Saturday 31 December 2022
Friday 30 December 2022
POSSESSION, A VERY ROMANTIC MOVIE
A visiting American scholar is paging through an old volume at the British Museum when he comes upon a letter stuffed between the pages, a love letter, it would appear, from Queen Victoria's poet laureate, addressed to a woman not his wife. The poet has been held up for more than a century as a model of marital fidelity. The letter is dynamite. The scholar slips the letter out of the book and into his portfolio, and is soon displaying it, with all the pride and uncertainly of a new father, to a British woman who knows (or thought she knew) everything about the poet. Read here.
https://www.silverpetticoatreview.com/possession-2002-a-love-story-with-multi-generational-pull/
https://fsharetv.io/watch/possession-episode-1-tt0256276
Sunday 25 December 2022
Saturday 17 December 2022
Friday 16 December 2022
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MISS AUSTEN!
December 16th is a festive day for Janeites. On a very snowy day in 1775 our favorite author Jane Austen was born to Rev. George Austen and his wife Cassandra at Steventon rectory in Hampshire, England.
She was a revolutionary writer, who had very strong views about her society and found pleasure in expressing her thoughts through her writing. Born into a large family, she enjoyed sharing her writings and entertaining others. Read here.
Wednesday 30 November 2022
Thursday 24 November 2022
Tuesday 22 November 2022
LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI ~ 5^C LINGUISTICO
O what can ail thee, knight-at-arms,
Alone and palely loitering?
The sedge has withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
O what can ail thee, knight-at-arms,
So haggard and so woe-begone?
The squirrel’s granary is full,
And the harvest’s done.
I see a lily on thy brow,
With anguish moist and fever-dew,
And on thy cheeks a fading rose
Fast withereth too.
I met a lady in the meads,
Full beautiful—a faery’s child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light,
And her eyes were wild.
I made a garland for her head,
And bracelets too, and fragrant zone;
She looked at me as she did love,
And made sweet moan
I set her on my pacing steed,
And nothing else saw all day long,
For sidelong would she bend, and sing
A faery’s song.
She found me roots of relish sweet,
And honey wild, and manna-dew,
And sure in language strange she said—
‘I love thee true’.
She took me to her Elfin grot,
And there she wept and sighed full sore,
And there I shut her wild wild eyes
With kisses four.
And there she lulled me asleep,
And there I dreamed—Ah! woe betide!—
The latest dream I ever dreamt
On the cold hill side.
I saw pale kings and princes too,
Pale warriors, death-pale were they all;
They cried—‘La Belle Dame sans Merci
Thee hath in thrall!’
I saw their starved lips in the gloam,
With horrid warning gaped wide,
And I awoke and found me here,
On the cold hill’s side.
And this is why I sojourn here,
Alone and palely loitering,
Though the sedge is withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
John Keats
Here you can find an analysis of this handsome ballad which is considered an English classic. It is a narrative of an encounter that causes both pleasure and pain. It avoids simplicity of interpretation despite simplicity of structure. Composed of twelve stanzas, of only four lines each, with a simple ABCB rhyme scheme, the poem is full of enigmas, and has been the subject of numerous interpretations.Read here.
Saturday 12 November 2022
Friday 11 November 2022
THE COMMONWEALTH OF NATIONS - 3^C LINGUISTICO
Tuesday 8 November 2022
ELLIS ISLAND - 3^C LINGUISTICO
Ellis Island is a historical site that opened in 1892 as an immigration station, a purpose it served for more than 60 years until it closed in 1954. Located at the mouth of Hudson River between New York and New Jersey, Ellis Island saw millions of newly arrived immigrants pass through its doors. In fact, it has been estimated that close to 40 percent of all current U.S. citizens can trace at least one of their ancestors to Ellis Island.
https://www.history.com/topics/immigration/ellis-island
Tuesday 1 November 2022
NOVEMBER
Wednesday 19 October 2022
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH - 5^C LINGUISTICO
Tuesday 11 October 2022
THE ENGLISH RENAISSANCE - 4^C LINGUISTICO
Saturday 8 October 2022
Monday 26 September 2022
THE ROMANTIC AGE - 5^C LINGUISTICO
The Romantic period began roughly around 1798 and lasted until 1837. The political and economic atmosphere at the time heavily influenced this period, with many writers finding inspiration from the French Revolution. There was a lot of social change during this period. Calls for the abolition of slavery became louder during this time, with more writing openly about their objections. After the Agricultural Revolution people moved away from the countryside and farmland and into the cities, where the Industrial Revolution provided jobs and technological innovations. Romanticism was a reaction against this spread of industrialism, as well as a criticism of the aristocratic social and political norms and a call for more attention to nature.
Click here to read my previous post about the Romantic Age.
Tuesday 13 September 2022
GEORGIAN ENGLAND
Thursday 8 September 2022
QUEEN ELIZABETH II HAS DIED
“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement. “The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.” Read here.
Thursday 1 September 2022
Wednesday 8 June 2022
Monday 6 June 2022
Sunday 5 June 2022
RAY BRADBURY'S FAHRENHEIT 451
Widely known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953), Ray Bradbury died on 5 June 2012. He was an American author best known for his highly
imaginative short stories and novels that blend a poetic style, nostalgia for childhood, social criticism, and an awareness of the hazards of runaway technology.
Read here.
https://literarydevices.net/ray-bradbury/
Thursday 19 May 2022
VIRGINIA WOOLF AND "MRS DALLOWAY"
Wednesday 11 May 2022
SOLDIER'S DREAM
I dreamed kind Jesus fouled the big-gun gears;
And caused a permanent stoppage in all bolts;
And buckled with a smile Mausers and Colts;
And rusted every bayonet with His tears.
And there were no more bombs, of ours or Theirs,
Not even an old flint-lock, not even a pikel.
But God was vexed, and gave all power to Michael;
And when I woke he'd seen to our repairs.
Wilfred Owen [1893-1918] was a remarkable young man. When he died he was just 25 years old, but his poetry has proved enduring and influential and is among the best known in the English language. He left behind a unique testament to the horrific impact of the First World War on an entire generation of young people.
Here you can find a text analysis of this poem.
Sunday 17 April 2022
Friday 8 April 2022
HAMLET - 4^C LINGUISTICO
There are more things in
heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt
of in our philosophy.
(Hamlet, Act 1 Scene 5)
Thursday 31 March 2022
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING - 4^C LINGUISTICO
Wednesday 30 March 2022
Monday 28 March 2022
KING LEAR - 4^C LINGUISTICO
King Lear is one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies; indeed, some critics have considered it the greatest. It is certainly one of the bleakest. The plot and subplot deftly weave together the principal themes of the play, which include reason, madness, blindness of various kinds, and – perhaps most crucially of all – the relationship between a father and his children. Read here.
Lear, the aging king of Britain, decides to step down from the throne and divide his kingdom evenly among his three daughters. First, however, he puts his daughters through a test, asking each to tell him how much she loves him. Goneril and Regan, Lear’s older daughters, give their father flattering answers. But Cordelia, Lear’s youngest and favorite daughter, remains silent, saying that she has no words to describe how much she loves her father. Lear flies into a rage and disowns Cordelia. The king of France, who has courted Cordelia, says that he still wants to marry her even without her land, and she accompanies him to France without her father’s blessing. Read here.
https://nosweatshakespeare.com/king-lear-play/
https://owlcation.com/humanities/King-Lears-
https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/k/king-lear/play-summary
Sunday 27 March 2022
Monday 21 March 2022
RICHARD III - 4^C LINGUISTICO
Sunday 20 March 2022
MEDIEVAL DRAMA - 3^C LINGUISTICO
The history of English drama began with the elaboration of the ecclesiastical (related to the Church) liturgy (series of rites to be followed in any public worship) in catechistical dialogues.
The plays that survive from the Middle Ages were written for street performances, services in churches and monasteries, entertainment in great halls and outdoor stages, but never for theatres as such.
There was a great variety of performances: cycle plays about biblical history, the so-called morality plays about how to be saved, liturgical plays celebrating important Christian holidays, plays about saints and miracles, and town pageants.
Read here.
Thursday 17 March 2022
HAPPY SAINT PATRICK'S DAY!
St. Patrick’s Day observes of the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. The holiday has evolved into a celebration of Irish culture with parades, special foods, music, dancing, drinking and a whole lot of green. Read here.
Sunday 6 March 2022
A PRAYER FOR UKRAINE
Loving God,
We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.
We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.
We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.
May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.
Amen.
Wednesday 16 February 2022
Monday 7 February 2022
Sunday 30 January 2022
MY SUNDAY MOVIE - ROBIN HOOD
Robin Hood:
Prince of Thieves is the 1991 blockbuster
movie in which Kevin Costner plays
the mythical medieval hero known for stealing from the rich and giving to the
poor.
When the shameful Sheriff of Nottingham murders
Robin's father, the legendary archer vows vengeance. To accomplish his mission,
Robin joins forces with a band of exiled villagers (and graceful Maid Marian),
and together they battle to end the evil sheriff's reign of terror.
Read here.
https://fsharetv.co/movie/robin-hood:-prince-of-thieves-episode-1-tt0102798
Wednesday 12 January 2022
NOTTING HILL
William Thacker is a London bookstore owner whose
humdrum existence is thrown into romantic turmoil when famous American actress
Anna Scott appears in his shop. A chance encounter over spilled orange juice
leads to a kiss that blossoms into a full-blown affair. As the average bloke
and glamorous movie star draw closer and closer together, they struggle to
reconcile their radically different lifestyles in the name of love. Read here.
https://fsharetv.co/movie/_uid12012022-notting-hill-episode-1-tt0125439
Monday 3 January 2022
JANUARY MORN
“Bare branches of each tree
on this chilly January morn
look so cold so forlorn.
Gray skies dip ever so low
left from yesterday's dusting of snow.
Yet in the heart of each tree
waiting for each who wait to see
new life as warm sun and breeze will blow,
like magic, unlock springs sap to flow,
buds, new leaves, then blooms will grow."
Nelda Hartmann