -10. This is the end the Irish Celtic Tiger. The forecast claims, that in future the GDP will increases again up to positive numbers. The reason for the sudden fall in 2007 was an inflation for instance of high house prices and the effect of that was, that the people could not pay for their credit and so that they became unemployed.

The film “Finding Forrester” by Gus Vant Sant, which was published in the year 2000, contains some scenes with racist aspects or racist indication. For instance the professor Crawford is angry, that William Forrester is a friend of Jamal and not of him, because he cannot understand why a black guy from the Bronx got such a famous author as a friend.  Another scene is the scene, where a man locked his car, when Jamal neared it. So there is another racist prejudice that blacks in the Bronx always steal and make trouble. Moreover most of the white professors at the private school, did not expect that a black like Jamal could have such an ability for writing. So they think that coloured people are actually not able to do extraordinary things like that. There is another scene on the roof top at Claire’s father’s party, in which Claire’s father does not want that Claire starts a relationship with Jamal. Jamal is a black guy from the Bronx, he shall rather play basketball, than to go to private schools and meet white young ladies.

I noticed that a man can change another man’s behavior trough visits and conversations and can even change his mind completely. Moreover, I recognized that in Louisiana was a heavy segregation. I also learned that even little things like ice cream can make a person happier. The last point is that sometimes you shall do things even though you actually do not want to do it, just to make another person happy.

Dear Vivian,

in the last months I changed myself. I can feel it inside me and in my act. In the beginning of the whole process my aunt forced me to visit Jefferson to change his mind from a hog to a man. I was so angry because I thought no one could change him and I felt browbeaten by her, cause I am just a teacher and nothing more. Vivian I hope you understand me, I did not do that kind of teaching before. Anyway I started visiting Jefferson, just to do Miss Emma a favour. The beginning was pretty hard. He did not speak much and when he spoke it was always, that he felt like hog and he had to act like that. I did not know what I shall do. I was so desperate. Every one of my attempts to reach Jefferson’s mind failed. It made me angrier. And it made me more and more angrier, that Jefferson refused Miss Emma’s good food and her advances and that he played with me. He tried to make me guilty for his situation, but I was not guilty, I had nothing to with that, I just did it to do a favour and nothing more. But after a while I saw little changes in Jefferson. Sometimes he answered me with more than one word and looked at me instead of just gazing on the wall or out off the window. One time he told me he wants a gallon of ice cream and I promised to bring him something. At that point he smiled, not much, but it was a smile. That situation reached me quite strong, I recognized that my work changed him a little bit and I got power and hope for further more visits. From that point he offered me more and more about his wishes and past and I understood why he sometimes acted like he did. He was interested in what I talked about and I thought, that  Jefferson thought less about his death than in previous visits. I observed him some other wishes and I could feel that he was happy about that and that made myself happier. Moreover, I gave him a notebook to write down his feelings and thoughts. In the end, Paul gave me the notebook and told me, that that was Jefferson’s last wish. Jefferson changed. Paul told me he was the bravest MAN in the execution room.

I feel good because my lessons had a got result and the whites lost in that fact, that Jefferson did not die as a hog. He died as a strong MAN and I achieved Miss Emma’s wish. But on the other side I lost Jefferson. He was a friend of mine and he was a very good boy.

Kiss and love

Your Grant

A lesson before dying ( summary chapter 9-12)

The chapters 9-12 from the novel “a lesson before dying” by Ernest J. Gaines, which was published in 1933, deals with Grant Wiggins and Miss Emma’s visits in Jefferson’s cell and with a meeting between Grant Wiggins and his secret love called Vivian.

The extract starts with the picking up of Miss Emma by Grant Wiggins and the driving to the jail in Bayonne. As they arrive, two deputies called Paul and Clark are in the jail and Clark orders Paul to check the basket with food, which Miss Emma brings for Jefferson. After a short introduction of the rules in the jail, Grant Wiggins and Miss Emma are guided to Jefferson’s cell, where Jefferson lies on his bunk and stares unemotionally at the ceiling. Miss Emma offers him some food, but he refuses it and even does not answer her questions. When they leave the cell Jefferson asks when he will be executed, but they does not know a fitting answer. The next two visits follow a similar pattern. But on the fourth visit Grant Wiggins comes alone, because Aunt Lou tells him, that Miss Emma is ill and cannot come with him. Grant Wiggins drives to the Miss Emma’s house, where she sits in her chair and coughs unconvincingly. Mr. Wiggins figures that she is just feigning her illness, because Grant shall visit Jefferson alone henceforth. Therefore he is getting angry and tells Miss Emma and Aunt Lou that he feels sick managing the duties they ask for him. Miss Emma apologizes and tells Grant, that she has no one else who would help.

After that, Grant Wiggins goes to Jefferson’s cell alone. He feels pretty unwell and does not know what he could say to Jefferson. Grant offers Jefferson some food, but he asks him, whether Grant has some corn, because hogs eat corn. Jefferson kneels on the ground and puts his head into the bag of the food like a hog would do it. Mr. Wiggins asks Jefferson, whether he wants to make him guilty for his situation and wants that he shall leave him alone. Grant tries to start a conversation about what Jefferson thinks about his circumstances, but he stifles it immediately.

Grant does not want to tell Miss Emma Jefferson’s disturbing anger, so he has to lie. While thinking about that he drives to the Rainbow club, where he drinks something and listens to a conversation by some old men about Jackie Robinson, who was a Baseball player. During hearing to the talk Mr. Wiggins remembers a young man, who should be executed on the electric chair, who asked the legendary boxer Joe Louis to rescue him. He asks himself, whether Jefferson could do the same with Jackie Robinson. Grant leaves the bar and goes to the school, where Vivian, his secret girlfriend, works at her desk. Mr. Wiggins wants to leave the town with her tonight, but she disagrees, because she does not want to give her husband any excuse to take her children. He tells her from his visit with Jefferson and that he wants to leave the south. Grant Wiggins is very confused, because he does not know how he should pass  Jefferson’s situation.

Narrative techniques

The novel “A lesson before dying” by Ernest J. Gaines is almost written in the first-person narrator named Grant Wiggins. The effect of that is that the reader gets every time to know how Wiggins feels and thinks about the situation, by what the narrator gets the readers’ attention and they started to compare their feelings with the narrator’s feelings. The author used also direct speech, so that you get other perspectives of the situation and the story becomes really alive and varied. Interesting is that the story starts with the judicial proceeding in Bayonne and primal later you get to know how that all happened. That makes the novel very trilling. Another point is the description of the area, whereby you get to know the circumstances at that time or the segregation, for example the separated toilets in the jail.

Louis Rougon:                     – does not support the task/ he is against it

(“he could not believe what he was

hearing” p. 23 ll.5)

–   Same opinion like the fat man

(p.46 ll.30 / p.48 ll. 7 )

The fat man:                        –    dislike Jefferson and the task (p.47 l. 19)

–          Same opinion like Mr. Rougon (p. 48 l. 7)

Edna Guidry: – she felt pretty sorry for Jefferson, so that she

wants to support the meeting between Grant and

Jefferson (p.43 ll. 18 / p.43 ll. 26)

–    You and I are in accord there,” he said.

“but my wife thinks different” (p. 47 ll.17)

Sam Guidry: –    he don’t like the idea of teaching Jefferson,

because he thinks it is an aggravation to try to

put something in Jefferson’s head against his will.

(p.47 ll.27)

–          He don’t like the idea at all

(p. 44 ll.13) / “nobody can make that thing a

man”  (p.44 ll.14)

–  but he allows Grant to teach Jefferson, if there is no

aggravation (p.47 ll.35)

–          He thinks it is just a waste of time (p.48 ll.21)

–          He was influenced by his woman “but my wife

thinks different” (p. 47 ll. 17)

Henri Pichot: – he thinks that he cannot change something for

Jefferson (p. 21 ll.15)

–   But he will speak to his brother-in-law probably as a

favour for Miss Emmy’s services she did for many

years

– He thinks the conversation is not necessary / he is

nerved by Miss Emmy (p. 23 ll.33)

– He thinks that the real decision can just do the sheriff

not he, he thinks he is not responsible for it (p.23 ll. 33)

–   He does not like Grand pretty much (p.44 ll.6)

Grant Wiggins: –  he does not really want to change Jefferson from a

hog to man, he does

it just because Miss Emmy wants it (p.47 ll.6 )

– He does not want to teach Jefferson, because he

does not know how and what he shall teach

(p.31 ll.12) -> he is confused whether miss Emmy’s

task is right and how he could pass it

–  He is pretty angry about getting such a difficult

task / beats his pupils and screams at them (p. 35 ff.)

A lesson before dying by Ernest J. Gaines

Different views on Jefferson

Godmother (Miss Emma):      – she loves Jefferson

–      She accepted his verdict, but she does not  want

that  the people call him a hog. She wants that

Grand educates him to a man, so that she can

prove that he is not an animal (p.21 ll.29 / p. 31 ll.10)

Defence lawyer :       – Jefferson is innocent (p.10 ll.18)

–   There is no proof for a connection between

the murderers and Jefferson

–           He described Jefferson as an animal, who is too

stupid to plan such a

robbery   (   p.10 ll.14 /p.11 ll.10)

–          Jefferson is just a slave, who serves

the people (p.11 ll. 11)

–          He drank the whiskey to calm his nerves and the

money out of hunger and plain of

stupidity (p. 10 ll.25)

Prosecutor :       – Jefferson, Brother and Bear went into the bar with

the full intention of

robbing

–          The killed the storekeeper, so that he could not

identify them

–          When all were dead Jefferson acted like an animal

and stuffed the money into his pockets and

celebrated the event with drinking whiskey over

the still-bleeding bodies. (p.10 ll.10)->Jefferson

is guilty

My personal view:                 – Jefferson was shocked if he saw all the blood

(p.9   ll.1)

–  Of course he is innocent because I know the incident

–          He drank whiskey because he was shocked

and  needed it to calm their nerves (p.9 ll. 30)

–      He knew taking money is wrong ,but  he thought no

one would see him (p.10 ll.1) I think that was

wrong beacuse stealing is crime

Positive:   proud, strong, happy, dominant, cool

Negative: sad, beastly, terrible, ugly

Indifferent: –

Neutral:  surprised,

Disgusted: indignant

Frightened: afraid,

Confused: surprised, bemused, shocked

Aggressive: aggressive, mean, angry , furious