News from Chicago

Click this link to get some of the latest news on the school strikes in Chicago.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/19/us/illinois-chicago-teachers-strike/index.html

Vocabulary Week 7

Starting off a great, new six week grading period early. :)

aberration - (noun) an optical phenomenon resulting from the failure of a lens or mirror to produce a good image; a disorder in one's mental state; a state or condition markedly different from the norm

Ad hoc- (adverb) for the special purpose or end presently under consideration

bane - (noun) something causes misery or death

bathos - (noun) triteness or triviality of style; a change from a serious subject to a disappointing one; insincere pathos

cantankerous - (adj.) having a difficult and contrary disposition; stubbornly obstructive and unwilling to cooperate

casuistry - (noun) moral philosophy based on the application of general ethical principles to resolve moral dilemmas; argumentation that is specious or excessively subtle and intended to be misleading

de facto - (noun) in fact; in reality

depredation - (noun) an act of plundering and pillaging and marauding; (usually plural) a destructive action

empathy - (noun) understanding and entering into another's feelings

harbinger - (noun) an indication of the approach of something or someone; verb foreshadow or presage

hedonism - (noun) an ethical system that evaluates the pursuit of pleasure as the highest good; the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of ethical principle

lackluster - (adj.) lacking luster or shine; lacking brilliance or vitality

malcontent - (adj.) discontented as toward authority; noun a person who is discontented or disgusted

mellifluous - (adj.) pleasing to the ear
nepotism - noun favoritism shown to relatives or close friends by those in power (as by giving them jobs)

pander - (noun) someone who procures customers for whores (in England they call a pimp a ponce); verb arrange for sexual partners for others; yield (to); give satisfaction to

peccadillo - (noun) a petty misdeed

piece de resistance - (noun) the most noteworthy or prized feature, aspect, event, article, etc., of a series or group; special item or attraction. 

remand - (noun) the act of sending an accused person back into custody to await trial (or the continuation of the trial); verb refer (a matter or legal case) to another committee or authority or court for decision; lock up or confine, in or as in a jail

syndrome - (noun) a complex of concurrent things; a pattern of symptoms indicative of some disease

Literature Analysis #1

The Catcher in the Rye

1. The Catcher in the Rye is told by Holden Caulfield reflecting on his past, as he is now in a mental institution.  After getting kicked out of three prep schools, he is then expelled from a fourth, Pencey Prep. He chooses to run off to Manhattan. It soon becomes evident that Holden doesn't have any close relations.  He is in awe with a girl named Jane, whom he casually dated but didn't keep much contact with. He meets with Sally Hayes, a girl he once dated.  Not long into their date, he asks her to run away and elope with him, where she refuses.  The night of Christmas Eve, Holden sneaks into his parents' apartment to see his little sister, telling her he was kicked out of Pencey Prep.  Confused on where he is going, Holden decides to leave home for good.  He ends the novel explaining that he got "sick," explaining why he is now in a mental institution.

2. The major theme of The Catcher in the Rye is separation from society.  Holden acts as if he is better than everyone else.  Due to this, he has had a hard time forming close with relationships with others. This in turn has led to the loneliness that Holden feels, and is often the reason behind his faulty reasoning.

3. The author's tone, as portrayed by Holden Caulfield, is very pessimistic.  He seems to feel as if there is no important meaning in life.

“Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules.” 

“Yes, sir. I know it is. I know it.” 

Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right—I’ll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it? Nothing. No game.

“Like hell it is.” I took it off and looked at it. I sort of closed one eye, like I was taking aim at it. “This is a people shooting hat,” I said. “I shoot people in this hat.”

“One of the biggest reasons I left Elkton Hills was because I was surrounded by phonies. That's all. They were coming in the goddam window. For instance, they had this headmaster, Mr. Haas, that was the phoniest bastard I ever met in my life. Ten times worse than old Thurmer. On Sundays, for instance, old Haas went around shaking hands with everybody's parents when they drove up to school. He'd be charming as hell and all. Except if some boy had little old funny-looking parents. You should've seen the way he did with my roommate's parents. I mean if a boy's mother was sort of fat or corny-looking or something, and if somebody's father was one of those guys that wear those suits with very big shoulders and corny black-and-white shoes, then old Haas would just shake hands with them and give them a phony smile and then he'd go talk, for maybe a half an hour, with somebody else's parents. I can't stand that stuff. It drives me crazy. It makes me so depressed I go crazy. I hated that goddam Elkton Hills.”

4.

• Direct Characterization -- “But there was one nice thing. This family that you could tell just came out of some church were walking right in front of me – a father, a mother, and a little kid about six years old. They looked sort of poor. […] The kid was swell. […] He was making out like he was walking a very straight line, the way kids do, and the whole time he kept singing and humming. […] It made me feel better. It made me feel not so depressed anymore.”

• Holden describes in detail a family he sees on the street.  Observing others, as he did here, often helps him to not feel so depressed and alienated from the world.

• Flashback -- “Anyway, it was the Saturday of the football game. […] I remember around three o'clock that afternoon I was standing way the hell up on top of Thomsen Hill. […] You could see the whole field from there, and you could see the two teams bashing each other all over the place. […] You could hear them all yelling.”

• The entire novel is a flashback, as Holden is giving an account of his life from the mental institution he is now living in.  

• Symbolism -- [Ackley] took another look at my hat . . . “Up home we wear a hat like that to shoot deer in, for Chrissake,” he said. “That’s a deer shooting hat.”
  “Like hell it is.” I took it off and looked at it. I sort of closed one eye, like I was taking aim at it. “This is a people shooting hat,” I said. “I shoot people in this hat.” 

• The hat in this case is symbolism to Holden’s deviation from the real world and the people in it.

• Imagery -- “I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff—I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all.”

• Here Holden connects to the title of the novel. He shows he wants to be the “Catcher in the Rye”, that helps children remain pure and unharmed.

• Foreshadowing -- “I have a feeling that you’re riding for some kind of terrible, terrible fall. . . . The whole arrangement’s designed for men who, at some time or other in their lives, were looking for something their own environment couldn’t supply them with. . . . So they gave up looking.”

• Mr. Antolini warns Holden that he is afraid that he is riding a “terrible fall”, which in turn really translates to his deterioration of life, and ultimately his enrollment in the mental institution.

MIT's Integration of Technology into the Classroom

http://web.mit.edu/edtech/casestudies/teal.html

Vocabulary Week 6

beatitude- Supreme blessedness

bete noire- a detested person (disliked or avoided)

bode- Be an omen of a particular outcome

dank- Disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold

ecumenical- Promoting or relating to unity among the world's Christian churches

fervid- Intensely enthusiastic or passionate

fetid- Smelling extremely unpleasant
gargantuan- of great mass

heyday- The period of a person's or thing's greatest success or popularity

incubus- A cause of distress or anxiety like a nightmare

infrastructure- The basic physical and organizational structures and facilities needed for the operation

inveigle- Persuade (someone) to do something by means of deception or flattery

kudos- Praise and honor received for an achievement

lagniappe- Something given as a bonus or extra gift

prolix- Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy

protege- a person who receives support and protection from an influential patron who furthers the protege's career

prototype- A first or preliminary model of something, esp. a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied

sycophant- A person who acts obsequiously toward someone in order to gain advantage; a servile flatterer

tautology- The saying of the same thing twice in different words

truckle- Submit or behave obsequiously

MIT Visit :)

Textbook Reading Notes

Notes:
epics are tales of ancient role models
can elarn about the times in which they were popular
Gilgamesh- 4000 years old
Iliad- 3000 years old

Prologue to Gilgamesh:
Gil built home for main gods, high ranking person
Anu & Ishtar, father of gods and goddess of love
takes place in Uruk
Gil is son of Lugalbanda and Lady Wildcow Ninsun
Gil is vangard and rear guard of army
2/3 god, 1/3 man. not sure how that math works

From the Iliad:
goddess Athene (as Trojan warrior) leads Hektor to Achilleus
she said to fight ruthlessly to see if they or Achilleus would die
H swore brutal battle and bargained to bring back dead to home country
Ach said no oaths between enemies.
shows honesty and knows he wouldn't honor his word
Ach fighting to avenge his countrymen H killed
H wants fair fight face to face
H threw spear and Athenes had abandoned him. knew death was fate
H wanted swift death, got speared in the neck. mercy from Ach
Ach actually avenging his partner Patroklos who H killed
Ach wants to let him sit out and be eaten
H begs to be taken hime for burning and promises treasure
Ach shows no more mercy and refuses offer. wants true revenge
H's last words were cursing but Ach didn't believe him. knew gods would take him in stride

History of English Church and People*The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
Bede (673-735) Rome had protected and supported Britain but when it withdrew, England was left isolated and prone to invasion
Monks and monasteries kept written word alive and preached it
Bede most learned scholar
father of English history
A History of the English Church and People
describes conquest of Britain by Anglo-Saxons after Romans left
wrote in Latin so all could read his work done at Jarrow
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle written by King Alfred's group of monks
sent out and minks added to chronicle

from A History of the English Church and People
Belgic Gaul id south of English island
tells of prosperous and promising Emglish land
even shore is bountiful
Latin common medium for scriptures
Britons-original inhabitants
then Scythians came to north Isish coast (W of Britain) and found Scots
Pictish settlers rejected from settling in Ireland
sent to go to Britain, promised help to fight if they resisted
settles in north, Britons in south
king comes from lady's side as part of agreement to marry into Pictish families, if needed
Ireland more pleasant with no reptiles or snakes, immune to poison
Scots originally from Ireland, migrated to Britain

from The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
Vikings broke up and went to Briatin
King Alfred created long ships to beat Viking raids
Danes beached at Isle of Wight
English took ships and killed their men, ruthless
tide saved Danes
I keep reading this passsage and I'm so confused on what's going on
Too many long words that I can't understand


Thank you Kathryn!
kgreenuprhsenglitcomp.blogspot.com

Beowulf and Godsylla Translation

Meanehwæl, baccat meaddehæle, monstær lurccen;
Fulle few too many drincce, hie luccen for fyht.
Ðen Hreorfneorhtðhwr, son of Hrwærowþheororthwl,
Æsccen æwful jeork to steop outsyd. Þhud! Bashe! Crasch! Beoom! Ðe bigge gye
Eallum his bon brak, byt his nose offe;
Wicced Godsylla wæld on his asse.
Monstær moppe fleor wyþ eallum men in hælle.
Beowulf in bacceroome fonecall bamaccen wæs;
Hearen sond of ruccus sæd, "Hwæt ðe helle?"
Graben sheold strang ond swich-blæd scharp
Stond feorth to fyht ðe grimlic foe. "Me," Godsylla sæd, "mac ðe minsemete."
Heoro cwyc geten heold wiþ fæmed half-nelson
Ond flyng him lic frisbe bac to fen
Beowulf belly up to meaddehæle bar,
Sæd, "Ne foe beaten mie færsom cung-fu."
Eorderen cocca-cohla yce-coeld, ðe reol þyng.

Meanwhile, back at Middle Hell, the monster lurks
Feeling too many drinks, he's lookin for fight
Then Jim, son of John,
Asked the awful jerk to step outside. Thud! Bash! Crash! Boom! The big guy
All of his bones broke, bit his nose off;
Wicked Godzilla wailed on his ass.
Monster mopped the floor with all of the men in hell.
Beowulf in the back room on a phonecall with batman was;
Hearing the sound of a ruccus said, "What the hell?"
Grabbed shield strong and switch-blade sharp
Stand forth to fight the gramlin monster. "I," Godzilla said, "make thee mincemeat."
He quickly got held in the famous half-nelson
And flung him like a frisbee back to hell
Beowulf drunk at Middle Hell Bar
Said, "The foe beat my fearsome kung-fu."
He ordered Coca-Cola Ice-Cold, the real thing.

Vocabulary Week 5

acumen (noun)- keen insight.

adjudicate (verb)- to settle or determine.

anachronism (noun)- something or someone that is not in its correct historical time.

apocryphal (adj)- of doubtful authorship or authenticity.

disparity (noun)- inequalityThere will always be disparity of wealth within this society.

dissimulate (verb)- to disguise or conceal under a false appearance.

empirical (adj)- derived from or guided by experience or experiment.

flamboyant (adj)- strikingly bold or brilliant; showy

fulsome (adj)- offensive to good taste, especially as being excessive;overdone or gross

immolate (verb)- to sacrifice

imperceptible (adj)- very slight, gradual, or subtle.

lackey (noun)- a servile follower

liaison (noun)- a person who initiates
and maintains such a contact or connection.

monolithic (adj)- consisting of one piece; solid or unbroken

mot juste (noun)- the exact, appropriate word

nihilism (noun)- total rejection of established laws and institutions.

patrician (noun)- a person of noble or high rank; aristocrat.

propitiate (verb)- to make favorably inclined; appease; conciliate.

sic (verb)-to incite to attack

sublimate(adj)-to make nobler or purer

Vocabulary Week 4

apostate: a person who forsakes his religion, cause, party, etc.

effusive: unduly demonstrative; lacking reserve.

impasse: a position or situation from which there is no escape.

euphoria: a state of intense happiness and self-confidence.

lugubrious: mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner.

bravado: a pretentious, swaggering display of courage.

consensus: majority of opinion

dichotomy: division into two parts

constrict: to slow or stop the natural
course or to contract or shrink

gothic: noting or pertaining to a style of
architecture, originating in France in the middle of the 12th century and existing in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century, characterized by the use of the pointed arch and the ribbed vault, by the use of fine woodwork and stonework, by a progressive lightening of structure, and by the use of such features as flying buttresses, ornamental gables, crockets, and foils.

punctilio: a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure.

metamorphosis: a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation

raconteur: to tell

sine qua non: an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential

quixotic: extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable.

vendetta: any prolonged and bitter feud, rivalry, contention

non sequitur: an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises.

mystique: a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning

quagmire: anything soft or flabby

parlous: perilous; dangerous

Literature Analysis #1 Preview

For now, Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift will be my first choice for a literature analysis. Based on Preston's post, this work seems to constantly find its way on to the AP exam, and I have heard its title in English classes since freshman year. I came close to reading it last year in Mrs. Nylander's class, but never found the time, with all of her choices of what we had to read. Now seems like the most beneficial time anyway, since I will fill my goal of reading this book and have a strong inclination to really comprehend the text as I will need to know the author's literary strategies in May.