From details in the story, what can we infer about Buddy's friend?

In Truman Capote’s short story “A Christmas Memory” one can infer that Buddy’s cousin is childlike despite being a woman in her sixties. Capote writes of a lengthy childhood illness but does not specify the nature of that illness. The cousin is intuitive in that she feels seasonal changes such as when the frost is on the windows she knows that it is “fruitcake weather.” The cousin sees the world with childlike wonder whether they...

In Truman Capote’s short story “A Christmas Memory” one can infer that Buddy’s cousin is childlike despite being a woman in her sixties. Capote writes of a lengthy childhood illness but does not specify the nature of that illness. The cousin is intuitive in that she feels seasonal changes such as when the frost is on the windows she knows that it is “fruitcake weather.” The cousin sees the world with childlike wonder whether they are flying kites or choosing the perfect Christmas tree. She is set in her ways and not very adventurous. After the two are caught drinking the dregs of the whiskey, the reader finds the cousin sobbing and she says it is because she is “old and funny.” She realizes that she does not have the reasoning skills that a sixty year old woman should have. From that one can infer that she knows that there is something not right with her but she is not in control of it. Buddy is able to make her laugh in much the same way that an adult would comfort a suffering child.

How is the digestive system connected to the circulatory system?

The digestive system is a body system that takes solid foods an organism eats and processes it to remove essential nutrients used to energize the organism's body.  The circulatory system is a body system that pumps blood through a network of blood vessels throughout the organism's body.  It is the "superhighway" for delivery to every cell in the organism's body, used to get essential nutrients and fuel in and waste products out.  The digestive system...

The digestive system is a body system that takes solid foods an organism eats and processes it to remove essential nutrients used to energize the organism's body.  The circulatory system is a body system that pumps blood through a network of blood vessels throughout the organism's body.  It is the "superhighway" for delivery to every cell in the organism's body, used to get essential nutrients and fuel in and waste products out.  The digestive system takes solid food and reduces it to a soupy, liquid mixture, called chyme.  The chyme is introduced into the small intestine, which has lots of finger-like projections called villi .  It is here in the small intestine where the villi absorb the glucose, a simple sugar used for energy manufacture in cells, and deliver it to the blood vessels of the circulatory system.  The blood of the circulatory system takes the glucose to every cell in the body, along with necessary oxygen supplied by the lungs of the respiratory system.  The glucose is combined with the oxygen in a chemical process within the mitochondria of the cell.  This process is called cellular respiration and provides energy formation for the cell in the form of an ATP molecule (adenosine triphosphate).  Carbon dioxide and water are formed as waste products, which is then delivered back to the blood, which then takes it to the appropriate excretory system organs for disposal.

What details develop the characters in the short story through the tunnel

The development of character through the methods of describing the thoughts and feelings of the character, the words of the character, the perception of a character by another, and other devices such as imagery are used by Doris Lessing in her story "Through the Tunnel."

• Thoughts and Feelings of Characters

Because Lessing employs an omniscient narrator, the reader is provided much detail in what the main characters are thinking. In the exposition, for example, Lessing describes the introspection of Jerry's mother as she has conflicting feelings about allowing him to leave her and go look at the rocks near the big beach.

She was thinking. Of course, he's old enough to be safe without me. Have I been keeping him too close? He mustn't feel he ought to be with me. I must be careful.

Jerry's feelings are revealed to the reader, as well. When he tries to gain the attention of the older native boys, they "turned their eyes back toward the water" and continue what they are doing. "Through his hot shame," Jerry tries clowning as though he does not care about their reaction.

Throughout the narrative, Jerry's feelings are described. In another example, "he was trembling with horror" at the sight of the long tunnel which he wants to swim through. Throughout his attempt to pass through the tunnel, the omniscient narrator provides a description of his mother's and Jerry's varied feelings and thoughts.

• Perception of a Character by Other Characters

As mentioned earlier, the older native boys are uninterested in Jerry, who cannot perform the feat that they can. 
Jerry, who goes through a rite of passage by swimming through the tunnel, undergoes psychological change, and his mother wrestles mentally with her changing perceptions of Jerry, also. At the end of the narrative, for instance, after Jerry rushes to the bathroom to clean his head from the bang against the tunnel. His mother examines him when he comes to greet her. "He was strained; his eyes were glazed-looking." As she talks with Jerry, she is

...ready for a battle of wills, but he gave in at once. It was no longer of the least importance to go to the bay.

• Literary Devices

In the opening paragraph, Jerry follows his mother, who walks before him. Lessing uses imagery to describe her:

....Her other arm, swinging loose, was very white in the sun. The boy watched that white, naked arm, and turned his eyes....

Later, as Jerry swims over to the rocks that are distant from the beach where his mother is, "that bare arm, now slighty reddened from yesterday's sun...

In one character description of Jerry's mother, Lessing employs a metaphor [bold], followed by a simile [italics]:

There she was, a speck of yellow under an umbrella that looked like a slice of orange peel.

Another simile describes the older boys:

...the water beyond the rock was full of boys blowing like brown whales.

What is the cultural significance of "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe?

"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe is not a story of cultural critique. Instead, it is primarily a story of psychological suspense, showing its unreliable narrator's descent into madness. There are a few cultural phenomena we can deduce from the story, but they are not central elements of the narrative.

First, the story is set in a rooming house, which tells us something of the way that unmarried people of moderate incomes lived in...

"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe is not a story of cultural critique. Instead, it is primarily a story of psychological suspense, showing its unreliable narrator's descent into madness. There are a few cultural phenomena we can deduce from the story, but they are not central elements of the narrative.

First, the story is set in a rooming house, which tells us something of the way that unmarried people of moderate incomes lived in this period. Both the narrator and the old man are relatively isolated and living alone, suggesting we are seeing a phase in the modern breakdown of the extended family; in antiquity or the middle ages, these men would have lived in a more communal environment, either on an estate where they worked or with their families.

Next, we can see this is a society that stigmatizes mental illness and has little in the way of public support for mental health. The narrator's insistence that he is not mad conveys a sense that he considers it almost worse to be thought insane than to be thought a murderer.

How is Frankenstein a Gothic novel? What elements of Gothic fiction does it contain? Provide quotes and page numbers.

According to the definition of Gothic Literature it is,

"a movement that focused on ruin, decay, death, terror, and chaos, and privileged irrationality and passion over rationality and reason" .

Frankenstein certainly fits that definition. I will provide examples and chapters. Page numbers aren't effective, considering there are so many editions out there.

Death:Victor Frankenstein is obsessed with death and makes the creature out of body parts from the dead. (Ch. IV and...

According to the definition of Gothic Literature it is,

"a movement that focused on ruin, decay, death, terror, and chaos, and privileged irrationality and passion over rationality and reason" .

Frankenstein certainly fits that definition. I will provide examples and chapters. Page numbers aren't effective, considering there are so many editions out there.

Death: Victor Frankenstein is obsessed with death and makes the creature out of body parts from the dead. (Ch. IV and Ch. V especially)

There are also many deaths in the book, including Elizabeth, William, Justine, Henry, and Victor.

Terror: Almost immediately, the creature terrifies Victor:

"How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavored to form" (Ch. V).

The description of the monster is meant to also terrify the reader. We also see that throughout the novel his appearance terrifies everyone he meets. His behavior, then, also becomes terrifying as he begins to kill people.

Irrationality and Passion: These are seen most obviously in Victor. At the beginning of his story we see how passionate he is about his science and his studies, but we also recognize (even when he does not), how irrational he is. Common sense tells us that trying to sew together a man our of dead body parts and bring it to life is probably going to end up badly, yet Victor genuinely expects perfection. He also expects that this is the beginning of a whole new race that will be grateful to him for its existence.

"A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me" (Ch. IV).

As readers, we can see that this is completely irrational and his thinking is blinded by his passion.

For all of these reasons, and many others, Frankenstein is a Gothic novel.

What are five traits/characteristics of the writing of William Butler Yeats, using "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" as an example?

William Butler Yeats is perhaps Ireland's most famous poet, and is indeed considered one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. His subject matter embraced a number of topics, including love, war, folklore and the supernatural. In choosing characteristics of Yeats' writing as exemplified in this well-loved poem, one thing that stands out is Yeats' frequent practice of writing poems that have an unusual and unexpected rhyme scheme.

Although some of Yeats poems are...

William Butler Yeats is perhaps Ireland's most famous poet, and is indeed considered one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. His subject matter embraced a number of topics, including love, war, folklore and the supernatural. In choosing characteristics of Yeats' writing as exemplified in this well-loved poem, one thing that stands out is Yeats' frequent practice of writing poems that have an unusual and unexpected rhyme scheme.

Although some of Yeats poems are very rhythmic, this one plays with the expectation of rhythm and form, and the result is that the end rhymes of the lines are somehow more impactful. The ending lines are roughly half the length with half the number of syllables, of the previous three lines in each stanza. This sensation of the stanza ending somewhat abruptly has the effect of making the words more memorable, and encouraging readers to muse on those final words, like "bee-loud glade" and "linnet's wings" and "deep heart's core."

Another characteristic present in Yeats poetry that is exemplified here is the representation of nature as both beautiful and melancholy, and the subject of deep yearning and persistent memory. The images described are offered as being on the poet's mind constantly, even though he is not physically present to experience them:

or always night and day 

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore

Do you think that Romeo and Juliet's love will last? Give two reasons to support your claim. Identify a counterclaim. Refute the counterclaim....

In my opinion, Romeo and Juliet's relationship was destined to be a failure from the beginning.  While it would be hard to predict that both partners would end up in the ground when the relationship went south, there are some signs that the relationship could not endure.  It is important to understand that relationships struggle when finances become an issue.  The fact that both Romeo and Juliet were going to be cut off from their...

In my opinion, Romeo and Juliet's relationship was destined to be a failure from the beginning.  While it would be hard to predict that both partners would end up in the ground when the relationship went south, there are some signs that the relationship could not endure.  It is important to understand that relationships struggle when finances become an issue.  The fact that both Romeo and Juliet were going to be cut off from their families if the relationship continued points to potential trouble in being able to support themselves fiscally. Their age was also a stumbling block in being able to support themselves.  

A lot of relationships are strained when one member of the couple does not get along with the in-laws.  In this case, both families did not get along with one another.  It would be naive to suggest that this would not cause problems moving forward in their relationship.  

I would also suggest that it takes longer than one day to wildly fall in love with another person and want to spend the rest of your life with that person. It seems like both characters are suffering from serious immaturity that would cause problems in a relationship moving forward.