Comparison of How it happened and The Signalman Essay Example for Free

Comparison of How it happened and The Signalman Essay The atmosphere in How it happened is full of mystery and energy. The plot moves very quickly, imitating the speed of the automobile as in the story it is said the automobile has a horse power of thirty, Then I remember the big motor, with its glaring headlights and litter of polished brass, waiting for me outside. It was my thirty-horse-power Robur, which had only been delivered that day. It also emphasises the lack of control the driver has over it. Whereas the atmosphere in The Signalman creates both suspense and mystery. The appearances of the spirit help to create suspense as we anticipate them to lead us to the climax. However, we find out at the end of the story that the signalman was getting premonitions of his own death. The appearances are really red herrings as it is the signalman himself who dies. Whereas the biggest red herring in How it happened is how the narrator speaks from memory in the first person, fooling us into believing he must still be alive. This makes the twist at the end so much more powerful. The difference of experience between the first time reader, who is fooled into believing the narrator must still be alive and the 2nd time reader who is able to pick out things that are ironic, for example, I can live it again. The 2nd time reader knows hes dead when hes saying it. Dickens creates a strong atmosphere through the characterisation of his characters as well as his long complex sentences that can be difficult to understand. This is because of the 150 year cultural gap of reading the story. This makes differences with the way we read the story. For example, The monstrous thought came into my mind, as I perused the fixed eyes and the saturnine face, that this was a spirit, not a man. The word monstrous meant abnormal in 1866. This also shows Dickenss effort to create psychological state. He also describes things very ambiguously, for example, I resumed my downward way, and stepping out upon the level of the railroad, and drawing nearer to him, saw that he was a dark sallow man, with a dark beard and rather heavy eyebrows. His post was in as solitary and dismal a place as ever I saw. The words underlined make the signalman difficult to imagine because if everything is dark, you would not be able to make out his features. The title How it happened is deliberately allusive to draw the reader in. But, it does immediately introduce suspense as we wonder what it refers to. Whereas the title The Signalman conveys urgency. The characterisation created in How it happened is that the narrator characterises himself as a risk taker, admitting one often does foolish things to the reader. This adds to his sense of honesty but also makes us question his decision taking. Also, it provides tension between two ways of behaving which should interest us. Whereas the characterisation created in The Signalman is a bit different because both the characters remain shrouded in mystery and this adds to the sense of curiosity that surrounds the story. We dont know the protagonist intimately to picture him in our mind. The themes in The Signalman include death, the supernatural and reason. Dickens sometimes uses the convention of quotation marks and sometimes does not. This reflects the contrasts of rationality and supernatural goings on. The narrator tries to give reasons to the visions that the signalman has, yet the final image of the story is of the narrator seeing the image of the signalman and the ghost himself. Dickens cleverly manipulates tension to give the final image the haunting effect. Whereas in How it happened, Arthur Conan Doyle was an apparent rationalist and he believed that after your death, you could continue to live on as a spirit. It was also believed that these spirits could communicate with the living through people known as mediums. This belief is present in the story where the narrator has survived his death in order to tell us how it happened. This idea is given more credit when we know that the story originally started with the line, This story was told to me by a medium . The story How it happened was written in 1918 and involves a high-powered automobile. This suggests to us the story must have been written about the present at the time. It is also set in London. At that time, London was still the centre of an empire and this important as the story involves aspects of modernism. Whereas the setting of The Signalman is important as Dickens goes to a lot of effort to make the story seem ghostly and surreal. Dickens was writing this story involving trains because they were the biggest and finest machines at the time and by writing the story to do with railway system he is challenging it. Dickens was also in a famous train crash. The Signalmans job is a job of life and death. The one in the story has a reputation for being good at the job. The signalman works in a cutting and that the descent into this place is described as if one is descending to the underworld of Greek Mythology. The clammy stone and that fact that it becomes oozoer and wetter helps create this sense. They key aspect of the cutting is its remoteness. The tunnel as well is described as having wet stains, suggesting that this is a place you would not want to visit. This helps to make an eerie atmosphere and makes it easier for us to imagine spirits and other ghostly aspects. The story is an intensely human story about psychological differences between two people whereas How it happened is about dealing with the physical and spirit world. The narrative voice in How it happened is in the first person and we tend to trust its honesty about the first person. This is because the narrator admits to not remembering everything clearly. I can remember some things upon that evening most distinctly, and others are like some vague, broken dreams. This is what makes it so difficult to tell a connected story. This openness suggests we are going to hear the truth. He also blames neither the car nor Perkins for events but himself. I also remember asking Perkins, my chauffeur, how she had gone, and his saying that he thought she was excellent. The ways he says, Perkins, my chauffeur tell us social standing and class of narrator. The narrator gains a ghostly aspect at the end, when we find out he is dead, and this introduces the idea of Spiritualism that is key to the story. Whereas the narrative voice in The Signalman is also in the first person and we find that until the end of the story we are not sure if we can totally trust it. This is because of the ambiguities in the description of things as well as the lack of information about the narrator himself. But we can tell the visitor is a sceptic. He chooses not to believe that the bell was rung by a ghost without proof. I caught at that. Did it ring your bell yesterday evening when I was here, and you went to the door? As readers, we side with the sceptic. The skill of the story is that most people will not agree the bell rang without sound. There is also an additional piece of irony, the sceptic doesnt believe in the ghost but he says the same things the ghost said like Halloa! Although he does tell us that he is a man who had been shut up within narrow limits until at last set free. But it is difficult to understand this because we dont know if hes referring metaphorically to something else or talking as if he has spent a long time in prison.

The Age of Computers :: Essays Papers

The Age of Computers Believe it or not, but the age of computers is upon us. I believe Computers are not only here to stay, but in my opinion computers are the wave of the future. Only a device like the computer can change the way we work, live, and think. I see computers taking us places where no man has gone before. Twenty years ago people were just not up to date with computers back then. I mean if you ask someone about a computer, they probably would say something like, what in the world our you talking about, or what the hell is a computer. Today just about anybody you ask, can tell you something about a computer. Papia Bhattacharyya , says: "Technology has bounded onto the center stage in the last few years"(59). The earliest existence of the modern day computer's ancestor is the abacus. The abacus dates back to almost 2000 years ago. It is simply a wooden rack holding beads which are strung on wires. The next step in computers took place in 1694 when Blaise Pascal invented the first digital calcu lating machine, which was designed to help Pascal's father who was a tax collector. Now we look at Charles Babbage, who many say is the father of computers. Charles Babbage was a professor of mathematics. In the 1800's Babbage designed an automatic calculation machine. This machine was steam powered and could store up to 1000 50-digit numbers. Charles Babbage was so ahead of his time, that the machines that were used back then were not even precise enough to make the parts for his computer. Gulliver, states: The first major use for a computer in the US was during the 1890 census. Two men, Herman Hollerith and James Powers, developed a new punched-card system that could automatically read information on cards without human intervention (Gulliver 82). In the 1930's punched-card machine techniques had become so well established that Howard Hathaway Aiken, together with engineers at IBM, came up with the automatic computer called Mark I. The Mark I ran by using prepunched paper tape. The Mark I was slow, and required 3 to 5 seconds to perform multiplication.

Mobile Commerce in Developing Countries Essay

Mobile Commerce or M-commerce as it is more commonly referred to is simply the ability to do business electronically without any physical limitations or barriers. This is more popular with the use of smartphones today and other mobile devices. After researching several journals and articles, it is obvious at this point that there is no standard definition of the term â€Å"Mobile Commerce. † Many authors and writers have coined phrases and come up with definitions that are similar to each other; the general idea is similar but the words in the different definitions vary somewhat. However, one acceptable definition is used and this comes from Liang and Wei (2004), â€Å"M-Commerce generally refers to the use of wireless devices (particularly mobile phones) to conduct electronic business transactions, such as product ordering, fund transfers, and stock trading† (p. 7). M-Commerce was formed as a result of the Internet and mobile computing coming together to create a new business area. The benefits of Mobile Commerce are almost endless and a few will be discussed later in the analysis. However, the focus of this paper is the emergence of this trend in developing countries with emphasis on Africa- Nigeria to be precise. The population of Nigeria is over 150 million boasting one of the largest markets in Africa. Akpan-Obong (2009) states that â€Å"Nigeria is a major actor in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector in Africa, Nigeria has so far recorded significant achievements in ICT utilization, and has recorded higher growth rates in the penetration and diffusion levels of ICT† (p. 208). With Mobile Commerce rapidly taking over the business world, it is important to gain an understanding of how the so called major actors are fairing on the playing field hence the emphasis on Nigeria in the topic of Mobile Commerce. Article Summaries Liang (2004) and Akpan-Obong (2009) in their separate articles introduce the concept of Mobile Commerce and present generally accepted definitions of the term. While Liang focuses on the likely successes and failures of M-Commerce applications, Akpan-Obong specifically suggests electricity and infrastructural inadequacies as the reasons for the underutilization of M-Commerce in Nigeria. Greengard (2008) goes on to discuss the general impact of mobile phones on the world as a whole. He talks about the development opportunities that the presence of mobile phone technologies has created with the transformation of commerce, banking and healthcare. In his article, he states that the most profound changes and biggest dividends are being realized in developing countries. Formulation of a series of hypotheses from a research model developed by Peter, Philip and Victor (2005) identifies some of the factors affecting the use of mobile ICT in the least developed countries. Ayo and Agboola (2006) delve into the uses of M-commerce in Nigeria and how this technology is becoming widespread in the country. Solutions are also offered to deal with the issues of underutilization of the technology. Generally, these articles discuss the current practices and also anticipated future implementations of M-Commerce. The Internet, which is a form of electronic commerce has been in existence for years but it has been difficult to cover as much of the market as it could especially in some parts of the world where amenities like a computer are not only unaffordable but considered a luxury. With the emergence of mobile phones, â€Å"an important fact to consider is that M-Commerce is gaining relevance because the penetration of mobile phones is much larger than the penetration of Internet access (Duffey, 1998) in most countries. Greengard (2008), highlights a few of the relevant uses of this technology: â€Å"Although mobile phones have already transformed the more affluent nations, they are ringing up some of the most profound changes- and biggest dividends- in developing countries. Today, people are using mobile phones to track crop prices in Kenya and manage micropayments in the Philippines. They are tapping into these devices to handle healthcare information in Nicaragua and oversee bakery orders in Nigeria† (p. 17). Gone are the days when Africa as a whole was considered backward and inconsequential when it came to matters of technological advancements, infrastructure and amenities. Like most developing countries, Nigeria in particular has not yet implemented M-Commerce on a full scale. However, the trend is beginning to emerge with the appearance of mobile phones in every nook and cranny of the country. Now, unlike before, devices like mobile phones are no longer seen as sacred or only for the rich and famous in society. Rotberg was spot on when he stated, â€Å"it is the first time in the history of technology that social class and geography are largely irrelevant† (as cited in Greengard, 2008, p. 18). Almost anyone who is of talking age owns a cell phone in Nigeria. From the executives at the renowned industrious firms, the students attending public schools who cant even afford to buy textbooks and even the farmers in the villages and rural areas; the fishermen selling fish at the local market and even the housewives who grow vegetables and cultivate livestock in their backyards. Owning a mobile phone is no longer considered a luxury and does not cost an arm and a leg like it used to only a few years ago. This singular reason that the phones are now easily affordable and available for purchase by every Tom, Dick and Harry is what has fostered the emergence of Mobile Commerce in Africa, Nigeria to be precise. With the mobile phones gaining more popularity with the people in Nigeria, so also has the technological benefits been exploited. The wireless handheld devices have orchestrated the use of e-banking services in Nigeria. According to Ayo et al. (2007), â€Å"virtually all the 25 banks that survived the recent capitalization exercise engage the use of ICT as a platform for effective and efficient delivery of banking services. Consequently, electronic cards, Internet banking and mobile banking services are gradually being introduced. However, M-Banking activities are limited to mobile finance information, download or ringing tones and music as well as telematic services, particularly, vehicle tracking, theft protection and emergency services† (p. 13). As more and more advancements are pursued, banking will become not only flexible but also more convenient. Customers now have the luxury of checking their bank accounts on their mobile device without having to take a trip to the local branch of their banks nearest to them. They also enjoy the comfort of immediacy, information at their fingertips. The banking sector is one of the first and more important aspects of Mobile Commerce that has emerged in Nigeria. However, there is also much hype about the little things that are being derived from this technological advancement. Ayo et al. (2007) states emphatically â€Å"the success of M-Commerce has partly been due to developments in mobile communication techniques. Cellular networks were originally designed for voice-only communication. To support M-Commerce transactions, which are data based, there has been an evolution of these networks from analogue to digital and from circuit switched to packet switched networks. Today a number of these mobile communication technologies are available† (p. 11). Some of the strengths of Mobile Commerce in Nigeria are attributed to the GSM operators and the services that they render to their customers. The three major operators are MTN, Celtel and Globacom. Their services include: Voicemail, WAP services, SMS, customer services, call forwarding, international dialing, Celtel mobile office, faxmail, roaming, customer care and Broadband Internet Access that offers Broadband Internet to residential users just to name a few. These services allow customers to derive utmost satisfaction from the emerging trends in the advancement of Mobile Commerce. In his article, Greengard (2008) talked about one incidence in particular. â€Å"A Nigerian baker started taking orders for cakes via SMS and quickly expanded his presence beyond his immediate neighborhood. He experienced a 30% increase in sales† (p. 17). Many small-scale businesses are now enjoying the benefits of this technological advancement and they are using its features to broaden the scope of their businesses and gain competitive advantage over their competitors in the industry. If not for anything else, the customer relationship that exists between the business owners and their customers has been strengthened by the ability of the owners in providing their services directly to the consumers via these mobile handheld devices. The emergence of Mobile Commerce in Nigeria has brought with it both advantages and disadvantages. As with the mobile banking, of course it is fast, convenient and nowadays very affordable, there is also the threat of security and the complex systems and expertise needed to run some of the programs. There is a gap between those who are more technologically savvy and the layman who grows crops on his farm. This gap in knowledge does not allow the features on some of these hand held devices to be fully utilized. The phones being so affordable that even the most basic of the devices could probably browse the Internet assuming all the features are purchased, makes it likely that the phones are being underutilized to the most of its capabilities. Most senior management and more well to do individuals are more concerned about the security of their transactions over this mobile devices. Research by Agboola (2006), revealed â€Å"38. 2% of the respondents considered security as a major threat, while 4. 3% and 5. 4% considered complication of services and cost respectively as other factors† (p. 3). Apparently, the cost of mobile telephone service is higher in Nigeria than other African countries so it only reasonable that the cost of this service would be a major threat to Mobile banking as a whole. Another threat is the unavailability of basic infrastructure to support this system such as electricity, among others. The lack of electricity as a basic infrastructure in Nigeria has a ripple effect because it affects every device that makes up the system. Without electricity, individuals cannot charge their mobile phones when the battery is depleted. This in itself, defeats the purpose of Mobile Commerce, as there is no fulfillment in owning a phone when you cannot use it when you want to. The systems in the banks that perform the updates to customer accounts and provide information to the customers would also shut down as a result of lack of electricity. Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), which are one of the first occurrences of Mobile Banking in Nigeria, would have to be shut down as well. With all the features of the mobile phones these days, it is only a matter of time before the developing countries of Africa begin to enjoy all of the benefits that countries like America are enjoying now. Although, seeing as how the advancement in America has not come to a halt, it is more than likely that developing countries would always play catch up. However, countries grow at different paces so it is only wise to perform according to the capabilities of the systems set up in the country until it can withstand the test of time. Synthesis Mobile Commerce as a concept has a lot of prospect for patronage dependent on the available services. First of all, there were no mobile phones at all in a country like Nigeria and then mobile phones were introduced and the craze cannot be contained. Now, the monumental growth of mobile devices all over the world, with over one-third of the world population having access to it has given prominence to M-Commerce. With technological advancements emerging everyday in different areas and industries, Mobile Commerce can only get better as more provisions are made to handle the loop holes and reduce the threat that are presently facing the market. There would most likely come a time when Mobile Commerce is not only the fastest way of doing business but the most common, the most trusted and also the safest. It would soon become a way of life. According to Peter et al (2005), â€Å"the country had experienced a phenomenal growth from a teledensity of 0. 49 in 2000 to 25. 22 in 2007. This trend has brought about a monumental development in the major sectors of the economy such as banking, telecoms and commerce in general† (p. 140). Nigeria, being the fastest growing telecoms nation in Africa and the third in the world, it is almost inconceivable to imagine how much is yet to come by way of technology and other infrastructure. Today, African countries may be struggling to hold their weight in the area of technological advancement in comparison with more advanced countries like the United States. Tomorrow, the tables might just be turned. One can only wait and see, behold the future!

Mermaids By Richard Van Camp Analysis - 798 Words

Tragedy is defined as an event that causes suffering, destruction and death. When one is not fully aware of their knowledge, terrible events will correspond to what one has done. In the short story Mermaids by Richard Van Camp, the human suffering of Torchy resembles an Aristotle tragedy. Firstly, Torchy demonstrates hamartia when he is gambling. Additionally, the outcome of Torchy’s hamartia leads him to peripeteia which Torchy runs out of medicine. Lastly, Torchy wonders if he is a villain and this shows anagnorisis. Torchy’s actions ultimately lead his life to a downfall that is caused through accidental events, and this overall demonstrates the concept of an Aristotle tragedy. When one has fulfilled their goal without any downfalls,†¦show more content†¦This is an enormous indication that Torchy went beyond his limit and should have stopped when he had reached his goal. As the story progresses, Torchy says â€Å"When i went back to the room, the twins had vanished with all my money†. (4) This means that Torchy’s blind actions directed him to his own self destruction. This shows peripeteia because it shows the consequence of a tragic flaw. During Torchy’s talk with Stephanie, Torchy foreshadows what will happen in his tragic future by saying â€Å"They forgot about God and anytime men forget about God, He reminds them He’s still there. That’s why he brought AIDS. Because we forgot†. (2) This is an exact analogy of what happens to Torchy as he forgets about the medicine and his forgetfulness leads him to lose all the money he won. These facts furthermore prove how Torchy’s actions resembles an Aristot le tragedy because of the downfalls that he created for himself. Lastly, Torchy portrays anagnorisis by gaining knowledge of himself in the past that he was neglecting. During his talk with Stephanie, Torchy about himself â€Å" Am I a bad man†¦ I’m not a bad man. I just leave for a while and let the bad man in†. (2) This is Torchy obtaining his knowledge of the past that he was a bad guy when he kept gambling after getting eighty thousand dollars, and letting his brother die without stopping him from committing suicide. At this point,Show MoreRelatedAn Analysis Of Mermaid By Richard Van Camp709 Words   |  3 PagesRichard Van Camp shares the story of Torchy and his series of events that takes the reader along to see and feel the tragedies of Torchy with his past and current experiences. In the short story â€Å"Mermaid† by Richard Van Camp, the author explores the realm of a true tragedy in this story through the use of the Aristotle style of the element s of tragedy displayed by the means of Torchy’s series of unfortunate events through willing blindness, dramatized actions and pity developed for the character