Belonging Essay ‘Romulus My Father’, ‘the Lost Thing’ and ‘the Catcher in the Rye’

Our search for who we are is fuelled by our innate desire to achieve a sense of acceptance and belonging. Belonging doesn’t just happen; it involves many factors and experiences in order to feel that you truly belong. Feeling a sense of inclusion can enrich our identity and relationships and can lead to acceptance and understanding. In order to understand who we are we need to belong and this is effectively represented in Raimond Gaita’s memoir ‘Romulus My Father,’ Shaun Tan’s ‘The Lost Thing’ and JD Salinger’s ‘The Catcher in the Rye. An individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can enrich or limit their experience of belonging to an environment. ‘Romulus My Father’ demonstrates this through the profound sense of acceptance that exists within Raimond. He delivers his observations in a reflective and thoughtful tone, particularly in his recollections of his father, as he â€Å"loved him too deeply†¦ no quarrel could estrange (them)† and felt a genuine sense of familial belonging. This is also evident even after Christine dies. He observed, â€Å"We came together as son and husband with the woman whose remains lay beneath us. † Juxtaposed against Raimond’s belonging is the suffering of Christine in her displacement. Christine struggles to be the mother that society expects her to be, and her inability to relate and conform is described by Raimond as, â€Å"a troubled city girl, she could not settle†¦ in a landscape that highlighted her isolation. † Raimond’s despondent tone conveys how Christine could not fit into the community and in Australia. As a result, her isolation and alienation lead her to betray the institution of family juxtaposed by â€Å"I felt awkward with her,† which shows that Raimond’s relationship with his mother has lost the familial belonging it once contained. Similar to Christine’s feelings of estrangement, Romulus â€Å"felt like a ‘prisoner’ in Australia,† that was looked down upon and unwanted, resulting in a sympathetic response from the reader. Throughout the novel, we witness Romulus facing and struggling with these opposing pressures. Feelings of estrangement and an inability to simply ‘fit in’ are similarly explored in Shaun Tan’s â€Å"The Lost Thing†. Tan explores the attitude and bitterness towards things that do not belong, and the intricacies of a world that directly reflects society and its inability to accept differences. The fundamental need to belong can consequently result in many altering themselves in order to conform to societal expectations. Feeling a sense of belonging and acceptance involves facing many pressures and difficulties, which are clearly demonstrated by Tan. The Lost Thing is largely ignored and hardly noticed by the community, despite its bright red colour and large appearance that makes it stand out to the reader as it is juxtaposed with the dull and industrialized background. However, regardless of it curious appearance and obvious presence, the community is self-absorbed, too preoccupied with their ritual habits to even notice it. Towards the end of the book, it becomes clear that there are many other lost things that regularly appear in the city, but their presence can only be measured by the minimal extent to which they are noticed. This demonstrates the negative attitudes directed towards people or things that do not stereotypically fit in with the rest of society. Tan also explores the sense of belonging created in such a detached environment. The citizens of the organised community develop a sense of identity by conforming to the rule of society and following the organised standardizations, as demonstrated through the reoccurring motif of the identical houses drawn in neat columns. Ultimately for them to be accepted, they exclude others. Attaining a sense of ‘belonging’ can act as a nurturing force for notions of identity, bringing fulfillment and enrichment of character and this is clearly demonstrated throughout JD Salinger’s novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ through the protagonist nature of Holden Caulfield. Holden seems to be excluded from and victimized by the world around him. As he mentions to his professor Mr. Spencer, he feels trapped on â€Å"the other side† of life, and he continually attempts to find his way in a world in which he feels he doesn’t belong. Part of Holden’s alienation is a result of his inability, or perhaps unwillingness to grow up. Holden is fearful of adulthood, claiming that adulthood is world of superficiality and â€Å"phonies. † We are constantly reminded of Holden’s war against â€Å"phonies†, ironically reflecting on Holden’s phoney and fake personality. Like a child, Holden fears change and is overwhelmed by the complexity, but he is too out of touch with his feelings to admit it. Instead, he spends much of his time criticizing others. When are you going to grow up? † Carl Luce makes it apparent to Holden that he must grow up and move on from his issues which are holding him back. In the conclusion of his journey, Holden is able to gain a sense of belonging and acceptance within his sister Phoebe. Although losing his brother Allie was incredibly hard, Holden finds comfort in his close relationship with his sister and is able to move on willingly. The feeling of acceptan ce involves many factors and experiences. The innate desire to belong and ramifications of not belonging are clearly represented within ‘Romulus my Father’. The struggles of belonging in the self-absorbed organized society of ‘The Lost Thing’ clearly demonstrate our basic need to be accepted. JD Salinger is able to prove that a sense of belonging comes from a sense of identity within ‘The Catcher in the Rye. ’ Belonging can enrich our identity and relationships and can lead to acceptance and understanding.

Seperating Metal Cations Using Paper Chromatography

Lab #3 Separating Metal Cations by Paper Chromatography Introduction/Purpose: In chemistry, it is important to effectively analyze the components in a given mixture. In order to do so, chemists will analyze a mixture either qualitatively or quantitatively using different methods and equipment. Qualitative analyses are subjective, and only gather â€Å"non-numerical† data such as the color, appearance, and smell of the components. This data is intended to obtain physical information on the components present.While quantitative analyses are objective, and use â€Å"numerical† data to gather the quantity of the components present. Quantitative data can be given in terms of height, area, volume, weight, speed, time, temperature, etc. Each method of data analyses provides chemists with specific types of information that can be used to draw conclusions about the experiments they have performed. This lab utilized both quantitative and qualitative data by using the Paper Chroma tography method for determining the metal cations present in an unknown sample.This was performed by using reagents that reacted with the metal cations deposited on the paper. The retention factor of each known cation was calculated in order to determine which metal cations were present in two unknown samples. Objective: Effectively use Paper Chromatography to analyze quantitative and qualitative data of different metal cations, in an effort to correctly identify two unknown samples of metal cations, by comparing them against a chromatogram with known component reactions.This lab also aids in better understanding the importance of developing a chemist’s observation and data recording methods, as some of the reactions are faint, or may degrade over a short period. Material & Equipment: 1) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) 2) 600 ml beaker 3) Plastic wrap 4) Rubber band 5) (3) Paper filters 6) (2) 11 x 14 cm pieces of chromatographic paper 7) Pencil 8) Metric ruler 9) Capilla ry tube 10) Paper towels 11) 10 ml of 6M HCL 12) 35 ml of Acetone ((CH3)2CO) 13) Metal cations- Iron(III), Cobalt(II), Nickel(II), and Copper(II) 14) Two unknown sample cations 5) Reagents: Potassium ferrocyanide, Potassium thiocynate in acetone, Dimethyl glyoxime in ethanol 16) 50 ml beaker with 25 ml of ammonium hydroxide 17) Fume hood Procedure/Methods: 1) *See the attached pre-lab outline for the procedure/order of operations used in completing this lab experiment* 2) *The procedure was altered at step #9 with direction from the lab instructor. Chromatogram #2 was not spotted with the four known metal cations. * Three pieces of filter paper were used to practice spotting with the four known metal cations.The filter paper was folded into four separate sections and a small sample of the known metal cation was spotted onto a marked point. This process was repeated for each piece of filter paper. Filter sample #1 was spotted using potassium ferrocyanide; filter sample #2 was spotted using potassium thiocynate in acetone; and filter sample #3 was spotted using dimethyl glyoxime in ethanol. Using three separate samples allowed the group to analyze the qualitative results (color change) of the interactions with each of the four metal cations.This provided preliminary data that was used to hypothesize which compound would be best to spot the known metal cations on chromatogram #1. After reviewing both the interaction results, and the retention values (RF), we then determined which reagent provided the most identifiable interaction with each of the metal cations. Equation 1. [pic] Data: *See attached Data Sheets* Results: The lab instructor reported the results of the correct unknown metal cations as follows: 1) Unknown #1 = Copper ) Unknown #2 = Iron and Nickel As shown on Data Sheet #2, our lab group concluded that the unknown metal cations were as follows: 1) Unknown #1 = Cobalt 2) Unknown #2 = Iron Qualitative Data (Chromatogram #1): The first observations made of chromatogram #1 were those of the physical changes in the color of the metal cations after they were exposed to the developing solvent. The colors observed for the metal cations were as shown by the corresponding bar graph in Figure 1 below.Copper = Light Brown, Nickel = Pink, Iron = Blue, and Cobalt = Green Quantitative Data (Chromatogram #1): After the qualitative observations were analyzed and recorded, the spotted sections of each metal cation were marked with a pencil at the highest migration distance of the substance. This measurement was then used in calculating the Rf value of each metal cation, using Equation 1 above, and represented in Figure 1 below. Copper = . 7, Nickel = . 1, Iron = 1, and Cobalt = . 5 Figure 1. [pic] Qualitative Data (Chromatogram #2):The first observations made of chromatogram #2 were those of the physical changes in the color of the metal cations after they were exposed to the developing solvent. The colors observed for the metal cations were as shown by the corresponding bar graph in Figure 2 below. Unknown #1 = Green, and Unknown #2 = Blue Quantitative Data (Chromatogram #1): After the qualitative observations were analyzed and recorded, the spotted sections of each metal cation were marked with a pencil at the highest migration distance of the unknown substance.This measurement was then used in calculating the Rf value of the unknown metal cations, using Equation 1 above, and represented in Figure 2 below. Unknown #1 = . 41 and Unknown #2 = . 91 Figure 2. [pic] Conclusion: The qualitative and quantitative data of the known metal cations from chromatogram #1 were used to determine the metal cations that composed Unknown sample #1 and #2, in chromatogram #2. Unknown #1 was developed using KSCN/acetone, and Unknown #2 was developed using K4Fe(CN)6. However, it is unknown why we chose to use that reagent as opposed to the other two available.It is also clear that a deviation from the procedure caused us to erroneously streak our chromatogram unknowns with only one reagent. Failing to spot and streak chromatogram #2 with all reagents prohibited our ability to analyze the sample after exposure to all reactions. As shown from the results of the filter paper samples, we were able to see qualitative changes on Fe, Cu, and Co with the use of potassium ferrocyanide, Fe, Cu, and Co with the use of potassium thiocynate in acetone, and Fe, Co, and Ni with the use of dimethyl glyoxime in ethanol.Although the colors in each reaction were different with each of the reagents used on the filter paper samples, the use of each reagent would have provided us with a number of visual changes to identify. Those observations would have been marked, and prompted more calculations of the Rf values associated with each reaction, allowing for a more thorough evaluation and determination of the unknown metal cations present.Although we were able to accurately detect the presence of Fe in unknown sample #2, it is evident that if the chromatogram had been exposed to the dimethyl glyoxime in ethanol, we would have detected the Ni as well. The exposure of the filter sample containing the Ni, to dimethyl glyoxime in ethanol, yielded the only visual reaction, out of all three reagents tested. This labs results further solidify the need to conduct the procedure as thoroughly as possible, and if there are feelings of inadequacy, we perform the procedures that we feel will enable us to procure the most accurate results.