Alexandria Victoria (1819-1901) was one of the most important female monarchs in history. Commonly known as Queen Victoria, she succeeded her uncle, William IV, and ruled Great Britain and Ireland between 1837 and 1901. (History.com) Queen Victoria is known for her involvement in foreign affairs, as well as her social impact on the Romantic Period, otherwise known as the Victorian Era. (My Perspectives, 550) However, her success could not have been achieved without the influence of her husband, Prince Albert, son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1819-1861). (Biography.com) Prince Albert was not only Queen Victoria’s husband, but her secretary and advisor as well. (Biography.com) Prince Albert guided his wife through many of the hardships she had to control, such as the Crimean War and the Irish Potato Famine. (Heritage History) Queen Victoria consistently listened to her husband, taking his advice and making her reign one of the most memorable of all time. He gave Queen Victoria the catalyst to address child labor, social welfare, and political neutrality. He also assisted her during the Trent Affair with the United States (1861) and her foreign disputes with Prussia (1856). (Biography.com) Without Prince Albert, Queen Victoria may have never been successful when addressing these affairs, which would have changed the course of history. On December 14, 1861, Prince Albert passed away due to typhoid, causing Queen Victoria to go into a state of eternal mourning. (Biography.com) Queen Victoria began to neglect her duties and isolate herself from her subjects, resulting in multiple assassination attempts and a republican movement. (Britroayls.com) This emotional state brought a decline to her popularity. The only person to “coax her out of her seclusion” was Benjamin Disraeli, a leader of the Conservative Party at the time. Her popularity as queen rose with age when she hit her 50th and 60th year as queen, celebrating these milestones with the traditional golden and diamond jubilees. (History.com) However, she could never get over Prince Albert’s death. She joined her husband in death on January 22, 1901, making her son, Edward VII, King of England. The Queen mourned for her husband even in death. By her request, photographs, clothes, and a plaster cast of Prince Albert’s hand were placed inside the Queen’s coffin before she was lowered inside. (Rosenberg) Queen Victoria is known for her long and successful reign as queen. She will always be known for her social impact, her handling of foreign affairs, and the impact she made on the Romantic Period. However, all of her success could not have been achieved without the advice and support of her loving husband, Prince Albert. Without him, the entire future of the world could have changed. Without him, we would have never had the Great Exhibition, child labor laws, and the peace between the United States and Great Britain after the Trent Affair. (Biography.com) Without Prince Albert, the Victorian Era would have never revolutionized the 20th century. Without Prince Albert, Queen Victoria would have been just another monarch on the throne. Prince Albert was the pen that wrote the Victorian Era into every history book in the world. Prince Albert was the Queen’s salvation. He was her best friend. Works Cited History.com Staff. "Queen Victoria." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 24 Apr. 2017. <http://www.history.com/topics/british-history/queen-victoria>. Morrell, Ernest, et al. My Perspectives. New York: Pearson Education Inc., 2017. Print. British and World Literature. "Prince Albert." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 08 July 2014. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <http://www.biography.com/people/prince-albert-20845371>. "Queen Victoria (1837 - 1901)." Queen Victoria | Britroyals. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2017. <https://www.britroyals.com/kings.asp?id=victoria>. "Queen Victoria dies." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/queen-victoria-dies>. Rosenberg, Jennifer. "How Did Queen Victoria Die?" ThoughtCo. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <https://www.thoughtco.com/queen-victoria-dies-1779176>. "Victoria I." Heritage History | Homeschool History Curriculum. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017. <http://www.heritage-history.com/?c=academy&s=char-dir&f=victoria>.
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Going to a college or university is life changing enough as it is. From the point of view of a freshman, a sophomore, or even a junior, it seems terrifying. It is true that, as a senior in high school, the very idea of going to college still seems terrifying. Every year seniors apply for colleges. If it is required, they have to audition in order to get into a certain class or career path. For me, the application process wasn’t difficult. Through the entire process, the idea of going to college didn’t seem real. However, reality settled in once I began preparing to audition for Central Michigan University’s School of Music.
Since I was in the seventh grade, I wanted to be a music teacher. My band director, Mrs. Tippett, was my role model and inspiration. It was my goal to earn a degree in music education from Central Michigan University. Halfway through my senior year, I was accepted to Central Michigan University. I was absolutely overjoyed to know I was one step closer to my goal. However, I still had to be accepted into their School of Music. This is a key element for graduating with a degree in music education. The challenge that faced me was passing the audition. The way I saw my situation, the expectations were far greater than that of any high school test. I come from a Class D school where our musical abilities seem below par compared to schools like Petoskey and the Traverse City schools. The audition felt larger than life compared to everything I have done in the past. I began to think I didn't have the skills to be accepted. Mrs. Tippett had recommended early on that I should take a lesson with the oboe professor at Central Michigan University in order to be introduced to them and give myself a better chance of being accepted into their music program. So, I contacted Professor Lindabeth Binkley of Central Michigan University and set up a lesson. When I arrived at the campus for my lesson, Professor Binkley gave me a tour of the music building and I showed her everything I could do as a musician. She asked me to play some of my solo, to sight read, and to play some scales. While I was having my lesson with Professor Binkley, all of my nerves and worries about the audition vanished. However, they all returned when she brought up the audition. We talked about what she thought of my abilities as an oboist, and what I need to work on to improve my playing. She gave me a list of skills to work on before my audition, and that she would be watching for those when I came to audition. It was then that my nerves hit the ceiling. The weeks they came and went. I practiced and improved upon the skills Professor Binkley recommended I work on. A week before the audition, however, I realized I had forgotten to memorize my melodic minor scales. The next week was an emotional rollercoaster of tears and regrets. I worked with Mrs. Tippett almost every night that week, pushing myself over an emotional wall and crying in her presence. All I wanted by this point was to get this audition done and over with. To my dismay, the day came where I had to travel down to Central Michigan University and audition for enrollment at the School of Music. When I arrived at Central Michigan University, the size of the school overwhelmed me. However, my nerves subsided as I took two mandatory music tests that would not affect my acceptance into the school. I was actually quite care-free till we were given the option of taking a practice room to warm up before our audition. The only help the practice room gave me was a place to release my nerves in the form of tears. Finally the time came. I felt like I was walking into death itself. My entire future depended on this audition. Then it happened. I walked into Professor Binkley's office for the second time in my life and all my nerves vanished. It was only her and I. We chatted before I actually did any playing, and she spoke kindly to me. I forgot I was even there to audition. I played my solo first. It was the best I ever played it. Next, I played some scales. Those were not as great as the solo. Before I sight read, she complimented me on my improvements since we had last met and how happy she was that I auditioned. She put the sight reading music on my stand and I was surprised at how easy it was. After I played the sight reading music, she turned to me and smiled. "I will tell you right now that I will accept you, but you won't hear anything about it till after all of the other auditions are done." I let out a sigh of relief. The future I desired was secured. Why was I so worried about this? The audition went on as if I just had a lesson with her. Thinking back, I believe that I was overthinking everything. I believed that their expectations were too high and that my skills were too low. I pushed myself down with every mistake. In reality, the university and I were the same size. To look at this incident with a new view, I can see that my expectations for myself and for what the school expected of me were not realistic. If I could have only understood this before, I would have saved myself not only tears, but emotional turmoil as well. |
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