Holes by Louis Sachar :: English Literature

Holes by Louis Sachar Summary I had just read a book called Holes by Louis Sachar, and was published by Dell Yearling in 1998. This story is about an innocent boy named Stanley Yelnats IV, whose name is very stand-out in his family, because every man in his family has this name except they are spelled differently from either frontward or backward. Stanley is a very quiet boy. Therefore, he has no friends in school and tends to be picked on because of his size all of the time. His family is very poor, and it is very reasonable to blame this cause on their great great grandfather. When Stanley’s great great grandfather was still living, he had stolen a pig from a Gypsy, and as the result she had pressed a curse on him and among his descendents. Stanley is a very bad luck kid. He was mistakenly convicted for stealing a pair of Clyde Livingston shoes. No one believes Stanley that those shoes were falling on top of him out of nowhere. As the result, the judge has given him two choices in which he’s either going to jail, or will be sent to a boy’s detention center, known as Camp Green Lake. Stanley, of course, decided his decision to Camp Green Lake, where he thought he would make some more new friends and get to do camping like other kids get to do. Stanley learns his vision at the lake was totally different when he finally arrived there. He found there is no lake, except it’s just a wide abandoned desert with bunch of holes everywhere. Mr. Sir, who’s a sunflower seeds addicted, gave Stanley an orange outfit just like the rest of the other boys are having. Stanley learns the life at the camp isn’t as simple as he thought it would be. In every early morning, all of the boys through out the whole camp would have to start digging holes that is must be 5 feet deep and 5 feet wide in the hot desert with only one canteen fills with water until the late evening. If any boy found anything interesting, he’s then must reporting it to Mr. Sir. Stanley makes a lot of new friends. Yet he’s only getting closer to one boy whose name is Zero. Zero is a very quiet person. He doesn’t talk much. He couldn’t read also. Therefore, Stanley has made an agreement with Zero in which he would teach Zero how to read, and Zero would dig holes for Stanley. Zero helps Stanley with the digging and whenever they are having free time Stanley would go on and teach Zero

Impact of Greek Mythology on Western Culture Essay

Greek mythology ‘s impact on modern societies cannot be understated. Modern language, industry, arts and culture all demonstrate the impact of Greek mythology in today ‘s world. For example, most people who have no formal knowledge of Greek mythology still know that Hercules was a strongman and that Venus (the Roman version of the Greek Aphrodite) is the goddess of love. The Impact of Greek Mythology on Language Very few people speak ancient Greek on a regular basis, but Greek mythology has shaped English and other languages on many levels. A â€Å"Herculean task, † for example, is one that requires great effort. This phrase comes from a myth about the Twelve Labors of Hercules. The drug morphine takes its name from the Greek God of Sleep, Morpheus. â€Å"Venereal disease † is a rather unflattering reference to Venus. The goddess of love fares better in the term â€Å"aphrodisiac â€Å", referring to any substance or circumstance that arouses sexual desire . To this day, an unpleasant woman may be called a â€Å"harpy † (a winged monster with a woman ‘s torso and a bird ‘s feet). Alternately, a handsome man is an â€Å"Adonis, † the mortal man so beautiful that Aphrodite herself fell in love with him. We call computer viruses â€Å"Trojans, † a rather unfair comparison with the Trojans, as we ‘re actually referring to the Greek-built Trojan horse, used by the Greeks to infiltrate Troy and end the Trojan War. The impact of Greek mythology on western culture and language isn ‘t confined to individual words. Many expressions, proverbs and clichs are direct references to ancient Greek myths. For example, the expressions â€Å"caught between a rock and a hard place † and â€Å"between the Devil and the deep blue sea † both come from tales about sailors being caught between the monsters Scylla and Charybdis of Greek mythology. Other common expressions that demonstrate Greek mytholog y ‘s impact on modern societies include: †¢ an Achilles heel (a single fatal vulnerability) †¢ having the Midas touch (everything turns to gold) †¢ lying in the arms of Morpheus (sleeping) †¢ opening Pandora ‘s Box (unlocking a world of trouble) †¢ rich as Croesus (Croesus was known for his wealth) †¢ the face that launched a thousand ships (a woman worth going to war for). Cultural Impact of Greek Mythology in the West Greek mythology ‘s impact on modern societies is often seen in the arts and popular culture. In the 1980s, the all-female rock band The Bangles had a top ten hit with the single Venus. Television shows and movies, such as Disney ‘s Hercules, have also reintroduced mythological figures to new generations, including characters such as Hades, the Lord of the Underworld. In fact, movies have been retelling versions of Hercule ‘s story since the 1950s. Some of the most famous works of art and literature demonstrate the impact of Greek mythology on western culture. Botticelli ‘s The Birth of Venus is one of the world ‘s most recognizable paintings. Operas often delve into Greek mythology, as well. Offenbach à ¢â‚¬Ëœs Orpheus in the Underworld is one of the most famous examples. Great writers such as Dante, Shakespeare and Milton make frequent references to Greek mythology, so much so that an understanding of Greek myths is necessary to truly appreciate their works. American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne ‘s Tanglewood Tales is a collection of rewritten Greek myths. Science and Greek Mythology Greek mythology ‘s impact on modern societies can be seen on any clear night. Many constellations are named after characters or monsters from Greek myths, including Cassiopeia, Andromeda, Hercules and Gemini. All of the planets and most of the moons in the solar system are also named after Greek mythological characters, although the planets have been given Roman versions of the Greek names. Even our Earth was named after a Greek myth: Another name for our planet is â€Å"Gaia, † the name of the Greek earth mother. Signs of Greek Mythology in Modern Societies The names of Greek mythology surround us today, sometimes in unusual places. Would Ajax, one of t he great Greek heroes of The Iliad, be happy knowing he ‘s the namesake for a popular cleaning product? Sometimes, references to Greek mythology are appropriate. The Aegis is the shield used by both Zeus and his daughter Athena. Today, the Aegis Group is an insurance company, and the U.S. navy uses Aegis cruisers. In both of these instances, the reference to Greek mythology is clearly valid in that the insurance company and Navy boats provide protection, just as the Greek shield. At other times, the connection between Greek mythology and modern products is more tongue-in-cheek. A popular brand of condoms is named â€Å"Trojan, † slyly alluding to the Trojan horse that allowed the Greeks to safely penetrate Troy ‘s defenses. Despite our sometimes questionable uses of Greek mythology in contemporary culture, its impact on modern societies cannot be understated. References to Greek myths abound. In fact, Greek myths even influence our maps. A collection of maps is an Atlas, named for the titan who held up the earth. And Europe, seat of so many societies influenced by Greek myths, is named for Europa, the maiden carried off by Zeus, who had disguised himself as a bull to trick her.

Developing A Lean Supply Chain Management Process Essay

3. When you have a complex supply chain, supplier evaluation and reduction is a great step that can be taken towards having a lean supply chain. Supplier evaluation and reduction is a continuous process within organizations and forms part of the pre-qualification step within the supply chain management process, although in many organizations it includes the participation and input of other departments and stakeholders. Most organizations experienced in collecting supplier evaluation information prefer doing so using five-step processes for determining which supplier to approve or reject. Their processes often take the form of either a questionnaire or interview, sometimes even a site visit with each supplier, and includes appraisals of various aspects of the supplier s business including capacity, financials, quality assurance, organizational structure and processes and performance. Based on the information obtained via the evaluation, a supplier is scored and either approved or not approved as one from whom to procure materials or services. In many organizations, there is an approved supplier list (ASL) to which a qualified supplier is then added. If rejected the supplier is generally not made available to the assessing company s procurement team. Once approved, a supplier may be reevaluated on a periodic, often annual, basis. The ongoing process is defined as supplier performance management. A lot of companies use a checklist system written by Ray Carter for DPSSShow MoreRelatedAgile and Lean Supply Chain Management1719 Words   |  7 PagesLeanness means developing a value stream to eliminate all waste, including time, and to ensure a level schedule. Agility means using market knowledge and a virtual corporation to exploit profitable opportunities in a volatile marketplace. 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