Tax Treatments for Individual Returns Essay Example for Free

Tax Treatments for Individual Returns Essay A. Recommended Tax Filing Status The tax filing status that I would recommend is Married Filing Joint. The reason for this is that the IRS has various tax breaks for married persons that file together that are unavailable if you file married filing separate. It also affect the tax rate, they will pay a lower rate of taxes if they file together than they would if they filed separately. A2a. Taxable and Non-Taxable Income Taxable Income for the couple would include the following items: Spouse A’s income from the partnership, Spouse A’s income from the part time job, Spouse B’s income from the electronics firm, and the dividends that were received by Spouse A from Company E. Their Non-Taxable Income items would be: The child support that spouse B receives (child support is nontaxable because it was taxed as income on the parent that is paying it), the interest received on Municipal Bonds (municipal bonds are tax exempt), and the income on the sale of their personal residence is tax exempt because it was their primary residence and they lived there for the required amount of time for the exemption of 500,000 (since they are joint filers). A2b. Capital Gains and Losses The couple has 5,000 in short term capital losses from the day trading while spouse B was unemployed. These losses can be netted against any capital gains that may exist. For example if the sale of the rental property resulted in a long term capital gain, however the rental property is a passive activity so the short term loss can only be claimed for 3,000 and the remaining amount would be carried forward. A2c. Profit or Losses from Sale of Property The profit from sale of the couple’s personal residence would not be taxed. Their personal residence was lived in for at least 2 of the last 5 years and  was under the cut off of the exemption of 500,000 after their adjusted basis calculation was deducted from their sale price. The profit from the sale of the rental property would be taxed as mention in the paragraph above. Depending on how the adjusted basis came out it would either be an ordinary loss or a capital gain. A2d. Partnership Income and Losses Spouse A received a K-1 reporting the share of the partnership income as 142,000. This amount will be reported by the couple on their schedule 1040 as income. The cash withdrawal of 83,500 would most likely not be considered a gain (the determining factor for this is whether or not the amount of Spouse A’s interest in the partnership is higher or lower than the withdrawal amount.) A2e. / A3. Passive Activity Gains and Losses The couple has passive activity from the rental properties that they own but are managed by a local realty company, which means they are not actively participating. Their gross rents are 23,000 and their expenses/depreciation total 29,200. The result of this activity is a passive loss of $6,200.00 The couple also has the gain on the sale of the rental property that could be passive because again it is from their rental properties that they do not actively participate in. The maximum amount of loss they could claim from rental properties is 25,000 per the IRS regulations. A4. Adjustments to Income (on the 1040 form this area is called Adjusted Gross Income) There are multiple adjustments and deductions available to the couple in the 1040 AGI section. The alimony that Spouse A pays can be listed in this section as an adjustment, this will lower their income. Because alimony paid is a deduction to the payer. Alternatively the child support amount that they have listed will not affect anything; you do not need to include it in your income so it is not an adjustment to income. Spouse A’s health  insurance would qualify them for a self-employed health insurance deduction. The contributions to Spouse A’s Keogh plan are also an adjustment to income, this is because they can be deducted in the year they are contributed so that the contributions to the plan are â€Å"tax free†. However, I am unsure about the calculation of maximum because the IRS states that: â€Å"Retirement plans for self-employed people were formerly referred to as â€Å"Keogh plans† after the law that first allowed unincorporated businesses to sponsor retirement plans. Since the law no longer distinguishes between corporate and other plan sponsors, the term is seldom used.† (Retirement Plans for Self-Employed People, 2014) The moving expenses are not an adjustment to Income, the reason for this is that on form 3903 there is a distance test worksheet, when the calculation is done it shows the move was not a difference of 50 or more miles since the move was 52 miles minus the distance to her previous job of 3 miles it is only 49. This does not qualify them to deduct their expenses. A5. Deductions The itemized deductions that the couple would be allowed to take are a deduction for their medical expenses in the amount of expenses that exceeds 10% of their Adjusted Gross Income (line 38 on 1040). So they would take their 10% of their AGI and subtract that number from their total medical expenses and the remaining amount is the available deduction. I don’t believe this would result in much of a deduction if any in their situation. The 6,000 in charitable contributions would be an itemized deduction. However, the 2,600 in business suits is not a valid deduction because you can wear a business suit as everyday clothing. If the clothing were a uniform or something more specifically required by the job that she would not be able to wear in place of her everyday clothes then the amount would be deductible. Due to these calculations, I would recommend to the couple that they take the standard deduction of 12,200 because I believe this would be higher than  their total for itemized deductions. A6. Tax credits Because the couple has a dependent that is in college and living at home they may be eligible to take the American opportunity credit or the lifetime learning credit these credits are available to someone that pays college expenses for themselves or a dependent. They cannot take both however, only one education credit is allowed per year so they would want to calculate which is more beneficial. The couple has dependent children, so they might also be able to take a child tax credit of up to 1,000 per child however, their adjusted gross income may be too high which would phase the credit out to 0. Without doing all of the calculations I am not certain as to whether or not they would actually get this credit. It is also possible that they would qualify for a savers credit which is based upon contributions to a qualifying retirement plan, but again I am not sure if they would end up being over the adjusted gross income limit to receive this credit. References Partners Instructions for Schedule K-1 (Form 1065) (2013 ). (n.d.). Partners Instructions for Schedule K-1 (Form 1065) (2013 ). Retrieved March 10, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1065sk1/ch02.html Publication 523 (2013), Selling Your Home. (n.d.). Publication 523 (2013), Selling Your Home. Retrieved March 10, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/publications/p523/ar02.html Publication 544 (2013), Sales and Other Dispositions of Assets. (n.d.). Publication 544 (2013), Sales and Other Dispositions of Assets. Retrieved March 10, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/publications/p544/index.html Ten Facts about Capital Gains and Losses. (n.d.). Ten Facts about Capital Gains and Losses. Retrieved March 10, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/uac/Newsroom/Ten-Facts-about-Capital-Gains-and-Losses1 1040 Central. (n.d.). 1040 Central. Retrieved March 13, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/1040-Central Retirement Plans for Self-Employed People. (n.d.). Retirement Plans for Self-Employed People. Retrieved March 13, 2014, from http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Retirement-Plans-for-Self-Employed-People

Symbolism In Hills Like White Elephants

Symbolism In Hills Like White Elephants Many stories contain symbolism such as the conch in the well known story Lord of the Flies symbolizing order on the island, or the name Fortunado in the story The Cask of Amontillado, symbolizing an ironic ending to the character. One story in particular that uses symbolism throughout the whole story to represent many different things is the short story Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemmingway. Hemmingway is an outstanding author and writes magnificent stories. This short story of his is about a couple who is discussing abortion in Spain and how difficult their problems are. Hemingway does a tremendous job using symbolism to show their problems throughout the story. Ernest Hemingway had a very interesting life and was a man who lived life as it came. His writing touched millions of people. He wrote about fascinating stories that were very strong and unforgettable. Hemmingway wrote about all sorts, pretty much whatever he felt like writing. Hemingway was born in Oak Park Illinois on July 21, 1899. His parents were Dr. Clarence Edmonds and Grace Hall Hemingway. His father was a practicing doctor, and later taught him how to hunt and fish. Hemmingway also liked to box.Unlike the bond with his father, Hemingway did not have a good relationship with his mother. Hemingways education consisted Oak Park and River Forest High School. Here is where he realized he had a gift of writing. Hitting the age of 18, Hemmingway decided to move to Kansas City instead of attending college. While in Kansas City, he obtained a job as a cub reporter on the Kansas City Star. During this time, he kept to himself. His writing style was first introduced by the Kansas City Star, it was brief and straight forward. Although his career was doing well, in May of 1918, Hemingway wanted to join the Army but was rejected due to a defective left eye which he inherited from his mother. Instead of joining the Army he joined the Red Cross. When he was overseas, one night he was sneaking smokes and chocolate into the soldiers. While doing so, he was hit in the leg by an Austrian machine gun and got over a hundred pieces of metal stuck in his body from grenades. Through unbearable pain, he managed to save a wounded soldier and carry him to safety. For his courageous acts, he was awarded the Italian Medal of Valor, a very high award. He recovered from injuries at the Ospedale Croce Rossa American, in Milan. This stay in Italy set a tremendous place to write his novel, A Farewell to Arms. After Hemmingways recovery, He returned to Oak Hill to live with his mother, until he was forced out for not having a job. After the trouble with his mom, Hemmingway moved to Chica go and got a job writing for the Toronto Star and was a sparring partner for boxers. While in the windy city, he came upon a women by the name of Elizabeth Hadly Richerdson. Hemingway fell madly in love with her and wanted to marry but money was a big problem. The two moved to Canada where their son John Hadly Hemingway was born in 1923. Shortly after, Hemmingway received a Nobel prize for his piece, The Old Man and The Sea. As success was finally with Hemmingway, tragedy struck. On one ofhis flights, his plane crashed leaving him with devastating injuries including a concussion, paralysis of the sphincter, first degree burns in his face, arm and head, a sprained right arm and shoulder, a crushed vertebra, and a ruptured liver, spleen and kidney. He was in much agony and pain for many months. In April 1961, Hemmingway tried to kill himself by putting a gun to his head, but did not succeed in suicide. While cleaning his shotgun in July of 1961, Hemmingway accidently shot himself. The gun which was made just for him took his life, and the life of an Author whose writing touched millions of people (Unknown, Ernest Hemingway Biography. The Hemmingway Resource Center. 4-1-10 http://www.lostgeneration.com/childhood.htm). Hemmingways story, Hills like White Elephants, has many symbolizing parts. Practically everything in the story symbolizes a different item. The story is about a girl by the name of Jig, and an American man, whose name is not stated. The story takes place in a railroad station while the two are waiting to board a train to Madrid. As the two await the trains arrival, they get into an intense, heated argument on whether or not the girl Jig should get an abortion. Jig wants to keep the baby, but the story indicates the man does not at first, but then emphasizes that he wants to do whatever Jig decides on. The story ends by the man carrying the bags to the other side of the tracks as they prepare to board the train and depart. The ending leaves us puzzled and unclear about the decision Jig made. At the end of the story she says I feel fine which leaves us questioning if she was going to go through with the abortion. There are many symbols in the story, but the three that are most recogniz able are the hills, white elephants, and the rail station. The hills symbolize one of many things. One could be obstacles that we as people must climb in order to achieve things. Being that they are hills and not giant mountains, we are able to get over them. This represents that the Jigs baby is a major obstacle in their life that they both can overcome and go on with normal lives. The Hills could very well be viewpoints to see from, but they block the views for people that live in the valley of the hills. This represents that in the story Jig views the Hills and finds opportunity while the man sees nothing because he is worried that the child will cause him to not have a happy and successful future. The Hills also could present a form of imagery being that the hills represent the shape of a pregnant woman. Jig could view the hills as a woman bearing a child is lying on her back with her stomach and breasts swollen from the pregnancy. During a part of the story, Jig mentions while viewing the scenery that they could have all this. Saying th is, she was meaning that the hills represented a challenge to face, new life to partake in, and possibility for the both of them. The white elephants are another sign of symbolism, which could possibly represent the baby. A white elephant is a valuable possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost (particularly cost of upkeep) is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth. It is also a gift that is useless to one person, but priceless to another. This being said is that the baby is priceless to her, but her partner could care less about having a child. The last main symbolizing item in the story is the train station. It can mean one of many things. One side of the station is a dry, dead landscape, which represents dissipation and death of the baby, while the other side is green and beautiful, representing life, and a new beginning. Besides the landscape, the tracks also have a meaning. Railroad tracks run parallel, which means they never touch or run into one another. This could symbolize the relationship of Jig and the American man (Schaefers, Adam. Analyzing the Symbolism of Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway. Lifestyle. 4-1-10 ). Hemmingway wrote many great stories and used symbolism in many great ways. In his story Hills like White Elephants; he did an amazing job showing the trouble of a couple on a decision affecting the rest of their lives. Hemmingway has many other great stories and his stories and symbolization has given people different ways to view stories and has touched the hearts of millions. Citations: Schaefers, Adam. Analyzing the Symbolism of Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway. Lifestyle. 4-1-10 . Cummings, Michael J. Hills Like White Elephants. Cummings Guides. 4-1-10 . Unknown, Ernest Hemingway Biography. The Hemmingway Resource Center. 4-1-10 . Machete, Ernest Hemingway . Literary Analysis. 4-1-10 .

Mental Health of Children with HIV

Mental Health of Children with HIV Chapter 1 Introduction Women are more at risk of acquiring HIV infection than men in sub-Saharan Africa mainly due to Gender inequality, this relatively increases the risk of children acquiring HIV through mother-to-child-transmission [1]. According to available statistics about 30% of babies born in sub-Saharan Africa to HIV positive mothers will themselves be infected with the virus either through childbirth or through breast-feeding [2]. From recent data there are about 3.2 million children living with HIV, 91% of these children living with HIV are found in sub-Saharan Africa [2]. The WHO recommendations stipulates that children below the age of 5 diagnosed with HIV should be placed on ART regardless of what their CD4 count is, 28% of these children living with HIV worldwide, requiring antiretroviral treatment (ART) currently have access to these drugs [2]. Since the onset of the epidemic, most of the children with perinatally acquired HIV in low and middle income countries do not live past infancy [3, 4]. However, results from recent research shows that life expectancy has improved and 36% of these infants live up to 16 years of age [5]. Likewise, strategies employed to screen pregnant mothers and test infants and children at risk for HIV infection, as well as the advances in ART, has improved the quality of life and ensure HIV positive children live longer [6, 7]. However, these children will have to face the challenges of living with a chronic illness, requiring tremendous social support for long, to enable proper development both mentally and physically. For example, recent studies indicate that living with a life-threatening and stigmatizing illness is also difficult and creates great psychological distress for children with HIV [8]. Children living with HIV are often confronted with fears/thoughts about their own death, most of them are stigmatized and discriminated against [8]. Consistent evidence also shows cognitive difficulties for HIV positive children [9]. 1.2. Background and Context Mental disorder is progressively becoming an important global health concern and the leading cause of disability globally. Depression an ordinary mental disorder, currently afflicts about 350 million people, both adults and children worldwide [10]. An increasing number of mental disorders are ranked among the leading causes of disability in the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Burden of Disease 2004 [11]. War, poverty, deprivation, marginalization and deracination are among the key social determinants of mental health identified as prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) [12-15]. This in turn increases the prevalence of depression in this region, though the number are under-reported. Despite the clear indication that mental health is a huge public health concern in SSA, it has consistently been neglected, due to the preponderance of communicable diseases, malnutrition and other perinatal disorders. Adults living with a chronic illness like HIV, are prone to psychosocial and psychological stressors so are children living with HIV. They are faced with anxiety associated with living with a chronic illness and the possibilities of death from the infection. High on the list for psychosocial stressor, is the issue of discrimination and stigmatization, as well as struggles with other challenges like malnutrition, poverty and diminished social support [15]. Evidence from studies have shown that children suffering from chronic diseases are more prone to developing mental disorders than their peers that are healthy. In one study [16] involving children with epilepsy, it was suggested that healthy children were less likely to suffer from mental disorder than those with epileptic conditions that had increased risks. Another study [17] showed minders of children with sickle cell disease reported more emotional and behavioural abnormalities among these set of children. Studies from other region of the world have shown that there is a relationship between HIV and mental illness. It has been shown [18] that early abnormalities in children’s neurological development is attributable to HIV infection and no other factors like environmental and biological risks. The association between HIV and neurological impairment is well researched in children. Learning difficulties, attention deficit disorder [19, 20], behavioural abnormalities [21-23] and cognitive discrepancies [24, 25] are all associated with HIV infection in children. The Pediatric Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Clinical Trials Group (PACTG) in their study reported increased risks for psychiatric hospitalization for children living with HIV compared to other children without the infection [26]. It was also suggested that children with perinatally acquired HIV infection may be susceptible to certain mental disorder due to the effects of HIV infection on neurological development. They a lso stated that there is a likelihood of increased mental illness among these children as they progress in life. Result from a study conducted by Mellins et al.[27] that examined psychiatric indicators in children between the ages of 9-16 years with perinatal HIV infection, showed that 11% of the children had oppositional defiant disorder and 13% diagnosed with conduct disorder. Moreover, other studies have shown that perinatal HIV infected children are at greater risk of experiencing abnormalities in brain development [28], these abnormalities include delayed motor and cognitive development [29] and in some cases short-term amnesia and mental retardation as a result of the infection [30, 31]. A study [32] of Ugandan HIV positive babies followed over a period of one year, showed that 30% of the babies on ART exhibited impaired motor functions while about 26% of the babies displayed impaired cognitive functions, this is in contrast with 5-6% of HIV negative babies that exhibited the same conditions. Papola et al. [33] in their study, collected retrospective data on 90 school children living with HIV, in order to examine their developmental and needs. From their findings 44% of the children’s range of intelligence were below average or average, while 56% had language impairment. A similar finding were replicated by Bachanas et al. [32], result from the study showed that HIV-infected children had lower WISC-III scores and abysmal academic performance. They also exhibited significant psychological functioning deficiency. 1.3. Research Project and significance With increasing access to ART, the number of children born with perinatal HIV infection getting to adolescence and adulthood has increased tremendously. These children in most cases share stressors experienced by other children living with other chronic illness, like long term medical hospitalization and treatment, and agonizing life experiences. Notwithstanding the burgeoning evidence and psychosocial consequences of living with a chronic disease, there are still dearth of studies that have investigated the mental health concerns of children living with HIV in SSA. Most research elsewhere focuses on the effect of ART treatment and prevention of HIV. Though, there is an increasing cognizance of the likelihood of increased risk of mental health disorders for people living with HIV in the long run, owing to biomedical changes occasioned by ART and environmental risks. Based on the glowing evidence from research on correlation between substance abuse, risky sexual behaviours and mental health disorders, it is then pertinent to understand the association between mental health and children living with prenatally acquired HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa, especially because of its unique environment and the high prevalence of the social determinants of mental illness in the region. This is necessary to inform mental health treatment and prevention programmes. 1.4. Study aim To review and provide a synthesis of research on the mental health and psychological functioning/outcomes of children who are perinatally-infected with HIV, corresponding risk and protective elements, treatment modes and areas of vital need for future research and interventions. 1.5. Organization of the Thesis This thesis is organized as follows. Chapter 1 deals with the scope and objectives of the thesis, it gives a brief background of children living with perinatal HIV infection and the current trend, the mental health issues associated with living with HIV/AIDS. Chapter 2 deals with the methodology, the literature search and identification of studies, inclusion and exclusion criteria, data extraction, quality assessment and procedures used in the analysis. Chapter 3 presents the study findings. Chapter 4 presents the general discussions of the study findings, including limitations of studies included. And also the limitations of a systematic review study, strength and weakness. Chapter 5 gives the concludes and summarizes the study, giving possible intervention to address the emerging mental health concerns for children living with HIV/AIDS, as well as recommendations and identified areas of future research. Chapter 2 Literature search A systematic literature review was conducted using the theme â€Å"children living with HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa and mental health†. The study included studies up until July 2014. The research focuses on papers dealing with children living with HIV/AIDS and the effects on their mental health. The aim is to harness these research papers on the above-mentioned theme, and discuss the subject, present a summary, and highlight areas of future research needs. This informed by the body of evidence suggesting that in the long run, perinatal infected HIV children are liable to mental health issues, arising from factors such as environment, genetics, biomedical and familial [30-33]. Nonetheless, in the course of these research there are dearth of studies using the mental health as outcome and perinatal HIV infection as exposure in SSA. Hence, terms relevant to the review theme were discovered and used in finding the required papers. Studies on children living with HIV and mental health outside sub-Saharan Africa were not included in this review. It is not clear as explained in some studies, whether the mental health condition experienced by HIV positive children is neurologically or psychological. This might be a limitation of this review. A comprehensive search of online database for published articles on mental health and psychological functioning of children who are perinatally-infected with HIV was conducted. The electronic databases includes: PubMed, EBSCOhost and Science Direct, MEDLINE, Psychinfo, PubMed, JSTOR and Google Scholar. In addition to the online databases, unpublished articles, theses and internal reports will also identified by citation snowballing from the initial journal articles. Data was collected between January 2014 and July 2014 from the databases. The search terms used, identified through MeSH include: mental health, psychiatric/psychological, emotional and behavioural problems, perinatal HIV infection, paediatric HIV and adolescence. Inclusion and Exclusion criteria The initial search returned one hundred and eleven studies relevant to children in sub-Saharan African living with HIV and mental health concerns, restrictions were applied in terms of age, geography and study methodology. Only studies that included children between the ages of 1- 15 years were included. Studies conducted outside sub-Saharan African countries were not included. Both quantitative and qualitative studies were included if the primary research was on HIV infection as exposure studied, the researchers had a control group or standardized psychological instrument, mental health disorder/symptoms was the key outcome studied. Only English language articles were included. Out of the 111 studies selected only 10 that were relevant to the review was selected. As the main aim of this review was to focus on well-grounded findings the mental health and psychological functioning/outcomes of children who are perinatally-infected with HIV, only papers that included both subject were selected. Exclusion of studies outside the geographical area of interest were only performed at a later stage, to ensure that relevant studies that did not stipulate their geographical emphasis in their keywords were not excluded. Figure 1. Inclusion and exclusion used in systematic review. Data Extraction Children were classified as infected or uninfected based on their seropositive or negative status. The final synthesized materials were evaluated based on the research methodology employed, age range, and the outcomes from the study. To assist in the analysis Microsoft Excel was used. A content analysis was performed. As the studies used in the systematic review is small, a meta-analysis could not performed.

Physics of Lift Essay -- physics lift airplane fly

Lift is a commonly used term to describe "something" that results in objects moving upwards against the force caused by gravity. This "something" is actually a force in itself. Lift is one of the four main forces that act upon all objects that move through the air. These four forces are: # Lift - an upward force on the object # Weight - a downward force due to the acceleration of gravity # Thrust - a forward force (propulsion) # Drag - a force caused by resistance that acts in the opposite direction of thrust Lift is a simple concept to grasp, yet the reason it exists is a complex one. To this day there is still great debate over what is the cause of lift. There are several popular explanations given which are commonly found in student textbooks, and even pilot training manuals, yet these popular explanations do not stand up to serious physics analysis. The most common of these arguments is based off of Bernoulli’s Principle. As it has been named, "Bernoulli’s" argument states that the reason lift is created in wings is that the upper surface of the wing is curved, and therefore longer than the underside of the wing (In truth, Bernoulli had nothing to do with this explanation of lift, it is only attributed to his principle). The argument goes on to say that if the upper surface is longer than that of the bottom, the air flowing over the upper surface must travel faster as it has farther to travel. Using Bernoulli’s Principle this explanation says that because the air traveling over the top of the wing is moving faster than the air under the wing the air above the wing exerts less pressure on the wing than the air under the wing. If there is less pressure above the wing then the air under the wing will push upwards on the... ...del for lift, even though it works in reality. In conclusion it can be seen that lift is derived from the fact that for there to exist a lifting force created in the wings the wings must exert a force on the air around them. The wings are able to do this due to the viscosity of air and the Coanda effect. By manipulating the wing's curves and angle of attack a pilot may preform great stunts and feats not possible if lift were to be explained through other incorect models. More information about lift, as well as a very detailed explanation of exactly how a wing interacts with the air around it can be read in the journal article: "A unified viscous theory of lift and drag of 2-d thin airfoils and 3-d thin wings" author Yates, John, published by National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Office of Management, Scientific and Technical Information Program in 1991.

Comparing Crime and Punishment and Taxi Driver :: comparison compare contrast essays

Crime and Punishment and Taxi Driver He is a man whose psychological workings are dark, twisted, horrifying, and lonely. He is an absurd, anti-hero who is absolutely repulsed by his surroundings, and because he is unable to remove himself from them, he feels justified in removing other people. This profile fits Travis, portrayed by Robert DeNiro in Scorsese's film "Taxi Driver,", and Raskolnikov, the main character of Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment. Their revulsion for life leads both men to commit cold-blooded murders, but the story lines contain major differences. By contrasting these differences and comparing the common themes of the classic and the film, we may come to a clearer understanding of the purpose of both stories. The root of both Travis' and Raskolnikov's problems is their complete and utter disgust with the world around them. Travis is a New York City cab driver who drives everywhere and picks up anyone. It doesn't matter to him if the customer is a prostitute who uses his backseat as her workplace. He just drives around with a glazed look of indifference in his eyes, while inside, his heart is overflowing with rage. In contrast, Raskolnikov is an ex-student living in St. Petersburg during the mid 1800's. He is extremely poor, and therefore lives in an area called the Haymarket, where all the whorehouses and bars were located. Every time he goes out, he walks past the dregs of society, which fills his heart with hatred for everyone and everything. Both characters see the world to be completely evil and devoid of all goodness, and this existential view drives them to become exactly what they so desperately hate. Their revolt against ugliness pulls both characters towards the most ugly of all deeds - murder. Travis dreams that "someday a real rain will come and wipe this scum off the streets." He feels some sort of divine calling to actually become this "real rain." Similarly, Raskolnikov plots to sacrifice one "louse of a human being" who is "no good to anyone" for the benefit of thousands. Out of this scheme he derives his Extraordinary/ Superman theory that states that humans are divided into the ordinary and the extraordinary, the men and the supermen.

The Innate Nature of Sin

The Innate Nature of Sin Nathaniel Hathorne was an author who consistently wrote about satires of the Puritan time. His short stories often revolved around themes of sin and how no one could escape from committing sin. The short stories â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† and â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† written by Hawthorne, reflect these themes through elements of fiction, such as plot, setting, symbolism, and point of view. â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† is about a town’s minister who walks into Sunday Congregation with a heinous black veil covering his face.The veil shields him from the sins of the rest of the world, and the rest of the world from his sin. â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† is about a newly married man who leaves Faith, his wife to follow a man into the forest, where Satanic Rituals occur. These Satanic Rituals are powered by the people Goodman Brown had once known to be the most religious. Through the elements of fiction, t he short stories â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† and â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† show how there is no way for one escape from committing sin, no matter who they are. One of the stories Hawthorne writes is â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil. The story starts when a minster walks into his weekly Sunday sermon with a veil that cover’s his face.. The veil is seen as symbolic with sin, because the minister has started to wear his sin on his face. He is shunned from the town, as people start to grow uncomfortable in his presence. The veil is a constant reminder of their sins as well. When the Minister goes to a funeral of a girl, he walks in with the veil and stoops down to the corpse’s level, and when by accident his face unveiled (just to the corpse) â€Å"the corpse had slightly shuddered, rustling the shroud and muslin cap, though the countenance retained the composure of death. (â€Å"Black Veil† 337). When the corpse sees the face of the minister, it shudders in reaction. This reaction gives hints about what may be behind the black veil. It shows that what is behind the black veil is so dark, and horrible that even a dead body has a reaction, and the only reaction a dead body can have is fear of what may be coming next. At its end, there’s nothing the corpse can do about its life and how it was lived: with or without sin. Seeing all the sin behind the veil scared the corpse, as it was a reflection of all the sin it could not longer escape.All of its sin had caught up with the corpse as it lay in the coffin. Then the Minister continued to make a sermon, praying that everybody be prepared for death when what is underneath the veil is revealed. This scene says that death is when all of one’s sins come to catch up with them, and everything underneath the veil is revealed as they are judged before God. The veil, in this sense, can be anything as a cover for sin. For the Minister, it was a physical a pie ce of cloth that covered his face.For other’s it can be their personalities; how they behave around others can deceive others of their sin. After the funeral, the Minister goes to a wedding and just about he’s about to take a sip of his wine, after wishing the couple happiness, he sees his own reflection: â€Å"catching a glimpse of his figure in the looking-glass, the black veil involved his own spirit in the horror with which it overwhelmed all others. His frame shuddered – his lips grew white – he spilt the untasted wine upon the carpet – and rushed forth into the darkness. (â€Å"Black Veil† 338) In this scene, the Minister is, for the first time, seeing himself with the veil. His reaction is much similar to that of his congregation: fear.. Here, we see an element of fiction: Symbolism. The veil is symbolic for sins the Minister has committed. When he sees this veil, hHe feels fear – so much fear – that he drops what he is holding and flees. The fear of sin the veil ignites in him causes him to run, , as if to escape from them. He cannot let anyone see what he sees, as he is the only one who truly knows what his sins are.His sins are so frightening because he knows that eventually he will be accountable for every single one, and the veil will one day be pulled off. Even he, the Minister of the church, cannot escape from his sin, and eventually at death, everyone’s sins will catch up with him or her: At that point, there is nowhere to run. The next story, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† is about a young man who is leaving his wife to go meet someone in the forests. He meets a man, who looks like an older version of himself, (actually the devil) and tells him that he wishes to go back to his village.He tells the man, his family was full of good Christians, and that he is ashamed to be associated with the devil. As he tells the Devil that he has to follow a different path, the Devil responds à ¢â‚¬Å"Well Goodman Brown! I have been as well acquainted with your family as with ever a one among the Puritans; and that is no trifle to say. † (Hawthorne 326) When the Devil says this, Goodman Brown gets confused: He believed his family to be of one of the most religious, and to see them associate themselves with the devil seems to be a lie. He believes that there must be rumors about his family.He can’t accept the fact that his father, and grandfather, who were known to be pious people, associated themselves with the Devil of all people. Goodman Brown waves off some people the Devil names, saying that they choose their own path. Then he says to the Devil that he would not be able to talk to the Minister of Salem Village if he were to go on. The Devil’s response to this is â€Å"Thus far the elder traveler had listened with due gravity; but now burst into a fit if irrepressible mirth, shaking himself so violently that his snakelike staff actually seemed to wri ggle in sympathy. (Hawthorne 327) Here, the Devil bursts into laughter when Goodman Brown suggests the Minister is a good Christian man. Goodman brown is offended at the man for proving all of his acquaintances wrong. He learns in this story that nobody, not even his good little Faith, can escape the Devil. His father, grandfather, the Minister, and Faith have all be revealed to be following the Devil, and it’s something he cannot escape. In Conclusion, both short stories, â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† and â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† by Nathaniel Hawthorn, reveal the inevitable sin of the people we trust the most.It shows us that nobody can escape sin, and it’s innate of human nature. When the town’s people first see the Minister with his veil, their reactions are all of shock and fear. During his first sermon with the veil â€Å"Each member of the congregation, the most innocent girl, and the man of hardened breast, felt as if the preach er had crept upon them behind his awful veil and discovered their hoarded iniquity of deed or thought. † (Hawthorne 336) Here, Hawthorne is describing the effect the veil had on the people of that town.Everybody who was at the sermon felt as though Minister Hooper had crept up to them, and discovered their sins of actions, and their sins of thoughts. It says even â€Å"the most innocent girl† felt her sins being discovered. This quote states that nobody can escape from sin, despite trying your hardest. The innocent girl should have been free of sins, but she feels the fear of her sins being unveiled just as everyone else. The fact that the Minister came into the sermon with his â€Å"sins† on his face, people actually felt fear and power from his sermon.

Gun Control Is Bad Essay

Gun control laws should not be strengthened, instead they should be enforced. Instead of making it harder for law-abiding citizens to obtain guns, guns should be taken away from unstable individuals or people who should not have guns like criminals. The first reason why gun control should not be strengthened is that citizens have the right to own guns; it is one of those entitlements that makes the United States different from other countries. Secondly, criminals are criminals and that is why they are called criminals, they don’t follow the law; basically if a criminal wants a gun they will get a gun, legally or not. My third reason is that guns are used for protection. Strengthening gun control laws will not prevent violence, guns aren’t the only tool used to hurt people, and people will use other objects to hurt people if they can’t have guns. Without a gun, murderers will still murder people whether they use a gun, knife, baseball bat, or any other object, it doesn’t matter. If not that many citizens have guns thanks to stronger gun laws, what if the government becomes tyrannical or does not protect the citizens’ rights? Well they won’t be able to do anything because they will be helpless, they can’t take out the leaders and fix the government. The second amendment states, â€Å"A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. Adolf Hitler took away guns from the Jewish people during his reign of power in Europe, the constitution states that guns are â€Å"necessary to the security of a free state† and Hitler did not want a free state, he did not want them to fight back. Same goes for Fidel Castro and other leaders like them. Guns are necessary to for the people to have, to make sure the government is kept in line. The founding fathers wanted citizens to be able to own guns to make sure that the people are in charge. Thomas Jefferson said, â€Å"When the people fear the government there is a tyranny, when the government fears the people there is liberty.† If stricter gun control laws went into effect then citizens will begin to lose a basic right as a citizen of the United States. Some people who think strengthening gun control will reduce gun violence but it will only make law-abiding citizens not want to go through the process of getting a gun. Criminals will find a way to get guns if they want them which is why instead of strengthening gun laws, it should be made sure that criminals and unstable people do not have guns. When alcohol was illegal during Prohibition, the criminals still found a way to get it, if guns are illegal they will still find a way to get them. Chicago has some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation. In 2010 it was illegal for a citizen to own a handgun. In that same year more Chicago police officers were killed by gunfire than any other police agency. According to theacru.org a Harvard study showed, â€Å"Norway has the highest rate of gun ownership in Western Europe, yet possesses the lowest murder rate. In contrast, Holland’s murder rate is nearly the worst, despite having the lowest gun ownership in Western Europe.† This is showing how gun control does not work. According to dosomething.org, â€Å"Most guns used in crimes are stolen either from homes or gun dealers.† A criminal will find a gun illegally if they have to, they won’t care about gun control laws, only citizens who will follow the law will, and they will be the ones to get hurt by the criminals. If they want it, they will find a way to get it. Guns don’t kill people, people kill people and if guns are not available then people will still kill people, gun control laws being strengthened will not stop people from killing each other. The proof is in the facts, gun control doesn’t work. Guns can be used to balance power between the strong and the defenseless which can save innocent lives. For example, if an elderly woman was home alone and someone was breaking into her home she could easily shoot the intruder and defend herself. According to justfacts.com, in a survey done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1994, â€Å"Americans use guns to frighten away intruders who are breaking into their homes about 498,000 times per year.† An example of this is a story done by ABC News on October 20, 2012 a 12 year old girl was home alone when an intruder broke in, she hid in her closet with her mom’s gun and when the intruder came to the closet she shot him in the shoulder and he got scared off, that probably saved her life. Also, a survey from the Journal of Quantative Criminology from 2000 stated, â€Å"U.S. civilians use guns to defend themselves and others from crimes at least 989,883 times per year.† If gun control laws are strengthened it will be harder for citizens who obey the law to obtain guns which they would use to protect themselves therefore the crime rate will spike as the smaller and weaker cannot protect themselves. Stricter gun control laws will only make it harder for citizens who actually follow the law to acquire guns, criminals don’t care if it is illegal or not. It is an unalienable right as a U.S. citizen to own guns and guns are used as protection from people like who want to do harm to others. If gun laws are strengthened criminals will still get the guns if they want them, they don’t care if they break the law. Guns are used for protection by citizens. I think that the only way to lessen violence with guns is to have stronger penalties for murders and harm to other people. Also, I believe that people should keep track of their guns and keep them in a safe place so no one can steal them.