Thursday, November 28, 2019

How does the opening sequence of Gladiator and Saving Private Ryan raise the audiences expectations Essay Example

How does the opening sequence of Gladiator and Saving Private Ryan raise the audiences expectations Paper Before the films Saving Private Ryan and Gladiator have begun the audience already has an expectation of the film based on the actors and directors of the two movies. Both films have Auteurs as directors and have famous actors playing the protagonist of the movies. This will give the audience expectations of the film based on the status of the actors and directors. Both directors Steven Spielberg and Ridley Scott have directed impressive films in all types of genre. Tom Hanks and Russell Crowe play the protagonists in the two films (Tom Hanks-Saving Private Ryan Russell Crowe-Gladiator) which are shown in the posters advertising the two films; these also show the genre of the two movies. The opening sequence of the two movies features montages with very little background sound. Gladiators opening shots show a close up of a hand being run through a field. The hand has a ring on showing that the man is married. The field is bathed in golden light; strong contrast to the first shot of the protagonist, which is lit with chiaroscuro. The successions of these two shots give us the impression that the hand belonged to the protagonist, Russell Crowe. Russell Crowe plays the general Maximus Deridius. The opening shots of Saving Private Ryan feature an Old man walking down a path in bright light on a sunny day. While the man is walking a group of people follow him down the path, telling the audience that this man is quite important. The man is walking in a graveyard and after walking to a particular grave he collapses crying. His sadness gives the impression that someone he knew and loved had died and was buried in that graveyard. The shot then switches to a group of men in a boat which again uses chiaroscuro. There is then a series of montages featuring close ups of the men in the boat. The emotions of the men are shown in the expressions on their faces and the dark shadowy light the scene is bathed in. The protagonist of the film Tom Hanks is then shown in a close up shot but it is different to the way that we are first shown Russell Crowe in Gladiator. The first time that we see Russell Crowe in Gladiator he looks deep in thought and with very little fear on his face. We will write a custom essay sample on How does the opening sequence of Gladiator and Saving Private Ryan raise the audiences expectations specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on How does the opening sequence of Gladiator and Saving Private Ryan raise the audiences expectations specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on How does the opening sequence of Gladiator and Saving Private Ryan raise the audiences expectations specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer His clothes depict what class of man he is (wealthy, powerful,) and also show the genre of the film to be war as he is holding a sword and wearing armor. The first time that Tom Hanks is introduced his clothes show the genre of the movie in the same way as gladiator, but he is not instantly recognizable as the protagonist of the film; he looks just as scared as the other people on the boat and has no instant sign of authority. As the men approach the shore, the sound of gunfire can be heard, which tells the audience that a battle is happening and that these mens fear is the onslaught of battle. The opening sequence of both texts show the genre of the movie by using strong battle scenes and sounds and both introduce why Tom Hanks and Russell Crowe are the protagonists of the films. Russell Crowe walks through the ranks of his army and is referred to as General by many. The director uses this to show the authority of the character. The director of S. P. R shows Tom Hanks to be powerful by having take control of the disbanded army around him and he seems to be the least distressed by the battle going on around him. Both texts feature strong battle sequences in their opening scenes. The scenes are seen in a different way by the audience because inter-textuality will tell people that the Roman Army in Gladiator was unbeatable and the most powerful fighting force the world had ever seen. We know that the protagonist is a Roman general and we know that the opposing army is not strong enough to beat them from what has been said by the characters already so the audience has a basic idea of what to expect from the battle: the Romans are going to win. In S. P. R Tom Hanks and his army are put in an impossible position from the off set. When they hit the shore the sound of gunfire fills the air and immediately pushes them back towards the sea and in a seemingly impossible position. Tom Hanks role as the protagonist is emphasized by the way that the people around him all turn to him for orders when they first hit the shore and begin fighting. The fighting scenes in both films are shot with a hand held camera allowing the audience to feel as if they are in the battle themselves. In S. P. R a hand held camera is used from behind the German stationery guns on the bank to show how easily the Americans are being picked off from the beach. Close up shots in Gladiator show the expressions of the Roman army and none of them look scared or worried about the battle. During the battle they use close ups of the fighting to show the Roman army defeating the German army with ease. A close up of Russell Crowe is used when he turns around and almost kills one of his own men, only to stop and smile at him. This shows he is used to fighting dangerous battles and how undeterred by the fighting and the sounds around him he appears to be. The music in the two opening sequences is similar and is used to create the same affect on the audience. The slow first scenes of the two movies have very little sound as the directors want you to focus on the messages on the screen. The flag at the start of S. P. R symbolizes what the Americans were fighting for: the love of their country. Gladiator features a hand being run through a field which tells you little apart from that the hand belongs to someone who is married. The battle scenes in the two films have very little music but you can hear the sounds of the battle distinctly. In S. P. R the sounds of gunfire is very loud and the cries of the men screaming and yelling are quite disturbing. In Gladiator the sounds of clashing swords fills the air with cries coming only from the German army. Music is absent as it is normally used to project the emotions of the characters on screen onto the audience. In a scene with a strong battle there are so many emotions of so many people fighting that there wouldnt be enough music to symbolize what they were all feeling. I think that Gladiator raises the audiences expectations more in the opening sequences as they show the Roman army to be brutal and unmerciful which is shown more and more in the rest of the film. Saving Private Ryan has a brilliantly directed opening and gives the audience a real insight into what war is like. Yet the rest of the film goes downhill and doesnt give you what you would expect from the dazzling opening sequences.

Monday, November 25, 2019

Museum of modern art essays

Museum of modern art essays Museum of Modern Art, also known as MoMA, was the first museum to devote its collection entirely to the modern movement. The museum was founded in 1929 by three public citizens, Lillie P. Bliss, Mary Quinn Sullivan and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. The works in the museum collection date from the 1880s to the present day and include many icons of modern and contemporary art. From an initial gift of eight prints and one drawing, the permanent collection has grown to encompass more than 100,000 works in a variety of mediums. The museum is initially located in Manhattan at 53rd street. Due to its growth the museum is currently undergoing major renovation and expansion, thus it has been move to a temporary location at 33rd street in Queens. One Sunday afternoon I went to visit the museum at its Queens location. The building that was once a Swingline staple factory has now turned into a blue collection of thought and expression of the greatest minds. There is a sensation upon entering MoMA QNS. The big blue half block building stands out in the middle of faded factory and industrial buildings. There is no luck waking directly up to the ticket counter. As soon as I enter the museum I come across a set of stairs that leads to the security check. Then a ninety-degree turn lead to a hallway going down and another stairs going up. The hallway leads to the main lobby and the ticket both while the stairs leads to the mezzanine. On the mezzanine it has gift shop and a caf. People are sitting around the round tables, having coffee and discussions among themselves. On the white wall of the hallway, it has various presentations with projection TV. One of them is a clip of a busy street from the street level. Only the part of a cars tire and peoples foot can be seen at a close distance. The biggest one was the projection of a huge aquarium with human shadows enjoying the swimming and scrawling of the fishes. ...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Managing the risks of organizational accidents by James T. Reason Essay

Managing the risks of organizational accidents by James T. Reason - Essay Example As the above diagrams elucidate there are layers of defenses placed at every step of operation. When a latent error happens due to at one stage the next operating layer has defenses so that the mistake is not passed on in the chain of procedures. Only when all the layers of operation fall in line to allow for the lapse to carry on does the entire system come crashing down. The first chapter on "Hazards, Defenses and Losses" brings to light the type of errors (human or organizational) that may occur, the precautions or defenses a person or an organization may take in order to prevent them. Also talked of are the tangible and intangible losses that have to be borne. "The Human Contribution" is a chapter devoted to the prospect of human error. Though the book in its entirety does not hold individuals responsible for a systemic failure, the many times human errors led to large scale mishaps are explored here. Important examples include the Apollo 13 slip-up, Glenborough disaster, Three Mile Island nuclear reactor accident etc. "Maintenance cans Seriously Damage your System" is a misnomer as the author presents sets of bad maintenance leading towards the damage of the entire structure. It is a continuation from the previous chapter of the human factor responsible for great errors. "Navigating the Safety Space" is a chapter wherein the author forays into the amount of leeway allowable to a system before it crashes. The next four chapters are useful instruction guides to policy makers; design engineers etc. to make for defect minimizing systems. In "A Practical Guide to Error Management" the author writes on the hands down approach to managing errors. The chapter "The Regulator's Unhappy Lot" explains the measures and methods of restructuring an organization to steer clear of catastrophes. Chapter 9, "Engineering a Safety Culture" suggests a whole lot of relevant arguments for creating a safety culture within an establishment. "Reconciling the Different Approaches to Safety Management", the final chapter calls upon managers, engineers and the maintenance people to adapt to appropriate safety techniques in order to avoid the risks of ending up with a disaster financially, materially or otherwise. Critique: The book is a compulsory read for all personnel working in risky atmosphere, hazardous industries etc. The author has used all his expertise in dealing with the issue of accident negation or at least reduction. Strengths: The strength of the book lies in its simplicity. The easy to understand language and lucid style make it a universal reference guide for managers and workers alike. Weaknesses: Apparently there appear no

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Is PTSD linked to criminal behavior Research Paper

Is PTSD linked to criminal behavior - Research Paper Example In chapter 8 it discusses in detail the possibility of a correlation between psychological disorders like PTSD and criminal behavior. It also furnishes very relevant and useful statistics pertaining to mentally ill offenders in state and federal prisons. It presents the conclusions from many studies regarding the prevalence of mental illness amongst criminals. It is a very informative source which facilitates important insight regarding the research question from a practical, statistical and academic perspective. Chapter 7 in this book is exclusively about childhood post traumatic stress disorder and criminal behavior. It delves on the ramifications of exposure to stressful and catastrophic events on children. The book summarizes various scientific studies that link childhood trauma to juvenile delinquency, drug abuse and criminal behavior. The approach of this book towards the question under consideration is very scientific and analytical. Chapter 7 also gives a detailed historical overview of the study of childhood stress and trauma and its relation to criminal behavior. Overall, it is a reliable scientific source that will make immense contribution to the research question. It is an elaborate and detailed, peer reviewed article that offers a literature review of the prior studies focused on the association between PTSD and criminal behavior in the offenders serving sentences in state and federal prisons. This article makes an immense contribution to the selected research question in the sense that it is a compilation of the approaches and views of the previous researchers associated with the issue of PTSD and criminal behavior. This is an immensely useful source as it examines the linkage between PTSD and violent behavior. The conclusions of this article are extremely reliable as it studies the association between violent behavior

Monday, November 18, 2019

Multicutural Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Multicutural Communication - Essay Example Ethnocentrism is one problem that can adversely impact communication between individuals from different cultural backgrounds. Lack of knowledge on cultural differences when communicating presents a problem especially with globalisation of the business environment. Cultural determinants such as traditions, communication practices and thought process are important in multicultural communication. Clinging to manner of conducting business that is ethnocentric for instance can cause a major problem of communication between individuals. Language differences present a very critical barrier to effective cross-cultural communication; translation difficulties, failure of conveying subtle language distinctions and cultural variations between people speaking the same language inform language problems business communication (Mathews and Thakkar, 2012). Environment is a source of problems in multicultural communication. Manners in which people utilize available resources differ markedly between cultures and as such cultural biases with regard to the technological and natural environment cause communication conflicts. Most of us are culturally accustomed perceive the environment in certain ways and as such the usage of technology. Variations in social values across cultures can also present major communication conflicts. As such it is therefore important to consider the social valued held by others on issues such as education, nepotism, class structures and religion etc in order to achieve effective communications. Nonverbal behaves and temporal conception also communication conflicts with significant impact especially in the international business settings. Use of nonverbal signs of communications and understanding of time may differ on cultural lines and thus present problems when individuals from different cultures interact (Prat t-Johnson, 2006). To

Friday, November 15, 2019

Dysbiosis and the Risk of Developing Mental Disorders

Dysbiosis and the Risk of Developing Mental Disorders Topic: Dysbiosis increases the risk of developing mental disorders       Dysbiosis is recognized as a microbial imbalance on or inside the body like a damaged microbiota. It is the most generally known in gastrointestinal tract but also can take place everywhere with a defined mucous membrane such as skin flora and gut flora. The potential causes of dysbiosis are mainly induced from contaminated food or water and improper antibiotics dosage. For instance, taking antibiotics kills the sensitive bacteria but the resistant germs can also be left to grow and breed. There is significant information to show the dysbiosis of the gut microbiota is connected with the pathogenesis of extra intestinal disorders. The roles of gut microbiome in establishing brain development and neurological function, and the mechanisms that the gut microbiotic of dysbiosis contributing to two example of mental health disorders, depression and Irritable bowel syndrome are outlined. Figure 1. The bidirectional communication system between CNS and the gastrointestinal tract (Gut-Brain-Axis). The brain is able to influence the intestinal microbiota while the microbiota is capable to affect the brain development and functions, resulting in mental disorders. The gut microbiota correlates with central nervous system which is vital for the brain development and functions. The bidirectional communication system between CNS and the gastrointestinal tract is called Gut-Brain Axis since the CNS is capable of constantly altering the gut permeability, microbiota configuration and secretion via the initiation of the hypothalamus pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis [7]. Moreover, Gut-brain-Axis is responsible to coordinate gut actions in order to associate the emotional centres of the brain with external intestinal functions like immune initiation, intestinal permeability and entero-endocrine signalling. Furthermore, the gut microbiota is involved in maintaining an equilibrium of homeostasis and providing protection against outer pathogens by activating the integration of defensive mucus lining of the gut epithelial cells. When the microbial gut is lake of balance, dysbiosis would be occurred and inflammation is prompted by intestinal permeability change and damaged gut barrier with the access of external antigens such as toxins, microorganisms and gluten to the interior. Additionally, a number of pathogens of diseases are expressed to interrupt the epithelial tight junctions to increase the intestinal permeability and lead to leaky gut so as to launch autoimmunological responses and induce neurological disorders like the depressive-like behaviours by altering gut microbiota composition. Firstly, an example of the mental health disorder is Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) which is known as depression by minimum two weeks of low mood followed with declining of self-esteem. Depression-like alternations is examined in germ-free mice and indicated that the increased density of pro-inflammatory cytokines which is expressed in MDD  46 is resulted from the linkage with gut microbiome. Moreover, concentrations of serum antibodies countered to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from gram-negative enterobacteria are greater in patients with MDD than in control individuals  51. Thus, it would induce stress-related disorders by increasing gut permeability and bacterial translocation  22,  52.  Also, the altered microbiota configuration is suggested to promote depressive states and dysbiosis. Figure 2. The comparison of a healthy gut and a leaky gut. Under homeostasis, the intestinal epithelial linked with the tight function to inhibit gut microorganisms, food particles etc. to go across the barrier. There is normal intestinal permeability and intact intestinal barrier. When a leaky gut is occurred, the barrier is damaged and increase the intestinal permeability, allowing the undesired passage for the pathogen, gluten, casein etc, which can induce an inflammation and results in mental disorders. The major neuroendocrine mechanism in human is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the activation of this axis stimulate various psychological stressors [130]. Additionally, the cells transfer the signaling molecules into gut lumen in the lamina propria which is under the regulation of the CNS, resulting in alternations in gastrointestinal motility and secretion and also the intestinal permeability in order to change the GIT system in which the bacteria existed in [2]. The mechanism of MDD linked with microbiota is evaluated by comparing the healthy gut and the gut with disease. From figure 2, the intestinal epithelium which is the largest mucosal surface in human body. It is used to provide an inhibition between the host and the environment and it is crucial in establishing the equilibrium of the organism with healthy condition. Under a healthy state, the intestinal epithelial associated with the tight function which prevent the undigested food particles from passing through and the absorptive cells fit close together with the mucus layer which can significantly act as a barrier to bacteria and antigens from outside. The reign of symbiotic microbiota, an intestinal barrier integrity is maintained and used to control pathobiont overgrowth inside the intestinal area and the function of a healthy gut establish the symbiotic relationship between CNS and gut microbiota. However, in the condition of pathological stress or disease, the epithelial barrier is damaged and the gaps between the cells are wider which leads to the increase of the intestinal permeability. Intestinal dysbiosis can negatively affect gut physiology causing improper brain-gut axis signalling and leading effects for CNS functions and disease conditions. Furthermore, stress linked with CNS can also influence gut function and contribute distress of the microbiota. An alternation in the balance of symbionts and pathobionts leads to pathobiont overgrowth and results in dysbiosis, allowing the channel for the translocation of pathological bacteria across the mucosal lining to sites where gives rise to the activation of an immune response recognized by increasing production of peripheral pro-inflammatory mediators and eventually the CNS, inflammation is initiated. When the inflammatory activity is launched, macrophages leads to pathogenesis through unsuitable responses to enteric microbial activation, incapable elimination of microbes from host organisms, defective pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory responses and also deficit of barriers role. This contributes to the greater translocation of pathogenic bacterial constituent from the intestinal mucosa to the systemic circuits where they can stimulate innate immunity and generate pro-inflammatory cytokines, causing the systemic inflammation with an abnormal gut. Therefore, a leaky gut or impaired intestinal permeability is associated the GI dysfunction and the impaired CNS function to induce psychiatric disorders such as depression. The mechanism shows that depression affect the composition and stability of gut microbiota and also the bidirectional communication between microbiota and the CNS arouse stress reactions. Figure 3. Pathways involved in communication between the gut microbiota and the brain including cortisol, cytokines, vagus and enteric nervous system. The brain requires theses pathways to alter the composition of gut microbiota with the state of stress-related disorders. The HPA axis control cortisol secretion and cortisol influence immune cells involving cytokine secretion. Cortisol changes gut permeability and barrier function and hence alter the gut microbiota composition. Moreover, the gut microbiota and probiotics can change the concentrations of circulating cytokines and this affects brain functions. The vagus nerve and regulation of tryptophan contribute to the influence of the gut microbiota to the brain. Also, SCFAs are neuroactive bacteria metabolites that regulate brain and behaviour. Secondly, another example of mental disorder is Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) which is a stress-related disorder linked with Gut-Brain- Axis in order to alter gut microbiota characterization (Carroll et al., 2011) and increase intestinal permeability (Dunlop et al., 2006). Moreover, depression or anxiety anticipate IBS symptoms in the high frequency of patients and psychological characterization incline earlier healthy people to cause IBS after gastroenteritis.[27][28] (Singh et al., 2012). These stress responses in the body associate with the HPA axis and the sympathetic nervous system to perform abnormally in IBS patients. It has a similar mechanism to the MDD and also adapt the HPA axis which modulate cortisol secretion and the cortisol influence immune cells involving cytokine secretion. Cortisol can alter gut permeability and permit bacteria or bacterial antigens to go through the epithelial barrier and this leads to mucosal immune response stimulated which can change the microbiome composition 131]. It is also indicated that a subtle impact on bacterial flora giving rise to greater adhesion and bacterial translocation owing to higher barrier permeability. Significantly, chronic stress damages the intestinal barrier, causing it leaky and raising the circulating level of immune modulator which is the element of bacterial cell wall called lipopolysaccharide (LPS) [134]. LPS transposition can switch on the inherited immune system and advancement of inflammatory actions to generate an autoimmune reaction such as the stress-related disorders. Additionally, the mechanism involves several molecules in the brain-gut-microbiota axis to induce physiological functions. The tryptophan metabolism is affected to brain function regulation which is induced by the gut microbiota (reviewed by OMahony ). Additionally, tryptophan is a crucial amino acid which is used to go through the blood brain barrier and involve in serotonin synthesis when the tryptophan is consumed from the gut. Furthermore, in the condition of pathogenic microbial infections in the gut, this pathway is triggered and the tryptophan from the body stock is depleted. Hence, this causes the deficiency of serotonin supply and result in IBS. Besides, the Short Chain Fatty Acids are known as butyrate, acetate, and propionate which act as signalling molecules and possess immunomodulatory characteristics. They cooperate with nerve cells by activating the sympathetic and autonomic nervous system through G-protein-coupled receptors.195 Furthermore, they can go across the Blood brain barrier to modulate brain development and behaviour19 6,  197,  198 in order to establish the IBS development.199 Besides, the serotonin, 5-HT, is a signalling molecule in the brain-gut-microbiota axis to regulate the intestinal permeability and use to stimulate sensory nerve to signal the CNS. Hence, this pathway involving different signalling molecules correlated with microbiota and initiated the leaky gut is significantly increase the risk of developing neurological disorder by dysbiosis. In conclusion, dysbiosis increases the risk of developing mental disorders such as the Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Both disorders linked with microbiota and require the similar pathways. Dysbiosis with an impaired microbiota correlated with the CNS significantly. The Gut-brain-Axis is responsible to coordinate gut actions and deliver the stress response to the brain by the HPA axis in order to increase the intestinal permeability and damage the intestinal barrier. Followed by several signalling molecules such as tryptophan, 5-HT and SCFAs, the resulted leaky gut and alternation in microbiota composition would contribute to the depressive like behaviours and other neurological disorders. For the future perspective, the mental illness induced by the dysbiosis with altered microbiota can be monitored with appropriate probiotic supplementation and change of metabolomics condition in order to influence the essential changes with both gastrointestina l and neurological significance. References: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dr_Ajit_Thakur/publication/260425062_Gut-microbiota_and_mental_health_Current_and_future_perspectives/links/00b7d53134a2bcb221000000.pdf http://www.nature.com/mp/journal/v21/n6/full/mp201650a.html https://jphysiolanthropol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40101-015-0061-7 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166223613000088 http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16512235.2017.1281916 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nmo.12378/full http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889159115001105 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S095816691400175X https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4879184/ https://www.jscimedcentral.com/Pharmacology/pharmacology-2-1016.php http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/855131 https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/psychobiotics-a-promise-for-neurodevelopmental-therapy-2329-8901-1000146.php?aid=72039view=mobile http://www.yeastinfection.org/anxiety-depression-candida-connection/ http://www.healthygutbugs.com/probiotics-next-big-anti-anxiety-remedy/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4315779/

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Free Essays on Homers Odyssey: Penelopes Enduring Faithfulness :: Odyssey essays

Penelope's Enduring Faithfulness in Homer's Odyssey Penelope, the wife of Odysseus, can be contrasted in various ways to the other characters in Homer's poem The Odyssey. In many ways, Penelope embodies the "ideal" woman, in that she conforms to the values and ideals of her society. These ideals include faithfulness, loyalty, willpower, long-suffering, pride in one's home and family, and hospitality to strangers. The majority of the other characters in the poem lack one or more of these attributes. Although Odysseus proves to be a character of strong will and determination throughout the Trojan War and the trials he endured at sea, he demonstrates weakness and wavering resolve when he is faced with sexual temptation. For example, when enticed by Circe to "mingle and make love," Odysseus submits to her appeals and enters her "flawless bed of love," thus committing adultery against his wife Penelope (Book X). When Circe tells Odysseus to remain with her, he "could not help consenting." Odysseus remains with Circe and continues to be unfaithful to Penelope for the duration of a year. It is only after hearing the appeals of his men that Odysseus decides to head back out to sea. Later, Odysseus has another adulterous relationship with the nymph Kalypso. This relationship endures for seven years. Throughout his stay on Kalypso's island, Odysseus weeps for Penelope, yet he continues to lie with Kalypso every night (Book V). In contrast, Penelope exemplifies tremendous will power and resourcefulness in that she remains faithful to Odysseus throughout his exile. While awaiting her husband's return, Penelope endures perpetual insolence and sexual advances from the suitors who invade her household. Penelope rebuffs the advances of the suitors and remains a devoted and faithful wife. Deferring the suitors is no easy task; therefore Penelope is very resourceful and goes to great lengths to postpone marriage to one of them. She puts the men off for three years by promising to marry one of them upon her completion of a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. In order to delay the completion of the shroud, she unravels her work every night (Book II, p. 223). Penelope also privately sends promises to each of the suitors in order to divide them so that they will not unanimously demand a decision from her as to which one she