Jazz by Toni Morrison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Jazz by Toni Morrison - Essay Example Nor does jazz music which is often made up as it goes along. The steamy, melodrama of many of Morrison's scenes and the interplay of love, violence, and sadness are also represented in jazz music which is such a powerful unifier. We especially see the relationship between Dorcas and Joe played out in this improvisational manner. The time in which this story is set—1920s Harlem—is key to the symbolism of the jazz music. This was a period of great change not only in the history of New York and the United States, but in the lives of African Americans. They were beginning to come into their own in a cultural sense. Jazz was to be one of their first and most successful cultural products. It revolutionized the way people thought of music and it also showed that musical talent, however chaotic, was inherent. You didn't need to be from Vienna to be a good musician. So jazz was a symbol in the sense that it represented a cultural aspiration for African Americans, much as rap mus ic may do so today for many young African American men. Overall, Jazz is a fascinating novel with a great deal of symbolism. Its main symbol is that of jazz music that appears throughout the story. It united the narrative and gives the book a timeless feel.

Charting a New Course for Schools Essay Example for Free

Charting a New Course for Schools Essay Marc Tucker’s article, â€Å"Charting a New Course for Schools,† highlights the most urgent problems that the American education system currently faces. He mentions the need to reform the education system in order to compete in today’s global economy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tucker pointed out the deficiencies of the educational system in the country today. Furthermore, he stressed on the need to implement changes to the system. The author focused on information that evidently shows why there is an urgent need to overhaul the educational system.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Tucker, the report of New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, â€Å"Tough Choices or Tough Times, provides an overview of the current status of the American labor force. It shows how the American workers are lagging behind workers from developing countries in terms of skills and abilities. Also, Tucker points out that workers from developing countries possess the same skills and knowledge as American workers and yet are paid lower wages. This poses a problem for American workers since it is a given that any business man would choose to lower costs for the same quality. American workers are losing their edge in the labor market due to the antiquated education system of the country.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The dilemma for American workers is this, they must either give up their current standard of living or they must improve themselves in terms of skills, talents, and abilities. The latter, according to Tucker, is the reason why a revamp of the country’s education system has become a necessity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tucker points out two criteria that the United States must meet in order for its workers to continue commanding their high wages and maintain their standard of living. The author says that first, American workers must match the best academic performance in the world. At the same time, Tucker said, the country must offer workers that are the most creative and innovative.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The article also highlighted the characteristics of a premium worker or the worker that deserves to be paid premium wages. According to the author American workers should become premium workers in order to receive the current wages that they are receiving. He described a premium worker as someone who has a high level of preparation in the general areas of reading, speaking, mathematics, history, literature, fine arts, and science. Furthermore, a premium worker should be comfortable with new ideas and abstractions. He must also be creative and possess the imagination to come up with meaningful and useful products for the company. Premium workers must also possess the ability to solve problems by using their knowledge from various fields. Lastly, Tucker described a premium worker as someone who is a team player and can easily adapt to the various changes around him.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Premium workers are products of a good and up-to-date educational system. This is the current problem of the education in the country as the current system is no longer adept with the conditions of today. To tackle this problem, Tucker suggested seven steps that can be taken to reform the American educational system. First, Tucker suggested charting a new course for student progression through the system. This requires a total reorganization of the system and opening of new educational opportunities as the students progress. Secondly, the author pointed out the need to reinvest resources where they are most needed and where they will be most efficiently used. This means that available resources should be allocated to areas of the system which can produce the greatest amount of rewards for the students. Another step is to initiate a universal preschool educational system. Tucker viewed preschool education as the foundation of school-based learning. If students are to become highly-skilled workers, they must have a good education foundation and preschool education is the integral aspect of such foundation. For teacher recruitment, Tucker suggested that schools recruit those coming from the top third of the college class. This will ensure highly-educated and competent teachers. Moreover, Tucker suggested the adoption of high-performance management modes to improve schools and districts. Also, he pointed out the need to provide strong support to disadvantaged students. Finally, he proposed the rebuilding of standards, assessment, and curriculum to reflect today’s needs and tomorrow’s requirements. In general, Marc Tucker’s article discusses the problems of the antiquated American educational system and its severe effects on the country’s labor force. I believe that there is indeed a pressing need to revamp the current educational system. Education in the country today no longer meets the needs of the economy. The labor force that the educational system produces is insufficient in terms of skills and abilities. The workers lack the necessary skills that warrant the wages they get. It is for this reason that American and international firms seem to turn to developing countries for their labor needs. If American workers are to remain deserving of the wages they receive, they must become more competent and highly-skilled. It is my opinion that the only way that the country will produce highly-skilled, creative, and innovative workers is to change the educational system. The system should focus more on the development of skills necessary for the various employment needs today. It is the right of every citizen to be properly and adequately educated in order to survive. The current system can no longer provide the educational needs of the people. The primary reason why people go to school is to prepare them for work. Since workers currently receive sub-standard education, they lack the skills and abilities that the labor market needs. Evidently, the only solution to this dilemma is, I believe, to revamp the educational system.

PLO - Palestine Liberation Organization :: essays research papers fc

History Palestinian Liberation Organization 1. Can the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) justifiably claim to be 'the sole, legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.'? The PLO was set up in 1964 by an Arab League decision in response to growing signs of Palestinian unrest. The Palestinians desired to reclaim the lands occupied by Israel, which they felt belonged to them, as said in the Bible. In 1964 the Arab states created the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). While it was supposed to represent the Palestinians, in reality it represented the views of President Nasser of Egypt, who guided the formation of the PLO. Its first leader made wild and irresponsible threats to drive Israelis into the sea, and had little support among Palestinians for he was seen as a puppet of the Egyptians. In the 1960s Palestinian students began to form their own organizations independent of control by Arab governments (although the Syrians, Libyans, and Iraqis continued to fund and control particular groups). Yasser Arafat founded an independent Palestinian-run party called Fatah. He is said to have the backing, for most of the recent past, of about 80% of the Palestinian people. The position of the Arab governments was that a PLO under Arab League supervision would be the best way of satisfying the demands made by an emerging Palestinian national consciousness. Also, it was felt that through such an organization Arab governments could control Palestinian political activities. Ten years after its founding, the PLO was raised to the status of government. And in 1988, the PLO's status was to be raised again, this time to a state in exile. After several negotiations, Arafat became a Terrorist leader and administrator of self-rule in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In the 1967 Six Day War, the Arab armies did very badly against Israel, losing 67,000 square kilometres of land. Palestinians came to believe that if they were ever to have their land, they would have to do it themselves. After the 1967 war, the situation changed drastically. The resistance activities of various guerrilla organizations, in particular the Al-Fatah and the PFLP, gained the increasing support of the Palestinians. With Arafat at the helm from 1969 and a resistance-oriented leadership, the PLO was more effective and played a central role in mobilizing the Palestinians and in expanding its basis of support both at the local and international level. The PLO became an umbrella organization for the various guerrilla groups. This increase in support was made possible because of the Al-Fatah's ability to access to the growing numbers of volunteers from refugee camps which were freshly swollen due to the 1967 war.

Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Abraham Lincoln’s â€Å"Second Inaugural Address† and Emily Dickinson’s â€Å"Success is Counted Sweet,† are two inspirational pieces of art that fall under two different types of discourses. The â€Å"Second Inaugural Address,† is a great example and definition of what Rhetoric is. It encompasses all four resources of languages- argument, appeal, arrangement, and artistic devices. â€Å"Success is Counted Sweet,† doesn’t cover the four resources of language that apply to rhetoric; therefore, it is categorized as a poem. According to the chapter, â€Å"rhetoric addresses unresolved issues that do not dictate a particular outcome and in the process it engages our value commitments.† (15). We see how Lincoln’s inaugural speech tries to engage in the values of the people as he brings up the main issue that has effected the country, the Civil War. During the time of Lincoln’s â€Å"Second Inaugural Address,† he was facing a divided nation in the midst of a civil war. Lincoln built an argument within his speech with a goal set in mind: To establish a common ground or compromise between the North and the South. Lincoln only hopes to change the outcome of the nation by stating, â€Å"with high hope for the future, no prediction in regard to it is ventured.† This shows that the unresolved issue has no dictated outcome, but he can only hope for a better future for the nation. A great rhetoric calls people to action and Abraham Lincoln does so by stating, â€Å" let us strive on to finish the work we are in†¦ to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.† Through this statement, Lincoln also creates a patriotic appeal to the nation as well as a sense of loyalty to the country as a whole. Lincoln creates an emotional appeal of unity and forgiveness by speaking about â€Å"peace†, â€Å"binding up the nations wounds,† and to â€Å"care† for the nation in which the Americans live in. Abraham Lincoln’s artistic devices also make his inaugural address a perfect example of a rhetorical discourse. He uses diction by reinforcing the commonality of the divided people, the North and the South. He states how  both, the North and South, â€Å"read the same Bible and pray to the same God,† and neither the North nor South expected for the war the magnitude or the duration which it attained. Lincoln also maintains an optimistic tone throughout the speech and invokes unity with his parallel structured sentences. Emily Dickinson’s â€Å"Success is Counted Sweetest,† doesn’t cover all four resources of language. It is a poem that does not call for action but does create an emotional appeal for the people. Throughout her poem, she created an emotional appeal for success and its value and the desire and want for success. We see how she creates such emotion when she states, â€Å"The distant strains of triumph break, agonizing and clear.† What Dickinson means by this is that gaining success can be the most beautiful accomplishment but at the same time, agonizing to reach. This creates an emotional appeal for those who are living through the Civil War, making the people have a desire for peace, but they have to go through bloodshed in the process of gaining success. Emily Dickinson carries out artistic devices throughout her poem, which also creates an emotional appeal for the audience. She uses metaphors to describe success by stating, â€Å"Success is counted sweetest.† Dickinson also uses her poem to recreate what was occurring at the time of the war. She speaks of the â€Å"purple Host† which is the representation of the Army and â€Å"capturing the flag,† which is the flag of victory during the war. She also appeals to the senses by stating, â€Å"as he, defeated, dying†¦. distant strains of triumph†¦agonizing and clear.† This paints an image of those in the war struggling for success. Dickinson also uses allusion by making this poem an indirect reference to â€Å"V-Day†. Although these pieces were written around the same time, we see how one calls for the action from the nation, meanwhile the other piece just creates an emotional appeal about the Civil War. Lincoln’s attitude showed he believed in justice and had a balanced view upon the nation as a whole and wanted to make a change. He seeks compromise through his inauguration address through an argument, creating emotional appeal, by arranging the speech accordingly, and using artistic devices to make it inspiring. Emily Dickinson focuses on sending the people a message through emotional appeal. She reaches our emotions reminding us how we don’t appreciate success. She also gives us the feeling that only by failing or lacking success we will learn how important it is for the people to achieve success. Although Lincoln’s â€Å"Second Inaugural Address,† and Emily Dickinson’s â€Å"Success is counted Sweet,† are not in the same category, they are both moving and emotional pieces. They are two different works or art that will forever remind us how much of an impact the Civil War was to the United States of America.

David Jones Essay

David Jones has a skilled, experienced and expertise Board of directors which is accountable for caring the rights, interests and the management of David Jones. Chief Executive Officer and Managing director are responsible for setting strategy, planning and administration for the company on daily basis. Paul Zahra has been â€Å"Chief Executive Officer and Managing director† for David Jones since 18 June 2010. Mr Zahra has more than 30 years’ experience in the Australian retail industry. He has held senior management roles across the retail sector in the areas of buying, stores, visual merchandising, supply chain, store refurbishments, customer service and operations. Directors are from a mix of different backgrounds, knowledge, skills and experience in the areas of retailing, financial services, property management and development, marketing, human resources, information technology, finance and law. Board of Directors Committee Memberships Name Role Audit Remuneration and Nominations Peter Mason AM Chairman and Non-Executive Director Paul Zahra Chief Executive Officer Jane Harvey Non-Executive Director  John Harvey Non-Executive Director Chairman Philippa Stone Non-Executive Director Steven Vamos Non-Executive Director Chairman Leigh Clapham Non-Executive Director Executive Management Name Role Paul Zahra Chief Executive Officer Paula Bauchinger Group Executive – Human Resources Cate Daniels Group Executive – Operations Matthew Durbin Executive – Strategic Planning Antony Karp Group Executive – Retail Services Sacha Laing Group Executive – Marketing and Financial Services Donna Player Group Executive – Merchandise David Robinson Executive – Multi Channel Strategy and Integration Brad Soller Chief Financial Officer 2. Employees According to David Jones , to achieve the highest profits and improve customer satisfaction, the company need to create an effective working environment for their employees following these goals: Every employee is valued; Recognition and reward for their contribution and performance; provide opportunities for employees to achieve their full potential; Obligation to safety, health and welfare, environmental responsibilities; and Support for philanthropic causes that are important to both David Jones’ customers and employees. Therefore, David Jones’ commitment is to realising its vision of being the ‘best place for our people to work’. In FY2012, David Jones invested in a range of advantages to ensure employees feel valued and supported: David Jones Charity Leave Policy: Supporting the philanthropic causes that are important to its customers and team members. Employee Referral Program: To reward any team member whose referral results in the successful placement of an external candidate in a nominated vacancy. Employee Self Service: To help team members achieve their full potential, reduces administration and to meet David Jones’ objective of transitioning to an environmentally sustainable business model. Innovation Workshop: Encourage continued innovative thinking, 150 team members from across the business participated in an innovation workshop at the Company’s annual conference in August 2012. To invest in the future and build the management and leadership capability of line managers, David Jones has established training and development programs. David Jones Executive Leadership Program: is designed to address the development needs of the David Jones’ Executive Committee and Executive Leadership Team, and comprises five leadership modules including a 360-degree leadership survey. David Jones Future Leaders Program: is designed in-house to develop high potential people managers that have been identified as part of the Company’s annual succession planning process. Operations Online Compliance: is designed to ensures that frontline employees remain current in processes and policies that are important to their role, including workplace safety, food safety, customer service and the David Jones Code of Ethics and Conduct. Recognition and Reward: New Executive Incentive Framework New Enterprise Agreements New Frontline Incentive Program Excellence Awards Program David Jones does not tolerate harassment, discrimination or bullying in the workplace. Employees of David Jones can expect to be treated in a fair and professional manner. Unacceptable behaviours under the David Jones terms of employment: Harassment- Discrimination and Bullying. 3. Organisational Culture Diversity Management and the entire David Jones workforce are embraced of and attract diverse, talented and motivated people. David Jones’ diversity supports commitment to a culture that equally embraces: gender, age, culture, religious beliefs, sexual orientation and family responsibilities of our people. David Jones encourages and supports all of our employees to reach their full potential and irrespective of gender. David Jones’ corporate sponsorship of the National Breast Cancer Foundation and the operation of Rose Clinics, while a philanthropic initiative, also serves to demonstrate our commitment to raising health awareness among employees and customers alike. This is representative of our broader commitment to the promotion of women and issues that affect women Equity David Jones has a Share Trading Policy that complies with the requirements of ASX Listing Rule 12. This was lodged with the ASX in 2010 and is available in the Corporate Governance section of its website. Consistent with the legal prohibitions on insider trading, under the policy, all directors, officers, members of senior management, other employees and consultants are prohibited from dealing in David Jones securities while in possession of unpublished price sensitive information about David Jones. HSBC CUSTODY NOMINEES (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED is the biggest shareholders with 69,772,020 shares (13. 20%). The 20 largest ordinary shareholders hold 45.  17% of the ordinary shares of the Company. External environment I. General Environment 1. Political and Legal Carbon Pricing Scheme David Jones has a proven track record in reducing its carbon emissions and supports the government of the day in its attempts to move the economy towards a low-carbon future. David Jones conducted its own analysis in 2011 to determine the direct impact on its cost base and participated in roundtable discussions facilitated by the Australian National Retailers Association (ANRA) to review macro-environmental impacts of the scheme. Macro-environmental impacts ANRA advocated that the government release analysis outlining how households would be affected and compensated by the introduction of a carbon price. Subsequent to these discussions, additional information was released, addressing many of the unknown factors in relation to the scheme and confining any detrimental impact on consumer sentiment, which is a key driver of top-line growth for discretionary retailers. Direct financial impacts David Jones count on the Business Roundtable on Climate Change, established by the Federal government, to represent business interests in the development of the Clean Energy Future legislative package, including the carbon pricing scheme. Trading Hours David Jones follow retail industry’s opening hours Monday:9:30am – 7:00pm Tuesday:9:30am – 7:00pm Wednesday:9:30am – 7:00pm Thursday:9:30am – 9:00pm Friday:9:30am – 9:00pm Saturday:9:00am – 7:00pm Sunday:10:00am – 7:00pm 2. Economical Low Inflation rate and high Australian dollar makes foreign imports become cheaper, leads to an increase in profit of David Jones. On the other hand, increase in the value of money also makes customers become interested in shopping online or buy goods overseas, makes customers rate of David Jones fall. Therefore, David Jones should adjust the price of goods for both profitable and consistent with the economic situation and the needs of customers. An increase in the unemployment rate reduces people’s income and also their shopping needs. 3. Social Cultural People are trying to keep a balance between their work and social-life. Besides spending a whole day at work, they are willing to spend more time go to department stores on the weekdays. Based on population data from around Australia, Gen Y has appeared as Australia’s largest demographic with 4. 67 million people. Generation X has also grown to 4. 6 million. And, the Baby Boomer demographic is shrinking; falling by 6,000 to just 4. 11 million people. Generation X and Y are tremendously internet savvy. The internet is the first place that they look when purchasing goods and services. There are more educated people so their knowledge about fashion and fashion demand has increased. They are willing to purchase clothes with good quality from well-known suppliers. 4. Technological New Point of Sale (POS) system: will improve customers’ service experience and reduce transaction times. This system has multi-functionality and will play a pivotal role in David Jones’ OCR Strategy. David Jones also has new Workforce Management and Traffic Analytics System. 5. Natural David Jones is committed to managing its own operations in an environmentally sustainable manner and will meet this commitment by: Investing in efficiency measures and driving behavioural change to reduce the impact that the business has on the environment; Embedding environmental sustainability into the corporate cultural of the organisation; Developing robust  management systems to ensure transparency and confidence in environmental reporting. David Jones’ environment strategy comprises four strategic objectives: Improve environmental outcomes, by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, protecting and conserving natural resources, and optimising water use. Motivate cultural change, by encouraging behavioural change and then by integrating sustainability into decision making at all levels of the organisation. Engage with employees, customers and shareholders, to ensure that interested stakeholders are able to access information about David Jones’ environmental impacts and initiatives, and ensure that the Company’s approach to sustainability reflects stakeholder expectations. Meet and, where viable, exceed the Company’s mandatory and voluntary reporting obligations. II. Specific environment 1. Customers People are willing to dress nicer, fussy and trendy. The way they dress is usually according to the fashion trend. They are influenced from the internet; all the fashion trends are spreading quickly. 2. Competitors : Myer Myer is Australia’s largest department store group, and a market leader in Australian retailing, operating about 65 stores that offer some of the top style and fashion lines in the country. Merchandise (some 2,400 brands) is sourced from suppliers worldwide and includes accessories; women’s, men’s, and children’s apparel; beauty and cosmetics; electrical goods; housewares; and toys. Myer runs stores in about 25 of the top 30 largest shopping centres in Australia, with New South Wales as its top market, followed by Victoria and Queensland. Besides Myer, Target, Kmart and other smaller retailers are also David Jones’ competitors. 3. Suppliers Suppliers are an integral part of David Jones’ â€Å"Home of Brands† strategy, which makes David Jones stand out from its competitors. David Jones is committed to improving and strengthening their relationship with each of their suppliers. David Jones also appreciates suppliers that have understood Australian customers and have adjusted their prices. 4. Regulations ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION David Jones takes a responsible approach in relation to the management of environmental matters. David Jones’ report has followed with the requirements of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 (Cth) (NGER Act). No environmental breaches have been notified to the Company Entity by any government agency. David Jones is committed to protecting the health, safety and welfare of all employees, contractors, visitors and customers. David Jones continues to work towards achieving an incident-free and injury-free workplace. This commitment is supported by the â€Å"SafetyFirst@davidjones† management system and the Company’s safety programs â€Å"SafetyFirst@ davidjones† management system imitates efforts of team members to put â€Å"SafetyFirst† in daily tasks and activities, by identifying and controlling hazards that have the potential to cause incidents and injuries. Safety Information Management system Incident, Hazard and Investigation: provides an on-line system to support the reporting of incidents and the completion of incident investigations, risk assessments and associated corrective actions; Case and Claims Management: focuses on the management of information related to workers compensation claim files, claim transactions and payments as well as Return to Work Plans for work related and non-work related injuries; Risk Management; Audit and Inspections; Training: focuses on core compliance training, safety accountabilities, hazard and risk management and injury management training.

Bilbo Baggins Essays - The Hobbit, New Zealand Films, Free Essays

Bilbo Baggins Essays - The Hobbit, New Zealand Films, Free Essays Bilbo Baggins The book begins with Bilbo Baggins enjoying a pipe after breakfast. Th is is one of his favorite pleasures and he feels quite content in doing so. He is middle-aged, and resides in a clean warm burrow in the ground. One morning Gandalf, a wizard stops by to chat with Bilbo. He informs Bilbo that he is looking for someone to go on an adventure with him. Although Bilbo is tempted he declines, but not before inviting Gandalf for tea the next morning. The next day Bilbo hears his doorbell and he recalls inviting Gandalf for tea, but instead of the wizard at the door, there is a group of dwarves... thirteen in all. Thorin son of the dwarf king starts to outline a plan on how to regain the tr easure stolen by the dragon Smaug. Bilbo is shocked to realize these plans involve him! He then realizes that Gandalf has tricked him by inscribing on his doo r that he was a burglar seeking a job with lots of excitement. With all this talk of quests and glory Bilbo decides to join the party after all. Gandalf reveals a key and a map of their journey which ends at the Lon ely Mountain. It is there that the treasure of Thorin's ancestors are kept-guar ded by Smaug. The quest begins and the party meets at the Green Dragon Inn. From there they venture into the Lone-lands. As heavy rains begin to fall, Bilbo notice s that Gandalf is missing. When it starts to pour they stop to investigate a light. There Bilbo finds three trolls grumbling about food. Bilbo decides to live up to title of burglar and attempts to pick one of the trolls pocket. However they quickly capture him. The dwarfs see what's going on and try to save poor Bilbo... yet all of them except Thorin is caught. Thorin formulates a plan of freeing them but fails. Gandalf returns and occupies the trolls till dawn, then the turn into stone. They group take the two swords and a knife the trolls were carrying. The travelers come across the Secret Valley. There they stop at Elrond 's Last Homely House. Elrond tells them the only way to use the key that Thorin possesses is to wait where the thrush knocks and the setting sun will shine up on the keyhole. The next morning the group heads toward the Misty Mountains. A storm has caused them to seek shelter in a cave. The cave however turns out to be an entrance to the goblin kingdom. Once again the group is captured. Only Gandalf is free, and he slays the Goblin King, and once again free the party from impend ing doom. During the escape Bilbo is knocked unconscious and is left behind. He awakes to find himself power which makes it's wearer invisible - the ring which Bilbo found. Bilbo slips the ring upon his finger and disappears. He follows Gollum stealthily toward the entrance to the outside world. He then bounds over Gollu m's head to freedom. Outside he is reunited with his dwarf friends. Later they encounter Wargs (large savage wolves). The Wargs chase the party into the trees. High in the branches Gandalf uses a spell to turn the pine cones a fire, in order to drive the wolves away. However the plan backfires and the very trees they took refuge in are now ablaze! Luckily for them the king of the eagles spotted them. He and his eagles swooped out of the sky and whisked our adventures to safety. The eagles dropped them off near Mirkwood Forest. This is where they come across Beorn, a bear like man who can indeed change into a bear. He puts them up for the night and outfits them with supplies for th eir trip into Mirkwood. He also warns them not to stray from the path in the fo rest. When they are ready to enter the forest, Gandalf announces he will not be accompanying them in this part of the journey. The group feels lost without him but yet they press on. They come across a black river. It is here that Bombur, one of the Dwarves falls in and is thrust into a sleep from which he cannot awake. Food is scarce now and the hungry travelers are lured off the path by visions of elves feasting in the forest. To their surprize every time they announce their presence to the elves...they elves vanish! Once again Bilbo finds himself seperated from the group. He stops for a short nap and awakes to find himself

Matthews Is a Patronymic Surname Meaning Son of Matthew

Matthews Is a Patronymic Surname Meaning Son of Matthew Matthews is a patronymic surname meaning basically son of Matthew. The given name Matthew, from which it is derived, means gift of Yahweh or gift of God, from the Hebrew personal name  Matityahu.  In Hebrew, the name was also known as Mattathaigh which translates to the gift of Jehovah. Mathis is the German version of the surname while Matthews with a double t is more popular in Wales. Facts About the Surname The name Matthew  was one of Jesuss apostles as well as the  author of the first Gospel in the New Testament.Popular modern-day celebrities with the last name Matthews include Dave Matthews (musician), Cerys Matthews (Welsh singer) and Darren Matthews (professional wrestler).Thousands of settlers, some of which included the family surname Matthews, migrated to North America in order to escape political and religious issues from their homeland.The earliest public record of lands and resource of the late 11th century England is known as the Domesday Book (1086), which includes the first origin of the surname Matthews in the form of Mathiu and Matheus.The surname has origins in English and Greek and has over 10 alternate surname followings. Alternate Surname Spellings MathewMathewsMatthewMathisMatthisMatthiasMatheu (Old French)Mateo (Spanish)Matteo (Italian)Mateus (Portuguese) Genealogy Resources Common Surname Search TipsTips and tricks for researching your Matthews ancestors online.Matthews Family Genealogy ForumThe free message board is focused on descendants of Matthews ancestors around the world.FamilySearch - Matthews GenealogyFind records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Matthews surname.Matthews Surname Mailing ListA free mailing list for researchers of the Matthews surname and its variations includes subscription details and searchable archives of past messages.Surname Finder - Matthews Genealogy Family ResourcesFind links to free and commercial resources for the Matthews surname.Cousin Connect - Matthews Genealogy QueriesRead or post genealogy queries for the surname Matthews, and sign up for free notification when new Matthews queries are added.DistantCousin.com - Matthews Genealogy Family HistoryFree databases and genealogy links for the last name Matthews.MyCinnamonToast.com - Matthews Genealogy in All RegionsCentralized search results f or family trees and other genealogy info on the Matthews surname. References: Surname Meanings and Origins Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.Dorward, David. Scottish Surnames. Collins Celtic (Pocket edition), 1998.Fucilla, Joseph. Our Italian Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 2003.Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.Reaney, P.H. A Dictionary of English Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1997.Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.