vocabulary #2

accouterments n.- An accessory item of equipment or dress. Often used in the plural
          Since accouterments were mandatory for the meeting I chose to wear a watch and a chain.


apogee n.- The farthest or highest point; the apex
           Becoming a millionaire is the apogee of most people in the world.


apropos adj.- Being at once opportune and to the point.
           He was apropos once he was able to obtain his promotion.


bicker intr.v- To engage in a petty, bad-tempered quarrel; squabble
           My siblings and I always bicker over small matters.


coalesce intr.v- To grow together; fuse
           To become more successful a group needs to coalesce as a unit.


contretemps n.- an awkward or difficult situation or mishap
           I was in a contretemps when I walked into the wrong classroom my first day of school>


convolution n.- A form or part that is folded or coiled
           That copper was in a convolution to make for extra room.


cull tr.v- To pick out from others; select
           The teacher culled Jerry because he believed that Jerry was best qualified for that specific demonstration.


disparate adj.- Fundamentally distinct or different in kind; entirely dissimilar
            It was evident that Tim was disparate from his brother when it came to schoolwork.


dogmatic adj.- based on assumption rather than empirical observation
           Many people feel that politics is dogmatic.


licentious adj.- Lacking moral discipline or ignoring legal restraint, especially in sexual conduct.
           Some people are licentious when it comes to the speed limit on a highway.


mete tr.v-  To distribute by or as if by measure; allot
           I was meted 100 thousand dollars for winning the lottery.


noxious adj.- Harmful to living things; injurious to health
           Inhaling helium from balloons is very noxious.


polemic n.- A controversial argument, especially one refuting or attacking a specific opinion or doctrine
            When dealing with the topic of abortion we deal with a polemic.


populous adj.- Containing many people or inhabitants; having a large population
            China is one of the most populous countries in the world.


probity n.- Complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness
            Many people believe in a policeman's probity.


repartee n.- A swift, witty reply
             Dr. Preston is known for his repartees.


supervene intr.v- To come or occur as something extraneous, additional, or unexpected
          When the class found out about the pop quiz the were supervened.


truncate tr.v- To shorten by or as if by cutting off
           Right before I was about to make my big announcement I was truncated.


unimpeachable adj.- unquestionable as to honesty, truth
          Many religious people believe that God's words are unimpeachable.

MY OPINION ISN'T (A) RIGHT

What I took away from this topic was the fact that the "right to my own opinion" was a fallacy due to the fact that it was used preemptively when wanting to get away from an argument. The falsity of this cliché was used when the author used Jack and Jill for his examples and using this example to show that any type of diversion, such as the right to ones own opinion, does not get us any closer to the truth. The main thing I took away from this article was the fact that argument is good because it helps us learn as people and improves our knowledge as well. Mr. Whyte made a good point on how we view our opinion as sacred and we find offense if someone challenges that point of view. This is why we need to "embrace debate" as ESPN'S First Take show is so famous for quoting.
         

Vocabulary #1

Definition
     adumbrate-report or represent in outline
     apotheosis- exaltation to divine rank or stature; deification
     ascetic-leading a life of self-discipline and self-denial, especially for spiritual improvement
     bauble- a small, showy ornament of little value; a trinket
     beguile-deceive by guile; delude
   burgeon-to put forth new buds, leaves, or greenery; sprout
     complement- something that completes, makes up a whole, or brings to perfection
     contumacious- obstinately disobedient or rebellious; insubordinate
     curmudgeon- an ill-tempered person full of resentment and stubborn notions
     didactic-intended to instruct
     disingenuous-not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating
     exculpate- to clear of guilt or blame
     faux pas- a social blunder or indiscretion
     fulminate- to issue a thunderous verbal attack or denunciation
    fustian- a coarse sturdy cloth made of cotton and flax
  hauteur- haughtiness in bearing and attitude; arrogance
    inhibit- to hold back; restrain
    jeremiad- a literary work or speech expressing a bitter lament or a righteous prophecy of doom
   opportunist- one who takes advantage of any opportunity to achieve an end, often with no regard for principles or consequences.
    unconscionable- not restrained by conscience; unscrupulous

Story
     There once was a boy named Vince. He had a sense of hauteur and was a very disingenuous personality.His teacher assigned an adumbrate assignment that was worth so much extra credit, that it will bump one up by an entire letter grade and Vince ever the opportunist knew that he was capable of reporting something that was both didactic and interesting to research. Vince then quickly went home to begin research on the project. So he typed the history of the NFL and it led him to a website that had the history of the NFL. Then instead of doing further research he decided to copy and paste it so he may print it out because he could not inhibit the fact that he found something so amusing in a matter of minutes. But, what he did not know was that the site was accessible by anyone that someone changed certain aspects of the history was jeremiad and had many statements that were written by a curmudgeon. Because Vince held himself to an apotheosis he beguiled himself into believing that he had done an excellent job. He did not know that he would be faced with a dilemma due to him being contumacious. The next morning when Vince was getting prepared to go to school he was forced to wear a fustian shirt due to his lack of dirty laundry and Vince was unconscionable of the event that will transpire later that day. Once Vince arrived he went to class and sat on a bauble, thinking about all the bad luck he has had that day. When he presented his plagiarized report Vince quickly found that what he had copied and pasted was of terrible quality. His faux pas then led to his teacher to fulminate at his lack of effort and his plagiarism. Vince woke up from bed and realized that he had dreamt the entire debacle and decided to exculpate himself from the previous day and decide to become ascetic. To complement his new way of thinking he spent all morning forgoing his daily routine just to complete his extra credit project hoping that he will burgeon one day into a better person.

Essay #2 Montainge/Austen

          The human mind is a very intricate when deciphering the meaning of life. This was stated by Mr. David Foster Wallace in "Good old Neon" when he stated words only sketch outline a little tiny part(of the Mind) at any given instant. Then there are writers who oppose i.e. Michel Montainge, who stated that humans can not attain certainty. His essays were an example of him expressing his feelings that humans can not attain certainty because they may feel obliged to feel certain in their ways, when in actuality they are not. Then Jane Austen comes along and gives a story of young women attaining certainty through new found relationships that eventually lead to marriage.

          Montainge would be a contradiction to Foster because Montainge believes that the mind is capable of keeping up to the level of having words do more than just outline a small portion of a certain matter. This was evident in his opposition to conquering the new world. The detail he puts into describing the feelings of natives being conquered was him attempting to do more than just "sketch" an idea to stop the conquest, but rather relay their suffering to people unaware of these issues. His views on new world conquest were just a small portion of the rest of his essays, that took 2 decades to be completely finished, and it shows that he tried to be incredibly detailed when it came to his views on issues.

          When Jane Austen comes along, nearly 300 years later, she is also focusing on a very prominent topic of parents trying to set up their off-spring with someone of benefit. Austen was able to show that there was love even though there was somewhat of a set up with Mr. Bingley and Jane Bennet. Austen was very effective in showing that there could be true love involved when a daughter is encouraged to meet a certain gentleman. This story, while only focusing on one topic, shows that as time goes by people start to simplify their word choice while being convincing.

           Maybe this is the reason David Foster Wallace stated what he stated because he has observed that over time, wording needs to be reduced to be more appealing to readers. And although Michel Montainge was intricate in his works we would rather read Jane Austen because we feel as if she has made a compelling novel while being quicker to the point. to be fair to Foster, as time has passed the human population has made the world much more simplified, so he implies that we have regressed in terms of articulating with our words since the days of Michel Montainge.

Poetry #1

1. This poem is borrowed from "the Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukowski
2. The use of this poem by a corporation can be considered ironic because it states many perceptions that people have towards corporations, for example: "don't let it be clubbed into dank submission" can be used to describer a corporation because they may force their workers to do something not at all worth doing, but they know if they refuse they will possibly lose that job and have no means of sustenance.
3. This poem would not be a good example of Mr. Bukowski's. Most of his works dealt with the darker side of life such as: alcoholism and gambling. Unlike most of his works he chose to express the hope in life and that there is always a positive to take from anything in life, including the negativity in life.
4. For #1 I clicked on the video to take me to youtube and luckily I found a comment that listed his name and the name of the poem as well. I then double checked it on google and by looking at my peers blogs and it confirmed. For #3 I first looked at peer blogs to see their insight, then I went to a website dedicated to him(http://bukowski.net/) and clicked on some literature to get a feel of his style of writing.

Big Question

If we were able to travel to the past, would we be willing to change our present and future?