Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh has risen to the peak of artistic achievements.

Although Van Gogh sold only one

painting in his life, the aftermath of his work is enormous. Starry Night is one of the most well known images in
modern culture as well as being one of the most replicated and sought after prints. From Don McLean's
song 'Vincent' (Starry, Starry Night) (Based on the Painting), to the endless number of merchandise products sporting
this image, it is nearly impossible to shy away from this amazing painting.
One may begin to ask what features within the painting are responsible for its ever growing popularity. There are
actually several main aspects that intrigue those who view this image, and each factor affects each individual
differently. The aspects will be described below:

1. There is the night sky filled with swirling clouds, stars ablaze with their own luminescence, and a bright crescent moon.
Although the features are exaggerated, this is a scene we can all relate to, and also one that most individuals feel comfortable
and at ease with. This sky keeps the viewer's eyes moving about the painting, following the curves and creating a visual dot to
dot with the stars. This movement keeps the onlooker involved in the painting while the other factors take hold.
2. Below the rolling hills of the horizon lies a small town. There is a peaceful essence flowing from the structures. Perhaps the
cool dark colors and the fiery windows spark memories of our own warm childhood years filled with imagination of what exists
in the night and dark starry skies. The center point of the town is the tall steeple of the church, reigning largely over the smaller
buildings. This steeple casts down a sense of stability onto the town, and also creates a sense of size and seclusion.
3. To the left of the painting there is a massive dark structure that develops an even greater sense of size and isolation. This
structure is magnificent when compared to the scale of other objects in the painting. The curving lines mirror that of the sky and
create the sensation of depth in the painting. This structure also allows the viewer to interpret what it is. From a mountain to a
leafy bush, the analysis of this formation is wide and full of variety.
Van Gogh painted Starry Night while in an Asylum at Saint-Remy in 1889.
During Van Gogh's younger years (1876-1880) he wanted to dedicate his life to evangelization of those in poverty.
Many believe that this religious endeavor may be reflected in the eleven stars of the painting. In Genesis 37:9 the
following
statement
is
made:

"And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the
sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me."
Whether or not this religious inspiration is true, it is known that
the piece is not the only Starry Night painting that Van Gogh ever
created. Gogh was quite proud of a piece he had painted earlier
in Arles in 1888 that depicted stars reflecting in the Rhone River.
Like Starry Night this previous piece shares many of the qualities
that have made Starry Night such a popular painting. For instance:
The stars in the night sky are surrounded with their own orb of light.
The Reflection of artificial light (new to the time period) from Arles in the
river makes the one's eyes move around the painting; thus keeping the
viewer visually involved.
There are structures in the distant lit up in a warm glow of light.
Starry Night over the Rhone contains one final aspect that is not
featured in the Starry Night piece; humans. In the bottom right
corner of the painting there is a couple walking along the river.
This gives the painting a down to earth feel with a natural quality. Although this painting is not nearly as popular
as the seconded Starry Night piece, it still creates a pleasurable and life like environment to look at. It is also
resides as a very sought after piece when it is placed with Starry Night and the following painting to create a
montage of Van Gogh's Starry Night works.

Cafe Terrace At Night was also painted in Arles in 1888. The similarities
between this piece the previous two are vaguely similar. This piece offers a
new type of perspective on the star filled sky.
The Stars are barely consumed in their own light.
The bright yellow wall draws in ones attention rather then assisting to move one's
eyes around the painting.
There is a sense of balance attributed to the dark cityscape silhouette to the right of
the painting (Contrasting the bright yellow wall).
Never the less these three paintings have astounded millions of people and
remain three of the best works ever to flow from Van Gogh's paint brush.
Each Day hundreds of people crowd around the original paintings located in
various art museums to offer their own personal interpretation as to the
meaning of the pieces. Although we may never know how Vincent himself
truly felt about these paintings, mankind still embraces their greatness.

Feel free to click on any of the paintings on this page to receive an

enlarged view. Below you can look around through various other
information we have listed about the Starry Night pieces. Or download wallpapers, icons, and other things for you
to use.

Have you ever wondered why women always wahses the dishes? Its because of this story:
In the town of Santa Rosa there once lived a couple named Hugo and Imelda. Every mealtime they quarreled over the
chore of washing the dishes. Imelda would scold Hugo if he refused to wash the dishes. Sometimes she would become
angry and call him names, and if he talked back she would get coconut midrib broom and chase him with it. He would
run to the house of his compadre and hide there till his wifes anger had passed.
The neighbors familiarly called Imelda, Ka Maldang and Hugo, Ka Ugong.
One day just as they were finishin their lunch, Ka Ugong announced: Im not going to wash the dishes any more. He
threw out his chest and lifted his chin.
Who says so? asked Ka Maldang, holding up her chin, highert than his.
I say so; I worked so hard in the field this morning. Im not going to wash any dish.
Ka Maldang stood up and with her arms akimbo, she glared down at Ka Ugong across the table. She was at Ka Ugong
across the table. She was a Big woman. Her arms were stourt. Her voice was also big. Ad who, Mister Hugo, is going to
wash these dishes? she asked.
Ka Ugongs chest sank again. His chin salso went down. He held on the edge of the table nervously.
You! he said in a much lower tone. You are the woman. You should do all the housework.
And what do you do? asked Ka Maldang. You tie the carabao to the reeds in the field and then you lie down on the
grass to watch it graze. You call that hard work? I cook, clean the house, wash your clothes, I scrub the floor, I do all the
work that only slaves should do. And yet, you even refuse to help me wash the plate which you have eaten! Ka
Maldangs voice was now raised to a high pitch and her tears posed on her eyelids at Ka Ugong and at her broom. She
grabbed the broom. She raised the broom to strike him, crying, You, you, you lazy man!
Ka Ugong ducked under the table, Dont he cried. Dont strike me!
Come out from under the table, you coward. ordered Ka Maldang.
Lay down your broom, said Ka Ugong.
All right, all right. Come out. Ka Maldang put her broom behind the door.
Ka Ugong returned to his seat opposite her at the table.
What have you to say? asked Ka Maldang, wipingher eyes.
Lets stop quarreling over the plates. Lets have a wager. The first one of us who will speak after Id said Begin will
wash the dishes. Always
Only that? said Ka Maldang. The first one who talks will always wash the plates, and bowls, and pots and pans.
Always.
Right. said Ka Ugong. If you ever say just one word to me or to anybody, or to anything after I had said Begin, you
will always wash the dishes.
Thats easy. I can keep my mouth shut even for a week. You cant. You even talk to your carabao.

All right, are you ready? asked Ka Ugong.

Ka Maldang sat upright in front of him across the table. She nodded her head, compressed her lips, and Ka Ugong said
Begin.
They both fell silent. They sat at the table looking at each other across the unwashed plates and bowls and spoons. They
did not like to leave each other for fear that one would talk to him self without the others hearing. They sat there just
staring.
Soon tje cat began to mew for its food. Neither Ka Maldang nor Ka Ugong paid attention to its mewing. The cat jumped
upon the drying dishes to lick the leftovers. Ka Maldang did not drive the cat away. Neither did Ka Ugong. The cat licked
the pot and pan on it, overturned a kettle, spilled its contents, then went to lie down under the table. Ka Ugong
pretended that nothing had happened. He continue to sit still, and so did Ka Maldang.
Soon, it was getting late in the afternoon but they went on sitting mutely at the lunch table. Their eyes were tired from
staring hard at each other. Tears began to roll down their cheeks. Ka Ugongs shirt became damp with his sweat. Ka
Maldangs sweat gathered on her fore heat, and trickle down to the sides of her face, and fell drop by drop to her
breast.
A neighbor called, Compadre Ugong! Oh! Compadre!
Ka Ugong did not answer.
The neighbor called again, Comadre Maldang! Yoo-hoo Comadre Maldang. Yoo-hoo, Compadre Ugong, may I borrow
your ax?
Ka Maldang did not answer. Ka Ugong looked at her silently.
Perhaps nobody is at home , they heard the neighbor say to himself. But why did they leave their ladder at the door?
They usually remove the ladder when they go away. Well, Ill just go up get the ax and return it later. The neighbor
went up.
When the neighbor went u the bamboo ladder he was surprised to see Ka Maldang and Ka Ugong sitting silently at the
table where the plates had dried up with the leftovers. He hurried toward them.
Ka Ugong nether moved nor talked. The neighbor repeated his question. He shook Ka Ugong;s shoulder. Ka Ugong let
him shake him, closing his lips tighter.
The neighbor turned to Ka Maldang. Speak, Comadre! What happened? He shook her shoulders, too.
She pushed him roughly aside but did not speak.
Did you eat something poisonous? Some food that has made you dumb? He shook each one alternately. But still
neither stood up nor talked.
The neighbor was alarmed . He did not get the ax but ran out to the rest of the neighbors, He told them that something
terrible had happened to to his Compadre Ugong and Compadre Maldang. The neighbors gathered at Ka Maldangs
dining room. They took turns trying to make them speak. But the two continued to sit staring at each other in silence. Ka
Maldang looked at her husband threateningly for a moment then closed her eyes. Ka Ugong knew that she did so to
avoid looking at the neighbors, He also closed his eyesand ignored every one who had come up to his house. Ka Maldang
was very angry with her Compadres interference but she dared not to speak her mind, She pretended to be asleep.

The compadre was very much worried. He ran to the village herb man. The herb man came and when he saw the
motionless, silent husband and wife sitting at the table, he declared that they were bewitched. He spread a woven bud
mat in the center of the sala and asked the bewitched couple to lie down. Ka Ugong obediently lay down and closed
his eyes. He curled up and went to sleep. But Ka Maldang refused to get up from where she sat at the dining table
The herb man said Ah, the spirit that has taken possession of her is very stubborn. I must break its spell.
He turned, then produced from a small bag which he always carried nine pieces of betel leaf, a piece of areca nut, and a
little lime from a tiny bottle. He examined the leaves closely to choose those which had veins running in identical
arrangements on each side of the midrib. He cut the nut into nine pieces. He spread a little lime on each betel leaf,
rolled them and wrapped them around each piece of areca nut. He now had nine rings of the leaves.
This represents the lost spirit of the couple, he said.
He chewed the leaf and nut. When he had chewed it he spat it on his palm, dipped a forefinger of the other hand into
the nut colored saliva and marked with it a cross on the foreheads of Ka Ugong and Ka Maldang. Ka Ugong did not seem
to feel the old mans finger on his forehead. Ka Maldang caught the mans forefinger and twisted it. The old herb doctor
cried aray and pulled back his hand. He moved toward Ka Ugong who was lying down. Calling his name softly and
slowly several times. Come, Ugong, Come back, Ugong! Ka Ugong did not move nor speak.
Come Maldangcome home to your body nowcome. Maldang! chanted the old man. Ka Maldang did not answer.
Evening fell on the frightened village, frightened because the herb doctor said that the spell might be cast on some other
villagers besides Ka Ugong and Ka Maldang. He called to the bewitched couple softly at first, and then louder, but
became tired so she reclined against the bamboo wall.
The old her man said, This is the first witchery of its kind that I have met here. By their silence I believe that they are
dead. Their spirits, driven away by the witch, have left their bodies. The only thing to do in order to keep their souls in
peace and to prevent this witchery craft from spreading among us is to bury them.
The herb man ordered some of the men to look for boards and make two coffins immediately before the malady would
go to them. In no time, the two coffins, made of rough planks, hurriedly nailed together, were finished .
The women began to weep for Ka Maldang. She had leaned rigidly against the back of her chair, closed her eyes, and
shut her lips tight. The herb man asked the men gathered around to lift the couple into the coffins.
We shall bury them at sunrise. Some of us have to stay to keep the wake for the dead, he said.
The man easily lifted Ka Ugong and places him inside his coffin. Surely, he thought to himself, he would win the wager.
He would not be afraid of being buried. Why, he would just get cut of the grave when the neighbors were gone. He
thought everything going on was great fun and he was enjoying himself. How he would frighten them all when he
returned from his grave!
The herb man approached Ka Maldang. Although her eyes were closed, she had been listening to his directions. She was
afraid that he would surely force her into the coffin if she did not tell him to go away. But she did not want to talk. She
hoped her husband would object to the mens lifting her into the coffin.
Surely, Hugo will not let me be buried tomorrow. Uh, Im afraid to sleep in that coffin tonight. No, Ill not let them lift
me into it, she thought to herself.
But she did not hear Ka Ugong speak. She opened her eyes just as the herb man, aided by two other men, put his arms
around her to lift up from her chair.

Ka Maldang pushed the men, got up to her feet, and shouted, Dont touch us! Get out! Get out of my house. Shame on
you for coming here, meddling with our lives!
Ka Ugong leaped to his feet. He also shouted, You talked first!
He jumped about clapping his hands and saying to the astonished neighbors, She talked first. We had a wager. Now she
will always wash the dishes!
Ka Maldang lifted up the lid of Ka Ugongs coffin to strike his head with it but he ran out with his neighbors, still shouting
happily and saying I won, I knew I would win! Now Ill never wash dishes.
Analysis

Cultural Studies' primary goal is to understand the nature of social power reflected within the text It is judged according
to its role or use in daily life. It studies the totality and the whole context of a culture inside a text.
It was shown here in the short story how it came to be that women wash dishes in the culture of the Filipinos. It is a
funny story about the culture of the Filipinos. As we all know, we Filipinos think before that man is supposed to work
and the wife only stays at home and do the house chores. The author told it in a humorous way but at the same time it is
being ridiculed. A lot our not agreeing with the thinking that men is stronger then women. So now a days Filipino
has overcame this way and thinks of men and women equally.

Essence And Attribute

by: Fernando Sorrentino
Translated by Clark M. Zlotchew
On July 25, as I tried to hit letter A, I noticed a slight wart on the pinky of my left hand. On the 27th it seemed
considerably larger. On the third of August, with the help of a jeweler's loupe, I was able to discern its shape. It
was a sort of diminutive elephant: the world's smallest elephant, yes, but an elephant complete down to the
smallest detail. It was attached to my finger at the end of its little tail. So that, while it was my pinky finger's
prisoner, it nevertheless enjoyed freedom of movement except that its locomotion completely depended on my
will.
Proudly, fearfully, hesitatingly I exhibited him to my friends. They were revolted, they said it couldn't be
good to have an elephant on one's pinky, they advised me to consult a dermatologist. I scorned their words, I
consulted with no one, I had nothing further to do with them, I gave myself over entirely to studying the
evolution of the elephant.
Toward the end of August it was already a handsome little gray elephant the length of my pinky although
quite a bit thicker. I played with him all day. At times I was pleased, to annoy him, to tickle him, to teach him
to do somersaults and to jump over tiny obstacles: a match box, a pencil sharpener, an eraser.
At that time it seemed appropriate to christen him. I thought of several silly, and apparently traditional,
names worthy of an elephant: Dumbo, Jumbo, Yumbo ..., Finally, I ascetically decided to call him just plain
Elephant.
I loved to feed Elephant. I scattered over the table bread crumbs, lettuce leaves, bits of grass. And out there
at the edge, a piece of chocolate. Then Elephant would struggle to get to his treat. But if I held my hand tight,
Elephant never could reach it. In this way I confirmed the fact that Elephant was only a part - the weakest part
- of myself.
A short time later - when Elephant had acquired the size of a rat, let us say - I could no longer control him
so easily. My pinky was too puny to withstand his impetuousness.
< 2 >
At that time I still was under the misapprehension that the phenomenon consisted solely of Elephant's
growth. I was disabused of this idea when Elephant reached the size of a lamb: on that day I too was the size of
a lamb.
That night - and a few others too - I slept on my stomach with my left hand protruding from the bed: on the
floor beside me slept Elephant. Afterwards I had to sleep - face down, my head on his croup, my feet on his
back - on top of Elephant. Almost immediately I found just a portion of his haunch to be sufficient. Afterward,
his tail. Afterward, the very tip of his tail, where I was only a small wart, totally imperceptible.
At that time I was afraid I might disappear, cease to be me, be a mere millimeter of Elephant's tail. Later I
lost that fear, I regained my appetite. I learned to feed myself with leftover crumbs, with grains of birdseed,
with bits of grass, with almost microscopic insects.
Of course this was before. Now I have come to occupy once again a more worthy space on Elephant's tail.
True, I am still aleatory. But I can now get hold of an entire biscuit and watch - invisibly, inexpugnably - the
visitors to the Zoo.
At this stage of the game I am very optimistic. I know that Elephant has begun to shrink. As a result, I am
filled with an anticipated feeling of superiority by the unconcerned passers - by who toss biscuits to us,
believing only in the obvious Elephant they have before them without suspecting that he is no more than a
future attribute of the latent essence which still lies in wait.

The Metamorphosis
by Franz Kafka

Published in 1915, The Metamorphosis is a widely read Novella from Franz Kafka. It is
widely read in schools throughout the world.
The story follows Gregor Samsa, a traveling salesman who works to provide for his
parents and sister. One morning he awakens to find that he has been transformed into a
monstruous insect. He is unable to work and becomes a claustrophile, attached to closedin spaces. Since he can no longer support the family, they begin working again.
The story may be based on Kafka's personal experience with severe insomnia which
made him dependent upon his sister. Indeed, in the story Grete Samsa becomes his
caretaker after the metamorphosis. That relationship starts off cordially and cooperatively
but deteriorates to a passive aggressive state with Grete leaving his room in disarray to
spite Gregor. She dreams of attending the music conservatory to play the violin, a dream
that Gregor had been working towards, and hoped to announce on Christmans Eve.
Instead Grete begins work as a salesgirl.
Mr. Samsa, Gregor's father, returns to work after the metamorphosis. He is unkind and
harsh to Gregor. Mrs. Samsa, his mother struggles alternatively between her maternal
instincts and her fear and revulsion of the her son's new form.

The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald that follows a cast of
characters living in the fictional town of West Egg on prosperous Long Island in the summer of 1922. The story
primarily concerns the young and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and his quixotic passion and obsession for
the beautiful former debutante Daisy Buchanan. Considered to be Fitzgerald's magnum opus, The Great
Gatsby explores themes ofdecadence, idealism, resistance to change, social upheaval, and excess, creating a
portrait of the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twentiesthat has been described as a cautionary tale regarding
theAmerican Dream.[1][2]
Fitzgeraldinspired by the parties he had attended while visiting Long Island's north shorebegan planning
the novel in 1923, desiring to produce, in his words, "something newsomething extraordinary and beautiful
and simple and intricately patterned."[3]Progress was slow, with Fitzgerald completing his first draft following a
move to the French Riviera in 1924. His editor, Maxwell Perkins, felt the book was too vague and convinced
the author to revise over the next winter. Fitzgerald was ambivalent about the book's title, at various times
wishing to re-title the novel Trimalchioin West Egg.
First published by Scribner's in April 1925, The Great Gatsbyreceived mixed reviews and sold poorly; in its first
year, the book sold only 20,000 copies. Fitzgerald died in 1940, believing himself to be a failure and his work
forgotten. However, the novel experienced a revival during World War II, and became a part of American high
school curricula and numerous stage and film adaptations in the following decades. Today, The Great
Gatsby is widely considered to be a literary classic and a contender for the title "Great American Novel". In
1998 the Modern Library editorial board voted it the 20th century's best American novel and second best
English-language novel of the same time period.

Les Misrables (pronounced /ls mz()rb()lz/ or/le mzrb/; French pronunciation: [le mizeabl()]) is
a Frenchhistorical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of
the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original French title,
however several alternatives have been used, including The Miserable, The Wretched, The Miserable
Ones, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, The Victims and The Dispossessed.[1] Beginning in 1815 and
culminating in the 1832June Rebellion in Paris, the novel follows the lives and interactions of several
characters, particularly the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his experience of redemption.[2]
Examining the nature of law and grace, the novel elaborates upon the history of France, the architecture and
urban design of Paris, politics, moral philosophy, antimonarchism, justice, religion, and the types and nature
of romantic and familial love. Les Misrables has been popularized through numerous adaptations for the
stage, television, and film, including a musical and a film adaptation of that musical.
The appearance of the novel was highly anticipated and advertised. Critical reactions were diverse, but most of
them were negative. Commercially, the work was a great success globally.