How to Write an A+ Argumentative Essay

How to Write an A+ Argumentative Essay SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips You'll no doubt have to write a number of argumentative essays in both high school and college, but what, exactly, is an argumentative essay and how do you write the best one possible? Let's take a look. A great argumentative essay always combines the same basic elements: approaching an argument from a rational perspective, researching sources, supporting your claims using facts rather than opinion, and articulating your reasoning into the most cogent and reasoned points. Argumentative essays are great building blocks for all sorts of research and rhetoric, so your teachers will expect you to master the technique before long. But if this sounds daunting, never fear! We’ll show how an argumentative essay differs from other kinds of papers, how to research and write them, how to pick an argumentative essay topic, and where to find example essays. So let's get started. What Is an Argumentative Essay? How Is it Different from Other Kinds of Essays? There are two basic requirements for any and all essays: to state a claim (a thesis statement) and to support that claim with evidence. Though every essay is founded on these two ideas, there are several different types of essays, differentiated by the style of the writing, how the writer presents the thesis, and the types of evidence used to support the thesis statement. Essays can be roughly divided into four different types: #1: Argumentative#2: Persuasive#3: Expository#4: Analytical So let’s look at each type and what the differences are between them before we focus the rest of our time to argumentative essays. Argumentative Essay Argumentative essays are what this article is all about, so let's talk about them first. An argumentative essay attempts to convince a reader to agree with a particular argument (the writer's thesis statement). The writer takes a firm stand one way or another on a topic and then uses hard evidence to support that stance. An argumentative essay seeks to prove to the reader that one argument- the writer's argument- is the factually and logically correct one. This means that an argumentative essay must use only evidence-based support to back up a claim, rather than emotional or philosophical reasoning (which is often allowed in other types of essays). Thus, an argumentative essay has a burden of substantiated proof and sources, whereas some other types of essays (namely persuasive essays) do not. You can write an argumentative essay on any topic, so long as there's room for argument. Generally, you can use the same topics for both a persuasive essay or an argumentative one, so long as you support the argumentative essay with hard evidence. Example topics of an argumentative essay: â€Å"Should farmers be allowed to shoot wolves if those wolves injure or kill farm animals?† â€Å"Should the drinking age be lowered in the United States?† â€Å"Are alternatives to democracy effective and/or feasible to implement?† The next three types of essays are not argumentative essays, but you may have written them in school. We're going to cover them so you know what not to do for your argumentative essay. Persuasive Essay Persuasive essays are similar to argumentative essays, so it can be easy to get them confused. But knowing what makes an argumentative essay different than a persuasive essay can often mean the difference between an excellent grade and an average one. Persuasive essays seek to persuade a reader to agree with the point of view of the writer, whether that point of view is based on factual evidence or not. The writer has much more flexibility in the evidence they can use, with the ability to use moral, cultural, or opinion-based reasoning as well as factual reasoning to persuade the reader to agree the writer’s side of a given issue. Instead of being forced to use â€Å"pure† reason as one would in an argumentative essay, the writer of a persuasive essay can manipulate or appeal to the reader’s emotions. So long as the writer attempts to steer the readers into agreeing with the thesis statement, the writer doesn’t necessarily need hard evidence in favor of the argument. Often, you can use the same topics for both a persuasive essay or an argumentative one- the difference is all in the approach and the evidence you present. Example topics of a persuasive essay: â€Å"Should children be responsible for their parents’ debts?† â€Å"Should cheating on a test be automatic grounds for expulsion?† â€Å"How much should sports leagues be held accountable for player injuries and the long-term consequences of those injuries?† Expository Essay An expository essay is typically a short essay in which the writer explains an idea, issue, or theme, or discusses the history of a person, place, or idea. This is typically a fact-forward essay with little argument or opinion one way or the other. Example topics of an expository essay: â€Å"The History of the Philadelphia Liberty Bell† â€Å"The Reasons I Always Wanted to be a Doctor† â€Å"The Meaning Behind the Colloquialism ‘People in Glass Houses Shouldn’t Throw Stones’† Analytical Essay An analytical essay seeks to delve into the deeper meaning of a text or work of art, or unpack a complicated idea. These kinds of essays closely interpret a source and look into its meaning by analyzing it at both a macro and micro level. This type of analysis can be augmented by historical context or other expert or widely-regarded opinions on the subject, but is mainly supported directly through the original source (the piece or art or text being analyzed). Example topics of an analytical essay: â€Å"Victory Gin in Place of Water: The Symbolism Behind Gin as the Only Potable Substance in George Orwell's 1984† â€Å"Amarna Period Art: The Meaning Behind the Shift from Rigid to Fluid Poses† â€Å"Adultery During WWII, as Told Through a Series of Letters to and from Soldiers† There are many different types of essay and, over time, you'll be able to master them all. A Typical Argumentative Essay Assignment The average argumentative essay is between three to five pages, and will require at least three or four separate sources with which to back your claims. As for the essay topic, you'll most often be asked to write an argumentative essay in an English class on a â€Å"general† topic of your choice, ranging the gamut from science, to history, to literature. But while the topics of an argumentative essay can span several different fields, the structure of an argumentative essay is always the same: you must support a claim- a claim that can reasonably have multiple sides- using multiple sources and using a standard essay format (which we'll talk about later on). This is why many argumentative essay topics begin with the word â€Å"should,† as in: â€Å"Should all students be required to learn chemistry in high school?† â€Å"Should children be required to learn a second language?† â€Å"Should schools or governments be allowed to ban books?† These topics all have at least two sides of the argument: Yes or no. And you must support the side you choose with evidence as to why your side is the correct one. But there are also plenty of other ways to frame an argumentative essay as well: â€Å"Does using social media do more to benefit or harm people?† â€Å"Does the legal status of artwork or its creators- graffiti and vandalism, pirated media, a creator who’s in jail- have an impact on the art itself?† â€Å"Is or should anyone ever be ‘above the law?’† Though these are worded differently than the first three, you're still essentially forced to pick between two sides of an issue: yes or no, for or against, benefit or detriment. Though your argument might not fall entirely into one side of the divide or another- for instance, you could claim that social media has positively impacted some aspects of modern life while being a detriment to others- your essay should still support one side of the argument above all. Your final stance would be that overall, social media is beneficial or overall, social media is harmful. If your argument is one that is mostly text-based or backed by a single source (e.g., â€Å"How does Salinger show that Holden Caulfield is an unreliable narrator?† or â€Å"Does Gatsby personify the American Dream?†), then it’s an analytical essay, rather than an argumentative essay. An argumentative essay will always be focused on more general topics so that you can use multiple sources to back up your claims. Good Argumentative Essay Topics So you know the basic idea behind an argumentative essay, but what topic should you write about? Again, almost always, you'll be asked to write an argumentative essay on a free topic of your choice, or you'll be asked to select between a few given topics. If you're given complete free reign of topics, then it'll be up to you to find an essay topic that no only appeals to you, but that you can turn into an A+ argumentative essay. What makes a â€Å"good† argumentative essay topic depends on both the subject matter and your personal interest- it can be hard to give your best effort on something that bores you to tears! But it can also be near impossible to write an argumentative essay on a topic that has no room for debate. As we said earlier, a good argumentative essay topic will be one that has the potential to reasonably go in at least two directions- for or against, yes or no, and why. For example, it’s pretty hard to write an argumentative essay on whether or not people should be allowed to murder one another- not a whole lot of debate there for most people!- but writing an essay for or against the death penalty has a lot more wiggle room for evidence and argument. A good topic is also one that can be substantiated through hard evidence and relevant sources. So be sure to pick a topic that other people have studied (or at least studied elements of) so that you can use their data in your argument. For example, if you’re arguing that it should be mandatory for all middle school children to play a sport, you might have to apply smaller scientific data points to the larger picture you're trying to justify. There are probably several studies you could cite on the benefits of physical activity and the positive effect structure and teamwork has on young minds, but there's probably no study you could use where a group of scientists put all middle-schoolers in one jurisdiction into a mandatory sports program (since that’s probably never happened). So long as your evidence is relevant to your point and you can extrapolate from it to form a larger whole, you can use it as a part of your resource material. And if you need ideas on where to get started, or just want to see sample argumentative essay topics, then check out these links for hundreds of potential argumentative essay topics. 101 Persuasive (or Argumentative) Essay and Speech Topics 301 Prompts for Argumentative Writing Top 50 Ideas for Argumentative/Persuasive Essay Writing [Note: some of these say "persuasive essay topics," but just remember that the same topic can often be used for both a persuasive essay and an argumentative essay; the difference is in your writing style and the evidence you use to support your claims.] KO! Find that one argumentative essay topic you can absolutely conquer. Argumentative Essay Format Argumentative Essays are composed of four main elements: A position (your argument) Your reasons Supporting evidence for those reasons (from reliable sources) Counterargument(s) (possible opposing arguments and reasons why those arguments are incorrect) If you’re familiar with essay writing in general, then you’re also probably familiar with the five paragraph essay structure. This structure is a simple tool to show how one outlines an essay and breaks it down into its component parts, although it can be expanded into as many paragraphs as you want beyond the core five. The standard argumentative essay is often 3-5 pages, which will usually mean a lot more than five paragraphs, but your overall structure will look the same as a much shorter essay. An argumentative essay at its simplest structure will look like: Paragraph 1: Intro Set up the story/problem/issue Thesis/claim Paragraph 2: Support Reason #1 claim is correct Supporting evidence with sources Paragraph 3: Support Reason #2 claim is correct Supporting evidence with sources Paragraph 4: Counterargument Explanation of argument for the other side Refutation of opposing argument with supporting evidence Paragraph 5: Conclusion Re-state claim Sum up reasons and support of claim from the essay to prove claim is correct Now let’s unpack each of these paragraph types to see how they work (with examples!), what goes into them, and why. Paragraph 1- Set Up and Claim Your first task is to introduce the reader to the topic at hand so they’ll be prepared for your claim. Give a little background information, set the scene, and give the reader some stakes so that they care about the issue you're going to discuss. Next, you absolutely must have a position on an argument and make that position clear to the readers. It’s not an argumentative essay unless you’re arguing for a specific claim, and this claim will be your thesis statement. Your thesis CANNOT be a mere statement of fact (e.g., â€Å"Washington DC is the capital of the United States†). Your thesis must instead be an opinion which can be backed up with evidence and has the potential to be argued against (e.g., â€Å"New York should be the capital of the United States†). Paragraphs 2 and 3- Your Evidence These are your body paragraphs in which you give the reasons why your argument is the best one and back up this reasoning with concrete evidence. The argument supporting the thesis of an argumentative essay should be one that can be supported by facts and evidence, rather than personal opinion or cultural or religious mores. For example, if you’re arguing that New York should be the new capital of the US, you would have to back up that fact by discussing the factual contrasts between New York and DC in terms of location, population, revenue, and laws. You would then have to talk about the precedents for what makes for a good capital city and why New York fits the bill more than DC does. Your argument can’t simply be that a lot of people think New York is the best city ever and that you agree. In addition to using concrete evidence, you always want to keep the tone of your essay passionate, but impersonal. Even though you’re writing your argument from a single opinion, don’t use first person language- â€Å"I think,† â€Å"I feel,† â€Å"I believe,†- to present your claims. Doing so is repetitive, since by writing the essay you’re already telling the audience what you feel, and using first person language weakens your writing voice. For example, â€Å"I think that Washington DC is no longer suited to be the capital city of the United States.† Versus, â€Å"Washington DC is no longer suited to be the capital city of the United States.† The second statement sounds far stronger and more analytical. Paragraph 4- Argument for the Other Side and Refutation Even without a counter argument, you can make a pretty persuasive claim, but a counterargument will round out your essay into one that is much more persuasive and substantial. By anticipating an argument against your claim and taking the initiative to counter it, you’re allowing yourself to get ahead of the game. This way, you show that you’ve given great thought to all sides of the issue before choosing your position, and you demonstrate in multiple ways how yours is the more reasoned and supported side. Paragraph 5- Conclusion This paragraph is where you re-state your argument and summarize why it’s the best claim. Briefly touch on your supporting evidence and voila! A finished argumentative essay. Your essay should have just as awesome a skeleton as this plesiosaur does. (In other words: a ridiculously awesome skeleton) Argumentative Essay Example: 5-Paragraph Style It always helps to have an example to learn from. I've written a full 5-paragraph argumentative essay here. Look at how I state my thesis in paragraph 1, give supporting evidence in paragraphs 2 and 3, address a counterargument in paragraph 4, and conclude in paragraph 5. Topic: Is it possible to maintain conflicting loyalties? Paragraph 1 It is almost impossible to go through life without encountering a situation where your loyalties to different people or causes come into conflict with each other. Maybe you have a loving relationship with your sister, but she disagrees with your decision to join the army, or you find yourself torn between your cultural beliefs and your scientific ones. These conflicting loyalties can often be maintained for a time, but as examples from both history and psychological theory illustrate, sooner or later, people have to make a choice between competing loyalties, as no one can maintain a conflicting loyalty or belief system forever. The first two sentences set the scene and give some hypothetical examples and stakes for the reader to care about. The third sentence finishes off the intro with the thesis statement, making very clear how the author stands on the issue ("people have to make a choice between competing loyalties, as no one can maintain a conflicting loyalty or belief system forever.") Paragraphs 2 and 3 Psychological theory states that human beings are not equipped to maintain conflicting loyalties indefinitely and that attempting to do so leads to a state called â€Å"cognitive dissonance.† Cognitive dissonance theory is the psychological idea that people undergo tremendous mental stress or anxiety when holding contradictory beliefs, values, or loyalties (Festinger, 1957). Even if human beings initially hold a conflicting loyalty, they will do their best to find a mental equilibrium by making a choice between those loyalties- stay stalwart to a belief system or change their beliefs. One of the earliest formal examples of cognitive dissonance theory comes from Leon Festinger’s When Prophesy Fails. Members of an apocalyptic cult are told that the end of the world will occur on a specific date and that they alone will be spared the Earth’s destruction. When that day comes and goes with no apocalypse, the cult members face a cognitive dissonance between what they s ee and what they’ve been led to believe (Festinger, 1956). Some choose to believe that the cult's beliefs are still correct, but that the Earth was simply spared from destruction by mercy, while others choose to believe that they were lied to and that the cult was fraudulent all along. Both beliefs cannot be correct at the same time, and so the cult members are forced to make their choice. But even when conflicting loyalties can lead to potentially physical, rather than just mental, consequences, people will always make a choice to fall on one side or other of a dividing line. Take, for instance, Nicolaus Copernicus, a man born and raised in Catholic Poland (and educated in Catholic Italy). Though the Catholic church dictated specific scientific teachings, Copernicus' loyalty to his own observations and scientific evidence won out over his loyalty to his country’s government and belief system. When he published his heliocentric model of the solar systemin opposition to the geocentric model that had been widely accepted for hundreds of years (Hannam, 2011) Copernicus was making a choice between his loyalties. In an attempt to maintain his fealty both to the established system and to what he believed, he sat on his findings for a number of years (Fantoli, 1994). But, ultimately, Copernicus made the choice to side with his beliefs and observations above all and pub lished his work for the world to see (even though, in doing so, he risked both his reputation and personal freedoms). These two paragraphs provide the reasons why the author supports the main argument and uses substantiated sources to back those reasons. The paragraph on cognitive dissonance theory gives both broad supporting evidence and more narrow, detailed supporting evidence to show why the thesis statement is correct not just anecdotally but also scientifically and psychologically. First, we see why people in general have a difficult time accepting conflicting loyalties and desires and then how this applies to individuals through the example of the cult members from the Dr. Festinger's research. The next paragraph continues to use more detailed examples from history to provide further evidence of why the thesis that people cannot indefinitely maintain conflicting loyalties is true. Paragraph 4 Some will claim that it is possible to maintain conflicting beliefs or loyalties permanently, but this is often more a matter of people deluding themselves and still making a choice for one side or the other, rather than truly maintaining loyalty to both sides equally. For example, Lancelot du Lac typifies a person who claims to maintain a balanced loyalty between to two parties, but his attempt to do so fails (as all attempts to permanently maintain conflicting loyalties must). Lancelot tells himself and others that he is equally devoted to both King Arthur and his court and to being Queen Guinevere’s knight (Malory, 2008). But he can neither be in two places at once to protect both the king and queen, nor can he help but let his romantic feelings for the queen to interfere with his duties to the king and the kingdom. Ultimately, he and Queen Guinevere give into their feelings for one another and Lancelot- though he denies it- chooses his loyalty to her over his loyalty to Ar thur. This decision plunges the kingdom into a civil war, ages Lancelot prematurely, and ultimately leads to Camelot’s ruin (Raabe, 1987). Though Lancelot claimed to have been loyal to both the king and the queen, this loyalty was ultimately in conflict, and he could not maintain it. Here we have the acknowledgement of a potential counter-argument and the evidence as to why it isn't true. The argument is that some people (or literary characters) have asserted that they give equal weight to their conflicting loyalties. The refutation is that, though some may claim to be able to maintain conflicting loyalties, they're either lying to others or deceiving themselves. The paragraph shows why this is true by providing an example of this in action. Paragraph 5 Whether it be through literature or history, time and time again, people demonstrate the challenges of trying to manage conflicting loyalties and the inevitable consequences of doing so. Though belief systems are malleable and will often change over time, it is not possible to maintain two mutually exclusive loyalties or beliefs at once. In the end, people always make a choice, and loyalty for one party or one side of an issue will always trump loyalty to the other. The concluding paragraph summarizes the essay, touches on the evidence presented, and re-states the thesis statement. How to Write an Argumentative Essay: 8 Steps Writing the best argumentative essay is all about the preparation, so let's talk steps: #1: Preliminary Research If you have the option to pick your own argumentative essay topic (which you most likely will), then choose one or two topics you find the most intriguing or that you have a vested interest in and do some preliminary research on both sides of the debate. Do an open internet search just to see what the general chatter is on the topic and what the research trends are. Did your preliminary reading influence you to pick a side or change your side? Without diving into all the scholarly articles at length, do you believe there’s enough evidence to support your claim? Have there been scientific studies? Experiments? Does a noted scholar in the field agree with you? If not, you may need to pick another topic or side of the argument to support. #2: Pick Your Side and Form Your Thesis Now's the time to pick the side of the argument you feel you can support the best and summarize your main point into your thesis statement. Your thesis will be the basis of your entire essay, so make sure you know which side you’re on, that you’ve stated it clearly, and that you stick by your argument throughout the entire essay. #3: Heavy-Duty Research Time You’ve taken a gander at what the internet at large has to say on your argument, but now’s the time to actually read those sources and take notes. Check scholarly journals online at Google Scholar, the Directory of Open Access Journals, or JStor. You can also search individual university or school libraries and websites to see what kinds of academic articles you can access for free. Keep track of your important quotes and page numbers and put them somewhere that’s easy to find later. And don’t forget to check your school or local libraries as well! #4: Outline Follow the five-paragraph outline structure from the previous section. Fill in your topic, your reasons, and your supporting evidence into each of the categories. Before you begin to flesh out the essay, take a look at what you’ve got. Is your thesis statement in the first paragraph? Is it clear? Is your argument logical? Does your supporting evidence support your reasoning? By outlining your essay, you streamline your process and take care of any logic gaps before you dive headfirst into the writing. This will save you a lot of grief later on if you need to change your sources or your structure, so don’t get too trigger-happy and skip this step. #5: Draft Now that you’ve laid out exactly what you’ll need for your essay and where, it’s time to fill in all the gaps by writing it out. Take it one step at a time and expand your ideas into complete sentences and substantiated claims. It may feel daunting to turn an outline into a complete draft, but just remember that you’ve already laid out all the groundwork; now you’re just filling in the gaps. #6: Edit If you have the time before deadline, give yourself a day or two (or even just an hour!) away from your essay. Looking it over with fresh eyes will allow you to see errors, both minor and major, that you likely would have missed had you tried to edit when it was still raw. Take a first pass over the entire essay and try your best to ignore any minor spelling or grammar mistakes- you’re just looking at the big picture right now. Does it make sense as a whole? Did the essay succeed in making an argument and backing that argument up logically? (Do you feel persuaded?) If not, go back and make notes so that you can fix it for your final draft. Once you’ve made your revisions to the overall structure, mark all your small errors and grammar problems so you can fix them in the next draft. #7: Final Draft Use the notes you made on the rough draft and go in and hack and smooth away until you’re satisfied with the final result. A checklist for your final draft: Formatting is correct according to your teacher’s standards No errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation Essay is the right length and size for the assignment The argument is present, consistent, and concise Each reason is supported by relevant evidence The essay makes sense overall #8: Celebrate! Once you’ve brought that final draft to a perfect polish and turned in your assignment, you’re done! Go you! Be prepared and â™ ª you'll never go hungry again â™ ª, *cough*, or struggle with your argumentative essay-writing again. (Walt Disney Studios) Good Examples of Argumentative Essays Online Theory is all well and good, but examples are key. Just to get you started on what a fully-fleshed out argumentative essay looks like, let's see some examples in action. Check out these two argumentative essay examples on the use of landmines and freons (and note the excellent use of concrete sources to back up their arguments!). The Use of Landmines A Shattered Sky The Take-Aways: Keys to Writing an Argumentative Essay At first, writing an argumentative essay may seem like a monstrous hurdle to overcome, but with the proper preparation and understanding, you'll be able to knock yours out of the park. Remember the differences between a persuasive essay and an argumentative one, make sure your thesis is clear, and double-check that your supporting evidence is both relevant to your point and well-sourced. Pick your topic, do your research, make your outline, and fill in the gaps. Before you know it, you'll have yourself an A+ argumentative essay there, my friend.

Best Fall Foliage and Autumn Color Web Cams

Best Fall Foliage and Autumn Color Web Cams Here are some of the very best web video cameras showing fall leaf color in forests throughout North America for this viewing season. These selected sites record the color of fall tree foliage using live web cameras mounted at strategic locations. By viewing these forest web cams, you will see how fall color is spreading and the autumn leaf wave is moving throughout North America. Starting in mid-September, Canada, the Rockies and Maines leaves will turn colors and steadily creep southward in waves of yellow, orange and red - read Catching the Fall Color Wave. The tree leaf display will end with leaf fall in the southern United States in late November. The Weather Channel has an excellent current map of expected fall color conditions.   The Best Views Algonquin Park. Ontario, Canada - The park covers 1.9 million forest acres. Here is a live view and a pan view that gives you a first show of leaf color turn in aspens for North America. Acadia National Park. Maine, USA - View turning leaves on 40,000 acres of Atlantic coast shoreline. Mixed hardwood colors light up the green spruce/fir forest. Glacier National Park. Montana, USA - There are now six outside digital cameras located in Glacier National Park. You can curser over each link to see an updated quick shot. The Nations Capitol. Washington D.C., USA - This web cam view is from the Netherlands Carillon looking east toward the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building. Brasstown Bald. Georgia, USA - Web cam view from Georgias highest point near Blairsville. You need the latest free Java install for this live video. Mammoth Cave National Park. Kentucky, USA - View of Green River Valley looking north-northwest. The visual range is approximately 15 miles and overlooks a massive upland hardwood forest. Fall Foliage Cams. The Entire USA - Another destination site for fall leaf viewing in North America.

Amazon Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Amazon - Case Study Example , the organization was an online bookstore but it diversified its operations to include services such as DVDs and VHS tapes, software, electronics, video games, music CDs, furniture, clothing, MP3s, and food items. Technology ensured that E-books could eclipse the sale of hard copies and Bezos took advantage of it (Stone, 2012). This was in recognition to what Amazon had done in making online shopping popular. In order to ensure that its products are closer to the customer, Amazon operates different retails websites for several countries including US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, China, Spain, Italy, France and Japan. In addition, the organization operates international shipping lines to given countries for delivery of its products to its customers there (Enright, 2010). The main competitors for the organization are Apple Inc., eBay Inc., buy.com, Google, Barnes & Noble, Inc., Wal-Mart.com USA, LLC, and Catalog & Mail Order Houses. This is because the companies are in the same business and they have been able to establish themselves in the market as well. These competitors operate several websites that customers can use to purchase their wares. In addition, the competitors such as Apple Inc offer a diverse number of services that can be used to rival Amazon. However, in order to stay ahead of the game Amazon ensures that it produces services that are not available in the other online retailers. For, example it was the first to introduce an international shipping line for transporting goods to its customers (Enright, 2010). The relationship between Amazon and publishers based in New York is very good because Amazon is able to sell books everywhere (Stone, 2012). This means that the organization has already established itself and thus customers trust its operations. Because of its policies, which are to satisfy the customer at all the times, Amazon has been able to create a huge client base. In addition, the existing clients for Amazon act as its marketers

Poetry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 14

Poetry - Essay Example Four stanzas characterize The Road Not Taken, each having five lines. The scheme of the rhyme in the poem is ABAAB. This means that the rhymes are masculine and strict, meaning that the speaker is in a dilemma to choose a path that is rarely used by people. The poem the road not taken has received widespread recognition based on which it reflects dilemma when an individual has to make a choice in life. Based on the simple words used in The Road Not Taken the author employs (â€Å"I shall be telling this with a sigh / I took the one less travelled by†), scholars stipulate that the poem is easy to memorize without the reader really understanding it. In the case of the poem, the persona stipulates â€Å"the passing here/ Had won them really about the same.† Ideally, the two roads â€Å"that morning/ In leaves no step had trodden black.† This means that in the case of the two roads, one of them is less travelled. As such, it is inappropriate to ignore the after-effects prevalent based on the way in which they are portrayed in the poem, since the persona is unsure on the path in which he should follow. In this case, the speaker stipulates that â€Å"I took the less travelled by / And that has made all the difference.â €  The major attraction evident in the poem is the archetypal dilemma, meaning that the narrator cannot make the right decision on the path to follow. The reader encounters it both figuratively and literally numerous times and in an instantaneous manner. The paths present in the folks and woods reflect deep-rooted and ancient metaphors for a lifeline. In this case, the persona stipulates that â€Å"The roads diverged in a yellow road / To where it bent in the undergrowth.† They reflect crisis and decisions that one has to make in life. The similar folks are a symbol for fate and free will. People are free to choose anything, but they are unaware of what lays ahead based on the choice they make. The speaker states, â€Å"hen took the other, as

Globe Theatre Essay Example for Free

Globe Theatre Essay William Shakespeare was born on April 26, 1564. William Shakespeare was the son of John Shakespeare, an alderman and a successful glover originally from Snitterfield, and Mary Arden, the daughter of an affluent landowning farmer. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon. He was the third child of eight and the eldest surviving son. Scholars have surmised that he most likely attended the Kings New School, in Stratford, which taught reading, writing and the classics. THEATRICAL CAREER Some of Shakespeares plays were published in quarto editions from 1594. By 1598, his name had become a selling point and began to appear on the title pages. Shakespeare continued to act in his own and other plays after his success as a playwright. EARLY WORKS With the exception of Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeares first plays were mostly histories written in the early 1590s. Richard II, Henry VI (parts 1, 2 and 3) and Henry V dramatize the destructive results of weak or corrupt rulers, and have been interpreted by drama historians as Shakespeares way of justifying the origins of the Tudor Dynasty. Shakespeare also wrote several comedies during his early period: the witty romance A Midsummer Nights Dream, the romantic Merchant of Venice, the wit and wordplay of Much Ado about Nothing, the charming As You Like It and Twelfth Night. Other plays, possibly written before 1600, include Titus Andronicus, The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew and The Two Gentlemen of Verona. LATER WORKS It was in William Shakespeares later period, after 1600, that he wrote the tragedies Hamlet, King Lear, Othello and Macbeth. In these, Shakespeares characters present vivid impressions of human temperament that are timeless and universal. Possibly the best known of these plays is Hamlet, which explores betrayal, retribution, incest and moral failure. These moral failures often drive the twists and turns of Shakespeares plots, destroying the hero and those he loves. In William Shakespeares final period, he wrote several tragicomedies. Among these are Cymbeline, The Winters Tale and The Tempest. Though graver in tone than the comedies, they are not the dark tragedies of King Lear or Macbeth because they end with reconciliation and forgiveness. JULIUS CAESAR The Tragedy of Julius Caesar is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against the Roman dictator Julius Caesar, his assassination, and the defeat of the conspirators at the Battle of Philippi. It is one of several plays written by Shakespeare based on true events from Roman history, which also include Coriolanus and Antony and Cleopatra. THE TEMPEST The Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place using illusion and skilful manipulation. He conjures up a storm, the eponymous tempest, to lure his usurping brother Antonio and the complicit King Alonso of Naples to the island. There, his machinations bring about the revelation of Antonios lowly nature, the redemption of the King, and the marriage of Miranda to Alonsos son, Ferdinand. THE TAMING OF THE SHREW The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction,[1] in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunkentinker named Christopher Sly into believing he is actually a nobleman himself. The nobleman then has the play performed for Slys diversion. The main plot depicts the courtship of Petruchio, a gentleman of Verona, and Katherina, the headstrong, obdurate shrew. Initially, Katherina is an unwilling participant in the relationship, but Petruchio tempers her with various psychological torments—the taming—until she becomes a compliant and obedient bride. The subplot features a competition between the suitors of Katherinas more desirable sister, Bianca. HAMLET The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. Set in the Kingdom of Denmark, the play dramatizes the revenge. Prince Hamlet exacts on his uncle Claudius for murdering King Hamlet, Claudiuss brother and Prince Hamlets father, and then succeeding to the throne and taking as his wife Gertrude, the old kings widow and Prince Hamlets mother. The play vividly portrays both true and feigned madness—from overwhelming grief to seething rage and explores themes of treachery, revenge, incest, and moral corruption. Hamlet is Shakespeares longest play and among the most powerful and influential tragedies in English literature, with a story capable of seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others. [1] The play was one of Shakespeares most popular works during his lifetime and still ranks among his most-performed, topping the Royal Shakespeare Companys performance list since 1879. TWELFTH NIGHT Twelfth Night; or, What You Will is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–02 as aTwelfth Nights entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play expanded on the musical interludes and riotous disorder expected of the occasion,[1] with plot elements drawn from the short story Of Apollonius and Silla by Barnabe Rich, based on a story by Matteo Bandello. The first recorded performance was on 2 February 1602, at Candlemas, the formal end of Christmastide in the years calendar. The play was not published until its inclusion in the 1623 First Folio. MACBETH Macbeth was written by William Shakespeare. It is considered one of his darkest and most powerful tragedies. Set in Scotland, the play dramatizes the corrosive psychological and political effects produced when evil is chosen as a way to fulfil the ambition for power. The play is believed to have been written between 1603 and 1607, and is most commonly dated 1606. The earliest account of a performance of what was probably Shakespeares play is April 1611, when Simon Forman recorded seeing such a play at the Globe Theatre. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book. It was most likely written during the reign of James I, who had been James VI of Scotland before he succeeded to the English throne in 1603. James was a patron of Shakespeare’s acting company, and of all the plays Shakespeare wrote during James’s reign, Macbeth most clearly reflects the playwright’s relationship with the sovereign. MERCHANT OF VENICE The Merchant of Venice is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Though classified as a comedyin the First Folio and sharing certain aspects with Shakespeares other romantic comedies, the play is perhaps most remembered for its dramatic scenes, and is best known for Shylock and the famous Hath not a Jew eyes? speech. Also notable is Portias speech about the quality of mercy. The title character is the merchant Antonio, not the Jewish moneylender Shylock, who is the plays most prominent and most famous character. THE COMEDY OF ERRORS The Comedy of Errors is one of William Shakespeares early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. The Comedy of Errors (along with The Tempest) is one of only two of Shakespeares plays to observe the classical unities. It has been adapted for opera, stage, screen and musical theatre. The Comedy of Errors tells the story of two sets of identical twins that were accidentally separated at birth. Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant, Dromio of Syracuse, arrive in Ephesus, which turns out to be the home of their twin brothers, Antipholus of Ephesus and his servant, Dromio of Ephesus. When the Syracusans encounter the friends and families of their twins, a series of wild mishaps based on mistaken identitieslead to wrongful beatings, a near-seduction, the arrest of Antipholus of Ephesus, and false accusations of infidelity, theft, madness, and demonic possession. POEMS In 1593 and 1594, when the theatres were closed because of plague, Shakespeare published two narrative poems on erotic themes, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. He dedicated them to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton. In Venus and Adonis, an innocent Adonis rejects the sexual advances of Venus; while in The Rape of Lucrece, the virtuous wife Lucrece is raped by the lustful Tarquin. Influenced by Ovids Metamorphoses, the poems show the guilt and moral confusion that result from uncontrolled lust. [124] Both proved popular and were often reprinted during Shakespeares lifetime. A third narrative poem, A Lovers Complaint, in which a young woman laments her seduction by a persuasive suitor, was printed in the first edition of the Sonnets in 1609. Most scholars now accept that Shakespeare wrote A Lovers Complaint. Critics consider that its fine qualities are marred by leaden effects. The Phoenix and the Turtle, printed in Robert Chesters 1601 Loves Martyr, mourns the deaths of the legendary phoenix and his lover, the faithful turtle dove. SONNETS Published in 1609, the Sonnets were the last of Shakespeares non-dramatic works to be printed. Scholars are not certain when each of the 154 sonnets was composed, but evidence suggests that Shakespeare wrote sonnets throughout his career for a private readership. Even before the two unauthorised sonnets appeared in The Passionate Pilgrim in 1599, Francis Meres had referred in 1598 to Shakespeares sugred Sonnets among his private friends. Few analysts believe that the published collection follows Shakespeares intended sequence. He seems to have planned two contrasting series: one about uncontrollable lust for a married woman of dark complexion (the dark lady), and one about conflicted love for a fair young man (the fair youth). It remains unclear if these figures represent real individuals, or if the authorial I who addresses them represents Shakespeare himself, though Wordsworth believed that with the sonnets Shakespeare unlocked his heart. The 1609 edition was dedicated to a Mr. W. H. , credited as the only begetter of the poems. It is not known whether this was written by Shakespeare himself or by the publisher, Thomas Thorpe, whose initials appear at the foot of the dedication page; nor is it known who Mr. W. H. was, despite numerous theories, or whether Shakespeare even authorised the publication. Critics praise the Sonnets as a profound meditation on the nature of love, sexual passion, procreation, death, and time. ESTABLISHING HIMSELF By 1597, 15 of the 37 plays written by William Shakespeare were published. Civil records show that at this time he purchased the second largest house in Stratford, called New House, for his family. It was a four-day ride by horse from Stratford to London, so it is believed that Shakespeare spent most of his time in the city writing and acting and came home once a year during the 40-day Lenten period, when the theatres were closed. By 1599, William Shakespeare and his business partners built their own theater on the south bank of the Thames River, which they called the Globe. In 1605, Shakespeare purchased leases of real estate near Stratford for 440 pounds, which doubled in value and earned him 60 pounds a year. THE MERMAID TAVERN GROUP About this time Shakespeare became one of the group of now-famous writers who gathered at the Mermaid Tavern located on Bread Street in Cheapside. The Friday Street Club (also called the Mermaid Clu was formed by Sir Walter Raleigh. Ben Jonson was its leading spirit. Shakespeare was a popular member. He was admired for his talent and loved for his kindliness. Thomas Fuller, writing about 50 years later, gave an amusing account of the conversational duels between Shakespeare and Jonson: Many were the wit-combats betwixt him and Ben Jonson; which two I behold like a Spanish great galleon and an English man-of-war; Master Jonson (like the former) was built far higher in learning; solid, but slow, in his performances. Shakespeare, with the English man-of-war, lesser in bulk, but lighter in sailing, could turn with all tides, tack about, and take advantage of all winds, by the quickness of his wit and invention. Jonson sometimes criticized Shakespeare harshly. Nevertheless he later wrote a eulogy of Shakespeare that is remarkable for its feeling and acuteness. In it he said: Leave thee alone, for the comparison Of all that insolent Greece or haughty Rome Sent forth, or since did from their ashes come. Triumph, my Britain, thou hast one to show To whom all scenes of Europe homage owe. He was not of an age, but for all time! Sweet Swan of Avon! what a sight it were To see thee in our waters yet appear, And make those flights upon the banks of Thames, That so did take Eliza, and our James! WRITING STYLE William Shakespeares early plays were written in the conventional style of the day, with elaborate metaphors and rhetorical phrases that didnt always align naturally with the storys plot or characters. However, Shakespeare was very innovative, adapting the traditional style to his own purposes and creating a freer flow of words. With only small degrees of variation, Shakespeare primarily used a metrical pattern consisting of lines of unrhymed iambic pentameter, or blank verse, to compose his plays. At the same time, there are passages in all the plays that deviate from this and use forms of poetry or simple prose. Shakespeare combined poetic genius with a practical sense of the theatre. Like all playwrights of the time, he dramatised stories from sources such as Plutarch and Holinshed. He reshaped each plot to create several centres of interest and to show as many sides of a narrative to the audience as possible. This strength of design ensures that a Shakespeare play can survive translation, cutting and wide interpretation without loss to its core drama. As Shakespeare’s mastery grew, he gave his characters clearer and more varied motivations and distinctive patterns of speech. MARRIAGE AND LIFE IN LONDON In 1582, when he was 18, he married Anne Hathaway. She was from Shottery, a village a mile (1. 6 kilometers) from Stratford. Anne was seven or eight years older than Shakespeare. From this difference in their ages, a story arose that they were unhappy together. Their first daughter, Susanna, was born in 1583. In 1585 a twin boy and girl, Hamnet and Judith, were born. What Shakespeare did between 1583 and 1592 is not known. Various stories are told. He may have taught school, worked in a lawyers office, served on a rich mans estate, or traveled with a company of actors. One famous story says that about 1584 he and some friends were caught poaching on the estate of Sir Thomas Lucy of Carlecote, near Warwick, and were forced to leave town. A less likely story is that he was in London in 1588. There he was supposed to have held horses for theater patrons and later to have worked in the theaters as a page. By 1592, however, Shakespeare was definitely in London and was already recognized as an actor and playwright. He was then 28 years old. In that year Robert Greene, a playwright, accused him of borrowing from the plays of others. Between 1592 and 1594, plague kept the London theaters closed most of the time. During these years Shakespeare wrote his earliest sonnets and two long narrative poems, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. Both were printed by Richard Field, a boyhood friend from Stratford. They were well received and helped establish him as a poet. RELIGION Some scholars claim that members of Shakespeares family were Catholics, at a time when Catholic practice was against the law. Shakespeares mother, Mary Arden, certainly came from a pious Catholic family. The strongest evidence might be a Catholic statement of faith signed by John Shakespeare, found in 1757 in the rafters of his former house in Henley Street. The document is now lost, however, and scholars differ as to its authenticity. In 1591 the authorities reported that John Shakespeare had missed church for fear of process for debt, a common Catholic excuse. In 1606 the name of Williams daughter Susanna appears on a list of those who failed to attend Easter communion in Stratford. Scholars find evidence both for and against Shakespeares Catholicism in his plays, but the truth may be impossible to prove either way. SHAKESPEARE PROSPERS Until 1598 Shakespeares theater work was confined to a district northeast of London. This was outside the city walls, in the parish of Shoreditch. Located there were two playhouses, the Theatre and the Curtain. Both were managed by James Burbage, whose son Richard Burbage was Shakespeares friend and the greatest tragic actor of his day. Up to 1596 Shakespeare lived near these theaters in Bishopsgate, where the North Road entered the city. Sometime between 1596 and 1599, he moved across the Thames River to a district called Bankside. There, two theaters, the Rose and the Swan, had been built by Philip Henslowe. He was James Burbages chief competitor in London as a theater manager. The Burbages also moved to this district in 1598 and built the famous Globe Theatre. Its sign showed Atlas supporting the world. Shakespeare was associated with the Globe Theatre for the rest of his active life. He owned shares in it, which brought him much money. Meanwhile, in 1597, Shakespeare had bought New Place, the largest house in Stratford. During the next three years he bought other property in Stratford and in London. The year before, his father, probably at Shakespeares suggestion, applied for and was granted a coat of arms. It bore the motto Non sanz droictNot without right. From this time on, Shakespeare could write Gentleman after his name. This meant much to him, for in his day actors were classed legally with criminals and vagrants. Shakespeares name first appeared on the title pages of his printed plays in 1598. In the same year Francis Meres, in Palladis Tamia: Wits Treasury, praised him as a poet and dramatist. Meress comments on 12 of Shakespeares plays showed that Shakespeares genius was recognized in his own time. HONORED AS ACTOR AND PLAYWRIGHT Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603. King James I followed her to the throne. Shakespeares theatrical company was taken under the kings patronage and called the Kings Company. Shakespeare and the other actors were made officers of the royal household. The theatrical company was the most successful of its time. Before it was the Kings Company, it had been known as the Earl of Derbys and the Lord Chamberlains. In 1608 the company acquired the Blackfriars Theatre. This was a smaller and more aristocratic theater than the Globe. Thereafter the company alternated between the two playhouses. Plays by Shakespeare were also performed at the royal court and in the castles of the nobles. After 1603 Shakespeare probably acted little, although he was still a good actor. His favorite roles seem to have been old Adam in As You Like It and the Ghost in Hamlet. In 1607, when he was 43, he may have suffered a serious physical breakdown. In the same year his older daughter Susanna married John Hall, a doctor. The next year Shakespeares first grandchild, Elizabeth, was born. Also in 1607 his brother Edmund, also a London actor, died at the age of 27. GLOBE THEATRE The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeares playing company, the Lord Chamberlains Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend and grandson Sir Matthew Brend, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613. A second Globe Theatre was built on the same site by June 1614 and closed in 1642. A modern reconstruction of the Globe, named Shakespeares Globe, opened in 1997 approximately 750 feet (230 m) from the site of the original theatre. The Globe was owned by actors who were also shareholders in Lord Chamberlains Men. Two of the six Globe shareholders, Richard Burbage and his brother Cuthbert Burbage, owned double shares of the whole, or 25% each; the other four men, Shakespeare, John Heminges, Augustine Phillips, andThomas Pope, owned a single share FAMOUS QUOTES All the worlds a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them. Lifes but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Listen to many, speak to a few. CRITICAL REPUTATION Shakespeare was not revered in his lifetime, but he received a large amount of praise. In 1598, the cleric and author Francis Meres singled him out from a group of English writers as the most excellent in both comedy and tragedy. And the authors of the Parnassus plays at St Johns College, Cambridge, numbered him with Chaucer, Gower and Spenser. In the First Folio, Ben Jonson called Shakespeare the Soul of the age, the applause, delight, the wonder of our stage, though he had remarked elsewhere that Shakespeare wanted art. FIRST FOLIO Mr. William Shakespeares’ Comedies, Histories, Tragedies is the 1623 published collection of William Shakespeares plays. Modern scholars commonly refer to it as the First Folio. Printed in folio format and containing 36 plays (see list of Shakespeares plays), it was prepared by Shakespeares colleagues John Heminges and Henry Condell. It was dedicated to the incomparable pair of brethren William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke and his brother Philip Herbert, Earl of Montgomery (later 4th Earl of Pembroke). Although eighteen of Shakespeares plays had been published in quarto prior to 1623, the First Folio is the only reliable text for about twenty of the plays, and a valuable source text even for many of those previously published. The Folio includes all of the plays generally accepted to be Shakespeares, with the exception of Pericles, Prince of Tyre and The Two Noble Kinsmen, and the two lost plays, Cardenio and Loves Labours Won. W. W. Greg has argued that Edward Knight, the book-keeper or book-holder (prompter) of the Kings Men, did the actual proofreading of the manuscript sources for the First Folio. Knight is known to have been responsible for maintaining and annotating the companys scripts, and making sure that the cuts and changes ordered by the Master of the Revels were complied with. DEATH Shakespeare died on 23 April 1616 and was survived by his wife and two daughters. Susanna had married a physician, John Hall, in 1607, and Judith had married Thomas Quiney, a vintner, two months before Shakespeare’s death. In his will, Shakespeare left the bulk of his large estate to his elder daughter Susanna. The terms instructed that she pass it down intact to the first son of her body. Shakespeares will scarcely mentions his wife, Anne, who was probably entitled to one third of his estate automatically. He did make a point, however, of leaving her my second best bed, a bequest that has led to much speculation. Some scholars see the bequest as an insult to Anne, whereas others believe that the second-best bed would have been the matrimonial bed and therefore rich in significance. Shakespeare was buried in the chancel of the Holy Trinity Church two days after his death. The epitaph carved into the stone slab covering his grave includes a curse against moving his bones, which was carefully avoided during restoration of the church in 2008.

Earnest Hemingway: Would Be King :: Writing Literature Papers

Earnest Hemingway: Would Be King In the period immediately before World War I, there was a revolution in all art forms. The impressionists in France, late in the nineteenth century, had abandoned photographic realism to imply their emotional impressions of a scene. By the time of Picasso and Braqueat the end of the first decade of the twentieth century, painters were analyzing shapes, deconstructing them for component elements, or later, doing away with representationalreality all together. Composers like Igor Stravinski and Charles Ives introduced atonal, dissonant passages into music. Artists did not want to create in the same manner as theirpredecessors; they wanted to extend the range of their art. Beyond the arts, Sigmund Freud demonstrated the existence of the sub-conscious, a theory that would revolutionize the field of psychology. Einstein changed the face of Physics by proposing the theory of relativity and Werner Heisenberg predicted that complete and accurate depictions of phenomena wereimpossible. It was a time of sweeping change; the world if literature was no exception. In poetry, Ezra Pound was reacting against the metronomic beat of Victorian poetry. His credo was "Make it new." He insisted that writers use no superfluous word and avoidabstractions at all cost. T.S. Elliot followed Pound's technique, his voice and the voice of post-war Europe coming through in his masterpiece, The Wasteland. In fiction, James Joyce was insisting on removing the obvious presence of the author. Gertrude Stein was experimenting with sentence structure and word repetitions, trying to immerse her readers in a sense of ongoing present. Sherwood Anderson, like Joyce, wrote stories that did not snap shut at the ending, but developed gradually, aimlessly, their intent being a revelation of character. All these authors defined character less through authorial description and more through what the character said and did. Earnest Hemingway knew and studied with many of the best modernists. Their influence accentuated the spare laconic style he had already developed in high sc hool. The spare unadorned, grammatically simple, declarative sentences, largely devoid of adjective or adverb, also echoed Hemingway's own philosophy. For Hemingway, loss was inevitable: fate, circumstance, something always brought on the end. Love expired, through death or disenchantment, fame always dwindled, youth and vitality crumbled through the years; life itself was nothing more than a unpredictable feast of the senses. His philosophy is both stoic and existential: one should not complain, one should show grace under pressure (Hays, 41) Also, one should care about one's craft because it was the individual's actions which defined the character.

A Vision of Teaching Profession in 2025

TITLE: A VISION OF TEACHING PROFESSION IN 2025 Priyanka Joshi Junior Research Fellow (J. R. F) Dept. of Education Panjab University, Chandigarh ABSTRACT KEYWORDS: Professionals, Modalities, continuous, latest trends, technology, mentors, rethink, updating, knowledge, knowledge explosion.We Lead, Care, Inspire For the future of the Nation passes through our hands as Teachers Technological changes in the era of modernization have significantly affected the role of teachers’ as professionals. As the future of education, rest on the competencies, professional growth and abilities of teachers as professionals so, it cannot be ignored. Related article: HR Map ExplainedAccording to Caroll and Resta (2010) teachers of today and tomorrow must be ready to facilitate learning in multiple modalities embracing; greater diversity of space, time, resources, media and methods for learning as well as the new 21st century environments which are synchronous and asynchronous, face to face and virtual. Further, Garoia(2012) referred that the present century has visioned so much of expectations from education which are so high that the teachers of today and tomorrow have to continuously rethink about their professional development.She further highlighted that this professional development is ought to be continuous in process because of; knowledge explosion and latest trends associated to methodology, technology, social and teacher networking. All these demands and requirements have posed a demand on teachers to assess, update, renew and modify themselves as mentors than teachers. The present paper will highlight; a) The teacher of today b) Changing role of the teacher in the present scenario c) Lifelong learning as renewal and updating of knowledge d) In-service growth and teachers †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Followed by conclusion and suggestions. * The Teacher of TodayThe teacher of today symbolizes himself to be professional in true sense because of the emerging concepts of criteria of appointments in schools colleges and universities. No more, the present century holds teaching as a profession by ‘chance’ but teaching as a ‘choice’. This scenario has placed an emphasis on the teachers to develop their potential, capacities in a way that no more they are called as a ‘simple’ but ‘effective’ in performance by performing a quite range of functions such as ; classroom management, teaching and learning strategies and how to implement them successfully with professional ethics, student learning and so on.These views were strengthened by Travers & Reborc (2 008) who professed that teacher professionalism extends beyond one’s ability to understand content. Here, the educator must discover if the students are being reached in an effective way. This calls for a profession which involves a lifelong career commitment and service to society. Teaching as a profession, no doubt is characterized by intellectual pursuits within a code of ethics and is highlighted by the making of independent professional judgements. But going by the present scenario, our country witness mass bunking from the classes, cheating, private tuitions and so on.To avoid this, this means that the teacher of today needs much more than just a mere subject expert. Further, through extensive training and professional development, they will incorporate in themselves lot of life skills which will not only enhance their performance but quality wise they will help them to grow to greater heights. * Changing Role of the Teacher in the Present Scenario The present scenario is characterized by the changing needs of the teacher which has pressurized him to change, reform and update according to the new teaching strategies, classroom practices and knowledge explosion.Let us have a look at the review how the role of the teachers has gradually changed:- * Koppic and Knapp (1998) highlighted that teacher can develop themselves with respect to practice if they focus on six dimensions narrated as; knowledge, professionalism, instruction, collaboration, agency and authority. He further added by saying that teachers to grow must make initiatives to make sense of new policies, ideas, programs and their own work. * According to Cohen & Ball (1999) review of the federally funded research suggest that the teacher must be a researcher, educator and reformer.The research further highlighted that now is the time that he must understand when curriculum, instructional materials and assessments so that he can focus on the goal and prospects of educational improvement to be enhanced. * Thomson & Zeuli (1999) advocated that if teachers want to see that their students work they must enable themselves to change so that they can make distinctive changes in teaching practice and student learning. They further concluded that the most effective teacher learning is to focus on instruction-as- interaction, rather than on isolated elements of instruction. Lieberman & Miller (2000) described the new professional teacher as researchers, meaning-makers, scholars, and inventors. Also they further stated that teachers establish a firm professional identity through which they act as the role model by updating themselves through the lifelong learning . * Lifelong learning as renewal and updating of knowledge Professional development is a normal part of school culture. Professional development is required in order to maintain certification.School corporations mandate that teachers participate in staff development opportunities offered by the school district throughou t the year. Teachers may also be expected to draft growth plans to give direction to their ongoing learning. Salary schedules also encourage teacher learning by offering higher salaries to individuals with more training, degrees or credits. Occasionally teachers are permitted to attend workshops and conferences outside the school system. Teachers are expected to grow as professionals and need to learn while they are teaching if students are to receive an optimal education.While schools do allocate limited funds and release time to professional development, a view of teachers as life-long learners is a perspective that is missing in most schools given the limited cope, quantity, and quality of professional development available to teachers. It is not uncommon to hear the phrases â€Å"life-long learning† or â€Å"life-long learner. †These terms adorn school mission and goal statements. Few people would malign the importance of developing life-long learners, but fewer su ggest ways in which such an ideal may be accomplished. Such a goal need not remain illusory.It is crucial that schools and communities recognize the importance of developing teachers as life-long learners. It seems foolish to hope to engender life-long learning skills and attitudes in children without paying attention to those same skills and attitudes in developing the teachers of those children. And if a teacher will remain a lifelong learner it would be facilitate him/her to cater to the upcoming problems in the realm to teaching learning process and the demands of the upcoming generation. * In-service Growth and Teacher As professionals we still have a long way to go.Even now in in-service teacher education is seldom conceptualized in practice as the continuation of pre service preparation. Too frequently in service practices are characterized by an aggregate of incidental activities, sporadic in occurrence, lacking in productive purpose, unorganized in structure and unsynchroni zed within the framework of a school district’s total operation. Perhaps a staff does grow or improve through such activities; however, the evidence seems to indicate that the bird of chance wings high on the winds of such uncertainty.Programs or practices of in service teacher education which appear to be producing results of a promising and lasting character are those in which conscious effort is made to reduce the element of chance in the development of staff. At the practical as well as the therotical level, positive and directional growth is enhanced through a program of inservice teacher education which develops activities planned most carefully in terms of directional purposes, organizational structure, and operational processes which are synchronized and complementary. ConclusionKnowledge is no longer considered a commodity which only a subject expertise can provide. In the present scenario knowledge is something which individuals constructs and create from their own experience with the materials, ideas & texts they have. Teachers of today and of preparation (pre-service teachers) have to construct themselves, reform themselves according to the teachers they actually have and develop themselves professionally according to the new and emerging ideas of the knowledge, learning and instruction in their own learning situations in their classrooms.This give a call to teachers to work and learn in a way in which they can compete efficiently, confidently and critically so that he can become efficient in true terms and targeted as a priority. Suggestions * To promote professional values and attitudes such as reflective practice, autonomous learning and collaboration. * To improve Practical teaching competencies. * To consider teaching as a profession and promote teaching as an attractive career; * to keep a balance between theory and practice; All beginning teachers, during their first years in the profession receive professional and personal support (à ¢â‚¬Ëœinduction’); * To engage themselves in regular reviews of their training needs and effective continuing professional development. * To develop and improve themselves as leaders for learning. This means that the role of the teacher in the year 2020 demands him to update and rehearse himself in a seamless continuum so that he has a assured quality. REFERENCES Ball, D. L. & Cohen, D. K. (1999). Developing practice, developing practitioners: Toward a practice-based theory of professional education.Caroll, T. , & Resta, P. (2010). Redefining teacher education for digital-age learners. Summit report from the Invitational Summit on Redefining Teacher Education for Digital-Age Learners. Retrieved from: http://redefineteachered. org/sites/default/files/SummitReport. pdf? q=summitreport Garoia,Valentina. (2012) . A closer look at the future of teachers' profession in 2025. Retrieved from http://insight. eun. org/ww/en/pub/insight/thematic_dossiers/articles/learning_networks/2025. html. Lieberman, A. , ; Miller, L. (2000). Teaching and teacher development: A new synthesis for a new century. In R. S. Brandt