African American Literature Essay Example for Free

African American Literature Essay African American literature has a strong deeply rooted background in the history of America, thus giving the writers categorized in this genre a strong message to convey in any story they chose to tell. From tragic life moments to happy life moments, the writers have the ability to tell their story in a variety of methods. This canon of literature serves as a diary for the African American community. All of the literary works that compile this genre reflect the many twists and turns a collective group of persons must endure while struggling to achieve a place in history. The following discussion of three historically significant African American stories reflects the struggles one race of persons had to endure on their journey throughout various time periods in America. The Short Stories In the short story, My White Folks Treated us Good by Mariah Hines the author describes in first person account of a situation when African American slaves were treated well in comparison to the stories of abuse, rape, and neglect most persons are accustom to reading from this era. The slaves never went hungry, always had clothes to wear, were able to work under their own accord, always treated with respect, and were told to take Sundays off while also being encouraged to attend church on Sundays. The slaves were in fact treated so well that when they were free to leave, they choose to remain at their former master’s farm and continued working for him. Hines concluded the Master continued to support his former slaves. Hines stated â€Å"Master helped us much as he could. Some of us he gave a cow or mule or anything he could spare to help us (p. 34). † Moving forward in time, the short story Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston describes a situation of domestic abuse in a long term relationship between a wife, Delia Jones, and her husband, Sykes Jones. Sykes enjoyed torturing Delia, he would find ways to make her job as a washwoman more difficult by kicking the clothes across the room or by scaring her with ways related to her fear of snakes. Sykes enjoyed fighting; he in fact enjoyed it so much so that he intentionally picked fights with Delia. This type of torture strained their marriage to the point of near silence on a daily basis. Sykes thought it to be a good idea to bring a rattlesnake into their home. The rattlesnake got lose in the home, Delia was able to get outside the home but Sykes remained in the home and was attacked in their bedroom. Sykes yelled to Delia for help and comfort, but she was unable to come to him related to fear. Delia finally walked to the door, but due to the nature of his injuries and the distance to the doctor she understood he would not make it through this attack, therefore she allowed him to pass in their backyard. â€Å"She could scarcely reach the chinaberry tree, where she waited in the growing heat while inside she knew the cold river was creeping up and up to extinguish that eye which much known by now that she knew (p. 108). † This story shows how those who choose to abuse others always pay for those actions in the end. Alice Walker wrote the story Nineteen Fifty-Five, about a young white singer, Traynor, who purchased a song from a young African American woman, Gracie Mae, and went on to become famous after recording and releasing his own version. His version of Gracie Mae’s song continued to eat away at Gracie Mae for the rest of her life. It did not have the same meaning, nor was it loved by his fans for the same reasons she hoped it would be. The fans loved Traynor, not the song. Traynor continued to keep in contact with Gracie Mae throughout his time in the army, touring, marriages, and divorces. Then towards after many years, contact stopped and Traynor was found dead after 15 wives and a troubled road in the end. Gracie Mae lived vicariously through Traynor and his portrayal of her song. Gracie Mae herself lived quite happily through the birth of many children, the divorce and/or death of three husbands, the showering of gifts from Traynor, and his ultimate death. Gracie Mae did have a connection to Traynor that flowed deeper than her song. â€Å"One night I dreamed Traynor has split up with his fifteenth wife p. 297). † Due to the stereotypes and prejudices of this time period Gracie Mae and Traynor were never able to express the emotional connection they felt between each other. Common Literary Conventions Literary conventions and themes were similar in the stories; connotations, culture, undertones, and main characters were alike. The three stories were written in first person and portrayed a personal struggle endured by each main character. The main character was always female, strong, and independent in different way. The stories span three different periods of time, yet still reflecting similar struggles in very different settings. These conventions are important when connecting the messages of these stories. Each has a story of struggle, some are internal while others are outward, and each woman must find inner strength to change or cope with their situations. Beginning with My White Folks Treated us Good, this story was historically important in relation to conveying the happiness that could be found in such a dire situation as slavery. Hines showed not all slavery conditions were adverse or abusive; there was still the possibility of enjoying life, and gaining independence by getting the break needed, such as the freeing of all slaves, to make one’s own life better. In Sweat, Hurstson was able write a story about a woman able to persevere in a dreadful situation of both mental and physical abuse. During this time in history, women were not able to be independent and outspoken due to a fear of judgment or increased abuse. Delia was given the chance to be free from the abuses of Sykes and took that chance by allowing him to die from his injuries, thus resulting in her freedom. Following in the same suit, Nineteen Fifty-Five expressed the internal struggle of a woman’s desire to be understood and independent. Gracie Mae wanted to sing her own song and live her own life, without connection to a version of her song that did not represent the original intent. Gracie Mae was happy with her life, but was never free from what the release of her song brought to her life. Conclusion Culturally, these stories are important to all American’s. The historical significance of these stories and the emphasis on equality places a connotation of acceptance and availability of equal opportunity to all persons regardless of color, social class, age, race, gender, or personal situation. African Americans are able to tell their personal stories of struggles and triumphs through literature. This literature is a valuable tool for all persons wanting to educate themselves about significant times in American history. References Young, A. (1996). African American Literature: A brief Introduction and Anthology. New York, New York: HarperCollins College Publishers.

Full-Scale Fatigue Testing using the Resonance Method

Full-Scale Fatigue Testing using the Resonance Method Welding: Welding is a process that is employed to join two distinct pieces of the same metal or remove any unwanted material from metals. In other words, the welding can be broadly discussed as the forging of two heated metals by employing electrode which acts as a slag and prevents the atmospheric contamination. The art of welding began when man started forging tools from metals. The first form of welding that was available to mankind was metal forging by pounding a metal until they are fused together. [1] Types of Welding: We live in a world where we can fuse a metal and separate a single metal into many components. There are many available methods of welding to achieve this objective. They have all been evolved from the idea of forging and have a high influence in the human survival. Some of the different types of welding that are been used are: Â   Â   Oxy-Acetylene gas welding Shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) Electroslag welding (ESW) Gas metal arc welding (GMAW) Submerged arc welding (SAW) magnetic pulse welding (MPW) Electric resistance welding (ERW) Flux-cored arc welding (FCAW) laser beam welding and electron beam welding [2] Weld Geometry: Welding two metals depends on a numerous factor such as type of joints, type of welds, groove face, root face, root edge, bevel angle, depth of bevel, groove angle, groove face, groove radius, and root opening. Based on all these factors there are nine categories of welds. They are Groove Welds Plug or Slot Welds Spot or Projection Welds Back or Backing Welds Flanged Welds Fillet Welds Stud Welds Seam Welds Surfacing Welds [3] Figure 2: Type of Weld Figure 1: Type of joint Figure 3: Process of a) Spot Welding b) Seam welding c) Projection Welding Types of Failure: A metal component is always subjected to stresses and strain. They have an impact on the total life of the component. A flaw that can cause disruption in the performance of a metal gives us an idea on the integrity of the metal. In case of welding the defect can occur in the area that has been welded. Based on the study, it is identified that most of the failure in the welds occur due to wrong technique, process conditions, bad weld groves, incorrect consumables and operator error. The common types of failures that occurs in welding are due to hydrogen embrittlement and residual stresses. So, the type of welding failure that can affect the life of the metal component are: Arc strike cracking Undercut Cold cracking Hot cracking Crater crack Root and toe cracks Hat crack Underbead crack Lamellar tearing Longitudinal crack Gas inclusion Reheat cracking Distortion Inclusions Transverse crack Lack of fusion and incomplete penetration [4] Fatigue: Fatigue may be characterized as the weakening of metal caused by the frequent application of cyclic loading and unloading. It causes progressive structural damage to the material. The fatigue strength is defined as the maximum strength a material can exhibit without breaking is an important dimension that is employed to study the life cycle of the metal or the welded structure. The BS 7608 or DNV-RP-C203 gives us an idea about the fatigue strength to the applied load for different weld geometry. Principle of Fatigue Testing: Resonance Method Testing is employed for the analysis of fatigue in welds. The process involves the excitation of the welded metal to be tested to its first mode of vibration by applying rotational radial force at one end. The rotational force causes a bending moment in its longitudinal axis of the welded metal with two nodal points without any deflection. The welded metal is supported at these points. Figure 4: Principle of resonance fatigue testing (in two dimensions). Figure 5: Bending-stress-profile-in-a-resonance-fatigue-test-specimen-with-a-circular-cross-section This method is employed to calculate the bending stress in a metal. The resonant frequency depends on the mass and stiffness of the material. Usually the tests are conducted below the resonant frequency to control the stress and thereby regulating the strain and deflection. [5] Figure 6: Resonant-response-of-specimen-deflection-controlled-by-changing-the-speed-of-rotation-of-the-excitation-force. Industrial Application: Resonant Testing Machines is the commonly employed fatigue testing machine when compared to its counterpart Servo-hydraulic testing machines due to its advantages such as better efficiency, high frequency, low maintenance and cost. They are used for the fatigue analysis of aerospace and automotive fasteners, engine components, turbine blades, chains etc. Aerospace Industry: Resonant test is employed in aerospace industry to study the fatigue strength of the composite materials such as Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP). They are employed to study the fatigue strength of aerospace fasteners such as bolts, screw, studs and rivets. An aircraft uses an utmost 3 million fasteners with bolts taking 25% and the rivets taking the rest. So, fatigue test is done to analyze the reliability of the fasteners to the repeated pressure and temperature cycles, variations in dynamic loads, and high vibration levels. [6] Figure 7: Fatigue Toughness Testing with resistance heating tester. Automotive Industry: Resonant tests are being implemented in structural dynamics lab in order to study the fatigue strength of high stiffness components such as the automotive components such as connecting rods, crankshafts, bolts, brackets, gear teeth, knuckle etc. The test duration is controlled by the stiffness of the material and the frequency can go high as up to 100 Hz. [7] Reference: The_Procedure_Handbook_Of_Arc_Welding_742pages_1973.pdf Online: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welding Online: http://nearyou.imeche.org/docs/default-source/hong-kong-branch/1- 20.pd Online: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welding_defect Online: http://www.twi-global.com/technical-knowledge/job-knowledge/full-scale-fatigue-testing-using-the-resonance-method-141/ Online: http://www.fastenerandfixing.com/news/high-cycle-fatigue-evaluation-of-aerospace-fasteners Online:https://www.araiindia.com/services_RnD_services_structural_dynamics_engineering_services.asp

Essay --

Develop a Personal Disaster Plan A natural disaster is any event that is caused by the force of nature on environmental factors that has catastrophic consequences. Natural disasters include: avalanches, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, impact events, landslides, mudslides, tornadoes, tsunamis, tropical cyclones, typhoons, and volcanic eruptions [1]. I live in the state of Missouri and based on the geographical location it is frequently affected by natural disasters like Ice storms, tornados, severe storms, and flooding. Since the year 1990, Missouri has recorded more than 30 federal disaster declarations. Local government keeps track of disaster information locally and it is the responsibility of State Emergency Management Agency to work with the local government to make sure that they get all the information needed and then they integrate all the information and send it to the governor. Based on the intensity of the event, the governor may request the president to issue an emergency disaster declaration. [2] Advance Preparation: Preparing for the disaster in advance might save your life. So, it’s always a wise thing to prepare in advance. My steps are: †¢ Designing a floor plan for my apartment, this makes me aware of the doors and windows to get out of the building during emergency. †¢ Creating an emergency contact of a person who is residing out-of-state and name that person as ‘ICE’ in my phone’s contact list, because whenever we are involved in an accident the officials might call to that ‘ICE’(In Case of Emergency) contact. †¢ Registering to weather alerts and being aware of the climatic conditions. †¢ Keeping the first aid kit in an emergency location in your house. †¢ In case of tornados, planning a location which is beneat... ...t locate a restore point, so that all the members of the family meet at this point after the disaster. †¢ Periodic drills must be done to ensure that, all the members of family execute their plan as planned. †¢ Talk to the children’s school officials asking for disaster plan when the disaster hits during school hours. If they are not made support them by giving your own ideas. †¢ Update and discuss the plan with all the members of the family once a year. REFERENCES: 1. Natural Disaster. (2014). Retrieved March 12, 2014, from http://www.hccmis.com/international-insurance-definitions/#N 2. SEMA. Declared Disasters in Missouri. Retrieved March 12, 2014, from http://sema.dps.mo.gov/maps_and_disasters/disasters/ 3. Family Disaster Plan and Personal Survival Guide. Retrieved March 12, 2014, from http://www.co.san-diego.ca.us/oes/docs/FamilyDisasterPlan.pdf

Italian Immigrants Essay -- Legal Issues, US Government

Immigration began late for the Italian population. With the main period of immigration coming in the late 19th century, Italians were already several steps behind the Irish, German, and French immigrants (Nelli 38). This proved to be detrimental to the Italians as the previous immigrants had already stitched themselves to the flag producing a resolute hatred for incoming immigrants, one of which was Salvatore Rossi. Having fled Italy in 1897 due to economic hardship, he pursued the â€Å"American Dream† in New York, by obtaining an education and landing an uncommon job within the U.S. Government. Italian immigrants in this period of time suffered extreme racial prejudice and experienced numerous obstacles in their process of immigration and assimilating themselves into society. In the end, Salvatore Rossi, unlike many Italian immigrants, stitched himself to the flag. Notable Italian immigration began in the 1900s. Missionaries were sent by the Catholic Church to console and convert the native population of America. The early immigrants were dispersed across the nation with large concentrations in the northeast (â€Å"America Put Under Microscopes† 2). Within these regions began the largest influx of Italian culture. Italian inspiration began the first Columbus Day celebration as well as the construction of the first Opera house in America. Italians in the early 19th century had a limited role in American culture however with the economic disparity of Italy in the mid-19th century, it swayed many to immigrate to the United States bringing along their way of life (â€Å"America Put Under Microscopes† 1). Born to a family of subsistence farmers, Salvatore Rossi fits the mold of the atypical southern Italian laborer. Heavy taxes had be... ... son of a subsistent Italian farmer, prejudiced by many, Salvatore cut himself free of the thresholds and chains of the typical Italian-American. Through determination, he came to America and educated himself bringing him into the modern world, thus assimilating himself into the American way of life. Salvatore had overcome the difficulties of the entire immigration process, beginning with leaving his family behind, trekking across the Atlantic, and starting a new life in America. Racial prejudice had also not overwhelmed Salvatore’s willpower as he continued to fight again the stereotypical mold of the free-riding Italian-American who offers nothing to American society. Although he paid the ultimate price of leaving behind his extended family and Italian way of life, Salvatore by becoming a U.S. Immigration Official, had stitched himself to the American flag.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Veterans Essay -- PTSD in Military

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (commonly known as PTSD) is an important issue associated with military soldiers. The primary focus of this paper will be on the causes of PTSD and the effects it has on returning soldiers from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I will attempt to elaborate on the soldiers' experiences through my own experiences in combat both in Iraq and Afghanistan. I will explain what PTSD is, look at the history of PTSD, how people get it, and differences of PTSD between men and women, and treatment options. As far back in history as we can go, humans have been in a fight for survival. There have been battles with gigantic mammoths, soldiers charging the front line with swords drawn or teachers witnessing neighbors being gassed to death. These are all significantly stressful situations that can lead to PTSD and have been around for centuries. For as long as there have been humans fighting there has been PTSD, it just wasn’t a term yet. During the Civil war, problems with PTSD became so severe that the first ever Military Hospital for the insane was established in 1863 (Bentley). Before that, since Military officials didn’t know what to do, or what was wrong with these physically able men they just threw them on the street or sent them home. With so many insane soldiers walking around, it was the public who insisted that something be done to help these soldiers and keep them off the street (Bentley). It wasn’t until 1905 during WWI that there was a link made between the mental collapse and the stresses of war(Bentley). There were so many cases of PTSD at first that officials believed it was caused by the concussion of shells on the brain, so they called it â€Å"shell shock†. It was the Russians who f... ...t. Bellevue College Lib., Bellevue, WA. 15 May 2011 Greist, John H., James W. Jefferson, David J. Katzelnick Facts For Heath. 11 May 2011. . Hales, Dianne. Wellness at Bellevue College. Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning., 2011 Tarrant, David. "Iraq veteran's PTSD is an unrelenting enemy but he's fighting back." The Dallas Morning News 22 Aug. 2010. 11 May 2011 United States. Department of Veterans Affairs. Treatment of PTSD. 05 Oct. 2010. 11 May 2011. . Unknown, Anthony. â€Å"Cognitive Behavior Therapy†. Online posting. 31 Mar. 2011. PtsdForum Supporting Trauma. 15 May 2011.

Capital punishment should be abolished Essay

There are almost 1,000 people sentenced to death because of committing heinous crime globally each year(Rogers,2012,para.10). However, some countries still insist on implementing the death penalty or capital punishment in order to reduce crime. In the twentieth century it is contended that value of life should be pursed, and everyone deserves the right to survive. For this reason, it can be argued that capital punishment should be abolished and whole life imprisonment should be implemented instead. Firstly, to define ‘heinous crime’ and ‘capital punishment’ is important. The definition of heinous crime differs depending on the country. Generally, it relates to crimes of ‘moral turpitude’, which are extremely violent acts including murder, rape, manslaughter and terrorism(Tooby,2012,para.1). In contrast, the definition of ‘capital punishment’ is more concrete. It is defined by the Oxford Dictionary(2012) as the legally authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime. This includes lethal injection, lethal gas, hanging, executed by firing sqard, stoning, beheading and electrocution. This essay will argue that capital punishment is against basic human rights, secondly will prove that criminals have been found to be innocent after they have been executed, thirdly it will verify the existence of unfair judgments. Finally, this essay will debunk counterarguments that support the death penalty, using cases from Saudi Arabia, China and America as its exemplar to argue that capital punishment is cruel and unnecessary. To begin with, according to The Universal Human Rights Declaration(2012,para.3) â€Å"Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person†, therefore, based on this premise implementing capital punishment is against basic human rights. Everyone has the right to survive, no one can deprive people of this right, not even the government. Since the right of individuals is protected by law, which cannot deprive anyone arbitrarily of life (Human Right Association, 2003,para.2). Capital punishment, nonetheless, is a practice that disregards human rights. Moreover, the justice system is set up to prevent crime and maintain a peaceful society (UNICEF,2003,para.7). The death penalty, however, inflicts harm upon another, which can potentially create terror inside society  (Jayashree,2010,para.7). Therefore, capital punishment seems to oppose the established justice system. Worse still, some governments execute criminals in a inhuman way. For example, in Saudi Arabia, criminals are executed by beheading by sword or stoning wherby the criminals are attacked by throwing stones until they die (Moni, 2010,para.6). Therefore, capital punishment is a heinous and inhuman act of violence that must be abolished in order to maintain a humane society with zero tolerance. Another reason of opposing capital punishment is that some criminals have been found to be innocent after they had been sentenced and executed, but they could never return. By using whole life imprisonment, the problem brought by misjudgment can be avoided. One example is Jiang Guoqing in Taiwan,China. He was executed in 1997 for the rape and murder of a 5-year-old girl. The body of the girl was found in toilet of welfare station staff of the Air Force Combat Command. The bureau of investigation conducted polygraph testing on all soldiers, however, only Jiang did not pass. Worse still, a toilet tissue was found in the toilet which contained combination of Jiang’s body fluid and blood of girl because Jiang used toilet before. Due to discovery of this evidence, Jiang was convicted of rape and murder. He was finally executed in 1997, but his father fought for appeal continuously due to insufficient investigation in this case. Finally, the authorities reexamined evidence left in the case in 2001, and they found that Jiang was innocent and the killer was Huang. Eventually, the actual killer was sentenced (Tian,2011). After Jiang was executed, the reputation of his whole family was destroyed. Can a government compensate for this? The case of Jiang is just the tip of the iceberg of miscarriage of justice that occurs around the world, there were countless cases where criminals were found innocent after execution. Unfortunately, the lives of these executed innocents cannot be returned, it is definitely a crime committed by the authorities. It is commonly believed that‘Everyone is equal and fair in front of law’, nevertheless, unfair judgment still exists in the legal system due to discrimination against different races and sexes in some countries. Nagin and pepper(2009) argued that â€Å"The Justice system in South  America is administered by same elite power structure. But justice for Blacks is vindictive and emotional, while for the whites is secular and rational.† The statistics also show that number of blacks being executed are far more than whites providing that almost same number of black and white criminals commit the crime in regards of inequality.â€Å"The capital punishment record indicates that 706 persons received the death sentence since 1910, while 362, or slightly more than half, were actually executed.† For the people being executed, there were 282 black males, seventy-three white males, five Indian males and two black females where the statistics was from the states that having majority of whites. (Laurence,2012,p.119)This evidence proves that Blacks have a higher chance of receiving the death penalty comparing to Whites. Also Jayashree(2010,para.6)states the poor may not have money to hire a lawyer to defend them. Thus, they have a relatively higher rate of imprisonment or even be executed. In addition, in Saudi Arabia, women face the death penalty by stoning for adultery. While it is normal for men to marry a few women, they do not suffer any legal consequence for affairs (Moni,2010, para.1).This reveals that unfair judgment exists for different sexes, different socio-economic status and different races. Many people think that implementing capital punishment can reduce the number of heinous crime in society due to fear of serious punishment. While, the effect of the death penalty in controlling crime is still doubtful. As support by Jayashree(2010,para.7) â€Å"The rate of crime is forty-three percent in the state that having dead penalty while only twenty-three percent in state that without death penalty in America.† This shows that the effect of capital punishment may not be effective in reducing crime rates. Also, there are many people casting doubt that money spent in supporting the lives of criminals is much more than cost of capital punishment. In fact, the cost of implementing the death penalty is not low at all, authorities need money to prepare documents such as DNA tests and a license of death for the criminal. Whole lives imprisonment is the most suitable way to punish the criminals that committing heinous crime. Jayashree,2010,para6 claim that â€Å"In jail, decades and decades of living in a cage, in an environment of rape and violence and being treated like animals  is worse than the death sentence. With the death sentence, the suffering is over quickly.† It can also comfort the victim family as the criminals suffer in jail for long period of time. Also, there is a good opportunity in jail to let them to revise themselves and give them a second chance to correct themselves. On the other hand, implementing capital punishment is implanting the concept of ‘an eye for an eye’ and ‘an ear for an ear’ into society. Thus, abolishing capital punishment is a only way not to let this evil concept pass to our next generation. More importantly, whole lives imprisonment do not let criminals suffer from miscarriages of justice. To conclude, since there are many disadvantages in carrying out capital punishment such as this is against human right, existence of unfair judgment and the effect of death penalty is still doubtful. To restate, capital punishment should be abolished and government should provide second chance for criminals to rectify themselves.

Dances of Luzon

Dances of Luzon ( see side bar for pictures of many of the dances ) 1. * Dance: Idaw This dance sometimes has many names and different versions. Most common is this dance depicts the hunting ritual performed before a tribal war. The tribes men would go out and look up and watch for the scared Idaw bird. Which is said to lead the tribe to victory. Also look at the clothing, Philippines being a very hot climate, plus the use of as little material as possible, the traditional clothing was not made to cover much of the body†¦. 2. * Dance : BangaThis dance displays the Igorot women on their way to the river to fetch the daily water supply for thier familys. It shows the skill and strength of the women as they would carry heavy laiden clay pots (Banga) full of water. Their grace and agility while balancing the heavy pots, sometimes stacks 5 high, is a testiment of the Filipino and how hardships become a art form and talent. As a young girl you would start with only one pot. Of course as you become older and more experienced, along with the fact that you could provide more water for your family in one trip.Pots could be stacked as high as 5 or 6. The more pots you could carry showed your skill and also you standing amoung the women of that area. They would all gather and march to the river each day, singing a native song which is represented by the flute and banging of bamboo on iron pots in the dance†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 3. * Dance : Idudu The family is the basic structure of family life among the Itneg / Tinggian poeple. The caring for the Children is shared by both the mother and father.While the men are clearing the fields, breaking the soil with bamboo and their feet, the women watch the children. Soon as the men are done, they take care of the children while the women do back breaking work. You can see in the dance how the women will take the bamboo baskets in a shaking fashion like drying the rice, while the men are going in circles in background like they are to iling the land. Then you will see the women put down the baskets fold the cloth into a baby while the husband stands aside.Then the women will turn over the baby to the husband, pick up the bamboo and start toiling the land while the men hold and cradle the babys†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 4. * Dance : Ragsaksakan The word means † Merriment†. This dance would be performed after a successful headhunt and also for a peace pact between waring tribles. The colorful hand woven blankets † blankets of life† are worn around the neck while baskets to carry produce or rice are worn upon the head. Some versions of this dance use the † Banga † instead of the basket.Dances of Mindanao – ( See side bar for pictures and more info) 5. * Dance : Singkil Sinkil dance takes its name from the bells worn on the ankles of the Muslim princess. Perhaps one of the oldest of truly Filipino dances, the Singkil recounts the epic legend of the â€Å"Darangan† of the M aranao people of Mindanao. This epic, written sometime in the 14th century, tells the fateful story of Princess Gandingan, who was caught in the middle of a forest during an earthquake caused by the diwatas, or fairies or nymph of the forest.The rhythmic clapping of criss-crossed bamboo poles represent the trees that were falling, which she gracefully avoids. Her slave loyally accompanies her throughout her ordeal. Finally, she is saved by the prince. Dancers wearing solemn faces and maintaining a dignified pose being dancing at a slow pace which soon progresses to a faster tempo skillfully manipulate apir, or fans which represent the winds that prove to be auspicious. The dancers weave expertly through criss-crossed bamboos. 6. * Dance : Asik This is performed by a solo madien, adorned with fine beads and make up, long head scarf.She would dance to win the favor of her Sultan master. Many time the girls would dance to win the hearts of her master or to make up for a wrong she had d one. She would give her whole heart and soul into this performance to soften the heart of her master to accept her†¦ Visayas Dances – ( see pictures in the side bar ) 7. * Dance : Sayaw Sa Banko This dance is native to the barrio of Pangapisan, Lingayen, Pangasinan, and demands skill from its performers who must dance on top of a bench roughly six inches wide. 8. * Dance : TinklingTinnikling is considered the national folkdance with a pair of dancers hopping between two bamboo poles held just above the ground and struck together in time to music. Originated from Leyte Province, this dance is in fact a mimic movement of â€Å"tikling birds† hopping over trees, grass stems or over bamboo traps set by farmers. Dancers perform this dance with remarkable grace and speed jumping between bamboo poles. 9. * Dance : Subli The term â€Å"subli† is from two tagalog words â€Å"subsub† meaning falling on head and â€Å"bali†, which means broken.Hence, the dancers appear to be lame and crooked throughout the dance. This version is originally a ritual dance of the natives of Bauan, Batangas, which is shown during fiestas as a ceremonial worship dance to the town’s icon, the holy cross 10. * Dance : Maglalatik Originally performed in Binan, Laguna as a mock-war dance that demonstrates a fight between the Moros and the Christians over the prized latik or coconut meat during the Spanish rule, this dance is also shown to pay tribute to the town’s patron saint, San Isidro Labrador.It has a four-part performance such as the palipasan and the baligtaran showing the intense battle, the paseo and the escaramusa- the reconciliation. Moro dancers wear read trousers while the Christian dancers show up in blue. All dancers are male; with harnesses of coconut shells attached on their chests, backs, thighs and hips Project In Physical Education 2 Philippine Folk Dances