Science Fiction & Fantasy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Science Fiction & Fantasy - Essay Example Still others have pointed to Tolkien’s wonderfully descriptive term ‘eucatastrophe’ as a means of both describing the ending of the tale as well as to highlight a theme that runs throughout the novel. Political concepts related to the novel have abounded, including everything from an examination of the relationship of steward/king to kingdom and an analogy drawn between the events of the trilogy and the personalities of Joseph Stalin and the West. While this tendency to analyze the work from such isolated viewpoints reveals a wealth of detailed information, the practice also promotes a sense that that trilogy is little more than a pastiche of fragments. However, each of these elements – religion, environment, ‘eucatastrophe’ and the political question of a king vs. a steward – can be seen to provide an important detail that contributes to the cohesiveness of the work as a whole. The overall Christian concept of original sin and the fall of man, especially as it is emphasized within the Catholic tradition, is first suggested in the greater ability of the race of hobbits to resist the pull of the One Ring over that of the humans, who have presumably already fallen out of the Garden of Eden and therefore have already demonstrated a greater susceptibility to evil. This is primarily shown through the quick seduction of Isildur and then Boromir by the ring versus the slow working of it upon Frodo and even Bilbo. However, the hobbits remain connected, however distantly, with humans and are susceptible to the ring if exposed to it for long periods of time, which is exemplified in the Gollum and traced through the effect seen on even good hobbits such as Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. The idea that mankind has fallen is also illustrated in the near-collapsed state of Gondor, a once-great nation, as well as the sad state of affairs to be found in Rohan. The nations of men are about to collapse

Teachers' Role in Early Literacy (community involvement in early Essay

Teachers' Role in Early Literacy (community involvement in early childhood education) - Essay Example Encouraging children toward literacy can be achieved through the interactions of the teacher with the play environments and through an understanding of how those imaginative results of play are part of the learning process towards textual based interactions. The theories of Vygotsky and Piaget on symbolic play support the idea that in creating play scenarios and adapting to roles, young children are engaging language towards literacy. Teachers can create appropriate environments in which children are observed at times or played with by the teacher in order to encourage literacy. In an examination of the nature of play as it relates to the development of literacy, this paper will explore the ideas of Vygotsky and Piaget as they can be associated to teacher participation in play environments with the intention of supporting early literacy. Literacy and Language Machado (2012) discusses the term literacy and breaks it down into four concepts: listening, speaking, reading, and writing, a ll of which are connected by the thinking process. The processes of interpretation are closely related to visual literacy as what is seen is then interpreted through textual concepts. This means that as a teacher in an early childhood environment, it is important that the overlap of language arts be explored through a variety of interactions. Machodo (2012) goes on to discuss how when children are introduced to reading skills or learn reading skills on their own before kindergarten, the interest in reading should be directed towards understanding the interrelatedness of all of the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. While sight recognition may be the source of early reading, interrelationships between the four key concepts are crucial for competent early literacy. There are a great many approaches to interacting with children in order to encourage literacy at an early age. Christie (1991) did a study in which imaginative function was used for four year olds who were first told to draw pictures, and then to ‘write’ stories through their own imagined concept of writing. The children then ‘read’ their stories, creating a literary connection between their drawings and their concept of storytelling. Reciting Halliday’s model, Christie (1991) stated that â€Å"the lifelike context of discourse directly affected the texts produced by the children† (p. 198). Children related their experiences in having been read to with producing their own stories that followed similar themes even though the text was imagined by them as they had yet to have grasped the written language skills to actually write the story. Children respond to literacy in relationship to how they perceive textual tools around them. In placing children into a village type atmosphere, they related stories about their roles in relationship to textual contexts by producing letters in the post office, mommy writing checks and so on (Christie, 1991). In o rder to extend this adaptation of textual roles in relationship to their environment, the teacher should have literary materials, such as papers and marking instruments at each play center in order to encourage the interaction of play and literacy. Vygotsky and Piaget Concepts in play as they relate to early literacy were explored by Vygotsky and Piaget, linking symbolic play to â€Å"