Convocation Address Essay Example for Free

Convocation Address Essay As part of his attempts to survive the horrors of the camp, Faludy (a university professor) gave mini-lectures in the barracks at night on a variety of subjects. Some of the fellow prisoners eagerly joined in; others declined. Faludy notes, Those who died . . . ere always the men who had been most determined to survive, those who had concentrated on nothing but food, sleep and warmth . . . I was reluctant to admit the obvious: that delighting in a good poem or discussing Platos Socratic dialogue could somehow arm the spirit to the point that it could prevent the bodys collapse. He concludes his address with this realization: Our whole fragile tradition of art and thought is neither an amusement nor a yoke. For those who steep themselves in it, it provides both a guide and a goal for surpassing all the half-baked ideologies that have blown up at our feet in this century like landmines . . All we have to guide us in this present is the accumulated thought and experience of those who have lived before us. This convocation address has had a significant impact on my view of education. Most people agree that there is potentially something noble about teaching, yet Faludy proves it. I am reminded of film critic Roger Eberts assessment of the film Life is Beautiful in which Ebert argues that since Jewish prisoner Guido is a clown, comedy becomes his weapon. Faludy was an educator. Education was his weapon. As it is for us all.

Australian Poet Kenneth Slessors Use of Imagery Essay -- Night Ride O

Australian Poet Kenneth Slessor's Use of Imagery Slessor's complex poems use many types of imagery, his imagery is one of his artistic techniques which defines him from other poets in Australia. One could say that his powerful words paint a picture for the reader but as they say, seeing is believing. Slessor uses many types of imagery however death, time and water are the main ones. He uses these in his poems Night Ride, Out of Time, Five Bells and Beach Burial. Slessor in Night Ride talks about the journey of life, he talks of death as being slow, depressive and lonely. He says, "Soon I shall look out into nothing but blackness". This dark portrait of death is dark, fearful yet beautiful. In Out of Time, slessor again about death. He say's, "The gulls go down, the body dies and rots". This literal image of death which one can not talk of it as being beautiful, quite the opposite actually. In Beach Burial however he paints a soldiers death. Slessor says, "Enlisted on the other front". The reader envisions this as if their soldiers were doomed before the battle, the 'other front' which he talks of is of course the afterlife. Later in the poem he says, "The convoys of dead soldiers come". His use of the word convoy gives the audience a military type picture, but mental image is copious amounts of soldiers coming to their deaths. His imagery of time too is very important in his poems. In Night Ride, he talks about time as being slow but fast at times. A train which the ... Australian Poet Kenneth Slessor's Use of Imagery Essay -- Night Ride O Australian Poet Kenneth Slessor's Use of Imagery Slessor's complex poems use many types of imagery, his imagery is one of his artistic techniques which defines him from other poets in Australia. One could say that his powerful words paint a picture for the reader but as they say, seeing is believing. Slessor uses many types of imagery however death, time and water are the main ones. He uses these in his poems Night Ride, Out of Time, Five Bells and Beach Burial. Slessor in Night Ride talks about the journey of life, he talks of death as being slow, depressive and lonely. He says, "Soon I shall look out into nothing but blackness". This dark portrait of death is dark, fearful yet beautiful. In Out of Time, slessor again about death. He say's, "The gulls go down, the body dies and rots". This literal image of death which one can not talk of it as being beautiful, quite the opposite actually. In Beach Burial however he paints a soldiers death. Slessor says, "Enlisted on the other front". The reader envisions this as if their soldiers were doomed before the battle, the 'other front' which he talks of is of course the afterlife. Later in the poem he says, "The convoys of dead soldiers come". His use of the word convoy gives the audience a military type picture, but mental image is copious amounts of soldiers coming to their deaths. His imagery of time too is very important in his poems. In Night Ride, he talks about time as being slow but fast at times. A train which the ...

I Never Expected This Essay

Hey guys, I’m writing my English exam soon, and would really appreciate it if you can give me some suggestions one how to improve this piece. The word limit is 400~450, so I’m a little over the limit here. Topic is: This is the story of a young man/woman who was able to escape from a difficult past to make a success of his/her life. My essay: â€Å"This is the story of a young woman who was able to escape from a difficult past to make a success of†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I tuned off the school principal’s voice at this point, ignoring his excited gestures and flying spittle. I was eight then. The man came out of nowhere, and I remember pain, horror, screaming, torn clothes, more screaming†¦It was only afterwards, in the hospital, that I understood what had happened to me. Twenty years ago the society wasn’t exactly sympathetic towards rape victims; it still isn’t today. Principal Clarke’s voice pulled me back to reality. I stood up to the pitiful round of applause, and walked up the stage. As I looked down, half the students were dozing off; and most of the other half had a snicker on their face. I putted on a smile, and began to tell my story in a grave voice: how I struggled to live with my past; how my family gave me hope and support; how, after years of hard work, I finally became a bestselling author. It is a boring old story, nothing unheard of before. And if this speech managed to inspire even one of these students, it would be nothing short of a miracle. Of course, there are things that a high school guest speaker just cannot include in her speech. For example, the way my mother indulged in various substances after my â€Å"incident†, and my father and I never sent her to the rehabilitation centre for the fear of even more publicity. Or better, how I found my puppy strangled and hung from a tree one day, the words â€Å"WHORE† in red paint glistening right behind him. And the fact that my ex-boyfriend had left with all my money last year, leaving me too heartbroken to write is definitely unmentionable. If it was not for this, I would not have been stuck at this little school, allowing people to dig up my past for a minuscule payment in return. There are some things that a person simply cannot look past. I sat back down, and endured another hour of the old principal’s speech. Apparently, according to Principal Clarke, if I can live with been raped then the students can surely get over their teenage issues and focus on learning instead. His words are not what finally pushed me over the edge, though. It was his the way he looked at me – as if I am some pathetic, filthy stray dog. I caught his eyes when he turned towards me again, and smiled until he hurriedly looked away. The next morning I rose early, and in the aroma of fresh coffee listened to the radio news reporting the shocking, gruesome death of a certain high school principal. I hummed to myself, and started typing my new story.

Old Testament Exegetical Paper  Isaiah 62 - 1683 Words

The prophet Isaiah lived in the Southern Kingdom of Judah in the 3rd century B.C. He had a reputation as an uncompromising prophet who did not soften his words of condemnation and urge to make changes (Stafford 616). The nation of Judah stood in a precarious position: the wickedness of the people, the civil war which divided the Israelites into two kingdoms of Judah and Israel, the neighboring countries which stood by, threatening war and the dilemma that faced the leaders about whether or not they should take on allies all indicated the downfall of the nation of Judah if the people did not heed his words and change their ways. According to The Interpreters Bible, Isaiah 62 was written in the later part of the prophet Isaiahs life. By†¦show more content†¦Most references to Zion take place in the books of Psalms, Lamentation and Isaiah. Its first appearance is in 2 Sam 5:6 as the stronghold of Zion. G.A. Barois points out that it need not be interpreted restrictively as a si ngle building, but rather as the fortified crest of the hill between the valleysÂ… (959). The name ‘Zion has been suggested by many to designate the entire walled town that covered the southeast hill of Jerusalem. During the exile however, the whole of Judah came to be known as Zion. ‘Zion occupies synonymous parallelism with the noun ‘Jerusalem (not just the southeast hill) while sons of Zion and daughters of Zion implies the inhabitants of Jerusalem (Lam. 4:2, Isa. 10:32). In 1Kings 8:1,2 we read, Â…out of the City of David which is ZionÂ… Hence we can correctly assume that both refer to the same place, which is Jerusalem. Since my chosen passage is about ‘Zion, it is good to be sure what exactly is being spoken about. Now that Ive mentioned Zion the city, Id like to cover another important aspect concerning cities thats mentioned several times in the BibleÂâ€" watchmen. According to The NIV Exhaustive Concordance, the word ‘watchmen has been used 13 times in the Old Testament (the singular form, ‘watchman, has been used 16 times). This word is often used figuratively in the Bible, hence it is important to understand its particular meaning in the passage chosen. ‘Watchmen is mostly found in the books ofShow MoreRelatedBibl450 Paper #1 Daniels 70 Weeks of Prophecy2440 Words   |  10 PagesTHE SEVENTY WEEKS PROPHESY OF DANIEL __________ A Research Paper Submitted to XXXXXXXXX University __________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for BIBL 450 By xxxxxxxx Table of Contents Introduction 3 The beginning of the Christian 3 Coming of Messiah 5 Counting of Weeks and Messiah 7 Why Daniel’s Prophecy is Disregarded 8 Conclusion 9 Bibliography 10 THE SEVENTY WEEKS PROPHESYRead MoreEssay on Daniel 9: 24-27 - The Prophecy Of The Seventy Weeks 2733 Words   |  11 PagesIntroduction Although the Jewish Scriptures evaluated the book of Daniel differently from the Christian Old Testament, by placing it in the Writings instead of with the major prophets, it remains a book of apocalyptic visions. Chapter nine begins with Daniel grappling with the prophetic prediction in Jeremiah 25:11-12, which declares that the Jews would serve the king of Babylon in captivity for seventy years. Now that the seventy years were almost at the end Daniel, in penitential prayer and