Dear John by Nicholas Sparks Book Review

'Dear John' by Nicholas Sparks Book Review Dear John is trademark Nicholas Sparks - romantic, sappy, sad, and redeeming. The book revolves around the love story of an army sergeant who falls in love shortly before 9/11. Dear John is one of Sparks most popular stories, and became known to an even wider audience after it was made into a movie in 2010 starring Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum.   Summary Dear John  starts in the present day, in terms of the books timeline, with John watching Savannah from afar. He is thinking about how much he loves her and why their relationship dissolved. Lost in a train of thought, John then takes the reader back in time and narrates the story of their love. The whole book is narrated by John, who joined the army to get away from his reclusive father and to straighten out. While he is on leave at home in Wilmington, North Carolina, he meets Savannah. They soon fall in love, but Johns time in the army post-9/11 weigh on the couples relationship. Review There is, unfortunately, not much more to say about the book other than its a predictable love story.  Dear John  has a pretty formulaic plot. Sparks writing is smooth and easy, but the characters are not memorable or complex. Furthermore, the love story is not very realistic. That being said, the characters are likable, if not particularly nuanced, and Johns relationship with his father creates a nice subplot. Although Sparks is one of the first to set the age-old boy meets girl love story in the modern, post-9/11 world, he does not delve into how the war affects the characters. In  Dear John, it could be any war keeping them apart. This specific war is not important. Overall,  Dear John  is a  quick, easy read that is not painful but also not extremely enjoyable to read. If you need  some beach reading, go ahead and borrow it. It will give you a few hours of  escape if nothing else. Recommended for those who like sappy romantic comedies, and at times tragedies, but not for those who like a little meat in their reading.  If you like previous books by Sparks, you will probably enjoy  Dear John.

Astrology Essays - Astrology, Astrological Signs, Pseudoscience

Astrology Essays - Astrology, Astrological Signs, Pseudoscience Astrology Have you ever wondered what the signs of the Zodiac means? When we turn on the TV it seems we always see an advertisement on horoscope predictions. People call in and get the predictions they have been looking for. When the newspaper first arrives, some people go to the horoscope section first. They base the entire day or entire week on the report they get. It seems that this phenomenon is something all new, or is it? Astrology has been around since ancient times, even dating back to biblical days. Astrology has a long line of history and a bright future. We will attempt to cover that topic as well as the signs and elements of the Zodiac. The signs of the Zodiac include: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Astrologers also claim the planets play a role in many key factors. How do these things affect us? We will also look at astrology as a science; a way to predict and control your life and your destiny. Although many people refer to astrology as just being superstitious others say the predictions are not worth the paper they are written on. Many men and women have studied astronomy but we will look at Mother Shipton. What caused this woman to focus her life on the study of astrology? Why did she believe astrology could predict ones character or life? Was she just passing on false information or is the universe interrelated and everything is based on these Zodiac signs? Astrology is a phenomenon that dates back to biblical days. There is an ancient legend, that Adam received the doctrines and mysteries of astrology direct from his Maker and thus by foreknowing that the earth was to be destroyed first by fire and afterwards by water. (Thompson 17) Astrology has played an important role in our civilization. Starting with Adam and even being present in todays society. Different civilizations seemed to be practicing astrology independetely. People noticed the Sun in particular had a change on how crops grew. Many people viewed astronomy and astrology as a similar science until the 1500s. People knew by looking at the sun or what the size of the moon was when to plant crops or even when a baby was going to be born. These early astrologers were searching for their place in life. A place where they fit into the universe. They believed that every component of the universe was linked together and everyone had their own place. Every aspect of ones life was based on the planets and the stars. Even behavior was blamed on the position of the sun! Astrology is widely practiced today. Even today most farmers have a Farmers Almanac. This book tells you when to plant your crops, and many people have success. Some wont even think about planting crops without this information. This is a form of astrology, although many people do not realize it. A popular form of astrology is the Physic Friends Network. This is a 900 number you can call in to see what your sign is and how this affects you. The astrologers on the Physic Friends Network always seem to know what has happened in the past and what will occur in the future. Everyone who says they are astrologers obviously are not and its up to us to use our own judgment to decide. When you hear people talk about signs of the Zodiac you often Wonder what does that mean? Ancient astronomers noted that the sun makes a yearly journey across the celestial sphere, part of which is represented in the picture by the blue band. The ancient astronomers associated dates with the constellations in this narrow belt (which is known as the zodiac), assigning to each constellation of stars the dates when the sun was in the same region of the celestial sphere as the constellation. (Encarta 1999) Each Zodiac sign belongs to four different elements: Fire, Air, Earth and Water. Fire is a positive element; this element focuses on changing energy from one form to another. Air is also a positive element that is associated with the spiritual part of life. Earth on the other hand is a

CASE 3 ETHICS - Physical Privacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

CASE 3 ETHICS - Physical Privacy - Essay Example Utilitarianism focuses on the consequences of actions, and the consequences of suspending these two players are generally good, while Deontology understands that although people have rights to enhance themselves, they should do so within the bounds of law and integrity, to which they have duties of following. Utilitarians assert that an action is good, if it results to a net good for the greatest number of people, and severe penalties for artificially enhancing performance have widespread benefits to numerous stakeholders (Brooks & Dunn, 2010, p.183). First, the penalty respects the hard work of majority of athletes who do not use these enhancers. Using testosterone has been documented to have immediate physical and functioning effects on athletes, such as increased strength, agility, and speed (Lumpkin, Stoll, & Beller, 2012, p.154). Their former manager, Brian Cashman, says that he is not surprised that these athletes used testosterone. He said: â€Å"In Bartolo’s case, as well as he has done last year as well through this year, at his age, after coming back from that surgery, makes you scratch your head† (DelVecchio, 2012). As for Cabrera, Cashman’s comments were: â€Å"When we traded him to Atlanta we had him as a low-end, everyday regular or an excellent fourth outfielder† (DelVecchio, 2012). ... Sports must be about natural abilities that are improved through regular practice, discipline, and other â€Å"natural† efforts. If everyone followed the same practice of using enhancers, people would no longer know if the performance they see is â€Å"natural† or a product of drug enhancement. The â€Å"truth† and â€Å"reality† of sports will be shattered. This means that using testosterone can have negative effects on the perceptions of both athletes and sports. The penalties are just because they ensure that athletes would not succumb to similar practices and that the sports industry’s image will not be marred. With such a high penalty, other athletes will be discouraged of using enhancers. They will know that the harms to their income and career will outweigh the benefits. Third, using these enhancers has side effects (Lumpkin et al., 2012, p.154). They can experience â€Å"life-threatening problems such as extreme psychoses, heart disease, li ver and kidney damage, and cancer (Lumpkin et al., 2012, p.155). Other side effects are mood swings and uncontrollable aggression (Lumpkin et al., 2012, p.155). With these negative effects on athletes, it means that Cabrera and Colon are harming themselves. If the youth follows their enhancement practices, they will also be in peril. Thus, as role models who can detrimentally affect the sports industry and other athletes, Cabrera and Colon deserve a steep punishment. Deontology focuses on duty, not consequences, and Cabrera and Colon have duties to the sports industry, fellow athletes, and audience to follow rules and regulations (Ferrell et al., 2011, p.159). The sports industry has already banned the use of testosterone and other artificial enhancers because they are unethical. Cabrera and Colon are aware of these