Lau Ah Pek and his IB GUIDE

Med School Interview

2009-03-19T18:36:00.000-07:00

This is an excerpt of an interview I took from someone's blog- can't remember it now, but this is approximately the kind of thing they would ask you in med school.

--------------------------------------------------------------
Me: Good afternoon. My name is CKP.
Panel: Good afternoon. Take a seat.
M: Thank you.
P: Kok Pun? (read it in Bahasa Melayu Baku)
M: Kok Pun. (read it in the same rhyme as fun, sun, run...)
P: Ah. So, why did you take the STPM and not A-Levels or other courses?
M: Because of costs. Besides, STPM is internationally recognised.
P: Ah. I read from your PS and you said that your ambition was not to be a doctor. What was your original ambition?
M: A physicist. I like Physics.
P: And how would that help you in your choice to do Medicine?
M: Physics gives me a foundation in analytical skills, providing strategies etc.
P: And would you continue to pursue your interests in Physics?
M: Not as a career. I'd treat Physics as a hobby. Besides, the sciences are all inter-connected. The role of Physics in the medical field is important, e.g. nanotechnology might affect the medical field in the future.
****
P: In your opinion, what is the most important trait a doctor should have?
M: A doctor should have good ethics and strong principles.
P: Sometimes, a doctor is required to change the decisions they have made beforehand. Would you change the decisions you have made or would you stick to your principles?
M: *talks a lot of crap*
P: How would you tell the family members of the patient about your indecisiveness?
M: I would tell them that was the best decision I could make at that moment in time but at this moment, this decision is the best.
P: Okay, now you have a 90-year-old man as a patient. What do you think is the most important thing as a doctor when dealing with him?
M: I will talk slowly... and maybe loudly *realises the stupid answer*
P: Are you implying that all 90-year-old men are like that?
M: No. But I have not seen many 90-year-old men. Only 90-year-old women.
****
P: Where do you intend to be after you graduate?
M: I could stay in Singapore and contribute.
****
P: What other universities have you applied? Did you apply for local universities?
M: Yes, UM and UKM.
P: Are you sure of getting a place there?
M: Maybe.
P: Why are you so sure?
M: *talks crap*
P: Why NUS, and not UM?
M: *talks about you-know-what-sensitive-issue* Besides, NUS wants the best.
P: But since you want to serve the community so much, you should be in UM. I think that Malaysia is in great need of doctors since their patient:doctor ratio leaves much to be desired.
M: The problem here is * talks crap that didn't answer the question*
****
P: Tell me what do you know about the NUS Medicine programme, after you graduate, what will you be etc.
M: 5 year programme, 6 years bond excluding housemanship (I actually told them "6 hours bond" before correcting myself..LOL!), houseman, medical officer...
****
P: Do you plan to specialise? Which discipline?
M: Maybe dermatology.
P: Why?
M: Because it's more laidback compared to surgeons who have the highest divorce rate.
P: But I thought you want to serve the community? Why you want a laidback life?
M: *trapped and talked crap to bail myself*
****
P: In your life, what is the greatest difficulty you have faced?
M: Financial difficulty. *talked more crap*
P: Then, are you working now?
M: Yeah, part-time.
P: What about during your school years?
M: Well, my parents told me to concentrate on studying.
****
P: What is the latest medical issue/disease currently afflicting this region?
M: Avian influenza?
P: Well, you don't see that in Singapore now, do you? I don't think it's in Malaysia now as well.
M: Umm. In Malaysia, tuberculosis cases are on the rise due to the entry of Indonesian immigrants.
P: Ah, that would be a better answer. Infectious disease. Now, would you goto a country infected by disease? And what preparations would you do? And let's say you're a trainee cardiologist and you're about to complete the programme. But all of a sudden, you were called to volunteer in another country. Would you go to the country?
M: *took some time to pretend to think* I will go to the country.
P: That's what they say in interviews.
M: Haha. For preparations, I will consult the pathologists and wear protective gear. About the trainee cardiologist issue, I would still proceed to the country.
P: Why?
M: Well, I get to learn about more cultures and diseases. Maybe I can contribute by writing articles in a journal or something.
P: Aren't you afraid of the diseases? For example, during the SARS crisis, many people in the medical line died.
M: Well, I'll take it as a challenge. I don't mind dying (LOL!) as I've actually contributed something. I don't think my parents would mind me dying for the profession. I think I would compare it to an army out on a war.
P: Well, let's not goto such extreme such as dying.
M: Haha.
****
P: Okay, that's all. Thank you.
M: Thank you.

After the first interview, I went out of the room and wished the candidates waiting for their turn Good Luck. Then, it was time for the 2nd interview conducted about 300 metres away from the room of the 1st Interview. I would say the first interview was okay for me. But in the eyes of the panel, I would have been "just another average candidate that didn't manage to wow us". Sigh.
-----------------------------------------------------
If I remember correctly the guy didn't get in... poor chap

warhammer lol

2009-03-03T05:01:00.000-08:00

Something interesting I found-

'Twas the night before 986996.M41, and all through the station
All there was clear, there was no abomination.

My helmet was set on the desk to my right,
On the chance that I was to need it that night.

The guardsmen were ensconced, asleep in their beds,
All the tanks too were safe, secure in the sheds.

Marines in the barracks, some manning the wall,
Assured me that the bastion never would fall.

When out in the yard there arose such discord
I grabbed up my bolter and unsheathed my sword.

Away to the window, I ran to take aim
As the marines around me all did the same.

My bionic eye turned the night into day
Allowed me to see, and to seek out my prey.

When what did my loyal ocular show,
But an ancient conveyance, knee-deep in the snow.

The vehicle was pulled by horned quadrupeds
And a fiery red nimbus glowed from the sled.

The driver was mighty, his eyes full of scorn,
Dressed all in crimson like a servant of Khorne.

I gestured for other to shoot without pause,
For I was now certain this was Santa Claus.

"Fire Marines! Fire Guardsmen! Fire Ogryn and Ratlings!
Fire bolters! Fire lasguns! Fire mortars and gatlings!"

"You in the courtyard and you men on the walls!
Now blast away! Blast away! Blast away all!"

But all through this maelstrom the evil one flew,
Past plasma and bolt shells and frag that we threw!

And then, to my horror, I heard on the roof
The vile cavorting of each decadent hoof.

Screaming my orders, I spun quickly around,
As down the chimney shaft it came with a bound.

I saw its eyes glow, its vast stomach gurgle,
Bloated and fat, like a deamon of Nurgle.

Blinded by anger, I attacked with a scream -
Charged into battle with my brave Space Marines.

As we thundered towards him, closing the rift,
He reached in his satchel and pulled out a gift.

Then it tossed the vile boxes - I fell in a stoop,
As they arced through the air at me and my troops.

The wrapped missiles fell short, and plopped at our feet,
Our morale was strong, we did not retreat.

But the marines paused - our charge was disrupted,
They picked up the gifts and were quickly corrupted.

For each box contained a chaotic present -
The marines (damn their souls), found them quite pleasant.

A bolter, a flamer, a new power fist,
The Claus gave to all, and he checked off a list.

It moved through the station and left in its wake,
The sound of bright laughter and the stench of fruit cake.

The others succumbed, but it failed in its goal,
For to me it gave only a small pile of coal.

The station was lost, I could only instruct
The bastion computer to set self-destruct.

I failed to kill him, for I saw as I fled,
The target escaping, quite safe in his sled.

I heard it cry out as the base burst into light,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"
-------------------------------
Once upon a battlefield dreary, where I cowered, spent and blearly,
Within an Imperial bunker, darkly stained with dust and gore -
As I cowered, nearly shuttering, suddenly there came a sputtering
As some weapon quickly stuttering - firing at my bunker door.
"`Tis some bolter", I murmmered, "firing at my bunker door -
Only this and nothing more."

Ah, distinctly I remember, it was in the bleak December,
And the brightly burning bastions lit the horizion by the score.
Eagerly, on freedom drunker; - vainly had I sought to hunker
In this heavy Imperial bunker - with perhaps a tunnel in the floor -
A safe and empty fortress with perhaps a tiny tunnel in the floor -
Only this and nothing more.

And the mad raving howling of each distant Space Wolf prowling
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before.
So that now, to the beating of my heart, I stood entreating
"`Tis some Space Wolf there repeating, firing at my bunker door -
Some common Grey Hunter rapid-firing at my bunker door -
This it is and nothing more."

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer
"Marine," said I, "or Scout, your attention I implore;
The bunker walls are thick - they are made of tempered brick
And your bolters do not nick the slightest scratch or tiny score -
Not a dimple, dent, depression, dip, scratch or tiny score -
Away now, and fire no more."

Then in the bunker slumping, presently I heard a thumping
A pounding - rattling many times fiercer than before.
And soon I began to screech - the bunker wall grenades did breach;
The very gods I did beseech as the ceiling fell upon the floor -
Through the wounds poured light which danced upon the floor -
Danced amidst the sounds of war.

Then at once it stopped the violence - I was left alone with silence
Confused, I spied the reason why the shells did drop no more -
For as I began to shutter, then with many a flit and flutter
a psyber-Raven flew through the clutter to perch above the door -
Perched on the two-headed eagle just above the bunker door -
Perched and sat and nothing more.

At this I grew more craven, for the talons of the psyber-Raven
Were all over covered with bright red blood and crimson gore.
"Wretch!" I cried, "Njal hath lent thee - into this fortress has he sent thee
So that remotely may he here be - and this bunker then explore -
Scry out my exact location and this bunker then explore -"
Quoth the Raven, "Eversor"

Then, methought, the air grew darker, the bunker now a little starker
For the uttered word brought terror as I had never felt before.
As for weapons, I knew I had none - no bolter, sword or lasgun;
No arms to stop the war's son fated to break soon through the door -
The blood-mad crazed assassin fated to break soon through the door-
Quoth the Raven, "Eversor"

"Be that word our sign of parting, machine or bird!" I shrieked, upstarting -
"Get thee back into the fire-fight and here spy on me no more!
For as you came unbidden - I would otherwise be here hidden -
Leave my location in this midden - quit that icon above my door!
Take thy shining metal eye, and take thy form from off my door!"
Quoth the Raven, "Eversor"

And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting - still is sitting
On the pallid two-headed eagle just above the bunker door;
His metal eye has all the seeming of a psyker that is scheaming,
To have my guts lie steaming in a pile upon the floor;
And now all hope has left me, crouched here upon the floor
I await the Eversor!
---------------------------------------
'Twas the night before Christmas;

throughout the Old World,

The armies were camped and their banners were furled.

The clamor of battle had finally ceased,

All races observing a Christmastime peace.

Each force in its barracks, each fleet in its haven,

No creature was stirring, not even a Skaven.

The dreams of the elf-lords were distant and deep;

The Orcs lay in rows, snoring "waagghhh" in their sleep.

Your humble narrator had blown out the light,

Set the brushes to rinse and turned in for the night,

And, stealing back blankets usurped by my love,

I was just dozing off...when I heard from above

Such a clatter of hooves! Were we under attack?

Our rooftop assaulted by Arkhan the Black?

I dashed to the parlour in nightshirt and cap

And loaded my crossbow in case of a scrap.

But who should pop out of the fireplace flue

Than old Santa himself! With a bulging sack too!

He shook himself off and went under the tree,

To set out some gifts for my lady and me.

He spun round to face me (which gave me a fright)

And said "You two were last on my list for tonight,

"In your world, that is. But I've work yet to do...

"There are other realms out there that need Christmas, too!"

And he pulled out more gifts, moving faster than light:

"I must get these sent out through the kingdoms tonight!

"A hatchet for Morglum that sings as it hews;

"A reinforced hatrack for Teclis to use;

"A cape for Karl Franz with a griffon-fur trim,

"A mustachio wax kit for Volkmar the Grim,

"A new cloak for Mannfred, all lined in red satin,

"A scabbard for Heinrich with etched words in Latin,

"A chew-toy for Scyla; for Arbaal a book

"(To write down the names of the heroes he's cooked),

"A tankard for Thorgrim, brim-full of good beer....

"And the Witch-King gets coal. For the six thousandth year."

And then, to my shock, he knelt down on the floor

Near a mousehole I just hadn't noticed before

And he squeezed in some boxes, all wrapped with great care;

Then Saint Nick hollered out, "Merry Christmas down there!"

"I'm sending down presents for all of your folk-

"A new knife for Sniktch and some mouthwash for Skrolk,

"A wrench set for Ikit, a mirror for Queek

"And a snuffbox for Thanquol...you're welcome! Neek Neek!"

His labours now done, Santa went on his way.

He rose up the chimney and boarded his sleigh.

He snatched up the reins, oh so jolly and spry,

Then he called to his team, and the reindeer Flew High.

But I heard him exclaim as he clove through the blue

"Merry Christmas To All! (hope games workshop won't sue!)"

indian questions

2008-08-21T01:11:00.000-07:00

Saw some interesting questions from some Indian students recently... The way they write it is quite interesting in itself- take at look at the phrasing for this:

"i have scored 65% in physics, chemistry and mathematics in 12th board, 150 in the mht-cet exam and 50 in AIEEE.so please provide me the information of top 35 engineering colleges of mumbai with complete information about total fees per semister for an open category candidate accordingly."

lol...

and some more for your viewing pleasure

"my 10th % is 85.4% and 12th% (assam board) is 61%, now m studying at Assam Engineering College ... my branch is Chemical Engg. till 4th semester my average % is 60% , i was the state topper in mathematics(100%) in 10th board exam but now i have not been able to score marks in mathematics, moreover i have lost my determination n self confidence as my all BE semester exams are not upto my expectation...will i be able to be a good engineer like that? will i be selected at the campus interview at such %? what should i do to regain my earlier % of marks ,? most importantly is there any job prospect for me after completing my BE? WHAT IS THE SCOPE FOR ME AS AN CHEMICAL ENGG? what should i go for after my BE... M.TECH OR MBA? Is m a good student with such academic bkground till now to get a job as an chemical engg? what is the scope of an chemical engg in India and particularly at Assam ? kindly provide me answers to my qstns.. "

"sir,i had asked you a question earlier but you didn't replied me.My question was " i am an aeronautical engineering student in india completed my first year and i want to continue that in uk.can i do so?if yes than what universities are there for me".My first year engineering and my 12th(physics,chemistry and mathematics)are 55.75 and 82.67 respectively.If you think that my first year engineering percentage is not sufficient than i am ready to start the course from the begining."

"I have studied 10+2 in India, under the Central Board Of Secondary Education with Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and English. Am I eligible for Sitting in the BMAT, United Kingdom? What is the registration fee for the test? Are there any Test Centres in India ( or around)?"

"i want to go in for the pschology (hons)/applied psychology, i scored 72.5 percentage in my best four subject viz, physics, chemistry ,biology and english, is there any chance that i can get admission in the first cut off ( i am ST student from manipur) and i passed my 12th examination in the year 2007."

"i have got 71% in 12th board exam and can got only 50 marks in AIEEE exam. can i get a good college like ITM in GURGAON or YMCA IN FARIDABAD. and can u pls tell me tht how is councelling done."

"i've passed my 12th this year from delhi...!! i had given entrance exams for engineering....!! i have qualified for aieee counselling with 38,000 rank...and ip(CET) with 6600 rank...!! i wanted to get into dce(delhi coll of engineering) atleast ..if not iit...!! but hav got 2100 rank in dce (cee)...so i don't think i'll be able to make it to counselling there.....!! with this rank in aieee exam ...i don't think i'll be able to make it to any of the NITs....!! but i heard a news on 24-6-2008 that there will be no state quota during admissions in NITs this time...!! is that true .?? i also have an option of dropping this year...and then appearing for entrances next year...!! but my parents and many of my friends are against it.....!! but some of my friends have decided to drop this year...!! and i myself think that it's not a big deal..!! as chances of getting admission after preparing for 1 entire year will be quite high......!! also i hadn't filled up separate forms for jaypee and thapar university ...thinking that they take direct admissions considering aieee rank......!! i had prepared for the entrances in 12th only for one year....and may be coudn't preapare so well may be due to boards pressure......!! pls guide me as in which good coll can i possibly get under aieee with this rank.....!! and should i possibly go for dropping..?"

aieee!!

more stuff?

2008-08-18T16:41:00.000-07:00

Please tell me if I should write more IB stuff; I'm contemplating it to help the current IB'ers

DR ONG'S SPECIAL IB RESULTS WOWOWOWOW

2008-01-08T07:59:00.000-08:00

Taken from:
http://www.acs.sch.edu.sg/acs_indep/uploads/news/2007%20IBDP%20Results.pdf

Table 5- Contrast between number of people in ACS who scored xx IB points and the total number of people scoring such points in the world
Points ACS(I) (% of worldwide figures)
41 39 (36.8%)
42 48 (45.7%)
43 33 (43.4%)
44 13 (35.1%)
45 9 (45.0%)
Total 142 (41.3%)

From this data, you can determine how many people in the world scored better than you! I'm not sure I would want to post that up here in case my diploma gets denied because of this, but you should know that from these figures, one is able to tell, roughly, how many people in the world received these kinds of scores and estimate a normal distribution curve from this pattern.... GG!

anyone lived in a pretty how town, e.e cummings

2007-08-24T23:14:00.000-07:00

e.e. cummings - anyone lived in a pretty how town

anyone lived in a pretty how town
(with up so floating many bells down)
spring summer autumn winter
he sang his didn't he danced his did

Women and men(both little and small)
cared for anyone not at all
they sowed their isn't they reaped their same
sun moon stars rain

children guessed(but only a few
and down they forgot as up they grew
autumn winter spring summer)
that noone loved him more by more

when by now and tree by leaf
she laughed his joy she cried his grief
bird by snow and stir by still
anyone's any was all to her

someones married their everyones
laughed their cryings and did their dance
(sleep wake hope and then)they
said their nevers they slept their dream

stars rain sun moon
(and only the snow can begin to explain
how children are apt to forget to remember
with up so floating many bells down)

one day anyone died i guess
(and noone stooped to kiss his face)
busy folk buried them side by side
little by little and was by was

all by all and deep by deep
and more by more they dream their sleep
noone and anyone earth by april
wish by spirit and if by yes.

Women and men(both dong and ding)
summer autumn winter spring
reaped their sowing and went their came
sun moon stars rain

e e cummings

Extract 1: Twelfth Night

2007-08-24T19:03:00.000-07:00

Extract 1

1) In what ways does the scene serve to set the romantic atmosphere of the play as a whole?
2) What are your feelings towards Orsino at the end of this opening scene?

Literary/historical context: The extract was written by William Shakespeare between 1599 and 1602, for the festivities of the night before the Christian Feast before Epiphany, also called Twelfth Night. As written for the purpose of festivities, Twelfth Night is fundamentally a play with humorous overtones.

Name of work and author(including dates): The extract is from Twelfth Night

o Context of extract: This extract is the start of the actual play itself, and introduces us to Duke Orsino, a very significant character in the play. He is shown to be pining for a woman named Olivia, who too serves as an important character, as they will come to form a love triangle of sorts where Viola comes into a picture.

Intro for the 2 sections of talk and line references: The commentary analysis can be split into two parts.
o Identify the three sections: My analysis shall be split into two parts the first being on the characterizations of Duke Orsino, and the second being how this scene serves to set the romantic atmosphere of the play as a whole.

For the main commentary:
o For poetry, comment on how the words contribute to the imagery, emotion, rhythm/rhyme, tone, word choice
o For extracts, add in the above, as well as how words contribute to characterization, setting/atmosphere, narrative style and main themes.

Section 1: Characterisation of Duke Orsino
o Regular use of blank verse as a medium, meaning that the audience will become accustomed to hearing its iambic rhythms, and to regulating their listening accordingly.
o Use of blank verse contrasts with prose such that spoken prose marks a deviation from the norm that is supposed to be noticed. In this extract, the switch is caused by Curio, whose use of prose indicates him as a commoner, emphasising Orsino’s use of verse which denotes his rank and nobility. High diction also marks Duke Orsino out as a nobleman.
o Much of Orsino’s initial speech makes reference to music, with words and phrases such as ‘music be the food of love’, ‘strain’, ‘fall’, ‘came o’er me ear like the sweet sound’ and ‘pitch’. This reference to Orsino’s love for music could show that he might possess hedonistic tendencies, or being a very idealistic person.
o In this way, a connection is drawn between the music and Orsino’s love, which is evanescent in nature.
o Orsino wishes to have ‘excess of it’, so that ‘the appetite may sicken and so die’.
o Words employed like ‘surfeiting’, ‘sicken’, ‘die’ and ‘dying’ gives a sense of passion that borders on decadence.
o He is convinced that he needs to be rid of love, and that getting Olivia’s love might be the way to do it.
o Hence, we wonder whether Orsino is truly in love, and his casual attitude to love creates the impression of a man who is fickle. The words ‘Receiveth as the sea, nought enters there’, also contrasts with the phrases ‘But mine is all as hungry as the sea, And can digest as much.’ In Act 2 Scene 4. We see that ultimately, Orsino could also be said to be arrogant, in a way, because he values himself highly, and possesses an egocentric view of the world.
o He contradicts himself, and the reader is ever more convinced that Orsino might be a man inconsistent in his endeavours?
o The following lines ‘Of what validity and pitch soe’er, But falls into abatement and low price. Even in a minute. So full of shapes is fancy That it alone is high fantastical.’ Only serves to allow Orsino to further describe his very own suffering at the hands of love, that his need for love causes all other good things in life to fall ‘into abatement’, or to lose their value. There is a great sense of self-indulgence here as he seems to be completely caught up in his own ideas.
o Punning on the word ‘hart’, meaning both a male deer, as well as “heart”. Orsino hunting for love? Gains the attention of the audience, and audience derives intellectual satisfaction from working out the pun.
o ‘Away before me to sweet beds of flowers! Love thoughts lie rich when canopied with bowers.’ Rhyming couplet closes long speech of blank verse. In this case, the ending couplet is typical of a romantic sonnet, showing how Orsino idealises the paradigms of traditional Romantic love, also drawing the attention of the audience to the meanings of Orsino’s departing words.
o Orsino’s self-absorbance is further emphasised with the imagery of ‘fell and cruel’ hounds. There is allusion to the myth of Diana, a goddess of chastity, whom sends her hounds to kill a hunter who saw her naked. Orsino is convinced that Olivia, by denying him, is being unnecessarily cruel to him in refusing his love. He compares himself to the hunter, who would die just to see Diana, again, another hyperbole regarding his actions.
o Pun on the word ‘hart’. Smarter then he appears to be. Audience assumes that he mistook the word ‘hart’ for heart’, then believed to be the noblest organ of the body, but the repetition of the word ‘hart’ proves that the pun is intentional, and that Orsino has still some wits about him?
o Orsino has praises Olivia to the point of exaggeration (‘purged the air of pestilence’, ‘hath a heart of that fine frame, To pay this debt of love but to a brother’ shows how he admires her devotion to her brother, who has also just died. If she is so devoted to her brother, how much more devoted would she be to Orsino if he becomes her husband.
o ‘Her sweet perfections, with one self king!’ Orsino hopes that Olivia will belong solely to him; he wishes to be her master and her king; a certain sense of arrogance here?
o ‘Away before me to sweet beds of flowers! Love thoughts lie rich when canopied with bowers.’ Rhyming couplet closes long speech of blank verse. In this case, the rhyme plays up the catchiness of the ending couplet, drawing the attention of the audience to the meanings of Orsino’s departing words.

Section 2: Romantic Atmosphere of the Play
o Romantic atmosphere is set by Duke Orsino, who seems to be the conventional lovestruck romantic; represented by ending couplets and use of high diction within the play.
o ‘Away before me to sweet beds of flowers! Love thoughts lie rich when canopied with bowers.’ Rhyming couplet closes long speech of blank verse. In this case, the rhyme creates a romantic, gentle flow within his closing words, drawing the attention of the audience to the meanings of Orsino’s departing words.
o Orsino lovesick, ideals of romance but nothing substantial?
o “Illyria”, a mythical land? Heightens the sense of myth surrounding the whole play
o Twelfth Night, a night of festivities; foreshadows that the play will end on a positive note, emphasising the romantic notion of the play.

Concluding thoughts:
o Explain importance of passage within the whole work
o How does it provide an answer to the guiding question? Evaluation of Orsino’s character
o From what other angle could you approach the extract? If there is time. Allusions to other literature, ideas or philosophy. From another perspective

IAN SAMUEL LIN

2007-08-19T06:38:00.000-07:00

IAN SAMUEL LIN. he is an indonesian from palembang. his wooden hut collapsed because a coconut fell on it

DO THE HARD WORK DO THE HARD WORK!

Classical Education

2007-08-05T04:24:00.000-07:00

From wikipedia

Classical education as understood and taught in the Middle Ages of Western culture is roughly based on the ancient Greek concept of Paideia. China had a completely different tradition of classical education, based in large part on Confucian and Taoist traditions. This article concerns the Western tradition.

Classical education developed many of the terms now used to describe modern education. Western classical education has three phases, each with a different purpose. The phases are roughly coordinated with human development, and would ideally be exactly coordinated with each individual student's development.

"Primary education" teaches students how to learn.

"Secondary education" then teaches a conceptual framework that can hold all human knowledge (history), and then fills in basic facts and practices of the major fields of knowledge, and develops the skills (perhaps in a simplified form) of every major human activity.

"Tertiary education" then prepares a person to pursue an educated profession, such as law, theology, military strategy, medicine or science.

Primary education
Primary education was often called the trivium, which covered grammar, logic, and rhetoric.

Logic and rhetoric was often taught in part by the Socratic method, in which the teacher raises questions and the class discusses them. By controlling the pace, the teacher can keep the class very lively, yet disciplined.

Grammar
Grammar consists of language skills such as reading and the mechanics of writing. An important goal of grammar is to acquire as many words and manage as many concepts as possible so as to be able to express and understand clearly concepts of varying degrees of complexity. Very young students can learn these by rote especially through the use of chant and song. Their minds are often referred to as "sponges", that easily absorb a large number of facts. Classical education traditionally included study of Latin and Greek, which greatly reinforced understanding of grammar, and the workings of a language, and so that students could read the Classics of Western Civilization in the words of the authors. In the modern renaissance of classical education, this period refers to the upper elementary school years.

Logic
Logic (dialectic) is the art of correct reasoning. The traditional text for teaching logic was Aristotle's Logic. In the modern renaissance of classical education, this logic stage (or dialectic stage) refers to the junior high or middle school aged student, who developementally is beginning to question ideas and authority, and truly enjoys a debate or an argument. Training in logic, both formal and informal, enables students to critically examine arguments and to analyze their own.

Rhetoric
Rhetoric debate and composition (which is the written form of rhetoric) are taught to somewhat older (often high school aged) students, who by this point in their education have the concepts and logic to criticize their own work and persuade others. According to Aristotle "Rhetoric is the counterpart of dialectic." It is concerned with finding "all the available means of persuasion." The student has learned to reason correctly in the Logic stage so that they can now apply those skills to Rhetoric. Students would read and emulate classical poets such as Ovid and others in learning how to present their arguments well.

Secondary education
Secondary education, classically the quadrivium or "four ways," classically taught astronomy, arithmetic, music and geometry, usually from Aristotle and Euclid. Sometimes architecture was taught, often from the works of Vitruvius.

History was always taught to provide a context, and show political and military development. The classic texts were from ancient authors such as Herodotus, Thucydides, Livy, Cicero and Tacitus.

Biographies were often assigned as well; the classic example being Plutarch's "Lives." Biographies help show how persons behave in their context, and the wide ranges of professions and options that exist. As more modern texts became available, these were often added to the curriculum.

In the Middle Ages, these were the best available texts. In modern terms, these fields might be called history, natural science, accounting and business, fine arts (at least two, one to amuse companions, and another to decorate one's domicile), military strategy and tactics, engineering, agronomy, and architecture.

These are taught in a matrix of history, reviewing the natural development of each field for each phase of the trivium. That is, in a perfect classical education, the historical study is reviewed three times: first to learn the grammar (the concepts, terms and skills in the order developed), next time the logic (how these elements could be assembled), and finally the rhetoric, how to produce good, humanly useful and beautiful objects that satisfy the grammar and logic of the field.

History is the unifying conceptual framework, because history is the study of everything that has occurred before the present. A skillful teacher also uses the historical context to show how each stage of development naturally poses questions and then how advances answer them, helping to understand human motives and activity in each field. The question-answer approach is called the "dialectic method," and permits history to be taught Socratically as well.

Classical educators consider the Socratic method to be the best technique for teaching critical thinking. In-class discussion and critiques are essential in order for students to recognize and internalize critical thinking techniques. This method is widely used to teach both philosophy and law. It is currently rare in other contexts. Basically, the teacher referees the students' discussions, asks leading questions, and may refer to facts, but never gives a conclusion until at least one student reaches that conclusion. The learning is most effective when the students compete strongly, even viciously in the argument, but always according to well-accepted rules of correct reasoning. That is, fallacies should not be allowed by the teacher.

By completing a project in each major field of human effort, the student can develop a personal preference for further education and professional training.

Tertiary education
Tertiary education was usually an apprenticeship to a person with the desired profession. Most often, the understudy was called a "secretary" and had the duty of carrying on all the normal business of the "master." Philosophy and Theology were both widely taught as tertiary subjects in Universities however.

The early biographies of nobles show probably the ultimate form of classical education: a tutor. One early, much-emulated classic example was that Alexander the Great was tutored by Aristotle.

Modern interpretations of classical education
Much of the current and modern renaissance of classical education is owed to the Dorothy Sayers essay "The Lost Tools of Learning", in which she describes the three stages of the trivium, grammar, logic and rhetoric, as tools by which a student can then analyze and master every other subject.

"The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home," by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer (W.W. Norton, 1999), is a modern reference on classical education, particularly in a homeschool setting. It provides a history of classical education, an overview of the methodology and philosophy of classical education, and annotated lists of books, divided by grade and topic, that list the best books for classical education in each category.

"The Grammar of Our Civility: Classical Education in America," by Lee T. Pearcy (2005) provides a theoretical and historical account of classical education in the United States and suggests the need for a distinctly American approach to ancient Greece and Rome.

Marva Collins has successfully taught a rapid-fire classical education to inner-city deprived children, many of them labeled as "retarded."

Also of note is "A New Trivium and Quadrivium," an article by Dr. George Bugliarello (Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, Vol. 23, No. 2, 106-113 (2003)). In it, he argues that the scope of the classical liberal education is inadequate for today's society, and that people should also be conversant with the basic facts of science and technology, since they now form a much more important part of our lives than did the tertiary studies of antiquity. He argues for a new synthesis of science, engineering, and the humanities in which there is a balance between what can be done and what ought to be done, between human desires and earthly consequences, and between our ever-increasing power to affect our surroundings and the ever-present danger of destroying the ecological and environmental systems which allow us to exist.

No discussion of classical education could be complete without mentioning Mortimer Adler and Robert Hutchins, both of the University of Chicago, who set forth in the 1930s to restore the "Great Books" of Western civilization to center stage in the curriculum. Although the standard classical works—such as the Harvard Classics—most widely available at the time, were decried by many as out of touch with modern times, Adler and Hutchins sought to expand on the standard "classics" by including more modern works, and by trying to tie them together in the context of what they described as the "Great Ideas," condensed into a "Syntopicon" index and bundled together with a new "five foot shelf" of books as "The Great Books of the Western World." They were wildly popular during the Fifties, and discussion groups of aficionados were found all over the USA, but their popularity waned during the Sixties and such groups are relatively hard to find today. Extensions to the original set are still being published, encompassing selections from both current and older works which extend the "great ideas" into the present age and other fields, including civil rights, the global environment, and discussions of multiculturalism and assimilation.

There still exist a number of informal groups and professional organizations which take the classical approach to education seriously, and who undertake it in earnest. Within the classical Christian education movement, David Hicks, author of Norms and Nobility, the Society for Classical Learning, the Association of Classical and Christian Schools, and the CiRCE Institute, founded by Andrew Kern, co-author with Gene Edward Veith of Classical Education: The Movement Sweeping America, play a leading role.

In addition to many middle-schools and high schools across the country, there are at present several universities or colleges in the United States wherein such an Oxonian classical education is taking place:

St. John's College (two campuses, one in MD and one in NM);
Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, CA;
New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, ID; and,
The Torrey Honors Institute at Biola University, in La Mirada, CA.
Gutenberg College in Eugene, OR
At each of these institutions some variation of the Canon of Western Great Books is used as the primary course material, and tutor-lead "Socratic discussions" are the primary vehicle for ingestion and digestion of the selected works.

A more traditional, but less common view of classical education arises from the ideology of the Renaissance, advocating an education grounded in the languages and literatures of Greece and Rome. The demanding and lengthy training period required for learing to read Greek and Latin texts in their original form has been crowded out in most American schools in favor of contemporary subjects. Latin is taught at some schools, but Greek rarely.

Nostalgic Poetry

2007-08-03T08:56:00.000-07:00

From speareseuss.blogspot.com

IAN LIN very FAT!
Pang sai need a MAT
A CAT sits on the MAT
And the FAT SHAT (past tense of shit) on the MAT with the CAT

# posted by Fish @ 6:00 PM
Fish is ALSO HERE!

# posted by Fish @ 4:57 PM
IAN LIN IS HERE!

# posted by NIL NAI @ 4:47 PM
hello! here are some of our damn pro VERSES

Gobi very fat
More fat than a cat

He is Kevin Koh
Drink lots of cocoa

My friend Michael Yue(pronounced YOU)
Eat lots of DAO YOU

Ian Lin has a GUN
Inside got a BUN

OH is a faggot
like to eat MAGGOT!

He is Lim tak KEET
He got Big armpit

His name is JASBIR
He like to eat DEER

Darren Chew on ice
Got a lot of mice!

Chieh yao has an ear
he like to drink BEER

Hongyi very fat
He eat too much crap

This is lim Chan Tuan
Her nose look like Phuan

hello i can see!
i can see you pee!

Ian Lin has no brain
He fell into DRAIN

Ian Lin full of shit
he's a stupid git

His name is IAN LIN
He look like DUSTBIN

Dickson no muscle
only got PIMPLE

Juin Shiong big arse man
drink soft drink from CAN!

He is MISTER MA
He look like pizZA

I put on my SHOE
And stepped into POO

If you make me cry
I hoot you with a BHAI

My friend ANDREW YOUNG
Live in pulau PISANG

The Highland Charge

2007-07-28T09:44:00.001-07:00

The Highland charge was a battlefield tactic used by the clans of the Scottish Highlands in the 17th and 18th century. It was developed as a response to the evolution of firearms. Previously, Highlanders had fought in tight formations, led by a heavily armoured warrior elite, that carried heavy battle-axes or two handed broadswords known as claidheamh mor or "claymores" -meaning "great sword" in Scottish Gaelic. However, with the widespread use of muskets and cannon, such formations became vulnerable. As a result, in the 17th century, Highlanders developed a lighter, one handed claymore with a hilt that protected the hand. This was generally used with a shield or "targe" strapped to the body and a "dirk" or biotag (long knife) held in the other hand.

From the 1640s onwards Highlanders in battle would launch rapid charges, firing their own muskets at close range, before closing with their enemy hand to hand. This became known as the "Highland charge." Its advantage was that it allowed the Highlanders to cover the range of the enemy muskets quickly, before the enemy could inflict many casualties. The Highlanders could then exploit their skills in hand to hand fighting. In this way, they could overwhelm regular troops who were better armed and more conventionally trained.

In practice, the Highland charge proved so effective as much because of its psychological impact as its physical one. Regular troops, when faced with a tide of screaming Highlanders, often lost their heads, fired off an un-aimed volley and began to run away. They would then face the charge not as a disciplined unit, but as a mass of panicked individuals, whom the Highlanders would cut down with impunity. This happened at such battles as Tippermuir and Falkirk. However when, as at the Battle of Culloden in 1746, well trained regular troops kept their composure, the Highland charge was raked with musket volley fire, then faced with an unbroken line of bayonets and beaten off with heavy losses. Cannon firing grapeshot also helped beat off the Highland Charge at Culloden.

The Highland charge was used widely during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms and the Jacobite Risings. The Historian David Stephenson has credited its invention to Alasdair MacColla, who pioneered its use in Ireland and Scotland during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Other historians have questioned this, and suggest that the charge was evolved gradually, to meet a particular set of battlefield challenges. They point out that conventional armies of this era also sometimes used rapid charges with swords, pikes and bayonets when the situation demanded. In the contemporary French army, this was known as an "a prest" attack.

Development Economics

2007-07-28T09:37:00.000-07:00

FROM THE DESK OF,
MR.MATHIEU TRAORE.
DIRECTOR AUDITING AND ACCOUNTING UNIT,
BANK OF AFRICA.(BOA)
OUAGADOUGOU -BURKIN
private email:mathieu_traore@myway.com,
Phone: + 226 76 38 87 74.
VERY URGENT AND CONFIDENTIAL.
Dear Friend?

This message might meet you in utmost surprise, however,it's just my urgent need for foreign partner that made me to contact you for this transaction.
I am a banker by profession from Burkina faso in west Africa and currently holding the post of Director Auditing and Accounting unit of the bank.
I have the opportunity of transfering the left over funds $7.7m ( one million seven hundred million u.s dollar.)of one of my bank clients who died along with his entire family on 31 july 2000 in a plane crash.You can confirm the genuiness of the deceased death by clicking on
this web site http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm
Hence,i am inviting you for a business deal where this money can be sharedbetween us in the ratio of 60/30 while 10% will be mapped out for expenses.If you agree to my business proposal.further details of the transfer will be forwarded to you as soon as i receive your return mail.
have a great day.
Your Faithfully
Mrmathieu traore:
Phone + 226 76 38 87 74
NB, MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THIS TRANSACTION AS YOUR TOP SECRECT AND MAKE IT CONFIDENTIAL TILL WE RECEIVES THE FUND INTO THE ACCOUNT THAT YOU WILL PROVIDE TO THE BANK. DONT DISCLOSE IT TO ANY BODY "PLEASE", BECAUSE THE SECRECY OF THIS TRANSACTION IS AS WELL AS THE SUCCESS OF IT.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sur Windows Live Ideas, découvrez en exclusivité de nouveaux services en ligne... si nouveaux qu'ils ne sont pas encore sortis officiellement sur le marché ! Essayez-le !

Maybe we really do need extra government spending on public goods so that people like these won't mistake $7.7m for one million seven hundred million us dollar

Some things about China

2007-07-28T09:33:00.000-07:00

CHINA

Social Indicators
Poverty Line: Official- 680 yuan (US$85) per capita net income a year
International- 2920 yuan (US$365) per capita net income a year

Number of people below poverty line: Official- 23.65 million people (1.81%)
Estimated- 120-130 million people (9.2-9.9%)

Income Inequality: Gini Coefficient: 0.496 (On a scale of 0 to 1)

Infant Mortality Rate: 22.12 (est., per 1000 live births)

Nutrition Rate: 12% (about 156,444,120 people)

Literacy Rate: 90.9% of total population
95.1% of males
86.5% of females

Economic Indicators
Population Growth Rate: 0.606%

Dependency Ratio: 1:2.5, or 40% (2.5 people in the labour force supporting 1 not in the labour force)

Unemployment Rate: 4.2% in urban areas(Official figures)
Substantial rural unemployment and underemployment

Resources Endowment: coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten,
antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world’s largest)

Colonial history: The Germans were the first to establish a sphere of influence in 1898 and militarily occupied China, resulting in foreign intervention in China’s policies. This later led to the Boxer Rebellion which was ultimately suppressed. Later, both Japan and the United Kingdom colonially ruled parts of China.

Growth Rates: China’s GDP averaged a 6.4% annual increase in the last ten years.

Per capita GDP: US$7,700 per capita

Population Size: 1,321,851,888 (2007 est.)

0-14 years: 20.4% (male 143,527,634/female 126,607,344)
15-64 years: 71.7% (male 487,079,770/female 460,596,384)
65 years and over: 7.9% (male 49,683,856/female 54,356,900)

Structure of industry:

Type of Industry %
Primary industry 12.5
Secondary industry 47.3
Tertiary industry 40.3

Obstacles to Growth

Provision of healthcare and education: The provision of healthcare in China is becoming more and more privatised today. As such, workers in the rural areas are less medically catered to, and because there is a high prevalence of infectious diseases in poor rural and urban areas in China, this creates an obstacle in the further expansion of large-scale capitalist development. As of now, the health status of this 15% of the total population is similar to that of the least developed nations.

Banking and Financial Services: Banking in China is currently inefficient and ill-equipped to handle the country's emerging complex market system, due to an insolvent banking system which has bad loans totalling 25 to 30% of the gross GDP; however, it is in the middle of a transition from Chinese to Western style banking, and banking reforms are currently being conducted by the People’s Bank of China to improve this situation. As China has had a historical reliance on banking rather than financial markets, the lack of a good banking structure significantly impedes growth.

Legal System: China’s legal system is currently subject to the China Communist’s Party’s (CCP) total control. This results in a lack of accountability which leads to many mistrials at the district level. As convictions are obtained in a large part on the basis of confessions, the use of torture on innocents in order to extract confessions is not uncommon. Ultimately, the lack of trust in the judicial system has caused many protests against the legal system, with many calling for legal reforms.

Political Stability: The CCP, as a political regime, faces weak political opposition domestically, and possesses relative elite cohesion as a political party (in contrast to previous power struggles at the top). This promotes it as a formidable force in power (the last political crisis faced was in 1989, when leaders promised but failed to deliver political reform). However, they are now facing a narrower base of support, an absence of effective institutions to resolve conflicts within the state (lack of federalism) and weak institutional channels of resolving state-society conflict, resulting in many more protests to express public grievances. It can be concluded that the CCP possess short term, but not long term political stability.

Corruption: Rising levels of corruption in the higher echelons of the CCP have created public distrust of the government in China. News about official actions can be classified a state secret. Local party officials have immense power they often abuse. Unless China adopts a political system with transparency and real checks and balances, maximum growth cannot truly have been achieved.

International Trade Barriers and Capital Flight: China is currently facing a large inflow of capital as opposed to human capital flight; this is brought on by worldwide recognition of its status as an emerging global superpower. However, an enormous amount of trade barriers in China prevent trade with the rest of the superpowers in the world, including the US and European Union. Effectively, this allows China to retain domestic monopolies over industries such as the aviation, steel, and telecommunications industry. This causes China to have a trade surplus, which has fueled complains that the yuan is intentionally being undervalued so as to provide exporters with an unfair price advantage. However, on the national level, industrialization has allowed China to manufacture many various goods at low prices, and this is essentially allowed it to overcome any possible disadvantages of not trading with others, as it can produce a large range of goods at extremely low prices.

Numismatics

2007-07-27T08:38:00.000-07:00

The antoninianus was a coin used during the Roman Empire thought to have been valued at 2 denarii. It was initially silver, but was slowly debased to bronze. The coin was introduced by Caracalla in early 215 and was a silver coin similar to the denarius except that it was slightly larger and featured the emperor wearing a radiate crown, indicating that it was valued at twice as much. Antoniniani depicting females (usually the emperor's wife), featured the bust resting upon a crescent moon.

But even at its introduction its silver content was only equal to 1.5 denarii. This helped create inflation - people rapidly hoarded the denarii, while both buyers and sellers recognised the new coin had a lower intrinsic value and elevated their prices to compensate. Silver bullion supplies were running short since the Roman Empire was no longer conquering new territory, and because a series of soldier emperors and rebels needed coin to pay their troops to buy loyalty. So each new issue of the antoninianus had less silver in it than the last, and each contributed to inflation. By the late third century the coins were almost entirely made of bronze or orichalcum from melted down old coins like the sestertius. Vast quantities were being produced, with a large proportion of the stocks being contemporary forgeries, often with blundered legends and designs. Individual coins were by then practically worthless and were lost or discarded in their millions. Today the coins are extremely common finds. The situation was not unlike the hyperinflation of the Weimar Republic in 1920s Germany when paper money was printed in reckless abundance. The coin ceased to be used by the end of the third century when a series of coinage reforms attempted to arrest the decline by issuing new types.

Modern numismatists use this name for the coin because we do not know what it was called in antiquity. The name was given to it because an ancient Roman document called the Historia Augusta (of generally low reliability) refers to silver coins named after an Antoninus on several occasions (several Roman emperors in the late second and early third centuries bore this name among others). Because Caracalla's silver coin was a new issue, an association was made with it, and although the association is certainly false, the name has stuck.

Wow, what a quiz

2007-07-25T09:28:00.000-07:00

Post your answers to Oracle_163@yahoo.com.sg if you really want to know how you did

1. When did Kofi Annan begin his first term as the Secretary-General of UN?

A. 1996
B. 1997
C. 1998
D. 1999

2. What is atheism?

A. Lack of belief in all deities for any reason
B. Strong belief in science
C. Belief in God as a concept but not to any particular God
D. Strong belief in the existence of God

3. Who came up with the idea of Keynesian economics?

A. Peter Maynard Keynes
B. John Mayned Keynes
C. John Maynard Keynes
D. Peter Mayned Keynes

4. Who was the author of the famous storybook ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’?

A. Rudyard Kipling
B. John Keats
C. Lewis Carroll
D. H.G. Wells

5. Scientists from a particular country had managed to bred three pigs that can ‘glow in
the dark’. What country is that?

A. China
B. Taiwan
C. New Zealand
D. United States of America

6. Excluding Timor Leste, which country in Southeast Asia is the last to achieve full
sovereignty from colonialism or other forms of foreign rule?

A. Indonesia
B. Brunei
C. Singapore
D. Laos

7. Where was Plato born in?

A. Israel
B. Persia
C. Greeece
D. Italy

8. Which of the following actresses had a lead role in the movie ‘Monster’?

A. Kiera Knightley
B. Julia Roberts
C. Sandra Bullock
D. Charlize Theron

9. Which country recently experienced an increase in the hijacking of cargo ships, thus
threatening humanitarian aid?

A. Nigeria
B. Somalia
C. Iraq
D. Afghanistan

10. What does ‘Agnus Dei’ mean in Latin?

A. Lamb of God
B. Jesus Christ
C. Ram of God
D. Our Holy Father

11. Which of these international organisations was created first?

A. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
B. The World Bank
C. The Group of Seven (G7)
D. The International Labour Organisation (ILO)

12. In which century were Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales written?

A. 14th century
B. 15th century
C. 16th century
D. 17th century

13. Who discovered platinum?

A. Julius Scaliger
B. James W. Marshall
C. Pierre Janssen
D. William Ramsay

14. Former US President Bill Clinton was only the second President in US history to
Undergo an impeachment trial during his term of office. Who was the first?

A. Jimmy Carter
B. Richard Nixon
C. Andrew Johnson
D. Lyndon Johnson

15. Who wrote The First Meditation and The Second Meditation?

A. Descartes
B. J.S. Mills
C. Socrates
D. Plato

16. Russell Crowe won a Golden Globe in 2002 for his role in this movie. What is this
movie?

A. Cinderella Man
B. Master and Commander
C. A Beautiful Mind
D. Gladiator

17. Who was recently voted the most powerful person in Britain by radio listeners?

A. Jose Manuel Barroso
B. Elton John
C. David Beckham
D. Richard Young

18. In Singapore, most Buddhists are of the _________ school of thought.

A. Mahayana
B. Theravada
C. Nirvana
D. Budajahaya

19. The most rapid move towards the free market in Latin America began in 1989 in
which country?

A. Venezuela
B. Columbia
C. Uruguay
D. Mexico

20. Name the book which opens with the line ‘All children, except one grows up’.

A. The Railway Children
B. Winnie the Pooh
C. Jungle Book
D. Peter Pan

21. Other that oxygen, which is the most common element on Earth?

A. Carbon
B. Iron
C. Plutonium
D. Silicon

22. When the Nobel Prizes were first awarded in 1901, it only considered achievements
in five categories. Which category in the present day Nobel Prizes is not part of the
original five?

A. Economics
B. Peace
C. Physics
D. Physiology

23. Who wrote the 1762 Social Contract?

A. Jean- Jacques Rousseau
B. John Locke
C. Rene Descartes
D. Voltaire

24. ‘Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrope’ was released in
Singapore on which of the following dates?

A. 23 Dec 2005
B. 24 Dec 2005
C. 25 Dec 2005
D. 27 Dec 2005

25. Who wrote the book ‘Clash of Civilization’?

A. Samuel P. Huntington
B. Jackson M. Goldington
C. Daniella O’ Connor
D. Hank Pith

26. Most of the Hindu temples have their shrines facing the _________.

A. North
B. South
C. East
D. West

27. Which of the following aims does the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
(GATT) seek to encourage?

A. a common internal tariff
B. elimination of exchange controls
C. free movement of capital
D. multilateral free trade

28. In which country does the story ‘The Pied Piper of Hamelin’ take place?

A. Austria
B. Germany
C. New Zealand
D. France

29. Who first developed the periodic table of elements?

A. Dmitry I. Mendeleyec
B. Johann Dobereiner
C. Henry Moseley
D. John Dalton

30. Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain, was first conquered by Sir Edmund
Hillary and his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norkay, on 29th May 1953. Which country
was Sir Edmund from?

A. New Zealand
B. United Kingdom
C. Canada
D. Australia

31. One term that is heavily used in Philosophy is that of ‘Logos’. What does the word
mean?

A. Reason
B. Persuasion
C. Argument
D. Distortion

32. In the 2006 Golden Globes, ‘Desperate Housewives’ won in which category?

A. Best Series Drama
B. Best Series Musical or Drama
C. Best Picture Award
D. Best Screen Play

33. What is the latest addiction present US President Bush hopes to kick for his country?

A. Addiction to fast food
B. Addiction to smoking
C. Addiction to drugs
D. Addiction to oil

34. Who is the current Pope?

A. John Paul II
B. John Paul I
C. Benedict XVI
D. Benedict XIV

35. The charging of different prices for a product is referred to as price discrimination
if it is based on ______________.

A. cost of production
B. order sizes
C. quality of output
D. incomes of customers

36. In which of Shakespeare’s plays does the line ‘A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a
horse’ appear?

A. Romeo and Juliet
B. Hamlet
C. Richard III
D. Much ado about nothing

37. Who discovered the structure of DNA?

A. John Kendrew and Max Perutz
B. James Watson and John Kendrew
C. Max Perutz and James Crick
D. Francis Crick and James Watson

38. This Communist leader has remained in power longer than that of any other
Communist leader of the 20th century. Who is he?

A. Mao Zedong
B. Leonid Brezhnev
C. Ho Chi Minh
D. Fidel Castro

39. In Plato’s Euthyphro, the main concern dealt with is?

A. Ethics
B. Emotions
C. Justice
D. Virtue

40. Who won American Idol II?

A. Fantasia Borrino
B. Clay Aiken
C. Ruben Studdard
D. Kelly Clarkson

41. Name the Italian artist who was sued by the parents of a 15-year-old school girl from
Turin for decorating their daughter with a tattoo without their permission?

A. Carmela Vecchio
B. Widianti Ruleti
C. Gorgiani Belantu
D. Antoninus Jeffe

42. When was the Great Depression?

A. 1900s/1910s
B. 1920s/1930s
C. 1940s/1950s
D. 1880s/1890s

43. How many languages has ‘ The Diary of Anne Frank’ been translated into?

A. 10
B. 35
C. 61
D. 55

44. Where was wine first enjoyed?

A. Mesopotamia
B. Rome
C. Persia
D. Greece

45. Various Arab-Israel wars have been fought since Israel came into existence in 1948.
In which year was there no major Arab-Israel confrontation?

A. 1956
B. 1967
C. 1974
D. 1980

46. What period was Lao Zi born in?

A. Pre 500 BC
B. Between 500 BC and 1 AD
C. Between 1 AD and 500 AD
D. Between 500 AD and 1000 AD

47. Where is Borobudur located in?

A. Malaysia
B. Thailand
C. Indonesia
D. Vietnam

48. Who won Survivor 1?

A. Susan Hawks
B. Richard Hatch
C. Sean Kenniff
D. Kelly Wiglesworth

49. This year’s FIFA World Cup will be held in Germany. When was the last time
Germany (be it West or East Germany) hosted this international competition?

A. 1954
B. 1962
C. 1974
D. 1990

50. The 2006 edition of the Asian Games will be held in which Middle Eastern country?

A. Saudi Arabia
B. United Arab Emirates
C. Bahrain
D. Qatar

Trivia for today

2007-07-18T09:02:00.001-07:00

Krak des Chevaliers, wikipedia.com

Krak des Chevaliers, also transliterated Crac des Chevaliers, is a Crusader fortress in Syria and one of the most important preserved medieval military architectures in the world. In Arabic, the fortress is called Qal'at al-Ḥiṣn (Arabic: قلعة الحصن), the word Krak coming from the Syriac karak, meaning fortress. It is located 65 km west of the city of Homs, close to the border of Lebanon, and is administratively part of the Homs Governorate.

Krak des Chevaliers was the headquarters of the Knights Hospitaller during the Crusades. It was expanded between 1150 and 1250 and eventually housed a garrison of 2,000. The fortress has outer walls which are 100 feet thick, with seven guard towers 30 feet in diameter.[1]

King Edward I of England, while on the Ninth Crusade in 1272, saw the fortress and used it as an example for his own castles in England and Wales. The fortress was described as “perhaps the best preserved and most wholly admirable castle in the world” by T.E. Lawrence.[1][2] This fortress was made a World Heritage Site, along with Qal’at Salah El-Din, in 2006[3] and is owned by the Syrian government. The fortress is one of the few sites where Crusader art (in the form of frescoes) has been preserved.
Location
The castle is located east of Tripoli, Lebanon in the Homs Gap, atop a 650-meter-high hill along the only route from Antioch to Beirut and the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of many fortresses that were part of a defensive network along the border of the old Crusader states. The fortress controlled the road to the Mediterranean, and from this base, the Hospitallers could exert some influence over Lake Homs to the east to control the fishing industry and watch for Muslim armies gathering in Syria.

Ancient history
The Middle East was always a meeting place for many different civilizations, notably the Babylonians, Egyptians, Hittites, Hebrews, Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs, Kurds, Ottomans, Seljuk Turks, and Franks. Such a vast array of different cultures led to the creation of the unique architecture preserved in the Krak des Chevaliers.

Many conflicts were fought out between different nations in the general area surrounding the Crac, including the famous Battle of Kadesh. The Romans, and then the Byzantine Empire following the East-West Schism, constructed many different fortresses of Hellenic design to resist Persian military pressure in that area, which led to the architectural design used by the Islamic armies after their conquest of the area from 634 to 639.

Islamic conquest
Under the rule of the Umayyad dynasty, builders took advantage of the previous Byzantine structures and their barrage and aqueduct of the Orontes River to turn them into magnificient palaces with gardens in the middle of the desert. Construction continued under the new rule of the Abbasid empire in 750, although it steadily declined under army control, as the primarily Turkish forces did not make as much use of the fortifications.

Crusades

The original fortress at the location had been built in 1031 for the emir of Aleppo.

During the First Crusade in 1099, it was captured by Raymond IV of Toulouse, but then abandoned when the Crusaders continued their march towards Jerusalem. It was reoccupied again by Tancred, Prince of Galilee, in 1110. In 1144, it was given by Raymond II, count of Tripoli, to the Hospitallers, contemporaries of the Knights Templar.

The Hospitallers rebuilt it and expanded it into the largest Crusader fortress in the Holy Land, adding an outer wall three meters thick with seven guard towers eight to ten meters thick, to create a concentric castle. The Grand Master of the Hospitallers lived in one of the towers, and the fortress may have held about 50-60 Hospitallers plus up to 2,000 other foot soldiers. In the 12th century, the fortress had a moat covered by a drawbridge, leading to postern gates.

Between the inner and outer gates was a courtyard, leading to the inner buildings, which were rebuilt by the Hospitallers in a Gothic style. These buildings included a meeting hall, a chapel, a 120-meter-long storage facility, and two vaulted, stone stables which could have held up to a thousand horses. Other storage facilities were dug into the cliff below the fortress, and it is estimated that the Hospitallers could have withstood a siege for five years.

In 1163, the fortress was unsuccessfully besieged by Nur ad-Din, after which the Hospitallers became an essentially independent force on the Tripolitanian frontier. By 1170, the Hospitallers' modifications were complete. In the late 12th and early 13th century numerous earthquakes caused some damage and required further rebuilding.

Another failed siege was made by Saladin in 1188, during which the castellan was captured and taken by Saladin's men to the castle gates where he was told to order the gates opened. He reportedly spoke a dual message, first telling his men in Arabic, the language of his captors, to surrender the castle, but then in French telling them to hold the castle to the last man.

In 1217, during the Fifth Crusade, the Hungarian king Andrew II strengthened the outer walls and financed the guarding troops.

In 1271, the fortress was recaptured by Baibars on April 8, 1271, after they had tricked the Hospitallers into believing the count of Tripoli had instructed them to surrender. Baibars refortified it and used it as a base against Tripoli. He also converted the Hospitaller chapel to a mosque.

The Mameluks later used it to attack Acre in 1291.

Trivia for today

2007-07-18T09:01:00.001-07:00

The Great Fire of Rome, wikipedia.com

According to the historian Tacitus, the Great Fire of Rome started on the night of 18 July in the year 64, among the shops clustered around the Circus Maximus.[1] As many Romans lived in wooden houses without masonry, the fire spread quickly through these areas.[1] The fire was almost contained after five days before regaining strength.[2] Suetonius claims the fire burned for six days and seven nights in total.[3] The fire completely destroyed four of fourteen Roman districts and severely damaged seven.[4] Also destroyed were Nero's palace, Temple of Jupiter Stator and the hearth in the Temple of Vesta.[5]

The Great Fire of Rome erupted on the night of July 18 to July 19, 64. The fire started at the southeastern end of the Circus Maximus in shops selling flammable goods.[1]

The actual size of the fire is the subject of some debate. According to Tacitus, who was nine years old at the time of the fire, it spread quickly and burnt for five days.[6] It completely destroyed four of fourteen Roman districts and severely damaged seven.[6] The only other historian who lived through the period and mentioned the fire is Pliny the Elder who wrote about it in passing.[7] Other historians who lived through the period (including Josephus, Dio Chrysostom, Plutarch, and Epictetus) make no mention of it. The only other account on the size of fire is an interpolation in a forged Christian letter from Seneca to Paul: "A hundred and thirty-two houses and four blocks have been burnt in six days; the seventh brought a pause".[8] This account implies less than a tenth of the city was burnt. Rome contained about 1,700 private houses and 47,000 apartment blocks.

It was said by Suetonius and Cassius Dio that Nero sang the "Sack of Ilium" in stage costume while the city burned.[9] However, Tacitus' account has Nero in Antium at the time of the fire.[10] Tacitus said that Nero playing his lyre and singing while the city burned was only rumor.[10] Popular legend remembers Nero "fiddling" while Rome burned, but this is an anachronism as the fiddle had not yet been invented, and would not be for over 1,000 years.[11]

According to Tacitus, upon hearing news of the fire, Nero rushed back to Rome to organize a relief effort, which he paid for from his own funds.[10] After the fire, Nero opened his palaces to provide shelter for the homeless, and arranged for food supplies to be delivered in order to prevent starvation among the survivors.[10] In the wake of the fire, he made a new urban development plan. Houses after the fire were spaced out, built in brick, and faced by porticos on wide roads.[12] Nero also built a new palace complex known as the Domus Aurea in an area cleared by the fire.[13] This was a 300 acre palatial complex that featured the Colossus Neronis, a 37-meter-high bronze statue of Nero placed just outside of the entrance. [14][15] To find the necessary funds for the reconstruction, tributes were imposed on the provinces of the empire.[16]

It is uncertain who or what actually caused the fire. Tacitus says that Nero had Christians arrested and condemned "not so much for incendiarism as for their hatred of the human race".[17] Christians confessed to the crime, but it is not known whether these were false confessions induced by torture.[17] Suetonius and Cassius Dio favor Nero as the arsonist with an insane desire to destroy the city as his motive.[18] However, major accidentally started fires were common in ancient Rome. In fact, Rome burned again under Vitellius in 69[19] and under Titus in 80.[20]

According to Tacitus, the population searched for a scapegoat and rumors held Nero responsible.[17] To diffuse blame, Nero targeted a sect called the Christians.[17] He ordered Christians to be thrown to dogs, while others were crucified and burned.[17]

Tacitus described the event:

Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.[17]

One more trivia

2007-07-15T00:20:00.001-07:00

Castellan, wikipedia.com

A castellan was the governor or caretaker of a castle or keep. The word stems from the Latin Castellanus, derived from castellum 'castle'.

Usually, a castellan combined the duties of both a majordomo (responsible for a castle's domestic staff) and a military administrator (responsible for maintaining defences and protecting the castle's lands). This was particularly the case if there was no lord resident at the castle, or if the resident lord was frequently absent.

In France, castellans (known in French as Châtelains) who governed castles without resident nobles acquired considerable powers, and the position actually became a hereditary fiefdom. At times, there was a castellan among the Officers of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

In the Kingdom of Poland and later the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the castellans (Polish: kasztelan) were often considered to be subordinates of voivodes (with the exception of the Castellan of Cracow as Cracow was the Commonwealth capital until 1596). Castellans were in charge of a part of the voivodeship called castellany until the 15th century and from that time on their domain was divided into provinces for Greater Castellans and powiats for Minor Castellans. Chancellors were district officials and had the right to attend sessions of the Polish parliament, the Sejm.

I will post the krak des chevaliers later

Trivia for today

2007-07-15T00:11:00.000-07:00

How many of you know the Alhambra? Wikipedia.com

The Alhambra (Arabic: الحمراء = Al-Ħamrā'; literally "the red") is a palace and fortress complex of the Moorish monarchs of Granada, in southern Spain (known as Al-Andalus when the fortress was constructed), occupying a hilly terrace on the south-eastern border of the city of Granada. It was the residence of the Muslim kings of Granada and their court, but is currently a museum exhibiting exquisite Islamic architecture. A Renaissance palace was also inserted by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.The name Alhambra, signifying in Arabic the red (Al Hamra الحمراء), derives from the colour of the red clay of the surroundings of which the fort is made. The buildings of the Alhambra were originally whitewashed; however, the buildings now seen today are reddish. The first reference to the Qal’at al Hamra was during the battles between the Arabs and the Muladies during the rule of the Abdallah (who reigned from 888-912). In one particularly fierce and bloody skirmish, the Muladies soundly defeated the Arabs who were then forced to take shelter in a primitive red castle located in the province of Elvira, nowadays located in Granada. According to surviving documents from the era, the red castle was quite small and its walls were not capable of deterring army intent on conquering. The castle was then largely ignored until the eleventh century when its ruins were renovated and rebuilt by Samuel ibn Naghralla, vizier to the King Bādīs of the Zirid Dynasty, in an attempt to preserve the small Jewish settlement also located on the Sabikah hill. However, evidence from Arab texts indicates that the fortress was easily penetrated and that the actual Alhambra that survives today was built during the Nasrid Dynasty.

Ibn Nasr, the founder of the Nasrid Dynasty, was forced to flee to Granada in order to avoid persecution by King Ferdinand and his supporters during attempts to rid Spain of Moorish Dominion. After retreating to Granada, Ibn-Nasr took up residence at the Palace of Bādis in the Alhambra. A few months later, he embarked on the construction of a new Alhambra fit for the residence of a king. According to an Arab manuscript published as the Anónimo de Granada y Copenhague, “This year 1238 Abdallah ibn al-Ahmar climbed to the place called ‘the Alhambra inspected it, laid out the foundations of a castle and left someone in charge of its construction…” The design included plans for six palaces, five of which were grouped in the northeast quadrant forming a royal quarter, two circuit towers, and numerous bathhouses. Over the reign of Nasrid Dynasty, the Alhambra was transformed into a palatine city complete with an irrigation system composed of acequias for the lush and beautiful gardens of the Generalife located outside the fortress. Previously, the old Alhambra structure had been dependent upon rainwater collected from a cistern and from what could be brought up from the Albaicín. The creation of the “Sultan’s Canal” solidified the identity of the Alhambra as a sumptuous palace-city rather than a defensive and ascetic structure.

Trivia for today

2007-07-15T00:10:00.001-07:00

Citadel, from wikipedia.com

A citadel is a fortress for protecting a town, sometimes incorporating a castle.[1] The term derives from the same Latin root as the word "city", civis, meaning citizen.

Citadels are most often used to protect a garrison or political power from the inhabitants of the town it is defending. They were designed to ensure loyalty from the town which they defended.

For example Barcelona had a great citadel built in 1714 to intimidate the Catalans against repeating their mid 17th and early 18th century rebellions against the Spanish central government. In the 19th century, as soon as the political climate had liberalised enough to permit it, the people of Barcelona had the citadel torn down, and replaced it with the city's main central park, the Parc de la Ciutadella. A similar example is the Citadella in Budapest, Hungary. The Citadelle of Quebec still survives, as the largest citadel still in official military operation in North America, after more than two hundred years of existence.

In ancient Greece, the citadel, placed on a commanding eminence, was important in the life of the people, serving as a refuge and stronghold in peril and containing military and food supplies, the shrine of the god and a royal palace. In the Middle Ages the citadel was the last defense of a besieged army, often held after the town had been conquered, and affording retreat to the people living in the areas around the town.

In a fortification with bastions, the citadel is the strongest part of the system, sometimes well inside the outer walls and bastions, but often forming part of the outer wall for the sake of economy. It is positioned to be the last line of defense should the enemy breach the other components of the fortification system.

gracias, su excelencia!

Trivia for today

2007-07-14T04:22:00.001-07:00

Starets, from Wikipedia.com

A starets (Russian старец) is an elder of a Russian Orthodox monastery who functions as venerated adviser and teacher. Startsy are charismatic spiritual leaders whose wisdom stems from intuition rather than experience. It is believed that through ascetic struggle and prayer (Hesychasm), and the leading of a virtuous life, the Holy Spirit bestows special gifts onto the starets including the ability to heal, prophesy, and most importantly, give effective spiritual guidance and direction. Startsy are looked upon as being an inspiration to believers, an example of saintly virtue, steadfast faith, and spiritual peace.

Startsy are not appointed by any authority, they are simply recognized by the faithful as being people "of the Spirit". A starets, when not in prayer or in voluntary seclusion, receives visitors (some who travel very far) and spends time conversing with them, offering a blessing (if the starets is an ordained cleric) and confession, and praying. People often petition the starets for intercessionary prayers, believing that the prayer of a starets is particularly effective.

Personal confessions to startsy are encouraged, although not all of them are formally ordained to priesthood. Many of them have a reputation amidst believers of being able to know the secrets of a person's heart without having ever previously met the visitor, and having the ability to discern God's plan for a person's life. This, as all of the startsy's gifts, is believed to come from the Holy Spirit acting through the starets.

The institution may be traced to the beginnings of the Christian monasticism in the 4th century. The original Greek term geron was rendered by the Russian word "starets", derived from the Slavic adjective for "old". Sergius of Radonezh and Nil Sorsky were two most venerated startsy of Old Muscovy. The revival of staretsdom is associated with the name of Paisius Velichkovsky (1722-94), who produced the Russian translation of the Philokalia. The most famous starets of the early 19th century was Seraphim of Sarov (1759-1833), who went on to become one of the most revered Orthodox saints.

The Optina Pustyn near Kozelsk used to be celebrated for its startsy. Such writers as Nikolay Gogol, Aleksey Khomyakov, Leo Tolstoy, and Konstantin Leontyev sought advice from the elders of this monastery. They also inspired the figure of Zosima in Dostoyevsky's novel The Brothers Karamazov. Grigori Rasputin was styled starets by his followers, although he was not generally recognised as one. A more modern example of a starets is Archimandrite Ioann Krestiankin (1910-2006) of the Pskov Monastery of the Caves who was popularly recognized as such by many Orthodox living in Russia.

The concept of the starets may be familiar to many Western readers through J. D. Salinger's Franny and Zooey. In the novel, one of the characters refers to the 19th century anonymous Russian work, The Way of a Pilgrim. The title character of The Way of a Pilgrim (ostensibly, the author) is advised in the progress of his spiritual life by a starets, who uses the Jesus Prayer as a starting point for spiritual discipline.

2007-07-14T04:07:00.000-07:00

The brise soleil on Santiago Calatrava's Quadracci Pavilion of the Milwaukee Art Museum in the open position. French for "sun break", a brise soleil serves to provide shade from the sun. Calatrava's brise soleil opens up for a wingspan of 217 feet (66.1 m) during the day, folding over the tall, arched structure at night or during inclement weather.

Wikipedia.com

Trivia for today

2007-07-13T08:58:00.001-07:00

Lorica Hamata, wikipedia.com

The lorica hamata is a type of mail armour used during the Roman Republic at late periods as a standard-issue armour for the secondary troops (Auxilia). They were mostly manufactured out of bronze or iron. It alternated with rows of closed washer-like rings, and riveted rings running horizontally, this produced a very flexible, reliable and strong armour. Each ring had an inside diameter of about 5 mm, and an outside diameter of about 7 mm. The shoulders of the lorica hamata had flaps that were similar to the Greek 'Linothorax' which ran from about mid-back to the front of the torso, and were connected by brass or iron hooks which connected to studs riveted through the ends of the flaps. Several thousand rings would have gone into one lorica hamata.

The knowledge on the manufacturing of mail may have come from the Celts. There were several versions of this type of armour, specialized for different military duties such as skirmishers, cavalry and spearmen.

Although labor-intensive to manufacture, it is thought that, with good maintenance, they could be continually used for several decades.

Around 5 A.D., the lorica hamata was still common amongst the Legionary soldiers. The lorica hamata remained standard issue for all soldiers, including auxilia. Later versions had sleeves and expanded to the knees unlike the earlier lorica hamata.

Trivia for today

2007-07-12T09:02:00.001-07:00

The Meta Sudans, from Wikipedia.com

The Meta Sudans (Latin: "sweating meta") was a large monumental conical fountain in ancient Rome.

The Meta Sudans was built some time between 89 and 96 under the Flavian emperors, a few years after the completion of the nearby Colosseum. It was built between the Colosseum and the Temple of Venus and Roma, close to the later Arch of Constantine, at the juncture of four regions of ancient Rome: regions I, III, IV, X (and perhaps II).

A meta was a tall conical object in a Roman circus that stood at either end of the central spina, around which racing chariots would turn. The Meta Sudans had the same shape, and also functioned as a similar kind of turning point, in that it marked the spot where a Roman triumphal procession would turn left from the via Triumphalis along the east side of the Palatine onto the via Sacra and into the Forum Romanum itself.

The Meta Sudans was built of a brick and concrete core, faced with marble. It seems to have "sweated" the water, rather than jetting it out the top. This may mean that it oozed out the top, or perhaps that water came from holes in its side. The monument is estimated to have stood up to 17m high; until the 20th century, its concrete core was still over 9m high. It had a base pool 16m wide and 1.4m deep.

The fountain was obviously damaged in the Middle Ages because it already appears as a ruin in early views of the Colosseum. Photos from the end of the 19th century show a conical heap of bricks next to the Arch of Constantine. The ruins of Meta Sudans survived until the 20th century. In 1936, Mussolini had its remains demolished and paved over to make room for the new traffic circle around the Colosseum. A commemorative plaque was set in the road. Although the above-ground structure is gone, its foundations were later re-excavated, revealing the extensive substructure. After another excavation in 1997-98 the traffic circle was closed and the area became a pedestrian district.

PC on "The Road Not Taken"

2007-07-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

Prac Crit on "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost
Contributed by Augustin Chiam, 6.7

This poem can be taken on a metaphorical or literal level. It is very typically a Frost poem as it explores the human psychology in making decisions and the emotions involved in the decision-making process. The major theme in this poem is the choices one has to make in one's life, using nature as a backdrop to put his message across. Many critics say that the context of this poem should be the many walks in the forest that Robert Frost took with his friend, Thomas Edwards. In these walks, his friend would always have to choose one path over the other and would often sigh at the end and wondering whether the other path not taken could have been better. Many, therefore, believed that
The title itself is very significant because it could mean different things depending on the interpretation. “The Road Not Taken” could refer to the choice that society didn't normally take and the one that was different from social norms, the road which the persona took, or it could also mean the road that the persona didn't take, hence the road not taken. Objectively speaking, this poem is about both roads, the choice to choose one of them and the process of choosing.
Frost starts the poem by telling us that there are “two roads”. This is significant because it tells us that Frost feels that there are only two distinctive choice in life, black or white and no shades of gray. This adds an element of determinism into the poem and shows that in the first place, the choices that are presented before us are limited, a theme that is repeated throughout the poem. Yellow is a color that represents autumn, a transition period between summer and winter, and in this case represents a cross roads and transition period in life. Wood represents life and is a symbol of the complexities and “denseness” of life. The repetition of “And” at the beginning of line two to four in the first stanza is used to emphasize the often long and tedious process of decision-making. “I could not travel both and be one traveler,” means that the choice that one makes will alter one's life irreversibly and that once decided, the persona cannot retrace his steps and still be the same person to choose all over again. This again adds an element of determinism and Frost reminds us that each decision we make is important and final, it changes us as a person forever and it is therefore of utmost important to consider our decisions thoroughly. To look down one path as far as possible and still be blocked by “undergrowth”, tells us that circumstances often block us from seeing the long-term consequences of our decision to take certain paths. This inability to see the full impact of our decisions even though they affect us irreversibly is lamentable but still we have to make the decision. In the first stanza, Frost emphasizes the very limited choices and situation that we are placed in and the many boundaries that we have to work with when making a decision, making the decision-making process long and painful and leaving the decision-maker helpless. The idea that even though we are supposed to be autonomous and sentient creatures yet the choices we make are still subject to externalities and the forces of nature, forces us to think twice about whether we really have a choice and how significant the human factor is when it comes to making decisions in life.
Frost uses the second stanza to enforce the idea that both paths are really the same after all and explores the reasons behind taking one over the “other”. The “other” path is described as “just as fair” which tells us that both paths are similar in nature. Frost goes on, however, to suggest that the “other” path was taken because it has “perhaps the better claim”. “Perhaps” indicates to us that there is uncertainty and it implies that we can never be fully certain about the decisions we make, an idea that is repeated throughout the poem. The word “grassy” in line eight refers to the saying “the grass is always greener on the other side”. It shows us how shallow our decision-making is and that most decisions are made based merely on perception, by what we perceive using our senses especially our sense of sight. Still, Frost reminds us that beyond that, the paths are “really about the same” as time passes.
The third stanza is like a culmination of the ideas in the first and second stanza, the deterministic nature of making decisions and the reasons behind our choices. The first two lines of the third stanza reinforces and reiterates the fact that both paths are almost the same and that they “equally lay”. Frost tells us that each path has no merits and advantages that places it above and makes it more favorable than the “other”. “Black” is significant as the other color other than “yellow” mentioned in the poem. “Black” represents the demerits and evils, any kind of disadvantage or attribute that will put us off or make us choose another path. The fact that the paths had not been “trodden black” tells us that this is not the case, there are no demerits that warrants that another path be given preference over the other. “Oh, I kept the first for another day!” seems naive and impulsive. As if one can have one's cake and eat it, that one can have the best of both world. Frost, however, immediate dispels that notion by again adding in the deterministic element into the poem again. He tells us that “way leads to way” which means that each decision is like a chain reaction that will lead to many other decisions. We are forever altered by our choices because “way leads to way”, there is no returning back as clearly stated by the persona's doubt over whether he “should ever come back”.The fact is clear that there is indeed no such choice anymore, there is no going back the way we came from after we make the decision. There is a definite choice to make when we come to a crossroads and each choice will affect our future decisions and is irreversible. Again this begets the question whether we actually have free will to make our decisions if the decision we make now will affect the choices we have and the decisions we will make in the future. Frost clearly presents to us the puzzling question of whether we truly have the autonomy and the free will that makes us superior to animals.
The last stanza is by far the most controversial stanza of the entire poem. There are many different interpretations of this stanza as it is the conclusion of the whole matter and is a final piece to the subtly complex poem. It determines the whole theme and direction that the poem takes. Many critics disagree what the actual connotation of the word “sigh” is. It could be a “sigh of relief”, a “sigh of disappointment” or even a “sigh of resignation” and each of these meanings presents a different perspective to the entire poem. Some believe that the last stanza is one of relief where Frost expresses relief after finally making a decision , whether right or wrong, after the long drawn-out and tedious process of decision making and considering that there was not much choice anyway because of the circumstances that restrict us. That we even decide on one particular path or stick to one decision is what “made all the difference”. Others believe that he was disappointed with the decision that he made, yet he cannot do anything about it because of the running theme of determinism in the entire poem that tells us that externalities prevent us from exercising our free will. The only thing that we should do is to tell others about our experience, in this case, “telling this with a sigh” is what “made all the difference”. Still others believe that he was resigned to his fate but was still glad that he chose a path that was not conforming to the society's norms and that has “made all the difference”. This view tells us that one should not merely conform to society's view and make your own decision, so far as to even go against what society expects and find your own unique individuality.
So whether be it the message that one should be a conformist and follow social norm, the message that we do not have choices in life even though there may seem to be or even that we often make decisions that are very superficial and based on perceptions, Frost lets the reader decide. Many of Frost poems have so many meanings and interpretation and that is characteristic of Robert Frost's poems as he believed that subtlety is very important in poetry and that a meaningful poem should have many meanings. “The Road Not Taken” is a classic example of Robert Frost's idea of a meaningful poem.

PC on After Apple Picking

2007-07-12T08:54:00.000-07:00

A Prac Crit on "After Apple Picking" by Robert Frost

contributed by Augustin Chiam, 6.7

There are several major themes in “After Apple-Picking” that Robert Frost portrays. These themes are sleep, work, illusion versus reality and the choices that we make in life. Frost uses different kinds of vivid imagery to bring out the different themes in his poem.
The first major theme is sleep. The whole poem is presented in a very dream-like state. This dreamy state is introduced in the first two lines where the persona sees his “two-pointed ladder” reaching out “toward heaven still”. This is a reference to the biblical story of Jacob's dream where Jacob saw in his dream a ladder reaching out to heaven. Immediately, the reader is able to see that the persona is experiencing a vision or is dreaming. There are three different kinds of sleep that Frost seeks to portray; nature's sleep, animal sleep and human sleep. Nature's sleep represents the continuous cycle of seasons where leaves fall off and plants wilt in the cold of winter only to be revived again when spring arrives. Frost uses the image of “winter sleep” to show the drowsiness of the persona. This is an effective use of imagery because cold temperatures cause people to be lethargic and drowsy so we can tell that this is not just any kind of sleep but a “winter sleep” that slows down all forms of activity in the persona's life. The phrase “stem end and blossom end” also depicts this seasonal change that causes the apple to fall off the tree only to grow again when the flowers blossom in spring. Here we can see that the “winter sleep” is not a permanent state but rather there is a hope of revival and renewal after the persona awakes from this “winter sleep”. There is further evidence of the sub-theme of renewal and revival with the imagery of the “cider-apple heap”. Apples that go to the cider-apple heap can be reused again to make cider thus showing the aspect of rebirth and a renewal of purpose after the persona awakes from his “winter sleep.” Animal sleep is portrayed in the imagery of a “long sleep” or hibernation like in the case of a “woodchuck”. The concept of hibernation like nature's sleep is not a permanent sleep but rather is a conservation of energy during winter only to awake in spring. Perhaps, this is indicative of Frost's own desire to rest from his work so as to take a break before writing again. Human sleep, in contrast, refers to a permanent state of rest which is death. The fact that the poem ends with the phrase, “or just some human sleep”, shows that human sleep brings about a finality unlike the woodchuck's “long sleep” or the “winter sleep” of nature. I feel that it is Frost's intention to portray “human sleep” as not just a finality but also an effective escape, more effective than merely the “long sleep” or the “winter sleep”, from the heavy burden of work and the troubles that the persona faces by leaving it as his last thought in the poem.
The next major theme that is prevalent in the poem is the nature of work. Frost argues that it is difficult to rest from one's labor. Linked to this is another biblical story relating to work. The Bible records that after the fall of man, God declared that man, from that day forth, cannot fest from his toil. Work and toil are but inevitable processes in a man's life which one cannot escape from. The depiction of falling apples is an allusion to the fall of man as depicted in the Bible. The persona in the poem clearly wants to escape from work because he is “overtired” and “done with apple-picking”. Even so, the tone of the persona is one of resignation because he cannot escape from apple-picking even in his sleep and dreams. The imagery of “magnified apples” appearing and disappearing is a manifestation of his inner desire and it shows that his work continues to haunt him even in his sleep. This indicates that, perhaps, there is no rest from work and that work is inevitable. Even in his dreams, he feels the “ache” and the “pressure of a ladder-round”. He cannot escape from the getting tired physically and mentally because of his work. He still feels the weariness and stress even when he sleeps. The “load on load of apples coming in” is further proof that in his dreams, the work and labor continue to pour in and his burden is not lifted but instead increased. Frost portrays work as a never-ending process that man cannot escape from. There is also a sub-theme of perfection where the persona desires perfection from his work. The persona talks about the “barrel” that he “didn't fill”, which implies that there is a desire to continue working until perfection is achieved by filling the barrel. This theme of perfection is further shown in line 28 where the persona talks about the “great harvest” he desired. The perfection is seen in the fact that he would “cherish in hand, lift down , and not let fall” any of the apples. In contrast, he let the sheet of ice fall and break in line 13 which shows the persona's struggle with the idea of perfection. The thought of apples that he “didn't pick” and a barrel he “didn't fill” is the evidence of the struggle for perfection, the repetition of “didn't” emphasizes the struggle. The conflict arises when perfection is not achieved and cannot be achieved especially when tiredness and weariness sets in because of work.
Illusion versus reality is a recurring theme in the entire poem. Frost uses present, past and present continuous tense in a random fashion which confuses the reader and make it hard to guess when the persona is sleeping and when he is not. This makes it hard to differentiate illusion from the reality. The best example of this theme is found from line 7 to line 17. “Essence of winter sleep is on the night, the scent of apples” shows that there is a mix of sleep and smell, an interesting combination when the different sensations begin to blend and the reader cannot tell apart one from the other. The word “strangeness” adds confusion to the poem because even the persona himself cannot fully comprehend the situation. The “pane of glass” that he holds up is actually a sheet of ice which is suppose to make things clearer yet the grass looks “hoary” or gray which shows that it is instead still very much an illusion rather than reality. The interesting thing to note in line 17 is that the persona claims to know the “form” in which his “dreaming was about to take”. This shows a clarity of thought and yet it is hard to believe that he can have a clarity of thought when the next moment he sees “magnified apples appear and disappear”. This uncertainty that Frost intentionally creates emphasizes the theme of illusion versus reality.
Lastly, the theme of choices is a theme that is also in Road Not Taken, another poem written by Robert Frost. In this poem, apples can be taken as a symbol of the choices that we make. The “two-pointed ladder” represents Frost's view that everything in life has only two shades, its either yes or no, black or white, there are no in-betweens. The apples that he “didn't pick” are representative of the choices he did not take, a variation of the same theme in Road Not Taken, when he chose one path over another. Like in Road Not Taken where there is a struggle to make the right decision, the “load on load of apples” is an unwelcome barrage of decisions which have to be made. The phrase “ten thousand thousand fruit” is a hyperbole to emphasize the sheer number of decisions one has to make in life. Frost shows how decision-making can be a struggle and though we often desire to “cherish” each decision and not let each one “fall”, inevitably there will be those decisions that we abandon for better decisions, hence the imagery of apples that “struck the earth.”
In conclusion, Frost successfully portrays the struggle man has to keep up with perfection in work and the inevitable hardships that one has to endure. Sleep is ultimately not not necessarily the solution as even in one's sleep, the troubles of work can permeate in many different forms. The choices that one has to make in life is also another inevitable struggle of man. It is possible that Frost wrote this poem with the intention of showing his tiredness and weariness in writing and needs a well-deserved break. Whatever the case, the poem shows how work can sometimes be too overwhelming to handle and rest is needed, like the hibernation of the woodchuck, before working again.

Trivia for today

2007-07-06T11:49:00.001-07:00

The Gemonian Stairs (Latin: Scalae Gemoniae) were located in the central part of Ancient Rome, leading from the Capitoline Hill down to the Roman Forum and Tiber River. Nicknamed the "Stairs of Mourning," the stairs are infamous in Roman history as a place of execution.

The stairs were built some time before the reign of Tiberius and were not mentioned by name in any ancient texts that predate his reign. Their first use as a place of execution is thus associated with the paranoid excesses of his later reign.

The condemned were slain on the stairs either by sword, or more famously, by being bound and thrown down the stairs. Occasionally the corpses of the executed were transferred here for display from other places of execution in Rome. Corpses were usually left to rot on the staircase for extended periods of time in full view of the Forum, scavenged by dogs or other carrion animals, until eventually being thrown into the Tiber.

Death on the stairs was considered extremely dishonourable and dreadful, yet several senators and even an emperor (Vitellius) met their demise here.

From wikipedia.com

Trivia for today

2007-07-04T02:03:00.000-07:00

From wiki:

The Gaesatae (Greek Γαισάται) were a group of Gaulish warriors who lived in the Alps near the river Rhône and fought against the Roman Republic in the Battle of Telamon of 224 BC. The Greek historian Polybius says their name meant "mercenaries",[1] although some modern scholars, by comparison with the Old Irish word gáe (spear, javelin),[2] contend that it may in fact have meant "spearmen", and compare them with the medieval Irish fianna, who were small warbands of landless young men operating independently of any kingdom.[3]

According to Polybius' account, the Boii and Insubres of Cisalpine Gaul paid the Gaesatae, under their leaders Concolitanus and Aneroëstes, large sums of money to fight against the Romans, in response to the Roman colonisation of the former Gallic territory of Picenum. The Gauls overran and defeated a Roman army on the approach to Rome,[4] but when the consul Lucius Aemilius Papus with his troops, the Gauls followed Aneroëstes' advice to withdraw with their booty. Papus pursued them, and the other consul Gaius Atilius Regulus cut them off at Telamon in Etruria.[5]

Polybius describes how the Gaesatae fought at the front, and unlike their Gallic allies who fought in trousers and light cloaks, they went into battle naked, both because of their great confidence and their desire not to get their clothes caught in the brambles.[6] Diodorus Siculus also reports that some Gauls fought naked, trusting in the protection of nature.[7] The appearance of these well-built naked warriors, and the noise of their trumpets and war-cries, intimidated the Romans, but their small shields offered little protection against Roman javelins, and the Gaesatae were driven back and their allies slaughtered.[8] Concolitanus was captured. Aneroëstes escaped with a few followers and took his own life.[9] In 222 BC the Gaesatae were hired again, but the Gallic forces were defeated by the Roman cavalry at Clastidium in the territory of the Insubres.[10]

1^ Polybius, Histories 2:22.1
2^ Dictionary of the Irish Language, Compact Edition, Royal Irish Academy, 1990, p. 352
3^ James MacKillop, Dictionary of Celtic Mythology, Oxford University Press, 1998, pp. 217-218
4^ Polybius, Histories 2.:5
5^ Polybius, Histories 2:26-27
6^ Polybius, Histories 2:28.3-7
7^ Diodorus Siculus, Historical Library 5.30
8^ Polybius, Histories 2:29.5-30.9
9^ Polybius, Histories 2:31.1-2
10^ Polybius, Histories 2.34; Plutarch, Marcellus 6-7

Prac Crit on "The Getting of Wisdom"

2007-07-01T06:13:00.000-07:00

This analysis of a prose passage for SL English was sent in by "Suzumiya Haruhi"; the passage is an extract taken from a text called "The Getting of Wisdom". Thanks for submitting!
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The passage describes the incidents in a classroom after the discovery of a theft from the point of view of the protagonist, Laura. Through her eyes we are presented with a rather innocent, unadulterated view of the happenings around her which are in contrast to the views of the adult figure, the principal. This brings forth the idea of how children, in their innocence, may sometimes see situations with more clarity.

The passage begins by introducing the setting – a rather old classroom, as seen from the “blackened, ink-scored, dusty desks, with eternally dry ink-wells.” The humble setting makes the theft, which occurs later, all the more poignant since the girl appears to be comparatively poor, even to others who are not likely to be that well off themselves.

The fact that the passage is seen through Laura’s eyes again is significant as Laura does not appear to be that similar to the other children, being on the “tiptoe of expectation” whereas the rest “only whispered and wondered”. She appears to be full of childlike curiosity even as she “[thrusts] her fingers, in and out” in expectation. Her behavior is in contrast to the principal’s, who perhaps personifies the idea of adulthood, as he carries himself to impress others, as shown through the “low impressive tone” and vivid “oratory” on the girl’s crime. However, while this is so, he does not appear to possess the childlike sense of empathy that Laura is able to have for the thief in this case, perhaps revealing a gap between childhood and adulthood, in terms of being “human”.

Indeed, his main purpose in reprimanding the child appears to be to condemn her, not to help her. This is shown through the description of the “unhappy culprit [rising], then to be cast down and [remain] glued to the floor”. There is an obvious contrast between the image of rising up and the idea of being “cast down” and this emphasizes the perhaps overzealous view of justice the principal appears to take. The fact that the culprit is prepared to remain “glued to the ground” shows the immense lack of sympathy from the principal.

The culprit, on the other hand, is given a highly unflattering description from the author, and from Laura. She is not only “pale and silly-looking”, but is also a “very ugly girl”. This description, probably reflecting the mindset of Laura, emphasizes that Laura’s empathy for the culprit is genuine, not bases on any physical redeeming qualities the culprit may have. In this ugly girl the reader is presented with an almost stereotypical situation, one in which the ugliest is also the one with the “worst” character, in this case being a thief. Normally, this would lead us to immediate condemnation and disgust but Laura’s insights allow us as the readers to empathize and perhaps see things as they really are.

From the passage however, we can see that Laura appears to appreciate the principal a lot. She appears to “[hang] on to his lips, [appreciate] his points and the skillful way he worked up his climaxes”. The author reveals to us that the principal is likely to be a rather educated person with notable oratorical skills. He appears to be the symbol of perfection in adulthood that even Laura appears to appreciate. However, his speech reflects the fact that he perceives the situation to be a “textbook” situation. He begins with “introductory remarks”, moves on from “general” discussion to details, and generally works his points as if giving a grand speech. However, impressive this may be, the author makes it feel rather mechanical, without feeling, by giving perhaps and ideal speech on crime and punishment. This could be an attempt by the author to use the principal as a figure of “perfection” that should not be achieved. His condescending remarks about the “motor impulse of thefts” being because a “lolly shop had stretched out its octopus arms to you” reflects a general disdain for childishness. However, the principal fails to realize that every situation does have external factors, all of which serve to complicate the situation. Through him the author suggests that perhaps the wisdom, as reflected by the title, is not going by the book, but in fact understanding each situation for what it is.

Laura understands the difference between the “needs” of “tram-fare on a rainy morning” and “wants” of lollipops from a “lolly shop”. Through this, the author appears to give a social commentary regarding the theme of general prosperity as compared to the austere situation faced by Annie Johns. Laura’s thoughts reveal the difference between theft out of need and theft because “a lolly shop had stretched out its arms to you”. This rather comical statement used by the principal not only dehumanizes the situation but also reveals the social divide between the privileged class who have all they need, and possibly want, and the proletariats who have nothing, and, in Annie John’s case, not even looks.

The author uses the main characters Laura and the principal to bring across the theme of innocence versus experience; only in this case, it is the younger one, who would otherwise be perceived to be more innocent, that is the more experienced one. Laura knows “what it is to be poor”. This is her experience, and, can be contrasted to the principal’s, whose perception of being poor is simply not having enough money to buy a “lolly”. Through this the author presents the idea that age is not a barrier when it comes to being more experienced. That it is the experiences which make one more experienced. This is shown particularly through her realization that Annie Johns stole little not to “avoid detection”, as Mr. Strachey had supposed, but rather because she felt that “a few odd coins could not matter”. This statement led myself as a reader to sympathize with Annie Johns and strengthened my view of her character.

Laura’s views throughout the passage represent feelings we all had but perhaps did not express, such as how she is “thrilled” by Miss Zielinski’s tears, even as seeing one spectator at a play moved to tears “intensifies his neighbors’ enjoyment”. Her myriad of feelings are in contrast to the general feelings of the adults who have mostly “stolid” faces, thus expressing their lack of feeling. This is interesting when we compare it to Annie John who is also hiding behind a stony mask of a face. The lack of explicit emotions expressed on either side could perhaps represent a lack of feeling to which Annie Johns is also being driven to due to her being reprimanded.

In the passage we may note that other than Mr. Strachey and Miss Annie Johns, most of the characters given names are those with dissenting viewpoints, who are not perhaps as unfeeling. These characters include Bertha and Miss Zielinski, the latter who sympathizes strongly enough to be moved to “tears”. Interestingly, her tears are not likely to be the product of Mr. Strachey’s speech but instead of her realization of the true circumstances. By glorifying the deviant voices such as Laura’s in the passage, the author appears to appeal to us as readers to judge situations, and people, not by our “adult” viewpoints but from a childlike “human” perspective whereby we are able to sympathize with others.

Hark! Achtung! Attencion!

2007-06-30T06:48:00.001-07:00

I hope you've enjoyed what I've posted up so far, and that its been of some help to you... please understand that in order for this blog to keep going with essays, I'm going to need far more essays on far more topics than just the ones I do; I mean, I feel that its better to post them up for people to read, rather than let them slowly rot away on my com's hard disk... As Honoré de Balzac once said,

"It is as easy to dream a book as it is hard to write one."

The quality of writing doesn't matter (it has to be, of course, of at least a minimal academic standard). The ideas do, because this site wasn't set up with the intention of letting people copy essays wholesale; rather, it was set up with the dream of one day providing an opportunity for the appreciation of essays written by fellow IBDP students, as well as to provide ideas to students who are rushing for that deadline. Please, if this site has benefited you in any way, do make a personal contribution by sending one of your essays in.

If you have anything to contribute, please send any entries to:

Oracle_163@yahoo.com.sg

on any subject at all =) Credit or anonymity will, of course, be offered if requested...

Looking forward to seeing some essays soon! =)

Prac Crit on Soyinka's "Massacre , October '66"

2007-06-30T06:47:00.001-07:00

To begin with, the poem was written by Soyinka to express his disgust over the massacre of the Igbos by fellow Nigerians in 1966. The poem adeptly expresses the inhuman nature of this killing with extensive use of metaphors and imagery to mask out the brutality of the killings he had witnessed. The title itself is short, presented in a matter-of-fact tone and unemotionally linked to the inhuman and senseless slaughters which might have occurred to this period, and it suggests that Soyinka, as the poem, might want to distance himself emotionally from the atrocities which the Nigerians might have performed during this event.
The poem proper begins by stastying that “Shards of sunlight touch me here/Shredded in willows”, which suggests incompleteness and sharp tactility. Literally, “shards” could evoke broken glass and evisceration, which may be linked to shrapnel, and is a poignant reminder of fragmentation. This is further enhanced by the fact that he “sought to reach/A mind at silt-bed” “through stained-glass/Fragments”, which is again, very visual and tactile. The next stanza continues with the fact that the “lake stayed cold”, which could symbolise the lack of life, coupled with the “October flush of dying leaves”. October, the season of autumn, represents death and loss, as opposed to spring, the season of rebirth and renewal. The theme of death is fleshed out very significantly here, and it is reminiscent of the senseless slaughter of many of the Igbo people. Again, the description of the massacre is veiled, and not immediately apparent. To the casual onlooker, without knowledge of the context of the poem, it would be very hard to tell that Soyinka was writing about this incident, and perhaps the purpose of writing it in such a style is to avoid negative attention from the Nigerian government, who was very strict regarding the publishing of these issues. When the “gardener’s labour flew in seasoned scrolls/Lettering the wind”, we are reminded of the “dying leaves” being the victims of the massacre, and the fact that the gardener “labour[ed]” in vain, shows that trying to save these victims was a pointless task, as well as the fact that man’s labour is ultimately fruitless. The fact that they “letter[ed] the wind” could show that the deaths which occurred were openly committed, but yet from what happened in the massacre itself, no one took responsibility for these deaths. This contrast is perhaps what Soyinka wants us as the audience to realise.
Below, the massacre is also shown to be an “idyll sham”, which conveys the sense of beauty, peace and tranquillity. However, when we see that the narrator “trod on acorns”, describing “each shell’s detonation”, we see that the explosions are sharp auditory sensory input, which reminds us of explosions and bombs shattering. Again, he compares the “detonation” of the acorn shells to the “skull’s uniqueness”- how similar they are to a skull shattering. This horrific comparison evokes shock in us, because it is not what we are expecting, and we realise that beneath this “sham” of nature which the narrator has painted to us, the cover-up of the massacre, there lies something deeper which we perhaps are not aware of, which the people in power try to cover up.
With this realisation “Came sharper reckoning”. When the narrator talks about the “favoured food of hogs”, he talks about acorns, which in turn we draw back to the reference about heads, and we realise that the acorns which the narrator is referring to, “cannot number high”, as compared to the amount of heads, or lives, which the massacre has claimed. The issues of “heads sharply crop[ping] to whirlwinds/[the narrator] has briefly fled” also comes up, where the killing of the Igbo people seems to be systematic and efficient, and the intensity of the massacre is revealed, when he describes the killing as a “whirlwind”, something which he may have “briefly fled” through luck.
Again, the “oak rains a hundred more”, a hyperbole of the number of victims who were targeted during the massacre, which is a “kind of confusion to arithmetics of death”, showing that the massacre is, in fact, immeasurable, due to the countless lives it has claimed. In contrast to the “sharper reckoning” which the narrator has attained, we see that the massacre brings chaos; regardless of the fact that the destruction is systematic, it is, at the same time, total, and referred to later as “autumn the removal man/Dust[ing] down rare canvases”, almost as if it is a natural process. It is not, however; in contrast, the massacre is artificial, and man-made, and it being described akin to nature is ironic, and from the irony, we are able to note Soyinka’s distaste of the massacre itself, and at the same time, see what really happened beyond the cover-ups which the people in power initiated.
The next stanza details beautifully the crux of the whole poem. To him, to let a “loud resolve of passion/Fly to a squirrel”, is as if the squirrel, nature, and representative of a human life, is being annihilated by this “loud resolve of passion”, or the fury and madness in which the massacre was committed in, in a explosion of “burnished light and copper fur”. Again, “burnished…copper” provides a very artificial, piercing sensation, and reminds us that the massacre is artificial, and destructive to man, because man here is represented by objects of nature, such as the acorns as described previously above. When the narrator sees this, he has a “distant stance without the lake’s churchwindows”, a line which hints that he wants to look at the incident transparently, through all the cover-ups the people responsible have initiated, from an onlooker’s point of view, hence the term “without”. Once he feels he has attained this, gained his “sharper reckoning”, he realises that, for the victims of the massacre, “for a stranger”, he cannot help but feel love, as a Nigerian to a Nigerian and a human to a human. Through this stanza, he is able to effectively evoke our sympathy for the victims of the massacre, as well as call us to look at the issue in a clear frame of mind.
The rest of the poem falls into place once this is established, that the “host of acorns [falling]” are simply men who fall once they have been shot, as they “are silenced all, whose laughter/Rose from such indifferent paths”, detailing the narrator’s slow revelation of how senseless the killing is. There is a double meaning in the word indifferent, meaning “neither good or bad”, and at the same time, also meaning “being neutral in alignment”, showing how everyone who was an Igbo, was slaughtered, no matter how important they were, and whether they were passionate revolutionaries or simply passive people. To him, this epiphany is moving, and even shocking, when he realises that “oh God/They are not strangers all”. Again, the massacre is referred to as a “desecration”, which “mocks the word/Of peace- salaam aleikum- not strangers any”, meaning that the “idyll sham”, as referred to above, was such a blatant pretence at covering up, that it was mocking, and even derogatory, not only to the people involved in the massacre, but also to him and his countrymen, and his religion, and everything that they have stood for. “Salaam aleikum” here means “peace be with you”, which is a common greeting for Muslims, but here it is realised that this greeting is part of the idyll sham which was created, and it loses, even tarnishes its significance in its part of Igbo culture. Again, the “Brain of thousands pressed asleep to pig fodder” is indubitably referring to the fact that many people have actually believed the audacious “idyll sham” which was constructed, and Soyinka here is expressing frustration, and even disbelief, that people are too blind to see what he perceives as the real truth of the massacre, and coming to terms with one’s self. To him, “Shun pork the unholy”, is just another excuse propagated by the people in power, for them to live their lifestyle of power, and be able to get off scot-free for initiating the massacre, and the “priest” here reveals that the people in power might even be using religion as a justification for their actions, albeit styling themselves as in control of the religion itself; their words seem to form a sort of cult-religion in itself, whose illusion Soyinka wishes to banish. Therefore, in a mocking tone, Soyinka wishes us to see that the only real “desecration” is the one that he has mentioned- that of secretly condoning the massacre or being in denial of its existence.
In conclusion, he “borrow[s] seasons of an alien land”, again, searching for meaning in the chaos of the “whirlwind” and “confusion… [in the] arithmetics of death”, only to realise that he finds it “In brotherhood of ill, pride of race around [him]/Strewn in sunlit shards”, that fact that he and his countrymen stand united in the aftermath of chaos and death, but for the wrong reasons. It is interesting to note that the Igbo war ignited was a civil war, and the underlying message of the poem was that during the massacre, Soyinka was not able to trust even his fellow countryman, due to the very nature of the war. The impermanence and ephemeral nature of Man and his relationships is also touched upon in this poem, hinted at his borrowing of “alien lands/To stay the season of a mind”. We realise, after reading the poem, that Nigeria is not united as a country, but as a confederacy of people, and that people are only united by visualising the “mockery of waves” in the “idyll sham”, as if it was a painting, and no one could look beneath the surface except him, to visualise the incident through clear “churchwindows”. To him, the “brotherhood of ill” is what he wishes to destroy, the fact that we are all united for the wrong reasons, and what he wants us to unite under, is under the banner of acceptance, of the realisation and acceptance that the atrocity did occur under Nigerian hands, and that people should all look through this “idyll sham” and look at this clearly.
The poem itself is deceptive in its stanzas with four lines each, seemingly regular, but in free verse. Again, this deception is vital in showing that a deeper message lies within the poem, as in the massacre itself, and how it was portrayed by the people in power. Pastoral symbolic references are also used to “cover up” the horror of the massacre in a seemingly innocent way, and are also representative of the way that the massacre was covered up. The tone is carefully neutral, and the mood, sombre, carefully disguising what Soyinka really feels, and we realise that this passion and anger is all the more intensified, due to it being veiled. Writing on the theme of death, transience of human life, and generally on the massacre itself, Soyinka is able to convey his feelings over effectively through such techniques, making “Massacre, October ‘66” a text which may evoke ambivalent feelings in us.

Prac Crit on Soyinka's "Telephone Conversation"

2007-06-30T06:46:00.001-07:00

Soyinka wrote this poem while he was studying at Leeds in England, and the context is significant because he, an African, was in a foreign land, and therefore plagued by much prejudice. To overcome this stigma, he used his poem, “Telephone Conversation”, as a political vehicle to show how racial prejudice has permeated all aspects of daily life, and to show how narrow minded one can be when this form of prejudice is involved in daily life.
The very title of the poem suggests a black person involved in a conversation over the phone, trying to find a place to stay in a foreign country, and we see that he is in a similar predicament to Soyinka’s when he was overseas, both regarding finding a place to stay and at the same time, overcoming the mindset that the westerners, or white people, have against people with black skin. Here, the poem starts off with the narrator considering renting a room, and we see that to him, the “price seemed reasonable, location/Indifferent”. Here, it is important to note the double meaning of the word “indifferent”, meaning both a lack of partiality, and also “neither good or bad”. This pun immediately has the effect of catching the audience’s attention, as well as revealing the narrator to be smart and witty, which will be explained later when more details about the narrator surface. The apartment is also attractive because the “landlady swore she lived/Off premises”, which is a advantage because the apartment the word “swore” reveals that the landlady was desperate to rent out the place, and that she lived off-premises, which, to the narrator, was important because she would not ever see him and realize that he was black. Therefore, to him, “Nothing remained/But self-confession”, showing that the narrator felt it was his duty, and his obligation to show how he was different from everyone else. This is immediately reinforced by the fact that he “warned” her that he was African. The effect of this is instantaneous, and immediately, there is “silence”, which is essentially the “Silenced transmission of/Pressurized good-breeding”, where the landlady is shocked out of her wits by this admission. On the literal level, we realize that the landlady is shocked but trying to be polite by not saying anything insulting. On the other hand, we realize that due to her views, there is pressure on her not to say anything, and that in general, there is a great amount of tension in the situation. Again, “good-breeding” is ironic, because the narrator relates this “good-breeding” to something which exists exclusively in white people who possess a racial prejudice against black people. The use of irony in this instance shows that the landlady may in fact be less polite than what our first impressions of her seem to show.
Finally, when the landlady gathers her wits, we see that “Voice, when it came,/Lipstick coated, long gold-rolled/Cigarette holder pipped.”, which in fact portrays the landlady as someone who possesses a certain amount of positive affluence in Western society. Essentially, Soyinka wants us to see racial prejudice as it is evinced in the woman because he wants us to realize that racial prejudice permeates every level of Western society, from bottom to top. Also, he brings into question the landlady’s moral values, and whether they are respectable or not. From the description of her voice being impersonal and, perhaps, slightly considerate, from the play with words on “Pressurized good-breeding”, we also see that the narrator is initially grateful for her lack of passion against his racial attributes, because he wants to look at the situation as optimistically as possible, and when she has not yet replied, he retains a glimmer of hope that she may not be as racially prejudiced as other people in the country. Again here, however, we see that her “Pressurized good-breeding” is ironic because she talks to the narrator in a judgmental tone below, and this verbal irony again shows the contrast between the landlady, and who she stands for, versus the narrator and who he stands for.
Finally, the narrator is “caught…foully” by her reply, where the word “foully” is use to connote both the “stench/of rancid breath of public hide-and-speak”, and at the same time, reminding the narrator that he is black, and that to white people, this seems foul. In her reply to his admission, the landlady asks “HOW DARK?” (which is essentially the all-important question in the poem), and the narrator is caught unaware by this question. We see that the question is so offending to him that there is an ellipsis to denote a pause or gasp of shock, before he realizes that “[he] had not misheard”, followed by another ellipsis. It is important to note that the narrator, offended as he is by the question, remains silent when the landlady continues- “ARE YOU LIGHT/ OR VERY DARK?” From this continuation of her reply, we can deduce that the capital letters are used to show that the landlady talks like someone who boasts of his or her power in society, but possesses little in reality, because we see that the narrator is able to subtly poke fun at her and outwit her in the latter part of the poem. However, when the narrator hears her reply, he begins to understand the reality of the situation. To him, “Button B, Button A” are similar to different choices because public telephones in England at that time had two buttons, “Button B [and] Button A” which one had to press before making a call. To the narrator, the buttons are like choices in the conversation, which he is able to make, or the various responses he could give to her. Also, the lucid description again shows him that the situation “was real”.
As soon as he recognizes his quandary, he begins to notice the environment, the “Stench/ of rancid breath of public hide-and-speak”, which is essentially a pun on the common phrase “hide and seek”, and reveals this seemingly innocuous conversation to be something akin to that, as if he was playing a verbal hide and seek with the landlady. Also, the fact that the words “stench” and “rancid” are used to describe this activity shows that he is reviled in the western society, and that this stigma is inescapable when faced with racial prejudice. Continuing, he begins to realize the presence of the “Red booth. Red pillar box. Red double-tiered/Omnibus squelching tar”, which are essentially anaphors, or repetitions to represent anger, derived from the colour red. It is also important to note that this is the only moment in which the narrator shows some shred of emotion, and that he is careful to keep his emotions veiled; this is perhaps due to the fact that he keeps his character meticulously shielded so as to prevent the landlady from realizing that he is black, even over the phone. Also, the fact that the omnibus was “squelching tar” shows how western society was oppressing him, because tar, the colour of black, also symbolizes his skin colour, and red, as explained above, his anger.
Stunned by this, the narrator also realises at the same time that both he and the landlady are “shamed/By ill-mannered silence, surrender/Pushed dumbfounded to beg simplification”- him by the fact that he is black, and therefore shamed and surrendering to the fact that he has been identified as a black person, and the landlady being shamed by revealing her prejudice, and also surrendering to the fact that she has prejudice against black people. Continuing, the narrator goes on to say that the landlady is “considerate… varying the emphasis”, which is again ironic, because she wants to quantify her expression of race, which is a very simple-minded view of race, and the irony here can be related back to the previous instance of irony where the narrator described the landlady’s “Pressurized good-breeding”, and which shows him to be subtly poking fun at her supposed superiority to him.
We are able to note that when the landlady says “ARE YOU DARK? OR VERY LIGHT?”, she seems to look at him in a monochromatic fashion, in the mutually exclusive colours of black or white, and to him, “revelation came” of her being a primarily shallow person, and also the fact that she was starting to view his patronage in a unfavourable light. From this point onwards, the narrator seems to realise that his position is one of a lost cause, and he starts to insult her subtly by saying “You mean—like plain or milk chocolate?” Here, plain chocolate and milk chocolate are the same colour, and what is unexpected is her assent, “clinical, crushing in its light/Impersonality”. There is a double meaning on the word “Light”, here, which could additionally mean light in terms of shades, as well as “not serious”. We also see that the narrator has already changed his stance towards the landlady, when his “wave-length adjusted”; again a pun on “wave-length adjusted” meaning that his stance towards her changed, and “wave-length adjusted” also meaning that the truth about his skin colour was clarified in their conversation. Following that, we realise that he chose to be honest by saying “West African Sepia… Down in [his] passport”, and admit his differences, whereas the landlady is forced to admit her ignorance when she asks ““WHAT’S THAT?” conceding/”DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT IS.”” Again the wit of the narrator, expressed thus far by the use of puns and irony in the poem, is contrasted with the narrow mindedness and ignorance of the landlady, who is forced to admit this fact by the narrator’s use of high diction, which the words “sepia” and “spectroscopic” can attest to. Essentially, the entire first stanza introduces the situation, as well as showing us how the narrow mindedness of the landlady causes her to want to categorise the narrator into “LIGHT OR VERY DARK”- to her, there is no “spectroscopic” range of colours except black, bad, and white, good.
In the second stanza, we see that the narrator refuses to give the landlady what she wants- a direct answer to her question. He avoids her probing questions with “Not altogether”, and goes on to mention how his face is “brunette”, and how other parts of him are “a peroxide blond”, and is all mentioned in a somewhat mocking tone. When he refuses to let the landlady quantify him as either dark or light, he starts to feign politeness and even goes so far as to pretend ignorance of what she’s asking for. Here, his diatribe, in addition to the caesuras to feign a dramatic pause, begins to annoy the landlady, and we assume that she finally realises that he is mocking her. When her “receiver rear[s] on the thunderclap/About [the narrator’s] ears”, she is on the verge of putting down the phone, and this shows us that she is, in fact, very shallow, because she probably has not understood anything, or even perceived that he was mocking her, from his reply.
The poem also ends on a comical note, when we see that the narrator “pleaded” with her, while he was in the midst of talking about his “bottom” and before she put down the phone, whether she would “rather/See for [herself]” the narrator’s bottom. This insult is, at the same time, a pun on the last phrase, and also concludes the poem effectively, because we sympathise with the narrator for not being able to complete the transaction successfully.
All in all, the poem emphasizes the narrator’s skin colour and his African descent, as well as to show how the speaker is a well-educated individual. The free verse of the poem contributes to a relaxed mood of conversation and also emphasizes the underlying tension, while the comical tone which the poem is written in serves to make the mood fairly light-hearted. In addition to that, we see that the speaker is, himself, a well-educated individual, and that the scenario of the black and supposedly unintelligent man outwitting the woman shows how wrong people can be in judging by skin colour, in addition to showing how stereotypes as displayed are not always true. As a final note, irony and sarcasm are used with great effect to show the ridiculousness and absurdity of racism, which is an underlying theme throughout the poem, and which has been developed successfully.

Prac Crit on "The Wood Pile" by Robert Frost

2007-06-30T06:39:00.000-07:00

I took this from a site which I am now unable to find; it was from an American Poet's forum and it was a very well written piece on Frost's "Wood Pile"... Sadly, the only reference I can find to it online is from http://angolbdf.argyre.hu/sem4/amlit/tetelek/7b.doc, and even that essay is one which plagarised bits of the analysis which was taken from the forum too... Anyway, here is the reproduction of the analysis in full; please read through it and appreciate it, it is not my work, but I have used it for referencing my own Prac Crit, and found it very useful. Again, all effort has been made to contact the writer of this wonderful piece of work, and I hereby disclaim all credit for this excellently written work.

The full analysis is reproduced below:

"The Wood-Pile" is thoroughly typical of many of Frost's mature nature poems. At once narrative and dramatic, the poem seems astonishingly clear even on first encounter. There at its center are the solitary speaker, a familiar figure, and his story, this one—like Frost's others—told in the inevitably simple, straightforward and calm, almost laconic language that characterizes dozens of Frost's other narrative lines. There is the typical stripped minimum of physical action—walking. Here, as elsewhere, the walking is seemingly aimless, has no manifest destination: it is an epitome of Frost's conviction that "Calculation is usually no part in the first step of any walk" (402). But, again as elsewhere, however much the walking appears to lack direction, it is clearly mysterious in that it radiates a high sense of personal destiny. "Every poem," Frost once remarked, "is an epitome of the great predicament; a :figure of the will braving alien entanglements" (401). The speaker simply appears in our field of vision and—to use Yvor Winters' negative criticism in a positive way—seems to be "spiritually drifting." There is the familiar winter landscape, bleak, desolate, initially amorphous and forbidding. There is the appearance of the small bird and the speaker's curious pretense of talking with such creatures. There is the woodpile itself, like the tuft of flowers, the mending wall, the road not taken, the west-running brook, so enigmatically and hypnotically there. And there is the almost dreamlike state of meditation it induces, in some ways calling to mind the sleepy vision of "After Apple-Picking." Finally, there is what Frost called "the vocal imagination," the speaker's voice, his style: that particular quality of sound "which indicates how the writer takes himself and what he is saying . . . , the way he carries himself toward his ideas and deeds" (403). Frost once joked: "Let the sound of [Robert Louis] Stevenson go through your mind empty and you will realize that he never took himself other than as an amusement. Do the same with Swinburne and you will see that he took himself as a wonder" (298). In "The Wood-Pile" Frost clearly takes himself neither simply as an amusement nor as a wonder but as both.
On another level of its structure, beneath the relaxed surface of the language, the poem progresses by way of a series, almost a system, of oppositions, ambiguities, and contrarieties that might be called Hawthornian. "In order to know where we are," Frost has noted, "we must know opposites." The "frozen swamp" is the first obvious instance of this characteristic structural phenomenon and suggests immediately multiple ambiguities in the external landscape: hardness-softness, cold-heat, solidity-fluidity, stability-instability, a surface level and a dimension—as yet untouched but present—beneath the surface. All this is registered against the blankness, the flatness of the minimally specified "one gray day." In the first line, then, we have concentrated an action, a place, a time. There is also a typically Frostian subtlety in the simple prepositions surrounding the action and thus wrapping it in still another operative ambiguity: "Out walking in"—the phrase is so solidly idiomatic, so much a mode of common speech, that all its powers of suggestion (namely, the juxtaposition of externality and internality) are playfully hidden, buried beneath the plainness of the words themselves. This particular tension is elaborated in the relationships between lines 1 and 2. Whereas the first line addresses itself to a continuous physical action and the external landscape, the second is concerned with a pause and a turning inward to the mind of the persona and his fearful response to that landscape. The speaker's decision to "turn back" emphasizes the sharp disjunction existing between this particular mind and this particular reality. The fear and confusion are isolated only momentarily, however, since they are immediately answered to by the courage of the counter-resolution of line 3. There, as the grammatical shift from "I" to "we" signifies, it is not Frost's purpose to annihilate the fear but to use it: the fear and the courage, the will to proceed and the hesitancy to do it, now almost formally define two dimensions of the persona. He has become at once his own reassuring guide and cautious initiate. And since it is the "we" who shall see, what is to be discovered will be informed by both. Still another ironic opposition is in Frost's use of the negative qualifier "No" to decisively introduce the positive affirmation of "going on" and thus to undermine the negative preference to "turn back." It is as if there is in the persona's emotions a mathematical logic in which two negatives interpenetrate to form a positive. The playful blending of "amusement" and "wonder" here illustrates what Reuben Brower calls Frost's "delight of saying the ordinary thing and discovering that it is art."
We might at this juncture turn back to ask what gives rise to the fear in the first place. The question leads back to that "frozen swamp" and to the realization that the place is forbidding and inscrutable because it suggests nature in its least regenerate aspects. It is essentially primordial, totally unformed. Hinting as it does at a sweeping geological sense of time and age, it provides another, prehistoric tension with the fragile minuteness and ephemerality of the mere "one gray day."
In line 4 the speaker, going on, now, as it were, gives himself to the place. He is no longer "out" altogether but in some sense "in." The distance between mind and reality is now diminished even to the point of tactile intimacy implied in the word "held." He who would see submits willingly to being acted upon by the still undefined force within that which he would see. But the explicit oppositions and tensions persist: in the "now" an the "then," the one foot and the implied other, the "here" and the "Somewhere else." Even the syntax displays similarly precarious balances: "The hard snow held me" announces a categorical, absolute condition, and points to a sureness of footing and, concomitantly, an intellectual and emotional security. But the line moves on by way of a concessive clause that turns back on the earlier statement and attaches exceptional circumstances contrary to it. The sentence contains elaborated images of impenetrability and penetrability that are quietly paradoxical because of the conditions they are associated with. The impenetrability suggests sureness and constancy, the penetrability doubt and instability, even danger. What normally seem to be positive and negative connotations are equally mixed in each of these syntactical units, then, and they are joined in fact by a conjunction—"save"—whose playful punning transforms the usual logic of "except" and suggests that the categories of positive and negative have again interpenetrated. To see is, of course, to penetrate into the truth or meaning of a phenomenon or thing. In a Frost poem, however, to see is always to know that there is a point at which the thing to be seen resists and defies penetrability, a point of its being beyond which it is alas unknowable. "The Wood-Pile," like "Neither Out Far nor In Deep," is from this angle a metaphor about the process of penetration and the ultimate limits of that process: a metaphor about the process of the interpenetration of him who sees and that which is seen. It is at once, like so much of Hawthorne's work, an exploration into the wilderness and into the self, a journey at once out and in.
What the persona sees in lines 5 to 9 is merely a "view," since he has as yet penetrated very little—only enough, in fact, to be confronted with an overwhelmingly confusing verticality. He sees merely one-dimensional lines without shape, and the measure of his plight is that he cannot find a language to give a name to the place. But, although he is thus suspended between his desire for certainty and the fact of his fearful uncertainty, his uneasiness and doubt are now informed by his awareness of them. Trying to solve the riddle of the landscape, he comes to know something not so much about that landscape as about himself. He is, he says, "just far from home." If "just" points up the severe, even terrifying, limits of his knowledge at this point of the process, it also simultaneously emphasizes his diminished anxiety regarding those limits. The word at once generates a sense of terror and dispels it. The effect is almost that the terrors of "homelessness," of being lost in undifferentiated space, comprise a condition the speaker has known before and finds so persistent and multifarious as to demand his constant re-engagement.
The small bird now appears, and in a way that seems equally fortuitous and gratuitous. The speaker responds immediately by recognizing it as a dramatic projection of his own fearfulness. In the following lines, the bird's activity adds a horizontal dimension to the speaker's growing spatial consciousness; and, giving the scene intersecting lines, if not shape, it permits the speaker to have for the first time a perspective. Again, the process moves by way of the artful opposition between bird and tree and the little joke by which physical laws seem overturned: the bird "puts" a tree—that is, assigns it a specific material place—between itself and the speaker. The bird is clearly what the speaker has come so far to know best, and he comes to know it by way of what he has previously come to know about himself. As Frost's deliberately confusing pronoun references in lines 12 and 13 imply, the speaker intimately identifies with the bird at the same time he tries to assert his superiority to it. The condition that allows him this intimacy, however, is his physical separation from the bird, marked by the one tree standing between subject and object. The tree, like the mending wall, signifies one of those barriers without which the world would, for Frost, not make sense. The speaker's teasing identification with the bird leads to his awareness of himself as the source of the bird's fearfulness; and this, in turn, clarifies his own relationship with the larger, unredeemed scene, the source of his own fear, which is thus brought further under the control of consciousness. The speaker's awareness is now many- layered, and he now has words for what is at stake. The bird's white tail feather is, of course, that by which he is what he is: it is the unmistakable mark of his irreducible identity and, paradoxically, the sign of his surrender. His fear of its loss turns back on and elucidates the speaker's recognition of his homelessness. "Home" is now understood to mean that point in space where one is at ease, where the self "belongs," where identity is safe.
Counterbalancing the gradual emergence of clarity and shape in the landscape is the gradually emerging personality of the speaker: at every stage of the poem, we know the speaker only to that extent which the speaker himself has come to know and understand the landscape. Frost once remarked that if the style of a poem "is with outer seriousness, it must be with inner humor. If it is with outer humor, it must be with inner seriousness. Neither one alone without the other under it will do" (351). The cautious sobriety and reserve within the vocal imagination as it initially addressed the outer terror are now cut across by a tone of humorous self-parody as the speaker engages in reflection. Now he can indulge in the quietly extravagant joke of a pathetic fallacy—"like one who takes / Everything said as personal to himself." Now too, however, the speaker's enlarged awareness and confidence are juxtaposed to, and measured by, his own self-deception. The speaker is himself deceived in thinking that the way for the bird to become "undeceived" is simply to flee the scene—to go "the way I might have gone." The bird, given free play, does not flee but, willing to get lost in order, apparently, to find itself, goes behind the woodpile. He seeks it out as a refuge, a home, in a final effort to discover and preserve identity in this place. Bird and man now embrace the woodpile, bind it by both courage and fear; and what the speaker sees there is conditioned, then, by his awareness of the bird on the opposite side. The logic of this perceptual symmetry, of course, is that the pile of wood has consolations to offer the man—consolations against the threat of formlessness, mindlessness, absence of order. And consolations there are indeed, in the lovely wholeness, the solid three-dimensionality of the woodpile. Here is, at last, the physical universe filled out in shapely and substantial form, caught in a moment of exacting perception that sees into it with a clarity and completeness incorporating at once modes of analysis and synthesis, modes of physical labor and intellectual love: "It was a cord of maple, cut and split / And piled—and measured, four by four by eight." The moment of perception constitutes a symbolic reenactment of the original building of the woodpile. The cutting and splitting and piling refer us simultaneously to the fact of the pile of wood and to that process by which it came to be. The speaker imaginatively duplicates all of the separate, divisible stages of the process of physical activity and then, in an evaluative act of measuring, finds a language—"four by four by eight"—that expresses perfectly the fact of its fully unitary and integrated wholeness of being. Process and fact, energy and form, coalesce and become one in a single continuous act of perception, and in that act the courage and fear have themselves been transformed into love and meditative forgetfulness.
The moment is a perfect illustration of Frost's distinction between what it means to believe in things and what it means, on the other hand, to believe things in (339). The latter is the special task of him who would be poet and person. In this symbolic reenactment, the speaker believes into existence an entity which was potentially there in the emerging but partial lines of the earlier stages of his journey inward. The woodpile, according to Frost's poetic theory, had its beginnings "in something more felt than known" (339). While in one sense, then, the speaker only "reveals" and "discovers" the woodpile, in another he can be said to have "made" it. We have here what William James, in "Humanism and Truth," called a quasi-paradox: "A fact virtually pre-exists when every condition of its realization save one is already there. In this case the condition lacking is the act of the counting and comparing mind. . . . Undeniably something comes by the counting that was not there before. And yet that something was always true. In one sense you create it, and in another sense you find it."
Like the white tail feather, the woodpile is totally singular. It is a far larger, more elaborate and complex symbol of individual form and identity. In its four-by-four-by-eightness there is a marvelous solidity as well as form, a substantiality that makes it not only palpable but, at least initially, permanent. In its apparent permanence it has a homeostatic capacity that heroically confronts the ephemeral and formless flux of the entropic environment. But just as soon as the speaker has become aware of its shape and form—its thereness—he is compelled, notice, to describe it in terms of what is not there: "And not another like it could I see." Thus, in the very process of celebrating the magnificence of its being, he uses language, has a perception, that points ironically to a sad sense of the diminishedness of things. Frost was himself fascinated by what he called "carrying numbers into the realm of space and at the same time into the realm of time" (333). In the same essay, he later quotes Einstein that "In the neighborhood of matter space is something like curved" (334). What Frost has done in "making his count" of the woodpile's dimensions is to carry those numbers into time, and in doing so he has transformed the straightness and angularity of the landscape into curves, into roundness and sphericity. This transformation is initially hinted at, I think, in the multiple suggestiveness of "cord," which is not only the specific name given to 128 cubic feet of fuel wood but, here, a pun on the mathematical term denoting a straight line which joins two points on an arc or curve. The change wrought in the speaker's perception of the scene is a brilliant poetic realization of Frost's conviction that "We are what we are by elimination and by deflection from the straight line."
Once he exists in a definitively three-dimensional physical universe, the speaker muses on the fourth dimension in trying to penetrate further into the meaning of the physical fact. Immediately, he meditates on—has a creative vision about—what is not there, what is quintessentially impalpable and increasingly indefinite, what is further and further back in time and of completely mysterious origin. Whereas the physical journey moves forward in space, its ultimate outcome is an inward journey, a meditation, which is a heightened mode of "turning back from here," an action no longer informed by fear alone. The implied and emergent curves of the woodpile the speaker's vision now makes explicit in the imagined loops of the runner tracks he cannot see; and these imagined curves in turn lead the speaker back into an awareness of the actual curved lines explicit in the woodpile itself: the warping bark, the sunkenness, the strings of clematis circling round and round. But the Hawthornian tensions and polarities, of which those curves are the ultimate expression, persist: between the imagined facts and the observable realities, in the references to different points in time, between the one side and the other, between what the clematis had done, what the tree is still doing, what the stake and prop are about to do. All these details catch, in a single, powerful image, a moment of process in which exquisite physical and spiritual form and imminent formlessness, growth and decay, stasis and flux fully interpenetrate, the implications of each participating in and giving value to the other. Now, although the speaker is completely at home in this place, his meditation does not lead to any reassuring consolation or benevolent resolution that would cancel these tensions and contrarieties; instead, it reaffirms and heightens them. For if the speaker's turning inward to the mind is a turning outward to the imagined identity of the woodcutter, and thus implies a consoling movement from solitude to human relationship, it also leads simultaneously to the speaker's recognition of his still distant separation from that imagined home with the "useful fireplace." The very process by which the speaker, along with the frozen swamp, has been warmed by the woodcutter's selfless and forgetful act of love issues in no comfortable, Emersonian notion of transcendent compensation. The condition of distance, of being "far from home," still attaches, as does the implied need to continually "turn to fresh tasks." Space and time have indeed been redeemed within the process of the speaker's vision to the extent that the woodpile as fact and process—as seemingly senseless material waste—is now endowed with a poignant significance and spiritual usefulness. But the implications of that redemption presuppose the necessity of continual other ones at different times, in different places. Seeing the woodpile in all its magnificence, the speaker sees also that its heat warms "only as best it could." And while there are duration, clarity, and beauty in the "slow, smokeless burning," they are apprehended in a vision that focuses on the inexorable fact of decay. The woodpile and the loving vision it induces only momentarily stay the confusion of a universe moving toward nothingness.
The condition of lostness, of homelessness, is not finally overcome; we are, at the end, still more aware of tensions than of unities. Whatever triumph there is lies in the fact that homelessness has now been defined and formalized by intelligence and love, by the process of growing awareness by which the woodpile and the poem have simultaneously come to be. In one sense, Frost himself provides the best gloss on the way the poem works when he says that "it makes us remember what we didn't know we knew" (394). He would agree with William James, I think, that "All homes are in finite experience" and that "finite experience as such is homeless." The process of the poem does not take us from an attitude of fearful doubt to one of certainty in the immutable. Instead, it begins with a felt doubt that arises out of the formless inscrutability of a new place and takes us to an affirmation of that doubt, which, now formalized, persists even after the loveliest but inevitably mutable forms of that place are fully understood. Frost's persona cannot stay there at the woodpile: his existence, it is clear, presupposes the necessity of perpetually walking on to an endless series of other new places equally unformed. What he walks on to, conscious all the while of the roads he does not take, is most often, as Frost says in "Directive," "a house that is no more a house / Upon a farm that is no more a farm / . . . in a town that is no more a town."
from "Hawthorne and Frost: The Making of a Poem." Frost: Centennial Essays. Copyright © 1973 by University Press of Mississippi.
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"The Wood-Pile" is like a sequel to "Home Burial," with the man in this instance wandering from a "home" that seems little more than an abstraction to him and to us. More a meditation than a dramatic narrative, it offers the soliloquy of a lone figure walking in a winter landscape. It is a desolate scene possessed of the loneliness of "Desert Places." Attention is focused on the activity of consciousness in this isolated wanderer, and nothing characterizes him as a social being or as having any relationships to another person. While the poem has resemblances, again, to Wordsworth's "Tintern Abbey," or Coleridge's "Dejection: An Ode," it is more random in its structuring and has none of the demarcations of the descriptive-reflective mode. A better way to describe the poem is suggested in a talk by A. R. Ammons, "A Poem as a Walk." "A walk involves the whole person; it is not reproducible; its shape occurs, unfolds; it has a motion characteristic of the walker" (Epoch, Fall, 1968, p. 118).
The man in the poem is not, like Stevens' Crispin, "a man come out of luminous traversing," but more like the "listener" in Stevens' "The Snow Man." In each poem is a recognition of a wintry barrenness made more so in Frost by a reductive process by which possibilities of metaphor - of finding some reassuring resemblances - are gradually disposed of. At the end, the speaker in Frost's poem is as "cool" as is the listener in Stevens, and also as peculiarly unanguished by the situation in which he finds himself. It is as if the wintry prospect, the arrival at something like Stevens' First Idea, a cold clarity without redeeming deceptions, has in itself been an achievement of the imagination. It is something won against all such conventional blandishments as the "misery" of what Harold Bloom calls the "Shelleyan wind" in "The Snow Man" or the flirtatious bird in "The Wood-Pile."
The persistent difference between Frost and Stevens applies here, too, however. It resides in the kind of context the reader is asked to supply for each of the poems. Thus, despite the absence of characterizing detail, the speaker in "The Wood-Pile" shapes, from his very opening words, a human presence for us in his sentence sounds, his voice; he makes us imagine him as someone in a human plight "far from home." By comparison, the "voice" in "The Snow Man" belongs not to a person but to a quality of rumination, and Bloom is succinctly generalizing about the poem - he calls it Stevens' "most crucial poem" - when he remarks of its author that "the text he produces is condemned to offer itself for interpretation as being already an interpretation of other interpretations, rather than as what it asserts itself to be, an interpretation of life" (Poetry and Repression, p. 270).
"The Wood-Pile" is about being impoverished, being on the dump - to recall two related states of consciousness in Stevens - with no clues by which to locate yourself in space. All you can assuredly know about "here" is that you are far from "home":
Out walking in the frozen swamp one gray day,
I paused and said, "I will turn back from here.
No, I will go on farther -- and we shall see."
The hard snow held me, save where now and then
One foot went through. The view was all in lines
Straight up and down of tall slim trees
Too much alike to mark or name a place by
So as to say for certain I was here
Or somewhere else: I was just far from home.
If this is a situation that resembles winter visions of Stevens, the sound resists any effort to bring visionary possibilities into being. The voice of this man ("So as to say for certain I was here / Or somewhere else") cannot be expected to test the poetic potentialities of what is seen and heard and can even less be expected to cheer itself up by indulging in the hyperbolic or the sublime vocabularies. There is an informality even in the initial placements - "out walking . . . one gray day" - of the spondaic effect of "gray day," as if it were a scheduled occurrence (like "pay day") and of the possible metaphoric weight in what he says, as in the allusion (but not really) to the lack of adequate support he can expect in this landscape ("The hard snow held me, save where now and then / One foot went through"). Such anxious and innocuous precision about the relative hardness of the snow or the size and contour of the trees is humanly and characterologically right. It expresses the kind of paranoia that goes with any feeling of being lost and of losing thereby a confident sense of self. Paranoia, displaced onto a small bird chancing by, becomes the motive for metaphor: the bird is endowed with the characteristics being displayed by the man observing him:
A small bird flew before me. He was careful
To put a tree between us when he lighted,
And say no word to tell me who he was
Who was so foolish as to think what he thought,
He thought that I was after him for a feather --
The white one in his tail; like one who takes
Everything said as personal to himself.
One flight out sideways would have undeceived him.
And then there was a pile of wood for which
I forgot him and let his little fear
Carry him off the way I might have gone,
Without so much as wishing him good-night.
There is a combination here of yearning, competitiveness, and resentment that threatens to become ludicrous, a parody of the romantic search for associations and resemblances. And the parodistic possibility is increased by the syntax of the lines about the bird's tail-feathers. They could mean that the bird was foolish to think that the man had this particular design upon him. But the lines could also be the speaker's rendition or imitation of what he thought the bird was thinking, i.e., "Who does that man think he is to think that he can get hold of my tail-feathers?" In any event, there is more "thinking" proposed than could possibly or profitably be going on. That the paranoia and self-regard confusingly attributed to the bird are really a characterization of the man who is observing the bird is further suggested by the accusation that the bird is "like one who takes/ Everything said as personal to himself" - a jocular simile, given the fact that there is only "one" person around to whom the comparison might apply. If all this is to some degree comic, it is feverishly so, the product of intense loneliness and displacement. From its opening moment the poem becomes a human drama of dispossession, of failed possessiveness, and of the need to structure realities which are not "here," to replace, in the words of Stevens, "nothing that is not there" with "the nothing that is."
The only probable evidence of structure that he does find, already put together, is the "wood-pile," a forgotten remnant of earlier efforts to make a "home" by people who, when they did it, were also away from home. The pile of wood, which lets the speaker promptly forget the bird, once more excites his anxious precisions. He still needs to find some human resemblances, evidences in zones and demarcations for the human capacity to make a claim on an alien landscape. What he discovers is sparse indeed, his reassurance equally so, as we can note in his rather pathetic exactitudes:
It was a cord of maple, cut and split
And piled -- and measured, four by four by eight.
And not another like it could I see.
No runner tracks in this year's snow looped near it.
And it was older sure than this year's cutting,
Or even last year's or the year's before.
The wood was gray and the bark warping off it
And the pile somewhat sunken. Clematis
Had wound strings round and round it like a bundle.
What held it, though, on one side was a tree
Still growing, and on one a stake and prop,
These latter about to fall. I thought that only
Someone who lived in turning to fresh tasks
Could so forget his handiwork on which
He spent himself, the labor of his ax,
And leave it there far from a useful fireplace
To warm the frozen swamp as best it could
With the slow smokeless burning of decay.
The poem here could be read as a commentary on the earlier "The Tuft of Flowers" where, instead of a bird, a butterfly acts as a kind of pointer who "led my eye to look / At a tall tuft of flowers beside a brook" and where these flowers, in turn, direct his attention to signs of work having been done by another man with "A spirit kindred to my own;/ So that henceforth I worked no more alone." "The Wood-Pile" is obviously a much starker poem. The "tuft of flowers" was left as a kind of signature, a greeting and communication; the pile of wood was simply forgotten by the man who cut and carefully stacked it, as he went on to the distractions of other things. The wood-pile cannot therefore prompt the gregarious aphorisms which bring "The Tuft of Flowers" to a close: "'Men work together,' I told him from the heart,/'Whether they work together or apart.'" Remnants of a human presence in the swamp only remind the walker that he is completely alone in a place that has been deserted. And his aloneness is the more complete because there are no alternatives outside the present circumstances which give him any comfort. Even when he thinks of a fireplace it is not with images of conviviality but only with the observation that it would be "useful." The wood burns of itself, with a warmth that cannot be felt and without giving any evidence whatever that it belongs in the world of men and women. "With the slow smokeless burning of decay" is a line whose sound carries an extraordinary authority and dignity because it has emerged out of the more sauntering vernacular movements at the beginning of the poem. It induces a kind of awe because it is the acknowledgment of nature as a realm wholly independent of human need or even human perception, and it belongs not only in what it says but in its very cadence with Wordsworth's evocation at the end of his sonnet "Mutability" of "the unimaginable touch of Time."
If the speaker "resembles" anything at the end of the poem, it is the wood-pile itself, something without even a semblance of consciousness; it is wholly self-consuming. As in "Desert Places," another poem about a lonely man walking in a landscape of snow, the man in "The Wood-Pile" could say that "The loneliness includes me unawares." This line is a little poem in itself. It has a syntactical ambiguity more common in Stevens than in Frost. It can mean both that the loneliness includes him but is unaware of doing so, and that the loneliness includes him and he is not aware of its doing so by virtue of his near obliteration. In either case he is not so much included as wiped out; he is included as if he were inseparable from, indistinguishable from, the thing that includes him. He is on the point of being obliterated by the landscape, rather than allowed to exist even as an observer of it, much less a mediating or transcending presence.
The "persona" narratives from the book - "Mending Wall," "After Apple-Picking," and "The Wood-Pile" - also strive for inclusiveness although they are spoken throughout by a voice we are tempted to call "Frost." This voice has no particular back-country identity, nor is it obsessed or limited in its point of view; it seems rather to be exploring nature, other people, ideas, ways of saying things, for the sheer entertainment they can provide. Unlike poems such as "Home Burial" and "A Servant to Servants," which are inclined toward the tragic or the pathetic, nothing "terrible" happens in the personal narratives, nor does some ominous secret lie behind them. In "The Wood-Pile," for example, almost nothing happens at all; its story, its achieved idea or wisdom, the whole air with which it carries itself, is quite unmemorable. A man out walking in a frozen swamp decides to turn back, then decides instead to go farther and see what will happen. He notes a bird in front of him and spends some time musing on what the bird must be thinking, then sees it settle behind a pile of wood. The pile is described so as to bring out the fact that it has been around for some time. With a reflection about whoever it was who left it there, "far from a useful fireplace," the poem concludes. And the reader looks up from the text, wonders if he has missed something, perhaps goes back and reads it again to see if he can catch some meaning which has eluded him. But "The Wood-Pile" remains stubbornly unyielding to any attempt at ransacking it for a meaning not evidently on the surface.
This surface is a busy one, as when the speaker meets the bird:
A small bird flew before me. He was careful
To put a tree between us when he lighted,
And say no word to tell me who he was
Who was so foolish as to think what he thought.
He thought that I was after him for a feather --
The white one in his tail; like one who takes
Everything said as personal to himself.
One flight out sideways would have undeceived him.
The bird is teased for its egoism in thinking that the world revolves around his subjective hopes and fears, and his nervousness is amusing because never was there a less predatory or even purposeful figure than the walker in this poem, who early along - in deciding to continue rather than turn back - put it this way: "No, I will go on farther - and we shall see." See what? See things like a bird lighting in a tree, and be free to make up a story about why it doesn't speak, or how jealously protective it is of the white feather in its tail? Being free to "see" means indulging in such harmless playful fantasies the freedom of whose play is a measure of its solitary creation, far from any human or social situation. Perhaps the point of maximum play occurs in the lines about the bird's caution as he lights in the tree and determines to look only: "And say no word to tell me who he was / Who was so foolish as to think what he thought." The monosyllabic tongue-twisting aspect of these lines is effective in mixing up the reader: who is more "foolish," man or bird, and how on earth can one tell?
Then there is the wood-pile itself, a cord of maple, split, piled and measured
... four by four by eight.
And not another like it could I see.
No runner tracks in this year's snow looped near it.
And it was older sure than this year's cutting,
Or even last year's or the year's before.
The wood was grey and the bark warping off it
And the pile somewhat sunken. Clematis
Had wound strings round and round it like a bundle.
What held it, though, on one side was a tree
Still growing, and on one a stake and prop,
These latter about to fall ...
This is a thoroughly unexciting presentation of what might lay claim to be the world's most unexceptional phenomenon, yet it engages the man enough to occupy him for the remainder of the poem. More interesting than anything it "says" is the way the presentation resists, as solidly as does the sunken woodpile, our readerly efforts to find a message in it, to take it as a symbol for something or other important. In so resisting us, the woodpile confirms the teasing character of the whole poem, always leading us on, promising that around the next corner, past the next tree, we shall see something, if we but have faith to follow the walker: and then, sure enough, there it is - an old woodpile with clematis wound round it, its very situation (its "stake and prop" about to collapse) precarious.
This is all we see, except that Frost moves to reflection, concluding the poem with these lines in which the pile of wood is extended into something more:
I thought that only
Someone who lives in turning to fresh tasks
Could so forget his handiwork on which
He spent himself, the labor of his ax,
And leave it there far from a useful fireplace
To warm the frozen swamp as best it could
With the slow smokeless burning of decay.
The final line has been rightly admired, but its brilliance almost blinds us to the fact that the reflection which it concludes is in no sense a stunning or profound one. The thought that "someone" who abandoned this pile of wood must be one who "lived in turning to fresh tasks," is certainly uncontroversial and hardly provocative of further speculation. Again the interest lies not in "content" but in the way a sentence develops over seven lines, winding from the "I" to the "someone" and finally to the "handiwork" whose thermal activity is celebrated in the ingenuity of the final three lines. As with other moments in the poem, no great claims are made, no meanings are held out for everyone to use, no praise or blame is assigned to motive or action.
Early in "The Wood-Pile" the walker is surrounded by "tall slim trees / Too much alike to mark or name a place by / So as to say for certain I was here / Or somewhere else . . ." By the poem's end a marking has been taken, a place named, though in a way so fanciful as to establish that it is poetry we are responding to when we try to think of that decaying pile, warming the frozen swamp as best it can.
To alter the walker's final thought: only someone, like a poet, who lives in turning to fresh tropes could write a poem like the one Frost has written here, and it is an appropriate conclusion to what remains the most original, even revolutionary, book he would ever write. We need to recall once more the language Edward Thomas used in defining and in praising it, about how Frost trusted his convictions about the validity of speech in poetry, of sentence sounds employed with "no purpose to serve beyond expressing it, when he has no audience to be bullied or flattered, when he is free, and speech takes one form and no other." Despite the presence of back-country characters and scenes in this "book of people," it is as a book of sentence sounds that it most truly exists, as a triumphant vindication of the poetic theory Frost had designed, and as a monument to how much could be accomplished by trusting to the rendering of speech. At the end of "Home Burial," the wife lashes out at her husband in exasperation: "You - oh, you think the talk is all . . ." But for the composer of these poems, the talk is all, whether that of his imagined characters or of himself speaking aloud.
________________________________________
. . . In "The Wood-Pile" the narrator finds in his frozen swamp ambiguous evidence of order and cultivation that does not yield simple revelations. The facts—the behavior of the bird and the woodpile itself—become hard to read in this ecologically complex environment.
The narrator's purposes remain obscure, though he seems ambivalent about them. Is he escaping, fleeing, or seeking something? At first he wants to "turn back" but then continues with "we shall see." See something literally or colloquially, as in "see what will happen"? There is a ruefulness in his recognition that he is "far from home":
[lines 1-9]
Ungraspable, beyond our naming or taming, the place is inhuman. One senses that the narrator is testing himself, attempting to overcome his fears and expectations in an environment indifferent to his ego. All the while he convinces himself of a decision and of his power of choice, both of which are soon mocked.
What he eventually sees are indications of life and form—the little bird and the woodpile—that do not conform to the uniformity of the trees; they are evidence of the Lucretian swerve of independence and order in a chaotic world. He attempts to infer some intention, purpose, or design from these facts, which resist comprehension. The bird, probably a white-tailed junco, becomes the target of the narrator's projections about purpose. According to the narrator, this bird is defensive, sure that he is after him for his white tail feather. But the narrator checks his own anthropomorphism with the wonderfully ambiguous qualifying phrase "Who was so foolish as to think what he thought." The real problem is the antecedent of the relative pronoun who, the bird or the narrator. Is the narrator foolish to try to think what the bird thought, or is the bird foolish for thinking that the narrator is after his tail feather? Both readings reveal something about the narrator and his quest for meaning:
[lines 10-16]
On one level the narrator appears to be mocking the bird for his paranoia and egotism, "like one who takes / Everything said as personal to himself." But the foolishness may be the narrator's for projecting onto the bird his own thoughts and his human tendency to see the world in terms of his own ego.
But the narrator's attention to the white feather in the bird's tail suggests that the bird may well indeed have something to fear; the narrator's attention to it betrays his lack of indifference to an unusual trophy, a thing of beauty, that he might want to capture or possess (not unlike the narrator seeking the trophy nest in "The White-Tailed Hornet"). The narrator asserts his own freedom from this desire with the line "One flight out sideways would have undeceived him," while confirming his own inability to liberate himself from this desire to take off "the way I might have gone," if he were still not bound to his instincts. The bird goes behind the woodpile, according to the narrator, "to make his last stand":
[lines 17-22]
Why does the bird go behind the woodpile? Probably not to make his last stand. Rather, the woodpile is the location of his nest, as the junco is the kind of bird who builds nests in fallen logs and close to the ground. The white feather, despite the attention of the narrator, serves the purpose of mating, not beauty for human eyes.
A carefully cut "cord," perhaps a play on chord, of the hardwood maple, it seems a religious sacrifice or a work of art, at least purposefully ornamented and finished by the clematis. But the clematis itself is seeking material upon which to grow. And it might also show the bird's real motive in going to the woodpile—seeking the seeds of the clematis for food. There is a network of growth and destruction. These aspects of the tangled swamp are lost on this seeker of ordered perfection comprehensible in human terms:
[lines 23-34]
Its isolation and age are remarkable indications of what appears to have been an inexplicable and, more important, deliberate action of waste. The environment overwhelms, threatens, and destroys any angular form of human order that can be imposed upon or made from it. The tree growing next to it—like the Darwinian Tree of Life, which encompasses both life and extinction—supports the pile, while the man-made stake and prop are "about to fall." The human destruction of a tree to create form is subsumed by the larger Tree of Life. . . .
The speaker of "The Wood-Pile" seems surprised that someone could build such an altar as the woodpile, "far from a useful fireplace." As a form set against the chaos of nature, it appears to serve no survival function, and that is its glory. What kind of individual would do this?
[lines 34-40]
The speaker's revelation is ambiguous. His own quest for perfection (the white feather, the perfect work of art) is mocked by the thought of a creator who moves on from form to form. There is a Lucretian lesson in this, that the fear of death and the concern with immortality are likely to produce fear and foolishness. The woodpile is an example of waste for its own sake. Its creator moves on with little concern for how others perceive what he has done or for the future of what he has made. But was his motive the "sheer morning gladness at the brim," as the speaker of "The Tuft of Flowers" said in hope of discovering a common faith? If the woodpile is a metaphor for a human effort at form or art or individuation—free from practical constraints—it reveals only that all attempts at transcendence lead back to some form of ecological function in the material world: "To warm the frozen swamp as best it could / With the slow smokeless burning of decay." The woodpile takes on a life of its own. Like Darwin, Frost moves past thinking about who made the cut wood, a creative agent of change, to the wood itself, which serves a purpose even in its death. Indeed, its presence and decay allow for clematis, and the clematis provides seed for birds. And it does in its decay actually allow enough warming so that trees can grow, from the bacterial breakdown into methane, though the phrase ''as best it could" indicates the limits Frost tends to ascribe to any single effort. The woodpile with its apparent merging of formal and final causes at the hands of an absent creator would be an example of l'art pour l'art were it not for the fact that its apparent ecological function defeats the projections and hopes of the narrator. Here too, Daphne eludes Apollo. The speaker would be as indifferent as the bird, as indifferent as the woodchopper, and indifferent to the woodpile itself as its purpose and design collapse into the swampy chaos of biological interpenetration and transformation. The conclusion expresses a recognition of the vanity of human pursuit in a pluralistic and inhuman universe.

Prac Crit on Frost's "Mending Wall"

2007-06-30T06:37:00.000-07:00

Robert Frost as a poet writes on two levels of understanding- the literal level and the metaphorical level. Here, the main focus of his essay is to question why there is a wall between him and his neighbour, who lives “beyond the hill”, with the theme being on breaking down barriers, which is expressed both literally and metaphorically. On a literal level, he wonders about the significance and effects of a physical obstruction between him and his neighbour, and questions the need to maintain such a obstacle. On the metaphorical level however, the wall is representative of both a social barrier between humans, as well as representing a division between both the individual as a human, and nature in general, together with the implication of the need for such a clear distinction. Firstly, we shall analyse this on a literal level before discussing the metaphorical.
The title “Mending Wall”, when read in conjunction with the rest of the poem, implies that the wall is a obstruction preventing him from communicating well with his neighbour, and thus slowly segregating himself and destroying the relationship on a literal level. The symbolism of a wall here being a clear boundary or marker for an area, as well as affording protection from any unknown hostile intruders serves to reinforce this interpretation. At the same time, however, we note that this annual process of “Mending Wall” is the only time where he is able to meet his neighbour and share his emotions with him. Already the fact that he questions his neighbour “what [he] was walling in or walling out” establishes an emotional connection between the two humans, and the communication of emotions between them. Therefore, the process of “Mending Wall” could also be used to describe the mending of relationships between both of them, thus, the contrast between the two meanings of the title relate to the contrast between both the metaphorical and the literal level.
On the literal level, there is “Something… that doesn’t love a wall/ That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it/ And spills the upper boulder in the sun”, which describes an unknown presence which actually attempts to physically destroy the barrier between the two men by slowly weakening the wall stone by stone, and whom the speaker perceives as hostile in nature. An interesting implication about the unknown entity here is the fact that it uses elemental forces of nature to aid it in the destruction of the wall, both the “frozen-ground-swell” as well as the implication of the sun, another symbol of nature and life, giving it strength to “spill the upper boulder” of the wall. There is also a sense of anonymity in the identity of the entity destroying the wall, leading us to believe that the “something” could be a mysterious, supernatural force which the speaker, and humanity in general, is unable to oppose, which leads on to the fact that it could be fundamentally an abstract concept which exists in opposition to humanity, and thus is wearing down the wall of human differences in that sense. Frost even states here that the “work of hunters is another thing”; this entity exists as a higher power which does not want the wall up. Therefore, the personification of the “something” in the poem, as well as the fact that “no one has seen [the gaps] made or heard them made”, evokes primal fear in humans of the unknown, a concept we are able to link up with the notion of the neighbour being an “old stone savage”. Thus, from line one to line ten, we are able to see that the enemy without is supernatural and even magical in nature, and is not even a manifestation of the arbitrary passions or lusts (or even evil) of man, as symbolized by the hunters (who ravage the wall entirely, leaving “not one stone on a stone”) but natural forces, which seem to turn the very land against the speaker and his neighbour. To enhance this, Frost uses imagery and personification with the phrases “love”, “sends” “spills” and “makes gaps” from lines 1-4 to vividly describe the degradation of the wall, as well as to create a very realistic visual image for the audience. It is important to note that on a literal level the wall is also being destroyed by nature, by small animals and frost, and other elements, which hints to us that a wall is unnatural, and therefore, not able to exist and complement nature. This, in addition to the fact that the gaps are so big that “two can pass abreast”, could mean that nature wishes both the speaker and his neighbour to co-exist harmoniously and relate to each other more often.
Therefore, from line eleven onwards, we see the speaker’s need to make constant reparations to the wall, where he has to “walk the line” at “spring mending-time”, something which he does only annually. However, it is unclear whether this need stems from the intimate knowledge the speaker possesses of the neighbour’s habits and eventual need on his side to repair the wall, or whether it arises from his own unconscious desire to have a wall between them. This is justified by every human’s need to have his or her own personal space. As ironic as it seems, Frost’s only chance to relate emotionally to the neighbour is during this period, where they rebuild the wall between them, which symbolizes, on another level, the rebuilding of personal barriers to prevent one person from becoming too emotionally attached to the other. Strangely, the neighbour does not feel the same urgent need to rebuild the wall, and it is always the speaker who has to “let [his] neighbour know”, rather than the neighbour taking the initiative to invite the speaker to rebuild the wall. Thus, we are forced to question who really needs the wall, if the neighbour seems to be so disinterested in the rebuilding of a physical boundary between him and the speaker. In addition to that, spring is the time for rebirth, renewal and regeneration, and rebuilding the wall at this time of the year hints at the speaker’s urge to grow closer and connect emotionally to his neighbour, as well as to provide an overall light and nonchalant atmosphere within the poem, almost as if the neighbour would not care if the wall was up or not. The speaker’s exclamation of “Spring is the mischief in me”, and his casual admonishment of “Stay where you are until our backs are turned!” only serve to reinforce this mood. To the speaker, the rebuilding of the wall is “just another kind of outdoor game,/One on a side. It comes to little more”, and we see that the portrayal of the rebuilding of the wall as a game is effective in showing that the friendship between the speaker and his neighbour is strengthened whenever they come to play this “game”.
Therefore, by looking at the reparation of the wall as the mending of friendships, we could interpret the fallen stones, the “boulders that have fallen to each [person]/”, some which are “loaves, and some so nearly balls” as the faults or mistakes of both the speaker and his neighbour, which have led to arguments and the weakening of their friendship, which is represented by the weakening of the wall. Replacing them on the wall thus signifies the speaker resolving disputes and making up with his neighbour, and thus the faults, those “boulders that have fallen to each”, are now forgiven and replaced on the wall of friendship. On the other hand, the wall does denote a sort of physical boundary between both of them, and their property represents their respective personal space. The neighbour’s repeated quote of “Good fences make good neighbours” is a repeated cliché on his part to justify why the wall should be repaired, and it is, to him, an important matter, and should be treated with the utmost seriousness. This is in stark contrast to the speaker who is jovial in nature, and looks upon the rebuilding of wall as simply a game, “nothing more”. He therefore visualises the neighbour as being “an old-stone savage armed”, someone highly conservative in nature, and probably backward in the times, and provides a grimly comical view of him repairing the wall, befitting the situation and making light of the issue. It also begs the questions of whether the neighbour is “old” in terms of age or attitude, and reflects Man’s primal origins, where he lived as a caveman who “move[d] in darkness… Not of woods only and the shade of trees”. There is also an implication that his neighbour moves in the darkness of his own ignorance, and is therefore trapped in the past, set in his ways, and unable to change his own views.
The differences between the two men are very great, and even the fruits here can be seen to represent them. The speaker’s “apple orchard” symbolises someone who is warm, sweet, as an apple, while the neighbour is “all pine”, prickly, cold, unyielding. The poem therefore describes the two men very differently; the speaker provides the thoughtful, philosophical view, while the neighbour stubbornly sticks to his thoughtless, meaningless cliché, by repeating his view of “Good fences make good neighbours”, something which has held true to him for a long time, being “his father’s saying”, and which he believes will hold true for ages to come. “Mending Wall”, therefore, reflects that humans will always be different, and will always possess a certain personal private spot, no matter how close friends they might be, and thus do we wall in our own secrets, hidden in the “darkness” of what we do not want others to see. Frost therefore is able to use irony, in both the title and the neighbour’s repetition of “Good fences make good neighbours” to mean both the fact that the speaker and his neighbour need to be closer to each other, and the fact that they both need their privacy, which is the reason for the wall. It is only the speaker’s introspection and thought which help to convince us of this fact, and ultimately the poem’s symbolic representation of barriers and the stanzaic structure and free verse used, which imitate a wall in itself, convey the messages effectively in a tone which is not too critical of humanity.

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IHS Project: A Review and Comparison of the Management of Political Space Between Israel and Singapore With Regards to Foreign Policies

2007-06-30T05:37:00.000-07:00

IHS Project, Year 4, 2005

Title: A Review and Comparison of the Management of Political Space Between Israel and Singapore With Regards to Foreign Policies

Aims and Thesis Statement:
Israel has always been in a volatile situation, with enemies on all sides of the country’s border who have been trying to enter undercover throughout the centuries and to undermine the security of the country. This has unsettled much of the Israeli population, which are composed predominantly of Jews, but with a sizeable minority as well, comprising not only (Druze) Arabs but Muslims and Christians, all of whom believe that Israel is a place of great spiritual significance to their faith. The Arabs, on the other hand, believe that Israel belongs to them, due to the massive amount of territory they control around the small country (Refer to Annex A). Thus, they have spent many troops and resources in an effort to retake Israel, all to no avail. My aim here is to find out Israel’s foreign policy, and why it is so effective against a nation several times its size. Also, I hope to compare this to Singapore’s foreign policy when dealing with its overseas neighbours, because Singapore is in as much the same situation as Israel is- surrounded by countries which are predominantly Muslim in faith, leaving Singapore in a precarious situation. A comparison and analysis would show why these policies are effective or ineffective.

Definition of Terms: By “Management of Political Space”, the essay refers to the political maneuvers conducted by the lawmakers and sovereignty of the country
By “Israel and Singapore”, the essay refers to the countries as and where relevant in the era or period stated or mentioned in the same sentence; if not, the period is taken to be in the 21st century.
By “Foreign Policies”, the essay refers to a set of political behavioural rules the country follows when in political contact with another country; this is to ensure that the country’s national interests are upheld with only the best in mind.

Background and Analysis of the Situation at Hand:
The majority of Jews in Israel originate as descendants of Jews who underwent a massive Diaspora to their “homeland” while seeking escape from persecution. Lasting centuries, the Diaspora has brought the percentage of Jews in Israel to 80.1% of the whole population with the rest being mostly Arab in nature. However, the trouble only started when Palestine Mandate was signed in June 1922 by the League of Nations, defining Britain as the Mandatory of Palestine and leading to a massive influx of Jews entering Israel to escape persecution as the call of the Anti-Semitic movement became popular in more and more countries. As Article 2 of the Palestine Mandate defined,
“…Government of His Britannic Majesty, and adopted by the said Powers, in favor of the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, it being clearly understood that nothing should be done which might prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country”.
And thus, the Jews flocked to Israel, which whom many regarded as their homeland. This upset the Arabs, who believed that Palestine belonged to them alone, and as a result, the Great Arab Revolt of 1937 occurred, which was subsequently put down by the British government after three years. Consequently, Arab hostility has been mounting ever since the British officially recognized the State of Israel in 1948. Almost immediately after Israel gained independence, the bordering Arab countries of Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan and Egypt attacked Israel, with hopes of destroying the newly declared state; however, their attack was repulsed, and when the war finally ended in January the next year, Israel controlled 24 % more of Palestine than had been allocated to it by the UN. This was then followed by the signing of peace and armistice agreements during the next five months.
The question is: How did Israel survive under continual attack by an Arab enemy with 11 times its GDP?
Firstly, it can be noted that ever since Britain was the first colonial mandatory in Palestine, both Israel and the Arab League have been relying on their Western superpower Allies to either gain an edge in the Israel-Arab conflict, or to circumvent war as an option. Currently, Israel, as a predominantly Jewish country with its population having suffered countless persecutions, retains an active army known as the unified “Israel Defence Forces” (IDF), which has been built up over the years, and now possesses an active standing strength of 170,000 members, and which can be reinforced to 455,000 men in 48 hours. Being formally at war with its neighbour states of Syria, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, military preparedness has always been the key issue in the state of Israel; in fact, the country spends 30% of its Gross National Product (GNP) on military spending alone. This rate of spending allows Israel to constantly upgrade its military equipment, researching technology to allow Israel to upgrade its own arms (Israel is suspected to even be an undeclared nuclear power), while at the same time purchasing heavy weaponry from its allies, for example, missiles from the United States. These, in addition, to the four major wars the Arab Nations have conducted so far against the State of Israel, and the fact that it is experiencing ongoing conflict, give it a directly (forced) aggressive stance against its immediate neighbours with little chance of initiating and concluding peace treaties.
In comparison, the island-republic of Singapore retains its status as the smallest state in South East Asia, and lacks natural resources, possessing human labour as its only resource. Surrounded by Muslim states, Singapore reports one of the highest per capita GDP in the region (US$25,000), and yet maintains the fragile balance of peace in the region, even though it has an innate vulnerability as a small nation. This is not surprising, when we look at the changes and experiences Singapore had undergone to develop its foreign policy so thoroughly.
Firstly, our army, albeit small, is modeled on the Israeli concept of National Service in order to forge an operationally ready force, where all males age 18 and above and required to undergo a compulsory stint of military service ranging from two to two and a half years with reservist training for a few weeks each year. The Israeli men, however, serve for three years with similar reservist training. Singapore even upgrades her arms as regularly as possible, importing weapons frequently from allies where need be, such is the similarity between hers and Israel’s military establishment. Thus, we can see that both countries rely on an outward show of aggression and military preparedness to discourage any possible attackers.
Secondly, Singapore possesses a strong and efficient authoritarian political and judiciary system under the People’s Action Party (PAP), the party in power ever since Singapore was granted self-governance in 1959. Classified as a parliamentary democratic state, the PAP has taken the opportunity whenever possible to politically publicise itself to the people while in office, thereby removing all possible chance of the opposition being granted control in Singapore. Israel, too, is a parliamentary democratic state in nature, with the conservative Likud party being predominantly in power. Possessing a Presidential figurehead and a 120-strong parliament known as the Knesset, Israel’s manner of rule in the country is very similar to that of Singapore’s.
To avoid offending its neighbouring countries, however, Singapore has taken a stand to be “friends with all who sought friendship” and to “remain nonaligned”, and this is where the difference occurs. Where Israel is already at conflict with others, Singapore is maintaining its best not to offend neighbouring countries by stressing on the concept of “Total Defence”, where a melting pot of racial groups would be only classified as Singaporeans, equal regardless of race. This concept has worked so far in Singapore’s history, and although Singapore has come close to offending other nations with this form of foreign policy, she has never gone into full blown war since independence, unlike Israel.

Recommendations for Changes:
Israel therefore should tailor her aggression policy to be one more based on diplomacy; with issues like the present disagreement between Egypt and Israel regarding the ownership of the West Bank and Gaza Strip lands looming, Israel’s step towards a more peaceful solution would surely be welcomed by the superpowers in the West, and currently, generating public sympathy in the West seems to be its surest guarantee of survival. It should therefore follow Singapore’s concept of peace over war.

http://factbook.wn.com/Israel
http://i-cias.com/e.o/israel_1.htm
http://www.jafi.org.il/education/100/maps/
http://www.mideastweb.org/mandate.htm
http://countrystudies.us/singapore/56.htm
http://www.science.co.il/Arab-Israeli-conflict.asp

Geography- Agriculture and the Green Revolution

2007-06-30T05:13:00.000-07:00

An essay about agriculture and the effects of GM Food... This was done in secondary four, so it is definitely below IB standard

Qns:
i) Has the introduction of GM (genetically modified) food benefited humans?
aii) What is agro-technology?
bi) Define and explain the concept of traditional breeding in agriculture.
bii) Explain why agri-business is becoming more and more common today.
ci) Define and explain what the "Green Revolution" refers to.
cii) Evaluate the usefulness of the "Green Revolution".

i) No, I do not believe that genetically modified food has benefited the agricultural sector and the environment. Firstly, although genetically modified foods (GM foods) are currently considered safe to eat, and there have been no evidence of any adverse effects so far on people, its long-term effects are yet unknown, and might prove damaging to its consumers. Also, there might be a case where unintended effects of GM foods are placed into the GM crop, perhaps during experimentations or gene technology, rendering the crop undesirable and unsafe for consumption, which will not happen when crops are grown using traditional methods. Not to mention, GM foods might threaten biodiversity; in the case of losing a ‘pure’ strain of crop by adding genes to it, or having the side effect of mutating the gene of an animal which consumes the crop, we are possibly pushing a race to its extinction in this manner. Also, introducing a GM crop with resistance to, for example, fruit bats, would affect the delicate balance of the environment, and possibly starve the fruit bats in the area, this in turn leading to a proliferation of other pests, therefore it is disadvantageous to the environment. There is also the matter of harvesting the crop; introducing the concept of genetic modification has reduced competition from farmers who grow their crop in the traditional style and prevented them from purchasing GM seeds to grow their crops differently because the majority of them are poor and therefore unable to afford such a level a technology. This, in turn, creates a greater rich-poor divide in the agricultural economy and thus consolidating the power of multi-national corporations (MNCs) like Monsanto, who deal in GM crops. This monopoly which the MNCs hold adversely affects the agricultural economy.
On the other hand, GM crops are grown with less pesticides used as compared to normal crops, reducing damage to the environment, and also allowing a greater yield due to less damages incurred by pests, because of their inborn tolerance to pests. Facts have proven that 40% less pesticide is used in cases where BT cotton is grown. Also, present and future GM foods may have additional nutritional content, for example, soya bean with added vitamin A. This would allow the agricultural sector to have a more thriving economy due to greater demand for these foods.
However, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages since these biological advantages do not deliver certainty; therefore GM foods are not zero-risk and not its advantages are not necessarily proven in all areas like the addition of nutrition. As a result, it does not benefit the agricultural sector and the environment.

ii) Agro-technology has, on overall, forced people to invest more capital in the agricultural sector in exchange for added yield. Agro-technology also allows people to grow crops requiring a special climate under any conditions, and also increases the yield and efficiency with which the crop is produced. This also results in improved quality of the crop and less manpower needed to harvest and tend to these crops. However, this form of technology is expensive, and only the elite companies in the agricultural sector are able to afford this; therefore, the rich-poor divide in the agricultural sector is widened.

1bi) Traditional breeding focuses on crops with a special immunity to certain adverse effects, and crosses them with other crops which have other desirable effects, for example, producing a yield higher than the average crop. This careful selection of crops eventually (theoretically) results in a strain which is both resistant to pests and high yielding. However, one difference is that this method is extremely time consuming as compared to genetic modification.
Also, only closely related species can be successfully bred; therefore, if a species does not possess a resistance to a certain kind of insect or epidemic, the species as a whole cannot be protected against these effects.
GM food on the other hand, allows for gene transfer between virtually any plant or animal, thereby cancelling these limitations. Also, traditional breeding might bring some unwanted traits into the plant; for example, if a cabbage is resistant to pests, it might also taste bitter, the quality which discourages pests from consuming it. However, genetic modification targets specific genes and transfers only that effect across; in that sense, it has an overall advantage over traditional breeding, apart from being very expensive to perform.

ii) Agri-business is defined as the act of “farming engaged in as a large-scale business operation which utilizes modern science and technology to produce high yield through optimal performance”. This form of farming results in high yield through use of new technology in farming like High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds and genetic modification to produce exceptionally abundant crops with preferred traits. However, this form of farming requires a high starting capital due to the fact that the required technology and machinery needs to be purchased.
Agri-business is becoming more and more popular because the turnover as compared to using traditional methods of farming is higher, and because crops grown through newer technology like genetic modification are now in higher demand as compared to traditional crops. The traditional method of farming also possesses many limits ; for example, if a farmer wanted to introduce a certain resistance-gene into a crop to reduce capital loss due to pests, the time it would take to breed such a crop through careful selection and cross-breeding would be very long (fifteen years, at least), whereas genetic modification, although expensive, allows for the farmer to transplant the gene into the crop almost immediately. There are also no added side effects as compared to natural breeding, where the crop might accidentally gain an unwanted trait in addition to resistance to pests (see example in question 1bi) above). Thus, agri-business is more desirable as compared to traditional breeding, and therefore there is a shift towards the agri-business sector.
Also, agri-business is now becoming more “trendy” in the business world of agriculture, and it is therefore in more demand by investors, who invest comparatively more in this sector as compared to crops grown using traditional methods. Farmers therefore capitalize on this and thus prefer to grow crops using agro-technology.
Finally, with the advent of agro-technology, new techniques have allowed the shelf life of agro-technologically grown food to be extended. It is therefore more desirable as compared to easily perishable crops, and this is extremely important as far as the world is concerned, because there is currently an increasing demand from the burgeoning population of the world to raise the current productivity of crops; therefore, agri-business is more popular in the agricultural business world not only because more crops can be produced, but also because these crops tend to survive when exported as compared to other crops which ripen and spoil easily (refer to tomatoes in Figure 1).
As a result, since agri-business produces more desirable crops, and a resulting higher capital for the farmer, more and more people are beginning to grow crops in this sector of business.

1c) The Green Revolution is the process of technologically modifying current agricultural techniques to increase the efficiency of crop growth, resulting in a higher productivity rate (especially in agricultural sectors in less developed countries). This is especially popular in poor countries where people are desperate for food, and there is, as a result, a higher demand for crops.
The Green Revolution first started out in Mexico under the Cooperative Wheat Research and Production Program, which aimed to find a solution to feed the starving population of third world countries through the cooperation of farmers in growing crops. The result was so successful in producing high-yielding crops which possessed resistances to natural elements that technologies used to grow these crops were exported abroad to assist farmers in meeting the food demands of their countries. In the end, more experimentation occurred, creating improved crop yield and other benefits.
The Green Revolution can currently be broken down into two smaller categories- the continued breeding and crossing of new plant varieties and the application of newer, modern technology into the agricultural sector (for example, genetic modification to boost a crop’s yield). The breeding of crops for various desirable traits has made much progress since the time the Green Revolution was introduced, and it has brought so many high yielding varieties (HYV) of crops that the majority of the public in industrialized companies now consumes these hybrid strains of crops as compared to traditionally grown crops. The breeding of new plant varieties now not only aims to increase crop yield, but also to increase shelf life, engineer resistances (against pests and herbicides) within the crop itself, and to help boost the appearance of the crop to make it more appealing.
The second category, introducing modern technology into agriculture, has helped greatly increase crop yield for farmers all over the world by introducing techniques which are now taken to be the standard for farmers delving into agri-business. Continued research into these techniques have come up with inventions like chemical fertilizer to allow any crop to grow in almost under any condition by providing the sufficient amount of nutrients for the crop, and the development of pesticides and herbicides to lower the loss of turnover by eliminating potential pests. Although with its drawbacks, pesticides have proven effective so far, with minimal crop loss and efficient weed control. Coupled with the introduction of heavy machinery to reduce labour required in harvesting the turnover, the Green Revolution has made much progress since its introduction into human society. Indeed, all these factors have helped prevent approximately one billion people in India from starving thus far, in addition to boosting India’s and Pakistan’s economy in the business of agriculture and securing its place in the world of agriculture for a long time to come.

ii) The Green Revolution has, in my opinion, greatly improved the lives of people throughout the world today. Firstly, its techniques have allowed food production to double and even triple in various third world countries, solving the problem of having people starve in these countries due to lack of food and achieving food security in developed countries as well as developing countries. In addition to this, the Green Revolution has helped to boost India’s economy by making it one of the world’s biggest agricultural producers.
However, the Green Revolution is also under fire for destroying the biodiversity and delicate balance of the environment by ensuring that less varieties of crops are grown in place of the HYV seeds, and this could also lead to herbicide-resistant weeds and other anomalies which are not normally found in nature. Also, there is an increased tendency for larger companies dealing in agri-business to monopolise the agricultural sector by selling sterile HYV seeds in order to gain revenue, resulting in farmers being forced to buy these sterile seeds from them again and again. Pollution also occurs in addition to dependence on fertilizers and the degradation of the natural fertility of the land due to possible run-off from pesticides and herbicides into oceans and lakes, resulting also in the lessened fertility of the land. This forces farmers to depend solely on fertilizers to ensure that crops grow well.
However, comparing the disadvantages and advantages of the Green Revolution, I feel that saving many human lives is a notable achievement, whereas many of these ‘disadvantages’ also apply to other large scale businesses in agriculture like the running of plantations, and is therefore not exclusive to the Green Revolution alone. I thus feel that the Green Revolution has drastically improved the lives of many people, and is therefore an advantage.

专题作业- Chinese New Year

2007-06-30T05:08:00.000-07:00

Well, I wanted to see if this worked...

专题作业
华族农历新年
在每年前，世界上的华人，不管住在哪里，都一定会庆祝农历新年。在华人的传统里，农历新年就是他们最热烈庆祝的华族假期，而对各种各样的华人，是代表幸福的来临。除了冬至，它也是华人最大的节日之一。但是，看了现代成千成万的大广告，农历新年对我们新加坡人只是一段公共假期，仍然又是一个机会走上呜街路，对我觉得心如死灰。所以，我想我们应该再看一看庆祝农历新年的理由。
农历新年就是从一月一日（在华人的日历）一直到灯笼节，在十四天后，才结束。这个传统是很旧的，在中国古代的时候也被遵守的。人人相信，有一天，在新年的时候，一个叫“年”的怪兽从森林里出现，开始在附近的村子杀人如麻。后来，村民悟到，“年”怪兽怕了严厉的声音和红色，所以他们利用烟火和爆发的声音把“年”追走了。从此，红色和烟火在华人的传统里，是吉祥的东西。
在这十五天间，家家户户都相信，如果你扫在家里，把它清洁一下，未来的好运都一定会被扫出家里。所以，每个家庭都会在农历新年嘉前打扫，把前年的坏运气扫出去，等待初一。在初一的早上，家人都会开始庆祝农历新年；结婚的夫妇也会在这时把红包给比较年轻的成人和少年在家族里。后来，人人都会打扮得雍容华贵去拜访别的家人。那晚，家庭也会团集在一起，吃团圆饭在大酒楼或家里。
团圆饭是个很大的事件；全家族，不管住在哪里，都必须回来分享团圆饭。在这晚，大家都会吃鱼和各种各样的肉，因为“鱼”是可以用来形容“年年有余”，和肉是形容幸福。饺子，在这时，也是个很受欢迎的食物。除了那些，人们也喜欢吃金橘子，因为名字听的是如金子一样！所以，我们通常看到别人在农历新年把一双金橘给别人，理由是祝他们好运。黏糕，和肉干，也是另外常常吃的食物。
在第七天，华人都相信这是“普通人生日天”（今天就是每个华族人的生日），还有，这是华人们开始吃鱼盛的天。鱼盛是个素食的食物，形容未来的好运和幸福。
在最后的一天，元宵节，很多人喜欢吃汤圆，因为这让他们觉得未来的年会跟汤圆一样甜的。这也就是小孩们的灯笼节，让全家庭扶老携幼去玩灯笼。总是，这就是农历新年庆祝的最后一天，令人又觉得开心，又觉得一点失望。从庆祝开始到结束，环境其实是兴高采烈－欢呼声通常是经久不息，到夜晚还可以听得到人们迎接新的一年，真是令人扶今追昔。。。

This is Chinese, expect it to be way below average than your average Chinese essay...

Things Fall Apart

2007-06-30T05:05:00.000-07:00

The Question is: "Achebe is very conversant with western literature and its traditional forms. He borrows from the tradition of greek tragedy by centering the story of "Things Fall Apart" around a tragic hero, Okonkwo. Many literary critics have noted several similarities between "Things Fall Apart" and classical tragedies like "Oedipus Rex" and "Hamlet". Find out more about the western definition of tragedy and the tragic hero. In what ways do they depart from the conventions of Western Tragedy and the tragic hero. In what ways do they depart from the Aristotelian model? In your opinion, what contributes most to the final tragedy of Okonkwo? Could his fall have been averted?"

Greek tragedy features much in Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”, and is basically the form which the book takes to impart its story. Okonkwo, the protagonist, can be compared to a classic example of a Greek tragic hero, but before we begin, an introduction and a brief outline of the Greek tragic hero in all his glory.
The word “tragedy” is derived from the Greek word tragoedia, meaning “goat song”, which described the chorus’ entrance as they wore masks and goat skins in imitation of Dionysus, the Greek God of wine. In the tragedy, Aristotle’s Greek tragic hero has to possess a few essential qualities that will ultimately result in the “catharsis” (purgation) of the feelings of pity and fear the audience has towards the destiny of the ill-fated hero, which is the aim and objective of every successful tragedy. Firstly, tragic heroes are usually born into nobility, which endows upon us the fact that they are responsible for the own fate. The irony here is that, although they are usually powerful and charismatic, and no matter how much power they wield in their hands, they can never ever control their own destiny. This, in addition to a tragic flaw they usually possess, curtails their potential for greatness and results in their downfall by the end of the tragedy, when they are doomed to a fatal error in judgement due to this flaw. This is the “harmartia” which every Greek hero must undergo in a tragedy- to rise to a position where he is almost certainly esteemed for glory, and to fall because of this reversal in fortune. In analyzing the Greek tragic hero, it is vital to keep in mind that the Greek hero in question in stuck in a situation which is almost inescapable from; for example, Oedipus could not prevent his own birth. In the end, it is his “harmartia” which brings the hero down, even though he has not truly done anything wrong in context. As a result, the audience experiences the catharsis because the hero, although fallen, still wins a moral victory because he is greater than what the common man in the audience can ever hope to achieve, and because he faces the truth of his mistakes and dies with honour. This elevates the tragic hero to a position higher in our esteem and wins our unfailing sympathy for the ill-fated hero in question, yet at the same time purging it because the unconquered spirit of the hero lives on in his tragic death. This, then, is the final aim of each and every proper Greek tragedy.
The Western tragedy, on the other hand, is described as more a prose or poetic narrative, as compared to a drama. To the Western tragic hero, the aim of the tragedy is to please the audience by exploring social matters within the play and making fun of them if they were unpopular, leading to a tragic ending in the story, or elevating their importance, resulting in a happier ending which the audience would prefer. Particularly, Shakespeare’s romantic tragedies catered to the whims of the audiences he had to please- Hamlet, for example, mixed tragedy and comedy into one play, and poetry and prose, combining the best of both into a play which the audience liked. No matter whether the protagonist or antagonist suffered in the end, the play was created to show that they ultimately deserved their fate (Macbeth in Shakespeare’s Macbeth); exceptions were created (Shylock in Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice”) to trigger sympathy from the audience. In addition, violence onstage played a very huge part in entertaining the audience, and often, the traditional Elizabethan tragedy ended in conflict and tragedy, which pleased much of the lower-class citizens of the era, who appreciated bawdy humour and violence more than the nobility of the Elizabethan era. Reversal of fortune was also frequently used to ensure that the plays did not fall too low in the audience’s esteem, and this led to the formation of the tragicomedy, which possessed both tragedy and comedy as elements. This was a form of play unique to the Elizabethan era, and deviated from the traditional Aristotelean tragedy.
Okonkwo is similar to the classic greek hero in the sense that he has a quintessential failing, a moralistic bugbear, that prevents him from becoming the ultimate hero. Where the greek heroes have their pride or hubris, Okonkwo has his fear of weakness and unquenchable pursuit of strength and power. This fear later leads to outbursts of violence, as he believes his tribe to be strong enough to go to war and hence kills the white man, while subsequently, the disillusionment that he faces with the weakness of the tribe leads him to hang himself. This is similar to the pride of Oedipus, when he demands the exile of the man who the gods have proclaimed to him is causing suffering to the land, yet ignoring Teresias’s prophecies about him being the man, until it is really proved to him, and he blinds himself in a fit of despair.

The plot of things fall apart is similar to a classic greek tragedy in the fact that it details the main character’s rise from commonality to greatness. In Oedipus, the story tells of how Oedipus, originally just a regular noble, solved the riddle of the sphinx, lifting the curse on the land, and later thus getting accorded the honour of becoming the King of Thebes. Similarly, the plot of things fall apart details how Okonkwo rose out of the shadow of his poor, weak father, and became the greatest wrestler in all the land by a young age, throwing the as-yet undefeated Amalinze the Cat; eventually, he became a great and prosperous warrior, accorded the honor of being one of the masked Egwugwu and taking three titles, as well as having a huge compound, three wives and nine children.

the essential difference between the classic greek tragic hero and okonkwo in things fall apart is that the classic greek hero is a greater projection of the common man, a great man who is noble both in spirit and in action, believing in greater ideals and ultimately failing because of their firm and often stubborn adherence to those beliefs. For example, Oedipus firmly believes in his own nobility. Yet their beliefs are not wrong to begin with; in fact, most of these beliefs are noble beliefs that many common people like ourselves would strive to identify with.

In that sense then, Okonkwo is different in this respect because his ultimate failing deviates from the harmatia of the greek heroes in a slight manner: the greek heroes’ harmatia is a facet of themselves which is inevitable, either something well and present in all men, or else something actually good and noble to begin with but later becomes twisted. In that sense, the greek tragic heroes cannot help themselves with regard to their harmatia; it is a quintessential, ineluctable part of them.

This is not necessarily the case with Okonkwo. In okonkwo’s case, we see that his ultimate failing, his unquenchable rage and thirst for strength and power, stems from his inner insecurities of his father; he wants so badly to cut off all links with his father that he is petrified of showing any signs of weakness whatsoever, to the point where his special affections for his children (particularly Ezinma) are muted and not publicly displayed. In this case, his failing has become more of a choice. As we know, Okonkwo, having secretly followed Ekwefi to the oracle of Agbala, does actually have a great deal of concern for his family and offspring. Yet his constant fear of weakness restricts him from showing any emotion whatsoever. This makes him much less like a regular person on his ascent to greatness, and less likeable due to his perpetual anger and brutality against those he considers to be weak, or those who step out of line. Thus his elitist and uncompromising character, while still retaining a large portion of (albeit private) humanity and emotion, allows for far less empathy than the noble and upright Oedipus and Antigone, who each followed a noble belief to its tragic denouement.

In addition, Okonkwo believed that his chi played a great part in his life. When he was strong and confident, in the beginning chapters, he believed that “When a man says yes, his chi says yes also”. He also believed that if he made any decisions which adversely affected him, his chi “was not made for great things. A man could not rise beyond the destiny of his chi. . . . Here was a man whose chi said nay despite his own affirmation”.

With regards to plot, the plot of things fall apart is markedly different from that of greek tragedies, in that it plots several falls for Okonkwo, as a sort of moralistic foil to his brand of vigilante justice. In classic greek tragedy, the plot tends to favor a single climax, with the first portion of the plot dedicated to the rising of the main tragic protagonist. Then, the second portion of the plot plays out a string of seemingly interlinked events, that foreshadow the eventual downfall of the tragic hero, which comes in the third and final part of the play. In this sense there is a strong singular plot buildup towards the eventual denouement.

While this is true of things fall apart, the several failings of Okonkwo shown along the way to create situations where he becomes dishonoured due to his excessive temper and violence, and his ultimate pride (“hubris”, in Greek terms); for example, his beating of his wife Ojugo during the week of peace leads to him being heftily fined. Also, his insistence on taking part in Ikemefuna’s death, because he was “afraid of being thought weak”, leads to a great deal of inner turmoil and anguish, that leads in turn to Okonkwo not eating anything for three days. Also, the unexpected plot twist of Okonkwo killing someone accidentally and hence being banished for 7 years, tends to bring the downfall of Okonkwo forward; unlike Greek tragedies, Okonkwo is disgraced before the end of the story, and his greatness is seen to diminish before the arrival and colonization of the white man. In that way, when Okonkwo is banished, there is irony there, as the readers can read by the changing of the circumstances that he is not going to regain his greatness, though he still retains many delusions of grandeur. The descent of Okonkwo is also emphasized by the once-favored Nwoye, who of late had become more manly according to his father’s wishes, defecting to the Christians. In the last two chapters itself, Okonkwo’s hate and anger turns into a “war of blame” when he channels his anger upon the villagers. When he beheads the messenger and finds no one on his side (“Why did he do it?”, someone asked) , he finally realizes that his fellow villagers would never war with the outside presence of the white colonialists, and therefore hangs himself because his hubris would never allow him to forgive himself for taking such a drastic measure and leading his clan into an atmosphere of inaction and fear, where no one was willing to side with him. Hence, the eventual destruction of Okonkwo is much more foreseeable than the Greek tragic heroes, whose destruction is much more sudden and unexpected.

TOK Reflections on Truth

2007-06-29T09:47:00.001-07:00

A short essay I did last year regarding the various theories of truth:
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“Truth”, defined in a layman fashion, is the conforming of a proposition to reality, and is the most straightforward definition of this term. As we are taught in the module on truth, truth can be divided into three theories, each defining truth in slightly more detail. The first one, the correspondence theory of truth, is the agreement of our thoughts with reality, or in essence, the layman definition outlined above. However, it does have its flaws, the most apparent being the fact that if we are comparing a proposition to the reality of it in this world, do we not already possess an incorruptible example of the truth itself?
To address this issue, the coherence theory of truth was proposed, where “truth” is, in essence, defined as the agreement of a belief with a body of knowledge we possess. In this respect, if everyone agrees with a certain truth, it becomes fact to them, since there is a general consensus. However, this begs the question of whether, even though the large majority of people living on Earth agreed on a certain proposition to be true, there is any guarantee that this was truly truth.
Thus sprang the last theory of truth to address the problems the above theories of truth faced: the pragmatic theory of truth, where a proposition is “true” if it is useful and aids in the interests of the person concerned, while a proposition is declared false if it has utterly no utility towards a person’s personal interests. In this respect, the pragmatic theory of truth is personal to each and every one of us; if we were to adopt a code of living by the pragmatic theory of truth, each and every one of us would possess different truths evident in our lives, which would challenge the concept of truth.
Personally, of these three theories of truth, I believe that the correspondence theory of truth holds the most water, due to several experiences denying the latter two theories of truth to be accurate as far as I am concerned, as well as beliefs which justify my faith in the correspondence theory of truth. Firstly, to prove that the coherence theory of truth does not always bring the truth, we need only look at the renaissance era, where people believed that the sun revolved around the Earth. This being common belief, it was held as FACT all the way until Galileo’s proofs were re-examined and showed that the general consensus of the time then, that the sun revolved around the Earth, was wrong. On a personal level, I have also experienced the coherence theory of truth going awry where truth is concerned. For example, when I was in primary school, when I was staring into a mirror, one of my classmates commented that one “should never look into a mirror when it is dark”, or else, he believed the spirit would depart from the body, leaving a lifeless husk. When he had said this, a complete stranger whom neither of us, knew who was standing nearby, turned to me, and affirmed the truth in that statement. From then on, I had been avoiding looking at mirrors in dark places on the basis that the statement was true, and until recently, have realized that there is no basis for such a phenomena to exist. As a result, the coherence theory does not always cohere to what can be proven truth beyond all measure, and therefore, the coherence theory of truth has little utility for me because to me.
I also disagree in the pragmatic theory of truth because “truth” here is relative and personal to each and every one of us. As a result, the “truth” expressed in such situations might not be true, simply because it is based on question’s level of utility in your life, and might produce absurd situations. For example, to a colour blind person, a banana being yellow is false because it does not help him in any way at all- all colours look the same to him. Therefore, using the coherence theory of truth, we are able to establish that our proposition of a banana being yellow is false, which does not cohere with sense perception and what we already know. Thus, in this respect, the pragmatic theory of truth is also unreliable.
On the other hand, I agree with the correspondence theory of truth because I believe that in addition to truths by sense perception, like the statement: “it is raining” (which can be true or false), there are also absolute, eternal truths, which are undoubtedly correct and impossible to prove otherwise. An example of this is the statement “two plus two equals to four”, where it was always equal four no matter what. Therefore, I believe that the correspondence theory of truth is the most accurate because when defining a truth, we are able to draw from a pool of “eternal truths”, which form the core base of truths, to which we are able to fairly compare. Moreover, a proposition cohering with an eternal truth remains a truth nonetheless, and not a proposition we are unable to verify the fidelity of.
The correspondence theory of truth, therefore, is in my opinion, the most accurate way to derive truth.

Practical Criticism on "The House of Mirth"

2007-06-29T09:38:00.000-07:00

The purpose of the extract is to focus mainly on the relationship between Selden, and Lily Bart. Here, we see that Selden, unexpectedly, meets with Lily Bart in a train station, and from the start, it is obvious that he is attracted to her, by the fact that his “eyes had been refreshed by the sight of [her]”. In the “afternoon rush” of the station, this is a very colorful contrast as opposed to the hustle and bustle of the station. Right from the start, we see that Selden is a person who is, by nature, someone very logical, and who carefully analyses his situation. This is justified by the poem being written in a third person point of view, from Selden; therefore, we as the readers are able to relate to Selden’s feelings and thoughts and see what he is experiencing. From this, it can be deduced that Selden is a logical person by the use of diction in the passage, in the words “inferred”, “plan”, “argument from design”, and through the use of repeated rhetorical questions within the extract, to show how his train of thinking leads him on to further deductions. Furthermore, he is a man of highly observant powers, represented by the descriptive, lyrical nature in which the extract is written in. When he sees Miss Lily Bart, he describes her “vivid head, relieved against the dull tints of the crowd”, something which others might not notice. In addition to that, Selden could also be said to be slightly pretentious in nature, by “respond[ing] joyfully that to [rescue Miss Lily Bart] was his mission in life”, and by “declaring himself entirely at [Miss Lily Bart’s] disposal”, which are extremely formal and overbearing declarations, and which could hint slightly at Selden trying to maintain his distance from her while, at the same time, trying to “be drawn, for a moment, into… sudden intimacy”. In addition to this, confidence, perhaps even arrogance, is expressed as we see how Selden is able to interpret every step of Miss Lily Bart’s actions as something more significant than what she seems to be showing, and due to his repeated questions as he thinks, it is almost as if he priding himself on his ability to outwit Miss Lily Bart and see her actions for what they really are. There is almost joy in the knowledge that “she would contrive to elude him” if “she did not wish to be seen”, and this little game amuses him. Again, although he is arrogant in thinking that his “course lay so far out of [Miss Lily Bart‘s] orbit”, he observes her physical beauty, her “little ear, the crips upward wave of her hair… and the thick planting of her straight black lashes” with an almost lustful pleasure, and yet maintaining a detached view, as much as he can. We may also note that Miss Lily Bart has an almost gripping effect on Selden; we see that Selden’s first reaction to seeing her is to “pause in surprise”, almost as if her presence has shocked him, and that he has the time for a “cup of tea” with her even though his work is fairly urgent in nature, prompting him to rush back from a “hurried dip” into the country”. Also, this is prompted by the repetition of words like “arrested”, “impulse” and “struck”, words which are very forceful and which imply that Selden cannot resist Miss Lily Bart’s charm.

On the other hand, although he is attracted to her, he cannot have a intimate relationship with her because he suspects Miss Lily Bart of having “far-reaching intentions” instead of her “[simple] acts”. This is fortified by Selden’s viewing of the “herd of [the female] sex” as extremely “dull and ugly” in contrast to Miss Lily Bart, and the “crudity of this average section of womanhood”. Almost portraying Selden as a chauvinist, it is clear that he thinks he deserves Miss Lily Bart because she stands out as “strong and fine”, compared to the “sallow-faced girls with preposterous hats, and flat-chested women struggling with paper bundles and palm-leaf fans”; it is almost as if he deserves her, because she represents the best as the leader of the female gender. Even though it is so, Selden still feels that the “fine glaze of beauty” of Miss Lily Bart is still temporal in nature, and mostly exterior, in stark contrast to the “vulgar clay” she is made of, are, Selden feels, are other women. However, he also questions whether a “coarse texture will… take a high finish”, assuming that because Miss Lily Bart is beautiful outside, she is perfect within, as she is without, showing that Miss Lily Bart has perhaps bewitched him, and caused him to feel a certain longing towards her, because she is, unlike the rest of her gender, more perfect and more capable than they are.
Miss Lily Bart, on the other hand, is perceived to be a cunning and devious woman in Selden’s eyes, manipulating him through her charm. We should keep in mind that the story is seen through Selden’s eyes, and that there is no definitive evidence to show that Miss Lily Bart is actually using her wiles to manipulate Selden. When Miss Lily Bart is first noticed, Selden perceives her as having “a desultory air”, an air of uncertainty and hesitation. From the fact that it was strange and that it “perplexed” Selden, we can assume that Miss Lily Bart is not one to actually vacillate often, and it again brings us to the point that Miss Lily Bart’s “simplest acts seemed the result of far-reaching intentions”. To Selden, her act of standing out in the crowd, “letting it drift by her”, is as if she is able to withstand the incessant flow of daily life as it rushes past her, and she serves as a foil to Selden, someone who, unlike Selden who must take a “hurried dip into the country” from work, is able to work without rushing here and there. Again, the fact that Selden works in the city, and that she works in predominantly “country-houses” reinforces the idea that Selden’s “course lay… far out of her orbit”. In contrast to Selden’s constant analysis and evaluation of the situation, Miss Lily Bart is seen to react spontaneously, especially when she first meets Selden and exclaims “Mr Selden- what good luck!”. Her off-the-cuff reactions could hint at her character- firstly, that she is a person who is able to talk her way out of situations, and secondly, a person that is able to display her emotions very well, as well as, perhaps, veil her inner feelings effectively with this veneer. By her very nature, she is attractive and “arrest[s] even the suburban traveller rushing to his last train”, and we see that even Selden cannot resist looking at her even though there is “nothing new” about her.
We may also note that Miss Lily Bart possesses a certain amount of coquetry, which we are able to observe, she uses with great skill in weaving Selden into her plans, when she replies as to “what form [Selden’s] rescue was to take”. Here, her pauses in her speech, where she says “almost any- even to sitting on a bench and talking to me. One sits out a cotillion- why not sit out a train? It isn’t hotter here than in Mrs Van Osburgh’s conservatory- and some of the women are not a bit uglier”, shows her pauses for emphasis and effect on Selden, as well as her diction, hinting that she is well educated. It is evident that she tries to project an image of being prosperous, by the fact that she has a “little jeweled watch” and wears “laces”. Also, the fact that she dances often hints at her prosperity, of either being a teacher of dancing to people who are well off, or being a student in dancing, a pastime for the upper echelon of society in 1905, when the extract was written. Accordingly, Miss Lily Bart displays a certain sort of arrogance, in thinking that the girls in Mrs Van Osburgh’s conservatory “are not a bit uglier”, and that her “arrest” of other people’s gazes is probably intentional by her “jeweled watch” and “laces”. Her condescending nature is also exemplified by her note that the patrons in “Sherry’s” were “a lot of bores”, and going on to note that she was as “old as the hills, of course”, which, although might be true, are not evidently what other people think. This under-statement by her could show that she tries to project an image of humility towards Selden, but in doing so, actually reveals the extent of her arrogance. All this serves to portray the fact that she is a work of art, as Selden believes, and that she is very valuable, so valuable that “a great many dull and ugly people must…have been sacrificed to produce her”. Her image of being “at once vigorous and exquisite, at once strong and fine” also serve as opposite ends of a spectrum of desirable qualities, but not entirely oxymorons, and this technique also serves to show how valuable she is compared to the “returning holiday-makers“. Her sophistication also hints that there is more to her than what she seems to be, more than just “vulgar clay”. This may be corroborated with the fact that her “indefatigable dancing” and “eleven years of late hours” were not seen in her “purity of tint” and her “radian[ce]”. Again, we take note that Miss Lily Bart does realise her beauty and charm, in her assumption that Selden was “com[ing] to [her] rescue”, and that everyone else around her is a “bore” or is “uglier”. Therefore, all this could make her actions, as she “glanced plaintively around the station” somewhat planned in nature, even hinting that they were purposeful and deliberate and that she had some hidden intentions not revealed to Selden in the extract. Her view of other women being all less interesting than her also shows that she seems to look at everyone as beneath her, but leaves it to Selden to actually realise this instead of openly telling him her fortes. The description of Miss Lily Bart in the extract therefore shows she is somewhat of an enigmatic character, and serves, again, as a foil to Selden, the logical and practical character that we see him to be.
The extract possesses an underlying motif of colour throughout the extract, and we see that Miss Lily Bart is described as a very colorful, “radiant”, “vivid” person, “relieved against the dull tints of the crowd”. The effect of this is to show a multi-layering of her personality, and that something could be deeper that what lies above on the surface. This motif is used very well to consistently flesh out the theme of appearance versus reality, as well as the use of the environment to show this; alone and in the train station, Selden is faced with monochromatic crowds, while out and alone with Miss Lily Bart, the “rapid shower had cooled the air”, and the environment develops into a somewhat more light-hearted and refreshing one, with Miss Lily Bart around. The extract ends off with us realizing that Selden does not see her as something more than a work of art, and thereby probably underestimating, even though he has already pre-empted, her veiled intentions, through the effective use of an extensive train of thought developed by Selden, and dialogue.

An Essay I Wrote for the Budget Essay Competition 2007 Singapore

2007-06-29T09:20:00.000-07:00

This is an essay I wrote on the economic future of Singapore; it didn't win anything, but I'm putting it up here to invite any comments on how to improve an essay that is part-GP argumentative and part-economics! To be fair I didn't exactly do a lot of research, so I didn't quote sites; most of the information is fairly accurate at the time of writing, however...

Where Our Economic Future Lies
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Essay Summary

This essay is written to answer the question of where Singapore’s economic future lies. With the environment of the markets of today changing more rapidly than ever, it falls to the youth to constantly adapt to the situation as part of our future workforce. Consequently, we should tap into this source of talent instead of outsourcing foreign talent, as our future ultimately is in our own hands. Therefore, in order to create this “adaptable workforce”, the young will have to be trained, and the more advanced and experienced will have to be retrained in order to perform well now and in the future, while slowly shaping those which are currently working in order to prepare them for possible shifts in the job industry, with more jobs in the hospitality and tourism sector arising from the construction of the Integrated Resort.
Of course, as the government shoulders the burden of retraining its workforce, it will incur additional costs as more and more incentives are offered to undergo retraining. To solve this problem, I also propose tapping into the Integrated Resort in the future, which will function as a major source of constant revenue to the government, which, by nature, is a profitable and at the same time, highly taxable industry, and taxing the industry will benefit the country in more than just an economic sense, the crux of which is in the latter half of my essay. All in all, the essay covers which economic aspects the government should improve in order to ensure a prosperous future, as well as some side effects of these actions.

Word count: 268

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“The future is in our hands” is a phrase which is commonly quoted in today’s society. As a student currently pursuing the International Baccalaureate Diploma in Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), I believe that this statement could not be more relevant than it is in today’s context- the way that the country is run in the future is currently affected to a large extent by the actions and ideas of today’s youth. Therefore, I propose that we focus on our youths, that they may proceed successfully to be the fundamental lynchpin of the country’s economy which we can rely on, and also because sooner or later, they definitely will play a greater part in our country’s economic affairs.

Singapore is turning more and more into a hub of creative expression and expansion, as compared to the industrialization period of the 1970s and the 1980s. This slow, but constant metamorphosis of our nation has changed our focus of development from nationalism to internationalism, and it therefore also behoves us to constantly improve our interconnectivity to the rest of the world, and thereby send a message to every investor in the globe identifying Singapore as a haven for investment. This is arguably more important than our focus, say, forty years ago, when Singapore was still developing as a nation and attempting to define its own cultural identity. I believe that it is time to put the past behind us, and focus our workforce on carving lucrative and well-defined niches in market sectors that are becoming more and more relevant to the world.

The Importance of Cultivating Local Talent
As we move further and further into the modern epoch, it is vital to realise that our youth are becoming an increasingly important asset to the country, not only because of their upbringing in a technology-rich environment, which our forefathers did not undergo, but also because they have the potential to become local talent after pursuing higher education, almost as if they are a form of capital in itself. The basic precepts of economics dictate that capital exists as man made wealth that is in turn used to create goods and services for human consumption. By extension, if we are to increase our sources of revenue, the key lies in nurturing our youth.

Singapore has always relied on its resource of human capital as the wellspring for many entrepreneurial ideas that have then gone on to transform the rest of the world into what it is today. This has helped to strengthen the economy, even when it was flagging in the 1950’s following the collapse of the Japanese Occupation, and still continues to, five decades later; we therefore should not undermine the importance of the entrepreneurial factor by seeking to change this traditional method of growth.
On the other hand, in our pursuit of achieving the status of a global nation, we should also not seek to totally strip away our national identity by completely relying on outsourced foreign entrepreneurs. An example of a country which has successfully balanced its intake of foreign minds versus local talent is China, which derives much of its success locally, but also “imports” just enough foreign talent to keep it updated with the rest of the world. Consequently, the continual upgrading of our human capital should be ranked among one of our most vital objectives as a nation if we are to continue to survive and prosper.

Retaining and Spending on the Old Guard
As we progress into the future, however, it is imperative that we do not impair the capabilities of our elders by denying them opportunities for re-training; firstly, this will ensure that they continue to contribute to society in a relevant manner, and secondly, they were the ones who have shaped our country to what it is now, and should not be denied this opportunity. To ensure that senior citizens have a part in shaping Singapore, the Government could further subsidise re-training opportunities for senior citizens above, say, sixty years old, or perhaps offer re-employment opportunities for people who are reaching the age limit for retiring, and are subsequently viewed by their employers as less useful, or less productive. This will not only send a signal to the senior citizens in our country that they are wanted, increasing their confidence in Singapore being in good hands, but will also provide the twin benefit of having them master the very technologies which are shaping our world.

Spending on the Youth
With the elderly and those reaching retirement age taken care of, the Government’s attention could now be turned to the youth of Singapore, a potentially harder force to harness in shaping Singapore’s future. For one, the youth in our country are uniquely different compared to those from other countries, possessing an uncanny ability to master technology, which is the hallmark of Singapore’s shift towards the information industry, and also emerging from educational institutions being highly trained, and definitely capable of working in any sector of Singapore’s industry, the result of compulsory education in Singapore. In any case, we should realise that we already have a wide and growing pool of knowledge and talent, and by carefully nurturing and cultivating budding students through the use of increased scholarships for local universities, students will be encouraged to go to local universities after graduation, and there will be significantly less ‘brain drain’, or the departure of local talent overseas in order to pursue university degrees; rather, a ‘reverse brain drain’ is engineered, where students from overseas will instead flock to Singapore, attracted by these subsidies. This would ensure that the pool of local talent which we can draw upon will become larger and make up a greater part of Singapore’s workforce, making it more formidable. Eventually, after being trained in Singaporean universities, graduates would ideally become part of a cohesive workforce, adept and adaptable in all relevant industries.
As mentioned in the previous few paragraphs, it is of utmost importance to train our youth to be leaders, because it is the youth that will be able to understand and fully grasp how important technology is to our industry today. Without technology, Singapore would not be able to refine raw materials into processed materials, an example of which is oil and petrochemical industry, which is a highly lucrative business here. Clearly, without keeping our level of technology up to date, Singapore would not have advanced far beyond entrepot trade, and would have possibly been invaded again if our military firepower had been far inferior to what we currently possess. However, as youths today are growing more and more outspoken, wishing to have a greater role in shaping the economy, we must remember that it would be a mistake to prepare the young to lead without the experience of the old, and likewise, the old to lead without preparing the young. The transition at this point of time must therefore be achieved gradually, and not immediately, retaining the old while at the same time refining the new. As a result, by taking care of both the young and old in Singapore’s society, we show that Singapore does look after its citizens well, preparing them for any possibility in the future. This is key to understanding the dynamic nature of today’s business, where a flexible workforce is vital in quickly adapting to the global business climate, which is constantly in flux.

The Welfare of the Working Class
Having taken great care to support the non-working population in our society, we now turn our focus to the lower, middle, and upper strata of the working population. As a whole, we see that we have industrialised to the point where the service sector, such as the information sector, is seen as “the way to go” by the Government. Subsequently, the lower class of the working population is placed in a disadvantaged position when attempting to tap into this lucrative service sector due to a lack of training in this area. To resolve this issue, we could relieve the tax burden of the lower income groups, for example, by further substantially reducing the income tax for people with lower income, which has already been implemented, and by only charging Goods and Services Tax (or GST in this case) to those whose incomes are above a certain amount. Of course, by doing this, many socioeconomic problems arise, central of which is the issue on whether those in the lower income bracket really do need this measure in order to be able to break out of the vicious cycle of poverty, and afford the costs of upgrading oneself. This would have to be taken into consideration before performing this measure.
As the working population works to support those who are not in the labour force, I also propose that the retirement age for civil servants be raised by one or two years, which would allow citizens to continue contributing to the economy. This move would not only effectively raise the size of the labour force, but also reduce the amount of people the working populace would have to support. Consequently, a greater proportion of taxes would be collected (since the retirement age is increased, people would have to pay income tax for the further one or two years which they work), and consequently channelled to the Treasury where it can be used for any fiscal or monetary policies if the circumstances require it.
On the other hand, doing this would also mean that the Central Provident Fund, or CPF, would have to be withheld for a few more years. This would adversely affect people who are in desperate need of funds from their CPF account, and may result in them taking loans which they are unable to repay, if nothing is done to remedy the situation. To avoid this scenario as far as possible, I further propose that the CPF be accessible at our present retirement age of 62, while extending the retirement age at the same time, because the CPF account being released just after retirement is simply a guideline or measure that has been retained only because it has done this way ever since the CPF was set up. As more and more people from the working population approach the age of 62, Singapore’s current retiring age, they will be increasingly reliant on what they have been saving up while working in their prime, in order to maintain their standard of living. In addition to that, it must be taken into consideration that Singapore’s population is an ageing one, and that as one becomes more advanced in age, one will tend to spend a greater proportion of their disposable income on medical care and such necessities as befits the older population. Consequently, it places greater stress on the government to allow these people to withdraw early from their CPF account. Moreover, by doing this, the government is able to allow for a greater amount of investments coming from the CPF Investment Scheme, or CPFIS, to be invested over a longer period of time, benefiting the government, and ultimately the people, due to the potentially greater amount of returns. Another alternative as compared to the one proposed above is to allow people to access their CPF account at the age of 62, and to keep that window of opportunity open until a year after that person has officially retired. This would allow them to access much needed funds without taking unwanted loans, and also show that the government takes the welfare of its citizens into consideration.

The Burden on the Treasury
I also support the 1% drop in corporate taxes as proposed by the government, effectively putting Singapore on par with Hong Kong for the country with the lowest corporate tax rates. Although this move is done on the basis that Singapore needs to be more competitive in the international market, we have to realise that there will be an added strain on the Treasury’s resources when implementing all the suggestions as raised above- the extended retirement age would suggest a substantially greater CPF payout per person, while the use of funds in offering a larger arsenal of grants and scholarships would also drain a substantial amount of cash reserves, not to mention the reduction in the amount collected of GST, reducing the annual amount of revenue the government may collect. Therefore, to counter this increase in government spending, the government must source for an additional inflow of revenue.

To Ease the Financial Woes of the Government
This comes, fortunately, in the form of the newly approved Integrated Resort, or IR, which has the potential to be heavily taxed due to the very nature of its industry. Moreover, the construction of the IR also signals an anticipated increase in demand in the tourism and hospitality sector of the market, having the double effect of also ensuring that various other businesses are able to sell a greater amount of goods and services to these tourists. So, why not place a tax on the monthly operation of the IR in the form of a compulsory permit, which will need to be replaced regularly? After all, the business running the IR will have to shift some of the tax burden on consumers by increasing their prices slightly, and this would discourage locals from actually visiting the IR itself, reducing the effect of the negative externality, gambling, which the IR will have on Singaporean locals, as fewer families will be at risk of bankruptcy, ensuring the basic economic unit, the family, is consistent in contributing to the economy. On the other hand, tourists who come to Singapore with the sole purpose of going to the IR will be less affected by the extra tax burden placed on consumers, because it is a limited “export” of our country (they can only use it while they are in Singapore), and therefore less price elastic, meaning that a larger proportion of the tax burden can be effectively passed on to them. Taxing the operation of the IR is therefore recommended as a source of revenue, albeit a major one, for the treasury as it gives multiple benefits as listed above. The only major cause of concern here is that the IR will not be completed in the next few years, and subsequently, no source of revenue may be derived from it between now and when it is fully completed. Therefore, I suggest that the above ideas be phased in slowly, so that the financial strain on the Treasury will not be too great at any point in time, and this will also allow us to have substantial reserves in the case of an emergency. Taxing the operation of the IR properly will result in the costs of the ideas listed above being fully covered, as well as providing a little extra to boost reserves, ideally ensuring a stable and prosperous economic future for Singapore.

2007-06-29T09:13:00.000-07:00

I won't post my EE up because I'm afraid the IB might take issue with that, plus the fact that I'm offering IB diploma in 2007; maybe it'll go up once the IB have received it or something, same for my world lit...

Trivium for today:

Hetairoi

The Companions (Greek Εταίροι) were Alexander the Great's elite cavalry, the main offensive arm of his army, and also his elite guard. They would be used as the hammer, in conjunction with his Macedonian phalanx based infantry, which acted as the anvil. The phalanx would "fix" (pin) the enemy in place, and the Companion cavalry would attack the enemy on the flank or from behind. It should be noted that Alexander employed other cavalry forces, which he normally deployed on his left. The companions were a heavier, better armed unit, made up mainly of noblemen.

Normally, Alexander would lead the charge with his cavalry, usually in a wedge formation. In a pitched battle, the Companions usually fought on the right wing of the Macedonian army, next to the shield bearing guard, and he normally positioned the phalanx in the center. The various cavalry troops would also protect the flanks of the Macedonian line during a battle. As heavy cavalry, the Companions were Alexander's decisive arm in battle.

The Companions were organized into territorial squadrons, made of 200 to 300 soldiers. In Alexander's campaign into Persia, there were eight squadrons, commanded by Philotas, with one being the royal squadron. Philip II of Macedon enlarged the size of the unit to around 2000 soldiers, as opposed to the 600 used as a mounted bodyguard for the king in battle.

The Companions would ride the best horses, and receive the best weaponry available. In Alexander's day, each carried a xyston (a long thrusting spear), and wore both a cuirass and helmet. A kopis (curved slashing sword) was also carried for melee combat.

Wikipedia =) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Companion_cavalry, accessed 30-6-2007, common license

The Thematic Significance of Water Imagery in Siddhartha

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13) Discuss the thematic significance of water imagery in Siddhartha.

The role and symbolism of the river is one of the major underlying themes which extend throughout the novel, and which is discussed perpetually in the text. Our first encounter with the river is in the first sentence of the text itself, where, “in the sunshine near the boats on the riverbank,… Siddhartha grew up”. Already, it seems that the river is “accompanying” Siddhartha from his childhood to his adolescence, and foreshadows how the river will play an even greater part in his quest for enlightenment.
Although the text itself is divided into two parts, it could be said that there are, in reality, three important sections the text may be divided into- the spiritual side of Siddhartha’s quest, the sensory side of Siddhartha’s quest, and his final attainment of Atman, all comprising three chapters each. The river figures prominently in the beginning or introductory chapter of all these three parts, as if it were his guide to his ultimate attainment of Atman. To fully realize the role of the river in directing Siddhartha’s quest, it is important to study where and how it materializes in each of the three instances raised above. The first instance, before he sets off to join the Samanas in his spiritual quest to “find the primal source in one’s own self”, has already been highlighted and discussed in the paragraph above. In the second instance, before he meets Kamala, the river presents itself as an obstacle, necessarily introducing Siddhartha to the Ferryman before he can proceed with his quest in “experien[cing]… [the senses] on its own”. It is interesting to note that later, as Vasudeva comments, “the river has been nothing but a hindrance in [the] travels” of many thousands who people who “traveled for money and business… and the river was in their way”. Similarly, it presents an obstacle to Siddhartha at this point, showing his increasing association with the life of “money and business”. At this point, we can also see that foreshadowing occurs in Siddhartha’s interaction with the Ferryman; firstly, because he suggests that “one can learn a lot from the river”, and secondly, because he proclaims that Siddhartha “will give [him] the [fare] another time” and ultimately return to the river again, which occurs later in the novel. Finally, the river appears yet again in the chapter “By the River”, where it causes the termination of his life of the senses, metaphorically symbolized by the deep sleep which he experienced after his “slumbering spirit suddenly awoke”, and heralds the beginning of his new life with the Ferryman, Vasudeva. As Siddhartha realizes the necessity of Samsara for him to be reborn into his new life, the river acts as both the source of his new self, in his recalling of the sacred “om”, as well as the death of the old self, symbolized by his propensity towards suicide. However, the most important function of the river is fully brought out by Hesse in the final three chapters of the text.
Throughout these three chapters, the river acts as the final setting of the text, and is a powerful symbol of the ritualistic cleansing, in Hindu culture, as provided by the Ganges. This is so because it is traditionally believed that bathing in the Ganges results in freedom from the endless cycle of Samsara, and because Siddhartha seeks the same goal of liberating self and reaching “the celestial world”. Also, the river exists as a symbol of flux and fluidity; because of its constant nature, ever running but never changing, it creates within Siddhartha a feeling of awe and wonder when he sees that it is “always and forever the same, and yet new every instant”. Ultimately, it brings him to a point of epiphany when he comes to the conclusions that “time does not exist”, and that “everything is, everything has being and is present” due to its constant flow. In this manner, the river also assists Siddhartha in ultimately attaining his goal, by allowing him to experience the unity and concordance of nature and life in the “thousand… voices” and the multitudinous nature of this issue, dispelling Siddhartha’s belief that all life is suffering. Finally, he appreciates the river for what it represents- “om”, or completeness, and this transforms him, making “his smile… almost as radiant, almost as blissful, likewise shining” as the Buddha’s radiant smile was. Eventually, Siddhartha becomes a spiritual figure, as Buddha was when he visited the Jetavana Grove at Anathapindaka, and rumours spread about of “two sages or wizards or saints”, making an obvious comparison to the Buddha at this point. Since they have achieved this state of holiness at the same time the Buddha becomes mortally ill, it could also be said that the river represents the transition between the existences of these spiritual leaders, due to its subtle referral to the Hindu concept of circularity. This concept can also be seen from Siddhartha’s current relationship with Vasudeva, brought forwards from the first time he met the ferryman, before he was about to engage in his life of the senses.
Eventually, the perpetual state of flux the river exists in leads directly to Siddhartha’s attainment of Nirvana. Although Siddhartha differentiated himself from the ways of the “child-people” he realizes, at the point of his enlightenment, that he himself is no different from the other people, because he himself has experienced the various desires and urges that these people do in life. By truly undergoing the process of suffering, Siddhartha realized that he was able to identify himself with the child-people, and as the child-people were previously released from suffering by taking refuge in the Sublime One’s teachings, so does Siddhartha similarly find a release from suffering by including himself within the unity that the child-people exist in within the world. At this point, Siddhartha is able to identify himself with everything, rather than identifying himself with nothing, as he had previously thought, and this is due, again, to the existence and imparting of truths by the river. Essentially, once Siddhartha has achieved this consciousness of unity, as well as being empowered by the various experiences he has had which connect him to the child-people, then only has the river truly fulfilled its duty of being a guide in his quest for liberation.

Siddhartha: Character Comparison

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16) Compare the characters of Siddhartha, his father, and his son.

Within the text, Siddhartha, his father, and his son play an extremely important vital role in consolidating Siddhartha’s background within the text; by examining Siddhartha’s response to these other characters, and by looking at the characters themselves, we will be able to determine their role and function in the catalysis of Siddhartha’s maturity, as part of the text’s canonization in the Bildungsroman genre, and to moreover provide us with a clearer picture of the character in question, essentially through a character analysis.
Siddhartha is, first of all, perfect in almost every aspect of his life- socially, physically, and mentally, excelling in each and every one of these qualities. He is, in the text, quoted as having a “clear-thinking mind” and understanding “how to know Atman in his innermost being, indestructible, at one with the universe”, and ultimately, he is introduced to us as “the strong, the beautiful boy, striding on slender legs… with perfect breeding”, essentially being the epitome of perfection, “[bringing] joy to all, and delight[ing] them all”. Similarly, his father is “pure… learned…the supremely venerable man” who likewise enjoyed social status as a Brahmin, and who excels in all the qualities mentioned above. There are also hints that Siddhartha’s father, like Siddhartha himself, is “a seeker, a thirster”, but what differentiates Siddhartha and his father is Siddhartha’s discipline and unquenchable thirst in seeking out knowledge; this is the driving force which carries him throughout his quest.
Siddhartha possesses a high level of discipline and iron will; this can be seen in two instances- firstly, where he stands in front of his father requesting to leave home in “the Brahmin’s Son”, standing for so long that the “stars were wandering across the small window, changing their patterns”, and till his father had to accede to his request, and secondly, when Siddhartha’s iron will is demonstrated as he undergoes the Samana experience, “burning with pain, burning with thirst… crouch[ing] in the twisting brambles, the blood dripping from his burning skin”, and staying in this kind of life “until no more blood flowed, until nothing more pricked, until nothing more burned”. This kind of behaviour demonstrates the discipline which Siddhartha possesses, and differentiates him from the “child people”, leading him to believe that his path to Atman must be different from that of the child peoples’- this is the reason why he cannot take refuge in Gautama’s Teachings, unlike his companion Govinda. This level of discipline is directly in contrast that demonstrated by Siddhartha’s son; while Siddhartha is so focused that he can meditate everyday during his youth, Siddhartha’s son resorts to “robbing Vasudeva’s fruit trees”, and living an undisciplined life as Siddhartha and Vasudeva toiled in their work. By his breaking of the rice bowls, as well as his “moods and defiance”, Siddhartha’s son represents at the same time, a hindrance and an obstacle to Vasudeva’s and Siddhartha’s goal of understanding the river, as well helping Siddhartha to advance in his quest by letting him understand “the sorrow and suffering of love”, without which his experience of the senses would not have been complete.
Siddhartha’s father represents the pinnacle of enlightenment exemplified by the Brahmin caste. As his father, “the pure, the learned, the supremely venerable man”, represents the paragon of priesthood, Siddhartha understands that if his father had to “wash away sin every day, strive for purification every day”, then priesthood is not the correct way to attain the inner peace which Siddhartha so seeks. By creating the father-figure in this manner, Hesse also wishes to foreshadow success in Siddhartha’s quest that he would one day “[join] the radiant ones”, by virtue of the fact that his father was already well-respected and possessed many good qualities. This achievement is significant because in traditional belief, as one repeats the cycle of Samsara, one goes up the social ladder if he has performed good deeds, and the attainment of the Brahmin caste symbolizes the near-attainment of Nirvana. This is precisely why Siddhartha’s father is placed within the text- to show that no matter how Siddhartha’s father was like, he was, perhaps, one of the child-people, and was therefore unable to attain enlightenment in this manner.
The significance of Siddhartha’s son cannot be underestimated or ignored. Firstly, because the text does not name him, we realize that “young Siddhartha” is merely a younger, more ill-disciplined version of Siddhartha in his youth. Even Siddhartha understands that his son lives an extremely secular existence, “refusing to work, showing the old men no respect” and “displaying a proud and defiant heart”. Consequently, because of his experiences in the second half of the book, Siddhartha is able to identify with this kind of worldly existence, the very existence that almost led him to drown himself. His attempts to protect his son are therefore logical actions to prevent his son from straying down the same path that he did, and suffering the pain which he himself endured. However, his son eventually runs away, causing Siddhartha much anguish in the process. This act of young Siddhartha leaving Siddhartha’s protection mirrors his conviction in the fact that everyone has, ultimately, to go his own way and learn from experience, because one cannot “tell anyone in words and through teachings… the secret of what… [he] himself [had] experienced”. Siddhartha was taught, from young, the futility of a materialistic life, but even he himself had to experience this kind of life to fully appreciate this fact. Similarly, the same lesson is true for his son.
Finally, Siddhartha’s son helps Siddhartha to experience one social concept he was unable to before- love. Even his meetings and lessons with Kamala within the text did not prepare him for the “sorrow and suffering of love”. Ironically, he only goes through the experience of love after he has renounced the life of the senses, and rededicates himself to learning from the river with Vasudeva. From this, we can deduce that love’s position is unique in respect to other emotions within the world, an inimitable quality which emphasises its difficulty to overcome, even for the disciplined Siddhartha. Ultimately, young Siddhartha’s function within the text is to cause Siddhartha to realise that even this kind of love is Samsara, and should be avoided because it would irrevocably lead to sadness for lack of it, the same way that loving an object would turn to sadness because of its loss. This experience is highly significant because Siddhartha soon attains Nirvana shortly after this, representing the fact that love remained as the final and most challenging hurdle to Siddhartha’s path.

November 2004 English A1 Essay Outline

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3b) “My characters are contradictory, not only in their language but in their behaviour as well.” Discuss the ways in which you see contradictions within individual characters as adding to the interest of fiction you have studied.

Two books for comparison: Siddhartha/ Huckleberry Finn

Beginning:
• Outline the question for the examiner- Show paradoxical actions which characters might do, or behaviour that is inconsistent with the portrayal of the character, or dialogue which the character says that is, again, inconsistent with his or her portrayal. This is a question mostly dealing with characterization and the credibility of the text compared to its intended setting.
• Demonstrate whether this “contradictions” are intended or otherwise; did the author have some purpose in creating those contradictions? What does it make you as the reader feel? This will help you score in personal response and interpretation.

This is an outline, it doesn’t have to be followed in this order, or with these points alone

Proposition/ Main Argument:
• For Siddhartha, analyse the central character, Siddhartha, with Kamala, Kamaswami, Vasudeva
• Siddhartha out-of-character moments:
-When he leaves his father the Brahmin to seek “Atman”; is that something that is typical or characteristic of the adolescent which Siddhartha is?
- When Siddhartha suffers in the forest in “samana training”; not even normal people have the threshold of pain which Siddhartha possesses, much less an adolescent.
- Siddhartha is able to initially disdain the profits and losses which he made under Vasudeva; is that characteristic of a normal person? Granted, he does fall under its sway later on, but his disregard for wealth and women (as seen in the beginning of “The Child People”) border on the extraordinary
- Siddhartha’s father makes him promise to return to him if he does not find enlightenment after he leaves his father; Siddhartha breaks this promise. As a man who seeks knowledge, as well as being the protagonist, we expect Siddhartha to honour his word in his quest for knowledge.
- Vasudeva seems to be able to foretell the future when he first ferries Siddhartha across the river; something out-of-character with a normal, poor boatman. By doing something even Siddhartha cannot do, Hesse hints to us that Vasudeva may be someone out of the ordinary
-Siddhartha’s attainment of enlightenment is something that borders on the supernatural; however, this point is not very relevant, and only serves as a not-so-good pointer if you cannot remember at least 4 of the points listed above.
• That’s not all- to get marks, you have to explain these and how they are relevant. Did the author intend for these contradictions? What is the effect of placing them here?
For Siddhartha, since there are not so many out-of-character moments, you only need to list a few of the points above; 3 to 5 points should suffice, plus whatever else you can think of. Nothing less than 3 if you want to get at least a 15 out of 25.

• In Huck Finn, write how the behaviour of Huck and Nigger Jim seem to be contrived, especially towards the end of the text.
• Remember that Twain is a horrible writer when it comes to plot; the contrived nature of his writing is certainly unintentional when we compare it to Hesse’s conscious craftsmanship.
• Focus on Huck and Jim, as most of the other characters are portrayed realistically; many critiques agree that this is the case, so focus on the main two
• Huck “loves nature” and hates humanly engineered artificial establishments. An example of this (use examples.. LOTS of examples) is organized religion, which Huck Finn rejects because of its hypocritical nature. Bring in the issue of the Shepherdsons and Grangerfords behaving like little kiddies- guns in church, even when “Colonel Grangerford was a gentleman” (chap 18); immature feud? Out of character behaviour
• The Duke and King are not able to see Huck’s real intentions, and they even “forgive” him, or ignore, his attempt to escape after the Mary-Jane incident where money was hidden in the coffin. This is not in character with their portrayal as cunning and evil men.
• One important thing to mention is how Huck regresses into being Tom Sawyer’s subordinate the moment Sawyer appears; when Sawyer leads Huck to rescue Jim, Sawyer issues the orders, while Huck follows him. This is something contradictory to Huck’s free spirit and leadership as experienced on the Mississippi river.
• Huck’s escape down the Mississippi River with Jim is ludicrous; why would Huck, the free spirit, who has initially negative impressions of black people (the incident of the steamboat accident where he mentioned to Aunt Sally “No, ma’am, killed a Nigger”), want to pair up with Jim in his quest to be free? Considering Huck’s cautious nature (he comes up with an alibi and an alias every time), it is surprising.
• Jim’s continued existence on the raft after Cairo is surprising, as he sails further and further South into Confederate territory (where slavery is practiced) rather than the Free States in the North. Looking at the map of the US, there is absolutely NO opportunity for Jim to escape slavery the moment he passes Cairo, the Southernmost Free State. Considering Jim left Miss Watson to avoid being sold in New Orleans, there is really absolutely NO NO NO reason for him to go down the Mississippi River once he has passed Cairo, Illinois. (You can make this the main thrust of your argument, it will probably raise your grade for interpretation and knowledge and understanding by one compared to someone who didn’t pick this up)
• Jim’s trust of Huck is something extremely out of character considering he is 1. an escapee 2. black 3. in an extreme state of nerves when he finds Huck (he initially believes Huck to be a ghost). Why did he not kill Huck in the first place? There is absolutely no reason for him to trust Huck; maybe because Huck is a child?
• If you can find any examples of dialogue, please add them in yourself; Huck Finn is a long and tedious text to quote.

Conclusion
Evaluate whether the contradictions were done with a purpose, or without. If it was done with a purpose, state how it has made you feel as a result, and how it has contributed to the book’s genre in bildungsroman. If it was done without a purpose, just write that it shows the author lacks skill in your opinion (this is the magic word); you won’t be penalized for this because IB is extremely open minded and may even award you marks for saying this. In conclusion, evaluate how the characters have been contradictory, and, again, show how it contributes.

TOK Essay for IBDP Year 5

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Question 2: “Different cultures have different truths.”
“A truth is that which can be accepted universally.”
What are the implications for knowledge of agreeing with these opposing statements?

Truth, Aristotle claims, is to “say of what is that it is, and of what is not that it is not” . However, in the modern world, “truth” is a word which can be widely interpreted, and has many different meanings in today’s context; however, the traditional interpretation of what truth is, “conformity to fact or actuality” , is still very widely utilized.
With this in mind, let us take a brief glance at the two statements. By asserting the different conditions under which something is true, both of these statements have different conclusions. The first statement, “different cultures have different truths” implies that culture somehow affects truth, and that the variance of each culture thereby brings out the various truths which can be determined. The second statement, “a truth is that which can be accepted universally”, hints that the nature of truth transcends all barriers, even that of culture, thus, the conflict in agreeing with both statements.
If I agreed with the first statement, I am proposing that truth is different because of my cultural context, and that because every person has a different upbringing, their evaluation of facts will always be relative to what they have experienced in life, justifying that there are different values attached to everyone’s beliefs due to cultural multiplicity. This kind of belief, also known as cultural relativism, proposes that when a person has a different culture from yours, it implies a different upbringing, a different experience in life, and in general, a different amount of perceptual evidence he has received, although the content of what he may have received through perception does not necessarily differ from yours or mine, because we are both human beings. The existence of different cultures, therefore, substantiates the fact that he can have various values attached to his beliefs, and therefore believe in a universally accepted statement to a different extent, conflicting with another’s views, because his experiences and other filters for information are different. This is what is meant by “different truths” in the statement.
This position is echoed by the philosophy of relativism, which proposes that “Man is the measure of all things” , meaning that the only way truth can be gained, is through the individual, and his defined perception of the world. Therefore, the truth, in this sense, is personal to everyone because of the filters with which they perceive the world in brought upon by culture. An example is when I state a truth personal to me, like “I believe that giving alms to a beggar is good”. When I state a truth like this, I propose to the world that I am inclined to giving alms to a beggar. However, my statement does not objectively show that giving alms to a beggar is something which is a “universally good” action. In fact, it simply shows my psychological state and attitude towards giving alms. However, to another person brought up under wealthy conditions, his interpretation of a beggar would, perhaps, be someone who is poorer than him, and essentially totally different from, say, a man who has been starving all his life. Therefore, similarly, when one says a truth like “such and such is good”, far from making a factual statement about the “goodness” of the object in question, the person is, in actuality, revealing his psychological and personal stand on the issue. This psychology within each person differs due to a non-parallel culture, and this is an example of how culture affects truth.

Now, what does that imply for knowledge if the truth is represented in this statement as non-absolute and relative in nature? Knowledge, firstly, can be defined as “justified true belief”, and therefore, becomes uncertain when people believe in a truth to a different degree, because if this statement is true for me, but not for anyone else, then the knowledge I gain will only ever apply to me, and therefore have no utilitarian use at all for anyone except me. Therefore, truths being different between cultures imply that each of us utilizes human reason to connect our own experiences to a truth, by rationalizing our beliefs, and thereby agreeing with it to varying degrees. On the other hand, reason also allows us to compromise conflicting beliefs between cultures by agreeing with both of them at the same time, but to various degrees. Again, this forms the same truth which differing cultures agree with, but relativism comes in to change the extent of which any culture believes in a truth, making it “different” for everyone. The implications for knowledge of agreeing with this statement, therefore, show that we glean a varied amount of knowledge from truths, because firstly, not everyone’s beliefs are true, and secondly, because our justifications are through reason, which differs because every cultures imparts different values to people, . Ultimately, this leads to personal “knowledge” like bias being imparted to us, affecting our judgement of reality.

On the other hand, a truth being that “which can be accepted universally” is a statement which does not have any contradictions when compared from culture to culture, and is therefore seen as absolute in nature. It is defined as absolute when it can be said to be correct, at all times and at all places. Therefore, this statement promotes the issue of truth being affected by our basest instinct- human nature. The fact that we are all human, no matter what our culture, has given rise to truths which have crossed the barriers of culture. The concept of ethics also comes into play here, because some truths able to be “accepted universally” mostly appeal to human nature rather than anything else. Other absolute truths also exist, for example, the truth of mathematics, in which I state the answer to a mathematics question, and it is, and ever will exist no matter what culture that question is asked in. This is not subjective to relativism, and will therefore always provide a singular truth. On the other hand, relativist questions like “is it raining now” do not prove the same answer every time you ask it. This is why this statement is in direct opposition to the previous statement. Consequently, a universally accepted truth is one without relativistic restrictions, and constitutes enough justification for truth in itself, because due to the fact that it is believed universally across cultures, it anchors us to reality, which is the awareness of our existence now; anything not related to reality in inconsequential.
To quote an example of an absolute truth, many people believe in the “Golden Rule” of “What you do not want others to do to you, do not do unto others” , or more aptly phrased as “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. Historically, this rule has appeared in various doctrines in so many cultures, that it is almost universally believed. Ethics here plays a part in the proliferation of this belief, because we are essentially human in nature, and therefore pander to basic human instincts; basically, this rule supports moral intiative in a person. Subsequently, because so many cultures follow this rule, it is almost absolute and eternal. Implications for knowledge are therefore clearer; due to the fact that very few value judgements are used for justification for absolute truths. As a result, everyone gets almost the same, consistent form of knowledge due to the fact that personal belief is less of a question here, than ethics. This has different implications from knowledge than the first statement because we are able to derive a different form of knowledge from examining an absolute truth. I personally lean towards agreeing with this statement because firstly, I believe that truth has various areas where it may be relative or not; mathematics is one example of where relativism does not apply, while the above arguments listed in the proposition for the first statement in the question give an example of how relativism does affect truth. Therefore, absolute truths do exist in a universal context. Also, the fact that the proposition for relativism, the statement that “all truths are relative” is universal in nature, and therefore contradictory, attempts to explain that universal, absolute truths do exist. On the other hand, we should not ignore truths derived from relativism, because relativism is truth that has undergone personal reason, and therefore thought, and is the product of our conclusions from experience, affecting how much we are able to rationally believe in a truth.
All in all, both statements provide different implications for knowledge, the first, one which is relevant and justified in a personal context to us, and the second, one which can be applied universally based on others’ belief in it at the same time, but both statements of which can said to give rise to an awareness of rational decisions which are informed with regards to various cultural contexts.

Word Count: 1477 words

Bibliography:

Stevenson, Daniel C., comp. "Metaphysics, by Aristotle." The Internet Classics Archive. 10 Apr. 2000. Web Atomics. 03 May 2006 .

Deleuze, Gilles, and Claire Parnet. Dialogues II. Trans. Hugh Tomlinson, Barbara Habberjam, and Eliot R. Albert. 2nd ed. New York: Columbia UP, 2002.

Eccles, John C., and Karl R. Popper. The Self and Its Brain. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 1983.

Fearn, Nicholas. Zeno and the Tortoise. 1st ed. New York: Grove P, 2001.

Underwood, Geoffrey, ed. The Oxford Guide to the Mind. New York: Oxford UP, 2001.

King Lear Act 4 Scene 7 Individual Oral Commentary and Analysis

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King Lear Commentary- Act 4 Scene 7, lines 44-84.

In the scene in this extract, Lear is finally able to reunite with Cordelia and express his newfound humility and beg repentance.
In the extract itself, when Cordelia addresses Lear as “royal lord, it is clear that she refers to Lear with the respect that he deserves as a king, as well with the reverence that she holds for her father. In contrast to Goneril’s and Regan’s formal “my lord”, it is evident that they do not display the same love and respect that Cordelia has for Lear. Lear’s reply to her shows an urge to seek death, just as Gloucester did at the cliffs of Dover, when he raises the image of being taken “out o’the grave”. In the same line of thinking, he refers to Cordelia as a “soul in bliss”, mirroring the angelic imagery used in Act 4 Scene 3 where Cordelia’s tears were likened to “pearls that dropped from diamonds”. This essentially enhances Cordelia’s innocence and goodness in the play, evoking a certain sense of purity in these words. Lear also brings in the effective image of a “wheel of fire”, which is an indirect allusion to the sun. In this case, the sun may be seen to represent evil, firstly, due to the symbolic representation of the sun as Cornwall’s influence in Act 2 Scene 2, where Kent states to Cornwall that he feels that his “influence [is] like a wreath of radiant fire on flickering Phoebus’ front”, comparing the rise of Cornwall’s, and by extension evil’s, power with the dominance of the sun. It is quite clear at this point that the ascendancy of the fortunes of evil characters within the play is at hand, especially when the war between Cordelia and Goneril’s forces results in the capture of Lear and Cordelia. Additionally, the sun could be seen as a figure of worship in the Elizabethan era. This could allude to Lear’s previous invocation of pagan gods in Act 1 Scene 4, where Lear proclaims “Hear, nature, hear, dear goddess, hear” in denouncing Goneril and cursing her to bear a child with deformities. In this case, it almost seems that the pagan gods which Lear refers to are punishing him even as he speaks, causing him to suffer on his own “wheel of fire”.
Additionally, Lear’s tears which “scald like molten lead” allude to Lear’s suffering and internal torment which he has brought upon himself, starting in Act One where Lear created strife by dividing his kingdom among the three sisters. The image of scalding like molten lead is effective use of metaphorical imagery, and it can be compared to Lear’s wish for Goneril and Regan to burn in hell, seen in Act 3 Scene 5, where he wishes them to “have a thousand with red burning spits come hizzing upon them”. This image of vengeance and righting wrongs may be juxtaposed against Lear’s wrongful actions towards Cordelia, also showing Lear for the weak and fragile man which he is now, stripped of his kingship. His referral to Cordelia as a spirit is also significant, because it shows that Lear seems to think he is dead, expressing subtly a wish to die, just as Gloucester had a wish to die while on the cliffs of Dover beforehand. Just like Gloucester at the cliffs of Dover, Lear faces this scene, also referred to as a scene of reconciliation between him and Cordelia, stoically, admitting his wrongdoings. Lear’s repeated questions of “Where have I been?” “Where am I?” and “Fair daylight?” are almost rhetorical, also symbolizing a return towards the restoration which Lear so desperately requires, rest which Gloucester admits “might have balmed [his] broken sinews”. Lear’s admission of his being “mightily abused” is also significant, because there is a pun on the word “abused”, which could mean both “deceived” or “maltreated”, both of which could apply just as well to Lear. This clever play on words evokes sympathy from the audience because we are able to see just how much Lear has suffered. The pinprick which Lear administers to himself is also symbolic as Lear attempts to orientate himself and elucidate his surroundings, because the pinprick may represent a minor fraction of the troubles which Lear had to go through, and as such, since Lear is able to feel the pinprick, it heralds the awakening of his senses and his return to sanity. Consequently, when he laments “Would I were assured of my condition”, we as the audience are able to see that the condition, both of his body, as well as his mental state, are recovering, or have recovered to some extent due to the rest that he has undergone. The next image in the extract is, perhaps, the most touching image, where Cordelia actually kneels in front of Lear, begging his forgiveness and pleading with him not to kneel. Kneeling here is significant because it acts as a sign of submission to authority, as well as being touching and provoking our sympathy for Lear, because it shows both Cordelia’s respect and reverence to Lear, the king, as well as her love for Lear as a daughter to a father. Symbolic as an act of reconciliation, kneeling, here, is also Lear’s first true act of submission, and may be considered ironic, as Lear is essentially a king! We can compare this to Lear’s mockery of kneeling in front of Regan as he begs her to take him and his men in, after Goneril has reduced his train to half. Here, at this point in the extract, kneeling also shows Lear’s self-awareness of his current state, evoking, again, sympathy from the audience. This leads up to Lear’s admission, that he is “a very foolish fond old man”, and further on admitting that she has “some cause” to hate him. Within Lear’s admission, it can be seen that the alliteration of the letter “f” is reminiscent of the word “fool”, and it may signal Lear’s true role throughout the play, that of being the fool and making decisions which harm both himself as well as Cordelia. Lear also expresses an intent to “deal plainly”, or speak the truth bluntly, which draws again a parallel between him and Kent, which may be seen in Kent’s conversation to Cornwall in Act 2 Scene 2 where he tells Cornwall that “Sir, tis my occupation to be plain”.
Lear’s subsequent monologue shows that he is still confused, when he exclaims that he is “mainly ignorant” and that “all the skill [he has] remembers not [his] garments”, finally showing certain signs of age catching up with him. His admission to identifying and being reconciled with Cordelia moves Cordelia so emotionally, that she can only “I am, I am” when he is finally questioned by Lear on whether she is Cordelia. Lear then continues by being willing to subject himself to further abuse for Cordelia, by stating that if Cordelia had “poison for [him, he would] drink it”, almost as if he was begging for forgiveness from her. Cordelia reply that she has “no cause, no cause” to hate him seals their reconciliation. Love and forgiveness, embodied in Lear’s best daughter, join with humility and repentance, and, for a brief time, happiness prevails. Towards the end of the extract, Lear also repeats that he is “Old and foolish”, alluding again to his previous admission that he was a “very foolish, fond old man”, which evokes sympathy for him from the audience. On that bittersweet note, the extract ends as the old and foolish Lear, weak and infirm, is finally reconciled with Cordelia. But the forces that Lear’s initial error unleashed—Goneril, Regan, and Edmund, with all their ambition and appetite for destruction—remain at large. We thus turn from happy reconciliation to conflict, as Cordelia leads her troops against the evil that her father’s folly has set loose in Britain.

Speaking of which...

2007-06-22T00:56:00.000-07:00

Like it says, awesome scolding skill

Hokkien Speeding

2007-06-22T00:41:00.000-07:00

This is Lau Ah Pek's favourite song and movie!

Hokkien Lyrics

Hokkien Part One:

Hwa cia lee si gway soh
Si zai ho qit toe

U lang ai speeding
U lang de ban ban soh

U lang jit chiew hwa cia
Jit chiew de girlfriend poh

U lang kwa cha bor
Di long tio lao ah poh

Hokkien Part Two:

Ang teng ci teng kua buay cheng cho
Xiong gway tio chut cia hor

Lim jew hwa cia de long tio lang
See lee yee sheng a tua cho

Pager nah hiang tio ai lun
Ah handphone tio san ban

Ai jit CBD tio buay twa
Bus-stand lee tio zai siam

Hokkien Part Three:

Hwa cia lee si gway soh
Mm si hor qit toe

Na lee boh suay lee
Liam mi tio u lang toe

Hwa cia si gway soh
Cen ban mai qit toe

Na li ai ti kee (heh heh)
Licence tio ga lee koh

Chinese (hanyu pin yin) Last Part:

Ren shuo ma lu ru hu kou ah
Jiao tong gui ze ni yao zun shou
Hong deng ting lai lu deng zou ah
Huang deng yi liang jiu bie cai you
Ning ke chi dao ji fen zhong ah
Ye bu yao ji zhe ba ming song

English Translation

English Part One:

Driving your car aimlessly around the streets
Is really fun

Some like speeding
Some will crawl slowly

Some one hand drive
Another hand hold girlfriend

Some watch girls
And knock down old man

English Part Two:

Red Light Green Light don’t see properly
Car accident easiet to happen

Drink and drive and knock down somebody
That is the biggest mistake of your life

If pager go off must restrain
Handphone will get summon

Enter CBD must buy ticket
Bus-stands must know to avoid

English Part Three:

Driving your car aimlessly around the streets
Is not fun

If you are not careful
Anyhow also will have people fall

Driving your car aimlessly around the streets
Do not anyhow play

If you are still stubborn (iron teeth) heh heh
Licence will be detained

English Last Part:

People Say Road Is Like Tiger Mouth
Traffic rules you must obey
Red light stop Green Light go
Amber light don’t step on accelerator
Rather be late for few minutes
And Don’t rush to give away your life

Ah Pek's 6th Eclectic Reader

2007-06-15T23:34:00.000-07:00

HO BO!
A lot of people now say IB very hard... IB, EE, TOK, CAS, SL, HL, all kind of funny letters also got...
this one is come from "McGuffey's 6th Eclectic Reader" one.

1. Ask of thy mother earth why oaks are made
Taller and stronger than the weeds they shade.
2. Their praise is still, "the style is excellent,"
The sense they humbly take upon content.
3. False eloquence, like the prismatic glass,
Its fairy colors spreads on every place.
4. To do aught good, never will be our task,
But ever to do ill is our sole delight.
5. Of all the causes which combine to blind
Man's erring judgment, and mislead the mind,
What the weak head with strongest bias rules
Is pride, the never-failing vice of fools.
6. Eye Nature's walks, shoot folly as it flies,
And catch the manners living as they rise.
7. To whom then, first incensed, Adam replied,
"Is this thy love, is this the recompense
Of mine to thee, ungrateful Eve?"
8. We may, with more successful hope, resolve
To wage, by force or guile, successful war,
Irreconcilable to our grand foe,
Who now triumphs, and in excess of joy
Sole reigning holds the tyranny of Heaven.
9. Which, when Beelzebub perceived (than whom,
Satan except, none higher sat), with grave
Aspect, he rose, and in his rising seemed
A pillar of state.
10. Thee, Sion, and the flowery brooks beneath,
That wash thy hallowed feet, and warbling flow,
Nightly I visit: nor sometimes forget,
Those other two equaled with me in fate.