Blog 6

Ne deeth, allas! ne wol nat han my lyf;

Thus walke I, lyk a restelees caityf,

And on the ground, which is my modres gate,

I knokke with my staf, bothe erly and late,

And seye, “leve moder, leet me in!

Lo, how I vanish, flesh, and blood, and skin!

 

The lines above describe the the old man that the three delinquents encounter. He speaks of knowing death, but said that death would not take him because of how aged he had become. This leads me to suspect that this old man could possibly be death himself. The fact that he has been wondering for so long, with no end in sight makes it seem completely possible that he is. Plus he leads the three delinquents into the direction of the gold where all three of them find death. This shows that he could have possibly set up this trap for the three, then pointed them in the direction where they would meet their fates.

Blog 5

The knight is a character that follows a strict code of honour and chivalry. He is devoted to justice and does not stray from his straight path. He has fought in many wars, for instance he helped take over Alexandria. Despite his success he remains noble and humble. Truly exemplifies the 'perfect' knight. However because of this he is a very unrealistic character. He is not very believable because of his lack of flaws. Also he is not an interesting character to read about for the same reasons. He's bland and lacks any sort of realistic traits that any normal human would have. Making him a much harder character to read about.

Blog 4

The ocean. So calming, yet so boring. I do not deny its beauty. The ability to be calm some days and so full of rage the next. But it's nothing new to me. Well that was the case up until Beowulf and his company showed up one day. A surprise it was. I was standing at the cliff, watching as I do everyday. And from the horizon a mast appears. And slowly a ship comes into sight. It moves closer and closer. I walk down to the shore to investigate the new arrival not sure of what to expect. As I make my way closer and closer to the arriving party I start to get nervous. A full company, all surrounding a very strong leader. Is this an invasion force? Will they attack? Are they friendly? Will I be able to run and warn the others or will they kill me? I get nervous. My palms begin to sweat, the shield in my right hand becomes heavier. I approach the company and I ask what their business is. The leader, or the man I assumed to be the leader, steps forward and answers. He says he wishes to see the king and that he is here to help with our latest problem: Grendel. All fear leaves my body and I am now glad. Maybe these mysterious strangers will be able to help us. As I walk them up another of the guards meets us halfway. He then begins to walk the strangers up to the king. I turn around and return back to my post. Hopefully they will succeed.

Alfred the Great and the English Language

Alfred the Great, the only English king to be accorded the epithet "the Great," is praised for his defense of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England from the Vikings however is should also be mentioned that he is the defender of the English language. It should also be noted that because of Alfred the Great the English language became further developed as a written language.

After defending many kingdoms from the Viking attacks, Alfred turned to his attention to the deterioration of learning in England. Due to the fact that the Vikings had been pillaging the many monasteries, learning had gone down hill. This was due to the fact that the monasteries had been used for educational purposes. Because of the constant attacks educational standards had been diminished. Education was very important to Alfred the Great. After the attacks Alfred immediately turned his attention to the educational system and would do everything in his power to further the importance of education as well as the English language. It will be because of Alfred that English became developed as a written language replacing Latin which had been used for written purposes.

After the attacks Alfred founded a court school to educate nobles. He also encouraged the great scholars of the time to move to England so they may be a constructive influence upon England's education. It is stated by Alfred that "...if we have peace, that all the youth now in England-may be devoted to learning." He placed a huge emphasis on education and because of his insistence English became the official written language. Alfred himself translated many texts from Latin, the official language for writing before, into English such as "The History of Venerable Bede," "Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy," "Dialogues of Gregory the Great," Gregory's "Pastoral Care," and Orosius' "Soliloquies of St. Augustine."

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Most Memorable Books Read By Michael Kalamchi

1. Rhinoceros. Eugène Ionesco. A play that speaks of the absurdity of the human condition and the struggle of an individual to keep an identity unique in a world where people would rather be with the crowd than out of it. Personal identity and individuality is something that has always been a subject of interest to me.


2. Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury. A novel in which society is kept in the dark from what has really been happening in the world. The end of the novel leaves us asking ourselves if ignorance is truly bliss. Would we want to live in such a world?


3. The Phantom Tollbooth. Norton Juster. The first book I've ever read that was important enough to me to remember. Modern fairy tale about a boy named Milo who is bored with life. Is sent a package with a tollbooth that takes him to a different world. After spending what seems like years in this world he arrives back in his room to find that only an hour has passed. Sad he hopes that the tollbooth will return one day but now has a new outlook on life.


4. Brave New World. Aldous Huxley. Did not read or had not heard of this book until the summer before this year. Ended up choosing it as my summer reading. Really enjoyed this book. Talks of the control of technology in an idealistic world where humans have been breed and predestined. Everything from there personality to their thoughts are some how influenced from their "birth."


5. A Separate Peace. John Knowles. A bildungsroman. This story is told 15 years after the events described in the novel took place. The main focus of this novel is human's natural tendency to become jealous and the destruction that comes with it. The jealousy that Gene has for his best friend Phineas causes him to intentionally or unintentionally, it's never made certain, physically injure his friend. The novel is about Gene coming to terms with himself and his actions. Towards the end he reveals what he had done to Phineas. After a confrontation Phineas ends up falling down a flight of stairs, breaking the same leg. During the operation Phineas dies, it is then that Gene finally comes to terms with himself.


6. Harry Potter series. J.K. Rowling. Enjoyable series that I had read when I was younger. I have re-read this series multiple times. A creative and enticing world with a story that allows you to connect with the characters.


7. Novels Related to the Star Wars series. Various Authors. Star Wars has been something I fell in love with as a child. Watched the movies growing up. An amazing universe with interesting characters. The books are just an expansion to the story of the films.

Bernard's True Intentions

In Brave New World, a science fiction novel commenting on the use of technology and its importance in shaping a Utopian/Dystopian world, the part of the novel that had the strongest effect on  would be right after Bernard Marx brought back John and Linda to show to the Director. After this event we see the true side of the character Bernard. Earlier in the novel we are introduced to the insecurities of Bernard. Being an Alpha but lacking in the normal physique shared by normal Alpha males. Being shorter than the rest gives rise to rumours of a mishap while he was an embryo. This furthers his insecurities with himself as well as his position. Through his conversations with Helmholtz Watson, his close friend, we see that Bernard is capable of individual thought and does realize that there is a problem with the world they live in. However after his experience at the reservation and after the ordeal with the Director involving his long lost lover and his son we see a different and truer side of Bernard. Bernard used his popularity as well as John to get what he wants. Be it reputation, fulfilling his own ego, or women. We find out that Bernard truly wanted to fit in with the world he was so critical of and find out that the only reason for the criticism of the world he lives in stems from his hate of being alienated from it. We also see a change in how the society views him. Before people used to be critical of his height, the reasoning for his height being too much alcohol in his blood while he was in the embryonic state. After the incident with John and the Director people completely disregarded this.  At first it seemed as if his experience with John, also an alien from the society he lives in, would open his eyes and show him that being an individual and being unique works and is more natural in humans rather than the completely controlled society he lives in. This was not the case as we see that Bernard only brings John back to his world as a publicity ploy, putting John on display to everyone as the savage. Surprisingly people do realize what Bernard is doing. They comment how this will be his fall and that fact that he will not have another savage to pick him back up afterward. This is surprising seeing as how any information or ideas that people know are those that have been drilled into their minds while they were infants. This event of the novel had a lasting effect on me because it shows the true dynamic of a human being. Bernard's views on society were clear and yet he still yearned to be part of the population even though he hated it. This part of the novel was surprising and a let down. Expecting to see Bernard finally break free from the mold of society we instead see him more than happy with his place even though he hates the ideals. He would rather be part of the crowd rather than stand alone even if he knows it is wrong.