tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34357427134749828492024-02-08T15:12:57.723-05:00The Ramblings of an English MajorStephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-19009993609704082122009-04-23T13:00:00.000-04:002009-04-23T13:01:27.869-04:00Courses and more<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5Carthad%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:donotoptimizeforbrowser/> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; 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mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">Only a few posts ago, I listed my courses for next semester, fall 2008, which is now last semester.<span style=""> </span>At this point, I’m almost through with the current semester, spring 2009.<span style=""> </span>I suppose for the sake of continuity I’ll list the classes I have now:<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 10.00 ENG214 World Literature II<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 12.00 PHIL316 Logic and Critical Thinking<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 13.00 GRK322 Classical Greek II<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 14.00 ENG322 American Literature II<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"> <span style=""></span> TR<span style=""> </span>09.30 PHIL310 Philosophy of Science<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">It’s been a good semester.<span style=""> </span>In World Lit, I’ve written papers on Voltaire and Borges’ “Pierre Menard, autor del Quijote,” and the process of writing them was a great learning experience.<span style=""> </span>In Logic and Critical Thinking, I’ve brushed up on my fallacies, and in about a week I’m going to debate the resolution “Christians should be involved in politics in order to change society.”<span style=""> </span>My team is negative – and my personal position is the same.<span style=""> </span>In Greek, we finished the book of abridged readings from Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, and others, and now we’re reading from the JACT anthology, starting with unabridged (though bountifully glossed) Homer.<span style=""> </span>It’s challenging but rewarding.<span style=""> </span>American Lit has been a lot of fun – I’ve read some American authors who I didn’t know existed, and some who I knew existed but whom I had never read, and who wrote some really good stuff.<span style=""> </span>Philosophy of Science has probably been my most challenging class, because of the sheer volume of material presented and its difficult nature.<span style=""> </span>But it’s been an incredible class as well, even though it’s responsible for my present epistemological (and hermeneutical) crisis.<span style=""> </span>More on that later, perhaps.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">At any rate, next semester (fall 2009) I have the following: <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 10.00 ENG325 Advanced Prose<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 13.00 SPAN321 Latin American Culture and Civilization<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">MWF 14.00 PHIL313 History of Philosophy I<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><span style=""> </span>TR 12.00 BIB337 Christian Theology I<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><span style=""> </span>TR 15.00 ENG331 British Literature I<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText">I’m taking some of the best classes that our best faculty members have to offer – needless to say, I’m excited.<span style=""> </span>I’m also leading a small group of freshmen guys (which involves one hour of academic credit) and helping one of our English faculty with ENG420, which I took last semester.<span style=""> </span>It should be a great semester.<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: times new roman;" class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: times new roman;">And I should note too that the URL of this blog needs to change. I no longer consider myself a future medievalist. For several reasons, my interests have shifted from literature itself to pedagogy (in general and applied to languages), applied linguistics, and theory (rhet/comp theory, literary theory, writing center theory . . .). I’m looking at graduate programs in TESOL, rhet/comp studies, and applied linguistics. We’ll see what happens. I’ve got another three semesters at my current school, so I have time to figure things out.</span><o:p></o:p></p> Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-23975467191935193982008-08-19T09:49:00.001-04:002008-08-19T09:52:10.786-04:00Shakespeare vs. Mother Goose<p class="MsoNormal">I find it humorous (or distressing) that because I viewed <span style="font-style: italic;">The Oxford Book of English Verse</span>, Amazon now recommends <span style="font-style: italic;">A Treasury of Mother Goose</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Original Mother Goose</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">The Real Mother Goose</span>.<span style=""> </span>What is the world coming to?</p>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-69026671253743334982008-07-29T10:45:00.001-04:002008-07-29T10:48:17.704-04:00I have accepted <a href="http://www.scripturezealot.com/2008/07/16/challenge-wordle-your-blog/">the challenge</a> and wordled this blog's RSS feed. Not surprisingly, "Greek" is the most prominent.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://wordle.net/gallery/wrdl/94850/Ramblings_of_an_English_Major_7-29-08" title="Wordle: Ramblings of an English Major 7/29/08"><img src="http://wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/94850/Ramblings_of_an_English_Major_7-29-08" style="border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221); padding: 4px;" /></a></div>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-1330931708290777932008-07-10T19:52:00.001-04:002008-07-10T19:54:12.169-04:00Some Thoughts on Ancient Language Pedagogy<p class="MsoNormal">Sometime last semester I was talking with a girl in my Greek class, and she asked me if Greek had ever been a spoken language.<span style=""> After a pause, </span>I replied that Modern Greek is still spoken, and that the Greek we’re studying (Attic) used to be spoken.<span style=""> </span>She then asked me, if it was once a spoken language, why we’re learning only to read it and not write it, speak it, or listen to it.<span style=""> </span><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Though hardly anyone asks it, the question is an excellent one.<span style=""> </span>The best answer I know of is that it’s much easier to learn to read a language than it is to write it, speak it, or listen to it.<span style=""> </span>Graduate students (supposedly) can learn to read French texts written by native speakers inside of two semesters, whereas typical undergraduate French classes don’t reach that level until the third or fourth year.<span style=""> </span>Why waste time learning to speak, listen to, or write a language, the argument goes, when you only need to read it?<span style=""> </span>Hence the numerous classes such as “French for Reading” and “German for Reading” which are offered at the graduate level.<span style=""> </span>And these are modern languages; the argument appears even stronger when ancient languages are in question.<span style=""> </span>Nobody speaks them anymore; there’s no need to write in them; and what’s the point of listening to them? <span style=""> </span>Reading appears to be the only skill worth developing.<span style=""> </span>And reasoning thus, teachers came up with the typical method of learning Greek and Latin: memorize paradigms, memorize vocabulary, and translate sentences into English.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But this approach has never been flawless.<span style=""> </span>Because of my own experience, and from what I’ve seen of my fellow students’ experience, beginning Greek and Latin students quickly begin drowning in paradigms.<span style=""> </span>Fluent reading of text depends upon instant recognition of forms: but when a Greek teacher has a class memorize several different combinations of tense, voice, and mood in quick succession, only the most diligent students will not be confused.<span style=""> </span>Also, half the fun of learning a language is learning to communicate in it: but after a year of Greek, I couldn’t carry on the most basic of conversations if I were somehow transported back to fifth-century Athens.<span style=""> </span>I could say more things in French after eight weeks of class than I could say in Greek after thirty-two weeks.<span style=""> </span>In fact, I can’t really say anything in Greek.<span style=""> </span>I can read a bit, and write still less.<span style=""> </span><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Why don’t teachers insert some conversational Greek or Latin into the first-year classes?<span style=""> </span>For a variety of reasons.<span style=""> </span>Some are too set in their ways. <span style=""> </span>Some haven’t really thought about it. <span style=""> </span>But there are some, like <a href="http://www.biblicalulpan.org/">Dr. Randall Buth</a>, who are leading the way in changing ancient language pedagogy. <span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, I haven’t seen any of his material; but he regularly makes valuable contributions to the <a href="http://www.ibiblio.org/bgreek/">B-Greek list</a>, and anyone who teaches people to actually <i style="">speak</i> Koine Greek and Classical Hebrew is worthy of praise.<br /><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I think I’ve mentioned previously what I’ll be doing next year for a part-time job: tutoring Greek and Spanish. <span style=""> </span>Our Writing Center has never offered Greek tutoring before, so it’ll be really interesting to see how it goes. <span style=""> </span>I’m hoping I can encourage the Greek I students to know their paradigms inside and out, and to strive for real comprehension and not just ability in making literal English translations of the Greek text.</p>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-47607561161916691302008-07-05T21:20:00.002-04:002008-07-05T21:23:04.633-04:00It's a small world . . .<p class="MsoNormal">File this one under “It’s a small world after all”: <span style=""></span>I was down at the marina in Panama City today and saw a boat for sale (for the very reasonable and affordable sum of $36,900). <span style=""> </span>Then I noticed that the area code of the owner’s phone number was 423.<span style=""> </span>And sure enough, it was registered in Tennessee. What are the odds?</p>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-60890365367851310872008-05-03T22:20:00.002-04:002008-05-03T22:23:21.408-04:00Courses for Fall 2008A few weeks ago I registered for next semester, and here are the results:<br /><br />MWF 08.00 BIB215 Pentateuch<br />MWF 09.00 ENG420 English Tutoring: Theory and Pedagogy<br />MWF 10.00 ENG213 World Literature I<br />MWF 13.00 GRK321 Classical Greek I<br />MWF 15.00 PHIL211 Introduction to Philosophy<br /><br />I also have a one-hour Bible class, a one-hour activity class, and piano lessons, for eighteen hours total. I'm pretty excited about ENG420, which will require me to spend three hours a week working as a consultant in the Writing Center. Unfortunately, since it's part of the class, it doesn't pay; that's why I'm also going to work in the Writing Center as a tutor in Greek and Spanish. I can certainly pick up four or five hours a week doing that, so I won't have to work in the cafeteria next semester. (Not that I mind working in the cafeteria, of course -- it's been a good job -- <span style=";font-family:Georgia;font-size:12;" ></span><span style=""></span>but I think I'll enjoy the Writing Center rather more.) I'll have only five three-hour classes, instead of my six this semester, but between the Writing Center, piano, and debate (which I'd like to spend much more time on), it probably won't be any less busy. And that's how I would prefer it, anyway.Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-88837010994442256102008-05-03T21:55:00.004-04:002008-05-03T22:09:24.257-04:00Recent Acquisitions (or maybe not so recent)<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;">At last, classes are over. <span style=""> </span>Yet there is a very important distinction between the term “classes” and the term “finals”; for although the former are finished, the latter have not yet begun. <span style=""> </span>But since finals week for me won’t be very hectic, I find myself with enough time on my hands to blog. <span style=""> </span>I have no Greek final and no Spanish final, although I do have finals in my other classes: Intro to Communication, Advanced Grammar, Biblical Foundations, and Intro to the Novel. <span style=""> </span>The first one consists of memorizing a long list of definitions and regurgitating them, the second of essays, the third of more essays, and the fourth of yet another essay. <span style=""> </span>For this last, however, I already know the question, and it’s a good one. <span style=""> </span>The professor is letting us bring as many notes and quotations as we like to the exam.<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">At any rate, here are a few of my recent acquisitions (although some of them can hardly be called “recent” any more).<span style=""> </span>These include some books I had to buy for school, although I’ve omitted most of my actual textbooks.<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">George Macdonald, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/8883885"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Phantastes<!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" spt="75" preferrelative="t" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" filled="f" stroked="f"> <v:stroke joinstyle="miter"> <v:formulas> <v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"> <v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"> <v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"> <v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"> </v:formulas> <v:path extrusionok="f" gradientshapeok="t" connecttype="rect"> <o:lock ext="edit" aspectratio="t"> </v:shapetype><v:shape id="_x0000_i1025" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" href="http://worldcat.org/search?qt=worldcat_org_all&q=0802860605" style="'width:.6pt;height:.6pt'" button="t"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\arthad\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=musofanengmaj-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0802860605"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><span style=""><img src="file:///C:/Users/arthad/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; margin: 0px; display: none;" shapes="_x0000_i1025" border="0" height="1" width="1" /></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> (Eerdmans, 2000 [1858]).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Charlotte Brontë, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/34951520"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Jane Eyre<!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1026" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" href="http://worldcat.org/search?q=0312095457&=Search&qt=owc_search" style="'width:.6pt;height:.6pt'" button="t"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\arthad\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=musofanengmaj-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0312095457"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><span style=""><img src="file:///C:/Users/arthad/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; margin: 0px; display: none;" shapes="_x0000_i1026" border="0" height="1" width="1" /></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> (Bedford/St. Martin's, 1996 [1848]).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">John Butt and Carmen Benjamin, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/56058008"><span style="text-decoration: none;">A New Reference Grammar of Modern Spanish</span></a> (McGraw-Hill, 2004).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">William Faulkner, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/21525355"><span style="text-decoration: none;">The Sound and the Fury</span></a> (Random House, 1990 [1929]).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="FR" style="font-family:Georgia;">Étienne Gilson, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/173162222"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Introduction à la philosophie chrétienne</span></a> (Vrin, <u1:p></u1:p>2007 [1960]).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Euripides, <span style=""><a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/50100176"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Medea</span></a><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1028" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:.6pt;height:.6pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\arthad\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=musofanengmaj-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0521643864"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/Users/arthad/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; margin: 0px; display: none;" shapes="_x0000_i1028" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><!--[endif]--></span> (Cambridge UP, 2002).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Euripides, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/61815124"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Fabulae III</span></a> (Oxford UP, 1994).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Sidney Greenbaum, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/34974774"><span style="text-decoration: none;">The Oxford English Grammar</span></a> (Oxford UP, 1996).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Herodotus, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/222480268"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Historiae II</span></a> (Oxford UP, 1927).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Herodotus, <span style=""><a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/48837933"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Histories Book IX</span></a></span> (Cambridge UP, 2002).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Henry James, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/40043490"><span style="text-decoration: none;">The Turn of the Screw<!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1029" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" href="http://worldcat.org/search?q=039395904X&=Search&qt=owc_search" style="'width:.6pt;height:.6pt'" button="t"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\arthad\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=musofanengmaj-20&l=as2&o=1&a=039395904X"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><span style=""><img src="file:///C:/Users/arthad/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; margin: 0px; display: none;" shapes="_x0000_i1029" border="0" height="1" width="1" /></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> (Norton, 1999 [1898]).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">William Kibler, <span style=""><a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/9946309"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Introduction to Old French</span></a><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1027" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:.6pt;height:.6pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\arthad\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=musofanengmaj-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0873522923"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/Users/arthad/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; margin: 0px; display: none;" shapes="_x0000_i1027" border="0" height="1" width="1" /><!--[endif]--></span> (MLA, 1984).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="FR" style="font-family:Georgia;">Gustave Lanson, </span><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/154236248"><span style="text-decoration: none;" lang="FR">Histoire de la littérature fran</span><span style="text-decoration: none;" lang="FR">çaise</span></a></span><span lang="FR" style="font-family:Georgia;"> (Hachette, 1951).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Molière, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/55702298"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Œuvres</span></a> (2 vols.) (Didot, 1869).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Plato, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/51108407"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Rempublicam</span></a> (Oxford UP, 2004).</span> <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Lynn Truss, <a href="http://worldcat.org/oclc/70117259"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Eats, Shoots and Leaves</span></a> (Gotham, 2006).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <span style="font-size:100%;"><span lang="FR" style="font-family:georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span> </span>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-57835616704039424142008-04-12T21:39:00.003-04:002008-04-12T21:48:23.122-04:00AccentsWell, this has been rather a long hiatus. I have been submerged by school, and reading and writing for non-academic purposes has been the furthest thing from my mind. In the next few weeks, however, I hope to have posts with more content than this one.<br /><br />I found this quiz through <a href="http://littleprofessor.typepad.com/the_little_professor/2008/04/accented.html">The Little Professor</a>.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><table style="border: 1px solid gray; width: 320px; font-family: arial,verdana,sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; background-color: white;"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" style="padding: 5px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; color: black;"><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; font-size: 20px; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; display: block; margin-bottom: 8px;">What American accent do you have?</b> <div style="font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 4px;">Your Result: <b>The Midland</b></div><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 200px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 90%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><p style="border: medium none ; margin: 10px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; color: black;">"You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.</p></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">The South</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 73%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Philadelphia</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 60%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">The Northeast</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 52%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">The Inland North</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 48%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">The West</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 45%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Boston</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 31%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; color: black; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">North Central</td><td style="padding: 3px; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><div style="border: 1px solid black; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100px; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; margin-top: 4px;"><div style="background: red none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 8%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; font-size: 8px; line-height: 8px;"> </div></div><br /></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="padding: 8px; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_american_accent_do_you_have"><b>What American accent do you have?</b></a><br /><a href="http://www.gotoquiz.com/">Quiz Created on GoToQuiz</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />Interestingly enough, my results were the same as hers, though it's not because I've lived in the Midwest. And although my accent itself may be neutral, my habitual use of "y'all" definitely pegs me as a Southerner.Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-88030983696184240422008-02-11T14:51:00.001-05:002008-02-12T18:11:18.282-05:00Disciplinary Insults<p class="MsoNormal">A biology major and I were jokingly trading insults about each other’s disciplines at lunch today. <span style=""> </span>He finished me off with, “Yeah, well, all you English majors do is find verbs all day long.” <span style=""> </span>I found that remark rather funny, because I couldn’t refute him: I’d just gotten out of my Advanced Grammar class, where for fifty minutes—you guessed it—we had been parsing verbs (<i style="">had been parsing</i>: pluperfect indic—sorry, never mind).<span style=""> </span>But I enjoyed it, so I guess I’m in the right major. :)</p>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-22095790022891928942008-01-24T21:48:00.000-05:002008-01-24T21:54:14.128-05:00Journalism in France and America<p class="MsoNormal">Today I was reading the news when I came across two articles on the same subject, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/25/business/worldbusiness/25bank-web.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all">one from <i style="">The New York Times</i></a> and <a href="http://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2008/01/24/la-banque-de-france-ouvre-une-enquete-sur-une-fraude-massive-a-la-societe-generale_1002943_0.html">one from <i style="">Le Monde</i></a>. <span style=""> </span>After glancing over each one, it occurred to me that the syntax of the French article seemed more complex than the English article’s; although it’s difficult to take into account the difference between the languages when making such a judgment. <span style=""> </span>I decided to compare their first sentences: </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in;">PARIS — <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/s/societe_generale/index.html?inline=nyt-org" title="More information about Société Générale.">Société Générale</a>, one of the largest banks in Europe, was thrown into turmoil Thursday after it disclosed that a rogue employee executed a series of “elaborate, fictitious transactions” that cost the bank more than $7 billion, the biggest loss ever recorded by a single trader.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in;"><span class="dropcap"><span style="" lang="FR">L</span></span><span style="" lang="FR">a Société générale, l'un des piliers du système bancaire français, l'une des références mondiales de la finance, a créé la stupeur, jeudi 24 janvier, en </span><a href="http://www.socgen.com/sg/upload/comm24012008/fr/cdp-240108_fr.pdf" target="_new"><span style="" lang="FR">annonçant</span></a><span style="" lang="FR"> la mise au jour d'une fraude massive portant sur 40 à 50 milliards d'euros de positions accumulées, commise à l'insu de ses dirigeants dans la salle de marchés de l'établissement financier, et qui a coûté à la banque autour de 4,9 milliards d'euros.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">First, the French sentence is longer, containing 69 words to the English sentence’s 46. <span style=""> </span>But the English article is longer overall, at 1219 words to the French article’s 799.<span style=""> </span>Second, the English article contains 27.7 words per sentence; the French article contains 21.89.<span style=""> </span>Thus considering statistics only—which is superficial—the English article appears to be more complex, if overall length and words per sentence are the sole criteria.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But of course these are not the sole criteria. <span style=""> </span>Analyzing the syntax of the sentences reveals that the English sentence is less complex than the French. <span style=""> </span>In fact, it contains two phrases and two subordinate clauses; only two of these are separated by commas from the independent clause. <span style=""> </span>The French sentence, on the other hand, contains four phrases and one subordinate clause, all of these being separated by commas.<span style=""> </span>In other words, the French sentence, while not difficult on an absolute scale, is structurally harder relative to the English sentence.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Now, enough with syntactical analysis.<span style=""> </span>Are the ideas in the French sentence any more difficult than those in the English? <span style=""> </span>Perhaps.<span style=""> </span>Note that the English sentence contains no figurative language; the French sentence, on the other hand, contains the phrase “l'un des piliers du système bancaire français”—literally, “one of the pillars of the French banking system.”</p><p class="MsoNormal">Moving on, we find that the English article contains only one paragraph of more than two sentences. <span style=""> </span>Most of its paragraphs contain one sentence.<span style=""> </span>The French article contains four paragraphs of more than two sentences (and the entire article is about four hundred words shorter than the English one). <span style=""> </span>In general, then (insofar as we may judge from these two articles) the French journalists seem to prefer longer paragraphs and more complex imagery than American journalists. <span style=""> </span>I think that may say something about the American educational system; at the least it indicates that average American newspaper readers are less inclined than their French counterparts to put up with sentences that demand much of anything from their intellects. <span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, of course, these observations are on shaky ground, being drawn from only two articles. <span style=""> </span>A better study would track articles on the same subject in various newspapers over a period of several months, calculating things such as their readability statistics, their syntax, and their use of rhetorical devices.</p>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-85798303606662517582008-01-11T14:53:00.000-05:002008-01-11T15:08:07.749-05:00Review of Pevear and Volokhonsky's Translation of War and Peace<p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/War-Peace-Leo-Tolstoy/dp/0307266931/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060657&sr=1-1">Tolstoy, Leo. <i>War and Peace</i>. Trans. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. New York: Knopf, 2007.<o:p> </o:p></a></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal">There is a mass of conflicting opinion on Pevear and Volokhonsky’s translation of <i style="">War and Peace</i>, which appears to center primarily on two issues: the English style, which is less than eminently literary, and the retention of Tolstoy’s French in the text with footnoted translations.<span style=""> </span>Before dealing with them, however, I’ll briefly describe the edition.<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal">It’s a big book, at xviii + 1273 pp., and tastefully presented.<span style=""> </span>It includes a useful introduction by Pevear (which should be read before criticizing the translation), an appendix containing Tolstoy’s 1868 essay “A Few Words Apropos of the Book <i style="">War and Peace</i>,” endnotes, an “Historical Index,” and a plot summary.<span style=""> </span>The endnotes are denoted by superscript numerals in the text, the footnotes by the usual sequence of asterisk, dagger, etc.<span style=""> </span>I found the endnotes very useful: they elucidate the obscure details of the period, often mentioned by Tolstoy, which only a specialist would know.<span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, I noticed several typos, probably ten or more; and suprisingly for Knopf, the “and” in “War and Peace” is capitalized in both places on the dust jacket, yet not on the spine.<span style=""> </span>I hope the dust jacket has been corrected in future printings.<span style=""> </span>Although these minor details didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the story, they did detract from the pleasure I was expecting in owning a well-produced copy of a great book.</p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal">Now for the contentious issues.<span style=""> </span>The first I am not qualified to judge because I know no Russian.<span style=""> </span>I first read <i style="">War and Peace</i> in the Maudes’ version – I have never read Garnett or Briggs – and fell in love with it.<span style=""> </span>From what I remember, it seemed more literary and I believe it did read more smoothly than P and V, which often breaks the rules of good English style (and pains my ear).<span style=""> </span>But if some reviewers are right that it echoes the Russian, then I’d rather read a sometimes awkward but faithful English version than a polished but misleading one.<span style=""> </span>There is a fine line, however, between faithfulness and bad style – I’m reminded of the old dictum that, when translating from Latin to English, if one language must yield to the other, Latin should yield to English; and when translating from English to Latin, if one language must yield, English should yield to Latin.<span style=""> </span>Of course, unless I learn Russian, I’ll never know whether P and V transgressed this rule.</p><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal">As for retaining Tolstoy’s French – remember that Tolstoy interspersed Russian with bits of French for a reason, and that P and V are merely following the practice of all the Russian editions by printing the French as Tolstoy wrote it and footnoting translations.<span style=""> </span>It’s interesting that apparently Tolstoy faced the same criticism when the book was published that P and V face today: it’s pedantic, it’s clumsy, it’s a pain to glance back and forth from the text to the footnote, etc.; and in a way it is.<span style=""> </span>(He defends himself on p. 1218 of P and V’s edition in “A Few Words Apropos of the Book <i style="">War and Peace</i>.”)<span style=""> </span>But to translate all Tolstoy’s French along with the Russian into English, without alerting the reader in any way, is to ruin what Tolstoy was trying to accomplish by showing the Russian nobility’s dependence on a foreign tongue.<span style=""> </span>Princess Marya’s friend Julie, for example, a Russian (but significantly called only by a French name), doesn’t even know how to say “un peu amoureux” in her native language.<span style=""> </span>I think the clumsiness of the footnotes is worth it, because it preserves Tolstoy’s intentions – the English editions which translate <i style="">War and Peace</i> as if the whole book were in one language lose an essential dimension of the work – but I admit that for those who don’t read French, the footnotes are a pain.<span style=""> </span>Of course, for those who do read French, it’s great fun: I especially enjoyed being exposed to new idiomatic usage.<o:p> </o:p></p> <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">All in all, I think the prospective reader of </span><i style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">War and Peace</i><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> who doesn’t know French should probably read it first in the Maudes’ version (not Garnett or Briggs), to avoid being excessively frustrated by the footnotes, and only then move on to P and V.</span>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-5048504315899226682008-01-08T17:15:00.000-05:002008-01-11T15:09:43.176-05:00Recent Acquisitions<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here’s a list of books I’ve gotten in the past few weeks, some for Christmas, some just because I wanted them.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Worlds-Major-Languages-Bernard-Comrie/dp/0195065115/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060458&sr=8-1">Comrie, Bernard, ed. The World’s Major Languages. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1991</a>.<br />One of the best single-volume reference works out there about language families; I’ve wanted it since I first discovered its existence as I was browsing the stacks of Southeastern University’s library back in 2006.<span style=""> </span>I’m looking forward to browsing through the various articles, especially those on the Semitic, Slavic, and Germanic languages – and already I’ve learned about the process by which the Latin habeo became Spanish haber, and the difference between haber and tener, something which I’ve been curious about for a long time.<span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, I can’t get much information from the sections on phonology because I know so little about linguistics. <span style=""> </span>My copy was poorly bound – at least one page has already separated – so it’s going back to Amazon for a replacement.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sophies-World-History-Philosophy-Classics/dp/0374530718/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060547&sr=1-1">Gaardner, Jostein.<span style=""> </span><i style="">Sophie’s World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy</i>.<span style=""> </span>Trans. Paulette Moller.<span style=""> </span>New York: Farrar, 1994</a>.<br /><i style="">Sophie’s World</i> purports to be a children’s story, but so far the story seems merely to be a nail on which to hang what seems to be the author’s main concern: brief descriptions of the systems of various philosophers.<span style=""> </span>The descriptions are clear, certainly (though I fear they oversimplify), but for a book with “Novel” in the subtitle, I would have expected better plot and characterization.<span style=""> </span>Also, Gaardner exhibits what Lewis called “chronological snobbery” in his description of the pre-Socratics, assuming that finding naturalistic explanations of events is superior to mythological explanations.<span style=""> </span>This view is problematic, however, because it fails to distinguish between efficient cause and final cause: we can explain the “how” of natural events (efficient cause), without eliminating the need to explain the “why” (final cause), for which mythological explanations are certainly superior to ignoring it altogether.<span style=""> </span>And his political correctness, exhibited by his constantly asserting the equality and often superiority of women to men, is tiresome.<span style=""> </span>In literary terms, the translation is not a masterpiece (the dialogue especially is unrealistic); I don’t know what it’s like in the original Norwegian.<span style=""> </span>But none of this criticism is final, of course, as I haven’t finished the book.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="ES-MX"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Amadis-Gaula-Garci-Rodriguez-Montalvo/dp/8437606934/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060576&sr=1-2">Rodríguez de Montalvo, Garci.<span style=""> </span><i style="">Amadís de Gaula</i>.<span style=""> </span>Ed. Juan Manuel Cacho Blecua.<span style=""> </span>Madrid: Cátedra, 2004.<span style=""> </span>2 vols</a>.<o:p></o:p></span><br />I’m beginning to think that the <i style="">Quijote</i> can’t be fully appreciated until one has read something like the <i style="">Amadís</i>.<span style=""> </span>Take<span style="" lang="ES-MX"> the following passage, for instance: “Y assí acaesció un día por la ribera de la mar, solamente llevando consigo a Gandalín, fuese poner encima de unas peñas por mirar desde allí si vería algunas fustas que de la Gran Bretaña viniessen, por saber nuevas de aquella tierra donde su señora estava.<span style=""> </span>Y en cabo de una pieça que allí estuvo, vio venir d’aquella parte qu’él desseava un a barca; y como al puerto llegó, dixo a Gandalín: ‘Ve a saber nuevas d’aquellos que allí vienen, y apréndelas bien, porque me las sepas contar.’”<a style="" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3435742713474982849&postID=504850431589922668#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="" lang="ES-MX">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style=""> </span></span>It contains several elements essential to the chivalric romance: the solitary knight, the squire, the lady, and the mysterious event (in this case, the unknown ship).<span style=""> </span><span style="" lang="ES-MX">Compare this from the <i style="">Quijote</i>: “De allí un poco, descubrió don Quijote un hombre a caballo que traía en la cabeza una cosa que relumbraba como si fuera de oro, y aun él apenas le hubo visto, cuando se volvió a Sancho y le dijo: ‘Paréceme, Sancho, que no hay refrán que no sea verdadero, porque todos son sentencias sacadas de la misma experiencia, madre de las ciencias todas, especialmente aquel que dice: «Donde una puerta se cierra, otra se abre».<span style=""> </span>[. . .]<span style=""> </span>Digo esto porque, si no me engaño, hacia nosotros viene uno que trae en su cabeza puesto el yelmo de Mambrino, sobre que yo hice el juramento que sabes.’<a style="" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3435742713474982849&postID=504850431589922668#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="" lang="ES-MX">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style=""> </span></span>Now, aside from the reference to the lady, all the elements present in the quotation from the <i style="">Amadís</i> are present in that from the <i style="">Quijote</i>: the knight, the squire, and the mysterious event.<span style=""> </span>But in the former, the author writes in all seriousness; in the latter, the author is not serious at all.<span style=""> </span>To properly appreciate parody or satire, one must experience that which is being parodied or satirized.<span style=""> </span>Now I had read all of Malory (in Shepherd’s edition of the Winchester MS) before finishing the First Part of the <i style="">Quijote</i>; but it seems to me that only after reading portions of the <i style="">Amadís</i> am I beginning to properly appreciate Cervantes’ humor.<span style=""> </span>Perhaps it’s wrapped up in the different flavor of <i style="">Le Morte Darthur</i> and the <i style="">Amadís</i>; for while ostensibly they belong to the same genre, the languages they’re written in – Middle English and early modern Spanish – are quite different.<span style=""> </span>And Malory and <span style="" lang="ES-MX">Rodríguez de Montalvo</span> write differently as well.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Creeds-Christendom-Philip-Schaff/dp/0801082323/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060630&sr=8-1">Schaff, Philip.<span style=""> </span><i style="">History of the Creeds of Christendom</i>.<span style=""> </span>1931.<span style=""> </span>Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2007.<span style=""> </span>3 vols</a>.<br />I don’t have much to say about this one, since I haven’t browsed through it much.<span style=""> </span>The first volume is “A History of Creeds”; the second volume contains texts of patristic creeds in Greek or Latin, most often with English translation; and the third volume contains texts of Reformation creeds and catechisms in Latin, German, French, and English, most often with English translation where applicable.<span style=""> </span>I’ve enjoyed browsing through the second volume, trying to read the Greek of such things as the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/War-Peace-Leo-Tolstoy/dp/0307266931/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200060657&sr=1-1">Tolstoy, Leo.<span style=""> </span><i style="">War and Peace</i>.<span style=""> </span>Trans. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky.<span style=""> </span>New York: Knopf, 2007</a>.<br />I read this translation in two and a half weeks, and I like it, but not as well as I expected.<span style=""> </span>Of course I don’t know the first word of Russian, so my judgments of the translation are based on my impression of Tolstoy as filtered through the Maudes’ version and now through P and V’s.<span style=""> </span>The great thing about P and V is that they translate only Tolstoy’s Russian into English: his French and German they print untouched, providing translations in footnotes.<span style=""> </span>In this way one gains a much better sense of what Tolstoy was trying to accomplish by exhibiting the Russian nobility’s use of French and Russian.<span style=""> </span>The practice can become tedious, especially when characters freely intersperse French and Russian phrases, making for awkward ellipses in the footnotes, but on the whole I think the tradeoff is worth it.<span style=""> </span>It’s very interesting that many upper-class Russians can’t express some things in their native language: Princess Marya’s friend Julie, for example, is unsure how to translate “un peu amoureux” into Russian.<span style=""></span><br />In terms of purely English style, the translation is not always eminently literary, and occasionally it appears to breach the rule of translation that, when translating from one language to another, the style of the target language must take precedence in case of a conflict; in this respect, I think the Maudes’ version might be superior.<span style=""> </span>(Without knowing Russian, of course, I can’t say for sure.)<span style=""> </span>And I suspect that Knopf might have rushed the publication of this one a bit, to counteract the “original” edition of War and Peace put out by another publisher: I’ve found several misspelled words, and the first letter of the word “and” in the title is incorrectly capitalized on the dust jacket (but not on the spine).<span style=""> </span>I hope future impressions will be corrected.<span style=""> </span>But minor quibbles aside, P and V reads well, and I’ve always been one to prefer a more literal translation to a looser one.<span style=""> </span>For someone thinking about reading War and Peace in English, and who either reads French or doesn’t mind wading through the footnoted translations, P and V is the best choice.<span style=""> </span>Someone who’d rather not wade through the footnotes should get the Maudes’ translation – not Garnett or Briggs.</p> <div style=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br /><hr align="left" size="1" width="33%"> <!--[endif]--> <div style="" id="ftn1"> <p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a style="" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3435742713474982849&postID=504850431589922668#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> And so it happened one day by the seashore that, taking with him only Gandalin [his squire], [Amadís] went and sat on top of some rocks to look from there if he could see any ships coming from Great Britain, to learn news from that land where his lady was.<span style=""> </span>And after a short time, he saw a boat coming from that very part he was hoping; and as it came to the port, he said to Gandalin: “Go learn news from those who are coming there, and learn them well, in order to tell me them.”</p> </div> <div style="" id="ftn2"> <p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a style="" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3435742713474982849&postID=504850431589922668#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Then Don Quixote saw a man on horseback who had on his head a thing which shone as if it were made of gold, and no sooner had he seen it than he turned to Sancho and said: ‘It seems to me, Sancho, that there is no proverb which is not true, for all of them are maxims taken from experience itself, mother of all the sciences, especially that which says: “When one door is closed, another is opened.”<span style=""> </span>[ . . .] I say this because, if I do not deceive myself, there is coming toward us one who has on his head Mambrino’s helmet, concerning which I made the oath that you know of.</p> </div> </div>Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-72876477812402146942007-12-17T13:37:00.001-05:002007-12-17T13:40:56.436-05:00A Wise Thief?From what I know of Tolstoy and from the very little I know of Hugo, I should think they would have appreciated <a href="http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,523810,00.html">this story</a>.Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-42054198664119347802007-12-08T15:46:00.000-05:002007-12-08T23:36:02.831-05:00Aristotle's definition of truthIn Advanced Christian Worldview yesterday, Dr. Boling brought up Aristotle's definition of truth: "To say that what is, is not, or that what is not, is, is false; but to say that what is, is, and that what is not, is not, is true." That prompted me to check Ross's text of the Metaphysics for the original Greek: το μεν γαρ λεγειν το ὀν μη εἰναι ἠ το μη ὀν εἰναι ψευδος, το δε το ὀν εἰναι και το μη ὀν μη εἰναι ἀληθες<span style="font-size:11;"><o:p></o:p></span> (Met. 1011b 26ff). It's a difficult sentence for a beginning Greek student like me, but once understood, its elegance reminds me why I wanted to learn Greek in the first place: to read thoughts like these in their original language. After less than a semester of Attic Greek, we can already understand the structure of a basic sentence from Aristotle (not just stuff from Chase and Phillips, the Greek textbook we use, like "Therefore the Greeks stood here," or "When they saw each other, the Greeks were throwing stones"). That's encouraging.Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435742713474982849.post-60758010950695693852007-12-01T16:35:00.000-05:002007-12-08T23:36:49.918-05:00Courses for Spring 2008Well, my schedule for the spring semester is set:<br /><br />MWF 09.00 COMM111 Introduction to Communication<br />MWF 10.00 GRK112 Elementary Greek II<br />MWF 12.00 ENG327 Advanced Grammar<br />MWF 16.00 ENG 346 Intro to the Novel<br />TR 08.00 BIB115 Biblical Foundations<br />TR 15.00 SPAN324 Advanced Spanish Grammar and Composition<br /><br />All of the above are three hour classes. I'm also taking a one hour CLF class (Perspectives on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood), which is a weekend retreat scheduled for January, I think, so it should be over with fairly quickly. So technically I have 19 hours, but for all practical purposes I have eighteen. And I'm keeping this semester's work schedule in the cafeteria: four hours a week in dishpit. It should be a tough semester, especially with Greek, Spanish, and English grammar classes, but it'll be a lot of fun. I'm especially looking forward to Advanced Grammar.Stephenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08023832036031489731noreply@blogger.com0