Allegretto con moto

Allegretto con moto

The taut hairs of the wooden bow

become blurry as they are drawn out over the

resonant steel strings

They hold the intricately carved wood in place

And the swift fingers leave

an invisible trace.

The notes float through the air

to form a sweet, silvery symphony

Twisting, turning

in singing swirls

Pulling, pushing

in constant complexity

And finally settling on a

mellifluous melody.

The notes ask and answer

in playful parlance

One turns arrogant, angry, atonal

causing the other to draw back

demure

An insistent note pierces through the air

  (tension

     tension

         tension)

— until they finally resolve themselves

into

a

harmony.

And so they disappear

Leaving the air to wonder

If they were ever

 really

   there.

The Unbreakable Bond

The two bikes are locked together, representing how Amir and Hassan are tied together by blood and brotherhood. In the picture, the bike on the right is higher than the one on the left. The higher bike represents Amir, “the socially legitimate half, the half that represented the riches [Baba] had inherited and the sin-with-impunity privileges that came with them” (301). The lock that ties the two bikes has two distinct parts: a bumpy, swirled top, and a straight bottom part. The bumpy top part represents Amir’s side of the friendship — his up and down attitude towards Hassan. The straight line of the lock on the bottom represents Hassan’s contribution to their friendship, and how he is always constant and loyal to Amir.

Amir and Hassan are locked together by something stronger than friendship — family blood. Although they do not always know it, their relationship always seems to be there and they are always tied together in some way. As brothers, they have their ups and downs, but are still forced together, sometimes when they do not want to be. Their relationship is tainted with a jealousy and immaturity that is always in the background, represented by the green bike. Amir is jealous of Hassan, vying for his father’s affections, and his immaturity causes him to choose the wrong path of action many times. However, regardless of all of their obstacles, they are still tied together by their shared blood and their past friendship.

The Ancient Crime of Piracy

In 75 BC, Julius Caesar was kidnapped by pirates off the island of Pharmacussa, near the coast of Africa: “[W]hen the pirates demanded a ransom of twenty talents, Caesar burst out laughing. They did not know, he said, who it was that they had captured, and he volunteered to pay fifty.” After he was released, he came back and crucified them (Plutarch). While piracy may seem like an ancient crime, for many years, kidnapping for ransom and hijacking for cargo theft have been a significant issue around the seas of Africa (Ten Things). Around 2008, piracy came back, driven by political instability in countries like Somalia (Palet), and it quickly became a profitable industry; in one incident, Somali pirates received $9,500,00 in ransom to spare the lives of Greek sailors they captured. According to the Center for Strategic Studies, there was a 244% increase in ship hijacks and 212% increase in hostage-taking between 2004 and 2008 in Africa. As Captain Poulin of the US Navy writes, “Piracy is a threat that transcends national borders. In a world where ninety percent of commerce travels by sea, anything that threatens maritime stability and security will have global ramifications” (Poulin). However, in recent years, piracy has gone down due to global initiatives to combat it.

Pirates have been deterred by innovative new technology, armed guards, and the creation of the world’s biggest pirate prison (Mungai). No ship with armed guards has ever been hijacked — however, the issue is controversial. The idea of armed guards has raised questions about the legal implications of having “floating armories” and the African government’s responsibility for mariners’ safety. In addition, many ships have installed water hoses, razor wires, and safe rooms (Rothwell). Other inventions include long range acoustic devices which emit loud sound frequencies to disorient pirates, boat traps with nets to disable motorboat propellers, and “Anti-Piracy Barriers” which prevent ladders and grappling hooks from attaching to ships (Mungai).

The primary reason that piracy has gone down is because of international collaboration among maritime powers. As the problem grew worse, the United Nations gave nations the authorization to combat piracy on African waters (Poulin). Ironically, the failure of one government led to concerted and and effective action by others: “With Somalia unable to police its waters, piracy became a problem that powerful governments saw as theirs to solve” (Mungai). Many task forces were convened, and over twenty countries contributed ships to the anti-piracy effort. One successful counter-piracy program, involving China and the United States, helped train the two navies to patrol the East African seas and work together effectively. Countless other United Nations resolutions also called countries to action; Resolution 1851 stated, “[O]rganizations that have the capacity to do so, [should] take part actively in the fight against piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia…by deploying naval vessels and military aircraft” (Poulin).

Although the modern resurgence of piracy has been controlled for now, many experts  say that if the problem is considered solved and ignored, it will just come back. Further action is still required to combat piracy, primarily in West Africa where the problem is still growing. In addition, further reforms need to be made to address the current lower levels of piracy. Some argue that piracy patrols should also regulate other types of maritime crime such as human trafficking (Walker). Regardless, it is clear that piracy is a relevant issue that comes with high consequences for the economy and human lives, and it cannot be ignored. While piracy may seem like an ancient crime, it has modern ramifications that every country should be concerned about, especially Africa.

Works Cited

Caldwell, Stephen. "Ongoing U.S. Counterpiracy Efforts Would Benefit From Agency

Assessments." US Government Accountability Office. N.p., 23 June 2014. Web. 12

Mar. 2016.
Mungai, Christine. "How East African Piracy Ended, and Lessons West Africa Can Learn

to End Crime on Its Waters." MG Africa. 22 Feb. 2015. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.

Palet, Laura S. "This Is the New Piracy Hot Spot." OZY. 26 Feb. 2016. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.

Plutarch. "Caesar and the Pirates." Livius. Trans. Robin Seager. N.p., 23 Nov. 2015. Web.

15 Mar. 2016.

Poulin, Andrew. "How the World Overpowered Piracy in the Horn of Africa." International Policy Digest. N.p., 16 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2016.

Rothwell, Sonia. "The International Community Must Maintain Its Efforts to Combat

Piracy." Piracy on the High Seas. Ed. Debra A. Miller. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2014. At Issue. Rpt. from "Has Piracy Around the Horn of Africa Gone?" Oilprice.com. 2013. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2016.

"Ten Things You Should Know about West African Piracy." Gray Page. 16 July 2014.

Web. 04 Mar. 2016.

Walker, Timothy. "Africa: Beyond Piracy - What Next for Maritime Security?"

AllAfrica.com. 08 Feb. 2016. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.

With Ignorance You Cannot See

Sijie uses Four Eyes’ glasses as a symbol of coming of age throughout the book. Four Eyes is dependent on his glasses, and in a way, he hides behind them. Four Eyes is kind of a cowardly person, and his glasses represent that. Additionally, the fact that Four Eyes wears glasses shows that he can be blind and closed minded, especially to other people’s opinions. He is only focused on his own goal and nothing else. When Four Eyes’ glasses become broken, he depends on his mom to send him another one. This shows that he is dependent on his parents, and also that his glasses represent his hopes of getting out of re-education to reunite with them. His mom is the one that helps him get new glasses as well as get out of re-education, and without his glasses, he can’t work in the fields or do anything else. He is using Luo and the narrator in this way, because he doesn’t actually consider them friends, he is just using them to get out of the re-education system.

Another idea through the symbolism of Four Eyes’ glasses is how the buffalo is the one that knocks them off, and in effect, breaks them. The buffalo represents the peasants and whole re-education system, and how the buffalo is taking away what Four Eyes needs and also his chance to get out. Throughout the book, Four Eyes does change, but the glasses just represent how he acts as his parents taught him to and he becomes more and more like that; he uses people to get what he wants behind a cowardly facade.

“The buffalo was of medium size, but boasted an exceptionally long tail, which swung vigorously from side to side as though determined to splatter its timid, inexperienced master with as much filth as possible. For all of his efforts to dodge the relentless lashes, one split second of inattention was enough for Four-Eyes to receive a blow to the face from the buffalo’s trail, which sent his spectacles hurtling through the air...he let out a stream of abuse, as if he had been blinded” (47).

“‘I’ve written to my mother. She’s going to send me a new pair as soon as possible, but I can’t sit and do nothing until they arrive. I’ve got to work, that’s what I’m here for. At least that’s what the headman says.’ He talked very rapidly, as if he had no time to waste on us” (53).

Existence

The Tao is

and was

and always has been.

It is the way, the reason things are as they are,

the path, the absolute

It is above existence

It does nothing, yet through it all things are done

You cannot find it, yet it is always there

Following only itself

It is what it is

Through the Tao

You know the yin and the yang

You give up everything

to be given everything

Letting go of fixed plans and concepts

Your heart is at peace.

Streams of Subconsciousness