Journalism In The Digital Era

Journalism In The Digital Era The arrival of the World Wide Web in the empire of journalism has led to uncertainty and confusion, unless someone is clear whether this change should be a source of hope or desperation. There seems to be consensus only around a major contradiction: that we live in the best of times for journalism and also the worst. There has never been a better time to make written journalism, and there has never been a worse to earn a living out of it. There are more opportunities and market than ever before, but less income based on industry trends. The decline trend is experienced across major national newspaper such as the Washington Post, publisher of the newspaper and Newsweek magazine, which reported back in 2009 a fourth- quarter profit fell by 77 percent as advertising sales declined and a wrote down the value of some assets. The trend is higher in United States, where it is often where we see major trends to start happening before we see the impact in the rest of the world. The picture is not looking very promising since the average number of newspapers sold has fallen from 62 million to 49 million since the Internet launched back in 1990s and it started to become accessible to all. Many newspapers have been forced to stop printing on paper due to profit loss. In the same period, the number of readers of digital journalism at United States has promoted from zero to 75 million. In the other hand revenue generated from advertising, which is the primary revenue of journalism on paper, has reduced profits dramatically, which has resulted in large amounts of dismissals or, for those who have had more luck, of early retirement. An interesting fact in this process is that there are actually many more readers, but a terrible pressure on the money and resources. For this reason the Post and The New York Times have lost money since 2008 for the first time in 50 years and based on industry forecasters with a pessimist outlook, predict that many more problems are to come. And although the same is true on almost all sectors of the economy, the difference lies in that the business of journalism has received a double shock since it is also being impacted by the revolution of the Internet. The technology advancements and innovations have been some of the drivers of what we called as globalizati on which is helping in many aspects of our society but at the same time has created a global crisis which is accelerating the inevitable impact of the digital revolution. There are many industry experts who agree that there is no force capable of preventing the extinction of the journalism, not only on paper, but as a concept, but in the other hand there are also many who believe that it will just disappear in the way that we know it to become purely local journalism kind of Facebook or even just become newspapers of a greater global reach. But the big questions that nobody seems to be able to answer; how can we continue making profit with journalism? Or would it just disappear? It is important to look at the big picture since this is something more than just the survival of a sector from our economy. Newspapers have played a central role in society over the past 200 years. They affect by influencing in the power of governments, the money from the companies and the entertainment of our society. For that same reason many of those same groups have also debated what will the future be like? In general there are three main groups coming up with their understanding of what the future holds for journalism: one that understands the way we know newspaper during the last 200 years will totally disappear, the other one is the one that believes it will re-invent and make important changes and adjust, adapt and embrace new trends, and the other one which is not clear what really the future will hold. Clay Shirky, who is an American writer, consultant and teacher on the social and economic effects of Internet technologies, is very sure that there is really not much that can be done. He claims; There is no model to replace what Internet has just destroyed. It is very clear that media communication has been at the heart of the revolution, and the challenges generated by the introduction of the Internet, and although it was obvious during the last two decades that they had to adapt and change, they have not been cleared on what the future business model of journalism in the digital era should look like. The only thing which is clear is that the current business model of journalism cannot be preserved. In the other group we have people like Bill Keller, director of The New York Times, who urges to review all the options, and put everything to the test. Based on experts forecasts, the future newspaper will become a mixture of printed and online, where content growth online compensate the decline of print media. Another industry expert is Earl J. Wilkinson, executive director of the International Newsmedia Marketing Association. Wilkinson is more conservative and has come up to the conclusion that the death of the newspaper is one of the great exaggerations stemming from the economic collapse of today. Another industry expert is Philip Bennett, who has conducted research for The Washington Post to investigate digital formulas to prevent the disappearance of the journalism business, and he is not in agreement that nothing, nothing works. He said: I believe that the era of the newspaper is finished, that the debate should focus not on the survival of the newspaper, but in the survival of journalism as we have understood. The United States discussion on the future of journalism is more negative, but it is important to keep in mind that it is also here in US where more people have access to the internet. A similar phenomenon is observed in the United Kingdom. To go to the other extreme, in China, India and Africa, where access to the network is still reserved for a privileged minority, the debate isnt so alarming, and the role of journalism the way we have always knew it, is still very viable. What is happening in United States should serve as a warning about what will happen in Europe and the rest of the world. There is no reason to suppose that if large American newspapers for nearly 200 years closed and are now transitioning to online media, that this wont be a trend that we could see across other countries. There have been other industry experts who believe in the importance to track and understand public reading patterns. They believe that in order to become more effective in the industry and star t capturing revenue, it will be critical to print more systematic, and with more content flexibility. They add that on certain days the newspaper may concentrate on certain issues; for example Mondays can be dedicated to have more space starting with the first page, to sports. Newspapers will be leaving behind its practice of losing money in the lazy days and concentrate its resources on the strong days. There is also a strong argument which is important to be considered in the debate, and it is the point around the individual newspaper and intimate connection with the reader. This is something that the latest technology is not able to establish, even with kindle, and the new tools to read books. In some very interesting ways, reading media is associated and becomes part of persons identity. It is an individual relationship with an object which in turn becomes social. Can this type of relationship be created outside of the printing paper with an object? We have seen similar relation ships with phone mobiles which are also objects. The threat to newspapers will be once a similar relationship is established with an object which people feel is a good substitute to the newspaper. One additional challenge we need to explore is the dynamics that we are seeing in media which people like Robert Thomson (director of The Wall Street Journal) call Web sites parasites. For example, major newspapers make huge investment to come up with a final product which is a story written by a correspondent in the other side of the world just to see it appears instantly and for free in one of the countless Internet portals. Another challenge for journalistic content on the Internet is telephone companies that sell access to the network. Meanwhile, those who have invested money into the final product end up losing it or in other words not maximizing their investment. All these trends have had a catastrophic impact to many major newspapers. The Seattle Post Intelligencer, with 146 years of life, turned off their recently printing machines, reducing its drafting of 167 just to 20 editors limiting just to generate, a digital newspaper. The Christian Science Monitor, San Francisco Chronicle, due to decline in subscribers, is another example of major newspapers which had to close business or change to a digital format. The problem, and what brings us back to the big question of how to keep making profit with journalism, is that so far it has shown that digital advertising is not approaching nearly to the profitability of advertising in paper. According to a study by the Pew Research Center, to transition from newspapers print format to just an online business model means to lose 90% of income. The major issue is to define and establish a business model since there is really none. The challenge is to change the production model of the newspaper, making it to continue to keep the high margins of profitability achieved since its creation. How we can keep making money? How to keep journalism alive? This is a global revolution that we are living, and perhaps answers to these questions could be found in the so-called countries in development, where the absence of old structures are forced to start from scratch, to create new companies adapted to todays technological reality, not the ones of the industrial revolution. An option that has been proposed with enthusiasm in the pages of The New York Times and Time magazine is based on the idea of saving journalism in the same way that has saved to a certain extent, to the music industry: using a method similar to micropayments of I-tunes, music purchased on the Internet, to the purchase of items. There are groups who see this very challenging and not to equal comparison because in reality a downloaded song is forever, while a news expires on a day. Anyway, it is certain that the method of t he micropayment would a good option to test. The key would be to discover, come up with a flexible procedure which would be paid, for example, three cents to read a particular article, and perhaps 50 to have unrestricted access to the web page of a newspaper for 24 hours. Another idea to keep afloat the newspapers on-line, is the payment for subscription on the web. The Wall Street Journal has done, with some success. However, it is important to make the observation that it is an exceptional case because it offers a very specialized financial service and more than half of the payments are made by companies and not regular readers. General news of interest to readers not business sports results, air accidents, declarations of politicians can be obtained free through countless sources, far beyond the traditional newspapers. In addition we need to keep in mind that even if there could be a group of people willing to pay to read exclusive news, the reality is that the income generated does not compensate for the inevitable losses of advertising. If journalism is in crisis today, as it is the world economy, it is largely by the tendency of people to believe that the circumstances of today are going to always play. What would happen if a new invention comes up that improves Internet? Or, although Internet remains as a means of communication, what happens if people change their habits? Everyone seems to assume that, given that 20 year-olds do not read on paper, have chosen a digital display as their preferred method of communicating with people and find out whats happening in the world. But, what happens if children today decide to change the current digital trend and start looking for a visual and tactile contact with not virtual people, but physical option. The great comfort of the journalist, or which aspires to be, is that what he does not become an old fashion. It has existed and has been in continuous demand long before the emergence of the Internet; long bef ore the first printing press; even before, even though the invention of the wheel. I really believe there will always be a market for those who have something to tell or inform. People will continue with a need to tell and hear stories, and while this is so, the newspapers have a hope. If a viable business model for journalism is not defined it is possible that the number of newspapers keeps trimming and that fewer people earn bread doing journalism. But, in the worst case, the good guys survive. Newspapers, in the format that is, responding more effectively to educate and amuse will also prevail. The New York Times is a good example on how to leverage the benefits from the digital era, based on its popularity not only in traditional format but also online. And thats because it has in its ranks to large counters of stories, journalists who are effective in their work. In the end, what lasts, as the great novels, is the quality. Internet blog site: Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable http://www.observer.com/2010/media/live-blog-bill-keller-discusses-future-news http://forum4editors.com/2009/10/earl-j-wilkinson-on-whats-ahead-for-newspapers/ http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1133/decline-print-newspapers-increased-online-news

The Catcher In The Rye Essay By Jason So :: essays research papers fc

A 'Phony' Family Each and every action the children performed in school and in any place is a reflection of the quality of life they have in their own homes. Parents have a responsibility of taking care of their children and parents have the influence and impact that creates the primary personality of an individual. This influence can mold a certain individual into a responsible citizen or a rebellious delinquent as perceived in J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye". The protagonist, Holden Caulfield, interacts with many people throughout novel, but probably none have as much impact on him as certain members of his immediate family. The ways Holden acts around or reacts to the various members of his family give the reader a direct view of Holden's philosophy surrounding each member and would likely explain his actions in the story. Holden makes reference to the word "phony" forty-four separate times throughout the novel (Corbett, 1997). Each time he seems to be referring to the subject of this metaphor as -- someone who discriminates against others, is a hypocrite about something, or has manifestations of conformity (Corbett, 1997). Throughout "The Catcher in the Rye", Holden describes and interacts with various members of his family. The way he talks about or to each gives you some idea of whether he thinks they are "phony" or normal. From the very first page of the novel, Holden begins to refer to his parents as di stant and generalizes both his father and mother frequently throughout his chronicle. Holden's father is a lawyer and therefore he considers him "phony" because he views his father's occupation unswervingly as a parallel of his father's personality. "Lawyers are all right, I guess - but it doesn't appeal to me,' I said. 'I mean they're all right if they go around saving innocent guys' lives all the time, and like that, but you don't do that kind of stuff if you're a lawyer. All you do is make a lot of dough and play golf and play bridge and buy cars and drink Martinis and look like a hot-shot. How would you know you weren't being a phony? The trouble is, you wouldn't'" (Salinger, 1945). When Holden describes his mom, he always seems to do so with a sense of compassion yet also with a jeering tone. Holden makes his mom sound predictable and insincere. These phony qualities are shown in two different examples when Holden is hiding in the closet of D.

The Static Character in Homer’s Odyssey Essay -- Homer Odyssey Essays

The Static Character in Homer’s Odyssey The Odyssey, by Homer, translated by W.H.D. Rouse (between 900 and 700 BC.) is "The best story ever written" (7). This is a story about a man named Odysseus Laertiades who went off to war. After winning the war, he and his men were heading home when their ship got off track. They ended up in the land of the Cyclops. They were held captive by a god's, Poseidon Earthholder, son. Odysseus came up with a plan to get out of there which involved poking the Cyclops' eye out. The Earthholder got mad and vowed Odysseus and his men would not make it back home to Ithaca. If Odysseus was to make it home, he was to arrive "There late and in misery, in another man's ship, ' lose all his companions, and ' find tribulation at home" (111). With the help of the gods, Odysseus finally does make it home, late, alone, and on another man's ship. He arrives there to find trouble in his house. In The Odyssey, the main character, Odysseus Laertiades is a static character; he doesn't change throughout the boo k. Yet Homer still retains the readers interests by the situations Odysseus finds himself in, how he always finds a unique way out, and how he triumphs in the end. Odysseus finds himself in many strange and difficult situations. One of the strange and difficult situations Odysseus finds himself at is the land of the Cyclops. Odysseus had taken twelve of his men to explore the island. They found a cave and decide to stay there until the Cyclops who lived there returned. The Cyclops returned and "Picked up a huge great stone and placed it in the doorway," so the men couldn?t escape (104). "The cruel monster? reached out toward my men, grabbed two like a pair of puppies and dashed them on the ground?. Then h... ...ss than a day. Odysseus finally met his son Telemachos, and the both fought to kill the men who wanted to marry Odysseus' wife. "Telemachos slung on his sharp sword, and grasped his spear, and took his stand by the seat, the son armed by his father's side" (242). They killed all the men who were eating up Odysseus' wealth. Odysseus finally met his wife and father after twenty years of being away. The Odyssey, by Homer, is good even though the main character, Odysseus, is a static character. In most good books, the reason they are good is because the main character changes. Homer manages to write a good book, even though the main character doesn't change, by the situations Odysseus finds himself in, how he always finds a unique way out, and how he triumphs in the end. Works Cited Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Rouse, W.H.D.. New York: New American Library, 1937.

My Town :: essays papers

My Town To give you a better view of "My Town," I will perch him atop the highest point of the some-kind-of-wonderful city of Hillside: The Giza pyramid-shaped pile of garbage majestically sitting in the town dump. The movie theater is to the west; a neon-pink fluorescent sign frames this week's shows: Th' Bach, Scram 3, and y' of Th' Bholdr. Teenage employees relinquish all responsibility for the missing "E"s. A makeshift lemonade stand is set up a block away. Sometimes, its determined entrepreneurs, the set of five-year-old twins, Brooke and Blake Simone like to mix their drink of choice with "extra flavoring," such as leaves, rocks, and the occasionally, yet classic family of ants. Needless to say, the single dime in their yellow Teletubbie cash box has not multiplied since their first day of business. The strip mall to the north has been replaced by Car Max, the automobile superstore. Unfortunately, the abundance of cars has not, in fact, improved anyone's driving skills, or lack of them. Further west is Proviso West High School; the peeling, forest-green painted fence that protects the school grounds failed to prevent kleptomaniacs from stealing seven car stereos from the parking lot last December. The football field behind the school patiently waits with its freshly mowed green splendor for the team of big, burly boys (and one girl) to actually win a game. At 5:30 AM, a shivering Student Council vice-president with the intent to do extra work trudges the perimeter of the edifice, praying for an open door to a building that doesn't like to be occupied outside of the normal school hours. Psychologically, two opposing beliefs surface for why I dream of dancing sugarplums and college diplomas rather than a pin on my Dairy Queen hat that reads "Employee of the Month." A child is either influenced by his surroundings and peers or repelled into the opposite direction. As a magnet gone a rye, I am thankful that Hillside has not influenced me to blend in with the crowd; neither the cemetery across the street from school nor the various monument and flower shops entice me to- pardon my morbidity- just drop dead. The strategically located bowling alley down the block does not tempt me to ditch school. Certainly, the smell of the garbage dump has turned me off to the wide-eyed world of garbage disposal and handicapped my nose, thus threatening me into giving a hoot.

Jamaica Kincaids essay On Seeing England for the first Time

Jamaica Kincaid's essay On Seeing England for the first Time "It's shit being Scottish! We're the scum of the fucking earth! Some people hate the English. I don't. They're just wankers. We're the ones what were colonised by wankers. We couldn't even pick a decent bunch of people to be colonised by." -Irvine Welsh, Trainspotting The cultural ties to empire are not so easy to efface as the political ones. This is perhaps one of the most important lessons the world has learned from the mass movement towards independence on the part of European colonies in the past half-century. Even we Americans, more than two hundred years after having rejected the British monarchy and all it stands for, are forever poking our noses in the supermarket tabloids to find out what crisis either Diana or Fergie is embroiled in this week. Have we progressed so little? Don't we owe it to ourselves to pay our own culture the tribute which is its due? This is one of the many questions that Jamaica Kincaid's essay, "On Seeing England for the first Time," raises. Being a "colonial" herself, she is forever being forced to question where her cultural loyalty should lie. Is she first and foremost an Englishwoman? An African? An Antiguan? Kincaid's essay is an attempt to come to terms with her own identity by exploring the influence of a colonial culture on her daily life as a child as well as on her education. She inundates the reader with "English images," just as she was once inundated with them as a schoolgirl. We sicken of the surfeit of imagery just as she must have when every waking moment, an image of England somehow wormed its way into her consciousness. "Made in England . . . those three words . . . ran through every part of my life, no... ...e United States for some years, she has maintained her Antiguan citizenship. Her writings, including "On Seeing England for the First Time," are all examinations of her own past and her cultural identity. Even though she has left her island home, she is actively engaged in a struggle to achieve a synthesis of what is English and what is African in her origins. Through her writings, Kincaid attempts to assert her present self-an Antiguan woman-and all that her present self signifies. Perhaps such a synthesis-or even just the struggle for it-is the best that any of us can hope for. Works Cited Gordimer, Nadine. "Where Do Whites Fit In?" Hoy and DiYanni. 292-298. Hoy, Pat C. II and Robert DiYanni, eds. Encounters: Readings and the World. 1st ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1997. Kincaid, Jamaica. "On Seeing England for the First Time." Hoy and DiYanni. 351-360. Jamaica Kincaid's essay On Seeing England for the first Time Jamaica Kincaid's essay On Seeing England for the first Time "It's shit being Scottish! We're the scum of the fucking earth! Some people hate the English. I don't. They're just wankers. We're the ones what were colonised by wankers. We couldn't even pick a decent bunch of people to be colonised by." -Irvine Welsh, Trainspotting The cultural ties to empire are not so easy to efface as the political ones. This is perhaps one of the most important lessons the world has learned from the mass movement towards independence on the part of European colonies in the past half-century. Even we Americans, more than two hundred years after having rejected the British monarchy and all it stands for, are forever poking our noses in the supermarket tabloids to find out what crisis either Diana or Fergie is embroiled in this week. Have we progressed so little? Don't we owe it to ourselves to pay our own culture the tribute which is its due? This is one of the many questions that Jamaica Kincaid's essay, "On Seeing England for the first Time," raises. Being a "colonial" herself, she is forever being forced to question where her cultural loyalty should lie. Is she first and foremost an Englishwoman? An African? An Antiguan? Kincaid's essay is an attempt to come to terms with her own identity by exploring the influence of a colonial culture on her daily life as a child as well as on her education. She inundates the reader with "English images," just as she was once inundated with them as a schoolgirl. We sicken of the surfeit of imagery just as she must have when every waking moment, an image of England somehow wormed its way into her consciousness. "Made in England . . . those three words . . . ran through every part of my life, no... ...e United States for some years, she has maintained her Antiguan citizenship. Her writings, including "On Seeing England for the First Time," are all examinations of her own past and her cultural identity. Even though she has left her island home, she is actively engaged in a struggle to achieve a synthesis of what is English and what is African in her origins. Through her writings, Kincaid attempts to assert her present self-an Antiguan woman-and all that her present self signifies. Perhaps such a synthesis-or even just the struggle for it-is the best that any of us can hope for. Works Cited Gordimer, Nadine. "Where Do Whites Fit In?" Hoy and DiYanni. 292-298. Hoy, Pat C. II and Robert DiYanni, eds. Encounters: Readings and the World. 1st ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1997. Kincaid, Jamaica. "On Seeing England for the First Time." Hoy and DiYanni. 351-360.

Native American Literature Essay

This piece of literature, â€Å"Superman and Me† by Sherman Alexie, reflects what it means to be an Indian in today’s culture written in first person. Alexie utilizes memories from his childhood to develop his thesis: reading and writing saved his life and allowed him to overcome poverty and be successful. They were an Indian family and his father owned an enormous amount of books. He learned to read at an early age with a Superman comic book. He writes about the stereotypes of Indians expected to be stupid and fail in the non-Indian world. He, on the other hand, declined this pity and refused to fail; he was a smart Indian that read as much as he could. He grew up to be a writer and visited the schools unfailingly to save the lives of Indian children. The purpose of this article is to improve the lives of Indian children. LaFarge, Oliver. â€Å"Myths that Hide the American Indian. † Historical view point. New York: John A. Garraty, 1991. 3-5. Print. In this essay, Oliver La Farge writes about the true civilization of the American Indian in â€Å"Myths that hide the American Indian. † Europeans made inferences without understanding them. La Farge describes the impact of the white men’s negative perception of Indians as ruthless, faithless, savages, drunken, and lazy good-for-nothings. The most important influence the Indians had on western civilization was their political economy where they had one ruler. Later, England formed a constitutional monarchy. All in all, this article’s purpose was to illistrate the Europeans’ views of Indians as savages was wrong; they were merely advancing to civilization. â€Å"The World on Turtle’s Back. † McDougal Littell Literature: American Literature. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littell, 2008. 34-40. Print. â€Å"The World on a Turtles Back† describes the world before land, creatures, or people. The Sky-World consisted of multiple gods, a great ocean, birds of the sea, fish, creatures of the deep, and most importantly the Great Tree that grew right in the middle. The author states that a couple was expecting a baby in the Sky-World the man went to fetch some bark from the roots of the Great Tree. He accidently dug a hole through the Sky-World and his pregnant wife fell through capturing a piece of the bark’s root. The woman planted the roots, and as she walked around the earth it grew into nurturing food. Later, the lady gave birth to a baby girl, and when the girl got older she had twins. the right handed-twin appeared to be god-like, while the left-landed twin comply with the devil. Both twins possessed their own powers; however one twin would use it to perform kind acts, and the other used it to pursue evil. They fought till the end, but both had to exist to maintain balance in the world. The purpose of this story is to show there has to be evil in the world to balance with the good. Momaday, N. Scott. â€Å"The Way to Rainy Mountain. † McDougal Littell Literature: American Literature. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littell, 2008. 52-58. Print. N. Scott Momaday’s â€Å"The Way to Rainy Mountain† utilizes imagery to enhance the impact of his deceased grandmother’s life and old customs while he makes his journey to her grave in Rainy Mountain. Aho, Momaday’s grandmother, belonged to the last tribe that migrated to North America. The Kiowas made a legend that explained that seven sisters form the Big Dipper. Aho honored the sun by attending the Kiowa Sun Dances. Prayers kept her memory since she was always praying even when she died. Momaday believes his grandmother’s death was whole and eternal for her to have lived and died in the same place: Rainy Mountain. The purpose of this story is to inform the reader about the cultural history of the Kiowa Indians. Tempus, Allie. â€Å"A Tribal Tragedy: Suicide Rates Soar Among Native Americans† New America Media November 29 2010 Posted. Web. Native Americans’ suicide rates are evaluated in Allie Tempus’, â€Å"A Tribal Tragedy. † They have the highest rate of all other ethnic and racial groups. The suicides are traced back to their mental health, including depression. Poverty and family issues resulted in depression which led to drug and alcohol use. Many users experienced an abusive childhood and turned to drugs to alleviate the pain. Native Americans involuntarily lost the balance in their lives as their traditions and customs died out, but today there are prevention efforts made to reduce suicide rates. The purpose of this news is to inform the reader about the history and hopeful future for Native Americans’ suicide rates. Popick, Jacqui. â€Å"Native American Women, Past, Present and Future. † Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal. 2006. Volume 1 Number 1. Jacqui Popicks’s â€Å"Native American Women, Past, Present, and Future† is an informative article that evaluates the different generations in the life of a typical Native American woman. In the past, women were treated equal and with respect because they have the power to give life. In present day, a drastic changed occurred because women face sexism, racism, and they are not generally respected as well as before. The Bill of Rights finally gave women their rights after a long, hard battle but that was not enough. As time progressed, Native American women initiated programs of awareness, AIDS, suicide, violence, prevention, and education to renew lives and overcome the feeling of hopelessness. The purpose of this journal is to show a comparison of the treatment of Native American women in the past and present, as well as goals for the future.

J. Galsworthy. the Broken Boot A Sample of Complex Stylistic Analysis Essay

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892-1973) was a major scholar of the English language, specialising in Old and Middle English. Twice Professor of Anglo-Saxon (Old English) at the University of Oxford, he also wrote a number of stories, including most famously The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955). The name â€Å"Tolkien† (pron.: Tol-keen; equal stress on both syllables) is believed to be of German origin; Toll-kà ¼hn: foolishly brave, or stupidly clever – hence the pseudonym â€Å"Oxymore† which he occasionally used. His father, Arthur Reuel Tolkien, was a bank clerk. Mabel Tolkien was diagnosed as having diabetes, usually fatal in those pre-insulin days. She died on 14 November By this time Ronald was already showing remarkable linguistic gifts. He had mastered the Latin and Greek which was the staple fare of an arts education at that time, and was becoming more than competent in a number of other languages, both modern and ancient, notably Gothic, and later Finnish. He was already busy making up his own languages, purely for fun. He went up to Exeter College, Oxford in 1911, where he stayed, immersing himself in the Classics, Old English, the Germanic languages (especially Gothic), Welsh and Finnish, until 1913. As a result of this he changed his school from Classics to the more congenial English Language and Literature. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, Tolkien did not rush to join up immediately on the outbreak of war, but returned to Oxford, where he worked hard and finally achieved a first-class degree in June 1915. At this time he was also working on various poetic attempts, and on his invented languages, especially one that he came to call Qenya [sic], which was heavily influenced by Finnish – but he still felt the lack of a connecting thread to bring his vivid but disparate imaginings together. He and Edith married in Warwick on 22 March 1916.Their first son, John Francis Reuel (later Father John Tolkien) had already been born on 16 November 1917. When the Armistice was signed on 11 November 1918, Tolkien had already been  putting out feelers to obtain academic employment, and by the time he was demobilised he had been appointed Assistant Lexicographer on the New English Dictionary (the â€Å"Oxford English Dictionary†), then in preparation. While doing the serious philological work involved in this, he also gave one of his Lost Tales its first public airing – he read The Fall of Gondolin to the Exeter College Essay Club, where it was well received by an audience which included Neville Coghill and Hugo Dyson, two future â€Å"Inklings†. However, Tolkien did not stay in this job for long. In the summer of 1920 he applied for the quite senior post of Reader (approximately, Associate Professor) in English Language at the University of Leeds, and to his surprise was appointed. His family life was equally straightforward. Edith bore their last child and only daughter, Priscilla, in 1929. Tolkien got into the habit of writing the children annual illustrated letters as if from Santa Claus, and a selection of these was published in 1976 as The Father Christmas Letters. He also told them numerous bedtime stories, of which more anon. In adulthood John entered the priesthood, Michael and Christopher both saw war service in the Royal Air Force. Afterwards Michael became a schoolmaster and Christopher a university lecturer, and Priscilla became a social worker. They lived quietly in North Oxford, and later Ronald and Edith lived in the suburb of Headington. Meanwhile Tolkien continued developing his mythology and languages. She asked Tolkien to finish it, and presented the complete story to Stanley Unwin, the then Chairman of the firm. He tried it out on his 10-year old son Rayner, who wrote an approving report, and it was published as The Hobbit in 1937. It immediately scored a success, and has not been out of children’s recommended reading lists ever since. It was so successful that Stanley Unwin asked if he had any more similar material available for publication. By this time Tolkien had begun to make his Legendarium into what he believed to be a more presentable state, and as he later noted, hints of it had already made their way into The Hobbit. He was now calling the full account Quenta Silmarillion, or Silmarillion for short. He presented some of his â€Å"completed† tales to Unwin, who sent them to his reader. The reader’s reaction was mixed: dislike of the poetry and praise for the prose (the material was the story of Beren and Là ºthien) but the overall decision at the time was that these were not commercially publishable. Unwin tactfully relayed this message to Tolkien, but asked him again if he was willing to write a sequel to The Hobbit. Tolkien was disappointed at the apparent failure of The Silmarillion, but agreed to take up the challenge of â€Å"The New Hobbit†. Despite all the fuss over The Lord of the Rings, between 1925 and his death Tolkien did write and publish a number of other articles, including a range of scholarly essays, many reprinted in The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays (see above); one Middle-earth related work, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil; editions and translations of Middle English works such as the Ancrene Wisse, Sir Gawain, Sir Orfeo and The Pearl, and some stories independent of the Legendarium, such as the Imram, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son, The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun – and, especially, Farmer Giles of Ham, Leaf by Niggle, and Smith of Wootton Major. After his retirement in 1959 Edith and Ronald moved to Bournemouth. On 22 November 1971 Edith died, and Ronald soon returned to Oxford, to rooms provided by Merton College. Ronald died on 2 September 1973. He and Edith are buried together in a single grave in the Catholic section of Wolvercote cemetery in the northern suburbs of Oxford. (The grave is well signposted from the entrance.) The legend on the headstone reads: