I was really shocked by the fact that Idek would so callously bring about suffering, just to be with a girl. It seems then that the Nazis really succeeded in making the Jews less than humans, unimportant and easy to hurt, because they didn't believe they suffered.
The hangings were very shocking, especially because it carries the important message of apathy. Wiesel feels nothing in the first prisoners' deaths, as he knew him not, but he did know the second and it hurt. Today we are in great danger of this, as the worlds' population is so big, we can be indifferent to problems if they don't directly affect us.
The man who kills himself during the raid, really affected me because of how much the camps destroyed his mind. When he sees cauldrons of soup, a dream come true, a dream in reach, the fact that he reached his goal iis so overwhelming that he chooses to die.
Another thing that stuck in my head is when on page 77 the hungarian sick man says he believes more in Hitler than anyone, because he kept his promises to the Jews, the promises to kill them.
The ending, though "happy" also rung with the author's style of deep but short phrases, taht really carry feeling. The last line is exemplary of this, and really carries the book's message. Not to forget, to not allow this again, this torture, for it yields death and pain and survivors that are less than human.
martes, 27 de noviembre de 2007
lunes, 26 de noviembre de 2007
Night, Pages 1-Top of 54
The quote "I believed profundly" (first page) is great foreshadowing that his faith will be shaken which happens in page 32 where the author states "those flames which consumed my faith forever", and I like the effect it has on the opening of the book, with such quiet dramatism.
I also find the fact that young Wiesel cries when he prays shows great emotion within him, and the notion that religion can be tragic, which will come into play when the are persecuted because of their beliefs. Also when he is asked whyhe prays he asks why do I breathe? which shows that religion is intregal to him, which also strikes the reader greatly, as the reader has at least a general idea of what is to come. He demonstrates this again when he awakes early to pray on their last day in the ghetto (page 16)
Moshe seems to teach that all human are valid and with a worthy spirit, regardless of monetary status.
I found very charged in meaning when, on page 9, he says that his ftaher did die of having the wear the yellow star, because it symbolized all that the Nazis wanted, and all that was to come.
The line on page 22 "Those who no longer wished to taste the bitterness of terror" struck me, not only because of its power but because I feel as though I've read it before before, but it eludes me whether or not this is true. Regardless, it is sure to stick in my mind, because the amount of emotion it manages to convey.
During today's reading, I often had to stop, because the author conveys the very strong feeling of pain and claustrophobia, and it affected me so that I had to stop and take breaks because everything was so strong and tragic.
I also find the fact that young Wiesel cries when he prays shows great emotion within him, and the notion that religion can be tragic, which will come into play when the are persecuted because of their beliefs. Also when he is asked whyhe prays he asks why do I breathe? which shows that religion is intregal to him, which also strikes the reader greatly, as the reader has at least a general idea of what is to come. He demonstrates this again when he awakes early to pray on their last day in the ghetto (page 16)
Moshe seems to teach that all human are valid and with a worthy spirit, regardless of monetary status.
I found very charged in meaning when, on page 9, he says that his ftaher did die of having the wear the yellow star, because it symbolized all that the Nazis wanted, and all that was to come.
The line on page 22 "Those who no longer wished to taste the bitterness of terror" struck me, not only because of its power but because I feel as though I've read it before before, but it eludes me whether or not this is true. Regardless, it is sure to stick in my mind, because the amount of emotion it manages to convey.
During today's reading, I often had to stop, because the author conveys the very strong feeling of pain and claustrophobia, and it affected me so that I had to stop and take breaks because everything was so strong and tragic.
domingo, 25 de noviembre de 2007
The Analects
What I truly liked about the Analects is that its teachings are so influential, even to us today. The teachings in the Analects are still taught today, but differently, whether they be in expressions or common knowledge, or even by direct quotes to Confucius.
This work also seems to set or belong to a pattern of works like these that give their teachings, (The Bible, Koran, Other holy books/works) but do not obligate the reader to follow the teachings, simply pointing the direction in which they must go, but not forcing them to do so.
The greatest similarity I saw between the Analects and other works is the fact that the Analects enforces the idea of filial piety, and the bible states in the Exodus (I believe, for I'm not entirely sure) "Honor thy mother and thy Father" which is what Confucius teaches, in different words.
In essence I likeed the Analects because it only points the way. The embark on the journey, the motivaation must belong to you.
This work also seems to set or belong to a pattern of works like these that give their teachings, (The Bible, Koran, Other holy books/works) but do not obligate the reader to follow the teachings, simply pointing the direction in which they must go, but not forcing them to do so.
The greatest similarity I saw between the Analects and other works is the fact that the Analects enforces the idea of filial piety, and the bible states in the Exodus (I believe, for I'm not entirely sure) "Honor thy mother and thy Father" which is what Confucius teaches, in different words.
In essence I likeed the Analects because it only points the way. The embark on the journey, the motivaation must belong to you.
martes, 20 de noviembre de 2007
Analects, Books Sixteen, Nineteen, and Twenty
These books seem to be collected fragments or ununified pieces of text, unlike the other books, in which the text all follows a theme or have a common element that connects them and gives them their place in whichever book. These books have (seemingly) arbitrary passages that were apparently grouped together because there was nowhere else to put them.
Book Nineteen is an exception as it is the sayings of Confucius' students rather than Confucius himself and some of them have been previously shown.
Book Nineteen is an exception as it is the sayings of Confucius' students rather than Confucius himself and some of them have been previously shown.
lunes, 19 de noviembre de 2007
Analects, Books Fifteen, Seventeen, and Eighteen
Passage15:1 makes me believe that Confucius was a pacifist, which hadn't been seen or adressed in the previous books.
Passage 15:28 really made me think, because one can get very easily caught out in herd mentality and mob psychology. Often people make up ntheir minds about others based on gossip and the opinions of others, rather than their own, which is what this passage urges one to do.
I really liked passage 15:30 because it teaches people to learn from their mistakes, rathe rthan keep on making them, which people do often, even if they know they should not. The idea of changing according to experience is revisited in passage 17:3.
I dislike the fact that 17:25 treats women as a separate entity from humans or the rest of the race, as if they are common and unworthy as men are, which gives a lot of insight into Confucian China.
Passage 15:28 really made me think, because one can get very easily caught out in herd mentality and mob psychology. Often people make up ntheir minds about others based on gossip and the opinions of others, rather than their own, which is what this passage urges one to do.
I really liked passage 15:30 because it teaches people to learn from their mistakes, rathe rthan keep on making them, which people do often, even if they know they should not. The idea of changing according to experience is revisited in passage 17:3.
I dislike the fact that 17:25 treats women as a separate entity from humans or the rest of the race, as if they are common and unworthy as men are, which gives a lot of insight into Confucian China.
domingo, 18 de noviembre de 2007
Analects, Books Twelve Through Fourteen
One again I see the roots of China's isolationism as they are told be Confucius to strictly adhere to ritual no matter what and ignore anything that does not conform to this. Also, passage 12:5 refers to China as entirely surrounded by seas, which contributes to the mindset that they must be independent and self sufficient.
Passage 12:8 struck me as "advanced" thinking because it talks of a concept I thought to have been conceived well after Confucius' time. The concept is that humans are equal. He says that all animals have the same skin underneath, which is why one msut study to be a gentleman, for one is born as just another human.
Confucianism seems to have high stock in leadership, as Confucius (the Master) would be in greatest and would teach his students, who in turn became Masters and taught others, creating a hierarchy, which Confucius believes in as he often helps nobles and believes they will lead those that follow them into following goodness, as he often says something along the lines of: raise up the straight and the crooked will become straight.
Passage 12:8 struck me as "advanced" thinking because it talks of a concept I thought to have been conceived well after Confucius' time. The concept is that humans are equal. He says that all animals have the same skin underneath, which is why one msut study to be a gentleman, for one is born as just another human.
Confucianism seems to have high stock in leadership, as Confucius (the Master) would be in greatest and would teach his students, who in turn became Masters and taught others, creating a hierarchy, which Confucius believes in as he often helps nobles and believes they will lead those that follow them into following goodness, as he often says something along the lines of: raise up the straight and the crooked will become straight.
jueves, 15 de noviembre de 2007
Analects, Books Seven, Eight, and Eleven
I find passage 7:4 most odd. It simply reads "In his leisure moments, the Master was composed and yet fully at ease". Why was this even here? Its lesson is inconsequential at best and completely ridiculous at worst. It seems to mean that even when relaxed you have to be prim and proper, which is a contradiction and this oddly seems to suggest that those who saw him at those moments saw him when he wasn't really leisurely.
I like that passage 7:8 says that the Master won't strive for those that won't strive, meaning that one must work as well, or not get anything at all. It implies that one really must have passion for what you want to achieve, which connects to 7:12 where the master states he follows what he loves.
Confucius seems to particularly like music, as seen in passages 7:14, 7:32, 8:8.
I like that passage 7:8 says that the Master won't strive for those that won't strive, meaning that one must work as well, or not get anything at all. It implies that one really must have passion for what you want to achieve, which connects to 7:12 where the master states he follows what he loves.
Confucius seems to particularly like music, as seen in passages 7:14, 7:32, 8:8.
Paraphrasing Exercise
1."The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source of our heat, and it exerts tremendous control on our climate," [Jacques] Cousteau told the camera. "The cold ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with warmer water from the tropics, and its upwellings help to cool both the surface water and our atmosphere. Yet the fragility of this regulating system is now threatened by human activity." From "Captain Cousteau," Audubon (May 1990):17.
The Antarctic produces cold for the planet, as its cold waters mix with warm tropic water and it keeping water and general temperature at its regular rates. Unfortunately this balance is very delicate (As any changes in water flow can affect its results), making it vulnerable to human activity (Audubon 17).
2. The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey, English 102 Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.
Drinking was against the law in 1920s America, but this law was broken easily and often. Because of the money made by illegal liquor mobs had a lot of power and the law couldn't stop it. Jazz music became very popular and the "flapper" movement appeared. both of these signs were taken to mean America was distancing itself from its previous history (Yancey 5)
3. Of the more than 1000 bicycling deaths each year, three-fourths are caused by head injuries. Half of those killed are school-age children. One study concluded that wearing a bike helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by 85 percent. In an accident, a bike helmet absorbs the shock and cushions the head. From "Bike Helmets: Unused Lifesavers," Consumer Reports (May 1990): 348.
There are many deaths a year caused by bycycle accidents and a large part of these deaths are because of injuries to the head. Amongst the dead are young kids. Bike helmets can help save lives as it protects the head and limit the shock. A study concluded that bike helmets can dimish the possibilities of injury to the head. (Consumer Reports 348)
4. Matisse is the best painter ever at putting the viewer at the scene. He's the most realistic of all modern artists, if you admit the feel of the breeze as necessary to a landscape and the smell of oranges as essential to a still life. "The Casbah Gate" depicts the well-known gateway Bab el Aassa, which pierces the southern wall of the city near the sultan's palace. With scrubby coats of ivory, aqua, blue, and rose delicately fenced by the liveliest gray outline in art history, Matisse gets the essence of a Tangier afternoon, including the subtle presence of the bowaab, the sentry who sits and surveys those who pass through the gate. From Peter Plagens, "Bright Lights." Newsweek (26 March 1990): 50.
French painter Henri Matisse is consider amongst the most talented artists at making the viewer feeling inside the painting. He uses color to give the time of day and type of place, and gave the illusion of texture and added precenses of people or things to make the setting depicted seem real. One of his paintings that is believed to be exemplary of this is "The Casbah Gate" (Plagens 50)
5. While the Sears Tower is arguably the greatest achievement in skyscraper engineering so far, it's unlikely that architects and engineers have abandoned the quest for the world's tallest building. The question is: Just how high can a building go? Structural engineer William LeMessurier has designed a skyscraper nearly one-half mile high, twice as tall as the Sears Tower. And architect Robert Sobel claims that existing technology could produce a 500-story building. From Ron Bachman, "Reaching for the Sky." Dial (May 1990): 15.
Sometimes belived to be the most amazing product of building, the Sears Tower is impressive. However other architects like William LeMessurier and Robert Sobel believe current tools can be used to build much larger buildings. (Dial 15)
The Antarctic produces cold for the planet, as its cold waters mix with warm tropic water and it keeping water and general temperature at its regular rates. Unfortunately this balance is very delicate (As any changes in water flow can affect its results), making it vulnerable to human activity (Audubon 17).
2. The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey, English 102 Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.
Drinking was against the law in 1920s America, but this law was broken easily and often. Because of the money made by illegal liquor mobs had a lot of power and the law couldn't stop it. Jazz music became very popular and the "flapper" movement appeared. both of these signs were taken to mean America was distancing itself from its previous history (Yancey 5)
3. Of the more than 1000 bicycling deaths each year, three-fourths are caused by head injuries. Half of those killed are school-age children. One study concluded that wearing a bike helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by 85 percent. In an accident, a bike helmet absorbs the shock and cushions the head. From "Bike Helmets: Unused Lifesavers," Consumer Reports (May 1990): 348.
There are many deaths a year caused by bycycle accidents and a large part of these deaths are because of injuries to the head. Amongst the dead are young kids. Bike helmets can help save lives as it protects the head and limit the shock. A study concluded that bike helmets can dimish the possibilities of injury to the head. (Consumer Reports 348)
4. Matisse is the best painter ever at putting the viewer at the scene. He's the most realistic of all modern artists, if you admit the feel of the breeze as necessary to a landscape and the smell of oranges as essential to a still life. "The Casbah Gate" depicts the well-known gateway Bab el Aassa, which pierces the southern wall of the city near the sultan's palace. With scrubby coats of ivory, aqua, blue, and rose delicately fenced by the liveliest gray outline in art history, Matisse gets the essence of a Tangier afternoon, including the subtle presence of the bowaab, the sentry who sits and surveys those who pass through the gate. From Peter Plagens, "Bright Lights." Newsweek (26 March 1990): 50.
French painter Henri Matisse is consider amongst the most talented artists at making the viewer feeling inside the painting. He uses color to give the time of day and type of place, and gave the illusion of texture and added precenses of people or things to make the setting depicted seem real. One of his paintings that is believed to be exemplary of this is "The Casbah Gate" (Plagens 50)
5. While the Sears Tower is arguably the greatest achievement in skyscraper engineering so far, it's unlikely that architects and engineers have abandoned the quest for the world's tallest building. The question is: Just how high can a building go? Structural engineer William LeMessurier has designed a skyscraper nearly one-half mile high, twice as tall as the Sears Tower. And architect Robert Sobel claims that existing technology could produce a 500-story building. From Ron Bachman, "Reaching for the Sky." Dial (May 1990): 15.
Sometimes belived to be the most amazing product of building, the Sears Tower is impressive. However other architects like William LeMessurier and Robert Sobel believe current tools can be used to build much larger buildings. (Dial 15)
martes, 13 de noviembre de 2007
Analects, Books Four Through Six
Though the prentense of being Good and teaching Goodness is admirable, this book seems self-promoting, more so than other similar texts, as it seems to push too much to follow the Confucian way.
The way wealth and social standing is talked about in passage 5 (book four) makes me think of societies today where people gain such things by illegal or immoral means.
In 4:6 it annoys me that he is talking about this perfect unknown person, his last line says: "but I have yet to meet him". Meet him, with absoluteky no thought to women, which haven't been mentioned in any of the analects, which, needless to say, greatly annoys me as a woman.
I am curious about Yan Hui, who was greatly praised in books 5 and 6 by both the master and his students, which makes me wonder why he was considered such a great man. all I've managed to gather about him is that he was a great learner.
The way wealth and social standing is talked about in passage 5 (book four) makes me think of societies today where people gain such things by illegal or immoral means.
In 4:6 it annoys me that he is talking about this perfect unknown person, his last line says: "but I have yet to meet him". Meet him, with absoluteky no thought to women, which haven't been mentioned in any of the analects, which, needless to say, greatly annoys me as a woman.
I am curious about Yan Hui, who was greatly praised in books 5 and 6 by both the master and his students, which makes me wonder why he was considered such a great man. all I've managed to gather about him is that he was a great learner.
Analects, Books One Through Three
I find that the insight to teaching comes from the fact that Confucius and his students were teachers themselves and thus see gigantic value in teaching and practicing what you preach, which is why passage 3 (book one) deals with deceitful people.
Passages 6, 9, and 10 (book one) all teach people to act a certain way, which immediately reminds me that this is done in the Bible and Greek myths as well, which serves to say that all or most religious or semireligious texts teach and enforce standards of behavior and conducts, usually by the example of the "heroes" of the text.
Confucius makes reference to ritual and keeping traditions, passages 11 and 12(book one) and 3(book two), which means he believes in keeping the ways of the past because they seem best. These ideas could've had great influence to China's isolationism in the nineteenth century.
Passages 6, 9, and 10 (book one) all teach people to act a certain way, which immediately reminds me that this is done in the Bible and Greek myths as well, which serves to say that all or most religious or semireligious texts teach and enforce standards of behavior and conducts, usually by the example of the "heroes" of the text.
Confucius makes reference to ritual and keeping traditions, passages 11 and 12(book one) and 3(book two), which means he believes in keeping the ways of the past because they seem best. These ideas could've had great influence to China's isolationism in the nineteenth century.
martes, 6 de noviembre de 2007
Primary And Secondary Sources For Speech
1. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_abuse I found: http://www.childwelfare.gov/can/defining/
2. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mommie_Dearest#External_links I found: http://www.joancrawfordbest.com/c.htm#crawfordchristina
3. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Ardell_Mason I found: http://www.astraeasweb.net/plural/spiegel.html
4. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_child_sexual_abuse_as_a_social_problem I found: http://www.klaaskids.org/pg-legmeg2.htm
5. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_Workers_in_Nepal#External_links I found: http://www.cwin.org.np/
2. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mommie_Dearest#External_links I found: http://www.joancrawfordbest.com/c.htm#crawfordchristina
3. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Ardell_Mason I found: http://www.astraeasweb.net/plural/spiegel.html
4. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_child_sexual_abuse_as_a_social_problem I found: http://www.klaaskids.org/pg-legmeg2.htm
5. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_Workers_in_Nepal#External_links I found: http://www.cwin.org.np/
lunes, 5 de noviembre de 2007
Job, Chapters 12-End
I find it odd that God would have allowed Satan to so torture one of his most loyal and devout, in short most exemplary citizens, to get him to curse God. First off, if God created everything and is the most powerful thing in existence (and before existence), he created Satan. Second, he created Job. Why would he allow Satan to hurt Job, if Job was amongst his most "successful" creations.
Then it came to me. God is colored by human opinions, since it was translated by men. Like Greek Gods, they are a reflection of us, humans. Humans learn by experience, which turns them into who they are. We forgive, but don't forget and our past experiences influence all our future decisions. As God was betrayed by Adam and Eve, and subsequently other humans, like Lot's wife, he is less trustworthy, and more wary of humans, Thus, he is in a way insecure, and allows Satan, his own creation, to manipulate him into allowing the "torture" on Job.
Then it came to me. God is colored by human opinions, since it was translated by men. Like Greek Gods, they are a reflection of us, humans. Humans learn by experience, which turns them into who they are. We forgive, but don't forget and our past experiences influence all our future decisions. As God was betrayed by Adam and Eve, and subsequently other humans, like Lot's wife, he is less trustworthy, and more wary of humans, Thus, he is in a way insecure, and allows Satan, his own creation, to manipulate him into allowing the "torture" on Job.
Job, Chapters 2-11
When Job finally begins to curse as he agonizes, I immediately thought of Enkidu and his curses as he died. Why does this happen? It is obviously recorded in both texts because it is a human behavior present in both cultures. But they why wasn't directed at this, but at why humans curse at the hour of their deaths. Why they feel the need to shift blame on fate, or family, or whatever is present. I believe it lies in the root fear humans have, the fear of death. When it feels close, the fact they feel life is slipping, makes them lash out.
Job's cursing of the day he was born makes me think of the movie "It's a wonderful life", in which a man desires he had never been born. His angel acquiesces and he sees the effect this has on the life he knew, and as he sees, ultimately loved, no matter how horrible it seemed at certain times. This story line has been followed in many different forms of media, as people in a fit of deppression (and I have observed a few instances in real life) sometimes wish never to have existed, so they knew not pain, which we see is another ancient form of human behavior, as it was recorded in the times of Job.
Job's cursing of the day he was born makes me think of the movie "It's a wonderful life", in which a man desires he had never been born. His angel acquiesces and he sees the effect this has on the life he knew, and as he sees, ultimately loved, no matter how horrible it seemed at certain times. This story line has been followed in many different forms of media, as people in a fit of deppression (and I have observed a few instances in real life) sometimes wish never to have existed, so they knew not pain, which we see is another ancient form of human behavior, as it was recorded in the times of Job.
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