Self Assessment II

Self Assessment for the Second Half of the Semester

I feel that as this class has gone on, that the whole idea of an electronic classroom has grown on me quite a bit. I had been skeptical for the better part of the semester, but after getting used to it I have changed my opinion. I feel that having us search online for the interpretations and commentary on the poems greatly helped me in my understanding of them. I have never been very good at analyzing the meanings of poetry, but I feel that I really have taken a great step forward in this aspect thanks to this class. Having each of us take poems and work on them individually, with the internet as our source, really helped to develop my ability to analyze poetry. My understanding of researching poetry has also expanded. I learned of several new databases to look through for information. After experiencing this class, I would like to have an increasing number of technology-involved classes in the future. There is an overwhelming amount of information on web 2.0 and having classes that focus on tapping into that knowledge gives students a limitless learning environment.

Milton's Sonnet 12

Sonnet 12
by John Milton

I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs
By the known rules of antient libertie,
When strait a barbarous noise environs me
Of Owles and Cuckoes, Asses, Apes and Doggs.
As when those Hinds that were transform'd to Froggs
Raild at Latona's twin-born progenie
Which after held the Sun and Moon in fee.
But this is got by casting Pearl to Hoggs;
That bawle for freedom in their senceless mood,
And still revolt when truth would set them free.
Licence they mean when they cry libertie;
For who loves that, must first be wise and good;
But from that mark how far they roave we see
For all this wast of wealth, and loss of blood.








This sonnet was one of Milton's works on his divorce. The negativity in his divorce work usually prevails over reason. This work in particular was said to be targeted at one of two groups, Presbyterians who had rejected his divorce pamphlets, or the radical sects who had welcomed them too enthusiastically.

I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs By the known rules of antient libertie, When strait a barbarous noise environs me Of Owles and Cuckoes, Asses, Apes and Doggs.
The first section of this sonnet is Milton asking readers to leave behind their thoughts on the divorce laws and to not listen to the opinions swirling around you from others.


As when those Hinds that were transform'd to Froggs Raild at Latona's twin-born progenie Which after held the Sun and Moon in fee. But this is got by casting Pearl to Hoggs;

This part is a reference to Apollo and Diana, the deities of the sun and moon, and their mother, Latona. Latona went to drink from a pool of water, and the villagers did not allow it, so they were all turned to frogs. The line of the sun and moon holding them in fee means that Apollo and Diana could hold the villagers as their own.


That bawle for freedom in their senceless mood, And still revolt when truth would set them free. Licence they mean when they cry libertie;

In this, he targets the Prebytarians and their rejection of divorce. It was said that Milton didn't target them for taking the Reformation too far, but rather, not taking it far enough.
For who loves that, must first be wise and good; But from that mark how far they roave we see For all this wast of wealth, and loss of blood. To close the sonnet, Milton says that the civil war took a toll on the people and their quality of life, but did so in vain. It is in vain because those now in power, the Presbytarians, have reverted to old habits that should be a thing of the past, rather than spreading liberty.

Milton's Sonnet 13

Sonnet 13 by John Milton

XIII

To Mr. H. Lawes, on his Aires.

Harry whose tuneful and well measur'd Song
First taught our English Musick how to span
Words with just note and accent, not to scan
With Midas Ears, committing short and long;
Thy worth and skill exempts thee from the throng,
With praise enough for Envy to look wan;
To after age thou shalt be writ the man,
That with smooth aire couldst humor best our tongue
Thou honour'st Verse, and Verse must send her wing
To honour thee, the Priest of Phoebus Quire
That tun'st their happiest lines in Hymn or Story
Dante shall give Fame leave to set thee higher
Then his Casella, whom he woo'd to sing
Met in the milder shades of Purgatory.








Harry whose tuneful and well measur'd Song
First taught our English Musick how to span
Words with just note and accent, not to scan
With Midas Ears, committing short and long;

This poem was written as an introduction to Henry Lawes' 1648 arrangement of the Psalms, which was dedicated to King Charles. Lawes was a music instructor and close friend of John Milton. The first section of the poem is about Lawes being the first to write a truly musical English song. His music was said to preserve the poets' rhythm and stress patterns when he composed it. The scanning is picking up those patterns and rhythm that he wrote them with. According to myth, Midas lacked the ability to recognize these, so Apollo gave him the ears of a donkey. The short and long in this stanza is short syllables being combined with long notes.



Thy worth and skill exempts thee from the throng, With praise enough for Envy to look wan; To after age thou shalt be writ the man, That with smooth aire couldst humor best our tongue

This stanza is saying that Lawes' skill as a writer and composer distinguishes him from the rest of the writers of his time. The praise he received was enough to "bruise" other writers with envy. After his time is over, he will be remembered as one of the best, who could write in a manner most appealing to singers and listeners.



Thou honour'st Verse, and Verse must send her wing To honour thee, the Priest of Phoebus Quire That tun'st their happiest lines in Hymn or Story

In this stanza, it is said that his ability to write not only pleases listeners, but brings honor upon the verse in which the psalm is written. It is work worthy of the choir of Apollo, the god of music and poetry.



Dante shall give Fame leave to set thee higher Then his Casella, whom he woo'd to sing Met in the milder shades of Purgatory.

The last stanza is a reference to Dante and his entrance to purgatory, where he ran into his friend, Casella, a friend who was a musician. Dante requests a song played, and Casella plays Purgatorio, which was Dante's work put to music by the musician.

The Mower's Song

The Mower's Song
By Andrew Marvell


My Mind was once the true survey
Of all these Meadows fresh and gay;
And in the greenness of the Grass
Did see its Hopes as in a Glass;
When Juliana came, and she
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

But these, while I with Sorrow pine,
Grew more luxuriant still and fine;
That not one Blade of Grass you spy'd,
But had a Flower on either side;
When Juliana came, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

Unthankful Meadows, could you so
A fellowship so true forego,
And in your gawdy May-games meet,
While I lay trodden under feet?
When Juliana came , and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

But what you in Compassion ought,
Shall now by my Revenge be wrought:
And Flow'rs, and Grass, and I and all,
Will in one common Ruine fall.
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

And thus, ye Meadows, which have been
Companions of my thoughts more green,
Shall now the Heraldry become
With which I shall adorn my Tomb;
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

My Mind was once the true survey
Of all these Medows fresh and gay;
And in the greenness of the Grass
Did see its Hopes as in a Glass;
When Juliana came, and she
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

Green is the color of hope, and the glass is a mirror. I believe that to mean that when he looks inside himself, he sees hope for his future with Juliana. This is his overconfidence of his place in the natural order of things. His innocence can be better seen as ignorance. The last two lines say that what he does to the grass, cut it down with his scythe, is the same as what she does to his thoughts and self when she comes. This means that his yearning for her is truly tearing him apart.

But these, while I with Sorrow pine,
Grew more luxuriant still and fine;
That not one Blade of Grass you spy'd,
But had a Flower on either side;
When Juliana came, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

This stanza is saying that while he laments his sorrow, the grass grows more and more abundant. His sorrow is that he is not the center of the world and that it does not revolve around him. He then says that the flowers are not growing, perhaps signifying that their love is not blossoming as the mower would have hoped.

Unthankful Meadows, could you so
A fellowship so true forego,
And in your gawdy May-games meet,
While I lay trodden under feet?
When Juliana came , and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

This stanza is possibly saying that nature is ungrateful for the service Damon provides. The mower sees nature in his own narrow view of what is and what is not right in the world. He blames nature for being unnatural, but in all actuality, it is doing precisely what it is supposed to do. The line about gaudy may-games is said to be a reference to “The excessive zeal of the Puritan consciousness with which Marvell and other moderates had to contend.”

But what you in Compassion ought,
Shall now by my Revenge be wrought:
And Flow'rs, and Grass, and I and all,
Will in one common Ruine fall.
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

In the fourth stanza, the human nature of revenge becomes Damon’s motivation in life. He is saying that as he cuts the grass, so too will he fall. He says this because he is not with Juliana.

And thus, ye Meadows, which have been
Companions of my thoughts more green,
Shall now the Heraldry become
With which I shall adorn my Tomb;
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

The last stanza here is about the Mower’s acceptance of his fate. He will not be with Juliana but he can still be with his meadow. It’s said that in this stanza, the mower is somewhat self-accepting, but only to a certain extent. The lines about heraldry and tombs suggest a lavish, aristocratic burial, yet Damon is a rural mower. It ends with him perhaps still not fully understanding how the world truly works.

Pastoral and Lyric Poems 1681

By Andrew Marvell, David Ormerod, Christopher Wortham

The Mower to the Glowworms

The Mower to the Glow-Worms
By Andrew Marvell

Ye living lamps, by whose dear light
The nightingale does sit so late,
And studying all the summer-night,
Her matchless songs does meditate;

Ye Country Comets, that portend
No war, nor princes funeral,
Shining unto no higher end
Than to presage the grasses' fall;

Ye glow-worms, whose officious flame
To wandring mowers shows the way,
That in the night have lost their aim,
And after foolish fires do stray;

Your courteous lights in vain you waste,
Since Juliana here is come,
For she my mind hath so displaced
That I shall never find my home.

Ye living lamps, by whose dear light
The nightingale does sit so late,
And studying all the summer-night,
Her matchless songs does meditate;

In this first stanza, the mower is overlooking his field on a summer night. The sun is down but light is still being emitted from the grass. It radiates from "living lamps" clinging to the blades of grass. These living lamps are the glowworms, who light the night for the other creatures who "sit so late." He is saying that the nightingale's song is it's way of meditating over the summer night.

Ye Country Comets, that portend

No war, nor princes funeral,

Shining unto no higher end

Than to presage the grasses' fall;

In the second stanza, he refers to the glowworms as country comets. Unlike real comets, he claims that these glowworms do not signify imminent catastrophe, such as the death of a prince or war. The only happening they forecast is the falling of the grass to the mower's blade.

Ye glow-worms, whose officious flame

To wandring mowers shows the way,

That in the night have lost their aim,

And after foolish fires do stray;

The glowworms emit their light, regardless the wishes of anyone around them. They serve as a runway to the mowers, thus guiding them in the night when they may have lost their aim. Perhaps though, they also serve a purpose to keep a mower focused if their minds had wandered from the task at hand. Foolish fires may be a reference to chasing Juliana, from the next stanza, and focusing on her when he is truly out there to do his job as a mower.

Your courteous lights in vain you waste,

Since Juliana here is come,

For she my mind hath so displaced

That I shall never find my home.

This stanza further expands on the ideas presented in the third stanza. He says the light emitted by the glowworms is appreciated, but wasted. Juliana has his full attention, thus rendering the light useless, for he is lost not in body, but mind. In the 17th century, it was believed that, "The world is full of such glow-wormes, that make some show of Spiritual Light from God." With this in mind, one may gather that the mower feels that he does not have room in his life for spirituality while Juliana holds captive his heart.



sources: http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=m9_7gQPe-tkC&oi=fnd&pg=RA1-PA175&dq=andrew+marvell+the+mower+to+the+glowworms+summary&ots=uMiWFj1R5r&sig=pu1q29oM-OP1dh1tF0f-SJI8h78#PRA1-PA169,M1

google images

http://faculty.goucher.edu/eng211/andrew_marvell.htm

Pictures by Thomas Hart Benton

The Glorious Revolution / Royalists vs Roundheads

Royalists vs. Roundheads




Headed by King Charles I, the Royalists were a party who believed strictly in the divine right of kings and that parliament had very little importance. This along with Catholic tendencies made for trying times in England. The Roundheads, or Parliament and their supporters, decided to take action against Charles and his regime by starting the English Civil War. The Roundheads chose Oliver Cromwell to lead their army against Charles. This was an issue of royal, professional soldiers taking on an army of the middle-class commoners.


The war became imminent when Charles continued to abuse his power to get what he willed. He dissolved parliament twice, and on the second, did so for eleven years. After a squashed uprising in Ireland, parliament feared Charles would use the army on them next. To counter this, the Roundheads chose Oliver Cromwell to lead their New Model Army. Cromwell hailed from a family who was not excessively rich, but still had power and influence.





Early in the war, the royalists held the upper hand, but the turning point came at the Battle of Naseby, in which the Roundheads destroyed a vast royalist force that would never be matched in skill, size, or power again by Charles and the Royalists. This was the end of the First English Civil War. The second war however was not far off. King Charles negotiated with the Scots, levying church reform, to get their backing. They agreed, thus beginning the Second English Civil War. This war, as the last one did boiled down to one battle, The Battle of Preston. In this battle, Cromwell’s Roundheads defeated the Royalists once again. This time, Charles
was to face the consequences of his actions. He was sent to trial for high treason, and was convicted. He was beheaded, thus ending his tyrannical reign. With a vacant throne, Oliver Cromwell was placed in charge as Lord Protector. This effectively ended the monarchy style of rule in England for the time being. It would not be a permanent end, but it was a beginning which was eventually achieved in the Glorious Revolution, in which England adopted a Parliamentary Monarchy. In this system, the monarch had powers with limits. Parliament held the power to overrule anything they saw as an abuse of power.

The Glorious Revolution

The 17th century in England had become one where its inhabitants had grown tired of absolute monarchy and Catholic rule. The Glorious Revolution, or Revolution of 1688, was one to overthrow the Catholic King James II of England. The one chosen to lead the revolution against James was William of Orange, husband of James’ daughter, Mary. Mary had been the heir to the throne until James had a son of his own. William had been third in line for the throne. James refused to accept them as true heirs though, due to their unwillingness to support his Catholic views, because they were Protestant. When James had a son, many saw this as the start of a Catholic dynasty being formed, so they decided action must be taken. William was chosen to lead this revolt against James, and had the backing of the parliament and many Protestant nobles. An army was prepared for William, and they reached England to take on James. When they arrived, James’ troops fled, leaving the king to fend for himself. James in turn fled to France, avoiding leaving his fate in the hands of William’s troops.

This is the reason it is called the Bloodless Revolution. The throne was abandoned without having a brutal struggle over it. James’ flight meant that the throne of England was now open though, so a replacement must be found. In 1689, William and Mary were chosen by parliament to lead England together. The means by which they would lead were greatly altered from prior monarchs though. They signed the English Bill of Rights, forming England as a constitutional monarchy, subjecting their leaders to parliament’s authority. No longer could monarchs rule as they pleased without consequence. William and Mary were forced to agree to this before they could rule. The bill of rights ended any chance of another Catholic monarch, as well as limited the powers to suspend laws, tax people, or have a standing army in a time of peace without consent from parliament.

Though the revolution was bloodless in England, that does not mean it had the same results everywhere. James returned to Ireland to gather Irish Catholic support to attempt to regain his throne. William’s forces were in battle with the French already, but they were able to muster a Protestant army who would defeat the Catholics in the Battle of Boyne, thus ending James’ attempts at reclaiming the throne.

James’ grandson, Bonnie Prince Charlie, also attempted to reclaim the throne in 1746, but was met by King George II and his army at Culloden. Bonnie Prince Charlie was defeated easily, and then went into exile in France, where he became a drunk and died, along with his younger brother, thus ending the Stuart monarch line

Bitter-Sweet Herbert

AH my deare angrie Lord,
Since thou dost love, yet strike;
Cast down, yet help afford;
Sure I will do the like.
   
I will complain, yet praise;
I will bewail, approve:
And all my sowre-sweet dayes
I will lament, and love.


This poem is the author saying that the lord has taken something from him.
Whether it be a lost love or a death, he is upset about what he has lost.
In the second stanza, he says, "I will complain, yet praise: I will bewail, approve,"
This is saying that though he disagrees with what was taken from him and misses it deeply,
he will still love and respect the lord and praise his name, just he is a little
more reluctant than usual. He claims, "And all my sour-sweet days I will lament
and love," This solidifies the fact that he has seen better days and is mourning at
the current time, but he will continue to love.

His request to Julia

JULIA, if I chance to die
Ere I print my poetry,
I most humbly thee desire
To commit it to the fire;
Better 'twere my book were dead
Than to live not perfected


This poem is written to an assumed lover, giving her instructions on what to do, shall the writer perish. He is claiming that if he does die, he wishes Julia to set ablaze his works, becuase they have not yet been perfected. This theory he had probably carried over to living his life too. "Better 'twere my book dead Than to live not perfected" could easily be seen as a way to live, meaning live your life to the fullest and to it's fullest extent. I chose this poem, because I agree with him. Every time I have attempted to write poetry, whether for class or for pleasure, I have stopped and thrown it away because it wasn't good enough for my standards. With writing, I generally am a perfectionist, and that doesn't usually bode well for my stabs at writing a decent poem.

An Assessment

I have always enjoyed the traditional literature class structure, so this class was a huge shock to my system from day one. I thought the classic setting for a lit class was appropriate and definitely facilitated the material and made it easy to learn. It was always easier for me to learn poetry if a teacher held my hand and walked me through it. This class threw me for a loop in that the focus had completely deviated from the norm. This class is more self-exploration and reflection with each poem. I had great difficulty with this at first, seeing as in all my years of schooling, I had never really encountered a class like this. It's a much more demanding style than I'm used to. More critical thinking, less critical listening. I definitely thought that I was learning a lot less about the poems than I had in my previous classes in the beginning, but I think that as we have progressed, my skills of interpretation have improved, and thus I've gathered more on my own. I have never been particularly good at analyzing poems, but I feel that I am better now than ever before. This class has structure, being mainly student-content driven has been very rewarding and interesting to me. Usually there is very little participation by students in my literature classes, but this is definitely an exception. I like the idea of classes being experimental like this, but I feel that one thing must be changed. I feel that in the course description, it should give heed that this is a very experimental class and is not for everyone. I could see those who are in a more science or math oriented field having great difficulty. That is the main thing I would change, because we all essentially entered this class blindfolded with no idea where we were going. I feel that I have greatly improved my skills in dealing with poetry in this class. It is sometimes difficult to post blogs at a fast pace for me, because I like to take as much time as I can to work on something before posting it, but I feel that I have done a pretty decent job keeping up and still being thorough with my work. I would like to see more classes like this in the future, and less of the whole read a poem, professor walks you through it, test, then research paper classes I'm used to.

The Pillar of Fame

Fame's pillar here at last we set,

Out-during marble, brass or jet;
Charmed and enchanted so
As to withstand the blow
O f o v e r t h r o w;
Nor shall the seas,
O r o u t r a g e s
Of storms, o'erbear
What we uprear;
Tho' kingdoms fall,
This pillar never shall
Decline or waste at all;
But stand for ever by his own
Firm and well-fixed foundation.


Click Here for the Actual Format of the Poem.


The poem begins with the pillar of fame being set and will outlast the tangible traces it can leave behind, such as statues or shrines. Fame is "Charmed and enchanted so as to withstand the blow of overthrow," meaning that it has been tempered as to be able to endure whatever may challenge it and try to bring the person down from prominence. It is saying that once you have ascended the pillar of fame, you will stay there. The Robert Herrick's The Pillar of Fame next sentence states that it cannot even be toppled by the wrath of mother nature, or wars that could take down a kingdom. The Pillar of Fame will outlast all and endure beyond the one who is on top of it. The line, "But stand for ever by his own firm and well-fixed foundation," is saying that fame is self-supporting and can live forever.

Love (III) Actually

Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back,
Guiltie of dust and sinne.
But quick-ey’d Love, observing me grow slack
From my first entrance in,
Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning,
If I lack’d any thing.

A guest, I answer’d, worthy to be here:
Love said, You shall be he.
I the unkinde, ungratefull? Ah my deare,
I cannot look on thee.
Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,
Who made the eyes but I?

Truth Lord, but I have marr’d them: let my shame
Go where it doth deserve.
And know you not, sayes Love, who bore the blame?
My deare, then I will serve.
You must sit down, sayes Love, and taste my meat:
So I did sit and eat.



The opening line of this poem personifies love as a persistent, but welcoming suitor. The speaker is hesitant, facing feelings of unworthiness in his soul due to his sins, saying, "Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back, guilty of dust and sin." But love, being persistent as it is, drew him back in. According to Ronald Johnson in his blog "Say Something Wonderful," ( http://saysomethingwonderful.blogspot.com/2006/09/herbert-love-iii.html )

this poem follows a specific pattern. He says, "
She tracks the gradual revelation of the various attributes of Love: first welcoming, then observant, then solicitous, and so on. I like this, too: the poem as sequential and accretive definition."

The observant part starts in the second stanza, when he says what is missing is someone who deserves to be there. Love responds back that the speaker shall be that person. When faced with this, the speaker is taken aback and bewildered, saying, "I the unkind, ungrateful? Ah, my Dear, I cannot look on thee." Love's response to this is where it becomes apparent that Love is in fact God, "Love took my hand, and smiling did reply, 'Who made the eyes but I?'"

The third stanza is the solicitous section. The speaker is enticed by Love's offerings, but still a little hesitant. Love at this point offers its self to the speaker, "'You must sit down,' says Love, 'and taste my meat.'" "So I did sit and eat." The last line is the speaker accepting love and essentially letting God into his life I believe.







image from: eishazinnerworld.blogspot.com

Why are we by all creatures waited on?

Why are we by all creatures waited on?
Why do the prodigal elements supply
Life and food to me, being more pure than I,
Simple, and further from corruption?
Why brook'st thou, ignorant horse, subjection?
Why dost thou, bull, and bore so seelily,
Dissemble weakness, and by one man's stroke die,
Whose whole kind you might swallow and feed upon?
Weaker I am, woe is me, and worse than you,
You have not sinned, nor need be timorous.
But wonder at a greater wonder, for to us
Created nature doth these things subdue,
But their Creator, whom sin nor nature tied,
For us, His creatures, and His foes, hath died.



This poem to me is asking why nature seems subservient to man. He asks, "Why do the prodigal elements supply life and food to me, being more pure than I, simple, and further from corruption." This is saying, why does something so pure provide for something so easily corruptible, such as a human being. He also expands this to animals too, saying, "Why dost thou, bull and boar, so silly dissemble weakness, and by one man's stroke die, whose whole kind you might swallow and feed upon?" This line is imploring animals to explain why they allow us to slay them senselessly and harvest them, when they easily have the power to overturn our rule and claim the land as their own. Man is weak, and guilty of sin, but it goes on to say that nature and the animals have not sinned and need not be fearful. Nature subdues fears and wonder. But in the end, it states, "But their creator, whom sin nor nature tied, for us, his creatures, and his foes, hath died." I assume this line to mean that it is not man who suffers for his own sins, but rather nature and its inhabitants.

photo by Fin Collins - www.fionnualacollins.com/.../Kerry%20Bull.jpg

Spit in my face you Jews... A Reflection

Spit in my face you Jews, and pierce my side,
Buffet, and scoff, scourge, and crucify me,
For I have sinned, and sinned, and only he
Who could do no iniquity hath died:
But by my death can not be satisfied
My sins, which pass the Jews' impiety:
They killed once an inglorious man, but I
Crucify him daily, being now glorified.
Oh let me, then, his strange love still admire:
Kings pardon, but he bore our punishment.
And Jacob came clothed in vile harsh attire
But to supplant, and with gainful intent:
God clothed himself in vile man's flesh, that so
He might be weak enough to suffer woe.


Before you even read this poem, you have to raise an eyebrow from the title. Spit in my face you Jews... What could he possibly have to write that involves Jews spitting in his face? Especially in the context of of being a "Holy Sonnet." It sounds degrading and Anti-Semitic from the get-go. Once you read it though, you realize he's not literally saying to spit on his face, but rather that he deserves it. Jesus died for man's sins without ever committing one himself. An example of this is the line, "For I have sinned, and sinned, and only he who could do no iniquity hath died..." He is saying that he has sinned over and over, but only Jesus paid for that sinning. This poem is Donne begging to pay for his sins in the manner Jesus did. He says that his sins surpass what the Jews did, and his continued sinning essentially makes the crucifixion happen every day, saying, "They killed once an inglorious man, but I crucify him daily, being now glorified." Essentially, this poem is a plea to people to remember that Jesus died for their sins, and continuing to repeat them is as bad of a crime as crucifying him from the start.

Picture from radicalx.org. No artist listed.

Blog Quiz

1) List the assumptions Dr. Wesch says permeated the old style classroom.

Classrooms are designed to help students acquire information
Information is scarce and hard to find
Therefore we put an expert at the front of the class
The room is essentially an information dump
This classroom is not about discussing information
Authorized information is beyond discussion
Trust authority for good information
The classroom teaches “obey authority” and “follow along”

2) Take each of these assumptions and demonstrate why they no longer are valid.

I can agree with Wesch in saying that these methods are outdated, and to an extent, no longer valid. The idea of a classroom being a place to gather and exchange information is more of a preconceived notion, rather than something that is actively put to practice. In my experience, classrooms are essentially dominated by a teacher lecturing to a class that is a mixture of attentive listeners, sleepers, talkers, and the kids who just played calculator games all day. The teacher's words fall silent on the closed ears of the majority of the students, thus making the whole class pointless. The gathering of knowledge is only worthwhile if people listen and revel in it. His point on trusting authority for good information is a valid one because I personally have experienced teachers tell me the wrong information. For instance, my first grade teacher spelled the word "Scissors" as "Sizzors" and "Sentences" as "Sentances." Not a big deal, I know, but it still reiterates Wesch's point. The idea of obeying authority is one that I do actually think is a necessary skill to learn. That is what you must do upon entering the workforce, so why not learn it from age five? I agree that the classroom we are a part of now is outdated and has it's multiple problems. I think the interactive classroom provides a much better outlet for student participation and creativity. What I am wondering is what will happen to classes if this trend continues? A class meeting three times a week is pointless if you are able to essentially meet online without going to class. I see it turning into a once a week get-together over coffee or sandwiches at a cafe, where everyone can get together and talk about what they have been compiling on their blogs and the like.

The (Bleak) Future

Blogging has grown exponentially in the recent years, and is even now creeping it's way into classrooms. Our class discussions on it's growth and the shrinking of libraries has gotten me thinking a lot about my father's profession and it's utter lack of a future in paper form. The newspaper industry. He is the sports content editor of The Commercial Appeal, and though it sounds like a secure job, no one is safe in this industry. With the vast majority of readers getting free news on the internet, the need for a hard-copy of a newspaper has all but vanished. I have always wanted to get into journalism, but with the recent changes, staffs are being reduced, no new writers are being hired, and some random Joe who writes a sports blog once a week is making more than all but the top of the paper. I admit, the new technology and the ways to gather information is handy, but an America with no newspapers? Now that's just scary to me. Images of a child standing on the street corner screaming, "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!" will never be echoed again if this trend continues. Granted that probably hasn't been said in years anyway, but the possibility remains. The technology is great, but we can't forget our roots.

Beyond

Beyond. A common word with uncommon depth. Does it simply mean to pass something? To transcend it? To circumvent it? The Greek root of meta, meaning "Beyond," is one that can be added to several words to alter their meaning. In this particular case, the addition is physical. Beyond physical. A very interesting combination, if I might say. How can something be beyond physical? Can an object be intangible, as if it were an idea or feeling deep inside? Beginning to understand metaphysical as a theory requires you to look, yes, beyond your traditional boundaries to an almost spiritual or sensory level of thought. In poetry, when metaphysical is brought about, it can bring much confusion. What is poetry, if not meant to appeal to the senses? The best example I have read of explaining this idea would be Tintern Abbey by William Wordsworth. This poem has meaning on such a subliminal spiritual level. It is not the senses that are stirred, but more the feelings in your heart. This is a very difficult idea to understand, and it must be viewed with an open mind.