Word of the Week! Pedagogy Richmond Writing

Word of the Week! Pedagogy Richmond Writing Special thanks to Lisa Bayard, Manger of Tylers at UR, for this excellent pick. After the Bacchanalia ends, we must return to our studies. I teach a course entitled Composition Theory and Pedagogy, and students rightly assume that the final word has something to do with the theory of teaching. For many years, poor student of Classical languages that I am, I mistakenly assumed that the peda in our word related to the Latin pedestere, to go around on foot. One often follows a mentor, like ducklings following mom. So that was that, as far as my defining the origins of pedagogy. How wrong I was! While pedestere gives us the modern pedestrian, my thinking was rather pedestrian indeed, not have have checked a few good dictionaries. During Spring Break, I am far from my printed dictionaries in Boatwright Library on campus, but I have the OED Online to follow me, like those ducklings, wherever I go. Their entry shows a history stretching back to Ancient Greece and, later in the Mediterranean world, Latin  paedagogia. In English, by the 17th Century a pedagogy could mean not only the art of teaching but also the profession itself or a place where teaching gets done. Today we generally refer to the system or theory of teaching when we use the word as a noun or adjective, as in we practiced several pedagogical techniques for teaching the history of language. I have heard teachers called pedagogues in older books; that term has faded from common usage. Nominate a word by e-mailing me (jessid -at- richmond -dot- edu) or leaving a comment below. See all of our Words of the Week here. Image courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.

Socrates Unexamined Life Essay - 1621 Words

Why does Socrates think that the unexamined life is not worth living? Does he have a good defense of his philosophical life? As the wisest man in all of ancient Greece, Socrates believed that the purpose of life was both personal and spiritual growth. He establishes this conviction in what is arguably his most renowned statement: The unexamined life is not worth living. Socrates makes it quite evident through the severity of the language in this claim, the extent to which he will live and die for this ideal. He did not merely say that the unexamined life was not a noble existence or that it was the path of the less righteous, rather the unexamined life is just not worth living at all. Theoretically, according to his†¦show more content†¦This is the point at which it begins to become a task to understand how the examined life is at all aligned with the quest of the principles justice and virtue, when in reality it just leads to a state of confusion. The skepticism found within Socrates logic leads us to realize that he has no claims that he has answers, yet he is living and dying for the ideal that an unexamined life is not worth living. There is no point at which Socrates is looking for followers, much like a prophet would look for disciples, for his ideals appeal to reason, not faith. Although this may be the case, he has left his contemporaries, ancient and modern day philosophers, as well as any other students of his teachings in a complete paradox. For centuries, many have attempted to carve out a middle path between the severity of his claim on the examined life, and the predestined state of doubt that surfaces with the search for justice and virtue. In Socrates attempt to live an examined life, he put forth efforts to improve society as a whole. His method consisted of elenchus, rather than that of preaching or lecturing, because it was more effective to allow his notion of human ignorance to surface through a dialogu e than through a monologue of his claims. Socrates saw it his duty to lead a lifestyle in which he continued to unveil the false wisdom of his contemporaries. He considered his efforts to be a mere fulfillment of his obligation to the gods. For theShow MoreRelatedThe Unexamined Life Of Socrates1434 Words   |  6 PagesPaper 1 02 October 2014 The Unexamined Life Through several dialogues Plato gives readers accounts of Socrates’ interactions with other Athenians. While some may think of him as a teacher of sorts, Socrates is adamant in rejecting any such claim (Plato, Apology 33a-b). He insists that he is not a teacher because he is not transferring any knowledge from himself to others, but rather assisting those he interacts with in reaching the truth. This assistance is the reason Socrates walks around Athens, engagingRead MoreAn Unexamined Life Of Socrates1199 Words   |  5 Pages An Unexamined Life Lyndsey Emry PHIL 1381-17 Introduction to Philosophy Professor Bannister When studying Socrates, you the reader must come up with your point of view and take what Socrates is trying to teach into your own approach. You must also think why Socrates choose the words he choose. Socrates careful choice of words give much color to his quote, â€Å"an unexamined life is no life for a human being to live.† The word examined for example has many definitions, including: toRead MoreSocrates And The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living1097 Words   |  5 PagesEveryone has a life to live; however, there are quite different between the unexamined life and the examined life. In the word of Socrates,† The unexamined life, for a human, is not worth living†, â€Å"the unexamined life† means people have no question, they never question the life, and they don’t want to know about the truth, and they don’t know who they are. Those people just get up every day, go to work and go to sleep, keep repeating these and never wonder what is the meaning of their life. On the otherRead MoreSocrates: â€Å"the Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living†1943 Words   |  8 PagesSocrates was the son of common Athenians. His father was a stone-mason/ sculptor, his mother a midwife. Socrates was also a stone-mason by trade and was to follow in his father’s footsteps. It was still yet unknown to Socrates in his early years that his ‘career’ would be that of a philosopher. It is said he was pulled out of his workshop by Crito because of the â€Å"beauty of his soul†. Jobless and serving no direct purpose to the Athenian (Greek) society, Socrates was well known in the AthenianRead MoreIn the words attributed to Socrates in Plato’s Apology, â€Å"The unexamined life is not worth living.†1000 Words   |  4 PagesIn the words attributed to Socrates in Plato’s Apology, â€Å"The unexamined life is not worth living.† David Foster Wallace expands on this idea in his â€Å"Kenyon College 2005 Commencement Address,† pointing out the importance of awareness and escaping the natural, default-setting of an unconscious, self-centred life. While commencement speeches are typically epideictic—celebratory—in nature, Wallace takes a deliberative rhetorical stance. According to Fahnestock, deliberative discourse is used in orderRead More The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living Essay1051 Words   |  5 Pages Socrates was considered by many to be the wisest man in ancient Greece. While he was eventually condemned for his wisdom, his spoken words are still listened to and followed today. When, during his trial, Socrates stated that, â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living† (Plato 45), people began to question his theory. They began to wonder what Socrates meant with his statement, why he would feel that a life would not be worth living. To them, life was above all else, and choosing to give up life wouldRead MoreThe Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living1344 Words   |  6 PagesLouis 1 â€Å"An unexamined life is not worth living† Imagine living a life without change, development and growth. Imagine living a life without any consciousness of what life has to offer. As mind-boggling as this may sound, there are actually many people on this earth that have not taken the effort to know themselves. People should be able to fairly judge their lives. Man should be able to gain wisdom by the examinations of the deeds they’ve done to prepare for the future. Life is no longer worthRead MorePlato s The Apology Of Socrates874 Words   |  4 PagesIn Plato s â€Å"The Apology of Socrates†, Socrates states, â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living† and he would rather be put to death them stop his practice of philosophy (The Apology). In this writing, Socrates is charged with not accepting the gods recognized by the state, devising new gods, and corrupting the youth of Athens. However, the word apology in the title is not our modern English interpretation of the word. The name of the speech ste ms from the Greek word apologia, which translatesRead More The Unexamined Life is Not Worth Living Essay1489 Words   |  6 PagesSocrates is correct when he says the â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living† In order to discuss why Socrates is correct, I would like to discuss these various points which consist of: the significance as well as the underlying meaning of his quote â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living†, the difference between an unexamined life and an examined life, specific examples, the importance of a person living an examined life and lastly, whether or not I’m living an examined life. Socrates was aRead MoreSocrate and the Examined Life1353 Words   |  6 PagesExamined life Adrian Eames 951105878 Section leader: Elizabeth Grosz The Trial and Death of Socrates takes place during a time in Socrates life where he becomes most reflective. During these final moments of Socrates life a theme arises, that of the unexamined life. Socrates claims that â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living† (Apology 38a). Profound as the statement may seem it creates many questions; what is the unexamined life? And why is the idea of an examined life so dear to Socrates? It s

Essay on The Duality of the American Dream in Amy Tan’s...

For millions of immigrants, America has been seen as the land of opportunity where anyone could become anything he or she wanted to be. A family that believes strongly in the American dream can be found in Amy Tan’s short story, â€Å"Two Kinds.† The story centers around the daughter of a Chinese immigrant who desperately wants her daughter to become successful. In the story, the author shows the difficult lives immigrants face when moving to a new culture. In this short story, the theme shows the protagonist’s conflict with her mother on the type of daughter her mother wants her to be. The author establishes the theme of how difficult mother-daughter relationships can be through characterization, setting, and symbolism. Primarily, Tan†¦show more content†¦The angry tone in the beginning leads to tension, but ends on a softer note once Jing-mei is older and learns to be more sympathetic. The setting of the story helps the theme become more realistic. In addition to setting, the author uses symbols to strengthen the theme of the story. In the story, the mother buys Jing-mei a piano on which to practice. The mother and Jing-mei have different perspectives on what this symbol means. To Jing-mei, the piano symbolizes her mother trying to change her into something other than herself; however, the piano symbolizes the American dream to her mother. Eventually as Jing-mei ages, she could see her mother’s idea on what the piano means and learns to appreciate the piano. When Jing-mei is a woman, â€Å"[she] realized that [â€Å"Pleading Child† and â€Å"Perfectly Contended†] were two halves of the same song† (Tan 9). As Critic Cynthia Becerra states, â€Å"the self-realization completes this rich vignette, it is not without pain and loss.(Becerra)† This realization shows how she learns that her mother only has high aspirations for her. The symbolical piano helps the theme by showing the contrasting views b etween the mother and the daughter in their relationship. Furthermore, Amy Tan writes a wonderful short story about the complicated relationship between mothers and daughters, yet one can be enriching. The theme of â€Å"TwoShow MoreRelatedHanif Kureishis My Son the Fanatic and Amy Tans Two Kinds: Modern Cultural Theme of Dual and Transitional Identity745 Words   |  3 Pagesmetamorphosis. Two exquisitely written short stories published during the tumultuous postcolonial period of the late 1980s and early 1990s, Hanif Kureishis My Son the Fanatic and Amy Tans Two Kinds, harness the provocative power of prose to explore the quintessentially modern cultural theme of dual and transitional identity. By juxtaposing the paternal expectation of father Parvez with the harsh reality his militarized, extremist son Ali, Kureishi exposes the fallacious notion of the British dream offeredRead MoreA Mother/Daughter Conflict in Amy Tans Two Kinds and Best Quality.2031 Words   |  9 PagesAmy Tans Two Kinds and Best Quality depict a struggling and often stressful relationship between a defiant daughter and an overbearing mother. June Mei and her mother Suyuan engage in a destructive battle between what is possible and what is realistic. June, although headstrong, seeks her mothers approval and adoration. Suyuan, although patronizing, yearns for her daughters obedience and best qualities. The relationship between mother and daughter falls victim to tension inherent in any mother/daughter

Baroque Period Free Essays

Baroque was the artistic period dating from 1600 to 1750 in European history. Derived from the Portuguese word barocco, Baroque literally means an ‘uneven pearl. ’ Often compared to Hellenistic art, Baroque artists discovered emotions and used strong contrasts of light and shade showcasing continued motion in their works. We will write a custom essay sample on Baroque Period or any similar topic only for you Order Now Cunningham L. S. Reich J. J. (2006) state that: It is not surprising that the term baroque, originally used to describe the extravagant European art of the seventeenth century C. E. , is often applied to the art of the Hellenistic period. The artists responsible for these innovations created their works for a new kind of patron. (p. 77) Baroque was born in Italy. From the Renaissance period of symmetry, monumentality, balance and odd forms, the Baroque period was characterised by bold, curves and asymmetrical themes in paintings and buildings. Heinrich Wolfflin, in Principles of Art History: the problem of the development of style in later art (1932; translated 1950, Page 14), explained the differences between the art of the 16th and 17th centuries stating that â€Å"baroque (or, let us say, modern art) is neither a rise nor a decline from classic, but a totally different art. † It also reflected the growth of monarchies as such a style suited the aristocracy who thought of integrated structures. Intense spirituality, realism of daily life, and psychological exploitation depicted in works of art and sculptures are highlights of Baroque art. Cunningham L. S. Reich J. J. (2006) explain that: During the Baroque period, artists were attracted by extremes of feeling – sometimes these strong emotions were personal. Painters and poets alike tried to look into their own souls and reveal by color or words the depths of their own psychic and spiritual experience. The desire to express the inexpressible required the invention of new techniques. As a result, baroque art placed great emphasis on virtuosity. Sculptors and painters achieved astonishing realm in the way in which they handled their media. Stone was carved in a way such as to give the effect of thin, flowing drapery, while seventeenth-century painters found ways to reproduce complex effects of light and shade. (p. 359) Some of the main representatives of baroque art are Michelangelo Merisi-Caravaggio (Portrait of a Courtesan-1597), Annibale Carracci (River Landscape-1595), Agostino Carracci (Lamentation of Christ-1606), Rembrandt (The Jewish Bride-1666), Nicholas Poussin (The Plague at Ashdod-1630), Georges De La Tour (The Fortune Teller-1620-1621) Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velazquez (Prince Balthasar Carlos-1635), Peter Paul Rubens (Mercury and Argus-1638), and Jan Vermeer (The Artist in his Atelier-1670). Like art, Baroque architecture too progressed from renaissance in Italy. Curving facades, oval shape, triangular areas between rooftops, tips scrolls and gilded and double curves with luxurious materials and ornate decorations were emphasized upon instead of symmetry. The most famous work is the Palace of Versailles, France (built by Louis XIV) which was a symbol of wealth and power. Baroque architects used marble, gilt and bronze in their works. Ceilings used illusionism where paintings were done and looked like engravings for expressing emotions. The main representatives of Baroque architecture were Gianlorenzo Bernini (Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, 1645-1652) and Francesco Borromini (Sant’Ivo alla Sapienza, 1640-1650). The late Baroque era was known as Rococo (1700-1780). In this era, the sculptors obtained unified spaces, created decorative schemes and emphasized on structural elements (Church of the Carmine, Turin, Italy, 1732, by Filippo Juvarra). Baroque style moved out of Rome and split in two different forms – The Roman Catholic countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Austria and South Germany) and Protestant regions (England, Netherlands and rest of northern Europe). The Catholic countries were inclined towards freer and active surfaces thereby appealing through the senses, whereas the Protestant countries were more restrained and developed a quiet monumentality. As it migrated, Baroque style underwent changes in different countries according to the traditions, preferences and outlooks. In France, the architecture was geometrical, formal and precise merging with the Rococo style. Dutch painting was sober and detailed; and Dutch architecture was affected by political and commercial events, thereby emphasizing on beauty and nature of the middle class. Germany continued with its alpine wood crafting tradition in sculptures. The Baroque style moved towards extravagance in Spain and Latin America. In the latter half of the 18th century, baroque transitioned to romanticism which was ‘the age of enlightenment. ’ References: Cunningham L. S. Reich J. J. (2006). Culture and Values: A survey of the Humanities. Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. How to cite Baroque Period, Papers

Lord Of The Flies By William Golding Essays (669 words)

Lord Of The Flies By William Golding In William Golding's novel, Lord of the Flies, a group of boys revert from civilized children to savages. The boys are stranded on a tropical island with no adults in authority to tell them what to do. Only one tool, a knife, and their intelligence provide the boys with the ways to survive. The story shows how the boys gradually loose their ability to behave in a socially acceptable way. They divide into two groups. One group tries to stay with normal behaviors. The other group changes into irrational savages. This descent into savagery is conveyed to the reader through the use of symbolism. The boys themselves represent the different facets of society from the calm and rational to the disorganized and irrational. Two of the boys have leadership skill. Ralph, one of the oldest of the boys, is voted in as the first leader. He brings all of the boys together and starts trying to figure out a way for the boys to get rescued. He sets up a signal fire. If any passing ships come by they may see the smoke and come and rescue them. Jack is the oldest of all of the boys and starts going along with Ralph. He slowly drifts away from what is wanted of him. He gets a group of kids together to go pig hunting. While they are hunting, the fire goes out. Ralph gets very angry with Jack for letting that happen. So Jack decides to form his own group. His group is called the hunters. The only things they live for is hunting pigs and killing the beast. They never really care if they ever get off the island. Ralph, the politician symbolizes a civilized and rational person; Jack, the hunters, symbolizes the uncivilized and irrational (1). Two boys are the victims in the story. Piggy, the fat, nearsighted asthmatic, is a rationalist who functions as Ralph's Prime Minister. He is the intelligent one. It is Piggy who teaches Ralph how to use the conch. Because Piggy has asthma, he can't blow into it himself (1). He has almost all of the answers to the boy's questions, but they do not like him. So they refuse listen to what he has to say. Piggy wears glasses. These symbolize political vision, which, until they break act as "the mirror of magistrates". Simon symbolizes Christ. He has been blessed and cursed with the gift of prophecy, but like Cassandra, on mythology, is doomed to be ignored. He is the sacrifice. He knows the evil that lives in man's devil-ridden nature, but he doesn't know how to say it to the others (2). He is killed by Jack's hunters. Symbolically, he is killed by the evil on the island to save the rest of humanity (3.). The power of good and evil are strong forces in the book and are represented by the pig's head, the conch, the paratrooper, the Beast, and the killing of Piggy. The conch is the symbol of authority and order. Whoever has it has total freedom to speak at the assembly. It is used by Ralph to gather all of the kids together for the assembly. The title of the book, Lord of the Flies, refers to the head of the pig, which is a translation of the Judeo-Christian word Beelzebub. Beelzebub was the right hand man of Satan. It represents the darker side of human nature (2). The paratrooper frightened the boys when they found him. The boys thought that he was the Beast. The Beast is another example of Satan. People fear Satan just as the boys feared the Beast. The death of Piggy and the breaking of the conch symbolize the destruction of Ralph's power (1). It is also the end of any hope the boys had of being sensible again. The flies symbolize death and decay, which are extensions of Satan (3). Lord of the Flies is about struggles and conflicts in society: good vs. evil. Civilization vs. society. Intelligence vs. emotion. Leadership vs. anarchy. Through these boys in a small island setting, William Golding's use of symbolism helps create a vivid picture of the action, the descent into savagery by a group of British students.

Die For Your Couintry essays

Die For Your Couintry essays Is it Glorious to Die for your Country? Is it glorious to die for your country?.... This question has been posed to many young people about to embark on war although the answer has usually been yes in response to their country due mainly to the fact that the government instills it in the people of the country to support one's country and one way is to send young abled bodied men into the army. If you were one individual that was not in favour of fighting for your country you would surely become an outcast by the countries people. To avoid ridicule and becoming outcasted by the people living around you, you would join the army just in the thought that you were obligated to for the sole sake of your country. Such thoughts were reinforced by the government promotion of propaganda. Glorifying death is not needed to be taught and should be up to the sole individual. School systems should teach an unbiased point of view of war to enable the child to make their own decision to fight for one's country. Is it Glorious to Die for your Country? Within the education system it was instructed to the teachers to teach the children at a young age during the brink of war to instill that their the life of the country and for them to defend their country against the enemy. Teachers showed being in a army was representing honour and the pride of the country. Guilt was laid on the students who showed rebellion by the teacher. Many times the teacher would try to show a soldier that looks happy and content trying to represent being a soldier makes you happy and content. Many young inexperienced soldiers were sent to training camps near the battle fields that they would soon be sent to fight, for their country and their life. The training camps were situated on similar enviroments that resembled the battle fields of where the fighting would take place. Reinforced displine to the young ...

Deep Earthquakes - Why They Happen

Deep Earthquakes - Why They Happen Deep earthquakes were discovered in the 1920s, but they remain a subject of contention today. The reason is simple: they arent supposed to happen. Yet they account for more than 20 percent of all earthquakes. Shallow earthquakes require solid rocks to occur, more specifically, cold, brittle rocks. Only these can store up elastic strain along a geologic fault, held in check by friction until the strain lets loose in a violent rupture. The Earth gets hotter by about 1 degree C with every 100 meters of depth on average. Combine that with high pressure underground and its clear that by about 50 kilometers down, on average the rocks should be too hot and squeezed too tight to crack and grind the way they do at the surface. Thus deep-focus quakes, those below 70 km, demand an explanation. Slabs and Deep Earthquakes Subduction gives us a way around this. As the lithospheric plates making up Earths outer shell interact, some are plunged downward into the underlying mantle. As they exit the plate-tectonic game they get a new name: slabs. At first, the slabs, rubbing against the overlying plate and bending under the stress, produce shallow-type subduction earthquakes. These are well explained. But as a slab goes deeper than 70 km, the shocks continue. Several factors are thought to help: The mantle is not homogeneous but rather is full of variety. Some parts remain brittle or cold for very long times. The cold slab can find something solid to push against, producing shallow-type quakes, quite a bit deeper than the averages suggest. Moreover, the bent slab may also unbend, repeating the deformation it felt earlier but in the opposite sense.Minerals in the slab begin to change under pressure. Metamorphosed basalt and gabbro in the slab changes to the blueschist mineral suite, which in turn changes into garnet-rich eclogite around 50 km depth. Water is released at each step in the process while the rocks become more compact and grow more brittle. This dehydration embrittlement strongly affects the stresses underground.Under growing pressure, serpentine minerals in the slab decompose into the minerals olivine and enstatite plus water. This is the reverse of the serpentine formation that happened when the plate was young. It is thought to be complete around 160 km depth.W ater can trigger localized melting in the slab. Melted rocks, like nearly all liquids, take up more space than solids, thus melting can break fractures even at great depths. Over a wide depth range averaging 410 km, olivine begins to change to a different crystal form identical to that of the mineral spinel. This is what mineralogists call a phase change rather than a chemical change; only the volume of the mineral is affected. Olivine-spinel changes again to a perovskite form at around 650 km. (These two depths mark the mantles transition zone.)Other notable phase changes include enstatite-to-ilmenite and garnet-to-perovskite at depths below 500 km. Thus there are plenty of candidates for the energy behind deep earthquakes at all depths between 70 and 700 km, perhaps too many. The roles of temperature and water are important at all depths as well, though not precisely known. As scientists say, the problem is still poorly constrained. Deep Earthquake Details There are a few more significant clues about deep-focus events. One is that the ruptures proceed very slowly, less than half the speed of shallow ruptures, and they seem to consist of patches or closely spaced subevents. Another is that they have few aftershocks, only one-tenth as many as shallow quakes do. They relieve more stress; that is, the stress drop is generally much larger for deep than shallow events. Until recently the consensus candidate for the energy of very deep quakes was the phase change from olivine to olivine-spinel, or transformational faulting. The idea was that little lenses of olivine-spinel would form, gradually expand and eventually connect in a sheet. Olivine-spinel is softer than olivine, therefore the stress would find an avenue of sudden release along those sheets. Layers of melted rock might form to lubricate the action, similar to superfaults in the lithosphere, the shock might trigger more transformational faulting, and the quake would slowly grow. Then the great Bolivia deep earthquake of 9 June 1994 occurred, a magnitude 8.3 event at a depth of 636 km. Many workers thought that to be too much energy for the transformational faulting model to account for. Other tests have failed to confirm the model. Not all agree. Since then, deep-earthquake specialists have been trying new ideas, refining old ones, and having a ball.