Christmas And Its Effects On America

A Christmas Carol is the classic story by Charles Dickens about the transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge. He is guided by three spirits, as they conduct him on his travels through time, teaching him to move beyond his earlier cruelty and hatred of mankind. With the guidance of the spirits, Scrooge learns the true meaning of family, love and Christmas. The spirits all influenced Scrooge in unique ways and taught him different lessons. The spirit that was the most significant in Scrooge’s transformation was the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come.

In this paper I will discuss Social Theories such as Structural Functionalism, Conflict theory; with emphasis on Karl Marx’s early work and how it relates to the conflict theory and Symbolic interaction. I intend to define and discuss relevant sociological terms of these theories and how these theories could apply to my favorite holiday which is Christmas.

An ideology created in the 1960s, the culture of poverty is the idea that people stuck in poverty during this time had no way of breaking out and that they were trapped in a vicious cycle. The people living this way are helpless and could not provide for themselves, and many born in this lifestyle are heading downward with no avail. To spread awareness in the 60s, CBS sent reporter Charles Kuralt to document the quality of life and present the culture of poverty that ravaged in Appalachia. He went around a small town in mountainside Kentucky and interviewed families and documented the state of life around Christmas. This CBS News Special Report, Christmas In Appalachia, affirms the ideology of a culture of poverty, and the interview with Ibe Johnson, a hardworking husband and father, solidifies this through several filming techniques. Using a mix of eye-level and low level angle shots along with scale, duration of the interview, and composition of the scene, the film subjects the viewers to evidence of the culture of poverty.

Christmas in france is way different then christmas in america. Merry christmas in france is “joyeux noel’. The traditions in france are french ornaments, french nativity scenes, and traditional french christmas food. There are many french traditions for christmas that are different than how we celebrate in america. Christmas is a big holiday in france.

The intensely reckless nature of the "November wind" becomes evident as it continues "its violent assault" upon the people between 7th and 8th street. Additionally, the wind "did everything it could to discourage people", including the protagonist, Lutie, as it "wrapped newspaper" around the passerby's feet, and "blew back and back again" until forcing pedestrians to stop their stroll through the street. Yet, it committed the most "Violent assault against" Lutie, as it continued to irk Lutie until it left her with only a modicum sense of courage to continue her search. The wind, by pushing away a sign, serves to demonstrate the sense of dread Lutie feels as she wanders purposely through the street, but leaves her feeling as though "there wasn't any point" in continuing her search for a home. Thus, the embittered wind exposes Lutie's internalized fears of the environment around her; but in contempt of this, Lutie's triumph against the wind, by reading the sign for a room exactly as she desired, establishes the protagonist as someone who, undeterred by hardships, maintains their will and continues to exhibit their

The chill of winter air had nudged her from her slumber. Gazing through the window upon the dreary horizon, the blur of gray told Hulga that rain was nearing. Nervously, she backed into the corner away from the window and curled up next to a pile of hay and settled in. Soon after repositioning herself, Hulga heard the consistent patter of rain on the roof of the barn. Her eyes watered as she wondered if her mother had been frantically searching for her.

“It was December and the weather bitterly cold. She was a tiny mite, the size of five years, though, as afterward appeared, she was then nine. From a pan set upon a low stool she stood washing dishes, struggling with a frying pan about as heavy as herself. Across the table lay a brutal whip of twisted leather strands and the child's meagre arms and legs bore many marks of its use. But the saddest part of her story was written on her face in its look of suppression and misery, the face of a child unloved, of a child that had seen only the fearsome side of life. These things I saw while seeming not to see, and I left without speaking to, or of, the child. I never

Ah Christmas, it is said to be the most wonderful time of the year. In the United States Christmas is a time of giving and receiving, spending time with your family, and in most Christian families, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas is hands-down the most highly commercialized holiday celebrated by Americans. In fact, according to CBS news, the average American will spend $700 on gifts this holiday season, totaling for a whopping $465 billion spent nation-wide. From mall Santas as far as the eye can see, to hearing Christmas music in every retail store you enter. Christmas is a time of high spirits and high spending in the U.S.

Mike Rauser’s article, “War on Christmas” product of spoiled attitudes, provides an introduction to help explain the contents learned in this class. His article has viewpoints that can be demonstrated by the four nodes of religion inquiry, and Ninian Smart’s six dimension of religion. His article acts as a springboard to show our understanding of the course materials.

The wind is harsh and piercing as the gusts reach up to 50 mph. Even layers upon layers of clothing do very little to protect people from the harshness of the cold unrelenting wind. The snow on the ground would blind them as they trekked across the barren wastelands of snow and wind. As they all began to peal back their layers of masks to speak, the pain of the fierce wind immediately ran across their faces. It felt as if a stroke of lightning had ran across their faces and down their throats with every breath of the icy wind. Each one speaks with the same raspy bark from the brutal cold ravaging their vocal chords. The wind laced its way through their clothes like it was not even there and chilled them all to the bones.

A scream bubbled up inside her as strong hand grasped her mouth, muffling any chance for help. His hot breath tickled her cheek as they disappeared into the woods just outside of town. Her eyes scanned in every direction, trying to find an escape, but his large body was all around her, enveloping her like the fog that was rolling in in an ungodly manner. It blanketed the forest like a mother tucking her children in at night. The little life that Evangeline lived flashed before her eyes, most of it spent with Lila. Without much hope of survival left, she thought of the only thing she could do. A swift kick to the shin sent him hobbling in the opposite direction after dropping Evangeline to the ground. She sat in a heap covered in mud and wet leaves, staring up at her attacker who was hopping on one leg favoring his injured

Abigail Elie Professor Carter English 100 A 21 November 2014 The difference between Christmas and Hanukkah Every year people are jolly to celebrate their own traditions. Whether it is Christmas or Hanukkah, people find joys with giving and receiving gifts. Both holidays differ in many ways. There are many differences in the holidays Christmas and Hanukkah.

wind. It was as if it was crying, almost howling for its voice to be

What is a “down-under” Christmas like? Australia is known as 'the land Down Under' for its position in the southern hemisphere. Australia is the world's largest island and also the world's smallest continent.The seasons in Australia are opposite to the United States. Christmas festivities begin in late November, when schools and church groups present Nativity plays. When Australians celebrate Christmas on December 25, it is during summer vacation. Many of the traditions in Australia are similar to the traditions in the United States. Homes are decorated, families enjoy a holiday meal, attend church together, Santa Claus is part of the Australian Christmas and during the entire month of December they sing carols.

Christmas is the annual festival celebrating the birth of Jesus on the 25th December, at least that is what it began as initially. Since it has expanded into an international phenomenon for consumption, taking priority over our everyday practices of life (Michel De Certeau, 1980). Our time we spend divided between work and leisure in accordance to the codes and conventions of society shifts, Christmas derails these expectations. Yet surprisingly Christmas gains little attention in terms of social research, despite the fact that it can be explored diversely. The inquiry ‘What is Christmas?’ links to multiple aspects of social research. The aspects of Christmas can be subdivided into the following; religion, commercialism, gift-giving, social relationships, sensualism and mythology. This essay will analyse these fundamentals of Christmas through both psychological and sociological perspectives, as the theories among these two social sciences are best suited to the elements which make up Christmas itself.