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The Word According to Henry (and Samuel Johnson)

April 1, 2016 by szachik@pvs.org 3 Comments

–by senior Blog Correspondent Henry Huang

Samuel Johnson, a genius of the English language, wrote the classic A Dictionary of the English Language in 1755. This widely-praised, linguistic-shifting, perhaps antiquated, dictionary has some very funny definitions. It is one of the earliest and most important English dictionaries. Here are some witty, amusing entries:

Oats. n.s. [aten, Saxon.] A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people. (Samuel Johnson was NOT a fan of the Scottish.)
Sonnet. n.s. [sonnet, French; sonnetto, Italian.] A short poem consisting of fourteen lines, of which the rhymes are adjusted by a particular rule. It is not very suitable to the English language, and has not been used by any man of eminence since Milton.
Lexicógrapher. n.s. [λεξικὸν and γράφω; lexicographe, French.] A writer of dictionaries; a harmless drudge, that busies himself in tracing the original, and detailing the signification of words.
Patron. n.s. [patron, Fr. patronus, Latin.] One who countenances, supports or protects. Commonly a wretch who supports with insolence, and is paid with flattery.

Reading these witticisms inspires me to write some of my own dictionary definitions:

A Dictionary of the English Language According to Henry:
Political Science: A study of politics, a study considered to be a modern-day dragon-killing skill

Life: A process from toothless to toothless.

Football (American): A sport that doesn’t necessarily need feet to play

Americans: A group of people who live in the United States. Sometimes a group considered annoying, loud, arrogant, and monolingual!

What contemporary English words would you like to RE-define?

The Art of Talking

December 17, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

As you prepare to sit around the holiday table with relatives and close friends, Ashley Zhou, specialist in relationships, has some conversational advice for you . . . .

–by Ashley Zhou

“We always take good care of our appearance, our clothing, and makeup. We look into the mirror several times a day, but we don’t listen to our own voices when we are talking.” — Kevin Tsai

This is an excerpt from a famous Chinese book, The Art Of Talking by Chinese writer and TV host, Kevin Tsai. I think of this book when I hear my peers talk, chat, or argue about different topics. We really don’t care much about the way we talk to others. No one will actually tape his own voice and play it back at the end of the day. I once listened to my voice when I was doing a interview, and I felt really uncomfortable about my voice. I didn’t think the voice sounded like me. However, we can think in a different way: If we constantly listen to ourselves or pay attention to our voice volume and tone when we are talking, we will become better talkers.

When we are talking, we all want to be the dominator in the conversation. We always want to talk about ourselves. To be a good friend, however, we need to listen carefully to others. Try to avoid saying “I” in the conversation, instead, use “you” or “he.” Also, if you don’t want to be too blunt in front of newly made friends, then you should avoid those sensitive or potentially dangerous topics, such as age, relationships, politics, religion, etc. Some people have secrets that they don’t want to reveal, and others might have strong opinions about a certain issue that might cause arguments.

People want to hear compliments the most. We need to intentionally compliment our friends and make them feel special. Being a good friend doesn’t mean being honest or blunt. It means to place yourself in your friend’s shoes. Be empathetic. When we are asking someone for a favor, it is the same thing. We could use a little trick to achieve whatever we want. For example, when you want someone to cover for you at work, you may want to say, “Could you help me this time and I will substitute for you next month?”

Talking is an art, and it needs us to be studied and explored and practiced. A person who knows how to talk will be much more attractive than someone who knows how to dress.

–Edited by Gaven Li

Contemplations on Mortality . . . via a Cricket on a Screen

December 17, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

WANT NOTHING

Two weeks ago,
on an anxious return trip
from visiting foreign strands
(my living room carpet),
a cricket leaped onto the screen
of the French doors leading to dirt
and home.

Stiff now
and dry like weathered paper,
the cricket still fixes to the grid,
clinging to the mesh,
in crinkled desperation–

eyesore to the housekeeper
who, nevertheless,
lets it be,
a meditation each morning
on his own mortal instinct
to want.

Mr. Ken Sarkis, Drama Instructor and Poet

About this poem: Mr Sarkis shared his story about this poem with us:
“Ms Zachik regularly sends me wonderful creative-writing prompts.
About two months ago, she shared one that challenged me to look around
my house and find an object to contemplate and then to respond by
writing.

For months I had been looking at a dead cricket clinging to the
screen in my living room. It wanted to get outside, so it jumped on
the screen thinking that would lead to his getting ‘home’ to his
natural habitat. It died, stuck to the screen.

I sat on the sofa with a cup of coffee and thought about the
significance of it.

I thought: that little creature wanted something so desperately, it
actually died. I wondered if some of my desires, my wants, are so
strong they make me immobile, stuck, even lifeless.

I decided, instead of cleaning the screen and disposing of the
cricket, I should leave it there as a lesson. It is still there as a
reminder NOT to let my wants get in the way of my living.

I hope anyone who reads the poem will think about that.”

–Interview and editing done by Gaven Li

The World According to Henry: A Guide to Book Burning

December 9, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org 4 Comments

–by Henry Huang

Suppose someday you and your friends end up in a situation like the one in the movie The Day After Tomorrow where you’re trapped in a library while a blizzard rages outside. In order to survive, you have to burn books to keep warm. Now the question, which books would you burn?
Remember, you are trapped in a library–an institution intended to store knowledge. You can’t burn books that will influence the survival and advancement of human beings. So, forget the calculus books, agricultural pieces, and books of essential scientific discovery. They are so important that it is not worth burning them to save individual life.
So what should you burn?
I suggest your first category for burning be . . . Celebrity Biography. Don’t get me wrong; some biographies are good. However, some biographies like Kim Kardashian’s Selfish, which contains nothing but her selfies, should be burned. Mostly, a biography exists because it can inspire people. However, Celebrity Biographies often offer very little under the cover. Do we really need selfies of Kim Kardashian? Remember, in our hypothetical situation, we are in a severe winter snowstorm, and we need to warm ourselves to fend off freezing. Those Celebrity Biographies are usually heavy (in weight), usually more than three hundred pages. Just one burning copy could keep us warm for hours.
Next, burn anything about the zodiac. unnamed I know many people believe in the zodiac and fortune telling. However, think about it seriously. We are now in a huge huge crisis that involves the existence of human beings in a snowstorm. At this moment, all kinds of zodiac and fortune-telling things would not work anymore. The only thing that we need to focus on, at this moment, is survival. If you’re about to freeze to death, do you really need your fortune told?
These are two kinds of books that I would like to burn in this scenario. What is your choice of books for burning in a life-threatening snowstorm?

Henry floated a survey on “What Book What You Burn” on Facebook. Here are some of the replies . . . .

Many of the respondents believe that the first choice of books for burning should be the Twilight series. The reasons were mostly concentrated on the fact that Twilight is a poorly written book. According to one respondent, “Twilight promotes abusive relationships and is just bad literature in general.” The second most popular choice involves encyclopedias and dictionaries. The reasons are, “They have the most paper, so they have the most fuel”; “They are very big and fairly replaceable.” Surprisingly, the third most popular choice for burning for warmth and survival is the Bible. The reasons include more are available “in the future” and “the Bible is thick and burnable.” And, one of Henry’s personal favorite responses is “Burn Mein Kampf.”

How Should America Respond . . . to Syrian Refugees?

December 3, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org 15 Comments

CHLOE’S CORNER

–by Chloe Sweeney

The question on the world’s mind is, “How should we respond to the Syrian refugee crisis?” In this piece, I will be presenting my personal opinion on how I believe America should respond. This does not necessarily reflect the views of Palm Valley School or my fellow blog constituents.

Recently thirty-one United States governors released statements on their refusal to accept Syrian refugees in light of the recent Paris attacks. These governors are from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin. This has been matched with only seven US governors stating their willingness to accept Syrian refugees. These are governors from Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Washington. This issue has gone far beyond party lines. Despite this outcry from the states, the decision on whether or not to accept refugees lies with the federal government. President Barrack Obama has so far remained firm that the US will accept 10,000 Syrian refugees. The states can make the executive branch’s task a lot more difficult by refusing to cooperate with the President or defunding programs that pay for refugee resettlement. A bill recently passed in the House of Representatives to halt the President’s refugee plan until a secure vetting system is put in place.

The President has vowed to veto this bill but thankfully the House has enough votes to reverse such a veto.

People seem to feel like we either need to allow Syrian refugees to enter our country, or we need to leave them alone in the cold. I don’t believe the situation is that simple. I feel very strongly that Syrian refugees, regardless of their faith, should not be allowed to enter my country. I believe that security is a fundamental right that Americans are entitled to. I want to feel safe going to school, sporting events, and church. I understand that the VAST majority of Syrian refugees are not radical Muslims, but we have absolutely no way to discern who these people really are. With Syria’s loss of infrastructure, there are no background checks or ways to confirm the validity of these people’s identities. Two weeks ago, five men were detained in Honduras for possessing fake Syrian passports. Experts have reason to believe that these men wanted to reach the United States to carry out jihadist attacks. One of the Paris attackers, as reported by CNN, is believed by experts to have disguised himself as a refugee who entered Europe from Greece, travelled to Belgium, and then on to Paris to help carry out the massacre. My opinion before, during, and after the Paris attacks has remained firm that Syrian refugees cannot be allowed to come to the United States. The risk of American lives is far too great. There are too many cracks in the vetting system for radical Islamic terrorists to slip through. There is absolutely no way to ensure the safety of all American citizens. The President’s number one job is to protect his nation, and it is not possible for Barrack Obama to fulfill his duty if we allow Syrian refugees to come to America. I implore President Obama to reconsider his resettlement plan.
I do believe that we have a responsibility to help the Syrian people. I think there are many different avenues on how to do this, besides letting them enter America. What I propose is creating a no-fly or safe zone in Syria and Iraq for refugees. There the US and other countries can provide humanitarian aid such as food, water, shelter, and health care. As fellow humans, we have an obligation to do our part to help these people. Ultimately, once they have been given the resources, we will need the Syrian people to restore stability and rebuild their own country. Once the civil war is over and ISIS is eliminated, the Syrian people must be responsible for their own country.
The terror group, ISIS, already causes me fear. The idea that they could reach me at home is absolutely horrifying. They threaten my life, my family’s lives, my freedom, and my faith. ISIS already has the means through social media, lone-wolf attackers, and the recruiting/radicalization of Americans to stage attacks in the United States. As we have seen with the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings and 9/11, we are well within the grasp of radical Islam. We must eliminate the possibility of terrorists infiltrating our homeland. For these reasons, I ask that Syrian refugees not be allowed to enter America.

Hurricane Joaquin Slams South Carolina

October 16, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

–by Chloe Sweeney

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For days, we watched the news from South Carolina as the state’s inhabitants attempted to bail out from Hurricane Joaquin. Many of us had friends and family scurrying for dry land. Blog Editor Trey Lucatero heard from his father, Greenville, South Carolina resident. Mr. Lucatero, who was safely away from the eye of the storm, said, “We received 6 inches of rain; elsewhere it was up to 27 inches.” Former PVS teacher, Mr. Kevin Smith, was leading a retreat of 8th graders through the Carolinas and just missed the downpour.

After weeks of intense rain in South Carolina, with some areas receiving over 20” of rain, the sun finally came out. The relief from the downpour was short-lived as 13 dams collapsed and forced many communities to evacuate. The National Guard and local law enforcement have conducted over 600 rescues. More than 300 people were confined to live in shelters. The destruction of significant infrastructure left several communities without clean water, and 400,000 people were forced to boil their water. Along with the failed dams, a thirteen-mile stretch of Interstate 95 was still closed. South Carolina
Floodwaters break through a walkway in Columbia, S.C., Monday, Oct. 5, 2015. After a week of steady rain, the showers tapered off Monday and an inundated South Carolina turned to surveying a road system shredded by historic flooding. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) Governor Nikki Haley just hours ago extended South Carolina’s “state of emergency declaration.” Gov. Haley said (AP) the National Guard is still repairing 74 roads across the state as well as repairing drinking water systems. There were 17 reported deaths due to this hurricane. The rain may have stopped in South Carolina, but the tragic repercussions are still pouring in.

–Edited by Amber Zheng

Lord of the Flies: Two Continents on One Island

October 15, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

–by Chloe Sweeney

Ninth graders across the country and here at PVS are assigned to read William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. If you haven’t read this iconic story in a while or at all, Chloe Sweeney introduces us to its main characters Ralph and Jack.

Fair-haired Ralph, athletic and disciplined, at the age of twelve is chosen to be chief over all the boys on the island. The idea of order and structure has been instilled in his mind from early childhood by his father, a British Naval Commander. “You remember the meeting? How everyone was going to work hard until the shelters were finished?…All day I’ve been working with Simon. No one else. They’re off bathing, or eating, or playing” (Golding 50). From the start, Ralph places his responsibilities ah FullSizeRender-4 ead of more frivolous activities conducted by other boys. Ralph engages in hard work and commitment to complete tasks that will resemble the life he was accustomed to. But soon, Ralph could no longer resist the barbaric pull: “‘I hit him,’ said Ralph again, ‘and the spear stuck in a bit.’ He felt the need of witnesses…Ralph talked on excitedly. ‘I hit him all right. The spear stuck in. I wounded him!’ He sunned himself in their new respect and felt that hunting was good after all” (113). However, confident, independent Ralph is replaced by an insecure Ralph who searches for the validation of others. Hunting begins as a distracting and pointless sport, but Ralph begins to value the thrill of inflicting pain. “He discovered with a little fall of the heart that these were the conditions he took as normal now and that he did not mind” (110). As Ralph’s standards for himself slip, the glue binding the boys to the laws of civilization begins to melt away.
At home, Jack was the leader of a choir with voices like angels. This identity is soon squashed, as society fades from his conscious thought. In the beginning, Jack is a main supporter of order and structure. ”We’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages. We’re English, and the English are the best at everything. So we’ve got to do the right things” (42). He still holds on to the ideals put in place at home and has a desire to maintain his moral standards. However, as the story progresses, Jack becomes trapped in a bloodlust, losing sight of civilization. “[Jack] tried to convey the compulsion to track down and kill that which was swallowing him up. ‘I went on. I thought, by myself –’ The madness came into his eyes again. ‘I thought I might kill'” (51). The slaughter of pigs, then of people, is a fixation for Jack. His enthrallment with killing distracts him from tending the fire, causing a ship to pass unaware of the boys’ presence on the island.

“There was a ship. Out there. You said you’d keep the fire going and you let it out!…You and your blood, Jack Merridew! You and your hunting! We might have gone home,” (70) screams Ralph. Jack’s incompetence costs the boys an early return home, and consequently the lives of Simon and Piggy.

The leadership styles of Ralph and Jack are revealed in their rise to power, methods of control, and priorities. Ralph was elected by the other boys’ votes.
The clamor changed from the general wish for a chief to an election by acclaim of Ralph himself…There was a stillness about Ralph as he sat that marked him out: there was his size, and attractive appearance; and most obscurely, yet most powerfully, there was the conch. The being that had blown that, had sat waiting for them on the platform with the delicate thing balanced on his knees, was set apart.
”Him with the shell.”
“Ralph! Ralph!”
“Let him be chief with the trumpet-thing.” (22)

Jack was never elected, but instead he broke away from the group to start his own tribe. Ralph controls the boys by using methods to which they are already accustomed. “And another thing. We can’t have everybody talking at once. We’ll have to have ‘Hands up’ like at school…Then I’ll give them the conch…He can hold it when he’s speaking…And he won’t be interrupted. Except by me” (33). Ralph’s system gives everyone a chance to speak and present their ideas and concerns. Contrasting to Ralph’s democratic system, Jack governs as a dictator, using fear and violence to control people. “[Jack’s] going to beat Wilfred. He got angry and made us tie Wilfred up” (159). While Ralph’s first priority is a signal fire, assigning boys to keep it burning, in an attempt to be rescued, Jack’s limited perception keeps him fixated on the present moment, focusing only on what is “fun.” Jack maintains order by promising protection and feasts, while Ralph demands responsibility and a focus on leaving their corrupted island.
So, look about your own desert island. Are you a Ralph or a Jack?

Utopia: from an Eagle Scout’s Point of View

September 11, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

By Amber Zheng

World Literature class last spring devised their own Utopias. Students drew their ideas from Sir Thomas More’s “Utopia”–agreeing or disagreeing or elaborating upon the model. Of course, “Utopia” translates into “No where.”

Utopia is broadly considered to be the ideally perfect society. However, it’s far from reality. David Kocen, last spring, expressed his own thoughts about Utopia. He believes that Utopia is an idea with flaws. From his perspective, Utopia is not going to work. The following are some excerpts from his World Literature essay.

“I do not condone the creation of a utopian society if it cannot be done without excessive bloodshed and hardship for the people. Since I believe that this is the only way to accomplish the creation of Utopia, we should instead focus our efforts on making what we already have better, instead of completely overhauling all of society.”

David asserts that it is necessary to get rid of people who don’t fit the idea of Utopia. Moreover, certain number of population needs to be removed in order to give all people in the society enough opportunities: “It is my personal belief that the only way to succeed in forming a Utopia is to get absolute support. This would mean exiling or killing those who do not support you.”

Unfortunately, the Utopian society still won’t work even if we remove those who are opposed to it, because: “Humans, by their very nature, tend to be more interested in accomplishing their own goals rather than bettering the whole. We are not to blame for this. It is simply evolution trying to be as efficient as possible in insuring the survival of humans. Sadly, evolution has only one tool and that is survival of the fittest. The fittest could help the week, but unless everyone else helps the weak as well, the fittest will be taken advantage of by those who seek only their own gains. It is sad but true……we are too unstable to create a truly utopian society without negative emotion. It just does not work.”

Having said that the Utopia itself will never be a success, David doesn’t think striving for it is a bad thing: “feelings and thoughts are what make us unique. Everyone responds to different things in their own ways. Without individuality and variability, life would be too bo
ring. What is the purpose of living for eighty something years if it is just false smiles and blissful repetition? …… A Utopia, in the common sense of the word, is just a nation filled with meaningless joy. That does not mean that we should not strive to m
ake the world a better place. One of our main purposes in this life is to create a better habitat for the children that we bring into the world. While complete success is impossible and meaningless, motivation for improvement keeps us going through life. We will never succeed in creating a complete Utopia, but we can strive for it. And, with each success, we will achieve a genuine smile on our faces. If we are lucky, we may even get some other people to smile with us.”

*Introductory graphic by Amelia Wang, for World Literature class.

Farewell . . . until September

June 8, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

: D

–B.T.W.

Chances are . . . God Does Play Dice

May 29, 2015 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

Special Blog Correspondent Birdie S. Caped rants about probability and college-dormitory placement systems.

I recently received my housing assignment for college. I got my last choice–a classic triple! Three guys in the smallest room with no air conditioning is suffocating beyond imagination, and I have to share a public bathroom, which consists of eight toilets and showers, with fifty of my floormates. Undoubtedly, the Housing Administrators did not even bother to read my housing application and consider my preferences. If they did, they made a mistake while finishing their sandwiches. Either way, I could only believe that I am truly . . . unlucky.

Probability was inherently my enemy. Every unlikely circumstance happens, and every likely circumstance does not happen. Plans go astray unbelievably often. Anybody so unlucky would be scared to go out on a stormy night because it is likely that the unlikely circumstance of being stricken by lightning will happen. Betrayed by all odds, or upset about my inability to limit the randomness, I once innocently became a perfectionist. Then, I learned that perfectionism is impossible, which is simply an easy, unchallengeable compromise. I have been fed up with the bad luck successively running into me and the housing situation served as the final blow. Now, I decided to not even care about the probability and its outcome but focus on the process and entertainment. Blaming all shortcomings on luck and trying to induce the best result through calculations, indeed, are tedious and childish. I became a lively, hedonistic corpse, who does only what he yearns, . . . with two roommates in close proximity.