Romeo and Juliet Coursework Essay Example Essay Example

The Body Mass Index Essay Example

The Body Mass Index Paper The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a proportion between the stature and weight of an individual, determined by the heaviness of the individual (in kilograms) by their tallness squared (in meters). Midriff to-Hip Ratio (WHR) is viewed as the factor that signals female ripeness and wellbeing. This is on the grounds that solid, premenstrual ladies store fat on their lower body parts bringing about a female trademark, while guys store fat on their chest area parts. While considering the impact of WHR, alone, on engaging quality lower estimations of the WHR are viewed as increasingly appealing, with values between 0.6-0. 7 being maximally appealing. Engaging quality isn't just founded on the WHR yet additionally on the BMI. Females with low BMI esteems (underweight) and high BMI esteems (overweight) are viewed as ugly, with the center of the BMI esteem run viewed as alluring and sound. In any case, it is that impacts of both these elements have upon the impression of engaging quality that has lead to inquire about. Numerous investigations have been directed so as to comprehend which of these two contributing components are progressively significant in the view of female engaging quality. Discoveries by Devendra Singh (1994) reason that the two people passed judgment on heavier female pictures with low WHRs as more appealing and more beneficial than more slender pictures with higher WHRs. These outcomes show that both the WHR and BMI are impressive contributing variables to the view of engaging quality. The perfect picture has stemmed numerous other research thoughts and it has been discovered that ladies picked flimsy female figures as perfect and see their own figure as fatter than the perfect (Fallon and Rozin 1985, refered to in Singh 1994). We will compose a custom exposition test on The Body Mass Index explicitly for you for just $16.38 $13.9/page Request now We will compose a custom paper test on The Body Mass Index explicitly for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Recruit Writer We will compose a custom paper test on The Body Mass Index explicitly for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Recruit Writer Additionally, ladies pick their optimal figure to be a lot more slender than what they accept to be mens view of alluring (Fallon and Rozin 1985, refered to in Singh 1994). Studies have lead to the presumption that the WHR and BMI impact various parts of pictures that all amalgamate into the impression of how alluring that picture is. BMI is by all accounts progressively powerful in the view of energy (Singh 1994) and considers have discovered that WHR could be identified with fruitfulness and the propensity to bring forth guys, as opposed to females (Tovee Cornelissen, 1999). Past examinations have shown that the BMI is the more compelling element in the impression of appeal representing over 70% of the various relapse investigation where WHR represents just 2%. This would recommend that the consequence of this trial would be comparable and that BMI is the more significant contributing component. Nonetheless, as referenced already, Singh (1994) reasoned that ladies judge view of engaging quality considering the WHR more than the BMI. It has been proposed that in current society a premium has been put on slenderness and along these lines it has brought about the general supposition that slight is alluring. This has positively been the situation in more Westernized civilisations where low WHR is liked. Notwithstanding, in progressively conventional social orders a higher WHR is favored as higher WHR is identified with the generation of children. Along these lines, in social orders that esteem children over little girls an increasingly cylindrical formed ladies is liked. This may likewise be expected to the medias portrayal of appealing, which in numerous social orders is flimsy, accordingly incompletely clarifying the fixation on slimming down and the battle to turn out to be slender. This carries notice to the issues of dietary problems and how they influence a people impression of engaging quality. Morris et al (1989) found that over a multi year time frame (1959-1978) the heaviness of Miss America Pageant competitors and Playboy centerfolds fundamentally diminished. In any case, it was likewise discovered that normal abdomen size expanded and bust and hip size diminished, bringing about a progressively cylindrical formed lady. The general end was that in the course of the most recent three decades a huge change in the romanticized female body shape has happened. In any case, later examinations demonstrated that Morris et al results were wrong and that when the genuine WHRs were registered they stayed inside a female 0. 68-0. 72 territory in this way, unmistakably demonstrating that the subjects were not turning into a progressively rounded shape (Singh 1994). Theory: BMI will be fundamentally more significant than WHR in deciding the engaging quality of a female body. Invalid Hypothesis: There will be no noteworthy contrast between the BMI and WHR in deciding the allure of the female body Method Apparatus: The main mechanical assembly included was the real PC program. The PC program included various pictures of the state of the female body. These pictures were clearly and the figure wore a skin tight leotard. The countenances were obscured out so there was no predisposition in the engaging quality of the facial highlights. Subjects: The whole brain research class occurred in the analysis. The sexual orientation of the gathering was blended. Albeit a huge extent of the class was female. The age of the stage two understudies was dominatingly between 19-22 years old. They were nai ve in the expected result of the examination now. Technique: The Body Mass Index (BMI) and the midsection to-hip proportion were being explored. The subjects were given a progression of 50 female pictures in front view on a VDU screen. The pictures shifted in Body Mass Index and in abdomen to-hip proportion. The subjects were then approached to rate each picture on a size of 0-9, composing their rating into the PC. The first run through the subjects experienced a training run with the goal that they could gage their general thought for the appraisals. The second time the outcomes were checked and spared, and pooled along with the remainder of the classs results.

5 of the Most Anticipated Books By Asian Authors in 2020

5 of the Most Anticipated Books By Asian Authors in 2020 One of the breakout stories of 2019 happened when Adele Lim, an Asian woman writing the Crazy Rich Asians’s movie sequel, left the project because of huge pay disparity. She was reportedly being paid almost ten times less than her white co-writer. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Lim, through a reported speech, said that “women and people of color often are regarded as ‘soy sauce’â€"hired to sprinkle culturally specific details on a screenplay, rather than credited with the substantive work of crafting the story.” On top of all this, the directors response left much to be desired. But no matter how saddening the outcome is, it calls for a stronger solidarity for Asian and other writers of color. Here are five books for you to consider reading this year to support them: Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara (February 4th, 2020) This mix of literary fiction and mystery might be what you’re looking for if you want to be immersed in Indian culture. Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line follows 9-year-old Jai as he investigates several disappearances in his neighborhood. What starts as an innocent probing turns into a serious case. The book effortlessly combines local folklore, like the Djinns, and significant themes such as social class and poverty in India. Amnesty by Aravind Adiga (February 18th, 2020) From the author of the Booker prize winner The White Tiger comes a relevant and timely tale. Danny, an illegal immigrant in Australiaâ€"after being denied a refugee statusâ€"just witnessed a horrendous crime. The dilemma is whether to report it to the authorities and risk being sent back to Sri Lanka, or let the justice do its own job. In the age of forced migration and displacement, this one hits home the most. Riverrun by Danton Remoto (April 4th, 2020) Previously published by a local Philippine publisher, Penguin Random House Southeast Asia is re-releasing an extended and international edition of this poignant tale from one of the pioneers of gay writing in the Philippines. Riverrun is a coming-of-age story that follows a young gay boy growing up under the government’s tyranny in 1960s Philippines. The book is genre-bending. At times, it feels like a novel, but it can feel a lot like memoir, too. The Groom Will Keep His Name by Matt Ortile (June 2nd, 2020) This is another queer Filipino writing on the list. The Groom Will Keep His Name is a collection of essaysâ€"slash-memoir from a gay Filipino immigrant in the United States. It explores what every gay immigrant faces when moving to the West: the search for identity and sexual exploration. This debut also documents Ortile’s social awakening when it comes to issues on race and ethnicity. Antiemetic for Homesickness by Romalyn Ante (July 23rd, 2020) We dont get enough poetry collections by poets who are a women of color and Asian. And I don’t see a lot of women Asian poets making it this big, so this one definitely makes this list. Antiemetic for Homesickness is a perfect read for every immigrant who straddles two worlds. Ante, who was brought by her mother to the United Kingdom as a child, explores identity, culture, and language in this debut collection. Like other Filipino works, like the hit comic series Trese (soon to be a Netflix anime series), this collection also incorporates Philippine mythology and folklore. These are only five of the most-anticipated reads from Asian writers this year. Want more books from Asian writers? Here’s a recommended reading: Backpacking Around Southeast Asia With 11 Books From 11 Countries Also, make sure to check out my contributor page for more Asian content.

The Debate of Interracial Marriages and the Unseen...

The Debate of Interracial Marriages and the Unseen Barriers of Relationships 1 For decades, interracial relationships have been a deep seated conflict among many people and families in our history. Not only in the United States, but many countries around the world have debated and banned such acts. Although it has now been found to be unconstitutional based on the violation of the fourteenth amendment, societal perceptions, norms, and hate groups have still managed to persist. We as a country have come a long way in the past fifty years by recognizing the injustice in banning and punishing certain marriages, but there is still a definite stigma and an abundance of prejudice, resentment, and negative reactions attached to those who are†¦show more content†¦These types of experiences and attitudes lead many Black/white couples to isolate from their communities to protect themselves (Bratter King, p.170). As one can see, when social support is lacking it can lead to couples isolation. Isolation in turn can lead to other psychological issues and problems between the couple making arguments and distress much easier to come by. One could almost say that at least outside of the direct home of the couple, negativity seems to be lurking on all sides of them. It would be easy to see how divorce may sometimes seem like the most logical or conceivable solution to these stresses. It is clear that negative reactions from family as well as from society and also outsider beliefs are aspects that can contribute to stress and negative marital dynamics, yet there are still other variables like background/values, age, and psychological distress that was just touched on briefly. In the past, interracial relationships were seen by many as a psychological flaw or disorder in the person involved; someone who had low self esteem, self-loathing, deep psychological sicknesses, and inferiority issues. These attitudes put even more of a 4 negative impression onShow MoreRelatedStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesAutomatic and Controlled Processing 351 †¢ Interest Level 352 †¢ Prior Knowledge 352 †¢ Personality 352 †¢ Message Characteristics 352 Barriers to Effective Communication 353 Filtering 353 †¢ Selective Perception 353 †¢ Information Overload 353 †¢ Emotions 353 †¢ Language 354 †¢ Silence 354 †¢ Communication Apprehension 355 †¢ Lying 355 Global Implications 356 Cultural Barriers 356 †¢ Cultural Context 357 †¢ A Cultural Guide 358 Summary and Implications for Managers 360 S A L S A L Self-AssessmentRead MoreMarketing Management130471 Words   |  522 PagesRetailing and Wholesaling Integrated Marketing Communication Advertising management Sales promotion Personal selling Public relations Understanding individual consumer behaviour Understanding industrial consumer behaviour Customer satisfaction Customer relationship management Marketing of services Rural marketing Types of marketing research Process of marketing research Tools and Techniques of marketing research Applications of marketing research Preparation of marketing research report Online marketing E-commerceRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pages.................................................................................. 474 Inferring from Correlation to Causation......................................................................................... 479 Criteria for a Causal Relationship................................................................................................ 481 Criteria for Creating Good Explanations ........................................................................................ 483 Assessing

Essay about Absurdity and Satire in The Importance of...

Absurdity and Satire in The Importance of Being Earnest In Oscar Wildes The Importance of Being Earnest, much is made of societal expectations, protocols, as well as the inversions of these expectations. A character, Jack Worthing, adopts an alter ego when going into town to avoid keeping up with the serious and morally upright behaviour that is expected of him as guardian to his eighteen-year-old ward, Cecily. Another character, Algernon Moncrieff, makes up an invalid friend Bunbury whose grave health conditions provide him with the excuse to escape to the country as and when he pleases. Both Jack and Algernon are admired by two young ladies who erroneously believe the mens names to be Ernest, and who adore the men for this very†¦show more content†¦JACK. You really love me, Gwendolen? GWENDOLEN. Passionately! JACK. Darling! You dont know how happy youve made me. GWENDOLEN. My own Ernest! JACK. But you dont really mean to say that you couldnt love me if my name wasnt Ernest? GWENDOLEN. But your name is Ernest. JACK. Yes, I know it is. But supposing it was something else? Do you mean to say you couldnt love me then? GWENDOLEN. [Glibly.] Ah! that is clearly a metaphysical speculation, and like most metaphysical speculations has very little reference at all to the actual facts of real life, as we know them. JACK. Personally, darling, to speak quite candidly, I dont much care about the name of Ernest . . . I dont think the name suits me at all. GWENDOLEN. It suits you perfectly. It is a divine name. It has music of its own. It produces vibrations. JACK. Well, really, Gwendolen, I must say that I think there are lots of other much nicer names. I think Jack, for instance, a charming name. GWENDOLEN. Jack? . . . No, there is very little music in the name Jack, if any at all, indeed. It does not thrill. It produces absolutely no vibrations . . . I have known several Jacks, and they all, without exception, were more than usually plain. Besides, Jack is a notorious domesticity for John! And I pity any woman who is married to a man called John. She would probably never be allowed to know theShow MoreRelatedThe Importance Of Being Earnest By Oscar Wilde980 Words   |  4 PagesEarnest Hypocrisy In Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, two gentlemen exemplify the result of dishonesty and hypocrisy. Set in Victorian England, the two bachelors, Algernon and Jack, fight over which one of them will take the name Ernest in order to win their own girl. Wilde circumvents conventionalism and employs superior satirical strategy to not only teach the importance of being earnest, a characteristic held dear by Victorian society, but he also chastises his world for the hypocrisyRead MoreThe Significance Of Being Earnest, By Oscar Wilde1305 Words   |  6 PagesAccording to Barbara Tuchman, â€Å"satire is a wrapping of exaggeration around a core of society.† Satire exposes the absurdity embedded in society through exaggerated extremes of social norms. Satire is the hyperbolic expressions of absurdity, which provides clarity through sarcasm and offensive exaggerations to project a society’s ethics. In Oscar Wilde’s play, The Importance of Being Earnes t, Wilde exposes the absurdity of Victorian aristocratic social propriety. Wilde utilizes numerous ironic punsRead MoreThe Absurdity Of The Victorian Upper Class Society1653 Words   |  7 PagesNovember 25, 2016 The Absurdity of the Victorian Upper-Class Society Sans irony, the title of the play, The Importance of Being Earnest - A Trivial Comedy for Serious People, by Oscar Wilde probably would have been called â€Å"The Insignificance of Being Earnest.† This is because throughout the play all the major characters lied and were not the least bit earnest. This comedy is a satire on the mannerisms of the Victorian upper-class society in the late 1800s. As it is a satire, Wilde’s intent was toRead MoreThe Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde1107 Words   |  4 PagesThe Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde’s comedy, The importance of Being Earnest, is a farcical critique of contemporary societal attitudes towards social institutions. The play is centered on the importance of the protagonists being called Earnest without actually being earnest. The Paradoxical structure of the play combines trivial situations with formal language to complicity ridicule traditional standards on issues like marriage and social class. These expectations are deemed meaningfulRead MoreA Modest Proposal By Johnathon Swift801 Words   |  4 Pagesis to procreate and profit from their offspring. He goes on to reference, â€Å"child dropped from its dam,† as if making a comparison between women and animals. Swift furthers that with talk of allowing a number of women for breeding reserves, and it being more than the allotted number to that of livestock. Swift continues his dehumanization by making the people and children themselves seem inconsequential. He reduces them to mere numbersâ €”statistics. By dividing and lessening their numbers (poor peopleRead MoreGender in the importance of being earnest Essay examples1312 Words   |  6 Pagesgender the main comic creator in the play of ‘The Importance of being Earnest’? Comedy originated in the 6th century BC in ancient Greece at the Dionysian festival. Comedy was first designed to provoke laughter and to entertain the audience. The ancient Greeks used the word comedy to describe a play with a happy ending much the same as the play the ‘Importance of being Earnest’. The play uses elements of old comedy for example; it is a satire of the Victorian era that is most importantly appliedRead MoreThe Importance of Being Earnest Essay1237 Words   |  5 PagesAThe Importance of Being Earnest a play written by Oscar Wilde is set in England in the late Victorian era. Wilde uses obvious situational and dramatic irony within the play to satirize his time period. According to Roger Sale in Being Ernest the title has a double meaning to it and is certainly another example of satire used by Wilde. With a comedic approach, Wilde ridicules the absurdities of the character’s courtship rituals, their false faces, and their secrets. (Sale, 478) In theRead MoreThe Importance of Being Earnest: Wildes Wit in Use2173 Words   |  9 PagesIn researching the ideas and themes behind Oscar Wildes The Importance of Being Earnest, I stumbled upon numerous questions and underlying themes which I plan to dissect thoroughly in the following body of this paper treating each question individually and in an abstract manner. The questions I encountered ranged from the incestual tendencies of Lady Bracknell in relation to the gothic genre to Wildes use of food as a weapon and a means of demonstrating ones power. Before diving into theRead MoreOscar Wildes Use Of Criticism In English Literature1107 Words   |  5 Pagesform of satire, mostly targeted the upper classes. His famous play The Importance of Being Earnest provides a prime example of the use of satire as a form of critique. Through the use of characterization and absurd language, Wilde mocks the value given to social institutions in the Victorian upper-class society. Specifically, he satirizes the socially constructed role of the family, religion and marriage. Lady Bracknell’s characterization and Jack’s family story satirize the importance of the familyRead MoreHoratian and Juvenalian Satire1884 Words   |  8 PagesHoratian and Juvenalian Satire Satire has many definitions, but according to Merriam Webster satire can be defined as â€Å"A literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn† (Webster). This definition is likely used by many authors who exercise the application of satire. Satire has been in literature since ancient times; it is derived from the Latin satura, meaning dish of mixed fruits, (Weisgerber). Many satirists have shared a common aim: to expose foolishness in all its guises

Scholarship, Practice and Leadership in Higher Education Free Essays

From a pragmatic point of view, what higher education demands in the current context of the Information Age and the globalized, digital economy is a vision of improvement and change; that is, a vision for moving forward, a vision which discerns mistakes and more importantly, addresses them. It is important to note that teaching and learning are processes; fundamental modes of human behavior and endeavor. With the increasing demand for higher education across countries, and as new technology applications emerge, most of administrators, faculty, and students embrace a new educational infrastructure; one which is built upon information technology. We will write a custom essay sample on Scholarship, Practice and Leadership in Higher Education or any similar topic only for you Order Now While this is true, it is also true that the digital divide is widening. This is to say that children from the lowest strata of society have less access to computers, the Worldwide Web, and new information resources in their schools than the wealthy. Such realities create future problems for these children because of the fact that most careers nowadays require information technology skills. Within this context, this paper seeks to explicate how information literacy influences, shapes and moulds scholarship, practice, and leadership in higher education. It is important to note that there are a number of definitions of information literacy but most of these definitions are derived from the definition provided by the American Library Association (ALA) Presidential Committee on Information Literacy (1989): To be information literate, a person must be able to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information (p. ) As far as higher education is concerned, information literacy then should not be viewed as discipline specific, but the other way around; a position argued by Diane Zabel in her article entitled â€Å"A Reaction to Information Literacy and Higher Education. † â€Å"It is imperative that information literacy not stand in isolation but be integrated across the curriculum† (Zabel, 20 04). It can be observed that the demands of the current global and digital economy require more collaboration and concerted efforts. If we are to comply with such demands, the direction that our institutions of higher education should take, in terms of their instruction and research should be leaning towards multi-disciplinary, participatory and collaborative approaches. â€Å"For information literacy to succeed, it must be integrated, relevant, ongoing, collaborative, and applied† (Zabel, 2004). Such ideas resonate even in Sean Lauer and Carrie Yodanis’ article entitled, â€Å"The International Social Survey Programme: A Tool for Teaching with an International Perspective. † Lauer’s and Yodanis’ focus is, however, on the teaching of sociology in the undergraduate curriculum. Over the years that we have used ISSP in the classroom, we have found that it does contribute to a learning environment in which students’ sociological questions and answers are not limited to their own country but are cross-national† (Lauer et al, 2004). The current global and digital economy h as implications not only in terms of instruction and research, but also on the concept of leadership. In as far as the current market paradigm is concerned, corporate business activities also tend to put premium on teamwork, collaborations, and collective strength in terms of leadership. In the current global and digital economy, the idea is for an individual to be capable of multi-tasking and networking; faculty members who do not only teach but also do research, practicing nurses who do not only do clinical duty but also do research, sociologists working side by side with medical practitioners, etc. In the final analysis, information literacy is a very important life-skill that an individual should possess in order to cope up with the demands of the globalized and digital economy. How to cite Scholarship, Practice and Leadership in Higher Education, Papers

The Virgin by Kerima Polotan Tuvera Essay Example

The Virgin by Kerima Polotan Tuvera Essay He went to where Miss Mijares sat, a tall, big man, walking with an economy of movement, graceful and light, a man who knew his body and used it well. He sat in the low chair worn decrepit by countless other interviewers and laid all ten fingerprints carefully on the edge of her desk. She pushed a sheet towards him, rolling a pencil along with it. While he read the question and wrote down his answers, she glanced at her watch and saw that it was ten. I shall be coming back quickly, she said, speaking distinctly in the dialect (you were never sure about these people on their first visit, if they could speak English, or even write at all, the poor were always proud and to use the dialect with them was an act of charity), you will wait for me. As she walked to the cafeteria, Miss Mijares thought how she could easily have said, Please wait for me, or will you wait for me? But years of working for the placement section had dulled the edges of her instinct for courtesy. She spoke now pere mtorily, with an abruptness she knew annoyed the people about her. When she talked with the jobless across her desk, asking them the damning questions that completed their humiliation, watching pale tongues run over dry lips, dirt crusted handkerchiefs flutter in trembling hands, she was filled with an impatience she could not understand. Sign here, she had said thousands of times, pushing the familiar form across, her finger held to a line, feeling the impatience grow at sight of the man or woman tracing a wavering X or laying the impress of a thumb. Invariably, Miss Mijares would turn away to touch the delicate edge of the handkerchief she wore on her breast. We will write a custom essay sample on The Virgin by Kerima Polotan Tuvera specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Virgin by Kerima Polotan Tuvera specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Virgin by Kerima Polotan Tuvera specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Where she sat alone at one of the cafeteria tables, Miss Mijares did not look 34. She was slight, almost bony, but she had learned early how to dress herself to achieve an illusion of hips and bosom. She liked poufs and shirrings and little girlish pastel colors. On her bodice, astride or lengthwise, there sat an inevitable row of thick camouflaging ruffles that made her look almost as though she had a bosom, if she bent her shoulders slightly and inconspicuously drew her neckline open to puff some air into her bodice. Her brow was smooth and clear and she was always pushing off it the hair she kept in tight curls at night. She had thin cheeks, small and angular, falling down to what would have been a nondescript, receding chin, but Natures hand had erred and given her a jaw instead. When displeased, she had a lippy, almost sensual pout, surprising on such a small face. So while not exactly an ugly woman, she was no beauty. She teetered precariously on the border line to which belonged countless others who you found, if they were not working at some job, in the kitchen of some married sisters house shushing a brood of devilish little nephews. And yet Miss Mijares did think of love. Secret, short-lived thoughts flitted through her mind in the jeepneys she took to work when a man pressed down beside her and through her dress she felt the curve of his thigh; when she held a baby in her arms, a married friends baby or a relatives, holding in her hands the tiny, pulsing body, what thoughts did she not think, her eyes straying against her will to the bedroom door and then to her friends laughing, talking face, to think: how did it look now, spread upon a pillow, unmasked of the little wayward coquetries, how went the lines about the mouth and beneath the eyes: (did they close? did they open? in the one final, fatal coquetry of all? to finally, miserably bury her face in the babys hair. And in the movies, to sink into a seat as into an embrace, in the darkness with a hundred shadowy figures about her and high on the screen, a man kissing a womans mouth while her own fingers stole unconsciously to her unbruised lips. When she was younger, there had been other things to do college to finish, a niece to put through school, a mother to care for. She had gone through all these with singular patience, for it had seemed to her that love stood behind her, biding her time, a quiet hand upon her shoulder (I wait. Do not despair) so that if she wished she had but to turn from her mothers bed to see the man and all her timid, pure dreams would burst into glory. But it had taken her parent many years to die. Towards the end, it had become a thankless chore, kneading her mothers loose flesh, hour after hour, struggling to awaken the cold, sluggish blood in her drying body. In the end, she had died her toothless, thin-haired, flabby-fleshed mother and Miss Mijares had pushed against the bed in grief and also in gratitude. But neither love nor glory stood behind her, only the empty shadows, and nine years gone, nine years. In the room for her unburied dead, she had held up her hands to the light, noting the thick, durable fingers, thinking in a mixture of shame and bitterness and guilt that they had never touched a man. When she returned to the bleak replacement office, the man stood by a window, his back to her, half-bending over something he held in his hands. Here, she said, approaching, have you signed this? Yes, he replied, facing her. In his hands, he held her paperweight, an old gift from long ago, a heavy wooden block on which stood, as though poised for flight, an undistinguished, badly done bird. It had come apart recently. The screws beneath the block had loosened so that lately it had stood upon her desk with one wing tilted unevenly, a miniature eagle or swallow? felled by time before it could spread its wings. She had laughed and laughed that day it had fallen on her desk, plop! What happened? What happened? they had asked her, beginning to laugh, and she had said, caught between amusement and sharp despair, Some one shot it, and she had laughed and laughed till faces turned and eyebrows rose and she told herself, whoa, get a hold, a hold, a hold! He had turned it and with a penknife tightened the screws and dusted it. In this mans hands, cupped like that, it looked suddenly like a dove. She took it away from him and put it down on her table. Then she picked up his paper and read it. He was a high school graduate. He was also a carpenter. He was not starved, like the rest. His clothes, though old, were pressed and she could see the cuffs of his shirt buttoned and wrapped about big, strong wrists. I heard about this place, he said, from a friend you got a job at the pier. Seated, he towered over her, Im not starving yet, he said with a quick smile. I still got some money from that last job, but my team broke up after that and you got too many jobs if youre working alone. You know carpentering, he continued, you cant finish a job quickly enough if you got to do the planing and sawing and nailing all by your lone self. You got to be on a team. Perhaps he was not meaning to be impolite? But for a jobseeker, Miss Mijares thought, he talked too much and without call. He was bursting all over with an obtruding insolence that at once disarmed and annoyed her. So then she drew a slip and wrote his name on it. Since you are not starving yet, she said, speaking in English now, wanting to put him in his place, you will not mind working in our woodcraft section, three times a week at two-fifty to four a day, depending on your skill and the foremans discretion, for two or three months after which there might be a call from outside we may hold for you. Thank you, he said. He came on the odd days, Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday. She was often down at the shanty that housed their bureaus woodcraft, talking with Ato, his foreman, going over with him the list of old hands due for release. They hired their men on a rotation basis and three months was the longest one could stay. The new one there, hey, Ato said once. Were breaking him in proper. And he looked across several shirted backs to where he stopped, planing what was to become the side of a bookcase. How much was he going to get? Miss Mijares asked Ato on Wednesday. Three, the old man said, chewing away on a cud. She looked at the list in her hands, quickly running a pencil down. But hes filling a four-peso vacancy, she said. Come now, surprised that she should wheedle so, give him the extra peso. Only a half, the stubborn foreman shook his head, three-fifty. Ato says I have you to thank, he said, stopping Miss Mijares along a pathway in the compound. It was noon, that unhappy hour of the day when she was oldest, tiredest, when it seemed the sun put forth cruel fingers to search out the signs of age on her thin, pinched face. The crows feet showed unmistakably beneath her eyes and she smiled widely to cover th em up and aquinting a little, said, Only a half-peso Ato would have given it to you eventually. Yes, but you spoke for me, he said, his big body heaving before her. Thank you, though I dont need it as badly as the rest, for to look at me, you would knew I have no wife yet. She looked at him sharply, feeling the malice in his voice. Id do it for any one, she said and turned away, angry and also ashamed, as though he had found out suddenly that the ruffles on her dress rested on a flat chest. The following week, something happened to her: she lost her way home. Miss Mijares was quite sure she had boarded the right jeepneys but the driver, hoping to beat traffic, had detoured down a side alley, and then seeing he was low on gas, he took still another shortcut to a filling station. After that, he rode through alien country. The houses were low and dark, the people shadowy, and even the driver, who earlier had been an amiable, talkative fellow, now loomed like a sinister stranger over the wheel. Through it all, she sat tightly, feeling oddly that she had dreamed of this, that some night not very long ago, she had taken a ride in her sleep and lost her way. Again and again, in that dream, she had changed direction, losing her way each time, for something huge and bewildering stood blocking the old, familiar road home. But that evening, she was lost only for a while. The driver stopped at a corner that looked like a little known part of the boulevard she passed each day and she alighted and stood on a street island, the passing headlights playing on her, a tired, shaken woman, the ruffles on her skirt crumpled, the hemline of her skirt awry. The new hand was absent for a week. Miss Mijares waited on that Tuesday he first failed to report for some word from him sent to Ato and then to her. That was regulation. Briefly though they were held, the bureau jobs were not ones to take chances with. When a man was absent and he sent no word, it upset the system. In the absence of a definite notice, someone else who needed a job badly was kept away from it. I went to the province, maam, he said, on his return. You could have sent someone to tell us, she said. It was an emergency, maam, he said. My son died. How so? A slow bitter anger began to form inside her. But you said you were not married! No, maam, he said gesturing. Are you married? she asked loudly. No, maam. But you have you had a son! she said. I am not married to his mother, he said, grinning stupidly, and for the first time she noticed his two front teeth were set widely apart. A flush had climbed to his face, suffusing it, and two large throbbing veins crawled along his temples. She looked away, sick all at once. You should told us everything, she said and she put forth hands to restrain her anger but it slipped away she stood shaking despite herself. I did not think, he said. Your lives are our business here, she shouted. It rained that afternoon in one of the citys fierce, unexpected thunder-storms. Without warning, it seemed to shine outside Miss Mijares window a gray, unhappy look. It was past six when Miss Mijares, ventured outside the office. Night had come swiftly and from the dark sky the thick, black, rainy curtain continued to fall. She stood on the curb, telling herself she must not lose her way tonight. When she flagged a jeepney and got in, somebody jumped in after her. She looked up into the carpenters faintly smiling eyes. She nodded her head once in recognition and then turned away. The cold tight fear of the old dream was upon her. Before she had time to think, the driver had swerved his vehicle and swung into a side street. Perhaps it was a different alley this time. But it wound itself in the same tortuous manner as before, now by the banks of overflowing esteros, again behind faintly familiar buildings. She bent her tiny, distraught face, conjuring in her heart the lonely safety of the street island she had stood on for an hour that night of her confusion. Only this far, folks, the driver spoke, stopping his vehicle. Main streets a block straight ahead. But its raining, someone protested. Sorry. But if I got into a traffic, I wont come out of it in a year. Sorry. One by one the passengers got off, walking swiftly, disappearing in the night. Miss Mijares stepped down to a sidewalk in front of a boarded store. The wind had begun again and she could hear it whipping in the eaves above her head. Maam, the mans voice sounded at her shoulders, I am sorry if you thought I lied. She gestured, bestowing pardon. Up and down the empty, rain-beaten street she looked. It was as though all at once everyone else had died and they were alone in the world, in the dark. In her secret heart, Miss Mijares young dreams fluttered faintly to life, seeming monstrous in the rain, near this man seeming monstrous but sweet overwhelming. I must get away, she thought wildly, but he had moved and brushed against her, and where his touch had fallen, her flesh leaped, and she recalled how his hands had looked that first day, lain tenderly on the edge of her desk and about the wooden bird (that had looked like a moving, shining dove) and she turned to him with her ruffles wet and wilted, in the dark she turned to him. from: http://pinoylit. blogspot. com/2005/03/virgin-by-kerima-polotan-tuvera. html