Question 1
The world and family roles have transformed in the past few years, and globalization is spreading. Initially, a woman’s place was in the kitchen, cooking, cleaning or catering for her family. In the middle class family, a woman’s traditional roles were mostly cut out and explicitly explained. On the other hand, the role of the man was simply to provide for the family. However, economics, access to education and globalization are among some of the factors that have led to the transformation of this situation. Women now seem to perform both the traditional feminine roles and the masculine ones. In the middle class family of this era, women hold a more stressful position than the husband mainly because more roles have been added to their list.
A woman is allowed to access education just like any other man. While this may have benefits in liberalizing the woman, it has added more roles to her list. This is because she is expected to attend school, provide for her family and also perform her traditional roles of taking care of her family. The woman’s salary subsidizes the husband’s making his work a little less stressful. In this way, a woman can be said to be performing both masculine and feminine roles thus adding stress to her.
With the economic situation in the world, any middle class family is not capable of meeting all their financial needs. This has pushed most women to seek for part time or full time jobs; sometimes which are of low wages. The ease with which women can access education has made the task of finding skilled employment easier. It is estimated that in every three families, one of the women is a working mother. While going to work, the woman is also expected to perform her traditional roles. Doubling of these tasks in such a manner compounds to the amount of stress a woman faces.
A woman’s position in the middle class family has changed over the years. She has been forced to add other roles to her traditional roles which have led to an increase in stress. On the other side, the man’s roles have remained almost consistent over the years. In fact, his burden to provide for his family has been lessened by the woman’s access to work. As a result, his life seems to be getting easier as he shares most of his traditional roles with the woman. Therefore, a woman is expected to handle more stressful situations than the man.
Question 2
America fought with Spain ostensibly to bring independence in the Cuban empire. America succeeded in driving the Spanish troops out of Cuba in order for Cuba to attain its independence. However, just as expected, America did not leave immediately after the signing of a peace treaty; instead they stuck in Cuba. This was aimed at making Cuba economically and politically stable. By that time, America had accessed several islands around Cuba which angered the Filipino. Consequently, the Filipino formed a revolution against America led by Emilio Aguinaldo.
Thesis
The budding commerce, strategic position of the Philippines and other advantages made America fight the Filipinos in a bid to keep the Philippines and other islands, which it had acquired during the Spanish- American war. This has been the position of America through history.
After the acquisition of the Philippines and other islands, America was in a position to perform better commerce. The island was used for the exchange of a variety of items including armaments. In this way, America managed to gain more financial benefits from the islands. Their aim was to continue keeping it, especially because they played a crucial role in freeing it from the rule of the Spanish. America simply changed the colonial rulers; they did not give any independence to Cuba and the islands around it.
America had a desire to control the international policy. They also wanted to have access to China’s market, which was one of the largest at the time. This was made easier by the fact that China had one of the largest markets at the time. China was also one of the largest producers and manufacturers of a variety of products. Accessing such a market would ensure that America was in a better position of influencing international policies on trade.
In the moral novel ‘American Goliath’, the author depicts a valid presentation of this esteemed country in a variety of aspects. He has managed to utilize his cast to give a clearer picture of America’s history. America is not only a superb country, but it is also one capable of conquering and controlling other nations in a proper manner. This applies to America in any time in history. America is always involved in solving the problems of other countries majorly due to the interests it would gain.
Throughout history, America has always been involved in the affairs of other countries. Usually, the efforts of America are ostensibly stated as lending a helping hand. However, after a while, it becomes clear that America had some hidden intentions. This is synonymous to what happened during the American- Spanish war that led to the America- Filipino war. The novel ‘America Goliath’ clearly presents such a picturesque through its characters.
Question 3
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was aimed at banning the rampant segregation in public places. It banned segregation along the basis of color, race, sex, religion and/ or national origin. It was resisted by many people of the white origin, but it managed to become a legislation in the year nineteen sixty five. The Great Society was a set of social reforms created by the domestic programs in the United States of America. It shared almost similar aims with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. President Lyndon also introduced the concept of War on Poverty in order to tackle the high poverty levels in America at that time.
Thesis
The Great Society, the War on Poverty and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 all aimed at betterment of human welfare. They strived to eliminate the aspects hindering the problems facing society at that time.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964- 1965 crowned the legislative despite being under a lot of resistance and scrutiny. After the civil war of 1861, slavery was abolished all over the world. As a way of reconstructing the United States of America, the Civil Rights Movement was formed in the year 1957. The movement faced a lot of resistance until after President Lyndon took over from President Kennedy. President Lyndon explained that his regime would be one that would embark on fulfillment of the requests from the Civil Rights Movement.
The key components of the Great Society include the war on poverty and elimination of racial injustice. Under these two components, this set of domestic programs aimed at reducing injustices in other areas. This include; education, transportation and labor. It also majored on educating people on aspects involving the environment as a means of reducing poverty. With time, the Great Society took up other roles like consumer protection, support for art institutions and the protection of the black heritage.
The War on Poverty was begun officially in 1964 as an ambitious effort by the government to address persistent poverty in America. Its success can be ascribed to the increase in poverty levels from the 1960’s. This led to an increase in the intensity for fighting poverty by various movements. Moreover, journalists and social reformers undertook an extensive research to expose the level of poverty in America around the same period. All this was done with an aim of sensitizing the authorities in America on the despicable situation most families were living under. The rule of President Lyndon also allowed the movement to carry out its activities under minimal supervision.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 held the beliefs of both the Great Society and the movement known as War on Poverty. Their policies and laws may have been almost different, but they shared a similar vision for America. All the three programs envisioned an America marred with liberalization, just and one without poverty. They also envisioned an America that was saved from the despicable depth of poverty being experienced after the civil war.
Question 4
The federal government responded to Hurricane Katrina poorly than it responded to hurricane Sandy. This sentiment is explicitly presented by Krugman who explains that the situation was worse during Hurricane Katrina. He says “the federal government’s ability to respond effectively to disaster always collapses when antigovernment Republicans hold the White House, and always recovers when Democrats take it back.” He cites that the Federal Emergency Management Agency did not react well to hurricane Katrina during the rule of President Bush.
The media reacted differently during the two disasters. This was especially intensified after the Hurricane Sandy. Part of the media lashed out on President Obama for mishandling the whole concept. However, a large percentage of them recalled the way President Bush had handled hurricane Katrina and praised Obama for his efforts. Apparently, it took a longer time for people to recover after Hurricane Katrina, and all the blame was placed on the government. The government did not put in enough measures to ensure the protection of the people. However, the Federal Emergency Management Agency was prepared for Hurricane Sandy. They handled the situation better than expected.
During the rule of President Obama, people were educated on how to protect themselves. Evacuation measures were put in place to avoid the effects of the disaster and the recovery happened quickly. The media reports intensified after reports of Hurricane Sandy occurrence. This was mainly because of the debate on which president had handled the situation better than the other. While some journalists accused President Obama of quick response, it was clear that this was the best measure of tackling such a disaster.
Reference List
Alfred Thayer Mahan. The Influence of Sea Power upon History. (Boston: Little, Brown) 1890.
Andy Newman. “Hurricane Sandy versus Huriicane Katrina.” New York Times. October 28, 2012. Accesed from www.newyorktimes.com
Coontz Stephanie. The way we really are; Coming to terms with America’s changing family. (New York: Perseus Books, 1997).
Davies, Gareth. From Opportunity to Entitlement: The Transformation and Decline of Great Society Liberalism. (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas), 1996.
Luzviminda Francisco. The Philippines reader; A history of colonialism, neocolonialism, dictatorship and resistance. (Chicago: South End Press), 1997.
“Mother’s day: More than candy and flowers, working parents need time off,” the clearinghouse on International Developments in Child, Youth and Family Policies. Issue brief, 2002. From www.childpolicyintl.org/issuebrief/_issuebrief5.pdf
O’Connor, Alice. Poverty Knowledge: Social Science, Social Policy, and the Poor in Twentieth-Century U.S. History. (Princeton: Princeton University Press), 2001.
Paul Krugman. “Sandy versus Katrina.” New York Times. November 4, 2012 accessed June 27, 2013 from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/05/opinion/krugman-sandy-versus-katrina.html?_r=0
