Persuasive Essay On Prison Segregation - 1490 Words

When it comes to segregation in prisons, there is a great deal of controversy. There are people who argue that this type of segregation (also referred to as solitary confinement) is necessary in certain situations, while others find that it is absolutely unnecessary and should be abolished. Ashley Smith was one such individual that spent most of her sentence in segregation until she took her own life. In the case of Smith, there was a lot more that should have been done to prevent her tragic demise. While initially Smith’s death was simply labelled as preventable, it was later ruled as a homicide. It was ruled that the CSC was responsible for her death because the facility’s officials were aware of her mental health concerns and even then,†¦show more content†¦This is also typically temporary. The third type of segregation is administrative segregation. Administrative segregation occurs when an inmate is either at risk of being harmed/causing harm to themselves or poses a risk to the general inmate population and/or staff (Morris p.2). This type of segregation is the one that is more likely to be long term in comparison to the other two. When in solitary confinement, an inmate remains in a cell that typically differs from regular cells. These types of cells are built to further reduce any sort of contact. For 23 hours of the day an inmate in solitary confinement is to have no contact with the general prison population. They are given 1 hour where they can shower and engage in some recreational activities if they wish (Morris p. 3). First and foremost, Mears puts forward many standards in his article â€Å"Supermax Prisons. Criminology Public Policy†. He uses these standards to determine whether solitary confinement is truly beneficial or not. He looks at cost efficiency, public support, ethical considerations and other options. According to Mears, problems with being able to successfully manage high numbers of prisoners in institutions with only a small number of staff are inevitable. The use of solitary confinement originally came into being due to incidents of violence and/or riots in prisons that sometimes resulted in death (MearsShow MoreRelatedThe Autobiography Of Malcolm X As Told By Alex Haley1442 Words   |  6 PagesThe Autobiography of Malcolm X as told by Alex Haley is the story about a man who greatly impacted American history. Malcolm Little, or Malcolm X as he is more widely known, taught what he believed in regards to segregation, racism, and discrimination. Growing up in a large family with a father Earl Little, a Baptist minister, and his mother Louis Little, who was a homemaker, Malcolm’s life at the time seemed very promising. 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Last Sacrifice Chapter Four Free Essays

AND WHEN I SAY THEY blew up, I mean they blew up. Flames and smoke unfurled like petals from a newly opened flower as those poor monarchs exploded into pieces of rock. For a moment, I was stunned. We will write a custom essay sample on Last Sacrifice Chapter Four or any similar topic only for you Order Now It was like watching an action movie, the explosion cracking the air and shaking the ground. Then, guardian training kicked in. Critical observation and calculation took over. I immediately noticed that the bulk of the statue’s material blew toward the outer sides of the garden. Small stone pieces and dust rained down on the funeral procession, but no large chunks of rock hit Lissa or anyone standing nearby. Assuming the statues had not spontaneously combusted, whoever had blown them up had done so in a precise way. The logistics aside, huge billowing pillars of flame are still pretty scary. Chaos broke loose as everyone tried to get away. Only, they all took different routes, so collisions and entanglements occurred. Even the pallbearers set down their precious burden and took off. Ambrose was the last to do so, his mouth agape and eyes wide as he stared at Tatiana, but another look at the statues sent him off into the mob. A few guardians tried to keep order, herding people back down the funeral path, but it didn’t do a lot of good. Everyone was out for themselves, too terrified and panicked to think reasonably. Well, everyone except for Lissa. To my surprise, she wasn’t surprised. She had been expecting the explosion. She didn’t run right away, despite people pushing past and shoving her aside. She stood rooted where she’d been when the statues blew up, studying them and the wreckage they’d caused. In particular, she seemed concerned about anyone in the crowd who might have been hurt by the blasts. But, no. As I’d already observed, there seemed to be no injuries. And if there were, it was going to be because of the stampede. Satisfied, Lissa turned and began walking away with the others. (Well, she was walking; they were running). She’d only gone a little distance when she saw a huge group of guardians hurrying toward the church, faces grim. Some of them stopped to aid those escaping the destruction, but most of the guardians were on their way to the blast site to see what had happened. Lissa paused again, causing the guy behind her to slam into her back, but she barely felt the impact. She intently watched the guardians, taking note of how many there were, and then moved on once more. Her hidden thoughts were starting to unravel. Finally, I began to see pieces of the plan she’d kept hidden from me. She was pleased. Nervous, too. But overall, she felt– A commotion back at the jail snapped me into my own mind. The usual quiet of the holding area had shattered and was now filled with grunts and exclamations. I leapt up from where I’d been sitting and pressed against the bars, straining to see what was happening. Was this building about to explode too? My cell only faced a wall in the hallway, with no view of the rest of the corridor or its entrance. I did, however, see the guardians who usually stood at the hall’s far end come tearing past me, toward whatever altercation was occurring. I didn’t know what this meant for me and braced for anything, friend or foe. For all I knew, there could be some political fringe group launching attacks on the Court to make a statement against the Moroi government. Peering around the cell, I swore silently, wishing I had anything to defend myself. The closest I had was Abe’s book, which was no good at all. If he was the badass he pretended to be, he really would have slipped a file into it. Or gotten me something bigger, like War and Peace. The scuffling died down and footsteps thundered toward me. Clenching my fists, I took a few steps back, ready to defend myself against anyone. â€Å"Anyone’ turned out to be Eddie Castile. And Mikhail Tanner. Friendly faces were not what I had expected. Eddie was a longtime friend from St. Vladimir’s, another new guardian like me and someone who’d stuck by me through a lot of misadventures, including the Victor Dashkov prison break. Mikhail was older than us, mid-twenties, and had helped us restore Dimitri in the hopes that Sonya Karp–a woman Mikhail had loved who had turned Strigoi–might be saved as well. I glanced back and forth between the two guys’ faces. â€Å"What’s going on?’ I demanded. â€Å"Nice to see you too,’ said Eddie. He was sweating and keyed up with battle fervor, a few purple marks on his face showing he’d met someone’s fist tonight. In his hand was a weapon I’d seen in the guardians’ arsenal: a baton-type thing used to incapacitate people without killing them. But Mikhail held something much more valuable: the keycard and mechanical key to open my cell. My friends were staging a prison break. Unbelievable. Crazy was usually my specialty. â€Å"Did you guys †¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ I frowned. The thought of escape filled me with joy, but the logistics were sobering. Clearly, they’d been responsible for the fight with my guards that I’d just heard. Getting down here in the first place wasn’t that easy either. â€Å"Did you two just take on every guardian in this building?’ Mikhail finished unlocking the door, and I didn’t waste any time in hurrying out. After feeling so oppressed and smothered for days, it was like stepping onto a mountain ledge, wind and space all around me. â€Å"Rose, there are no guardians in this building. Well, maybe one. And these guys.’ Eddie gestured in the direction of the earlier fight, where I assumed my guards lay unconscious. Surely my friends hadn’t killed anyone. â€Å"The rest of the guardians are all checking out the explosion,’ I realized. Pieces began coming together–including Lissa’s lack of surprise over the commotion. â€Å"Oh no. You had Christian blow up ancient Moroi artifacts.’ â€Å"Of course not,’ said Eddie. He seemed shocked that I would have suggested such an atrocity. â€Å"Other fire users would be able to tell if he did.’ â€Å"Well, that’s something,’ I said. I should have had more faith in their sanity. Or maybe not. â€Å"We used C4,’ explained Mikhail. â€Å"Where on earth did you–‘ My tongue locked up when I saw who was standing at the end of the hallway. Dimitri. Not knowing how he was during my imprisonment had been frustrating. Christian and Tasha’s report had been only a tease. Well, here was the answer. Dimitri stood near the hall’s entrance in all his six-foot-seven glory, as imperious and intimidating as any god. His sharp brown eyes assessed everything in an instant, and his strong, lean body was tensed and ready for any threat. The look on his face was so focused, so filled with passion, that I couldn’t believe anyone ever could have thought he was a Strigoi. Dimitri burned with life and energy. In fact, looking at him now, I was again reminded of how he’d stood up for me at my arrest. He wore that same expression. Really, it was the same one I’d seen countless times. It was the one people feared and admired. It was the one I had loved. â€Å"You’re here too?’ I tried reminding myself that my muddled romantic history wasn’t the most important thing in the world for a change. â€Å"Aren’t you under house arrest?’ â€Å"He escaped,’ said Eddie slyly. I caught the real meaning: he and Mikhail had helped Dimitri escape. â€Å"It’s what people would expect some violent probably-still-a- Strigoi guy to do, right?’ â€Å"You’d also expect him to come bust you out,’ added Mikhail, playing along with the game. â€Å"Especially considering how he fought for you last week. Really, everyone is going to think he busted you out alone. Not with us.’ Dimitri said nothing. His eyes, while still carefully watching our surroundings, were also assessing me. He was making sure I was okay and uninjured. He looked relieved that I was. â€Å"Come on,’ Dimitri finally said. â€Å"We don’t have much time.’ That was an understatement, but there was one thing bugging me about my friends’ â€Å"brilliant’ plan. â€Å"There’s no way they’ll think he did it alone!’ I exclaimed, realizing what Mikhail was getting at. They were setting Dimitri up as the culprit in this escape. I gestured to the unconscious guardians at our feet. â€Å"They saw your faces.’ â€Å"Not really,’ a new voice said. â€Å"Not after a little spirit-induced amnesia. By the time they wake up, the only person they’ll remember seeing will be that unstable Russian guy. No offense.’ â€Å"None taken,’ said Dimitri, as Adrian stepped through the doorway. I stared, trying not to gape. There they were together, the two men in my life. Adrian hardly looked like he could jump into a fistfight, but he was as alert and serious as the other fighters here. His lovely eyes were clear and full of the cunning I knew they could possess when he really tried. That’s when it hit me: he showed no sign of intoxication whatsoever. Had what I’d seen the other day been a ruse? Or had he forced himself to take control? Either way, I felt a slow grin creeping over my face. â€Å"Lissa lied to your mom earlier,’ I said. â€Å"You’re supposed to be passed out drunk somewhere.’ He rewarded me with one of his cynical smiles. â€Å"Well, yes, that would probably be the smarter–and more enjoyable–thing to be doing right now. And hopefully, that’s what everyone thinks I’m doing.’ â€Å"We need to go,’ said Dimitri, growing agitated. We turned toward him. Our jokes vanished. That attitude I’d noticed about Dimitri, the one that said he could do anything and would always lead you to victory, made people want to follow him unconditionally. The expressions on Mikhail and Eddie’s faces–as they grew serious–showed that was exactly how they felt. It seemed natural to me too. Even Adrian looked like he believed in Dimitri, and in that moment, I admired Adrian for putting aside any jealousy–and also for risking himself like this. Especially since Adrian had made it clear on more than one occasion he didn’t want to be involved with any dangerous adventures or use his spirit in a covert way. In Las Vegas, for example, he’d simply accompanied us in an observer’s role. Of course, he’d also been drunk most of the time, but that probably made no difference. I took a few steps forward, but Adrian suddenly held out a hand to stop me. â€Å"Wait– before you go with us, you need to know something.’ Dimitri started to protest, eyes glinting with impatience. â€Å"She does,’ argued Adrian, meeting Dimitri’s gaze squarely. â€Å"Rose, if you escape †¦ you’re more or less confirming your guilt. You’ll be a fugitive. If the guardians find you, they aren’t going to need a trial or sentence to kill you on sight.’ Four sets of eyes rested on me as the full meaning sank in. If I ran now and was caught, I was dead for sure. If I stayed, I had the slim chance that in my short time before trial, we might find evidence to save me. It wasn’t impossible. But if nothing turned up, I was also most certainly dead. Either option was a gamble. Either one had the strong possibility of me not surviving. Adrian looked as conflicted as I felt. We both knew I didn’t have any good choices. He was simply worried and wanted me to know what I was risking. Dimitri, however †¦ for him, there was no debate. I could see it all over his face. He was an advocate of rules and doing the proper thing. But in this case? With such bad odds? It was better to risk living as a fugitive, and if death came, better to face it fighting. My death will not be penciled in on someone’s calendar. â€Å"Let’s go,’ I said. We hurried out of the building, anxious to get moving with the plan. I couldn’t help but comment to Adrian, â€Å"You’ve got to be using a lot of spirit to pull off all those illusions on the guards.’ â€Å"I am,’ he agreed. â€Å"And I don’t really have the power to do it for very long. Lissa could probably make a dozen guardians think they’d seen ghosts. Me? I can barely make a few forget Eddie and Mikhail. That’s why there had to be someone they remembered to attract the attention, and Dimitri’s the ideal scapegoat.’ â€Å"Well, thank you.’ I gave his hand a gentle squeeze. As warmth flowed between us, I didn’t bother telling him I was a long way from being free yet. It would diminish his heroics. We had a lot of obstacles ahead, but I still appreciated him stepping up like this and respecting my decision to go along with the escape plan. Adrian shot me a sidelong glance. â€Å"Yeah, well, I’m supposed to be crazy, right?’ A flash of affection shone in his eyes. â€Å"And there isn’t much I wouldn’t do for you. The stupider, the better.’ We emerged to the main floor, and I saw that Eddie had been right about guardian security. The halls and rooms were virtually deserted. Without a second glance, we hurried outdoors, and the fresh air seemed to renew my energy. â€Å"Now what?’ I asked my rescuers. â€Å"Now we take you to the getaway car,’ said Eddie. The garages weren’t far, but they weren’t close either. â€Å"That’s a lot of open ground to cover,’ I said. I didn’t bring up the obvious problem: me being killed if spotted. â€Å"I’m using spirit to keep us all vague and nondescript,’ said Adrian. More testing of his magic. He couldn’t handle much more. â€Å"People won’t recognize us unless they stop and stare directly at us.’ â€Å"Which they probably won’t,’ said Mikhail. â€Å"If anyone even notices us at all. Everyone’s too worried about themselves to pay much attention to others in all this chaos.’ Looking around outside, I could see he was right. The jail building was far from the church, but by now, people who’d been near the blast had made their way to this part of Court. Some were running into their residences. Some were seeking guardians, hoping for protection. And some †¦ some were going the same direction we were, toward the garages. â€Å"People are freaked out enough to actually try to leave Court,’ I realized. Our group was moving as fast as we could with Adrian, who wasn’t in the shame shape as dhampirs. â€Å"The garages will be crowded.’ Both official Court vehicles and visiting guests parked in the same area. â€Å"That could help us,’ said Mikhail. â€Å"More chaos.’ With so many distractions in my own reality, I couldn’t plunge completely into Lissa’s. A light brush of the bond found her safe, over in the palace. â€Å"What’s Lissa doing during all of this?’ I asked. Believe me, I was glad she wasn’t involved with this busting-me-out-of-jail madness. But, as Adrian had noted, her ability with spirit could have gone much farther than his here. And now, looking back on it all, it was obvious she had known about this plan. That had been her secret. â€Å"Lissa needs to stay innocent. She can’t be linked to any part of the escape or explosion,’ replied Dimitri, eyes fixed ahead on his goal. His tone was firm. He still regarded her as his savior. â€Å"She has to keep herself visible with the other royals. So does Christian.’ He almost smiled. Almost. â€Å"Those two would certainly be my first suspects if something exploded.’ â€Å"But the guardians won’t suspect them once they realize the blast wasn’t caused by magic,’ I mused. Mikhail’s earlier words returned to me. â€Å"And hey, where did you guys get a hold of C4? Military grade explosives are kind of extreme, even for you.’ No one answered me because three guardians suddenly leapt out into our path. Apparently, they weren’t all out at the church. Dimitri and I surged ahead of our group, moving as one, just as we always had in battle together. Adrian had said the illusion he’d stretched over our group wouldn’t hold if anyone was facing us directly. I wanted to make sure Dimitri and I were the first line of contact with these guardians, in the hopes they wouldn’t recognize the others behind us. I threw myself into the fight without hesitation, defensive instincts kicking in. But in those milliseconds, the reality of what I was doing truly sank in. I’d fought guardians before and always felt guilty about it. I’d taken on the ones at Tarasov Prison, as well as the queen’s guard during my arrest. I hadn’t really known any of them, though. Just realizing they were my colleagues had been bad enough †¦ but now? Now I was facing one of the most difficult challenges in my life, as small as it seemed. After all, three guardians were an easy match for me and Dimitri. The problem was–I knew these guardians. Two of them I’d run into quite a bit after graduation. They worked at Court and had always been kind to me. The third guardian wasn’t just someone I knew–she was a friend. Meredith, one of the few girls in my class at St. Vladimir’s. I saw the flash of uneasiness in her eyes, a sentiment mirroring my own. This felt wrong to her too. But, she was a guardian now, and like me, she had had duty drilled into her throughout her life. She believed I was a criminal. She could see I was free and in attack mode. Procedure dictated she take me down, and honestly, I wouldn’t have expected anything less. It’s what I would have done had our roles been reversed. This was life and death. Dimitri was on the other two guys, as fast and badass as ever. Meredith and I went for each other. At first, she tried to knock me down by virtue of her weight, probably in the hopes of pinning me down until backup could help grab me. Only, I was stronger. She should have known that. How many times had we sparred in the school’s gym? I’d almost always won. And this was no game, no practice drill. I pushed back at her attack, punching her on the side of her jaw and desperately praying I didn’t break anything. She kept moving through the pain, but–again–I was superior. I caught a hold of her shoulders and threw her down. Her head hit hard, but she remained conscious. I didn’t know whether to be grateful or not. Maintaining my grip, I put her in a chokehold, waiting until her eyes closed. I released as soon as I was sure she was out, my heart twisting in my chest. Glancing over, I saw Dimitri had also taken down his opponents. Our group kept moving as though nothing had happened, but I glanced at Eddie, knowing there was grief on my face. He looked pained too but sought to reassure me as we hurried along. â€Å"You did what you had to,’ he said. â€Å"She’ll be okay. Banged up, but okay.’ â€Å"I hit her hard.’ â€Å"The medics can deal with concussions. Hell, how many did we get in practice?’ I hoped he was right. The lines between right and wrong were getting confusing. The one good thing, I supposed, was that Meredith had been so occupied by the sight of me that she probably hadn’t noticed Eddie and the others. They’d held back from the fight, hopefully keeping on Adrian’s veil of spirit while Dimitri and I took the attention. We finally reached the garages, which were indeed more crowded than usual. Some Moroi had already driven off. One royal was hysterical because her driver had her car’s keys, and she didn’t know where he was. She was shouting to passers-by to see if anyone could hotwire the car for her. Dimitri led us purposefully forward, never wavering. He knew exactly where we were going. There had been a lot of planning, I realized. Most of which had probably happened yesterday. Why had Lissa obscured it from me? Wouldn’t it have been better for me to have a heads-up on the plan? We scurried through the people, heading toward the garage on the very farthest side. There, sitting just outside of it and seemingly ready to go, was a drab gray Honda Civic. A man stood near it, arms crossed as he examined the windshield. Hearing our approach, he turned around. â€Å"Abe!’ I exclaimed. My illustrious father turned and gave me one of those charming smiles that could lure the unwary to their doom. â€Å"What are you doing here?’ demanded Dimitri. â€Å"You’ll be on the list of suspects too! You were supposed to stay back with the others.’ Abe shrugged. He looked remarkably unconcerned at Dimitri’s angry expression. I wouldn’t have wanted that fury directed at me. â€Å"Vasilisa will make sure a few people at the palace swear they saw me there during suspicious times.’ He turned his dark eyes toward me. â€Å"Besides, I couldn’t leave without telling you goodbye, could I?’ I shook my head in exasperation. â€Å"Was this all part of your plan as my lawyer? I don’t recall explosive escapes being part of legal training.’ â€Å"Well, I’m sure it wasn’t part of Damon Tarus’s legal training.’ Abe’s smile never wavered. â€Å"I told you, Rose. You will never face execution–or even a trial, if I can help it.’ He paused. â€Å"Which, of course, I can.’ I hesitated, glancing toward the car. Dimitri stood by it with a set of keys, looking impatient. Adrian’s words echoed in my memory. â€Å"If I run, it’s just going to make me seem that much more guilty.’ â€Å"They already think you’re guilty,’ said Abe. â€Å"You wasting away in that cell won’t change that. This just ensures we now have more time to do what we need to without your execution looming over us.’ â€Å"And what are you going to do exactly?’ â€Å"Prove you’re innocent,’ said Adrian. â€Å"Or, well, that you didn’t kill my aunt. I’ve known for a while you aren’t all that innocent.’ â€Å"What, are you guys going to destroy the evidence?’ I asked, ignoring the dig. â€Å"No,’ said Eddie. â€Å"We have to find who really did kill her.’ â€Å"You guys shouldn’t be involved with that, now that I’m free. It’s my problem. Isn’t that why you got me out?’ â€Å"It’s a problem you can’t solve while you’re at Court,’ said Abe. â€Å"We need you gone and safe.’ â€Å"Yeah, but I–‘ â€Å"We’re wasting time arguing,’ said Dimitri. His gaze fell on the other garages. The crowds were still chaotic, too busy with their own fears to notice us yet. That didn’t affect Dimitri’s concern. He handed me a silver stake, and I didn’t question the reasons. It was a weapon, something I couldn’t turn down. â€Å"I know everything looks disorganized, but you’ll be amazed at how quickly the guardians will restore order. And when they do, they’re going to lock this place down.’ â€Å"They don’t need to,’ I said slowly, my mind spinning. â€Å"We’re already going to have trouble going out of Court. We’ll be stopped–if we can even get to the gate. There are going to be cars lined up for miles!’ â€Å"Ah, well,’ said Abe, idly studying his fingertips. â€Å"I have it on good authority there’s going to be a new â€Å"gate’ opening up soon over on the south side of the wall.’ The truth dawned on me. â€Å"Oh lord. You’re the one who’s been doling out C4.’ â€Å"You make it sound so easy,’ he said with a frown. â€Å"That stuff’s hard to get a hold of.’ Dimitri’s patience was at an end. â€Å"All of you: Rose needs to leave now. She’s in danger. I’ll drag her out if I have to.’ â€Å"You don’t have to go with me,’ I shot back, kind of offended at the presumption. Memories of our recent arguments emerged, of Dimitri saying he couldn’t love me and didn’t even want to be friends. â€Å"I’ll take care of myself. No one else needs to get in trouble. Give me the keys.’ Instead, Dimitri gave me one of those rueful looks that said he thought I was being utterly ridiculous. We could have been back in class at St. Vladimir’s Academy. â€Å"Rose, I can’t really get in any more trouble. Someone has to be responsible for helping you, and I’m the best choice.’ I wasn’t so sure of that. If Tatiana really had made progress in convincing people Dimitri wasn’t a threat, this escapade would ruin it all. â€Å"Go,’ said Eddie, surprising me with a quick hug. â€Å"We’ll be in touch through Lissa.’ I realized then that I was fighting a losing battle with this group. It really was time to leave. I hugged Mikhail too, murmuring in his ear, â€Å"Thank you. Thank you so much for your help. I swear, we’ll find her. We’ll find Sonya.’ He gave me that sad smile of his and didn’t reply. Adrian was the hardest to leave behind. I could tell it was difficult for him too, no matter how relaxed his grin seemed. He couldn’t be happy about me going off with Dimitri. Our hug lasted a little bit longer than the others, and he gave me a soft, brief kiss on the lips. I almost felt like crying after how brave he’d been tonight. I wished he could go with me but knew he’d be safer here. â€Å"Adrian, thank you for–‘ He held up his hand. â€Å"It’s not goodbye, little dhampir. I’ll see you in your dreams.’ â€Å"If you stay sober enough.’ He winked. â€Å"For you I just might.’ A loud booming noise interrupted us, and we saw a flash of light off to my right. People near the other garages screamed. â€Å"There, you see?’ asked Abe, quite pleased with himself. â€Å"A new gate. Perfect timing.’ I gave him a reluctant hug too and was surprised when he didn’t pull back right away. He smiled at me †¦ fondly. â€Å"Ah, my daughter,’ he said. â€Å"Eighteen, and already you’ve been accused of murder, aided felons, and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see.’ He paused. â€Å"I couldn’t be prouder.’ I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Goodbye, old man. And thanks.’ I didn’t bother asking him about the â€Å"felons’ part. Abe wasn’t stupid. After I’d asked him about a prison that had later been breeched, he’d probably figured out who was behind Victor Dashkov’s escape. And like that, Dimitri and I were in the car, speeding off toward Abe’s â€Å"new gate.’ I regretted not being able to say goodbye to Lissa. We were never truly apart with the bond, but it couldn’t take the place of face-to-face communication. Still, it was worth it to know she would be safe and free of any connection to my escape. I hoped. Like always, Dimitri drove, which I still thought was totally unfair. It had been one thing when I was his student, but now? Wouldn’t he ever give up that wheel? This didn’t seem like the time to discuss it, though–particularly since I didn’t plan on us staying together much longer. A few people had come out to see where the wall had blown up, but no one official had surfaced yet. Dimitri raced through the gap as impressively as Eddie had when he’d driven through Tarasov Prison’s gate, only the Civic didn’t handle the bumpy, grassy terrain as well as the SUV in Alaska. The problem with making your own exit was that it didn’t come with an actual road. Even that was beyond Abe. â€Å"Why is our getaway car a Civic?’ I asked. â€Å"It’s not really great for off-roading.’ Dimitri didn’t look at me but continued navigating over the rough ground toward a more drivable area. â€Å"Because Civics are one of the most common cars out there and don’t attract attention. And this should be the only off-roading we do. Once we hit a freeway, we’re putting as much distance between us and Court as we can–before abandoning the car, of course.’ â€Å"Abandon–‘ I shook my head, letting it go. We reached a dirt road that felt like the smoothest surface on earth after that jolting start. â€Å"Look, now that we’re out of there, I want you to know that I mean it: you don’t have to come with me. I appreciate your help in the escape. Really. But hanging out with me won’t do you any favors. They’ll be hunting for me more than you. If you take off, you can live somewhere around humans and not be treated like a lab animal. You might even be able to slink back to Court. Tasha would put up a fight for you.’ Dimitri didn’t answer for a long time. It drove me crazy. I wasn’t the kind of person who handled silence well. It made me want to chatter and fill the void. Plus, the longer I sat there, the more it hit me that I was alone with Dimitri. Like, really and truly alone for the first time since he’d become a dhampir. I felt like a fool, but in spite of the dangers we still risked †¦ well, I was still overwhelmed by him. There was something so powerful about his presence. Even when he made me angry, I still found him attractive. Maybe the adrenaline pounding through me was addling my brain. Whatever it was, I was consumed by more than just his physical aspects–though they were certainly distracting. The hair, the face, his closeness to me, his scent †¦ I felt it all, and it made my blood burn. But the inner Dimitri–the Dimitri who’d just led a small army through a prison break–captivated me just as much. It took me a moment to realize why this was so powerful: I was seeing the old Dimitri again, the one I’d worried was gone forever. He wasn’t. He was back. At long last, Dimitri replied, â€Å"I’m not leaving you. None of your Rose-logic arguments are going to work. And if you try to get away from me, I’ll just find you.’ I didn’t doubt he could, which just made the situation more confusing. â€Å"But why? I don’t want you with me.’ I still felt a lingering attraction for him, yes, but that didn’t change the fact that he had hurt me in breaking things off between us. He had rejected me, and I needed to harden my heart, particularly if I wanted to move on with Adrian. Clearing my name and leading a normal life seemed far away right now, but if it happened, I wanted to be able to return to Adrian with open arms. â€Å"It doesn’t matter what you want,’ he said. â€Å"Or what I want.’ Ouch. â€Å"Lissa asked me to protect you.’ â€Å"Hey, I don’t need anyone to–‘ â€Å"And,’ he continued, â€Å"I meant what I said to her. I swore I’d serve her and help her for the rest of my life, anything she asks. If she wants me to be your bodyguard, then that’s what I’ll be.’ He gave me a dangerous look. â€Å"There’s no way you’re getting rid of me anytime soon.’ How to cite Last Sacrifice Chapter Four, Essay examples

Feudalism in Pakistan free essay sample

The Zamindarana Nizam or Feudal system is a phenomenon that has affected Pakistan’s history time and again; sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. There are many salient features of the Feudal system in Pakistan. They are large landholdings by joint families; Lambardari of the local landlord family, work done by peasants or mazeras, complete rule of the landlord in the vicinity and often its surroundings too, debt bondage and sometimes absentee landlordism. The Pakistani feudal system is compatible with the European medieval feudal system where a large proportion of the production of the subsistence farmer would go to the landlord as homage. The Indian caste system is also similar to the hierarchy of the medieval European feudal pyramid expect for the fact there a person from a lower rank could be promoted to a higher rank by proving his worth unlike India where a Pandit’s son will grow up to be a Pandit and a Shudra’s son is deemed to be a servant for the rest of his life. We will write a custom essay sample on Feudalism in Pakistan or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page There are also some similarities with the Japanese feudal system. In this research we will delve into the intricacies of the matter and will ascertain the reason for the phenomenon of feudalism and its effects on Pakistani society in general. The European Feudal Model:- We have to see the similarities between the Indian Feudal Model and the European feudal model because a lot of people confuse one with another. It will also be easier to study the Indian feudal system because it was a forerunner of the modern Pakistani feudal system. The European feudal system was based on homage to one’s feudal lord because of the fact that he protects the plebian from external threat by serving in the military. If we want to study the European feudal model we have to grasp the idea of the King, the Lord, the vassal and the peasant. The King was the sovereign barring exceptions in some cases, all the feudal barons and others were knighted by the King so that they would pledge allegiance to the King. Pledging allegiance to the King meant that many of the feudal lords were required to serve in the military. As a result the profession of an Army Officer up till world war two remained largely a feudal profession. Almost all Earls, Dukes, Viscounts and Barons served in the army or Navy as officers; a tradition that continues to this day as we can see both the sons of Charles, the Prince of Wales serving in the military. Another way how an ordinary man could work up the hierarchy was by proving himself in battle. Once the man would do so, he would be awarded with land by the King called â€Å"fief†. This would make him a landowner and he would then be required to swear an â€Å"Oath of Fealty†, the literal meaning of fealty is fidelity. Once the feudal pledged allegiance to the King he was made head of his area. The entire medieval Europe fell into some sort of a pyramid of hierarchy; with the head of everything being the Pope and the Clergy. The Pope was responsible for a lot and he would often appoint Prices in an around the area of modern Italy. Cesare Borgia is one such example of people appointed by Pope Alexander the Sixth, his father. The Church was known for its nepotism and this is why the Great Schism or the Western Schism and the Protestant Reformation took place. The Church’s corruption knew no bounds at times. Alexandre Dumas once said that â€Å"Christianity assumed a pagan character†. This is exactly what he was talking about. The Church has absolute power. Then came the Monarchs, then the Knights and Vassals, the business people were next and finally there were the peasants and the serfs. This has a lot of similarities with the Indian caste system. There were basically four Varnas. The Brahmins were the highest and they were the equivalent of the Clergy of those days, then there were the Kshatriyas who were a lot like Knights of the European feudal model and Samurais of the Japanese feudal system, then were the Vaishyas who were the traders, the businessmen and merchants, finally there were the Shudras who were sort of like the peasants. The feudal system in history has been a way of keeping the oppressed down. Both systems show a clear indication of exploitation. While Brahmins and Kshatriyas were landowners, the Vaishyas were confined to doing business only and the Shudras were made to serve the Brahmins, the Kshatriyas and the Vaishyas in the most demeaning and despicable of ways. They were confined to cleaning jobs, acting as servants and laborers. The Mahar are a lower community of India. They were called the untouchables. One of their leaders B. R. Ambedkar was the Chairman of the Constitutional Drafting Committee. He was the author of several books and was very aware of the fact that he was from an oppressed community and made provisions to make India into the secular and tolerant state that it is today. Some people may disagree with this statement but I beg to differ. The Union of India has done a lot to protect the rights of its lower castes ever since independence and this is where people like B. R. Ambedkar needs to be given credit. Unfortunately in Pakistan, people from lower castes often try to hide their identity and being from a lower caste is still considered a stigma, particularly in the Punjab. Here the Kshatriya tribes who are almost exclusively Muslim have not let go of their Hindu approach. They still believe in Mazera and Kammi system. They are not sent to school and are forced to work for their landlord families generation after generation. It is a shame what Pakistan has become today. Pakistanis embrace modernism thinking that it is an American phenomenon but they have no clue whatsoever how much of an equalitarian society the United States is today. While India has let go of their former hatred, Pakistan continues to be an insolent, third-rate godforsaken society. Coming back to the European feudal system, there were instances when the King knighted the people who were close to the king or were in the process of forging close relationships were also knighted so that their status would be elevated to that of any other peer. We can clearly see that in the case of King Henry the Eighth or Henry Tudor. Before he was set to marry Anne Boleyn he knighted her father making him a Viscount and her brother a Baron. The feudal Barons in the middle ages dominated every walk of life. The German name prefix of â€Å"von† usually showed nobility and we can clearly see that all the people who dominated German and Austrian societies before the Second World War had this prefix in the beginning of their name. For example von Mises the economist, von Bismark the statesman, von Manstein the general, von Hindenburg the Chancellor of Germany before Adolf Hitler and his Third Reich came into power. This is clear evidence of how the nobility was dominant in all spheres of life. We will discuss the same about Pakistan but like Europe trends are changing here too and we can see a more fair and equalitarian society. The Indian Feudal Model:- The first evidence of allotment of lands was in ancient India. Indians of antiquity were very giving to their spiritual leaders, the Brahmins. The customs of gifting lands to Brahmins dates back to Maurya times. The Maurya Empire thrived in India between the 4th to 1st Century B. C. E. The Empire controlled from Paltiputra in Present day Patna, Bihar controlled almost all of India. The special thing about this empire was that it was very sparsely populated. This made it very easy for greedy, licentious Brahmins to encroach land. The situation was ideal and the Brahmin is a very shrewd man. According to R. S. Sharma of the University of Patna this is when the trend started and was later enacted into the epic of Mahabharata during the Gupta Empire. This indoctrination meant that the Brahmins would later become landowners. Vast estates of land boil down into huge sums of money and with money comes power, influence and authority. Over the course of the next two thousand years the Brahmin consolidated his position by becoming the landlord along with the Kashatriya. Our ancestors, the Kashatriyas had to earn his land and fight with every fiber of his being for every last chunk of land but the Brahmin had his devious ways. The Brahmin changed the Holy Hindu script and stammered rites for a living. The result of all this was that the Brahmin to this date remains economically well off and continued to rule for centuries to come. Only in today’s world do you see people from lower Varnas such as Laksmhi Mittal or Bajaj strike rich. Otherwise it was always the Brahmin Pandit or the Kshatriya warrior who had control over wealth. It is important to note that the Nehru family is of Kashmiri Brahmin Pandit origin; their scions include Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi. The concept was then started off by the Mughals who with their skill in administrative issues decided to appoint tax collectors from area to area. This included people from every religion. The Mughals made no discrimination in religion. There were some smaller kingdoms all over India too as the Mughals did not have a hundred percent control over everything. The Mughals, like the British conferred titles upon their tax collectors. Some of these titles were Mian, Rai Bahadur and Chaudhary. Mian was the title given to the Arian family who were the custodians of the Shalimar Gardens. The family is called Mian family of Baghbanpura. Mian Muhammad Shafi, one of the politicians of per-partition India and the Judge to whom Jinnah swore his oath to after becoming Governor-General are both from this family. Rai Bahadur was the title given to those families who helped the Mughals succeed in destroying their enemies for example some people from one tribe would given the title for killing people from another tribe who were causing troubles to for the Mughals. Chaudhary literally meant â€Å"Lord† and unlike today it was a very rare title back then. It was also customary amongst the Mughals to grant Lordship to Pashtun Generals serving in the army. The Nawabs of Bhopal and the landlords of Khwaspur near modern day Lalamusa were both handed over to Pashtun generals for the services they rendered to the Mughal Empire. Once the British came to power, they had similar tactics of retaining power. The only difference was that they had different names for their loyalists. They preferred to give the title of â€Å"Khan Bahadur†. The British clearly understood the differences between communities of India and did their best to divide us. When people from one tribe rebelled, they were expelled from the army. They placed tribes loyal to them over others in social standing and even today, the effects of this intrusion and manipulation of history effects our society in a very detrimental way which I will discuss later in the research. Hegemony of feudals in Pakistani society:- There were also stories from history where we can see that the King was not as powerful and that the Feudals were running the show altogether. We see the evolution of the â€Å"Magna Carta†, the first bill of rights of man that the western world saw. This Magna Carta was written in the thirteenth century by the Feudal Barons of King John the Second after a series of critical istakes made by the King and now the power lay with the Barons. This is how important the nobility was back in the medieval ages. The phenomenon is still prevalent in modern day Pakistan where we clearly see that almost all of the bureaucrats and politicians hailing from Interior Sindh have remarkably eccentric and ridiculous last names. Th is is because these are the leaders of their respective tribes. Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, Asif Ali Zardari, Muhammad Khan Junejo among many others. Why does not any Sindhi from an ordinary background make it to the top? It is the hegemony of these tribe leaders that keeps them oppressed and downtrodden. We do see a sort of connection of these nobles with their German pre world war counterparts. They were all extremely dominant in their societies and controlled the military, the bureaucracy, the foreign affairs, almost all the intellectual discourse, the food production and pretty much everything else. Absentee Landlordism:- This is a phenomenon by which a peculiar landlord from a peculiar rural area of Pakistan remains absent during the entire course of the cultivation and harvest of his crops in order to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the urban areas of Pakistan. These landlords do not contribute to their land; some of them embark on political careers or take up important bureaucratic jobs. As a result they have little or almost no input on the growth of their crops. There are people that are part of the feudal gentry who leave their country estates and farmlands comprising of hundreds of acres just to live a lavish life in Lahore and other cities playing polo and consuming ridiculous amounts of alcohol. When their crops are harvested they get the largest share of the profits while their mazera gets nothing but some money to barely make ends meet. Societal deterioration of Urban Pakistan:- According to Ayesha Siddiqa, the author accredited with writing â€Å"Military Incorporated†, feudal system is still alive and kicking in Pakistan and even Pakistan’s urban elite are trying to copy the life styles of the feudals. She says and I quote â€Å"the decadent lifestyle of the old Nawabs and the feudal elite by holding huge parties, mujrahs and flaunting money† in their newly built farmhouses. The tragedy of our country is that we try to copy whatever culture we think is superior. Our Anthropology teacher first introduced us to the phenomenon of â€Å"Cultural Diffusionism† where traits of dominant cultures are slowly assimilated into weaker cultures. Unfortunately for Pakistani society, we are ready to accept any culture that has more to do with ostentatiousness than modesty. Moreover, Nawabs and Thakurs were more powerful in areas like Balochistan or Uttar Pradesh. Nawabs of Punjab for example Nawab Sir Fazal Ali of Gujrat and Nawab Sir Hayat of Wah were mostly installed by the British. It is sad to see North Punjabis and other Pakistanis trying to emulate their lifestyles because of their own inferiority complexes. The word â€Å"khandaani† has been thrown around so much and is uttered by every single menial who has a few nickels in his pocket. Pakistani society is a complete and utter shambles and the feudal archetype is to be held accountable in this particular case. Pakistan Army Officer Corps and its deterioration because of differences in background:- Pre-partition Pakistan Army also shows a clear discord between army officers of feudal background and army officers of ordinary backgrounds. In a story narrated by my father, a former Pakistan Army Armored Corps officer there was a clear discord and hatred between both the parties within the Armored Corps back then. There were two syndicates that we formed one lead by former Lieutenant General Sahabzada Yakub Khan, a landowning aristocrat and the son of the Nawab of Rampur who opted for Pakistan army after partition; The other by Lieutenant General Gul Hassan Khan a man of humble background from Pabbi, Nowshera District. Both Generals were from PAVO Cavalry (Frontier Force) and Probyn’s Horse respectively with the former filled with people from elite backgrounds and elitist principles and the latter being the complete opposite of that. My father told me that before the 1970s if you were serving in the army as a cavalry officer you had to be a part of one group or the other or else you had no future in the army and were constantly harassed by both parties. So the officers picked their sides, all except one General Zia-ul-Haq did so. As a result young Zia a staunch mullah, was thrown out of three army regiments before settling into one dominated by elitists, the Guides Cavalry (Frontier Force). There he was welcomed by Lieutenant Colonel Pir Israr Shah who felt sorry for poor Zia. The day Colonel Shah left poor Zia was once again bullied and harassed by fellow officers especially by former NWFP and Punjab Governors Lieutenant Generals Fazl-e-Haq and Ghulam Jilani, both personally appointed by General Zia later so that he would show them who’s boss. The result of these dissensions was that Zia did his best to purge out the â€Å"elitist† from Pakistan Army and this policy very slowly and gradually took its effect. Coming back to Gul Hassan and Sahabzada Yakub Khan, There were implications that Bhutto wanted Gul Hassan as the future head of the Army, part of the reason why the competent Sahabzada resigned as Commander of East Pakistan (present day Bangladesh). He was replaced by A. A. K. Niazi, a genuinely incompetent officer. As a result of all of this, Pakistan Army failed to protect East Pakistan from Indian onslaught in the 1971 war. All because our officers failed to unite as one and let go of their backgrounds. What a pity! Perhaps this was why it was so hard to get any work done in any military office back then. There was too much politics surrounding every issue. One party would do whatever it was in their capacity to make the other one look bad and not caring about the duties that their state entrusted upon them.