Three weeks... ah... well, figured I'd start with the shortest post, so I can get myself back in the swing of things. Life is catching up with me as I struggle to catch up with life.
Book-reading? I've spent the last... six? weeks trying to get through Lord of the Rings -- just the first book, mind you -- and I just can't do it. Granted, for the past three weeks I've been driving to work instead of walking to work, because I couldn't afford a bus pass this month, so I've lost my time to study Italian every morning, and I've also lost my reading time on the bus. I've tried taking some time at work, but really, I just can't get into this book, and it's the third time I've tried.
J.R.R. Tolkien 1, Me 0. And that's how it's going to have to be.
Showing posts with label cultural-literacy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cultural-literacy. Show all posts
Sunday, October 22
Sunday, October 1
Book Review: Catcher in the Rye
I admit that before I actually read J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, I knew nothing about it, except that the book had something to do with the death of John Lennon*. Oh, and that it had been banned for a while, as well. But that's pretty much it; it was one of those rare pleasures for me: going into a book with a completely clean slate, not having any opinion of it, nor knowing in advance how it was going to end, nor any other details about the book. OK, so maybe I was worried about the whole Lennon thing.
Imagine my surprise when I found the book to be about Holden Caufield (I knew that), a teenager (didn't know that) who just got kicked out of another private school and now must face the music back at his parents' apartment in New York City, right before the Christmas holiday. As it turns out, the book is a wonderful study of the protagonist's mental state and progressive deterioration over the course of a few days, not into degeneracy as such a book today might be written, but rather into a nervous breakdown.
One can also imagine my surprise when I found myself relating a little bit to Caufield, his life experiences and his view of the world and the people who inhabit it. Essentially, he wants to help the world hang on to its innocence, thus protecting it from the negative influences that are becoming more and more pervasive. He also has a hard time dealing with other people, many of whom he perceives as "phonies" who put on a face for other people. Paradoxically, it should be noted that Caufield is an accomplished liar, although he justifies it as just messing around with other people, or having some fun.
Holden's desperation through the novel mounts, as does the tension near the end, as the inevitable finally happens. It's in the last few pages that I found the book to be the most compelling and gripping, actually deviating from the prearranged schedule of "reading this on the bus only" to sneaking reads at it around the house (again, with apologies to my poor wife). A very good read, with an interesting look at the character of people through the eyes of a young man. It can be imagined that many people today who feel disaffected for one reason or another, myself included, can relate very well to young Mr. Caufield, although hopefully it doesn't lead to a nervous breakdown, but rather to an opportunity to discuss feelings with peers and other like-minded people, and form a support network.
I'm about to start going completely off-topic here, so I'm going to stop. Highest recommendation for this book, as anyone who has ever felt disaffected with society or other people can get something out of it. With the way attitudes have changed-yet-stayed-the-same since the book was written, Catcher in the Rye remains a relevant, important work of literature in our day.
* Mark David Chapman was holding a copy of Catcher when he shot Lennon.
Imagine my surprise when I found the book to be about Holden Caufield (I knew that), a teenager (didn't know that) who just got kicked out of another private school and now must face the music back at his parents' apartment in New York City, right before the Christmas holiday. As it turns out, the book is a wonderful study of the protagonist's mental state and progressive deterioration over the course of a few days, not into degeneracy as such a book today might be written, but rather into a nervous breakdown.
One can also imagine my surprise when I found myself relating a little bit to Caufield, his life experiences and his view of the world and the people who inhabit it. Essentially, he wants to help the world hang on to its innocence, thus protecting it from the negative influences that are becoming more and more pervasive. He also has a hard time dealing with other people, many of whom he perceives as "phonies" who put on a face for other people. Paradoxically, it should be noted that Caufield is an accomplished liar, although he justifies it as just messing around with other people, or having some fun.
Holden's desperation through the novel mounts, as does the tension near the end, as the inevitable finally happens. It's in the last few pages that I found the book to be the most compelling and gripping, actually deviating from the prearranged schedule of "reading this on the bus only" to sneaking reads at it around the house (again, with apologies to my poor wife). A very good read, with an interesting look at the character of people through the eyes of a young man. It can be imagined that many people today who feel disaffected for one reason or another, myself included, can relate very well to young Mr. Caufield, although hopefully it doesn't lead to a nervous breakdown, but rather to an opportunity to discuss feelings with peers and other like-minded people, and form a support network.
I'm about to start going completely off-topic here, so I'm going to stop. Highest recommendation for this book, as anyone who has ever felt disaffected with society or other people can get something out of it. With the way attitudes have changed-yet-stayed-the-same since the book was written, Catcher in the Rye remains a relevant, important work of literature in our day.
* Mark David Chapman was holding a copy of Catcher when he shot Lennon.
Friday, September 8
Things I want to do before 9/8/2007
Now is as good a time as any to revisit some goals and create new ones for the upcoming (birth) year. Hey, I'm a goal-oriented person looking to constantly improving myself, so... why not?
First off is going to be a couple of ideas from the "25/25/25" blog that I previously mentioned.
I have obtained from a friend of mine who had a collection of "essential knowledge" books a reading list, featuring many classic books that ideally should be read by the end of high school. Since I only went to high school for three years and did not get a lot of reading done while I was there, there is a lot missing. I do not know off the top of my head how long the list is, however, I can confidently state that I have not read at least 25 of those books. So, starting with books on that list that I have not read, I will read 25 books before 9/8/2007. I will even cheat, as I am currently reading a book on that list, and have been for a few days now. If I get more than 25, great, if not, well, then that's good too. I am going to throw myself at the mercy of the local library for this one, but I will also take responsibility to ensure that I have an adequate amount of books ready to read... i.e. I always have something checked out or ready to pick up on reserve.
I will also select 25 movies from the IMDB Top 100, again, ones that I haven't seen, and watch those. This may be more difficult for me, as I do not want to watch any R-rated movies, however, I'm confident that I can watch a movie every two weeks or so to accomplish this goal. I have some gift certificates, but I also have other resources to which I can apply myself to accomplish this goal.
The 25 cultural events I will not commit myself at this time, however, there is a wonderful local independent newspaper which advertises all of this stuff, so it is not beyond the realm of expectation that I should at least be informed of what is going on in this city. We will work as a family to attend as many cultural events as feasible, with an emphasis on Saturday afternoons. Besides, it's cooler outside. Much, much cooler. It's hard to get things done when one feels like they're standing on the sun.
I'll post the list of movies in the near future. Books, I think, will have to be done more by personal preference, as I am someone who tends to read according to my mood: I've never been one to sit down and force myself to read something, but if I enjoy reading something, you can't take me away from the book (just ask my poor wife).
I feel good about this. So good, in fact, that I can make the commitment to post a little blurb about the book, with insights and what have you, upon completion. I will do my best to refrain from reading others' reviews or "why I should read this book"s, so I can form my own independent judgment and see if I can make this a part of my own personal literacy.
First off is going to be a couple of ideas from the "25/25/25" blog that I previously mentioned.
I have obtained from a friend of mine who had a collection of "essential knowledge" books a reading list, featuring many classic books that ideally should be read by the end of high school. Since I only went to high school for three years and did not get a lot of reading done while I was there, there is a lot missing. I do not know off the top of my head how long the list is, however, I can confidently state that I have not read at least 25 of those books. So, starting with books on that list that I have not read, I will read 25 books before 9/8/2007. I will even cheat, as I am currently reading a book on that list, and have been for a few days now. If I get more than 25, great, if not, well, then that's good too. I am going to throw myself at the mercy of the local library for this one, but I will also take responsibility to ensure that I have an adequate amount of books ready to read... i.e. I always have something checked out or ready to pick up on reserve.
I will also select 25 movies from the IMDB Top 100, again, ones that I haven't seen, and watch those. This may be more difficult for me, as I do not want to watch any R-rated movies, however, I'm confident that I can watch a movie every two weeks or so to accomplish this goal. I have some gift certificates, but I also have other resources to which I can apply myself to accomplish this goal.
The 25 cultural events I will not commit myself at this time, however, there is a wonderful local independent newspaper which advertises all of this stuff, so it is not beyond the realm of expectation that I should at least be informed of what is going on in this city. We will work as a family to attend as many cultural events as feasible, with an emphasis on Saturday afternoons. Besides, it's cooler outside. Much, much cooler. It's hard to get things done when one feels like they're standing on the sun.
I'll post the list of movies in the near future. Books, I think, will have to be done more by personal preference, as I am someone who tends to read according to my mood: I've never been one to sit down and force myself to read something, but if I enjoy reading something, you can't take me away from the book (just ask my poor wife).
I feel good about this. So good, in fact, that I can make the commitment to post a little blurb about the book, with insights and what have you, upon completion. I will do my best to refrain from reading others' reviews or "why I should read this book"s, so I can form my own independent judgment and see if I can make this a part of my own personal literacy.
Cultural Literacy
I might have talked about this before, however, I haven't really done anything about it except get a book out which I never really read. Anyway, "Cultural literacy" -- or the things that people who write expect their audience to know -- has become a big thing for me, not only because I feel that my education as a youth was stunningly lacking in the liberal arts, but also because I feel I would need to know this in the event that I find myself on a quiz show in the future.
I have found a website which recreates some cultural literacy evaluations which are found in a popular book on the subject, and another website which has another authoritative book online. It's definitely something for me to do in my spare time, for example, as I sit here at work waiting for documents to scan. :-) I've taken some of the evaluations, and I did OK, however, there are some tests that I do not feel comfortable at all (world literature, for example) taking. I'll have to read up on those sections in the New York Times Book of General Knowledge that I have.
I'm glad to see that this isn't an isolated pursuit of mine only, that there are other people out there willing to enrich themselves and pursue other knowledge. There is a website called "25/25/25" where the authors endeavor to read 25 books, watch 25 movies, and attend 25 cultural events over the course of one year. That's a pretty good goal, and while I don't see myself doing that (it's hard to get out of the house when you have no money and two small children!), I can at least do some of the things which would cost less money, such as reading books. I can also prepare at least a list of movies that I would like to see. The books is a good goal, as I have lots of dead time on the bus every day, and in fact have begun doing some reading already.
So... this is turning into another goals post, so I'm just going to go ahead and continue this idea in another post.
I have found a website which recreates some cultural literacy evaluations which are found in a popular book on the subject, and another website which has another authoritative book online. It's definitely something for me to do in my spare time, for example, as I sit here at work waiting for documents to scan. :-) I've taken some of the evaluations, and I did OK, however, there are some tests that I do not feel comfortable at all (world literature, for example) taking. I'll have to read up on those sections in the New York Times Book of General Knowledge that I have.
I'm glad to see that this isn't an isolated pursuit of mine only, that there are other people out there willing to enrich themselves and pursue other knowledge. There is a website called "25/25/25" where the authors endeavor to read 25 books, watch 25 movies, and attend 25 cultural events over the course of one year. That's a pretty good goal, and while I don't see myself doing that (it's hard to get out of the house when you have no money and two small children!), I can at least do some of the things which would cost less money, such as reading books. I can also prepare at least a list of movies that I would like to see. The books is a good goal, as I have lots of dead time on the bus every day, and in fact have begun doing some reading already.
So... this is turning into another goals post, so I'm just going to go ahead and continue this idea in another post.
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