Heritage and Identity in Pat Barkers Regeneration Essay -- Pat Barker

The presence of Jews in England has been a source of controversy for many reasons. On page 35 of Pat barkers historical novel Regeneration, Siegfried Sassoon reveals the nature of his relationship with his father, who left home when he was five, and gives an account of his Jewish history. Though he hadnt been brocaded Jewish and apparently had no association with his Jewish relatives, Sassoon was subjected to the discrimination that was often seen in England before and during WWI. Through Sassoons Jewish heritage and the other characters relation to the past, Barker exposes the need of mankind to identify with the past in order to come to terms with the present.There is much history concerning the Jewish people and their presence in England as an organized community, beginning in 1066 when Jewish merchants were encouraged to move to England. Professor Daniel J. Elazer, in summarizing an article by Aubrey Newman, states that from 1066 to 1290 the Jews suffered persecution in the form of blood libels, throng riots, and discriminatory legislation (4), followed by expulsion from England until 1655 when a Sephardi Rabbi was able to convince Oliver Cromwell to allow the Jews readmission. Most of the Jews coming into England were Sephardi Jews, well educated and successful businessmen from Spain and Amsterdam, until afterward in the seventeenth century when Jewish immigrants from Northern Europe began to arrive. These Jews were known as Ashkenazi Jews and were of a lower social class than the Sephardi (5).Anti-Jewish sentiment in England fuel be attributed to more than religious persecution. It includes religious, race, and social issues and is researched in depth in Anti-Semitism in British Society, 1876-1939, by Professor Colin Hol... ...ows both Rivers and Prior to incubate the present. By denying the past, many of the characters in Barkers novel struggle with the present. Many are unable to deal with the horrors of war witnessed and experienced in their rece nt past. Others, such as Rivers and Prior, struggle with issues from their childhood as well. Regeneration shows that by making a connection with the past and accepting it for what it is, the characters are able to continue their lives with some palpate of order and purpose.Works CitedBarker, Pat. Regeneration. New York Plume, 1993.Elazer, Daniel. British Jewry. Jerusalem Center For Public Affairs. 14 April 2004. <http//www.jcpa.org/dje/articles3/british.htmHolmes, Colin. Anti-Semitism in British Society, 1879-1939. London Edward Arnold Ltd., 1979.Westman, Karin E. Pat Barkers Regeneration. New York Continuum, 2001.

Shirley Chisholm :: essays research papers

Shirley st. hill chisholm(1924-2005)A Brief Biography of Shirley Chisholm(1924-2005)Shirley St. cumulation was born in New York City on November 30, 1924 she was the oldest of four daughters. Her parents were Charles and Ruby St.Hill. In 1927 at geezerhood 3 Shirley was sent to live on her grandmas farm in Barbados. She attended British grammar school and picked up the Caribbean accent that marked her speech. Shirley moved back to New York in 1934 at the age of 11 and went on to graduate in 1946 from Brooklyn College with honors by and by earning a masters degree from Columbia University. During this time it was difficult for black college graduates to find jobs. After world rejected by many companies, she obtained a job at the Mt.Calvary childcare center in Harlem.In 1949 she married Conrad Chisholm, Shirley and her husband participated in local anaesthetic politics. In 1946 she ran for an assembly seat. She won and served in the New York general assembly from 1964 to1968. In 1968 after finishing her destination in the legislature, Shirley Chisholm campaigned to represent New Yorks Twelfth Congressional District. Her campaign slogan was Fighting Shirley ChisholmUn bought and Un bossed. She won then election and became the first African American woman elected to congress. During her first term in congress, Chisholm hired an all-female staff and spoke out for civil rights, womens rights, the poor and against the Vietnam War. In 1970 she was elected to a second term.On January 25, 1972, Chisholm announced her candidature for president. She stood before the cameras and in the beginning off her speech she said, I stand before you today as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the disposal of the United States. I am not the candidate of black America, although I am black and proud. I am not the candidate of the womens of this country, although I am a woman, and I am equally proud of that. I am not the candidate of any political bosses or special int erest. I am the candidate of the people. Though Shirley did not win a single primary during the 1972 presidential election, she captured over 150 votes on the first ballot and later said her campaign had been a necessary catalyst for change. Shirley went on to serve for ten more years in the House and retired in 1982 after septenary terms in congress.Shirley kept active in politics following her retirement by co-founding the National Political Congress of Black Women and parcel as its founding in 1984 until1992.