Vocabulary: Fall List #3

Accolade: n. an award or honor

Arthur believed he should be given an accolade for not panicking during his entire trip through space and time.  

Acerbity: n. a sharp sour taste; a rough and bitter manner

Her attitude with the game today was brought down by her acerbity.

Attrition: n. the act of rubbing together; a wearing down to weaken or destroy; erosion by friction

Beowulf’s sudden attrition to Grendel brought forth a celebration to the entire kingdom.

Bromide: n. a trite or obvious remark

His bromide to the teacher’s question was unsettling.

Chauvinist: n. a person with a prejudiced belief in the superiority of his or her own kind

Most of the people in the South were chauvinist in the mid nineteen hundreds.

Chronic: adj. being long-lasting and recurrent or characterized by long suffering

I have GOT to be the worst chronic procrastinator to have ever lived through high school so far.

Expound: v. to explain or interpret; clarify the meaning of

She reluctantly expounded his question about how the storks are able to deliver newborns.

Factionalism: adj. self-interested; partisan

His factionalism beliefs on democrats made him very unpopular among his friends.

Immaculate: adj. neat and clean; without fault or error

Her paper on ballpoint pens was immaculate.

Imprecation: n. a curse that invokes evil (or serves as an insult)

John’s creepy neighbor sent an imprecation his way after he ran over her cat, causing a lot of bad karma to crawl his way; perhaps she was a witch?

Ineluctable: adj. Impossible to avoid or evade

She soon found that he was ineluctable when she realized that they were both together all the time.

Mercurial: adj. changeable; animated and lively

Nurse Janet’s mercurial singing was found to be a nuisance to the patients in the hospital.

Palliate: v. provide physical relief (from pain); lessen the seriousness or extent of

Jeffery tried to palliate his wrongdoings to his father but it did no satisfactory.

Protocol: n. code of correct conduct

It was standard protocol under Sergeant Millard that everyone report in once at their base.

Resplendent: adj. having great beauty and splendor

Hera was truly a resplendent goddess.

Stigmatize: v. to accuse or condemn or openly or formally or brand as disgraceful

Galileo was stigmatized by his people for talking about a bunch of nonsense on inertia.

Sub Rosa: n. secretly; confidentially

The document labeled “Bigfoot” was, at the time, to be remained sub rosa until further notice.

Vainglory: n. outspoken conceit

Like they say, everyone has some vainglory at times.

Vestige: n. an indication that something has been present

Some say Fred Flintstone is the only vestige that cavemen existed.

Volition: n. the act of making a choice; capability of conscious choice and intention

Chuck’s volition to stop smoking lasted several years with the replacement of chewing gum.

Beowulf Questions 

Beowulf and Grendel

Rise of the Danish Nation

1. Shield Sheafson became the founder of the Dane’s royal line and he was founded as an infant out on sea.  His funeral consisted of his loyal men paying tribute and casting his body away in a boat with the riches that he earned as a noble king. Hrothgar is a descendent within the line of royalty under Sheafson. 

Heorot is Attacked

1. Hrothgar built a monument for his success and it was called Heorot where men drank and sung merrily in the hall. Grendel, a villain, attacked the men in Heorot and slaughtered them each night for twelve years. The Danes grew into a state of panic that was heard of all over and they desperately called for help to defeat the mysterious creature.

The Hero Comes to Heorot

1. Beowulf, after hearing the distressing news, decides to sail over to Hrothgar’s kingdom and help out their problem for he was a great and mighty warrior.

2. Beowulf and his men are stopped by a couple of Danish guards before entering the kingdom and demands to know why they were there. To this, Beowulf announces from whence he came from and who he was and why they had come (to slay the beast). They believe his story, much by their appearance, and they enter the kingdom.

3. Hrothgar’s herald, Wulfgar, approaches the men and asks that they state their business with the king. Beowulf replies that he must speak to Hrothgar immediately. Taking the response with haste, Wulfgar tells Hrothgar of the traveling warrior. Hrothgar tells Wulfgar that he remembered Beowulf when he was young, declaring that he knew Beowulf’s father as well. It is a small world, isn’t it?

4. Beowulf offers to kill Grendel unarmed. Hrothgar tells of the story of how his father was in gratitude of him. He had sent money to the Wulfing tribe to fix a feud after Beowulf’s father killed a member of the Wulfing tribe.

Feast at Heorot

1. A Dane, Unferth, accused Beowulf of losing a swimming match against Breca and was determined that Beowulf would lose to Grendel. Beowulf tells of the story of how it really happened and boasts of killing eight monsters underwater whereas Unferth would fail in doing. His cockiness shows his character and increases his honor and valor. He accuses Unferth of being drunk.

2. Queen Wealhtheow offers a ceremonial goblet to everyone in the room and thanks God for sending the brave and mighty Beowulf. Beowulf, of course, boasts in response.

The Fight With Grendel

1. Instead of gearing up with armed weaponry, Beowulf removes all of his armor and weapons and claims that he is just as mighty as Grendel with his bare hands. He waits for Grendel while the other men rest for the night.

2. Once Grendel enters, he immediately devours one of the Geats and goes for Beowulf, who grips his arm in response with remarkable strength. They begin to wrestle each other around the hall, creating a ruckus that wakes up the men. No weapon pierces Grendel and Beowulf’s mighty strength tears Grendel’s arm off. Grendel saunters away, fatally wounded, and heads back to his swamp. Beowulf

Celebration at Heorot

1. Beowulf is much like Sigemund because he has slewed the beast (or dragon in Sigemund’s case) with much valor and was a brave hero for doing so, gathering the beast (dragon’s) riches. This, of course, is foreshadowing for Beowulf in the third part of the epic. His is not like Heremond because he is not an evil king who is against his own people. This also foreshadows Beowulf becoming king in Gaet.

2. Hrothgar is very much thankful for Beowulf’s deed and promises to lavish Beowulf with rewards and riches. He also expresses how much of a son Beowulf is to him in his heart. Unferth is completely disproved by Beowulf’s glorious deed and his claims on Beowulf before were wrong.

3. In the tale of Finn, the Danes had battled the king of Frisians, Finn, and lost. Danish Princess Hildeburh, who is married to Finn, is upset by the battle and demands that her dead brother, who worked on the Danish side, and her dead son, who was a soldier for the Frisians, be burned together. The Danish, later on, declare another battle on the Frisians and the Frisians lose horribly to them. Hildeburh is returned to Denmark.

4. After Hrothgar wanted to adopt Beowulf as his son instead of his own. Wealhtheow asks Hrothgar not to deprive one of her sons the right to rule after him.

5. Wealhtheow presents to Beowulf necklace and asks him to protect and guide her sons after Hrothgar dies. 

6. It’s a REALLY bad idea for the men to sleep in the beer hall because unbeknownst to them, another monster is lurking in their midst as vengeance for her son’s death. They believe there is not another dangerous creature out there now that Grendel is gone.

Beowulf and Grendel’s Mother

Another Attack

1. Like I said, Grendel’s mother came to Heorot to avenge her son and not JUST to feast on delicious human flesh much like Grendel had.

2.  Hrothgar is devastated when realizing that Grendel’s mother has taken his friend and councilor, Aeschere. He immediately tells Beowulf the news and pleads for him to go slay the beast for he will reward Beowulf with more riches.

3. The mere is said to be a swampy and horrible. There is also a magical eminence to it. The water is said to burn and the bottom of the mere has never been reached before. Even the animals are afraid of the water.

Beowulf Fights Grendel’s Mother

1. Beowulf tells Hrothgar that he accepts to hunt down Grendel’s mother and he assures him that she will not escape his clutches. He gives him his honor.

2. The men find Aeschere’s severed head near the mere and it was a horrifying sight. At the cliff’s edge is an endless amount of sea monsters and serpents in the murky water where Grendel’s mother is said to be. Beowulf slays one of the beasts in the water with an arrow.

3. Beowulf arms up with his weapons and Unferth hands him the seasoned sword Hrunting, which is said to never have failed in battle.

4. When Beowulf enters the mere, Grendel’s mother immediately senses him and attacks him, but Beowulf’s armor protects her attacks. She drags him to a battle-hall where the water’s heat could not harm him, which is surprising and much of an advantage on his behalf.

5. Beowulf swung the sword he brought with him at Grendel’s mother but the sword does not harm her and fails to pierce her. He angrily throws it aside for it was useless to him.

6. As Grendel’s mother comes down to stab at Beowulf from beneath her with the dagger, the mail shirt he wore protected him. Beowulf escapes her hold on him and rises back up.

7. Once back up, he saw a very large sword hanging near him and grabs it in his mighty hands. He decapitates Grendel’s mother and she falls dead at his feet. Angrily, he goes to the dead body of Grendel and decapitates the beast, bringing back the severed head. In response, the sword begins to melt from Grendel’s blood but Beowulf still saves the hilt of the sword.

8. When Beowulf emerges from the mere, his sees that the Geats were still waiting for him with hope. The Danes had given up and gone home but the Geats had loyally waited for their leader.

Further Celebration at Heorot

1. Beowulf gives Hrothgar Grendel’s severed head and the hilt of the sword.

2. Hrothgar gives Beowulf advice on how to be a great king by choosing eternal rewards rather than earthly. He mentions Heremond once again by contrasting Beowulf with him. He predicts a great future with Beowulf by using Heremond as an example of him being the exact opposite of what Beowulf will be.

3. Beowulf gives Unferth the hilt of the sword before he leaves so as to give it back to him.

Beowulf Returns Home

1. I already mentioned this but Hrothgar predicts that Beowulf will have an excellent future.

2. Hygd is the wife of King Hygelac and she is lovely and wise. She is contrasted with Queen Modryth who was very terrible to her subjects by killing innocent people. She is said to have improved in behavior after marrying King Offa.

3. Beowulf believes that the engagement will bring a feud between the Danes and Heathobards instead of peace. He is reminded of the Finn story with the unhappy engagement that turned into a lengthy battle and predicts that it may happen again, thus breaking the intended peace among them. It is a very ironic side brought to his character because we are seeing something other than his glory side and he seems rather more worried about the other kingdoms.  

4. When Beowulf explains his victorious triumph over Grendel and his mother, he tended to exaggerate the ferocity of the beasts and the rewards he received over there. So, he wasn’t EXACTLY accurate.

5. Beowulf is generously given much of the treasure and land by Hygelac. He is praised by the entire kingdom for his brave deeds.  

Beowulf and the Dragon

The Dragon Wakes

1. Fifty Years have passed since Beowulf’s been king. After Hygelac died, Beowulf suggested that his cousin Heardred, Hygd’s son, rule the kingdom. However, Heardred was killed in a war and Beowulf took over the kingdom. Now the kingdom is wracked with fear because there is a dragon living beneath them with a great deal of treasure.

2. Centuries ago, the last survivor of an ancient race hid the treasure of the dragon in the barrow when that person realized that the treasure was useless to him upon realizing he will die one day. The dragon took the place in guarding it for over three hundred years. However, a thief slave had stolen a goblet for his master and fled, causing the dragon to be in a rage.

3. The dragon, in a fiery rage, burns down Beowulf’s throne-hall that evening and Beowulf is upset.

4. Beowulf had asked why his home was burnt down and realized that he must be punished by God. With no fear, he orders a new shield to go and fight the dragon himself with only a handful of people by his side. His high level of valor is the only thing he is dependent on and I’m afraid that it may not be enough.

5. Hygelac died while fighting against the Franks in Juteland. Hygd tried to bestow the throne to Beowulf but he did not accept it and let her son, Heardred, rule the kingdom.

6. Heardred was killed in a war against the Swedes and Beowulf becomes king. Beowulf avenged Heardred’s death by ending the feud between them.

7. Beowulf takes eleven men with him when he goes to slay the dragon.

8. Hygelac’s brother, Herebeald, was accidentally killed by his other brother, Haethcyn. In response, King Hrethal retires from the throne and eventually dies. (In progress...)

Beowulf Attacks the Dragon

1. Beowulf tells his companions to be strong and ready for battle when the opportunity comes and also wishes them luck.

2. Beowulf underestimates his strength as it weakens against the dragon’s strong features. In terror, his companions flee all except for one. Wiglaf is the only loyal companion to have stuck by Beowulf’s side. He scorns against the other companions for their cowardly ways of abandoning their leader. Wiglaf bravely fights alongside Beowulf.

3. Upon another attack, Beowulf slashes at the dragon but the sword breaks. The dragon bites Beowulf on the neck and Wiglaf assists him. Wiglaf stabs the dragon but his hand is scorched and it does nothing to the dragon. In desperation, Beowulf pulls out a dagger and stabs the dragon in a fatal blow.

4. Dying, Beowulf tells Wiglaf to grab a portion of the treasure for him to see. Beowulf thanks God for bringing wealth to his people upon seeing the glorious treasure. He tells Wiglaf to take care of the Gaets and asks for them to build him a barrow labeled Beowulf’s Barrow overlooking the sea.

Beowulf’s Funeral

1. When the cowardly companions return, Wiglaf bitterly scolds them for their immoral behavior. He predicts that their cowardice will be greater than Beowulf’s life. He backs this up by saying that now foreign countries are more likely to invade easier now that their great leader was dead.

2. The messenger tells the city of the predictions Wiglaf had told them. He assures that it is now more likely that they will be attacked by those foreign kingdoms. In Ravenswood, the Ongentheow rounded the Geats and taunted them. When the morning came, Hygelac arrived to save their men. 

3. Wiglaf tells the people of how Beowulf would like to be buried. He readies them to start building a funeral pyre.

4. As for the dragon, the Geats hurl the dragon’s body into the water to be swept into sea.

5. They build the pyre and Beowulf’s body is laid in it. They set him on fire while the woman lament over his death and of the predicaments that it will cause with upcoming wars. They then place his remains in the barrow on the cliff for all eyes to see.

6. They continue to describe Beowulf as kind king to his people and the best to have ever lived who was open to his people and so deserving of praise. In a way, describing a military hero of such is fairly accurate because a hero fights with his heart and his mind set on the goal at hand. He is one who never gives up, which is another good hero trait.

Question #1: "Old Leisure" George E. Essay

            Leisure defies against the growth of technology as it continues to partake in society. George Eliot dominates the field in defense of what she calls “old leisure”. Her view on the term “old leisure” is that of a simpler time way back from when she was living in the mid eighteen hundreds. It all boils down to everyone wanting to continue to create more efficient ways to make things easier while the author complains about the times losing its leisure.

            The way George Eliot conveys her message on leisure is through personification during her long descripted rant on how the term “Old Leisure” is properly interpreted. There is literally a WALL between her portrayal of leisure and ours today. She also seems very biased when it came to expressing the positive effects of leisure instead of explaining in detail why having growth in society is such an undesirable thing to have. She hardly gave room for any argument and was straight to the point with the subject at hand. Her descripted ways was very much detailed and gave the reader a sense of having that leisure of scenting the apricots and lying under fruit trees with the caress of nature across your skin. With that, she is able to convince the reader that relaxation is a healthy way to live. Now, this may not be the case for everyone for even most know how ridiculous that sounds.

            Eliot's leisure customs back in her time has intensified a thousand percent in modern day society. Leisure to most is taking a coffee break at a Starbucks to and from work. It just doesn’t have the same meaning as it did back in her time period, and even then was the term leisure deteriorating. The cultural view on the topic has completely morphed into that of just being “what one does at a retirement home”. Though society back then might have been sitting under apple trees and snoozing away any discomfort, towns will burgeon into cities with more technology and more devices to use to pass the time. Eliot merely is clinging onto false hope with her arguments.

            All in all, Eliot’s portrayal on “Old Leisure” is clarified through her use of personification, descriptive diction, and biased characterization by stating her opinion strongly on the subject. Many may not agree to her arguments, but having an understanding of her past and the time period she was in underlines the true meaning of what leisure was like back then. 

Here is my first essay out of two. I'll be working on the next one soon enough once I am caught up with my other homework.

Socratic Seminar Thoughts

First off, I really wish that I had spoken up with today's seminar. The subject was interesting to think about and even though most of us had gone through this talk already in Sophomore year, we still had much to say about it. Now, I have to be honest, I was lagging behind and did not read the article from which we were supposed to read. However, that did not stop my thoughts when we began talking about our own opinions. Sure, I had a lot of thoughts but did I voice any of them? No, I didn't. I wish I had but I became frustrated with myself for not saying something. I had agreed with Beka most of the time and at some points I had disagreed with her, mentally, by agreeing with what Ashlie was talking about. There IS no wrong answer when it comes to your opinions. This is what I believe. It got me thinking about other countries and their beliefs when it came to voicing your own opinion. Even in the U.S we had that conflict during the Cold War when voicing out our ideas. But I want to contradict what Ashlie had to say with some history here. If there is no wrong answer to your opinion, then why are some people on this planet being punished for it? Your opinions can be found dangerous and threatening to others, which brings up what we were talking about during our seminar. Others will pounce on you if they believe your opinion is wrong. It happens. Dr. Preston knows how to intimidate others with his intellect, but that doesn't mean people should not join in on the conversation. I may sound hypocritical, but I know that expressing yourself is something not to be ashamed of. Anyway, we had some very fascinating ideas that I will most likely contribute to in our next Socratic Seminar.

Week One Reflections

1. You know, other than the unfortunate curse of not being technilogically savvy, I feel very sure that my friends will affect my experience in this class. I have very close friends who are most helpful to others. I will not forget that I am not alone in this. Not only do I have people who will help me outside of class but who also take the time to share ideas and give advice to me on the computer. Why, the connections people have through facebook and myspace is phenomenal. I am in love with my PC. Sounds strange, yes, but I can't think of any other time when I'm not using it. Sometimes I play around with it instead of doing what I need to be doing, but through my friends pushing me, I'm starting to learn that putting your amount of work into the computer is hard work. Hell, I still find it hard to do, but I have confidence (sometimes that confidence deflates on some days) that I will learn more about the things I can do with the internet than I have ever learned before.

2. I had a pretty awesome learning experience that I recently did this last summer. Now, it probably isn't the best, mainly because I can't think of a time that far back, but it most certainly was a worthwhile learning experience. I love to act. Next to drawing, acting is one of my favorite things to do. Just this last summer, I had signed up for a program that teaches you how to act. The Young People's Project (YPP) gave me tips and ideas on how to express yourself. I had never felt more expressed in my life. It was almost like meditating in the middle of a wide lake while a gentle breeze swept across your face. During that exercise, I had learned how to express myself inwardly through my outwards motions. We were all in unison, gliding across the room with passion and grace. We weren't dancing to the music playing in the background but rather showing the emotions we felt with the music. It was interesting to watch others express different movements to the song. Some went with the music and others did their own thing. Actually, the theme this year for YPP was Do Your Thing. But, the most important thing I learned from that exercise was not to be afraid of people who judge you. It was really cool becuase NOBODY was judging you becuase everyone was doing their own thing and expressing themselves just as much as you were. It was a VERY memorable experience that I enjoyed fully.

3. I'm enthusiastic to learn new things that I've never known before. I want to venture out into the unknown and question the impossible and ask why those particular things are impossible. It would also help to be able to control my timing when taking essays or tests. I am not the best at timing myself for such things. In fact, I've gotten worse over the years, which is becuase I am constantly being paranoid about making my essays sound perfect. DP, I will need your help on this. The only thing I am concerned about is being able to catch up on all the assignments in this class and being active with my classmates. I'm very shy when it comes to expressing my own opinions. It's silly to think about but I'm always thinking about how stupid I would be trying to answer questions or give out ideas that may not be appealing to others. You know, I have very high expectations for this class and I very much want to believe that this class will change my future. I VERY much want to graduate knowing that this class has changed me and prepared me for college. That is what I am excited for in this class, to know that this course will prepare me for a spot in my future. I want to animate. That is what I want to do. And I WILL do it within the next ten years of my life. :)

Assignment # 1 Dr. Preston's AP Lit Comp Blog

This should have been published eons ago but I'm trying to keep up with my blog and post as much homework assignments as I can.

Finally! Here is the poem. I know, I didn't present it in the best way but I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't have said so many "Ums" if I had presented it in front of the class. (This is my belief.) So, DP, here you are.

I have to admit, that essay got me worried there today. If you haven't noticed, the only thing about essays that really bugs me is my timing for them... it's awful. But! I'm hoping to improve that this year!

What I would have included in my essay if I had more time would be to at least compare the style between Montaigne and Austen. I already managed to contrast their style of writing in my first paragraph but I didn't have enough time to get on with comparing them. I would have mentioned their similar diction/syntax aaand that's about all I can think of. As you can see, I hadn't put much thought into it.

You know, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have finished it even if we had the time to do it becuase of the unfortunate curse I have when tending to embellish essays with what isn't needed on it. But, next time, when I'm given an extra day to think about my next essay, I will put more thought into it and shorten my beginning paragraph.

The break gave me a little more time to think about what I was going to write next, but I never had anything to back up my thoughts. I just ended up rambling again. This is all I have to really say on the subject, but next time I will be more prepared... hopefully.

Though I am late to update this blog, I am determined to prepare myself these next few weeks for Dr. Preston's class. :) (No more habitual laziness for me no matter how hard it'll be to break that habit.)