Free Essays on The Talented Mr. Ripley

The Talented Mr. Ripley By: Patricia Highsmith Copyright  © 1955 Setting: The Talented Mr. Ripley takes place somewhere in the mid 1950s to the early 1960s. The year is never said in the book. When letters are written the people only use â€Å"19- †. The book is mainly set in and around Italy, but some parts of it are set in the United States. A lot of traveling and moving is done, so lots of cities are home to the main character, Tom, during the duration of the book However, Mongibello and Rome are two cities that he seems to stay in for a while. Major Character Descriptions: Tom Ripley is a twenty-five year old American sent to Italy by Herbert Greenleaf to bring his son, Dickie, home. But, unbeknownst to Mr.Greenleaf, Tom is a master of forgery. Shy, but easily angered, Tom befriends Dickie and stays with him in Italy. Everything goes along well until Dickie starts to push Tom out of his life. Tom ends up killing Dickie, and pretends to be him. To keep his secret Tom has to kill one of Dickie’s friends, and later reclaim his own life. Dickie Greenleaf a young twenty-five year old American who lives in Mongibello, Italy. His parents send Tom Ripley to bring him home. Dickie takes an almost immediate liking to Tom, and they become good friends. They start doing many things together until it’s just too much. Dickie starts spending more of his time with his girl friend Marge, and Tom doesn’t like that. Dickie becomes bored with Tom, so one day Tom becomes enraged by this and decides to kill Dickie. As the only other American in Mongibello, Marge Sherwood is a good friend with Dickie. She doesn’t like Tom as much as Dickie. She believes he is a fraud who is after Dickie’s money and love. These opinions arose from feeling abandoned by Dickie when Tom came to town. Tom hates her because of this, and they begin fighting for Dickie’s love. When Tom poses as Dickie he makes as if he wins. This Dickie moves away ... Free Essays on The Talented Mr. Ripley Free Essays on The Talented Mr. Ripley The Talented Mr. Ripley By: Patricia Highsmith Copyright  © 1955 Setting: The Talented Mr. Ripley takes place somewhere in the mid 1950s to the early 1960s. The year is never said in the book. When letters are written the people only use â€Å"19- †. The book is mainly set in and around Italy, but some parts of it are set in the United States. A lot of traveling and moving is done, so lots of cities are home to the main character, Tom, during the duration of the book However, Mongibello and Rome are two cities that he seems to stay in for a while. Major Character Descriptions: Tom Ripley is a twenty-five year old American sent to Italy by Herbert Greenleaf to bring his son, Dickie, home. But, unbeknownst to Mr.Greenleaf, Tom is a master of forgery. Shy, but easily angered, Tom befriends Dickie and stays with him in Italy. Everything goes along well until Dickie starts to push Tom out of his life. Tom ends up killing Dickie, and pretends to be him. To keep his secret Tom has to kill one of Dickie’s friends, and later reclaim his own life. Dickie Greenleaf a young twenty-five year old American who lives in Mongibello, Italy. His parents send Tom Ripley to bring him home. Dickie takes an almost immediate liking to Tom, and they become good friends. They start doing many things together until it’s just too much. Dickie starts spending more of his time with his girl friend Marge, and Tom doesn’t like that. Dickie becomes bored with Tom, so one day Tom becomes enraged by this and decides to kill Dickie. As the only other American in Mongibello, Marge Sherwood is a good friend with Dickie. She doesn’t like Tom as much as Dickie. She believes he is a fraud who is after Dickie’s money and love. These opinions arose from feeling abandoned by Dickie when Tom came to town. Tom hates her because of this, and they begin fighting for Dickie’s love. When Tom poses as Dickie he makes as if he wins. This Dickie moves away ...

Round vs. Around

Round vs. Around Round vs. Around Round vs. Around By Maeve Maddox One of the differences between American and British English is the usage of the words round and around. Americans use around in contexts in which most British speakers prefer round. The word round has five grammatical functions: noun, verb, adjective, adverb, and preposition. The fighter was able to go another round. (noun) We watched as the runner rounded first base. (verb) Do you want a round plate or a square one? (adjective) The bridge was out, so we had to go round. (adverb) The tiger ran round the tree. (preposition) Round came into the language as a noun meaning â€Å"a circular object.† At various times, the â€Å"circular object† was a racecourse, a ring, and a coin. In a text from 1325, round is the word used for a diadem encircling the head of a man in a painting. Chaucer used round in the sense of a globe. In Macbeth, Shakespeare used round as a word for a sovereign’s crown. Around was formed from the noun round by adding the prefix a-, a variation of the prefix on-, creating an adverb that meant â€Å"in a circle.† In some contexts, British speakers use round and around interchangeably; for example, either â€Å"He put his arm round her,† or â€Å"He put his arm around her.† Otherwise, according to a note in the British English section of Oxford Dictionaries, there’s a general preference among British speakers to use round for â€Å"definite, specific movement,† and around in contexts that are less definite. For example, She turned round. A bus came round the corner. She wandered around for ages. The computer cost around  £3,000. According to a rumor circulating around the track, he’s using steroids. American usage sometimes reflects British usage by using round, but around is more common. Although the Oxford note says that in most contexts, â€Å"round is generally regarded as informal or non-standard,† I haven’t found anything in Merriam-Webster or the Chicago Manual of Style to indicate that using round the way the British do is â€Å"non-standard† in American usage. It may be old-fashioned, but it is not unknown in American writing: By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood And fired the shot heard round the world. Ralph Waldo Emerson, â€Å"Concord Hymn,† 1837 I should like if my sisters are well and all the people round the neighborhood. letter from Peter Van Wagener (son of Sojourner Truth), March 22, 1841 The usage is still seen in emails and web comments by American speakers: We live downtown and I take them round the neighborhood, A mother talking about taking children trick or treating in Sacramento, California. One of the latest scams going round is that someone will stop you and ask if you are interested in perfume, email debunked on Snopes.com/. The strange form ‘round crops up in both British and American contexts, but as round is not a shortening of around, and as there’s no law against the American use of round to mean around, the apostrophe makes no sense in either dialect. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:75 Contronyms (Words with Contradictory Meanings)Using the Active Voice to Strengthen Your WritingPreposition Mistakes #3: Two Idioms