João Gilberto

‘For the Tropicália movement, music was a form of politics.’ Discuss. The music of Tropicália brought a subtle political message of unity and social activism to Brazil in a time of heavy repression. It developed in 1967, following the psychedelic rock movements of USA and UK, but was quickly restricted the following year when its founding members, Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso, were exiled as threats to society. Its music applied a mixture of musical styles, from Brazilian traditional dance to American rock, to create a new, synthesized culture of the tropical and the modern. In doing so, it rejected Brazil’s strong nationalist agenda, from both sides of the political spectrum, and posed as a social critique to both the conservative elite…

dominated the musical scenario, and it was produced by the low class population in the rodas de samba, which were groups of musicians who would informally gather in bars to play and compose. Bossa Nova produced international hits such as Garota de Ipanema by Tom Jobim, reinterpreted by Frank Sinatra as Girl from Ipanema. Mammi (1992) says that Bossa Nova represents the Rio de Janeiro middle class; it suggests the idea of a refined life without being aristocratic, of comfort that does not relate…

Relationships in The Things They Carried The Things They Carried is a collection of stories about the Vietnam War, but in reality, the book centers around the relationships the men make, their connections to the world they left behind and the connections that they formed to Vietnam. The stories are not war stories, but stories about love, respect and the bonds made between men when they spend day after day fighting just to stay alive. One of the clearest points in The Things They…

Once she was up in the air she was going to teach classes from space to kids all over the world. The temperature outside on the day of the launch was thirty two degrees fahrenheit, which is the freezing point of water. This was the coldest launch yet, but they made the decision to launch anyways. The coldest launch before this was fifteen degrees fahrenheit warmer which is forty seven degrees fahrenheit. Icicles covered the launch pad and the rocket boosters. The O-rings that connect the rocket…

Quipped by singer Judy Collins, “Suffering is the price of being alive.” In the novel The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, Wang Lung, along with his family, goes through life in 1930s China, experiencing tribulation and prosperity. The Good Earth sends a universal message about a life full of struggle, in hopes to thrive and be successful. The book, wasting no time with frivolous love stories or fairytale endings, focuses mainly on the hardships of Wang Lung. A poor farmer, he depends heavily on his…

One can argue that whenever an astronaut goes into space, they are subject to the unknown risks that space holds; like the Challenger accident made evident, space flight is not a routine practice. That theory could not be comparable to an astronaut embarking into space with the full knowledge of a pre-existing and very real mechanical issue that could be potentially fatal to the entire crew. In the case of the Challenger launch, there has been overwhelming evidence that the crew of astronauts…

Willa Cather was a famous female writer in the early 1900’s. In 1913 she wrote O Pioneers! It was the first book of her Great Plains trilogy. O Pioneers! Tells the story of the Swedish Bergson family that lives in Hanover, Nebraska. Alexandra Bergson, the main character, inherits the family farmland when her father John Bergson passes away. Alexandra Bergson devotes her life to two things, making a good farmland and the success of Emil Bergson, her youngest brother. In this story Willa Cather…

In the article called “Jay Z Testifies at ‘Big Pimpin’ Trail” by Associated Press from Bilboard, explains how the song "Big Pimpin" sample case was finally concluded to court after eight years of debate consideration between Osama Ahmed Fahmy and Jay Z and Timbaland. According to associated Press, both Jay Z and producer Timbaland will testify during the trail, which is set to begin on October 13. The argument of the trail basically ends up with whether or not Timbo and Jay Z rightfully sampled…

throughout the text. At the beginning of the story, Wang Lung presents his grandfather’s current physical state. His grandfather is very old and dependent upon others, and as his son, Wang Lung’s duty is to care for the old man throughout his old age until he dies. Wang Lung takes care of him throughout the rest of the story until he dies. “He had to lit the fire, boiled water, and poured the water into a bowl and taken it into the room where his father sat upon his bed, coughing and fumbling…

Deviance, a term that determine whether the fact or state is departing from usual or accepted standards due to his or her daily behavior of the society. From a sociological perspective, despite of the bias on person judgement toward the positive or negative outcomes, the criminal behaviors are more often to be considered deviant because they are outside the norm, such as those criminal cases that related to murders, rapes and frauds, in spite of there are also crimes that are not deviants but…