Freya and I have been eagerly looking through the many bookshelves of the library for the past couple of hours. On finding a modern American poetry book we have found a new word in the poem called Aunt Jennifer's Tigers by Adrienne Rich. What a wonderful world.
Today's Word:
Denizen
Resident or inhabitant
Sentence example: A denizen of London will carry an umbrella with them whatever the weather.
By Jess
Tuesday, 28 June 2011
Monday, 27 June 2011
Word of the Day
This is from doing my Personal Statement around friends who just randomly throw good words around, even though it's the library and we are meant to be silent. Don't you just love school?
Today's Word:
Précis
A precise summary
Origin: No extra brownie points for guessing this is from the French for 'precise'.
Sentence example: Charlotte's personal statement was a précis of her love for Classics.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Précis
A precise summary
Origin: No extra brownie points for guessing this is from the French for 'precise'.
Sentence example: Charlotte's personal statement was a précis of her love for Classics.
By Jess
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Las Chicas de España
As any of my AS Spanish classmates are well aware, the end of Spanish AS came as a relief. Now we don't have to worry about grammar or excessive knowledge of vocabulary (or lack of it) until next June. Of course, we all had to return to school anyway so as to prepare our personal statements and university applications, but it also means that lessons stretch beyond the syllabus and allow us as students a little leeway to enjoy, for example, Spanish literature and culture as opposed to solid blocks of specification lists.
So, in Spanish, we have just finished reading La Casa de Bernada Alba by Federico García Lorca (who also wrote Blood Wedding for those of you who saw our school play). La Casa tells the story of a mother and her five daughters after the death of their father, set in a rural village in a repressed Spain. Lorca himself was shot during the Civil War and never saw Spain under General Franco the dictator, but from this play especially we can easily see he knew what was coming.
Bernada Alba, the titular character, is an old mother who thinks of one thing and one thing only: honour. In this Spain, only the older daughter may marry since she carries the dowry of the family, whilst any other daughters must stay at home to help their mother, all the while staying chaste and respectable. It is very much a society of "what would the neighbours think", and the repression is unbelievable.
The symbolism in La Casa de Bernada Alba is overwhelming. Bernada herself holds a walking stick. From her first line to her last line she demands silence while banging the stick on the ground: ultimate authority, and also that no matter what the course of events may be, her attitude never changes. Colours are another source of symbolism for Lorca; the white lace that all the girls wear marks their purity whereas the green dress that Adela wears brings an omen of death. And just Adela's name itself: it sounds like the Spanish word 'adelante' meaning 'forward', for she is the daughter who signifies the progression of movements against the dictatorship.
I shan't spoil any of the plot of this play, but I definitely think you should all find out what happens for yourself. Not only will you learn about Spanish history and culture but you will improve your Spanish along the way! For those who read in translation, never fear. Though some of the language techniques may be lost, the story stays the same as does any symbolism you may wish to pick up on. Enjoy!
By Jess
So, in Spanish, we have just finished reading La Casa de Bernada Alba by Federico García Lorca (who also wrote Blood Wedding for those of you who saw our school play). La Casa tells the story of a mother and her five daughters after the death of their father, set in a rural village in a repressed Spain. Lorca himself was shot during the Civil War and never saw Spain under General Franco the dictator, but from this play especially we can easily see he knew what was coming.
Bernada Alba, the titular character, is an old mother who thinks of one thing and one thing only: honour. In this Spain, only the older daughter may marry since she carries the dowry of the family, whilst any other daughters must stay at home to help their mother, all the while staying chaste and respectable. It is very much a society of "what would the neighbours think", and the repression is unbelievable.
The symbolism in La Casa de Bernada Alba is overwhelming. Bernada herself holds a walking stick. From her first line to her last line she demands silence while banging the stick on the ground: ultimate authority, and also that no matter what the course of events may be, her attitude never changes. Colours are another source of symbolism for Lorca; the white lace that all the girls wear marks their purity whereas the green dress that Adela wears brings an omen of death. And just Adela's name itself: it sounds like the Spanish word 'adelante' meaning 'forward', for she is the daughter who signifies the progression of movements against the dictatorship.
I shan't spoil any of the plot of this play, but I definitely think you should all find out what happens for yourself. Not only will you learn about Spanish history and culture but you will improve your Spanish along the way! For those who read in translation, never fear. Though some of the language techniques may be lost, the story stays the same as does any symbolism you may wish to pick up on. Enjoy!
By Jess
Friday, 24 June 2011
Word of the Day
Moving onto words from Chapter Three of The Great Gatsby (don't worry I am further on than that, it's just because there are so many amazing words that F. Scott Fitzgerald has bestowed upon me that we are still on Chapter Three). I feel we are making real progress here, dear readers.
Today's Word:
Prodigal
1. Wastefully or recklessly extravagant
2. Giving profusely
3. Abundant
4. Noun - a person who spends too much
Sentence example: Her prodigal behaviour was costing her father dearly.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Prodigal
1. Wastefully or recklessly extravagant
2. Giving profusely
3. Abundant
4. Noun - a person who spends too much
Sentence example: Her prodigal behaviour was costing her father dearly.
By Jess
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Being Shakespeare
About a week ago one of my dearest friends invited me to go and see Simon Callow perform "a Shakespeare monologue thing". I wasn't really sure what this meant, but I knew that if it was Simon Callow performing then it was bound to be spectacular. Was I wrong? Of course not. And so on Tuesday I went with Charlotte and her family to the Trafalgar Studios, signposted clearly for us by the enormous posters depicting Callow's face alongside that of Shakespeare himself.
It all started with Mr Callow walking out fairly solemnly onto a stage decorated with a few simple props and a couple of trees in the background. As earlier mentioned, I didn't really know what to expect from it, so even though any time allowed for anticipation was short, I still felt myself leaning closer to the stage (not too hard considering we were fortunate enough to have front row seats), and waiting for his first words.
It turned out to be Callow telling us about Shakespeare's life from birth to death, referred to as his "seven ages". Along the way, Callow would perform short extracts from different Shakespeare plays, and not just male monologues. Though his portrayal of Mark Anthony from Julius Caesar ("Friends, Romans, countrymen; lend me your ears") had me sitting in utter awe, I can safely say he was just as good at hopping to and fro acting both Romeo and Juliet in the scene where Romeo first visits Juliet ("what light through yonder window breaks") as she looks out for him, remembering their time spent together at the dance ("O Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou Romeo?") The second act was finished off with a monologue from King Lear, which had both Charlotte and I nearly reduced to tears. And then he snapped back into the storytelling aspect of the show and wiped away the tears as if they had meant nothing at all. Truly inspiring.
I found it particularly interesting, though not altogether surprising, that a lot of phrases or sequences from Shakespeare's plays were taken from his own life and his own experiences. The quality of his work was marked by his bouts of happiness or sadness, his great rebound shown by classics such as The Tempest; he hadn't lost his touch.
Callow didn't go into Shakespeare's sexuality, i.e. homosexuality, though he did talk about his wife of many years named (coincidentally) Anne Hathaway, and also his children. What was particularly distressing was the death of his son, Hamnet, which happened around the same time as the writing of Hamlet, an infamously tragic play. Nor did Callow go into this whole hullaballoo about whether Shakespeare did or did not write his own plays. All he said was that Shakespeare had indeed shamelessly stole ideas and words from a few playwrights at the start of his career, since he started out in the theatre business by patching up others' work, so really he was bound to steal something (though I know it is still not entirely justifiable).
If you can manage to get your hands on a pair of not too pricey tickets to see Being Shakespeare by Jonathan Bate I really would recommend it. If you think from this review that it is just Simon Callow bellowing about Shakespeare and his life, it's not, and I apologise for giving you the wrong impression. Callow acts nearly all the parts worth playing that Shakespeare has ever written, snapping in and out of character as if it is the easiest thing in the world. If you are not an actor yourself, trust me, it isn't easy to do that and make it convincing. Callow succeeds superbly.
By Jess
It all started with Mr Callow walking out fairly solemnly onto a stage decorated with a few simple props and a couple of trees in the background. As earlier mentioned, I didn't really know what to expect from it, so even though any time allowed for anticipation was short, I still felt myself leaning closer to the stage (not too hard considering we were fortunate enough to have front row seats), and waiting for his first words.
It turned out to be Callow telling us about Shakespeare's life from birth to death, referred to as his "seven ages". Along the way, Callow would perform short extracts from different Shakespeare plays, and not just male monologues. Though his portrayal of Mark Anthony from Julius Caesar ("Friends, Romans, countrymen; lend me your ears") had me sitting in utter awe, I can safely say he was just as good at hopping to and fro acting both Romeo and Juliet in the scene where Romeo first visits Juliet ("what light through yonder window breaks") as she looks out for him, remembering their time spent together at the dance ("O Romeo, Romeo, where for art thou Romeo?") The second act was finished off with a monologue from King Lear, which had both Charlotte and I nearly reduced to tears. And then he snapped back into the storytelling aspect of the show and wiped away the tears as if they had meant nothing at all. Truly inspiring.
I found it particularly interesting, though not altogether surprising, that a lot of phrases or sequences from Shakespeare's plays were taken from his own life and his own experiences. The quality of his work was marked by his bouts of happiness or sadness, his great rebound shown by classics such as The Tempest; he hadn't lost his touch.
Callow didn't go into Shakespeare's sexuality, i.e. homosexuality, though he did talk about his wife of many years named (coincidentally) Anne Hathaway, and also his children. What was particularly distressing was the death of his son, Hamnet, which happened around the same time as the writing of Hamlet, an infamously tragic play. Nor did Callow go into this whole hullaballoo about whether Shakespeare did or did not write his own plays. All he said was that Shakespeare had indeed shamelessly stole ideas and words from a few playwrights at the start of his career, since he started out in the theatre business by patching up others' work, so really he was bound to steal something (though I know it is still not entirely justifiable).
If you can manage to get your hands on a pair of not too pricey tickets to see Being Shakespeare by Jonathan Bate I really would recommend it. If you think from this review that it is just Simon Callow bellowing about Shakespeare and his life, it's not, and I apologise for giving you the wrong impression. Callow acts nearly all the parts worth playing that Shakespeare has ever written, snapping in and out of character as if it is the easiest thing in the world. If you are not an actor yourself, trust me, it isn't easy to do that and make it convincing. Callow succeeds superbly.
By Jess
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
Word of the Day
This word was learnt today in none other than my Personal Statement Workshop for English Literature. It has been plucked from a personal statement that is of astoundingly bad quality, due to the overuse of long words. Such as this one:
Today's Word:
Verisimilitude
1. The appearance of truth
2. Likelihood; probability
Sentence example: La Cantatrice Chauve, a French play by Ionesco, lacked any form of verisimilitude within its plot.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Verisimilitude
1. The appearance of truth
2. Likelihood; probability
Sentence example: La Cantatrice Chauve, a French play by Ionesco, lacked any form of verisimilitude within its plot.
By Jess
Monday, 20 June 2011
Word of the Day
My dad found me this word in the travel journals of Samuel Hearne, published in the late 18th century.
Today's Word:
Assiduity
1. Constant and close application
2. Devoted attention
Adj: Assiduous
Sentence example: Jessica was working on her extended project with much assiduity.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Assiduity
1. Constant and close application
2. Devoted attention
Adj: Assiduous
Sentence example: Jessica was working on her extended project with much assiduity.
By Jess
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Word of the Day
It's pretty bad I know, but this is one of those words that I always hear and never have the courage to ask what it means because I don't want to seem uneducated. So now I'm posting my ignorance on the internet, because when in doubt, make it public.
Today's Word:
Astute
1. Sagacious or wise: as in either a concept or a person.
2. Shrewd or cunning
Sentence example: The astute businessman made quite a profit through his crooked deals.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Astute
1. Sagacious or wise: as in either a concept or a person.
2. Shrewd or cunning
Sentence example: The astute businessman made quite a profit through his crooked deals.
By Jess
Saturday, 18 June 2011
Nothing Compares
Nothing Compares To You is a song written by Prince in the 1980s, though it never had much publicity then as it was never released as a single. When Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor recorded it as a single, however, it took off and gained her global fame. I think we need to take a look at the lyrics and discuss their meaning, as there is so much hidden meaning.
Please carry on to the end of this. Its interesting quality increases as you read on.
It's been seven hours and fifteen days
since you took your love away.
I go out every night and sleep all day
since you took your love away.
Since you've been gone I can do whatever I want.
I can see whomever I choose.
I can eat my dinner in a fancy restaurant,
But nothing
I said nothing can take away these blues,
'Cause nothing compares,
nothing compares to you.
It's been so lonely without you here,
like a bird without a song.
Nothing can stop these lonely tears from falling.
Tell me baby where did I go wrong?
I could put my arms round every boy I see,
but they'd only remind me of you.
I went to the doctor guess what he told me,
guess what he told me.
He said girl you better try to have fun
no matter what you do,
but he's a fool.
'Cause nothing compares
nothing compares to you.
All the flowers that you planted, mama,
in the backyard
all died when you went away.
I know that living with you, baby, was sometimes hard,
but I'm willing to give it another try.
Nothing compares
Nothing compares to you (3x)
You read these lyrics and, assumedly, you link it to a harrowing tale of love and the loss of it. The fact that only a fortnight has passed since the departure (whether over death's boundary or just out of the singer's life) of the beloved means that the pain is all the more evident. On the topic of death or break-up, I would say that is up to the listener to decide for themselves. "Where did I go wrong?" could mean what did the singer do to deserve sudden self-willed desertion of the loved one, or it could mean 'what have I done to deserve this?' in some sort of karma-esque manner, as in the partner has died. I really don't know.
Perhaps this lover even had a bad effect on the singer. The fact that now he or she can go wherever he or she wants signifies a potential restriction of free will, yet the addressee is still a preciously loved one. That's loyal love for you.
It is particularly confusing when the singer says he or she is "willing to give it another try". Then you think: 'oh so the lover's not dead?' Because when the singer mentions the doctor, we assume it is due to a case of depression.
Right?
Wrong.
Prince wrote this song about cigarettes.
Isn't that wonderful? I love eccentricity. Perhaps Sinéad O'Connor sang this about the loss of a loved one, but it was on BBC Radio 2 the other day that Prince had indeed written this song about his love of cigarettes.
Priceless. Do leave a comment below if this twist of events humoured you as much as it did me.
Enjoy the respective performances of Prince and Sinéad O'Connor below:
By Jess
Please carry on to the end of this. Its interesting quality increases as you read on.
It's been seven hours and fifteen days
since you took your love away.
I go out every night and sleep all day
since you took your love away.
Since you've been gone I can do whatever I want.
I can see whomever I choose.
I can eat my dinner in a fancy restaurant,
But nothing
I said nothing can take away these blues,
'Cause nothing compares,
nothing compares to you.
It's been so lonely without you here,
like a bird without a song.
Nothing can stop these lonely tears from falling.
Tell me baby where did I go wrong?
I could put my arms round every boy I see,
but they'd only remind me of you.
I went to the doctor guess what he told me,
guess what he told me.
He said girl you better try to have fun
no matter what you do,
but he's a fool.
'Cause nothing compares
nothing compares to you.
All the flowers that you planted, mama,
in the backyard
all died when you went away.
I know that living with you, baby, was sometimes hard,
but I'm willing to give it another try.
Nothing compares
Nothing compares to you (3x)
You read these lyrics and, assumedly, you link it to a harrowing tale of love and the loss of it. The fact that only a fortnight has passed since the departure (whether over death's boundary or just out of the singer's life) of the beloved means that the pain is all the more evident. On the topic of death or break-up, I would say that is up to the listener to decide for themselves. "Where did I go wrong?" could mean what did the singer do to deserve sudden self-willed desertion of the loved one, or it could mean 'what have I done to deserve this?' in some sort of karma-esque manner, as in the partner has died. I really don't know.
Perhaps this lover even had a bad effect on the singer. The fact that now he or she can go wherever he or she wants signifies a potential restriction of free will, yet the addressee is still a preciously loved one. That's loyal love for you.
It is particularly confusing when the singer says he or she is "willing to give it another try". Then you think: 'oh so the lover's not dead?' Because when the singer mentions the doctor, we assume it is due to a case of depression.
Right?
Wrong.
Prince wrote this song about cigarettes.
Isn't that wonderful? I love eccentricity. Perhaps Sinéad O'Connor sang this about the loss of a loved one, but it was on BBC Radio 2 the other day that Prince had indeed written this song about his love of cigarettes.
Priceless. Do leave a comment below if this twist of events humoured you as much as it did me.
Enjoy the respective performances of Prince and Sinéad O'Connor below:
By Jess
Word of the Day
I'm pretty sure this word is still from the first chapter of The Great Gatsby but I can't be certain. I have, you will all be pleased to know, read on since that point, and I have a whole wealth of new words to share with you over the next hundred years.
Today's Word:
Visceral
To do with the viscera, or affecting the viscera.
And thus here is word two:
Viscera
The collective word for the organs of the body.
So maybe not so useful...
But hoorah! Here is another, far more useful word to attend to your needs of learning a good new word each day! My mother literally just asked me what it means as she read it in an article.
Egregious
Extraordinary in a bad way.
Sentence example: He was a particularly egregious character.
Today's Word:
Visceral
To do with the viscera, or affecting the viscera.
And thus here is word two:
Viscera
The collective word for the organs of the body.
So maybe not so useful...
But hoorah! Here is another, far more useful word to attend to your needs of learning a good new word each day! My mother literally just asked me what it means as she read it in an article.
Egregious
Extraordinary in a bad way.
Sentence example: He was a particularly egregious character.
Friday, 17 June 2011
Word of the Day
This is a word from my Ancient History class with Dr. Arnold. It is truly amazing how many words Harriet and I have learnt from that class.
Today's Word:
Vitriolic
Hostile
Sentence example: The professor's vitriolic style of teaching meant his students lived in fear of him.
*DISCLAIMER: The professor is not referring to Dr. Arnold.*
By Jess
Today's Word:
Vitriolic
Hostile
Sentence example: The professor's vitriolic style of teaching meant his students lived in fear of him.
*DISCLAIMER: The professor is not referring to Dr. Arnold.*
By Jess
Thursday, 16 June 2011
The Bard of Ye Olde England
Shakespeare.
If someone ever mentions the name, we think of Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, or funny love stories that become more and more complicated after the turn of each page. Not only has dear Will contributed to our entertainment industry and to England's heritage and tourism income, but he has contributed just as much to our language, though so many of us are unaware of this. And no, they aren't just silly words that mean nothing to us anymore, they are everyday words that we may use whenever we want to express ourselves. That takes some skill.
I am going to provide a list of words first recorded in Shakespeare's works; see if you would ever have expected it of him!
If someone ever mentions the name, we think of Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, or funny love stories that become more and more complicated after the turn of each page. Not only has dear Will contributed to our entertainment industry and to England's heritage and tourism income, but he has contributed just as much to our language, though so many of us are unaware of this. And no, they aren't just silly words that mean nothing to us anymore, they are everyday words that we may use whenever we want to express ourselves. That takes some skill.
I am going to provide a list of words first recorded in Shakespeare's works; see if you would ever have expected it of him!
1) Accused (noun). First recorded in Richard III, the word was already a verb from the Latin 'causa', but Shakespeare used it as a noun. It is now commonly used in trials.
Extract: "Face to face / And frowning brow to brow ourselves will hear / The accused and the accuser freely speak"
2) Blushing (adjective). This was used in Richard II. It was also used in Henry VIII and two of Shakespeare's poems called Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece.
Extract: When the angry king's face is compared to "the blushing discontented sun".
3) Cater (verb). This word derives from the Middle English noun meaning 'buyer of provisions'. Shakespeare includes 'cater' in As You Like It, when an old servant is talking to Orlando.
Extract: "Take that and He that doth the ravens feed / Yea, providently caters for the sparrow / Be comfort to my age!"
4) Critic (noun). This is used by Shakespeare in Love's Labour's Lost when Berowne is complaining, having made fun of others for being in love. Shakespeare was, indeed, constantly criticised for his work so it is not entirely surprising that he made up 'critic'.
Extract: "I...have been love's whip / A critic, nay, a night-watch constable".
5) Denote (verb). This is used in Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, said by Friar Lawrence when admonishing Romeo for contemplating suicide. It is from the Latin meaning 'to mark or note out'.
Extract: "Thy wild acts denote / The unreasonable fury of a beast".
6) Frugal (adjective). This word can be found in the comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor, in the scene where Mistress Page is surprised to receive a love letter from someone unexpected. It derives from the Latin word 'frugalis' which means 'frugal or virtuous".
Extract: "Why, he hath not been thrice in my company!... I was then frugal of my mirth".
Here are some briefer examples too:
I do hope you enjoyed this bite of knowledge. I think it is so inspiring that one man created so many words that we use in everyday language. Imagine trying to do that...
By Jess
Extract: "Face to face / And frowning brow to brow ourselves will hear / The accused and the accuser freely speak"
2) Blushing (adjective). This was used in Richard II. It was also used in Henry VIII and two of Shakespeare's poems called Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece.
Extract: When the angry king's face is compared to "the blushing discontented sun".
3) Cater (verb). This word derives from the Middle English noun meaning 'buyer of provisions'. Shakespeare includes 'cater' in As You Like It, when an old servant is talking to Orlando.
Extract: "Take that and He that doth the ravens feed / Yea, providently caters for the sparrow / Be comfort to my age!"
4) Critic (noun). This is used by Shakespeare in Love's Labour's Lost when Berowne is complaining, having made fun of others for being in love. Shakespeare was, indeed, constantly criticised for his work so it is not entirely surprising that he made up 'critic'.
Extract: "I...have been love's whip / A critic, nay, a night-watch constable".
5) Denote (verb). This is used in Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, said by Friar Lawrence when admonishing Romeo for contemplating suicide. It is from the Latin meaning 'to mark or note out'.
Extract: "Thy wild acts denote / The unreasonable fury of a beast".
6) Frugal (adjective). This word can be found in the comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor, in the scene where Mistress Page is surprised to receive a love letter from someone unexpected. It derives from the Latin word 'frugalis' which means 'frugal or virtuous".
Extract: "Why, he hath not been thrice in my company!... I was then frugal of my mirth".
Here are some briefer examples too:
aerial / aggravate / brittle / bump / castigate / countless / cranny / critical / dwindle / eventful / excellent / fitful / fragrant / frugal / gnarled / gust / hint / homicide / hurry / lonely / majestic / monumental / obscene / pedant / radiance / submerge / summit /
bare-faced / blood-stained / cloud-capped (towers) / fancy-free / fore-father / ill-starred / heaven-kissing (hill) / lacklustre (eye) / leap-frog / snow-white.
I do hope you enjoyed this bite of knowledge. I think it is so inspiring that one man created so many words that we use in everyday language. Imagine trying to do that...
By Jess
Word of the Day
Still listing words from the first chapter of The Great Gatsby, because there were just so many. F. Scott Fitzgerald is officially one of my idols.
Today's Word:
Genuflect
1. To express a servile attitude (passive or obeying)
2. To bend the knee in worship or reverence
Sentence example: The servant genuflected in his master's presence because he needed to be respected.
Word origin: 'Genu' in Latin means 'knee' and 'flectere' means 'to bend'
Just to let everyone know, Talia has had to go into hospital for surgery (this little anecdote is not from our school obviously). She is fine, but it means that she won't be blogging for a while. Everyone wish her to get well soon!
By Jess
Today's Word:
Genuflect
1. To express a servile attitude (passive or obeying)
2. To bend the knee in worship or reverence
Sentence example: The servant genuflected in his master's presence because he needed to be respected.
Word origin: 'Genu' in Latin means 'knee' and 'flectere' means 'to bend'
Just to let everyone know, Talia has had to go into hospital for surgery (this little anecdote is not from our school obviously). She is fine, but it means that she won't be blogging for a while. Everyone wish her to get well soon!
By Jess
Wednesday, 15 June 2011
Word of the Day
I think we are all guilty of this in our essay-based exams...
Today's Word:
Trite
Lacking in freshness or effectiveness because of overuse by excessive repetition.
Sentence example: She found it difficult to take his trite argument seriously.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Trite
Lacking in freshness or effectiveness because of overuse by excessive repetition.
Sentence example: She found it difficult to take his trite argument seriously.
By Jess
Sunday, 12 June 2011
Good Morning America
At The English Review we are always looking for ways to expand our audience and cater to more people's English related needs. This is just a quick post to say that we would love to know what our American readers would like to see more of, whether it be words, books, music, films or any other category that has some semblance of English attached to it.
Either comment below with suggestions or email us at: tburrows@godolphinandlatymer.com or
jhof@godolphinandlatymer.com
Either comment below with suggestions or email us at: tburrows@godolphinandlatymer.com or
jhof@godolphinandlatymer.com
Saturday, 11 June 2011
Word of the Day
The word for today is one I happened upon whilst whiling away my free time (yes that's right, I am a FREE woman,) on YouTube and Google.
Exegesis:
Critical explanation or analysis, especially of a text
Sentence Example: To understand her homework assignment it would take an exegesis of the source and she was tired, therefore she instead watched the dancing cockatoo on YouTube.
I have included a link of the dancing cockatoo, since it really is highly entertaining.
Exegesis:
Critical explanation or analysis, especially of a text
Sentence Example: To understand her homework assignment it would take an exegesis of the source and she was tired, therefore she instead watched the dancing cockatoo on YouTube.
I have included a link of the dancing cockatoo, since it really is highly entertaining.
By Talia
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Word of the Day
I thought I would stay true to this season of our year. Just in the nick of time.
Today's Word:
Vigil
Alertness or wakefulness during the hours usually dedicated to sleep.
Sentence example: All night, the vigil caused by anxiety kept her awake, which was a dreadful problem because she had an exam the next morning.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Vigil
Alertness or wakefulness during the hours usually dedicated to sleep.
Sentence example: All night, the vigil caused by anxiety kept her awake, which was a dreadful problem because she had an exam the next morning.
By Jess
Monday, 6 June 2011
Word of the Day
Here is another word, still from the first chapter of The Great Gatsby. Don't you all feel super intellectual?
Today's Word:
Extemporise
To improvise, whether it be with speech, music or just general life.
Sentence example: Annie felt she had to extemporise in her audition as she had forgotten to learn her monologue.
*DISCLAIMER: We at T.E.R. do not recommend following Annie's example. It's scary and makes you shake a lot.*
By Jess
Today's Word:
Extemporise
To improvise, whether it be with speech, music or just general life.
Sentence example: Annie felt she had to extemporise in her audition as she had forgotten to learn her monologue.
*DISCLAIMER: We at T.E.R. do not recommend following Annie's example. It's scary and makes you shake a lot.*
By Jess
Sunday, 5 June 2011
What happened to my sweet girl? She's gone!
So I just watched Black Swan for the third time, and still it is mesmerising. And I decided how better to share my opinion than with all you lovely people.
Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman (V for Vendetta; Closer), Mila Kunis (The Book of Eli; Friends with Benefits) and Vincent Cassel (Read My Lips; The Crimson Rivers) is a recent film that deals first and foremost with severe psychological issues and extreme striving for an ultimate perfection. Nina Sayers (Portman), is a ballerina in a New York City ballet company who has been wishing for the lead in a production for a long time, especially with her obsessively protective mother telling she deserves it non-stop. When the previous lead female is fired for being too old and past-it, Nina lands herself the role of the Swan Queen in the company's production of Swan Lake, though she does this in a not entirely P.C. way. I shan't elaborate. I will only hint that the director is male.
Anyway, a new addition to the company, Lily (Kunis), arrives and immediately Nina feels threatened. We all know that feeling. I can relate especially to Nina when the director, Thomas Leroy (Cassel), makes it known to poor Nina that he clearly admires Lily and her "passion" for ballet. She is so afraid of being replaced, and perhaps this is what stems a lot of the rest of the storyline.
If you do not know the ballet, let me help you. The White Swan falls for the Prince, but when her evil twin, the Black Swan, seduces him, leading him to reject and hence forget about the White Swan, she kills herself in despair. As 'Swan Queen', Nina has to play both parts immaculately. Precision is not a problem for Nina: she is always accurate and flawless; but it is also her main problem. Leroy insists that the Black Swan has to be passionate and carefree, i.e. a bit like Lily. So when Lily is made the understudy or alternate of the Swan Queen, Nina goes crazy. Not that she was particularly sane before that.
What we see in Black Swan is the production season through Nina's eyes, leading up to the grand performance. As previously mentioned, though, Nina is slightly insane, in that she is extremely paranoid and has magnificently vivid hallucinations. The point is, we are seeing the film through Nina's eyes, so half the time something will occur, the audience is shocked / upset / in a terrible awe; then it will turn out to have been a hallucination. This is what makes the film so thrilling. The goosebumps factor comes in when they play the Swan Lake theme tune in all its delicate glory, whilst her music box plays and the ballerina spinning has eerily had its top half broken off.
The contrast between Nina and Lily is pointed out all the time in Black Swan. Lily always wears black and has tattoos and swears a lot; whereas Nina wears white and is quiet and reserved. However, both have the girly, high voice typical of ballerinas and this sometimes confuses the two of them, especially when it is too dark to see who it is. The cleverness of this staggers me. We do see, however, a change in Nina as the film progresses. When she dons her Black Swan costume after committing a particularly heinous act, she dances as she never has before, with passion and insanity. I shan't tell you the ending, but it is as spectacular as the rest of the film.
Black Swan seems to me to be a bit like marmite. If you love it, you love it. And if not, then you hate it. So many people have reviewed it so badly yet so many have reviewed it so well and by that you know it's going to be hard-hitting. A friend said to me that she found it slightly far-fetched, which is true in a way, but so incorrect in another. Do you see what I mean? The questions are endless. Please do see it if you were unfortunate enough to miss it on the big screen.
Here is the trailer just to persuade you even further:
By Jess
Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman (V for Vendetta; Closer), Mila Kunis (The Book of Eli; Friends with Benefits) and Vincent Cassel (Read My Lips; The Crimson Rivers) is a recent film that deals first and foremost with severe psychological issues and extreme striving for an ultimate perfection. Nina Sayers (Portman), is a ballerina in a New York City ballet company who has been wishing for the lead in a production for a long time, especially with her obsessively protective mother telling she deserves it non-stop. When the previous lead female is fired for being too old and past-it, Nina lands herself the role of the Swan Queen in the company's production of Swan Lake, though she does this in a not entirely P.C. way. I shan't elaborate. I will only hint that the director is male.
Anyway, a new addition to the company, Lily (Kunis), arrives and immediately Nina feels threatened. We all know that feeling. I can relate especially to Nina when the director, Thomas Leroy (Cassel), makes it known to poor Nina that he clearly admires Lily and her "passion" for ballet. She is so afraid of being replaced, and perhaps this is what stems a lot of the rest of the storyline.
If you do not know the ballet, let me help you. The White Swan falls for the Prince, but when her evil twin, the Black Swan, seduces him, leading him to reject and hence forget about the White Swan, she kills herself in despair. As 'Swan Queen', Nina has to play both parts immaculately. Precision is not a problem for Nina: she is always accurate and flawless; but it is also her main problem. Leroy insists that the Black Swan has to be passionate and carefree, i.e. a bit like Lily. So when Lily is made the understudy or alternate of the Swan Queen, Nina goes crazy. Not that she was particularly sane before that.
What we see in Black Swan is the production season through Nina's eyes, leading up to the grand performance. As previously mentioned, though, Nina is slightly insane, in that she is extremely paranoid and has magnificently vivid hallucinations. The point is, we are seeing the film through Nina's eyes, so half the time something will occur, the audience is shocked / upset / in a terrible awe; then it will turn out to have been a hallucination. This is what makes the film so thrilling. The goosebumps factor comes in when they play the Swan Lake theme tune in all its delicate glory, whilst her music box plays and the ballerina spinning has eerily had its top half broken off.
The contrast between Nina and Lily is pointed out all the time in Black Swan. Lily always wears black and has tattoos and swears a lot; whereas Nina wears white and is quiet and reserved. However, both have the girly, high voice typical of ballerinas and this sometimes confuses the two of them, especially when it is too dark to see who it is. The cleverness of this staggers me. We do see, however, a change in Nina as the film progresses. When she dons her Black Swan costume after committing a particularly heinous act, she dances as she never has before, with passion and insanity. I shan't tell you the ending, but it is as spectacular as the rest of the film.
Black Swan seems to me to be a bit like marmite. If you love it, you love it. And if not, then you hate it. So many people have reviewed it so badly yet so many have reviewed it so well and by that you know it's going to be hard-hitting. A friend said to me that she found it slightly far-fetched, which is true in a way, but so incorrect in another. Do you see what I mean? The questions are endless. Please do see it if you were unfortunate enough to miss it on the big screen.
Here is the trailer just to persuade you even further:
By Jess
Word of the Day
In case you have been completely mind-boggled by the post below mine I thought I would add a single 'Word of the Day' for you all to learn (on top of the ones below of course - you can never know too many words).
Hegemony:
The political, economic, ideological or cultural power exerted by a dominant group over other groups.
Sentence Example:
The Labour Party were afraid of the hegemony displayed by the Conservative party, and believed that electoral reform was the only way to break their political dominance.
By Talia
Hegemony:
The political, economic, ideological or cultural power exerted by a dominant group over other groups.
Sentence Example:
The Labour Party were afraid of the hegemony displayed by the Conservative party, and believed that electoral reform was the only way to break their political dominance.
By Talia
Words About Words - Word of the Day Special
For every literary geek out there, and also those who are not so literary and geeky, here is a one of a kind 'word of the day' post just for you. Useful in essays, poetry analysis, and just in general conversation, if you care about words, you'll care about words about words too.
Be prepared:
Acronym: A word formed by the first letters of the phrase that it represents.
Example - 'NASA' stands for 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration'
Anagram: A word which is just another word with its letters jumbled up.
Example - 'married' and 'admirer'
Antonym: A word which means the opposite to another word.
Example - 'light' and 'dark'
Capitonym: A word whose meaning depends on whether or not it is capitalised.
Example - to 'polish' the brass is not the same as a 'Polish' man
Heteronym: A word with the same spelling as another word, though they are pronounced and mean different things.
Example - 'so' as opposed to 'sew'
Holonym: A word whose meaning denotes it as the whole that another word is part of.
Example - 'bedroom' as it relates to 'bed'
Homonym: A word which is pronounced and spelt the same as another word but means something different.
Homophone: A word which is pronounced the same as another word but means something different.
Example - 'witch' and 'which'
Isogram: A word or phrase with no repeated letters.
Example - 'botany'
Logogram: A symbol that represents a written and spoken word
Example - '&' relating to 'and'
Meronym: A word whose meaning denotes it as a part of another word's meaning.
Example - 'bed' as it relates to 'bedroom'
Neologism: A newly invented word or phrase.
Example - Shakespeare made up words such as 'submerge' and 'majestic'. A full post to come on this soon.
Onomatopoeia: A word which is a sound.
Example - 'cluck'
Palindrome: A word or name which is spelt the same backwards as it is forwards.
Example - 'Hannah'
Paronym: A word from a foreign language that is not changed when used in a different language
Example - 'tsunami'
Portmanteau: A word formed by mixing other words, whose meanings relate to the word
Example - 'telethon'
Retronym: A word that is the adapted form of an older term.
Example - 'bar soap' only became a term when soap started to appear as liquid or gel
Synonym: A word which means the same as another word.
Example - 'tedious' and 'monotonous'
I know these sorts of words can be a wee bit mind-boggling, but just think if you knew them all and just included them in general conversation. You would be a legend.
By Jess
Be prepared:
Acronym: A word formed by the first letters of the phrase that it represents.
Example - 'NASA' stands for 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration'
Anagram: A word which is just another word with its letters jumbled up.
Example - 'married' and 'admirer'
Antonym: A word which means the opposite to another word.
Example - 'light' and 'dark'
Capitonym: A word whose meaning depends on whether or not it is capitalised.
Example - to 'polish' the brass is not the same as a 'Polish' man
Heteronym: A word with the same spelling as another word, though they are pronounced and mean different things.
Example - 'so' as opposed to 'sew'
Holonym: A word whose meaning denotes it as the whole that another word is part of.
Example - 'bedroom' as it relates to 'bed'
Example - a dog with a 'bark' as opposed to 'bark' on a tree
Homophone: A word which is pronounced the same as another word but means something different.
Example - 'witch' and 'which'
Isogram: A word or phrase with no repeated letters.
Example - 'botany'
Logogram: A symbol that represents a written and spoken word
Example - '&' relating to 'and'
Meronym: A word whose meaning denotes it as a part of another word's meaning.
Example - 'bed' as it relates to 'bedroom'
Neologism: A newly invented word or phrase.
Example - Shakespeare made up words such as 'submerge' and 'majestic'. A full post to come on this soon.
Onomatopoeia: A word which is a sound.
Example - 'cluck'
Palindrome: A word or name which is spelt the same backwards as it is forwards.
Example - 'Hannah'
Paronym: A word from a foreign language that is not changed when used in a different language
Example - 'tsunami'
Portmanteau: A word formed by mixing other words, whose meanings relate to the word
Example - 'telethon'
Retronym: A word that is the adapted form of an older term.
Example - 'bar soap' only became a term when soap started to appear as liquid or gel
Synonym: A word which means the same as another word.
Example - 'tedious' and 'monotonous'
I know these sorts of words can be a wee bit mind-boggling, but just think if you knew them all and just included them in general conversation. You would be a legend.
By Jess
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Hungry for more?
I have just finished reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Before you point out that it is not exactly an adult book I would like to point out that reading should be for pleasure, and when my mind has been invaded by the UK constitution and about one thousand Cabinet members, I feel like reading a book that is not too challenging. So for two days I cast aside Anna Karenina (yes I am still reading it, I swear) and picked up The Hunger Games, and I do not regret it.
The novel follows the story of Katniss Everdeen who lives in the post-apocalyptic country of Panem, which is where North America used to stand, in the poorest of areas; District 12. The Hunger Games are an annual televised event shown in every district in Panem, organised by the omnipotent and cruel government in the Capitol, where one male and one female "tribute" from each of the twelve Districts are put in an arena and forced to fight until only one victor remains alive. Think Big Brother but with killing rather than challenges and more intelligent contestants. Katniss volunteers to enter the Games in place of her younger sister and is forced to take part in the contest she had tried her whole life to avoid.
I think that part of the brilliance of the novel lies not only in the creativity of the idea but also in the way Collins creates a very real and understandable environment for the reader. Despite the entirely different world that the book is set in, it is not a place completely divorced from our lives in the 21st Century. Before the "tributes" take part in The Hunger Games they are put through rapid media training and have an image recreation, they are manipulated by those around them to project an image that is meant to gain them favour with the public. The same thing happens with celebrities today, especially the 'flash-in-the-pan' or '30 seconds of fame' type celebrities that are produced by reality TV shows, where your image is everything. Whilst reading it I felt appalled at all the people of Panem who just let this happen every year and sit back and watch children kill each other and themselves for enjoyment, but is that not just a few steps down the line from watching I'm a Celebrity...Get me out of here! ? Obviously I am aware there is a difference between eating bugs and eating a human because you are starving (an example from the book not my head!) but the passivity displayed by the spectators is definitely not alien to our modern times.
The Hunger Games is currently being made into a movie. It is being directed by Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Pleasantville) and will star Jennifer Lawrence (yes the one who got an Oscar nomination for her first movie last year,) Josh Hutcherson (Little Manhattan, Bridge to Terabithia) and Liam Hemsworth (The Last Song, Miley Cyrus' ex.) If you have read this book then you will understand why I am incredibly excited about the movie, it has everything that could make a fantastic film, provided they don't deviate too much from the story itself.
Just an afterword:
I realise this post may have come across as a rant against reality TV, but let me assure you, I love many reality TV shows, especially X-Factor, The Bachelor and Shipwrecked. All three are balls of vacuous wonderfulness!
By Talia
The novel follows the story of Katniss Everdeen who lives in the post-apocalyptic country of Panem, which is where North America used to stand, in the poorest of areas; District 12. The Hunger Games are an annual televised event shown in every district in Panem, organised by the omnipotent and cruel government in the Capitol, where one male and one female "tribute" from each of the twelve Districts are put in an arena and forced to fight until only one victor remains alive. Think Big Brother but with killing rather than challenges and more intelligent contestants. Katniss volunteers to enter the Games in place of her younger sister and is forced to take part in the contest she had tried her whole life to avoid.
I think that part of the brilliance of the novel lies not only in the creativity of the idea but also in the way Collins creates a very real and understandable environment for the reader. Despite the entirely different world that the book is set in, it is not a place completely divorced from our lives in the 21st Century. Before the "tributes" take part in The Hunger Games they are put through rapid media training and have an image recreation, they are manipulated by those around them to project an image that is meant to gain them favour with the public. The same thing happens with celebrities today, especially the 'flash-in-the-pan' or '30 seconds of fame' type celebrities that are produced by reality TV shows, where your image is everything. Whilst reading it I felt appalled at all the people of Panem who just let this happen every year and sit back and watch children kill each other and themselves for enjoyment, but is that not just a few steps down the line from watching I'm a Celebrity...Get me out of here! ? Obviously I am aware there is a difference between eating bugs and eating a human because you are starving (an example from the book not my head!) but the passivity displayed by the spectators is definitely not alien to our modern times.
The Hunger Games is currently being made into a movie. It is being directed by Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Pleasantville) and will star Jennifer Lawrence (yes the one who got an Oscar nomination for her first movie last year,) Josh Hutcherson (Little Manhattan, Bridge to Terabithia) and Liam Hemsworth (The Last Song, Miley Cyrus' ex.) If you have read this book then you will understand why I am incredibly excited about the movie, it has everything that could make a fantastic film, provided they don't deviate too much from the story itself.
Just an afterword:
I realise this post may have come across as a rant against reality TV, but let me assure you, I love many reality TV shows, especially X-Factor, The Bachelor and Shipwrecked. All three are balls of vacuous wonderfulness!
By Talia
Say it. Out loud. Vampire?
No, not vampire. I know the title of this post is misleading, but do you honestly think I would write anything about Twilight? Really? I could never stoop so low.
The Reader, a novel by Bernhard Schlink, is set in Germany from about ten to thirty years after the end of World War II. Published in 1995, it looks back at Michael Berg's life and how a certain Hanna Schmitz was involved in it so intricately and so vitally.
For those of you who have not read The Reader, I encourage you to look away if you wish to read or watch the film adaptation without any knowledge of what is coming next. However, I cannot really write any sort of interesting review if I do not spill a couple of secrets. Nothing too terrible, I promise.
Michael first meets Hanna when he is 15-years-old and quite ill, after throwing up in the street. Typically romantic, if you ask me. Anyway, Hanna cleans him up and sends him on his way. However, Michael cannot stop thinking about this mysterious woman and goes back to find her. Immediately, you know he is being a bit silly because firstly she is old enough to be his mother and secondly she doesn't strike the reader as the kindest sort. But Michael does find her eventually and over not too much time they start what I perceive to be a rather twisted relationship, in that they fornicate after school and then he reads aloud to her.
However, it isn't just a purely physical relationship. Though Michael is certainly unsure about what Hanna feels for him (she only ever calls him 'Kid'), he knows he is head-over-heels in love with her, despite her sourly pinched face and her abruptness of speech, and even when she suddenly leaves without as much as a goodbye, he still cannot stop thinking about her.
This is why it comes as a nasty surprise to Michael when he sees Hanna again years later. Michael, at this point, is studying law, and his class is attending a long, drawn-out trial, where former female SS guards are being tried for their actions. Hanna is a defendant. This is when Michael realises in horror that he fell in love with a staunch Nazi.
And this, for me, is when I started to wonder. I already knew the outcome of the story, because I saw the film when it came out, but Schmidt still managed to give me that feeling of shock that Michael must feel when he sees Hanna in front of the judge. Because Hanna's principle crime is truly horrific: the SS were told to lock a large group of women in a village church and make sure no one escaped. When bombs started to fall on the host village, there were screams erupting from the church as it burned down to the ground, but the guards, including Hanna, refused to open the doors. Why? Because no one was allowed to escape; and she was following orders. Personally, this sickens me. But then I thought about it from Hanna's point of view: if she had opened the doors, she and the other guards would probably have been killed for their disobedience. Still, there is no excuse for letting those women die.
Another philosophical point that the novel brings to mind is that of illiteracy. I recently read a series of articles about illiteracy in London, and the figures are staggering. One boy in a primary school, when asked to bring in a book for class, brought in an Argos catalogue, because in his home there were no books at all. For us at The English Review, this is sacrilegious. Hanna Schmitz is also illiterate. For this, she is sentenced to life in jail because she is accused of writing the report on the church incident, though it is impossible, for the above mentioned reason. Even in the concentration camps, Hanna had the weaker women read aloud to her before they were sent off to Auschwitz.
Then I thought about what would happen if I couldn't read, or anyone couldn't for that matter. A Rossetti poem that we studied for AS called Lalla: Reading My Verses Topsy-Turvy is where the idea of words and letters as visually pleasing is explored. Once someone can read, one cannot appreciate the visual effect of a letter. It just becomes a letter that you read (if that doesn't make sense, ask in the comments section). For example, when people look at Chinese letters, if they can't speak Mandarin, they only see a picture, perhaps visually attractive, perhaps not, but they are not reading the letter: they are looking at it as one would look at a painting. You have no idea, but trying to read the rest of a book whilst contemplating this and simultaneously trying to appreciate letters in their beauty is torturous.
I really recommend this book for anyone who is interested in WWII or in law or in anything really. It can be quite shocking in places, but nothing that requires a pillow to scream into or anything. And as I always say, please watch the film afterwards. I know Kate Winslet got the Oscar, and I admit it does stay rather true to the book, but nothing will ever beat the original words on a page.
By Jess
The Reader, a novel by Bernhard Schlink, is set in Germany from about ten to thirty years after the end of World War II. Published in 1995, it looks back at Michael Berg's life and how a certain Hanna Schmitz was involved in it so intricately and so vitally.
For those of you who have not read The Reader, I encourage you to look away if you wish to read or watch the film adaptation without any knowledge of what is coming next. However, I cannot really write any sort of interesting review if I do not spill a couple of secrets. Nothing too terrible, I promise.
Michael first meets Hanna when he is 15-years-old and quite ill, after throwing up in the street. Typically romantic, if you ask me. Anyway, Hanna cleans him up and sends him on his way. However, Michael cannot stop thinking about this mysterious woman and goes back to find her. Immediately, you know he is being a bit silly because firstly she is old enough to be his mother and secondly she doesn't strike the reader as the kindest sort. But Michael does find her eventually and over not too much time they start what I perceive to be a rather twisted relationship, in that they fornicate after school and then he reads aloud to her.
However, it isn't just a purely physical relationship. Though Michael is certainly unsure about what Hanna feels for him (she only ever calls him 'Kid'), he knows he is head-over-heels in love with her, despite her sourly pinched face and her abruptness of speech, and even when she suddenly leaves without as much as a goodbye, he still cannot stop thinking about her.
This is why it comes as a nasty surprise to Michael when he sees Hanna again years later. Michael, at this point, is studying law, and his class is attending a long, drawn-out trial, where former female SS guards are being tried for their actions. Hanna is a defendant. This is when Michael realises in horror that he fell in love with a staunch Nazi.
And this, for me, is when I started to wonder. I already knew the outcome of the story, because I saw the film when it came out, but Schmidt still managed to give me that feeling of shock that Michael must feel when he sees Hanna in front of the judge. Because Hanna's principle crime is truly horrific: the SS were told to lock a large group of women in a village church and make sure no one escaped. When bombs started to fall on the host village, there were screams erupting from the church as it burned down to the ground, but the guards, including Hanna, refused to open the doors. Why? Because no one was allowed to escape; and she was following orders. Personally, this sickens me. But then I thought about it from Hanna's point of view: if she had opened the doors, she and the other guards would probably have been killed for their disobedience. Still, there is no excuse for letting those women die.
Another philosophical point that the novel brings to mind is that of illiteracy. I recently read a series of articles about illiteracy in London, and the figures are staggering. One boy in a primary school, when asked to bring in a book for class, brought in an Argos catalogue, because in his home there were no books at all. For us at The English Review, this is sacrilegious. Hanna Schmitz is also illiterate. For this, she is sentenced to life in jail because she is accused of writing the report on the church incident, though it is impossible, for the above mentioned reason. Even in the concentration camps, Hanna had the weaker women read aloud to her before they were sent off to Auschwitz.
Then I thought about what would happen if I couldn't read, or anyone couldn't for that matter. A Rossetti poem that we studied for AS called Lalla: Reading My Verses Topsy-Turvy is where the idea of words and letters as visually pleasing is explored. Once someone can read, one cannot appreciate the visual effect of a letter. It just becomes a letter that you read (if that doesn't make sense, ask in the comments section). For example, when people look at Chinese letters, if they can't speak Mandarin, they only see a picture, perhaps visually attractive, perhaps not, but they are not reading the letter: they are looking at it as one would look at a painting. You have no idea, but trying to read the rest of a book whilst contemplating this and simultaneously trying to appreciate letters in their beauty is torturous.
I really recommend this book for anyone who is interested in WWII or in law or in anything really. It can be quite shocking in places, but nothing that requires a pillow to scream into or anything. And as I always say, please watch the film afterwards. I know Kate Winslet got the Oscar, and I admit it does stay rather true to the book, but nothing will ever beat the original words on a page.
By Jess
Words of the Day
At the moment I have just started reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and so far I have found five words (well, six, but I think I may know what 'vigil' means) which I shall share with you, as always, with great suspenseful gaps of a whole day in between each. Except for today because the first one is not really one to be used in everyday conversation.
Today's Word No. 1:
Rotogravure
1. A printing process using an intaglio copper cylinder
2. A print made in this way
3. The section of the newspaper with pages printed in this way
Sentence example: Jess realised that the word 'rotogravure' was quite pointless for anyone except those in the printing or publishing business, so she decided to add another word to her post.
Today's Word No. 2:
Epigram
1. A witty or ingenious saying
2. A short, satirical poem dealing with a specific idea and ending rather wittily.
Sentence example: Oscar Wilde's plays were filled to the brim with epigrams, making them as popular and enjoyable as they are today.
By Jess
Today's Word No. 1:
Rotogravure
1. A printing process using an intaglio copper cylinder
2. A print made in this way
3. The section of the newspaper with pages printed in this way
Sentence example: Jess realised that the word 'rotogravure' was quite pointless for anyone except those in the printing or publishing business, so she decided to add another word to her post.
Today's Word No. 2:
Epigram
1. A witty or ingenious saying
2. A short, satirical poem dealing with a specific idea and ending rather wittily.
Sentence example: Oscar Wilde's plays were filled to the brim with epigrams, making them as popular and enjoyable as they are today.
By Jess
Friday, 3 June 2011
Word of the Day
Now, this word I heard quite a while ago in a Spanish class, but I thought everyone should know it because it has appeared quite a few times since (and by the way, nothing beats the feeling of coming across a particularly difficult word and you know what it means).
Today's Word:
Pedagogy
Adjective: Pedagogical
The act, principles and art of teaching.
Word Origin: From the Greek 'paidagogia' meaning 'education' or 'attendance on children'.
Sentence example: Her style was terribly pedagogical, so that everyone understood what she was talking about.
By Jess
Today's Word:
Pedagogy
Adjective: Pedagogical
The act, principles and art of teaching.
Word Origin: From the Greek 'paidagogia' meaning 'education' or 'attendance on children'.
Sentence example: Her style was terribly pedagogical, so that everyone understood what she was talking about.
By Jess
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Words of the Day
Please note the additional 's' on the end of 'Word' because today I have not one, but two new words for you. Admittedly this is because the first one is a slightly futile word but it's just fun to say and fun to know.
Avoirdupois:
Avoirdupois:
1.Avoirdupois weight, a system of weights based on a pound containing 16 ounces or 7,000 grains (453.59 grams).
2.Weight; heaviness; as, a person of much avoirdupois.
Avoirdupois comes from Middle English avoir de pois, "goods sold by weight," from Old French aveir de peis, literally "goods of weight,"
N.B: "slightly" futile, not entirely futile as I can put avoirdupois into a sentence!
N.B: "slightly" futile, not entirely futile as I can put avoirdupois into a sentence!
Sentence example: Charlotte was determined to stay active until middle age and avoirdupois took over.
The next word may not be entirely seasonally appropriate but as I just re-watched 'Home Alone' and fell back in love with Macaulay Culkin, I thought I would share it with you anyway.
Clinquant:
Glittering with gold or silver; tinselled
Sentence Example: The water had been turned clinquant by the sunset.
By Talia
By Talia
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