The socioeconomic success of second generation immigrants

A great number of people come to the United States hoping that their children will have more opportunities in terms of education, employment, or healthcare. However, the socioeconomic achievements of second generation immigrants can differ dramatically.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The socioeconomic success of second generation immigrants specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Thus, it is important to understand the factors that contribute to this inequality among the descendants of immigrants. Overall, one should focus on two determinants, in particular, the socioeconomic position of their parents and the attitude of the community toward a certain ethnic group or nationality. These circumstances can greatly affect the status of second generation immigrants, especially their economic welfare. First of all, when speaking about the socioeconomic class of parents, one should remember that this concept includes several elements. Special attention should be paid to such components as their education, income level, occupation, ability to access to healthcare services and so forth. Moreover, this status determines the expectations that parents set for their children. Each of these factors can significantly influence the socio-economic progress of second generation immigrants. For example, if first-generation immigrants belong to upper classes, they can help their children access to high-quality education. In turn, their descendants are more likely to become well-paid professionals. Additionally, people, who belong to upper classes, are seldom involved in criminal activities and they do not endanger the economic prosperity of their families. Thus, the influence of social class should not be disregarded. In this case, one can look at several examples. For instance, people, who came to the United States from Europe, belonged to middle classes, and they were better able to ensure the wellbeing of their c hildren. However, one cannot say the same thing about Hispanic Americans. Many of their parents were low-income and sometimes unskilled workers. These people were often unable to pay for the education of their children. This is one of the main factors that should be considered. Secondly, one should speak about different levels of ethnic and racial discrimination. In this case, one should focus on the attitude of the community toward a certain ethnic group or nationality. It can affect the welfare of second generation immigrants. Certainly, such biases and prejudices are not an official part of governmental policies, but they can affect the decisions of officials, policy-makers, or employers.Advertising Looking for essay on ethnicity studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For example, immigrants, who come from Mexico, can be perceived as non-white people, and they can be diversely affected by racial prejudices. Moreover, they are often viewed as a threat to the job security of workers. In turn, the immigrants, who come from Asia or Europe, do not face the same discrimination. They are more likely to receive the status of legal residents in the country. In turn, the legal status often determines the ability of a person to access education or healthcare services. Thus, the degree of discrimination can affect the social and economic progress of second-generation immigrants. On the whole, these examples indicate the welfare of second generation immigrants can depend on external factors such as the socioeconomic status of their parents and the level of ethnic or racial discrimination. Certainly, it is not possible to disregard the individual effort of these people, their attitudes or values. However, in many cases, social environment can be the most important determinant. The understanding of these factors is important for policy-makers and legislators of the country. This essay on The socioeconomic success of second generation immigrants was written and submitted by user Cuck00 to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Rembrandts La Petite Tombe Essays - Dutch Golden Age Painters

Rembrandt's La Petite Tombe Essays - Dutch Golden Age Painters Rembrandt's La Petite Tombe According to some philosophers La Petite Tombe would most probably be considered a great work of art, this is my opinion too. Rembrandt is one of very few painters known around the world and valued as an addition to human history. Praised by the art world long time ago and until today. It also considers Rembrandts work as great, professional, expressive and impressive. However its greatness can be analyzed and criticized, which I will try to do in this paper. Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Riju was born July 15, 1606 in the town of Leiden, Netherlands. One of the seven children he was the only one who received Higher Education, all of his siblings went into trade. Leiden was a University town with favorable education atmosphere. Upon graduating from the Leiden high school where students primarily learned Latin, and true religion (Calvinistic Protestantism) Rembrandt enrolled into a Leiden University, which by 1620s was internationally renowned. Not very eager for education he pretty soon became an apprentice of Jacob Isaacszoon Swandenburgh, and showed promise in painting, so his father found it good to apprentice him and to take him to the renowned painter P. Listman, residing in Amsterdam so that he might advance himself and be better trained and educated. During the seventeens century history painters enjoyed the highest prestige, higher even then portrait painters. Since history painters could give their imagination a certain freedom, depict and arrange their compositions as they please. In comparison portrait painters had little variation to work with to express themselves. This is why Rembrandt wanted to become a history, or religion painter. This era would probably be more favored by Tolstoy then by Plato. Although the paintings still presented the objects close or were identical to what we see in life, the fantasy of the artists began to take over the order of the objects, leaning towards the more historical, religious perspective, something Tolstoy would love. A piece of art from that era by Rembrandt of a religious context is an etching called La Petite Tombe, also known as Christ Preaching. The subject here is a gathering of common people around Jesus Christ, who is preaching the remission of sins, an event that does not occur in the Gospels, but which played an important part in the Mennouite doctrine. (Clark, p. 183) Rembrandt has many religious paintings and etchings in his collection, and in all of them he keeps his style of presentation. A little bit rough, and expressive. His characters on one hand are not explicitly detailed, but on the other all have their own unique points of interest, and expressive quality. If Plato were shown this etching he would probably be satisfied with it, since it meets all his conditions to be defined as good art. He argues that to be considered art at all, a piece of someones work, whether it is a painting, etching, poem etc., has to resemble identically a life that we see, and how we perceive it. The closer the work of art is to reality, the better would he consider it to be. Looking at an etching by Rembrandt we can see a very close similarity to life. People are proportionate, they look what ordinary people should look like, and the place where they are gathered is also a familiar surrounding which would look probably the same if we were to look at it in real life. However if we were to think about the content of the piece, there is a side to it, which draws particular attention. Jesus Christ is present on the etching. In the times of Plato there were no such concepts as Bible or Christianity. Even if we were to explain them to Plato, a person for whom the w hole other concept of religion is a basis for understanding reality, still he would not accept it as a replica of a real life, since for him there is no such god as the one accepted by Christians. The person right in the middle of a picture would be a step away from reality, together with the aura above his head. Therefore for Plato this etching would be a good even a

Reflection Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Reflection - Personal Statement Example my thanks to entail: Role of accounting in a given business, some basic accounting concepts, accrual accounting concepts, and basis accounting concepts. I managed to achieve organization in the way I handled my businesses through proper book keeping and drafting of financial records. These skills will always prove useful even in the business world as they are the foundations of accounting. Other concepts that made me a stronger individual in accounting include; financial accounting systems, internal control elements, fixed assed including liabilities (Juan, 2007). These concepts proved useful as they always played a role in business daily. As a student, I have gained much from the course, that is, intellectual and professional growth. I now believe I can manage any business better than before I joined the course through application of some of the concepts I had learnt throughout the course (Juan, 2007). I am also determined to pursue a further degree in business. I believe that through gaining more knowledge in accounting, I will become a better person in the business

Green marketing(is it ethical to use green marketing just to convince Essay

Green marketing(is it ethical to use green marketing just to convince customers to buy the companies products) - Essay Example The present essay is based on the book ‘Sign Wars: The cluttered landscape of advertising’ by Goldman and Papson (Goldman et al, 1996). It deals with the meaning and practice of green marketing, its concepts as developed by the advertising industry, its effectiveness both to genuinely care for the environmental concerns and to hoodwink the public etc. It deals with the ‘signs’ attached to the products with a view to promote sales, even as companies defend their record of environmental concerns. Relevant case studies are included to argue that green marketing has been more of a self-promotion gimmick than any real concern for responsible corporate behaviour. 1 (a). Goldman and Papson, trace the evolution of advertising industry from 1920s, when the competitive market forces were compelling industries to entice consumers to buy their products. They point out that in order to sell more and more of the products, advertisers â€Å"†¦created a social world in which (a consumer’s) identity is expressed through consuming commodity signs† (Goldman, 1996, p.187). These commodity signs represented a â€Å"†¦social process of branding goods, that is, endowing goods with value and capacity to fulfill a variety of desires† (p.188). In this process, the advertisers used, â€Å"†¦nature as a referent system from which to derive signifiers for constructing signs† (p.191). â€Å"Commodities like cars and cigarettes are placed in the landscape settings labeled ‘natural’ and juxtaposed with natural objects† (p.192). By 1980s, advertising that started with nature as a referent system, progresse d to ‘green marketing’ to position nature itself as the subject of the ad †¦(only) to hail the viewing subject† (p.192). Thus commodities are positioned as environmentally friendly, and corporations 1 (b). Automation and mass production of the last century, led to severe competition. To compete, it was not enough for the

English Literature Essay Example for Free

English Literature Essay Willam Russel is a British playwright who is eminent for the production of many plays; his best known works are Educating Rita, Blood Brothers and Shirley Valentine. Russell was born and raised in Whinston, on the outskirts of Liverpool. He came from a working class background and some of his experiences as a youngster are reflected in his works, such as within the play Educating Rita. As a young adult, Russell only had experience and knowledge of manual work and left college with having only achieved one O-Level in English Literature. Being from a working class family, his mother had then suggested the concept of training to become a womans hairdresser. This was a typical working class job which had low pay and was generally looked down upon. Russell felt trapped due to his working class status; he was still unsatisfied with his lifestyle and began to seek a career that provided greater opportunities to learn and make a greater contribution to society. He was a young person who showed initiative and soon took action and decided to become a student. Though despite the efforts that he was making, Russells life was still greatly impacted by his social class; he couldnt afford student fees and the Education Authorities refused to fund him or offer a scholarship. However, he remained adamant that he was going to break the class boundaries and achieved this by spending some time working in Fords Car Company to fund his studies. As a result of his determination, by the age of twenty, Russell had enough qualifications to become employed as a teacher. Indeed, this is where he got his inspiration for the characters of Rita (a hairdresser) and Frank (a lecturer) because he had experienced of these careers and an insight into the emotions that they wouldve felt. Russell has interpreted the character of Rita as a duplicate of himself in his early years and Frank represents the level of education that he achieved in later life. Educating Rita can be compared with many other of Willy Russells plays; this is because majority of his work focuses on the issue of different classes within society. For example, the musical Blood Brothers is about the lives of fraternal twins who were separated at birth. Due to their separation, the two twin boys grew up with different backgrounds and this took them to opposite ends of the social spctrum. As a result of this, one brother became unemployed and in prison and the other became an well paid and respected councilor. There are connections between this play and Educating Rita because Rita and Frank are also at opposite ends of the social spectrum. Another connection is that both of these plays explore the importance of love; in Educating Rita the audience learns that Frank has had his heart broken and is now in a loveless relationship and Rita splits up from her husband because they want different things in life. This shows that Rita values her education more than her relationship and is therefore willing to sacrifice this in order to improve her life. Whereas in the play Blood Brothers, Russell portrays love as something that is of great value and that should be cherished. Russell shows that the two brothers are willing to risk everything for love; as a consequence this is that the play ends in tragedy when they both fall for the same girl. There are also connections betwteen Educating Rita and Willy Russells play Shirley Valentine. This is a one-character play about the life of a working class housewife from Liverpool and therefore, alike in Educating Rita, Russel has inclued an aspect of his own life. Shirley feels trapped, alone and unappreciated; this is similar to Rita because both women are fed up with their lives and want to improve them. Shirley is also similar to Rita because they both discover that they have to make sacrafices and an effort to achieve their goals. Both women also represent the changing roles of women in society. During the eightiess there was great reform and women began to show that they were capable members of society. The twentieth century began as a wave of revolution for the females in society; including the suffragist movement and an ever increasing amount of feminists. The actions of these women contributed to the change of attitudes and laws were eventually enforced to ensure that both sexes were valued and treated equally. This included things such as new guidelines from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission which were enforced in 1980 and prohibited sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. This had led to great changes in the lifestyles of women, who were no longer bound to their households or deemed unworthy to carrying out manual work or labour. Instead, they were out there, among the masses, making a difference and trying to change the way they were viewed. Indeed, the actions of these women encouraged others such as Rita and Shirley to become educated and prove that they were worthy. Educating Rita was commissioned by the Royal Shakespear Company and premiered at the Warehouse in London in 1980. This play earned Russel a great deal of recognition and won the Society of West End Theatres Award for best comedy. From this point on, Educating Rita was made into a film and has continued to be performed in theatres across the globe. In the opening scenes of this play, Russel has addressed the issue of class and shown that anyone is capable of achieving their goals and breaking the class boundaries. The play involves two main characters, Rita and Franck; Russel has shown a great contrast between these two characters and both come from very different classes in society. Rita is a twenty six year old working class hairdresser who applies to study with the Open University. The play follows just over a year in Ritas life and shows her gradual progress in an English Literature course. Again, Russell has incorporated an aspect of his own life because he himself took this qualification. This type of course was recently developed at the time and allowed poorer people to afford further education whilst working it around their daily hours. The Open University was also very popular in Britain because it accepted majority of people regardless of their previous academic achievements or intellect. This allowed the less fortunate members of society to have the opportunity to improve their lives. At first Rita knew that she wanted to do the course but had self doubt and lacked any initiative. Rita hadnt been disciplined or been taught how to critically analyse work from an objective point of view. Therefore, majority of her early work was based upon personal opinions and experiences-which is a subjective point of view. On the other hand, Frank has an entiterely different life from Rita; he is a middle aged, middle class English lecturer in a University who bases his ideas purely on objective knowledge and intellect. Frank shows numerous clichid characteristics of the middle class; he is a reserved, formal, highly educated and wealthy man. However, he is miserable and doesnt seem to value this; it is immedtialy evident that he takes his lifestyle for granted. Futhermore, Frank also makes it known to the audience that he has taken on the additional responsibility of tutoring Rita in order to pay for his drinking habit. However, this also gives indications that he is trying to escape his drab homelife because being from a middle class background, Frank would undoubtedly be able to afford this habit whether he tutored Rita or not.

How Surface Area to Volume Ratio Affects the Rate of Heat Loss :: Depression and Suicide

How Surface Area to Volume Ratio Affects the Rate of Heat Loss Aim The aim of this investigation is to answer the following questions: Why do elephants have trouble cooling down? And why do mice have trouble keeping warm. Apparatus 5x cans (5 different sizes) 1x Bunsen burner 1x heatproof mat 1x Thermometer 1x Ruler 1x Kettle 1x Stopwatch 1x Tripod 1x Gauze 1x Clamp and stand Plan ==== * Label each can from A to E in ascending order, A the biggest and E the smallest. A representing the mouse and E representing the elephant. * Measure and record the height and diameter of each can. * Fill can A to the top with boiling water out of the kettle. * Bring the water back up to a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, to make sure it is a fair test and that all the cans start from 100 degrees Celsius. * Use a clamp and stand to hold the thermometer inside the can, position it so that the bulb of the thermometer is in the centre of the can. * With a stopwatch ready to start timing, switch off the gas to turn off the Bunsen burner and start timing. * Read and record the temperature on the thermometer every two minutes for twenty minutes. * Repeat this for all of the other cans, twice for each one and make a recording of all the temperatures, and work out the averages. Safety ====== * Always wear safety glasses during the practical to protect the eyes and avoid any hot water being splashed into them.

Last Sacrifice Chapter Thirty-three

CRIES AND SCREAMS FROM THE audience told me my disguise was gone. Many eyes also went to Dimitri. Adrian had dropped that illusion too, once I'd shed mine. And, as we'd been expecting, the guardians who had been gradually taking up position around us surged forward, armed with handguns. I still thought that was cheating. Fortunately, my mother and Mikhail moved quickly into place to block our attackers and deter any gunshots. â€Å"Don't,' I snapped at Dimitri, who I knew was probably about to join our two defenders. It was crucial he and I stay perfectly still, so we weren't taken as threats. I even went as far as to hold up my arms, and–reluctantly, I suspected–Dimitri did too. â€Å"Wait. Please listen to us first.' The guardian circle was tight, with no gaps. I was pretty sure my mom and Mikhail were the only thing keeping them from shooting us then and there. Guardians would always avoid fighting other guardians if possible. Two blockers were easy to take down, though, and these guardians wouldn't wait forever. Jill and Abe suddenly moved forward, taking positions next to us. More shields. I saw one of the looming guardians grimace. Civilians complicated things. Adrian had not moved, but the fact that he was enclosed in the circle at all still made him an obstacle. â€Å"Haul us off later if you want,' I said. â€Å"We won't resist. But you have to let us talk first. We know who killed the queen.' â€Å"So do we,' said one of the guardians. â€Å"Now, the rest of you †¦ back away before you're hurt. These are dangerous fugitives.' â€Å"They need to talk,' said Abe. â€Å"They have evidence.' Again, he pushed forward with his case, acting confidently about things he had no clue about. He was staking it all on me. I was starting to like him. It was kind of unfortunate that our evidence wasn't as 100 percent solid as I'd hoped, but as I'd said earlier †¦ technicalities. â€Å"Let them talk.' It was a new voice, but a voice I knew by heart. Lissa pushed her way through two of the guardians. They held their tight position, the immediate concern being that we not escape. This allowed her to slip through–but only so one could grab her arm and stop her from reaching us. â€Å"They've come this far. They were right about †¦ Jill.' Boy, that was not easy for her to say with a straight face, seeing as she hadn't entirely come to terms with the issue. My imminent death was probably the only thing distracting her from the earth shattering experience of learning she had a potential sibling. She too was taking a lot on faith here, confident I was telling the truth. â€Å"You've got them. They can't go anywhere. Just let them talk. I've got evidence to support their case too.' â€Å"I'd hold off on sharing that, Liss,' I said in a low voice. Lissa still believed Daniella was the killer and wasn't going to like hearing the truth. Lissa flashed me a confused look but didn't protest. â€Å"Let's hear them,' said one of the guardians–and not just any: Hans. â€Å"After an escape like they pulled, I'd really like to know what brought them back.' Hans was helping us? â€Å"But,' he continued, â€Å"I'm sure you two will understand we'll have to restrain you before you make your great reveal.' I looked at Dimitri who had already turned to me. We'd both known what we were getting ourselves into, and honestly, this was a better scenario than I'd envisioned. â€Å"Okay,' said Dimitri. He glanced at our noble protectors. â€Å"It's okay. Let them get through.' My mom and the others didn't move right away. â€Å"Do it,' I said. â€Å"Don't end up as our cellmates.' I thought for sure those loveable fools wouldn't listen to me. But Mikhail backed off first, and then the others did too, practically in sync. In a flash, guardians seized them all, leading them away. Dimitri and I stayed put, and four guardians moved in, two for Dimitri and two for me. Adrian had retreated with the others, but Lissa still stood a few feet away from us, all her trust in me. â€Å"Get on with it,' said Hans. He gripped my right arm tightly. I met Lissa's eyes, hating what I had to say. But, no. She wasn't the one I was worried about hurting the most. Looking out into the audience, I found Christian, who was understandably watching this drama with avid attention. I had to turn away and stare at the crowd as a whole, refusing to see individual faces. Just a blur. â€Å"I didn't kill Tatiana Ivashkov,' I said. Several people grumbled doubtfully. â€Å"I didn't like her. But I didn't kill her.' I glanced at Hans. â€Å"You've questioned the janitor who testified about where I was during the murder, right? And he ID'd the man who attacked Lissa as the one who paid him off to lie about where I was?' I'd learned from Mikhail that Joe had eventually admitted to taking money from the mystery Moroi, once the guardians had cornered him with the picture. Hans frowned, hesitated, and then nodded for me to continue. â€Å"There's no record of his existence–at least not with the guardians. But the Alchemists know who he is. They saw him at one of their facilities–acting as someone's bodyguard.' My eyes fell on Ethan Moore, who stood with the guardians near the door. â€Å"A bodyguard for someone who was let in to see Tatiana the night she died: Tasha Ozera.' There was no need for any uproar from the audience this time because Tasha more than made up for it on her own. She'd been sitting next to Christian and sprang up from her chair. â€Å"What on earth are you saying, Rose?' she exclaimed. â€Å"Are you out of your mind?' When I'd stood there defiantly, ready to face the crowd and demand justice, I'd been full of triumph and power. Now †¦ now I was just sad as I stared at someone I'd always trusted, someone who was staring back at me with so much shock and hurt. â€Å"I wish I was †¦ but it's true. We both know it is. You killed Tatiana.' Tasha's disbelief grew, tinged now with a little anger, though she still seemed to be giving me the benefit of the doubt. â€Å"I never, never believed you killed her–and I've fought for you on that. Why are you doing this? Are you playing on the Strigoi taint in our family? I thought you were above that kind of prejudice.' I swallowed. I'd thought getting evidence would be the hard part. It was nothing compared to revealing it. â€Å"What I'm saying has nothing to do with Strigoi. I almost wish it did. You hated Tatiana for her age law and refusal to let Moroi fight.' Another memory came to me, when Tasha had learned about the secret training sessions. Tasha had been aghast with what I now suspected might have been guilt at misjudging the queen. The crowd was riveted and stunned, but one person came to life: an Ozera I didn't know but who apparently had family solidarity on his mind. He stood up, crossing his arms defiantly. â€Å"Half this Court hated Tatiana for that law. You among them.' â€Å"I didn't have my bodyguard bribe a witness or attack Lis–Princess Dragomir. And don't pretend you didn't know the guy,' I warned her. â€Å"He was your bodyguard. You were seen together.' Ian's description of her when she visited St. Louis had been perfectly clear: long black hair, pale blue eyes, and scarring on one side of her face. â€Å"Rose, I can't even believe this is happening, but if James–that was his name–did whatever you're talking about, then he acted alone. He always had radical ideas. I knew that when I hired him as outside protection, but I never thought he was capable of murder.' She glanced around, looking for someone in charge, and finally settled on the Council. â€Å"I've always believed Rose was innocent. If James is the one responsible for this, then I'm more than happy to tell you whatever I know to clear Rose's name.' So, so easy. The mystery Moroi–James–was almost everywhere Tasha had been. He'd also been spotted in suspicious situations where she hadn't been–like Joe's bribery and Lissa's attack. I could save Tasha and just blame it all on him. He was already dead. Tasha and I could stay friends. She'd acted on principle, right? What was wrong with that? Christian stood up beside her, looking at me like I was a stranger. â€Å"Rose, how can you say any of this? You know her. You know she wouldn't do it. Stop making a scene and let us figure out how that James guy killed the queen.' So, so easy. Blame the dead man. â€Å"James couldn't have staked Tatiana,' I said. â€Å"He had an injured hand. It takes both hands for a Moroi to stake someone. I've seen it happen twice now. And I bet if you can get a straight answer out of Ethan Moore †¦' I glanced over at the guardian who had gone pale. He could probably jump into a fight and kill without hesitation. But this kind of scrutiny? And eventual interrogation by his peers? I didn't think he'd hold up. It was probably the reason Tasha had been able to manipulate him. â€Å"James wasn't there the night Tatiana died, was he? And I don't think Daniella Ivashkov was either, despite what Princess Dragomir was told earlier. But Tasha was. She was in the queen's chambers–and you didn't report it.' Ethan looked like he wanted to bolt, but his odds of escape were about as good as mine and Dimitri's. He slowly shook his head. â€Å"Tasha wouldn't kill anyone.' Not exactly the confirmation of her location I wanted–but close. The guardians would get more out of him later. â€Å"Rose!' Christian was pissed off now. Seeing him look at me with such outrage hurt even more than Tasha's expression. â€Å"Stop it!' Lissa took a few hesitant steps forward. I could feel in her mind that she didn't want to believe what I was saying either †¦ yet she still trusted me. She thought of a controversial solution. â€Å"I know it's wrong †¦ but if we used compulsion on the suspects †¦' â€Å"Don't even suggest that!' exclaimed Tasha, turning her sharp eyes on Lissa. â€Å"Stay out of this. Your future's on the line here. A future that could make you great and achieve the things our people need.' â€Å"A future you could manipulate,' I realized. â€Å"Lissa believes in a lot of the reforms you do †¦ and you think you could convince her of ones she doesn't. Especially if she's with your nephew. That's why you've fought so hard to change the quorum law. You wanted her to be queen.' Christian started to step forward, but Tasha laid a restraining hand on his shoulder. It didn't stop him from speaking. â€Å"That's idiotic. If she wanted Lissa to be queen, why make that James guy attack her?' That was a mystery for me too, one of the holes I hadn't quite figured out. But Dimitri had. Conscious of his two guards, he shifted closer to me. â€Å"Because no one was supposed to die.' Dimitri's low, resonant voice sounded wonderful with the room's acoustics. He needed no microphone as he directed his words to Tasha. â€Å"You didn't expect a guardian to be with her.' He was right, I realized. Eddie had been drafted that night under weird circumstances and only barely made it back in time to see Ambrose with Lissa. â€Å"James was probably going to fake an attack and run †¦ enough to generate sympathy and more support for Vasilisa. Which it certainly did–just a little more severely.' The outrage on Tasha's face transformed to something I couldn't entirely gauge right away. She'd seemed offended at my accusations, but from Dimitri–it was more. She looked legitimately hurt. Crushed. I knew that look. I'd seen it on Adrian's face a couple hours ago. â€Å"Dimka, not you too,' she said. Through Lissa's eyes, I watched the colors of Tasha's aura shift, burn a little brighter as she gazed at Dimitri. I could see exactly what Sonya had explained to me, how the aura showed affection. â€Å"And that's why I took the fall,' I murmured softly. No one but Dimitri and our guardians heard me. â€Å"Hmm?' Dimitri asked. I just shook my head. All this time, Tasha had still loved Dimitri. I knew she had last year, when she'd made him an offer to hook up and have kids–not something a lot of dhampir men had the chance to get. He'd refused, and I thought she had accepted simply being friends with him. She hadn't. She'd still loved him. When Lissa had revealed my relationship with Dimitri to Hans, Tasha had already known. But for how long? I wasn't sure. She'd obviously known about the relationship before killing Tatiana, and putting the murder on me left Tasha free and clear and opened back up her chances with Dimitri. There was no point in bringing up her personal motives for blaming me. Tatiana's murder was the real issue at stake. I just looked at Hans. â€Å"You can take me into custody, I meant it. But don't you think you've got enough to take her–and Ethan–in too?' Hans's face was unreadable. His feelings toward me had always gone back and forth, since the day we met. Sometimes I was a troublemaker without a future. Other times I had the potential to be a leader. He'd believed I was a murderer, yet he'd still allowed me to address the crowd. He didn't really like my friends either. What would he do now? He lifted his eyes from my face and looked to where several guardians were stationed in the audience, ready for any action. He gave a curt nod. â€Å"Take Lady Ozera. And Moore. We'll question them.' Seeing as Tasha was seated amidst other people, there was a bit of fear and panic when four guardians moved toward her. They avoided injuring other audience members as much as possible, but there was still plenty of pushing and shoving. What came as a total surprise was how fiercely Tasha fought back. She was trained, I remembered. Not in the same way guardians were, but enough to make it hard to get a hold of her. She could kick and punch–and stake queens–and even managed to knock one guardian down. She might actually try to fight her way out of here, I realized–though I didn't believe for an instant she could. It was too crowded and chaotic. Guardians were heading toward the fray. Terrified Moroi were trying to get away from the fight. Everybody seemed to be getting in everyone else's way. Suddenly, a loudcrack echoed through the room. A gunshot. Most of the Moroi dropped to the floor, though guardians kept coming. Holding a handgun she must have seized from the guardian she'd knocked over, Tasha grabbed the first Moroi she could with her free hand. So help me, it was Mia Rinaldi. She'd been sitting near Christian. I didn't think Tasha even noticed her hostage choice. â€Å"Don't move!' Tasha yelled at the encroaching guardians. The gun was at Mia's head, and I felt my heart stop. How had things escalated to this point? I'd never foreseen this. My task was supposed to be neat and tidy. Reveal Tasha. Put her away. Done. The guardians froze, less because of her command and more because they were sizing up how to deal with the total threat. Meanwhile, Tasha began to slowly–very slowly–make her way toward the exit, dragging Mia along. Her progress was slow and unwieldy, thanks to all the chairs and people in the way. The delay gave the guardians time to solve this ugly dilemma. They come first. Mia's life–a Moroi life–was on the line. The guardians didn't want Mia killed, but a gun-toting warrior Moroi also couldn't be allowed to go free. The thing was, Tasha wasn't the only warrior Moroi in the room. She had probably picked the worst hostage possible, and I could tell by the glint in Mia's eyes that she was not going to go quietly. Lissa realized this too. One or both of them were going to get killed, and Lissa couldn't let that happen. If she could get Tasha to look at her, she could compel her into submission. No, no, no, I thought. I didn't need another friend involved. Both Lissa and I saw Mia tensing to break her way out of Tasha's hold. Lissa realized she had to act now. I could feel it through the bond. I could feel her thoughts, the decision, even the way her body's muscles and nerves moved forward to get Tasha's attention. I felt it all so clearly, as if we shared the same body. I knew where Lissa would move before she even did. â€Å"Tasha, please don't–‘ Lissa sprang forward, her plaintive cry interrupted as Mia kicked back at Tasha and broke away, slipping down out of the gun's reach. Tasha, startled on two fronts, still had her gun pointed out. With Mia out of her grasp and everything happening so fast, Tasha frantically fired off a couple shots at the first threat moving toward her–which wasn't the rapidly approaching guardians. It was a slim figure in white who had shouted at Tasha. Or, well, it would have been. Like I said, I'd known exactly where Lissa would step and what she would do. And in those precious seconds before she acted, I broke out of my captors' hold and threw myself before Lissa. Someone leapt after me, but they were too late. That was when Tasha's gun had gone off. I felt a biting and burning in my chest, and then there was nothing but pain–a pain so complete and so intense it was almost beyond comprehension. I felt myself falling, felt Lissa catching me and yelling something–maybe to me, maybe to someone else. There was so much commotion in the room that I didn't know what had happened with Tasha. There was just me and the pain that my mind was trying to block out. The world seemed to grow quieter and quieter. I saw Lissa looking down on me, shouting something I couldn't hear. She was beautiful. Brilliant. Crowned in light †¦ but there was darkness closing in around her. And in that darkness, I saw the faces †¦ the ghosts and spirits that always followed me. Thicker they grew, closing in. Beckoning. A gun. I had been brought down by a gun. It was practically comical. Cheaters, I thought. I'd spent my life focusing on hand-to-hand combat, learning to dodge fangs and powerful hands that could snap my neck. A gun? It was so †¦ well, easy. Should I be insulted? I didn't know. Did it matter? I didn't know that either. All I knew in that moment was that I was going to die, regardless. My vision was growing dimmer, the blackness and ghosts closing in, and I swore, it was like I could hear Robert whispering in my ear: The world of the dead won't give you up a second time. Just before the light completely vanished, I saw Dimitri's face join Lissa's. I wanted to smile. I decided then that if the two people I loved most were safe, I could leave this world. The dead could finally have me. And I'd fulfilled my purpose, right? To protect? I'd done it. I'd saved Lissa, just like I'd sworn I'd always do. I was dying in battle. No appointment books for me. Lissa's face shone with tears, and I hoped that mine conveyed how much I loved her. With the last spark of life I had left, I tried to speak, tried to let Dimitri know I loved him too and that he had to protect her now. I don't think he understood, but the words of the guardian mantra were my last conscious thought. They come first.