What types of irony are used in "The Gift of the Magi"? Situational irony is obvious, but are there any other types of irony used? Explain.

Well, you have clearly identified the situational irony
that occurs in this excellent short story, however, you are also right in suspecting
that other forms of irony exist in this story. Remember, that irony can be detected
whenever there is a gap between appearance and reality, and therefore, the ending of the
story, when the narrator intervenes to give us his opinion of these two "foolish
children". Note what he says:

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The Mgie, as you know, were wise men -
wonderfully wise men - who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. They invented the
art of giving Christmas presents. Being wise, their gifts were no doubt wise ones,
possible bearing the privilege of exchange in case of duplication. And here I have
lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children in a flat who
most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a
last word to the wise of these days, let it be said that of all who give gifts, these
two were the wisest. Of all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest.
Everywhere they are wisest. They are the
Magi.

There exists irony then
in the fact that in the eyes of the world, what Della and Jim did was foolish, and yet
the narrator tells us that they are "the Magi" - their spirit of sacrificial giving out
of love makes them closes to the original Magi who brought gifts to the Jesus-child at
Christmas all those years ago. Although the world would scorn them for what they have
done, they show they know more about giving than anyone else.

In a functionalist society, do people need to agree within the society, or is it that they perform the actions in order to conform?

In my opinion, the functionalist perspective in sociology
tells us nothing about why individual people act in the ways that they do. 
Functionalism is about the society as a whole, not about the
individuals.

So, for example, functionalist theory says
that crime and deviance exist because they help to define who we are.  We define who we
are by saying who we are not -- by saying "those kinds of behaviors are criminal or
deviant; they are not acceptable to us."

But this does not
say anything about why the individual criminal commits a crime.  It only speaks about
why crime is "important" to our society.

Who is the protagonist in To Kill A Mockingbird and why?

The reason Scout is the protagonist in this story is
evidenced by the changes that take place in her life over the two year period the book
covers. She begins as a rather naive little girl who is not familiar with the lifestyles
of those outside her household. Her world is the safe and comfortable confines of her
home and father. She believes her father is a little boring and has few outstanding
traits. She will find that he is the crack shot in Maycomb County and is not afraid of
upholding truth and justice even when his peers do not agree with him. She finds other
lifestyles, like those of the Ewells, the Radleys, Miss Maudie's, are not how she
experienced life sheltered by Calpurnia and her family. As Scout learns, she accepts
changes in her life that are beyond control. She begins  to learn a female's role in
society and how justice is not always just to those of color. Her acceptance of Boo
Radley as a protector, not a gruesome monster, shows her understanding of people
maturing.

How important is the first paragraph?

The first paragraph establishes clarity about the
narrator’s sense of guilt, but it shows him to be unsure about his own motivations for
the narrative to follow. He is therefore ambiguous because he assumes that “some
intellect” in the future may be able to interpret the causes of his actions, and
therefore could show that they stemmed form “nothing more than an ordinary succession of
very natural causes and effects.” It is a model for writers to follow in which it
contains almost the entire exposition but leaves out enough information for readers to
want to know more. This could be something that students could follow in
developing their own essays.

How is the character Friar Laurence used to heighten the tragedy in the play Romeo and Juliet?Please use citations in your response.

Friar Laurence in Shakespeare's Romeo and
Juliet is a "scheme-hatcher"; he is also a character who, ironically since he
is a priest, acts impetuously himself and shirks responsibility, thereby causing
misfortune to both Romeo and Juliet.

Without following the
proper procedures of the Church and without consulting the parents, Friar Laurence
performs a marriage of Romeo and Juliet as a scheme to bring together the feuding
families:

In
one respect I'll thy assistant be;

For this alliance may so
happy prove,

To turn your households' rancor to pure love.
(2.3.  

However, since the
priest does not get the opportunity to talk with the parents, this act causes tragic
events: 

1.  After Romeo is married to Juliet,he secretly
spends the night with her.  As he enters the streets of Verona the next day, he
encounters Tybalt and Mercutio in a heated argument.  Then, Romeo tries to intervene and
ameliorate matters by stating that he cannot hate Tybalt without explaining that he now
is part of the Capulet family:

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Tybalt, the reason that I have to love
thee

Doth much excuse the appertaining
rage

To such a greeting.
(3.1.50

Tybalt is further
angered by what he interprets as Romeo's insults, and reaches through Romeo's arm,
stabbing Mercutio fatally.  Incensed by Tybalt's act, Romeo pulls his sword and kills
Tybalt.  Afterwards, he bemoans his rage and irrationality on which he has heretofore
prided himself.  He exclaims, "O I am fortune's fool!" (3.1.137) when he realizes that
he must flee Verona.

2. This deception of the secret
marriage by Friar Laurence also allows the engagement of Juliet to Paris to occur.  When
Juliet refuses to be married to Paris, Lord Capulet misinterprets her behavior and
becomes exceedingly angry, demanding that she marry Paris or be sent off to a nunnery. 
Despairingly, Juliet runs to the Friar to help her; he devises the plan to have her seem
dead. Friar Laurence tells Juliet,

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Hold, get you gone, be strong and
prosperous

In this resolve.  I'll send a friar with
speed

To Mantua, with my letters to thy lord.
(4.2.123-125)

With her
funeral, etc., the Friar will buy time for Juliet, he hopes, and the Capulets will be so
elated when Juliet "returns" to the living that they will forgive everyone.  As they
enter the tomb, Friar Laurence deceptively tells the Capulets to follow Juliet's corpse,
but he suggests to them to not tempt fate anymore: 

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Sir, go you in, and, madam, go with
him.

...To follow this fair corse into her
grave

The Heavens do lour upon you for some
ill;

Move them no more by crossing their high will.
(4.5.97-98)

However, Friar
Laurence's message to Romeo that Juliet is not dead, but is resting in the family
catacombs does not reach Romeo in Mantua where he is banished, and Romeo rushes
to Verona only to discover what he thinks is her corpse since a rumor came to him by his
man servant.  He arrives at Juliet's tomb and takes poison so he can join her in
eternity as he senses fate:

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A dateless bargain to engrossing
death...

Thou desperate pilot, now at once run
on

The dashing rocks thy seasick weary bark
(5.3.115-118)

Friar Laurence
arrives too late at the catacombs, but Juliet begins to wake up.  Hearing the guard
arriving outside, Friar Laurence becomes frightened and will not take Juliet with him,
telling her "I can no longer stay."  After he leaves, Juliet discovers Romeo and then
slays herself with a dagger that she finds.

The tragic
events of Romeo and Juliet are precipated by two schemes of Friar
Laurence: the marriage scheme and the scheme of dissembling Juliet's death.  Had he been
forthright with the parents, perhaps the tragedy of the two "star-crossed lovers" would
not have occurred.  Certainly, he should have been more responsible in his acts and have
consulted with parents and authorities, as should have the Nurse, who also knew the
truth behind Romeo and Juliet's actions.

Why does Blanche try to avoid reality? What are the causes?

I think that we have to start off with a premise that
Blanche is not operating " on a full tank of gas."  I think it might be a bit on the
crude side, but it gets the point across.  There are so many issues and challenges in
Blanche's own background that it is nearly impossible for the reader/ viewer to ask that
she be presented in a "normal" or traditional manner.  It's probably here where Blanche
has to be the protagonist.  Williams wanted to create a character where there is so much
in terms of challenges and socio- psychological baggage whereby one had to see her in a
variety of lights, where strict moral judgment was nearly
impossible.

We can only begin to list some of these
elements here, and in doing, so we can fully understand why there might be a desire to
block out reality and to not see things in a "coherent" or "normal" light.  The social
world in which Blanche had been raised has become completely undermined and replaced by
a new and industrialized social order that has buried the past.  Contrast this with
another great Southerner's line about the past when Faulkner says, "The past isn't dead
and buried.  In fact, it's not even past."  If this is true, then Blanche has to deal
with the emotional challenge of a world that is physically dead, but emotionally alive
and vibrant.  We know little of her husband, but there are implications that part of the
reason the marriage failed was because he was homosexual in a social order that saw it
as taboo.  This had to have some level of impact on Blanche in terms of how she
perceives herself as a woman, and might also help to explain why there is a such a
bizarre and twisted relationship she has towards sexual conduct, one in which she
rebukes Mitch's advance but is overtly flirtatious with a young boy.  The rejection from
her position as a teacher for the same reason also adds to her complex nature whereby a
denial of reality is present.  Even in general, there is an edge to Blanche, almost as
if to indicate that the premise of a woman who seems to be so assertive and so
independent is only doing so to mask a frail sense of self and a condition of living
that is the complete opposite.   Her experiences have warped or distorted her view of
reality and her place in it because such experiences are examples of warped reality.  I
suppose that this is a way of saying that there is little hope for Blanche to see the
world as normal, little way for her to be able to accept reality for what it is.  Realty
and consciousness have been so distorted for so long that this is actually normal for
her.  To ask Blanche to see the world as "real" implies that she is able to tell the
difference.  I am not sure Blanche is because of the intense experiences that she has
endured.  In no way would I say that Blanche has not been responsible for some of these,
but I do think that she is the protagonist in the play because she represents what many
of us are in that we have experienced love, loss, pain, futility, and a sense of the
disjointed in our own consciousness and have had to reconcile reality with it.  In
assessing Blanche, I think it's nearly impossible for us to turn the lenses of
reflection and refraction upon ourselves. Such a loaded condition makes her to be not
just the protagonist of the play, but one of the most compelling characters
around.

Discuss the growth and development of tourism in India.I want in details of how there has been a growth and development in tourism in India.

Indeed, I think that you have hit on a question that is
quite topical.  The growth and emergence of tourism in India is something that is
growing in fairly strong leaps and bounds.  The facts might vary from source to source,
but the overall upwards trajectory is fairly undeniable.  In the last half a decade, the
growth in tourism in India has emerged due to some significant factors.  The national
economy has become much more liberalized and much less centrally governed.  The
convergence of this fact along with the massive proliferation of the information
technology sector has helped to generate much more income and interest in India.  As
more "Western" businesses outsource to India and take advantage of economic
competitiveness with location of their centers in India, significant foreign capital has
been invested with equally significant domestic income being generated, with a growth of
personal disposable income of over 10%.   These factors along with a strong growth of
the middle class has helped to put India on the map for tourism.  Tourist arrivals are
expected to grow over 20% through 2010.  This growth is going to continue and be
fostered as the tourist service industry is one of massive employment, at last count
giving jobs to about 20 million Indians. Much of the interest in India has developed
from the business end, but also with the rediscovery of the natural beauty of the nation
as well as the spiritual element intrinsic to any understanding of India.  Additionally,
spots such as Kerala have been dubbed as centers for the spa
treatment.

There is much in way of nationalism tied into
the growth of tourism, as well:  "The tourism industry of India is based on certain core
nationalistic ideals and standards which are: Swaagat or welcome, Sahyog or cooperation,
Soochanaa or information, Sanrachanaa or infrastructure, Suvidha or facilitation, Safaai
or cleanliness and Surakshaa or href="http://www.economywatch.com/business-and-economy/tourism-industry.html">
security. "  This has been confirmed in recent advertising.  Bollywood actors
are filming public service announcements encouraging the Indian population to be more
welcoming and protecting of foreign tourists.  In a mock situation that might actually
be all too real, a recent advertisement shows a couple of tourists being hassled and
conned by a few streetwise Indians.  Suddenly, a massive deux et machina arrives in the
form of Bollywood actor, Aamir Kahn, who repudiates the hoodlums from harassing the
tourists and then encourages the crowd of people in a very grassroots manner to take
ownership of the problem and stop the cheating and harassment of foreign tourists.  He
concludes it with suggesting that it is part of the Indian nature to treat guests with
utter humility and hospitality and ensure that their foreign dollars continue to find
their way into the economy.  This PSA is a great convergence of both traditional and
economic rationales to the increase of tourism in India.