Samantha Dilday McGee AP English 12

1. Samantha DildayMcGeeAP English 12

2. Table of Contents Directions for the Reader My Bucket List Six word memoir Suppression of Women in Wuthering Heights History of Philanthropy GM foods essay My Soul Signs of Courage I hold in my hand… Busch Gardens

3. Directions for the Reader Simply click on the Dunder Mifflin logo ( ) to navigate to individual slides. Click the Dunder Mifflin logo in the top left corner of each slide to navigate back to the Table of Contents.

4. My Bucket List 13. Visit Antarctica 14. Go fire walking 15. Leave the atmosphere 16. Get married barefoot on the beach 17. Create my own business 18. Meet Charles Dawkins 19. Do something spontaneous 20. Laugh at least once a day 21. Allow myself to make mistakes 22. Meet Warren Buffet 23. Be Time Magazine’s Person of the Year 24. Join the Peace Corps 25. Go whale watching • Work at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich • 2. Sell a piece of artwork • 3. Live in Europe • 4. Buy a boat to live on • 5. Graduate from college • 6. Intern at Epcot in Disney World • 7. Build my own computer from scratch • 8. Start a family • 9. Bowl a 200 • 10. Try exotic food without thinking twice • 11. Go to the running of the bulls • 12. Go to La Tomatina in Spain

5. Six word memoir “Good times… that’s what she said.”

6. Suppression of Women in Wuthering Heights Many elements of Wuthering Heights factor into the suppression of the women figures in the novel such as the setting, the time period, and numerous characters. Through the author's depiction of these elements, she creates a novel that is dominated by the male characters and thus pushes aside the freedoms of the women characters. The novel was written during the Victorian Era when women's role in a marriage was to be obedient and faithful to their husbands. Young Catherine is forced into a marriage with Linton and after his death; Heathcliff takes custody over her and treats her like a servant. This was not uncommon during the time where women were seen as property. Though the novel was written during the Victorian Era, it is actually set during the Georgian Era also known as the Age of Aristocracy. The Georgian Era was also a time where women were supposed to be obedient housewives to their husbands. After Mr. Earnshaw’s death, Hindley takes over the estate including Catherine. Like Heathcliff, Hindley takes control over her and begins to make all the decisions for her. Women didn’t have the luxury of thinking for themselves and it was the dominant male who made all of the decisions. And because of the time period Wuthering Heights is told in, the reader is set up to believe that women will be suppressed from the very beginning. Ultimately, this is what happens to two of the main female figures in the novel: Isabella and young Catherine. The setting of the novel is on the Yorkshire moors between two houses, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. The moors are very isolated between the rest of the world and even going between the two houses is a dangerous journey that quite possibly could lead the characters to their own death. Mr. Lockwood even begs for a servant to help him through the moors back to his housing at Thrushcross Grange for fright of becoming lost in this wasteland. The reader feels a sense of isolation from anyone outside the realm of the book. The isolation also helps to develop the parallel feelings the suppressed woman are having to the feelings of the reader. The reader begins to feel the same as the women: hopelessness and despair with no help from others that surround them. Wuthering Heights, compared to Thrushcross Grange, is always in some kind of storm of hatred or darkness. Wuthering Heights, where most of the suppression takes place, is also a cold estate where "narrow windows deeply set in the wall, and the corners defended with large jutting stones.” The character of Heathcliff is very similar to his surrounding and the reader starts to see the two as one in the same. The strong over-powering feelings of isolation and hatred help the reader connect more with the women figures in the novel by making them feel the same emotions. Both the women and the reader feel the overbearing presence of Heathcliff and his “castle of darkness” and begin to feel the sharp pains of their freedom slowly being smothered. Isabella is the sister to Edgar Linton and as Heathcliff seeks revenge, she is tricked into believing that Heathcliff is in love with her. Through his trickery and her ignorance to the real world, Isabella marries Heathcliff. Right from the start of their marriage, Heathcliff begins to treat her cruelly and also degrades her intelligence with insults and forces her to become almost like a servant to him. She no longer is the joyful child she once was and is reduced to an abused wife. It is only by running away to London that she can ever be free from Heathcliff’s grasp. Though she runs away, the damage has already been done and the marriage has ruined her life. Young Catherine is the daughter of Edgar Linton and Catherine Earnshaw. After many years of isolation from Wuthering Heights, young Catherine wonders into the estate and meets Linton Earnshaw, the son of Heathcliff and Isabella. Catherine falls in love with Linton only due to the fact that Heathcliff is commanding Linton to court her. After being forced into marriage with Linton, Catherine becomes a prisoner of Wuthering Heights. Once Linton passes away, Catherine becomes the property of Heathcliff and is treated like a slave. Heathcliff’s hatred and the prison like atmosphere of Wuthering Heights suppress this independent young woman from reaching her full potential. Heathcliff is the dominant male presence in the novel. His manners and dialogue throughout the novel help to emphasize his menacing appearance. Heathcliff does not speak, he growls. He does not smile, he grins and sometimes sneers. Bronte’s diction also helps to develop Heathcliff into a chauvinistic pig. Bronte writes, “do you mark those two lines between your eyes; and those thick brows, that, instead of rising arched, sink in the middle; and that couple of black fiends, so deeply buried, who never open their windows boldly, but lurk glinting under them, like devil's spies”? He is a very strong character that degrades not just woman but anyone that associates with him. He makes slaves out of Isabella and young Catherine through his sinister personality and becomes the main focus of Nelly’s story. Bronte’s depiction of the setting and time period with the connection between Heathcliff and the young women of the novel help to develop the suppression of woman in Wuthering Heights.

7. The History of Philanthropy Philanthropy has been around since the ancient Greeks and has developed into the foundations and organizations that we know today through businessmen such as John D. Rockefeller, Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and Greg Mortenson. Philanthropy comes from the Greek words philos and anthropos which combined means "to love the human being." It was thought to have originated over 2,500 years ago by the Greek mythological story of Zeus and Prometheus. Zeus wanted to destroy the primitive human beings yet Prometheus did not want this fate to happen so he gave these humans fire and optimism. Thus, they created and developed a more civilized culture. The Greeks took this story and used it as teaching tool to create "Philanthropia", loving what it is to be human (PROMETHEUS). The first act of philanthropy in the U.S. was when the pilgrims immigrated to Massachusetts in 1620 and created the Mayflower Compact that stated that they would "combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politic, for our better Ordering and Preservation" (Mayflower Compact). A leader in this philosophy was the Christian preacher Cotton Mather who wrote many books, including Bonifacius,( translation: an Essay to Do Good) in 1710. This book included many philanthropic ideas that were way beyond his time period. Some included developing community projects, to reward instead of punish students, and to study the state of mind of patients to solve their cause of illness (Mather, Cotton). The American Revolution was based around the classical view of philanthropy. The Continental Army, for example, was made up of mostly volunteers, and even their commanding general served without pay for three years. Many other organizations developed such as the Sons of Liberty, to help with the cause. The Declaration of Independence was also the first document that created a government that was for and by the people. The Constitution was also developed by volunteers and ratified by volunteers. Many volunteers during the American Revolution were fighting for the dignity and happiness of mankind (HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION). The most well known philanthropist in America was Benjamin Franklin. Dr. Franklin was a model of American values. His life was centered around helping the people of his nation through public service. Many other political figures such as the German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, and his political rival John Adams, gave Benjamin Franklin a tip of their hat for his achievements in the scientific field. He also founded the first organized group of philanthropists in 1727 called the “Junto”. Even though his group only consisted of 12 members, he used this organization to create the Philadelphia Gazette, which recruited volunteers and helped to fundraise for community projects (About Junto Society). John D. Rockefeller is regarded as the richest man in history through his booming oil business. And he became one of the most wealthy philanthropists in American history. As Rockefeller started his business he donated a portion of his paycheck to his church before his business took off. When his paychecks began to get bigger so did his donations to public health and education (John D. Rockefeller). His donations to society were mostly because of the growing Efficiency Movement during the Progressive Era. This movement was based around the idea that the government and its programs were inefficient and thought that experts should identify the problems and fix them. Thus people were supporting educational programs and universities to help with research (Efficiency Movement). Throughout the era, Rockefeller provided over $80 million dollars to universities such as the University of Chicago, Yale, Harvard, and Columbia. John D. Rockefeller also founded the Rockefeller Institute of Medical Research, which was later named Rockefeller University. Also, the Rockefeller Foundation was created to help the Sanitary Commission. Over his lifetime, Rockefeller gave away $550 million dollars to foundations for education, public health and the arts (John D. Rockefeller). Warren Buffet has contributed more money to charities and foundations than any other person on the face of the earth. His biggest contribution is that of $31 billion dollars to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Buffet has contributed to many causes including healthcare, poverty, education, and access to technology. He has even announced that his children won't be getting a huge sum of his money once he and his wife pass away. Most of his money will be donated to different foundations all around the world. Along with his donations, Buffet has auctioned off his 2001 Lincoln Town car on eBay and also has auctioned off a luncheon with himself to help raise money for charities such as Girls, Inc (Warren Buffett Biography). And even though he is the second richest man on earth, he still lives in the same house that he bought over three decades ago (Warren Buffett Value Investor). Warren Buffet once said: "I don't have a problem with guilt about money. The way I see it is that my money represents an enormous number of claim checks on society. It's like I have these little pieces of paper that I can turn into consumption. If I wanted to, I could hire 10,000 people to do nothing but paint my picture every day for the rest of my life. And the GDP would go up. But the utility of the product would be zilch, and I would be keeping those 10,000 people from doing AIDS research, or teaching, or nursing. I don't do that though. I don't use very many of those claim checks. There's nothing material I want very much. And I'm going to give virtually all of those claim checks to charity when my wife and I die." (Warren Buffett Speaks). Another well known philanthropist of modern time is Bill Gates. Bill Gates is the founder of Microsoft Corporation along with Paul Allen. Gates started his philanthropy work when he sold some of his shares to Microsoft to create the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has the goal of reducing poverty and improve healthcare globally. As of 2007, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates are the second most generous philanthropist by giving away a total of $27 billion dollars to help global causes that are overlooked by their governments. Gates also founded the Bill Gates scholarship for minorities that help low income families pay for college. He also helped with research and AIDS prevention in third world countries (Bill Gates Philanthropy). Greg Mortenson is the co-founder of the Central Asia Institute in Afghanistan. His life as a philanthropist started when his younger sister died of epilepsy in 1992. In her memory Mortenson climbed K2, the second largest mountain in Pakistan. As he and three other climbers were making their way to the summit, they began a rescue mission of another climber that took roughly 70 hours to complete. Mortenson was unable to make it to the peak and he started his descent. Unfortunately, he became weak and needed medical attention. He found his way to the remote village of Korphe where he was cared for. To thank the village and its people, Mortenson promised to build an education center for the village. Thus, he was able to start the Central Asia Institute that helped promote education and literacy in the remote region. Mortenson also received the Sitara-e-Pakistan which translates to The Star of Pakistan which is the highest civilian award. He has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize numerous times and is also recognized as one of America's Top Twenty Leaders of 2009 (Greg Mortenson). Since it was first taught in ancient Greece over 2500 years ago, Philanthropy has helped developing countries and those in need through many different figures in history. Countries were also formed through volunteers and organizations. And as the world develops in the years to come, Philanthropists will still be needed to push it down the right track.

8. Why I think GM foods are more helpful than harmful Because there is an ever growing population, space is needed to grow larger amount of crops thus farmers need to move to places that were once not thought of to be suitable for agriculture. Developing GM crops that can withstand long periods of drought or higher slat content in water are now being developed to allow for this to happen. Now crops are sprouting up in areas once thought to be inhospitable for agricultural use. In some third world countries, families rely on a single crop such as rich to sustain their diet yet rice does not hold all of the nutrients needed for a balanced diet. If we could genetically modify rice that contains an additional vitamin or mineral then malnutrition might become a thing of the past. Blindness is third world countries are very common because of a vitamin A deficiency. Scientists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Institute for Plant Sciences have created rice that contains high amounts of beta-carotene which would provide the needed amount of vitamin A; they actually nicknamed this crop the “golden” rice. Not all GM plants are used for crops or consumed by the public. There is actually a tree that was developed that is used to clean up heavy metal pollutants in contaminated soil. Most GM plants are developed to help our generation. If monitored correctly and held under strict guidelines, GM foods could help wipe out the world’s hunger problem. The world population as of right now is around 6 billion people and it is predicted to double in the next 50 years. To feed this growing population, GM foods are the only way to go. By using GM foods, countries will be able to provide an adequate supple of food for their people. If the world were to only use non-modified crops then we would not even come close to providing enough food to feed the world. GM foods are much more pest resistant compared to non-modified crops. Crop losses from insects result in a devastating financial loss for farmers and starving countries. Farmers would usually drench their crops in chemical pesticides to prevent pest problems yet consumers don’t want chemically treated crops because of potential health problems associated with pesticide usage. Also chemical pesticides cause pollution to waterways because of excess runoff. There is a GM food that was developed that eliminates the need for chemical pesticides and also reduces the cost of a crop. For most crops it is not cost effective to manually pull weeds out of crop lands and thus farmers have begun to spray large amounts of herbicides on their crops to kill weeds. By developing a GM crop that is resistant to a herbicide could reduce the cost and also prevent environmental damage of using excessive amounts of herbicide. Also there are many viruses, bacteria and fungi can cause plant diseases yet a GM crop could be developed to be resistant to these diseases and thus healthier for the consumer. One of the many dangerous to crops is cold weather. An unexpected frost could destroy a farmer’s whole crop field. Scientists have introduced an artic flounder fish gene into the black Mexican sweet corn and have developed a crop that is resistant to colder temperatures. Now these plants are able to survive in colder weather and are not as susceptible to frost.

9. My Soul