Literature Analysis: Inferno

The novel begins with Dante lost in a forest. This symbolizes him being in a bad place in his life. He is trying to get to the top of a mountain, but he is blocked. He soon finds a stranger named Virgil. Virgil leads him through hell, because it's the only way to get to the top of the mountain. They descend through hell and see Satan himself, at which point they climb into his loincloth and ascend to Purgatorio. The theme of this novel is that the oath to salvation is not easy. It is hard and takes many sacrifices. The protagonist, Dante, is dynamic, yet flat. He changes throughout the story, but not much is revealed about him. I chose this book because u wanted a challenge. It is really good.

Greek Drama Questions

1. What kind of prize is given for dancing choruses of worshippers?
Answer: The dancing choruses of worshippers were awarded a bull or a goat.
2. How many spectators would gather in the open-air theatre of Dionysos?
Answer: As many as fourteen thousand spectators gathered in the open-air theatre.
3. How does the mask affect the voices of the actors?
Answer: These masks had mouthpieces that amplified the actors’ voices.
4. Why was Antigone suspenseful to viewing audiences?
Answer: Suspense came from their knowledge of things the characters on stage did not know.
5. How is the shepherd to leave the infant on the mountainside?
Answer: The shepherd is to leave the baby with his ankles pinned together.
6. What is the riddle the Sphinx gave to Oedipus?
Answer: “What creature goes on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?”
7. Who are Oedipus' kids?
Answer: Oedipus’ kids were two sons, Polyneices and Etocles; and two daughters, Antigone and Ismene.
8. After Oedipus is exiled, who takes over Thebes?
Answer: Jocasta’s brother and Oedipus’ uncle Creon took over Thebes.
9. What did the family do to the dead body?
Answer: Creon decreed that Polyneices; body be left unburied, to rot in the sun outside the city gates.

Latin Roots #6

Roots and Derivatives 

1. corp(or) (body): corpse, corporation, corps, corpuscle, corporeal, corpus, corset

2. cred (to believe, to trust): credo, credit, discredit, credence, credentials, accreditation

3. cur(r), curs, course (to run, to flow): current, excursion, discourse, concur, recourse, curriculum, recurrent

4. dic(t) (to speak, to say): diction, indication, edict, jurisdiction, dictionary, addict, interdiction

Word List

1. benediction: the invocation of a divine blessing, as at the close of a religious service; a blessing or a state of blessedness
Example: He dismissed the congregation with a benediction.

2. concourse: a running or flowing together; a broad public walkway or hallway; a crowd or throng
Example: The woman was lost among the concourse at the concert.

3. concurrent: occurring at the same time; meeting or acting together
Example: Earthquakes and tsunamis are usually concurrent, causing massive damage.

4. corporal: related to the physical body
Example: Although corporal punishment is illegal in schools, some students see p.e as the same thing.

5. corpulent: very stout; fleshy and obese; fat
Example: More and more americans have steadily become corpulent due to fast food.

6. credibility: the quality of being believable or trustworthy
Example: The singer lost all credibility after being caught lip syncing the national anthem.

7. credulity: the (naïve)willingness to believe too easily without proof
Example: The internet has caused human credulity to become much more common.

8. cursory: done in a superficial or hasty manner
Example: The knot was cursory, ended up coming loose dropping the bag.

9. dictum: an authoritative saying or maxim
Example: His favorite dictum was, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

10. incorporate: to form into one body or functioning unit; to combine several different things into a whole
Example: The author liked to incorporate parts of her past into her writing.

11. incredulous: not believing, skeptical, or doubting
Example: The girl had an incredulous look on her face after watching the magician's act.

12. indicative: characteristic of or very much like; suggestive
Example: The results of the CAT scan were indicative of some type of tumor growth.

Antigone Quick Write

My favorite brother is dead. I would mourn his dead and pray for his salvation. My uncle has declared himself king. I would question his authority. If he said that my brother should not be buried then he is wrong. He must be insane and not fit to be king. I would argue with him the decision to call my favorite brother a traitor. He must not have heard the whole story, since it was my least favorite brother's fault that they both died. I would not listen to him and take my brother from the dump and give him a proper funeral and burial. I would also talk to my sister about our uncle. She obvious has no sense if she is afraid of that psycho. If all else fails, I would run away to Canada. The End.

A Case For Eating Dogs Response

Jonathan Safron Foer is a renowned author and known vegetarian. His book, Eating Animals, highlights the latter. One particular section, titled "A Case For Eating Dogs," seems to go against his particular choice of diet. The section is just what you would think it would be: Safron Foer makes a particularly strong case for the consumption of man's best friend. At surface level, this would seem an iniquitous act in the world of vegetarian's, but Safron Foer's satirical tone can easily be seen after a second glance. Though Safron Foer intended the section to discourage the ingestion of canines, it has sparked a question: Why is eating dogs seen as a taboo in the United States?
In many other countries, eating dogs is seen as perfectly normal, but in The Land of the Free, it is seen as heinous. Many Americans readily consume chickens, cows, and pigs, but what sets these animals apart from dogs? Safron Foer comes up with three reasons that might explain this: “Don’t eat companion animal, don’t eat animals with significant mental capacities, and those things are bad for us.” These statements seem just, but they have their flaws. Not all countries recognize canines as companions. In fact, many see them as another source of nutrients, just as we see pigs. Along the same lines, pigs and dogs could be considered equals in regards to mental capacity. Both can be trained, and some may even argue that pigs are more valuable, considering their handiness in finding valuable truffles. "[Dogs] are bad for us." This statement could not be less true. When handled an cooked correctly, dog meat is no more harmful to us than cows or chickens. 
“Three to four million dogs and cats are euthanized annually.” This fact is almost as bad as the thought of eating our furry companions. This means that millions of pounds of consumable meat is wasted each year. Is it really wasted though? This meat is used to produce protein bits, which are then fed to livestock, and if we use our knowledge of biology and clichés, we can come to this conclusion: You are what you eat. This means that millions of Americans are inadvertently doing the unthinkable, eating dogs.

The topic of eating dogs is a particularly touchy subject for Americans. The thought of eating our beloved companions is almost too horrible to think of. Is it really something that should be avoided, though? In conclusion, eating dogs should be considered here in America. Though it would not seem humane at first, it would be a wise choice. Even someone as picky as myself would consider a dog taco.

Latin Roots #5

Roots and Derivatives
1. cent(i) (hundred): century, centipede, centennial, centigrade, centimeter

2. cid(e), cis(e) (cut, kill): homicide, incision, suicide, scissors, circumcise

3. clam, claim (cry out, declare): clamor, exclaim, proclaim, disclaim

4. cord, cour (heart): accord, courage, encouraged, cordiform, cordate

Word List
1. bicentennial: a celebration of a two hundredth anniversary; happening once in a period of two hundred years or lasting two hundred years
Example: The bicentennial of the first town with plumbing is next week.

2. centenarian: a person who has lived to be one hundred years old
Example: One of my life goals is to live to become a centenarian.

3. centurion: a Roman officer commanding one hundred men; related to the military mind, especially as it favors military solutions for handling social problems
Example: Society tends to think of people with a centurion point of view are tougher.

4. clamorous: characterized by continuous loud and complaining voices; noisily complaining; insistent
Example: The moment the teacher announced the group project, the class became clamorous .

5. concise: covering much in few words; brief and to the point
Example: I admire people who are concise; since I have a tendency to babble .

6. concordance: a condition of harmony or agreement; an alphabetical index indicating reference passages, as from a writer's works
Example: My best friend and I were forced to come to a concordance, as we needed to work on a project.

7. cordial: of the heart; warm and friendly; amiable
Example: Even though they were mad, the gift was cordial.

8. discordant: (sounding) harsh or inharmonious; clashing
Example: The choirs performance was so discordant, the instructor quit. 

9. genocide: the systematic extermination of an ethnic group
Example: One of the most well known examples of  genocide is the Holocaust. 

10. incisive: keenly penetrating; cutting into
Example: The detective's interrogation was so incisive, he found out more than he was looking for.

11. proclamation: an official statement or announcement that informs or honors
Example: The king sent out a proclamation to honor the birth of his son and the heir to the throne.

12. reclaim: to claim again; to restore to former importance or usefulness
Example: The king sent his best troops to reclaim their captured land from the invaders.

Latin Roots #4

Roots and Derivatives
1. bon, boun (good): bonus, bounty, bountiful, bonify, boon, bon voyage, bonhomie

2. capit, capt (head, chief, leader): capital, captain, capitalize, decapitate, per capita, capitol

3. carn(i) (flesh): carnal, carnality, carnival, carnify

4 ced(e), ceed, cess (go, yield, surrender): recede, proceed, success, concede, exceed, procession, unprecedented

Word List

1. accession: the attainment of a certain rank or dignity; an increase by means of something added; the act of becoming joined

Example: After the prince's accession to the throne, the kingdom cheered in delight.

2. bona fide: in good faith; genuine

Example: The band was so awful they didn't have one bona fide hit.

3. bonanza: a sudden and unexpected source of money or riches; a windfall

Example: The lawyers won the case, which granted the company a bonanza*.

*not sure if I used this correctly

4. bounteous: inclined to be generous; plentiful and abundant

Example: The farmer's fields were so bounteous that they became famous throughout the land.

5. capitulation: surrendering, usually upon prearranged terms or conditions; a final giving-up

Example: The school's capitulation to the school board's new rules disappointed me.

6. carnage: a great slaughter, as in battle

Example: The carnage of the battle left thousands of dead bodies lying in the streets.

7. carnivorous: flesh-eating, as an animal

Example: There have been reports of carnivorous squirrels running loose in the park, so watch your toes.

8. incarnate: literally, in the flesh; in bodily form; personified; flesh-colored

Example: I am ninety-nine percent positive that my sister is evil incarnate.

9. intercede: to act on another's behalf; to meditate

Example: I can't stand it when my friends try to intercede while I'm in an argument.

10. precedent: a previous act or decision taken as a valid model; having gone before.

Example: They used the plans for the Empire State Building as a precedent for the new landmark.

11. recapitulation: a brief repetition; a summary, as of what has already been said.

Example: I find recapitulations pointless. If you don't remember something, it's because you didn't pay close enough attention the first time.

12. reincarnation: a thing that is reborn, or comes back into being, although perhaps in a different (bodily) form

Example: The idea of reincarnation appeals to spiritual beliefs, such as Buddhism and Hinduism.