writing an essay and need help.

[Namhias]

I see no reason why not. Sure, you can post it here as long as it follows the site's rules.

[skulblaka]

it is going to be fairly long, its five pages double spaced...if that is too long i can post parts of it or something...that's my biggest worry with posting it.
_________________

I sing, I read, I live. In that order.

[Rayadragon]

I'm guessing you could just post it in sections, like a post a page or something.

I'm jealous that you concider 5 pages of double spaced text long. I miss those days ;_;
_________________
"People who are easily offended need to be offended more often."
"Do on to others as you would have others do on to you."

[Ragnarok]

[skulblaka]

alright. I'll have it up by tonight.
_________________

I sing, I read, I live. In that order.

[skulblaka]

Jorge Johnson
HON 299: The Occult
Paul Spaeth
10 October 2008
"Here There Be Dragons"
Dragon: (drag’ən), n. 1. a huge, fierce animal in old stories, supposed to look like a snake or lizard with wings, claws and scales. Dragons often breathed out fire and smoke (The World Book Dictionary). This very common definition of dragon encompasses the general ideals of the west. These “fierce animals” were often noted for disrupting the lives of people living nearest to them. They would light up entire villages, kill/eat virgins, and steal anything that was shiny or considerably precious. Most were noted for having entire hoards of diamonds and gold (similar to the dragon in Tolkien’s The Hobbit). But this is a very naïve view on just one type of dragon.
Let us, first, parallel dragons to humans for a while. Each human has his or her own specific personality. Some are meek and mild, small and timid; others are loud and obnoxious, big and full of themselves. The same can be said of a dragon. Each one has its own personality and character that makes them different from any other. Along with this idea of individuality comes the idea that not every single dragon is going to be able to breathe fire.
One Hollywood example of a dragon breathing something other than fire is in the movie Dragonheart: A New Beginning. In this movie, a young, western dragon breathes fire, but also breathes, or spits, ice. Other dragons depicted in literature spit acid, or use their own roar as a destructive force in and of itself (His Majesty’s Dragon). In art, dragons have been depicted spewing lightning, thought this even less common than acid and ice spitters. Though the idea of a dragon using something other than fire less thought of, it still occurs. Another interesting thought is the physiology of dragons.
Dragons are not uniform in any way. Size, as an example, varies from type to type. A larger flying dragon would usually be slow during flight but, once up to speed, nearly impossible to stop. A small dragon would usually be fast, darting in and out of a battle, but easily thwarted. Also, the wingspan of a dragon differs from type to type. As with birds, if a dragon has a large wingspan, it does not necessarily need to beat over often to stay aloft. Conversely, a dragon with a short wingspan would have to beat its wings often in order to stay aloft. Along with the idea that all dragon’s are the same size and have the same wingspan, the idea that every dragon has horns, spikes, and otherwise pointy protrusions is absurd.
Let’s consider a speed flyer. It would want to be as aerodynamically sounds as draconically (sorry I couldn’t help myself) possible. Too many protrusions would be inconvenient. They would cause the dragon to drag in the air, slowing down the overall speed the dragon could fly. For a fast dragon at least, what would work better is a spiked ruff that could be flexed and relaxed accordingly. Since it is a small beast (and I use this term very lightly), the availability of a ruff would be helpful. It could use this ruff to slow down its pace for landing, or as a way to make it look bigger. At the same time, a large, firebreater may have many more protrusions than what could be considered a normal dragon. When you take a firebreather, you have to consider that it has a large amount of heat that needs to be displaced at any given moment, and not all of it can be spewed from its maw, some of it would have to be displaced by those protrusions in the form of steam. This could be compared to a human’s physiological response to heat – sweating. Though these dragons are the type commonly accepted in the West, the East has a different view on the subject.
Dragons in the East do not fit the mold of Western dragons in any way. For the most part, they are serpentine, without wings, and, generally speaking, lack long limbs. They tend to have at least three claws, and in some cases as many as five. Oftentimes they are known to hold a pearl in one of these claws, as a show of wisdom and understanding of the universe.
They also serve a different role in the East; they are protectors, guardians, healers, givers, and helpers. They tend to be enamored with magical abilities, such as being able to control the weather, the tide, and other such things. Also, they are received by the East with reverence, and as sources of vast stores of knowledge. Unlike in the West, if an Eastern dragon were to appear to a human, it would most likely give that human a gift. This differs greatly with the Western idea of murder and chaos. However, the stereotype of a good protector cannot me maintained indefinitely, because personality will overrule stereotype at every turn.
As almost an opposite of the west, eastern dragons can break out of their stereotype by turning evil. In stead of being protectors, they can turn into tormentors. Because they are given the ability to control magic, they can loose it upon anybody or anything they want. But regardless of either draconic type, their bodies tend to be considered a repository for magical energy.
There are certain parts of dragons that seem to have the most magical properties; its scales, blood, horn (if it has any) and teeth. The scales and teeth are often ground down into a fine powder and mixed with certain other magical objects (such as the horn of a unicorn, etc.) The blood is possibly the most valuable part of a dragon, as it can heal wounds and tends to grant the user a heightened understanding of other languages. For the horn of the dragon to be useful it needs to be hollowed out, then to be blown through, like a trumpet. The sound that is produced by the horn is considered to be the most beautiful and soothing music imaginable.
These are some of the ideas that I have come to understand are dragons. Most of the sources are lost to me, only the impression they left on me has remained. Some of this is my own imagination at work, but most of it comes from books where dragons are present and the ideals of what dragons are through art and movies. I only wish I could remember which movies and which books, because I wish I could read them again. Are dragons real? I could only hope.
_________________

I sing, I read, I live. In that order.

[Ragnarok]

Before I go through it, what are the guidelines for the report? Was it supposed to be a somewhat objective research paper, or a subjective piece? Are you allowed to use first person? What were you trying to get across while writing this?

And more importantly, when is it due?
_________________
To win against an opponent stronger than yourself, you must not be weaker than that opponent. - Takamachi Nanoha

[skulblaka]

its due on friday. I'm not really sure if it is subjective or otherwise, nor do i know if i am allowed to use the first person "I" (though I do use it in my conclusion). I guess I am asking weather or not you would go with my notions or if i am entierly off base. The class itself deals with just about anything (there is one person writing on fairy's and another on Neo-paganism), so if that helps with the subjective/objective aspects any, but i don't know otherwise.
_________________

I sing, I read, I live. In that order.