From the two short stories you have read what do we learn about what :: English Literature

From the two short stories you have read what do we learn about what it was like for American black people to live in Americain the 1950s? From the two short stories; The Gold Cadillac by M.D. Taylor and 1955 by Alice Walker, both set in 1950s America and both written by black female writers we learn about the segregation, racism and poverty of 1950s black America. Both these stories are set in the deep south of America. The gold Cadillac is about a young black girl who knows nothing about racism and discovers it for the first time as she travels with her family into the Deep South in a gold Cadillac. 1955 is written from the point of view of a black woman who has experienced the racism her whole life. America in the 1950s was segregated in the Deep South; it was divided into black ghettos. Even radio stations were divided into stations playing only black music and ones only playing white music. Before Elvis Presley black music would not be played to a white audience so it did not get the recognition it deserved, but Elvis's music was played on all stations and democratised music. Black people did not have the freedom that white people had and were discriminated everywhere they went, black people could not use the same buses and could not eat in the same restaurants as white people and were discriminated by police because the law was nearly completely run by white people, they were turned away at shops and were discriminated against in nearly all other places. In M.D. Taylor's "The Gold Cadillac" the family are driving through the Deep South and the girl sees signs saying "White only coloured not allowed" In Alice walker's "1955" Gracie Mae tells her husband J.T. to put his shirt on because Traynor who is a white man comes to the door, this is because white people had to be treated with more respect because they were seen as more important than black people. The American civil war took place in 1865 and slavery was abolished in the Deep South, but 90 years later there is still resentment from whites towards blacks. The two short stories are all about the prejudice against blacks in the Deep South and how it affects people's lives and freedom. In "The Gold Cadillac" the family is trying to aspire to be rich as they live

Poverty: a Silent Killer

Poverty: a silent killer The merciless chain of poverty is enclosing its arm around America. Children are storming the streets starving for a modest meal and a heated room. It confines them, forcing them to live a life of nightmares. It is evidently noted that poverty is the silent killer all over the world. The danger is, no one truly knows what poverty is, and who is to blame. A snapshot of poverty would seemingly resemble the poorest of the poor. As an experienced person who lived through childhood poverty, I can relate.When Bobby, a preschooler, scratched a mosquito bite on his leg, the area became infected. His parents took him to the doctor, who prescribed an antibiotic. However, because Bobby’s father earned very low wages at his job, the family could not immediately afford to buy the prescription. As a result of the family’s poverty the infection grew dangerously out of control and Bobby was hospitalized for three days in order to receive intravenous antibiotics . Each of those hospital days cost about $800, doctors estimated (Sherman, 6) What is the real truth about poverty?Every conception of the term is misconstrued. There is no absolute one-size-fits-all definition for poverty. All we know is that poverty is currently at war with America and has been for an unquestionable amount of time. Poverty has structured the face of destiny for good. In the eyes of Americans, poverty is the plight of delinquents. Beginning with the Bible and continuing through the Elizabethan poor laws, there has been a belief among some that the poor have no one to blame but themselves (Edelman, XV). However, poverty looks different than it did decades ago.The elderly are considerably more impoverished, and children have become the poorest age group. To understand why there is so much more poverty among children, we need to understand why their parents are worse off. Although some experts affirm children are affected by biological conditions (genetics, health, an d nutrition) and environmental conditions (families, communities, and schools), some also believe there are no accurate measurements for poverty (Boyden and Bourdillon, 129). â€Å"Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn't commit. -Eli Khamarov. Around 21,000 children die around the world everyday due to poverty (Boyden and Bourdillon, 151). At this very moment, a child died from poverty. We need to pinpoint the cause for poverty now! But it is a cycle that cannot be broken. For example, as a child I was raised wealthy. Anything and everything I ever wanted could have been mine thanks to my parents. Although the economy began its sinking process, my family still managed to rise above surface. That is, until my dad’s company went bankrupt and all our money sunk with it.The wealth turned to poor, and we had to do anything and everything we could to carry on. The food was scarce, and the toys were sold. I asked myself everyday why this was our punishment. After nearly a year of enduring the pain of poverty, I now know whom to blame. Ourselves. Are we enough to blame for our own predicament? Have we been lazy, made poor decisions, and been solely responsible for our plight? What about our government? Have they pursued policies that actually harm successful development? We’ve waged war on poverty and poverty won (Edelman, ).With the real cost of minimal living, the cycle will continue unless America platforms a plan. As of right now, President Barack Obama makes little use of the word â€Å"poverty. † The government website detailing the contents of his Recovery Act used the word â€Å"vulnerable† to characterize those portions of legislation relating to low-income people (Edelman, xiv) With that being said, both are to blame. America’s disease is greed. Greed has produced rash tax cuts that have given money to the rich and taken it from the poor.We all want more money, bigger homes, and nicer cars; however, no one can ap preciate what they have. The only people that can are the poor. In result to the greed of my family, when an unforeseen dilemma arose we didn’t know how to handle the situation at hand. Thus, we sunk further and further into the cycle and it took a fight to pull us to the surface. I believe that unless one truly experiences poverty no one will truly comprehend its meaning. On the other hand, poverty can happen to those born into it. As the government focuses more and more on other nation worries, a child dies from poverty.

Compare the use of language of the two editorials Essay

Compare the use of language in the two editorials, considering in particular how far the fact that they were written at different times is reflected in the language of the two texts The two texts are extremely contrasting in their use of language and it is apparent from the dates that they were written as to why this is the case. The first editorial was published in The Daily Mirror (broadsheet) in 1912 and is based upon the fatal disaster of the Titanic. The second editorial was printed in The Sun (tabloid) in 1999 and comments about the train wreck that occurred in the channel tunnel. The graphological features of each text are quite differing, even though they both have the discourse structure of an editorial. The Titanic article’s text is split unevenly into five conjoined, long paragraphs and is of a slightly smaller font, yet also features significantly more words, indicating a more sophisticated reader. In comparison the article on the train accident has very little text and features each sentence to be a separate paragraph, replicating the format of a list/bullet points. This makes the text much more accessible to the reader as it can appeal to a wider range of intellects and age groups when considering audience. The article on the Titanic’s only typographical variation of font is the bold, capitalised and center-underlined title â€Å"one touch of nature† and also the dropped capital of â€Å"Draughtsmen† to begin the editorial, showing that the piece is quite old fashioned in style as a dropped capital is a very traditional technique that dates back to monastery writing. The article in The Sun however portrays a lot more typographical variation as the beginning, middle and end sentences/words are in a bolded, underlined font and the â€Å"Why† for each question as well as the title â€Å"The sun says† and the â€Å"The† to begin the article are also all bolded and capitalised to add emphasis and focus importance and attention. There is also an italicised sentence that claims â€Å"this is clearly not true†, this has most likely been italicised to stress the point of persuasion into agreeing with The Sun’s overall opinion, as this is not a fact so it has to be empathised with for it to gain status as a reputable opinion. The use of ‘Chunnel’ at the end of The Sun’s article, is a blend word made up of the two words ‘channel’ and ‘tunnel’, indicating a more modern, up to date audience. The Daily Mirror article is extremely descriptive and is much more formal in tone, imitating he narrative of a story as it proceeds in chronological order, referring to the disaster in a poetic manner whilst using long complex and compound sentences to engage the reader and enhance escapism, leading the reader to feel as if they were actually present at the time as they are taken through this journey. Each sentence is particularly well crafted and precise to also further exemplify that of a story, as there is no spontaneity and the words put in place to capture emotion have been very well structured and created. The ‘story’ is split into four stages of the journey, the first being the planning of the ship, the second the actual building of it, the third the launching of the Titanic and the fourth the sinking. Even though the ‘sinking’ of the Titanic is supposed to be the main topic of the article as it is the end, shocking result, there is no indication of this when reading through the piece and only after having read the entire article does the title ‘one touch of nature’ seem to fit. This may be for overall impact and to embody the ‘story’ like structure as without preconceptions the reader would not know that this was to be the outcome. There is a technique of parallelism in the first article which makes up the second paragraph with the sentence ‘work of the disciplined hand was to follow labour of directing mind’ creating a balanced sentence. There is also the literary use of opposites (antithesis) supporting the notion that the text is well crafted with the sentence ‘A permanent population is appointed to live here, with the changing passengers ready to begin the voyage†¦ ‘ the opposite words being ‘permanent’ and ‘changing’ as they juxtapose each other. The vocabulary used is extremely archaic in nature e. g. ‘At once, with formidable din of ringing blow’ and this is reinforced throughout with the high detail of description, whereas in The Sun (the more recent dated newspaper article) it is shown that the main focus is on the actual matter at hand and that becomes the full body of the text, there is very little description to aid it and the purpose and subject is exploited promptly. The article from The Sun is extremely critical of the fire in the Channel Tunnel and seeks to point blame, acting as if it was someone’s fault whereas in the article on the Titanic, the fault seems to be ‘our stepmother nature’ of whom is a natural occurrence so no blame can physically be put in place. The Sun appears to put the blame on everything but nature – ‘The train’, ‘Eurotunnel’, ‘the driver and train chief’, ‘the staff in general’ and ‘the sophisticated ventilation system’. The Sun’s article is based upon a ‘near disaster’ where no one died or came to any immediate harm and it acknowledges this within the article ‘happily, everyone survived – but it could all have been so different. ‘ Yet the overall air of it personifies an ‘angry/heated’ tone. Whereas, in the article based on the Titanic, even though masses of people died, there was no blame directed and it was merely accepted as ‘nature’s doing’. However, this greatly reflects on the period that the article was written as recently, people have been trying to find blame for this great disaster and making assumptions of poor craftsmanship etc, so maybe at the time that the article was published (1912) people were less ready to point blame and more accepting of what they were told. The Sun seems to demand answers through rhetorical questions (e. g. the constant and bolded use of ‘why’ to highlight six main questions, taking a very direct approach and using a major public campaigning aspect) and proceeds to group the reader into asking these questions themselves through its high use of persuasion and collectives. For example, ‘the one thing everyone feared†¦ But we were assured†¦ ‘, ‘the public deserves†¦ ‘, all of these sentences are persuading and trying to engage the reader through the use of possessive pronouns ‘we’, ‘our’ and collectives ‘everyone’ and even commenting that the public ‘deserves’ an explanation, taking an extremely personal yet quite informal tone to connect with the reader and attach with their apparent views. The opening, second heading ‘Black Hole’ is a pun/metaphor which also ends the article and shows how newspaper headlines are written at this present time (they have to be catchy, short and are usually in some form of a pun) as opposed to when The Daily Mirror article was written as the heading mimics a story like title. Overall, the language and techniques used in each editorial greatly highlight and portray their differing published times and although their subjects are quite similar, the portrayal of each is very different through numerous aspects of language and lexical change.

The Importance of Authenticity in a Man’s Life

Authenticity, as defined by existentialist philosophers, is the degree to which one is true to one's own personality, spirit, or character, despite external pressures. According to Jean-Paul Sartre, â€Å"Existence precedes essence†, in other words, man makes himself. In order for him to define himself, he should be totally free. But, how can he be free totally? Man can be totally free when he lives an authentic way of living. By living a life of authenticity, man should not seek guidance towards the established codes of life. He should decline every sort of objective morals and values that is set by his society for him?. By this, he should be living his life according to his true self. Living by his true nature requires him his freedom of choice. And by creating his own choices, he freely makes his own actions despite external forces. These actions which he freely chooses are now the basis of his existence. But in order for him to be able to live an authentic life, he must take full responsibility for all of his actions. Knowing things about freedom and authentic living, what are its implications to man’s life? Being authentic will enable a man to live his life to the fullest. And living life to the fullest means is to have a life that is joyful, meaningful, and full of values and happiness. By living authentically, he will be able to liberate himself from the barriers that are cast to him by his society. By transcending the presupposed purposes-in-life, the true purpose of his existence become so clear to him. With the knowledge of his existence’s ultimate purpose, he can formulate the best decisions for himself. Deciding according to his own choices will lead him towards the fulfilment of his personal goals. In sum, all these things will guide him to a more comfortable and a better life in which he lives through the assistance of his own choices and according to his very true nature. Indeed, authenticity is truly significant to a man’s life. The most mportant aspect of living an authentic life is total freedom. Because of total freedom, man is able to make personal choices and also, he leads his life to anew. He is no longer having problems when it comes to decision making for the reason that he already has a clear view of his ultimate purpose. For one to acknowledge his freedom of choice and the responsibility that he hold as a being is, according to Sartre, to have an authentic way of living.

Nick’s Story

A. Which symptoms that Nick has described so far are relevant to the nervous system? Are his symptoms sensory, motor, or both? Nick has complained of burning and prickly pain in feet, clumsiness, dizziness when sitting or standing, and vision problems. These are symptoms of both sensory and motor nerve damage. B. Do you think the symptoms Nick describes are likely caused by peripheral nerve damage? Could they be caused by damage to the central nervous system? I believe there has been peripheral nerve damage because of the symptoms that he exhibits.It seems that his receptors are not effectively communicating back to the central nervous system; in addition he is losing his somatic reflexes in his feet, both indicating damage to his somatic nervous system. I guess there could be damage to the central nervous system, but I would expect that the symptoms would be even more severe. C. Diabetic neuropathies damage peripheral nerves. Which component of the reflex arc is most likely to be da maged in Nick’s situation? I think a lot of Nicks reflex arc damage would begin at the sensory neuron.Stimuli are still triggering the receptor, but the information isn’t traveling along the damaged sensory neuron to continue the arc to the integrating centers, motor neurons, and effectors, though the damage could be further along in the reflex arc providing basically the same symptoms. D. Which division of the autonomic nervous system would be affected and would be causing Nick’s GI tract symptoms? Because his digestion is suppressed I would say the sympathetic division is mainly active, inhibiting the gastrointestinal tract.So the parasympathetic division of his nervous system, which allows motility of the gastrointestinal tract, is primarily affected. E. Nick’s light-headedness is caused by a condition known as orthostatic hypotension, a rapid drop in blood pressure upon standing up. Based on what you have learned so far, how does the autonomic nervous system control blood pressure? The hypothalamus connects the parasympathetic and sympathetic divisions of the ANS by neurons in the brain and spinal cord and relay information.The posterior and lateral parts of the hypothalamus control the sympathetic division which constrict blood vessels and raise blood pressure. The anterior and medial parts of the hypothalamus control the parasympathetic division which lowers blood pressure. F. After becoming comatose, Nick was sweating profusely, and had rapid heart and respiratory rates and elevated blood pressure. Which area of the brain interacts with the autonomous nervous system during physical stress to initiate these responses? The hypothalamus . G. Nick has digestive symptoms indicating reduced gastrointestinal mobility.What autonomic receptors regulate closing of sphincters and relaxation of organ walls? Pelvic splanchnic nerves. H. Why would the term polyneuropathy be appropriate for the symptoms that Nick was experiencing? Because h is symptoms indicate that several different nerves and neural pathways were damaged. I. What symptoms noted by Nicks primary care physician indicated a polyneuropathy? Knowing that Nick was struggling to manage his diabetes definitely sent a red flag, additionally vision problems, feet problems, and balance issues indicated polyneuropathy. J.Why are Nicks generalized symptoms more indicative of a peripheral polyneuropathy than a central nervous system lesion to the brain or spinal cord? Because certain individual signals aren’t being interpreted and responded to effectively. K. Which of Nick’s systems were related to somatic reflexes? Which were related to autonomic reflexes? Somatic reflex issues were indicated by the lack of response in reflex and when nick wasn’t able to resist much to pressure against his foot. Autonomic reflexes were suppressed when Nick was unable to digest food, and increased when his blood pressure went up.

Italian Neorealism and National Cinema

The question whether to consider a particular film part of national cinema is still unanswered. What is national cinema? What separates it from other forms of film genres? What makes it part of ones culture and how does it illuminate identity and patriotism? Films are often described as society’s reflections or representations. Because of films’ utilization and articulation of visual imageries, storytelling becomes more vivid and concretely presented. In addition to that, the presence of alive actors and actresses makes film more in touch with reality. This is one advantage that films possess over other national art and treasures such as literature and music. The truth of the matter is, it is a combination of both literature, music, visual and performing arts. If the community renders such notions about national cinema, then the dictates of logic and reason readily show that each and every featured film shown in big screens are parts of a bigger picture known as national cinema. However, the problem is that members of the academe and scholars alike seem to be uncomfortable in settling to such an idea. National Cinema Keith Cameron noted that in discussing national cinema, there are â€Å"axis of reflections† that should be considered [1]. These are the manner in which films are â€Å"enunciated.† [2] The second one pertains to different texts and images that these films want to promote or imply.[3] The last but definitely not the least, is how to locate these films within the national context.[4] These three aspects are of great importance to this particular discussion. This would bring a better contextualization of De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves and how it fits in into the national cinema category. According to Cameron, there are three ways to enunciate films and that is based on the actual structure and content of the film involved, the analyses and discussions that are given to it and the institutions in which these films are shown and made available to the public. [5] With this regard, Cameron questions the differentiation of popular cinema from national cinema. First of all, Cameron seem to imply that although some films or productions are supported by the government or even if the country involve, such as France for example releases large numbers of film, these alone cannot really define national cinema’s true meaning. If such is the case, it seems that the term national cinema is too encompassing yet too specific. It is encompassing since, it basically involves films within the region and specific, since each of these cinematic productions goes through the scrutinizing eyes of various critics and members of the academic intelligentsia. This brings us to the second mode of enunciation which has something to do with the discourses that are attributed to a particular film. More often than not, to determine whether a film would best fit under the national context is based on the studies that deconstruct every ingredient that embodies a locally produced film. On the other hand, Cameron seem to imply that certain organizations which are actively involved in preserving these films play an important role in film classification—so much so, that a local film cannot be considered as part of national cinema unless these institutions tells so. Turning to the second axis, it is important to look at different symbols and imageries that are embedded in the film. National cinema tends to depict societal and systemic issues. Such readily promotes nationalism, identity, culture and history. But there are also occasions wherein the political structure of a country or state, that are often evident in censorship rules also affect the whole story. Political turmoil can either reinforce the inclusion of nationalistic advocacies and movements in film elements or it can silence these works of art and transform it into mere commodities. As for the case of the third axis, Cameron noted that locating cinemas within the national context should be examined as a mixture of different film genres that are present within the country. Plurality seem to be an important factor in defining films as part of national cinema that are differentiated by six typologies such as the following: â€Å"narratives, genres, codes and conventions, gesturality and morphology, the star as the sign and the cinema of the centre and of the periphery.† [6] Italian Neorealism and National Cinema Given this situation at hand, there is no doubt that national cinema, most especially in Italy has taken the attention of many. Angelo Restivo explained that a comparison cinemas that are not produced in Hollywood readily shows that extensive studies and researches has been conducted towards Italian cinema.[7] Based from this argument, clearly, Italian films exemplify the second mode of enunciation wherein it concerns the discourses that revolve around the film per se. One of the biggest contributions of Italy in the cinematic world is the rise of a genre more popularly known as Neorealism. [8] The defining characteristics of Neorealism are its strong emphasis on social and economic as well as political depiction of society. [9] Maria Prammaggiore and Tom Wallis elucidated that the rise of this film genre occurred during World War II’s aftermath. Roberto Rossellino, Vittorio De Sica and Luchnio Visconti are considered as the main proponents of the said film movement. [10] This has readily contributed into the growth and development of art films that are being offered in the public. With this regard, there is a need to understand national cinema and its seemingly inevitable fusion with Neorealism. If Neorealism began during the time wherein   communities are torn with war and poverty, then the film genre is expected to be part of a much diverse category, which is of course national cinema. An examination of De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves seems to reflect the social dilemmas that are present in Italy. The Bicycle Thieves is a story of a struggling man who is desperate to land a good job in the city. He has a family to raise and everyday expenses are synonymous to everyday curses. Ricci, who is the main protagonist of the story, is in dire need of a bicycle since it is one of the job’s primary requirements. Job opportunities are scarce and there are also other applicants who are readily qualified for the position. In order to get the job, he and his wife pawned some of their precious possessions to get a bike. The world literally crumbled during the war. Economies dropped down and more individuals were denied to have a decent means of living. This is well articulated in the film. Ricci’s undertakings represent the experiences of an individual that is in extreme poverty and desperation. Therefore, it has the tendency to reflect the sentiments of persons who are also engulfed in such situation. Italy is not spared from the war’s impact and De Sica showed that even a great city encounter severe problems. Thus, the social and economic aspect of national cinema in this case is already manifested. Furthermore, since Neorealism, as the term realism depicts, emphasizes capturing reality on screen or at least being closed to reality in that manner. In order to accomplish this, conversational language and natural settings are readily utilized to imbue the â€Å"real† effect. [11] In the first scene alone, Ricci’s environment already manifests extreme poverty. Natural sounds are basically not edited or polished in order to present the realities of the movie’s setting and thus its artificiality is readily reduced. The striking techniques of realism and at the same time, the claims of national cinema make a perfect combination. Perhaps it can be best explained that Neorealism falls under the category of national cinema. Out of the need to live and survive, Ricci became a bicycle thief too. Apparently, this situation demonstrates war’s remnants. There is the struggle to live throughout the whole war per se. But the battle is even harder when on how to continue life after the incident. The use of close-up shots in the film further heightens the drama that is presented in the film. However, De Sica does not seem to place much importance on dramas that are filled romantic notions—but rather on what is evident in the world. Linda Badley, Barton Palmer and Steven Schneider [12] explained that questions about Neorealism have something to do with insufficient funding. The raw and organic styles that it features are out of necessity rather than pure stylistic and aesthetically-related techniques, according to its critics. But then again, Badly, Palmet and Schneider discussed that â€Å"on-location† shoots are even more expensive since some factors such as the weather and lighting cannot be controlled and that it should go through a series of finishing touches for it to capture the desired effect. [13] National cinema as previously discussed is a celebration of society’s everyday affairs. De Sica and his great interest and fervor desire in promoting Neorealism is a concrete example of a classic national cinema. Once and for all, the mere fact that Neorealism deals with reality simply purports that national values and experiences are highlighted. The visual imageries that are used in Bicycle Thieves connote a strong presentation of Italy’s previous political and social upheavals that has to be confronted. The aim to depict this reality goes hand in hand with the objective to readily champion a vital change that is essential in Italy’s community. Due to this, national cinema transforms into an art form worthy of praise and recognition. Bibliography Badley, L, R Palmer& S Schneider. Traditions in World Cinema. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2006 Cameron, C,   National Identity. Intellect Books, Great Britain, 1991 Prammagiore, M   & and T Wallis, Film: A Critical Introduction. Laurence King Publishing,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   London, 2005 Restivo, A,   The Cinema of Economic Miracles: Visuality and Modernization in the Italian   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Art Film, Duke University Press, USA, 2002 [1] K Cameron, National Identity. Intellect Books, Great Britain, 1991, p. 96 [2] Ibid. [3] Ibid. [4] [5] Ibid. [6] Ibid. [7] A Restivo, The Cinema of Economic Miracles: Visuality and Modernization in the Italian Art Film, Duke University Press, USA, 2002, p.3 [8] M Prammagiore   & and T Wallis, Film: A Critical Introduction. Laurence King Publishing, London, 2005, p.310 [9] Ibid. [10] Ibid. [11] Ibid. [12] L Badley, R Palmer, S Schneider, Traditions in World Cinema. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2006, p. 32 [13] Ibid

Terrorism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Terrorism - Research Paper Example d political fractions), motivation is based upon global jihad, its goals are based on political and religious supremacy of Islam, threat is related to the rapid spread of religious fundamentalism and terrorism, and anti-terrorism policies can save Somalia from the negative influence of this terrorist organization. First of all, the origin of the jihadist group, named as Al-Shabaab, is indebted to the military aims of political Islam in Somalia. To be specific, Al-Shabaab originated as a military subsidiary of the Islamic Courts Union or ICU. When the ICU lost influence and support during its clash with Transitional Federal Government in Somalia (TFG), Al-Shabaab gained momentum and began to exert its influence in Africa. Besides, this terrorist organization was formed in the year 2006. One can see that the origin of this terrorist group is deeply rooted in the Islamic concept of jihad. For instance, the masterminds behind the origin of this terrorist group served in Afghanistan during late 70s. Hansen (2013) states that, â€Å"A proper exploration of the history of Al-Shabaab should start with the origins of this network, which are amongst the Somalis travelling to Afghanistan in the wake of the Soviet intervention, during the Afghan war of 1979-89† (pp.19-20). To be specific, those wh o (say, Somalis) served during this time returned to Somalia and helped the ICU while fighting against the TFG. The defeat of ICU by the TFG resulted in the fragmentation of ICU into different groups. During this time, Al-Shabaab (say, one among these fragmented groups) declared its aim, i.e., the leadership of jihadists in Africa or the fight against the foes of political Islam. One can see that Al-Shabaab amalgamated the idea of political Islam to the core of religious fundamentalism. To be specific, the leaders of this jihadist group gained the confidence of the mass by proclaiming their ultimate aim, the superiority of religion beyond the government. As pointed out, Al-Shabaab