Learn What a Feature Story Is

Ask most people what a feature story is, and theyll say something soft and puffy, written for the arts or fashion section of a newspaper or website. But the truth is, features can be about any subject, from the fluffiest lifestyle piece to the toughest investigative report. And features arent just found in the back pages of the paper—the ones that focus on things like home dà ©cor and music reviews. In fact, features are found in every section of the paper, from news to business to sports. If you go through a typical newspaper from front to back on any given day, chances are, the majority of stories will be written in a feature-oriented style. The same is true on most news websites. So we know what features arent—but what are they? Feature stories arent defined so much by subject matter as they are by the style in which theyre written. In other words, anything written in a feature-oriented way is a feature story. These are the characteristics that distinguish feature stories from hard news: The Lede A feature lede doesnt have to have the who, what, where, when and why in the very first paragraph, the way a hard-news lede does. Instead, a feature lede can use description or an anecdote to set up the story. A feature lede can also run for several paragraphs instead of just one. Pace Feature stories often employ a more leisurely pace than news stories. Features take the time to tell a story, instead of rushing through it the way news stories often seem to do. Length Taking more time to tell a story means using more space, which is why features are usually, though not always, longer than hard news articles. A Focus on the Human Element If news stories tend to focus on events, then features tend to focus more on people. Features are designed to bring the human element into the picture, which is why many editors call features people stories. So, for example, if a hard news story recounts how a thousand people are being laid off from a local factory, the feature story might focus on just one of those workers, portraying their emotional turmoil—grief, anger, fear—at losing their job. Other Elements of Feature Articles Feature articles also include more of the elements that are used in traditional storytelling—description, scene-setting, quotes, and background information. Both fiction and non-fiction writers often say their aim is to  help readers paint a visual portrait in their minds of whats happening in a story. Thats also the goal of feature writing. Whether its by describing a place or a person, setting a scene, or using colorful quotes, a good feature writer does anything he or she can in order to get readers engaged with the story. An Example: The Man Who Played Violin in the Subway To demonstrate what were talking about, take a look at the first few paragraphs of this April 8, 2007 feature by Washington Post writer Gene Weingarten about a world-class violinist who, as an experiment, played beautiful music in crowded subway stations. Note the expert use of the feature-oriented lede, the leisurely pace and length, and the focus on the human element. He emerged from the metro at the L’Enfant Plaza station and positioned himself against a wall beside a trash basket. By most measures, he was nondescript: a youngish white man in jeans, a long-sleeved T-shirt and a Washington Nationals baseball cap. From a small case, he removed a violin. Placing the open case at his feet, he shrewdly threw in a few dollars and pocket change as seed money, swiveled it to face pedestrian traffic, and began to play. It was 7:51 a.m. on Friday, January 12, the middle of the morning rush hour. In the next 43 minutes, as the violinist performed six classical pieces, 1,097 people passed by. Almost all of them were on the way to work, which meant, for almost all of them, a government job. L’Enfant Plaza is at the nucleus of federal Washington, and these were mostly mid-level bureaucrats with those indeterminate, oddly fungible titles: policy analyst, project manager, budget officer, specialist, facilitator, consultant. Each passerby had a quick choice to make, one familiar to commuters in any urban area where the occasional street performer is part of the cityscape: Do you stop and listen? Do you hurry past with a blend of guilt and irritation, aware of your cupidity but annoyed by the unbidden demand on your time and your wallet? Do you throw in a buck, just to be polite? Does your decision change if he’s really bad? What if he’s really good? Do you have time for beauty? Shouldn’t you? What’s the moral mathematics of the moment? From Gene Weingartens Pearls Before Breakfast: Can one of the nation’s great musicians cut through the fog of a D.C. rush hour? Let’s find out.

Societal Resistance and Control in The Handmaids Tale...

The words control and Gilead, the setting for the novel The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood, are interchangeable. Not only is control a pivotal feature of the novel and its plot, it consequently creates the subplots, the characters and the whole world because of its enormity in the Republic of Gilead. Resistance also features heavily, as does its results, mainly represented in the salvagings, particicution and the threat of the colonies. Control dominates all aspects of Gileadian society, from minor, seemingly petty normalities such as the clothes allowed, all the way up to how and who to have sexual relations with. Unimaginable in this day, Atwood represents modern society gone sour, something which is chillingly†¦show more content†¦The most blatent form of control would of course be the punishments given for resistance and the retribution given out for disobeying the state. These, in Gilead, are really rather harsh and such things as homosexuality can resut in death, under the term Gender treachery. This is positively appalling to any civilised person believing in equal rights and death is almost absurd for such a non-crime. It seems that the society has medieval tendencies, which can be expected seeing that its main doctrine is taken from the most ancient book, the Bible. Still obviously this is no excuse for such barbaric acts in a modern society. Salvagings are also a horrible concept used by Atwood. All Handmaids and other women in the society are forced to attend the hangings of fellow women, often arranged on the nooses by their colours so they look pretty. A harsh warning not to step out of line. Also occasionally during the salvagings a rapist or murderer is thrown to the handmaids who rip him apart with their own hands, or feet, or teeth. The unthinkable is thought of for punishments in the Handmaids tale. There is also the threat of the colonies which always has to be contended with by all mischievous people in Gilead. The colonies are contaminated areas containing nuclear waste from numerable nuclear disasters and oil spills during the eighties.Show MoreRelatedPower Struggle In The Handmaids Tale By Margaret Atwood1373 Words   |  6 PagesRenowned playwright William Shakespeare, and contemporary novelist Margaret Atwood both explore power struggle from a feminist perspective. Shakespeare in ‘King Lear’ and Atwood in ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ explore varying power struggles and their correlation to gender through their respective texts. Shakespeare and Atwood use the genders of their central characters to focus on power in historical and dystopian settings. Both authors explore religious frameworks, the types of power in a patriarchalRead MoreLiterary Analysis of the Handmaids Tale1863 Words   |  8 Pageswhen one’s daily life, actions, and thoughts are dictated by domineering societal expectations. Oppressive environments such as regimes controlled by a dictatorship and that run off a totalitarian government system strip an individual of their civil rights as a human being in order to gain ultimate control over its citizens. A government such as the Republic of Gilead in Margaret Atwood’s work, The Handmaid’s Tale, controls their citizen’s lives to the extent to where they must learn to suppressRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Crucible 1598 Words   |  7 Pagesenough against the oppression of Gilead. With the discovery of this secret phrase, there is a subtle shift in Offred’s character; no longer does the society completely control her, for she has discovered something that has slipped past the careful eye of Gilead, and this gives her hope. Offred is given many chances to join the resistance against Gilead, but she is never bold enough to become an active member in the cause, fearing the repercussions of being caught, of crossing the â€Å"invisible line† (194)Read MoreMargaret Atwood s The Handmaid Tale Essay1166 Words   |  5 Pagesamount of power and control of its citizens in order for a society to function properly. However, too much power and control in a society eliminates the freedom of the residents, forbidding them to live an ordinary life. In the dystopian futuristic novel, The Handmaids Tale, Margaret Atwood demonstrates the theme of power and control through an oppressive society called the Republic of Gilead. The government established power and control through the use of the wall, military control, the salvaging, theRead MoreThe Handmaid s Tale By Margaret Atwood Essay1124 Words   |  5 Pages An American journalist, Theodore White, once said, â€Å"power in America is control of the means of communication.† This holds true not only for America, but in many environments, including The Gileadean government in Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale. There are two linguistic elements employed throughout the novel which bolster the totalitarian regime of the Gileadean government. The religious terminology and speech and the sexist language and symbols highlight the repression of free speechRead MoreThe Worlds Of The Last Man Essay2207 Words   |  9 PagesIn the worlds of The Last Man by Marry Shelly and A Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, the lives of the survivors of the apocalypse are thrown into chaos. In The Last Man, the people of England are driven out of their native home by the plague and forced into the desolate wasteland that is Europe. In A Handmaid’s Tale, Gilead society has torn Offred away from her past life and severed all her connections to it. In these troubled times, characters turn to religion either by force o r their own freeRead MoreUse Of Verbal And Symbolic Languages On The Handmaid s Tale2269 Words   |  10 Pagessame cultural tradition. Figurative language is a classification that exists within the complex societal settings and is often integrated that compromise of communication general concepts to specific initiatives. Therefore, in addition to spoken language, coded language can be taken by a given society in order to give both the direct and the indirect messages to the intended people. In The Handmaid’s Tale, the Atwood has chosen the use of verbal and symbolic languages to pass across her experience

Gattaca Essay free essay sample

Gattaca Essay Gattaca is a futuristic movie that addresses the possible issues of genetic discrimination and the problems that occur in a scientifically enhanced world. The movie gives many example of genetic discrimination as it follows the life of the main character Vincent, a genetically disabled person or invalid. As apposed to a genetically perfect, valid. The more prominent issues brought up involving invalids include finding suitable early child care and obtaining jobs in preferred industries. Both these matters have convincing positive and negative arguments that will be summarised below. Genetic discrimination takes place in many different areas throughout the movie but begins at the child care centre Vincent’s mother and father try to enrol him in. They are unable to sign him up as he was diagnosed at birth with numerous possible genetic disorders that the child care centres insurance would not cover for. This leads to other problems such as the parents having to educate him at home from an early age which could possibly develop other concerns. We will write a custom essay sample on Gattaca Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page His social skills would be severely undeveloped due to lack of socialisation with other children his age. With his parents teaching him Vincent may not have been able to gain the highest possible level of education that the child care centre would have otherwise been able to provide. He would then begin his higher education lacking in the skills other valid students in his year already possessed. On the other hand without invalid students attending child care centres the educators are able to give more attention to the valid students that are more likely to succeed and progress towards a productive future in the work force. If an invalid student is permitted to attend a child care centre the safety of that child and the others attending is severely compromised. If a supervisor was constantly worried about the safety of the invalid child their attention would not be evenly distributed between the other students which could cause other dangerous situations. All throughout his life Vincent dreamed of going into space but because he was an invalid it was an almost unattainable dream. The only way he was able to obtain his goal was to take the identity of a valid. By doing this and accumulating enough knowledge to pass as a valid he became an astronaut and with some difficulties made it into space. If he had not been able to take a valid’s identity Vincent would have suffered as he would not have achieved his full potential in contributing to society. The most significant problem with being an invalid in the work force is that the higher paid jobs are unavailable because of their status so they have to make do with a lower paid job where they may be exploited and forced to work with minimal pay due to their increasing need for money. There are however many advantages for the employers. They are more likely to know who to hire and how productive that employee will be. This reduces the likelihood of fired employees and employing more people for a job that could be accomplished by only one valid. As well as this if an applying employee wants the position enough they will keep striving to be better than the rest and this will in turn force the standard higher in the work force which can only be seen as a benefit. In conclusion there are many arguments for and against genetic discrimination. Discrimination aids almost everyone who isn’t being discriminated against. For example the child care workers are able to reduce their numbers to concentrate on individual needs and reduce their insurance costs, where as employees are able to reduce the number of employees which therefore reduces their expenses. Unfortunately the invalids being discriminated against do not get an adequate early education and often miss out on well paid jobs in the industries they take an interest in. In some cases discrimination does work because the majority of people are valid’s and they are getting the benefits while the invalids strive to achieve their maximum potentials in a world of genetic perfection. Word Count: 688 words

Regi Babamusta Essays - Chemistry, Matter, Inorganic Solvents

Regi Babamusta Intro to Met. S. Nasse Acid Rain Acid rain is not only an issue for us here in the states, but in areas all over the world. Unfortunately, many do not even know what acid rain is. It's simple really. When fossil fuels burn, they release chemicals into the atmosphere, and those chemicals mix with the moisture in the atmosphere, which results in rain, snow, sleet, hail etc. with a higher acidity level than previously seen. Those fossil fuels are; coal, oil and natural gasses. Acid deposition is a more proper/scientific name than acid rain due to the fact acid can fall to the floor as any form of water. It can additionally integrate with dry debris and fall to the ground. Whenever dry debris is mixed in with the acidic chemicals it's better known as dry deposition, in comparison to acid coming down in the form of any moisture known as moist deposition. Not all people, but environmentally conscious people have been aware of air pollution since the times of the Ancient Romans. Just because they knew of the issue does not mean they did anything to help, or solve it. Up until the twentieth century people had turned their backs to the rising issue of air pollution including air pollution's most dangerous outcome, acid rain. Acid rain, over time is extremely harmful to ecosystems all over the globe and is one of the biggest problems we face today. Yet, not enough attempts have been made to begin the process of correcting this problem. The way acid rain forms in the atmosphere is essentially by the burning of an excessive amount of fossil fuels from places like factories and power plants worldwide. As per a study done by needtoknow.nas.edu, "The United States gets 81% of its total energy from, oil, coal, and natural gas, all of which are fossil fuels. We depend on those fossil fuels to heat our homes, run our vehicles, power industry and manufacturing, and provide us with electricity". To illustrate, when the biggest culprits of acid rain are burned they release gasses such as, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, etc. Everyone has seen the huge power plant chimneys dumping tons and tons of gas into the sky, the approximate amount being 21.3 billion tons. Once released, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides react with other components in the atmosphere like water vapor, and sunlight to produce the acids found in acid rain.There is a 14-point scale which is used to measure PH levels in liquids, 7 being neu tral and anything less than 7 is acidic. While anything more than 7 is alkaline. For example, battery acid measures at about 1 on the scale (depending on the manufacturer) while table vinegar is at 2-2.4 acidity. Conventional rain is between 5 and 6 acidity; acid rain is somewhere between 2 and 5.5. According to Insidermonkey, "The country with the worst cases of acid rain levels is China". The United States comes in a modest second place. Since acid is extremely corrosive and the levels worldwide are on the rise, many of the things we take for granted are prone to being damaged. Rivers, lakes, reservoirs, infrastructure, buildings, monuments, and animal life. Over time, acid rain affects almost everything it touches from our homes in the states to trees in the Amazon Forest When acid rain occurs, the acidity levels in major bodies of water aren't immediately affected. Unless it's pouring acid rain every other day the water dilutes the acid in the rain, otherwise all bodies of water would be highly acidic requiring neutralizers to get it back to base ph levels. During the spring months although rare, something called, "acid shock" can occur. Snow build up containing acid melts. Once the snow has melted, the acid runoff pours into the ground and neighboring bodies of water. Since the bodies of water are essentially being shocked with high acid levels, small organisms like algae begin to die off. Which causes a kind of deadly chain reaction. As the algae slowly die off, the organisms that consume the algae could possibly die of starvation. The chain reaction could go on or quite some time until many organisms