Life without electricity Essays

Life without electricity Essays Life without electricity Paper Life without electricity Paper Essay Topic: City Lights Whilst the 19th century context of these stories is very apparent, I do not believe that they make the stories too remote for the 21st century reader. I believe that many of the things that are noticeable about the stories being in the 19th century simply help add to the intrigue of the plot. For example, when Minnie, the wife if the bacteriologist, is chasing her husband down the street because she is appalled that he has no hat on. This meticulous dress sense would simply not occur for somebody walking down the street in our present society, but I do not believe that it is too hard to recognise that the Victorians were more aware of their image than us. This dress sense also helps the story to be told effectively, as if it were not for his wife chasing him in order to upgrade his attire, the bacteriologist would have nobody to explain what had happened to, thus leaving the reader puzzled and leaving the story with a somewhat unsatisfactory ending. Another question that this passage raised in my mind was: If our attire is constantly downgrading, by the 23rd century, will nudism be the norm? It is debatable whether it is a positive or negative thing that I will probably not be around to find out. Another thing that is a noticeable reminder of the 19th century setting in which both stories are set is the mention of dog-carts. Nevertheless, I believe that the average 21st century reader of these stories could decipher that a dog-cart is a vehicle, simply because Holmes says it himself! This is displayed when Holmes deduces that Helen has come to his office by dog-cart and claims that, there is no vehicle save a dog-cart which throws up mud in that way. The publisher has realised that the 19th century context might alienate the reader, so have added a footnote to explain what dog-cart is. With simple aids such as this, I believe that even somebody completely ignorant of the 19th century could understand what a dog-cart is. Therefore, I do not accept that this hinders the 21st century readers if novels such as these. Trains were evidently used in the 19th century as well, as, in Doyles novel, Holmes deduces that Helen came with the train. Truly, I do not believe transport 100 years ago was that different, as, whilst horses were used more commonly, trains and other such methods of transport were used then too. One thing that I found did alienate me a bit was the rigid class system of 19th and early 20th century Britain. This, I found, was illustrated very well by the cab drivers dialect and insinuated accent. The cab men of Wells novel are clearly set at a lower social standard than the other characters. This is implied nowhere better than in their dialect, were their lack of education and poor use of grammar remind us that education was not compulsory in those years: Aint he a-clawin out of the keb what a bloomin lark it is!  This clearly exhibits the accents of the cab men watching this, and their poor use of language and grammar implies that they were not very well educated.  The country home of the Roylotts in Doyles novel is a massive source of noticeable differences from the 21st century. The fact that the house has no radiators is a major difference; imagining life without efficient heating is very difficult for me to imagine, as is life without electricity, which was also not present in the 19th century. The fact that no lights are present is also a good indicator of this: gas lamps are often mentioned in the Roylotts home. Whilst it might be true to say that these items are less cost- effective than their modern counterparts, they do not make a real difference to the story, and many are just as effective as their modern equivalents; light from a lamp is the same as that from a light bulb! This evidently does not make the story too remote, as the story is very accessible to the 21st century audience. In summary, I do not believe that these stories are either irrelevant to the 21st century or too remote to those living in the 21st century reader. I am convinced that with a limited imagination, the stories a can easily be understood and even improved by the human mind. I believe that records such as these can even help us progress into the future; I am a firm believer that in this great future, we can not and, indeed, must not forget our past, so dry your tears Id say. Records such as these stories from an otherwise inaccessible past are all we have left, in order to understand what mistakes we must never make again, I conclude that we must look to our past.

Names of Occupations and Job Titles in Spanish

Names of Occupations and Job Titles in Spanish Chances are that when you start talking with native Spanish speakers, one of the first things youll talk about is your jobs or occupations- or what you hope to do someday. Heres a guide to talking about occupations in Spanish along with a list of the most common types of jobs. List of Occupational Names Many of the job titles below seem familiar, as many are English cognates, having come from Latin. Keep in mind, though, that in a few cases the meanings in similar-sounding titles dont always line up exactly, sometimes because of cultural differences. A secondary-school teacher in Latin America, for example, might be known as a profesor, while in the United States, at least, the word professor is used primarily at the university level. In this list, the masculine forms are given. The feminine forms are given following a slash (/) in cases where they dont follow the rules above. Note also that different words may be used in some areas, or for certain specialties. Accountant- contador, contableActor/actress- actor/actrizAdministrator- administradorAmbassador- embajadorArchaeologist- arqueà ³logoArchitect- arquitectoArtist- artistaAthlete- atleta, deportistaAttorney- abogadoBaker- panaderoBarber- barberoBartender- mesero, cantineroBeautician- esteticistaBiologist- bià ³logoBusinessman/businesswoman- hombre/mujer de negocios, empresarioButcher- carniceroCaptain- capitnCarpenter- carpinteroChemist (pharmacist)- armacà ©uticoChemist (scientist)- quà ­micoChief executive officer- director generalClerk (office worker)- oficinistaClerk (retail worker)- dependienteCoach- ntrenadorComputer programmer- programadorCook- cocineroDancer- bailarà ­n/bailarinaDentist- dentistaDoctor, physician- mà ©dicoDriver- conductorEditor- redactorElectrician- electricistaEngineer- ingenieroFarmer- agricultor, granjeroFirefighter- bomberoFlorist- floristaGeologist- geà ³logoGuard- guardiaHotelier, innkeeper- hoteleroJeweler- joyeroJournalist- cronistaKing/que en- rey/reinaLandlord- dueà ±oLawyer- abogadoLibrarian- bibliotecarioMail carrier- carteroMechanic- mecnicoMidwife- comadronaMinister (politics)- ministroMinister (church)- pastorModel- modelo (no separate feminine form)Musician- mà ºsicoNurse- nfermeroOptometrist- optà ³metraPainter- pintorPharmacist- farmacà ©uticoPilot- piloto (separate feminine form rarely used)Poet- poetaPresident- presidente/presidentaProfessor- profesor, catedrticoPsychologist- sicolà ³gicoRabbi- rabinoSailor- marineroSalesman/saleswoman- dependiente, vendedorScientist- cientà ­ficoSecretary- secretarioServant- criadoSocial worker- asistente socialSoldier- soldadoStudent- estudianteSurgeon- cirujanoTeacher- maestro, profesorTherapist- terapeutaVeterinary- veterinarioWaiter- camarero, meseroWelder- soldadorWriter- escritor Grammar of Occupations Gender One matter of some confusion can be the gender of the occupational names. In many cases, the same word is used to refer to a man as to a woman. For example, a male dentist is el dentista, while a female dentist is la dentista. In some cases, there are distinct forms, such as el carpintero for a male carpenter and la carpintera for a female carpenter. In many cases, both forms can be used to refer to a female. For example, the boss is el jefe if hes male, but either la jefe or la jefa if shes female, depending on the region and, sometimes, whos speaking. Similarly, la mà ©dica is used to refer to a female doctor in some areas, but in other areas la mà ©dico is used and/or might be considered more respectful. In nearly all cases, using la with the masculine form is the safer choice if youre not sure of local usage. Otherwise, the feminine form of the occupations ending in -o are formed by changing the -o to an -a. Occupations that end in -dor are changed to -dora for the feminine. Occupation names that already end in -a are the same in masculine or feminine. Use of the Indefinite Article Unlike English, Spanish does not use the indefinite article- a or an in English, and un or una in Spanish- when specifying someones occupation: No soy marinero; soy capitn. (I am not a sailor; I am a captain.)Mi madre es profesor de ciencia. (My mother is a science teacher.)Felipe Calderà ³n era presidente de Mà ©xico. (Felipe Calderà ³n was president of Mexico.)Se hizo actriz extraodrinaria. (She became an extraordinary actress.) However, the article can be used in other situations, such as when talking about an occupation in general: Un actor es una persona que interpreta un papel. (An actor is a person who plays a role.)El juez condenà ³ a un dentista por hacer extracciones innecesarias. (The judge sentenced a dentist for performing unnecessary extractions.) ¿De dà ³nde saca la inspiracià ³n un escritor? (Where does a writer get inspiration from?) Some occupation names can be used in ways characterize actions rather than referring to occupation, in which case the article can be used. Todos sabà ­an que el despota era un carcinero psicoptico. (Everyone knew the dictator was a psychopathic butcher).Mi moto es un psicolà ³gico, y la velocidad mi terapia. (My motorcycle is a psychologist, and speed my therapy.) Key Takeaways Many occupations names in Spanish are similar to those of English because they both come from Latin.The indefinite article (un or una) is not typically used when referring to someones occupation.Separate feminine and masculine forms exist for the names of some occupations, although their use varies across regions.