Psy240 Final Analyzing Psychological Disorders Essay Example for Free

Psy240 Final Analyzing Psychological Disorders Essay You are interviewing for a psychologist position with a top company. After your face-to-face interview with the team, they have provided you with two additional assignments—Part A and Part B below, which will complete the interview process: * Part A: A psychologist understands how biology can affect psychological activities and disorders. In your interview, you are asked about your understanding of the causes and treatment(s) of schizophrenia. In your reply, discuss the following: * Areas of the brain affected * Causal factors * Associated symptoms * The neural basis * Appropriate drug therapies * Part B: Part B of the interview consists of interpreting some case studies from a biopsychologist’s perspective. You are given four different case studies of disorders and have the option of choosing two out of the four case studies to analyze. * Write a 1,750- to 2,100-word paper in APA format containing the following: * Introduction * Part A of the interview process. * Part B of the interview process: * Choose two of the four case studies presented in Appendix A. * Discuss your understanding of the problem presented in each of the two case studies from the perspective of a biopsychologist. * Include each problem’s relation to the nature-nurture issue and any relevant portions of the Basics to Biopsychology text. * Use a minimum of five outside resources, including at least 3 peer-reviewed articles. * Apply any helpful drug interventions or solutions. * Discuss the positive or negative aspects of these drug interventions or solutions and * Conclusion

Malcolm X Essay -- essays research papers fc

The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley was published in 1965. It is national best seller about the life and times of Malcolm X. On May 19, 1925 Malcolm Little was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His father was a preacher who spoke out about the unity of black people. This caused several white racists to strike out against Malcolm’s father and his family violently. His family moved to Lansing, Michigan where Malcolm, his parents, brothers, and sisters were shot at, burned out of their home, harassed, and threatened. When Malcolm was 6 years old, his father was murdered by a white man. After his father’s death his mother had a nervous breakdown and the family got split up by welfare agencies. Malcolm was placed in a lot of different schools and boardinghouses. He was a good student and wanted to be a lawyer someday, but a teacher told him that because he was black he should take up carpentry instead. At age 15 he dropped out of school and moved to Boston to live with his half sister Ella. He quickly sees the fast pace life of Detroit. To get money he shined shoes, worked at a soda fountain, worked at a restaurant and on a railroad kitchen crew. Later he moved to the black Harlem section of New York City where he sold drugs, became a thief, and was involved with a lot of hoodlums and pimps. He moved back to Boston and got arrested for burglary. While he was in prison he learned about the Nation of Islam and later joined the Islamic religion. He was released from prison in 1952 and went to be with his brother in Detroit where he replaced his last name, Little, with X to symbolize his lost true African family name. The Islamic religion taught that white people were devils so Malcolm went around speaking out against whites at universities and other places. He returned to New York and became minister of the Harlem temple. For 12 years he preached that the white man was the devil and Muhammad was God’s messenger. In 1964 he left the Nation of Islam and said "I feel like a man who has been asleep somewhat and under someone else’s control. I feel what I’m thinking and saying now is for myself. Before, it w as for and by guidance of another, now I think with my own mind."(Haley 312) He was 38 years old when he left the Islamic religion and started his own group, Organization of Afro-American Unity. He went to Mecca, known as the Hajj, and this is a religious... ...t of drug addiction, self-hatred and poverty. He restored a sense of pride in our African heritage to millions of black Americans. He offered his own view of civil rights issues, and it was totally different from the views held by other leaders, who were thought to be more moderate. If he had lived, many people think that he would have become one of the most powerful political figures this nation has known. At the end of the book Malcolm said, "I know that societies often have killed the people who have helped to change those societies. And if I can die having brought any light, having exposed any meaningful truth that will help to destroy the racist cancer that is malignant in the body of America then all of the credit is due to Allah. Only the mistakes have been mine." Book Report: The Autobiography of Malcolm X Chidima Keke April 13, 2004 African American History II Professor Lewis Works Cited Haley, Alex. The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Ballantine Books: New York.1965 D.Hine, W.C. Hine, Harrold Stanley. The African American Odyssey. 2nd edition. Vol.2.Perason Education, Inc: New Jersey. 2003

“Pygmalion” by George Bernard Shaw and its film version “My fair lady” Essay

Pygmalion written by Bernard Shaw, was first performed on stage with Rex Harrison as Henry Higgins. The reception of the audience during the play was of utmost disappointment due to the non romantic ending of the play, even though that was Shaws initial intentions. My fair Lady on the other hand is a musical based on Pygmalion, and the movie was shot in 1964 by director George Cukor. Although there are numerous similarities between musical and play such as the character interactions or how both of them portray social status, especially in the conclusion, the musical displays several contradictions in comparison to the movie. Bernard Shaw wrote the play during an important moment in history, which was when women were starting to gain independence in the beginning of the 20th century. It is produced in 1914 which is when WW1 broke out and war time made it easier for women to find work, and soon after women got their independent vote in 1920. Thus Pygmalion has a strong sense of feminism and independence as one of the leading themes to guide the characters on, especially Eliza. Eliza throughout the play is striving to prove how women should be independent and not rely on men in order to lead a life. Both movie and play shows us that when Higgins turns Eliza into a duchess, he didnt give her just class and status but he took her independence away because she is not fit to sell anything else. What happens now is that if Eliza doesnt marry she has no one to provide for her and Freddy is useless because he has no talent for making money. Thus Higgins indirectly limited Elizas opportunities making her dependent on men. And during the movie when she goes back to Higgins she loses power in her character. Even though it was of her own free will and not on necessity, she still loses the power she had before. Pygmalion comes from a Greek Myth, Ovids narrative where a man called Pygmalion makes a sculpture of a woman called Galatea. Ovids original idea is that Galatea would be a worshipping monument to Pygmalion with a woman who refuses to be bound to a man who says that he has created her. Shaw in a way is flouting with Ovids original purpose due to all the inferences even  in Pygmalion that Higgins maybe has feelings for Eliza, supporting Shaws proposal of a woman within a low rank to dominate and gain the love of a middle class man. However, whether Eliza loves him or not is a different matter. On the other hand, Shaw has an ironic ending of Eliza marrying Freddy. So her independence goes straight into the gutter when she goes from being the subject of one man to another, because that is the only thing an upper class woman is supposed to do in her life, just like when Mr. Doolittle said I was free. He wants to return to the undeserving poverty instead of living as a rich man where everyone wants something from him, including his wife now wants to marry him. What happens is that as a working class woman, Eliza had her own independence and was used to assert her own rights I wont stay here if I dont like and I wont let nobody wallop me!. Now, women in her position cannot sell flowers and she must sell [her]self into marriage, giving up her rights and being dominate by men. As a second theme, Higgins is shown as a dangerous teacher to Eliza due to his mind broadening influence. Similar to the movie Dead poets Society, just like the teacher Mr. Keating, Higgins exerts a subversive influence on Eliza, with an encouragement to such an extent that he fills her heads with dreams that life cant give. His destructive influence although with best intentions at heart, if Higgins had done nothing, Eliza would not have moved classes. But now that he has given her attributes changing her social class, he creates expectations, illusions and taste to a dream which she cannot fulfill. The consequence is that his actions creates these ripples which can disrupt society, because he is going against societys flow, just like Socrates, who was popular among young men, he gave ideas going against cities principles. For any person, not just a fictional character within a play, when someone doesnt have what they want, this creates frustration because there is no structure to support their dreams, and Higgins just like Mr Keating doesnt realize the consequence of his actions. So now Higgins created a situation where Eliza cant do anything else and is now only fit to  sell myself. This theme is also connected to another theme in the play such as social class and language, because Higgins gives Eliza her language, but as shown in the first meeting that Eliza has with Mrs. Higgins, she has a flawless English however lacks a decent background, manners and taste. Thus social class is a combination of all of these and Pickering is the one who gives her the rest of her social class in addition to the language given by Higgins. So language also has an important role as shown in Higgins song why cant the English? where he says that Eliza is condemned by every syllable that she utters. In the year 300 b.c. Aristotle made it clear that a tragedy usually ends in death and a comedy ends in marriage. Throughout the play, Bernard Shaw leads the characters in believing that Eliza will end up marrying Higgins or someone with very great richness, when in fact, Shaw does not follow Aristotles rule and he breaks the whole build up of expectations that the audience had while watching the play. In contrast the film ends with Eliza entering Higgins room and his ending line is where the hell are my slippers so the film allows us to believe they dont get married, it only hints it, and that if they do, he will be a dominant person in their relationship. However when Shaw wrote the play, and the movie changes his initial reasons of writing the ending the way he did, Shaw wanted to show that people who dont marry, such as Higgins, arent disintegrated from their parents because they put their parents in high pedestals, which is also known as Oedipus tragedy. Both endings in Pygmalion and My Fair Lady, seem to have an ending which is adapted to the main theme of the story, i.e. the film director and Shaw wanted to make different statements in their work. This leads to the assumption that the ending from Pygmalion is an ending that makes sense when seen that Shaws initial intention of having a play about feminism and independence, and at the same time the ending of My Fair Lady also makes sense because it is a Hollywood movie, like a Cinderella story with a romantic twist, shot in order to attract an audience. Thus although the  movie and play are the same story the focus placed on each one is on different themes which is what causes the alteration of the ending. This means that if My Fair Lady had a different ending, the addition of the songs such as rain in Spain and grown accustomed in the movie, which add a sense of romance, would be completely destroyed if both lovers werent able to conquer all of the issues between both of them. In addition, the film director also placed an emphasis on different characters and evens than Shaw. Whilst Shaws play is on social concern, criticizing the way social classes judge others based on their accent, the films message is of an individuals life that if one tries hard enough a development may be achieved. Or during the film when they say that she needs the services of a dentist so that she can get used to live and speak like a lady, meaning that all that the film was concerned about was Elizas development and her climbing of steps on the social ladder. Not to mention that for the movies ending, an idealized Eliza is portrayed in order to appeal to the public: with a noble posture when dealing under pressure. Whilst in comparison to the play she does not show her sincere feelings as Shaw first wrote it. However, even though when Eliza leaves Higgins in Pygmalions ending, although it follows through with the feminist theme, it is completely understandable why the audience for this play end the play with a feeling of dissatisfaction because after reading a whole play with a character such as Higgins who is hilarious at every speech, and at some point in the play makes you feel compassion for him, it is extremely infuriating when the main character goes off without him after a man who is in the play mainly for tempting Eliza and has no other part in play. All Freddie feels for Eliza is a platonic love and he writes her three pages every day, when Higgins actually shows true feelings for Eliza in his own disguised way. In My fair Lady, when Eliza returns from the ball, she is crying and really afraid of what might happen to her in the future where am I to go, what am I to do which Higgins without any kind of respect throws her options like working in a florists shop or marrying someone. However none of these  options satisfy Eliza. Then on the next day, it seems like it dawns on Higgins because he says where will you go, in Heaven`s name?, giving a sense that he realized that he would miss Eliza as shown in the song grown accustomed. Even though she says quite firmly she would teach phonetics, it is obvious for the audience that teaching phonetics is not what she really wanted. So what the movie shows more clearly is that Eliza does indeed have options and that Higgins is afraid he will be without her. So what makes the ending of this movie such an attraction to the audience is that Eliza comes back to Higgins as a choice of her own and not as a need. Which is in fact exactly what Higgins likes: a person who makes their decisions based on rational thinking and not on weakness. In conclusion the film has added and taken away certain characteristics of the play, but this does not mean that one is better than the other, it only means that the author and the director had different propositions in mind as to what they wanted to show their audience. One could say that the main obvious difference between the play and the movie are the songs. The songs entertain the public and thus they are more appealed because it follows a movies characteristics of those days, in addition it emphasizes Shaws initial ideas of what the characters felt leading to the main themes of the play. For example when Eliza is in the market and she wished for comfort, warmth and chocolate. However the disadvantage is that the main theme of the play which is a criticism to high classes is lost, thus songs lose the main themes and makes the story appear more Hollywood like instead of being based on a book. NOTES TAKEN FROM THE BOOK â€Å"PYGMALION† BY BERNARD SHAW AND FROM THE MOVIE â€Å"MY FAIR LADY†

Battle of Salamis in the Persian Wars

The Battle of Salamis was fought in September 480 BC during the Persian Wars (499-449 BC). One of the great naval battles in history, Salamis saw the out-numbered Greeks best a larger Persian fleet. The campaign had witnessed the Greeks pushed south and Athens captured. Regrouping, the Greeks were able to lure the Persian fleet into the narrow waters around Salamis which negated their numerical advantage. In the resulting battle, the Greeks badly defeated the enemy and forced them to flee. Unable to supply their army by sea, the Persians were forced to retreat north. Persian Invasion Invading Greece in the summer of 480 BC, Persian troops led by Xerxes I were opposed by an alliance of Greek city-states. Pushing south into Greece, the Persians were supported offshore by a large fleet. In August, the Persian army met Greek troops at the pass of Thermopylae while their ships encountered the allied fleet in the Straits of Artemisium. Despite a heroic stand, the Greeks were defeated at the Battle of Thermopylae forcing the fleet to retreat south to aid in the evacuation of Athens. Assisting in this effort, the fleet then moved to ports on Salamis. Athens Falls Advancing through Boeotia and Attica, Xerxes attacked and burned those cities that offered resistance before occupying Athens. In an effort to continue resistance, the Greek army established a new fortified position on the Isthmus of Corinth with the goal of defending the Peloponnesus. While a strong position, it could be easily outflanked if the Persians embarked their troops and crossed the waters of the Saronic Gulf. To prevent this, some of the allied leaders argued in favor of moving the fleet to the isthmus. Despite this threat, the Athenian leader Themistocles argued for remaining at Salamis. Frustrations at Salamis Offensively-minded, Themistocles understood that the smaller Greek fleet could negate the Persian advantage in numbers by fighting in the confined waters around the island. As the Athenian navy formed the larger component of the allied fleet, he was able to successfully lobby for remaining. Needing to deal with the Greek fleet before pressing on, Xerxes initially sought to avoid fighting in the narrow waters around the island. A Greek Trick Aware of discord among the Greeks, Xerxes began moving troops towards the isthmus with the hope that the Peloponnesian contingents would desert Themistocles in order to defend their homelands. This too failed and the Greek fleet remained in place. To promote the belief that the allies were fragmenting, Themistocles began a ruse by sending a servant to Xerxes claiming that Athenians had been wronged and wished to switch sides. He also stated that the Peloponnesians intended to depart that night. Believing this information, Xerxes directed his fleet to block the Straits of Salamis and those of Megara to the west. Moving to Battle While an Egyptian force moved to cover the Megara channel, the bulk of the Persian fleet took up stations near the Straits of Salamis. In addition, a small infantry force was moved to the island of Psyttaleia. Placing his throne on the slopes of Mount Aigaleos, Xerxes prepared to watch the coming battle. While the night passed without incident, the following morning a group of Corinthian triremes was spotted moving northwest away from the straits. Fleets Commanders Greeks ThemistoclesEurybiades366-378 ships Persians XerxesArtemisiaAriabignes600-800 ships Fighting Begins Believing that the allied fleet was breaking up, the Persians began moving towards the straits with the Phoenicians on the right, the Ionian Greeks on the left, and other forces in the center. Formed in three ranks, the Persian fleets formation began to disintegrate as it entered the confined waters of the straits. Opposing them, the allied fleet was deployed with the Athenians on the left, the Spartans on the right, and other allied ships in the center. As the Persians approached, the Greeks slowly backed their triremes, luring the enemy into the tight waters and buying time until the morning wind and tide (Map). Greeks Victorious Turning, the Greeks quickly moved to the attack. Driven back, the first line of Persian triremes was pushed into the second and third lines causing them to foul and for the organization to further break down. In addition, the beginning of a rising swell led the top-heavy Persian ships to have difficulty maneuvering. On the Greek left, the Persian admiral Ariabignes was killed early in the fighting leaving the Phoenicians largely leaderless. As the fighting raged, the Phoenicians were the first to break and flee. Exploiting this gap, the Athenians turned the Persian flank. In the center, a group of Greek ships managed to push through the Persian lines cutting their fleet in two. The situation for the Persians worsened through the day with the Ionian Greeks being the last to flee. Badly beaten, the Persian fleet retreated towards Phalerum with the Greeks in pursuit. In the retreat, Queen Artemisia of Halicarnassus rammed a friendly ship in an effort to escape. Watching from afar, Xerxes believed that she had sunk a Greek vessel and allegedly commented, My men have become women, and my women men. Aftermath Losses for the Battle of Salamis are not known with certainty, however, it is estimated that the Greeks lost around 40 ships while the Persians lost around 200. With the naval battle won, Greek marines crossed and eliminated the Persian troops on Psyttaleia. His fleet largely shattered, Xerxes ordered it north to guard the Hellespont. As the fleet was necessary for the supply of his army, the Persian leader also was forced to retreat with the bulk of his forces. Intending to finish the conquest of Greece the following year, he left a sizable army in the region under the command of Mardonius. A key turning point of the Persian Wars, the triumph of Salamis was built upon the following year when the Greeks defeated Mardonius at the Battle of Plataea.

Essay on The Develoment of the Horror Genre - 1076 Words

The term Gothic is significant for the understanding of the origins and development of the horror genre. Both of these genres differ, whilst Gothic literature is the text that explores the frightening extremes in mankind, horror focuses more on the unknown. The Gothic horror genre has changed over time and retains importance because it is the antecedent of the horror genre. Factors such as the definition of the word Gothic, the archetypes of the genre, and its social and historical contexts, have altered considerably as time progressed. The value and popularity given to the gothic horror genre has also varied during the past few centuries. As a result, in order to understand the horror genre’s foundations, it is important to observe the†¦show more content†¦Therefore, it can be said that the Gothic genre was a form of escapism from the Enlightenment as it portrayed extreme emotions and moods. The Gothic horror genre has been given different responses and values from t he time of its birth in 1764, with Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto, to the present moment. The Castle of Otranto is considered the first Gothic novel, which contains elements of suspense, violence and supernaturalism. As dominant paradigms and interests change, so has the appreciation which is given to Gothic horror. The Gothic has been frequently criticised for the sensationalism and implausibility created. Some believe that Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles’ Maturin, which was published in 1820, was the last â€Å"Classic Gothic† novel. Several literary critics have often been hesitant to accept the Gothic genre as valuable. It was only the critics who were interested in its historical aspects and practices that were the first to appraise the genre. However, the Gothic genre is celebrated today with canons being studied at educational institutions. At present, elements of the Gothic still reverberate through horror books, films and so on; thus it is essen tial to become aware of the origins of the Gothic horror genre in order to identify the inspiration created and how the horror components were derived. Gothic themes still resonate in modern literature through authors such as Anne Rice, who wrote tales of

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - 581 Words

â€Å"This book might have been written by a woman but certainly not a lady.† It is bildungsromane (Triska); a type of novel concerned with the education, development, and maturing of a young protagonist (Dictionary.com). Jane Eyre was a very shy, plain, and reserved person. Even though she had a very plain look she had a passion that wasn’t expected of her (Green). She also had hopes and dreams and aspirations. So I wonder, how might Jane Eyre react to the women of today? All in all I think she would probably be proud of the women of today because she placed high value in self-respect, she did not approve of the high value placed in beauty, and she wanted to be proud without being ungrateful. Some of the women today probably have the same morals. On the day of Jane’s wedding during the ceremony, Mr. Rochester’s â€Å"wife’s† brother comes and claims that he is already married (Brontà «). Mr. Rochester believes he is no longer married because his wife is crazy and it is not a real marriage (Brontà «). After this Jane will not marry Mr. Rochester because of the amount of respect she places in herself. Although Jane was aware that she was not beautiful, she refused to sacrifice her self-respect by marrying a man that was already married. Throughout the book the Victorian culture is constantly criticized because of the high value placed in beauty (Triska). In the Victorian era the ideal for women was almost unachievable. To qualify as beautiful you had to have a 12 inch waist and a wearShow MoreRelatedJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1601 Words   |  7 Pagesfeminist, one must see it through the lens of the time and place Brontà « wrote it. Charlotte Brontà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s Jane Eyre was a feminist work in that Bronte expressed disdain for oppressive gender structures through the voice of Jane Eyre, and the actions of Bertha Mason. Jane Eyre was a steamy novel for its time, with imagery as blatantly concealed as Jane’s description of Rochester’s hand as being â€Å"rounded, muscular; and vigorous†¦long, strong†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Brontà « 312) A modern reader might blush at the description and itsRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1437 Words   |  6 Pagestools that depict history. One great work of art that portrays these constant struggles is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontà «. While addressing social issues of a governess, Brontà « also tackles Victorian society’s corrupt and unjust ideals by using different settings and characters such as Mr. Rochester and Gateshead Manor. In Jane Eyre, the depiction of a rigid social class restricts the protagonist, Jane Eyre, from marrying her love, Mr. Rochester. Sadly, Jane’s relationship is also jeopardized by passionRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1374 Words   |  6 PagesJane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Within the specter of the Gothic fictions arises the atmosphere of gloom, terror, and mystery with some elements of uncanny challenging reality. One major characteristic function of the Gothic fictions is to open the fiction to the realm of the irrational and perverse narratives, obsessions, and nightmarish terrors that hide beneath the literally civilized mindset in order to demonstrate the presence of the uncanny existing in the world known rationally through experienceRead MoreJane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte781 Words   |  3 PagesThrough her trials and tribulations, Charlotte Bronte has kept her passion for poetry alive and remains as one of the most influential British poets of all times. Even though she is one of the most famous female writers of all times, she is mostly famous for her most popular novel Jane Eyre. Charlotte Bronte has experienced more tragedy in her life than happiness by losing her mother and all five of her siblings. But, in her moments of tragedy, she expre ssed her feelings through poetry. As a resultRead MoreJane Eyre, By Charlotte Bronte949 Words   |  4 PagesSurrounded by witnesses, Jane stands in front of the minister, poised to take her marital vows as the mystery of Thornfield unravels. Unbeknownst to her, Rochester’s actual wife, Bertha Mason, is within close proximity.The knowledge of Bertha, and the mystery, will pose as a test to Jane s morals and her character. Through Jane Eyre, a powerful Victorian-era novel, Charlotte Bronte portrays the role of women in Victorian society while masterfully solidifying Jane’s role as its polar opposite: anRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1714 Words   |  7 Pages Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brà ¶nte voiced the radical opinions of Brà ¶nte on religion, gender, and social class. Jane Eyre, a young orphan who lived with her vituperative aunt and cousins, strayed away from the Victorian ideals of a woman and established a new status for herself. Jane Eyre was originally written in 1827 and was heavily influenced by the late gothic literature of the 19th century. Gothic literary aspects such as supernatural occurrences, mysteries and dark secrets, madness and dangerRead MoreJane Eyre, By Charlotte Bronte1620 Words   |  7 PagesIt is often said that it is the role of literature to challenge and confront the conventional values of a society. In the novel, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte the idea of challenging and confronting conventional values is stressed often. Perhaps it is in relation to the author herself, as seen in the autobiographical elements recognizable throughout the novel. Some of these autobiographical elements include the form of which the novel is written in, called Bildungsroman where the story is focusedRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1203 Words   |  5 PagesThe nineteenth-century Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is considered to be a gothic novel. Gothic literature took place mostly in England from 1790 to 1830, falling in to the category of Romantic literature. The Gothic takes its roots from previous horrifying writing that extends back to the Middle Ages and can still be found in writings today by many authors including Charlotte Bronte. The strong description of horror, abuse, and gruesomeness in Gothic novels reveals truths to readers through realisticRead MoreJane Eyre, By Charlotte Bronte929 Words   |  4 PagesIn Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontà « explores how Jane wants to find love--not just romantic love but to value and sense of belonging. The book challenges how the language of middle-class love affects the way a character’s self-identity can alter the action, how Jane sees herself later when she found love and sense of belonging as independent women. When Jane was a child she struggles to find her own identity Jane begins to change through her journey once she realizes her own identity and this helpsRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1359 Words   |  6 PagesFollowing the ex periences of Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte, expresses many elements of gothic literature throughout her novel Jane Eyre. In her perfect understanding of gothic literature, she expresses the three types of evil commonly found in gothic literature, including the evil of the supernatural, the evil within or the instinctual evil motives of humans, and lastly, the evil because of societal influence. Jane Eyre experiences all of these three evils with her aunt and three cousins with her residency

My Biggest Achievement free essay sample

Learning a new skill can be a challenging experience requiring time and a lot of effort; nevertheless, we benefit greatly when we finally accomplish our goal. The feeling of pride and strength fills our mind, and the awareness that we were capable of doing something significant, either for ourselves or for others, gives us an appetite for more. My adventure with Muay Thai began two years ago when my friend from school, Olivia, told me about the new martial art gym in town and she asked me to go with her. At that time, I just moved to California and I was looking for anything to do besides sitting at home all alone. Therefore, I reacted very enthusiasticly about her idea. I thought it would be great to learn how to defend myself and burn some calories as a side effect. I did not realize though, how taugh Muay Thai training is and how much of physical and mental strength is needed to become successful in this discipline. We will write a custom essay sample on My Biggest Achievement or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page On the day of the first Muay Thai class, all excited, I was preparing myself for the training. I found my old gym bag in the closet and I started to pack all kinds of things I thought I might need, which included a bottle of water, a towel, wristbands, pair of socks, shampoo and conditioner for the shower, and a banana, just in case I was hungry afterwards. The class was starting at 6 o’clock in the evening so Olivia and I agreed to meet at the gym at 5:40. At 5 o’clock I changed into my fashionable gym outfit consisting of a black and torquoise top, matching shorts and my old black training shoes, and after 20 minutes of driving I happily arrived at my destination. I went inside of the gym building and the first thing that seemed surprisigly pleasant was that there were about 30 male trainees and only 3 females including me, Olivia, who was already streching on the mat, and one other girl of angel look. The place looked not too big and not too small, with two separate mats; Muay Thai was taught on one and Brasilian Jujitsu on the second. I told the girl behind the counter that it was my first class and she walked me around the gym, showing where the particular parts of the gym were, namely bathrooms and locker rooms. Meanwhile, other people were chatting with each other and the atmospehere was really friendly. I noticed that nobody was wearing shoes. Soon thereafter, the  instructor accounced the beginning of the class by simple †Start running!† and everyone followed the instruction. After about 5 minutes of a run, the instructor told us to spread out on the mat and we started stretching; a very important part of training which reduces the risk of soreness and pulling muscles. One of the stretching positions that I found interesting was the †superman†, which is standing on bent legs with back and arms pulled forward. The key point is to lean forward in an exact straight line to effectively stretch entire spine, and, as a bonus, you totally look like a superman. After stretching, it was the time for a serious training. The instructor told us to find a partner and put on boxing gloves and shin pads. He was showing us the structure of kicks and punches and then we were practising. After a few minutes of jabs and crosses, high kicks and extensive use of knees and elbows, I broke a serious sweat. I realized that it was not that easy as I thought it would be. Even the advanced fighters were all red and sweaty, giving a hundred percent of their strength. At the end of the class we did a set of sit-ups which help to build core muscles essential to protect abdominal organs during the fight. When we finished I did not have strength to get myself up. I lied on the mat for a longer minute trying to catch a breath. The instructor came to me and told me that I did a really good job. He helped me to get up and we talked a little bit about the rules in Muay Thai. I was exhausted but somehow it felt great. I drove home devouring my banana, with a smile on my face. In the morning, I woke up all sore. I wished I did not force my muscles so hard. The pain was not letting me study. I slept for a half of the day and I did not even have a strength to eat. I could berely walk, my legs were shaking. The feeling of soreness persisted for a week. I said to myself that I was never going to go to Muay Thai class again. †It’s just too much for me! It’s so painful!† I was telling to my mom. However, my complaining did not make any impression on her. †Nothing worth having comes easy† she said. Suddenly I understood. When the pain was gone, I decided to train again. †I’m glad you came back† my instructor said when I showed up at the gym. †Many people give up after the first class because the trainings are too hard for them.† I felt embarrassed in front of myself that I almost gave up but I was glad to be there again. The class started and I was ready to  get my butt kicked again. I was a partner with a very nice guy from Brasil named Rafael who was explaining me all the moves and correcting me when I have done something wrong. By the way, eighty percent of people at the gym are from Brasil. I never met such helpful, joyful and, at the same time, tough people. I was learning from them not only the Muay Thai technique, but also a positive attitude towards life. On the following day I felt excatly like after the first training. This time, though, I did not wait until the pain would go away. I went to the gym after two days and I hardly survived the warm up. I felt like someone was sticking neddles into my muscles. Every single part of my body was hurting. Hardly alive I went home. All of the sudden I knew about my fingers muscles existence; they hurt so bad that I could not write or even hold a pen. Laughing was changing into crying because of the stomach muscles soreness. However, I felt this internal urge that was telling me to keep going until I come to perfection. My instructor told me that once my body gets used to the effort, the pain will disappear. It did. After two months. It means that my whole body was sore every single day for 60 days. Nontheless, that was a good pain. More specifically, it was the pain of exercised mind. When eventually I got to the proper shape, the trainings was giving me an enormous satisfaction. Each class would just make my day. I was so happy that I was driving home smiling and singing out loud. I could not consider my day successful if I did not go to my training. Thus, Muay Thai became a part of my life. In summary, I realized that the harder I have to work to achieve something, the better I feel when I am done. The pride that I am good at something feels even better when my family and friends express their admiration for my accomplishment. Before, I was lazy and I did not like to work out too much. Now I have changed. I like challenge because I love the feeling of satisfaction after I have done something well, even if it is just an A on the school test. My self-esteem definitely increased since I started training Muay Thai, and I look so much better, too. I lost weight, my body shows the definition and I am a lot stronger than I used to be. It feels amazing. Presently, when some of my friends is trying to give up their diet  or a New Year’s resolution I tell them that, of course, it is easier to stay at home, eating ice cream in front of the TV and dwelling at your misearable life, but what is it going to change in your life?