... several unique legal factors present in the progression of the landmark ruling in the case of Perez versus Sharp (1948) and the creation of Proposition 8 on the California ballot in 2008. Complicating this progression is the unique role of San Francisco's city government which overruled the findings of federal courts and allowed same-sex marriage in their city (Barron, 2218). As a result, there continues to be an influx of homosexual and lesbian couples to San Francisco ... this point the opposing sides of Proposition 8 disagreed the most, with those in favor of overturning the ban on s...

• Word Count: 907
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... with precedents as other areas as well, making the dissolution of a marriage particularly challenging and difficult. There is also the negative connotation of gay marriage undermining the traditional definition of the institution of marriage, specifically between a man and a woman. This has continued to lead to more ostracism and a lack of support from many courts in ruling on custody cases of children from divorced gay homes and the dissolution of gay marriages as well. Summary For gay ... partners seeking to have the full benefits of a legal marriage, the majority of ... ...

• Word Count: 914
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan The novel, The Kitchen God's Wife is a true-life story told in flashbacks, by a mother (Winnie) to her daughter (Pearl). She relates the incidents that had occurred in her life when she was in China. The story begins with the memories of a six-year old, about her mother who she loves intensely. At such a tender age she experiences the pangs of separation when her mother suddenly disappears from her life. Till her marriage to Wen Fu, Winnie lives in Tsungming Island where her treatment is no better than that of an orphan. Despite all the sufferings that Winnie ...

• Word Count: 136
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... they did not make any trouble to anyone. It is about 2 people loving each other and want to be together.The law do not say that you can not have sex before marriage.The couples may think that they are mature enough and have responsibility. Live-in relationship is the good way to get to know each other.I think when people love each other,they ... have the idea of getting married but they will never know whether they are the perfect match or not.In order to get to ... know each other better,living together before marriage seems to be the good way.If ... ...

• Word Count: 353
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... , on top of allaying her hunger, the pronunciations of long an, candied jujube and lotus seeds also rhyme with certain words that convey blessings and good wishes. Just like the old times, the bride nowadays usually eats these kinds of snacks before the ceremony for similar purposes. Because during the whole wedding ceremony, the bride has to make toast continuously to the invited guests and has little chance to sit down and eat. It is ... are normally made up of 8 different kinds of candy and are packed in small red packets. The purpose of this custom is to share the sweet feelings brou...

• Word Count: 9974
• Approx Pages: 40
• Grade Level: High School

... : In Magpies, abuse of power is present in both Rose's and An-Mei's stories. An-Mei's mother was abused by Wu Tsing because her mother was too weak to resist. Ted also did the same. Both men also hide their true self from their wives. Wu Tsing, and his rich merchant lifestyle with his big mansion cloaked his evil personality. Ted also pretends for ... . Traditional China: I think that in this chapter there is a clear comparison between the ways of America and the traditions of China. There are many descriptions of how China is very different such as the building with bamboo poles as suppo...

• Word Count: 295
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... her interaction with the others. (Witcomb and Benson, pg.87) Knowing most of the key concepts of the Confucian Code makes is easier to look into Pei's family and discover the relationship between the two. Another important concept in Confucian China was the restricting gender roles. These roles become apparent in Women of the Silk and in Pei's family. In the first scene of the book, Pei's mother is giving birth to a new baby. The importance of the baby is ... continuously throughout the novel. For most Chinese women at that time, including Pei, were sent to work in silk factories. When ...

• Word Count: 679
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... of my living status and social norms in the imperial times in China including the norms that the society held upon regarding men and women's statuses compared. I base the evaluations in line with the knowledge and understanding of the Confucian ideologies, through the  information  and facts in reading that I learned from class as well as elsewhere as I grew up in China watching and reading television and paper documentaries regarding this  important piece of history for not only the Chinese ... but all mankind civilizations as a whole. I was born in 1500 AD, of the Ming dynasty when...

• Word Count: 1804
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

When it comes to personal strengths and weaknesses, we all have some learning experience in life. Knowing what we are good at and what we are weak in can help us to overcome the obstacles of lives. For me, personal strengths and weaknesses is a key to be a successful person. If I realize that I have a weakness in certain area in life, I will work to improve myself in that area ... . I consider this characteristic of mine a strength. For example some of the strength that I need to focus on. Religion: Almost all people have a belief in ... their lives. I consider my religion is my strength beca...

• Word Count: 310
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... decides to do what's right, and stay pure for marriage, that person will be less likely to get a divorce. Also, if that person stays pure, it will make their first time more special with their spouse. Lastly, one should stay pure because the Bible tells them to. For these three reasons, everyone should have the power of purity. Facts show that people who stay pure ... until marriage, have a less likely chance of getting divorced. If a person saves him/herself for marriage, then there is a deeper bond of love between that person and their spouse. If more marriages had this love, divorce ...

• Word Count: 275
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... period in jail, three hours of public humiliation on the scaffold, and the requirement of wearing a scarlet letter "A" on her chest for the rest of her life, serving as "a living sermon against sin" (Hawthorne 69). After confessing her sin and accepting the punishment, Hester was able to move on with life. She was able to bring up a strong and confident daughter. She was a talented seamstress and a devoted nurse with "so ... much power to do and power to sympathize" (158). She gave to the poor and needy. "None so ready as she to give of her little substance to every demand of poverty- (...

• Word Count: 1175
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... for studying the language, and the other is time for a real observation. Her name is Margery Wolf who does not agree herself as an anthropologist but her husband is an anthropologist who is interested in Chinese families. Otherwise, Wolf would like to send to her readers three things "to present a case study for the social scientist interested in the strains inherent to the form of family considered ... responsibility toward a good name of the family because it has a great effective leadership within Peihotien country village. Besides that, communication is a next obstacle for her altho...

• Word Count: 991
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... to men. Therefore, the struggle for equality and the end to sex discrimination continues. Since the year 221 BC, the philosophy of China has always been male dominance over women. In the 5th century BC, Chinese philosopher Confucius set three rules for women to follow. The first was "obedience to the father before marriage, obedience to the husband after marriage, and obedience to the son after the death of the husband." (Tan p. 11) Chinese history has been ... they didn't want to take off their clothes to be examined by a male doctor. So little value was placed on the lives of women th...

• Word Count: 2634
• Approx Pages: 11
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

"The Joy Luck Club," by Amy Tan, is about four mothers and four daughters talking about their relationships sharing key points in their lives. Lena St. Clair was one of those daughters; half Chinese and half English-Irish. She talked about her relationship with her mother Ying-ying St. Clair and her marriage with her husband Harold Livotny. Lena St. Clair is immature from childhood to adulthood as ... evidenced by her thoughts of a beggar's death, her reluctance to eat ... ...

• Word Count: 918
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... married by the end of the book. In this book, we see three generations of Chinese women and their lives and destinies. Ning Lao T"ai-t"ai lived a difficult but full life. She has seen much in her time; she showed us the traditional thought and role of Chinese women and this gives us a sense of what life was like in the nineteenth century. I feel that the characters in the book do represent some aspect of Chinese thought and tradition ... , but does not reflect today's Chinese society. Today, women have gained many more rights and privileges and their roles have expanded beyond simply dau...

• Word Count: 1253
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... 's was originally about pursuing happiness, growth, and indivivualism, but the dream was corrupted by greed and the desire for pleasure. In the Great Gatsby, almost every character had a desire for something. The characters in the story were corrupted by greed. Jay Gatsby, the stories main character, is the first example of amorality. Coming from a poor family with nothing, Gatsby desired wealth, security, and to be an intellectual aristocrat. He wished to ... another key character in the story. He is married to Daisy, Gatsby's love interest. Tom desires power and wealth and he is a very...

• Word Count: 345
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... the left hand of the couple. The rings remain on the left hand until the wedding day in which then are placed on the right hand. The most symbolic moment of a Greek wedding is that of the wedding crowns, "stefana"". These crowns denote that the bride will become the queen and the husband the king of the household. After the ceremony the bride and groom exit the church while the guests shower them with rice and almond candies, "koufeta"", for good luck. In the Chinese culture the ... marriage and ... ...

• Word Count: 1069
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

The main themes in "The Rocking-Horse Winner" are the pursuit of love and luck. Both of the main characters in "The Rocking-Horse Winner," the mother and Paul, are in pursuit of love. First the mother marries for love, and the love fades. She gains children from her marriage, but she can not love them. Nowhere in her life can she find love. She rejects the closest thing to love, her young son Paul. Her ... feelings toward her children, especially Paul, are exemplified when her children are around. She feels the centre of her heart go hard. Everyone thought of her as a great mother who loved h...

• Word Count: 260
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... county, through the lives of the Chinese people who were so directly affected by the morals and customs of the time period. Chapter one, The Observers, begins by demonstrating the accuracy of the local historian; Feng K'o-ts'an, who compiled The Local History of T'an-ch'eng in 1673. The descriptive context of the Local History encapsulates the reader's attention to understand and literally project themselves into people's lives of the period. The records of the earthquake of 1668, the White Lotus rising of 1622, and rebels rising ... Local History, Mr. Spence defines the meaning of prop...

• Word Count: 1409
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... by her mother. She bounces from the old family tales, to the tales of her mother and then to tales of her aunt, Moon Orchid. Kingston was the expected subject of the autobiography, but it seems more like a tale of her family history. She talks about the act of speech. It becomes a way to act out against the Chinese community. The chanting of the descendant line shows a type of fellowship and bond between the women. Her mother built a verbal ... and terrifying, the phantoms of our mind can and do become real. The "Ghost from Chinese past" becomes a real being in her life. He asks us to t...

• Word Count: 715
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... missing...always needed improvements...not in balance" (19). This reveals that Suyuan is lacking something herself and feels not good enough for her family. We later discover her past and the twin girls she left behind in China. This past life draws readers and makes the story more interesting but a little confusing at the same time. This past comes back to Jing-Mei when her mother dies ... and Jing-Mei begins to understand how hard it is to let go of the people you love, which makes her become more ... forth a tough exterior, but it's clear that she has some insecurities and although ...

• Word Count: 1115
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... who are in happy marriage, commit adultery. It's the desire for variety, twist their sense of judgment. More then one in five Americans do have an affair in their life time. There are 2 patterns in the timing of affairs. A married woman like hood of staying is the highest in the first five years. For men is the first five years and after 20th year. Even though marriages are tied ... down by the vows. But the young married couples are tempted by the craving for flirtation and sexually charges. One reason for affair is for couples feeling ... rebelliousness against vows. In recent survey...

• Word Count: 276
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... one person who will be there trough the hardest of times in life. He or she finds one person who they will wake up just to see him or her every morning. So was the life of Henry David Thoreau. One Day while on a boating trip with his brother, John, in his hometown, Concord, he met Ellen Sewall. Little did he know at that time ... , Ellen would later become the love of his life. Ellen Sewall was a young girl Boston who came from a very wealthy ... family. When Thoreau and Sewall first met, she was a mere 17 years old. Both John and Henry David courted Ellen Sewall during that time period...

• Word Count: 304
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... . Throughout her life Edna feels the need for attention from all men. This explains why she marries Leonce Pontellier, her deep feelings for Robert Leburn, and her sexual affairs with Alcee Arobin. Because her husband spends most of his time away from home on business trips, Edna is left with a great deal of time for herself. Leonce spends little time worrying about family matters. He ... constantly criticizes Edna and only cares about money and his own reputation. Edna knows she need to be ... with Leonce for his financial support and stability. Edna is not sure if she is in love with ...

• Word Count: 355
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... is an eventful day. The bride to be and her closest friends retreat to a living of seclusion for as long as needed. There the ladies sing, mourn the departing of the bride from her family, curse the "go-between" as well as the grooms" family and girls" parents. It is a little less harsh preparing for the wedding on the grooms" part. The day before the wedding he is in charge of "installing" the bridal bed. It is ... is followed by the exchange of wedding bands. Both the bride and groom can exchange rings. In the Jewish wedding, only the bride receives a ring. A retreat to a scared "Saka...

• Word Count: 2066
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School