... to folk stories or the vivid emotions and scenes he creates in order to illustrate his point. Hunter's lyrical themes can be divided into three main categories. First are themes used in a traditional vein, written about classical ideas and told in a folkloric fashion. Second are themes employed in a contemporary tone, about modern concepts and written in a more current style. Last are themes that are either used frequently in both contemporary and traditional ways, or transcend the division of contemporary/traditional and form their own categories. One of the main traditional themes that Hunter uses is the gambl ...

... to the throne. Nicholas’ first action was to put down, with great harshness, a revolt of officers and soldiers who had fought in Europe during the Napoleonic wars and favored reform in Russia. This uprising occurred in the month of December and the rebels became known in Russian history as “Decembrists.” The new czar ordered the principal leaders killed and the rest exiled to Siberia. He felt there was something wrong with the government of the country, and he thought that Russia needed more discipline rather than liberal reform. Nicholas ordered the codification of Russian laws, reformed finan ...

... The burning of his house by the Klu Klux Klan resulted in the murder of his father. His mother later suffered a nervous breakdown and his family was split up. He was haunted by this early nightmare for most of his life. From then on, he was driven by hatred and a desire for revenge. The early backgrounds of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were largely responsible for the distinct different responses to American racism. Both men ultimately became towering icons of contemporary African-American culture and had a great influence on black Americans. However, King had a more positive attitude than Malcolm X, believing t ...

... failed. Jackie was a fair student and had to work several part time jobs. For a while he was involved in several crimes and robberies with the pepper street gang. This didn’t last long because he received "big brotherly" care from Carl Anderson, a local mechanic and Reverend Karl Downs. Both men were able to point him in a more positive direction. They had him focus more on athletics. After Pasadena Junior College Jackie got a scholarship to the University of California at UCLA. Jackie's true passion was playing sports. He excelled in every sport he played. His favorites were football, track, baseball and bas ...

... in it's natural state. Buonarroti was called to Rome in 1505 by Pope Julius II to create for him a monumental tomb. We have no clear sense of what the tomb was to look like, since over the years it went through at least five conceptual revisions. The tomb was to have three levels; the bottom level was to have sculpted figures representing Victory and bond slaves. The second level was to have statues of Moses and Saint Paul as well as symbolic figures of the active and contemplative life-representative of the human striving for, and reception of, knowledge. The third level, it is assumed, was to have an effigy ...

... a life of spirituality. John of the Cross was born Juan de Yepes in 1542 to a poor family of Spanish nobility. When John was a boy, he attended a school for poor children, gaining a basic education, and the opportunity to learn skills from local craftsmen. When he was 17, John began to work at the Plague Hospital de la Concepcion, and its founder offered to let him attend the Jesuit College, so long as he did not neglect his hospital duties. From 1559 to 1563, John studied with the Jesuits, learning Latin, Greek, and other subjects. He was offered the chance to study for the secular priesthood, which would ha ...

... in residence and director of the theatre in Bergen. While there, he wrote St. John’s Night (written in 1852), Lady Inger of Osteraad (written in 1854, published in 1857), The Feast at Solhaug (written in 1855, published in 1856), and Olaf Liljekrans (written in 1856). All these plays were inspired by folk songs, folklore or history, all of which are leitmotifs that run through Ibsen’s works. Ibsen became creative director of The Norwegian Theater in Christiania in 1858. The next year, he wrote the historical play The Vikings at Helgeland. The Pretenders was written in 1863. Beside Bjornstjerne Bjorns ...

... Julius Caesar. In 48 B.C., Antony helped Caesar defeat a rebel army led by Pompey the Great at the Battle of Pharsalus. In 44 B.C., Caesar was assassinated. When he was assassinated on the Idles of March, Antony immediately took possession of Caesar's papers and residence including whatever assets he had held. Mark Antony gave his famous oration at Caesar's funeral in the forum and was instrumental in turning people against the Senators led by the assassin Brutus. Many people believed Mark Antony's action were not quite as good as the actions of Caesar. In 43 B.C. Octavian, the true heir to Caesar's throne, chal ...

... experiences as a young girl. Kaye Gibbons’ experiences as a child are the foundations for this breathtaking saga of a young girl’s tragic memories of her childhood. As with Ellen, Gibbons’ parents both died before she was twelve-years-old forming the basis of the plot and themes of this novel. The fond memories she possessed of her mother and the harsh ones of her father are reflected in the thoughts and actions of Ellen. The simplistic and humble attitude that both Gibbons and Ellen epitomize in the novel is portrayed through diction and dialogue throughout the novel allows the audience to gain a be ...

... in 1920, Mallie sold a few of her family’s things and the family boarded a train to California. They bought a house on Pepper Street in Pasadena. As child, Jackie enjoyed sports as much as the next kid did. Just before he started school, he became ill with Diphtheria and almost died! He was an average student at his school, in the playground he realized that his amazing talent in sports made him stand made him stand out. More than once he came home with a pocket full of change or an extra lunch, because the kids bribed him into playing on their team. But his childhood wasn’t all-good, because all of his frien ...