Friday, December 14, 2012

FEATS OF WISDOM #1




https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6j-11WnWHJk0NU4LloCbxO8AY1beCc1Fvhe4pfAAajVAofD-lqKvqoY81_6cCeZ2L8ShToWkUAVU0gEZ16fBBmjPHAGPXeh7CIWjYCdZs3jl1bkBvpF_Xt6Mhetb0IWmWJttYvy72qPP/s1600/Sphinx_Face2.jpg 
 Amanda Arnold and myself at the Hobbit
Camera men: 
Ryan Nguyen and Will Veroski

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Fall Semester Reflection

Do you read your colleagues’ work online?  How often? What is it like to read their work? How does being able to see everyone’s work online at any given time change the way you do your work?
If I'm honest, I don't look at people's blogs very much. I'd say about once every other week... bad I know. 
Having your peers be able to look in on your assignments makes you want to do better.
How has the publicly and always visible course blog made this course different from one without a blog? How would the course change if the course blog disappeared tomorrow?
It's easily accessible to everyone and we don't waste class time to talk about what's going on. Certainly, if the blog went down tonight we would probably just find another place to collaborate. The internet doesn't begin and end with Blogger.
Has publishing your work for the public to see changed your approach to completing an assignment? How so?  How would your feelings about the course change if you couldn’t publish your work that way?
I never thought about the incentive for better quality work, but it is true isn't it? We all try harder and make things that are worth seeing because anyone can see them.
Has your experience of the physical classroom changed because of the open & online aspects?  Where does your learning actually happen?
Not really, I guess if there's one thing I tend to not pay attention to your announcements because I know they'll be on the blog that evening. My learning happens where ever I can find a video or a website that explains something to me.


You were described in the Macarthur Foundation/DML  interview as “a pioneer”-- how do you describe the experience on the edge to people who haven’t been there (friends and family)?
My experience in this class has been very different from my other classes. I love Shakespeare and in this class I actually got to help people understand him better. I got to teach. THAT is pretty fantastic.
How do they respond when you describe the brave new world in which you’re working?
haha...hah. mmmmm you don't want to know. I will say though that they don't like it very much.
 What do their responses mean to you?  What effect(s) (if any) do they have on you?
Not much, this system isn't perfect but it has some great potential all the same. Things change every day and if there's one thing that I say needs a good healing, it's the public school system.

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Richard II & Henry IV Literary Analysis

yaaay

A Christmas Carol LAQs

General:
1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

Ebenezer Scrooge is a grumpy old man who doesn’t think much of Chrismas. “A covetous old sinner” who isn’t very nice to the people around him. One night when he gets home his old friend Jacob Marley’s ghost comes to him telling him to change his ways and to warn him that he will be visited by three ghosts that night. Past Present Future. By the end of the story Scrooge is so shaken by the horrors of what he has become that he turns into a lovely chap who saves Tiny Tim from death.



2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel.
When you are mean to people it isn’t good for you. Especially during Christmas season. Try to love people more than loath them.

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
Dickens is always rather peppy. He’ll actually use words we would say to describe things. His voice is very definitively jolly when it needs to be and serious when the mood flips. His tone is one of “hey I have a great story here, so give it a listen if you fancy a good read on this cold winter’s night.”

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. Foreshadowing: "Scrooge crept towards it, trembling as he went; and following the finger, read upon the stone of the neglected grave his own name, EBENEZER SCROOGE." The ghost of Christmas yet to come shows Scrooge his grave.

Concrete Language: "Holding up his hands in a last prayer to have his fate reversed, he saw an alteration in the Phantom’s hood and dress. It shrunk, collapsed, and dwindled down into a bedpost." This quote is telling us what happened, instead of talking about an idea or belief.
Simile: "Every time he resolved within himself, after mature inquiry, that it was all a dream, his mind flew back again, like a strong spring released, to its first position, and presented the same problem to be worked all through, 'Was it a dream or not?'" (The First of the Three Spirits)
Aphorism: "But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round—apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that—as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys."
Amplification:
 “Why, bless your heart alive, my dear, how late you are!” said Mrs. Cratchit, kissing her a dozen times, and taking off her shawl and bonnet for her with officious zeal." I think this was meant to show just how jolly the Cratchits are, even though their circumstances are not ideal.
Foil: Scrooge's nephew is his foil. They are exact opposites when the story begins. One loves Christmas and the other hates it. In the end however, Scrooge conforms and approaches the day with a happy heart.
Repetition: "Scrooge went to bed again, and thought, and thought, and thought it over and over and over, and could make nothing of it." (The First of Three Spirits)
Syntax: “And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased."
Allusion: "For they were a musical family, and knew what they were about, when they sung a Glee or Catch." Glee and Catch was a new form of music at the time.
Caricature: “Oh!  But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind- stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!” (Marley's Ghost)

CHARACTERIZATION 



1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?

“Oh!  But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind- stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!” (Marley's Ghost)
This quote is a direct characterization that tells the reader just how mean Mr. Scrooge was. An Indirect example is at his nephew's party where everyone is insulting Scrooge while he is looking in with the ghost of Christmas present. Some loath him, but his nephew is the only one that takes pity on Scrooge.
2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?




Yes, for example when Scrooge is talking he uses many exclamation marks to let the reader know he is a grumpy old chap that needs a good kick in the backside. Whilst the many of the other characters don't exclaim things unless it's to wish someone a Merry Christmas. 
3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.
Scrooge is definitely a dynamic character. He went from screaming "Humbug!" all the time to helping Tiny Tim and making peace with his nephew and wife and giving to the poor. All because of his visitations from the spirits.
4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character? 
I felt like I came out of the book with a lesson, but I did like the sentimentality of going back to Scrooge's past and finding pity for him. It was a bit generic. Be righted or get smited.



The Picture of Dorian Gray LAQs

GENERAL 



1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

Wow, this book was a real... eye opener is how I can best describe it. Dorian Gray is a young man who is being painted by this painter named Basil. He paints such an amazingly lifelike image of Dorian that the young man sees himself as young and hansom and with the influence of Lord Henry he curses himself and the portrait. He then goes about living this corrupt life while he stays young and flawless and the painting begins to reflect who he really is. Dorian ends up stabbing the painting and therefore killing himself.
"When they entered, they found hanging upon the wall a splendid portrait of their master as they had last seen him, in all the wonder of his exquisite youth and beauty. Lying on the floor was a dead man, in evening dress, with a knife in his heart. He was withered, wrinkled, and loathsome of visage. It was not till they had examined the rings that they recognized who it was."
(ch20 last page)



2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.

I think what Oscar Wilde was trying to say was that deception is lethal and an over exposure to bad things is also lethal. If we could see our souls as Dorian did through the painting, depending on what kind of life we lead we would probably see something hideous.

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).

I thought it was very foreboding, especially with Henry Wotton saying all of those influential "wise" sayings to a young easily influenced young boy. For example, when Henry says,


"Because to influence a person is to give him one's own soul. He does not think his natural thoughts, or burn with his natural passions. His virtues are not real to him. His sins, if there are such things as sins, are borrowed. He becomes an echo of some one else's music, an actor of a part that has not been written for him."
(ch2)
It's as if he's using reverse psychology to influence Dorian. Saying not to let anyone influence you and then that's exactly what Dorian lets him do. I don't know, if you read the book, you'll realize just how many seemingly insightful statements Henry makes. It's kind of choking and Dorian think that this cynic is right so he follows him blindly.
 

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers.

Foreshadowing: "They neither bring ruin upon others, nor ever receive it from alien hands. Your rank and wealth, Harry; my brains, such as they are--my art, whatever it may be worth; Dorian Gray's good looks--we shall all suffer for what the gods have given us, suffer terribly." (ch1)

Metaphor: "Dorian Gray stepped up on the dais with the air of a young Greek martyr" (ch2)
Simile: "The moon hung low in the sky like a yellow skull." (ch16)
Aphorism: "The commonest thing is delightful if one only hides it.
" (ch1)
Amplification:
"I am jealous of everything whose beauty does not die. I am jealous of the portrait you have painted of me. Why should it keep what I must lose? Every moment that passes takes something from me and gives something to it." (ch3)
Foil: At the beginning of the story Lord Henry is a foil for Dorian, but by the end of it, I make the argument that Dorian becomes Henry's foil because he has changed so dramatically.
"Stop!" faltered Dorian Gray, "stop! you bewilder me. I don't know what to say. There is some answer to you, but I cannot find it. Don't speak. Let me think. Or, rather, let me try not to think."(ch2)

Pedantic: Henry is always trying to "enlighten" Dorian by giving him all these lectures on what he has observed.
"I find that, ultimately, there are only two kinds of women, the plain and the coloured. The plain women are very useful. If you want to gain a reputation for respectability, you have merely to take them down to supper. The other women are very charming. They commit one mistake, however. They paint in order to try and look young. Our grandmothers painted in order to try and talk brilliantly. Rouge and esprit used to go together. That is all over now. As long as a woman can look ten years younger than her own daughter, she is perfectly satisfied." (ch4)
Diction: Wilde is very descriptive with words.

"For some reason or other, the house was crowded that night, and the fat Jew manager who met them at the door was beaming from ear to ear with an oily tremulous smile." (ch7)
Allusion:
Wilde references Dorian to Adonis twice in the text. Adonis was a Greek god who was a strikingly beautiful young man.
"and this young Adonis, who looks as if he was made out of ivory and rose-leaves." (ch1)
"and as Adonis with huntsman's cloak and polished boar-spear." (ch9)
Caricature:
"Why, my dear Basil, he is a Narcissus, and you--well, of course you have an intellectual expression and all that." (ch1)



CHARACTERIZATION 



1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?

Indirect and direct characterization are used equally in the book.
"You are an extraordinary fellow. You never say a moral thing, and you never do a wrong thing. Your cynicism is simply a pose." ch1
"In the centre of the room, clamped to an upright easel, stood the full-length portrait of a young man of extraordinary personal beauty." ch1
Wilde used both to show us the true character and to show us what everyone already thinks of that character's character.


2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?



  
When he focuses on James Vane his syntax and diction seems to slip into a low class sounding dialogue. "A chance word I heard in that damned den set me on the wrong track." (ch16)
However, when he focuses on Lord Henry for example he uses bigger words and linger sentences.
3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.



Dorian is definitely a dynamic character. He goes from white and innocent to red and horrific in nature.
4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.


No not really. I felt like Dorian was too innocent and didn't know anything about the real world and then in the end he was... too corrupt to even be human. As for Lord Henry he was very cynical yet he never did anything wrong. I don't know it felt like all of the characters were merely there for Oscar Wilde to get his point across. It was however, a very interesting read. It really made me think and it will make you think too. It's not just a book, really, more of a philosophy lesson.


Thursday, November 29, 2012

Thinking Inside the Blue Box

Create a post for your blog entitled "Thinking Outside the Box" in which you compare how Plato and Sartre describe the limitations of our thinking and imply solutions to the problem.  Be sure to analyze their literary techniques, especially their use of allegory and extended metaphor.

To contrast the two, Plato's view was more all about you. The one individual who broke the chain and walked out of the bane where knowledge was slain. That slave saw a world full of wonder but a-frighted with what he saw decided to blunder on.... anyway. True, that at first it was all a big blur, but by taking the first step he "plundered the stronghold of Troy," as it were. Now in Sartre's hell hole, these people are victims of population control. They were taken by death and sent to a room. A room with a gloom, no doubt to entomb the very essence of their own humanity. In this story we focus on the all, none of them knowing just what will befall should they a step out the door into the residence hall. My rhymings are vexing and pesky, I think you'll agree, but that's what you'd get to spend eternity with me. I think Sartre's stpry was more of an extended metaphor because how much deeper can you go if you're already in Hell. I think the Plato's on the other hand is definitely an allegory.

Think about the place you have chosen as your hell. Does it look ordinary and bourgeois, like Sartre's drawing room, or is it equipped with literal instruments of torture like Dante's Inferno? Can the mind be in hell in a beautiful place? Is there a way to find peace in a hellish physical environment? Enter Sartre's space more fully and imagine how it would feel to live there endlessly, night and day.

Wow, this question took me a while to come up with an answer. My hell would be sitting in a room with someone like Mr. Skinpole and then also having to deal with a peacekeeper.

 Could hell be described as too much of anything without a break? Are variety, moderation and balance instruments we use to keep us from boiling in any inferno of excess,' whether it be cheesecake or ravenous sex?

I don't think that an excess amount of something is hell. It's just annoying. But then again, if I was stuck for all eternity listening to that scratched up parrot sounding sound that's only 1 second long for the rest of my days... I'd want to shoot myself in the head. It's creepy and it's the only sound I have ever heard that makes me not want to go to sleep at night.

How does Sartre create a sense of place through dialogue? Can you imagine what it feels like to stay awake all the time with the lights on with no hope of leaving a specific place? How does GARCIN react to this hell? How could you twist your daily activities around so that everyday habits become hell? Is there a pattern of circumstances that reinforces the experience of hell?

When Inez says, "All sorts of little things got on my nerves. For instance, he made a noise when he was drinking-- a sort of gurgle. Trifles like that. He was rather pathetic really," I thought immediately of Screwtape Letters. One of the ways Screwtape suggested his nephew Wormwood get under the skin of everyone in his assigned household was make them loath the tiny tiny things that the other person always does. This tense atmosphere that builds and builds in hatred and loathing for a person you've been hanging around too much. Garcin tells the girls not to talk to one another. Just sit in a corner and think on the past and try to work something out for yourself.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Sonnet on the Allegory of the Cave

1. Do you hear those noises up above?
2. They're nothing! Pay no mind!
3. Watch me close and you will see that everything is fine.
4. There is nothing in this world worth knowing.
5. I am the truth and
6. There is no proof to say that I AM LYING.
7. Never wander, never worry,
8. Feel free to sit and tarry.
9. Those chains are there for a reason.
10. They will help you see what's real,
11. For surely you know that you are mine
12. And I can make you kneel.
13. Never ponder what lies beyond my rocks,
14. When you can stay here, with me, inside my hollow box.


This sonnet was written from the perspective of the shadows 
that the cave prisoners thought were real.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Plato's Allegory of the Cave

1. According to Socrates, what does the Allegory of the Cave represent?
Socrates relates the Allegory of the Cave to our own perceptions of the world. We have grown up for so long looking at one thing and believing it to be the truth, but in reality it may not be true. Everything we see and how we see it has been dictated to us from birth.
2. What are the key elements in the imagery used in the allegory?
The fire is like... the dictatorship that has loomed over us all our lives. The shadows are what we see, but they aren't the real thing. The shadows are our psuedo-reality.
3. What are some things the allegory suggests about the process of enlightenment or education?
Sometimes I think that we'd be better off getting rid of the learning system we have today and that doesn't entail NEVER learning anything again. But whenever I-- well, this is just the way I see it but whenever I think of how tedious and mind numbing school is I see the image of Mr. Hutton looming over the school and I see Mr. Molina smiling vaguely at everyone's boredom. If we want to get out of this egregious funk of learning the bare minimum to pass these standardized tests then we need to get rid of the people who make us learn in a prison. Seriously, they just built the fence about 3 feet taller this week... 
When we listened to The Cave by Mumford & Sons whilst doing our journals today there was a set of lyrics that said, "Come out of your cave walking on your hands and see the world hanging upside down." Actually, now that I'm looking at the lyrics to the song, I think Marcus actually based that song off of this allegory!
4. What do the imagery of "shackles" and the "cave" suggest about the perspective of the cave dwellers or prisoners?
The cave prisoners' perspective is very narrow and confined.
5. In society today or in your own life, what sorts of things shackle the mind?
The bloody tabloids for a start.
6. Compare the perspective of the freed prisoner with the cave prisoners?
The freed prisoner is actually seeing the reality of the world, whilst the cave prisoners only understand the shadows.
7. According to the allegory, lack of clarity or intellectual confusion can occur in two distinct ways or contexts. What are they?
The first is by birth and being born into a world where we can't think for ourselves. The second is when we let our perception of what something is get in the way. It becomes even worse when our way of seeing something becomes the reality.
8. According to the allegory, how do cave prisoners get free? What does this suggest about intellectual freedom?
The prisoner is dragged out meaning that he could be being forced outside or he is too weak to go on his own. If the first is true then it will be difficult to progress, but if the second is true then we need to help other people find intellectual freedom.
9. The allegory presupposes that there is a distinction between appearances and reality. Do you agree? Why or why not?
Yes, just look at people. In high school you see many masks, hardly ever faces. In the adult world it's the same thing. Anyone can fake being happy and content, but in reality they hardly ever are. 
that's the trouble with disguises, no matter how hard you try they are always a reflection of the real person.
10. If Socrates is incorrect in his assumption that there is a distinction between reality and appearances, what are the two alternative metaphysical assumptions?
I don't think he is incorrect, but the other two alternative metaphysical assumptions could possibly be that the appearance is the reality , nothing more or.......... erm that........ THERE IS NO REALITY!!! I'M JUST DREAMING YOU ALL UP!!! Thanks Beka :). Laterz.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Monday, November 5, 2012

Sonnet

I've been thinking about what sonnet I would like to study and I have finally decided to take a gander at Shakespeare's Sonnet #116. It's really quite lovely :)

Bacov

Affinity- relationship by marriage
Bilious- of or indicative of a peevish ill nature disposition
Cognate- of the same nature
Corollary- A proposition inferred Immediately from a proved proposition with little or no additional proof
Cul-de-sac - a pouch
Derring-do- a daring action
Divination- The art or practice that seeks to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge due to the interpretation of omens
Elixir- A substance capable of prolonging life indefinitely
Folderol- a useless accessory
Gamut- an entire range or series
Hoi polloi- the General populace
Ineffable- incapable of being expressed in words
Lucubration- to study by night
Mnemonic- intended to assist memory
Obloquy- abusive language
Parameter- an independent variable used to express the coordinates of variable point and functions of them
Pundit- a learned man
Risible- provoking laughter
Symptomatic- having the characteristics of a certain disease but arising of a different cause
Volte-face- a reversal in policy

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Realizations Before Bedtime

Oh hey, it's November... I feel like eating cabbage.

Bacov

aficionado - noun a serious devotee of some particular music genre or musical performer; a fan of bull fighting
browbeat - verb discourage or frighten with threats or a domineering manner; intimidate; be bossy towards
commensurate - adj. corresponding in size or degree or extent
diaphanous - adj. so thin as to transmit light
emolument - noun compensation received by virtue of holding an office or having employment (usually in the form of wages or fees)
foray - noun an initial attempt (especially outside your usual areas of competence); a sudden short attack; verb briefly enter enemy territory; steal goods; take as spoils
genre - noun a class of art (or artistic endeavor) having a characteristic form or technique; a kind of literary or artistic work; an expressive style of music; a style of expressing yourself in writing
homily - noun a sermon on a moral or religious topic
immure - verb lock up or confine, in or as in a jail
insouciant - adj. marked by blithe unconcern
matrix - noun mold used in the production of phonograph records, type, or other relief surface;the formative tissue at the base of a nail; the body substance in which tissue cells are embedded;a rectangular array of elements (or entries) set out by rows and columns; an enclosure within which something originates or develops (from the Latin for womb)
obsequies - noun a funeral rite or ceremony
panache - noun a feathered plume on a helmet; distinctive and stylish elegance
persona - noun (Jungian psychology) a personal facade that one presents to the world; an actor's portrayal of someone in a play
philippic - noun a speech of violent denunciation
prurient - adj. characterized by lust
sacrosanct - adj. must be kept sacred
systemic - adj. affecting an entire system
tendentious - adj. having or marked by a strong tendency especially a controversial one
vicissitude - noun mutability in life or nature (especially successive alternation from one condition to another); a variation in circumstances or fortune at different times in your life or in the development of something

Monday, October 29, 2012

Much Ado About Nothing LA #2

GENERAL

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).
 
Ahem, there is no “briefly” when it comes to Shakespeare. Much Ado About Nothing is a romantic comedy that is set in Sicily. It begins with a group of soldiers who are coming home from a battle they have just won. This group is led by Don Pedro the Prince of Arragon and among his noble friends are a young Claudio and Signior Benedick, both two of his closest friends, Borachio, Conrade, a couple other soldiers and Don Pedro's bastard brother Don John (he turns out to be a nasty piece of work later on, but for now, let's continue). They are all coming home to visit Pedro's old friend Leonato who welcomes them and invites them to stay at his house for a month. When the soldiers first arrive at the house is when 3 major things happen and it will be helpful to note them. The first is the meeting between Hero, Leonato's daughter, and Claudio. They had met once before, but Claudio confesses, "I looked upon her with a soldiers eye, that liked but had a rougher task at hand than to drive liking to the name of love: But now I am return'd, and that war-thoughts have left their places vacant, in their rooms come thronging soft and delicate desires, all prompting how fair young Hero is, saying I liked her ere I went to wars." (pg. 6) We see their love grow as the play goes on. The second thing to notice is the relationship between Beatrice, Leonato's niece and cousin to Hero, and Signior Benedick, which is the opposite of Hero and Claudio's relationship and in turn a lot more hilarious. All they do is spew insults at each other. Having a battle of wits whenever they meet. Well, soon Claudio is professing his love for Hero to Don Pedro and Benedick. Benedick only laughs and says he will never be married, but Pedro offers to help Claudio get Hero for a wife. He says he will disguise himself as Claudio at the party that’s happening that night. Pedro will woo her, profess his/Claudio’s love and get her father to agree to the match. Everyone is so happy to be together that they throw an evening party where everyone is wearing a disguise. Pedro breaks with Hero’s father, BUT Don John tells Claudio that Pedro means to woo her for himself! A lie, obviously, however Claudio believes him and when Beatrice fetches him to go meet Hero, he won’t come because he’s sour. She finally gets him to go and Pedro swears he did not woo Hero for himself, then Claudio is like, “Cool,” and the party is a merry happenstance indeed all the way through the night. Now we see the focus shift from the cute couple to Beatrice and Benedick. People know that they like each other, but they are both too proud to say so and so they come up with a plan. Claudio, Hero, Pedro, Leonato, and Ursula decide to play cupid as they will go to one of the two and “gossip” about how the other loves the other. For example, Pedro, Claudio, and Leonato make Benedick think they can’t see him and they talk to each other about how much Beatrice loves Benedick and visa-versa, they even go so far as to say she feels like killing herself because she is too proud to confess her love to Benedick. This part is really funny because both Beatrice and Ben BELIEVE what they have heard and because of this, fall even more in love with each other. The trap of love worked. Next it is the night before Hero and Claudio’s wedding, when Don John makes up some mischief again. He tricks Claudio and Pedro into believing Hero is not a maid. Enraged, Claudio explodes on her in the morning at the wedding, disgracing her in front of all the wedding guests. The Friar comes up with a plan and says that until Hero’s name can be cleared, say that she is dead. This is make Claudio feel remorse and if she turns out to be a virgin then he will want her back even more. So it goes. In the end her name is cleared and they bring her “back from the dead.” Claudio and Hero are married and Beatrice and Benedick are as well. A rare Shakespearean happy ending.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.

I think that a major theme in this play is check your facts before you act. There seriously was so much ado over NOTHING because one person (Don John) told a couple lies and the next thing you know Claudio is screaming at Hero because he thinks she's a whore! There was also the theme of fidelity to one's spouse. Claudio reacted to forcefully against Hero on the day of their wedding that it shows you how serious an offense it was to have sex before marriage, even Hero's father, who had been such a loving man through out the whole play was about ready to kill her.  3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
The tone is very comical and happy, mainly because all the characters are glad to each other, at least in the beginning. For example, Leonato says to Don Pedro, "Never came trouble to my house in the likeness of your grace, but when you depart from me, sorrow abides, and happiness takes his leave." (pg3) There is irony here because she actually finds a husband! Then we read the antagonist's parts and here the tone is changed to show us the mischief that is ensuing. For example, Don John says, “I had rather be a canker in a hedge than a rose in his grace.” pg. 8 (speaking of Pedro) In the end however, when everything is set right, Benedick remarks, “Come! We are friends, let’s have a dance ere we are married!” (pg. 42) Showing the reader how joyful everyone is.
4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)
Foreshadowing: The wise Don Pedro said this to Benedick after they had first arrive at Leonato’s house, “In time the savage bull doth bear the yoke.” (pg. 5) Telling the reader that sooner or later Benedick will fall in love.

Metaphor: Beatrice expresses her feelings about marriage by saying, "Would it not grieve a woman to be overmastered with a piece of valiant dust?" She is comparing men to “valiant dust.” (pg. 9)

Pun: Benedick, whilst arguing with Beatrice says, "What my dear Lady Disdain!” (pg. 3) calling her a lady of contempt.


Amplification: Shakespeare amplifies John’s contempt for his brother in Act I scene I when he says, “If I can cross him any way, I bless myself every way.” (pg. 8)

Foil: Don John (a mischievous, conniving lier)  is a foil to Don Pedro (a noble, trustworthy gentleman)

Rhyme Scheme: The song that Balthazar sings in Leonato’s garden reads, “sigh no more ladies, sigh no more, me were deceivers ever, one foot at sea and one on shore, to one thing constant never.” (pg. 17)

Aphorism: “A man loves the meat in his youth that he can not endure in his age.” (pg. 20) This wise statement was given by Benedick in regards.. again to marriage.

Characterization: The characterization of Hero is built up as the story progresses. We see how sweet and courteous she is and how much love she has to give, but then Claudio rips her good reputation from her. However, because of her good character she has many people surrounding her that don’t believe the accusations made against her.

Diction: “Use it for my love some other way than swearing by it.” (pg. 33) The words that Shakespeare picks flow together beautifully, even his simple sentences, like this one are arranged    effortlessly.

Allusion: “You seem to me as Dian in her orb.” (pg. 30) Claudio references to the Roman goddess of chastity.

CHARACTERIZATION 


1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?

Well, I can only answer the indirect characterization because it's a Shakespeare play and Will didn't exactly pop in now and then to say, "Hey er'body! Beatrice has purple hair and loves to say too-da-loo whenever she sees Benedick!" No, he didn't, but the characterization that he did use to help us form an opinion on the different character personalities were everywhere. An example of indirect characterization is when Benedick says, “With anger, with sickness, or with hunger, my lord, but not with love." (pg5) Shakespeare is indirectly showing us how stubborn Ben can be at times, especially when it comes to idea of marriage. Likewise Beatrice says, "He that hath a beard is more than a youth; and he that hath no beard is less than a man: and he that is more than a youth is not for me, and he that is less than a man, I am not for him." (pg. 9) This shows how wise, but also cantankerous she can be.
2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?

Yes, incredibly, for example when Shakespeare writes dialogue for Don Pedro it is a lot more composed and to the point than Dogberry, the foolish ass. Dogberry goes off on many tangents where as Don Pedro's words are very affirmative and noble. Here Shakespeare is showing us the obvious differences between the lords and the peasant's speech.

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.

I think that Beatrice and Benedick are dynamic characters because both of their ideals about love are changed by the end of the play. They learn to accept each other and not be so sneering all the time. Even though the “merry war” is one of the funniest elements of the play, both characters change their opinions on why marriage is a good idea.
4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.

You know it's funny, but whenever I read a Shakespeare play I can feel the character's sincerity, but I can never believe they are real. The only time I can truly trick myself into thinking he created an actual person is when he writes the dialogue of commoners and peasants. I say this because Shakespeare really knew what it meant to be human, he could write characters that have the same feelings we feel every day, but I can never believe they are actual people because of the way he writes. No one talks that way anymore. His phrases are so far removed from our everyday life that people think he's talking gibberish. However, when Shakespeare gives breath to commoners, you can feel their humanity... they're more like us. For example, when Dogberry tries to tell Don Pedro what Borachio and Conrade have done he rambles. I ramble! Everyone rambles! Dogberry is a silly git as am I given some time and a crayon! And when he says these lines, I believed he could've been standing right next to me saying these words:
"Marry, sir, they have committed false report; moreover,
they have spoken untruths; secondarily, they are slanders;
sixth and lastly, they have belied a lady; thirdly, they have
verified unjust things; and, to conclude... they are lying
knaves." (pg. 41)
It just seemed so real and it was as if I wanted to be friends with this guy because he's funny, weird, and most of all human. Many times I'll read Shakespeare and like the idea of nobles that use beautiful words to express their feelings, but sometimes, I just like the weirdos.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

"Tools That Change the Way We Think"

How does extensive Internet/media/technology use change the way you think?

What I find myself doing whenever I search something on the internet is getting the answer off of a website and then forgetting that information then next day. Now that I think about how technology influences the way I learn, it's kind of scary. I've wired my memory to think instantly, not long term, if that makes sense. I get the information and then forget it. Why? I think it's because I've become so dependent on the inter-webs to tell me about things and then knowing that they will be there tomorrow, I don't care enough to remember them.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

"Notes on Hamlet"

One BIG thing that I've never noticed when I read this play is how naive Claudius is. He doesn't want to see what's right in front of him, he'd rather go about like everything's fine. But then when he knows that Hamlet is onto him, he changes tactics immediately, because up until then everything was going to be fine, he would rule and he would have Gertrude. He realizes how much of a threat Hamlet is so he finally does something about i by sending him to England, but I know this will not work out for him...

"To Facebook or Not to Facebook"

I feel like Facebook is just an empty way to advertise. Like that episode from the IT Crowd when they did their own version about "Friendface." The characters where getting back in touch with old acquaintances that should've been forgotten, girlfriends that turn out to be rotten, and they result to making up misbegotten (becuase their statements have no truth) lies about their life to make themselves look better. It's a shark business and it can be used badly and all anyone ever does on that thing is talk about themselves. I do that all the time and I hate it! I only do it because I want to feel a connection to my friends/ the outside world, but there are other ways to do that, ways that don't involve being watching and analyzed for the rest of my life.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Bacov


Abortive: failing to produce the intended result
 
Bruit: spread a report or rumor widely
 
Contumelious: scornful and insulting behavior
 
Dictum: a formal pronouncement from an authoritative source; a short statement that expresses a general truth or principle
 
Ensconce: establish or settle
 
Iconoclastic: characterized by attack on established beliefs or institutions
 
In medias res: a narrative that begins somewhere in the middle of a story rather than the beginning
 
Internecine: destructive to both sides in a conflict
 
Maladroit: ineffective or bungling; clumsy
 
Maudlin: self-pitying or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness
 
Modulate: exert a modifying or controlling influence on
 
Portentous: of or like a portent; done in a pompously or overly solemn manner
 
Prescience: the power to foresee the future
 
Quid pro quo: a favor or advantage granted in return for something
 
Salubrious: health-giving, healthy; pleasant, not run-down
 
Saturnalia: the ancient Roman festival of Saturn in December; an occasion of wild revelry
 
Touchstone: a standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized
 
Traumatic: emotionally disturbing or distressing; relating to or causing psychological trauma
 
Vitiate: spoil or impair the quality or efficiency of; destroy or impair the legal validity of.
 
Waggish: humorous in a playful, mischievous, or facetious manner

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Mretdim Yralubacov

My vocabulary midterm didn't go well, but I didn't study as much as I could have. I think this time around, it'll just help me if I actually study. I'm under this sort of smarticle curse. No one around me needs to study words, they just *snap* Get Them! Sometimes I think I could do that, so I never study, but I gotta break out of that. I never used to do that, but I don't know, since we're all ranking and rating ourselves according to the numbers, well I want to keep up, but I can't do that with studying.

Remix

For the Remix Shindig check Josh's blog out. Josh, myself and a couple others made this. Click on the youtube link on his page:
http://jmonterorhsenglitcomp.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Imagination

"Logic will get you from A to B, but IMAGINATION will take you everywhere."
- Albert Einstein

Monday, October 8, 2012

Bacov

Abeyance-(N.) A state of temporary disuse or suspension.

Ambivalent- (Adj.) Having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone.

Beleaguer- (V.) Beset with difficulties

Carte blanche- (N.) Complete freedom to act as one wishes or thinks best.

Cataclysm- (N.) A sudden violent upheaval, esp. in a political or social context

Debauch- (V.) Destroy or debase the moral purity of; corrupt.
(N.) A bout of excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures, esp. eating and drinking

éclat- (N.) brilliant or conspicuous success

Fastidious- (Adj.) Very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail

Gambol- (V.) Run or jump about playfully

Imbue- (V.) Inspire or permeate with a feeling or quality: "imbued with deep piety".

Inchoate- (Adj.) Just begun and so not fully formed or developed

Lampoon- (V.) Publicly criticize (someone or something) by using ridicule or sarcasm.
(N.) A speech or text criticizing someone or something in this way

Malleable- (Adj.) Easily influenced; pliable

Nemesis- (N.) The inescapable or implacable agent of someone's or something's downfall

Opt- (V.) Make a choice from a range of
possibilities

Philistine- (N.) A person who is hostile or indifferent to culture and the arts, or who has no understanding of them

Picaresque- (Adj.) Of or relating to an episodic style of fiction dealing with the adventures of a rough and dishonest but appealing hero

Queasy- (Adj.) Nauseated; feeling sick

Refractory- (Adj.) Stubborn or unmanageable

Savoir-faire- (N.) The ability to act or speak appropriately in social situations.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Quintessence of Dust

What a piece of work is a man! how noble in reason!
how infinite in faculty! in form and moving how
express and admirable! in action how like an angel!
in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the
world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me,
what is this quintessence of dust?

Mr. Romeo Monkitoes



Letter to Ophelia

Dear Ophelia,

Listen girlfriend, I understand your whole shindig about being all gaga over Prince Hamlet, but this imperceptible flirting you're doing with him, won't pay off in the end... trust me. Your dad may be a sycophantic curmudgeon, but the thing is, he's right. Hamlet is going to become obsessed with his personal vendetta and in the end he's going to forget all about you. The disparity between the two of you is too great, anyway. Maybe you both could've risen to the challenge if your love was fervid enough, but Hamlet's mind is too far set on revenge at this point. You need to inhibit your encounters with him and you need to do so quickly and with haste. Ghosts within the castle walls is only a harbinger for misfortune. At the moment it is imperceptible that you could know what Hamlet's true thoughts about you are now and I can tell you that your association with him will only lead you to a lugubrious fate. So please, head my warning, and get thee to a nunnery!

Sincerely,
A Vigilant Anachronism

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Shakespeare

Answer these "Pre-Will"questions in a post on your blog:
a) What do you already know about Hamlet, the "Melancholy Dane"? 
 Hamlet was the son a King who died suddenly and mysteriously. The king's brother, then marries the Queen, hamlet's mum. He gets verrryyy upset about this and feels like everyone is against him. However, there is talk of a strange phenomenon going on within the walls of the palace. Hamlet's good friend Horatio tells the Prince that he has seen a ghost that resembles the dead king. Hamlet goes to see for himself and sure enough it is his father's ghost which tells him that Hamlet's uncle poisoned him. Things happen, "To be or not to be," and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern come and say hey, but Hamlet gets mad at them because the king and queen sent them to spy on him etc. He is very revengeful, but at the same time very cautious, we see this when he holds the play, that was his test. Hamlet is also very deep in his thoughts, he gets lost in them often and doesn't trust anyone else, sometimes not even himself. He pushes friends away only to wish he had more of them and he can also be VERY silly at times. "More like a whale." XD

b) What do you know about Shakespeare? 
I know that he is my home-skillet and he had a wife named Anne Hathaway but he had many mistresses. He wrote for the Globe Theater and many of his works were copied from other writers and then he revised them to suit the stage.

c) Why do so many students involuntarily frown when they hear the name "Shakespeare"?
 That's a good question... I think it's because they don't understand him very well. His words are very complex and his sentences, intricate.

d) What can we do to make studying this play an amazing experience we'll never forget?
make it more relative to their lives, some how. Because Shakespeare's themes are universal any one could connect with at least one of his plays.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

We are all stories in th end...

I saw this play last night aaand it was pretty intense especially considering that I've only ever seen Comedy Chekhov... not Serious Chekhov

 

 

"Time will pass, and we shall go away for ever, and we shall be forgotten, our faces will be forgotten, our voices, and how many there were of us; but our sufferings will pass into joy for those who will live after us, happiness and peace will be established upon earth, and they will remember kindly and bless those who have lived before."

ANTON CHEKHOV, The Three Sisters

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

BLEAK HOUSE

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read.
 There is a court case that has been going on for generations called Jarndyce and Jarndyce. This case led many people who became involved in the case into thinking they would inherit a VERY large sum of money when it was all settled. The problem is that the late Mr. Jarndyce left many different versions of his will that were all written at different dates. The case has never been resolved and it has ruined many people's lives. The newest victims of the case are announced to be Richard Carstone and Ada Clare; both orphans who end up falling in love with each other. Ada is given a companion named Esther Summerson to accompany them to their new home, Bleak House. Mr. John Jarndyce owns this estate and he's a very fun guy, but he has seen too much of the J&J case that he wants nothing to do with it. He has made his own way in the world without relying on the possibility of it ever being solved. Anyway this book has so many different parts to it and sooo many other characters to track, that I’ll skip to the near end. Mr. John wants Esther to marry him, but she is in love with Mr. Woodcourt. In the end he sees this and releases Esther from her acceptance of his proposal. Many people die for example Lady Dedlock herself, Mr. Tolkienhorn, Jo, Richard and at the beginning, Captain Nemo who was the start of this whole investigation in the first place. The J&J case if FINALLY solved after a more recent will is found by Mr. Smallweed under Mr. Krook’s cat. Sadly, however, what everyone expected to be a happy day for the wards in J&J (they were supposed to get a large amount of money) ended badly as the cost of the case had eaten up the inheritance money because it had gone on for so long. This is what kills Richard. Ada has his baby, but is a single mother and Esther marries Mr. Woodcourt.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.
"And yet, in the clouded, eager, seeking look that passed over him..." (ch.37) There certainly is something to say about obsession in this book. It shows the reader the difference between passion and obsession. Richard becomes obsessed with the case while Mr. Jarndyce has a passionate love for Esther. Rich sadly went too far and because of his infatuation he ended up not taking good care of himself and dying.

3. Describe the author's tone.  Include three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
I have always loved reading Dickens novels because you know that everyone will get what they deserve, in the end. However he writes to my vision of London. Dank, rank, putrid, cruel, cold, foggy, and unrelenting. His tone is knowledgeable. He grew up with all that bad stuff and he knows what the world is like, therefore he writes from his own experience with the knowledge that there are evils in this world AND at the same time, goodness. "With so much of itself abandoned to darkness and vacancy. With so little change under the summer shining or the wintry lowering; so sombre and motionless always." Truth. "And don't you know that you are prettier than you ever were?" 
Harsh truth and yet love and hope. "Allan, standing at the window, was as pleased as Caddy; and I was as pleased as either of them; and I wonder that I got away as I did, rather than that I came off
laughing, and red, and anything but tidy, and looking after Caddy, who looked after us out of the coach-window as long as she could see us." The people who do find each other as friends love each other so much and are so contented in each others company that they remain friends through out the story. I wonder if that's possible today...




4. Describe five literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthen your understanding of the theme and/or your sense of the tone.  Include three excerpts (for each element) that will help your reader understand each one.

Many symbols were used in this story:
- Miss Flite’s birds, all with names like Hope, Joy, Freedom, Despair, Ruin, Dust, Disease, and         
The Wards of Jarndyce. Only to be set free from their cages when J&J is concluded.
- Mothers, to me were also a very big symbol. In many of Dickens’ books he writes about mother figures being extremely negligent and treating their children horribly. Lady Deadlock gave Esther away and put her in a house where the nanny dashed her self esteem greatly. Then there’s Mrs. Jellyby who is so obsessed with her mission to “save Africa” that she neglects her children. The irony is she is so wound up with the children of Africa that she scars her own children very deeply. She isn’t even the slightest bit interested when Caddy tells her she’s marrying Mr. Turveydrop.
- The Jarndyce and Jardyce case itself is a symbol of ruin and despair for all those who become entangled in its web. It has made people obsess over its verdict that they forgot how to live, eat, and sleep, killing them with each passing moment of its dreary life-time.

Dickens uses very interesting and descriptive language:
- “There is much good in it; there are many good and true people in it; it has its appointed place. But the evil of it is that it is a world wrapped up in too much jeweller's cotton and fine wool, and cannot hear the rushing of the larger worlds, and cannot see them as they circle round the sun.
It is a deadened world, and its growth is sometimes unhealthy for want of air.” (ch2)
- “I say seemed, for the windows were so encrusted with dirt that they would have made midsummer sunshine dim.” (ch. 5) Stopping in mid-sentence to help the reader better understand what Esther was looking at.
- ”In the shade of Cook's Court, at most times a shady place, Mr. Snagsby has dealt in all sorts of blank forms of legal process; in skins and rolls of parchment; in paper--foolscap, brief, draft, brown, white, whitey- brown, and blotting; in stamps; in office-quills, pens, ink, India-
rubber, pounce, pins, pencils, sealing-wax, and wafers; in red tape and green ferret; in pocket-books, almanacs, diaries, and law lists; in string boxes, rulers, inkstands--glass and leaden--pen-knives, scissors, bodkins, and other small office-cutlery; in short, in articles too numerous to mention, ever since he was out of his time and went into partnership with Peffer.” (ch. 10)

Repetition:
- “I had never heard my mama spoken of. I had never heard of my papa either, but I felt more interested about my mama. I had never worn a black frock, that I could recollect. I had never been shown my mama's grave. I had never been told where it was. Yet I had never been taught to pray for any relation but my godmother. I had...” (ch.2)
- “... like inferior blood unlawfully shed, WILL cry aloud and
WILL be heard. Sir Leicester's cousins, in the remotest degree,
are so many murders in the respect that they.” (ch. 27)
- “Fog everywhere. Fog up the river, where it flows among green aits and meadows; fog down the river, where it rolls deified among the tiers of shipping and the waterside pollutions of a great (and dirty) city. Fog on the Essex marshes, fog on the Kentish heights.” (ch. 1)

Allusions:
- Many Shakespeare references, "will out." and quoting some of the Tempest.
- Referencing to Rip Van Winkle
- The Flying Dutchman, “with a crew of ghostly clients imploring”

Foreshadowing:
- Many people were worried about Richard and we learned about his obsession through Ada's worried looks, Mr. & Mrs. Badger warning Mr. John that if Rich doesn't settle down soon he we become too entangled and Esther warning him against letting Mr. Skimpole run his affairs.
- We can tell that Mr. Jandyce likes Esther when they have their talk about Esther being unhappy. She says she sees him as a father figure only to make a connection and reassure him that he wasn't doing anything wrong. When she says this, however Mr. John gets pretty upset and she doesn't know why, but later she understands it when he tells her how he feels.
- Lady Dedlock's obsession with the hand writing of a particular law document suggested she had a much deeper past than her husband gave her credit for.
- The final one is dear Mr. Guppy. Having been rejected once by Miss Summerson he would stalk her
and try to find out everything he could about her past, this only meant that he was still in love with her and would try again, soon, to see if her mind had changed.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Bacov... too much LOTR

beatitude- Supreme blessedness
Arowen's beatitude is what attracted Aragorn.
bete noire- a detested person (disliked or avoided)
I know a few bete noire people. Guy Noire, Private Eye.
bode- Be an omen of a particular outcome
It bode a certain reluctance and I could tell it would be hard to budge the donkey.
dank- Disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold
In Great Expectations, Miss Havisham's house was dank.
ecumenical- Promoting or relating to unity among the world's Christian churches
the ecumenical convention was meant to united them.
fervid- Intensely enthusiastic or passionate
David tennant is fervid when it comes to playing the Doctor.
fetid- Smelling extremely unpleasant
Gollum's cave is fetid
gargantuan- of great mass
there was a gargantuan of tarantulas.
heyday- The period of a person's or thing's greatest success or popularity
"cuz this is our heeeey daaayy, baby! And we're not gonna be afraid to shout!"
incubus- A cause of distress or anxiety like a nightmare
I had an incubus last night that woke me up and I was sweating.
infrastructure- The basic physical and organizational structures and facilities needed for the operation
The infrastructure of the building was badly built
inveigle- Persuade (someone) to do something by means of deception or flattery
"because it's my birthday and I wants it." -Smeagol
kudos- Praise and honor received for an achievement
Kudos to Samwise Gamgee!!! He's the real hero.
lagniappe- Something given as a bonus or extra gift
we will give u a new parking spot as a lagniappe
prolix- Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy
To prolix your essays makes the reader bored.
protege- a person who receives support and protection from an influential patron who furthers the protege's career
You shall be my protege and I will show you how to get down in Funky Town.
prototype- A first or preliminary model of something, esp. a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied
The prototype for the cyborg looked perfect, but when it came to fusing flesh with metal... not everything went as smoothly as planned...
sycophant- A person who acts obsequiously toward someone in order to gain advantage; a servile flatterer
haven't we had-- never mind anyway, YOU SYCOPHANTIC SYCOPHANT! (not you personally, never. but the other person next to you. Nope actually not them either, I wouldn't want to insult readers. What readers? shhhhhhh just act like you have readers! OK Fine then, your sister's neighbor's cow is the sycophantic sycophant. Better? Better.
tautology- The saying of the same thing twice in different words
You're just rephrasing it so I won't understand you and you'll come out on top!
truckle- Submit or behave obsequiously
Obsequious sorrow? what hamlet.... what?

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Sinome Maruvan

Sinome Maruvan (elvish)
"In this place will I abide"
... I've been watching too much Lord of the Rings

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Active Reading Notes

 

Bicyclists

I saw this pic and couldn't help but enhance it. Their faces are so vibrant and I thought some good splashes of color would add to the excitement!

Monday, September 10, 2012

Doctor Who

Bacov

1.) acumen: The ability to make good judgments and quick decisions
~The mad men must be able to make good business acumen if they want to advertise well.
2.) adjudicate: Make a formal judgment or decision about a problem or disputed matter
~The committee adjudicates on all of the cities decissions
3.) anachronism: something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time
~psshhh The Doctor, that is all
4.) apocryphal: of doubtful authorship or authenticity.
~She told an apocryphal stpry about how the knife got there, the truth was later revealed.
5.) disparity: lack of similarity or equality; inequality; difference
~The disparity of the south was deplorable, and parts of it still are.
6.) dissimulate: to disguise or conceal under a false appearance
~Lemony Snicket
7.) empirical: depending upon experience or observation
~The nurse used an empirical idea based upon her experience in the Serengeti.
8.) flamboyant: strikingly bold or brilliant
~ The nebula the visited was flamboyant with color and stars being born right in front of them.
9.) fulsome: disgusting; sickening; repulsive
~American television is fulsome, unlike British telly.
10.) immolate: to sacrifice
~River immolated herself to save him from the Silence.
11.) imperceptible: very slight, gradual
~The imperceptible slope of the road
12.) lackey: a footman or liveried manservant
~Bailey Nelson is my lackey >:P
13.) liaison: a person who initiates and maintains a connection.
For references you need to call upon a reliable liaison
14.) monolithic: characterized by massiveness, total uniformity, rigidity, invulnerability
monolithic hull on the Albion
15.) mot juste: right word: exactly the right word or words to express something
Molto Bene! Allons-y! Will you go for a spin in the TARDIS with me?
16.) nihilism: belief that nothing is worthwhile
Just listen to Bohemian Rhapsody
17.) patrician: somebody with the qualities and manners traditionally associated with the upper class
Mr. Darcy--> ci---> Darci
18.) propitiate: win somebody's favor
Huzzah let's go kiss up to teachers!
19.) sic: thus or so
Sic, the world came to an end
20.) sublimate: redirect, to channel impulses or energies regarded as unacceptable
Did you know you can fix that Chameleon Circuit if you just try hot wiring the fragment links and superseding the binary fibula- clusters? ... well you can.