Research Plan

Effects of Christianity on Native Alaskans

1. My general research topic is The Russian Orthodox Church in Native Alaskans life.

There are a few questions that I can propose:

• What role the Russian Orthodox Church played in Native Alaskans’ lives?
• Did the Russian Orthodox Church have the good or negative impact on people?

·         What attributes Native Alaskans used in church?

• How many orthodox churches are now in Alaska?
• How many of Native Alaskans are related to the Orthodox Church now?

2. The Russian Orthodox theme is important to me, because I am sort of related to Russian Orthodox. I know about Russian Orthodox only as example in my country. I think it will be great to find out some facts about Russian Orthodox in Native Alaskans’ lives, because I live in Alaska and I want know more about history and it will be interesting to compare Russian Orthodox in Alaska to my country.

These questions are import for people who want to know the life of Native Alaskans. The religion is important aspect of life, so people can find out more about the Native Alaskans knowing their religion. I think my audience can be students, people who moved to Alaska, who want to know more about Alaska history.

3. I have delegated to make a research in the Internet about the Russian Orthodox Church. I need to learn as I can about my general topic. My responsibility is to write about this topic for Research Wikis assignment in our group. I will also help my group mates to figure out what we should add to our topic.  

4. March 31^st: To discuss our research plan within the group in class and also have some information about my particular topic. To make a better research on my topic.

April 2^nd and 3^rd: To write an example of my topic and e-mail group my writing. To e-mail Bria some questions that I would ask at the interview with Native Alaskan woman. To find out if we are going to meet on Sunday. Sunday meeting?

April 4^th: Check when we need to meet in order to discuss the interview that Bria did and write a Research Prospectus.

April 7^th: Group meeting at 9:45 am with Christie about our Wiki. Will be great to listen to some suggestions. Set up the new group meeting.

April 10^th: Probably, the group meeting. Get compiled our writings and do revising.

April 14^th: Annotated Bibliography. Rough Draft of Wikis Project.

April 26^th: Group Research Projects Due

There are also should be new group meetings before April 26^th.

6.   Some questions I may ask on the group conference.

Speech delivered by Premier Benito Mussolini

The speech by Mussolini is an appeal or even a command to the Italian people, to the army. In the first and sixth paragraphs Mussolini emphasizes the people who his is talking to (Blackshirts of Rome, Rome comrades). He is not calling them, for example, confreres or citizens. He emphasizes that those people are like a Rome weapon in this war. Then his words “feel your temperature and break the silence” are so strong, powerful that reader can become scared.

There are many dates which make this speech more concrete and realistic. Because of those dates, reader can even find out some interesting facts about the war. For example, as a reminder for everybody, the war was started from September 1, 1939. Therefore, this text is the speech-command. The phrase by Mussolini: “…we will struggle to the last drop of blood.” is a hyperbole which shows that there is no way to go back. When Benito Mussolini says: “We are not like English”, in this sentence the reader can see how the premier doesn’t like the English people, how he blames the English. Then the simple comparison “we call bread bread and wine wine” shows that the Italian government is acting in a good way and not hiding the facts of the war, while the English government doesn’t say the truth to its people. In that phrase Mussolini appeals to comrades showing that the government acts perfect, it is not lying to its people, so people can be sure that they should fight for their country. Therefore, it is a leader’s speech; there cannot be any bad things to say about government. That is how it is presented. There are only positive moments and incentives to continue the war.

Mussolini admires his Italian army who fights in this war. He calls them as “the authentic, real, great Italian people”.  Another hyperbola in his speech “fight with the courage of lions on land” is a good example of Mussolini’s confidence in power of Italian army. Mussolini is saying: “Rome comrades! Trough you I want to speak...” in order to show all Italian people that he and comrades are acting in the war for their lives, freedom, needs.

Mussolini compares people with “snakes, who remain in the Masonic lodges”. Those people are the Italian enemies. And Mussolini appeals to “crush them without the difficulties”. After that he calls “the Italian people, the Fascist people…” emphasizing the participation of Italy in Fascism, the alliance with Hitler. The premier knows that “the Fascist people will have victory”. He is saying this as a statement, without any doubts.

The last sentence is very long. This sentence is almost like a short story about the Italian future victory. There are many powerful words as sacrifices, battlefields, hardships, dignity, heroism, soldiers that show the picture of the war, its reality. Also Mussolini thinks about the Italian army as heroes by saying “heroism of our soldiers”. And as it should be, the last the strongest phrase that makes soldiers take their weapon and go fight is “Victory, Italy, peace with justice among peoples!” that gives a hope to people that there will be the country with peace and justice…

The Cove

The film “The Cove” is a true story about slaughtering the dolphins in Taiji, Japan. “The Cove” makes everybody think about it after realizing the problem of killing the dolphins. This film has many scenes which are hard to watch. It is not understandable how humans can be so inhuman, self-interested, and amoral. All people in the world see the dolphin as a beautiful creature of the nature that can makes them happy. Dolphins are free, happy and they are smiling to people without knowing that the next day they can be dead.

“The Cove” is the film that was made illegal. People, the activists who were involved in it, risked their freedom to show everybody what is going on in Taiji. They did. The fact that people in Taiji can sit, eating a dolphin’s or whale’s meat, and watch the show with the dolphins is shocking. And all those pictures of dolphins on the ground, on the bridge, the dolphins boats which are situated in the city where thousands of dolphins are being killed every day. The most terrible thing about it is the legalization of the dolphins slaughtering. The film makers know all those facts and they knew what they should show to people in order to make an impact. Watching this film and realizing that those people are acting and I am just sitting down without acting was awful. I think everybody could feel this way. Although, the fact that dolphins are smart and self-aware like people is good, still it didn’t stop anybody to kill them, or at least to think about it.

This film is sad and sensitive. “The Cove” is really similar to the “Trojan horse” result. Those people who wanted to stop the dolphins slaughtering put the hidden cameras in the fake rocks in order to get video and audio of killing dolphins. They also played different roles during their secure operation. They knew that it was illegal but they still wanted to show this disaster in Taiji to the world. It helped. The most terrible scene is the cove with water covered by blood of killed dolphins, the dolphin’s screaming. The film makers showed how people can be inhuman in order to make money. If they wouldn’t risk their lives and freedom to make this film, nobody could know about this disaster in Taiji. Also they were talking about the mercury poisoning though the dolphin’s meat. This meat was used in schools; children ate the dolphin’s meat with mercury in it. It was harmful for people to eat this meat. Why people in Taiji are still killing dolphins? I think the film makers wanted us to think about this question.

The film had some results but not stopped the dolphins slaughtering in Taiji. Therefore, some people were fired and some countries refused to support Japan in dolphins and whales killing. So, the film makers did an impact on this situation.

Japan, in this case, in order to response to this problem can make a film about pigs and cows farming and killing, or about fishing. But those people in Taiji still will be on people’s mind. It will be hard to forget and not think about this film.