Reading is one of the best hobbies a person can have. But it’s saddening to know that majority of us aren’t introduced to the fabulous world of books. If you are one of the non-book readers who feels you “don’t need no stinking books”, here are some reasons to start the habit…before you are left behind!
Reading is an active mental process: Unlike sitting in front of the idiot box (TV), reading makes you use your brain. While reading you would be forced to reason out many things which are unfamiliar to you. In this process you would use the grey cells of your brain to think and become smarter.
Reading improves your vocabulary: Remember in elementary school when you learned how to infer the meaning of one word by reading the context of the other words in the sentence? You get the same benefit from book reading. While reading books, especially challenging ones, you will find yourself exposed to many new words you wouldn’t be otherwise.
Gives you a glimpse into other cultures and places of the world: How would you know about the life of people in Mexico if you don’t read about it? Reading gives you an insight into the diversity of ethnicity of people, their customs, their lifestyles etc. You become more aware about the different places and the code of conduct in those places.
Improves concentration and focus: It requires you to focus on what you are reading for long periods. Unlike magazines, Internet posts or e-Mails that might contain small chunks of information, books tell the whole story. Since you must concentrate in order to read, like a muscle, you will get better at concentration.
Builds self-esteem: The more you read, the more knowledgeable you become. With more knowledge comes more confidence. More confidence builds self-esteem. So it’s a chain reaction. Since you are so well read, people look to you for answers. Your feelings about yourself can only get better.
Improves memory: Many studies show if you don’t use your memory, you lose it. Crossword puzzles are an example of a word game that staves off Alzheimer’s. Reading, although not a game, helps you stretch your memory muscles in a similar way. Reading requires remembering details, facts and figures and in literature, plot lines, themes and characters.
Improves your discipline: Making time to read is something we all know we should do, but who schedules book reading time every day? Very few… That’s why adding book reading to your daily schedule and sticking to it, improves discipline.
Improves creativity: Reading about diversity of life and exposing yourself to new ideas and more information helps to develop the creative side of the brain as it imbibes innovation into your thinking process.
You always have something to talk about: Have you ever found yourself in an embarrassing situation where you didn’t have anything to talk about? Did you hate yourself for making a fool of yourself? Do you want a remedy for this? It’s simple. Start reading. Reading widens your horizon of information. You’ll always have something to talk about. You can discuss various plots in the novels you read, you can discuss the stuff you are learning in the business books you are reading as well. The possibilities of sharing become endless.
Reduces boredom: One of the rules I have is if I am feeling bored, I will pick up a book and start reading. What I’ve found by sticking to this is that I become interested in the book’s subject and stop being bored. I mean, if you’re bored anyway, you might as well be reading a good book, right?
If you want to break the monotony of a lazy, uncreative and boring life, go and grab an interesting book. Turn the pages to explore a new world filled with information and ingenuity.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Rh3tOriCal D3vic35
Alliteration: repetition of the initial consonant sounds beginning several words in sequence.
"....we shall not falter, we shall not fail." President G.W. Bush Address to Congress following 9-11-01 Terrorist Attacks.
"Let us go forth to lead the land we love." President J. F. Kennedy, Inaugural 1961
"Veni, vidi, vici." Julius Caesar (I came, I saw, I conquered)
Assonance: repetition of the same vowel sounds in words close to each other.
"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." The Lord's Prayer
Anadiplosis: ("doubling back") the rhetorical repetition of one or several words; specifically, repetition of a word that ends one clause at the beginning of the next.
"Men in great place are thrice servants: servants of the sovereign or state; servants of fame; and servants of business." Francis Bacon
Anaphora: the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or lines.
"We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender." British Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Antistrophe: repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.
"In 1931, ten years ago, Japan invaded Manchukuo -- without warning. In 1935, Italy invaded Ethiopia -- without warning. In 1938, Hitler occupied Austria -- without warning. In 1939, Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia -- without warning. Later in 1939, Hitler invaded Poland -- without warning. And now Japan has attacked Malaya and Thailand -- and the United States --without warning." President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Antithesis: opposition, or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction.
"Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice, moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."Barry Goldwater - Republican Candidate for President 1964
"Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more". Brutus in: " Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare
Aporia: expression of doubt (often feigned) by which a speaker appears uncertain as to what he should think, say, or do.
"Then the steward said within himself, 'What shall I do?" Bible: Luke 16
Apostrophe: a sudden turn from the general audience to address a specific group or person or personified abstraction absent or present.
"For Brutus, as you know, was Caesar's angel.Judge, O you gods, how dearly Caesar loved him". Mark Antony in 'Julius Caesar' - William Shakespeare
Asyndeton: lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words.
"We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardships, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty." J. F. Kennedy, Inaugural
"But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground." President Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
Cacophony: harsh joining of sounds.
"We want no parlay with you and your grisly gang who work your wicked will." British Prime Minister Winston Churchill -referring to Hitler.
Catachresis: a harsh metaphor involving the use of a word beyond its strict sphere.
"I listen vainly, but with thirsty ear." General Douglas MacArthur, Farewell Address
Chiasmus: two corresponding pairs arranged not in parallels (a-b-a-b) but in inverted order (a-b-b-a); from shape of the Greek letter chi (X).
"Those gallant men will remain often in my thoughts and in my prayers always." General Douglas MacArthur
"Renown'd for conquest, and in council skill'd." Marcus Tullius Cicero
Climax: arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of ascending power. Often the last emphatic word in one phrase or clause is repeated as the first emphatic word of the next.
"One equal temper of heroic hearts,Made weak by time and fate, but strong in willTo strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." Tennyson, " Ulysses"
Euphemism: substitution of an agreeable or at least non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh or unpleasant.
Examples: Euphemisms for " stupid"A few fries short of a Happy Meal.A few beers short of a six-pack.Dumber than a box of hair.Doesn't have all his cornflakes in one box.The wheel's spinning, but the hamster's dead.One Fruit Loop shy of a full bowl.All foam, no beer.The cheese slid off his cracker.Body by Fisher, brains by Mattel.
Hyperbole: exaggeration for emphasis or for rhetorical effect.
"If you call me that name again, I'm going to explode!"
Irony: expression of something which is contrary to the intended meaning; the words say one thing but mean another.
*Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;And Brutus is an honourable man. Shakespeare's Mark Antony in "Julius Caesar"
Metaphor: implied comparison achieved through a figurative use of words; the word is used not in its literal sense, but in one analogous to it.
*Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player,That struts and frets his hour upon the stage. "
Shakespeare, in "Macbeth"
*From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent. W. Churchill
Oxymoron: apparent paradox achieved by the juxtaposition of words which seem to contradict one another.
*I must be cruel only to be kind." Shakespeare, Hamlet
"Hurts so good" John Cougar Melancamp
"Jumbo Shrimp"
Paradox: an assertion seemingly opposed to common sense, but that may yet have some truth in it.
*What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young."
George Bernard Shaw
Personification: attribution of personality to an impersonal thing.
*England expects every man to do his duty."
Lord Nelson
The rose was a soft as a baby's skin
"Rise up and defend the Motherland" Line from "Enemy at the Gates"
Pleonasm: use of superfluous or redundant words, often enriching the thought.
*No one, rich or poor, will be excepted.
*Ears pierced while you wait!
*I have seen no stranger sight since I was born.
Simile: an explicit comparison between two things using 'like' or 'as'.
*My love is as a fever, longing stillFor that which longer nurseth the disease"
Shakespeare, Sonnet CXLVII
*Reason is to faith as the eye to the telescope"
D. Hume
*Let us go then, you and I,While the evening is spread out against the sky,Like a patient etherized upon a table"
T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
Syllepsis: use of a word with two others, with each of which it is understood differently.
*We must all hang together or assuredly we will all hang separately. Benjamin Franklin
Tautology: repetition of an idea in a different word, phrase, or sentence.
"With malice toward none, with charity for all." President Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural
"....we shall not falter, we shall not fail." President G.W. Bush Address to Congress following 9-11-01 Terrorist Attacks.
"Let us go forth to lead the land we love." President J. F. Kennedy, Inaugural 1961
"Veni, vidi, vici." Julius Caesar (I came, I saw, I conquered)
Assonance: repetition of the same vowel sounds in words close to each other.
"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." The Lord's Prayer
Anadiplosis: ("doubling back") the rhetorical repetition of one or several words; specifically, repetition of a word that ends one clause at the beginning of the next.
"Men in great place are thrice servants: servants of the sovereign or state; servants of fame; and servants of business." Francis Bacon
Anaphora: the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or lines.
"We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender." British Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Antistrophe: repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.
"In 1931, ten years ago, Japan invaded Manchukuo -- without warning. In 1935, Italy invaded Ethiopia -- without warning. In 1938, Hitler occupied Austria -- without warning. In 1939, Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia -- without warning. Later in 1939, Hitler invaded Poland -- without warning. And now Japan has attacked Malaya and Thailand -- and the United States --without warning." President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Antithesis: opposition, or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction.
"Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice, moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."Barry Goldwater - Republican Candidate for President 1964
"Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more". Brutus in: " Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare
Aporia: expression of doubt (often feigned) by which a speaker appears uncertain as to what he should think, say, or do.
"Then the steward said within himself, 'What shall I do?" Bible: Luke 16
Apostrophe: a sudden turn from the general audience to address a specific group or person or personified abstraction absent or present.
"For Brutus, as you know, was Caesar's angel.Judge, O you gods, how dearly Caesar loved him". Mark Antony in 'Julius Caesar' - William Shakespeare
Asyndeton: lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words.
"We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardships, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty." J. F. Kennedy, Inaugural
"But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground." President Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
Cacophony: harsh joining of sounds.
"We want no parlay with you and your grisly gang who work your wicked will." British Prime Minister Winston Churchill -referring to Hitler.
Catachresis: a harsh metaphor involving the use of a word beyond its strict sphere.
"I listen vainly, but with thirsty ear." General Douglas MacArthur, Farewell Address
Chiasmus: two corresponding pairs arranged not in parallels (a-b-a-b) but in inverted order (a-b-b-a); from shape of the Greek letter chi (X).
"Those gallant men will remain often in my thoughts and in my prayers always." General Douglas MacArthur
"Renown'd for conquest, and in council skill'd." Marcus Tullius Cicero
Climax: arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of ascending power. Often the last emphatic word in one phrase or clause is repeated as the first emphatic word of the next.
"One equal temper of heroic hearts,Made weak by time and fate, but strong in willTo strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." Tennyson, " Ulysses"
Euphemism: substitution of an agreeable or at least non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh or unpleasant.
Examples: Euphemisms for " stupid"A few fries short of a Happy Meal.A few beers short of a six-pack.Dumber than a box of hair.Doesn't have all his cornflakes in one box.The wheel's spinning, but the hamster's dead.One Fruit Loop shy of a full bowl.All foam, no beer.The cheese slid off his cracker.Body by Fisher, brains by Mattel.
Hyperbole: exaggeration for emphasis or for rhetorical effect.
"If you call me that name again, I'm going to explode!"
Irony: expression of something which is contrary to the intended meaning; the words say one thing but mean another.
*Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;And Brutus is an honourable man. Shakespeare's Mark Antony in "Julius Caesar"
Metaphor: implied comparison achieved through a figurative use of words; the word is used not in its literal sense, but in one analogous to it.
*Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player,That struts and frets his hour upon the stage. "
Shakespeare, in "Macbeth"
*From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent. W. Churchill
Oxymoron: apparent paradox achieved by the juxtaposition of words which seem to contradict one another.
*I must be cruel only to be kind." Shakespeare, Hamlet
"Hurts so good" John Cougar Melancamp
"Jumbo Shrimp"
Paradox: an assertion seemingly opposed to common sense, but that may yet have some truth in it.
*What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young."
George Bernard Shaw
Personification: attribution of personality to an impersonal thing.
*England expects every man to do his duty."
Lord Nelson
The rose was a soft as a baby's skin
"Rise up and defend the Motherland" Line from "Enemy at the Gates"
Pleonasm: use of superfluous or redundant words, often enriching the thought.
*No one, rich or poor, will be excepted.
*Ears pierced while you wait!
*I have seen no stranger sight since I was born.
Simile: an explicit comparison between two things using 'like' or 'as'.
*My love is as a fever, longing stillFor that which longer nurseth the disease"
Shakespeare, Sonnet CXLVII
*Reason is to faith as the eye to the telescope"
D. Hume
*Let us go then, you and I,While the evening is spread out against the sky,Like a patient etherized upon a table"
T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
Syllepsis: use of a word with two others, with each of which it is understood differently.
*We must all hang together or assuredly we will all hang separately. Benjamin Franklin
Tautology: repetition of an idea in a different word, phrase, or sentence.
"With malice toward none, with charity for all." President Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural
Friday, March 12, 2010
DIstINctIOn....
Value 1: Determination ...
How do we build strength in themselves not to U-turn with each obstacle (Obstacle) outside the period. Strength is built with value 2: Readiness ...
Value 2: Readiness ...
Faced with obstacles that require precise readiness of mind and physical. This sense of readiness to rise to knowledge, and thoroughly understand every obstacle that successful challenger to the solution formed. However the solution to form the side we need to value 3: Willingness ...
Value 3: Willingness ...
solutions for each obstacle has a value of sacrifice that we need to face with redha and ready. When we were ready to go through and know what to sacrifice to achieve solutions to obstacles that the challenger Value 4: Acceptance play an important role.
Value 4: Acceptance ...
Acceptance of things that need to waived to get the solution of obstacles will facilitate mental and physical shape our readiness through obstacles. To receive these situations we need to realize where we are and what we would expect that the value 5: Sense of belonging can be formed in us ..
Value 5: Sense of belonging ...
Shaping values have owned and will make your mind and become physically stronger and more robust. This value will be formed when we can create value 1 to value 4. This process will strengthen ourselves to support and further develop the network in the life consisting of friends and family members. This value will also put us in a safe zone for us to deal with obstacles that challenger.
Once we control all these values, then we can form value distinction in ourselves ..
So .. tap your minds, hearts and ask where our needs and desires. ..
How do we build strength in themselves not to U-turn with each obstacle (Obstacle) outside the period. Strength is built with value 2: Readiness ...
Value 2: Readiness ...
Faced with obstacles that require precise readiness of mind and physical. This sense of readiness to rise to knowledge, and thoroughly understand every obstacle that successful challenger to the solution formed. However the solution to form the side we need to value 3: Willingness ...
Value 3: Willingness ...
solutions for each obstacle has a value of sacrifice that we need to face with redha and ready. When we were ready to go through and know what to sacrifice to achieve solutions to obstacles that the challenger Value 4: Acceptance play an important role.
Value 4: Acceptance ...
Acceptance of things that need to waived to get the solution of obstacles will facilitate mental and physical shape our readiness through obstacles. To receive these situations we need to realize where we are and what we would expect that the value 5: Sense of belonging can be formed in us ..
Value 5: Sense of belonging ...
Shaping values have owned and will make your mind and become physically stronger and more robust. This value will be formed when we can create value 1 to value 4. This process will strengthen ourselves to support and further develop the network in the life consisting of friends and family members. This value will also put us in a safe zone for us to deal with obstacles that challenger.
Once we control all these values, then we can form value distinction in ourselves ..
So .. tap your minds, hearts and ask where our needs and desires. ..
Sunday, March 7, 2010
stylistic technique
a stylistic device is the use of any of a variety of techniques to give an auxiliary meaning, idea, or feeling to the literal or written
Connotative meaning...
1. an act or instance of connoting.
2. the associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning: A possible connotation of “home” is “a place of warmth, comfort, and affection.” Compare denotation (def. 1).
3. Logic. the set of attributes constituting the meaning of a term and thus determining the range of objects to which that term may be applied; comprehension; intension.
2. the associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning: A possible connotation of “home” is “a place of warmth, comfort, and affection.” Compare denotation (def. 1).
3. Logic. the set of attributes constituting the meaning of a term and thus determining the range of objects to which that term may be applied; comprehension; intension.
Diction
1. style of speaking or writing as dependent upon choice of words: good diction.
2. the accent, inflection, intonation, and speech-sound quality manifested by an individual speaker, usually judged in terms of prevailing standards of acceptability; enunciation.
Use diction in a Sentence
See images of diction
Search diction on the Web
2. the accent, inflection, intonation, and speech-sound quality manifested by an individual speaker, usually judged in terms of prevailing standards of acceptability; enunciation.
Use diction in a Sentence
See images of diction
Search diction on the Web
Denotative meaning...
Denotation is often associated with symbolism, as the denotation of a particular media text often represents something further; a hidden meaning (or an Engima Code) is often encoded into a media text (such as the images below).
In order to understand the difference between denotation and connotation in the media studies and semiotics uses it may be helpful to consider the following examples:
The denotation of this example is a red rose with a green stem. The connotation is that it is a symbol of passion and love - this is what the rose represents.
The denotation of this example is a red rose with a green stem. The connotation is that it is a symbol of passion and love - this is what the rose represents.
In order to understand the difference between denotation and connotation in the media studies and semiotics uses it may be helpful to consider the following examples:
The denotation of this example is a red rose with a green stem. The connotation is that it is a symbol of passion and love - this is what the rose represents.
The denotation of this example is a red rose with a green stem. The connotation is that it is a symbol of passion and love - this is what the rose represents.
The denotation is a representation of a cartoon heart. The connotation is a symbol of love and affection, not in the way of a rose, but a symbol of true love.
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