Learning He, She, or It in English

English grammar states that people are referred to as he or she and that all other objects are referred to as it in the singular or they in the plural. In many languages, such as French, German, Spanish, etc. objects have gender. In other words, things are referred to as he or she. English students quickly learn that all objects are it, and are probably happy because they dont have to learn the gender of each object. I live in a house. Its in the countryside.Look at that window. Its broken.I know thats my book because it has my name on it. He, She or It With Animals When referring to animals we run into a problem. Should we refer to them as he or she? When speaking about animals in English use it. However, when speaking about our pets or domesticated animals, its common to use he or she. Strictly speaking, animals should always take it, but native speakers generally forget this rule when speaking about their own cats, dogs, horses or other domestic animals. My cat is so friendly. Shell say hi to anyone who comes to visit.My dog loves running. When I take him to the beach, he runs for hours and hours.Dont touch my lizard, he bites people he doesnt know! Wild animals, on the other hand, usually take it when spoken about in a general way. Look at the hummingbird. Its so beautiful!That bear looks like its very strong.The zebra in the zoo looks tired. It just stands there all day long. The Use of Anthropomorphism Anthropomorphism - Noun: The attribution of human characteristics or behavior to a god, animal, or object. You often hear wild animals referred to as he or she in documentaries. Wildlife documentaries teach about the habits of wild animals and describe their lives in ways humans can understand. This type of language is referred to as an anthropomorphism. Here are some examples: The bull stands his ground challenging anyone to a fight. He surveys the herd looking for a new mate. (bull - male cow)The mare protects her foal. She keeps a look out for any intruder. (mare - female horse / foal - baby horse) Anthropomorphism is also used with some vehicles such as cars and boats. Some people refer to their car as she, while sailors commonly refer to ships as she. This use of she with some cars and boats is probably due to the intimate relationship people have with these objects. Many people spend hours with their cars, while sailors can spend most of their lives aboard ships. They develop a personal relationship with these objects and give them human traits: anthropomorphism. Ive had my car for ten years. Shes part of the family.The ship was launched twenty years ago. Shes sailed around the world.Toms in love with his car. He says shes his soul mate! Nations In formal English, especially in older written publications nations are often referred to with the feminine she. Most people use it in modern times. However, its still quite common to come across the use of she in more formal, academic or sometimes patriotic settings. For example, some patriotic songs in the USA contain feminine references. The use of she, her and hers is common when speaking about a country someone loves. Ah France! Her bountiful culture, welcoming people and amazing cuisine always call me back!Old England. Her strength shines through any test of time.(from Song) ... bless America, land that I love. Stand beside her, and guide her ...

Boys and Girls by Alice Munro - 817 Words

Society tries to place many rules upon an individual as to what is acceptable and what is not . One must decide for themselves whether to give in to these pressures and conform to society’s projected image, or rather to resist and maintain their own desired self image. In the story â€Å"Boys and Girls† by Alice Munro, Munro suggests that this conflict is internal and external and a persons experiences in life will determine which of these forces will conquer. In terms of the unnamed protagonist’s experiences in the story, it becomes clear just how strong the pressure of society to conform really is, as it overcomes and replaces the girl’s self image. In order to better understand the conflict, first we must define what conformity and self†¦show more content†¦Although seemingly unimportant to the storyline, the presence of the foxes and horses play a major role in the story, as they symbolize the sides of the conflict between conformity and self image. The foxes represent conformity; they all live in the same routine, are controlled by others in their environment, and are both literally and metaphorically locked in a cage. The narrator’s environment is much like the foxes, controlling. Her parent’s subtle hints, whether it be her mother’s comments or her father’s tasks, are slowly but surely enclosing on her like a cage, and will soon trap her. The horses however, try as hard as they can, much like the narrator, to roam free for as long as possible, seemingly unaware of the forces acting against them in an attempt to deny them their freedom. For the horses, this force was the narrator’s father, who felt that they had a purpose to be served, in the narrator’s case, it was her mother’s thought that she had a place to be served as well; inside the home. In the case of the foxes and horses, neither win, as they both die in the end, much like people. However, although the horse’s lives end much sooner, they get to experience something that the foxes do not, and that is freedom. The protagonist’s desire for freedom is clearly desirable as she expresses her resistance to conform to societies ideals by continuing to do things against the norm, â€Å"thinking that by such measures [she] keptShow MoreRelatedBoys and Girls by Alice Munro1683 Words   |  7 Pagesagainst societys ideas of how gender roles should be, as well as threats of a feminist influence on some issues are found in Boys and Girls composition written by Alice Munro. In this story, the main character, who appears to be an unnamed girl, faces her awakening body and the challenge of developing her social identity in a mans world. Through first-person narration, Munro shows the girls views of femininity by describing the girls interpretations of her parents shaped by indoor and outdoor territorialityRead MoreReview Of Boys And Girls By Alice Munro861 Words   |  4 Pages The role of gender is a main point of many pieces of literature. One of those story’s is â€Å"Boys and Girls† by Alice Munro. This is a story of a girl who is in conflict between the role she wants to fill and the role that her gender prescribes to her. She would like to help her father in the business of raising foxes for their pelts, which is work normally ascribed to a man. This conflict causes her mother to disagree with the girl’s want to help her father. The mother is inclined to push for herRead MoreSymbolism In Boys And Girls By Alice Munro766 Words   |  4 Pages In the short story â€Å"Boys and Girls,† Alice Munro develops the theme ‘your perception is your reality’ through the use of supporting characters, the narrator, and symbolism. In â€Å"Boys and Girls,† the narrator struggles with the societal views placed upon women and how her own personality is in contradiction to that ideal. Firstly, the secondary characters develop the theme by supporting one constant notion in which women are inferior and submissive. The temporal setting is in the late 1940s, afterRead MoreBoys And Girls By Alice Munro Summary995 Words   |  4 PagesIn Alice Munros Boys and Girls†, Munro tells a story concerning a young ladys encounter to womanhood in society which is infested with gender roles and stereotypes. Regardless of whether it is the past or the present, there have dependably been gender roles in society. In many homes, it is the womens obligation to deal with the house. This incorporates cleaning, meal arrangements, raising and dealing with the youngsters and in addition the spouse. Contrasted with the men who deal with the moreRead MoreAn Analysis Of Boys And Girls By Alice Munro1785 Words   |  8 Pagesreject it altogether, further reinforcing their original traits. Sometimes these external forces are too substantial for the individual to handle and they have no choice but to conform and submit to these forces. In the short story â€Å"Boys and Girls†, written by Alice Munro the protagonist begins to discover that society plays an important role in the shaping of a ones character and personality. In her childhood, the protagonist exhibits a very unorthodox nature as she prefers to do manual labour alongsideRead MoreGender Discrimination in Boys and Girls by Alice Munro932 Words   |  4 Pagesfigures (heteronomous obedience) while growing up. In the short story â€Å"Boys and Girls† by Alice Munro, life during the twentieth century is portrayed. The narrator, who has portrayed herself as a nameless young girl, struggles for freedom from inequality in her society. The disobedience in â€Å"Boys and Girls† is clarified in Erich Fromm’s essay, â€Å"Disobedience as a Psychological and Moral Problem (DPMP).† The narrator of â€Å"Boys and Girls† goes through different phases of obedience due to her â⠂¬Å"authoritarianRead MoreThe Story Of Boys And Girls Alice Munro Analysis775 Words   |  4 Pageshousehold works and his opinion was never considered. The Story of Boys and Girls Alice Munro, the narrated whose name is never oversized passed by the situation that she did not want to follow the example of his mother because she wanted to be helping his father out of housework. The protagonist of the story of Munro, unidentified by a name, goes through a radical and radical initiation into adulthood. The creation of Alice Munro of a female protagonist with no name and, therefore, unworthy, proposesRead MoreGender Roles In Boys And Girls By Alice Munro1192 Words   |  5 PagesHistorically, gender roles determined one’s course of life. Learning from generations past and how a person is raised, teaches one what is expected of them in the future. In Alice Munro’s short story â€Å"Boys and Girls†, the expectations of each gender determines the narrator’s role in society and who she becomes. This story is set in the mid twentieth century, a time where men and women were seen as having different purposes in life (Jade Mazarin). Throughout the story, it is portrayed that men wereRead MoreAnalysis Of Alice Munro s Boys And Girls 1311 Words   |  6 Pagese roles and expectations of different characters in Alice Munro’s â€Å" Boys and Girls†: While gender roles have been very important in society, the expectations of men and women are very different than each other, based off society’s views. Men are the superior of the household that hold the more physical tasks of hunting, building, and striving for survival. While women play the nurturing type of person toward their family, whom cradle their children, prepare the food, and clean within their livingRead MoreComing Of Age In Boys And Girls By Alice Munro844 Words   |  4 Pageslectures and readings that we have done on coming of age, I have learned that coming of age is a lot like a milestone in life. It happens when we mature or become more knowledgeable and it can happen no matter what age we are. The story, â€Å"Boys and Girls†, by Alice Munro, shows us the perfect example of coming of age and is also a story that left a lasting impression on me because of it feminist aspect of a girl’s life. Coming of age is our minds and bodies evolving into a more mature person. It isn’t

Reading and Comprehension Free Essays

Resource: Ch. 7 of Keys to College Studying Read â€Å"8 Secrets to a Knockout Business Presentation† using the SQ3R method. Answer the following questions to assess how well you followed the SQ3R method, and whether it helped. We will write a custom essay sample on Reading and Comprehension or any similar topic only for you Order Now Note: Your grade for the assignment will depend on the quality and honesty of your responses and not on how successful you felt you were. ? What was the main point of the written piece? ? What did each section deal with? ? What questions did you ask yourself as you were reading? ? How can you change your note taking skills for the future? What would you do to retain this information for later use? ? How might the SQ3R method help you improve your reading comprehension and retention skills? Gen/105 Week 7: Reading and Comprehension Project 1. The main point of this written piece was to tell the reader what the eight most successful secrets were to delivering a knockout presentation in your business affairs. A lot of people at companies just make boring PowerPoint slides and it has so much irrelevant information that the point of the meeting is masked by a weak presentation. This article shows what to do and how to make a great presentation. 2. Each section of this paper dealt with a new and exciting way to capture the attention of a viewer of your business slides. The writer states to â€Å"dig deep† by adding new information and giving more to the viewer. â€Å"Avoid Info overload† shows that too much information can be detrimental to a project, people can bored and wander off. In the section â€Å"Practice Delivery†, it talks about how to memorized your speech and practice what you are saying. This will avoid mistakes, mishaps and fumbling with words. Also, the writer says to â€Å"forget comedy†, by leaving the humor out the project is more professional and shows that you are serious. By â€Å"pick powerful props† shows your audience that memorable ideas and notions can be obtained by using props, so the audience can remember ideas and thoughts associated with the presentation. Another secret is to â€Å"minimize you†, this means take out information relating to you or the business, because people already know what this information is. It waste space and time, and people can get sidetracked. â€Å"Speak the Language† notes that speaking as you always do will help minimize confusions with acronyms and abbreviated words. Be professional but make sure everyone can understand what is been said. Last but not least, â€Å"simple slides† states that you should use slides in your presentation to highlight important information and key words, don’t let the slides overrun the presentation. 3. The questions that came to mind when I was reading was significant. They dealt with how to maximize information during presentations and how do I apply material that are useful in my projects. I don’t want to use unnecessary information that is irrelevant. I also asked myself if using pictures and props were a good idea. I found out that these two tools are necessary to keep the audience engaged in what you’re talking about. . I feel like that I have great note taking skills. I always note key words and phrases. If I have a long or difficult reading I always break it down in paragraphs and take notes on key sentences. I also use an outline format which helps greatly. It is almost like the article written in my own language so I can understand it better. I always u se my notes to go over information instead of trying to re-read an entire article to find important facts. 5. I will use notes to retain this information for later use. My notes can be very well written as well as the reading, with the same information available. I always keep notes to look over for extra information and key points. 6. I think the SQ3R method does help my reading and comprehension skills improve. By skimming the article I mentally note key words and phrases. I can see how each paragraphs ends and if there are any vocabulary words noted. Noting questions is helpful as well. Keeping in mind question I would ask about the article will help me find an answer to it within the paper. I believe the method does help a lot especially when it comes to larger papers or article that I need to comprehend. How to cite Reading and Comprehension, Essay examples