Notes of the Day

Please review Favorite Notes and Food Ideas, below.




Today's Notes:



Friday, December 20, 2024

Food Recipe

1:00pm - 2:00pm
Chicken Rice-a-Roni, Perdue Chicken Strips, Tomato Slices, & Mayonnaise Sauce
1. Combine 2 and one half cups water, and rice-vermicelli (Rice-a-Roni) mix in a pot on the stovetop.
2. Turn on High heat.
3. When the mixture begins to boil, stir in the Special Seasonings.
4. Cover and reduce heat to Low. Simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until rice is tender. I cook for 20 minutes.

1. Cut the Perdue Chicken Strips into bite-sized pieces.
2. Cook in a pan on the stovetop until hot.

1. Cut a tomato into bite-sized pieces.

1. Combine the cooked Chicken Strips and Tomatoes in a bowl, and add a spoonful of Mayonnaise. Stir.

1. Put the cooked Rice-a-Roni on a plate, along with the (sauced) Chicken Strips and tomato slices.
2. Enjoy!


Wednesday, November 6, 2024

The Dead Sea Scrolls

12:00am - 1:00am
1. Blessed is...with a pure heart
and does not slander with his tongue.
He directs his heart towards her ways,
and restrains himself by her corrections,
and always takes delight in her chastisements.
2. He will fill your days with good and you will walk in great peace...
you will inherit glory.
And you will end up in the eternal resting place.
3. Do not pour out your thoughts before you have
heard their words...greatly.
First listen to their utterance and afterwards answer
With long-suffering express them and answer correctly among princes.
4. Indicates the presence of a saviour, who has come to help the people.
5. God heard the voice of Job and forgave them their sins because of him.
6. Some foods are forbidden according to Scripture; some foods should not be eaten.
7. And that which you did see, namely that part of their branch of the first, I explained to him the mystery...And that you did see all of them...they will go around, the majority of them will be wicked. And that which you did see, namely that a man came from the south of the land.
8. Some things on earth are the acts of God.
9. I journeyed along the Euphrates until I came to the Red Sea (Persian Gulf) in the east, and I travelled along the coast of the Red Sea until I came to the tongue of the Sea of Reeds (the modern Red Sea) which flows out from the Red Sea.
10. The Dead Sea Scrolls includes biblical interpretation, or passages from the Bible that are read and then interpreted so that they can be understood for symbolic and moral value.
11. Commentaries on Hosea - Interpreted, this means that he smote them with hunger and nakedness that they might be shamed and disgraced in the sight of the nations on which they relied. They will not deliver them from their miseries.
12. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim and like a young lion to the house of Judah. - Its intepretation concerns the last Priest who shall stretch out his hand to strike Ephraim.
13. But they, like Adam, have broken the covenant. - Its intepretation, they have forsaken God and walked according to the decrees of the Gentiles.
14. Sometimes life is not as smooth as we want it to be.
15. The bible cites several instances of man's nakedness and woman's nakedness.
16. There is quarrelling and contention.
17. They scoff at kings, and princes are their laughing-stock. - Interpreted, this means that they mock the great and despise the venerable; they ridicule kings and princes and scoff at the mighty host.
18. The Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill. And their goods shall be plundered and their houses laid waste.
19. The lord knows the days of the perfect and their portion shall be for ever. In evil times they shall not be shamed.
20. And those who love the Lord shall be like the pride of pastures. Interpreted, this concerns the congregation of His elect, who shall be leaders and princes...of the flock among their herds.
21. The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom and his tongue speaks justice. The law of God is in his heart.
22. My heart is astir with a good word. My heart wants to do good.
23. Mark the blameless man and behold the upright, for there is posterity for the man of peace.
24. This is the time of which it is written in the book of Daniel the Prophet: But the wicked shall do wickedly and shall not understand, but the righteous shall purify themselves and make themselves white. The people who know God shall be strong.
25. Let no man's garment be worn by a woman, and let no woman's garment be worn by a man.
26. Creditors should be kind toward their debtors.
27. The pseude...known prior to Qumran from a complete Ethiopic and partial Greek, Latin and Syrian translations, has for the first time surfaced in a large number of mostly small nearly extant fragments in its Hebrew original in five Qumran caves.
28. For I know the mysteries of the Lord which the holy ones have explained and showed me and which I read in the heavenly tablets. And I saw written in them that one generation after another will do evil in this way, and evil will last until generations of righteousness arise and evil and wickedness shall end and violence shall cease from the earth and good shall come on the earth.
29. The sun rises and darkness comes and then there is night. Then the sun rises and darkness comes and this is the second night....Then the sun rises and darkness comes and this is the seventh night, and the earth proceeds in this way.
30. Behold the Ruler of heaven descended to earth and thrones were set and the Holy One sat. Thousands and thousands stood before Him. And behold, books were opened and judgement signed. And the Great one reigns over all the living and all those who rule.
31. Words of the Archangel Michael - The dream...Words of the book which Michael addressed to the angels...He said: I found there divisions of fire, and I saw there nine mountains: two to the east, and two to the west, and two to the north and two to the south. I saw there the angel Gabriel...like a vision. Then I showed him the vision. And he said to me, in the books of my Master, the Lord of the world, it is written: Behold, between the sons of Ham and the sons of Shem.
32. The Testament of Levi - Then I raised my eyes and face towards heaven and opened my mouth and spoke, and I prayed and said, Lord, Thou knowest every heart, Thou alone knowest all the thoughts of the heart...
33. The chief of all your deeds shall be truth, and it shall be with you for ever. Righteousness and truth...you will bring in a blessed harvest.
34. Sprinkle the blood of a sacrifice on your body. Then wash your hands of it, then wash your neck of it, then wash your legs of it, then wash your feet of it.
35. His word is like a word of heaven, and his teaching is according to the will of God.
36. Humour is okay, but don't be so foolish that people despise you.
37. 'You are thirty years old.' And he gave a banquet lasting seven days...Then, when the days of the wedding feast came to an end, everything returned to normal.
38. Gather together all the congregation and go up to Mount Nebo and stand there, you and Eleazar son of Aaron. Interpret to the heads of family of the Levites and to all the Priests, the words of the law which I proclaimed to you on Mount Sinai.
39. "Partying is okay, but too much partying is bad." --The Words of Moses
40. You will do all that your God has commanded you from the mouth of the prophet.
41. Let them be gathered, to Thy people and be a help to it and raise it, and deliver their feet from muddy clay and establish for them a rock from of old, for Thy praise is over all the peoples.
42. An Elisha Apocryphon - And Elisha went up. The spirit of Elijah rests over Elisha.
43. A Zedekiah Apocryphon - ...Michael...Zedekiah shall enter into a covenant on that day...to practise and to cause all the Torah to be practised.



Monday, November 4, 2024

The Roman History, Cassius

3:00pm - 4:00pm
1. Generally speaking, it is unclear what subjects are protected by freedom of speech and what subjects are not.
2. Even among the men who conspired against him, he punished only those whose lives would have been of no benefit, even to themselves.

5:00pm - 6:00pm
Heroides, Ovid
1. In the twenty-one poems of the Heroides, Ovid gave voice to the heroines and heroes of epic and myth. These deeply moving literary epistles reveal the happiness and torment of love, as the writers tell of their pain at separation, forgiveness of infidelity or anger at betrayal.
2. In the poetic letters between Paris and Helen the lovers seem oblivious to the disaster prophesied for them, while in another exchange the youthful Leander asserts his foolhardy eagerness to risk his life to be with his beloved hero.
3. People in a relationship should learn to forgive and understand each other.
4. The Penelope of the Heroides asserts that she is primarily and most properly worthy of sympathy and compassion.
5. In a relationship sometimes, when we ask questions, our partner may not give us the exact answer that we're looking for.
6. Imagine if the buildings of a city were not there, and only grass and earth existed.
7. You're so skilled at fighting, you should take on a whole army all by yourself.
8. Be sure that I know how fickle men can be.
9. "Look at how they grow fat on the wealth won by your blood."
10. "Men should do men's work, women should do women's work."
11. Objections to romantic relationships in the workplace/military as the couple won't be able to get any work done.
12. The man was simply too old to work, he was a very old man.
13. He was widely regarded in the Greek world as a man of great wisdom whose advice was actively and often sought on many different matters.
14. Zacynthus is an island in the Ionian Sea, just of the coast of Thraces.
15. "She regretted her decision, because she failed to realize the possible consequences."
16. Yet as she here presents herself as a simple woman swept off her feet by an experienced man of the world, the reader cannot help but remembering that love is blind.
17. "Tell me what have I done? I loved unwisely."



Monday, November 4, 2024

The Roman History, Cassius

12:00pm - 1:00pm
1. Some laws conradict human nature.
2. Do not let the shortcomings of other disturb you, but rather take every precaution to guard your own person and property.
3. Doctors rarely resort to surgery, because this is a drastic solution.
4. Some people would accept this post, yet a man of noble birth and high spirit would rather die than suffer such dishonour.
5. A man can be compelled to fear another, but he ought to be persuaded to love him.

4:00pm - 5:00pm
1. Since the people had been wronged by the government, they discussed plans for an uprising.
2. I shall not describe all these matters minutely; many of the events which took place are not worth mentioning. I shall speak of only those episodes which are memorable.
3. The country has a fine military composed of brave soldiers.
4. They were familiar with the region and lightly equipped, and so could easily move wherever they chose.
5. The spoiled kid was made to prove himself in the army.
6. If the senators could not reach an agreement, then they would try to find another solution.
8. "God created man," implies that god created woman also.
9. A goal of man is to build up a country to the best of his ability.
10. A good experience, is still a good experience, even though it may have slightly bad aspects.
11. Even though the man was fined, the state issued a grace period, and even forgiveness, if he could not pay.
12. All fortresses have their vulnerabilities
13. One fortress was well fortified and armed, but the inhabitants had to leave the fortress regularly to get food and supplies.
14. One fortress was well fortified and armed, and because the enemy saw it operating as though it were its own nation, the enemy retreated, and let it operate independently.
15. The army hurled down volleys of stones and spears onto the enemy's base.
16. The military had to determine what to do in the event of an attack.
17. As a result of the siege, the army retreated.



Saturday, November 2, 2024

The Roman History, Cassius

10:00am - 11:00am
The Roman History
1. In one Greek city-state, it was rather difficult for citizens to join the army.
2. Even though he was an old man and retired from the military, he was allowed to join military functions dressed in military uniform.
3. He also specified by law the number of senators required for the passing of decrees according to the various kinds of decree.
4. Once, when a former comrade asked Augustus to help him present his case, he at first made out that he was busy and asked one of his friends to speak on the man's behalf.
5. He also directed that Roman senators should serve in colonies outside of Rome.
6. They invented a series of short-hand symbols to achieve a faster rate of writing, and taught many people how to use this system.
7. Some gladatorial combats took place between opposing groups of equal numbers.
8. At one point because the Roman army was growing spoiled, the senator introduced a series of reforms.
9. Some legislation had a specific time limit, and some legislation had an approximate time limit.
10. The senators who he appointed were wise men who had displayed their knowledge in certain areas.

2:00pm - 3:00pm
Mencius
1. In life, there a many variables that we cannot control.
2. Our emotions sometimes fluctuate.
3. Sometimes we have more food, and sometimes we have less food.
4. Some music is pleasing, I don't know why, but it's pleasing.
6. There is a character name Ti, and another character, King Hsuan of Ch'i.
7. Your people are responsible for atrocities and crimes against humanity, why should I listen to you?
8. He did this not out of choice, but because he had no alternative.
9. "T'eng is a small state. If it tries with all its might to please the large states, it will only bleed itself white in the end."
10. He tried to buy them off with skins and silks, with horses and hounds, with pearls and jade, but all to no avail. "What the Ti tribes want is our land."
11. It is not easy to provide food for the hungry and drink for the thirsty.
12. In war, I look at defeat as a victory. It gives me an opportunity to refocus and get stronger.
13. You can't even understand words in my language, why should I listen to you?
14. I understand that someone died and a life was lost, but that doesn't make it right to take the life of this person in repayment or punishment.



Friday, November 1, 2024 -- 1:25am

The Roman History, Cassius

1:00am - 2:00am
The Roman History
1. You should, of course, supervise the lives of your subjects, but not probe them too strictly. You should judge cases which are referred to you by others, but if no accusation has been made, act as if you knew nothing.
2. Human nature often tempts men to break the law, and if you were to prosecute in every single instance, few, if any, of the accused would be left unpunished; but if you temper the letter of the law with leniency and humanity, you may succeed in bringing the offenders to see reason.
3. You should never allow gold or silver images to be made of yourself, for not only are they expensive, but they positively invite conspiracy and last only for a short while.
4. There are plenty of urgent needs for which the money can be better used, for genuine wealth is accumulated not by raising large revenues but by effecting large savings.
5. For these and other reasons you need people who will keep their eyes and ears open in all matters touching your leadership of the state, and clearly you must be informed of any situation which may demand preventive or corrective action.
6. If you take time about giving your trust to any of these men, no great harm will be done, but if you act too swiftly you may make a mistake which proves to be irretrievable.
7. Becaue of the civil wars, a large number of knights and persons of still lower status had become members of the Senate without any rightful qualification for being there, so that its membership had increased to one thousand. Although Octavian wished to expel these men, he did not himself strike his names off the roll, but rather urged them in view of what they knew to make themselves judges of their case. manner.
8. Gladatorial combats between prisoners of war often took place.
9. Octavian paid for these events out of his private means, it was generally supposed. When money was needed for the public treasury, he borrowed the amount and paid it in. For the management of the public funds he ordered two magistrates to be chosen each year from the former praetors.
10. I gave myself to you without stint in all the emergencies which have arisen, and what I sacrificed is known to you all.

4:00pm - 5:00pm
15. As your allies, we will help you, because you are our friends.
16. Since America is comprised of many different world peoples, we have to try to practice tolerance.
17. All world peoples have performed noble, courageous deeds.
18. Immortality is a state which it is not in our power to possess, but by living nobly and dying nobly we do in a certain measure achieve this condition.
19. He brought his lunch with him and ate it in the courthouse.
20. Since he had a cold, the doctor recommended hot baths and hot liquds.
21. Because of this the Senate passed a resolution that Augustus should be a tribune for life and gave him the privilege of introducing before the Senate at each session any one subject at whatever time he chose.
22. Augustus went to the court-room of his own accord, and when he was asked by the praetor whether he had given the man orders to make war, said that he had not.
23. There was a rivalry between two politicians that left the state in turmoil.
24. He provided the city with the water supply and gave it the name Aqua Virgo.
25. After attending to these matters, he again carried out a review of the Senate. He thought its numbers were too large, and he could see no merit in a multitude of senators.
26. It was Augustus's custom to use the regular order of precedence when he invited the senators to vote, he would call one senator first, then another senator second, then a third senator third, and so on, and ultimately they made a decision.
27. He snores, and snoring disturbs me.
28. Citizens were given incentives to marry foreigners.
29. Two tribes took up arms against the Romans, but they were defeated and the revolt quelled by Publius Silius. The uprisings in Dalmatia and Spain were also quickly put down.
30. All this I have brought together, so as to prevent the native inhabitants, if they were in possession of such money, from starting a rebellion.



Thursday, October 31, 2024

The Roman History, Cassius

12:00pm - 1:00pm
The Roman History
4. "We must also maintain a standing army to be recruited from the citizen body, the allies amd the subject nations. Its strength in the different provinces will vary according to the demands of the situation, and these troops should always be under arms and continually training for active service.
5. "Winter quarters should be bult for them in the most suitable places, and the men should serve for a specified term, so that a period of years is allowed for them between their retirement from service and old age."
6. "On the other hand, if we allow all those of military age to bear arms and train for fighting, rebellions and civil wars will constantly arise from their inexperience."
7. "In this way, the most active men in the population, those who are in their physical prime, will be maintained without harming others, and the rest will live their lives free form danger."
8. "Cities should not hold too many festivals, since this would deplete the resources of the city."
9. "The prize for their brave and courageous deeds was free subsistence for life."
10. "Have regular meetings with the best sportsmen of all sports, so as to know what the best men of the country know."

11. "Children should learn in school the skills necessary for survival as adults."
12. "It is difficult for an unarmed man to conspire against an armed man."
13. "Questions that citizens have should be asked to the local Senator, who may then refer the questions to the Senate body."
14. "In the event of possible wrongdoing, Senators should be tried by other Senators."
15. Book Reviews XII: The Dead Sea Scrolls, added.

6:00pm - 7:00pm
16. "The best ruler, the one who is of any real value, should not only perform all the duties which fall to his lot, but should provide for the rest of his subjects, so that they can develop their virtues to the full."
17. "It is better to educate people, than it is to terrorize them with laws and punishments."
18. "You share a stage with the whole world for your audience, don't be ashamed of being human."



Sunday, October 27, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights

10:00am - 11:00am
The Arabian Nights
1. "Some crimes are forgivable."
2. The king said, "Here is money for food and rent, and here is an additional sum annually for other expenses."
3. "I like him, he is pleasant, sweet and agreeable!"
4. The caliph said, "I want you to find a man in Basra called Abu Muhammad the sluggard."
5. "There is nothing cowardly in doing what is patient and safe."

1:00pm - 2:00pm
6. "Since I have a lot of money, I will tempt him with money, and try to cause him to forget how I wronged him."
7. "In early times its inhabitants had been unbelievers, but Almighty God had transformed them into stones."
8. There was a monkey, and because the monkey was misbehaving, the man put it in a brass jar.
9. "He could not refuse a drink of wine when his companions asked him to drink. It could have gotten him drunk."
10. Some biblical traditions began with the first person receiving the act, and then continued with each successive person.
11. "He presented him with two hundred dirhams, ten Arab horses, five with trappings of silk and five with ornamental processional saddles...as well as an appropriate selection of precious jewels."
12. "Your punishment is to have your beard shaved off."
13. "You cannot return what you have purchased."
14. "For compensation, give me whatever item you have. I will try not to make you poor."

2:00pm - 3:00pm
15. "Beware of drinking wine. This is the source of all evil; it does away with reason and brings the drinker into contempt."
16. "If you spend all your days acquiring and amassing wealth, When are you to enjoy what you have got?"
17. There was a beautiful slave girl, and instead of selling her off to the highest bidder, her kind owner allowed her to choose which man she wanted to be with.
18. The slave girl chose the most handsome and intelligent man to be with.
19. "She can recite the Quran in all seven readings; she can write in seven scripts; and she knows more of the sciences than the most learned scholar."
20. "She told the auctioneer: 'Take my hand and bring me to him, so that I may display myself to him and attract him to me.'"
21. "Up till now I have had nothing to eat, but I am embarrased to say in front of the merchants that I have no money."
22. The man met a Christian. He told the Christian, "Follow behind me, with a drink of water, and if I get thirsty, then give me the water, and I'll pay you at the end of the day."

3:00pm - 4:00pm
23. Omitted.



Friday, October 25, 2024

Mencius

12:00am - 1:00am
1. Take the example of a farmer. A farmer certainly works for a living, but he cannot be expected to also do the hundred and one things necessary to make his farm successful.

6:00am - 7:00am
1. “It is great that today, we can benefit from bookstores and the internet to share information and learn new things.”
2. The king said, “For your courageous and brave actions, I will ensure that you are taken care of for your lifetime.”

7:00am - 8:00am
3. "With the passage of time, new developments and new problems arose, and if Confucianism was to hold its own, it had to take cognizance of these new developments and furnish answers to these new problems."
4. "'He had no right to,' said the King. 'He did not quite run a hundred paces. That is all. But all the same, he ran.'"
5."Now when food meant for human beings is so plentiful as to be thrown to dogs and pigs, you fail to realize that it is time for garnering, and when men drop dead from starvation by the wayside, you fail to realize that it is time for distribution."
6. "No one in the Empire will refuse to give it to him. Does Your Majesty not know about young rice plants?"
7. "Seeking the fulfilment of such an ambition by such means as you employ is like looking for fish by vlimbing a tree."
8. "In good years life is always hard, while in bad years there is no way of escaping death. Thus simply to survive take more energy than the people have. What time can they spare for learning about rites and duty?"
9. Omitted.
10. "Mental health is okay, but at some point, questions and problems about it arose, and these need answers and solutions."



Wednesday, October 23, 2024

History of the Peloponnesian War

12:00am - 1:00am
1. "If you are not neutral in the war, then you are our allies.”
2. “The large army was bullying smaller nations around.”
3. “For peace in a war, write a treaty, and ensure that both sides abide by the terms of the treaty.”
4. “According to the treaty, the Potidaeans were to pull out their troops, allow the Corinthians to repair their country, and return to normal.”
5. “We’re going to call a meeting of our allies to see who can help us.”

6:00am - 7:00am
6. “They are quick to go out and fight a war, while their country itself could use help in other areas.”

7:00am - 8:00am
7. "If a people are deprived of their liberty, then they have the right to fight."
8. "Our aim is to prevent you from coming to the wrong decision on a matter of great importance through paying too much attention to the views of your allies."
9. "A country should have reasonable aims."
10. "As it is, long speeches are unecessary."
11. "You are a leader who waits calmly before taking action."
12. "The chief reason for the failure of the Persian invasion was the mistaken policy of the Persians themselves. We can learn from this."
13. "We are skilled builders, and we have built a lot of arms and ships, and that is what has saved us in war."
14. "The actions of their military brought them economic and trade sanctions, and the disaproval of other nations."



Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Misc. Notes

10:00am - 11:00am
1. Updated: Introductory Notes post, June 22, 2024.

5:00pm - 6:00pm
2. Please review on my Facebook page — Research in Law and Psychiatry post - January 15, 2024

:00pm - 7:00pm
3. "This courtroom is being too formal, judge. Lighten up please."

10:00pm - 11:00pm
1. “If you want to prosecute me then prosecute me, you don’t have to constantly torture me and harass me about my past.”



Monday, October 21, 2024

The Dead Sea Scrolls

4:00am - 5:00am
1. At the last judgement, predicts the Commentary, the Wicked Priest will empty 'the cup of wrath of God.' His successors, the 'last Priests of Jerusalem', are also charged with amassing 'money and wealth by plundering the peoples,' i.e. foreigners.
2. It seems to designate here as in rabbinic literature ritually pure food, as well as the vessels and utensils in which it is contained or cooked.
3. "He was not, in effect, to attend the common table and had to eat elsewhere."
4. Many historians focus less on the dates and specific locations of historical events, and more on the meaning and symbolism of the events.
5. During one event in Qumran history "...in Daniel, they humiliate the enemy of the Jews."
6. In the Habakkuk Commentary, "Feared and admired by all, they are seen to be on the point of defeating the 'last Priests of Jerusalem' and confiscating their wealth, as they have done to many others before. Such a representation of a victorious and advancing might would hardly apply to the Greek Seleucids of Syria, who by the second half of the second century BCE were in grave decline."
7. It is also worth noting that the 'Kittim' of the War Scroll, the final opponents of the eschatological Israel, are subject to a king or emperor (melekh).
8. eschatology - the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind.
9. "For although biblical names are often used symbolically, including that of 'Israel,' the actions attributed to the 'Wicked Priest' make little sense if the person in question did not exercise both pontifical and secular power."

5:00am - 6:00am
10. "The war with the Romans tried their souls through and through by every variety of test. Racked and twisted, burned and broken...they refused to yield to either demand, nor ever once did they cringe to their persecutors or shed a tear."
11. View religion as "a path to holiness walked in obedience to God's commandments."
12. ...persuaded them to remember their Covenant with God with solemn vows of repentance and national rededication; but the promises were usually short-lived.
13. Cautions congregations against sliding into "mere religious formalism."

6:00am - 7:00am
14. Election and Holy Life in the Community of the Covenant
15. "The aim of a holy life lived within the Covenant was to seek out the secrets of heaven in this world and to stand before God for ever in the next."
16. To judge from the many references to it, the time element both calendric and horary was crucial.
17. The laws of purity were also assuredly essential to the sect, and some practical guidance is given. The dietary laws are dealt with in the Damascus Document and the Temple Scroll. For instance, the eating of 'live creatures' (e.g. larvae of bees, fish and locusts) is declared to be prohibited.
18. Omitted.
19. Omitted.
20. Perfume in excess violates hygeine standards.
21. Priests had to adhere to a strict moral code.

7:00am - 8:00am
22. Certain activities between husband and wife were prohibited.
22. Future Expectations in the Community of the Covenant
23. Using biblical models as vehicles for their own convictions, the Teacher of Righteousness and the Community's sages projected an image of the future which is elaborate and colorful, but which cannot always be fully comprehended by us, partly because some of the associations escape us, and partly because of gaps in the extant texts. They foresaw in their Community's story the fulfilment of the prophetic expectations concerning the salvation of the righteous.
24. Omitted.
25. The Priest was to be the final teacher, he was also to preside over battle liturgy and the eschatological banquet.

9:00am - 10:00am
1. Updated: Food Ideas post.
26. This is the rule for an Assembly of the Congregation - Each man shall sit in his place: the Priests shall sit first, and the elders second, and all the rest of the people according to their rank. No man shall interrupt a companion before his speech has ended, nor speak before a man of higher rank; each man shall speak in his turn. And no man shall speak without the consent of the Congregation. If they let him speak after he asks, he shall speak.
27. These are the Rules by which they shall judge at a Community (Court of) Inquiry according to the cases

10:00am - 11:00am
28. Entry into the Covenant - And the Guardian will come, and the elders with him until...and they shall enter by geneology.

11:00am - 12:00pm
29. The Priests are converts of Israel who departed from the land of Judah, and (the Levites are) those who joined them.
30. No man that approaches them shall be free from guilt; the more he does so, the guiltier shall he be.
31. God remembered the Covenant, and he raised men of discernment and men of wisdom.

12:00pm - 1:00pm
1. The Penguin Book of Hebrew Verse
2. Todros Abulafia is one poet in the collection. "Figs," "Three Poems from Prison," and "Zecharia, the Messiah" are some his poems.
3. Three Poems from Prison - "My rings have fallen off, but I still have my fingers; my glory is not in my wealth of rings. I still have my faith, my dignity, and my precious soul, the legacy of my parents, the patrimony of my ancestors...The man of sense laughs at Time, and cheers himself with 'perhaps' or 'if'."
4. Zechariah the Messiah - "The wind of the arrows quivers in the hearts, it burns men's vitals and scatters their spirits, and there is no remedy for the bodies."
5. In one of her poems one female author suggests that the city is filled with grime, filth, and is a dirty place to live.
6. One author writes, "When I make you uncomfortable with my right hand, then focus on my left hand, when I make you uncomfortable with my left arm, then focus on my right arm."

1:00pm -2:00pm
1. Mencius
2. Little is known about Mencius other than what can be gathered from the book named after him. He was, perhaps, born a century or so after the death of Confucius, and it is likely that he died before the end of the fourth century B.C. Only two Chinese philosophers have the distinction of being known consistently to the West by a latinized name. The first is Confucius. The second is Mencius, whose name is Meng K'e. That Mencius should share the distinction is by no means an insignificant fact, for he is without doubt second only to Confucius in importance in the Confucian tradition, a fact officially recognized in China for over a thousand years.
3. Characters include: King Hui of Liang, King Hsiang of Liang, Duke Huan, Duke Wen, Wan Chang, Wang Huan, Kung-ming Yi, Kung-sun Ch'ou...

4:00pm - 5:00pm
1. Since I am trying to perfect my site, I updated the Food Ideas post.

5:00pm - 6:00pm
1. Cut open and examine their stomach to detect the presence of poison, if you want to autopsy a dead body to detect poisoning.



Sunday, October 20, 2024

Misc. Notes

8:00am - 9:00am
1. Pools which hold fresh water can be useful in areas where there are shortages of water. The freshwater can be imported by ship to pools that are created. The people can then line up, get water in buckets, in order to drink and use for other purposes (such as growing vegetables and cooking).

9:00am - 10:00am
2. These “pools” which hold fresh water can at a later date be adapted with pipes and pumps in order to transport the water more easily.
3. The fresh water would be imported from somewhere else and then loaded onto ships and then transported by ship, and then taken off the ship onto trucks, and then emptied into freshwater pools. Then it can be collected by the people in buckets for various uses.

10:00am - 11:00am
4. The water would be imported onto ships in large quantities, about enough water to fill one storage pool per ship. Also the plants that can be grown from the water such as oranges and lemons, can be either grown directly in the ground, or grown in pots, whichever is more convenient.
5. The water can be used to make powdered drink mix such as Kool-Aid or from the oranges and lemons that are grown it can make orange juice and lemonade. The water can also be used to plant vegetables such as carrots, lettuce and tomatoes, which can at some point be eaten.
6. The water can also be used to grow crops such as potatoes and yams, which are popular in many areas.

4:00pm - 5:00pm
1. A water station, like a gas station, located in key points in the city, where water once imported, is stored and then pumped out in a way that permits people to carry the water home is a good idea.

5:00pm - 6:00pm
1. The Dead Sea Scrolls
2. In the spring of 1947 a young Arab shepherd climbed into a cave in the Judean desert and stumbled on the first Dead Sea Scrolls. The cave was located close to the Dead Sea, near Jerusalem.
3. II. The Community - We all live in a community. People have symbolic roles or jobs in the community. People also have certain responsibilities in the community.
4. These are, as may be seen, mostly the sort of recommendations to be expected of men devoting themselves to contemplation. A point to bear in mind, however, is that the contemplative life is not a regular feature of Judaism.
5. The hierarchy at Qumran was strict and formal, from the higest level to the lowest.
6. The highest office was vested in the person of the Guardian, known also, it would seem, as the 'Master' (maskil). The Community was to be taught by him how to live in conformity with the 'Book of the Community Rule', and to be instructed by him in the doctrine of the 'two spirits'. He was to preside over assemblies, giving leave to speak to those wishing to do so. He was to assess, in concert with the brethren, the spiritual progress of the men in his charge and rank them accordingly. And negatively, he was not to dispute with 'the men of the Pit (or Dawn)' and not to transmit to them the sect's teachings.
7. In Judaism as represented by the Mishnah, the priest is superior to the Levite, the Levite to the Israelite, and the Israelite to the 'bastard'. But the priestly precedence is conditional. If the 'bastard' is a man of learning, we are told, and the High Priest an uneducated 'boor', 'the bastard...precedes the High Priest.'
8. The purpose of the meetings of the twelve tribes and three Levitical clans is clear. It was to debate the Law, to discuss their current business, to select or reject newcomers under the guidance of the Guardian, to hear charges against offenders and to conduct a yearly inquiry into the progress of every sectary, promoting or demoting them in rank, again under the Guardian's supervision.
9. During their sessions, order and quiet were to prevail.

6:00pm - 7:00pm
10. The severely handicapped and some foreigners were disqualified from performing priestly duties.
11. There were laws against a Jew stealing from a non-Jew.

7:00pm - 8:00pm
12. The history of religions furnishes scores of examples of sister sects which turned into mortal enemies.
13. Determine the reasons why the sister sects split from the main branch.
14. Drawing the threads of these various aguments together, there would seem to be little doubt not only that the desert and town sectaries were united in doctrine and organization, but that they remained in actual and regular touch with each other, under the ultimate administrative and spiritual authority of the shadowy figure of the Priest, of whom we hear so little...
15. Determine the differences between the different sister sects of a religion.

8:00pm - 9:00pm
16. Many people have tried to record history, but for some, the focus is not on historical events themselves, but on their religious significance.
17. As may be remembered, the superior at Qumran was required to be expert in recognizing 'the nature of all the children of men according to the kind of spirit which they possess.’



Saturday, October 19, 2024

A Harlot High and Low, Honore de Balzac

3:00am - 4:00am
1. The female protagonist said, “I want a diamond; I want to experience owning a diamond. I may in the future turn it in for the cash value.”
2. Towards the end of the novel, the female protagonist who became successful and wealthy finally achieves upper class status.
3. She was dressed in expensive clothing.
4. Reminds readers of the abstract nature of money.
5. "The magistrate and his clerk could not restrain themselves from laughing, despite the gravity of their functions. Jacques Collin joined in their hilarity, though with moderation."
6. "Human justice, in the form in which it flourishes in Paris, that is to say in its cleverest, most mistrustful, wittiest, most educated form, too witty in some ways, for it interprets the law differently on different occasions."
7. "Coquart read over his report of the scene, but the prisoner refused to sign basing his refusal on a lack of knowledge of French legal procedure."
8. "Well, that's quite enough for one day, you must be feeling the need for a little food, I'll have you taken back to the Conciergerie."
9. She wrote a letter, which highlighted her liveliness and wisdom, and this impressed him.
10. She illustrated the troubles that women sometimes endure.
11. "'Don't imagine that I am compromising myself...,' went on Jacques Collin giving the judge to understand that his suspicion had been noted."
12. "'Well, then, believe me, I know Lucien, he has the soul of a woman, a poet, a man of the South, inconstant, lacking in willpower,' he continued."
13. "Do you have to be so evil, judge?"

9:00am - 10:00am
The Histories, Herodotus
1. “What a strange man you are. Have you any fault to find with our army? Isn’t it big enough? What are you afraid of?”
2. “No, sir, quite the contrary. We have the biggest and most powerful army and navy in the world.”

10:00am - 11:00am
3. "A small dog ran under his feet, and then he fell down and hit his head."
4. Omitted.

11:00am - 12:00pm
5. “The farmers took time to fatten up the cattle.”
6. “Some animals panic very easily.”
7. “Soldiers who die for their country are brave and courageous.”

1:00pm - 2:00pm
8. During one war, the decision was made to hold the pass in order to prevent the Persians from entering Greece.

2:00pm - 3:00pm
1. Omitted.
9. A navy ship was sent to dock in order to protect the waters. It did not have orders to protect the land of the country.

8:00pm - 9:00pm
1. I think that many people who've never smoked weed have recently tried cbd oil or cbd oil mixed with their other drugs. I draw this conclusion because they’ve slowed down a bit recently.



Friday, October 18, 2024

The Histories, Herodotus

10:00am - 11:00am
1. The army surrounded the enemy's building.
2. Once the military had surrounded the enemy building, they cut off access to essential supplies, and did not allow the enemy soldiers to go shopping for food or get oil for transportation.
3. The enemy surrendered peacefully.
4. "Amongst the Athenian commanders opinion was divided: some were against risking a battle, on the ground that the Athenian force was too small to stand a chance of success; others -- and amongst them Miltiades -- urged it."
5. "Increase the space between borders of a country, in order to avoid territorial disputes."
6. "He made guest-friendship with a man called Themison, and obtained from him a promise upon oath to perform whatever service should be asked of him."
7. "The mother believed that she was giving birth to an evil daughter."
8. In history there are several examples of people sacrificing children or adults to the gods.

11:00am - 12:00pm
9. "He would add that Europe was a very beautiful place; it produced every kind of garden tree; the land there was everything that land should be -- it was, in short, too good for any mortal except the Persian king."
10. "They were having so much fun, they didn't get any work done."
11. "Anyway, he went to Susa; and now, whenever he found himself in the king's presence the people would talk big about his wonderful powers and he would recite selections from his oracles."
12. "First, however, he sent an army against the Egyptian rebels and decisively crushed them; then, having reduced the country to a condition of worse servitude than it had ever been in the previous reign, he turned it over to his brother, a Libyan."
13. An ion gun is a fascinating modern weapon which can be fired with impressive accuracy.

12:00p, - 1:00pm

14. "Yet, from what I hear, the Greeks are pugnacious enough, and start fights on the spur of the moment without sense or judgement to justify them. When they declare war on each other, they go off together to the smoothest and levellest bit of ground they can find, and have their battle on it -- with the result that even the victors never get off without heavy losses, and as for the losers -- well, they're wiped out. Now surely, as they all talk the same language, they ought to be able to find a better way of settling their differences: by negotiation, for instance, or an interchange of views -- indeed by anything rather than fighting. Or if it is really impossible to avoid coming to blows, they might at least emply the elements of strategy and look for a strong position to fight from. In any case, the Greeks, with their absurd notions of warfare, never even thought of opposing me when I led my army to Macedonia."
15. "But should I be wrong and they be so foolish as to do battle with us, then they will learn that we are the best soldiers in the world.
16. Omitted.
17. "The phantom after uttering these threats was on the point of burning out Artabanus' eyes with hot irons, when he leapt up with a shriek, and ran to find Xerxes."
18. "At the same time other work too was in progress, and provision dumps were being formed for the troops, lest either men or animals should go hungry on the march to Greece. For these dumps the most convenient sites were chosen after a careful survey, the provisions being brought from many different parts of Asia in merchantmen or transport vessels."



Thursday, October 17, 2024

The Penguin Book of Hebrew Verse, T. Carmi

12:00am - 1:00am
1. Eleazar Ben Kallir or Killir - the outstanding representative of the classical piyut, probably lived in Palestine before the Arab conquest. Though his poems have figured prominently in printed rituals, and hundreds more have come to light in manuscript collections, his biography remains one of the great mysteries of Hebrew literary history. His radical innovations in the diction, style, and structure of the piyut had a great influence on the poets who succeeded him in Palestine and in other lands of the Near East and Europe. The 'Kallir style' involves a highly allusive use of language, packed with references to written and oral traditions. The 'Kallir style' was severely criticized in the twelfth century by Abraham ibn Ezra for having corrupted 'classical' (i.e., biblical) Hebrew and for being unduly obscure and esoteric. But Kallir - like other great innovators of the classical and late Eastern periods -- was also capable of writing simple and direct poetry, both lyrical and dramatic, as some of the selections demonstrate.
2. Sa'adiah Gaon - the father of medieval Jewish philosophy, was born in the Faiyum district in Egypt. From 928, except for a period of conflict with the exilarch, he held the post of gaon ('eminence') of the Academy of Sura in Babylonia (Iraq). A bold innovator in many areas, he translated the Bible into Arabic (which had replaced Aramaic as the principle language spoken by the Jews); edited the first 'scientific' prayer-book; and compiled the first comprehensive Hebrew dictionary, including a rhyming dictionary for the use of poets. He was the first to wed Hebrew poetry and philosophy...
3. Joseph Albardani - was chief hazan in the Great Synagogue of Baghdad, and was succeeded in this post by his son and grandson. The following poem, attributed to Albardini, is based on a Midrashic elaboration of the episode in Exodus 14.
4. Simeon Ben Isaac - a native of Mainz, was the outstanding synagogal poet of Ashkenazi Jewry. His distinctive style clearly reflects the influence of the Palestinian classical school, or merkava mysticism, and of his older contemporary, Moses ben Kalonymus. In several of his piyutim, he introduced his son's name in the acrostic. A venerated Talmudic authority, he became the hero of many folk legends. One tradition has it that his son embraced Christianity and rose to the rank of Pope. When Simeon the Great went to Rome to plead his people's cause, he played chess with the Pope and, by the style of his game, recognized him as his son.
5. Poems from the Dead Sea Scrolls
6. The Mystery to Come A poem which suggests that what will happen in our life is a mystery. "...and they do not know the mystery to come; they have not brooded over the past; they do not know what will befall them; they have not saved their lives from the mystery to come."
7. Anonymous - The Death of Moses Sequence "How then shall I die? How then shall I die? I sinfully answered: 'I am slow of speech,' and angered You who give man speech - if this is my crime, blot it out and do not call it to mind!"
8. Wine, by Samuel Hanagid - Wine in the cup looks like a normal liquid, but remember that it can be a dangerous substance when it is consumed. "When it is in the bowls, it is feeble; but once it goes to the head, it holds sway over swaying heads."
9. The Jasmine, by Samuel Hanagid - A poem praising jasmine.

1:00am -2:00am
10. Wine Song For Spring, by Moses Ibn Ezra
"Give me the cup that will enthrone my joy and banish sorrow from my heart. Drink all day long, until the day wanes and the sun coats its silver with gold; and all night long, until the night flees like a Moor, while the hand of dawn grips its heel."

7:00am - 8:00am
1. Learn the difference between am and pm in telling time.
2. Learn how to measure something with a ruler.

12:00pm - 1:00pm
1. "Remember that women are the only sex which can practise strict chastity." --Herodotus
2. "He assumed the identity of another man by dressing like him, and then performed the other man's jobs as though they were his own."

1:00pm - 2:00pm
1. “Sometimes, our neighbors get on the phone with their friends, and they are quiet, and this makes us mad.” —Repost

3:00pm - 4:00pm
1. “Because she was scared for her life, she killed her husband.” —Honore de Balzac
2. “The woman said, ‘either give me a lump sum of money monthly, or I won’t do any work for you in this relationship.’” —Honore de Balzac
3. “Before they were married, they drew up a marriage contract which included $50,000 in savings, which the wife could take if they divorced. And she was not obligated to leave with the children either.” —Honore de Balzac
4. “An education can prepare you for death.” -Preparation for Death, St Alphonsus
5. “Being close to nature can prepare you for death.” —St Alphonsus
6. “There may be moments of life in death.” — St Alphonsus

4:00pm - 5:00pm
1. Omitted.
2. Chicken and vegetables is a good dish!

5:00pm - 6:00pm
1. “If you build more farms (animal/vegetable) then you can avoid food shortages.” —Herodotus

8:00pm - 9:00pm
1. Green Bean Casserole (soup) is easy to make in a pot, on the stovetop. This is in reference to the recipe on the back of the French's Crispy Fried Onions box.



Wednesday, October 16, 2024

12:00am - 1:00am

The Histories, Herodotus
1. If a person dies then he should be compensated according to how much he would earn over his lifetime. Compensation should be proportionate to one’s injuries instead of being too excessive.
2. “During all his time with her in Paris, he never left her side.”

7:00am - 8:00am
3. Some people view fire as a living, breathing thing.
4. “The two men drank wine together, and one of the men encouraged the other man to sing and shout.”

8:00am - 9:00am
5. Since she was mad at her husband, she said, "At that I swore a solemn oath that I would commit adultery with the filthiest and dirtiest of men."
6. "It is a saying of the Baghdadis that wine without music may lead to a headache."
7. "He was a bad influence on his friend."
8. "Harun al-Rashid had the chance to turn and look at him. On his body he saw scars of a whipping, and when he was certain of what he had seen, he exclaimed: 'By God, Ja'far, this is a handsome young man but he is also a foul thief!'"

12:00pm - 1:00pm
9. The Story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Killed by a Slave Girl, is the last story in the book. It is a story about two brothers, one called Qasim and the other Ali Baba.

1:00pm - 2:00pm
10. "One group of world people lived in a tropical climate, and were known for copulating outside." --Herodotus

2:00pm - 3:00pm
1. The Penguin Book of Hebrew Verse, edited and translated by T. Carmi
2. T. Carmi was born in New York City in 1925, to a Hebrew-speaking family, and settled in Israel in 1947, serving with the Israel Defence Forces for two years and then attending the Hebrew University. He was Ziskind Visiting Professor of Humanities at Brandeis University in 1970, Visiting Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Postgraduate Hebrew Studies between 1974 and 1976 and poet-in-residence at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1977. Subsequently, T. Carmi became Visiting Professor of Hebrew Literature at the Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion in Jerusalem, from which post he took a leave of absence in 1979 to be Visiting Professor at Stanford University in the Department of English. In 1986, he was Visiting Professor at Yale University in the Department of Near Eastern Studies and Literature and the Department of Comparative Literature, and at New York University in the Departments of English and Hebrew and Judaic Studies.
3. Over the years, T. Carmi lectured and gave poetry readings at many universities and at the Poetry Center in New York. He took part in the International Poetry Festival in London in 1971 and 1976, in the Poetry International in Rotterdam in 1975, and in the Jerusalem International Poet's Festival in 1990 and 1993. In Israel, he was awarded the Shlonsky Prize for Poetry, the Brenner Prize for Literature, the Prime Minister's Award for Creative Writing, and the Bialik Prize for Literature. Between 1987 and 1988, he held the Guggenheim Fellowship for Poetry and Translation. During his lifetime, he published thirteen volumes of poetry, and a fourteenth volume was published posthumously. Four collections of his work have appeared in English translation: The Brass Serpent, Somebody Like You, T. Carmi and Dan Pagis: Selected Poems, and At the Stone of Losses. His work has also been translated into other languages, among them French and German. He also translated several well-known plays into Hebrew, including A Midsummer Night's Dream, Measure for Measure, Hamlet, Othello, and Cyrano de Bergerac.
T. Carmi died in Jerusalem in 1994.
4. Preface This anthology spans the full range of Hebrew poetry, from the Bible to contemporary Israeli writing. To the best of my knowledge, it is the first such collection in English. More surprisingly, it is also the first comprehensive selection in Hebrew. This strange state of affairs is partially explained by the fact that the texts representing the first thousand years of post-biblical poetry came to light only at the turn of the century. Many of the major poets are not yet available in collected or critical editions. Scholars are still engaged in the arduous task of processing thousands of manuscripts from the hoard of the Cairo Genizah. No one can predict how much of this will prove to be of literary interest or how it will affect our overall view of the development of Hebrew poetry. Unknown poems, and even poets, are constantly being retreived from the vast storehouse of undeciphered manuscripts. A comprehensive anthology of Hebrew poetry is, therefore, in the nature of a draft which should be revised periodically as new material is presented to the reader.
5. There are, to be sure, Hebrew editions of individual authors, especially from the Andalusian period onwards, and collections which encompass a specific age or geographic area. No student of Hebrew poetry can fail to be indebted to the monumental compilations of J. Schirmann: Hebrew Poetry in Spain and Provence (Jerusalem-Tel Aviv, 1956) and Anthology of Hebrew Poetry in Italy (Berlin, 1934). The innovative publications of H. Brody, M. Zulay and E. Fleisher have radically changed the picture of medieval Hebrew poetry. The collections of D. Yellin, A.M. Habermann, S. Mirsky, D. Yarden, and others have acquainted us with a large variety of previously unknown texts.
6. In compiling this selection I have, of course, drawn on these, and many other, standard sources. However, the desire to present a comprehensive anthology obliged me to track down a multitude of scholarly publications in out-of-the-way journals and Festschriften, rare editions that have not been reprinted for centures, and liturgical collections from all over the world which have never been ransacked for their poetic gems. As a result, this volume includes many poems which have never been previously anthologized or even published in critical editions; poems which have never been dislodged from their original setting in a local liturgical rite; and even poems (e.g., some of the Hekhalot hymn) which have never been printed as poetry, but, strange as it may seem, are printed as prose in the few editions in which they are to be found. Early in the work of the compilation - I should add that, except in rare cases, I have limited myself to printed sources - I realized that I must give chance a chance to proffer its unexpected gifts. Such a moment of delight was the 'discovery' of the unusual 'Death of Moses Sequence' in an Italian rite (Bologne, 1538). The poems were clearly lying in wait for me and testing my patience and persistence.
2:47pm 7. Although I have attempted a systematic review of the corpus of Hebrew poetry, I am fully aware of the extent to which such an endeavour exceeds the capabilities of a single person. Suffice it to mention that I. Davidson's classic Thesaurus of Mediaeval Hebrew Poetry (New York, 1924-33) lists about thirty-five thousand poems from printed sources, and since the index was printed, thousands of additional poems have been published. Ideally, the preparation of a comprehensive anthology should be undertaken by a team of experts. Professor Schirmann has pointed out that the study of Hebrew poetry demands a knowledge of many subsidiary subjects, such as history, bibliography, palaeography, linguistics and liturgy. The full comprehension of Hebrew texts occasionally necessitates their comparison with texts written in other languages...The research into their origins entails a knowledge of several languages (e.g., Aramaic, Syriac, Byzantine Greek, Latin , Arabic, Spanish, Italian and Provencal) and the closer we approach our own time, the more languages are required.
8. Obviously, poems culled from such a wide variety of sources have presented serious textual problems. Many of the editions are corrupt, the readings are often suspect and the meanings obscure. I would not have been able to cope with these problems withouth the help of the many scholars I consulted over the years. I am especially indebted to Professor Gershom G. Schloem for having placed his unpublished version of the Hekhalot hymns at my disposal; and to Professor Ezra Fleischer for his elucidations of many textual difficulties. Professor M. Greenberg, Dr. J. Licht, Professor Y. Ben Shlomo, Professor H. Blanc, Dr I. Gruenwald and Professor Y. Ratzaby all gave me valuable advice in their respective fields. Other acknowledgements are noted in the Table of Poems; but even a partial list of my benefactors would turn this preface into a 'Scroll of Thanksgiving.' I am, of course, solely responsible for all sins of omission and commission. 'Who can be aware of errors? Cleanse me from mu unknown faults...' (Psalms 19.13).
9. The notes to the biblical translations in this anthology are far from exhaustive. They are meant to indicate to the reader the surprising range of plausible interpretations advanced by authoritative biblical studies. My brief foray into the enchanting maze of biblical scholarship has convinced me of the truth of Professor Greenberg's conclusion: 'The beginning of wisdom in biblical study is the realization that the Bible is an exotic book about which modern readers understand very little."
10. I have not included any poems in order to 'represent' a specific school of poetry, although I have attempted to offer as varied a selection as possible and to draw attention to lesser known centres, such as Yemen, Turkey and North Africa.
11. Mr Stephen Mitchell reviewed the entire English manuscript with a 'cold eye'; I could not wish for a finer blend of critical severity and warm sympathy. Mr Dom Moraes edited some of my earliest drafts and, in fact, initiated the project by suggesting it to Penguin Books in 1963. Mr Hans Schmoller and Mr Nikos Stangos, formerly of Penguin, and Mr William Sulkin, the present peotry editor, have been unfailingly helpful and encouraging. To Dr Moshe Spitzer I am indebted for invaluable typographical, as well as scholarly, guidance. My deepest thanks are due to the Librarian and staff of the Schocken Institute, Jerusalem, and of the Oriental Reading Room of the Bodleian Library, Oxford, for their cooperation.

3:00pm - 4:00pm
12. Cultural diffusion with Palestine has affected Hebrew poetry.
13. Hebrew poetry was written in Italy and Spain.
14. Sa'adiah...paved the way for the introduction of philosophical themes into sacred poetry.
15. At the end of the ninth centurty Hebrew poetry made its first appearance on European soil, in southern Italy. The early Italian school was an offshoot of Palestine, and produced a distinctive synthesis of Palestinian (classical) and late Eastern elements. Germany, under the direct influence of Italy, produced its first major poet, Simeon the Great, in the tenth century. Here again, the Palestinian-Babylonian blend is clearly discernible.

3:21pm 16. It was only with Hayim Nahman Bialik (1873-1934) that Hebrew recovered from its stroke of amnesia, began to rediscover important chapters of its long history, and found its modern voice...Under the influence of Yiddish, Russian and German, the syllabic system was discarded in favour of the tonic-syllabic or accentual system. This change was effected mainly by Bialik, the acknowledged leader of the Odessa circle...Bialik had the distinction of providing Hebrew poetry with a new idion which fused together the various strate of the language. The result in Haskalah poetry was a mosaic technique, a patchwork quilt of involuntary quotations and allusions that stifled the individual voice.
17. Songs of everyday life: vestiges of work songs; watchman's songs; drinking songs; elaborate taunt songs; love songs; war and victory songs; and personal or collective dirges. Early Israelite poetry was sung to the accompaniment of music and choral dancing.
3:36pm 18. 'I shall sing to the Lord' Exodus 15. 1b-18. 'The Song of the Sea,' which celebrates the crucial event in Israel's history, is a hymn, incorporating elements of the victory song and thanksgiving song.
19. 'For the warriors, in Israel' Judges 5.1-31. 'The Song of Deborah', noted for its dramatic vitality and rapid contrasts, is a religious victory song with a hymn-like beginning and conclusion, and motifs borrowed from taunt songs.
20. 'There is a source for silver' Job 28 - a wisdom poem with a characteristic refrain, was composed as an independent lyrical unit.
21. 'Return, return, O Shulammite' Song of Songs 7.1-10 - On the eve of her wedding the bride performs a sword dance to the rhythm of a descriptive song (known in Arabic as the wasf) that celebrates her beauty and her adornments.

3:47pm 22. The Talmud, a vast corpus of law, commentaries and legends, took shape in Palestine and Babylonia over a period of almost five centuries. It occasionally contains short poems: prayers designed for synagogal use, private devotions, elegies, and random snatches of popular verse. The personal prayers are often distinguished by great simplicity of diction and structure; the elegies, however, are highly stylized and because of their frequent use of epithets can sound like riddles. But both genres trstify to a growing freedom from biblical models and to the evolution of new styles, under the impact of rabbinic Hebrew.



Tuesday, October 15, 2024

5:00am - 6:00am

The Histories, Herodotus
1. "Ten days' journey from the Garamantes is yet another hill and spring -- this time the home of the Atarantes, the only people in the world, so far as our knowledge goes, to do without names."
2. "The nomad Libyans -- except the Nasamonians -- bury their dead just as in Greece; the Nasamonians, however, bury them in a sitting position, and take care when anyone is dying to make him sit up, and not to let him die flat on his back. Their houses, which are portable, are made of the dry haulms of some plant, knit together with rush ropes."
3. “One of the people of Libya are dog-headed men, headless men with eyes in their breasts.”
4. “In one island is a lake, and the native girls dip feathers into the bottom of it, and bring up gold dust.”
5. Omitted.

6:00am - 7:00am
6. “In some places they grow crops and make them into breakfast cereals.”
7. One group of people used smoke to get help when they were lost, they would send up a smoke signal, and then when their tribe saw it, they would be able to locate the individual.
8. During one war, “though there was no fighting of any kind, the Persians were seized with panic and hastily retreated a distance of some seven miles before they dared come to a halt.”

7:00am - 8:00am
9. In one land they are several little horses, which cannot carry a man, but these small horses are fashioned with a harness and used to pull things.
10. One group of people believed themselves to be immortal.
11. "One group of tribes of a land would have been very powerful if they were not subjugated by another people."
12. "Each member of one tribe has his own hut on platforms, with a trap-door opening on to the water underneath."
13. "We have welcomed you kindly...won't you folow our custom?"
14. "I beg you not to do these men any mischief; for if you do, you will ruin us all. Have the courage to endure the sight of their behavior. As for myself, I will leave the room as you suggest."
15. The king said, "these women are entirely for you to choose, you can date any one of them you like, but there's a catch..."
16. Amyntas said, "You are an old man, father, and should look after yourself. Don't try to sit out the playing, but go to rest."

8:00am - 9:00am
17. "He tried to compete in the Olympic games, on the side of Greece, and his Greek competitors tried to exclude him on the ground that foreigners were not allowed to take part. Alexander, however, proved his Argive descent, and so was accepted as a Greek and allowed to enter for the foot-race."
18. "Darius the king to Histiaeus: On thinking the matter over, I find that I have no friend more loyal than yourself, or more devoted to my prosperity; and the proof of it has been deeds, not words. Therefor, as I have an important enterprise in hand, I beg you to come to me without fail, in order that I may communicate it to you."
19. "Their best men visited the place, and when they saw the widespread ruin there they asked to be allowed to make a thorough inspection of all the land."
20. "The first thing they did when they got there was to ask Aristagoras to lend them some troops, in the hope of recovering their position at home."
21. "Bees don't like the cold weather."
22. After the destruction, however, some of the citizens organized themselves, and left the area.
23. "The plan you propose, is likely to be of great benefit to our royal house, and I think your advice is excellent, except in one particular -- the size of the fleet."
24. "Aristagoras returned to Miletus much pleased with this answer, and Artaphernes at once communicated with Susa. He laid the proposal of Aristagoras before the king, obtained his consent, and set about his preparations..."
25. One group of people were known for erecting commemorative statues and plaques in honor of notable people or events.
26. "...equipping two hundred triremes and a strong force of Persian and allied troops, the whole of which he put under the command of Megabates, one of the Achaemenidae, and a cousin both of Darius and himself. Megabates' daughter -- if there is any truth in the story -- was subsequently betrothed to Pausanias, son of Cleombrotus, when he had his heart set on making himself master of Greece."
27. "He then made sail ostensibly for the Hellespont; but on reaching Chios, he brought up at Caucasa, meaning to make a passage from there to Naxos as soon as he got a northerly wind."

9:00am - 10:00am

28. "But to return to Cleomenes: he was, the story goes, not quite right in his head -- even, indeed, on the verge of madness, whereas Doreius was the finest young man of his generation and confident that his merits would assure his succession."

12:00pm - 1:00pm
29. The group found a settlement elsewhere, after consulting with the wise man on a suitable site. There, they settled on a piece of excellent land.
30. The organization gathered to discuss the benefits of moving all of the people in the area to this more suitable location.
31. Omitted.
32. "They reached Sicily, but were defeated and killed, with all the men under their command, in a battle with the Phoenicians and the people of Egesta."
33. Later, after the expulsion of Peithagoras, he attempted to seize power himself, and did actually enjoy it for a while, until the people of the town organized a revolt and killed him, though he took sanctuary at the altar of Zeus of the Market-Place.
34. "This Philippus was an Olympic victor and the best-looking man of his day; and because of his good looks he received from the people of Egesta the unparalleled honour of a hero's shrine erected on his tomb, at which religious ceremonies are still held to win his favour."
35. "He had a plan for world modernization and urbanization."
36. "The Phoenicians introduced into Greece, after their settlement in the country, a number of accomplishments, of which the most important was writing, an art till then, I think, unknown to the Greeks. At first they used the same characters as all the other Phoenicians, but as time went on, and they changed their language, they also changed the shape of their letters. At that period most of the Greeks in the neighborhood were Ionians; they were taught these letters by the Phoenicians and adopted them, with few alterations, for their own use, continuing to refer to them as Phoenician characters -- as was only right, as the Phoenicians had introduced them."

1:00pm - 2:00pm
37. "The Thessalians responded to the appeal, and dispatched a troop of cavalry, a thousand strong, under their king, Cineas of Condia."
38. "This disaster upset all their plans; in order to recover the children, they were forced to accept the Athenian's terms, and agreed to leave Attica within five days."
39. "Answering that he was not a Dorian but an Achaean, Cleomenes paid no attention to the warning, and made his attempt upon the Acropolis, and he and his Spartans were flung out. The rest were put in prison by the Athenians and executed..."
40. "In the fight which followed the Athenians won an overwhelming victory, killing a great many and taking seven hundred prisoners."
41. "Only male children were not forced into military service."
42. "The only way they could punish their women for the dreadful thing they had done was to make them adopt Ionian dress, very similar to the fashion at Corinth; previously Athenian women had worn Dorian dress, now they were made to change to linen tunics."
43. "Moreover they were spurred to action by the discovery of certain prophecies of coming disasters at the hands of the Athenians -- prophecies of which they had known nothing until Cleomenes brought them to Sparta."

2:00pm - 3:00pm
44. "It is easier to impose upon an individual than a crowd."
45. "Come now -- was this well done? Someone is to blame for this."
46. "The common council of Ionia sent us here to guard the sea, not to hand over our ships to you and fight the Persians on land. We will therefore keep the station assigned to us, and in that try to do our duty."
47. "The struggle was long and violent, but the Carians were finally overwhelmed by weight of numbers. Some 2,000 Persians were killed, and about 10,000 Carians."
48. "Crossing to Chios, Histiaeus was arrested by the islander on suspicion of a plot against them."

3:00pm - 4:00pm
49. "..and Histiaeus, taking care to conceal the real reason, declared in reply that he had done so because Darius had been planning a transfer of population, intending to settle the Phoenicians in Ionia and Ionians in Phoenicia."
50. "When Phrynichus produced his play, The Capture of Miletus, the audience in the theatre burst into tears. The author was fined a thousand drachmas for reminding them of their own evils, and thye forbade anybody ever to put the play on the stage again."
51. "In Samos the wealthier citizens...met in conference, and decided not to wait for the arrival of Aeaces, but to abandon the island and settle elsewhere rather than to stay and be slaves to Aeaces and his Persian masters."

6:00pm - 7:00pm
52. If you create more livestock and crop farms, then the price of food will go down, and you can provide food to more people.



Monday, October 14, 2024

6:00am - 7:00am

Misc. Notes
1. Building more livestock farms and crop farms is a good solution for shortages of food in places where this exists.

8:00am - 9:00am
2. Please review Book Reviews I - XI on my blog. They contain a lot of information about the books that I’ve read, and you can learn a lot.

9:00am - 10:00am
3. "Nor from mother, Thetis: this alien earth I stride will keep me secure at last." —The Iliad, Homer

1:00pm - 2:00pm
4. “Some people have a mania or an obsession about trying to prosecute and criticize other people.”

2:00pm - 3:00pm
A Harlot High and Low, Honore de Balzac
1. "It took the friends no more than a moment to sketch out their plan."
2. "Within a matter of days Esther would be the owner of a private house and she would also have thirty thousand francs' annual income."
3. If you do something right the first time, then you won't have to correct yourself in the future.
4. "Whatever answer he gave was the wrong answer, and insufficient."
5. "He only answered to his superiors."



Sunday, October 13, 2024

6:00am - 7:00am

The Histories, Herodotus
1. “Discusses a man who was half woman.”
2. With countries that have water in a man made water supply, people can then focus on agriculture and grow crops and get more drinking water.

7:00am - 8:00am
3. Describes a people who have certain unique rituals, one which involves sacrificing a large bull.
4. In one war, after some soldiers were captured, they had to live under certain conditions, one of which was to keep silent at all times.
5. People in countries that had a shortage of water, learned to take partial baths, and clean only certain parts of their bodies.
6. If you are a very big person, then take partial baths, and only clean certain parts of the body.

8:00am - 9:00am
7. “The language of the Budini people is half Scythian, half Greek.”
8. “The language of some people, is quite different.”

9:00am - 10:00am
1. Omitted.

11:00am - 12:00pm
9. Home insurance should cover some if not all of the costs of damage due to earthquakes, storms, tornadoes, and other natural disasters.
10. During one war, the king said, "Alright, I'll give you the state, and surrendered the state to the villains, and almost packed up with his team and left the country. However, the villains were incapable of running the country, so they allowed the original king to continue to rule."
11. "He possessed an immense revenue in money and an unlimited number of men to draw upon."
12. One man missed the meaning of what the oracle had told him.
13. One people had a custom that made them dress a certain way and cut their hair in a specific way.
14. One people were exceptionally good at being friends to other people.
15. One people dismissed their dreams as being insignificant.
16. He "returned to his native country, where he found the people in great poverty and ignorance."
17. "He looked out over the Black Sea. No sea is as marvellous as the Black Sea."
18. For one explorer and his crew, sailing was easy, so they sailed to distant lands.
19. Mentions a mythological figure who was a snake from waist down, and was woman from waist up.
20. "Most Greeks assume that Libya was so called after a native woman and that Asia was named after the wife of Prometheus."

1:00pm - 2:00pm
21. In order to get plants to grow, just get a lot of seeds, clear some earth, and throw the seeds on the earth, or plant as many seeds in the earth as possible, and eventually some of them should grow.

10:00pm - 11:00pm
A Harlot High and Low, Honore de Balzac
1. "The poor girl was defending her life in defending herself against infidelity."
2. "The house of Grandlieu requires the dear child to show an estate worth a million before getting him the title of marquess and offering him the hand of that long pole called Clotilde, with whose help he will rise to power. Thanks to us two, Lucien has just acquired his maternal manor, the old house of Rubempre which didn't cost much...but his solicitor, by the luck of the market, has managed to add to it a million's worth of land, on which three hundred thousand francs have been paid."
3. "'Really! I shall be stranded. I need my man with me when I leave. If anybody insulted me, I should have nobody to appeal to...'"
4. "That nabob robbed me, he died without making a will, and the family put me out as though I had the plague."
5. "Word spread fast, in only a couple hours everyone had known the news."
6. "Then they fling themselves into the arms of the of the wardrobe dealer, they sell exquisite jewellry for almost nothing, they run up debts, anything to keep up the appearance of luxury which might help them to regain what they have lost: coffers into which they can dip. The ups and downs of their life sufficiently explain the cost of affairs almost invariably arranged, in reality, as Asia had fixed up that of Nucingen with Esther."

11:00pm - 11:59pm
7. "All-round virtue, the dream of Moliere, in the person of Alceste, is extremely rare; it occurs nevertheless everywhere, even in Paris. Good nature is the product of a certain graciousness of character which proves nothing. A man is like as a cat is smooth-furred, as a slipper is ready for the foot."
8. "'He's dining with me tomorrow, come then, my dear,' said Esther. 'You've got him where you want him...' 'Darling, so far he's only paid my debts...' 'What a little pickpocket she is!' cried Suzanne du Val
9. The little girl asked for money for clothes and toys. Then she asked for a bicycle.



Saturday, October 12, 2024

7:00am - 8:00am

The Histories, Herodotus
1. "It is better to use simple and mild remedies than rough and complicated ones."
2. "Democedes...went first to Aegina, where within a year he proved himself the best doctor."
3. "In the second year of his residence the Aeginetans gave him a state appointment at a salary of a talent; a year later the Athenians emplyed him at a salary of 100 minae; and a year after that Polycrates offered him two talents; and that was how he came to Samos."
4. "While he was in Egypt, Syloson had an extraordinary stroke of luck..."
5. Psilocybin (Sylosibin,) which is prescribed as medication, makes people talkative. It is a compound found in poisonous mushrooms. There is also Psilocin (Sylosin).

7:00pm - 8:00pm
6. Omitted.

8:00pm - 9:00pm
7. Countries that have a surplus of food should export it to countries that have shortages of food.

9:00pm - 10:00pm
8. “Cody the crocodile!”
9. “Robert the rigatoni!”

10:00pm - 11:00pm
10. The king had a man made lake built.



Friday, October 11, 2024

A Harlot High and Low, Honore de Balzac

2:00am - 3:00am
1. “She spoke to me automatically, without paying any attention to my emotions or feelings.”
2. The old woman said, “Open the window and get some fresh air, let some fresh air in the room.”
3. “Opening the windows to let fresh air in the house can be healthy.” —Jane Austen
4. “Sleep with the windows open, it’s like camping outside.” —Jane Austen

3:00am - 4:00am
1. “We already owe money to the firm. I live from day to day.”
2. “He invested a thousand francs in her.”
3. She owned several clothes and garments.
4. “Oh, she has got lovely hair, her asset. When she takes the comb out, it covers her like a tent.”

12:00pm - 1:00pm
5. "'We shan't get rid of that one,' said Blondet to Rastignac. 'It's better to make a friend of him, he's formidable,' said Rastignac.
6. She was the most beautiful woman in London. She said, "Here is my offer: I will marry you if you give me $50,000 a year for the next 10 years, after which time I have the option either to leave with the money or remain in the relationship, at which time we will arrange another contract. If I leave, I will buy my own house with the money I've earned."
7. "Evil, whose poetic representation is called the Devil, in his dealings with him..."
8. "More foreign than any foreigner, this man had finally given up Spanish cigars, which he found too mild."
9. "Esther was ferreting about as women do before going to bed, she darted here and there, fluttered and sang. You would have thought she was a humming-bird."
10. Contrasts the person who drinks, who gambles and who has vices, to the person who doesn't drink, doesn't gamble, and has very few vices.
11. "Contenson, one of the most curious products of the scum which floats upon the waters of the Parisian sink, where everything is in ferment, prided himself above all on being a philosopher."
12. "'If Madame goes out this evening without her,' said Georges to his master whose eyes sparkled like carbuncles, 'she'll come sharp on ten.'"
13. "Like two hunted beasts lapping a little water at the edge of a marsh, they might continue skirting precipices along which the strong man led the weak one..."
14. It, "is a phenomenon still unexplained by medical physiology."
15. "...her wardrobe is three months out of date."
16. "Go and see Biddin, he lives in the rue de l'Arbre, he'll give you pawnshop tickets for ten thousand francs."

7:00pm - 8:00pm
The Histories, Herodotus
*1. "The Arabs, and peoples who have scarcities of water, should have an extensive series of man made reservoirs, dams, and pipes, and should import their water from elsewhere."



Thursday, October 10, 2024

The Histories, Herodotus

8:00am - 9:00am
1. The king says of businessmen, “If they have gained their wealth by treachery, then seize it from them.”

9:00am - 10:00am
2. “A king does at least act consciously and deliberately; but the mob does not.”

10:00am - 11:00am
3. “They further agreed that the king should not marry outside the families of the seven confederates.”

11:00am - 12:00pm
4. Omitted.

1:00pm - 2:00pm
5. You can season canned corn with ingredients from your local supermarket.

5:00pm - 6:00pm
The Penguin Book of French Poetry (1820-1950)
1. Pierre-Jean Jouve
2. "...Restlessness, though, was predominant in Jouve's early creative life as he searched for his true orientation."
3. "The difficulty of transcending man's state of sin, guilt and despair preoccupies him intensely, yet the search for redemption is motivated by a genuine faith in ultimate victory in his battle with evil."
4. Andre Breton
5. "The Surrealist goes beyond reason and logic, beyond the normal waking state of consciousness, and approaches a superior state of awareness by the cultivation of a condition of lucid trance or delirium, often hypnotically induced, and by the notation of his dreams and perceptions in the form of 'automatic writing.'"
6. "The most powerful surrealist image...seems to resolve itself weakly..."
7. Robert Desnos
8. "He already had a remarkable ability to drop into 'hypnotic sleep,' and to practise 'automatic' talking and writing with great immediacy and power."

6:00pm - 7:00pm
9. Henri Michaux
10. "Poetry for Michaux is not an aesthetic game, nor an escape, nor an ornament on life, but a sleeves-rolled-up means of surviving life itself, a way of holding the line in the innumerable tense battles between a limited reality and the activity of a mysterious, comically or fearfully alarming inner self, a self that is sometimes fluid and sometimes explosively fragmented."
11. End of book's author sketches.
12. For one French author, Hitler was synonymous with the devil.

7:00pm - 8:00pm
1. A Harlot High and Low, Honore de Balzac
2. “The friends would often go to a cafe, to drink coffee and discuss politics.”
3. “They picked on him to the point of madness.”
4. “Sir, I’ve earned 100 francs through you, and for that I thank you.”

8:00pm - 9:00pm
5. “She was the best-looking woman in London. Drunk on gin, she killed her lover in a fit of jealousy…the lover was a waster the London police were glad to be rid of…”
6. “Now that we’ve earned the money, we’ll split it fifty-fifty down the middle.”

9:00pm - 10:00pm
7. In order to make him more presentable to a future wife, his parents got him a makeover, they made him over.

10:00pm - 11:00pm
1. I believe that you can live well into your hundreds (120, 130, 140), if you take care of yourself. This is because I learned that in biblical and ancient times, it was common for people to live well into their hundreds.

11:00pm - 11:59pm
1. “Musicians are smart, musicians have to be smart in order to play their instruments and make music.”



Wednesday, October 9, 2024

The Histories, Herodotus

6:00am - 7:00am
1. "The Greeks, after one war, made slaves of their enemies.”
2. A country can capture its enemies, tell them where to live and force them to follow their rules.
3. The Greeks had names denoting notable people. Change your name after you attain a certain level of wisdom.
4. It was common during days of antiquity, for people to live well over a hundred years.

7:00am - 8:00am
5. One group of people, one country, made an offer to buy the islands of another country, but the people of the islands refused to sell.
6. The offer to buy the islands of the other group could have led to a more powerful military, as well as increased trade.
7. Essentially, the people from the islands would have enjoyed the same rights as the people from the mainland country who were offering to buy them.
8. The country offering to buy the islands stated that if there was a flood or natural disaster on the island, then they would help rebuild, or the people would be transported to the mainland for safety.

8:00am - 9:00am
9. During natural disasters such as flooding, storms and earthquakes, the government should send in troops to help and if necessary house and feed the people.
10. The country tried to prevent an uprising with its troops, but they were overwhelmed and defeated, then the country enlisted the help of three other countries which combined their military forces to stop the uprising.

9:00am - 10:00am
11. One country produced a lot of grain, large quantities of grain— more than they could ever use in a year.
12. One country contained inhabitants who had no agriculture, and the people existed only on meat and fish.
13. “…and I actually went to Thebes and Heliopolis…It is at Heliopolis that the most learned of Egyptians are said to be found.”

10:00am - 11:00am
14. Two countries exist close to each other. The boundaries are respected in approximate terms, within 1,000 feet of the border.

11:00am -12:00pm
15. "The names of Egyptian dieties have have specific characteristics.
16. "Imaginary boundaries are the creation of man, people do not have to restrict themselves to imaginary boundaries."
17. The Egyptians, "In writing or calculating, instead of going, like the Greeks, from left to right, the Egyptians go from right to left -- and obstinately maintain that theirs is the dexterous method, ours being left-handed and awkward."
18. "The Egyptian priests shave their bodies all over every other day to guard against the presence of lice, or anything else equally unpleasant, while they are about their religious duties; the priests, too, wear linen only..."
19. "They bathe in cold water twice a day and twice every night -- and observe innumerable other ceremonies besides."
20. "They respect and do not slaughter cows."
21. "Cows are allowed to die a natural death, and receive a decent burial."
22. "...the Thebans do not sacrifice rams but consider them to be sacred animals."
23. "They have puppets for amusement, and the puppets are non-sexual."
24. Due to cultural diffusion, the traditions of the Greeks and the Egyptians are very similar."
25. "Heroes have no place in the religion of Egypt."
26. Take up to five showers a day like the priests of ancient Egypt.

12:00pm -1:00pm
27. During one festival, there is singing and dancing, and more wine is consumed than at any other time in the year.
28. During certain ceremonies the lower classes cut their foreheads with knives, and in similar ceremonies sometimes a few of people even die from their injuries.

1:00pm -2:00pm
29. "There are not a great many wild animals in Egypt, in spite of the fact that it borders on Libya."
30. In some parts of Africa, "the various sorts of animals have guardians appointed to them, who are responsible for feeding them."
31. There are many animal species on the Nile, including several birds. One "sacred bird is the phoenix; I have not seen a phoenix myself, except in paintings, for it is very rare and visits the country only at intervals of 500 years, on the occasion of the death of the parent-bird...Finally it is carried by the bird to the temple of the Sun in Egypt. Such, at least, is the story."
32. "The Egyptians who live in the cultivated parts of the country, by their practice of keeping records of the past, have made themselves much the most learned of any nation of which I have had experience. I will describe some of their habits: every month for three consecutive days they purge themselves, for their health's sake, in the belief that all diseases come from the food a man eats."
33. "... next to the Libyans they are the healthiest people in the world. I should put this down myself to the absence of changes in the climate; for change, and especially change of weather, is the prime cause of disease."
34. “The country in Africa is infested with mosquitoes, and the people have invented various methods of dealing with them…everyone provides himself with a net, which at night he fixes round his bed.”
35. “Mosquitoes are nuisances particularly in tropical climates.”

3:00pm - 4:00pm
35. Ask, “What do the different structures and monuments in this area symbolize or represent?”

4:00pm - 5:00pm
36. “Earth is the house that God built.”
37. “United by intermarriage, the twelve kings governed in mutual friendliness on the understanding that none of them should attempt to oust any of the others, or to increase his power at the expense of the rest.”
38. “To strengthen the bond between the twelve kings, they would regularly hold meetings together and dinners, where they would discuss important issues.”

10:00pm - 11:00pm
39. “There was an old man, who had a lot of stories to tell, but he himself was harmless.”
40. There was a king who sent his scouts out to various regions of the world to collect information: deserts, dense jungles, mountains.

11:00pm - 11:59pm
41. “He took his friend out hunting, and then shot him and killed him and claimed that it was an accident.”
42. In another story, he lured his friend down to the sea and drowned him.



Tuesday, October 8, 2024

12:00am - 1:00am

The Arabian Nights
1. His mother and father said, of their son, "'I want us to find him a wife, as he is now ready for marriage.' Khalid replied: 'He has an ugly face, foul breath and is a filthy brute whom no woman would accept.'" His parents might clean their son up in order to prepare him for marriage.
2. His parents seek to buy him a slave girl, and bid for her, and keep increasing their price in order to get a winning bid for her.
3. One night, a skillful thief robs the caliph's house (of jewels and money). When the caliph awakens to find that he has been robbed, he flies into a rage and threatens to kill whoever robbed him and issues written authorization to break into houses and search them.
4. The group of villains who the thief had fallen in with included a woman. The thief and the woman produced a child.

1:00am - 2:00am
5. One of the thief's had known the caliph whose house had been robbed, so it was an inside job.
6. "The boy's mother, Yasmin, looked for him and, failing to find him, went up to the sitting room, where she saw the emir Khalid sitting there with the boy playing on his lap, God having filled his heart with love for him. When his mother came, she said: 'Whose child is this?' 'He is my son and the fruit of my heart,' she answered. 'And who is his father?' he asked. 'His father was 'Ala al-Din Abu'l-Shamat,' she said, 'and now he has become your son.'...Khalid told her: 'When the child grows up and asks you who his father was, tell him: "You are the son of the emir Khalid, the wali, the chief of police."' 'To hear is to obey,' she replied.
7. "The emir had Aslan circumcised and gave him the best possible upbringing. He provided him with a faqih, who was also a calligrapher and who taught him to read and write. He read through the Quran a first and then a second time, and memorized the whole of it, and he grew up addressing the emir as 'my father.'...and when he was fourteen years old he was appointed to the rank of emir."
8. Omitted.
9. "The captain now ordered 'Ala' al-Din to be brought up from the cabin, and when this was done they gave him a sniff of the antidote to banj. He opened his eyes and said: 'Where am I?' 'You are with me,' replied the captain, 'and I'm holding you as prisoner. Had you gone on saying "Come, come," I would have offered you more.' 'What is your trade?' asked Ahmad. 'I am a sea captain,' the man replied, 'and I want to bring you to the darling of my heart.'"
10. 'Ala' al-Din gets captured, along with forty Muslims. Each of the Muslims is executed, their heads chopped off by an executioner. The king spares 'Ala' al-Din's life, however.
11. Sherbet is eaten in several passages of The Arabian Nights.

9:00am - 10:00am
1. I suspect that psilocybin and psilocin injections are available from psychiatrists.

12:00pm - 1:00pm
The Histories, Herodotus
1. The leaders, the officials say, "We ask you to be calm and comfortable, and not to be any more frightened than we are ourselves."
2. "You foresee the future when you complete what you set out to do for the day."

9:00pm - 10:00pm
The Histories, Herodotus

1. "During the twenty-eight years of Scythian supremacy in Asia, violence and neglect of law led to absolute chaos."
2. "...if he disobeyed, he would be put to death by torture."
3. "To Harpagus was served the flesh of his son: all of it, except the head, the hands, and the feet, which had been put separately on a platter covered with a lid."
4. "If you had to hand the throne over to somebody else rather than keep it to yourself, it would have been more proper to give so fine a prize to a Mede than to a Persian..."
5. One man had been issuing threats against another person.
6. "The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, by Michelangelo, was painted to create an artificial sky."
7. "If an important decision is to be made, they discuss the question when they are drunk, and the following day the master of the house where the discussion was held submits their decision for reconsideration when they are sober...Conversely, any decision they make when they are sober, is reconsidered afterwards when they are drunk."
8. "I admire also the custom which forbids even the king himself to put a man to death for a single offence, and any Persian under similar circumstances to punish a servant by an irreparable injury. Their way is to balance faults against services, and then, if the faults are greater and more numerous, anger may take its course."
9. "These Ionians to whom the Panionium belongs had the good fortune to establish their settlements in a region which enjoys a better climate than any other we know of. It does not resemble what is found either further north, where there is an excess of cold and wet, or further south, where the weather is both too hot and too dry."
10. "The reason for the separation of Miletus from the other Ionian towns was simply the general weakness of the Hellenic peoples at that date, and particularly of the Ionians, who of all the Greek races had least power and influence."

11. "Even those who started from the Council House in Athens and believe themselves to be of the purest Ionian blood, married Carian girls..."
12. "The soil of Aeolis is better than that of Ionia, but the climate is not so good."
13. "...they chose Pythermus, a Phocaen, as their spokesman....he came forward to make a long speech asking for Spartan aid. The speech was a failure. The Spartans refused to help the Ionians, and the envoys left."



Monday, October 7, 2024

9:00pm - 10:00pm

The Arabian Nights
1. “The night is a perfect opportunity for reading, thinking, and similar intellectual pursuits.” —Islamic author
2. “The king said, ‘What is this enormous army? We are only a small band of resistance fighters.’”
3. We meet ‘Ala’ al-Din, whose grandfather is the leader of a great army.
4. He met a girl. She drew up a marriage contract with him, which included $10,000 savings, then married him, and then the next year divorced him and left with the money.
5. His girlfriend asked him to pay her a monthly sum, for the work that she did in the relationship, or else she wouldn’t do any work.



Sunday, October 6, 2024

7:00am - 8:00am:
Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu
1. Many Chinese words can be used interchangeably to refer to the same thing. Even though there may be slight differences in spelling, the words may represent the same thing. For example, 'Lao Tzu' and 'Lao Tsu,' both refer to the same person, and the 'Tao Te Ching' and the 'Dao De Jing' both refer to the same book.
2. Google "Chinese vocabulary," for information about Chinese words.

1:00pm - 2:00pm
1. The Arabian Nights contains several scenes discussing the events in the life of a woman named Marjana.

2:00pm - 3:00pm
1. A beet is a good tasting vegetable.
2. "While I am on vacation, I miss my family dearly. Even though they are out of my sight, they will always be on my mind, because I am always thinking about them." --The Arabian Nights

7:00pm - 8:00pm
1. The Penguin Book of French Poetry
2. Biographical Sketches
3. Tristan Corbiere - "He hides his insecurities and his failures behind a mask of irony and punning black humor, but it is a mask that does not fully conceal either the pain within or the potential for lyricism."

8:00pm - 9:00pm
1. Tristan Corbiere - "His discordant, dislocated verse, almost modernist at times in its clashing of registers and broken rhythms, has a raw energy that seems to explode literary conventions."
2. Arthur Rimbaud - "Disruption of the normal workings of the mind (through sleep deprivation, alcohol, drugs, solitude, sickness...) will be carried out with lucid control, and the personality that emerges out of euphoria and horror will be the prototype of a new human being."
3. Jules Lafourge - Viewed life as boring and, "expanded his interest in the Unconscious and its relationship with sensory perception, and he located Art's future role in that area..."
4. "His first important volume, Les Complaintes...is intermittently brilliant. In each 'lament' he projects his own state of mind into another voice or voices, sometimes identified and sometimes not."
5. For Lafourge, "behaviour is biologically determined, personality is multiple and infinitely complex; morality is fraud and religion a fantasy; only Art has reality and permanence..."
6. Many of the poems of Lafourge (and other poets in this collection), express anarchic ideas.
7. The Symbolist Movement
8. "For the pure Symbolist, language is to be wilfully ellipctical, complex, precious and melodic, excluding social reference and popular taste."
9. Mentions Alfred Jarry, best known today for his remarkable pre-Absurdist Ubu plays.
10. Emile Verhaeren - "He is a melancholy poet of Flemish mists and rural stagnation, but also a vibrant, passionate observer of the glories and horrors of industrial urbanization."
11. "Madman's Song", Emile Verhaeren - "You'll howl in vain at the earth, with your mouth in the pit, not one among the departed souls will ever answer your bitter clamour."

9:00pm - 10:00pm
12. Saint-Pol Roux - "Metaphors abound, as recognizing no barrier between conscious and subconscious orders. The revelatory nature of this poetry was admired by the Surrealists,and he has also been likened to the German mystic Novalis."
13. A Renewal of Lyricism - "This involves a renewal of contact with the organic world, a sensitivity to the natural rhythms of human life, an awareness of the experience, culture and traditional wisdom of ordinary people."
14. Paul-Jean Toulet - "Toulet himself was a rather self-destructive dandy. His origins were in south-western France, but after travelling in Africa and the Far East he became known in Parisian literary circles, and 'burned himself out' rapidly on alcohol, drugs and nocturnal living, chronicling this existence in novels and journalism."
15. Paul Claudel - "...Thought beats like the brain and the heart."

10:00pm - 11:00pm
16. Paul Valery - "His creativity is a parallel experience for the intellect and senses, in which the dynamic process leading to the completion of a poetic event brings satisfaction to both."
17. "Musical Stone," Pierre Musicale - "Here is the place where they recognized each other, the lovers in love with the intermittent flute; Here is the place where they..."
18. "In Praise of Jade," Pierre Musicale - Indicates that for many Asian people, Jade possesses magical qualities.
19. ...Apollinaire's poem suggests that he and Salmon are "'pelerins de la perdition', adventurers risking their entire identity in their radical plunge into experience."
20. Leon-Paul Fargue - As distinguished from the country, "The city becomes a magical yet melancholy symphony of impressions, a dreamlike world made concrete through language."
21. Jules Supervielle - "...he blends in an unproblematic way the abstract and the concrete, the past and the present, cosmic and commonplace perceptions, in a lyrical and humorous amplification of reality...he is drawn in his awareness of inner space towards the idea of an absorption into nothingness and an eventual rebirth."



Saturday, October 5, 2024

2:00am - 3:00am:
The Histories, Herodotus
1. Tells the story of a boy. He went to another neighborhood, where he got into a fight with another boy and his friends. After getting beat up, the boy ran home to his neighborhood and told his friends about it. When his friends heard the story, they went to the other neighborhood and beat the other group of boys up to avenge their friend's loss. Then, this victorious group enjoyed their victory.
2. The king said, "If he disobeys, he will be put to death by torture."
3. Frozen french fries taste good, after you put them in the oven.

10:30am - 11:30am
1. “Confucius, at one point, met, or 'linked up' with Lao Tzu, and the two had a philosophical discussion.” —Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu
2. “The failure of a student represents the failure of the teacher, not the student.” —Plato



Friday, October 4, 2024

8:00am:
Misc. Notes
1. “Yes, you lost the fight, but you’re still a man with courage and heart.” —The Iliad, Homer

7:00pm - 8:00pm:
The Histories, Herodotus
1. "Similar peoples speak a similar language."
2. "One famous Greek philosopher was active in government, and although he held no office, he played an important role as an adviser."
3. One king gave orders that a large, sprawling city be built.



Thursday, October 3, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. French's Green Bean Casserole modified recipe (on the reverse of the French's Crispy Fried Onions box), is to combine 1 can Campbell's Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup, and 1 can Canned Cut Green Beans in a pot.
Then heat until boiling.
Then serve with fried crispy onions.
This dish tastes great!
2. Omitted
3. Philosophers probably got some of their ideas from common sources. From boxers, or sportsmen they might have known that we think, or we process information through our eyes, rather than in our heads, because boxers have to have quick eyes and not too much time to think. The philosophers probably got from Africa the idea that our sense of time is based on man and not the earth, because in many places in Africa there were no clocks.

6:00pm:
1. Cee 7 Allah is a positive African American brother who I spoke to. Visit his channel on Youtube to learn more about him.

7:30pm:
1. "There exists the law of nature, the law of man, and the law of god."
2. "After spending some time in the desert, he drank a lot of water, and then relieved himself under a tree." --The Arabian Nights
3. "The people left their newborn sons uncircumcised and without adequate care." --The Jewish War, Flavius Josephus
4. "The Indians came upon a chest, and in it contained several papers. Since the Indians didn't understand the value of paper, they crumpled it into balls and played catch with it, and they used it to roll their tobacco. Then the owner of the chest, a white enters, and is surprised at what the Indians are doing, because, she indicates, the papers were titles to property and wealth, and were worth a good deal of money." --James Fenimore Cooper

8:30pm - 9:00pm:
1. "For most Jewish people, the custom is to circumsize as a newborn, however, for some Arabs, the custom is to circumsize at age thirteen." -- Flavius Josephus
2. Night Sonnet, by Tristan Corbiere - "The night is beautiful."
3. Evil Landscape, by Tristan Corbier - "Some frogs are poisonous."
4. Sleep Litany, by Tristan Corbiere - "Wild animals don't sleep, human beings shouldn't sleep either. Sleep is a waste of time. Sleep is for the tired -- stay up, read, write, live!"

9:30pm - 10:30pm:
1. Comte de Lautreamont
2. He became known superficially in Parisian literary circles around 1867, and wrote nocturnally, accompanying his phrases with crashing piano chords.
3. Little is known of him. He was an intense, violent adolescent with a wild imagination, an insomniac who read voraciusly in classical and English literature as well as French.
4. The Hymns of Maldoror, by Comte de Lautreamont - "I dreamt that I was a pig: oink, oink, oink."
5. Arthur Rimbaud - A talented poet who embodied the madman as poet archetype.
6. The Jewish War, Flavius Josephus
7. "During a war with the Romans, the Jews interfered from above in every way possible." --Flavius Josephus
8. "Next came two centurions, Furius and Fabius, followed by their respective units, which completely surrounded the Temple court and killed some as they fled into the Sanctuary, others as they put up a short-lived resistance."
9. "Pompey next deprived the Jews of the towns they had occupied in Coele, Syria, putting them under a Roman governor, specially appointed; this meant that the nation was confined within its own boundaries."

The Arabian Nights
2. Night 231
3. Two travelers were lost in the desert. They were thirsty and tired. They came upon a house and wanted to enter it to seek shelter, but the door was bolted. So the man took a rock and broke the bolt and opened the door. Then they entered the house and ate, drank and restedm and their health was restored. Some time later the owner of the house appeared. She said "It's okay that you have found shelter in my home, as my religion advocates hospitality to others, however, you needn't have broken the door down. Knowledge of mechanics would have taught you that the bolt could have easily been opened by manipulating it in the right way."
4. "Men are the guardians of women, because of the superiority that God has granted to the one sex over the other."
5. "By God, my lady, I thought that Bahadur, my mamluk, had taken some jewelled necklaces of mine, each worth ten thousand dinars."
6. The king said, "Here, take this sword, and kill this man, or I will have you killed."
7. "Additionally, if you kill this man, then I will make you king of your own land."
8. He went into a palace, and in a room, he saw some lines of poetry written on a wall. This may be similar to grafitti.
9. Night 236
10. "...'Are you still alive?' He then took him off to his house, where he had an underground torture chamber for Muslims, and in this he put al-As'ad, with heave fetters on his legs."
11. "It was he, whom he entrusted with the task of torturing al-As'ad night and day until he died."
12. "The father of the daughter, was responsible with torturing the prisoner who had wronged his daughter."
13. “Many clever doctors who were knowledgeable in different subjects existed during this time.”
14. “He was sick because he had no friends.”
15. “The girl’s health is dependent on her seeing him, as the only illness from which she suffers is love for him."
16. The man entered the palace, and in the hallway, instead of turning left, turned right. He saw another hallway with seven doors, and entered the seventh. In the seventh room was a table containing gold treasure. He then wondered what was behind the other doors.



Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Harper Collins Russian Dictionary
1. kalechut - to cripple
2. konsol - cantilever
3. koshatnik - cat-lover
4. kofe - coffee
5. kofeen - caffeine
6. kofeunik - coffee-pot
7. kyvirkon narech - head over heels

-----
1. The Arabian Nights contains several instances of people’s fingers and toes getting amputated or cut off due to torture.
2. In the judicial system, the punishments for serious crimes may be too mild.
3. Canned vegetables taste good, if you know how to cook them.



Tuesday, October 1, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Stack up two or more pillows, to help you elevate yourself when lying in bed — stack up pillows to help you sit up in bed.

Harper Collins Russian Dictionary

1. koren - preskat - pyskat - to nip something in the bud
2. korzina - basket
3. Kormovaya cbokla - beet
3A. Just buy canned vegetables -- it doesn't matter what kind, all vegetables are good to eat -- just buy canned vegetables.
4. korotkuu - short
5. korotkoe zamikanue - short circuit
6. korpet - to slave away at
7. koco -cmotreet - squint
8. kocoglazue - squint
9. kot - tomcat
10. kotyonok - kitten

11. kottedg - cottage
12. sweet pea - dyshutstie goroshek
13. sweet potato - yams
14. sweet tooth - he/she has a -- on/ona slastyona
15. suicide bid - popitka camoybeestva
16. syrup - curup
17. syrupy - gystoi clashavee

The Arabian Nights
1. Night 216
"Some nights, it is as though the stars and the moon do not move."
2. "She continued to promote him from one grade to the next until she made him a treasurer, giving him control of the revenues."
3. "I shall live poor as far as money goes but rich in ideas and wisdom."
4. "Do not compare a woman to a beardless boy..."
5. "Men ask for pardon with their hands and women with their legs."
6. "If you're in love then you should get married -- that is the ultimate act."
7. "'After tonight you will see nothing to distress you,' she said, and she leaned towards him, kissing and embracing him and twining her legs with his."
8. "This greatly pleased King Armanus, and after assembling the qadis, the witnesses and the leaders of his state, he had a marriage contract drawn up between Qaar al-Zaman and his daughter, Princess Hayat al-Nufus. He organized wedding celebrations, gave magnificent banquets, distributed splendid robes of honour to all the emirs and army commanders, and gave alms to the poor and needy."
9. "...the sequence of my sorrows, the cares that follow on each other's heels, how separation pains me, my melancholy and my burning passion."
10. "When he had read it and grasped its meaning...In a fury, he blamed all women for their actions, and angrily cursed all women."


11. "Budur then perfumed the paper of the letter with pungent musk and wrapped it in her hair bands of Iraqi silk, whose tassels were of emeralds, set with pearls and other gems. This she handed to the old woman, telling her to give it to al-As'ad."
12. Night 219
The two of them, "They advised one another that the affair should be kept secret lest their father, Qamar al-Zaman, come to hear of it and kill the two women. After they had passed a sorrowful night, in the morning Qamar al-Zaman came back from the hunt with his men."
13. After walking for some time in the desert, the men come to a city. “On his way they met a very old man, whose forked beard was quite long and impressive.”
14. “Go slowly, Time! How many injuries will you inflict on me, And for how many days will you part me from my brothers?”
15. “He ate a little, just enough to keep him alive, and drank some water, and he was still uncomfortable.”



Sunday, September 29, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Canned corn, mixed with pork ramen seasoning, cooked is a kind of seasoned boiled corn that tastes good.
2. Soy milk (or almond milk) tastes good: it goes down silky smooth.



Saturday, September 28, 2024

The Republic and The Laws, Cicero
1. "The people's continual need of the advice and authority of the aristocracy holds the state together."
2. "White is the colour most appropriate to a god in all offerings. Black is a colour meant to represent mourning."
3. "Understand why each law was established. Understand the points on which each law was based."
4. "When a man dies, the traditions established while he was alive continue on after his death. His family continues the traditions that he began."
5. "When a man dies, even his 'enemies' receive some of his inheritance, in the name of honour and kindness."
6. "Everyone makes peace with the man when he's dead. They even act as though minor disagreements never existed in the first place."
7. "The family can hold an annual celebration in the deceased's name once he passes."
8. "The family can go on a vacation or go to a retreat to honor the deceased."
9. "The family writes a speech in praise of the deceased. The speech is delivered by the head of the family."

Framework for Governement
1. "In all towns, there shall be someone responsible for recording ages, children, households, possessions. He shall be the guardian of civil law."
1. “When there is no need for it, there shall be no government. Government exists on an as needed basis.”
1. "There shall be a small number of officials, selected by vote of the people or by other appointment. They shall conduct affairs in a just manner."
2. "Based on needs of the town, the officials should engage in business (politics)."
3. "The senatorial order shall be of unblemished behaviour and shall set an example for the rest."
4. "If anything needs to be addressed, then the people shall appoint someone to attend to it."
5. "Meetings of the people shall be free from violence and peaceful."
6. "When bills have been read at meetings, or judgements have been made, they shall keep their records on file in the treasury."
7. "Officials can now draw up a constitution."
8. The above is a framework for government.
9. “Find a way to determine the needs of the people, and then work on addressing these.”
10. “In some provinces, government may involve building jails to house prisoners.”

11. "Once an acceptable form of government has been formed, follow the laws day to day."
12. "Take a tally of everyone's opinions and needs."
13. "Proceedings with the people and in the Senate shall be conducted with decent restraint, that is, in a quiet, disciplined manner. The presiding magistrate controls and shapes the attitude of those over whom he presides...he should speak in his proper turn, and at moderate length, so as not to run endlessly on.
14. "The law adds: 'He shall have a grasp of public affairs'. It is essential for a senator to be familiar with the state of the country (that has wide implications--knowing what is has in the way of troops, how well off it is financially, what allies, friends, and tributaries the country has, what laws, conditions, and treaties apply to each), to understand legislative procedure, and to be aware of traditional precedent."
15. "You can now appreciate the whole range of knowledge, application, and memory without which no senator can be properly equipped for his job."
16. "Then comes the ruling, 'Anyone who blocks a harmful measure shall be deemed a public benefactor'.
17. "Discusses wicked men who are troublemakers."
18. Questions, what are the principles on which the laws are based?"
19. The end.



Friday, September 27, 2024

Misc. Notes/Food Ideas
1. Cold cuts in pita bread, with Rice a Roni on the side, taste good.
2. "Jails and prisons should be held accountable when inmates get injured or die in altercations while in their custody. This could involve financial compensation, prosecution of any guilty parties, and prison reform."
--Posted to "Research in Law and Psychiatry".



Thursday, September 26, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. "Some people put things in their butt, to make them sound louder when they talk."
2. "Some people's neighbors get their friends on the phone, to 'get other people's air,' which sometimes frustrates other neighbors."



Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Omitted.
2. "I don't know, it came like this from the factory." --James Joyce

The Penguin Book of French Poetry (1820-1950)

1. "The Conquistadores," by Jose-Maria de Hereida. "...from Palos de Moguer soldiers of fortune and captains set out, drunk with a heroic, brutal dream. They were going to conquer the fabulous metal from Cipangu in its distant mines...towards the mysterious shores of the Western world."

The Arabian Nights
1. Night 206
"An expensive wedding ring is best."
2. Night 208
Refers to the Middle East as the lands of Islam.



Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Misc. Notes/Food Ideas
1. Cold cuts with a slice of sushi ginger on the side taste good.



Sunday, September 22, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Book Reviews XI: Confucius -- Updated.



Saturday, September 21, 2024

The Physiology of Marriage, Honore de Balzac (Project Gutenberg)
1. Marriage involves having good morals.
2. Marriage involves fidelity.
3. That divorce, this admirable release from the misfortunes of marriage, should with one voice be reinstated?
4. Defines an honest woman in a marriage.
5. Discusses a break up of a marriage.

The Republic and The Laws, Cicero
1. "Speech, which interprets the mind, uses different languages but expresses the same ideas."
2. "What community does not love friendliness, generosity, and an appreciative mind which remembers acts of kindness? What community does not reject the arrogant, the wicked, the cruel, and the ungrateful--yes, and hate them too? So, since the whole human race is seen to be knit together, the final conclusion is that the principles of right living make everyone a better person."
3. To what degree do human laws exist in nature?
4. ...by laying down first principles which have not been well considered and carefully examined. Mind you, I do not mean that they should be proved to everyone's satisfaction, but to the satisfaction of those who believe that everything right and honourable should be desired for its own sake..."
5. "There is one, single justice. It binds together human society and has been established by one, single law. That law is right reason in commanding and forbidding."
6. "Goodness itself is good not because of people's opinions but because of nature...Since, then, good and bad are judged to be so on the basis of nature, and they are fundamental principles of nature, surely things which are honourable and dishonourable must also be judged by the same method and assessed by the standard of nature."
7. Cicero writes that goodness exists in nature. This suggests that when animals display anger or aggression, they have been given a drug by a human to do so.
8. Atticus: How can that be done now that Lucius Gellius is no longer alive? Marcus: What on earth has that to do with it?
9. Philosophy enables men to know themselves and their place in the natural order.
10. "And when that same mind examines the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the nature of all things, and perceives where those things have come from and to where they will return, when and how they are due to die, what part of them is mortal and perishable, and what is divine and everlasting; and when it almost apprehends the very god who governs and rules them, and realizes that it itself is not a resident in some particular locality surrounded by man made walls, but a citizen of the whole world as though it were a single city; then; in the majesty of these surrounding, in this contemplation and comprehension of nature, great God! how well it will know itself..."

11. "With such an instrument it will rule nations, reinforce laws, castigate the wicked, protect the good, praise eminent men, issue instructions for security and prestige in language which will persuade fellow citizens..."
12. Marcus: I note, then, that according to the opinion of the best authorities law was not thought up by the intelligence of human beings, nor is it some kind of resolution passed by communities, but rather an eternal force which rules the world by the wisdom of its commands and prohibitions. In their judgement, that original and final law is the intelligence of God, who ordains or forbids everything by reason. Hence that law which the gods have given to the human race is rightly praised, for it represents the reason and intelligence of a wise man directed to issuing commands and prohibitions.
13. When you view the bust of a philosopher, it is as though you can talk directly to him.
14. "Since everything that possesses intelligence is superior to what lacks intelligence, the statement is accurate."
15. Quintus: Thank you for presenting it, Marcus. I am very pleased that you are concerned with different issues and different ideas from Plato's. As far as I can see, the only thing you imitate is his literary style.
16. Religious Laws
17. "They shall preserve the rituals of their family and fathers."
18. "And the priests shall pay attention to vineyards and patches of withies and the safety of the people."



Friday, September 20, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Updated -- Research in Law and Psychiatry.
2. If you have a day and need to pass the time, go to the library. You can schedule your day there by reading for an hour or two, and then getting up to stretch your legs and grabbing a bite to eat, and then repeat this every hour or two until it is time to go home. You can read great books there, and remember to take notes about what your reading for future discussion.



Thursday, September 19, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. “The ideas of right and wrong are not the same for everyone.”
2. “Sometimes we have to make mistakes as children, in order to learn the right way as adults.”
3. Items 1. & 2., added to "Research in Law and Psychiatry."
4. "Some people are rabble rousers who know how to fire up a crowd." --Favorite Notes

The Republic and The Laws Cicero
1. -“Why don’t you spend your time giving advice on points of law.”
-“Sure, I would love to give my interpretation of the law.”
2. Discusses how attorneys should consult with their clients.
3. In nature, animals sometimes fight, and human beings also sometimes fight.
4. Items from 1. - 3. (above,) from Cicero's book, posted to "Research in Law and Psychiatry."



Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Grid View, located at the top of my Facebook page, is a great way to view my Facebook posts by title, which saves time scrolling!
2. The Arabian Nights illustrates several instances of hawks preying on other bird species.
3. Hawks -- According to Wikipedia, "Accipitridae is a family of birds of prey which includes hawks, eagles, kites, and harriers. These birds have very large powerful hooked beaks for tearing flesh from their prey, strong legs, powerful talons, and keen eyesight."
4. "View alcohol as poison." --James Joyce
5. The Lady with the Little Dog, by Anton Chekhov:
A story about a lady with a pomeranian.
--Posted to "Book Reviews VI: Russian Literature"
6. “My lungs are healthy, and it’s just a gastric cough...I can put up with hell. So what is the Red Sea, anyway?" --Anton Chekhov
7. "If I can't see it or feel it, then it's not a bad illness."
8. "A true gentleman doesn't look at a woman sexually in public."
9. "The two lovers sucked each other's tongues." --The Arabian Nights
10. Omitted.
11. Ramen seasoning mixed with canned corn tastes good.



Monday, September 16, 2024

Misc. Notes / Food Ideas
1. "American sushi," a version of sushi, replacing seafood with cold cuts, might be a good idea.
2. Police officers or their families should be compensated for injuries that they receive on the job, including death.
3. Compensation for his death was equal to his earnings for his lifetime. --The Arabian Nights.
4. Items 2 & 3, added to Research in Law and Psychiatry.



Sunday, September 15, 2024

Misc. Notes / Food Ideas
1. Chicken breast cold cuts dipped in ginger dressing sauce might taste good!
2. Determine what sauces Asian cooks use for their dishes, then buy them at the store to dip cold cuts in.
3. Dip your cold cuts in hummus if you are health conscious.
4. There's a dipping sauce for every occasion!



Saturday, September 14, 2024

Misc. Notes / Food Ideas
1. Toasted sandwiches taste good.
2. Updated, Food Ideas (below).
3. A variety of potato chips is good, different kinds of potato chips are good.



Friday, September 13, 2024

Research in Law & Psychiatry
1. Determine the reasons why police officers do what they do.
2. "A police officer might do something that appears evil, but it is actually to create a good outcome." --Cicero



Wednesday, September 11, 2024

Sophocles
1. "Remember we are women, we're not born to contend with men."
2. "They clashed and won the common prize of death."
Reminds readers that people are not supposed injure or cause harm to any living thing.

The Arabian Nights
1. A dust cloud, a cloud of dust is visible in the desert, when the dust clears, emerges the sultan's army.
2. "For I am one who throws down heroes on the battlefield,
And my sharp sword is like a crescent moon.
3. "You filthy dog, can the highly priced be equal to the low?
4. To the camel, "How can a large creature like you, with your great size, be afraid of the son of Adam, whom you could kill with a single kick?" "Prince," answered the camel, "know that the son of Adam is invincibly cunning and it is only death that can get the better of him. He puts a threat in my nostrils which he calls a nose ring and on my head he puts a halter. Then this little child pulls me along by my nose ring."
5. "While the camel and the lion cub were talking, another dust cloud rose, clearing away after a while to show a small, think-skinned old man, with a basket on his shoulder containing carpenter's tools... when I saw him, I was so afraid that I fell down."
6. When the lion cub heard this, the light turned to darkness in his eyes.
7. He then leapt playfully at the carpenter, struck him with his paw and knocked the basket from his shoulder.
8. "You are a weak creature, carpenter. You have no strength and you can be excused for being afraid of the son of Adam."
9. "Sister, you know how small are my powers of endurance, and had I not seen you here, I would not have done this."
10. "If doom is near at hand, who can save us? No ne dies until he has had the full measure of what has been alotted to him of both sustenance and length of life."

11. "...it eats the grasses that grown on the earth, and, just as you are of the race of birds, so, for its part, it is of the race of beasts. Be calm and don't worry, for worry makes the body thin."
12. Night 148 - Discusses a woman who says, "There is no one with us whom we need fear and I want to stay with you as long as you remain on this mountain. I will be your friend and companion..."
13. "Whether we give prohibitions or commands, We are like the Seven Sleepers, awake but yet asleep."
14. "It is said, that a certain bird flew high up into the sky and then swooped down to settle on a stone in the middle of a running stream."
15. "The company of birds has always derived blessings from you, and your counsel has taught them to recognize what is good. How can they be left with a burden of cares and damage?"
16. At this, the water fowl recited:
There is many a mishap that leaves a man powerless,
But God supplies him an escape from it.
It closes in, but when it has encircled him,
To my surprise, it opens up again."
17. There was a fox and a wolf who lived in the same den. Often, they didn't get along. One day, after speaking, the wolf "felled the fox with a blow which knocked him unconscious. When the fox had recovered his wits, he laughed at the wolf and excused himself for having spoken out of turn."
18. An assortment of candy bars, different candy bars, is good.
19. "While the camel and the lion cub were talking, another dust cloud rose, clearing away after a while to show a small, thin-skinned old man with a basket on his shoulder containing carpenter's tools."
20. "Whether we give prohibitions or commands, We are like the Seven Sleepers, awake but yet asleep."

21. "It is said: arrogance is loss; the ignorant have cause to repent; he who fears is safe; justice is one of the characteristics of noble men; and the best thing that can be acquired is culture."
22. "The master pardons the servant who has done wrong and forgives him if he confesses his faults." "I have pardoned your fault and forgiven your error..."
23. "Childbirth is a mixture of pain and joy."
24. "Half of cleverness is caution."
25. "'Abu'l-Husain,' said the wolf, 'you used to pretend to be my friend, to want my favor and to fear my great strength.'"
26. "You ignorant and deluded wolf, wily and treacherous as you are, don't hope to escape, for this is the reward and requital for your evil deeds."
27. The wolf recited these lines,
"You whose favors to me are many
And whose gifts cannot be counted,
No disaster of Time has ever struck me
Without my finding you there to hold my hand."
28. He then recited these lines,
"You who are trying to deceive me,
Your evil intention brought you down."
29. "It is said a sympathetic friend is better than a full brother."
30. "They have pointed out that those with thick bodies and coarse natures are far removed from intelligence and close to stupidity."

31. "To die in company is the best of things, and I shall certainly hurry to kill you before you see my own death."
32. "Pluck fruits, but if you find these out of reach, Content yourself with grass."
33. Illustrates the productive potential of people.
34. "If what he claims is true, then he will have put right what he did wrong; but if he is lying, then it is the Lord who will repay him."
35. "Yesterday I dreamt that I was dancing at your wedding and when I told this to an interpreter of dreams, he said that I was going to fall into great danger and then escape from it."
36. "Fool, jokes have a limit which the joker must not pass."
37. “Doctors give advice and recommendations, not orders and commands.” —Marcel Proust
38. Some people are rabble rousers, who know how to start up a crowd.
39. "...you will not have to leave because of any harm that I might do you and I hope to be able to reward you with all kinds of benefits for the service that you are doing me."
40. "You can see how he repaid her and gave her the most excellent of rewards."

41. "What will bring me joy will bring you joy; what will happen to you will happen to me."
42. There was a monkey who stole things from people and brought them to his master.
43. There was a sparrow who used to go every day to one of the kings of the birds.
44. "Here are two sparrows fighting. I shall act as peacemaker between them."
45. "Her skin was like silk and her voice gentle."
46. The boy and the girl speak in terms of messages and replies.
47. "My love, because you are so often absent,
You teach my eyes how long they can shed tears."
48. From the house of the sultan emerged ten singing girls.
49. "I stretched out one hand to say goodbye...
May this not be the last time we meet..."
50. The singing girls performed several songs.

51. "Time has opposed me, my patience has run short."
52. "On her hand...was a pattern painted on a wrist."
53. Briefly discusses Jujubes, Chinese dates or red dates.
54. The doctor said, "Were I able to cure you, I would do it for you before you asked."
55. "I struggle with patience in my suffering."
56. He went to Basra to meet Basran merchants.
57. "...during the course of their conversation he kept swearing that he had not spoken a word about the matter."
58. "I understand the girl's position, but if God Almighty wills, I can help you to get what you want."
59. "Speak and I listen; order and I shall obey."
60. "My friend, men's souls are matched in their desires and people depend on each other."

61. "I thought that it would be better to tell the truth than to lie. So I told them everything that had happened to me, from start to finish."

Selected Works, Cicero
1. "Suppose a man's father was stealing from temples -- ought his son to report him?"
2. "Our country will benefit by having sons who are loyal to their parents."
3. "If a wise man inadvertently accepts a counterfeit coin, will he, on discovering his mistake, pass the piece off to someone else as good, in payment of a debt?"



Tuesday, September 10, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. "After using drugs, he entered the mosque in a dream state."
2. He meets a woman named Marjana.
3. "Your mother had been converted to Islam by Sharkan, your brother, and he took her off secretly to Baghdad."
4. Tells a story which is the reason for the hostility between the people of Rum and those of Baghdad.
5. The woman talks to the sultan and asks him for help.
6. The kings seek to take vengeance by avenging themselves on Shawahi, the old woman known as Dhat al-Dawahi.
7. "'Uncle,' said Kana-ma-Kana, 'you are the only fitting ruler for this kingdom.'"
8. Throughout the Arabian Nights, are stories which include instances where people are kidnapped.
9. "He kissed her hands and thanked her for what she had done, adding: 'By God, you do not allow good deeds to be wasted.'"
10. "She drew back and the kings said: 'Now tell us a story.' 'Kings of the age, if I tell you a wonderful tale, will you pardon me?' When they agreed to this, he began to tell them of his most remarkable experience."

11. "...but then we saw that it was far too hot for us to start, as not only was the heat oppressive but we were parched with thirst."
12. Omitted.
13. “He used healing lotion for help with his wounds.”
14. Kidnappings were common during these days, and they were not necessarily bad.
15. I learned several things reading Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley, by Timothy White: that people had to be fit to survive in Trenchtown, a ghetto of Jamaica; that Zionism Rastafarianism dated back to Africa and Ethiopia and the Coptic church; that marijuana was widely smoked by Rastafarians across Jamaica, because it was a religious accessory; that the slang spoken by Rastafarians was a respected language; and that soccer was a favorite sport in Jamaica, and Jamaican soccer teams would routinely face world soccer teams such as those from South America and Africa.
16. “One of the sultans soldiers was worth a hundred of the other army's fighters.”
17. “When I was a young man, I met a girl, and we spoke. After speaking, we parted and I never saw her again.” —Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
18. "When he had finished, she brought him a jug of wine and, applying himself to this, he drank until the wine went to his head and his face grew red."
19. "The men had convinced her to convert to Islam."
20. James Joyce reminds readers of the dangers of swimming while intoxicated.

21. I told the wild birds where I live, that they can speak as humans do if they work on their words. For example, at night they can chirp, "co, co, co, come, come, come," to attract other birds. To fly together, they can chirp, "up, up, up," or "'ly, 'ly, 'ly," and so on. I told the birds that they can chirp partial words if not the entire word, in order to communicate.

Italian Folktales, Italo Calvino
The Three Dogs
1. A story about a girl who faces difficulties but is aided by three dogs and ends up victorious.
2. The girl makes a scene, and starts shouting to prove her point in one scene.
3. The girl criticizes the stinking dogs because of their foul smell in one scene.

Invisible Grandfather
1. Reminds us that our grandparents are old people, are seniors who are related to us.

Animal Speech, Italo Calvino
1. “Some people cannot understand animal language.”

Ulysses, James Joyce
1. When cooking, you can smell when food is burning.
2. Some people believe, he said, that we go on living in another body after death, that we lived before. They call it reincarnation. That we all lived before on the earth thousands of years ago or some other planet. They say we have forgotten it. Some say they remember their past lives.
3. Tell him silly Milly sends my best respects. I must now close with fondest love Your fond daughter, MILLY. P. S. Excuse bad writing am in hurry.
4. A paper. He liked to read at stool.
5. He fixed the hair over his head.
6. O, surely he bagged it. Bury him cheap in a whatyoumaycall.
7. Very warm morning. Under their dropped lids his eyes found the tiny bow of the leather headband inside his high grade hat.
8. Then running round corners. Bad as a row with Molly. Cigar has a cooling effect. Narcotic.
9. Tell about places you have been, strange customs. The other one, jar on her head, was getting the supper: fruit, olives, lovely cool water out of a well, stonecold like the hole in the wall at Ashtown
10. Going under the railway arch he took out the envelope, tore it swiftly in shreds and scattered them towards the road. The shreds fluttered away, sank in the dank air: a white flutter, then all sank. Henry Flower. You could tear up a cheque for a hundred pounds in the same way. Simple bit of paper. Lord Iveagh once cashed a sevenfigure cheque for a million in the bank of Ireland.



Monday, September 9, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. “Read the best literature in every culture.”
2. "..after a month, he arrived at al-Ruhba. He then moved on to the outskirts of Baghdad, from where he sent a message to Dau' al-Makan, announcing his arrival."
3. "On his instructions, she was lodged with his son, Kana-ma-Kana, and the two of them grew to be the most intelligent of the people of their age as well as the bravest."
4. "'Do whatever you think right,' replied the vizier to the king, 'for we shall obey your orders.'"
5. The vizier said, "Know that I am leaving the transitory world for the world of eternity."
6. "I shall be the loser in all things, light or serious,
If God, my master, does not mend my heart."
7. "The situation of Kana-ma-Kana changed and the Baghdadis deposed him, isolating him and his family."
8. "It is enough for you that death's wonders become plain...
These days are only stages on a journey..."
Nothing so saddens me as the loss of noble men,
Who have been victims of great miseries."
9. "Our house is yours; our place is yours; our wealth is yours, together with all that we have."
10. "His eyes filled with tears and he said: 'If you want to see what the world will be like after you have left it, look at when someone else has gone."

11. "...he told her to be sure that she was given an honorable lodging and her poverty relieved."
12. "A beautiful girl, perfect in loveliness,
Whose eyebrows put to shame the use of kohl."
13. "...when the grand chamberlain became king, he was called al-Malik Sasan. He took his place on the royal throne and treated his subjects well."
14. "It is even more necessary that your daughter be kept away from men, as girls like her should be kept in seclusion."
15. "My heart loves one who has enslaved it;
Look for no grain of patience in me.
16. "Forgive me; in my inmost heart there is a page
For which most clearly tears provide a heading."
17. "I have hear, O fortunate king, that news of this reached King Sasan. It was brought to him by the leading emirs, who told him: 'He is the son of our king, of the stock of King 'Umar ibn al-Nu'man, and we have heard that he has left the country."
18. "This land had drunk from the cups of clouds to the sound of thunder and the cooing of doves."
19. "He replied with gentle eloquence: 'Chief of the Arabs, don't talk of my youth, but tell me how you come to be travelling by night through the desert, reciting poetry."
20. "When we both grew up we were kept away from each other, as my uncle saw that I was poor and penniless. The Arab chiefs and the leaders of the tribes went to see him and criticized him for this. He felt ashamed and he agreed to marry my cousin to me, but only on condition..."

21. "Sabbah replied: 'It may be that you are feeble-witted or the extent of your passion may have driven you out of your mind.'"
22. "My strength has now gone and I am no longer concerned with worldly things."
23. "Sasan was sitting on his throne in a state of perplexity when he heard of his arrival."
24. "'By God,' she said, 'my son, your absence distracted me from everything else, including all thought of your beloved, especially as it was she who was the cause of your exile.'"
25. They complained to each other of the pain of separation.
26. The prince refused to fight a woman.
27. The wild animals of a country belong to the government.
28. “Chivalry dictates that gazelles with young should be released.”
29. Examine the degrees to which anarchy is illegal.



Sunday, September 8, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. How to Read a Book, by Mortimer Adler is a great book for teachers, libraries, and bookstores. It is a book that teaches people how to read a book.
2. "The tapping of one foot of the listener of the blues is deliberate, keeps a beat -- too fast would be a different style altogether. Forms where the beat is abstracted from the melody. A 3/4 beat, for example." —Louis Armstrong: An American Genius
3. Playing the guitar was as easy as riding a bike for Chuck Berry. —Trivial Pursuit



Saturday, September 7, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. Your personality, are you sweet or sour?
2. The claws of a hawk are powerful weapons.
3. On the seas, there is water everywhere, but it is too salty to drink, unfortunately.
4. When he had finished his poem, he told him that he had removed some of his cares.
5. "You can't buy love."
6. "You shouldn't do a thing backwards, and you should do the important things first."
7. "Don't blame others for your mistakes, be a man and take responsibility for your actions."
8. "When he heard that, it brought great relief and joy to him, and allowed him to live a happy life."
9. "The leaders enjoyed talking to the king's son."
10. "When she fainted, he sprinkled water on her face to revive her."

11. “There are many pubs and taverns in Ireland.” —James Joyce
12. The king was personally responsible for several administrative changes, all of them concerned with wisdom and justice.
13. An assortment of Little Debbie cakes, that is, different kinds of cakes, is good.



Friday, September 6, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. "She took a fan and sat by my head, fanning my face until the end of the day."
2. "You who seek for separation, go slowly, Time's nature is treacherous."
3. "She did not express her feelings enough."
4. "A shower can be refreshing."
5. "She was decorated with jewelry, rings, and I stared at her in astonishment."
6. "If a child dies then its parents will be compensated for the loss while in its youth."
7. Standard lamps are useful if you want to do work at night such as reading.
8. “You torture me, but your torture is sweet.”
9. If anyone dies prematurely (not of natural causes), then maybe their death should be investigated and their families should be compensated.
10. According to Greek vocabulary, the drug store or pharmacy contains vitamins, etc., that can help with just about any health condition.

11. Stores sell Del Monte Southwestern corn, which might be a good snack — boiled corn!
12. "Bonny" is a Scottish word that means attractive or beautiful.

The Arabian Nights
1. "Here he gave him a house of his own and supplied him with whatever he needed in the way of food, drink and clothing." This allowance was based on necessity.
2. “Family and friends are positive aspects of being in a relationship.”
3. "A man with a muscular, attractive physique, should have brains to go with it."
4. "With a lamp, you have conquered the night."
5. "Fully wash your feet in the baths at the mosque."
6. "You have come and our hills are clothed in green."
7. Omitted.
8. "The next day, the vizier summoned a house painter, an artist, and a skilled goldsmith, and he produced for them all the tools they would need."

Ulysses, James Joyce
1. I used to. Yes, used to carry punched tickets to prove an alibi if they arrested you for murder somewhere. Justice. On the night of the seventeenth of February 1904 the prisoner was seen by two witnesses. Other fellow did it: other me. Hat, tie, overcoat, nose. Lui, c’est moi. You seem to have enjoyed yourself.
2. Feefawfum. I zmellz de bloodz odz an Iridzman.
3. A point, live dog, grew into sight running across the sweep of sand. Lord, is he going to attack me? Respect his liberty.
4. Then from the starving cagework city a horde of dwarfs, my people, with flayers’ knives, running, scaling, hacking in green blubbery whalemeat.
5. The dog’s bark ran towards him, stopped, ran back.
6. Their dog ambled about a bank of dwindling sand, trotting, sniffing on all sides. He turned, bounded back, came nearer, trotted on twinkling shanks. On a field tenney a buck, trippant, proper, unattired.
7. The dog yelped running to them, reared up and pawed them, dropping on all fours, again reared up at them with mute bearish fawning. Unheeded he kept by them as they came towards the drier sand, a rag of wolf’s tongue redpanting from his jaws.
8. He stopped, sniffed, stalked round it, brother, nosing closer, went round it, sniffling rapidly like a dog all over the dead dog’s bedraggled fell. Dogskull, dogsniff, eyes on the ground, moves to one great goal. Ah, poor dogsbody! Here lies poor dogsbody’s body.
9. The simple pleasures of the poor. His hindpaws then scattered the sand: then his forepaws dabbled and delved. Something he buried there, his grandmother. He rooted in the sand, dabbling, delving and stopped to listen to the air, scraped up the sand again with a fury of his claws, soon ceasing, a pard, a panther, got in spousebreach, vulturing the dead.
10. You find my words dark. Darkness is in our souls do you not think?

11. He lay back at full stretch over the sharp rocks, cramming the scribbled note and pencil into a pock his hat.
12. Cup your hands. The cup of your hand.
13. Must get those settled really. Pity. All the way from Gibraltar. Forgotten any little Spanish she knew.
14. Drink water scented with alcohol.
15. Windows open. Fresh air helps memory.



Thursday, September 5, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. Are tales from the Middle East.
2. Night 107
3. There was a king. "For many years he lived in his kingdom, glorious and secure, but he had neither wife nor child." For this reason he was unhappy.
4. "Buy a slave girl," one of the men says, but be careful, because she comes from a tough background.
5. Night 108
6. There was a king, and while under his rule, his subjects ate well, and his daughter was sent an abundance of gifts and presents.
7. "...My daughter is one of his slave girls, and this is my greatest wish, that she may be my treasure and support."
8. "The celebrations lasted for two months and nothing was omitted that might please the heart or delight the eye."
9. "If they have a child, the child may turn out to be a tyrannical hypocrite and an evil being. She is like a salt marsh, where the seeds that are sown produce bad and weak plants."

10. Night 109
11. "The order was obeyed and a proclamation was made in the city that no girl kept in seclusion, young or old, should stay behind but that they were all to come out to meet the bride."
12. "Days passed and years went by until he was seven years old. The Sulaiman Shah summoned the learned doctors and philosophers and told them to teach his son calligraphy, philosophy and literary culture. They stayed for a number of years doing that until the boy learned all that was needed. Whenever he went out on any business, all who saw him were captivated by him."
13. The prince became a skilled horseman, surpassing all living at his time. Because of his beauty, all who saw him were captivated by him, poems were composed about him and he had many admirers.
14. The prince had a mole on his cheek, and it was thought to be a beautiful mole.
15. "Do not blame him, for blame is hurtful.:
16. "Time did its best with its rough hand."
17. The prince was skilled at hunting, and he often trapped and released many animals, including gazelles.
18. "This year we shall draw up the marriage contract between 'Aziz and 'Aziza."
19. The bride had several gestures each meaning something different.
20. The woman's handwriting was delicate and fine.

21. "Backwards or forwards -- I do not know how love is to be read."
22. Perhaps the old man was under a spell to make him old, and when the spell is broken, he reverts to his youthful form.
23. "I became afraid for myself as I sat there alone, and so I got up, staggering like a drunken man until I got home."
24. Omitted.
25. Because she knew that too much salt is unhealthy, she cooked bland food.

26. "Her grandmother enjoyed it when her granddaughter read the Bible to her."
27. “An education can prepare you for death.” —St. Alphonsus
28. “It is important to have a strong vocabulary.”



Wednesday, September 4, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. White rice, canned corn (or mixed vegetables), and Perdue chicken strips, taste good.
2. Crayons are good for making children’s pictures.
3. Updated, Favorite Notes, with Item VII. - Notes about Alcohol.

Greek vocabulary
1. Περού - Peru
2. πιατάκι - saucer

Cicero: Selected Writings
1. During that trip of yours, “your progress was truly magnificent.”
2. “When he left for Rome and approached Aquinum, quite a large crowd came to meet him, since the town has a considerable population.”
3. “There will be crowds within the crowd.”
4. Negative behavior prevents future progress, and is also a step backwards in the present state of development.

German Vocabulary
1. Skelett - skeleton
2. Sodawasser - Soda water
3. Sodbrennen - heartburn
4. Spulen - rinse
5. Staubig - dusty
6. Stehlampe - standard lamp
7. Stimmbander - vocal cords
8. Stimme - voice
9. Strahl - ray, beam
10. Omitted.

Ulysses, James Joyce
1. He hacked through the fry on the dish and slapped it out on three plates, saying: - In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti.
2. View Irish art.
3. Haines stopped to take out a smooth silver case in which twinkled a green stone. He sprang it open with his thumb and offered it.
- Thank you, Stephen said, taking a cigarette. Haines helped himself and snapped the case to. He put it back in his sidepocket and took from his waistcoatpocket a nickel tinderbox, sprang it open too, and, having lit his cigarette, held the flaming spunk towards Stephen in the shell of his hands.
4. He had been wearing a Panama hat.
5. Stephen turned and saw that the cold gaze which had measured him was not all unkind.
6. Haines detached from his underlip some fibres of tobacco before he spoke.
7. “I don’t know why it’s discolored. It came like this from the factory.”
8. Of course I’m a Britisher, Haines’s voice said, and I feel as one. I don’t want to see my country fall into the hands of German jews either. That’s our national problem, I’m afraid, just now.
Two men stood at the verge of the cliff, watching: businessman, boatman.
9. Briefly refers to Bullock Harbour, Ireland.
10. A voice, sweettoned and sustained, called to him from the sea. Turning the curve he waved his hand. It called again. A sleek brown head, a seal’s, far out on the water, round.

11. Two of the characters discuss Irish history.
12. I have put the matter into a nutshell, Mr Deasy said. It’s about the foot and mouth disease. Just look through it. There can be no two opinions on the matter.
13. May I trespass on your valuable space. That doctrine of laissez faire which so often in our history. Our cattle trade. The way of all our old industries. Liverpool ring which jockeyed the Galway harbour scheme.



Tuesday, September 3, 2024

James Joyce: Writings
1. Examines the difference between public and private life.
2. “You will give me a headache if you make me think today.”
3. The men smoke a cigar after drinking a glass of whiskey.
4. “Humans like simplicity.”
5. “You may make fun of him as much as you like.”
6. “Will you blame me then?”
7. “He sprays perfume in the room as though it were air freshener.”
8. “You know there were rumours here of your life abroad — a wild life.”
9. A goal of prisons may be to reform inmates.
10. A battle of your soul against the spectre of fidelity, of mine against the spectre of friendship. All life is a conquest, the victory of human passion over the commandments of cowardice.

11. “There was an eternity before we were born: another will come after we are dead.”
12. “Then it is my mind that attracts you? Is that it?”
13. “There is a difference between speaking generally and going into detail.”
14. Candles sometimes jump, or flicker.
15. “It was unkind of you towards me. But I forgive you because you were thinking of his happiness and mine.”
16. You have the international versions of people: the English version, the Spanish version, the Indian version, the Chinese version, etc.
17. “There, the article in the newspaper, is it for him or against him?”
18. The little girl in Les Miserables by Victor Hugo represents the youth and the future, and freedom and change.
19. “He passes the greater part of the night in there writing. Night after night.”
20. “Listerine was invented in 1879. It is named after Dr. Joseph Lister, an English surgeon who pioneered antiseptic surgical methods.” —Trivial Pursuit

21. James Joyce discusses a man who poached a fowl in order to eat. Nelson Mandela, in his autobiography, indicates that when he was a young man, he killed a few birds with a contraption like a slingshot.
22. After slavery was abolished, southern blacks moved to the north, (New York, Philadelphia, D.C.) and invented their own trends and adopted their own style of music. --Louis Armstrong: An American Genius
23. Horn of Plenty: The Story of Louis Armstrong, is another popular book about Louis Armstrong.
24. Louis Armstrong, who started out as a poor kid who taught himself how to play the horn was successful. His albums were loved by many people and sold millions of copies.

25. Canned collard greens, canned yams, and several slices of ham cold cuts on the side, taste good!
26. “Some people just know how to lie, they can lie about anything." “Oh, I took this of yours, I did that to yours— No you just know how to lie, you didn’t do anything to my anything.” —Henrik Ibsen, Relationship Advice

27. "Circumcision was invented by the ancient Egyptians, and intended to be used to create a scholar, or intellectual class." --Writings from Ancient Egypt

Virgil: The Aeneid
28. Sports are our realm, we are the victors!
29. "Stop concocting this panic for me, please."
30. "Men will make war and peace. War's their work."
31. Battles involve luck, talent, and skill.
32. The troops all honored their leader.
33. Then he returned, reborn by the healer's potent herbs and his wife's love.
34. "Don't fear the threats of war."



Monday, September 2, 2024

James Joyce: Writings
1. They “sit at long tables eating beef fringed with green fat and vegetables that are still rank of the earth.”
2. She moves backwards towards me mutely.
3. Please, mister God, big mister God! Goodbye, big world!.......
4. She has no smell: an odourless flower.
5. Omitted.
6. Of him we are further told that at the age of six he wrote a school prize essay on kindness to freshwater fish.
7. “…the plain fact of the matter being that being a natural born lover of nature in all her moods and senses…”
8. “…of That Which Itself is Itself Alone exteriorates on this here our plane in disunited solid, liquid and gaseous bodies in…”
9. Three quarks for Muster Mark, Sure he hasn’t got much of a bark, And sure any he has it’s all beside the mark.
10. “He had sought medical advice for a stubborn cough.”

11. “We are born in different places, and we die at different times.”
12. “She wanted a complicated dinner, when a simple dinner would have done her just as good.”
13. “He was between forty and sixty years of age.”
14. King Art MacMurrough Kavanagh, now of parts unknown, God guard his generous soul, that put a poached fowl in the poor man’s pot before he took to his…
15. He was a man with hairy eyebrows.
16. I wouldn’t dream of a sausage of his to poison a cat and it was in all the Sunday papers about Earwicker’s farfamed…
17. Just as there is a God of all, Livvy, my mind is a complete blank.
18. I don’t care a fig for such a letter.
19. He spent quite a lot of time looking at the mirror.

20. “The villains committed their crimes because they themselves were poor and in an impoverished state.” —Cicero
21. “The villains possessed unbelievable stupidity.”
22. “They had repudiated the constitution and established values their country represented.”

23. “After working a tough job, he used lotion for bruising.”
24. “Books about drunks,” and “stories about drinking,” are good terms to learn more about the subjects which James Joyce wrote about.
25. If you make franks and beans, after combining the franks and the beans in the pot, cook everything on low heat, until boiling, so as to cook the franks throughout.



Sunday, September 1, 2024

Cicero, Selected Works
1. Pesticides can be harmful to humans as well as the environment.
2. "Every living thing is entitled to life."
3. "The courtroom is your friend. Attorney's should feel comfortable and at home in the courtroom." --Cicero
4. Rap music began in the playgrounds and the barbershops of NYC during the 1980s. The young men who began rap music wrote the lyrics in their language and about their experiences in the city. Depending on the circumstance, you can call it rap, or hip hop. --From Hip Hop: A Positive Black Tradition (my Facebook post).
5. Different blacks possessed different styles of music, based on their geographical location. Take the Charleston, a dance originated by southern blacks from Charleston, North Carolina. --From my Facebook paper about Louis Armstrong.
6. "Their crimes ranged from mild to severe."
7. "Their crimes were both national and international, and represented weaknesses in their character."
8. "All of the villains were tried together in one big trial for each and every one of their offenses."
9. "He selected honorable members of the Senate to be judges at their trial."
10. "The evil men were trying to destroy the country."
11. "Their crimes caused delays in the normal progression and growth of society."

James Joyce
12. “Love's breath in you is stale, worded or sung…”
13. “You reek of alcohol.”
14. James Joyce’s poetry is available on the www.
15. “Alcohol makes you shout.”
16. “She kept playing with his head.”
17. Alcohol makes you rude.
18. “Explores the jolly drinker archetype.”
19. “Alcohol brings out a negative element in society.”

20. "I'm a loud person."
21. "Why are you drinking alcohol to begin with?"
22. "When he drank, he sang songs."
23. “Whatever you’re drinking, I’m drinking.”
24. Omitted.
25. James Joyce told the secrets of the Irish.
26. “Use food coloring and water, to make it look like an alcoholic drink.” —Ulysses, James Joyce
27. "View alcohol as (fermented) sugar water, or medicine."
28. “They pass in an air of perfumes: under the perfumes their bodies have a warm humid smell.”
29. “Great ideas are ‘Thousand dollar ideas.’”
30. “If you use candles at night, then maybe more than one candle will be useful.”

31. “Some people don’t have a strong tolerance for foul smells.”
32. “…she greets me wintrily and passes up the staircase darting at me for an instant out of her sluggish sidelong eyes a jet of liquorish venom.”



Sunday, September 1, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Pesticides can be harmful to humans as well as the environment.
2. "Every living thing is entitled to life."
3. "The courtroom is your friend. Attorney's should feel comfortable and at home in the courtroom." --Cicero
4. Rap music began in the playgrounds and the barbershops of NYC during the 1980s. The young men who began rap music wrote the lyrics in their language and about their experiences in the city. Depending on the circumstance, you can call it rap, or hip hop. --From Hip Hop: A Positive Black Tradition (my Facebook post).
5. Different blacks possessed different styles of music, based on their geographical location. Take the Charleston, a dance originated by southern blacks from Charleston, North Carolina. --From my Facebook paper about Louis Armstrong.
6. "Their crimes ranged from mild to severe." --Cicero
7. "Their crimes were both national and international, and represented weaknesses in their character."
8. "All of the villains were tried together in one big trial for each and every one of their offenses."
9. "He selected honorable members of the Senate to be judges at their trial."
10. "The evil men were trying to destroy the country."
11. "Their crimes caused delays in the normal progression and growth of society."



Saturday, August 31, 2024

Selected Works Cicero
1. "The evil men, they had one intention, and that was to murder the citizens of Rome."
2. "The future only exists in our memory." --Marcel Proust
3. cavity - Hohlraum. German.
4. When you're at the dentist, allow the dentist to give you a shot of novocaine, and then let the novocaine take effect, and then you won't feel anything during the procedure.
5. “These evil men, they were anarchists.”
6. “When a new crime is committed, you create a new law.”
7. Kollubo - boiled corn. —The Oxford New Greek Dictionary. Canned corn cooked, is boiled corn; it tastes good with a piece of ham (cold cuts) on the side.
8. Franks and beans are also inexpensive and easy to make. Just cut up some franks, mix them in a pot with baked beans, cook, serve, and enjoy!
9. Don't watch tv all the time, sometimes turn the tv off and read, or rest.
10. "The repeating rifle, has helped American soldiers on the battlefield in many ways."
11. Electric hairdryers are great tools for drying off your wet dog or cat after a bath!

The Arabian Nights
1. "In fact, she had told the infidels of the trick she had played."
2. "The woman then told them what had happened in order to spread alarm and fear."
3. "Islam is the religion of the best of mankind."
4. "We camped here and it has water colder than snow."
Animals can drink the water from puddles of rain, or melted snow.
5. "We saw a picture on the wall, and it was talking to us."
6. "The infidels had surrounded the Muslims, thinking that they would escape humiliating punishment, and they remained hopeful of success against the followers of the true faith."
7. "He said, 'I am a messenger sent to you all. A messenger's only duty is to deliver his message. Give me safe conduct and permission to speak so that I may deliver mine.' 'You have safe conduct,' said Sharkan, 'so fear neither sword cut nor spear thrust.'"
8. "...God will reward you well, for the reward will be in proportion to the hardship."
9. If the soldiers died, then their families would receive enough money to cover their living expenses and an honorable ceremony.



Friday, August 30, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. "Jails and prisons should be held accountable when inmates die or get injured in altercations while in their custody. This could involve financial compensation, investigations, prosecution of any guilty parties, and prison reform."
2. “Because of the rule of a villain, the country was depressed.” —Cicero
3. Tuna casserole (or just plain tuna and noodles,) is easy to make, with a Kraft Mac & Cheese cup and a tuna pouch!
4. Run - Lauf. German. Additionally, I learned that running suppresses your laughter somewhat.
5. “How to use deodorant,” “how to use body spray,” and “how to use cologne,” are search terms that taught me a lot.
I learned that you should research “how to use” something in order to learn how to use it.
6. Dictionaries in different languages with English translations contain tremendous practical knowledge.
7. "Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries will add an extra layer of juicy sweetness to your coffee without any added sugar."
8. Taste - Geschmack. German
9. Apricot - Aprikose. German
10. The godparents of one’s children should simply be there for the kids: talk to them on the phone, visit them at home somewhat regularly, etc.
11. Take two cod liver oil pills daily, if you want to speed up its effects of removing encrusted snot.



Thursday, August 29, 2024

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
1. Omitted.
2. “…the sight of him still impressed me as might that of an historic personage, upon whom one had just been studying a series of books, and the smallest details of whose life one learned with enthusiasm.”
3. “Classical literature has a unique beauty and nobility to it.”
4. “As for Swann, in my attempts to resemble him, I spent the whole time, when I was at table, in drawing my finger along my nose and in rubbing my eyes.”
5. Her beauty made him melt with emotion.
6. “He had a tongue like a viper, and would sometimes curse people out.”
7. “…who could hold out no longer, and complained that her legs were ‘giving’ beneath her, to stroll up and down with me for another hour…”
8. “They would ask one another, ‘Who is she?’, or sometimes would interrogate a passing stranger, or would make a mental note of how she was dressed so as to fix her identity, later, in the mind of a friend better informed than themselves, who would at once enlighten them.”
9. “It was also the time of day. In places where the trees still kept their leaves, they seemed to have undergone an alteration of their substance from the point at which they were touched by the sun’s light, still, at this hour in the morning, almost horizontal, as it would be again, a few hours later, at the moment when, just as dusk began, it would flame up like a lamp…”
10. “A patch of brightness indicated the approach to almost every one of them, or else a splendid mass of foliage stood out before it like an oriflamme.”

11. Refers to Michelangelo’s Creation.
12. Certain ceremonies require us to act slowly.
13. “Learn about women in history.”
14. “Alas! there was nothing now but flats decorated in the Louis XVI style, all white paint, with hortensias in blue enamel.” Endnotes:
15. Ali Baba ... resplendent with its unsuspected treasures: Ali Baba discovers a secret treasure cave in a famous story in The Thousand and One Nights, also known as The Arabian Nights, a collection of Persian, Indian, and Arabian tales translated into French in the eighteenth century. It was one of Proust’s favorite books.
16. Discusses the difficulty of bringing Prousts’s novels to the big screen, which include difficulties in following the plot and keeping true to characters.
17. “He fears death by water.” —T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land
18. “He is sick of looking at cigarette ends.” —T.S. Eliot

In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower, Marcel Proust
1. Book two in the seven volume collection. The longest book ever written by French novelist Marcel Proust.
2. MADAME SWANN AT HOME
3. Swann had been a man of simplicity.
4. “Swann…was like those great artists—modest or generous by nature—who, if at the end of their career they take to cooking or to gardening, display a childlike gratification at the compliments that are paid to their dishes or their borders, and will not listen to any of the criticism which they heard unmoved when it was applied to their real achievements…”
5. “No doubt they preferred, socially, to meet certain others who were better read, more artistic, with whom they could discuss Nietzsche and Wagner.”
6. “We don’t have to live in silence.”
7. Our lives involve different activities.
8. “The villains ruled through bribery and intimidation.” —Cicero
9. Some phrases are pleasing to say out loud.
10. She liked when he spoke names and places in French to her. Chevalier, le Sorbonne, villepiers, quatre, Jean-Jacques Rousseau…

11. “After launching this quotation M. de Norpois paused and examined our faces, to see what effect it had had upon us.”
12. “And then that admirable voice…I should almost be tempted to describe it as a musical instrument.”
13. “He was skilled at imitating other people.”
14. Many authors and philosophers have actually published their essays and letters.



Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
1. “…which is rather like being astonished that anyone should condescend to die of cholera at the bidding of so insignificant a creature as the comma bacillus.
2. “‘He was a fine character, and interests me very much, does La Pérouse,’ he ended.”
3. “That’s a house that will be really smart some day, you’ll see!”
4. “‘It’s easy to see that you’re a musician heart and soul, Madame,’ said the General, alluding to the incident of the candle.”
5. After going on vacation overseas, he wrote a book about his experiences. You can tell this story through words or photographs.
6. “…belonged indeed to a mysterious world to which one never may return again once its doors are closed.”
7. “There are in the music of the violin…accents which are so closely akin to those of certain contralto voices, that one has the illusion that a singer has taken her place amid the orchestra.” It is supernatural almost.
8. He was a member of a smart home, an intelligent home.
9. There is a difference between body spray and perfume.
10. There is soft perfume and strong perfume.

11. “From the depths of what well of sorrow could he have drawn that god-like strength, that unlimited power of creation? When it was the little phrase that spoke to him of the vanity of his sufferings, Swann found a sweetness in that very wisdom which, but a little while back, had seemed to him intolerable when he thought that he could read it on the faces of indifferent strangers, who would regard his love as a digression that was without importance.”
12. “Doubtless the form in which it had codified those graces could not be analysed into any logical elements. But ever since, more than a year before, discovering to him many of the riches of his own soul, the love of music had been born and for a time at least had dwelt in him…”
13. “When a candle or lamp is lit in the darkness, you have to let your eyes adjust to the amount of light that it emits.”
14. “We shall perish, but we have for our hostages these divine captives who shall follow and share our fate. And death in their company is something less bitter, less inglorious, perhaps even less certain.”
15. “…to make it visible, following and respecting its outlines with a hand so loving, so prudent, so delicate, and so sure, that the sound altered at every moment, blunting itself to indicate a shadow, springing back into life when it must follow the curve of some more bold projection.”
16. “And so Swann lost nothing of the precious time for which it lingered. It was still there, like an iridescent bubble that floats for a while unbroken. As a rainbow, when its brightness fades, seems to subside, then soar again and, before it is extinguished, is glorified with greater splendour than it has ever shown; so to the two colours which the phrase had hitherto allowed to appear it added others now, chords shot with every hue in the prism, and made them sing.”
17. Never was spoken language of such inflexible necessity, never had it known questions so pertinent, such obvious replies.
18. But no one, as it happened, dreamed of speaking.
19. “…as none of these men had ever, in conversation with Swann, suggested that he approved of anonymous letters, and as everything that they had ever said to him implied that they strongly disapproved…”
20. After all, M. de Charlus might be most fond of him, might be most good-natured; but he was a neuropath; to-morrow, perhaps, he would burst into tears on hearing that Swann was ill; and to-day, from jealousy, or in anger, or carried away by some sudden idea, he might have wished to do him a deliberate injury.

21. How do we define trends? How do we define our generation?
22. “…the artist’s rather than the business-man’s, the noble’s rather than the flunkey’s.”
23. Lock them up until we are satisfied that they have paid the price for their crime, may be a good approach to incarceration.
24. When she was spending time with one man, she thought that she was spending time with the other man.
25. She told him lies, to make him mad.
26. Omitted.
27. “‘He is more of a man than you are,’ she said.”
28. “Despite all this, she was not a vicious person.”
29. Whipped cream and orangeade might taste good!
30. M. Verdurin asked her, “How in the world can you see what he’s doing, when he’s a thousand miles away?” And Odette answered, “Nothing is impossible to the eye of a friend.”

31. “…like certain novelists, he had distributed his own personality between two characters, him who was the ‘first person’ in the dream, and another whom he saw before him…”
32. The stress of his life had grown too much for him to bear.
33. People sometimes change emotions quickly.
34. “Calm your nerves, calm your nerves.”
35. “Everything appeared to me unknown, uncommon.”
36. What differentiates your days in the present from your days in the past?
37. “…and they made me conscious of as glorious a hope as could have been cherished by a Christian in the primitive age of faith, on the eve of his entry into Paradise.”
38. Towards the end of his days at the cottage, it was like a crescendo, the final segment of a wonderful opera.
39. If you lack in some areas, then make up for it in others.
40. “I had wanted to see her, but had difficulty forming a mental image of her.”
41. He wrote the words repeatedly in his notebooks.
42. “Read grammar books of foreign languages.”
43. “Her hands had been fragrant with soap.”



Tuesday, August 27, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. During the war, the men shouted, "Allahu akbar!"
2. "Jails and prisons should be held accountable when inmates die or get injured in altercations while in their custody. This could involve financial compensation, investigations, prosecution of any guilty parties, and prison reform."
3. "The man was upset, because his friends had played a trick on him."
4. The Great Wave off Kanagawa, or, the Great Wave, by Katsushika Hokusai, is a Japanese artwork that I admire. The painting depicts small boats amid a large sea, with the formidable Mount Fuji in the background, and illustrates man's relationship with nature.
5. "The doctor said, 'Drop everything else, and look after your physical health.'"
6. Cultural Psychology was a course that taught me that there are collective societies and there are individualistic societies. Collective societies function as a group, and are often centered around family, where individualistic societies are centered around the individual. Traditional socialist African societies are an example of collectivist cultures, and capitalist American society is an example of individualist culture. Additionally, individualist societies are more materialistic than collective ones.



Sunday, August 25, 2024

Italian Folktales, Italo Calvino
1. Encrusted snot in your nose can be annoying, so take cod liver oil pills for it.
2. The Little Girl Sold with the Pears is a story about a little girl who is the hero. Her father harvests four baskets of pears a year to the king, but one year, when he could only harvest three, he puts his little girl into one of the baskets. When the king's guards find Perina among the baskets, they put her to work in the kitchen, and she soon becomes the fastest and best worker in the castle.
3. Perina is envied by many of the other workers, and the king sends her on a mission. She meets an old woman who helps her and gives her three pounds of grease, three pounds of bread, and three pounds of millet. She uses the items that the old woman gave her to assist her in her journey. "On and on she walked and met three mastiffs that barked and rushed at anyone coming their way. Perina threw them three pounds of bread, and they let her pass."
4. In addition to this, Perina uses the grease to fix a broken door and gain entry to the palace containing the treasure.
5. Perina finally gets the treasure chest, opens it, and "out came a hen and her brood of gold chicks. They scuttled away too fast for a soul to catch them. Perina struck out after them...then the hen and chicks reentered the treasure chest." This was the treasure the king had sought.
6. "Upon her arrival, the king's son came out to meet her." He said, "Tell my father that for a reward, you want that box filled with coal in the cellar."
7. She asked the king for this box of coal, "they brought her the box of coal, which she opened, and out jumped the king's son, who was hiding inside. The king was then happy for Perina to marry his son." The end.
8. A good idea for restaurants is to offer 1pound of cold cuts, along with dipping sauce. This is the main sell. They could also offer fries or a vegetable on the side, and a drink. Ham and Italian dressing; roast beef; etc. This could also be a good idea for a standalone restaurant offering these at a flat fee.

The Arabian Nights
1. After getting drunk, he spoke in an incomprehensible tongue, or, he cursed people out.
2. The man also sees invisible men, who he believes talks to him.
3. Describes a “Holy War,” of Christians against Muslims.
4. Recites the words of the poet, who has said, ‘Long hair is of no use except when it streams out, On both sides of the head on the day of battle…’
5. There was a girl, the son of a king, "Unequalled as she was in beauty, she would ride with her father dressed as a man, and no one who saw her would know that she was a girl."
6. The men divided the night into different segments.
7. "The doctor prescribes soup for a bad cold."



Saturday, August 24, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. "According to Hasan of Basra, no man's soul leaves this world without regretting three things. The first is that he did not enjoy what he had collected; the second is that he did not achieve what he had hoped for; and the third is that he had not provided himself with sufficient provisions for the journey on which he was embarked."
2. "The caliph said: 'Almighty God sent Muhammad as a blessing to some and a punishment to others.'"
3. The man made a will, and left money to his wife and children.
4. "O king, this girl is the wonder of the age, unique in her time. Never at any time throughout our lives have we heard the likes of this."
5. "About my children...Were it not for visions of them in my dreams, I would not sleep."

Italian Folktales, Italo Calvino
1. There are several different elements and many different symbols present simultaneously in these stories, and every time I read them, I learn something new. Additionally, many of the endings are uncommon, and often a bit strange, unexpected or unfinished.
2. The Ship with Three Decks
3. A husband and wife do not have a godfather for their baby son, so they are searching for a godfather for him.
4. They meet a stranger from England, who they make the child's godfather. This stranger gives the child many gifts. The stranger enlists the boy to go on an adventure with him. While on the adventure, they meet rats, ants, and vultures, whose animal powers they use to help them. For example, they tie buckets around the necks of the vultures and then the vultures swoop down into a magical lake to retrieve water from it. In the end, their combined efforts help them, although the godfather turns out to be an evil man, who kills himself because he does not have the love of the princess.
5. The Man Who Came Out Only at Night - A story about a man who is under a magic spell to be a turtle by day and a man by night. He seeks a wife to lift the spell, and in so doing, he gives her a magic ring, which she in turn uses to free him of the spell, and they live happily ever after.
6. And Seven! - A story about a greedy daughter who eats bowls of food, after which, her mother says, And one! And two! And three!, and so on after each bowl. After hearing the mother say And Seven!, a man asks what is going on, and the mother, embarrassed by all this, lies and tells him that she is counting about how many dresses the daughter has been weaving. The man is impressed, so he asks to marry the daughter if she can weave several more dresses. The daughter, unable to do this, enlists the help of an old woman, whose fast sewing skills save the day, and in the end, they get married, and don't have to sew dresses anymore.



Friday, August 23, 2024

Swann's Way Marcel Proust
1. “He would go out of his way to make it comfortable and pleasant for her, she would come running to him, happy and grateful.”
2. “He enjoyed one of her glances, the formation of one of her smiles, the utterance of an intonation of her voice.”
3. “He examined what was on the very surface of his consciousness.”
4. “To be kind to your partner, get her something to drink, or something to eat, and make it something healthy.”
5. “On her birthday, he had decided to send her a basket of fruit.”
6. “Find out what your partner likes, and then follow this.”
7. “Two people are supposed to have fun in a relationship.”
8. “Just think, in many ways, we are living life like Bach, Chopin, or Mozart, lived life hundreds of years ago.”

Arabian Nights
1. Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime.
2. During this time, in Saudi Arabia, it was common for people to ride camels for transportation.
3. "You blame me, I am being blamed, for everything I do."
4. "With a knowledge of the information I've posted about philosophy, now you have knowledge about philosophy."



Thursday, August 22, 2024

Swann's Way Marcel Proust
1. "The stress exhausted Swann's brain and made it weary."
2. "He had longed for a state of calm and peace, a favorable atmosphere."


Wednesday, August 21, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. As a result of his hard work and dedication, the king increased his servant's rank, and put him in charge of more people.
2. In the Middle East, during this time, it was common for people to sing songs to themselves if they were alone, and faced with problems.
3. Indicates the presence of electuaries.
4. "In my struggles against the miseries of Time,
God has forbidden me many things."
5. "The magic of your eyes has captured hearts."
6. "Fearing for his life, he killed her."
7. The couple eat fruits, fresh and dried, as well as meats.
8. "Fetch me students and then bring the wisest men of the age to teach them philosophy and poetry. The teachers are to talk to them on philosophical and religious subjects. They must show patience and endurance."
9. The group enjoyed drinking different sugary drinks.
10. Once you have the components for making Kool-Aid, drink-mix powder juice (Snapple, Skittles, etc.) is easy to make -- no added sugar needed!

11. One girl was very wise, knew the Quran by heart, and had read Aphorisms of Hippocrates; the Mufradat, or the Comprehensive Book on Simple Drugs and Foods; and the Meccan Canon, Avicenna's Canon of Medicine. She also had a great deal of knowledge in other areas.
12. "Expectant mothers should read books about pregnancy."
13. "A good leader has experience and wisdom."
14. "This man, he is kind to his wife, and he spends money liberally on her."


Tuesday, August 20, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. Omitted.
2. "He enjoyed eating dried fruits."
3. "Time waits for no man. No matter what man does, time of the earth passes."
4. "On seeing that he was hungry, they brought him a bowl of honey and two loaves of bread."
5. "The day will come when Lord God will be the judge, and his angels will be the witnesses."
6. "We love the poor and needy because it is our Christian duty to do so."
7. "Although his body was weak, when he saw the man, his spirit returned."
8. "The caliph gave orders that the history of the town from beginning to end should be written down and placed in the treasury, so that future generations might read it."
9. "Things went on like this until she reached the term of her pregnancy and sat on the birthing chair."
10. "She had hoped for a virtuous son and an easy labor, and received these."

11. He gave instructions that she was to bring the children up with a good education.
12. The people of Baghdad are extremely delighted at the birth of twins.
13. The caliph of Baghdad knew the king of Greece, the ruler of Macedonia, the leader of Christendom, and other leaders. These leaders brought the caliph gifts on special occasions.
14. "Read Arabic books."
15. "Listen to Arabic music."
16. "When the lovely girl commits a single fault, for her beauty she is forgiven."
17. "You are covered by my protection, and so you can set your mind at rest. Should anyone wish you harm, they could only reach you after I had lost my life in your defense."
18. "Don't do too much of one thing: don't stay in bed for too long, don't watch too much tv, don't study one thing too much, enjoy the variety of life."
19. "In the evenings, read for one hour."
21. They discuss the poet Jamil Buthaina. Then he recited Jamil's lines:
...And all their victims die a martyr's death.
When I tell her my love is killing me,
She answers: 'Stand firm and it will increase.'"
22. Then she recited:
"Time is both wrapped away and then spread out,
Now an extended line and now a cone."
23. She then indicates that parting is unfortunate, when two friends have to part from each other, or when a person has to part from a pleasant environment.
24. "Masura replied: 'Your anger will not hurt me but your father's anger will.'"
25. "When Sharkan heard this, he said to himself: 'This girl has played a trick on me and has kept me here."
26. "The king is waiting for us to return with this prince, who is the thorn of the army of Islam..."
27. O auspicious king: 'He is one single man and you are a hundred knights. If you want to fight him, go out to meet him one by one, so that the king may see who is the champion among you.'
28. Reminds us of the presence of guerilla warfare.
29. The king wrote a letter to the leader of the other army, stating his demands and terms.
30. You have the winner of a battle by physical, tangible means, and then you have the hero of the battle in terms of pride and respect, who are often two different people. This means that you can "lose" the battle, but still be its hero.

31. "To be given a "decent burial," means to be buried in a traditional Christian way, so as not to have your remains scattered by wild animals, and to have a pastor preside at your funeral." --James Fenimore Cooper
32. In Arabic mythology, certain gems have possessed magical properties.
33. "I'm doing a job, and time is money." --Ivanov, Anton Chekhov
34. "After he got drunk, he lost all his senses and became rather wild."


Sunday, August 18, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. "Many people are born of pure race."
2. "Thirty days have now passed, during which I have not tasted sleep."
Night 39
3. During the night, they had brought candles and lamps.
4. During the night, when he was outside, he saw two men, one carrying a lantern, and one carrying a chest.
5. The man who died, "was a man of importance."
6. Nelson Mandela, during one court appearance, wore a traditional Xhosa leopard-skin kaross instead of a suit and tie. “I had chosen traditional dress to emphasize the symbolism that I was...literally carrying on my back the history, culture, and heritage of my people."
7. Murder Trials (Penguin Classics), by Marcus Cicero, is a great book for a defense attorney. "Cicero was in his twenties when he got Sextus Roscius off a charge of murdering his father..."
8. The Orations of Marcus Tullius Cicero (free on Google books), includes some of Cicero's defense writings. One thing he does is indicate that an attorney should take his time when defending a client, especially when the case looks good for him. "When the mob gets hold of the case, then it will be a feeding frenzy -- they don't know the facts and only know one side...I don't belong in jail. I'm a handsome person, I come from a good home, I have a loving family...If I would be set free I would thank all the Gods."
9. Kubla Khan, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, is a poem where Coleridge for one, suggests that some art, like the art of the Italian Renaissance for example, (the Sistine Chapel, the Mona Lisa,) is holy and enchanted.
10. Additionally, while it is good to write loops, it can be better and more efficient to write connecting lines as though you were imitating a heart rate monitor: connecting "A's," without the middle line, or upside down connecting "V's".
11. The men find a large chest. The caliph orders the men to bring the chest to his palace. When they open the chest, they find a slave girl in the chest, sleeping. When the men awaken her, she becomes indebted to them, and is the their property forever. This is similar to the part played by Yul Brynner alongside Rita Moreno in The King and I.
12. A similar classic film that I enjoyed watching was From Here to Eternity, with Frank Sinatra and Montgomery Clift.
13. Classic movies and classic Disney movies are good to watch during this time of year!


Saturday, August 17, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. "Morning now dawned and Shahrazad broke off from what he had been allowed to say."
2. "I have heard, that the king of China said: 'Fetch me the barber, for he is the reason why I am letting you all go free.'"
3. "He looked at the dead man's face and then laughed until he fell over backwards. 'Every death is a wonder,' he said, 'but the death of this man deserves to be written in letters of gold.'"
4. "He passed a hand over his face and said: 'I bear witness that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the Apostle of God.'"
5. There was a leader who loved the poor, the beggars and all his subjects, distributing his wealth to those who believed in Muhammad -- may God bless him and give him peace."
6. "...for she has studied calligraphy, grammar, philology, Quranic interpretation, the foundations of jurisprudence, religion, medicine, precise calculation and how to play musical instruments."
7. The beautiful young woman, the man's wife, in the end, reverted to her true form, and turned into an old woman, as a result of a magic spell wearing off.
8. Speak for quality, not quantity.
9. "He meets a man who has the power to restore people back to life, he has the magical ability to bring the dead back to life."
10. A high-end car, modified with the top chopped off, is also known as a car with "its brains blown out." --Trivial Pursuit
11. Aladdin is a movie/play that people should watch, while examining the presence of Middle Eastern and Arabic influence within it.
12. The man’s wife, the beautiful woman turns into an old woman, his expensive house also turns into a shack, his money becomes lost, he turns out ruined as a result of the spell wearing off. These elements are similar to those contained in Cinderella.
13. "Some of us are born into negative paths in life."
14. "Soup broth is good for you.” —Jane Austen. Consequently, you can eat Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle, if you first eat some of the broth, and then eat the noodles, and while cooking, remember to dilute it with a half can of water.
15. Help others: link to Scholarlyinformation.com from your site.
16. “He drinks for a time and then falls asleep, leaving me on my own…”


Friday, August 16, 2024

The Arabian Nights -- Tales of 1001 Nights
1. "Don't grind or clench your teeth together."
2. "The government does not allow you to earn more money than can buy you food, shelter, and other basic necessities."
3. "Watch out, or they'll play another trick on you."
4. "He is a man of few words, not loquacious."
5. "All the maids stood up and their mistresses told them to perfume my brother and sprinkle rosewater on his face."
6. "Whoever disobeys me, I expel, but whoever endures reaches his goal."
7. "She is going to pluck out your moustache. Plucking out a moustache is a painful business, so do not disobey the old woman."
Night 32
8. Omitted.
9. "I took him back into the city secretly and, I gave him an allowance for food and drink."
10. "The caliph laughed at the story and ordered that I should be given a reward and allowed to leave..."
11. "Citizens are under an unwritten contract with their governments."
12. "The man laughed until he fell over, and then spoke."
13. "I ask you in God's Name to listen to what I have to say and not to judge me hastily."
14. Omitted.
15. "I shall enter the city, with my mamluks behind and in front of me, as well as to my right and left. It will be a grand scene."
16. "If he addresses me in ten words, I shall reply in two."
17. "When they bring her, I shall again look down towards the ground and I shall continue in this way until the ceremony is complete."
18. "People who get rich, sometimes do not adequately compensate the people who helped them earn their riches."
19. "He is a bearded man with a young face."
20. "Eat this delicious white bread, plain bread."
21. “He pretended to be drunk, and then left the house.”
22. His captor said, “Buy your life from me with cash, or else I’ll kill you.”


Thursday, August 15, 2024

Swann's Way, Marcel Proust
Chapter: PLACE-NAMES: THE NAME
1. Omitted.
2. “Some people are more photogenic than others. This regards head size and facial dimensions.” —The Autobiography of Greta Garbo
3. Greta Garbo, although she achieved fame and fortune, always yearned for the contentment offered by her small country cottage in the Swiss Alps.
4. Horror movies may be flawed, because they do not account for people who do not fear death, due to their bravery, or intelligence, such as American Indians, and philosophers like Aristotle and Plato.
5. The notes from the previous chapter, Swann in Love, suggest that a candlelight dinner would be an enjoyable occasion.


Tuesday, August 13, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Creativity with the rhyming poetry of William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and other classic poets, can allow anyone to create a song that rhymes!
2. "Some books are better than others."
3. “You can tell if someone has smoked weed before based on how wisely they lead their life.”
4. “After eating a light breakfast, he left the house.”

Swann's Way, Marcel Proust
1. “The pianist played a song to the couple.”
2. “The couple enjoyed listening to love songs.”
3. “The woman was so active in her job, it was as though she was being worked to death.”
4. “One of the songs was the love anthem for the couple.”
5. “He did a little dancing: simple, graceful movements.”
6. “They appreciated what the sonata expressed.”
7. “During this time, they did not find fault with each other: they accepted one another for who they were.”
8. “They enjoyed this moment together.”
9. “The winter afternoon was almost nocturnal.”
10. “She represented his ideal of happiness, particularly because he could express his refined tastes in art and music with her.”
11. “This opened up a new world for her, where she assumed a new and nobler form.”
12. Omitted.
13. "He left the restaurant after drinking a cup of chocolate.”
14. “The interval of space separating her from him was insignificant.”
15. "Then she would pretend to stop, saying: ‘How do you expect me to play when you keep talking to me? I can’t do everything at once. Make up your mind what you want; am I to play the phrase or do you want to talk to me?"
16. "What a torture it was to her to act a lie."
17. Made minor edits to Research in Law and Psychiatry post.


Monday, August 12, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Updated: Favorite Notes with Item V. Philosophy Notes.


The Oxford New Greek Dictionary

T
1. Tekno - child
2.Tzatziki - yogurt and cucumber dip
3. Tonic - tonic water
4. Toxikos - toxic
5. Toxini - toxin
6. tost - toasted sandwich
7. tostiera - toaster
8. toulipa - tulip
9. trapoula - pack of cards
10. trapoulaxarto - playing card

11. traxeia - windpipe
12. traxilos - neck
13. trela - madness
14. tralabiko - loony bin
15. Triti - Tuesday
16. triton - newt
17. tsigaro - cigarette
18. tsigarothiki - cigarette box
19. tsikna - smell of burning food
20. turi - cheese
21. turopita - cheese pie

Y (I)

1. igieinos - hygienic, healthy
2. igiis - healthy, sound
3. idatikos - moisturizing -krema, mouisturizer
4. iperilikos - very old
5. iponops - imply

F

1. fagito - food
2. Omitted.
3. Febrouarioc - February
4. feggari - moon
5. feta - soft white cheese, feta
6. flegma - phlegm
7. froutosalata - fruit salad



Sunday, August 11, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. My Story about Kool-Aid: Kool-Aid is a drink mix powder that makes juice when mixed with sugar. There are many different flavors of Kool-Aid and they taste great. When I was growing up, my big family always had pitchers of Kool-Aid in the fridge ready for us to drink. When I would watch my favorite cartoons, often the Kool-Aid commercial would come on (Youtube: Kool-Aid videos). And you can show off your strength by carrying the 4-lb bags of sugar home to mix with Kool-Aid. Additionally, Kool-Aid is easy to make, with a wooden stirring spoon, a large pitcher, a measuring cup, and, of course, water (2 packets, and 2 cups of sugar, to every gallon of water) -- good luck!
2. Kolluba - boiled corn. —-The Oxford New Greek Dictionary.


Saturday, August 10, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. The information contained on this blog, the book reviews, etc., can be used to help English students in high school and college. If a review doesn't fall under a specific category, then maybe it can be used towards extra credit, or general literature coursework.
2. He was stopped in the street by a man. "I was carrying a quantity of gold in readiness for a day or a crisis like this. So I began to scatter it among the people to distract their attention, which it did, as they picked it up. Then I started to make my way throught the lanes of Baghdad, with this man on my heels."
3. "You wanted to go by yourself, but I don't hold your folly against you, as you are an impatient young man of limited intelligence." You should try to increase your intelligence.
4. There was a governor. This governor loved the poor and unfortunate and would sit with men of learning and virtue.
5. "All this, my friends, was caused by my sense of chivalry and the fact that, as a man of few words, I kept silence and did not allow myself to speak."
6. Plato was a philosopher who was fond of taking partial baths.
7. Added -- Book Reviews X: Homer, with notes from The Iliad and The Odyssey.
8. “When you’re with a friend, and you two are getting along well, that’s what friendship is all about, that's success.”



Friday, August 9, 2024

Misc. Notes.
1. You can even write connecting lines as though you were imitating a heart rate monitor.
2. Alexander Pushkin was born in Moscow, and his maternal great-grandfather was an Abyssinian (Ethiopian) princeling who was sent as a gift to Peter the Great. The Stationmaster, by Alexander Pushkin is a popular story. The story begins by speaking badly about stationmasters, people whose job it is to administer duties of a clerk in a train station. Toward the story's end however, we meet a stationmaster face to face, and learn that he is actually a human being after all, after which, he dies. It is believed that Pushkin was using this story to describe the struggles of Negroes abroad.


Thursday, August 8, 2024

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. "On a business trip to Cairo, I met a girl, and we hung out. We got drunk on several nights. It was a great deal of fun."
2. I met her friend, another girl. We hung out too, and one night I even fed her mouthfuls of food. We fell asleep, and when I woke up, this second girl was dead. The first girl, who had learned of evil ways from the Egyptians, killed the second girl in the night and absconded.
3. I was scared, so I buried the girl and left the house. I was questioned by the authorities, who beat me, and eventually, because I was scared, I confessed to the murder, plead guilty, and spent a great deal of time in jail.
4. A kind governor intervened, and talked with me. I told him my story and that I was innocent. He freed me. For my courage and suffering, he also made me the mayor of a nearby village.
5. Omitted.
6. Check back for updates.
7. "The old woman said: 'You have plenty of time, so why not go to the baths and have your hair cut, especially after your illness? That would restore you.' 'A good idea,' I said." After having my head shaved, and being sprinkled with oils, I felt better, and it was the first time that I viewed the barber as being a "holistic barber," a barber who is also an astrologer, a chemist, an expert in philology, rhetoric, logic, religious law, the traditions of the Prophet and the interpretation of the Quran."
9. Muslims use perfumed oils for the body.
10. "There is also a proverb: 'Whoever has no elder to help him will not himself be an elder.'

11. "Master, haste comes from the devil and patience from the Merciful God. Act slowly and not with haste in what you want."
12. "Crafts are like necklaces, and here this barber Is like the pearl hung on a necklace string, Standing above all men of wisdom, While under his hand are the heads of kings."
13. He prayed when the sun rose.
14. "Rather, I would like to know the time exactly, for guesswork leads to shame."
15. "You're trying to deceive me so that you can go alone and involve yourself in a disaster from which you won't be able to escape."


Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Writings from Ancient Egypt
1. "The evil-doer will be lost in death as he was in life."
2. "The people would proceed by repeating the list of sins he committed."
3. "...the Egyptian term connotes an effeminate man."
4. "In government there are leaders, who plan works, and followers, who do not plan things."
5. "There are several statues, which I shall not go beyond."
6. "...The Egyptian word means 'sunrise' rather than 'east'."
7. "The death of Akhenaten, after only seventeen years on the throne, ushered in a period of great political turmoil in Egypt, as the forces of conservatism sought to overturn his revolution and re-establish the old orthodoxies."
8. "When his majesty rose as king, the temples and the cities of the gods and goddesses were fallen into ruin. Their shrines were fallen into decay and had become weed-strewn mounds. For the earth was like a sickness. The gods had turned their back on this land. If an army was sent to extend the borders of Egypt, it met with no success. If a god was beseeched likewise, he did not come at all. Their spirits were weak in their bodies and they were destroying creation." Then came a leader who restored the land to life, prosperity, and health.
9. "Psamtek took pains to uphold the established line of succession, rather than simply promoting his daughter immediately to the top job."
10. "The reward for this is a million years of life, a million years of stability and a million years of dominion."

11. "Their decision was confirmed in writing, as follows: 'We hereby give to you all our property in country and town. You shall be established upon our throne and shall endure and abide until the end of eternity.'" Their witnesses were all the priests, and friends of the temple.
12. One of the songs expressed a "common scepticism about life after death, suggesting that such doubts were less rare in ancient Egypt than the official texts would lead us to believe."
13. The nurses who delivered two children said, "What did we come here for, if we do not perform a wonder for these children that we can report to their father who sent us?"
14. "Be wary of subordinates who have not yet come into their own.
Do not get too close to them; do not be alone with them."
15. "Be a writer. Become skilled in writing. To be able to write a book is a valuable skill."

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. "Muslims are required to pray five times a day."
2. There is an Egyptian term that refers to the patterns of sexual intercourse, or the patterns people go through when they're having sex.
3. "I met a woman, who I befriended and we spent a great deal of time together. We enjoyed ourselves. The woman told me, however, that she was ill. Soon afterwards, she died, and after I saw to it that she was properly laid to rest, a clerk came to me and informed me that the woman had left me a great deal of money. I became rich overnight."
4. "I met a beautiful woman who also had the sweetest voice. We spent a good deal of time together. Unfortunately, she swindled me and took a great deal of money from me."


Tuesday, August 6, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. Lately my Facebook page has been updated first with the reading, and then a day or so afterwards, I update this blog.

The Tain Bo Cúalnge
1. The hero meets 50 of the kings men, and scatters them across the field; he stuns them with his blows.
2. The hero meets a superior, who calms him down and talks to him.
3. The hero meets other warriors.
4. All of the men have a feast, and eat roasted pig.
5. M.A. Nanga is one of the characters' names in a Chinua Achebe novel. There is also nangavanga.
6. “He is the loneliest boy on earth.” —William Wordsworth
7. "Get your partner something to eat, something to drink, if you want to do something nice for her." --Sappho
8. "Just lay beside each other and rest, or watch the stars, or a movie." --Sappho
9. “You and your partner can talk just for the sake of talking.” —Sappho
10. “The ‘talk for talking,’ could be accompanied by soft laughter.”
11. “Then repeat this, and do the same things over again day after day with your partner.”

The Arabian Nights - Tales of 1001 Nights
1. When a woman wants something, nothing can get the better of her."
2. What is a cause for wonder is a man, Whom women have not trapped by their allure."
3. "Shahrazad had read books and histories, accounts of past kings and stories of earlier peoples, having collected, it was said, a thousand columes of these, covering peoples, kings and poets."
4. "You must know, my daughter, that a certain merchant had both wealth and animals and had been given by Almighty God a knowledge of the languages of beasts and birds."
5. "Time passes slowly sometimes."
6. "You think your life is bad now, well you could have it worse."
7. The old man owned a gazelle, which he had on a leash. The gazelle used to be his sister, but was trapped in the gazelle's animal body by a magic spell. The gazelle can speak to the man.
8. The old man also owned two Salukis (dogs). The two dogs used to be his brothers, and were also trapped in their animal bodies by a sorcerer. The dogs can also speak to the old man.
9. A good idea for a movie is to have animals who talk.
10. "The evil-doer's own deeds are punishment enough for him."
"" Research in Psychiatry and Law

11. Omitted.
12. "I wandered into a butcher shop, where one of the butcher's daughters sprinkled some water over my head, said some magic words, and I then returned to human form."
11. A poor old fisherman is out one morning casting his net to catch fish. He casts the net several times unsuccessfully, bringing in worthless fish, mud, wood pieces. After several hours of this, he casts his net, and in it he retrieves a bottle, an ancient bottle with text inscribed on it indicating that it belongs to Solomon, son of David. After examining the bottle for some time, a genie appears.
12. At first, the old fisherman is scared of the powerful genie, but then the two men begin to speak.
13. The genie explains his past, that he was the son of David, a warrior enmeshed in a holy war. A magician trapped him inside the bottle, and this was his state, for four hundred years, until now.
14. Omitted.
15. The genie will now grant the fisherman three wishes.
16. Briefly refers to the mamluks, slave warriors.


Monday, August 5, 2024

The Arabian Nights
1. In The Arabian Nights tale the Three Calendars, Sons of Kings, there is a government official who gets drunk and then tries to pass laws. This injures one honest man, who is then saved by an honest politician.
2. “You are not allowed in the castle, because you are uncircumcised and eat fish.” —The Arabian Nights
3. “This rebellious vizier had conceived a strong hatred against me, and had for a long time cherished it. The cause of his hostility was as follows: When I was very young, I was fond of shooting with a cross-bow. One day I carried my weapon to the upper part of the palace, and amused myself with it on the terrace. A bird happened to fly up before me; I shot at it, but missed; and the arrow, by chance, struck the vizier on the eye, and destroyed the sight, as he was taking the air on the terrace of his own house." As a result of this, he has been trying to prosecute and jail me ever since.
4. “Read commentary about the Koran.”
5. “Write in script as an excellent alternative to print. Use them both to show off your handwriting skills.”
6. “I met the king, who made me swear an oath of secrecy, made me swear that I would never tell anyone his secret.”
7. “As I spoke, the count could tell that I was lying, that I had something to hide.”
8. “Many biblical peoples had to undergo the covenant of circumcision.”


Saturday, August 3, 2024

I. The Tain Bo Cúalnge (Irish Epic)
2. We meet a well off woman who is a rich man’s wife. Her rich husband is known for gift-giving.
3. One of the characters is named Fiachna, Fiachina, Fia, Fianna.
4. When they were drunk, they spoke foolish words.
5. “It is not easy to exercise after drinking.”
6. “Some people come from large families, and some people come from small families.”
7. “Her voice and speech were as melodious and sweet as the strings of lutes when played by master hands.”
8. “Beauty pageants should weigh the cultural qualities that make a woman beautiful.”

II. 1. “Different tribes and different districts existed in Ireland.”
2. “Not perplexed,” answered Cuchulain; “ it is easier for me than for thee. For I have three magical virtues: Gift of sight, gift of understanding, and gift of reckoning.
3. “Now, many and divers were the magic virtues that were in Cuchulain that were in no one else in his day. Excellence of form, excellence of shape, excellence of build, excellence in swimming, excellence in horsemanship, excellence in chess and in draughts, excellence in battle…”
4. “He reduced the chariot to fragments and splinters, bits and pieces.”
5. “All the tribes of Ireland came out for this one small boy.”
6. “Thou findest not there one that could equal his age and his growth, his dress and his terror, his size and his splendour, his fame and his voice, his shape and his power, his form and his speech, his strength and his feats and his valour, his smiting, his heat and his anger.”
7. “He closed one of his eyes so that it was no wider than the eye of a needle. He opened the other wide so that it was as big as the mouth of a mead-cup.”
8. “To cause social change, it is best to do so through government ways, instead of through rioting and protests.” —Nelson Mandela
9. “Soup broth is good for you.” —Jane Austen. With this in mind, you can eat Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle, if you first eat some of the broth, and then eat the noodles.
10. Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle is good, and don’t be afraid to dilute it with half a can of cold water.

11. St Augustine was a religious figure who spent a good deal of time working in Hippo, Africa, or what is now Annaba, Algeria.
12. In the Tain, there are several instances of the Irish heroes feasting and drinking.

The Arabian Nights
1. Introduction - The first book to be written with this content was the book Hazar Afsan, which means ‘A Thousand Stories’. The basis for this was that one of their kings used to marry a woman, spend a night with her and kill her the next day.
2. In their originating habitat, the stories were basically meant as entertainments for coffeehouse audiences and urban communities at a time when storytelling was a central entertainment.
3. It is understandable that European neoclassicists rejected writing that did not correspond to their standards of composition, but their disdain did not keep the tales from becoming popular, given their appeal to perennial sentiments and human needs. Writers and poets in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe and America received the tales with joy and admiration. There were, for example, the enthusiastic responses of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edgar Allan Poe, and Herman Melville in America, and of Samuel Johnson, Horace Walpole, William Beckford, Samuel T. Coleridge, William Wordsworth, Lord Byron, John Keats, Charles Dickens, George Elliot, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and George Meredith in Britain.
4. The Arabian Nights include elements of criticism, history, philosophy, comedy and more.
5. These tales, according to critic William E. A. Axon, came at a time when the European reading public was sick “of sham classical romances of interminable and portentous unreality.”
6. Indeed, while some tales in the Arabian Nights are realistic, others operate by means of magical machinery and supernatural agency. The natural and the supernatural fuse in many tales, something that appealed not only to the Romantics but also to their late-nineteenth-century descendants. Les Mille et une nuits, contes arabes, in its first translation in French and then in English, was next to the Bible in popularity among readers in England, France, and other countries. In 1889 C. H. Toy wrote for the Atlantic Monthly on the vogue of the tales in France. He emphasized their Oriental garb, their charming sentiments, the mystery they conveyed of a “strange life,” and their delicacy of humor.
7. Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, for Longman’s Magazine that the collection was “more generally loved than Shakespeare,” for it “captivates in childhood, and still delights in age.”
8. In other words, knowledge becomes power when it is exercised; Scheherazade resorts to storytelling and suspense to captivate the Sultan, keeping him thereby from further brutality.
9. Arose during a time when unremarkable literature was being written.
10. Warnings increase curiosity, and may interfere with clear thinking, for the propensity to satisfy one’s curiosity can be more powerful than contravening considerations of comfort and security. In “The History of the Third Calender, the Son of a King,” the third calender is told: “Friend, sit down upon the carpet in the centre of this room, and seek not to know anything that regards us, nor the reason why we are all blind of the right eye”
11. Oaths and promises are effective narrative devices, too; to breach them is to invite consequences. In “The History of the Greek King and Douban the Physician,” the physician who cures the King is promised wealth but instead receives death at the hands of the King (p. 34). For breaking his promise, the King himself suffers death. The same happens to the genie rescued by the fisherman in “The Story of the Merchant and the Genie”: He is imprisoned in the sealed jar again, and not released until he vows to serve the fisherman.
12. Finally, the Arabian Nights narrative celebrates the art of storytelling by celebrating itself: To tell a good story is to put yourself in the way of great rewards. The ransom motive (especially in this edition’s part two, the ransom frame) is central to Scheherazade’s initiative.9 Believing in her art, she not only encourages the Sultan to let her survive as queen and live happily ever after but also saves other women and influences a new social order of merits and punishments.
13. To the non-Arabist their world is out of space, out of time.
14. Influenced artists such as John Keats and Samuel Taylor Coleridge
15. The pleasure gotten by both poets and the common reader from the Arabian Nights should be seen, too, in relation to a growing Orientalism that fed the colonial desire for lands and riches. More than any other book, the tales became for eighteenth- and nineteenth-century readers an unparalleled repository for images of the Orient (that is, the present Middle East) as sensuous, luxurious, rich, dormant and exotic.
16. In the tales the supernatural has a religious explanation, for the jinn (genies) are recognized in the Qur’an. Third, there are human concerns that relate to love, beauty, women, jealousy, travel, geography, business, social mobility, and culture; a feeling for these themes shapes the tales as a whole and give a reader the sense that the unifying subject matter is something immutably human.
17. There is always an association between love and beauty, for beauty in itself can arouse the lover; music and singing—the more beautiful the better—are often part of courtship.
18. But love can lead to death, for separation from one’s partner drives a lover to languish in agony, an issue that always appealed to the Romantics. The topic drew the attention of many, including George Meredith, as it brought something new to the concept of love.
19. All the tales of Iraqi origin treat wine in a very free manner; Abu Hanifa’s advice is to drink in moderation to avoid intoxication.
20. Genie (Jinn). Demons are among the spirits that populate the universe, as mentioned in the Qur’an. In the tales, these powerful creatures can be subdued through human intelligence, by other supernatural beings, or by caliphs, in their role as vicars of God. In the Qur’an genies belong to another world, but they are part of this universe, too. Only Solomon has been endowed with control over the world of the genies; those who disobey Solomon are punished, usually by imprisonment in a sealed jar. Among genies there are believers and unbelievers; the Koran (Qur’an) divides them as such, exactly as it does human beings.

21. In The Story of the Three Calenders, Sons of Kings, and of Five Ladies of Bagdad, a man got intoxicated and then his friends sent him on a mission to go get things from the store.
22. He got into trouble when he went out, since he was drunk. The moral of the story is be careful when drinking.


Friday, August 2, 2024

Writings from Ancient Egypt
1. "War is bad, because it involves death and destruction; peace is better."
2. Holy bodies of water exist, where people go to purify themselves.
3. "The god's seed is in me." Due to our divine creation, we all possess traces of god.
4. "Officials don't have to enact a thousand laws in government, just let people rule themselves, and peace and harmony will be achieved."
5. The number of mayors, senators, and governors are so numerous, that often, they are in the dark, or ignorant about many things.
6. He lived as a monk, his clothes were in tatters, he ate only a little, he was not rich.
7. Some hymns in ancient Egypt were designed to be read aloud.
8. "In the Cannibal Hymn, it is the gods who are butchered, cooked and eaten by the kings, so that he may absorb and deploy their powers to assist him in his resurrection and apotheosis after death."
9. ""When it rains and thunders, people are arguing."
10. "The people should be happy for things such as a plentiful harvest, and plenty of food; shelter from rain and snow; being allowed to breathe freely."
11. Refers to the sun as the living Orb.
12. Gives thanks to the sun for giving light to the earth. When the sun shines, it brings life to the world. The sun makes fruits and vegetables grow.
13. "Everyone has his food, his allotted lifespan.
Their tongues differ in speech, their characters likewise.
Their skins are different, because you made the foreigners distinct."
14. Discusses a man who no one will remember when he's gone.
15. "Changes are happening; it is not like last year.
Each year is more burdensome than another.
The land is in confusion and has become injurious to me."
16. "The commander is in the same position as the commanded."
17. "The poor man has not the strength to defend himself against the more powerful." --Posted to Research in Psychiatry and Law
18. "People should be compensated for everything that they do at their jobs, not just what is stated in writing. This includes putting up with bad behavior."
19. A clause in the contract of workers which applies to if they receive bad behavior and compensates them for it might be appropriate as well.


Thursday, August 1, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. 4:45pm -- please review my Facebook page for notes from today's reading.
Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
Thursday, August 1, 2024 — 3:45pm 1. Swann began to take an interest in the character of a girl he admired. 2. Lust vs love - physical attraction to someone vs physical and intellectual admiration for someone. 3. “And yet I should so much like to learn, to know things, to be initiated. What fun it would be to become a regular bookworm, to bury my nose in a lot of old papers!” 4. “He was a man who wanted a woman who knew how to cook.” 5. She engaged him on an intellectual level. She entertained his thoughts and held discussions with him. 6. They got along well together. 7. There were not many different levels to Swann.


Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
1. Toys for children can be played like adults look at photographs of actors and actresses. Children look at their favorite toys and sometimes interact with them.
2. St Augustine was a religious figure who spent a great deal of time in Africa, in what was then called the Hippo region of Africa.
3. One ancient Egyptian term focuses on the individual, or the characteristics of a person that makes them unique.
4. “It's fun to watch the cable music channels (classical, 70’s, jazz,) on your tv at night!"
5. “Classical music is perfect for a garden.”
6. “…and especially Mme Verdurin, for whom—so strong was her habit of taking literally the figurative accounts of her emotions—Dr Cottard, who was then just starting in general practice…”
7. “It is nice when the sky has blue tints in it, even when there is a pink tint among the blues, and especially when there is a bird flying through it.”
8. If the pianist suggested playing the Ride of the Valkyries, or the Prelude to Tristanan, Mme Verdurin would protest, not that the music was displeasing to her, but, on the contrary, that it made too violent an impression.
9. “The morning is a perfect time to play classical music.”
10. “If you don’t do this, then you’ll do that. If you don’t do that, then you’ll do a third. If you don’t do a third, then you’ll do a fourth.”

11. “He never formed an opinion on any subject until she had formed hers, his special duty being to carry out her wishes and those of the ‘faithful’ generally, which he did with boundless ingenuity.”
12. “‘What do you say?’ ‘Why, as if anybody could refuse anything to a little piece of perfection like that. Be quiet; no one asked your opinion.’”
13. “To do this, would have been viewed as a cowardly act in the game of life.”
14. “A starving man might barter a diamond for a crust of bread.”
15. “Indeed, when it was too late, he would laugh at himself for it, for there was in his nature, redeemed by many rare refinements, an element of clownishness.”
16. “Then he belonged to that class of intelligent men who have led a life of idleness, and who seek consolation and, perhaps, an excuse in the idea, which their idleness offers to their intelligence, of objects as worthy of their interest as any that could be attained by art or learning, the idea that ‘Life’ contains situations more interesting and more romantic than all the romances ever written.”
17. “He had met a woman on the train, and had taken her home with him, before discovering that she was the sister of a reigning monarch, in whose hands were gathered, at that moment, all the threads of European politics, of which he found himself kept informed in the most delightful fashion…”
18. Sonnet 18: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? - a popular poem by William Shakespeare. Compares a woman’s beauty to a summer day. “But thy eternal summer shall not fade…” - Mourns the end of summer, yet praises its immortal essence.
19. “The tints, which live along the raptured sky.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge


Sunday, July 28, 2024

Writings from Ancient Egypt, Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust & Confessions, St Augustine
1. “The action of touching the forehead to the ground was a sign of respect (compare the tradition of the Pope kissing the ground on arrival in another country.)” —Writings from Ancient Egypt
2. Tells the story of a king who is praised by statues with quotes, inscriptions, and sayings, rather than his detailed biography. —Writings from Ancient Egypt
3. The window was partly open; the lamp was lighted...

Confessions, St Augustine:
4. “You are great, lord…Still he desires to praise you, this man who is only a small part of your creation.”
5. “Have mercy on my client, kind men and women.”

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust:
6. “…an artist in evil, which a wholly wicked person could not be, for in that case the evil would not have been external, it would have seemed quite natural to her, and would not even have been distinguishable from herself…”
7. “I would amuse myself by watching the glass jars which the boys used to lower into the Vivonne, to catch minnows…”
8. “It was evident to me then that I existed in the same manner as all other men, that I must grow old, that I must die like them, and that among them I was to be distinguished merely as one of those who have no aptitude for writing.”
9. “Her eyes waxed blue as a periwinkle flower, wholly beyond my reach, yet dedicated by her to me…”
10. “The zone of melancholy which I then entered was totally distinct from that other zone, in which I had been bounding for joy a moment earlier, just as sometimes in the sky a band of pink is separated, as though by a line invisibly ruled, from a band of green or black. You may see a bird flying across the pink; it draws near the border-line, touches it, enters and is lost upon the black.”

11. “Additionally, while it is good to write loops, it can be better and more efficient to write connecting u's or connecting v's instead.”
"" Write with Both Hands post.


Saturday, July 27, 2024

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
1. “…which, at the moment when I heard it, seemed to me fuller, more portentous than any other name, because it was burdened with the weight of all the occasions on which I had secretly uttered it in my mind.”
2. “Study the trajectory of the bullet, in order to solve the crime.”
3. “I did not, however, hear her. ‘Oh, my poor little hawthorns,’ I was assuring them through my sobs, ‘it is not you that want to make me unhappy, to force me to leave you.”
4. “And, drying my eyes, I promised them that, when I grew up, I would never copy the foolish example of other men, but that even in Paris, on fine spring days, instead of paying calls and listening to silly talk, I would make excursions into the country to see the first hawthorn-trees in bloom.”
5. “I was taught to recognize the more subtle harmonies, in the music she played.”
6. Discusses the novels of Saintine, the art of Gleyre.
7. “They held that one ought to set before children, and that children showed their own innate good taste in admiring, only such books and pictures as they would continue to admire when their minds were developed and mature.”
8. “As a reward for his hard work, a man was given by the government, land, so that he could live on it with his friends.” —Writings from Ancient Egypt
9. The Egyptian term ka denoted the life-force.
10. “A good race/match is when the men match each other, stride for stride, blow for blow.” —Virgil


Friday, July 26, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. 7:30pm -- please review my Facebook page for notes from today's reading.

Swann's Way Marcel Proust
1. “He viewed a portrait of Mahomet II.”
2. “You can know a neighborhood by street names, or by sight and landmarks.”
3. “Anyhow, my father’s fears were dissipated no later than the following evening. As we returned from a long walk we saw, near the Pont-Vieux, Legrandin himself, who, on account of the holidays, was spending a few days more in Combray.”
4. “He admired French because it is a guttural language.”
5. References the writings of Paul Desjardins.
6. “What fascinated me was a rainbow-loveliness that was not of this world.”
7. “Some brands of coffee are more fragrant than others.”
8. “Learn first aid for help in an emergency.”
9. Omitted.
10. “When we cook meat, we are also cooking flesh.”

11. “Don’t be a lifeless puppet to other people’s desires.”
12. “A can of Goya black bean soup, and a can of Yams (sweet potatoes), cooked on the stovetop, and mixed together, tastes great — an Afro-Latino dish!”
13. Of my father’s uncertainty, “It was like every attitude or action which reveals a man’s deep and hidden character; they bear no relation to what he has previously said…”
14. “He was skilled at imitating women.” —Dante Alighieri
15. “‘Now you really are a man.’ And since he did not understand what she meant, she spelled it out to him. ‘You’re going to be a father.’” —One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
16. “There are tints in the clouds this evening, violets and blues, which are very beautiful, are they not, my friend?’ he said to my father.” Degrees of dark blue and light blue.
17. “It’s like looking at your portion of the sky from space.”
18. Historical sites where they are now building hotels or restaurants on.
19. “View your last days and death as a dream sequence.”
20. “Ballet is a dramatic art.”

21. Briefly discusses “young houris.”
22. “Somewhere in one of the tall trees, an invisible bird was exploring.”
23. “And it was indeed a hawthorn, but one whose flowers were pink, and lovelier even than the white. It, too, was in holiday attire, for one of those days which are the only true holidays, the holy days of religion…”
24. “…by burying the bush in these little rosettes, almost too ravishing in colour, this rustic ‘pompadour’. High up on the branches, like so many of those tiny rose-trees, their pots concealed in jackets of paper lace, whose slender stems rise in a forest from the altar on the greater festivals…”
25. “…of a pink as fragrant and as faded as old Spanish leather…”
26. “‘Gilberte, come along; what are you doing?’ called out in a piercing tone of authority a lady in white.”
27. “…she would send down to say that she was tired at the moment and resting, but that she would be happy to see him another time.”


Thursday, July 25, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. 1:30pm -- please see my Facebook page for notes from today's reading.

Swann’s Way, Marcel Proust
1. “Russian Fables,” by Ivan Krylov, is a popular collection of stories. Added to “Russian Literature” post.
2. Watercolors are for when you want to draw the sky, the morning. “Imitate other artists who draw watercolors.”
3. “I saw a woman, but was uncertain whether I ought to address her as Madame or Mademoiselle.”
4. “She enjoyed looking at photographs of actresses.”
5. The plot of a novel is different from its details (quotes, ideas gained).
6. “The beauty of women varies, from natural and simple, to makeup and jewelry.”
7. “She was a woman of good family and refinement.”
8. “I admired the image of a butterfly poised upon a flower.”
9. “Read the works of Albert Camus and Simone de Beauvoir.”
10. Simone de Beauvoir, in The Second Sex, discusses “masculine women,” who compete with men. Also discusses the double standard that exists where women are expected to be attractive, but not too attractive to threaten men. Discusses the ignorance of male chauvinistists.

11. “Day to day, you do your best, that’s all that you can do.”
12. “Examine the difference between the state of Nature and the state of Culture.”
13. “The division of the sexes is a biological given, not a moment in history.”
14. “Women are equal, and should, if they do not already, receive some concessions in society due to their biological makeup.”
15. Affirmative action has benefited women and blacks.
16. Women sometimes experience an alienation in society.
17. “Beautiful things have a magical power over us.”
18. “Notre-Dame de Paris is a beautiful, impressive architectural structure.”
19. “It is good to look at masterpieces of art.”
20. “…they kiss and believe that beneath the crushing breastplate there beats a heart different from the rest.”


Wednesday, July 24, 2024


The Aeneid, Virgil
1. After the crown taunts him, asks, “Where’s your humanity?”
2. “What did I do to deserve this treatment?
3. “Have you no pity for me?”
4. “You’re expending all that energy taunting me, save your energy and be reasonable.”
5. "Be a man of your word, a person who represents honesty and integrity, ideas which nations were founded on.”
6. "I dismissed his statements as random ramblings of a crazy person.”


Tuesday, July 23, 2024


Swann's Way, Marcel Proust
1. Draw the sky, watercolors are for drawing the sky.
2. Home fries/hash browns are easy to make, they're just potatoes cut into small pieces, seasoned, and cooked.


Monday, July 22, 2024


Swann's Way, Marcel Proust
1. ‘I do not agree with you: there are some days when I find reading the papers very pleasant indeed!’
2. Swann was puzzled, but went on: ‘ “I cannot say whether it was his ignorance or a trap,”...
3. "Hasn't he been punished enough?" " " Research in Psychiatry and Law
4. “When I tucked the kids in bed at night, it was okay if I laughed.”
5. "Look, since you can’t sleep, and Mamma can’t either, we mustn’t go on in this stupid way; we must do something; I’ll get one of your books."
Maybe your children are at the age when you can read them fairy tales (or children's books).
6. "...and had there fallen back upon the four pastoral novels of George Sand."
7. Engage in activities where intellectual profit is to be derived.


Writings from Ancient Egypt
1. Certain things we do because it is proper behavior in society; there are established norms and customs that we follow in our society.
2. “Our ability to write affects our speech; the better we can write, the better we can speak.”
3. “When we get along with our wife, that is a thing to be cherished.”
4. "Benefits of script handwriting" is a term that I searched for on the web. "Cursive provides a flow of thought as well as a flow of words," and "cursive is a smoother form of writing," are some comments that are stated.
5. In Nelson Mandela's autobiography he writes that he met a girl who he liked and then she left and they never saw each other again.
6. “In ancient Egypt words had a magical power: to utter a thought made it effective.”


Sunday, July 21, 2024


Writings from Ancient Egypt
1. The tale of the royal children
2. "Go forth and let her give birth to the three children, who will carry out this excellent office in the entire land. For they will build your temples, provision your altars, endow your offering-tables and increase your offerings." They will be the future kings, future celebrities, who will have lots of friends.
3. The Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor
4. ...the work reveals itself on closer study to possess a complexity and sophistication of structure, symbolism and meaning. The structure involves a tale within a tale. At the outset of the story, the sailor recounts a tale of his triumph over adversity.
5. Omitted.
Teachings
6. The survival of a relatively large number of teachings is no accident. They were considered ideal texts for use in scribal training schools -- imparting both writing skills and lessons in morality at the same time, and so were extensively copied by trainee scribes.
7. ...all six texts emphasize the same broad themes: balance and restraint in one's personal life, respect for social norms and deference to one's superiors.
7. Indeed, 'perfect speech' -- the public delivery of finely crafted words that reflected the wisdom and experience of the speaker, championed the correct order of things and served to educate as well as entertain the listener -- was one of the most highly esteemed skills in ancient Egypt at all periods.
8. "Script handwriting is a great way to display your writing skills."
To be continued.
9. "A good writing exercise it to write essays on different subjects."
10. Twenty-third maxim
11. Know when to speak, when to remain silent. Your silence will be more effective than idle chatter. Speak (only) when you have thought of a solution.
The Teaching of King Amenemhat I for His Son
12. "I was a maker of grain, beloved of Nepri.
No one was hungry during my years, no one was thirsty.
One sat (comfortably) because of what I did, and spoke well of me.
For I had ordained everything in its proper place."
13. "Laws can always be reversed or changed."
14. The king built for himself and his family a house decorated with gold, lavishly furnished.
15. "We like the reign of some rulers better than that of others."
16. Discusses the theme of loyalty to a ruler and its relation to social cohesion. Also discusses people who rebel against the current ruler.
17. "Writing is useful if you want to be an author, journalist, or poet." Note famous writers of the past.
18. "Some people are skilled in writing."
19. "A book is more effective than a well-built house or a chapel."
20. "They are gone, their names forgotten, but writings cause them to be remembered."

21. Discusses characteristics of certain jobs, including: the carpenter, the barber, and the potter.
22. The job of a scribe or scholar is in many ways better than work as a carpenter or manual laborer.


Saturday, July 20, 2024


Swann's Way, Marcel Proust
1. “I would go for long walks in the mornings and evenings.”
2. "It's good to tell stories about the good old days."
3. “I spent my time looking at the door handle.”
4. “She spent a great deal of time sitting in her garden.”
5. "It is a pity to shut oneself indoors in the country."
6. Discusses his feeling of uncertainty about the future.
7. “I spent a good deal of time, just sitting and listening to the sounds around me.”
8. "The memories of the old days were important to him."
9. "He entered with a basket of peaches or raspberries from his garden."
10. “Penny toys are great gifts for kids.”

Writings from Ancient Egypt
1. “The king is wise, partly because of the contributions of his wife and children.” --Ancient Egyptain writer.
2. In one story, for their contributions to the king, his wife and children were entitled to his fortune.
3. “Socially speaking, a family of a high bloodline was more valuable than a low-ranking family.”
4. In one story, after the king’s death, his wife succeeds him on the throne, and becomes queen.
5. “Knowledge of the past, and of past family members is valuable history.”
6. Stories are a feature of every known culture. In most societies until recent times, stories were passed down orally. Yet it would be a mistake to dismiss these works as mere children's tales, for the imagery is richly layered and the subject matter is at times highly controversial.
7. Tales of Wonder, or The Tale of the Court of King Khufu. In this story, there is a king who is very rich, but cannot find peace and contentment. To contrast this, there is the poor man, who has little or nothing, but lives in peace and contentment.
8. Prince Hordedef's Tale. In this story, Prince Hordedef indicates that old age is different from one's youth, and that one should act differently in old age than one does in youth.
9. "Why do you look upset? You should be happy, your wife is about to give birth. This is a reason to be happy."


Friday, July 19, 2024


Writings from Ancient Egypt, Toby Wilkinson
The Will of Naunakht.
1. Women in pharaonic Egypt enjoyed a legal status equal to that of men. They shared their husband's wealth, and sometimes, even spent more of their husband's wealth than their husband.
2. "...And women were free to dispose of their wealth as they wished." Examine, for example, the last will and testament of Naunakht, a woman of modest means who lived in Thebes in the mid Twentieth Dynasty, at the end of the New Kingdom, during the reign of Ramesses V. In it, Naunakht sets out how she wishes her property to be divided after her death.
3. "In many cultures (even today), all children would have an equal claim on a parent's estate. Not in ancient Egypt. Naunakht makes it very clear that she intends to leave her property to be divided among those five of her eight children who have looked after her in her old age. The other three children she disinherits -- although she cannot prevent them from inheriting their father's property."
4. "Her favourite son is singled out for special favour, receiving not only his share of her estate but also her single most valuable asset, a bronze statuette."
5. "Her will offers fascinating insights, not only into ancient Egyptian law, but also into the dynamics of an ancient Egyptian family."
6. Naunakht determined which of her children were her favorite through their degree of respect for her, for themselves, for their god and for their outlying society. For the children who she didn't like, she wrote them out of the will, and gave them nothing.
7. The end.
8. To be continued.
9. "You can’t talk to your soul so much.” —Ancient Egyptian writings
10. “It is easier to do some things, than it is to do others.” —Ancient Egyptian writings
11. Tells the story of a person who credited the success and conquest of a nation, to its leader, or its head.
12. Don’t get mad at a man in an administrative position of power, he has to do a job too, and the decision can sometimes be reversed, as is the nature of government.
13. An option for people who are being persecuted, may be to retreat, or leave the area.
14. During a flood, in the city, everything was destroyed. The leader had to rebuild the city from ruble, even administrative agencies.
15. The king created several commemorative scarabs, or coins, praising people for their good deeds.
Jane Austen and George Eliot would be good women for commemorative coins— I learned a lot reading their books. This applies to all of the authors I've read.
16. The scarabs also contained explanatory notes with information about each person.


Misc. Notes
1. “He viewed the gods with reverence and awe.” —Hesiod, Homeric Hymns
2. “A teddy bear is a lot like a bear cub.” —Greek dictionary.
3. “He didn’t know that he was talking to a drunk person.”
4. “Alcohol impairs your memory, and ability to perform simple tasks.”
5. γεύμα -- gévma -- meal
6. vaselini -- vaseline
7. Omitted.
8. Some people have difficulties with patience, that is, they have problems being patient.


Thursday, July 18, 2024


The Oxford New Greek Dictionary
1. ham -- ζαμπόν -- zampón
2. herb -- βότανο -- vótano
3. hermit -- ερημίτης -- erimítis

K
4. kebab -- souvlaki
5. khaki -- χακί
6. kitten -- γατάκι -- gatáki
7. kitchen -- κουζίνα -- kouzína
You are supposed to be cozy, in your apartment or house.
8. Rice a Roni and Perdue chicken strips (chopped into small pieces, mixed with chopped tomato, and a little bit of mayo,) tastes great!

A
9. amamilos -- witch hazel
10. αλογοουρά -- alogoourá -- ponytail
11. απιδιά -- pear
Don't exclude some fruits arbitrarily -- eat all fruits, just because they're there!


Wednesday, July 17, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. “He drank whisky diluted with water.” —James Joyce
2. “He drank a beverage with only a few drops of alcohol in it.” —James Joyce
3. “The two friends played nose goes, or the nose game.” — James Joyce


In Search of Lost Time, Marcel Proust
1. "I would close my eyes, and lie down for a long time, and play like I was asleep.”
2. “I would play the same games that I played in my boyhood.”
3. Many of the works of Friedrich Nietzsche and Marcel Proust are available for free on Project Gutenberg.
4. “All of a sudden, he began to act like a man.”
5. “The couple sat in the garden and drank coffee.”
6. “My heart began to beat fast, and I had to order myself to keep calm.”
7. "It is simple to make iced coffee."
8. "He possessed a great deal of practical wisdom."
9. “The cakes that are sold in supermarkets might go good with iced coffee.”
10. “The best judges, are judges who are capable of understanding and compassion.” —Victor Hugo
11. “White-collar crimes are different than criminal crimes. White-collar crimes are often not physical in nature, for example.” -- Victor Hugo
"" Research in Psychiatry and Law


Tuesday, July 16, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. Remember that many cable companies have music channels that you can watch on your tv.
2. “Don’t worry and obsess about trying to hit the right note in your songs, just sing man," said one of Al Green’s band members, in Soul Survivor: A Biography of Al Green by Jimmy McDonough.
3. Juneteenth, by Ralph Ellison is a book that I want to read.
4. The Egyptian Book of the Dead, indicates that there are certain prayers, or recitations that the living can give to the dead.

The Oxford New Greek Dictionary
1. decipher -- αποκρυπτογραφώ -- apokryptografó
It is good to decipher the meaning of words from different languages.
2. defy -- προκαλώ -- prokaló
3. demon -- δαίμων -- daimon
4. dictionary -- lexico
5. discolour -- αποχρωματίζω -- apochromatízo
6. discount (n) -- έκπτωση -- ékptosi
Going to the stores and shopping for discounts is good!
7. disease -- νόσος
A disease is not something that you're born with.
8. dolphin -- δελφίνι -- delfíni
9. domino -- ντόμινο -- ntómino
10. dream -- όνειρο -- óneiro

11. doctor -- γιατρός -- giatrós
12. doubt -- distazō
E
13. ear -- αυτί -- aftí
Use headphones to block out noise.
14. energy -- ενέργεια -- enérgeia
15. ermine -- ερμίνα -- ermina
16. evergreen -- αειθαλής -- aeithalís

F
18. fable -- μύθος -- mýthos
19. fabric -- ύφασμα -- ýfasma
20. fictitious -- φανταστικός
21. fig -- Σύκο -- Sýko
22. fried -- τηγανητό -- tiganitó
23. friend -- φίλος -- fílos
24. frizzy -- σγουρός

G
25. Gaelic -- keltikos -- γαλελικός galelikós
26. ghost -- φάντασμα -- fántasma
27. girl -- κοπέλα
28. guard -- προστατεύω
29. guess -- μαντεύω

H
30. heaven -- παράδεισος -- parádeisos


Sunday, July 14, 2024

The Oxford New Greek Dictionary
1. saliva — σάλιο — salio
Omitted.
2. acoustic -- ακουστικός -- akoustikós
3. additive -- πρόσθετο ουσ ουδ
4. adrenaline -- αδρεναλίνη
5. air -- αέρας -- aéras
6. almond -- αμύγδαλο -- amýgdalo
7. ankle -- αστράγαλος -- astrágalos
8. ant -- μυρμήγκι -- myrmínki
9. appetite -- όρεξη -- órexi
10. appetizing -- ορεκτικός -- orektikós

11. apple -- μήλο -- mílo
12. apron -- ποδιά -- podiá
13. aquarium -- ενυδρείο -- enydreío
14. ashtray -- σταχτοδοχείο
15. aspirin -- ασπιρίνη -- aspiríni
16. Asia -- Ἀσία
17. aunt -- θεία -- theía
B
18. bean -- φασόλι -- fasóli
19. black -- μαύρος -- mávros
20. blueprint -- προσχέδιο -- proschédio
21. book -- Βιβλίο -- Vivlío
C
22. cabin -- καμπίνα -- kampína
Many people live in cabin-style homes.
23. cab -- ταξί -- taxí
24. cabinet -- ντουλάπι -- locker -- ερμάριο
25. camel -- καμήλα -- kamíla
26. candy -- καραμέλα -- karaméla
27. caramel -- καραμέλλα -- karamélla
28. caress -- χάδι, χαϊδεύω chádi, chaïdévo
29. cattle -- βοοειδή -- vooeidí
30. caterpillar -- κάμπια -- kámpia

31. cereal -- δημητριακό -- dimitriakó
Cereal tastes good, but you just have to keep buying it before it gets stale.
32. cheap -- φτηνός -- ftinós
33. chin -- πηγούνι -- pigoúni
34. China -- Κίνα -- Kína
35. chive -- είδος κρεμμυδιού -- eídos kremmydioú
36. Christ -- Χριστός -- Christós
37. claustrophobia
38. Coca Cola -- Κόκα-κόλα
39. corn -- καλαμπόκι -- kalampóki

40. complexion -- χροιά -- chroiá
41. cracker -- μπισκότο
42. baby carriage -- καροτσάκι (μωρού)
43. crayon -- κραγιόν
44. crochet -- κροσέ
45. cruise -- κρουαζιέρα -- krouaziéra
46. crust -- κόρα
47. daffodil -- νάρκισσος
The origins of Narcissus - The drooping flowers that characterise most daffodils are said to represent Narcissus bending over to catch his reflection in a pool of water. The name derives from the Greek 'narco', which is the root of the word narcotic.
48. Determine what cereals are good for adults, as well as children.


Saturday, July 13, 2024

The Aeneid, Virgil
1. “She kindles fragrant cedar through the night.”
2. Readers are introduced to Caesar Augustus, of the line Iulus.
3. “He felt a refreshing breeze at night.”
4. In the palace lay a sacred laurel, named Laurentes. This shrub is treated similarly to the burning bush in the Bible.
5. “Here all the Italian tribes and all Oenotria’s land, seek out the oracle’s response in hours of doubt.”
6. “There, before the city,
boys and young men in their vibrant strength
are trained as riders, challenging friends to race or box
when a herald comes riding up ahead of the Trojans."
7. "All stand in the forecourt, and all the other kings
from the start of time, and those who had taken
wounds in war, fighting to save their country.
Many weapons too, hang on the hallowed doors,
captured chariots, curved axes, crested helmets,
enormous bolts from gates, and lance, shields."
8. "Many Indians admired the chameleon, for its ability to blend in with the environment." --James Fenimore Cooper.
9. Plato, I believe, said, An education prepares you for death, and in The Apology, when he is threatened, he says, I am not afraid of death.
10. Larynx and laryngitis are words that I found in The Oxford New Greek Dictionary that taught me that there is an upper, middle and lower part of the throat, or, the pharynx, larynx, and esophagus.
11. Deontology, or ethics is another word I found in the Greek dictionary. Following this, I found a good article, Deontological Ethics, on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. One of the things that the article indicates is that according to deontologists, negative acts are sometimes required in life, for the good of the whole. The article also discusses the advantages of deontological theories and the disadvantages of deontological theories. The article also discusses how deontologists deal with "moral catastrophes." One of the last items in the article is, "Deontology and Uncertainty About Outcomes," where "deontologists have begun to ask how an actor should evaluate courses of action in which it is uncertain whether a deontological constraint will be violated."

The Oxford New Greek Dictionary:
12. lemonade -- λεμονάδα -- lemonada.
13. lozenge -- pastillia.
14. lung -- pnévmonas.
15. dog -- skulos
16. monkey -- Πίθηκος -- pithikos
17. onion -- κρεμμύδι -- kremmýdi
18. pancake -- τηγανίτα -- tiganíta
19. peppermint -- μέντα -- ménta
20. penicillin -- πενικιλλίνη -- penikillíni
21. pigtail -- κοτσιδά -- kotsida
22. pregnant -- έγκυος -- énkyos
23. ranch -- ράντσο -- rántso
24. play -- παίζω -- paízo
25. rattle - κρόταλο - krotalo
26. reservation — κράτηση — krátisi
27. rest -- υπόλοιπο -- ypóloipo
28. silk — μετάξι — metáxi
29. smooth — λείος — leíos
30. rye -- σίκαλη -- síkali

31. to salt -- στο αλάτι -- sto aláti
32. soup -- σούπα -- soúpa
33. stair — σκαλί — skalí
34. star -- άστρο -- astro
35. starlight -- αστροφεγγιά -- astrofengiá
36. stance -- στάση -- stási
37. steak -- μπριζόλα -- brizóla
38. stew — ραγού — ragou
39. suntan lotion — sunbathe — sunburn
40. subject -- υποκείμενο -- epokeimivo

41. theology -- θεολογία -- theologia
42. thunder -- βροντή -- vrontí
43. thyme -- θυμάρι -- thymári
44. vegetable -- χορταρικά -- hortarika

II. A. "Dauntless Little John" is a short story in Italian Folktales, by Italo Calvino. It is about a fearless young hero named John who courageously explores a castle.
B. "The Man Wreathed in Seaweed" is a story about a sailor who goes through a lot of adventures, and in the end, gets the princess.


Friday, July 12, 2024

Misc. Notes
1. House of the Dead, by Fyodor Dostoevsky is a novel which illustrates the horrors of prison life. It is available for free on Project Gutenberg.
" " Research in Psychiatry and Law
2. Writing a few lines in script, or fake script, each day, helps you to think clearly.


Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Preparation for Death, St Alphonsus Liguori
1. Acquiring Perfection - We are not perfect; don’t obsess over trying to perfect yourself.
2. Do many people return from the dead?
3. “At the time of death, there may be pain involved.”
4. "Stay close to nature."
5. “Let us then persuade ourselves that the proper time for repairing disorders of the soul, is not the hour of death, but the time of health.”
6. "Eternal happiness, or eternal misery is not determined at the time of death, but during the time of health."
7. Of sinners, “they who have led a bad life shall never die a good death.”
8. Many people want a big funeral, attended by all of their friends and family.
9. The departure of the soul from the body should not be called death but the beginning of life. “To the just death is only a passage to eternal life.”
10. “There may be certain moments of life in death.”

11. “The world is such that if you lose in one way, you may win in another way.”
12. “The present life is a journey to eternity.”
13. m. “Answer a fool according to his folly.” —John Henry Cardinal Newman
14. m. "Whether there is a visible or invisible church, people still ascribe to religious doctrines.” --John Henry Cardinal Newman
15. m. "II. Sea Food" added to "Food Ideas".
16. m. The generous amount of food in our supermarkets is great!
17. m. Script handwriting is useful, particularly when you want to write an essay.


The Aeneid, Virgil
1. "And Apollo fills his soul with truth, one prophecy."
2. Goes into a cave and meets a priestess who gives him advice and prepares him for his battles.
3. "I said a last farewell:
'Live on in your blessings, your destiny's been won.'"
4. We stretch out, as sleep comes to our weary bodies.
5. "Here I saw it--our first omen, four horses, horses armed for war.
6. In a scene of desolation and destruction, out of the smoke, a solitary man appears.
7. "Hear the tremendous groaning of waters, pounding rocks,
it is only an inch between the devil and the deep blue sea."
8. m. Some poisonous mushrooms are stronger than others."
9. m. "This woman, who I was to marry in the future, it is as though she were already my wife." --Leo Tolstoy
10. "Examine the case of bullies, who beat up on people weaker than them."
11. “He’d speak his heart, but his voice chokes from exhaustion.”
12. “What good is our hard work, when it can be ruined in an instant by war?”
13. “All progress is suspended now, because of this war.”
14. “The war doesn’t only affect the two sides involved, it also affects the entire world.”
15. "They perceived how to stop fighting, and thought about how to stop fighting, then they just decide flat out to stop fighting.”
16. "Now that we have decided to end the war, let us focus on peace, eternal peace."
17. "Borders are merely imaginary lines, people come and go as they like."
18. "I am assured that I can count on your good will and your word."
20. "The earth created you, and the earth loves you."

21. "Rumor flies through Libya's great cities,
Rumor, the swiftest of all the evils in the world.
She strives on speed, stronger with every stride...
the people's ears pricked up for news."
22. "Now rumor is in her glory, filling the country,
with tale on tale of intrigue, of facts and falsehoods mingled."
23. "Mercury puts on a pair of golden sandals, which contain magic powers that can make him run faster."
24. "He plunged to the sea as a seahawk skims the waves,
rounding cliffs to hunt for fish inshore."
25. "What can he dare say now to the queen?
Where to begin, what opening?"
26. "She fears everything now...
Rumor, vicious as ever, brings her word,
that Trojans are rigging out their galleys, gearing to set sail."
27. Omitted.
28. "You cruel, heartless-- Even if you were not
pursuing alien fields and unknown homes,
even if ancient Troy were standing, still,
who'd sail for Troy across such heaving seas?"
29. "Thanks to you, the African tribes, Numidian warlords
hate me, even my own Tyrians rise against me...
Do you leave me here to meet my death?"
30. "I shall never deserve what you deserve, my queen,
never regret my memories of Dido, not while I can recall myself and draw the breath of life."

31. "Come, stop inflaming us both
with your appeals. I set sail for Italy -- all against my will."
32. "Why hide it? Why hold back? To suffer greater blows? Never! What can I say first? So much to say."
33. "Some herbs are more potent than others."
34. Iris, hovering over Dido's head, declares
"'So commanded, I take this lock as a sacred gift
to the God of Death, and I release you from your body.'
With that, she cut the lock with her hand and all at once the warmth slipped away, the life dissolved in the winds."

Funeral Games for Anchises
35. "but the Trojans know the pains of a great love
defiled, and the lengths a woman driven mad can go,
and it leads their hearts down ways of grim foreboding."
36. "And with that he issues orders."
37. The ships assumed battle formation.
38. To the crowd, "Why don't you come down here and play the sport that I'm playing."
39. "If you enjoy this sport so much, why don't you arrange to have it played more often."
40. "My love of glory, my pride
still holds strong, not beaten down by fear.
It's slow old age, that's what dogs me now."
41. He learned more about his entire race.
42. "But good Aeneas, consoling them all with heartfelt words,
weeps as he commends them to Acestes, their blood kin."

The Kingdom of the Dead
43. One of the things that the queen knew how to do well was shout.
44. "Corynaeus, circling his comrades three times with pure water,
sprinkling light drops from a blooming olive spray,
he cleansed the men and voiced the last farewell."
45. "And the Sibyl says no more but
into the yawning cave she flings herself, possessed--
he follows her boldly, matching stride for stride."
46. "and sleep, twin brother of Death, and twisted, wicked Joys..."
47. "they are mere disembodied creatures, flimsy
will-o'-the-wisps that flit like living forms..."
48. "Some sports are more civilized than others."
49. "When he fell down, the lights went out, and he saw stars."


Tuesday, July 9, 2024


Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
Polzunkov
1. In this story, Dostoevsky is giving the recommendation that people enjoy life, and have fun, because life is short, so laugh sometimes, and smile.
2. During a disagreement, one of the men asks, Are you a dancing man? The other man replies, Well I don't dance much nowadays, but these days, I'm known to dance on occasion. --Story by Leo Tolstoy
3. "Let us examine the magical properties of herbes." --Edmund Spenser
4. "While the world around him was changing, he was changing too." --Dante Alighieri
5. "The crowd were bloodthirsty savages, and would have cheered for anything.” --The Iliad, Homer
6. Philadelphia Cream Cheese's different flavors, on white bread tastes great!
7. Book clubs could even use my book reviews that I have on my blog for content for their subscribers.


Monday, July 8, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. Plain cream cheese on white bread is a good snack!


Sunday, July 7, 2024


The Aeneid, Virgil
1. “These lands, they say, were once an immense unbroken mass
but long ago—such is the power of time to work great change
as the ages past—some vast convulsion sprang them apart
dividing lands and towns."
2. The soldiers meet mythical creatures such as a two-headed serpent and a dog-like beast.
3. The "other" group owns slaves, who they treat badly.
4. The heroes' parents are gods.
5. M. - “Every person has their positive qualities, every person has his or her own strengths.” --Chinua Achebe


Saturday, July 6, 2024


Sevastopol Sketches, Leo Tolstoy
1. “Let us examine the horrors of war and the dead, how their limbs can be distorted in death, the stench of the dead, etc.”
2. "No matter how rich you are, you can’t buy your way out of this war."
3. “Maybe we should all stop fighting on account of this small boy.”
4. “He was skilled in all forms of weaponry, but didn’t know how to use a pair of scissors.”


Friday, July 5, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. If you want to be closer to nature, and world peoples who do not have air conditioning, then buy an electric fan for your home or room.
2. My observations suggest that many world peoples, such as in Asia and India, spend a large amount of time gathering, preparing and eating food.
3. In addition to running or brisk walking, women can benefit from strength training/weight lifting (lifting heavy), and then they can compete with men.



Thursday, July 4, 2024


Exiles, James Joyce
1. Discusses how to control painful memories. This involves knowing when you've been successful in doing so.
1b. "You can control the memories of a previous relationship, if you work on them in your current relationship." --" " Favorite Notes (Item II, 15)
2. “Sometimes, recovery involves a gradual improvement over time.”
3. Some instructional lessons can be longer, and some lessons can be shorter.
4. One of the characters had been working half the night, writing.
5. Beatrice indicates that what happened was long ago, when she was a child.
6. Robert describes the "asthmatic voice of protestantism."
7. In business, it is important to have a professional appearance and attitude.
8. M. - To book reviewers: don’t forget about classical literature, the classics! In fact, try to cover all the genres of literature.



Wednesday, July 3, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. The Best Of Ashford & Simpson, is a great compact music disc. The text insert included with the cd indicates that Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson believed that good karma and positive chemistry are important elements for a successful music group, and they also say, If you’re not having fun, you’re doing something wrong.
2. “Almost immediately after signing with Jobete Music, the team began writing tunes for Marvin Gaye and his then duet-partner Tammi Terrell. The Top 20 hit “‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” “‘Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing,” “Good Lovin’ ‘Ain’t Easy to Come By,” and “You’re All I Need to Get By”; all written and produced by Ashford & Simpson." Ashford & Simpson’s “Gimme Something Real,” and “Solid,” are also favorites. "Tell Me Something Good," by Chaka Khan and Rufus is a related song in this genre.
3. How to Read a Book, by Mortimer Adler, teaches people how to read a book. This would be a great book to be reviewed on websites, on tv talk shows and in the media, since it encourages reading.
4. Grouping people on land with apartments, who are all friends with each other, might be a good idea. This is based on Aristotle's idea to separate a country into small states based on people with similar interests, in this case, friendship is the common interest.



Tuesday, July 2, 2024


The Aeneid Virgil
1. For the Greeks and Romans, life during the time of the Trojan War was rough: the people often slept outside, used harsh language, and didn't have many of the trappings of civilization that we enjoy today. This makes us question how far we have actually progressed since this era in history.
2. “They hate him when he’s there, but when he’s gone, they miss him.”
3. “He left the land of the living.”
4. "That was my first step on the road to ruin.”
5. "We are citizens of the country we inhabit."
6. “We burn to question him, blind to how false the cunning Greeks could be.”
7. "As the word spread, the army rose in uproar."
8. “For an advantage, we have to sacrifice the life of a Greek in return." They single out one poor person.
9. “If I save you, you must save me too.”
10. M. - “The crowd was bloodthirsty, and would have cheered for anything.” --Homer
11. M. - Wrapping cold cuts in flour tortilla wraps, with dipping sauce on the side, tastes great!



Monday, July 1, 2024


The Divine Comedy Dante Alighieri
1. "To test our patience and display our creativity, let us decorate regular (unboiled) eggs." Origami also requires patience.
2. "Tell me the ways that I was wrong."
3. "We see like those who have imperfect sight."


Misc. Notes
1. Cooking tongs can make cooking bacon a lot easier!
2. Honore de Balzac presents characters who have many dimensions, who are round, dynamic characters.



Sunday, June 30, 2024


Ulysses, James Joyce
1. "You should not drink alcohol as though you were drinking water."
2. Discusses "the evils of alcohol.”


Finnegans Wake, James Joyce
1.Omitted.
2. The chal and his chi, their roammerin over, gribgrobgrab reining trippetytrappety.
3. Why, wonder of wenchalows, what o szeszame open, v doer s t doing?
4. The aged crafty nummifeed confusionary overinsured ever-Iapsing accentuated katekattershin clopped, clopped, clopped...
5. ...a weerpovy willowy dreevy drawly and the patter of so familiars, farabroads and behomeans, as she shure sknows...
6. ...nonce at a time, with them Murphy’s puffs she dursted with gnockmeggs and the bramborry cake for dour dorty dompling obayre Mattom Beetom...
7. And this is defender of defeater of defaulter of deformer of the funst man in Danelagh, willingtoned in with this glance dowon his browen and that born appalled noodlum the panellite pair’s cummal delimitator, odding: Oliver White, he’s as tiff as she’s tight. And thisens his speak quite hoarse.
8. The sound of maormaoring The Wellingthund sturm waxes fuercilier. The whackawhacks of the sturm. Katu te ihis ihis! Katu te wana wana! The strength of the rawshorn generand is known throughout the world.
9. Leave the letter that never begins to go find the latter that ever comes to end, written in smoke and blurred by mist and signed of solitude, sealed at night.
10. And oodlum hoodlum dood-lum to yes, Donn, Teague and Hurleg, who the bullocks brought you here and how the hillocks are ye?

11. But da. But dada, mwilshsuni. Till even so aften. Sea vaast a pool!
12. The guberniergerenal in laut-lievtonant of Baltiskeeamore, amaltheouse for leporty hole! Endues paramilintary langdwage. Ullahbluh!
13. Come alleyou jupes of Wymmingtown that graze the calves of Man!
14. Omitted.
15. Omitted.
16. ...fumfing to a fullfrength with this wallowing olfact). Mortar martar tartar wartar.
17. Pitsy Riley! Gurragrunch, gurragrunch! They are at the turn of the fourth of the hurdles. By the hross of Xristos...
18. To be continued.
19. M. - “He was a colorful man, and he dressed in colorful clothes.”
20. To be continued.
21. Norfolk Virginia, Nor’folk, or North folk, the folk from the north of Virginia, as distinguished from the folk from other parts of the state.
22. Many people grew up in military households. --" " Research in Psychiatry and Law
23. “She sipped her drink slowly, while he gulped his down,” writes James Joyce. Joyce also reminds us that different drinks have different alcoholic content. --Favorite Notes.



Saturday, June 29, 2024


Finnegans Wake, James Joyce
1. This early work by James Joyce was originally published in 1939 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'Finnegans Wake' is a an experimental novel of comic fiction.
2. Joyce wrote and published articles in Italian in the local newspaper Piccolo della Sera, and continued to work on his English-language fiction.
3. After the war, the modernist poet Ezra Pound persuaded Joyce to come to Paris. His wartime publications had provided him with some fame as an avant-garde writer, as well as a degree of financial security, and he was now able to focus fully on Ulysses. Upon its completion, the American journal The Little Review began to serialize it, but this came to a halt in 1921 when a court banned the work as obscene. Following a similar reaction in England, Joyce was only able to publish Ulysses with the help of Sylvia Beach, an American expatriate living in Paris who owned and ran the bookshop Shakespeare & Co. The novel appeared in February of 1922, and is now regarded as one of the most important works of Modernist literature, and one of the most groundbreaking English language works of all time.

Joyce’s last and perhaps most challenging novel, Finnegans Wake, was published in 1939. A year later, with the prospect of a Nazi invasion looming, he fled to the south of France, before dying in 1941, at the age of 59.

Finnegans Wake
4. She carried a nice kettle of fruit.
5. His sister played in the mirror.
6. His sister cleverly tooted.
7. Sometimes she sits gloomy, “glooming so gleaming in the gloaming.”
8. Sometimes she corrected his language.
9. Then she says, “Let’s study grammar.”
10. She has a lot of stories to tell.

11. She wants to get her fortune read.
12. She had her other ways about her also.
13. "And he did a get, their anayance, and slink his hook away, aleguere come alaguerre."
14. She was a tomboy.
15. "For poor Glugger was dazed and late in his crave, ay he, laid in his grave."
16. Helpmeat too, contrasta toga, his fiery goosemother, laotsey taotsey, woman who did, he tell princes of the age about.
17. Omitted.
18. The why if he but would bite and plug his baccypipes and renownse the devlins in all their pumbs and kip the streelwarkers out of the plague and nettleses milk from sickling the honeycoombe and kop Ulo Bubo selling foulty treepes...
19. It darkles, (tinct, tint) all this our funnaminal world.
20. "Spickspuk! Spoken."

21. Glamours hath moidered’s lieb and herefore Coldours must leap no more. Lack breath must leap no more.
22. Aghatharept they fleurelly to Nebnos will and Rosocale.
23. "But listen to the mocking birde to micking barde making bared!"
24. "...king’s game, if he deign so, are in such transfusion just to know twigst timidy twomeys, for gracious sake, who is artthoudux from whose heterotropic, the sleepy or the glouch, for, shyly bawn and showly nursured, exceedingly nice girls can strike exceedingly bad times unless so richtly chosen’s by..."
25. Till they go round if they go roundagain before breakparts and all dismissed. They keep. Step keep. Step. Stop. Who is Fleur? Where is Ange? Or Gardoun
26. "A condamn quondam jontom sick af a..."
27. He does not know how his grandson’s grandson’s grandson’s grandson will stammer up in Peruvian for in the ersebest idiom I have done it equals I so shall do. He dares not think why the grandmother of the grand-mother of his grandmother’s grandmother coughed Russky with suchky husky accent since in the mouthart of the slove look at me now means I once was otherwise.
28. The Zionist lion is cryin'.
29. Only the caul knows his thousandfirst name, Hocus Crocus, Esquilocus, Finnfinn the Faineant, how feel full foes in furrinarr!
30. To be continued.

31. "Attach him! Hold! Yet stir thee, to clay, Tamor!"
32. "Too soon are coming tasbooks and goody, hominy bread and bible bee, with jaggery-yo to juju-jaw, Fine’s French phrases from the Grandmere des Grammaires and bothered parsenaps..."
33. "...about old Father Barley how he got up of a morning arley and he met with a plattonem blondes named Hips and Haws and fell in with a fellows of Trinity some header Skowood Shaws like..."
34. You’re well held now, Missy Cheekspeer, and your panto’s off! Fie, for shame, Ruth Wheatacre, after all the booz said!
35. For the Clearer of the A* from on high has spoken in tumbul-dum tambaldam to his tembledim tombaldoom worrild and, mogu--
36. To see in his horrorscup he is mehrkurios than saltz of sulphur. Terror of the noonstruck by day, cryptogam of each nightly bridable...
37. Hearasay in paradox lust. seldomers that most frequent him. That same erst crafty hakemouth which under the assumed name of Ignotus Loquor, of foggy old, harangued bellyhooting fishdrunks on their favorite stamping ground, from a father theo-balder brake.
38. But is was all so long ago. Hispano–Cathayan-Euxine, Castillian—Emeratic—Hebridian, Espanol—Cymric—Helleniky? Rolf the Ganger, Rough the Gang—ster, not a feature alike and the face the same...
39. Pastimes are past times. Now let bygones be bei Gunne’s. Saaleddies er it in this warken werden, mine boerne, and it vild need older-wise 3 since primal made alter in garden of Idem. The tasks above are as the flasks below, saith the emerald canticle of Hermes...
40. We dont hear the booming cursowarries, we wont fear the fletches of fightning, we float the meditarenias and come bask to the isle we love in spice.

41. Even Canaan the Hateful. Ever a-going, ever a-coming. Between a stare and a sough. Fossilisation, all branches.
42. A phantom city, phaked of philim pholk, bowed and sould for a four of hundreds of manhood in their three and threescore fylkers for a price partitional of twenty six and six.
43. By this riverside, on our sunnybank, 2 how buona the vista, by Santa Rosa! A field of May, the very vale of Spring. Orchards here are lodged; sainted lawrels evremberried. You have a hoig view ashwald, a glen of marrons and of thorns.
44. The Big Bear bit the Sailor’s Only. Trouble, trouble, trouble.
45. Making it up as we goes along. The law of the jungerl.
46. ...knowledge that often hate on first hearing comes of love by second sight.
47. The O’Connor, The Mac Loughlin and The Mac Namara with summed their appondage, da, da, of Sire Jeallyous Seizer, that gamely torskmester,1 with his duo of druidesses in ready money rompers...
48. You may fail to see the lie of that layout, Suetonia,3 but the reflections which recur to me are that so long as beauty life is body love4 and so bright as Mutua of your mirror holds her candle to your caudle, lone lefthand likeless, sombring Autum of your Spring, reck you not one spirt of anyseed whether trigemelimen cuddle his coddle or nope.
49. All his teeths back to the front, then the moon and then the moon with a hole behind it.
50. "Shake eternity and lick creation."

51. "My globe goes gaddy at geography giggle pending which time I was looking for my shoe all through Arabia."
52. "It must be some bugbear in the gender especially when old which they all soon get to look."
53 Amum. Amum. And Amum again. For tough troth is stronger than fortuitous fiction and it’s the surplice money, oh my young friend and ah me sweet creature, what buys the bed while wits borrows the clothes.
54. Slash-the-Pill lifts the pellet. Run, Phoenix, run!
55. "The bookley with the rusin’s hat is Patomkin but I’m blowed if I knowed who the slave is doing behind the curtain."
56. Vieus Von DVbLIn, ’twas one of dozedeams a darkies ding in dewood) the Turnpike under the Great Ulm (with Mearingstone in Fore ground).
57. When I’m dreaming back like that I begins to see we’re only all telescopes. Or the comeallyoum saunds. Like when I dromed I was in Dairy and was wuckened up with thump in thudderdown.
58. Sewing up the beillybursts in their buckskin shiorts for big Kapitayn Killykook and the Jukes of Kelleiney.
59. Till its nether nadir is vortically where (allow me aright to two cute winkles) its naval’s napex will have to beandbe. You must proach near mear for at is dark. Lob. And light your mech. Jeldy! And this is what you’ll say.
60. Vely lovely entilely! Like a yangsheep-slang with the tsifengtse. So analytical plaus—ible! And be the powers of Moll Kelly, neigh—bour topsowyer, it will be a lozenge to me all my lauffe.

61. He was mister-mysterion. Like a purate out of pensionee with a gouvernament job. All moanday, tearsday, wailsday, thumpsday, frightday, shatterday till the fear of the Law.
62. ACCORDING TO COCKER. TROTHBLOWERS. FIG AND THISTLE PLOT A PIG AND WHISTLE.
63. Old Keane now, you’re rod, hook and sinker, old jubalee Keane!
64. Thou in shanty! Thou in scanty shanty!! Thou in slanty scanty shanty!!! Bide in your hush! Bide in your hush, do! The law does not aloud you to shout.
65. Not Kilty. But the manajar was. He! He! Ho! Ho! Ho!
66. Sometimes, wild animals don't eat anything.
67. Oikey, Impostolopulos?1 Steady steady steady steady steady studiavimus. Many many many many many manducabimus.2 We’ve had our day at triv and quad and writ our bit. Art, literature, politics, economy, chemistry, human-ity, &c. Duty, the daughter of discipline, the Great Fire at the South City Markets, Belief in Giants and the Banshee, A Place for Every-thing and Everything in its Place, Is the Pen Mightier than the Sword? A Successful Career in the Civil Service,3 The Voice of Nature in the Forest,4 Your Favorite Hero or Heroine...
68. Do you Approve of our Existing Parliamentary System? The Uses and Abuses of Insects, A 1 The divvy wants that babbling brook. Dear Auntie Emma Emma Eates. 2 Strike the day off, the nightcap’s on nigh. Goney, goney gone!
69. Noah. Plato. Horace. Isaac. Tiresias. Marius. Diogenes. Procne, Philo-mela. Abraham. Nestor. Cincin-natus. Leonidas. Jacob. Theocritus. Joseph. Fabius. Samson. Cain. Esop. Prometheus. Lot. Pompeius Magnus, Miltiades Strategos. Solon. Castor, Pollux. Dionysius. Sappho. Moses. Job. Catilina. Cadmus. Ezekiel. Solomon. Themistocles. Vitellius
70. Visit to Guinness’ Brewery, Clubs, Advan-tages of the Penny Post, When is a Pun not a Pun? Is the Co–Education of Animus and Anima Wholly Desirable?1 What Happened at Clontarf? Since our Brother Johnathan Signed the Pledge or the Meditations of Two Young Spinsters,2 Why we all Love our Little Lord Mayor, Hengler’s Circus Entertainment, On Thrift,3 The Kettle–Griffith-Moynihan Scheme for a New Electricity Supply, Travelling in the Olden Times,4 American Lake Poetry, the Strangest Dream that was ever Halfdreamt. 5 Circumspection, Our Allies the Hills, Are Parnellites Just towards Henry Tudor? Tell a Friend in a Chatty Letter the Fable of the Grasshopper and the Ant,6 Santa Claus, The Shame of Slumdom, The Roman Pontiffs and the Orthodox Churches,7 The Thirty Hour Week, Compare the Fistic Styles of Jimmy Wilde and Jack Sharkey, How to Understand the Deaf, Should Ladies learn Music or Mathematics? Glory be to Saint Patrick! What is to be found in a Dustheap, Who No One Likes Darkness, The Value of Circumstantial Evidence, Should Spelling? Outcasts in India, Collecting Pewter, Eu,8 Proper and Regular Diet Necessity For,9 If You Do It Do It Now.

71. Then sagd he to the ship’s husband. And in his translaten-tic norjankeltian. Hwere can a ketch or hook alive a suit and sowterkins?
72. But first, strongbowth, they would deal death to a drinking. Link of a leadder, dubble in it, slake your thirdst thoughts awake with it. Our svalves are svalves aroon!
73. Nummers that is summus that is toptip that is bottombay that is Twomeys that is Digges that is Heres. In the frameshape of hard mettles. For we all would fain make glories. It is minely well mint.
74. Thus as count the costs of liquid courage, a bullyon gauger, stowed stivers pengapung in bulk in hold (fight great finnence! brayvoh, little bratton!).
75. Paradoxmutose caring, but here in a present booth of Balla-clay, Barthalamou, where their dutchuncler mynhosts and serves them dram well right for a boors’ interior.
76. ...willpip futurepip feature apip footloose pastcast with spareshins and flash substittles of noirse-made-earsy from a nephew mind the narrator but give the devil his so long as those sohns of a blitzh call the tuone tuone and thonder alout makes the thurd.
77. There were no pea-nats in her famalgia so no wumble she tumbled for his famas roalls davors.
78. Burniface, shiply efter, shoply after, at an angle of lag, let flow, brabble brabble and brabble, and so hostily, heavyside breathing, came up with them and, check me joule, shot the three tailors, butting back to Moyle herring.
79. ...bump as beam and buttend, roller and reiter, after the diluv’s own deluge, the seasant samped as skibber breezed in, tripping, dripping, threw the sheets in the wind, the tights of his trunks at tickle to tackle and his rubmelucky truss rehorsing the pouffed skirts of his overhawl.
80. Heaved two, spluiced the menbrace. Heirs at you, Brewinbaroon! Weth a whistle for methanks.

81. Is gossiping a lost art?
82. He was the care-lessest man I ever see but he sure had the most sand. One fish—ball with fixings!
83. And a disk of osturs for the swanker! Allahballah! And he salaamed his friends.
84. Osler will oxmaul us all, sayd he, like one familiar to the house, while Waldemar was heeling it and Maldemaer was toeing it.
85. The because of his sosuch. Uglymand fit himshemp but throats fill us all! And three’s here’s for repeat of the unium! Place the scaurs wore on your groot big bailey bill, he apullajibed, the O’Colonel Power.
86. Yet never shet it the brood of aurowoch, not for legions of donours of Gamuels. I have performed the law in truth for the lord of the law, Taif Alif I have held out my hand for the holder of my heart in Anna-polis, my youthrib city.
87. He made one summery (Cholk and murble in lonestime) of his the three swallows like he was muzzling Moselems and torched up as the faery pangeant fluwed down the hisophenguts.
88. Afferika is a beautiful continent.
89. Till Irinwakes from Slumber Deep. How they succeeded by courting daylight in saving darkness he who loves will see.
90. That’s fag for fig, metinkus, confessed, mhos for mhos.

91. ...that a hole in his tale and that hell of a hull of a hill of a camelump bakk. Fadgest-fudgist!
92. With the old sit in his shoulders, and the new satin atlas onder his uxter, erning his breadth to the swelt of his proud and, picking up the emberose of the lizod lights, his tail toiled of spume and spawn, and the bulk of him, and hulk of him as whenever it was he reddled a ruad to riddle a rede from the sphinxish pairc while Ede was a guardin, ere love a side issue.
93. Thus street spins legends while wharves woves tales but some family fewd felt a nick in their name.
94. Hooks are used in hunting and fishing trips.
95. To be continued.



Friday, June 28, 2024


A Portrait of the Artist, James Joyce
1. "I can't answer you at this exact moment, please ask me the question at a later date when I will be more ready to give you an answer."

THE GLORIES OF MARY, St Alphonsus
1. “Don’t be a cruel and evil leader, instead be a mild and gentle leader, who through teaching, shows people the error of their ways and forgives their sins." Especially don't punish someone as an adult, for something they did when they were in their childhood.
" " Research in Psychiatry and Law
2. Oh, most loving mother! Oh, most compassionate mother, be ever blessed! and may that God be ever blessed, who has given us thee as a mother, and as a secure refuge in all the dangers of this life.
3. M. - Greek and Roman writers suggest that ambitious writers can be more flexible with their plot and characters. For example, how the character remained in the same time period for decades, and how much of the seemingly impossible action transpired, is attributed to the author's magic.
A Portrait of the Artist
Notes
4. novena...patron saint, the first martyr: a novena period of nine days devoted to a special prayer dedicated to a saint or the Virgin for a particular goal or purpose. Stephen was the first Christian martyr, stoned to death outside the walls of Jerusalem.
5. the fainting sickness of his stomach: because he would, as a novice, be fasting from the night before in order to be able to receive Holy Communion.
6. References The Idea of a University, by Newman.
7. References The Testimony of the Rocks; or, Geology in Its Bearings on the Two Theologies, by Hugh Miller.
8. Groceries: a pub that also sold groceries.
9. nuns' madhouse beyond the wall: St Vincent's Lunatic Asylum in Fairview, run by nuns.

10. Guido Cavalcanti: Italian poet (1259-1300) whose famous poetic style, developed for the expression of pure feeling, would be a contrast to the cheap world of commerce and provision shops.
11. References A Synopsis of Scholastic Philosophy for the Understanding of St Thomas, by St Thomas Aquinas.
12. Ivoire, avorio, ebur: French, Italian and Latin for 'ivory'.
13. References Metamorphoses, by Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso).
14. Horace: a selection of the poems of Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65-8 bc), the great Roman poet.
15. You've no call...no one in it: 'You've no reason to be frightened; there's no one here' (Hiberno-English speech).
16. Vive l'Irelande!: 'Long live Ireland!'
17. levite...canonicals...ephod: a levite is a subordinate priest under Mosaic law.
18. Bonum est...appetitus: 'The good that which all things desire.' Stephen is again quoting, but strategically, from the same passage in Aquinas.
19. cliffs of Moher: dramatic cliffs in County Clare.
20. tundish: this is in fact an English (Elizabethan) word, not an Irish word.

21. the souls of the lax...the prudent: the Jesuits were often accused of being worldly and of catering to the more comfortable classes.
22. two photographs: of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and the Tsarina Alexandra Feodorvina. The Tsar issued a 'Peace Rescript' in 1898. It resulted in the Hague Peace Conference of 1899. MacCann (Sheehy-Skeffington) was an ardent supporter of this plan for world peace.
23. Ego habeo: dog-Latin, 'I have'. This schoolboy joke Latin is continued in the subsequent conversation.
24. Per pax universalis: 'for universal peace'.
25. handball: used in the game of that name. Handball was one of the games revived by the Gaelic Athletic Association. It is played on a court with an end wall and side walls.
26. Collins: Anthony Collins (1676-1729), one of the eighteenth-century deists and freethinkers. His most famous work was Discourse of Free-Thinking. In fact the first man to be called a freethinker was the Irish deist John Toland (1670-1722)
27. Lynch...criticism of life: an ironic reminder of Matthew Arnold's dictum that 'Poetry is a criticism of life'.
28. Long pace, fianna!...one, two!: military instructions from the Fenian handbook. The word 'fenian' derives from Irish 'fianna', 'warriors'.
29. To be continued.
30. M.- Dip your favorite cold cuts in salad dressing or dipping sauce, and also add a sliced tomato on the side!
" " Food Ideas



Thursday, June 27, 2024


A Portrait of the Artist, James Joyce
1. M. - "One person turned the hearts of the people against another person, he started a campaign in the eyes of the people to tarnish the reputation of the other person, and cause his destruction." --Homer
2. M. - "There are good ideas, and there are bad ideas."
3. M. - "He only thought evil thoughts." --The Fairie Queen, Edmund Spenser
4. --With guns and cattle, added Stephen, pointing to the titlepage of Cranly's book on which was printed Diseases of the Ox.
5. --The captain has only one love: sir Walter Scott. Isn't that so, captain?
--I love old Scott, the flexible lips said. I think he writes something lovely. There is no write can touch sir Walter Scott.
He moved a thin shrunken brown hand gently in the air in time to his praise and his thin quick eyelids beat often over his sad eyes.
6. The park trees were heavy with rain and fell still and ever in the lake, lying grey like a shield.
7. --Tell us, Temple, O'Keefe said, how many quarts of potter have you in you?
--All your intellectual soul is in that phrase, O'keefe said Temple with open scorn.
8. "Our speeds and clarity of speech differ according to varying conditions: fast, slow, with a slight stutter, clearly."
9. --What age is your mother?
--Not old, Stephen said. She wishes to make my easter duty.
10. The characters have a discussion about religion.
11. It is important to speak clearly and with coherence.

12. "...in certain circumstances it is not unlawful to rob."
" " Research in Psychiatry and Law
13. Apply to the Jesuit theologian Juan Mariana de Talavera who will also explain to you what circumstances you may lawfully kill your king.
14. --Alone, quite alone. You have no fear of that. And you know what that word means? Not only to be separate from all others but to have not even one friend.
15. "I wonder if William Bond will die
For assuredly he is very ill."
16. 25 March, morning: Strange figures advance from a cave. They are not as tall as men. One does not seem to stand apart from another. Their faces are phosphorescent, with darker streaks. They peer at me and their eyes seem to ask me something. They do not speak.
17. 11 April: Read what I wrote last night. Vague words for a vague emotion.
18. 13 April: That has been on my mind for a long time. I looked it up and find it English and good old blunt English too. Damn the dean of studies and his funnel! What did he come here for to teach us his own language or to learn it from us? Damn him one way or the other!
19. 15 April: Met her today in Grafton Street...This confused her more and I felt sorry and mean...I made a sudden gesture of a revolutionary nature.
20. 26 April: So be it. Welcome, O life! I go to encounter for the millionth time the reality of experience...

21. Notes
22. rector: the rector is the ecclesiastic who has charge of the government of a college. He is superior to the prefect of studies and the prefect of a discipline, both of whom are also ecclesiatics.
23. seventyseven to seventysix: the number of days to go to the end of the first term.
24. green rose: possibly the references to red, green and roses are covert allusions to Ireland, traditionally associated with the rose in its dark or sacrifically crimson shades.
25. dead mass: a Mass for the dead, a Requiem Mass. The colours of the vestments for such a Mass would be black and gold.
26. Bodenstown: this townland in County Kildare contains the churchyard in which Wolfe Tone, the father of Irish republicanism, is buried.
27. boss: a kind of footstool.
28. Bless us, O Lord...Amen: a standard prayer recited before meals.
29. The bishops...the English people?: in November 1890, Parnell's divorce case came up for trial... On 29 November he published his Manifest to the Irish People, an intemperate attack on his enemies. The Catholic hierarchy intervened decisively in December, just before the Parliamentary Party met to consider Parnell's position.
30. renegade catholics: the practice, quite common under the Penal Laws of Ireland, of changing one's faith from Catholicism to Protestantism in order to retain property or the means of survival. A proper nationalist pedigree would bear no such stain.

31. Tower of Ivory...House of Gold!: a litany is a form of united prayer by alternate sentences, in which the clergy lead and the people respond. The Litany of Our Lady came into general use about the thirteenth century...
32. priestridden: the reorganization of the Catholic Church in Ireland after the Famine was undertaken by Cardinal Paul Cullen.
33. whiteboy: the Whiteboys were an agrarian secret society that flourished initially in the 1760s. They wore white garments to help identify one another at night during their raids on stock, farmhouses and the like. Their grievances were payments of tithes, raised tents, enclosures and various taxes. Whiteboyism endured, in different forms, into the nineteenth century. The movement was condemned on several occasions by the Catholic Church.
34. car: a two-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle.
35. boatbearer: the server who carries the vessel that holds the incense before it is transferred to the censer in the rite of Benediction...The incense is then transferred to the thurbile, burnt and the thurbile swung before the Host.
36. a sprinter: a racing cyclist.
37. cricket was coming: rugby football, a winter sport, was giving way to cricket, a summer game.
38. rounders: a mild version of baseball.
39. Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow: Macbeth, Act V, scene v.
40. Magnall's Questions: Richmal Magnall (1769-1820) published Historical and Miscellaneous Questions for the use of Young People in 1800. It remained in use throughout the nineteenth century.

41. Peter Parley's Tales: Peter Parley was the pseudonym of Samuel Griswold Goodrich, author of Peter Parley's Tales about Ancient and Modern Greece and Peter Parley's Tales about Ancient and Modern Rome.
42. saint Francis... John Berchmans: St Francis Xavier (1506-52), the most famous of Loyoloa's disciples, went as a missionary to India and Japan. He is often portrayed pointing to the crucifix on his chest, indicating the centrality of the cross to his mission.
43. To be continued.
44. black twist: tobacco twisted in a cord.
45. All serene: equivalent of 'no problem.'
46. Madame, I never eat Muscatel grapes: a quotation from "The Count of Monte Cristo.' Dantes twice makes this declaration to Mercedes.
47. without...ever reaching: Stephen's heresy consists in the fact that he has denied that the soul could never come closer to divine perfection. It is orthodox, of course, to say that it can never attain it.
48. bake: hot and bothered.
49. 'Tis youth and folly...The mountain dew: the verses are from an anonymous ballad.
50. come-all-yous: popular street ballads that traditionally began with the invocation 'Come all you...'

51. Dilectus: a phrase book of Latin quotations.
52. the particular judgement: the belief that souls are judged at the moment and in the place of death.
53. He founded...prevail: Matthew 16:18-19. Joyce liked the idea that the Church was founded upon a pun -- i.e., the Latin for Peter, Petrus, also means a rock.
54. To be continued.
55. Mercedes: the beloved of Dantes who ultimately comes to live in a cottage in Marseilles.
56. in a sack...a serpent: the Roman punishment for parricide.
57. beatific vision: the sight of God, face to face, the essential bliss of angels and humankind.
58.mortal sin...venial sin: mortal sin destroys the soul; venial sin infects it but leaves it in a reparable condition.
59. The face of conscience...O why? Stephen, associating sexual arousal with sin, is, according to Catholic doctrine, in error. Concupiscence is the appetite of the fallen state. It is an incentive to sin, not a sin in itself.
60. angel guardian: Catholic belief assigns an angel guardian to every person as a defence against evil and a help towards salvation.

61. heroic offering: 'heroic' in this instance means an act by which the agent offers to God all the satisfactory works which he performs in his lifetime for the sake of another or others -- in this case for the sake of the Pope.
62. interleaved prayerbook: a prayerbook containing devotional and in memoriam cards; a serious sign of piety.
63. ...mysteries: Stephen says three chaplets to strengthen his hold on the three theological virtues -- Faith, Hope and Charity -- each identified with one of the Three Persons in God and each assigned to one of three sets of mysteries.
64. Whose symbols...fire: the New Testament emblems for the Holy Ghost were the dove and the wind. The six sins against the Holy Ghost are Presumption of God's Mercy, Despair, Resisting Christian Truth, Envy at another's spiritual good, Obstinacy in Sin, Final Impenitence. For the last of these there is no forgiveness.
65. books...saint Alphonsus Liguori: St Alphonsus (1696-1787) wrote Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament, and Preparation for Death.
66. saint Thomas and saint Bonaventure: St Bonaventure, a Franciscan, and St Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican, were friends at the University of Paris.
67. Lord Macaulay: Thomas Babington Macaulay, English historian, essayist, politician.
68. Victor Hugo: dominant figure in French Romanticism.
69. Simon Magus...no forgiveness: Simon Magus offered money in exchange for spiritual power -- hence the sin of simony. The sin against the Holy Ghost was Final Impenitence, involving a refusal to acknowledge even the existence of a spiritual force for good.
70. "To prepare for death, treat all creatures kindly while on earth." --St Alphonsus, "Preparation for Death,"
71. "Try to live life according to your current circumstances." --St Alphonsus, "Preparation for Death"
72. To be continued.



Wednesday, June 26, 2024


The Faerie Queene, Edmund Spenser:
Introduction
1. Edmund Spenser was born in London, probably in 1552. "...Spenser met, or reacquainted himself with his neighbor, Sir Walter Ralegh, who in 1589 brought him to London to present three books of The Faerie Queene to its deidcatee, Queen Elizabeth, who rewarded him with pensions of fifty pounds a year."
Canto I
1. What are the uses of Hollandaise sauce?
2. The first character who we meet is a gentle knight.
3 "On his brest a bloudie Crosse he bore...
But of his cheere did seeme too solemne sad,
Yet nothing did he dread, but euer ydrad.
2. There is also the Dwarfe. The dwarf is probably a warrior who has a helmet and an axe, and is skilled in battle.
3. There is also the Elfe. The elf is probably also a warrior who has a bow and arrow, and is skilled in battle.
4. Contains a passage which describe different species of trees.
5. Refers to some substances as "poisonous drugs."
6. These characters are about to embark on a journey.
7. They encounter an evil lady who spewed, and her vomit was full of books and papers.
8. The evil woman sends forth an army of deformed monsters to attack the heroes.
9. The "soueraigne Queene," is also a character in the book. She leads the heroes.
10. To be continued.
11. "As when old father Nilus gins to swell
With timely pride above Aegyptian vale,
His fattie waues do fertile slime outwell,
And ouerflow each plaine and lowly dale:"
12. M. - "There in each other's arms, they found pleasure in making love." --The Odyssey, Homer
13. M. - "Come, my beloved, let us go to bed and find pleasure in love." --The Odyssey, Homer
14. To be continued.
15. An aged Sire joins the heroes.
16. The heroes are going to begin a new adventure.
17. Near the stream, the atmosphere was silent, no noise. In the area there was eternal silence.
18. One of the sprites had a lumpish head.
19. "Sometimes we endure tests to prove our sense."
20. To be continued.



Tuesday, June 25, 2024


A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, James Joyce
1. "Rhythm is a characteristic of being soulful."
2. How to Read a Book is a book where Mortimer Adler recommends "systemic skimming," or reading the first line of every paragraph, when a reader does not want to read the entire book.
3. "Yes, his mother was hostile to the idea, as he had read from her listless silence."
4. "He set to chewing the crusts of fried bread that were scattered near him."
5. "...to distinguish between moral beauty and material beauty."
6. "Some people can talk in a deep bass note."
7. "...it was a great day for European culture, he said."
8. "...that seems to be a maze out of which we cannot escape. I see however, two ways out."
9. Distinguishes pure science from applied science.
10. To be continued.

11. "He's taking pure mathematics and I'm taking constitutional history. There are twenty subjects."
12. "I'm taking botany too. You know I'm a member of the field club."
13. "Aquinas says pulcritudinem tria reuiruntur, integritas, consonantia, claritas. I translate itso: Three things are needed for beauty, wholeness, harmony and radiance."
14. "The anonymous artist is a strong figure."
15. Discusses midwifery.
16. "He lay still, as if his soul lay amid cool waters, conscious of faint sweet music."
17. "A spirit filled him, pure as the purest water, sweet as dew, moving as music."
18. Possessed an Irish phrasebook.
19. "And yet he felt that, however he might revile and mock her image, his anger was also a form of homage."
20. She represented the womanhood of her country.
21. To be continued.
22. M. - Ham cold cuts dipped in Italian dressing tastes great!
23. M. - Find out what different cold cuts taste good with different dressings -- chicken breast and French dressing for example.
23. M. - "Let my words disappear in the wind, like rain disappearing after a storm."



Monday, June 24, 2024


Misc. Notes
1. “I want to see everyone’s hands at all times,” said a security guard in a Charles Dickens novel.
2. “Apologize to me! I want you to apologize.”
3. Campbell's Chunky Beef with Country Vegetables is a great soup/stew! It contains big chunks of beef, carrots, and potatoes. It also tastes good when you add a little bit of salt.
" " Food Ideas
4. Running regularly has many benefits, including increasing your self-defense skills.
" " Favorite Notes III, 21.
5. Mycophagist - a person who eats mushrooms. —Collins Dictionary
6. War of the Worlds hysteria - Orson Welles's 1938 radio drama The War of the Worlds caused some confusion and panic in the United States, but some say the stories of mass hysteria were exaggerated. The broadcast's realistic documentary style and naturalistic dialogue led some listeners to mistake it for real news, especially those who tuned in late and missed the introduction that provided context.



Sunday, June 23, 2024


A Portrait of the Artist as A Young Man, James Joyce
1. Stephen grew up, aged a few years.
2. "Mr Dedalus went over to the sideboard. He brought forth a great stone jar of whisky from the locker and filled the decanter slowly, bending now and then to see how much he had poured in, Then replacing the jar in the locker he poured a little of the whisky into two glasses, added a little water and came back with them to the fireplace."
2. Stephen's companion's name is Mercedes.
3. "One of the jobs of the priest was to prevent people from sinning." Emphasizes the importance of being pious.
4. Stephen observed a spirit of quarrelsome comradeship in his rival.
5. The road smelled like horse pee and rotted straw, he thought. "But it is a good odor to breathe. It will calm my heart. My heart is quite calm now. I will go back."
6. To be continued.
7. M. - "Many of the people of Africa speak quietly and slowly."
8. To be continued.
9. M. - Our emotions can sometimes control us more than our sense of reason.
" " Research in Psychiatry and Law.





Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
Mr Prokharchin
1. The family paid rent not only for lodging, but also for peace and calm.
2. Mr Prokharchin could never have hoped to make a particularly advantageous appearance on anyone, and yet his appearance did not count against him.
3. "He rarely drank tea, but when the need a rose imbibed a rather pleasant infusion of wild flowers and certain medicinal grasses, of which he always kept a plentiful supply."
4. "If you feel comfortable picking wild flowers outside and making them into a tea, then do that -- our tastes vary."
5. He "made do with a few slices of white bread garnished with onion, cottage cheese, pickled cucumber or other condiments, which was far less expensive, and only returned to his half dinner when he could stand such fare no longer."
6. "White bread garnished with onion, cottage cheese, pickled cucumber or other condiments, was a snack that he enjoyed eating."
" " Food Ideas
7. "Coffee with a maraschino cherry tastes good."
To be continued.
8. "The Lady with the Dog,' by Anton Chekhov, is a short story about a woman with a pomeranian dog.
9. ...a state of affairs that will become more clearly evident in what follows. We shall, however, take care not to bore the reader with a description of all Ivanovich's caprices...
10. Then one of them would rather wittingly begin, as though it were the most natural thing in the world, to relate various items of news, which nearly always contained fictitious and entirely improbable material.

11. "...and more suitable for promotion as they were quiet and had their aptitudes considerably enhanced by marriage, and for this reason he...
12. Semyon Ivanovich was entirely impervious to any idea unfamiliar to his intelligence and that having, for example, received some piece of news he was invariably compelled to chew it over and digest it, search for its meaning, in order at last, after a process of trial and error, to master it, in a thoroughly perculiar way that was quite special to himself.
13. "...neither Semyon Ivanovich nor Ustinya Fyodorovna could even remember exactly when fate had brought them together. 'Oh, it'll be ten years by now, no, fifteen, no, twenty-five."
14. Okeanov's nose grew red and swollen from their games of 'noses' and 'three leaves'.
15. "Opening the envelope in the staircase, he took a quick look around him, hurriedly counted off half of his rightful wages and hid the money in his boot.
16. "'Money!' Andrey Yefimovich said to him, with a shake of his head. 'If there's no money, there's no bacon,' he added grimly, going downstairs.
17. omitted
18. "And indeed there was a muzhik of some kind dressed in a torn, unbelted cloth coat, who began to incite the whole vast crowd against Semyon Ivanovich."
19. Sometimes, when Ivanovich spoke, "the further he got, the more each word seemed to give rise to another word, which at once gave rise to a third, a third to a fourth and so on, so that his mouth was full, and the words came out in the most picturesque order."
20. There had been a fire which was caused by a scatter-brained girl living there.

21. When Mr. Zimoveykin quietly entered, "it was as if they all had been waiting for him, everyone began to signal to him to come in as quickly as he could."
22. "But they pay you an annual salary! You're a Thomas, a doubting Thomas, you man of little faith!"
23. Here Zimoveykin actually did bow down to the ground in a sweeping movement that included everyone, performing the action with a kind of pedantic dignity.
25. To be continued.


The Landlady
1. A woman with a silvery voice begins to sing a song.
2. "Ordynov could make out the words. But he paid no attention to them, listening to the sounds alone."
3. Ordynov met Katerina. "All the ardor, the entire conflagration that had raged within him seemed to die away in a single instant.
4. "He was satisfied...and he wore slippers on his feet."
5. "The old man flinched from his gaze. With a kind of animal instinct he sensed near him the presence of a deadly enemy."
6. "Ordynov attempted to get up, but his legs seemed paralysed by an unseen force."
7. "'Your wine is strong, my little dove, but you are only moistening your lips!' said the old man.
'Yes, I shall only take a mouthful, but you must drain your cup to the bottom. Drink, old man."
8. "After all, you can't live an entire life in the space of one minute."
9. "Don't be too hard on people. One person is one way, and another person is another way."
10. Katerina asks the old man to tell her her future.

11. Reminds us that falcons often live in forests.
12. "He went on pouring wine for himself and gulping down mouthfuls of it, not knowing what to do in order to quell his increasing excitement."
13. She says, "Let me tell your fortune -- I will tell you the whole truth. I am indeed a sorcerer; you are not mistaken Katerina!"
14. "You ask me if you will know sadness and sorrow? Heavy is human sadness. But calamity does not strike feeble hearts. It is strong hearts that grow acquainted with calamity...your suffering, will be like a footprint in the sand -- the rain will wash it, the sun will dry it, the stormy wind will blow it and sweep it away."
15. "'Ha! Live and let live,' he cried."
16. "...The merchant's goods have grown rotten from lying around too long, he's giving them away for nothing."
17. "'You've read an awful lot of books, sir; I'd say you'd gotten to be awful clever; or, as we muzhiks say in Russian: your mind's gone ahead of your reason..."
18. Reminds us that certain natural laws apply to every man.
20. "It seemed to him that Katerina was of perfectly sound mind."
21. Praises German honesty and punctuality.
22. "But his hand, with the cup in it, seemed to grow paralysed and stopped moving..."
22. "Ordynov began to feel faint...Katerina watched him motionlessly, seeming to breathe no longer...Katerina screamed, as though she had woken from oblivion, from a nightmare, from some terrible, fixed hallucination.
24. The end.
25. Notes
26. Devushkin: the name is derived from the Russian word devushka, 'a girl'.
27. Many of the stories presented involve psychology and philosophy.
28. A Romany wine: Romaneya, a sweet wine.
29. izbas: huts, small wooden dwellings.
30. In one short story, James Joyce describes a drink which contains only a few drops of alcohol.
31. Slippers, or slipper-socks, can be useful.



Saturday, June 22, 2024


A Portrait of the Artist as A Young Man, James Joyce
1. Tells a humorous story about a moocow coming down the road. And the moocow came down the road where Betty Byrne lived: she sold lemon platt (lemon candy).
2. His father told him that story: his father looked at him through a glass: he had a hairy face.
3. When Stephen was younger, he hid under the table.
4. Pull out his eyes...apologise - derived from Song XXIII of Isaac Watts' Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language for the Use of Children.
5. The wide playgrounds were swarming with boys. The evening air was pale and chilly and after every charge and thud of the footballers the greasy leather orb flew like a heavy bird through the grey light.
6. If you have a dog in a blanket, then you have a dog-in-a-blanket. If you have a dog in a bag, then you have a doggie-bag.
7. Nasty Roche asks his name, he replies, --Stephen Dedalus.
"Then Nasty Roche had said: --What kind of name is that?"
And Stephen had not been able to answer, so Nasty Roche asked a different question.
8. Cantwell says: --Go and fight your match. Give Cecil Thunder a belt. I'd like to see you.
9. Then at the door of the castle the rector, his soutane fluttering in the breeze, the car had driven off with his father and mother in it.
10. Dante knew a lot of things. She taught him where the Mozambique Channel was and what was the longest river in America and what was the name of the highest mountain in the moon.

11. And the air in the corridor chilled him too. It was queer and wettish. But soon the gas would be lit and in burning it made a light noise like a little song.
12. "He enjoys drinking hot tea, and he enjoys drinking hot cocoa."
Many people from different world cultures enjoy drinking tea year round.
13. Stephen Dedalus - the name conjoins the first Christian martyr, St Stephen, stoned to death outside Jerusalem in 34 AD, and the great pagan artificer-artist hero, Daedalus.
14. After being impressed by a silk badge, "he tried his best so that York might not lose."
15. kiss your mother - probably a reference to St Aloysius Gonzaga, a famous Jesuit who is reported to have avoided even looking at his mother. This version of the Oedipal complex understandably worries Stephen. Kissing his mother or being kissed by her is an anxiety that recurs throughout the novel.
16. Dingdong!...carry my soul away - anonymous nursery rhyme.
17. He heard the noise of the refrectory every time he opened the flaps of his ear. It made a roar. When he closed his ears, the sound abruptly went off. He closed his eyes and the train went on, roaring and then stopping, roaring again, stopping.
18. And how cold and slimy the water had been! And a fellow had once seen a big rat jump plop into the scum.
19. Recommends that you stay in school.
20. He was writing. "He read the verse backwards but then they were not poetry."

21. He could only think of God. God was God's name just as his name was Stephen.
22. Dieu was the French for God and that was God's name too; and when anyone prayed to God and said Dieu then God knew at once that it was a French person praying. This applied to people praying in all the different languages of the world, too.
23. It pained him that he did not know what politics meant and that he did not know where the universe ended.





Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. "Life is good; do you enjoy life?"
2. One of the characters was fond of reading religious books.
3. "...it was as though he had been stabbed in the heart with a knife. He gave a faint cry and lost consciousness...then, in a moment of intense and desperate struggle, he felt himself losing consciousness again, as again the impenetrable, bottomless gloom opened up before him and he fell into it with a howl of anguish and despair."
4. ...and occasionally looking in bewilderment at him, her strange lodger, whom she believed to have gone insane from sitting so long over his books...He fell into confusion, into alarm, and he had a fantastic dream sequence.
5. He saw Katerina flutter and tremble all over, saw the old man's eyes begin to glitter under his heavily knit eyebrows as a sudden fury distorted his features.
7. This character was slowly going insane.
6. “It is important to bathe, and wear clean clothes, and not neglect this area of your health.”
7. Questions whether one of the characters is in full possession of his mental faculties.
8. "He could hear two sets of breathing: one was heavy, painful and intermittent, the other quiet but uneven, and also somehow filled with emotion."
9. "He greedily inhaled the air which had been rendered warm and electric by her close breathing."
10. We are different in our childhood from when we're adults.

11. “Mother recovered, and asked me to get her shroud ready for her.”
12. "After being frustrated, he became temporarily mad, temporarily insane."
" " Research in Psychiatry and Law.
13. "Lanterns, candles, and old fashioned lamps have historically been used at night."
14. Visit this blog on Facebook: "Toren Spencer-Gray."
" " Favorite Notes.



Friday, June 21, 2024


The Cossacks and Other Stories, Leo Tolstoy
1. Sevastopol in August 1855
2. One of the soldiers calls his big scar a little scratch.
3. One of the soldiers was known for having killed many men.
4. One of the soldiers lived life impulsively, as opposed to in a predetermined way.
5. One of the soldiers had a nervous stutter.
6. "War isn't a vacation."
7. "We've been in the army for 6 months, going on 20 years."
8. One of the soldiers was missing an arm, which he had lost in a previous war.
9. While most of the men were drafted into the army, one of the soldiers volunteered for duty.
10. The soldier had been transformed from a skinny, inexperienced kid, to a built up, trained soldier.

11. "Straight to Sevastopol, that hell on earth -- how dreadful!"
12. "What sort of stakes were you playing for, anyway?"
13. "If the female soldiers are that tough, then the male soldiers must be ten times tougher."
14. One of the officers was laid back, and down to earth.
15. In a barracks filled with veteran soldiers, a fresh-faced recruit walks in.
16. Some of the soldiers were crippled as a result of the war.
17. Literally every second the air was shaken by artillery discharges and explosions that followed one another in rapid succession.
18. What he was experiencing was new to him; much of it didn’t make sense.
19. Updated: Favorite Notes 2, with some structural edits.
20. You don't have to reduce sentences down to word meaning and sentence structure in order for someone to understand you, just talk. --Aristotle



Thursday, June 20, 2024


The Aeneid, Virgil
1. In a fight:
by Diomedes splattered with their blood, lashing
back to the Greek camp.
2. As a thousand mountain-spirits crowd around it...
thrills with joy too deep for words.
3. We escaped and floated toward your coast.
What kind of men are these? What land is this,
that you can tolerate such barbaric ways?
We are denied the sailor's right to shore--
4. If you have no use for humankind and mortal armor,
at least respect the gods. They know right from wrong.
5. Cast fear to the winds Trojans, free your minds.
6. We are not so dull of mind, we Carthaginians here.
7. But may the gods,
if there are Powers who still respect the good and the true,
if justice still exists on the face of the earth,
may they and their own sense of right and wrong
bring you your just rewards.
8. What destiny hunts you down through such ordeals?
What violence lands you on this rightful coast?
9. "Reminds us that wars should be fought over tangible goods, such as treasure, or land."
10. So come, young soldiers, welcome to our palace.

11. But now Venus is mulling over some new schemes,
new intrigues.
12. They were trying to drive the queen mad, trying to drive the queen to madness.
13. Servants pour them water to rinse their hands,
quickly serving them bread from baskets.
14. A hundred other townsfolk and a hundred men, all matched in age,
are sreading the feast on trestles, setting out the cups.
15. The Final Hours of Troy
16. The Trojan Horse:
helped by Minerva's superhuman skill,
they built that mammoth horse, immense as a mountain,
lining its ribs with ship timbers hewn from pine.
They pick by lot the best, most able-bodied men
and stealthily lock them into the horse's dark flanks
till the vast hold of he monster's womb is packed
with soldiers bristling weapons.
17. Some gaze wonderstruck at the gift for Pallas,
never wed -- transfixed by the horse.
'Drag it inside the walls,' he urges, 'plant it high
on the city heights.'
18. Capys, suspecting a trap, says,
'Fling it into the sea or torch the thing to ash
or bore into the depths of its womb where men can hide!'
The common people are split into warring factions.
19. A second soldier is also suspicious. He says "either the Greeks are hiding, shut inside those beams, or the horse is a battle-engine geared to breach our walls, overwhelm us."





Divine Comedy: Inferno, Dante
1. The desire to have fun is a powerful desire.
2. He stopped attentive, like a man who listens,
Because the eye could not conduct him far.
3. But none the less his saying gave me fear,
Because I carried out the broken phrase,
Perhaps to a worse meaning than he had.
4. Seldom it cometh to pass that one of us
Maketh the journey upon which I go.
5. This pen...
Encompasses about the city dolent,
Where now we cannot enter without anger.
6. What helpeth it to butt against the fates?
7. Than that of him who in his presence is,
After those holy words all confident.



Wednesday, June 19, 2024


Dubliners, James Joyce
1. A Painful Case
2. The protagonist in this story is named Mr Duffy.
3. Duffy. The name derives from the Irish Dubh: black or dark.
4. He met a young girl, and they talked. "While they talked he tried to fix her permanently in his memory."
5. After he reads news about the girl in the newspaper, he begins to think. In the end, because of his faulty thinking, he is alone.
6. In modern phraseology or slang, the moral of this story is: even though we don't always understand our partner, don't get upset. Just let your girlfriend get you; women have a way about them.
7. Notes
8. saturnine. Medieval medicine attributed psychological states to the influence of the body, and the influence of the planets.
9. Mozart's music. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Austrian composer whose works were acclaimed in late Victorian times for their genial good spirits.
10. reefer over-coat. A tight-fitting jacket of thick cloth.
11. Ivy Day in the Committee Room
12. The protagonist in this story is named Mr O'Connor.
13. Mr O'Connor rolls tobacco into cigarettes meditatively.
14. Omitted.
15. What's the world coming to when people behave that way?
16. Won't he? said Mr Hynes. Wait till you see whether he will or not. I know him. Is it Tricky Dicky Tierney.
17. Uses the slang "floosie," to refer to women.
18. Mr Henchy began to snuffle and to rub his hands over the fire at a terrific speed.
19. It's no go, said Mr Henchy, shaking his head. I asked the little shoeboy, and he agreed.
20. --What did I tell you, Mat? said Mr Hynes. Tricky Dicky Tierney.
--O, he's as tricky as they make 'em.

21. You can play with anyone's name.
22. Military voice, military mind.
23. Some of these people are a little too clever if you ask me, said Mr Henchy.
24. Sure, that'll be alright. I'm sure she has forgotten all about it.
25. Yes...but he's not worth anything as a canvasser. He hasn't a word to throw to a dog.
26. People have things to say, people have things to talk about, if you give them time to talk about them.
27. The French have a tradition of looking down and thinking while walking, that is, they look down, walk, and think.
28. Mr Crofton got up from his box and went to the fire.
--Right you are, Crofton! said Mr Henchy.
29. "The Death of Parnell"
He fell as the mighty ones,
No sound of strife disturb his sleep.
Calmly he rests: no human pain
Or high ambition spurs him now.
Rise, like a Phoenix from the flames,
When breaks the dawning of the day.
30. It can be useful to put a towel between the pillowcase and the pillow.

31. The human body is simply a combination of bone and skin. --Homer
32. Notes
33. the thin end of the wedge. In logging the thin end of the wedge opens the wood to prepare for the thicker end which finishes the job. The implication of this proverbial phrase is that, the first step taken, there is no going back.
34. the Irish Revival. The Irish literary and cultural renaissance, a movement which since the 1880s had sought to raise Irish national awareness through cultivation of aspects of Celtic and Gaelic civilization.
35. "Dubliners," contains stories which are based on the lives of real people in Ireland.
36. A Mother
37. The protagonist in this story is named Mr Holohan.
38. He had a game leg and for this his friends called him Hoppy Holohan.
39. Reminds us that a smoked ham is simply a bigger version of thinly sliced ham.
40. To be continued.

41. Notes
42. the real cheese. Slang: the real thing, the authentic experience.
43. Allan Line. A passenger shipping line out of Liverpool in England that served the Pacific coast of North America by way of a voyage which involved sailing round Cape Horn, calling at Beunos Aires en route.
44. Persia. Now Iran. Throughout the nineteenth century the Orient was associated with romance and mystery.
45. High Toast. Brand of snuff, i.e. pulverized tobacco to be snuffed up the nostrils.
46. racing tissues. Cheap publications about horse racing.
47. (name lost). - the Irish name for a drink with only a few drops of alcohol in it.
48. Lanterns, in addition to candles, can also be helpful at night.
49. A Mother
50. Miss Devlin often tried to console herself by eating a great deal of Turkish Deligh in secret.
51. She bought the dress. I cost a pretty penny; but there are certain occasions when a little expense is justifiable.
52. One of these gentlemen was Mr O'Madden Burke. His magniloquent western name was the moral umbrella upon which he balanced the fine problem of his finances. He was widely respected.
53. He had paid his money and wished to be at peace with men. However, he said that Mrs Kearney might have taken the artistes into consideration.
54. "If you're a lady, then act like a lady."
55. To be continued.
56. Grace
57. ...a tall agile gentleman of fair complexion, wearing a long yellow ulster, came from the far end of the bar.
58. Mr Kernan was helped into the house. His wife put him to bed while Mr Power sat downstairs in the kitchen asking the children where they went to school and what book they were in.
59. I know you're a friend of his not like some of those others he does be with. They're all right so long as he has money in his pocket to keep him out from his wife and family. Nice friends!
60. The part of mother presented to her no insuperable difficulties and for twenty-five years she had kept house shrewdly for her husband.

61. Mr Cunningham was the very man for such a case. He was an elder colleague of Mr Power. His own domestic life was not very happy. People had great sympathy with him because he had married a woman who was an incurable drunkard.
62. The scheme might do good and, at least, it could do no harm.
63. Tell the truth, I want you to tell me the truth.
64.--It keeps coming like down from my throat; sickening thing.
--Yes, yes, said Mr M'Coy, that's the thorax.
65. Mr Power said:
--Ah, well, all's well that ends well.
66. Mr Power did not relish the use of his Christian name.
67. --You see, we may as well all admit we're a nice collection of scoundrels, one and all.
68. --And tell me, Martin...Is he a good preacher?
--Mmmno...It's not exactly a sermon, you know. It's just a kind of a friendly talk, in a common-sense way.
69. --Pope Leo XIII., said Mr Cunningham, was one of the lights of the age. His great idea, was the union of the Latin and Greek churches.
70. --The old system was the best: plain honest education. None of your modern trumpery.
71. In one of the benches near the pulpit sat Mr Cunningham and Mr Kernan. In the bench behind sat Mr M'Coy alone: and in the bench behind him sat Mr Power and Mr Fogarty.
72. The preacher read a verse from the Bible. It was one of the most difficult texts in all the Scriptures, to interpret properly.
73. Jesus Christ was not a hard taskmaster. He understood our little failings, understood the weakness of our poor fallen nature, understood the temptations of this life. But one thing only, he said, he would ask of his hearers. And that was: to be straight and manly with God.
74. The Dead
75. Miss Kate and Miss Julia were there, gossiping and laughing and fussing, walking after each other to the head of the stairs, peering down over the banisters and calling down to Lily to ask her who had come.
76. Enjoy life while you're young, because before you know it, you'll be old, and about to die.
77. For they are jolly gay fellows,
For they are jolly gay fellows,
For they are jolly gay fellows,
Which nobody can deny.
78. The end.

79. Notes
80. Royal Irish Constabulart in Dublin Castle. The R.I.C. an armed militia-like poliice force that was responsible for the security of the state in the country at large.
81. the holy alls of it. Slang from the Irish: the truth of the matter, all that's to be said about it.
82. good with the mits. - skilled at fighting.
83. Robert Browning. English Victorian poet. Although his passionate wooing of his wife, the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, was a famous love story, his poetry was often reckoned by Victorian and Edwardian readers to be obscure and difficult.
84. references Joyce's poem "She Weeps for Rahoon."
85. snow was general all over Ireland. A very rare occurrence indeed given Ireland's generally temperate climate.
86. The end.



Tuesday, June 18, 2024


Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. It is good to read books written by the gods of literature!
2. I am unwell today. It's so cold in our apartment, and everything is in such terrible chaos. Mr Bykov's aunt is so old that she is barely alive. I'm afraid she may die before we manage to get away.
Sincerely, V.D.
3. Oh, what will become of me? I'm afraid to look into the future.
4. For some reason I keep seeing those accursed furbelows -- oh I can't stand them, those furbelows, furbelows!
5. His Excellency has flown off the handle -- he lost his temper with Yemelyan Ivanovich, and shouted at him, so that the poor fellow was worried nearly to death.
6. Overreliance on doctors, causes us to lose our independence. --Added to "Research in Psychiatry and Law."
8. James Joyce, and many other authors questioned convention.
9. "After all, I’m just a simple, stupid fellow, I just write whatever comes into my head.”
10. The decision to take medication, involves considerable moral conflict.

11. One smile from me was enough to make you happy, one line of my handwriting.
12. The Landlady
13. Ordynov was startled by the solemnity of this scene, and awaited its conclusion with impatience.
14. At last, worn out and incapable of putting two ideas together, he went home to his room.
15. To live one's life properly one must live long.
16. Ordynov got into some trouble. It was very difficult for Ordynov to lose the stigma that was attached to him, and return to normal again.
17. Confounded! I've been ruined!


Dubliners, James Joyce
18. Counterparts
19. A story about a businessman, Mr Alleyne. He was a little old man, with a bald head, which looked like a large egg.
20. Do you take me for a fool? Do you think me an utter fool?

21. You ruffian! You apologise to me for your impertinence! You apologise to me!
22. He felt annoyed at himself and with everyone else.
23. I don't think that's a fair question to put to me, says I.
24. After drinking, they were all beginning to feel mellow.
25. When Paddy Leonard called him he found that they were talking about feats of strength. Weathers was showing his biceps muscle to the company and boasting. The two arms were examined and compared and finally it was agreed to have a trial of strength. The two began arm wrestling.
26. --You're not to put the weight of your body behind it. Play fair, he said.
27. --Light the lamp. What do you mean by having the place in darkness? Are the other children in bed?
28. Clay
29. Maria was a very, very small person indeed but she had a very long nose and a very long chin. She talked a little through her nose, always soothingly.
30. And Ginger Mooney was always saying what she wouldn't do...Everyone was so fond of Maria.

31. Joe was a good fellow. She had raised him and Alphy too, and Joe used to always speak kindly of them.
32. In a few minutes the women began to come in by twos and threes.
Notes:
33. coppers. Slang:penny coins.
34. tracts on the walls. Religious and biblical texts hung on the walls for the moral improvement of the inmates.
35. tincture. Literally a slight trace; euphemism for a drink which is hardly a drink at all and scarcely counts.
36. smahan. Irish: a taste, used similar to 'a tincture.'
37. In Virgil's ten pastoral poems Bucolica the Roman poet characterized rustic life as essentially innocent.
38. six shillings. A considerable sum for a man, with a wife and family to support on a clerk's wages.
39. caraway seed. A particularly pungent seed of a herbal plant of the carrot family. Useful in disguising the smell of alcohol on the breath, so available in the pub.
30. lambabaun. Irish term of affection: lamb-child. Jesus in the Gospel of St John is described by John the Baptist as 'the lamb of God'.

31. very flush. Slang: with lots of spending money.
32. gone to the dogs. Slang. deteriorated markedly, especially in moral and personal matters.
33. Lithia. A mineral water characterized by the presence of mineral salts, especially lithium.
34. Atalantas. In Greek mythology Atalanta would marry no one who could not beat her in a foot-race. In archaic art Atalanta is often shown as a huntress and as an athlete in short tunic.
35. when his hour had struck. When his working day had ended.
36. Silent O Moyle. One of the Irish Melodies by Thomas Moore.
37. strangers. Traditional mode of reference to the English invasion and occupation of Ireland.
38. Bunsen Burner. A gas burner which produces an extremely hot blue flame, often used in chemistry experiments in the classroom.
39. ragged boys...ragged girls...the ragged troop. Possibly a reference to pupils of charitable schools run by Catholic and Protestant agencies for the education of the city's poor.
40. After the Race, is the correct title of the short story.

41. electric candle lamps. Electric bulbs shaped to look like lit candles. In 1903 only the most pretentious of hotels would have boasted such amenities.
42. Candles and lamps (old fashioned,) have historically been used at night.
43. To be continued.
44. We are taught in life, not to accept things that don’t make sense.



Monday, June 17, 2024


Dubliners, James Joyce
Two Gallants
1. The grey warm evening of August had descended upon the city and a mild warm air, a memory of summer, circulated in the streets.
2. Lenehan said no more. He did not wish to ruffle his friend’s temper, to be sent to the devil and told that his advice was not wanted.
3. Refers to Silent O' Moyle, from Songs of Ireland, by Mary O'Hara.
4. Make up your own life, write the script of your own life.
5. The Irish people were overwhelmingly Catholic.
6. See Great Famine (Ireland), or the Irish Potato Famine.
7. In the city, make life up as you go along: sometimes go to a restaurant to sit and eat, sometimes do this, sometimes do that.
8. The end.
9. To be continued.
10. The Boarding House
11. Mrs Mooney was a butcher's daughter. She had married her father's foreman. But as soon as his father-in-law was dead Mr Mooney began to go to the devil. He drank, gambled, and ran into debt.
12. One night he went for his wife with a cleaver. After that they lived apart. She went to the priest and got a separation from him with care of the children.
13. He was a shabby stooped little drunkard with a white face and a white moustache. Mrs. Mooney was a big, imposing woman.
14. Mrs Mooney set up a boarding house. Jack Mooney was her son. When he met his friends he had always a good one to tell them and he was always sure to be on to a good thing.
15. During one ordeal, Mrs Mooney intervened. She dealt with moral problems as a cleaver deals with meat: and in this case she made up her mind.
16. In the end of the story, Mrs Mooney's daughter marries her boyfriend.
17. The Little Cloud
18. The protagonist in this story's name is Gallaher.
19. There was no doubt about it: if you wanted to succeed you had to go away. You could do nothing in Dublin.
20. It was a pity his name was not more Irish-looking. Thomas Malone Chandler, or T. Malone Chandler perhaps would be better.

21. --Does a fellow good, a bit of a holiday. I feel a ton better since I landed again in dear dirty Dublin. Here you are, Tommy. Water? Say when.
Little Chandler allowed his whisky to be very much diluted.
22. --I drink very little as a rule, said Little Chandler modestly.
--Ah, well, said Ignatius Gallaher, cheerfully, here's to us and to old times and old acquaintance.
They clinked glasses and drank the toast.
23. --I met some of the old gang today: O'Hara, Hogan.
24. After some discussion, "The old personal charm was still there under this new gaudy manner. And, after all, Gallaher had lived, he had seen the world. Little Chandler looked at his friend enviously."
25. --Everything in Paris is gay. They believe in enjoying life. And mind you, they've a great feeling for the Irish there.
26. --Ignatius Gallaher puffed thoughtfully at his cigar and then, in a calm historian's tone, he proceeded to sketch some pictures of the corruption which was rife abroad. He summarised the vices of many capitals...He revealed many of the secrets of religious houses on the Continent...
27. --Well Tommy, he said, I wish you and yours every joy in life, and may you never die till I shoot you. And that's the wish of a sincere friend.
28. Gallaher gave Little Chandler a chance to talk. Little Chandler impresses Gallaher.
29. A volume of Byron's poems lay before him on the table. He began to read the first poem in the book.
30. The child awoke and began to cry. It was useless. He couldn't read. The child was crying too loudly.
31. The end.
32. Dubliners, by James Joyce (a collection of short stories): to be continued.


Poor Folk, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. It was a good life we had, and that way we lived for twenty years.
2. I became terribly sad when I saw that you were displeased with me.
3. After each visit Father would become so ill-pleased and angry; I can remember that he used to pace the floor hour after hour, frowning, and never exchanging a word with anyone.
4. “I would arrive home cheerful and joyful, and would hug all the members of our household fiercely, as though I had been away for ten years.”
5. Omitted.
6. It was common to educate children at home during those days.
7. In several works of Russian literature, there are characters who write notes in the margins of their books.
8. During the education of the protagonist, “we talked about everything that came into our heads, that begged to be given expression.”
9. Of old man Pokrovsky, writes, “he laughed, and made jokes in his own peculiar way.”
10. Emphasizes the importance of behaving well.

11. When some things are all over, things gradually return to how they were before.
12. "I was full of hope and apprehension -- both at the same time."
13. "Learn how to smoke tobacco from a pipe."
14. Makar Alekseyevich, you take everything too much to heart; because of that, you will always be an unhappy man.
15. You are still living exclusively through me: my joys, my griefs, my emotions!
16. “You’d ruin the brush, master, and it's government property.”
17. Do what makes you happy.
18. I expect you to act that way, you don’t know what I have to endure because of you.
19. It’s just one thing after another, I no longer know what to do!
20. Right by the edge of the water the fisherman would have a faggot burning, and its light would flow far away, out over the water.

21. The fire would be crackling in the stove, and our black dog Polkan, chilled to the marrow from being out all night, would look in at the window with a friendly wag of his tail.
22. As adults, we don’t cry as we did when we were kids.
23. In the city, they were all poor, and one of the people pushed him.
24. "You have this dark, dirty city, a ghetto, and then you have this innocent little girl walking around in it.”
25. To be continued.
26. Such shops, such rich department stores. You might think that all this had simply been displayed here for show -- but that's not the case -- I mean, there are people who actually buy these things!
27. He doesn't want to beg, so he toils in order to give people entertainment.
28. To be continued.
29. Sometimes, one trudges onwards with a shrug of one's shoulders as quiet as a mouse...
30. I'm an old man who has a great deal of wisdom, listen to my words.

31. Oh, poverty! How is it, old chap, that you're in such a plight, yet you're renting a room that costs five silver rubles a month?
32. He's litigating with some merchant or other who swindled the state authorities over the matter of a contract.
33. I feel really sorry for Gorshkov, and I know what he's going through.
34. Christ be with you. I have only to remember you, and it is like having medicine applied to my sick soul.
35. Sometimes it's good to elevate your legs.
36. Thank you, Mother. I have kissed all your letters today.
37. It's so sad to think that one really can have no knowledge of the day or the hour.
38. Christian soldiers would endure many hardships, rather than renounce their religion.



Sunday, June 16, 2024


The Aeneid, Virgil
Introduction, by Bernard Knox, continued.
1. Briefly discusses the mythological twins Romulus and Remus.
2. Briefly discusses the mythological king Alba of Longa.
3. The battle of Actium is shown to the Roman reader as the victory of Italy and the West over the barbarous tribes of the East.
4. In the Aeneid Virgil combines mythological epic with themes from Roman history.
5. But the catalog of the Etruscans was another opportunity to do what he does so well -- to recall in his lines the glories of the Italian countryside, its towns and its history.
6. As copies appeared and multiplied, the Aeneid became the textbook for the Roman school and the medieval school after that. In fact, the whole of post-Virgilian Latin literature, is saturated with Virgilian quotations, adaptations, and allusions, as much as English literature for the last three hundred years has been with Shakespeare.
7. Dante admired Virgil, and depicted him in the Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy).
8. ...was destined to echo down the ages until its appearance in a remarkable twentieth-century context in the Italy of Mussolini, who was trying to restore the warlike image of Roman Italy and make the Mediterranean once more mare nostrum, "our sea."
9. "...moguls in Washington figured that since I had studies Latin at Cambridge I would have no trouble picking up Italian."
10. Omitted.

11. Book One - Safe Haven After Storm
12. "The more blows you take, the more of an underdog you are."
13. "Sometimes, the victors in fights, did not come up 'brawling to break free.'"
14. "They bluster in protest, roaring round their prison bars with a mountain above them all, booming with their rage."
15. In one battle, they were all hardened men.
16. "Bear up.
Save your strength for better times to come. Brave words."
17. He had mounting worries elsewhere.
18. "We are abandoned, thanks to the rage
of a single foe, cut off from Italy's shores."
19. Had been trying to relive past times which had been good.
20. Indicates that Aeneas "will wage a long, costly war in Italy."

21. Suggests that the villains have very little friends.
22. Here enters a young girl, with curls streaming free in the wind, and flowing skirts.
23. "Your face, your features--hardly a mortal's looks
and the tone of your voice is hardly human either.
Oh a goddess, without a doubt!"
24. "But her brother held power in Tyre--Pygmalion,
a monster, the vilest man alive.
A murderous feud broke out between both men."
25. "...where her temples stand and a hundred altars steam
with Arabian incense, redolent with the scent
of fresh-cut wreaths."
26. Aeneas “feeds his spirit on empty, lifeless pictures."



Saturday, June 15, 2024


The Aeneid, Virgil
Introduction, by Bernard Knox
1. "When Publius Vergilius Maro -- Virgil in common usage -- was born in 70 b.c., the Roman Republic was in its last days."
2. Virgil's poetry reflects much of the history of the period, which included: Greek wars, the conquests of Julius Caesar, and Roman war in Africa and Egypt.
3. "Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide in Alexandria rather than walk to execution in Rome in Octavian's triumph, and Egypt became a Roman province."
4. "In his comparatively short life Virgil became the supreme Roman poet; his work overshadowed that of his successors, and his epic poem, the Aeneid, gave Homeric luster to the story of Rome's origins and its achievement -- the creation of an empire that gave peace and rule of law to all the territory surrounding the Mediterranean, to what are now Switzerland, France, and Belgium, and later to England."
5. "Virgil was an Italian long before he became a Roman, and in the second book of the Georgics he follows a passage celebrating the riches of the East with a hymn of praise for the even greater riches of Italy. In the passage, he indicates that none could rival Italy, because the land is full...And rivers gliding under ancient walls...The same has bred a vigorous race of men..."
6. "And in the Aeneid, Virgil's poem about the origins of Rome, there is a constant and vibrant undertone of sympathy for and identification with the Italians."
7. "Biographical information about Virgil is scant and much of it unreliable, but we learn from Suetonius' "Life" of the poet, that Virgil 'was tall...with a dark complexion and a rustic appearance' and that 'he spoke very slowly and almost like an uneducated man.' Yet when he read his own poems, his delivery of them was 'sweet and wonderfully effective.'"
8. "Like most Roman poems, the Ecologues (a word that means something like "Selections") have a Greek model, describing themes such as: the singing contests, love affairs, and rivalries of shepherds and hersmen who relieved the boredom of their lonely rural life by competing in song and pursuing their love affairs and rivalries far from the city and the farmlands, in the hills with their sheeps, goats, and cattle."
9. "Not all of Theocritus' poems feature shepherds; one of them, for example, is a delightful dramatic sketch of two light-headed, gossipy housewives on their way to the festival of Adonis in Alexandria, and another is a hymn of praise to Ptolemy II, the ruler of Alexandria and Egypt." This evident in the art of the Italian Renaissance and in Elizabethan England.

11. The Georgics
12. Of Virgil's four books the first is on field crops, the second on trees, the third on herds, and the fourth on bees.
13. The only source of sweetness to the ancient Western world was honey -- hence the importance of bee-keeping.
14. Virgil's poem, with its devotion to the land, the crops, and the herds, fits admirably into the old Roman ideal: the Roman farmer is equally adapted to work on the land and to do the work of a soldier in the legion in time of war. The model was the legendary figure Cincinnatus...
15. Book 2 is concerned with trees and vines, principally with the olive and the wine grape. There is much good advice here for the farmer, and also for its praise of the happy life of the farmer as compared to that of the city dweller.
16. Book 3 is concerned with the breeding and raising of farm animals: horses and cattle in the first part and sheep and goats in the later section.

17. The Aeneid
18. The word pius does indeed refer, like its English derivative, to devotion and duty to the Divine. But the words pius and pietas have in Latin a wider meaning. Perhaps the best English equivalent is something like "dutiful," "mindful of one's duty" -- not only to the gods but also to one;s family and to one's country. Aeneas' devotion to his family was famous. He carries his father, Anchises, on his shoulders out of the burning city of Troy.
19. But pietas is not a virtue confined to Aeneas; it is also an ideal for all Romans...the Romans had a profound sense of national unity, and the talents and virtues necessary for a race of conquerors and organizers, of empire-builders and rulers. One of the virtues besides pietas that they admired was gravitas, a profound seriousness in matters political and religious. They admired discipline, the mark of their legionary soldiers who conquered and held for centuries an empire that included almost the whole of Western Europe and much of the Middle East.
20. The Aeneid is to be Rome's Iliad and Odyssey, and it derives also from Homer its picture of two different worlds, each with its own passions and actions. In the Aeneid the heavens are the home of Jupiter the supreme god...They preside over the world of the heroes -- Aenas, Turnus, Evander, Pallas, and Camilla down below. As in Homer, the passions and actions of the gods affect the passions and actions of the heroes on earth.
21. "...Juno never forgot this insult; it is mentioned at the beginning of Virgil's poem, "the judgement of Paris, the unjust slight to her beauty." And this is one of the reasons why she curses the Roman people.
22. History
23. Whereas the Homeric epics have no historical background to speak of, the Aeneid is always conscious of history, Roman history, many centuries of it.
24. In this paradise Aeneas finally meets the ghost of his father, who explains to him the workings of this spiritual world and in particular the nature of the spirits who roam about. They are the souls of those, who are destined to return to the world after drinking the water of the Lethe and forgetting their previous existence.
25. Omitted.
26. To be continued.


The Odyssey, Homer
1. Eurycleia Recognizes Odysseus
2. “So noble Odysseus was left in the hall plotting the destruction of the Suitor’s with Athens’s aid."
3. "'My lady,’ answered the resourceful Odysseus, ‘there is not a man in the wide world who could find fault with you.’”
4. Suggests that some people can find fault with anyone, no matter how good, or normal they are.
5. Prelude to the Crisis
6. “As he lay there wide awake brewing trouble for his rivals, a group of people came out of the house.”
7. "But though Odysseus' heart was wrung by his wife's distress, his eyes, as if made of horn or iron, remained steady between their lids."
8. It is important to have a sense of right and wrong.


Various Notes
1. Updated: Favorite Notes & Favorite Notes 2.
2. Item 4 (above), added to "Research in Psychiatry and Law."
3. Updated: Food Ideas.
4. Updated: Favorite Notes 2, 4:30pm.



Thursday, June 13, 2024


The Odyssey, Homer
1. Odysseus Goes to the Town
2. Odysseus puts on a pair of "elegant sandals," and prepares for a journey.
3. "...I have too many troubles on my mind. And if he is annoyed by this, so much the worse for him. I believe in plain speaking."
4. Emphasizes the importance of bathing and wearing clean clothes.
5. Indicates that bathing is a ritual for some people.
6. "But as to your appeal and the questions you asked me -- I have no wish to deceive you or put you off with evasive answers. On the contrary I shall pass on to you without concealment or reserve every word that I heard myself from the infallible lips of the Old Man of the Sea."
7. "This accomplished I left him. The immortal gods sent me a favourable wind and brought me quickly back to my beloved Ithaca."
8. "Sir, may what you say prove true! If it does, you will soon receive from me such friendship and generosity that anyone who meets you will call you a fortunate man."
9. "So now let us be on our way. The best part of the day is gone and you may well find it chilly towards evening."
10. "He'd much rather fill his belly by grovelling and begging round the town. You mark my words, and time will prove me right. If he goes to noble Odysseus' palace..."

11. "Close on his heels Odysseus entered the buildings. He looked like some wretched old beggar leaning on a stick, his body covered with filthy rags."
12. "He who was dressed like a beggar spoke like a beggar, while he who was dressed like a gentleman spoke like a gentleman."
13. "For plenty of these Achaeans harbour evil thoughts. May Zeus destroy them before they destroy us!"
14. To be continued.
15. The Beggar in the Palace
16. "There now appeared a common vagrant who used to beg in the town of Ithaca...He was a big fellow, yet in spite of appearances he had no stamina or muscle."
17. "'Friends,' he said, 'there's no way in which an old fellow taken on by hardships can take on a younger man...So now I ask you all to take an oath. No one must side with Irus: I don't want to lose him through an unfair blow from one of you.'"
18. "At this they all took the oath he asked of them, and when they had sworn the full oath, the great Telemachus put in his word: 'Stranger, if you have the heart and pluck to match yourself against this man, you need not be afraid of any of these gentlemen.'"
19. "I'll tell you this, and it will happen. If this fellow beats you and shows himself the better man, I'll throw you into a ship and send you over to the mainland to King Echetus the Destroyer..."
20. "The patient, good Odysseus considered carefull whether he should fell him with a mortal blow or knock him to the ground with a gentler punch. In the end he decided on the lighter blow, so that the Achaeans would not suspect him."
21. "Your health, my ancient friend! You are having a hard time now; but here's to your future happiness!"
22. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. A History of the Yoruba People by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye, is a paper begun Monday, December 18, 2023, that was also added to Book Reviews I.
2. The Iliad and The Odyssey, both contain passages about a character who was of noble and wealthy birth, who became "transformed" by wearing rags and such, into a poor person or beggar.



Wednesday, June 12, 2024


The Cossacks and other Stories, Leo Tolstoy
1. "'Come on soldier, let's hear that war voice!' the officer shouted."
2. Reminds us that there is a reason why soldiers use their war voices in war.
3. When the soldier was in the trenches, he was in darkness, he felt constricted, and felt a cold chill run up his spine.
4. Called his battle scar a “first-class decoration.”
5. In the firefight, one of the soldiers says “Thank God I’m only contused,” then looks to his right, and sees his friend who had been killed by a wound to the chest.
6. Indicates that authors may be joking when they tell stories of their characters throwing stones at each other. Plato indicates that sometimes, philosophers get drunk.
7. One of the soldiers goes to get his wound treated, then another of the soldiers says “That’s not a wound,” and then shows off his huge battle scar.
8. We meet four veteran soldiers, who had been through a lot.


Various Notes
1. Maybe a person's normal heartbeat is irregular, that is, does not beat to a "normal" rhythm.


Tuesday, June 11, 2024


Daniel Deronda, George Eliot
1. The Spoiled Child, is a chapter in the novel where the narrator indicates that one of the characters is spoiled by wealth and upbringing, by a wealthy family member.
2. Because of dissatisfaction with life in America, one of the characters wants to go to "the colonies" to live.
3. "'I used to think archery was a great bore,' Grandcourt began."
4. "'One may understand jokes without liking them,' he said."


The Symposium, Plato
1. "And why is reproduction the object of love? Because reproduction is the closest mortals can come to being permanently alive and immortal. Perhaps it's immortality they are in love with."
2. Indicates that love is synonymous with friendship.
3. Indicates that love is not only the romantic type, but can also be of knowledge, or cooking, for example.
4. "That's a good idea. But I don't think it's fair to make someone who's drunk compete against speeches made by people when they were sober."



Monday, June 10, 2024


The Brothers Karamazov, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. "I want to see the world, to understand all the knowledge that it contains, not when I'm dead, in some infinite time and space, years after I'm gone, but in my lifetime, while I'm still alive. This knowledge will grant me peace and rest, at last."
2. "You cannot fit the whole of human history and wisdom in three sentences, it takes a book, at least."
3. Cites an instance of God granting a woman a gift as a result of her faith and devotion.
4. Cites an instance where one of the characters caused confusion amongst the people.
5. "How many times can you watch the same thing? Isn't there something more productive to do?"



Sunday, June 9, 2024


The Cossacks and other Stories, Leo Tolstoy
Sevastopol in May - VII
1. "'Where are you going, and on whose orders?' Galtsin thundered at him."
2. Galtsin expected the other soldiers to act strictly according to orders.


The Odyssey, Homer
Odysseus Meets His Son
1. "But it is difficult for a man to do anything single-handed against a crowd, however strong he may be. They have an overwhelming advantage."
2. "I wish I were as young as you, or as young as I feel."
3. "...and those villains gorging themselves, just for the sport of the thing, on and on, and not likely to get anywhere."
4. "So father and son discussed the situation, and the good ships that had brought Telemachus and his men from Pylos began to approach the harbor at Ithaca."
5. "As it happened, this messenger and the worthy swineherd, conveying the same news to the lady, met on the way."


The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Dante Alighieri
Canto VIII
1. "As he who listens to some great deceit
That has been done to him, and then resents it,
Such became Phlegyas, in his gathered wrath."
2. "And I: 'Its mosques already, Master clearly
Within there in the valley I discern
Vermilion, as if issuing from the fire.'"
3. "So onward goes and there abandons me
My Father sweet, and I remain in doubt,
For No and Yes within my head contend."


Various Notes
1. "As a result of another person's actions, how do you judge their behavior?" Is a question posed by Plato in The Symposium



Saturday, June 8, 2024

The Symposium, Plato
1. Some of the fictional characters of legend were one of three genders: male, female, and hermaphrodite.
2. "Her ideas of love are centered on the themes of pregnancy, childbirth, and the joint rearing of the children."
3. Briefly discusses instances of competition for love. This could cause bad blood in the community, as well as have negative effects due to the reliance on physical skill, money, and even humiliation and deception. Reminds us that a healthy relationship involves intellectual admiration for one another.
4. "Love involves an understanding of human nature."
5. Hephaestus asked, "What is it, humans, that you want from each other?"
6. "He also holds out to us the greatest hope for the future: that if we show reverence to the gods, he will restore us to our original nature, healing us and so giving us perfect happiness."


Various Notes
1. “No one ever said that life would be easy.” --Nelson Mandela. In his village, he had to collect water from the river every morning.
2. "And this is she who is so crucified
Even by those who ought to give her praise,
Giving her blame amiss, and bad repute."
--The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Dante Alighieri
3. The above quotation suggests that some people know how to play the "blame game," and throw blame to everything and everyone.



Friday, June 7, 2024

Various Notes
1. "Cheap tobacco is trash, it's best to smoke expensive tobacco." --The Cossacks, Leo Tolstoy
2. I made some updates/edits to Favorite Notes, including the addition of the above item.
3. "The man was born at 12:00 midnight on a Friday. When he grew up, he was invincible, survived gunshots and knives, then an ant bit him, and he died." --Inspired by David Copperfield, Charles Dickens



Thursday, June 6, 2024

American Notes for General Circulation, Charles Dickens
1. Even though one of the characters was blind, she enjoyed human contact a great deal. In a safe context, of course.
2. "They were in their school-room when I came upon them, and answered correctly, without book, such questions as where was England; how far was it; what was its population; its capital city; its form of government; and so forth."
3. One other establishment closes the catalogue. It is the House of Correction for the State, in which silence is strictly maintained, but where the prisoners have the comfort and mental relief of seeing each other, and of working together.
4. For this very reason though, our best prisons would seem at the first glance to be better conducted than those of America. The treadmill is conducted with little or no noise; five hundred men may pick oakum in the same room, without a sound; and both kinds of labour admit of such keen and vigilant superintendence, as will render even a word of personal communication amongst the prisoners almost impossible.
5. On the other hand, the noise of the loom, the forge, the carpenter's hammer, or the stonemason's saw, greatly favour those opportunities of intercourse - hurried and brief no doubt, but opportunities still - which these several kinds of work, by rendering it necessary for men to be employed very near to each other, and often side by side, without any barrier or partition between them, in their very nature present. A visitor, too, requires to reason and reflect a little, before the sight of a number of men engaged in ordinary labour, such as he is accustomed to out of doors, will impress him half as strongly as the contemplation of the same persons in the same place and garb would, if they were occupied in some task, marked and degraded everywhere as belonging only to felons in jails.
6. In an American state prison or house of correction, I found it difficult at first to persuade myself that I was really in a jail: a place of ignominious punishment and endurance. And to this hour I very much question whether the humane boast that it is not like one, has its root in the true wisdom or philosophy of the matter.
7. My reason is as well convinced that these gentry were as utterly worthless and debauched villains, as it is that the laws and jails hardened them in their evil courses, or that their wonderful escapes were effected by the prison-turnkeys who, in those admirable days, had always been felons themselves, and were, to the last, their bosom-friends and pot-companions.
8. At the same time I know, as all men do or should, that the subject of Prison Discipline is one of the highest importance to any community; and that in her sweeping reform and bright example to other countries on this head, America has shown great wisdom, great benevolence, and exalted policy. In contrasting her system with that which we have modelled upon it, I merely seek to show that with all its drawbacks, ours has some advantages of its own.
9. The House of Correction which has led to these remarks, is not walled, like other prisons, but is palisaded round about with tall rough stakes, something after the manner of an enclosure for keeping elephants in, as we see it represented in Eastern prints and pictures. The prisoners wear a parti-coloured dress; and those who are sentenced to hard labour, work at nail-making, or stone- cutting.
10. Behind these, back to back with them and facing the opposite wall, are five corresponding rows of cells, accessible by similar means: so that supposing the prisoners locked up in their cells, an officer stationed on the ground, with his back to the wall, has half their number under his eye at once; the remaining half being equally under the observation of another officer on the opposite side; and all in one great apartment. Unless this watch be corrupted or sleeping on his post, it is impossible for a man to escape; for even in the event of his forcing the iron door of his cell without noise (which is exceedingly improbable), the moment he appears outside, and steps into that one of the five galleries on which it is situated, he must be plainly and fully visible to the officer below. Each of these cells holds a small truckle bed, in which one prisoner sleeps; never more. It is small, of course; and the door being not solid, but grated, and without blind or curtain, the prisoner within is at all times exposed to the observation and inspection of any guard who may pass along that tier at any hour or minute of the night. Every day, the prisoners receive their dinner, singly, through a trap in the kitchen wall; and each man carries his to his sleeping cell to eat it, where he is locked up, alone, for that purpose, one hour. The whole of this arrangement struck me as being admirable; and I hope that the next new prison we erect in England may be built on this plan.

11. I was given to understand that in this prison no swords or fire- arms, or even cudgels, are kept; nor is it probable that, so long as its present excellent management continues, any weapon, offensive or defensive, will ever be required within its bounds.  

Such are the Institutions at South Boston! In all of them, the unfortunate or degenerate citizens of the State are carefully instructed in their duties both to God and man; are surrounded by all reasonable means of comfort and happiness that their condition will admit of; are appealed to, as members of the great human family, however afflicted, indigent, or fallen; are ruled by the strong Heart, and not by the strong (though immeasurably weaker) Hand. I have described them at some length; firstly, because their worth demanded it; and secondly, because I mean to take them for a model, and to content myself with saying of others we may come to, whose design and purpose are the same, that in this or that respect they practically fail, or differ.
12. To an Englishman, accustomed to the paraphernalia of Westminster Hall, an American Court of Law is as odd a sight as, I suppose, an English Court of Law would be to an American. Except in the Supreme Court at Washington (where the judges wear a plain black robe), there is no such thing as a wig or gown connected with the administration of justice. The gentlemen of the bar being barristers and attorneys too (for there is no division of those functions as in England) are no more removed from their clients than attorneys in our Court for the Relief of Insolvent Debtors are, from theirs. The jury are quite at home, and make themselves as comfortable as circumstances will permit. The witness is so little elevated above, or put aloof from, the crowd in the court, that a stranger entering during a pause in the proceedings would find it difficult to pick him out from the rest. And if it chanced to be a criminal trial, his eyes, in nine cases out of ten, would wander to the dock in search of the prisoner, in vain; for that gentleman would most likely be lounging among the most distinguished ornaments of the legal profession, whispering suggestions in his counsel's ear, or making a toothpick out of an old quill with his penknife.
13. But seeing that he was also occupied in writing down the answers, and remembering that he was alone and had no 'junior,' I quickly consoled myself with the reflection that law was not quite so expensive an article here, as at home; and that the absence of sundry formalities which we regard as indispensable, had doubtless a very favourable influence upon the bill of costs.
14. Still, I cannot help doubting whether America, in her desire to shake off the absurdities and abuses of the old system, may not have gone too far into the opposite extreme; and whether it is not desirable, especially in the small community of a city like this, where each man knows the other, to surround the administration of justice with some artificial barriers against the 'Hail fellow, well met' deportment of everyday life.
15. ”'Pepper' is an English phrase, used to express excitement."
16. The fruits of the earth have their growth in corruption.
17. Yet the general character of his countenance was pleasant and agreeable. The service commenced with a hymn, to which succeeded an extemporary prayer. It had the fault of frequent repetition, incidental to all such prayers; but it was plain and comprehensive in its doctrines, and breathed a tone of general sympathy and charity, which is not so commonly a characteristic of this form of address to the Deity as it might be.
18. Indeed if I be not mistaken, he studied their sympathies and understandings much more than the display of his own powers.




The Odyssey, Homer
1. "With unfaltering speed she forged ahead, and not even the wheeling falcon, the fastest creature that flies, could have kept her company."
2. "There was a pitch-black sky that night covering the heavens and not a soul was nearby..."
3. "Any other man on returning from his travels would have rushed home in high spirits to see his children and his wife. You, on the contrary, are in no hurry even to ask questions and to learn the news."
4. "Oh no! Whose country have I come to this time? Are they some brutal tribe of uncivilized savages, or a kindly and god-fearing people?"
5. "He was busy shaping a pair of sandals to his feet, cutting them out of a piece of good brown leather."
6. "Yet the blessed gods don't like wicked acts. Justice and fair play are what they respect in men."
7. "But now, old friend, you must tell me about your own troubles. Tell me the truth; I want to know everything."
8. To be continued.

9. "There should be moderation in all things."
10. "Oh no, my friend! What on earth put such a scheme into your head?"
11. "I will tell you all, Laertes is alive, but every day he prays to Zeus that death may visit his house and release his spirit from his flesh."
12. Discusses a place where there are lots of pigs, lots of pig stys and lots of pigs.



Wednesday, June 5, 2024

The Odyssey, Homer
1. In his analysis of sportsmen, reminds us that as we age, we lose our strength.
2. "That would be to spite himself. But the rest of you, there is no one I'll back away from and no one I'll consider beneath me. I'm ready to meet and match myself against anyone."
3. There were wolves and lions. "They did not attack my men, but rose on their hind legs to fawn on them, with much wagging of their long tails, like dogs fawning on their master as he comes from table for the tasty bits he always brings."
4. "Why are you looking for trouble? It was this man's reckless folly that cost them their lives."
5. "Go round this trench and pour offerings, first with a mixture of honey and milk..."
6. "As for your own end, Death will come to you far away from the sea, a gentle Death. When he takes you, you will die peacefully of old age, surrounded by a prosperous people."
7. "My eyes fell next on Iphimedeia, wife of Aloeus. She told me that she was the mother of the godlike Otus and Ephialtes famed in story, the largest men Earth ever nourished."
8. Relates the story of a warrior who was haunted by the ghosts of the men he'd slain.
9. "He took his share of the spoils and his special prize, and embarked safe and sound on his ship without a single wound either from a flying spear or from a sword at close quarters. Such wounds are common in battle: the War-god in his fury is no respecter of persons."
10. "Terrible too was the golden belt he wore, depicting miraculous scenes -- bears, wild boars and glaring lions, conflict and battle, bloodshed and massacre." This represented the mindset of the wearer.

11. "So you too are working out some such miserable doom as I endured when I lived in the light of the sun."


The Greatest Short Stories of Leo Tolstoy
1. A Spark Neglected Burns the House
2. A town in Bulgaria, the scene of fierce and prolonged fighting between the Turks and the Russians in the war of 1877.
3. Based on one spark, the whole house burns down. Based on one event, a whole series of events follows.
4. Sometimes, a dispute between neighbors can look like a whole catastrophe or comedy where he said this, she said that, one neighbor does one thing, the other neighbor does another, etc.
5. “You have everything else figured out, but you can’t agree on simple things and have a simple dialogue with someone.”
6. Two Old Men
7. One of the characters is an old man who is a religious figure, who advocates kindness towards others, virtue, and patience. Then he goes about wandering as though he was a wise man. Then, he is a wise man of the land. This is a way to be more religious.
8. "Little Russia is situated in the south-western part of Russia, and consists of the Governments of Kief, Poltava, Tchernigof, and part of Kharkof and Kherson."
9. An icon (properly ikón) is a representation of God, Christ, an angel, or a saint, usually painted, enamelled, or embossed.
10. "He said his prayers, and lay down; but he could not sleep. On the one hand he felt he ought to be going, for he had spent too much time and money as it was; on the other hand he felt sorry for the people."

11. All day they sailed smoothly, but towards night a wind arose, rain came on, and the vessel tossed about and shipped water. The people were frightened: the women wailed and screamed, and some of the weaker men ran about the ship looking for shelter. Efím too was frightened, but he would not show it, and remained at the place on deck where he had settled down when first he came on board, beside some old men from Tambóf.
12. "‘Much water flows away in a year,’ the proverb says. It takes a lifetime to build up a homestead, but not long to ruin it, thought he."
13. Where Love is, God is
14. Martin buried his son, and gave way to despair so great and overwhelming that he murmured against God. In his sorrow he prayed again and again that he too might die, reproaching God for having taken the son he loved, his only son, while he, old as he was, remained alive. After that Martin left off going to church.
One day an old man from Martin’s native village, who had been a pilgrim for the last eight years, called in on his way from Tróitsa Monastery. Martin opened his heart to him, and told him of his sorrow.
‘I no longer even wish to live, holy man,’ he said. ‘All I ask of God is that I soon may die. I am now quite without hope in the world.’
The old man replied: ‘You have no right to say such things, Martin. We cannot judge God’s ways. Not our reasoning, but God’s will, decides. If God willed that your son should die and you should live, it must be best so. As to your despair—that comes because you wish to live for your own happiness.’
15. ‘What else should one live for?’ asked Martin.
'For God, Martin,’ said the old man. ‘He gives you life, and you must live for Him. When you have learnt to live for Him, you will grieve no more, and all will seem easy to you.’
Martin was silent awhile, and then asked: ‘But how is one to live for God?’
The old man answered: ‘How one may live for God has been shown us by Christ. Can you read? Then buy the Gospels, and read them: there you will see how God would have you live. You have it all there.’
These words sank deep into Martin’s heart, and that same day he went and bought himself a Testament in large print, and began to read.
At first he meant only to read on holidays, but having once begun he found it made his heart so light that he read every day.
16. He continued to read every night, and the more he read the more clearly he understood what God required of him, and how he might live for God.
17. When Martin read these words his soul was glad within him. He took off his spectacles and laid them on the book, and leaning his elbows on the table pondered over what he had read. He tried his own life by the standard of those words, asking himself:
‘Is my house built on the rock, or on sand? If it stands on the rock, it is well.'
18. "And turning to the woman, he said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath wetted my feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair. Thou gavest me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but she hath anointed my feet with ointment."
19. "You see, friend, last night I was reading the Gospel, about Christ the Lord, how he suffered, and how he walked on earth. You have heard tell of it, I dare say."
20. “You call me Lord,” he said, “and I will wash your feet.” “He who would be first,” he said, “let him be the servant of all; because,” he said, “blessed are the poor, the humble, the meek, and the merciful.”

21. ‘Ask her forgiveness!’ said he. ‘And don’t do it another time. I saw you take the apple.’
The boy began to cry and to beg pardon.
22. ‘God bids us forgive,’ said Martin, ‘or else we shall not be forgiven. Forgive every one; and a thoughtless youngster most of all.’
23. It’s true enough,’ said she, ‘but they are getting terribly spoilt.’
‘Then we old ones must show them better ways,’ Martin replied.


Various
1. "Tomatoes with a few grains of salt on them taste great -- it's healthy to eat them plain, too!"



Tuesday, June 4, 2024

The Odyssey, Homer
1. "The decorations in the rooms of Egyptian Thebes, are more luxurious than anywhere in the world."
2. "...it only makes things worse to think that such qualities as these could not shield Odysseus from disaster. Even a heart of iron could not have saved him."
3. "With this wand in his hand, the mighty giant-killer made his flight. From the upper air he dropped to the range, and from there swooped down on the sea, and skimmed the waves like a sea-gull drenching the feathers of its wings with spray as it pursues the fish down fearsome troughs of the unharvested deep."
4. Calypso asks, "Hermes of the golden wand, what brings you here? You are an honored and welcome guest, though in the past your visits have been few."
5. "But I will not help him on his way. I have no ship fitted with oars, no crew to carry him so far across the seas. Yet I do promise with a good grace and unreservedly to give him such directions as will bring him safe and sound to his native land."
6. "So I shall not entrust myself to a raft unless...you give me your solemn oath that you will not plot some other mischief against me."
7. "There was a time when sailors could sail based on the stars."



Sunday, June 2, 2024

The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Dante Alighieri
1. "Thus I descended out of the first circle,
Down to the second, that less space begirds,
And so much greater dole that goads to wailing."
2. "'The first of those, of whom intelligence
Thou fain wouldst have,' then said unto me,
'The empress was of many languages.'"
3. "At the return of consciousness, that closed...
New torments I behold, and new tormented
Around me, whichsoever way I may move,
And whichsoever way I turn, and gaze."


The Odyssey, Homer
1. "The sun brought light to the land."
2. "In the ceremony of libation the first few drops of wine were poured on to the ground or on to the fire as an offering to the gods."
3. "Indeed, I cannot help looking at you in awe: you talk exactly as he did, and I should have sworn no young man could so resemble him in speech."
4. "Don't let a day pass where you learn nothing. Try to learn something new every day."
5. "Tell me, do you tamely submit to this, or have the people of Ithaca been listening to some rumour inspired by a god that has turned their hearts against you?"
6. To be continued.
7. "Eteoneus, son of Boethus, you have not always been a fool; but at the moment you are talking nonsense like a child...and we could expect that Zeus might grant us a life without suffering in time to come."
8. "Meanwhile a carver served them with plates of various meats he had selected from his board, and put gold cups beside them."
9. "When they had satisfied their appetite and thirst, Telemachus spoke to Nestor's son, leaning close so that the rest might not hear him."
10. "How happy I could be...so far from Argos where the horses graze."
11. To be continued.
12. One of the characters gives another a drug, "that had the power of robbing grief and anger of their sting and banishing all painful memories...It was one of the many drugs which had been given to the daughter of Zeus by an Egyptian woman, Polydanna, the wife of Thon. The soil of Egypt is very rich in herbs, many of which are beneficial in solution, though many are poisonous. And in medical knowledge Egyptians are supreme among men."
13. "I had no further use for life, no wish to see the sunshine anymore. But then the Sea Prophet spoke to me and said, 'Menelaus, you have wept too long. Enough of this grief, which gains us nothing. Better make every effort to get back to your own land as quickly as you can. For either you will find Aegisthus still alive or Orestes will have forestalled you...'"
14. Discusses the importance of each person not worrying too much, and getting some enjoyment out of life.


Various Notes
1. “Yams are eaten as snacks, in many African villages.” —Chinua Achebe



Saturday, June 1, 2024

The Odyssey, Homer
1. Discusses the interaction between past and present.
2. Poseidon is obsessed with persecuting Odysseus.
3. "Men blame the gods for things that are the responsibility of men."
4. "Poseidon will relent. For he will not be able to struggle on alone against the unified will of the immortal gods."
5. "But tell me honestly who are you and where you come from. What is your native town? Who are your parents? What brought you here? And what do you hope to do?"
6. "His death would have made him less stressful to us."
7. "People party 'with never a thought for all the wealth that is being wasted.'"
8. "We are not able to defend it ourselves...Yet I would willingly fight if I had the strength. For I tell you, the things I do are past all bearing."
9. "...For three years she took us in by this trick. A fourth began, and the seasons were slipping by, when one of the women who knew all about it gave it away."
10. Zeus urged two eagles into flight from the mountain-top. "For a while they sailed down the wind, wing to wing." Then, with their talons, the two birds had a fight in the air. Then, one of the men below took this opportunity to make a speech.


Various Notes
1. Historical fiction and philosophical fiction are genres that contain great books. Other great book categories include, "historical science fiction," and "philosophical science fiction." “Children’s fiction,” is also a great category to inspire young readers.
2. “The book of all books is a valuable resource. A book that has all the best secrets, tips, recipes and information, the book of all books is a valuable treasure.”
3. Project Gutenberg has a great selection of free ebooks to read at night, on your smartphone. Browse around for titles that interest you, and then review them at night, and don't be afraid to talk about what you've read!



Thursday, May 30, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. In one scene, one of the characters says that he does not want to leave his friend who is injured.
2. "For all your grief—what sorrow
siezes on your heart. I know it well myself.”
3. "Take care of yourself; how can you help our family if you are hurt?"
4. The end.
Notes
1. Ocean River: in the Homeric imagination, Ocean is a river that, encircles the whole world. All the rivers of the world flow from it, connected often by subterranean channels.
2. Heracles is the greatest of the Greek heroes, he eventually, after his death, became an immortal god.
3. The afterlife in Greek mythology, is filled with gods and goddesses.
4. “As in many tribal societies, compensation for a killing might be offered to and accepted by the victim’s relatives. If it were not offered, the relatives would pursue the killer to exact blood for blood."
5. Refers to the mythical figure Linus, a great musician.
6. "Or share the riches with its people, ie, they would cease hostilities if offered half the cities wealth."
7. The end.


Various Notes
1. Updated: "Research in Psychiatry and Law."
2. How to Be Content, by Horace, involves a passage that suggests that happiness can be increased by eating more fresh fruits and vegetables. He also suggests that happiness can be increased by being around animals.



Wednesday, May 29, 2024

Les Miserables, Victor Hugo
1. One of the characters who had a garden, said, "My friends, remember this: There are no bad herbs, and no bad men; there are only bad cultivators."


The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Dante Alighieri
1. In one canto, uses the greyhound as imagery.
2. "He shall not feed on either earth or pelf,
But upon wisdom, and on love and virtue;"
3. ”To whom, then, if thou wishes to ascend,
A soul shall be for that than I am worthy;”
4. "There
were lamentations none, but only sighs,
that tremble made the everlasting air.”
5. “‘Tell me, my Master, tell me, thou my Lord,’
Began I with the desire of being certain.”
6. Refers to Charon, in Greek mythology.
7. Homer, Horace, and Ovid are philosophers referenced.
8. Refers to several early Greek philosophers, including: Democritus, Diogenes, Anaxagoras, Thales, Zeno, Empedocles and Heraclitus, as well as Euclid, Ptolemy, Galen, Hippocrates and Avicenna.
9. "Thus I beheld assemble the fair school…
who o’er the others like an eagle soars.”


Various Notes
1. "Your family and friends aren’t really concerned with your recovery.”
2. ”Really? There’s no cure for disorganized thoughts? Schizophrenia? Just change your way of thinking. I mean, that’s what we go to school for, right? Seems simple enough to change, simple enough to cure."
3. "If I listen to all the complaints and requests of doctors, psychiatrists, and social workers, then I’ll never live a happy life."
4. The above ideas were acquired after reading The Works of Horace.
5. Stand your ground in a debate or discussion, is a suggestion I learned.
6. "I don’t believe that I have a thought disorder, I believe that I think like any normal human being."



Monday, May 27, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "But Hector, his helmet flashing, never flinched:
'Don't think for a moment, Achilles, son of Peleus,
you can frighten me with words like a child, a fool--
I'm an old hand myself at trading taunts and insults.'"
2. "Then on the twelfth day
some god cast him into Achilles's hands again
and now he would send him off on a new journey."
3. Achilles “killed in a blur of kills,” eight men. He would have killed more, had not it been for the river rising.
4. Refers to Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.
5. Held a ceremony commemorating the dead soldiers.
6. “What if I put down my sword and my shield, to meet Achilles, noble Prince Achilles.”
7. "Past these they raced, one escaping, one in pursuit
and the one who fled was great but the one pursuing
greater, even greater--their pace mounting in speed."
8. The group decides whether to make peace or to continue fighting.
9. Achilles was known for his speed while running.
10. Achilles and Hector fight, and Achilles kills Hector. The war ends.

11. A competition similar to the Olympics begins.
12. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. "'Essential needs,' such as biological, food, and shelter, should have priority over other needs." --Voltaire
2. "Keeping the windows open in your house is a lot like camping outside."
3. "When he couldn't fall asleep, he lay down on his pillow, and strained to keep his eyes close, he tried really hard to close his eyes, and he eventually fell asleep."



Sunday, May 26, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "And across its vast expanse with all his craft and cunning
the god creates a world of gorgeous immortal work."
2. "Treachery never crossed their minds."
3. "He laid it all at the feet of Achilles' mother Thetis--
and down she flashed like a hawk from snowy Mount Olympus"
4. "As the sun rose, bringing light to immortal gods and mortal men,"
5. "Enough. Let bygones be bygones. Done is done."
6. "When a man stands up to speak, it's well to listen.
Not to interrupt him, the only courteous thing."
7. "And rushed in person to give the word to Zeus:
'Zeus, Father, lord of the lightning bolt--'"
8. "But since I was blinded and Zeus stole my wits,
I am intent on setting things to rights, at once:
I'll give that priceless ransom paid for friendship."
9. "And the famous cripples Smith replied, 'Courage!
Anguish for all that armor--sweep it from your mind.'"
10. "It's no quick skirmish shaping,
once the massed formations of men begin to clash
with a god breathing fury in both sides at once."
11. "Yet I might surpass you in seasoned judgement
by quite a lot, since I have years on you."
12. "You want the men to grieve for the dead by starving?
Impossible. Too many falling, day after day--battalions!"
13. "And there with the Myrmidons hold my marriage feast.
So now I mourn your death--I will never stop--
you were always kind."
14. "That, or else one of us might stant beside Achilles
and lend him winning force--his courage must not flag."
15. "Let him know he's loved by the greatest gods on high
while the gods who up till now have shielded Troy
from war and death are worthless as the wind!"
16. "Come, Achilles...
A man's tongue is a glib and twisty thing...
plenty of words there are, all kinds at its command--
with all the room in the world for talk to range and stray."



Saturday, May 25, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "So follow my advice, hard as it may seem...
Tonight conserve our strength in the meeting place,"
2. "By his own possessions, let him collect the lot,
pass them round to the people--a grand public feast."
3. "The god of war is impartial:
he hands out death to the man who hands out death."
4. "Troy is a world away."
5. "Nor from mother, Thetis--this alien earth I stride
will keep me secure at last."
6. "Tell me what's on your mind. I am eager to do it--
whatever I can do...whatever can be done."
7. "I go to his side--nothing I do can help him. Nothing."

Various Notes
1. "Some men can have appetites, and can be hungrier than the wildest of wild animals." --The Divine Comedy: Inferno
2. Lentil soup is good, and even though it contains a lot of lentils, you can just save or throw away the portion that you don't eat.



Thursday, May 23, 2024

Various Notes
1. The paragraph below is the result of recent work I've been doing in the Spanish language:
Yo estudio por la universidad: historia, literatura, y filosofia. Aristotle, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Anton Chekhov, y mucho mas. Por Aristotle, la alma es responsible por movimiento y conocimiento. Tambien, la historia de el Negro no es verdad. Tienes mucho falso informacion y mentiras.
2. How to tell when a person is telling a lie, is a web search that taught me a great deal. The search results were presented after researching one of the above Spanish words.
3. Tornado Alley and Tornado Valley, are high-frequency tornado areas in the United States that are described on a deck of Trivial Pursuit cards.



Wednesday, May 22, 2024

The Faerie Queen Edmund Spenser
1. "An education 'raises one's thoughts' from lowly to noble."
2. "One night when the stars were out, he was under a 'happy sky.'"
3. "The Sunne that measures heaven all day long,
At night doth baite his steedes the Ocean waves emong.
Then with the Sunne take Sir, your timely rest,
And with new day new worke at once begin."
4. "Live in your house as though it were a monastery, or hermitage."
5. "Full of the makers guile, with usage sly
He taught to imitate that Lady trew,
Whose semblance she did carrie under feigned hew."
6. “How’s the world going to act when I’m dead? In a few years, they’ll be dead too, so why worry?”
7. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. Maruchan Yakisoba noodles are a great alternative to "regular" ramen noodles!



Tuesday, May 21, 2024

The Cossacks and Other Stories, Leo Tolstoy
1. In the war, unfortunately, there were casualties on both sides.
2. "One of two things appears to be true: either war is madness, or, if men perpetrate this madness, they thereby demonstrate that they are far from being the rational creatures we for some reason commonly suppose them to be."
3. In the town of Sevastopol, cannons and artillery shells were constantly flying overhead.
4. "In the besieged town of Sevastopol a regimental band was playing next to the pavilion on the Boulevard, and crowds of people were moving gaily along the paths in a holiday mood."
5. One of the women describes one of the soldiers, Lieutenant-Captain Mikhailov, as a hero.
6. "It's quite likely that I'll be made a battalion commander this year, because a lot of men have already been killed in this campaign, and a lot more are going to die before it's over. There'll be another battle and I, as a famous man, will be given a regiment to lead...."
7. "Just then, however...he found himself on the Boulevard, a lieutenant-captain as before, awkward, timid, and of no significance."
8. "Moreover, what possible enjoyment could be had from walking with Messrs Obzhogov and Suslikov when he already met them and shook hands with them six times a day? It was not for the sake of this that he had come to hear the band."
9. "Vanity, vanity, all is vanity -- even on the brink of the grave, and among men who are ready to die for the sake of a lofty conviction. Vanity! It must be the distinguishing characteristic and special malady of our age."
10. "I saw how pleased the regimental commander was when I asked to be allowed to go since Lieutenant Nieprzysiecky was ill...I'll probably be given the Order of St Vladimir. After all, this'll be my thirteenth time on the bastion. Thirteen's an unlucky number! I'm going to be killed, I just know it, I'm bound to be killed."

11. "...and so he calmed down for a while, had a few nibbles of the soapy cheese, lit a cigarette and, after saying his prayers, tried to sleep for a while."
12. "A servant came in with a silver tray bearing tea with cream and krendelki.
13. "The poor officer...was really at a loss as to what he should do -- his gloveless hands dangled limply in front of him."
14. "'I suppose I can tell you. After all, you've been in the bastions, haven't you?' Galtsin made a sign that this was so, although in fact he had been in the 4th bastion only once."
15. "You know, I'm so used to these shells now that I'm sure when I get back to Russia I'll see them whenever there's a starry night. That's how used to them one gets."
16. "At that moment a terrible crackel of small-fire arms sounded above the din of the artillery...thousands of tiny, constantly flaring points could be seen blazing along the whole length of the line.
'It's really getting started now!' said Kalugin."
17. "'Lord Almighty, Mother of Jesus,' the old woman was saying to herself, in between sighs, as she watched the shells hurtling constantly back and forth like balls of fire. 'Horrible things, horrible things, aye-aye-aye!'"
18. 'There's only one word for it,' Nikita concluded, pointing to the window of his master's lighted room where in the lieutenant-captain's absence the Polish cadet Zwadczeski had invited a couple of guests to help him celebrate the military cross he had just been awarded. These guests, who were also Poles, were Lieutenant Colonel Ugrowicz and Lieutenant Nieprzysiecki, the very same man whose turn it was to go to the bastion that night and who was supposed to be incapacitated by a piece of shrapnel."
19. One of the soldiers nearly gets a splinter.
20. More and more wounded men, some on stretchers, come in. One of the men came running, shouting 'Allah! Allah!.'

21. "Galtsin stopped the man at this point in his narrative." Then the French troops enter. Then one of the troops starts asking specific questions to the other soldiers. And then one of the soldiers answers each question exactly right.
22. "'Well, you ought to be ashamed -- giving up a trench to the enemy! This is terrible! You ought to be ashamed!' he repeated, turning away from the soldier. 'Shame on you, men, shame on you! Giving up one of our trenches!'"
23. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. "No one looks good sleeping."
2. "In our class, it was Jim, the Russian kid, Tom, the Irish kid, Jacob, the Jewish kid, and me, I was the black kid, and we were all friends."
3. "You made your money, don't spend it all in one place."
4. "In life, women have normal, platonic relationships with other men." --Anton Chekhov
5. "Don't believe everything you read, don't believe everything you hear." --Leo Tolstoy



Sunday, May 19, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. Both sides fought valiantly in the war.
2. "There his brothers and countrymen will bury the prince
with full royal rites, with mounded tomb and pillar.
These are the solemn honors owed the dead."
3. "Then send him on his way wih the wind-swift escorts
twin brothers Sleep and Death, who with all good speed
will set him down in the broad green land of Lycia."
4. "then the Argives mounted a fiercer new attack.
fighting beyond their fates..."
5. To be continued.
6. "If he hadn't fought one of the soldiers, he would have fought twenty."
7. The courageous act of the low-ranking soldier humbled the 'high and mighty Atrides, captain of armies.'
8. One of the soldiers was a fresh, brand new soldier, compared to the military veteran.
9. "When you fight a man against the will of the gods,
a man they have sworn to honor--then look out,
a heavy wave of ruins about to overwhelm you."
10. "But you--you lacked the nerves to go up against Great Ajax,
and fight the man head-on--he's a better man than you."

11. The war raging is the Trojan war, with the Trojans against the Argives.
12. "He dispelled the mist at once,
and the whole war swung into view, clear, that instant--"
13. "The eagle has the sharpest eyes of all birds that fly the heavens."
14. "They swept in like hounds that fling themselves
at a wounded boar before young hunters reach him,
and the hounds cringe and bolt and scatter left and right."
15. "If only strife could die from the lives of gods and men
bitter gall--sweeter than dripping streams of honey,
that swarms in people's chests and blinds like smoke--"
16. "Not that he will glory in it long, I tell you:
his own destruction hovers near him now."
17. "Three times illustrious Hector shouted for support,
three times the Aeantes, armored in battle-fury
fought him off the corpse."
18. "And show yourself to the Trojans. Struck with fear
at the sight of you, they might hold off from attack."
19. "So wild the man's fury he will never rest content,
holding out on the plain where Trojans and Argives
met halfway..."
20. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. "Day to day life involves nothing spectacular going on, often, nothing spectacular happens for a long amount of time." --The Iliad, Homer



Saturday, May 18, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "Down from Ida's peaks he swooped like a hawk,
...the fastest thing on wings."
2. "So up now, Hector--
command your drivers here in all their hundreds
to lash their plunging teams at the hollow ships."
3. "Tense as a chalk-line marks the cut of a ship timber,
drawn taut and true in a skilled shipwright's hands--
some master craftsman trained in Athena's school--"
4. "Quick, better to live or die, once and for all,
than die by inches, slowly crushed to death--"
5. "And Hector lunged again
like a murderous lion mad for kills, charging cattle
grazing across the flats of a broad marshy pasture,"
6. To be continued.



Friday, May 17, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. One of the characters leaps and springs, in one action scene.
2. "Don't think struggle and pain will be ours alone--
your day will come to die in blood like him."
3. One of the characters has wealth, but no way to spend it.
4. "I speed this word to you from storming Zeus.
He commands you to quit the war and slaughter now,
go back to the tribes of gods or down to your bright sea."


Various Notes
1. The wife inherits her wealthy husband’s money, after he dies, in one popular book.
2. "It is refreshing to drink pure water." The previous sentence is a quote from a popular book.
3. "Love of life, love for life, is an admirable quality." This sentence is a quote from another popular book.



Thursday, May 16, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "And the two Aeantes ranged all points of the rampart,
calling out commands to spur their comrades' fury."
2. "Glaucus
why do they hold us both in honor, first by far,
with pride of place, choice meats and brimming cups,
in Lycia where all our people look on us like gods?"
3. "A brisk command, and the runner snapped to it--
he dashed along the wall of the Argive men-at-arms"
4. "Soon as he noticed Glaucus slipping clear,
the pain overcame Sarpedon
but even so he never forgot his lust for battle."
5. "Ajax lunged at the man, he struck his shield but the point...
Not that Sarpedon yielded all the way, never,
his heart still raced with hopes of winning glory,"
6. Of the great warrior Hector, writes,
"No one could fight him, stop him,
none but the gods as Hector hurtled through the gates
and his eyes flashed fire."
7. "Victory is sweet, defeat is bitter."
8. "So they roused each other, exulting in the fire,
the joy of battle the god excited in their hearts."
9. "How on earth can we hang back from combat now?
Heal our feuds at once! Surely they can be healed,
the hearts of the brave. How can you hold back
your combat fury any longer? Not with honor--
you, the finest men in all our ranks..."
10. "immense floods breaking the bank's grip, and the reckless boulder
bounding high, flying with timber rumbling under it,
nothing can stop it now, hurtling on undaunted"
11. "...and down he went like a tall ash
on a landmark mountain ridge that glistens far and wide--
chopped down by an ax, its leaves running with sap,
strewn across the earth...So Imbrius fell,"
12. "A fight of equals, that's a fight."
13. To be continued.
14. "and out for blood he charged Idomeneus now.
But nothing could make him panic.
he stood his ground like a wild mountain boar,"
15. "'The worst wounds are wounds near the navel, near the stomach,'
the worst the god of battles deals to wretched men."
16. "One can achieve his fill of all good things...
But not these Trojans--
no one can glut their lust for battle."
17. "Impossible man! Won't you listen to reason?
Just because some god exalts you in battle
you think you can beat the rest at tactics too."
18. "Now all towering Troy is ruined top to bottom.
Now one thing's certain--your own headlong death!"
19. "If you have the daring to stand against my heavy spear
its point will rip your soft warm skin to shreds!"
20. "Think, noble Machaon, what shall we do now?
The cries are fiercer--fighters beside the ships!"

21. "Why come back here to shore? I'm filled with fear
that breakneck Hector will bring his word to pass--"
22. "And they have no stomach left
to fight to the end against the warship's sterns."
23. "Then, commander of armies, your plan will kill us all!
So now, whoever can find a better plan, let him speak up,
young soldier or old. I would be pleased to hear him."
24. "That man has got no heart in him, not a pulsebeat.
So let him die, outirght--let a god wipe him out!"
25. "A shattering cry--so huge that voice the god of the earthquake
let loose from his lungs."
26. "Sleep, master of all gods and mortal men...
And then I put the brain of thundering Zeus to sleep,"
27. "And filled with guile the noble Hera answered,
'I am off to the ends of the fruitful, teeming earth
I go to visit them and dissolve their fendless feud--'"
28. Hera sleeps with Zeus, to make him forget about the war. Then Hera becomes powerful.
29. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. 10:00pm, beginning with Item 14, updated notes on today's reading of "The Iliad".
2. "Sometimes sit at the table, like a religious monk."



Wednesday, May 15, 2024

The Brothers Karamazov, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. "In what way did it assist him? To marry Grushenka? But that Alyosha considered the worst thing possible."
2. "It must be noted that Alyosha felt ashamed of his own thoughts and blamed himself when they kept recurring to him during the last month."
3. The narrator needs his friends, he depends on them.
4. "'And you begin explaining that you are not glad of that but sorry to be--losing a friend. But that was acting too--you were playing a part--as in a theatre.'
'In a theatre? What? What do you mean?' exclaimed Katerina Ivanovna."
5. There was some serious business in the street, and "a boy, quite a child," stood up for his father.
6. "Thinking of another subject was a relief, and he resolved to think no more about the 'mischief' he had done, and not to torture himself with remorse, but to do what he had to do, let come what would."
7. Presents readers with "a clever woman."
8. "So in the evening we went for a walk, we go for a walk every evening, always the same way, along which we are going now."
9. "She said just now that you were a friend of her childhood, 'the greatest friend of her childhood.'"
10. "When he poured out his heart, he felt ashamed at having shown me his inmost soul like that."

11. "How can it be contempt when we are all like him, when we are all just the same as he is. For you know we are just the same, no better."
12. "In the first place, you've known me from a child and you've a great many qualities I haven't. You are more lighthearted than I am."
13. "'Listen, Alyosha. What will you wear when you come out of the monastery? What sort of suit? Don't laugh, don't be angry.'
'I haven't thought about the suit; but I'll wear whatever you like.'"
14. "'But I am not going to give it to you. Look at it from here.'
'Why, then you told a lie? You, a monk, told a lie!'
'I told a lie if you like. I told a lie so as not to give you back the letter. It's very precious to me."
15. "'Come, now go. Christ be with you!' and she made the sign of the cross over him."
16. "To be serious about it is impossible, unthinkable, and in the first place I shall never be at home to you again, you may be sure of that."
17. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. Evil Allures, but Good Endures, and Little Girls Wiser than Men, by Leo Tolstoy, are two short stories that suggest that black people are the catalyst for the reactions of white people. He suggests that simply because of black people, white people have created myths and images, started slavery and wars, etc.
2. Sandwich meat (ham, roast beef, etc.), is a good snack!
3. Jam (cherry, blueberry, etc.), on bread, is a good snack!



Tuesday, May 14, 2024

Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. "That is why, perhaps, I have such enthusiasm and such fondness gone over in my mind the most insignificant details of my insignificant life in those happy days of mine."
2. "He was seldom in possession of his faculties; frequently he would be in delirium; he would talk about God knows what; his job, his books, about me, about his father..."
3. "Truly what a good man you are, Makar Alekseyevich! Yesterday you really looked into my eyes in order to read in them what I was feeling, and you were delighted by my enthusiasm."
4. "50 pages in a book cannot compare to a happy feeling."
5. "All right, let me be a rat, since they've found a resemblance! But this rat is needed, this rat is of use, this rat is relied upon, and this rat receives a bonus -- that's the sort of rat it is!"
6. "But I have not the strength now to talk about my past; I don't even want to think about it; I grow frightened by all those memories."
7. "Fedora says that it is all just gossip, that they will eventually leave me alone. Pray God she is right."
8. To be continued.
9. "O, how he writes. He has a bold pen and oceans of style; in his each and every word, I mean -- each one of them -- in the most trivial, the most ordinary."
10. "I attend the evenings he holds in his room, too. We smoke tobacco, and he reads to us, reads for nearly five hours at a stretch and we listen all the time. It's so lovely: like flowers, just like flowers; one can gather a bouquet from every page."
11. "Oh, literature is a wonderful thing, Varenka, a very wonderful thing. It is a profound thing!"
12. Tells the story of a prince and a princess. "And after all that Yermak, unable to go on living without his Suleika, throws himself into the Irtysh, and there the story ends."
13. "You know, sometimes I have an idea...well, what if I were to write something, what would come of it? Say, for example, that quite suddenly, for no particular reason, a book were to appear with the title "The Poems of Makar Devushkin"? Well, what would you say then, my little angel? How would that seem to you, what would you think?"
14. "For what do I do in my free time now? I sleep, fool that I am. Yet indulging in sleep I don't need, I might be doing something agreeable; like sitting down and writing something."

Various Notes
1. One Russian short story, presents a big Russian man, who bullies some Chinese people in the area, suggesting that white people are the reason why Chinese people learned martial arts.
2. Poor Folk, by Fyodor Dostoevsky, includes a scene with a family of five children. The narrator indicates that if one of the children dies, even though it would be bad, it would be good because the family wouldn't have to ration food and the death would lighten the family's load.



Monday, May 13, 2024

Poor Folk and Other Stories, Fyodor Dostoevsky
1. "Why am I not a bird, a bird of prey?"
2. "I had not yet set off for the office, yet there you were, just like a bird in springtime."
3. To be continued.
4. "He is a food expert. He likes all kinds of different foods: Chinese, Italian, Greek, etc."
5. "Once again I beg you: please do not spend so much money on me."
6. "You may be assured that I shall never have the effrontery to make jokes about your years or your character."
7. "The African American experience, the black experience, and the human experience, is not a joke or subject for jokes to be made about."
8. "Oh, my little mother, whatever is the matter with you? Each time you frighen me in the same way. In each of my letters I tell you to look after yourself, but you do not listen to me."
9. Describes the constant arguing of the people next door, and one of the characters wears dirty clothes.
10. "One thing is certain, and that is that they're poor -- my, how they're poor."

11. "Their room is always quiet and peaceful. You don't even hear their children. You never ever see the children out enjoying themselves, playing around, and that's a bad sign...my heart almost broke."
12. "I write what wanders into my mind, so as to provide you with some diversion."
13. Of Anna Fyodorovna, writes, "I do not think she will ever stop trying to make my life a misery."
14. "I send you a few grapes...the doctor recommends them for the alleviation of thirst."
15. "I had the idea, heaven knows why, of jotting down random moments of my life, that I have no doubt my parcel will bring you great enjoyment."
16. "I would sit down somewhere in a corner with a book, as quiet as a mouse, not daring to make the slightest movement."
17. The narrator had pleasant childhood memories.
18. "Also, he had an irritable disposition -- he constantly got angry, losing his temper over the merest trifles."
19. "He saw it all, and with every day that passed became more attached to me."
20. "'Look, here's what I have,' he said, taking out all his money, wrapped up in a greasy scrap of newspaper." With his money, he brought several items, and was very happy.
21. To be continued.

Various Notes
1. Chinua Achebe, in one of his novels, presents a character who is a man, but does women's work around the house.
2. Perhaps the hearing impaired can draw pictures to express themselves, in addition to writing down how they're feeling with a pen and a pad.


Sunday, May 12, 2024

The Iliad, Homer
1. "Up with you, Diomedes! What, sleep all night?"
2. "Take us alive, Atrides, take a ransom worth our lives!
Vast treasures are piled up in Antimachus' house,
bronze and gold and plenty of iron--
father would give you anything, gladly, priceless ransom
if only he learns we're still alive in Argive ships!"
3. "Now pay for your father's outrage, blood for blood!"
4. Omitted.
5. Suggests that war is just one result of an enmity between nations.
6. "So then and there under royal Agamemnon's hands
the two sons of Antenor filled out their fates
and down they plunged to the strong House of Death."
7. "Trojans! Lycians! Dardan fighters hand-to-hand--
Their best man goes and runs--
Zeus is handing me glory, awesome glory."
8. In a previous passage, mentions that many of the people in the town were skilled in crafts.
9. "Hector rejoined his men
with a strong hand planted against the earth
and the world went black as night across his eyes."
10. "The spear stuck fast in the ground.
And loosing a heady laugh of triumph Paris leapt
from his hiding-place and shouted out in glory,
'Now you're hit--no wasted shot, my winging arrow!'"

11. "Ajax, royal son of Telamon, captain of armies,
He sounds like a man cut off and overpowered,
by Trojan ranks in the rough assault.
I'm afraid he may be hurt, alone with the Trojans,"
12. "A man who can cut out shafts and dress our wounds--
a good healer is worth a troop of other men."
13. "Hector kept on raging, battling ranks on ranks,
but he stayed clear of attacking Ajax man-to-man."
14. Ajax's spirits were dashed.
15. To be continued.
16. "And then through camp we took our evening meal
by rank and file, and slept when we could."
17. "And to his eldest daughter, Agamede,
skilled with as many drugs as the wide world grows."
18. "We'd come to the strong and storied house of Peleus,
out for recruits across Athena's good green land."
19. "So in the years to come Poseidon and god Apollo
would set all things to rights once more.
But now,
the war, the deafening crash of battle blazed,"
20. “Not without fame, the men who rule in Lycia,
these kings of ours who eat fat cuts of lamb,”


Various Notes
1. "The houses and buildings are nice, but the people inside of them, have problems."
2. 9:00pm - beginning with Item 16, updated today's reading.



Friday, May 10, 2024

The Greatest Short Stories of Leo Tolstoy
1. In one of the short stories, writes, "I feel insignificant when I consider the great blue sky, the radiant, brilliant sun."
2. In one of the short stories, writes, you don’t have to remember religious teachings and declare adherence to a religion at the time of death in order to be admitted to heaven.
3. ”The Godson” is a short story about a kind and generous man who becomes godfather to a young man and raises him as though he were his own son.
4. “The Bear-Hunt” is about a group of men who are hunting a bear. They track the bear through the snow, and then when one man sees the bear he shoots at it, but the bear gets away. Then the men get separated and the bear attacks the man who shot at it, but another of the men chases the bear off. Then the men find the bear and one of the men shoots and kills it, but again, not until the bear causes great injury to the other man in the party.
5. Omitted.
6. In one story, refers to an old South American folk tale that says that at first, God created man to live independently, but he was not satisfied, so he made it so that people had to work in order to be together more.
7. To be continued.

The Iliad, Homer
1. "Yes, we'll keep clear of the war as you command.
We'll simply offer the Argives tactics that may save them
so they won't all fall beneath your blazing wrath."
2. "Their morale had not been broken. The spirits of the troops soared."
3. "Few can match your power in battle, Diomedes,
and in council you excel all men your age.
So no one could make light of your proposals,
not the whole army--who could contradict you?"
4. "The troops focused on his words and took his orders.
Seven chiefs of the guard, a hundred under each,"
5. "I will even honor him on a par with my Orestes,
full-grown by now, reared in the lap of luxury."
6. "Songs are supposed to lift our spirits."
7. Many of the characters have a feast, of sheep, goat, and pig.
8. As a gift, the god gives one of the soldiers seven small cities, filled with people, rich in sheep and cattle.
9. Even though the cities are separate, they cooperate with each other on some levels.
10. Briefly discusses the limitations of old age.

11. "How can you ask me to poison myself, and take medication?”
12. "No, what lasting thanks in the long run
for warring with our enemies, on and on, no end?"
13. "I say no wealth is worth my life!"
14. "Even the gods themselves can bend and change,
and theirs is the greater power, honor, strength."
15. "Still you could bring them round with gifts and winning words."
16. "There's no achieving our mission here, I see,
not with this approach. Best to return at once."
17. "The more you battle him, the stronger he fights."
18. "Not a man in sight will take
that mission on, I fear, and go against our enemies."
19. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. After handling a cucumber this morning, I accidentally touched my face, and then I felt great. I continued to apply cucumber slices to areas on my face and eyes, and the feeling was awesome!
2. “I act fast, I walk and talk fast, but I write slow.”
3. "Too little sleep is problematic, but too much sleep can also be problematic."
4. The Odyssey, by Homer, includes a scene where the goddess leads one of the heroes to the table, and says, "Relax, the war has ended. Eat some fruit, eat some meat."



Wednesday, May 8, 2024

The Cossacks and Other Stories, Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Cossacks
2. Life on the mountainous Cossacks was free of many of the restraints of life in the cities of Russia.
3. One of the characters listens to his wife's breathing, however, she says, "Don't focus on me so much."
4. Omitted.
5. "'So what? He doesn't do anyone any harm,' Maryana said suddenly."
6. Briefly discusses the Russian game lapta.
7. "The sun was not up yet, yet it seemed that there was an unusual amount of commotion in the street: people were walking, riding to and fro on horseback and talking."
8. "Out on the steppe the sun is red when it sets."
9. Examines the difference between love for someone and physical attraction to someone.
10. Some of the Cossacks hide under some hay, in a cart, and then ambush their enemies with their gunfire and are victorious.
11. One of the Cossack characters gets wounded in the back by a bullet, and his friend, also a Cossack encourages him to smoke with him to lessen the pain.
12. "The air did not move; all that could be heard was the movement and snorting of horses; and even this sound was faint and died away at once."
13. Sevastopol Stories
14. Sevastopol is an area much like a small city. There are different groups of soldiers and other various people, it is a dirty place, there are puddles of filthy water everywhere, and rotting animal carcasses.
15. "Most of a man's troubles come from thinking too much."
16. "'Well, may God grant you a speedy recovery,' you say to him as you move on."
17. "There you will see surgeons, deep in concentration over a bed on which a wounded man is lying, and uttering meaningless words which are occasionally simple and affecting."
18. You can talk to people about experiences when you were younger, current experiences, you can talk about what you watched on the news, or what you read in a magazine, for example.
19. Omitted.
20. "You enter beat up buildings: the doorways are boarded up, the windows are broken, the walls are smashed in."
21. "...whether it has not all been far too terrible and extraordinary, it can be seen that he is straying too far from the strict relation of the truth."
22. "During the half-hour you have spent in the tavern the weather has had time to change."



Tuesday, May 7, 2024

The Iliad, Homer:
1. "True, and what profit for us in the long run?"
2. "No more of your hot insistence--it repels me.
You must have something better than this to say."
3."Now take your evening meal throughout the city,
just as you always have, and stand your watches,
each man wide awake."
4. "And home Idaeus came,
delivered his message standing in their midst,
and they fell to making hurried preparations,
dividing the labors quickly--two detachments,
one to gather the bodies, one the timber."
5. "Father Zeus, is there a man on the whole wide earth
who still informs the gods of all his plans, his schemes?"
6. To be continued.
7. "Yes, but all night long the Master Strategist Zeus
plotted fresh disaster for both opposing armies--"
8. "Then they lay down at last and took the gift of sleep."
9. "and the thunder of struggle roared and rocked the earth.
Screams of men and cries of triumph breaking in one breath,"
10. "Now there would have been havoc, irreversible chaos,
but the father of men and gods was quick to the mark."

11. "He hands the glory to Hector, today at least--
tomorrow it's ours, if he wants to give us glory."
12. "I'll never yield, you'll never mount our towers,
never drag our people back to your ships of war--
I'll pack you off to the god of darkness first!"
13. "corpse on corpse he dropped to the earth that rears us all."
14. "But Father rages now, that hard black heart,
Not a thought for the many times I saved his son"
15. "Those two alone, Athena and Hera, sat apart from Zeus--
not a word would they send his way, not a question."
But Zeus knew what they were trying to say.
16. "as Athena and Queen Hera muttered between themselves,
huddled together, plotting Troy's destruction."



Monday, May 6, 2024

The Greatest Short Stories of Leo Tolstoy
1. Introduction -- Wonderfully wide-ranging and enjoyable, this outstanding collection features highly acclaimed short stories by Tolstoy who is regarded as one of the greatest writers in history.
Among Russian writers, Leo Tolstoy is probably the best known to the Western world, largely because of War and Peace, his epic in prose, and Anna Karenina, one of the most splendid novels in any language. But during his long lifetime, Tolstoy also wrote enough shorter works to fill many volumes.
The seven parts into which this book is divided include ‘God Sees the Truth, but Waits’ and ‘A Prisoner in the Caucasus’ which Tolstoy himself considered as his best. ‘How Much Land Does a Man Need?’ depicting the greed of a peasant for land; the most brilliantly told parable, ‘Ivan the Fool’—these are all contained in this volume. The book includes an active table of contents for easy navigation.
2. About the Author -- Leo Tolstoy was a Russian writer who primarily wrote novels and short stories. Later in life, he also wrote plays and essays. His two most famous works — ‘War and Peace’ and ‘Anna Karenina’, are acknowledged as two of the greatest novels of all time and a pinnacle of realist fiction. Many consider Tolstoy to have been one of the world’s greatest novelists. Tolstoy is equally known for his complicated and paradoxical persona and for his extreme moralistic and ascetic views, which he adopted after a moral crisis and spiritual awakening in the 1870s, after which he also became noted as a moral thinker and social reformer.
His literal interpretation of the ethical teachings of Jesus, centering on the Sermon on the Mount, caused him in later life to become a fervent Christian anarchist and anarcho-pacifist. His ideas on non-violent resistance, expressed in such works as ‘The Kingdom of God is Within You’, were to have a profound impact on such pivotal twentieth-century figures as Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.
3. How Much Land does a Man Need?
4. Tolstoy suggests that one should determine how to live life modestly, say in an apartment, instead of possessing the desire to live on a lot of land.
5. Suggests that you’d be better off living in a city or small town, than putting up with the trouble of living on your own large lot of land.
6. Like the character in the story, Tolstoy is saying that you could work yourself to death trying to maintain the land.
7. The Repentant Sinner
8. repent - feel or express sincere regret or remorse about one's wrongdoing or sin.
9. The Imp and the Crust
10. A friend of the Devil shows a peasant a pleasure -- drinking.

11. The Coffee-House of Surat
12. A Persian enters a coffee house. With him he has an African slave. The two have a discussion. The discussion is heard by a Brahmin.
13. Omitted.
14. A Prisoner in the Caucasus
15. "'Eh!’ thought Zhílin, ‘the more one fears them the worse it will be.’"
16. "The whole village collected round. Little boys and girls, Tartar men and women, all came and clicked their tongues.
'Ah, Russ! Ah, Iván!’


Various Notes
1. One popular Russian author suggests that nighttime can be boring.
2. "So now Pahóm had land of his own. He borrowed seed, and sowed it on the land he had bought. The harvest was a good one, and within a year he had managed to pay off his debts both to the lady and to his brother-in-law." --"How Much Land does a Man Need?", Leo Tolstoy
3. "If you do the research, you can find out how to use everything in the supermarket."



Sunday, May 5, 2024

The Iliad, by Homer:
1. Diomedes says,
"Fighting is not for you, my child, the works of war.
See to the works of marriage, the slow fires."
2. During a war, ask ourselves, "Why are they fighting again?"
Reminds us that wars are sometimes fought over money or territory.
3. The captain of the army as a charismatic leader.
4. "Aeneas replied in kind and killed two Argive captains."
5. "So here the twins were laid low at Aeneas' hands,
down they crashed like lofty pine trees axed."
6. "Once they'd dragged the bodies back to their lines
they dropped the luckless twins in companions' open arms
and round they swung again to fight in the first ranks."
7. "For all your power, soldier,
crushed at my hands you'll breach the gates of Death!"
8. "Heroic Sarpedon--
his loyal comrades bore him out of the fighting quickly,
weighed down by the heavy spearshaft dragging on..."
9. “They loosed this manic Ares — he has no sense of justice.”
10. "And again she lashed her team
and again the stallions flew, holding nothing back,
careering between the earth and starry skies as far
as a man's glance can pierce the horizon's misting haze..."

11. "poured a dense shrouding mist and before their hoofs
the Simois sprang ambrosial grass for them to graze."
12. "So Hera trumpeted,
lashing the nerve and fighting-fury in each man"
13. When Diomedes killed Ares,
"A shudder swept through all ranks, Trojans and Argives both,
terror-struck by the shriek the god let loose,"
14. "And we all must battle you--
you brought that senseless daughter into the world,
that murderous curse -- forever bent on crimes!
But that girl --
you never block her way with a word or action, never,
you spur her on, since you, you gave her birth"
15. "But I, I'm so fast on my feet I saved my life.
Else for a good long while I'd have felt the pain...
beaten down by bronze."
16. Briefly discusses fig-juice and fig spread.
17. To be continued.
18. "Take me alive, Atrides, take a ransom worth my life!
Treasures are piled up in my rich father's house,
bronze and gold and plenty of well-wrought iron--
father would give you anything, gladly, priceless ransom
if only he learns I'm still alive in Argive ships!"
19. Helenus, son of Priam says,
"My captains! You are our bravest men, whatever the enterprise,
pitched in battle itself or planning our campaigns,
so stand your ground right here!"
20. "And the Lycians carved him out a grand estate,
the choicest land in the realm, rich in vineyards
and good tilled fields for him to rule over."

21. "when Hector reached the Scaean Gates and the great oak,
the wives and daughters of Troy came rushing up around him,
asking about their sons, brothers, friends and husbands.
But Hector told them only, 'Pray to the gods'--"
22. "I've learned it all too well. To stand up bravely,
always to fight in the front ranks of Trojan soldiers,
winning my father great glory, glory for myself."
23. "Nor did Paris linger long in his vaulted halls.
As a stallion full-fed at the manger, stalled too long,
breaking free of his tether gallops down the plain,
out for his favorite plunge in a river's cool currents,
thundering in his pride--his head flung back, his mane
streaming over his shoulders, sure and sleek in his glory,
knees racing him on to the fields and stallion-haunts he loves."
24. "We'll set all this to rights,
someday, if Zeus will ever let us raise
the bowl of freedom high in our halls,
high to the gods of cloud and sky who live forever."
25. Ajax Duels with Hector
26. "No doubt you'll hand your Argives victory soon,
you'll turn the tide of battle."
27. "'But tell me,
how do you hope to stop the men from fighting?'
'We'll spur his nerve and strength, that breaker of horses,
see if he'll challenge one of the Argives man-to-man
and they will duel in combat to the death.'"
28. "And Apollo lord of the silver bow and Queen Athena,
like carrion birds, like vultures
slowly settled atop the broad towering oak"
29. "Our oaths, our sworn truce has brought them all to nothing
and all the Father decrees is death for both sides at once."
30. "'Here are the terms that I set forth --
let Zeus look down, my witness!'
'If that man takes my life....
he will give my body to friends to carry home again,
so Trojan men and Trojan women can do me honor once I am dead...'"

31. "Once more the fine old horseman gave commands:
'Now shake the lots for all,
the first to the last man--we'll see who wins.'
And each soldier scratched his mark on a stone
and threw it into Atrides Agamemnon's helmet."
32. "Pray to yourselves in silence, so Trojans cannot hear
no, pray out loud!"
33. "The men of Argos exulted at the sight of him there Hector himself, his heart pounding against his ribs."
34. For protection, Ajax wore heavy bronze over seven layers of oxhide.
35. "Don't toy with me. War--I know it well."
36. The characters begin to do battle. Then the herald Idaeus comes, and breaks it up.
37. "No more, my sons--don't kill yourselves in combat!"
Zeus who marshals the storm cloud loves you both.
You're great fighters--we know that full well.
The night comes on at last. Best to yield to night."
38. "Nestor was the first to speak--from the early days
his plans and tactics always seemed the best."
39. "So at dawn you must call a halt to fighting by Achaeans,
form your units, bring on wagons, gather up the dead"
40. To be continued.


Various Notes:
1. "Since there is a chain of causes in the life of every human being, it follows that the human mind is a system of mechanism."
"The mind is very subtle in its operations."
“All relations terminate in simple ideas.”
-- "Book Reviews III: Rousseau, Descartes, Locke."



Saturday, May 4, 2024

The Iliad, by Homer:
1. "Athena! If you ever stood by father...
Bring that man into range and let me spear him!
He's wounded me off guard and now he triumphs --
he boasts I won't look long on the light of day."
2. "Now take heart, Diomedes, fight it out with the Trojans!
Deep in your chest I've put your father's strength."
3. "So now if a god comes up to test your mettle,
you must not fight the immortal powers head-on."
3. Suggests that different people are built differently and thus can succeed different sports.
4. To be continued.
5. "He passed them on to Deipylus, a friend-in-arms
he prized beyond all comrades his own age--"
6. Suggests that you do not fight an opponent who is mismatched, but rather, you fight an opponent who is your equal.


Various Notes:
1. Many works of Russian literature suggest that a big person needs a big car, a big house, has a big appetite, etc.
2. In one of his works, Aristotle suggests separating people in a country based on similar interests.
3. Omitted.



Friday, May 3, 2024

The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "I've been talking aloud so many years, that I've got into the habit of talking, and so much so that it's almost more difficult for me to hold my tongue than to talk, even now."
2. Indicates that monks were a respected class in Russian society.
3. As they spoke, "Sometimes he broke off altogether, as though to take breath and recover his strength."
4. "The monk, as he related afterwards, approached in the utmost apprehension. It was rather late in the evening. Father Ferapont was sitting at the door of his cell on a low bench. A huge old elm was lightly rustling overhead.
'Do you want me to bow down to you, monk?' said Father Ferapont."
5. Suggests that the elders knew about the matters of the younger monks without them having to confess them.
6. Asks, when it is our time to face death, how do we want to spend our last days?
7. Omitted.
8. Omitted.
9. To be continued.



Thursday, May 2, 2024

Various Notes
1. Perdue chicken strips cooked for a little while in the frying pan, then taken out and mixed with chopped cucumber and chopped tomato, and a little bit of mayo, on bread, tastes great -- it's like chicken salad!
2. Tba.



Wednesday, May 1, 2024

The Cossacks and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Cossacks
2. "Things that were neither thoughts, nor memories, nor dreams roamed about in his head -- fragments of all three."
3. "He was angry with Beletsky, and with himself, and yet against his will he inserted French phrases into his conversation, took an interest in the commander-in-chief..."
4. Many of the characters in the story either own or ride horses.
5. "Olenin read, but did not take in anything of what was written in the book that lay open before him."
6. "They're all nonsense, all those things I thought before... Happiness is the only thing that matters: he who is happy is right."
7. Of a horse, "And its stride! How it runs!"
8. They sat down at the table. "Even in the shade the heat was unbearable."
9. "When Maryana had finished her dinner, she put out some more grass for the oxen, tucked her beshmet under her head and lay down under the ox cart."
10. "'He once said something to me, the lodger,' she said quietly, chewing on a blade of grass."
11. To be continued.


Poor Folk and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Introduction
2. "Dostoevsky began his literary career as a translator of French fiction...like the theater, French novels were extremely popular in the St Petersburg of the 1830s and 40s."
3. Briefly discusses Pushkin and Gogol.
4. Dostoevsky writes, "For several years I had been reading Belinsky with enthusiasm... 'he'll make a laughing-stock of my Poor Folk,' I sometimes used to think. I had written the work with passion, with tears, almost..."
5. To be continued.



Tuesday, April 30, 2024

The Cossacks and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Cossacks
2. Describes the Cossack people as a mountainous, or mountain-dwelling people.
3. "On leaving Yeroshka's, Lukashka called in at home. As he returned, a damp, dewy mist was rising from the ground and enveloping the settlement."
4. Suggests that pronunciation of a language is different for foreigners than it is for native speakers.
5. One of the characters indicates that a shaven head meant a Chechen.
6. "...and thus we can always do business together by stages, like all gentlemen."
7. The people of the Cossacks have unique rituals and customs.
8. "Again the old man told his endless stories of hunting, of Abreks...of a bold and carefree life."
9. "He felt cool, comfortable; there was nothing in his mind, he had no desires."
10. "The need for happiness has been placed in every human being; therefore it is lawful."

11. "He began to pray, fearing only one thing -- that he would die without ever having done anything kind or good; and he so much wanted to live."
12. "...but none of them shouted to him in reply, as army men would, 'We wish you health, yer honor!' -- and only one or two replied with a simple bow."
13. "The Cossack's eyes laughed as they looked at Olenin. It seemed he had understood everything that Olenin was trying to say to him, but was above such considerations."
14. "'Well, you've got the wrong man!' thought Lukashka. 'I have the horse, and so we'll see. I'm nobody's fool either. As for who can trick whom, we shall see!' he thought, sensing a need to be on his guard against Olenin..."
16. “In spite of such misgivings, this action aroused in them a great respect for Olenin’s simplicity and wealth."
17. Omitted.



Monday, April 29, 2024

The Cossacks and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Cossacks
2. "'Though I've done a lot of stupid things, I'm still a very, very fine young man,' he thought."
3. He meets a Circassian slave girl. “She was lovely, but she was uneducated, wild, coarse. In the long winter evenings he began to educate her."
4. "And the conquered territory that will give me more wealth than I’ll need for a whole lifetime?”
5. Olenin was impressed by the mountains and the sky. They made him think of the composer Bach. These thoughts were in contrast to his memories of Moscow, the city.
6. "In addition, the constant heavy male labor and and the cares entrusted to her hands have given the Grebensk woman a particularly independent, masculine character, and have wrought in her a remarkable development of physical strength, common sense, determination, and steadfastness."
7. In the Cossacks, a good deal of the people’s time is spent outdoors: hunting, fishing, collecting vegetables, chopping firewood, etc.
8. “'I’ll take a nap, we’ll sleep in short turns; you’ll sleep next, and I’ll sit; that’s the way to do it.'
'Thanks, but I don't feel like sleeping,' replied Lukashka."
9. “No one made any reply, and again the angel of silence flew above the Cossacks.”
10. “Arriving in the settlement, the Cossacks drank and then lay down to sleep until evening.”

11. Many of the characters tease each other, that is make fun of, or joke about one another.
12. “All his rested limbs exuded tranquility and strength. His state of mind also felt fresh and clear.”
13. “‘Oh, they’re just teasing an old man. It doesn’t matter. Let them have their fun,’ he said.”
14. “Don’t try to bully me, Lukashka, but listen to what I have to say. Yes, I know I'm just a girl, but you listen to me."
15. “‘Love me as you are,’ said Lukashka, suddenly changing from being angry to once again being calm."
16. To be continued.
17. "He stood and spoke quietly, in a measured way; but in his slow and measured movements there was more strength and animation than in all of Nazarka's chatter and bustle."
18. "Or they drink themselves silly; and drink not like men but like I don't know what. But who was I? I was Yeroshka the thief..."
19. "'And how old are you?'
'God knows! About seventy.'
'You must be. But you're still in fine shape.'
'Well, I thank God that I'm healthy, quite healthy...'"
20. Brifely discusses "the slender trees" in the settlement.

21. "What people, what a life!"
22. “That’s how real men behave, not like nowadays.”
23. One of the men is eating seeds and spitting out the shells.
24. Briefly discusses razryv-trava, or the lovebreak-herb, traditionally placed under the head of one's bed to stimulate prophetic dreams. Magical herbs have a history in Slavic culture.
25. "Times are different now, you're not the Cossack men you were, you've turned to rubbish!"



Sunday, April 28, 2024

The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Short Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Death of Ivan Ilyich
2. A shocking act occurred. "The act brought Ivan Ilyich to his senses."
3. "He was thinking of so many ideas, that he could hardly make sense of anything."
4. "'For Christ's sake, let me die in peace!' he said."
5. "What if I really have been wrong in the way I've lived my whole life, my conscious life?"
6. The end.
7. The Forged Coupon
8. "From the same drawer he took some Russian cigarette papers with their cardboard holders, stuffed a quantity of tobacco into one of them using a piece of cotton wool and started to smoke."
9. “‘Master, be sure your sins will find you out. One day we all must die,’ said Ivan Mironov.
'What's the matter with him? You must be dreaming.'"
10. One of the characters proceeds to explain his philosophy on life.

11. "It's common knowledge they're a stupid lot. Uneducated. Don't you worry, sir, I know what to say to the likes of him."
12. All because of Ivan's decision to forge a coupon, he goes on a whole chain of events and experiences: he winds up in jail, gets released and then goes to a new town to live, meets different people along the way, etc.
13. The end.
14. To be continued.

The Cossacks and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Introduction
2. "The three works in this volume all relate to the years 1851-5 which Tolstoy spent soldiering in the Caucasus and the Crimea."
3. "The Caucasus with its majestic mountain scenery and exotic peoples stirred Tolstoy as it had earlier writers, such as Pushkin and Lermontov."
4. "War with the Turks, which began in 1853, led Tolstoy, now an artillery officer...to the Danube front..."
5. "The Russian soldier is a calm, efficient soldier, unique for his skill."
6. "Yeroshka has a deep respect for life in all its forms."
7. "Each of them illustrates an aspect of Cossack life; together they provide a composite picture of the integrity and self-sufficiency of their community."
8. "In the December sketch he portrays them as heroes, united by their common Russian nature and determination to serve their country. In the May sketch he concerns himself with the psychology of war and examines the feelings, motives and conduct of the individuals involved."
9. "Despite the pain of defeat after so much suffering and sacrifice, the retreating troops who turn and shake their fists in defiance at the enemy suggest Tolstoy's continuing faith in the strength of the heroes of 'Sevastopol in December' -- the Russian people."
10. "Most striking is his understanding of his fellow men: like Yeroshka in The Cossacks, Tolstoy is aware of the common humanity in man as well as of the features which make him an individual."

11. The Cossacks
12. "Everything has grown quiet in Moscow. At rare, rare intervals the squeak of wheels is heard somewhere along the winter street...The streets are empty."
13. To be continued.

Various Notes
1. One Russian author who I've recently read, briefly discusses life on a farmstead.
2. Tba.



Saturday, April 27, 2024

The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Short Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. The Death of Ivan Ilyich
2. "After two years working in the new town Ivan Ilyich met his future wife. Praskovya Fyodorovna Mikhel was the most attractive, intelligent, and colorful young lady in the social circle frequented by Ivan Ilyich."
3. "Praskovya listened to all of this, pretending to believe it and not querying anything, but her real interest was only in sketching out the new way of life that they would lead in the city to which they were moving."
4. Where he was working with coworkers, the relationships had to be strictly official. Discusses friendly human relations. “At the point where an official relationship breaks off, everything else breaks off too."
5. "Personal relationships can interfere with business in the workplace."
6. "After dinner, if there were no guests, Ivan Ilyich sometimes read a book that people were talking about, and later in the evening he sat down to do some work, reading through papers, studying the law, comparing depositions and sorting them by statute. This neither bored nor amused him."
7. "There were more and more quarrels between husband and wife, the pleasant, easy-going way of life lapsed, and they were hard put to keep up an appearance of decency."
8. Ivan Ilyich went to see a doctor. "He was made to wait, the doctor was full of his own importance -- an attitude he was familiar with because it was one that he himself assumed in court..."
9. "Just place yourself in our hands and we'll sort it out, we know what we're doing, there's no doubt about it, we can sort things out the same way as we could for anyone you care to name."
10. "The doctor was holding forth...As far as Ivan Ilyich was concerned there was only one question that mattered: Is this condition life threatening or not?"

11. "And after this, however hard Ivan Ilyich tried to raise the subject of his appearance, his brother-in-law wouldn't say a word."
12. He was recovering from an illness. "'Yes, that's how it goes,' he said to himself. 'All you have to do is give nature a helping hand.'"
13. "'Can I get you some tea, sir?'
'He likes good order. The masters must have their tea in the morning,' he thought, but all he said was, 'No.'"
14. To be continued.


The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. In a relationship, in comparison, ask yourself, “Am I really worse than other men?”
2. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. Many of the books I've read, illustrate the difference between speaking generally, and going into detail.
2. "Some people just know how to lie, they know how to lie about just about anything." --Henrik Ibsen
3. Campbell's Chunky Old Bay Seasoned, Manhattan or New England Clam Chowder mixed with an extra can (or two) of chopped clams tastes great! Campbell's Chunky Old Bay Seasoned Clam Chowder, is like a stew, or a "bouillabaisse with fragrant peppercorns and bay leaves." - Anton Chekhov.



Friday, April 26, 2024

The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Short Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Polikushka
2. Examines the contrast between “dirty money,” or money gained by evil means — “the devil’s money,” and money that makes people happy.
3. The Death of Ivan Ilyich
4. “I must apply to have my brother-in-law transferred from Kaluga. My wife will be delighted. She won’t be able to tell me I never do anything for her people."
5. “Pyotr Ivanovich heard that she had made detailed enquiries about the cost of various plots of land before settling on the one she wanted.”
6. "Ivan Ilyich’s transfer to a new town meant meeting new people and making new contacts; he also struck a new attitude, and slightly changed his tone."
7. “For no reason that Ivan Ilyich could fathom, his wife began to disrupt the pleasant and decent run of his life. She became jealous of him for no apparent cause, demanded his closest attention…"



Thursday, April 25, 2024

The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Short Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Polikushka
2. "Others -- the majority -- considered him a bad man but a great master of his trade."
3. "A pair of rubber boots would be a good investment."
4. "Aksyuta... instead of bending her arms she swung them, not at her sides but out in front of her body, like two pendulums keeping time with her running speed."
5. "Tinklin' away she were, tinklin' away while she got it right. What a treat! Mind you, I could've played, you know."
6. The children in the town played a game like tag, of hawk-and-chickens.
7. "This is a Christian village, not somewhere where they listen to a ranting drunk."
8. "It's obvious, isn't it? This is what you get for being honest."
9. "...by the yellow-green jacket which functioned in her family as blanket, coat, hood, carpet, overcoat, and many other things as well."
10. "Despite everything, though, Polikey was thinking pleasant thoughts."
11. "No tavern or shop, nothing could tempt him."
12. "Dutlov walked over, and lay down. Another peasant went out to sleep with the horses."
13. To be continued.


Various Notes:
1. "It is important to remain calm at all times."
2. "It is important to use calm language at all times."
3. I cleaned up the layout for Food Ideas (below).
4. Updated, Favorite Notes, Item II., 11 - 14.
5. I combined two pages and created "Notes about Psychiatry and Law."



Wednesday, April 24, 2024

The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Short Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Introduction
2. There was a giant in Leo Tolstoy's family. Tolstoy himself was also a large man. "He could lift 180lb (82 kilos) with one hand -- a large ego, a colossal appetite for life and learning, along with a formidable intellect. He was also recognized across the globe as a titan of moral and spiritual leadership."
3. Collected Works, by Tolstoy, ran to ninety volumes.
4. For Leo Tolstoy, the only scale was gargantuan.
5. Tolstoy was concerned with "the improvement of our lives."
6. Tolstoy lost four close family members to death, by the time he was thirteen.
7. "...her husband had been fiddling around with second-rate works of philosophy, morality, and religion that no one wanted to read."
8. "Ordinariness is the currency Tolstoy chooses to deal in, the ordinary."
9. "...the French writer Guy de Maupassant, before he died, is reported to have signed off with these unhappy words: 'I realize that everything I have done was to no purpose and that my ten volumes are worthless.'"
10. To be continued.
11. "'The Death of Ivan Ilyich' is an object lesson in style, construction and the sensitive use of language.
12. "Terrible contrasts are examined: sickness versus health, for example."
13. Omitted.
14. "Three Deaths," has very little purpose other than to tell us how to die: stay close to nature and the dying will be easy. Additionally, an education can help us face death bravely.
15. Examine the difference between masses of soldiers who die, and two young civilians who die.
16. Omitted.
17. "After the Ball," is considered by some as one of the very greatest things Tolstoy ever wrote. Its power is drawn from the shocking contrast between two opposite personalities displayed by an elderly colonel, seen first at a ball dancing serenely with his daughter and charming the company..."
18. "The sad truth is that, throughout his life, Tolstoy wanted to tell us all how we should conduct our lives, how we should love other people as a first priority, and how we should learn to die well. But the only way to do any of this would be to treat his life story like one of his cautionary tales, as an object lesson in how not to love and how not to prepare for death."
19. The Raid - "Well, please allow me to ignore your advice. I've been waiting here a whole month just for the chance of seeing some action and you want me to miss it!"
20. "If you really want to know what battles are like, read Mikhaylovsky-Danilevsky's Description of War -- it's a fine book and you'll find what you want there, where each corps was positioned, how battles are fought."

21. "However silly I felt at the captain's misinterpretation of my motives I did not start arguing with him."
22. "The old lady was absolutely delighted that I would be seeing her Pashenka (her pet name for the elderly, grey-haired captain)."
23. "After treating me to some excellent pie and smoked duck, she went away."
24. "He had been severely wounded in the Caucasus but, needless to say, had not written one word to his mother either about wounds or campaigns."
25. "'So let him wear his holy image now,' she continued. 'My blessing goes with it. May the Holy Mother of God protect him! Especially in battles -- that's when he must never forget to wear it.'"
26. "The captain lived frugally...and he smoked very cheap tobacco which, for some reason, he was too proud to call shag, giving it some obscure brand name instead. I had taken to the captain from the start: he had one of those simple, calm Russian faces that are easy to look straight in the eye."
27. "Although the good captain's appearance had nothing particularly martial or handsome about it, it expressed such equanimity towards everything around it that it could only inspire respect."
28. "The road ran along a deep and wide ravine by the side of a small stream in full spate. Flocks of wild pigeons circled over it, settling on its rocky banks or turning, swiftly wheeling and disappearing from sight."
29. "The other side of the ravine and the valley, were damp and gloomy and presented an elusive medley of colors -- pale lilac, shades of black, dark green and white. Directly in front of us rose the dazzling white masses of snowy mountains..."
30. "The air smelled of water, grass, mist -- all the scents of a beautiful early summer's morning. The captain struck a flint and lit his pipe. I found the smell of his cheap tobacco and tinder extremely pleasant."

31. "The captain seemed more pensive than usual, never took his Daghestan pipe from his mouth and at every step prodded his little horse with his heels."
32. Omitted.
33. The captain was a stern gentleman.
34. "The infantry, rifles and kitbags on their backs, slowly marched along the dusty road. Now and then their laughter and the sound of Ukranian could be heard in their ranks. A few old campaigners in white tunics -- mostly non-commissioned officers -- were walking by the roadside smoking their pipes and in solemn conversation."
35. Introduces us to another officer. "He was one of those young, daredevil officers who model themselves on Marlinsky's or Lermontov's heroes."
36. Briefly discusses A Hero of Our Time, by Mikhail Lermontov.
37. One of the things that the soldier carried was a large icon (pendant) which hung around his neck.
38. "Filled with curiosity, I listened to the soldiers' and officers' conversations and closely studied their expressions. But I could find absolutely no trace in any of them of the nervousness I was feeling..."
39. "I shall not say what I was thinking about then, firstly because I am too ashamed to admit to the succession of gloomy thoughts that kept nagging at me... and secondly because they would be quite irrelevant to my narrative."
40. "Most of the sky was overcast... The air was so warm and still that not one blade of grass, not one cloud moved. It was so dark that it was impossible to make out even the closest objects..."

41. "In war, it's best to be serious and stern."
42. "The whole village came alive. All of the townspeople were doing their duties."
43. "The captain sat on the roof of a hut smoking his cheap tobacco and sending streams of smoke from his short pipe with such a casual air that when I saw him I forgot that I was in an enemy village and felt quite at home."
44. Omitted.
45. "I saw a soldier killed by an enemy cannon ball. But why go into detail over a terrible scene I would give anything to forget?"
46. "'We'll beat them back,' he said convincingly.
'It's not necessary,' the captain replied softly. 'What we must do is retreat.'"
47. "Physical skill is only one element of military life."
48. "The wounded man looked round and a sad smile passed over his pale face.
The doctor then, rolled up his sleeves and went over to the ensign with an encouraging smile.
'Well, it seems they've given you a hole where you didn't have one before!' he said in a light-hearted, jocular tone."
49. The Woodfelling
50. "When I went to the fire to light a cigarette, Velenchuk...pulled a burning coal from the heart of the fire in a fit of zeal, with his bare hand, tossed it a couple times from one hand to the other then let it fall to the ground... I finally managed to light my cigarette with out the asistance of Velenchuk, who was again attempting to pick out a live coal. He then rubbed his burnt fingers on the flaps of his sheepskin coat and, most probably for want of something to do, lifted a huge piece of plane-tree wood and with a mighty swing hurled in on to the fire."

51. "'Man, I've forgotten my pipe. What a nuisance, lads!' Velenchuk repeated.
'Then you should smoke cigars, old chap,' Chikin said, twisting his mouth and winking. 'When I'm at home I always smoke cigars -- they're sweeter!'"
52. "There they are, twisting away and you can't stop laughing -- yes, you laugh yourself to death, you do!"
53. "Kirsanov was a shortish, stout man with a black moustache...when he laughed all that remained of his eyes were two moist little stars. Kirsanov behaved and bore himself better than anyone else in the regiment...although he was thought to be very dense. He knew the army, was industrious, diligent..."
54. Another soldier, "would bow, sit in one corner without saying a word for several hours, roll cigarettes and smoke them, after which he would get up, bow and leave."
55. "The guns were going off: Ta-ta-ta-ta! Pop-pop-pop-pop!"
56. To be continued.
57. "So, you see, death didn't call on him for nothing this morning when I had to wake him up..."
58. Three Deaths
59. "It's sad, it's hard to bear, but what can you do?"
60. "'Not jealous, are you?' Sergey replied, half-rising and tucking the bottom of his coat round his legs."

61. "'Throat giving you trouble, with all that coughing?'
'It all hurts. Time for me to die -- and that's it...' moaned the sick man."
62. "It was now spring. In little fenced-off gardens the buds had begun to swell on the trees, and you could just catch the murmur of branches rocking in the breeze...Sparrows squawked and twittered amidst a fluttering of tiny wings."
63. "'...inside, the lady who had been rushing to travel abroad lay dying.'
'The sick lady's husband and an elderly woman stood by the closed doors of her room. On the sofa sat a priest with downcast eyes...In one corner an old woman reclined in a high-backed armchair -- the sick lady's mother -- weeping bitter tears.'"
64. Sometimes, birds chirp, or sing, from trees, or bushes.
65. To be continued.


The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "Alyosha knew that she lived with two aunts. One of them, a woman of little education, was that aunt of her half-sister Agafya Ivanovna who had looked after her in her father's house when she came from boarding-school."
2. "For his opinion had struck him as awfully foolish immediately after he had uttered it. He felt ashamed too of having given so confident an opinion about a woman."
3. "'I've only been waiting behind the curtain for you to call me,' said a soft, one might say sugary, feminine voice.
The portiere was raised and Grushenka herself, smiling and beaming, came up to the table."
4. "No, she really was fascinated by Grushenka, that's to say, not by Grushenka, but by her own dream, her own delusion-- because it was her dream, her delusion!"
5. To be continued.


Various Notes:
1. Beginning with No. 57, updated, notes about today's Tolstoy reading. 8:00pm.
2. Tba.



Tuesday, April 23, 2024

The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "You worthless, puny weakling."
2. "Everything you touch, you defile."
3. "Why are you looking at me? Why do you look like that?... You ugly drunkard!"
4. "To my mind there are no ugly women."


The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy:
1. Introduction
2. Tolstoy attempted to create new definitions of old ideas.
3. In his diary, Tolstoy indicates that there is no love, only physical desire and "the demand of reason for a life partner."
4. "Love involves several dimensions."
5. Omitted.
6. "Being in love must yield to other forces."
7. Omitted.
8. Family Happiness
9. One of the characters listens to obscure, little-known, unpopular classical music.
10. “I don’t look like the average American, I don’t look like the typical American, but I am a good American nonetheless.”

11. "We want a partner who is on our level."
12. "Reading a book over and over again is like listening to a good piece of music over and over again."
13. Omitted.
14. "Two people in a relationship are supposed to be happy together."
15. "It can be rewarding to think about reasons why you’re happy. This expression of thankfulness is like giving thanks to God in prayer.
16. Omitted.
17. Omitted.
18. “When we spoke, it was as though we were alone in the whole world.”
19. "There is a special, unique effect "when 'we' hang out, that can not be duplicated with anyone else."
20. A house, "one of those old country houses in which several generations of kindred have lived their lives."

21. "...the maid who with folded hands reported that Tatyana Semyonovna wished to know how I had slept after my walk yesterday..."
22. "After tea maman played patience or listened to Marya Minichna's fortune-telling...then she made the sign of the cross over us, and we went off..."
23. Eventhough the couple was uncomfortable living there, neither of them ever let it show that anything displeased them.
24. "His perpetual calmness impressed me."
25. "We are supposed to govern feeling, not have feeling govern us."
26. Omitted.
27. "I know, you’re right. You’d do better not to say anything, you’re right.”
28. “Sometimes, people are guilty of ‘talking nonsense.’”
29. “Like when the whole world revolves around your friend. The waiter in the restaurant serves him first. They get the special seat in the movie theater. They get treated with preference the entire day.”
30. “Like in the ball, or party, when everyone’s eyes turn toward him.”
31. To be continued.


The Iliad, by Homer:
1. "The elderly should teach, and give spoken orders, and let the younger generation use their strength."
2. "Leaders should keep their word, and not break agreements. This displays courage and honesty."
3. Omitted.
4. "Fools. Their own bravado killed them."
5. "...and not one cry, no common voice to bind them."
6. "So now if a god comes up to test your mettle
you must not fight the immortal powers head-on."



Various Notes
1. "...just to write a series of connecting loops, as though you were writing in script -- a 'fake script.'"
Added to "Write with Both Hands" page.
2. I reposted several notes from The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy.
3. I edited Favorite Notes and Favorite Notes 2, and moved Food Ideas to the bottom of the page.
4. Omitted.



Monday, April 22, 2024


The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "What a saint he was! I will remember him...and I will pray for your husband's health."
2. The narrator emphasises the importance of being good in life, of going to church, and praying to God.
3. "No wounds, no festering sore could at that moment frighten me. I would bind them up and wash them with my own hands. I would nurse the afflicted. I would be ready to kiss such wounds."
4. "And if the patient whose wounds you are washing did not meet you with gratitude, but worried you with whims, without valuing or remarking your charitable services...what then?"
5. "I am a hired servant, I expect my payment at once--that is, praise, and the repayment of love with love. Otherwise I am incapable of loving any one."
6. In one scene, one of the characters said every word in a sing-song voice.
7. Two of the characters get into a discussion about separation of church and state, then one of the men indicates that one shouldn’t go against the church.
8. "...the Church ought to be transformed into the State...making way for science, for the spirit of the age, and civilization."
9. Reminds us that many churches accept all peoples.
10. One of the men argues that if society was not so state oriented, and was more oriented towards the church, then people would not face such severe punishments as they do in criminal law cases.

11. Suggests that you examine the major world religions.
12. “…the state is eliminated and the church is raised to the position of the state.”
13. Chapter 6 - Why Is Such a Man Alive?
14. Reminds us of the religious saying, "Love thy neighbor."
15. "But thank the Creator who has given you a lofty heart capable of such suffering; of thinking and seeking higher things, for our dwelling is in the heavens. God grant that your heart will attain the answer on earth, and may God bless your path."
16. "After such an escapade how can I go to dinner, to gobble up the monastery's sauces. I am ashamed, I can't."
17. To be continued.
18. "Alyosha believed that impicitly. But how could he be left without him? How could he live without seeing and hearing him? Where should he go? [What should he do?]"
19. The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky is also available for free, online. You can follow along with the reading, review previous passages, or jump ahead in the novel.
20. "But the truth is not to be found in eating gudgeon and that I proclaim aloud! Father monks, why do you fast! Why do you expect a reward in heaven for that?"

21. To be continued.
22. “Marfa Ignatyevna was by no means foolish; she was probably, indeed, cleverer than her husband, or, at least, more prudent than he in worldly affairs…”
23. “It was almost a morbid condition. Corrupt and often cruel, like some noxious insect.”
24. "Beauty is a terrible and awful thing! The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible.”
25. Reminds us that often, cycles end, then begin again.
26. “I have often been friendly with women quite innocently. I used to talk to her with shocking frankness, and she only laughed.”
27. Briefly discusses the concept of self-incrimination.
28. Briefly mentions fish patties and fish soup.
29. Briefly discusses Smaragdov's Universal History.


Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Tba.



Sunday, April 21, 2024

The Three Musketeers, by Alexander Dumas:
1. In one passage, the narrator indicates that the nobleman was surrounded by a large group of attorneys, bankers, and soldiers.
2. In one passage, one of the musketeers says, “If the worst case scenario presents itself, then I am willing to surrender my sword in order to preserve the safety of the group."
3. In one scene, indicates that the queen was surrounded by several of her ladies, Madame de Guitaut, Madame de Sable, Madame de Monthazon…who were entertaining the queen.
4. The queen and her ladies were deciding what they were going to do. The queen gets money from the king to pay for her expenses.


The Iliad, by Homer:
1. One of the soldiers in the story was a man who "had fought to exhaustion."
2. A son of Iphiclus, son of Phylacus, was “rich in flocks.”
3. “But their captain lay on an island…where the armies had marooned him.”
4. “Both men armed at opposing sides of the forces
into the no man’s land between the lines they strode…"
5. “Hurl your challenge at Menelaus dear to Ares
fight it out together, man-to-man again.”
6. To be continued.


The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "...Dmitri's major question concerns ethics. 'What is ethics?' he asks, and what is the right thing for me to do?"
2. Some question Dostoevsky poses include: What is human happiness? Is there a God? When does one forgive?
3. One of the characters in the novel has a wife, who he sometimes argues with. The wife is always dominant in their arguments.
4. Of the husband, “...he was even glad of a new comic part in which to play the buffoon.”
5. “You can easily imagine what a father such a man could be and how he would bring up his children. His behavior as a father was exactly what might be expected. He completely abandoned the child of his marriage, not from malice, nor because of his matrimonial grievances, but simply because he forgot him.”
6. “Fyodor Pavlovitch was all his life fond of acting, of suddenly playing an unexpected part, sometimes without any motive for doing so, and even to his own direct disadvantage, as, for instance, in the present case.”
7. Omitted.
8. Of one childhood memory, writes, “he rarely cared to speak of this memory to anyone.”
9. Apparently, there is a connection to Hinduism and Russian religion.
10. Introduces readers to a student. "He was thoughtful and absent-minded. There was a strange fixity in his gaze at times. Like all very absent-minded people he would sometimes stare at a person without seeing him.”

11. “So there are loopholes, after all, to creep out of the hermitage…”
12. “‘Now, I know myself, I am annoyed, I shall lose my temper and begin to quarrel—and lower myself and my ideas,’ he reflected.”
13. "Near it were two other holy pictures in shining settings, and, next them, carved cherubims…engravings from the great Italian artists of past centuries…Russian prints of saints aand martyrs…portraits of Russian bishops, past and present."
14. “At the first moment he did not like Zossima. There was indeed, something in the elder's face which many people besides Musov might not have liked.”
15. “The minute I see my joke isn’t coming off, both my cheeks feel as though they were drawn down to the lower jaw and there is almost a spasm in them.”
16. Refers to the philosopher Denis Diderot.
17. Briefly discusses the Lives of the Saints.
18. To be continued.


Various Notes
1. "There was a gentleman, an elderly man, and a young woman. This gentleman loved the young woman as he would a daughter, and treated her as such."
2. Tba.



Saturday, April 20, 2024

King Lear of the Steppes, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. The giant had an enmity with a small person who lived nearby.
2. Suggests that one of the characters is a small person, who just eats moderate-sized meals.
3. “Just you go on being the big bully!…you go on being the bully-boy!"
4. At one point, the little dog ran under the table in fright.
5. “There are your daughters, Vladimir, making as much fun of you as they like in your very own house and home!”
6. One of the young girls, Yevlampia, says, “Forget the past. You can trust me now.”
7. "The speaker fell silent, we chatted for a while and then went our separate ways."
8. The end.


Asya, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. The story begins with the narrator indicating that he intends to travel to see the world. During his travels, he encounters different people, and it is people who interest him, their faces, their mannerisms, etc. he is not interested in monuments or buildings, but rather, is interested in people.
2. The narrator indicates that some of the people are smiling, and some of the people are not.
3. At one point, when some music was played, the narrator writes, "I felt all the strings of my heart quiver in response to its enticing melody."
4. In one passage, the narrator indicates that one of the characters was "as fresh-looking as the morning."
5. "The tenor of my thinking seemed exactly suited to the tranquil nature of that region."
6. "One has to know her well in order to pass judgement on her...you wouldn't blame her if you knew her background."
8. To be continued.
9. "No, what Asya needs is a hero...Look, I've been talking too much and holding you up," he added, getting to his feet.
10. Indicates the importance, in certain settings, of being serious.
11. "The expression on his face was very entertaining, but I was not in the mood for laughter."
12. "'One can't play with fire'-- Gagin's words, like arrows, buried themselves in my soul."

13. "Wrapped in a long shawl, she was hidden in a chair beside the window, her head turned away and almost hidden, like a frightened bird...I went up to her. She turned her head still further from me..."
14. "She suddenly straightened up, and tried to look at me--and couldn't."
15. "There was a slight rustling sound, like a sigh cut short, and I felt on my hair the touch of a feeble hand quivering like a leaf."
16. To be continued.
17. “She still can’t forget the moment when they dressed her in a silk dress for the first time and kissed her hand.”
18. Omitted.



The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
1. "The Brothers Karamazov is an encounter with passion. For Dostoevsky the passions are the most mysterious dimension of the human being, and, therefore, this is the dimension that obsesses and compels him."
2. "Dostoevsky persists in pointing to an impassable joy as well as a blocked darkness and muteness at the core of our being."
3. "At these moments, Dostoevsky attempts to answer what he calls the eternal questions: What is heaven and what is hell? What pleasure or pain do these grand original metaphors represent within the psychic human domain?...What could give Ivan those two seconds of senseless, useless, speechless joy that he so desperately desires and for which he would give a 'quadrillion quadrillions'?"
4. "Parricide and regicide are motivated by a desire to destroy something foundational -- all law, representation, and order, or the fundamental gift of the father that makes these possible: language...Rather than submit to the law that demands giving an account, narrating, speaking, and being judged by others, Smerdyakov escapes by suicide. He returns to the solitude of his languageless body."
5. Should one punish or forgive? Should one impose law or give way to loving trust, charity, and hope?
6. Dostoevsky’s characters are all rebellious against something.
7. Of Ivan, “his is the vision of a godless and masterless society where all would be equal, though he understands that godlessness would also mean lawlessness.”
8. In the novel, “no answer or resolution is ever imposed.”
9. “Dmitri’s body governs his mind.”
10. “Against all of them Zossima preaches the doctrine of responsibility to one’s fellow man.”
11. Suggests that even if you do not have someone to love, try to follow the teachings of Christianity, and take care of yourself.



Friday, April 19, 2024

First Love and other Stories, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. "I didn’t ask myself when and how it had all happened. I didn’t feel surprised at not having guessed the truth for so long and I didn’t even blame my father. What I had learned was too much for me. The unexpected revelation had crushed me."
2. "We returned to town. I didn’t quickly throw off the past and I didn’t quickly start my studying again. My wound was slow to heal."
3. The narrator’s father has a horse named Electric.
4. “An unpleasant rawness rose from the river."
5. “Let psychologists explain this contradiction as best they can.”
6. To be continued.
7. Zinaida was upset. She was saying words of only one syllable.
8. Suggests that we let some things disappear like snow in the heat of the sun, disappear in the wind.
9. “Oh, the things I could have done if only I hadn’t wasted my time.”
10. “But I am not being fair to myself.”
11. The narrator was present, at the death of a poor old woman who lived with them in the same house. Covered in rags, she was dying painfully and with difficulty. Her whole life had been one of bitter struggle…
12. The end.

King Lear of the Steppes, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. Introduces readers to Harlov, a tall, big man who, when he was home, had to be cautious not to knock things over and break them.
2. Indicates that Harlov descended from a line of Russian royalty.
3. The giant, “had great faith in himself and feared no man. ‘What can they do to me? Where is there a man on this earth who can?’ he used to ask and suddenly burst out laughing with a short but deafening guffaw.”
4. “Due to his size Harlov hardly went anywhere on foot: the ground wouldn’t bear his weight.”
5. “Besides, as a man he was completely straight, sought no one’s favor, was not in debt and did not drink — and he was no fool, though he’d received no education.”
6. He had a very healthy appetite.
7. Harlov, the colossus, also possessed a thunderous voice.
8. “I gazed at him in silence and could scarcely marvel enough at the mountainous size of the man.”
9. We are introduced to Anna Martinova, Harlov’s eldest daughter, who has a slight temper.
10. “Martin Petrovich’s face, when he lumbered into the room, and instantly sank down into a chair beside the door, had such an unusual expression…that my mother repeated her exclamation aloud and despite herself.”

11. “…that’s a bad sign. It’s a sign he has a weight on his heart and unhappiness…”
12. The group go for a trip, in a large four-seat family carriage drawn by six horses. Harlov’s mother had given the suggestion for this extraordinary vehicle to be used.
13. Omitted.
14. The group go to a court proceeding, and the superintendent asks, “Do you know of any just impediments?”
15. One of the characters turns down the corner of a page in a book as a makeshift bookmark.
16. Briefly discusses a horse, poor creature, whose ribs were almost breaking through the skin, and whose sides were sweating.
17. The giant writes only in large letters.
18. "Such silence dwelt everywhere that at a hundred paces one could hear a squirrel bounding through the dry leaves or catch the sound of a broken twig as it caught in other branches and fell at last into the soft grass…"
19. To be continued.



Thursday, April 18, 2024

First Love and other Stories, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. "I didn’t feel happy and had left home…but youth, the beautiful weather, the fresh air, had got the better of me…"
2. Omitted.
3. “…there was not the slightest sound anywhere; everything was sound asleep; even our dog was fast asleep, curled up by the gate.”


Various Notes:
1. "There are just too many inaccuracies, so I don't believe those old stories. And it is clear that they were based on lies."
Added to the paper "Why I Don't Believe the Story About the Slave Trade..."
2. In Ward No. Six: A Novella, by Anton Chekhov, one of the questions Chekhov asks, is, "Should you treat someone with medication and therapy, and ignore philosophy and religion?"



Wednesday, April 17, 2024

First Love and other Stories, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. "Nobody restricted my freedom. I was able to do just what I wanted…"
2. "…my mother hardly paid any attention to me; she was consumed by other cares. My father, a man who was still young and very handsome, had married her for her money; she was ten years his senior."
3. Briefly discusses Schiller’s The Robbers.
4. Indicates that one couple often conversed in French.
5. "Zinaida paid no attention to me at all.”
6. Omitted.
7. "'Read me some poetry,' said Zinaida... 'I like it when you read poetry.'"
8. "Oh, you'll start arguing again about Romanticism and Classicism..."
9. "The next morning I got up early... and set off for a walk outside the town limits. I'll walk, I thought, and forget my sorrows. It was a beautiful day..."



Various Notes
1. Anton Chekhov reminds us that sometimes, medication makes people feel like they're going to faint.
Added to Notes about Psychiatry.
2. A cucumber and some lettuce go nicely with sliced tomatoes!
3. Edited: Notes about Psychiatry -- Item 4.



Tuesday, April 16, 2024

First Love and other Stories, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. Introduction
2. Turgenev suggests that we have to work at love and relationships, in order to make them work.
"'Love!' he went on. 'Everything is mysterious about it: how it comes, how it grows, how it goes."
3. The Diary of a Superfluous Man, by Anton Chekhov
4. "In the face of eternity, they say, all things are as nothing..."
5. “For a long time I couldn’t make myself say anything, because my heart was beating so strongly.”
6. “My perpetually strained smile, agonizing awareness of everything, stupid silence and fretful and vain desire to leave— all this was probably very remarkable of its kind.”
7. Indicates that he couldn’t sleep because he was too excited, too happy.
8. “‘Quiet, quiet,” he remarked. ‘Respectable people don’t shout.’”
9. “I’ll never find a better, truer friend. I’ll be your wife.”



Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Tba.



Monday, April 15, 2024

Fathers and Sons, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. "'Ectually I want to prove, my dear sir,' (whenever he grew angry Pavel Petrovich deliberately said 'ectually' and 'ectual,' although he knew only too well that they were incorrect. This quaint habit was a hangover from the Alexandrine epoch. Dandies in those days, on the rare occasions when they spoke Russian, used the terms 'ectually' and 'ectual' as much as to say that 'We native-born Russians though we are, are at the same time such grandees we're allowed to break school rules!') 'ectually I wanted to prove that..."
2. Many of the scenes in Fathers and Sons are deeply philosophical and reflective.
3. Two of the characters briefly discuss what it means to be a "real man."



Sunday, April 14, 2024

Fathers and Sons, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. "Really? Well, now I see why we've got on so well. You're the same as I am."
2. "You can't bring back the past, Anna Sergeevna..."
3. Briefly discusses The Friend of Health, “a newspaper for the medical profession published in St. Petersburg from 1833 to 1869."
4. “Just you take a look at how my little garden’s doing now! I planted every sapling myself. I’ve got fruit trees and berries and all kinds of medicinal herbs.”
5. Briefly discusses Paracelsus, Swiss physician and alchemist, "who advocated the use of specific treatments for particular illnesses 'through herbs, words, and minerals.’”
6. Briefly discusses a woman who believed in “folk remedies.”
7. One of the characters galloped off to obtain some “Circassian beef.”
8. To be continued.
9. "'In that case it'd be good to have a doze,' Arkady remarked.
'Maybe. Only don't you look at me. A person's face always looks silly when he's asleep.'"
10. "'Just let's say we'll be friends as we were before. That was a dream, wasn't it? And who remembers dreams?'
'Who remembers them?'"
11. "Live a long life, that's best of all, and enjoy it while there's time."


The Iliad, by Homer:
1. "...words, endless words--that is your passion, always,
...true, but they speak a thousand different tongues,"
2. "...miles east where the mother lode of silver came to birth."
3. "The minds of the younger men are always flighty,
but let an old man stand his ground among them,
one who can see the days behind, the days ahead--"
4. "That's Laertes' son, the great tactician Odysseus...
the man of twists and turns."


Various Notes:
1. Anton Chekhov indicates that daydreaming is fun, and that some people do not know how to daydream.
2. Anton Chekhov indicates that some questions, a person has to find the answers for himself.



Saturday, April 13, 2024

Fathers and Sons, by Ivan Turgenev:
1. His wife, "in short, lived her life to her heart's content."
2. "A bedraggled-looking cat, curled up foppishly against the railings, eyed it in an unfriendly way."
3. "A large grey dove flew down to the road and hurriedly set about drinking from a puddle beside the well."
4. "Nikolai Petrovich turned quickly round and...firmly squeezed his ungloved red hand, which the other had not immediately offered him."
5. "His chief subject is natural science. But he knows all sorts of things."
6. "But the latter did not move at all. He was a man of the old school who didn't share the latest ideas."
7. "How marevellous the air is here! What a wonderful scent it's got! It really does seem to me that nowhere in the world smells as good as here!"
8. "...but, firstly, I can't hide things and, secondly, you know that I've always had particular principles about the relationship between a father and a son."
9. "...the cows hungrily munched at the grass in ditches."
10. "He threw his greatcoat from him and looked at his father so happily, so like a small boy, that his father embraced him once again."

11. "Having done with the preliminary European 'shake hands', he kissed him in the Russian fashion three times, that is to say he brushed his cheeks three times with perfumed whiskers and said:
'Welcome home.'
12. "But your father's a splendid chap. He wastes his time reading poetry and he's hardly got any idea about running a farm, but he's a really good type."
13. "Pavel Petrovich...simply replaced the patent-leather shoes with red heelless Chinese slippers."
14. "I dissect the frog and have a look at what's going on inside it. Because you and I are just like frogs, 'cept we walk about on legs, I'll be able to find out what's going on inside us as well."
15. To be continued.
16. "We, men of another age, we suppose that without principes...' (Pavel Petrovich pronounced the word softly, the French way, while Arkady, by contrast, pronounced it 'principles' with the accent falling hard on the first syllable)..."
17. Briefly discusses German philosophers Schiller and Goethe.
18. "'Yes,' he declared without looking at anyone, 'it's a great misfortune to have spent five years of so in the country far removed from great minds! In a flash you become a perfect fool. You try not to forget what you've been taught and then--just like that!--it turns out everything you've been taught is nonsense and you're told sensible people don't concern themselves with such rubbishany more and that you're, so to speak, old hat."
19. "But Nikolai had the enduring consolation of a life well spent and a son who was growing up before his very eyes..."
20. Nikolai Petrovich "took up reading more and more in English and in general modelled his life on English tastes..."

21. "'His education?' queried Bazarov. 'Each man's got to educate himself--well, as I do, for instance."
22. "And both friends went off to Bazarov's room, in which some kind of medicinal, surgical smell had already established itself along with the smell of cheap tobacco."
23. "In response to these words Pavel Petrovich would simply turn away, but he didn't spoil his brother's illusions."
24. "Nikolai Petrovich, like all longstanding country residents, engaged in looking after the sick and had even ordered homeopathic remedies to be sent to him."
25. Briefly discusses The Gypsies, by Alexander Pushkin, notable for the 'realistic' treatment of gypsy life and the dilemma of the Byronic hero Aleko.
26. "The human personality must be strong as a rock, because everything is built on it."
27. Omitted.
28. "Civilization is what's dear to us--yes, indeed, my good sir."
29. To be continued.
30. "On such occasions he would say: 'What one needs is energy.'"

31. "...Such forms of expression were quite familiar to him. He even followed--true, with a certain majestic casualness--the developments in contemporary literature..."
32. "'Do you dance?'
'I do dance, only badly.'"
33. Briefly discusses George Sand and Ralph Waldo Emerson.
34. "Earlier I used to spend my winters in Moscow...What's more, Moscow's now--oh, I don't know--it's not what it was."
35. "Evdoksiya rolled a cigarette with her nicotine-stained fingers...and lit up."
36. "At last a point was reached when Evdoksiya...set about singing in a hoarse voice some gypsy songs..."
37. "...from several of her remarks Arkady concluded that here was a young woman who had already managed to experience a great deal emotionally and mentally in her life."
38. "'Why don't you want to allow the idea of freedom of thought among women?' he asked under his breath."
39. “…Odintsova never for a moment took her crystal-clear eyes off him.”
40. “Time, sometimes flies like a bird, sometimes crawls like a worm.”

41. “Bazarov’s eyes glittered for an instant beneath his dark brows.”


Various Notes:
1. According to one of the books that I've read, birds sometimes eat carrion, or the decaying flesh of dead animals.
2. Omitted.
3. Much of the literature that I've read reminds us that music is an art, and that some music is slow, and some music is fast. Take the blues, classical music, or pop music, or the styles of different musicians, for example.



Friday, April 12, 2024

Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. Brimming with emotion, she watched them. The presence of angels is a herald of paradise.
2. There are certain natures that cannot have love on one side without hatred on the other.
3. Introduces readers to a gentleman who “had extracted a fortune for himself and a fortune for the whole region.”
4. Despite this, emphasizes the importance of feeding the poor and investing in education.
5. Suggests that this businessman might be corrupt.
6. Indicates that this businessman brought so much prosperity to the area, that the king appointed him mayor of the city.
7. “Nevertheless he remained as simple as at first. He had gray hair, a serious eye, the tanned complexion of a laborer, and the thoughtful expression of a philosopher."
8. "He usually wore a hat with a wide brim, and a long coat of coarse cloth, buttoned to the chin.”
9. ”He fulfilled his duties as mayor but beyond that his life was solitary. He talked with very few.”
10. “He loved books; books are cold but sure friends. As his growing fortune gave him more leisure, it seemed that he took advantage of it to cultivate his mind.”
11. “…it was noted that from year to year his language became more polished, more carefully chosen, and gentler.”
12. “With his eyes raised to heaven, he listened with a sort of longing toward all the mysteries of the infinite, to the sad voices that sing on the brink of death’s dark abyss.”
13. “He did a multitude of good deeds…”
14. “He was good-natured and sad. The people used to say, “There is a rich man who does not show pride. There is a fortunate man who doesn’t seem self-satisfied.”
15. “Introduces us to a gentleman named Javert”
16. “From some words Javert had let drop, it was guessed that he had secretly hunted up, with that curiosity belonging to…all traces of his previous life that Father Madeleine had left elsewhere.”
17. Briefly discusses how much Fantine receives for her day’s work.
18. "There is in all small towns…a set of young men…They are beings... parasites, nobodies who have a little land, a little folly, and a little wit, who would be clowns in a drawing room…hunt, smoke, gawk, drink, take snuff…"
19. To be continued.
20. She touched the unfortunate with charming fingers, delicate and pure... she said just what was necessary, and she had a tone of voice that would have both edified a confessional and enchanted a drawing room.
21. These two thoughts were so closely associated in his mind that they fused into one: both were equally absorbing and imperious and rules his smallest actions. Ordinarily they harmonized in regulating the conduct of his life; they turned him toward the dark side of life; they made him benevolent and simple-hearted...
22. For the rest of the day he was in this state, tempest within, perfect calm without; he took only what might be called precautionary measures.


The Iliad, by Homer:
1. Introduction - The poem, in other words, is some 2,700 years old.
2. Briefly discusses Milton and Shakespeare.
3. Suggests that we can create our own crude script handwriting, containing complicated shapes.
4. Omitted.
5. "The most likely date for the composition of the Iliad is the fifty years running from 725 to 675 b.c."
6. "The Iliad is a poem that lives and moves and has its being in war..."
7. "The gods are immortal; they are not subject to time. They have all the time in the world. And so they are not subject to change, to the change brought by age, to the change brought by learning and suffering and a realization of limitations."
8. "And shattered with anger, the old man withdrew
but Apollo heard his prayer--he loved him, deeply--"
9. "How can you sleep all night, a man weighed down with duties?"
10. "No, don't give up now. Range the Achaean ranks,
with your winning words hold back each man you find--
don't let them haul their rolling ships to sea!"

11. "Their morale was low but the men laughed now,
good hearty laughter breaking over Thersites' head--"


The Cook's Wedding, by Anton Chekhov:
1. GRISHA, a little urchin of seven, stood at the kitchen door with his eye at the keyhole, watching and listening. Something was taking place in the kitchen that seemed to him very strange and that he had never seen happen before. At the table on which the meat and onions were usually chopped sat a huge, burly peasant in a long coachman's coat.



Thursday, April 11, 2024

The Greatest Novellas & Short Stories of Anton Chekhov, by Anton Chekhov:
1. At the Barber's, by Anton Chekhov is one of the short story's that I read.
2. After reading many short story's by Anton Chekhov, is is clear that Chekhov influenced Henrik Ibsen.

3. A Living Chattel, by Anton Chekhov:
4. "Rain had just fallen, and made the fresh, transparent fragrant air still fresher."
5. "Throughout the whole night she had the most fascinating dreams…. She dreamed whole romances, novels, Arabian Nights…."
6. "Oh, dreams! In one night, lying with one’s eyes shut, one may sometimes live through more than ten years of happiness…."
7. "A grey cat with its tail in the air was rubbing itself against one of the table legs, and with a plaintive mew proclaiming its desire for food."
8. It seems that it is fated. I can imagine the awkwardness of his position when he meets us.
9. But the dinner did not pass off so quietly. During dinner precisely that “awkward position” which Groholsky so dreaded occurred. Just when the partridges, Groholsky’s favorite dish, had been put on the table, Liza was suddenly overcome with confusion, and Groholsky began wiping his face with his dinner napkin.
10. And at the word “here” Ivan Petrovitch passed his open hand from his neck down to the middle of his stomach.

11. Unluckily for her, Ivan Petrovitch’s papa spent his whole time in the open air, and even slept on the verandah.
12. He slept well,” he informed them. “Yesterday he was put out because I had no salted cucumbers… He has taken to Mishutka; he keeps patting him on the head.”
13. There was a worm gnawing at her vitals…. That worm was misery….
14. To be continued.

15. Bliss & Joy, by Anton Chekhov:
16. This short story is about a man who sustains an injury to his neck, after a horse accident.
17. You live like wild beasts, you don’t read the newspapers and take no notice of what’s published, and there’s so much that is interesting in the papers. If anything happens it’s all known at once, nothing is hidden! How happy I am! Oh, Lord!

18. A Classical Student, by Anton Chekhov:
19. The lodger was sitting at his table reading "Dancing Self-Taught." This Kuporosoff was considered a clever and learned person. He spoke through his nose, washed with scented soap that made every one in the house sneeze, ate meat on fast-days, and was looking for an enlightened wife; for these reasons he thought himself an extremely intellectual lodger. He also possessed a tenor voice.

20. The Death of a Government Clerk, by Anton Chekhov:
21. It is not reprehensible for anyone to sneeze anywhere. Peasants sneeze and so do police superintendents, and sometimes even privy councillors. All men sneeze.
22. "I ventured to disturb your Excellency yesterday,” he muttered, when the general lifted enquiring eyes upon him, “not to make fun as you were pleased to say. I was apologising for having spattered you in sneezing… . And I did not dream of making fun of you. Should I dare to make fun of you, if we should take to making fun, then there would be no respect for persons, there would be… .”
23. Reaching home mechanically, without taking off his uniform, he lay down on the sofa and died.

24. A Daughter of Albion, by Anton Chekhov:
25. Suggests that patience is related to fishing: sometimes you have to wait a very long time, before something exciting happens.

26. The Trousseau, by Anton Chekhov:
27. Tea, biscuits, butter, and jam were brought in, followed by raspberries and cream.
28. My husband’s pay is not very ample, and we are not able to permit ourselves luxuries. So we have to make up everything ourselves.
29. He is going into a monastery. He was unfairly treated in the service, and the disappointment has preyed on his mind.
30. To be continued.

31. The Man in a Case, by Anton Chekhov:
32. “Ukrainian is like Ancient Greek in its softness and pleasant sonority.”
33. “The things we get up to in the provinces from sheer boredom—so many unnecessary and stupid things! And it is because we do not do what actually needs to be done.”
34. “The atmosphere here is suffocating, it’s totally vile.”
35. “This is no sacred place of learning, it’s more like a police station, and it smells as sour as a sentry box.”
36. “I have been teaching for a long time, but you have just started your career, so I consider it my duty as your senior colleague to warn you. You have been riding a bicycle, and it is a pastime which is totally improper for an educator of young people.”
37. "Please leave me in peace. I am an honest man and do not wish to talk to a gentleman like you. I do not like sneaks.”
38. “But I do have to warn you that someone may have heard us, and lest our conversation is interpreted the wrong way, or there are repercussions, I will have to report the contents of our discussion to the principal…in general terms.”
38. Briefly discusses books about agriculture.
39. Omitted.
40. Omitted

41. About Love, by Anton Chekhov:
42. "The next day for lunch delicious pies, crayfish, and lamb rissoles were served…"
43. "They worried that instead of engaging in academic or literary work, here I was, an educated man who knew foreign languages, living in the countryside, running round and round like a hamster in a wheel, working fiendishly hard but never making any money."

44. The Lady with the Little Dog, by Anton Chekhov:
45. “She looked up at him and went pale…clearly doing her best not to faint.”

46. Explanatory Notes: The Black Monk
47. "A healthy mind in a healthy body."

48. Explanatory Notes: The House with the Mezzanine
50. Gogol’s Petrushka: Petrushka, Chichikov’s servant in the novel “Dead Souls” by Nikolai Gogol, was fond of reading things he did not understand.
51. Omitted.

52. At Christmas Time, by Anton Chekhov:
53. Suggests that a good writing exercise, is to write a series of connecting loops, as though you were writing in script.
54. Chekhov suggests that if you add some additional characters, then you have created your own handwriting.

55. The Bishop, by Anton Chekhov:
56. As the worshippers surged forward in the twilight like the waves of the sea, it seemed to his Reverence Peter, who had been feeling ill for three days, that the people who came to him for palm leaves all looked alike, and, men or women, old or young, all had the same expression in their eyes.
The people in the crowd all looked identical.
57. The bishop is distinguished from everyone else.


Various Notes:
1. As a result of recent readings, I learned about ornithology, that wild birds sometimes eat worms and insects.
2. In one short story by Anton Chekhov, he suggests that we think differently when we’re alone than when we’re with someone.



Wednesday, April 10, 2024

About Love and Other Stories, by Anton Chekhov:
1. “The past, he realized, was linked to the present by an unbroken chain of events, which flowed from one into another.
2. “The men carried the baskets out of respect, not because they were paid to.”
3. The House with the Mezzanine:
4. "To my right, in an old orchard there was an oriole singing, reluctantly and feebly; it was probably old too."
5. “I’ve lost touch with good people, I really have! It’s just work, work, work, all the time.”
6. "Lida was never affectionate and always talked about serious matters."
7. “They always prayed together and shared a strong faith, and they understood each other, even when they were silent.”
8. “If you get caught up in books and handing out medicines you might not notice life going by…She ought to get married.”
9. To be continued.
10. “Belokurov arrived, decked out in his embroidered peasant shirt and coat.”
11. “…I carried away with me an impression of an incredibly long day spent in complete idleness…”
Cautions against wasting the day away.
12. Suggests that we should not make life more complicated and burdensome.
13. Suggests that when life is more complicated, we waste a lot of time and energy.
14. Briefly discusses Fables, by Ivan Krylov.
15. Suggests that people should not live in fear.

16. The Man in a Case, by Anton Chekhov:
17. Because of one of the characters "strange name," the people in the province called him only by his first name and his patronymic.
18. Omitted.


Various Notes:
1. In one Anton Chekhov story, one of the characters is rich, and has gold, and enjoys looking at his gold fortune. It is pleasant and even entertaining for the man to look at his fortune of gold. Chekhov even indicates that sometimes, the yellow image of the gold fortune is so strong that it remains imprinted in his eyes for some time after looking at it.
2. In one Anton Chekhov story, one of the characters mother tells him that eating soup is good for his health, so the son, in trying to attain good health, eats soup "like ten times a day," eats it until it makes him sick, eats soup religiously.
3. Sometimes, a deck of playing cards can be entertaining.



Tuesday, April 9, 2024

About Love and Other Stories, by Anton Chekhov:
1. On the Road & The Letter - "...there was a tall, broad-shouldered man of about forty sitting at the large, unpainted table. With his elbows resting on the table and his head propped up on his fist, he was sleeping...Taken separately, his nose, his cheeks, and his eyebrows were crude and cumbersome, like the furniture and the stove in the travellers' room, but together they combined to look harmonious and even handsome." That is the hallmark of the Russian face, so they say: the larger and sharper its features, the softer and more kind-hearted it seems.
2. On one of the benches that stretched all the way along the wall, sleeping on a fox-fur coat, was a girl of about eight, dressed in a brown frock and long black stockings. She had a pale face, fair hair, narrow shoulders, and a body that was thin and frail...She was fast asleep...
3. The travellers' room had a festive appearance. There was a smell of freshly scrubbed floors in the air, for once there were no cloths hanging off the rope that stretched diagonally right across the room...
4. In this short story, Chekhov give quite accurate descriptions of Russian peoples' faces and other appearances.
5. The Fish, by Anton Chekhov, is another short story that I read. It is a comic story, about a group of three or so men, who go into a lake, and try to catch a big fish, but all of the mens' work is in vain, and the fish gets away.
6. The introduction of About Love and Other Stories, by Anton Chekhov indicates that the newspaper that Chekov wrote for, also contained comic strips, and a variety of other journalistic content, and was a great experience for Chekhov to learn about writing.
7. Suggests that breakfast, or to break the fast, is when you eat after "fasting" for hours at night when you're at rest.
8. Briefly discusses pharmacognosy.
9. Briefly discusses zoology.
10. Omitted.

11. Suggests that when we die, we do not “leave this world forever.”
12. “You have to teach! You have children yet, and you don’t instruct them! It’s a sin! It’s bad! It’s shameful!"
13. “…you will perish because you possess riches but you do not cherish them.”
14. “God forgive me, but there are some dreadful women in the world! Don’t you think? Where is her sense of shame?”
15. “When he saw the table already covered with Easter cakes and red painted eggs, he for some reason started crying, probably because he was remembering his own home…”
16. “I used to live like other people and didn’t have too many worries, but now that I have fallen from the one true path, all I want is for kind people to forgive me.”
17. “No, you should be forgiving the people who you feel pity for…really!”
18. “Anastasy propped his head up on his fist and became lost in thought.”

19. Fortune
20. "To judge from his upright, motionless posture, his manner, and the way that he behaved...he was a serious, level-headed man who knew his own worth..."
21. "Everyone was waiting for Zhmenya to show us the places, or dig them up himself, but it was like he was cutting off his nose to spite his face--he went and died..."
22. "The government has the same plan up its sleeve. It says in the law that if a peasant finds treasure, he has to report it to the authorities."
23. Suggests that the treasure could hold a spell or curse on it which only the government is capable of controlling.
24. “The old man was not able to give an answer as to what he would do with the treasure if he found it.”
25. “…everything which had moved and made noises in the night, sank into somnolence.”

Gusev, by Anton Chekhov:
1. “Human life is what is important, not plans! You’ve only got one life, and you’ve got to respect it."
2. “My lungs are healthy, and it’s just a gastric cough... I can put up with hell. So what is the Red Sea, anyway?"
3. “Everything will collapse without me and my father and his old lady will end up begging, I know it.”
4. "Actually my legs are a bit wobbly, and it’s a bit stuffy in here.”
5. “He is tormented like before with a vague desire for something but he cannot work out what it is that he wants.”

The Black Monk, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Andrew Kovrin, master of arts, was exhausted and on the edge of a nervous breakdown. He did not go for treatment, but managed to have an informal chat with a doctor friend, who advised him to spend the spring and summer in the country.
2. “Then, when the roads became passable he set off by carriage to stay with his former guardian and tutor Pesotsky, a horticulturalist renowned through Russia."
3. “Yes. I teach psychology, but my work generally is in philosophy.”
4. “Well, let’s hope it stays that way, said Yegor Semyonich, stroking his grey sideburns thoughtfully.”
5. “He suddenly felt stirring in his chest the feelings of youth and joy he used to have when he ran about the gardens as a child.”
6. “…they both went into the house and drank tea from old porcelain cups, with cream and thick pastries…”
7. Briefly discusses horticultural textbooks.
8. “But the ideas in the book he was reading did not satisfy him. He wanted something massive, uncontainable, earth-shattering.”
9. “I exist in your imagination, and your imagination is part of nature, so that must mean I also exist in nature.”
10. “An exalted mood, excitement, ecstasy—everything which distinguishes prophets, poets, and those who martyr themselves for an ideal, from ordinary people—is inimical to a person’s animal nature, that is, his physical health.”
11. “His look, the way he moved and talked, was gentle and refined, just like his mother. And his brain? His brain always astonished us. Well he’s not got his degree for nothing, you know! Absolutely not!”
12. “One long winter night Kovrin was lying in bed reading a French novel.”
13. "The greater a person’s intellectual and moral development, the greater his freedom, and the greater the pleasure he will derive from life.”
14. Briefly discusses Socrates, Diogenes, and Marcus Aurelius.
15. "Tanya put her arms around Kovrin…and covered his eyes with her hand.”
16. “It was quiet, and the sweet scent of tobacco plants came in through the open windows from the garden.”
17. To be continued.


Eugenie Grandet, by Honore de Balzac:
1. In certain provicial towns whose appearance arouses a melancholy as great as that of the gloomiest cloisters, the most desolate moorland, or the saddest ruins...the sepulchral gloom of the ruins.
Illustrates instances in the history of towns, where there are depressed, gloomy-looking houses.
2. "Life is nearly always lived in the open air. Every household sits at its front door, where it lunches, dines, and quarrels. There is not a passer-by in the street who is not closely examined. And so it is like olden times..."
3. Introduces us to Monsieur Grandet. "Grandet's manners were very simple. He spoke little. Usually he expressed his ideas in brief sententious phrases, uttered in a low voice." Monsieur Grandet was in the military, and was also a successful businessman.
4. "Few people know how important a living-room is in the little towns of Anjou, Touraine, and Berry...It is the theater of domestic life, the center of the home."
5. Introduces us to Big Nanon. Big Nanon was a woman who was over six feet, and built "like Hercules." She excelled in tasks which required physical strength.


Various Notes:
1. In a Charles Dickens novel, there is a character who leaves his mail unopened for days, on the table, after he retrieves it from his mailbox.
2. Problems are normal for people to have. Maybe it is wrong for doctors to say that people are mentally ill (schizophrenic or bipolar), just because they have problems.
Edited, on Notes about Psychiatry.
3. In one of the books I’ve read, the narrator describes a bird, that swoops down from its perch.
4. "In general, the healthiest choices are oil and vinegar or a light vinaigrette," for a salad dressing. -Everyday Health
5. In Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo, Hugo suggests that it is the mark of a wise man, it is the mark of an educated man, to know when to stop.
6. Updated with notes about Eugenie Grandet, by Honore de Balzac - 4:30pm.
7. Updated with notes about today's Chekhov reading, beginning with The Black Monk, Item 8 - 9:00pm



Monday, April 8, 2024

About Love and Other Stories, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Introduction
2. Industrialization belatedly reached Russia at the end of the nineteenth century, and with it came the inevitable mass exodus from the villages, where it was becoming increasingly difficult for Russia's peasant population to earn a living.
3. Chekhov began his literary career by writing short stories for newspapers. This was also a way for him to support himself financially.
4. His pious family background provided him with an intimate knowledge of the Russian Orthodox Church and its clergy.
5. What is immediately striking about Chekhov's stories is his evenhanded approach to his characters. What interests him as a writer are individual human qualities...with persuading the Russian educated public of the virtues of simple peasant living...
6. Some of the pieces which Chekhov authored are comic stories.
7. Chekhov's On the Road, so inspired Rachmaninov that in 1893 he wrote an orchestral fantasy (op. 7, The Rock) based on it.
8. Chekhov's admiration for Tchaikovsky was reflected in his dedication of a short story collection to the composer.
9. Chekhov filled his writing with characters from all walks of Russian life. 'Rothschild's Violin' features a Jew, and is a sensitive exploration of Russian anti-Semitism.
10. Suggests that in life, we ask questions, and even if we do not have all of the answers, at least we have some of them, some of the answers.

11. What is also remarkable about both Pushkin and Chekhov is the apparent timelessness of their writing; when reading their works, one often has the impression that they are our contemporaries, so modern does their language seem. Suggests that these classic authors can also set trends in modern language and thought.
12. The beauty of his language lies not in the words themselves, however, but in the way they are put together.
13. To be continued.



Sunday, April 7, 2024

Minds in Ferment, by Anton Chekhov:
1. The same evening Akim Danilitch sat in the grocer’s shop drinking limonade gaseuse, and writing...
2. "Limonade gazeuse is a French phrase that translates to "sparkling lemonade" or "gaseous lemonade" in English." -Google

A Chameleon, by Anton Chekhov:
1. "No, that’s not the General’s dog"... “the General hasn’t got one like that. His are mostly setters.”
I know it, too. The General has valuable dogs, thoroughbred, and this is goodness knows what!
2. It’s a stray dog! There’s no need to waste time talking about it….
3. A dog is a delicate animal…. And you put your hand down, you blockhead.

Oysters, by Anton Chekhov:
1. It needs no straining of memory to recall the rainy twilight autumn evening when I stood with my father in a crowded Moscow street and felt overtaken by a strange illness. I suffered no pain, but my legs gave way, my head hung helplessly on one side, and words stuck in my throat. I felt that I should soon fall on the pаvement and swoon away.
2. Had I been taken to hospital at the moment, the doctor would have written above my bed the word: “Fames” — a complaint not usually dealt with in medical text-books.
3. I must have kept my eyes on the notice at least half an hour. Its whiteness beckoned to me, and, it seemed, almost hypnotised my brain. I tried to read it, and my attempts were fruitless.
4. “Papa, what does ‘oysters’ mean?” I repeated.
“It is a kind of animal. . . . It lives in the sea. . . .”
And in a wink I visualised this mysterious animal. Something between a fish and a crab, it must be, I concluded; and as it came from the sea, of course it made up into delightful dishes, hot bouillabaisse with fragrant peppercorns and bay leaves, or sour solianka with gristle, crab-sauce, or cold with horse-radish. . . . I vividly pictured to myself how this fish is brought from the market, cleaned, and thrust quickly into a pot . . . quickly, quickly, because every one is hungry . . . frightfully hungry. From the restaurant kitchen came the smell of boiled fish and crab soup.
5. This smell began to tickle my palate and nostrils; I felt it permeating my whole body.
6. Frenchmen, they said, ate frogs. But children — never! And I saw this fish being carried from market in its shell, with claws, bright eyes, and shiny tail. . . . The children all hide themselves, and the cook, blinking squeamishly, takes the animal by the claws, puts it on a dish, and carries it to the dining-room.
7. I frowned disgustedly. But why did my teeth begin to chew.? An animal, disgusting, detestable, frightful, but still I ate it, ate it greedily, fearing to notice its taste and smell.
8. One animal was finished, already I saw the bright eyes of a second, a third. ... I ate these also.
9. Give me some oysters! Give me some oysters.” The cry burst from my lips, and I stretched out my hands.
10. "And so you'll eat oysters! Such a little whipper-snapper!” I heard a voice beside me.

11. In a minute a crowd had gathered, and looked at me with curiosity and amusement. I sat at a table, and ate something slippy, damp, and mouldy. I ate greedily, not chewing, not daring to look, not even knowing what I ate. It seemed to me that if I opened my eyes, I should see at once the bright eyes, the claws, the sharp teeth.
12. After this, I remember only my terrible thirst. I lay on my bed, kept awake by repletion, and by a strange taste in my hot mouth.

The Swedish Match, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Ten minutes later he was sitting on a stool, carefully nibbling lumps of sugar, and sipping tea as hot as a red-hot coal.
2. You should read Dostoevsky! And what does Lyeskov say… and Petchersky!
3. “You are convinced of the guilt of Nikolashka and Psyekov,” he said, nervously pulling at his youthful beard.
4. It was evident that he had not come back without news. “Veni, vidi, vici!” he cried, dashing into Tchubikov’s room and sinking into an armchair.
5. To her, to the fourth…. We must make haste, or… I shall explode with impatience!

The Marshal's Widow, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Lyubov Petrovna has taken a vow never to have in her house cards or spirituous liquors — the two sources of her husband’s ruin.
2. The guests approach the table and hesitatingly attack the pie. But the progress with eating is slow. In the plying of forks, in the cutting up and munching, there is a certain sloth and apathy…. Evidently something is wanting.

Small Fry, by Anton Chekhov:
1. A story about a man who kills a cockroach.

IN AN HOTEL, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Day and night! Sometimes he fires off such things that it simply makes one’s ears blush! Positively like a cabman. It’s a good thing that my poor girls don’t understand or I should have to fly out into the street with them…

BOOTS, by Anton Chekhov:
1. A PIANO-TUNER called Murkin, a close-shaven man with a yellow face, with a nose stained with snuff, and cotton-wool in his ears, came out of his hotel-room into the passage, and in a cracked voice cried: “Semyon! Waiter!”

NERVES, by Anton Chekhov:
1. From thought-reading they had passed imperceptibly to spirits, and from spirits to ghosts, from ghosts to people buried alive….
2. He had called up among others the spirit of his deceased uncle, Klavdy Mironitch, and had mentally asked him...
3. Suggests that you ask your doctor, "Do you think that I'm mentally ill?"

A Country Cottage, by Anton Chekhov:
1. "What have you got for our supper tonight?” “Chicken and salad…. It’s a chicken just big enough for two…. Then there is the salmon and sardines that were sent from town.”
2. Is a story about a happy family.

Malingerers, by Anton Chekhov:
1. MARFA PETROVNA PETCHONKIN, the General’s widow, who has been practising for ten years as a homeopathic doctor, is seeing patients in her study on one of the Tuesdays in May. On the table before her lie a chest of homeopathic drugs, a book on homeopathy, and bills from a homeopathic chemist.
2. I went home from you that Tuesday, looked at the pilules that you gave me then, and wondered what good there could be in them.
3. Omitted.
4. Suggests that doctors can assess their patients' health just by looking at them.
5. Compares homeopathic medicine to allopathic medicine.

A Horsey Name, by Anton Chekhov:
1. Suggests that there are dog names, and there are human names.

Gone Astray, by Anton Chekhov:
1. "Petya, my dear fellow…. I can’t…. I feel like dying if I’m not in bed in five minutes.”
2. Then through his sleep he hears the barking of dogs. First one dog barks, then a second, and a third…. And the barking of the dogs blends with the cackling of the fowls into a sort of savage music.
3. "What are you saying? Call the elder. He knows me.”
4. "Whew! Do you take this for the Dale? This is Sicklystead, but Rottendale is farther to the right, beyond the match factory. It’s three miles from here.” “Bless my soul! Then I’ve taken the wrong turn!”

The Huntsman, by Anton Chekhov:
1. A SULTRY, stifling midday. Not a cloudlet in the sky…. The sun-baked grass had a disconsolate, hopeless look: even if there were rain it could never be green again…. The forest stood silent, motionless, as though it were looking at something with its treetops or expecting something.
2. You know yourself I am a pampered man…. I want a bed to sleep in, good tea to drink, and refined conversation…
3. Omitted.
4. To be continued.


Various Notes:
1. "Sure, we can talk, I have nothing to hide." -Henrik Ibsen.
"There are different degrees of dysfunctional behavior." -Henrik Ibsen.
Added to Notes about Law.
2. Tba.


Saturday, April 6, 2024

Rosmersholm, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. Rosmer - My dear Kroll, ask about whatever you like. I have nothing to hide.
2. Kroll - That’s exactly why. I know how easily you are influenced by those you associate with.
3. Kroll - Listen. Whatever went on here in secret when Beata was still alive…and whatever is still going on here…I don’t want to inquire any further.
4. Kroll - What I say is this: if this madness must go on, then in Heaven’s name go ahead and think whatever you like…about anything under the sun.
5. Kroll - But see that you keep your opinions to yourself. After all, it’s a purely personal affair.
6. Rosmer - And have you returned to the Church yourself then, of late?
Mortensgaard - We needn’t go into that.
7. Mortensgaard - Even if you were to scrutinize your own conduct as thoroughly as you once scrutinized mine?
8. Rosmer - You say that so strangely. What are you getting at?
9. Mortensgaard - Yes, there is one thing. Just one. But that could be bad enough if any of those malicious people on the other side got wind of it.
10. Rosmer - You know of course that my wife had a mental breakdown at that time.
Mortensgaard - She begins by saying more or less that she is living in fear and trembling; there are so many wicked people in the district, she says; and all these people think about is what harm they can do you.

11. Rosmer - Who brought you the letter?
Mortensgaard - I promised not to tell. It was brought to me one evening after dark.
12. Rosmer - I had good grounds for keeping the relations between us concealed. It was a dangerous secret.
13. Rebecca - Oh, why must we worry about what others think? We know, you and I, that we have no reason to feel guilty.
14. Rebecca - Surely you are not beginning to doubt that she was very nearly insane?
15. Rosmer - What I mean is…where are we to look for the immediate cause that tipped her sick mind over into madness?
16. Rebecca - Oh but that’s a dangerous thing to do…turning this morbid affair over and over in your mind.
17. Rosmer - She must have noticed how happy I began to feel after you had come to live here.
18. Rosmer - She must have been going about here…sick with passion…never saying a word…watching us…noticing everything…and misinterpreting everything.
19. Indicates that Beata died by suicide.
20. Rosmer - Oh, how do I what I would or wouldn’t do? I can think of nothing but this one thing…this one irrevocable thing.

21. Rosmer - How do you ever suppose I could put all this behind me?
Rebecca - By forming new associations. Yes, new associations with the world outside. Living, working, doing things. Not sitting here brooding and stewing over insoluble problems.
22. Rebecca - I still think our friendship can endure…whatever happens.
23. Rosmer - I mean that that kind of relationship…doesn’t it go best with the sort of life that’s lived quietly, serenely, happily…
24. Rosmer - But the sort of life I see opening up in front of me is one of strife and unrest and strong passion. Nobody is going to decide my life for me...
25. To be continued.
26. Rosmer - Inexperience and lack of judgment…
27. Rebecca - Now you ought to go out for a walk in the fresh air, my dear Johannes. A good long walk, you should make it.
28. Rebecca - Then we had best make the most of our time.
29. Kroll - That shows you how uncertain he is in his judgment when it concerns his fellow men and their practical affairs.
30. Rebecca - But between you and full and complete freedom was this grim, insurmountable barrier.

31. Rosmer - And the poor sick creature went be believed it, all this web of lies and deceit.
32. Rosmer - How could you…how could you play such a horrible game?
33. Rebecca - Forgive me, Mr Kroll…but that’s something that concerns nobody but me. That’s something I shall settle with myself.
34. Rebecca - Rosmersholm has broken me. Completely and utterly broken me.
35. Rosmer - But I don’t understand you, Rebecca. You yourself…and the way you behaved…it’s all a complete mystery to me.
36. Rebecca - Once I dared tackle anything that came my way; now that time is gone. I have lost the power to act, Johannes.
37. Rebecca illustrates the benefits of living in peace and solitude.
38. Rebecca - It is the Rosmer philosophy of life...or in any case your philosophy...that has infected my will.
And made it stick. Made it a slave to laws that had meant nothing to me before.
39. Rebecca - You need have no doubts about that. The Rosmer philosophy of life ennobles all right. But...but...but...
40. To be continued.
41. Rebecca - But I am in the power of the Rosmersholm view of life now. Where I have sinned…it is right that I should atone.
42. The end.


Peer Gynt, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. ACT FIFTH - PEER GYNT, a vigorous old man, grizzled hair and beard, is standing aft on the poop. He is dressed half sailor-fashion, with a pea-jacket and long boots. His clothing is rather the worse for wear; he himself is weather-beaten, and has a somewhat harder expression.The CAPTAIN is standing beside the steersman at the wheel.The crew are forward.
2. THE PASSENGER - It’s just a hypothesis. But when one is placed with one foot in the grave, One grows soft-hearted and open-handed——
3. THE PASSENGER - I heard you shout.— It’s pleasant finding you again. Well? So my prophecy came true!
4. PEER - If the luck goes against you, at least you’ve the honour Of a life carried through in accordance with principle.— Though fate to the end may be never so biting— Still old Peer Gynt will pursue his own way, And remain what he is: poor, but virtuous ever.
5. THE MAN IN MOURNING - That’s the end of the ditty; it’s over and done.
PEER - All the ditties end just alike; And they’re all old together; I knew ’em as a boy.
A LAD OF TWENTY [With a casting-ladle.] - Just look what a rare thing I’ve been buying! In this Peer Gynt cast his silver buttons.
6. THE MAN IN GREY - Oh, rubbish; blood’s never so thin as all that; One cannot but feel one’s akin to Peer Gynt.
7. Peer briefly discusses “the knowledge that lay the pyramid’s foundation.
8. THE THREAD-BALLS [On the ground.] - We are thoughts; Thou shouldst have thought us;—
9. THE BUTTON-MOULDER - Why that is precisely the rub, my man; You’re no sinner at all in the higher sense...
10. THE BUTTON-MOULDER - Here it is, empty and scoured. Your grave is dug ready, your coffin bespoke. The worms in your body will live at their ease...

11. THE BUTTON-MOULDER - But what else? Come now, be reasonable. You know you’re not airy enough for heaven...
12. THE BUTTON-MOULDER - Bless me, my dear Peer, there is surely no need To get so wrought up about trifles like this. Yourself you never have been at all;— Then what does it matter, your dying right out?
13. Omitted.
14. PEER - Love, power, and glory at once I renounced...
15. THE OLD MAN - Oh, come now, the Prince can’t complain of the word. And if he could manage by hook or by crook——
16. PEER - My man, you have got on the wrong scent entirely; I’m myself, as the saying goes, fairly cleaned out...
17. THE BUTTON-MOULDER - You seem bent on beginning all over again——
18. Peer - But then there’s a proverb of well-tried validity Which says that as long as there’s life there is hope.
19. THE LEAN ONE - But the retrospect o’er recollection’s domain Would be, both for heart and for intellect...
20. THE LEAN ONE - That depends; the door, at least, stands ajar for them. Remember, in two ways a man can be Himself—there’s a right and wrong side to the jacket.

21. PEER - Do you think that I haven’t been whistling and shouting As hard as I could?
22. PEER - Ay, everything’s over. The owl smells the daylight. Just list to the hooting!
23. PEER - And that wailing sound——? THE BUTTON-MOULDER - But a woman singing.
24. PEER - Set my house in order? It’s there! Away! Get you gone! Though your ladle were huge as a coffin, It were too small, I tell you, for me and my sins.
25. PEER - Then tell what thou knowest! Where was I, as myself, as the whole man, the true man? Where was I, with God’s signal upon my brow?
SOLVEIG - In my faith, in my hope, and in my love.
26. The end.


Various Notes:
1. Beginning with Item 25, today's notes on Rosmersholm, updated - 8:00am.
2. Updated: Book Reviews II, with notes about A Treatise on Government by Aristotle, and Book Reviews IX, with notes about Henrik Ibsen's plays.
3. 7:00pm - updated with notes about Peer Gynt, by Henrik Ibsen.
4. “There came the sound of cheerful voices.” -The Steppe, Anton Chekhov.
5. The Bird Market, by Anton Chekhov, is one short story that I enjoyed reading.
The story is about a square or market in Russia, that sells, amongst other things, birds in cages to be used as pets. Fish are also sold in the market. "The carp is a grand fish! The carp’s the fish to keep, your honour, plague take him! You can keep him for a year in a pail and he’ll live!"
6.Omitted.



Friday, April 5, 2024

An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. Hovstad - But I have profited from the advice of experienced and thoughtful men that, when it comes to local affairs, a paper should proceed with a certain caution.
2. Hovstad - And in the matter under discussion it is now undeniably true that Dr Stockmann has public opinion against him.
3. Dr Stockmann - The truths the masses recognize today are the same truths as were held by advanced thinkers in our grandfathers’ day.
4. Dr Stockmann - No oxygen, no conscience! And there must be an awful lot of houses in this town short of oxygen, it seems…
5. Hovstad - It might also seem that Dr Stockmann is set on ruining the town.
6. Omitted.
7. Kit - If you persist with these stupid ideas, then things will not be worth much, you know.
8. Dr Stockmann - If I don’t come to the aid of the Herald then you’ll take a pretty poor view of things. The hunt will be up, I dare say….You’ll be after my blood…you’ll be on to me like a dog on to a hare.
Hovstad - That’s the law of nature. Every animal must fight for survival.
9. Dr Stockmann - …Jump, I tell you. And quick about it!
10. Dr Stockmann - Yes, and I could even go as far as to say that now I’m one of the strongest men in the whole world.
Dr Stockmann - The thing is, you see, that the strongest man in the world is the man who stands alone.
The end.


Rosmersholm, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. The action takes place at Rosmersholm, an old family estate near a small coastal town in Western Norway.
2. Rebecca - They cling long to their dead here at Rosmersholm.
3. Rebecca - Oh, Mrs Helseth! You will try to find something special for supper please, won't you?
4. Kroll - Now that is the most incredible thing of all. All her life she has shared my opinions and agreed with my views - in big things as well as small.
5. Rosmer - My dear fellow, you know very well how little understanding I have of politics...
6. Rosmer - You are heartily welcome here now. Of that you may be sure.
7. Rosmer - Don't you think it's nice and comfortable out here?
Kroll - Yes, it certainly is nice and comfortable - and peaceful.
8. Kroll - Well, yes. But we two are pretty well agreed. On the big questions, at any rate.
9. Rosmer - That is precisely what makes me define the true aim of democracy.
Kroll - What is that?
Rosmer - To make all my countrymen noblemen.
Kroll - By what means?
Rosmer - By liberating their minds and purifying their wills, I should say.
10. Rosmer - There was no escaping my duty. In the present struggle men are growing evil.

11. Rosmer - Kroll! Things must not end like this between us.
12. Rebecca - As long as he doesn't meet the White Horse, that's all.
I don't think anything of the sort. But there are so many kinds of White Horses in the world.
13. Omitted.
14. Kroll - Today I see things in an altogether different light from yesterday.
15. Rosmer - But, Kroll...you are like a different person today.
16. Kroll - Can you remember if you had any books in the house at the time dealing with the institution of marriage, giving the modern, advanced view?


Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. It has been said that to err is human.
Added to Notes about Law.
2. Suggests that sometimes, a system of doing things is desirable.
3. Describes a hawk flying, who can detect a circle on a rock below.


Various Notes:
1. Beginning with Item 9, today's notes on Rosmersholm, updated - 11:00pm.
2. Tba.



Thursday, April 4, 2024

Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. Indicates that the Viscountess de Cette has sea-green eyes.
2. Fantine was beautiful, without really being conscious of it.
3. Suggests that it can be rewarding to sing sometimes, infrequently and occasionally, that is.


Peer Gynt, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. INTRODUCTION
2. WRITTEN AFTER HIS FIRST SUCCESS, Brand (1865), Peer Gynt (1867) is Ibsen’s second “dramatic poem,” the second play he wrote after having left Norway and the theater, after deciding to settle in Italy and to write no longer for the stage. This decision to break with the theater, with the perceived limitations imposed by the stage, had an enormously liberating effect. The Aristotelian unities of time, place, and action had become a suffocating set of mechanical rules limiting dramatic literature, and Ibsen realized that a new drama could be written only outside and against the theater. The reading public had different and less rigid expectations than theater producers and audiences, and the printed page lent itself well to fantastic and imaginative material such as the adventures of Peer Gynt, which Ibsen had borrowed from a Norwegian folktale. Ibsen’s decision was unusual, but not unique. There existed a long tradition of reading or closet dramas, including Goethe’s Faust and the Romantic closet dramas of Shelley and Byron, as well as the tradition of the dramatic monologue—a heterogeneous group of plays that have in common their refusal to be put on stage. It is in this tradition that Ibsen placed Peer Gynt, which became an important precursor for the veritable explosion of closet dramas at the turn of the century, with Strindberg’s A Dream Play being probably the best-known example.
3. Peer Gynt himself is a liar, a character who creates his own version of reality, his own fantastic world in defiance of all common sense and realism. The most theatrical scene is the one with the trolls; reality and fantasy are so blurred that one simply doesn’t know the difference between them anymore. The troll world itself functions by imposing a different character on reality, by masking and deceiving the senses; in fact, the trolls want to operate on Gynt’s eye so that their temporary charade will become permanent, so that he will see the world their way forever. This is the moment, however, when Gynt runs, because he does not want to accept any fabrication of reality except his own. Just as he had refused the realism of his mother, who wants him to become a good citizen, so he refuses the permanent fantasy of the trolls and chooses his own path, tells his own lies, fashions himself as best as he can until he returns to Norway to die.
4. One consequence of Ibsen’s liberation from the stage was that he could write a play that moved freely from the Norwegian mountains to Morocco, developing a plot closer to that of an epic or a novel, one that follows the travels and adventures of a single character across different locales, spanning his entire lifetime from teenage boy to old man. Such dramatic structures would become common for later playwrights...
5. ACT FIRST
6. ASE - Ah, you’re big and strong enough, You should be a staff and pillar For your mother’s frail old age,— You should keep the farm-work going...
7. PEER - [Hotly.] I will be a king, a kaiser!
8. A MAN [In conversation as they pass.] - His father was drunken, his mother is weak.
9. ASLAK THE SMITH [To some other young men, passing along the road.] - Just look at Peer Gynt there, the drunken swine——!
10. HIS FATHER - You’re a nincompoop!

11. ACT SECOND
12. SOLVEIG [To ÅSE.] - Say on; tell me more.
13. SCENE THIRD
14. PEER - In quagmire and filth knee-deep!
15. PEER - You shall eat all you want, till you’re ready to burst.
16. THE OLD MAN - True enough; in that and in more we’re alike. Yet morning is morning, and even is even.
17. THE OLD MAN - The cow gives cakes and the bullock mead...
18. PEER [Pushing the things away from him.] The devil fly off with your home-brewed drinks.
19. THE IMPS - Come brownies! Come nixies! Bite him behind!
20. HELGA - Let go; there’s the basket of food.

21. ACT THIRD
22. PEER - Lies! ’Tis an old tree and nothing more. Lies! It was never a steel-clad churl; It’s only a fir-tree with fissured bark.— It is heavy labour this hewing timber; But the devil and all when you hew and dream too.—
23. PEER - Can shut out cantankerous hobgoblin-thoughts?
24. ÅSE - Alas, Peer, the end is nearing; I have but a short time left.
25. ÅSE - Ay, Peer; all will soon be o’er.— When you see that my eyes are glazing, You must close them carefully. And then you must see to my coffin; And be sure it’s a fine one, dear. Ah no, by-the-bye——
26. ÅSE - Has he cakes as well, Peer?
PEER - Cakes? Ay, a heaped-up dish. And the dean’s wife is getting ready Your coffee and your dessert.
27. ACT FOURTH
28. PEER - I was a brisk and handsome lad, And she to whom my heart was given, She was of royal family——
29. Omitted.
30. To be continued.
31. PEER - …And the soul, moreover, is not, Looked at properly, the main thing. It’s the heart that really matters.
32. PEER - Oh, stuff! The prophet’s not old at all, you goose! Do you think all this is a sign of age?
33. PEER - Not yet——. Crazy? Heaven forbid! [A commotion. The Minister HUSSEIN forces his way through the crowd.]
HUSSEIN - They tell me a Kaiser has come to-day. [To PEER GYNT.] It is you?


The Master Builder, by Henrik Ibsen
1. One thing that Ibsen does is invoke Becker’s theory, or the argument “that human beings need to create a meaningful world.”
2. In the last pages of the play, Ibsen suggests that someone who is not a master builder, can ruin the operation for everyone.


An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. Suggests that newspapers write for the class of reader they can expect the greatest response from.
2. Dr. Stockman - Yes, isn’t it grand to see young people eating well? Such an appetite they’ve got! That’s as it ought to be. They need food…need to build up their strength. They’ll be the ones to stir things up a bit in the coming years.
3. Billing - Ah! A supper like that and, if it doesn’t make you feel like a new man!
4. Dr. Stockmann - …Now let them come as they always do, and say it’s some madman’s crazy idea!
5. Dr Stockmann - Last year there were a number of curious cases of sickness among the visitors…typhoid and gastric fever...
6. Dr Stockmann - It testifies to the presence in the water of putrefied organic matter…it’s full of bacteria. It is extremely dangerous to health, internally and externally.
7. Suggests that people’s medical problems can interfere with their performance at work.
8. Hovstad - Do you mind if we put a little paragraph in the Herald about your discovery?
The sooner the public hears about this the better.
Act Two
9. Dr Stockmann - Aha, let us see. Your manuscript is herewith returned.
10. Hovstad - [In government,] this myth of official infallibility must be destroyed.
11. Suggests that in government, certain functions such as parades, are easier to administer than other more complicated functions.
12. Hovstad - Most of them are like that round here, teetering along, wobbling one way then the other; they are so cautious and scrupulous that they never dare commit themselves to any proper step forward.
13. Petra - What makes me cross is that you haven’t played straight with Father.
To be continued.


Various Notes:
1. One book that I’ve read by Leo Tolstoy, suggests that chai, or Russian tea, is a mixture of spices such as cloves, nutmeg, and orange peel.
2. I began notes on An Enemy of the People, by Henrik Ibsen, and posted them above.



Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. Hugo implies, "He may have his problems, but otherwise, he is a noble, kind, religious, good person."
2. Of one character, Hugo writes, “…he had one of those philosophies peculiar to our age…”
3. Briefly discusses certain "pantheistic features."
4. “What enlightened this man was the heart. His wisdom was formed from the light emanating from there.”
5. “There are geniuses who are, so to speak, above all dogmas—present their ideas to God.”
6. Suggests that this is direct religion, a more efficient way of living.
7. "Human thought has no limit."
8. Briefly discusses "a humble approach to ideal perfection."
9. Briefly discusses Swedenborg and Pascal.
10. Suggests that there are moments when nature seems your friend, and moments when nature seems your enemy.

11. “He was carefully dissecting all that the Fathers and Philosophers have said on this serious topic.”
12. “The duties of all are the principal duties; there are four, as set forth by St. Matthew: duty toward God (Matt 6); toward ourselves (Matt. 5:29, 30); toward our neighbor (Matt. 7:12); and toward animals (Matt 6:20, 25)."
13. “Mademoiselle Baptistine so often told what happened at the bishop’s house that evening, that many still alive can recall the tiniest details.”
14. “Then turning towards his guest, he added,” “The night wind is raw in the Alps, you must be cold monsieur.”
15. “The bishop looked at him again and said, “You have suffered a great deal?””
16. “The man paid no attention to anyone. He ate with the voracity of a starving man.”
17. “It’s a hard journey. If the nights are cold, at least the days are warm.”
18. “It was certainly a golden opportunity to get in a little sermon and to set the bishop above the convict in order to make an impression on his mind.”
19. “He was a man who had no systems about him.”
20. When he was silent, she acted differently, from when he spoke.

21. “Jean Valjean was thoughtful though not sad, a characteristic of affectionate natures.”
22. “On the whole, however, there was something immature and passive, to all appearances at least, in Jean Valjean.”
23. “Can man, created good by God, be made wicked by man?”
24. "Sometimes, in the midst of prison work, he would stop and begin to think. His reason, more mature and yet more disturbed than before, would rebel.”
25. VIII - Deep Waters, Dark Shadows
26. Indicates that for a healthy adult, certain behaviors are normal.
27. He feels buried by two infinities together, the ocean and the sky…
28. “Jean Valjean had been dazzled with the idea of liberty, had believed in a new life.”
29. ”…the sensation was too novel not to disturb his sleep.”
30. "He was in one of those times when our minds are agitated with ideas.”

31. He opened it; but because the cold, crisp air rushed into his room, he closed it immediately.
32. He looked into the garden with an intensity that studies rather than sees.
33. At the far end of the room he could hear the even, quiet breathing of the sleeping bishop.
34. The souls of the upright in sleep contemplate a mysterious heaven.
35. And Madame Magloire, who was grumbling to herself, that there was really no need of a wooden spoon or fork to dip a piece of bread into a cup of milk.
36. Inexpressible thoughts gathered in his mind this way all day long.
37. He was still standing…His chest heaved with deep breaths at irregular intervals.
38. His cries died away into the mist, without even awaking an echo.
39. His brain was in one of those violent, yet frighteningly calm states where reverie is so profound it swallows up reality.
40. He saw himself then…and at the same time through that hallucination he saw at a mysterious distance, a sort of light...

41. The year 1817 was the one Louis XVII, with a certain royal presumption...called the twenty-second year of his reign. It was the year of M. Bruguiere de Sorsum's fame.
42. Indicates that Pleignier, Carbonneau, and Tolleron, were all sent to the guillotine.


The Wild Duck, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. HEDVIG - There is one great big book called Harrison’s History of London. It must be a hundred years old; and there are such heaps of pictures in it.
2. HEDVIG - Oh, an old sea captain once lived here, and he brought them home with him. They used to call him “The Flying Dutchman.” That was curious, because he wasn’t a Dutchman at all.
3. HEDVIG - No. But at last he was drowned at sea; and so he left all those things behind him.
4. HEDVIG - I don’t think father likes it; father is strange about such things. Only think, he talks of my learning basket-making, and straw-plaiting! But I don’t think that would be much good.
5. In this play, perhaps Ibsen is simply encouraging discussion and dialogue of all kinds: two of the characters have a lengthy discussion about the Muscovy duck.
6. HIALMAR - I swore that if I consecrated my powers to this handicraft, I would so exalt it that it should become both an art and a science.
GREGERS - And what is the nature of the invention? What purpose does it serve?
7. An earlier introduction indicates that many of Ibsen's works are feminist plays.
8. HIALMAR - No no no; quite the contrary. You mustn’t say that. I cannot be everlastingly absorbed in the same laborious train of thought.
9. GREGERS - Don’t be afraid; I shall find a way to help you up again. I too have a mission in life now; I found it yesterday.
10. RELLING Molvik got it into his head that he could smell herring-salad, and then there was no holding him.—Good morning again, Ekdal.

11. HIALMAR - Oh, come now, don’t let us get upon unpleasant subjects again!
12. MOLVIK - Let us draw a veil over last night’s proceedings. That sort of thing is totally foreign to my better self.
13. EKDAL - Salted it too. It’s good tender meat, is rabbit; it’s sweet; it tastes like sugar. Good appetite to you, gentlemen!
14. RELLING - Drink some soda water, man!
15. Indicates that sometimes, people “shuffle in and out,” when they’re wearing slippers.
16. HIALMAR - Yes indeed—then you shall see——! Hedvig, I have resolved to make your future secure. You shall live in comfort all your days.
17. HIALMAR - Ah yes, I really prize these social hours.
18. RELLING - But devil take it—don’t you see that the fellow’s mad, cracked, demented!
GINA - There, what did I tell you! His mother before him had crazy fits like that sometimes.
19. ACT FOURTH
20. HIALMAR EKDAL’s studio. A photograph has just been taken; a camera with the cloth over it, a pedestal, two chairs, a folding table, etc., are standing out in the room. Afternoon light; the sun is going down; a little later it begins to grow dusk.

21. HIALMAR - Well? Oh yes, well enough. We have had a tiring walk, Gregers and I.
GINA - You didn’t ought to have gone so far, Ekdal; you’re not used to it.
22. HIALMAR - Oh yes, by-the-bye——. Well, the day after, then. Henceforth I mean to do everything myself; I shall take all the work into my own hands.
23. HIALMAR [Walks about.] And this is my Hedvig’s mother. And to know that all I see before me—
[Kicks at a chair] —all that I call my home—I owe to a favoured predecessor! Oh that scoundrel Werle!
24. HIALMAR - [Placing himself in front of her.] Have you not every day, every hour, repented of the spider’s-web of deceit you have spun around me?
25. HIALMAR - “Bad ways” do you call them? Little do you know what a man goes through when he is in grief and despair—especially a man of my fiery temperament.
26. GINA - And now we’d got everything so nice and cosy about us; and me and Hedvig was just thinking we’d soon be able to let ourselves go a bit, in the way of both food and clothes.
27. GREGERS - After so great a crisis—a crisis that is to be the starting-point of an entirely new life—of a communion founded on truth, and free from all taint of deception——
28. HIALMAR - A man’s whole moral basis may give away beneath his feet; that is the terrible part of it.
29. HIALMAR - What is all this hocus-pocus that I am to be kept in the dark about!
30. HIALMAR - [Puts on his overcoat.] In this case, there is nothing for a man like me to think twice about.

31. ACT FIFTH
32. GREGERS - When he ought to have been yearning for solitude, to collect and clear his thoughts——
33. GREGERS - [After a short silence.] I never dreamed that this would be the end of it. Do you really feel it a necessity to leave house and home?
34. HIALMAR - Why, great heavens, what would you have me invent? Other people have invented almost everything already. It becomes more and more difficult every day——
35. RELLING - We will talk of this again, when the grass has first withered on her grave. Then you’ll hear him spouting about “the child too early torn from her father’s heart;” then you’ll see him steep himself in a syrup of sentiment and self-admiration and self-pity.
36. The end.

Hedda Gabler, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. The character Hedda Gabler is a quick, lively young woman.
2. BRACK - To make a long story short—he landed at last in Mademoiselle Diana’s rooms.
3. BRACK - Good heavens, Mrs. Hedda—we have eyes in our head.
4. LÖVBORG - Yes, I tell you! Tore it into a thousand pieces—and scattered them on the fiord—far out. There there is cool sea-water at any rate—let them drift upon it—drift with the current and the wind. And then presently they will sink—deeper and deeper—as I shall, Thea.


Various Notes:
1. 8:00pm: updated, today's notes on Les Miserables, with Item 26.
2. One of the books that I've read, suggests that the power of life, or the power that keeps one alive, is a powerful entity.
3. 10:15pm: updated, today's notes on Les Miserables, beginning with Item 27.



Tuesday, April 2, 2024

The Wild Duck, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. WERLE - But was it not Ekdal that drew the map of the tracts we had bought—that fraudulent map! It was he who felled all that timber illegally on Government ground. In fact, the whole management was in his hands.
2. WERLE - Acquittal is acquittal. Why do you rake up these old miseries that turned my hair grey before its time?
3. WERLE - What would you have had me do for the people? When Ekdal came out of prison he was a broken-down being, past all help.
4. WERLE Then perhaps your mind would be easier than it seems to be now. What can be your object in remaining up at the works, year out and year in, drudging away like a common clerk, and not drawing a farthing more than the ordinary monthly wage? It is downright folly.
5. GREGERS - Oh, don’t let us be nice in our choice of words—not when we are alone together, at any rate.

6. GREGERS - [Without heeding.] And there he is now, with his great, confiding, childlike mind, compassed about with all this treachery—living under the same roof with such a creature, and never dreaming that what he calls his home is built upon a lie!
7. HIALMAR - [Comes to a standstill.] It may be a fine wine. But of course you know the vintages differ; it all depends on how much sunshine the grapes have had.
8. HIALMAR [Pacing up and down the room.] It’s monstrous what absurd things the father of a family is expected to think of; and if he forgets the smallest trifle, he is treated to sour faces at once. Well, well, one gets used to that too.
9. GREGERS - [Goes over to him.] I bring you a greeting from your old hunting-grounds, Lieutenant Ekdal.
EKDAL - Hunting-grounds?
GREGERS - Yes, up in Höidal, about the works, you know.
EKDAL - Oh, up there. Yes, I knew all those places well in the old days.
GREGERS - You were a great sportsman then.
10. ACT THIRD

11. One of the characters indicates that his medical condition is hereditary.



Various Notes
1. You can collect the notes, from the books you read, and post them to your social media account.
2. Updated: Monday, March 25, 2024 -- Various Notes -- Item 4.



Sunday, March 31, 2024

The Wild Duck, by Henrik Ibsen:
1. INTRODUCTION
2. It is a play that recycles most of Ibsen’s earlier themes and topics: a harsh truth that is being covered up with lies...
3. ...an isolated character who is willing to force out the truth. Gregers Werle returns to his father and his poor high school friend Hialmar Ekdal and slowly learns that this friend has been coaxed into marrying Gregers’s father’s mistress and to bring up their illegitimate child as his own. Financially relying on Gregers’s father and his own competent wife, Hialmar has created for himself a fantasy world in which he is working on a great invention when in truth he does nothing of the sort.
4. All of these elements can be reassembled into a play such as Ibsen’s earlier ones—but this is not what happens. Rather than celebrating the difficult search for truth and the destruction of lies, here it is the very attempt to undo these lies that wreaks havoc among these characters.
5. The term Ibsen employs is that of the “life lie” (livslögnen), implying that a certain amount of self-deception is necessary to bear life on this earth. A misguided idealist such as Gregers, who will have the truth no matter what the cost, only creates more misery for everyone.

6. Gregers seems like an Ibsenite character run amok, a preacher of truth who takes no prisoners and risks the happiness of everyone in the process.
7. He did not allow himself to break with realism altogether, but he created a limited space in which wild fantasies may dwell
8. Set designers realized that everything in this play hinges on the contrast between inner and outer space, which Ibsen also detailed in his extensive stage directions. The entire play lives by these objects and how they are employed: the old uniform of Hialmar’s grandfather; his rifles; the decoration of the winter garden; the old books and maps; the work tools in the front room that doubles as a photography studio.
9. PETTERSEN - [Lights a lamp on the chimney-place and places a shade over it.] Hark to them, Jensen! now the old man’s on his legs holding a long palaver about Mrs. Sörby.
JENSEN - [Pushing forward an arm-chair.] Is it true, what folks say, that they’re—very good friends, eh?
10. JENSEN You can see he’s been through a lot.
PETTERSEN Yes; he was an army officer, you know.
JENSEN You don’t say so?

11. A THIRD GENTLEMAN I hear the coffee and maraschino are to be served in the music-room.
12. THE FLABBY GENTLEMAN Bravo! Then perhaps Mrs. Sörby will play us something.
13. GREGERS Why should that give me any feeling against you? Who can have put that into your head?
14. GREGERS [Starts.] My father! Oh indeed. H’m.—Was that why you never let me hear from you?—not a single word.
15. HIALMAR You see, life is itself an education. Her daily intercourse with me——And then we know one or two rather remarkable men,
16. To be continued.



Various Notes
1. In The Life of Charlotte Bronte by Elizabeth Gaskell, Gaskell indicates that sometimes, insults, acts of disrespect, or petty disputes, have influenced historical events.
2. In one James Fenimore Cooper novel, one of the characers indicates that he especially enjoys eating easily digestable food.



Saturday, March 30, 2024

Various Notes
1. In Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye, by David Ritz, Ritz indicates that Marvin Gaye's father, Marvin Sr. sometimes would dress up in women's clothing. "Soft things of all kinds fascinated him." "Sometimes Marvin would see him that way," his mother indicates. Perhaps this behavior of Gaye's father influenced Marvin Jr.
2. Skittles Green Apple drink mix makes great juice!
3. In Hedda Gabler, by Henrik Ibsen, one thing that Ibsen does is suggest that male and female in a relationship do not have to do much to enjoy themselves and have fun in the relationship. He suggests that man and woman do not have to go to the movies and dinner to enjoy themselves, and can just have fun together being around one another talking and being in each other's presence.



The Master Builder, by Henrik Ibsen
1. HILDA - I mean that your conscience is feeble—too delicately built, as it were—hasn’t strength to take a grip of things—to lift and bear what is heavy.
2. SOLNESS - [Growls.] H’m! May I ask, then, what sort of a conscience one ought to have?
3. Omitted.
4. SOLNESS - Stay where you are, Hilda!—I ought to tell a lie, you say.
5. SOLNESS - It is hopeless, Hilda. The luck is bound to turn.

6. ACT THIRD
7. HILDA - You understand nothing—since you can talk like that!
8. The end.



Thursday, March 28, 2024

The Iliad, by Homer
1. Book II
Now the other gods and the armed warriors on the plain slept soundly, but Zeus was wakeful, for he was thinking how to do honor to Achilles and destroy much people at the ships of the Achaeans
2. With this he led the way from the assembly, and the other sceptered kings rose with him in obedience to the word of Agamemnon;...
3. The king rose, and the other kings rose with him. Then, the king makes an inspirational speech to the assembly.
4. “Sir,” said he, “this flight is cowardly and unworthy.
5. Achilles is a much better man than he is, and see how he has treated him...

6. Lead the Argives on to battle, and leave this handful of men to rot, who scheme, and scheme in vain, to get back to Argos ere they have learned whether Zeus be true or a liar.
7. The men go on a series of adventures. They meet different people and do different things as the story progresses.
8. Hector knew that it was the goddess, and at once broke up the assembly. The men flew to arms; all the gates were opened, and the people thronged through them, horse and foot, with the tramp as of a great multitude.
9. Book III
10. “Paris,” said he, “evil-hearted Paris, fair to see, but woman-mad and false of tongue, would that you had never been born, or that you had died unwed.

11. Suggests that you do not speak in a way that betrays your tongue.
12. Young men’s minds are light as air, but when an old man comes he looks before and after, deeming that which shall be fairest upon both sides.
13. Book IV
14. Athene and Hera muttered their discontent as they sat side by side hatching mischief for the Trojans.
15. Do as you will, but we other gods shall not all of us approve your counsel.



The Master Builder, by Henrik Ibsen
1. INTRODUCTION IN GHOSTS, THE LACK OF fire insurance exposed the destructive hypocrisy of a pastor, but in The Master Builder (1892; Bygmester Solness ) Ibsen realized that the theme of insurance provides a much more powerful tool for the genre most dear to his heart: the tragic double bind. Master Builder Solness owes his fame as a builder of homes to the fire that destroyed his own house and, indirectly, his children’s and their mother’s happiness. His whole life has been spent attempting to rebuild a home that would somehow compensate for this original loss. But no matter how much he tries, no matter how great his powers as a Master Builder, everything he does will be nothing but a shallow substitute. The fire made him Master Builder and at the same time marks the limits of his skill; it makes and unmakes him at the same time.
2. Suggests that despite appearances, many people are not master builders.
3. On one of his first assignments, the Master Builder had met a child and promised to build her a castle in the air.
4. CHARACTERS
HALVARD SOLNESS, Master Builder.
ALINE SOLNESS, his wife.
DOCTOR HERDAL, physician.
KNUT BROVIK, formerly an architect, now in SOLNESS’s employment.
RAGNAR BROVIK, his son, draughtsman.
KAIA FOSLI, his niece, book-keeper.
MISS HILDA WANGEL.
5. The action passes in and about SOLNESS’s house.

6. The Master Builder was the first play Ibsen wrote after returning to Norway when he was in his early sixties...
7. KNUT BROVIK is a spare old man with white hair and beard. RAGNAR BROVIK is a well-dressed, light-haired man in his thirties.
8. SOLNESS Has any one been here for me?
RAGNAR [Rising.] Yes, the young couple who want a villa built, out at Lövstrand.
SOLNESS [Growling.] Oh, those two! They must wait. I am not quite clear about the plans yet.
RAGNAR [Advancing, with some hesitation.] They were very anxious to have the drawings at once.
SOLNESS [As before.] Yes, of course—so they all are.
BROVIK [Looks up.] They say they are longing so to get into a house of their own.
SOLNESS Yes, yes—we know all that! And so they are content to take whatever is offered them. They get a—a roof over their heads—an address—but nothing to call a home. No thank you! In that case, let them apply to somebody else. Tell them that, the next time they call.
BROVIK [Pushes his glasses up on to his forehead and looks in astonishment at him.] To somebody else? Are you prepared to give up the commission?
9. BROVIK Yes. You see, he knows the family. And then—just for the fun of the thing—he has made drawings and estimates and so forth——
10. SOLNESS Oh, it comes to the same thing.
[Laughs angrily.]
So that is it, is it? Halvard Solness is to see about retiring now!
To make room for younger men!

11. SOLNESS But confess now—you want to get married!
12. SOLNESS [Clasps her head with his two hands and whispers.] For I cannot get on without you, you see. I must have you with me every single day.
KAIA [In nervous exaltation.] My God! My God!
13. MRS. SOLNESS enters by the door on the right. She looks thin and wasted with grief, but shows traces of bygone beauty.
14. MRS. SOLNESS [With a glance at KAIA.] I am afraid I am disturbing you.
SOLNESS Not in the least. Miss Fosli has only a short letter to write.
15. SOLNESS What do you want with me, Aline?
MRS. SOLNESS I merely wanted to tell you that Dr. Herdal is in the drawing-room. Won’t you come and see him, Halvard?

16. MRS. SOLNESS and DR. HERDAL enter by the door on the right. He is a stoutish, elderly man, with a round, good-humoured face, clean shaven, with thin, light hair, and gold spectacles.
17. MRS. SOLNESS [Still in the doorway.] Halvard, I cannot keep the doctor any longer.
18. SOLNESS Then I daresay you fancy that I am an extremely happy man.
19. DR. HERDAL Afraid? Because you have the luck on your side!
SOLNESS It terrifies me—terrifies me every hour of the day. For sooner or later the luck must turn, you see.
DR. HERDAL Oh nonsense! What should make the luck turn?
SOLNESS [With firm assurance.] The younger generation.
20. HILDA For you must know I have run through all my money.

21. ACT SECOND
22. SOLNESS sits by the little table with RAGNAR BROVIK’s portfolio open in front of him. He is turning the drawings over and closely examining some of them
23. SOLNESS No, nothing of the kind. From the outside it looked like a great, dark, ugly wooden box; but all the same, it was snug and comfortable enough inside.



Wednesday, March 27, 2024

The Iliad, by Homer:
1. O Atreus’ son! canst thou indulge thy rest?
Suggests that sometimes, you indulge others’ ideas.
2. Suggests that you have different names for things: the eyes, eyeballs; sight, vision...
3. Suggests that women have a power about them.
4. The vision spoke, and pass’d in air away.
5. What grieves the monarch? Is it thirst of gold?
Questions the goal of the monarch.
6. Suggests that there is a difference between a person at rest, and a person in motion.
7. And all who live to breathe this Phrygian air.
8. From Jove himself the dreadful sign was sent.
9. The Phocians next in forty barks repair;
10. Fierce in the fight their nostrils breathed a flame,

11. Speeds on the wings of winds through liquid air;



Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Various Notes
1. Tesman: Oh, well, his relations...I'm afraid they've disowned him entirely.
Brack: They used to regard him as the white hope of the family.
2. Hedda uses potpourri in all of the rooms.
3. The above items were taken from Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen.
4. Maybe a certain number of apartments in every complex which are dedicated to women in abusive relationships would be good. Apartments that are available to help women leave abusive relationships.
5. Sometimes, wisdom is concealed.
6. Henrik Ibsen reminds us that it can be refreshing to drink cold punch!
7. I speak from my innermost soul.
8. Long as Achilles breathes this vital air, Also reminds us of the benefits of breathing in the fresh, open air.
9. And from his eye-balls flash’d the living fire
10. What cause have I to war at thy decree?
11. Thou dog in forehead, but in heart a deer!
12. The raging king return’d his frowns again.
To calm their passion with the words of age,
Reminds us that the words we use have been in existence for ages.
13. Suggests that it is good to have a code of honor.
14. The gods command me to forgive the past:
But let this first invasion be the last.
15. The sable fumes in curling spires arise,
And waft their grateful odours to the skies.
16. Unskill’d to judge the future by the past.
17. Omitted.
18. The generous Greeks their joint consent declare,
The priest to reverence, and release the fair;
And thus the sorrows of his soul explores
19. To avert the vengeance of the power divine.
20. Unhappy son! (fair Thetis thus replies,
While tears celestial trickle from her eyes)


21. Now mix with mortals, nor disdain to grace
The feasts of Ethiopia’s blameless race
22. Refuse, or grant; for what has Jove to fear?
23. The thunderer spoke, nor durst the queen reply;
24. And unextinguish’d laughter shakes the skies.
25. Aristotle suggests that we examine whether one's actions were good or bad.
Added to Notes about Law.
26. Aristotle suggests that perhaps in society, there are not enough rewards for being good.

*Items 7 continuing, drawn from The Iliad, by Homer.



Monday, March 25, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.
Added to Favorite Notes
3. Henrik Ibsen reminds us that there are some people who will go to war over their girlfriends.
4. Should men and women repress, and hide the pain they're in, or should they be able to freely express their pain? - A philosopher I've read.
5. In one Henrik Ibsen play, one of the main characters tries her best to forget about someone from her past.

6. Henrik Ibsen suggests that you store the notes that you take reading, in a chest or notebook, or even post them on your social media account.
7. James Fenimore Cooper suggests that it is unlawful to drastically change the exterior of your house in such a way that changes it from the original look intended for your neighborhood.
8. The quote by Alexander Pushkin, "What is time, in the face of eternity?" means that you can view time in terms of one hour in the future, or five thousand hours in the future.
9. Sometimes I find it useful to say, "I'm not black, no one’s black or white. You're not white, no one's black or white."
Added to page: Write with Both Hands, No One’s Black or White, and More



Saturday, March 16, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. “If you have dry lips, moisturize them with lip balm.”
--Charles Dickens.
3. According to Ray Charles: Man and Music by Michael Lydon, Ray Charles helped the Beatles create music, and the Beatles helped Ray Charles create music. Additionally, Ray Charles and the Beatles would work together in the recording studio to create music. Yesterday was a Lennon-McCartney song that intrigued Ray, and Ray also performed Eleanor Rigby, written by the Beatles.



Friday, March 15, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. Even though I haven't done any running, I updated my running log for the past two weeks.



Thursday, March 14, 2024


Hedda Gabler, by Henrik Ibsen,
1. One of the characters is Jorgen Tesman, the holder of a University Fellowship in cultural history.
2. Miss Juliane Tesman is a good-looking lady of benevolent aspect, some 65 years old, neatly but simply dressed.
3. Berte is a serving-maid getting on in her years, with a plain and somewhat countrified exterior.
Miss Tessman: Well, well...let them have a good rest and welcome. But we'll give them a breath of the fresh morning air when they do come down.
4. Berte: And what about me then, Miss? What am I to say? For so many years now I've been with you and Miss Rina.
5. Miss Tessman: We must make the best of it, Berte. There's really no other way. Jorgen must have you in the house with him, you see. He simple must.

6. Berte: I'm really so scared I'll never give satisfaction to the young mistress.
7. Tessman: Just think, Auntie...the whole of that case was crammed full of nothing but notes. It's quite incredible, really, all the things I managed to dig up round about in those old archives. Fantastic old things that no one knew anything about...
8. Miss Tessman: Well to be sure, I don't expect you wasted your time on your honeymoon, did you, Jorgen?
9. Tessman: Hey, wait a moment...take this along, will you.
10. Miss Tessman: How wonderfully good it is to see you here again, as well as ever, and full of life, Jorgen!

11. Tesman: For me too! To be with you again, Auntie Julle! You've always been both father and mother to me.
Miss Tesman: Yes, I know you'll always have a soft spot in your heart for your old aunts.
12. Miss Tessman: But you were telling me about the journey...It must have cost a pretty penny, Jorgen?
13. Tesman [looks at her rather crestfallen]: Why yes, I suppose it will, Auntie?
14. Miss Tesman: There now...don't get so excited about it. It's just a formality, you know.
15. Tesman: [When I write], it will be an account of the domestic crafts of mediaeval Brabant.
"The Duchy of Brabant, a state of the Holy Roman Empire, was established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant of 1085-1183." --Wikipedia

16. Tesman: Incidentally, it may be quite a while before I get it finished. There are all these extensive collections of material, you know, they all have to be sorted out first.
17. Miss Tesman: Yes, collecting things and sorting them out...you've always been good at that. You're not Joachim's son for nothing.
18. Miss Tessman: Ah, and most of all, now that you've won the wife of your heart, dear Jorgen.
19. [Hedda enters. She is a lady of 29. Her face and figure are aristocratic and elegant in their proportions.]
20. Tesman: Think of it...Aunt Rina lay there and embroidered them for me. Weak as she was. Oh, you can't imagine how many memories they have for me.

21. Hedda: Yes, we can do with a bit of fresh air. All these blessed flowers...won't you take a seat?
22. [While this is going on Hedda walks about the room, raises her arms and clenches her fists as though in a frenzy.]
23. Hedda: Do you think she was very put out about that hat business?
24. Hedda: Well, what manner of behavior is that, anyway, flinging her hat just anywhere in the drawing-room! It's not done.
25. Hedda: Exactly. That woman with the provoking hair that everyone made such a fuss of. An old flame of yours, too, I'm told.

26. Hedda: It's odd that she should come here. I hardly know her, apart from school.
27. Tesman: No, and I haven't seen her for...oh good Lord, it must be years.
28. Mrs Elvsted: And I don't know another soul here, not anyone I could turn to, apart from you.
29. Hedda: Come...we'll sit down here on the sofa...
Mrs Elvsted: Oh, I can hardly keep still, let alone sit down!
30. Mrs Elvsted: Well...it both is and yet isn't. Oh, I do so hope you won't misunderstand me.

31. Mrs Elvsted: ...you were such good friends before. And then you're both interested in the same subject. The same field of studies...so far as I understand it.
32. To be continued.



Wednesday, March 13, 2024


Various Notes,
1. In order to determine a person's innocence or guilt, perhaps you can consult with their friends and family, neighbors, spiritual advisors, etc.
Added to Notes about Law
2. If you’re not hungry enough to eat a big meal, then Campbell’s Condensed soup broths should taste great!
3. Perhaps watching exercise videos late at night, on low volume, prevents others from sleeping. Because people rest in the day, this could also be problematic.



Ghosts, by Henrik Ibsen
1. Engstrand: We men shouldn't judge a woman too harshly.
2. Engstrand: But Jacob Engstrand, I says, he's a man that stands firm on his own two feet, he is...
3. Engstrand: I accept your offer, thank you for working with me.
4. Manders: You see how extremely careful one has to be when passing judgement on one's fellow men.
5. Mrs Alving: I thought you'd gone for a little walk up the road.
Oswald: In this weather?

6. Mrs Alving [gripping his arm]: Oswald, what is it?
7. Oswald: Yesterday and again today, I tried to shake off these thoughts...fight myself free. But it's no use.
8. Oswald: Oh, if only I could live my life over again...undo everything I've done!
9. Mrs Alving: Perhaps you think we don't know how to live out here in the country?
10. Oswald: ...it was then I realized that she was my salvation. Because she was filled with the joy of life.

11. Oswald: Yes, Mother, the joy of life...You don't see much of that around this place. I never feel it here.
12. Engstrand: Oh, you just let things take their course. It's not the first time somebody I know has taken the blame for somebody else.
13. Manders: Jacob! Characters like you are rare.
14. Mrs. Alving: Let me dry your face, Oswald, you are wet.
15. This reminds me of a scene in an old black and white movie where the male character asks the female character to take his temperature, and tell him if he is sick, by feeling his forehead.

16. Oswald: I don't understand a word of what you are saying.
17. Mrs Alving: You should have seen your father when he was a young lieutenant. He had plenty of the joy of living.
Is like a story by Charles Dickens: "I bet you were a strong young man when you were younger."
18. Regine: No more's the pity. And anyway, now that there can never be anything serious between us...No, you don't catch me staying out here in the country, working myself to death...
19. Regine: No thank you. Pastor Manders will look after me all right. And if the worst comes to the worst, I know a place I can make my home.
20. Oswald [stands at the window looking out]. Has she gone?

21. Oswald: Yes, surely you realize that, Mother. It's simply one of those ideas that get around and...
Mrs Alving: Ghosts!
Oswald: Yes, call them ghosts if you like.
22. Mrs Alving: Oswald...then you don't love me either.
23. Oswald: Yes, but these are just empty words.
24. The end.
25. To be continued.



Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Ghosts, by Henrik Ibsen
1. One of the characters is Mrs. Helene Alving, widow of Captain (and Chamberlain) Alving.
2. The action takes place on Mrs. Alving's country estate by one of the large fjords of Western Norway.
3. Jacob Engstrand is standing beside the door into the garden.
4. Engstrand: Well, we are frail creatures, all of us, my child...
5. ...and many are the temptations of this world, you know...but still, there I was up and at work at half-past five this morning.

6. Omitted.
7. Regine: What are you going to try and talk him into this time.
8. Engstrand: Sh! Are you crazy? Me talk Pastor Manders into anything? Oh no, Pastor Manders has been far too good to me for that. But look, what I really wanted to talk to you about was me going back home again tonight.
9. Regine: The sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned.

10. Regine: Not likely! You'll never get me coming home with you.
11. Engstrand: Oh? We'll see about that.
12. Regine: Who's been brought up here like a lady like Mrs. Alving...? Who's been treated like one of the family, almost...? Expect me to go home with you? To a place like that? Puh!
13. Regine: Often enough you've said I wasn't any concern of yours.
14. Engstrand: Huh! You are not going to bother your head about that...?

15. Engstrand: I'll be damned if I ever used such filthy language.
16. Regine: Oh, I know well enough what language you used.
17. Engstrand: Well, but only when I'd had a few...Many are the temptations of this world, Regine.
18. Engstrand: Or else when your mother started her nagging...
19. Regine: Poor mother! You drove her to her death the way you tormented her.
20. Engstrand: Oh that's right! Blame me for everything.

21. Regine: How many times haven't I heard that one before! But you always made a mess of it.
22. Engstrand: Because what can you spend your money on, stuck out here in the country?
23. Engstrand: To lend a hand, that's right. Just help to look after the place, if you know what I mean.
24. Engstrand: Because we'd want a bit of fun in the evenings, singing and dancing and that sort of thing.

25. Henrik Ibsen suggests that it can be rewarding for a guy and his girlfriend to do all the things she did with her previous boyfriends, with her current boyfriend.
26. Omitted.
27. Regine: No, if things worked out as I wanted them to...Well, it could happen. It could happen!
28. Engstrand: Ah, but it's better with a father's hand to guide you, Regine.
29. I bet you wouldn't stay very long with me. Not much chance of that. Not if you played your cards properly.
30. Regine: I wouln't marry anybody like that. Sailors have no savoir vivre.
31. Regine: I know what sailors are, let me tell you. No use marrying them.
32. Regine: Out, and quick about it! You're barmy man!
33. Suggests that children cannot compete with adults, because they do not have deep, quick or clear enough voices, or strong enough bodies capable of working to earn money, or the other skills possessed by adults necessary to survive.
34. Engstrand: Now, now, you wouldn't hit me, would you!
35. Manders: But pretty busy, I imagine, getting ready for tomorrow?

36. Regine: Yes, thank you, quite well. But horribly tired after his journey.
37. Regine: Did he? He's always glad to have a talk with you, Pastor.
38. Regine: It's awfully lonely out here...and you know well enough yourself, Pastor, what it's like to be alone in the world.
39. Mrs. Alving: Can't you be persuaded even yet to stay the night in my house?
40. Manders: Well, of course you must be feeling extremely pleased with yourself today.

41. Manders: My dear lady, there are many occasions in life when one must rely on others. That's the way of the world, and things are best that way.
42. Please see Notes about Psychiatry, Item IV., for a conclusion drawn from this reading.
43. Manders: Nor can I blame you for wanting to get to know something about the new trends of thought which, so they tell me, are current in the great world outside...
44. Manders: But one doesn't talk about it, Mrs. Alving. One doesn't have to account to all sundry for what one reads and thinks in the privacy of one's own room.
45. Here, Ibsen is suggesting that people don't have to account and explain and replay every little event in their lives. They're people, they should just live their lives in peace.

46. Manders: You decided to found it at a time when your opinions and beliefs were very different from what they are now...
47. Manders: I chose 'Captain' rather than 'Chamberlain' for the name. 'Captain' looks less ostentatious.
48. Manders: And in this Bank Book you have details of the capital sum, the interest on which is to cover the running expenses of the Orphanage.
49. Manders: With pleasure. I think we'll leave the money in the bank for the time being. The interest isn't very attractive...then we could discuss the thing again in more detail.
50. Mrs. Alving: I keep everything insured--the buildings, the contents, the crops and the stock.

51. Suggests that sometimes we use too much opinion, and not enough facts.
52. Manders: I'm thinking principally of men in independent and influential positions of the kind that makes it difficult not to attach certain importance to their opinions.
53. Manders: You've only got to think of those who support my colleague!
54. Manders: So you don't want any insurance?
Mrs. Alving: No, we'll let it go.
Manders: But if there did happen to be an accident? You never know...
55. Manders: From what I hear, he's trying very hard to turn over a new leaf, thank God.

56. Manders: He told me so himself...
To be continued.
57. Manders: He has a lot on his mind, that man...all sorts of worries.
58. Mrs. Alving: Oh? Who told you that?
Manders: He told me himself. He's a good workman, too.
Mrs. Alving: Oh yes, when he's sober.
59. Manders: Good. What I wanted say, my dear Oswald, was this--you mustn't think I want to condemn out of hand all artists and their ways.
60. Mrs Alving.: Even an artist must rest now and again.

61. Manders: A child's proper place is and must be the home.
62. Oswald: When some of our model husbands and fathers took themselves a trip to Paris...Then we got to know what was what.
63. [Mrs. Alving follows with close attention, and nods but says nothing.]
64. Oswald: Well, you can believe every word they say. Some of them are experts.
65. And I would be the last person to condone his conduct as a young man, assuming these rumors told the truth.

66. Manders: Yes, you should thank God...that I managed to dissuade you from your hysterical intentions, and that it was granted to me to lead you back into the path of duty, and home to your lawful husband.
67. Manders: All your life, you've always been quite disastrously selfish and stubborn. In everything you've done, you have tended to be headstrong and undisciplined... Turn back yourself, and save what can perhaps still be saved in him. Because Mrs. Alving [with raised forefinger], you are in truth a very guilty mother...I see it as my duty to tell you this.
68. Mrs. Alving [slowly, and with control]: You have had your say, Pastor Manders. And tomorrow you will make a speech in my husband's memory. I shall not speak tomorrow. But now I'm going to talk to you just as you have talked to me.
69. Mrs. Alving: None of these things you have been saying about my husband and me and our life together after you hadled me back to the path of duty, as you put it--absolutely none of these things do you know from first-hand. From that moment on, you--our closest friend, who regularly used to call every day--you never once set foot in our house.
70. Manders [fumbling for a chair] What did you say?

71. Alving: That was the expression our doctor used.
72. Manders: I don't understand you.
73. Manders: Am I to believe that your entire married life...all those years together with your husband...were nothing but a facade?
74. Manders: How was it possible...How could a thing like that be kept hidden?
75. That was the endless battle I fought, day after day. And then I had to battle twice as hard, fight tooth and nail to prevent anybody from knowing what sort of person my child's father was...then came the most hideous thing of all.
Manders: More hideous than this?

76. Mrs. Alving: I had to put up with a lot in this house. To keep him home in the evenings...and at nights...I had to sit there with him, just the two of us drinking, and listen to his remarks, and then struggling with him to get him dragged into his bed.
77. Mrs. Alving: And now you understand why he was never allowed to set foot in this place as long as his father was alive.
78. Mrs. Alving: I was obsessed by the thought that inevitably the truth must come out sometime and be believed.
79. Act Two
80. Omitted

81. Mrs. Alving: Oh, all this law and order! I often think that's the cause of all the trouble in the world.
Added to the newest page here, Notes about Law.
82. Mrs. Alving: Oh, I know! I know! I find the idea shocking myself. What a coward I am!
83. Manders: But I saw enough to realize that his father represents a kind of ideal to him.
84. Manders: You have built up a beautiful illusion in your son's mind, Mrs. Alving...
85. Mrs. Alving: I'll tell you what I mean. The reason I'm so timid and afraid is that I can never get properly rid of the ghosts that haunt me.

86. Omitted.
87. Manders: Are you in the right frame of mind for a meeting of this kind?
88. Engstrand: God help us Pastor, there's not much point in talking about consciences.
89. Engstrand: And isn't a man bound to keep his promise.
90. Engstrand: I must say it fair broke my heart to listen to her.
91. To be continued.



Sunday, March 10, 2024

Various Notes
1. A movie about the life of Bob Marley has recently been released. I learned several things reading Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley, by Timothy White: that people had to be fit to survive in Trenchtown, a ghetto of Jamaica; that Zionism Rastafarianism dated back to Africa and Ethiopia and the Coptic church; that marijuana was widely smoked by Rastafarians across Jamaica, because it was a religious accessory; that the slang spoken by Rastafarians was a respected language; that soccer was a favorite sport in Jamaica, and Jamaican soccer teams would routinely face world soccer teams such as those from South America and Africa.
2. Tba.



Saturday, March 9, 2024

A Doll's House, by Henrik Ibsen,
A. Today's reading by Henrik Ibsen is about empowering women who are in unhappy relationships. It suggests that women can leave abusive relationships and gain their independence, and go on to lead rewarding, happy lives.
1. Suggests that despite the kind of room, the characters remain the same and act the same.
2. Mrs. Linde - We have a great deal to talk about.
Mrs. Linde - That's because you never really understood me.
3. Krogstad - When I lost you, it was just as if the ground had slipped away from under my feet. Look at me now: a broken man clinging to the wreck of his life.
Mrs Linde - Help might be near.
4. Mrs Linde - I know how far a man like you can be driven by despair.
5. Mrs Linde - All this secrecy and deception, it just can't go on.

6. Mrs Linde - How things change! How things change! Somebody to work for…to live for. A home to bring happiness into.
7. Helmer - So you knit, eh?
Helmer - You should embroider instead, you know.
Suggests that because of the motions, embroidery is much more elegant.
8. Suggests that at certain stages, you take life slow.
9. Nora - Yes I’m very tired, I just want to fall straight off to sleep.
10. Nora - You mustn’t talk to me like that tonight.

11. Helmer - You still have the Tarantella in your blood, I see. And that makes you even more desirable.
12. Helmer - You know, whenever I’m out at a party with you…do you know why I never talk to you very much, why I always stand away from you and only steal a quick glance at you now and then…
13. Helmer - What’s this? It’s just your little game isn’t it, my little Nora.
14. Nora - Torvald also drank a lot of champagne this evening.
15. Rank - Well, you never get anything for nothing in this life.

16. Rank - At the next masquerade, I shall be invisible.
Rank - There’s a big black cloak…haven’t you heard of the cloak of invisibility?
17. Rank - But I’m clean forgetting what I came for. Helmer, give me a cigar, one of those dark Havanas.
18. Nora - It is true. I loved you more than anything else in the world.
Helmer - Don’t come to me with a lot of paltry excuses.
19. Helmer - Oh stop pretending! What good would it do to me if you left this world behind, as you put it? Not the slightest bit of good.
20. Helmer - Yes you do. You try and get some rest, and set your mind at peace again. Have a good long sleep. You know you are safe and sound under my wing. What a nice, cozy little home we have here!

21. Nora - Eight whole years, ever since we first knew each other—and never have we exchanged one serious word about serious things.
22. Nora - That's why I'm leaving you. If I’m ever to reach any understanding of myself and the things around me, I must learn to stand alone. That’s why I can’t stay here with you any longer.
23. Helmer - First and foremost, you are a wife and a mother.
Nora - That I don’t believe anymore. I believe that first and foremost I am an individual, just as much as you are…
24. I have to think things out for myself, and get things clear.
25. Nora - I don’t really know what religion is.
Nora indicates that she feels that she needs to go on a religious journey, in search of knowledge.

26. Helmer - Then only one explanation is possible. You don’t love me anymore.
Nora - Exactly.
Helmer - Nora! Can you say that!
27. Nora - It was tonight, when the miracle didn’t happen. It was then I realized you weren’t the man I thought you were.
28. Nora - I was absolutely convinced you would say to him: Tell the whole wide world if you like. And when that was done…
29. Nora - I was absolutely convinced you would come forward and take everything on yourself, and say: I am the guilty one.
30. Nora - …It was to prevent it that I was ready to end my life.

31. Helmer - …But nobody sacrifices his honor for the one he loves.
32. Nora - …Look, here’s your ring back. Give me mine.
33. Nora - …I don’t accept things from strangers.
Helmer - Nora, can I never be anything more to you than a stranger.
Nora - Ah, Torvald, only by miracle of miracles…
Helmer - ...The miracle of miracles…
[The heavy sound of a door being slammed is heard from below.]
The end.
To be continued.



Friday, March 8, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Tortilla chips and salsa are a good snack!
2. Tba.



Thursday, March 7, 2024

Various Notes,
1. It’s useful to say, “Toadstools, shrooms, poisonous mushrooms make you shout.”
2. Omitted.



Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Various Notes,
1. If you start by first eating the broth, and then eat the rest, Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle soup or Campbell's Condensed Chicken with Rice soup is great! This is in reference to the soup in the small, red and white can. This is related to the statement, in a Jane Austen novel, that soup broth is good for you. Just make sure to mix with 1 can of water (as directed) to dilute it.
-Edited.
2. With the knowledge that the Greek word for salt is alati, tomatoes sprinkled with salt taste great!
(άλας {n} [form.] αλάτι {n} [coll.])
3. Lentil soup tastes great -- it has been in existence since biblical times!



Friday, March 1, 2024

Various Notes,
1. If you're in a place and you don't have pillows available, you can stack up things like clothes, sheets, or blankets, to help you sit up in bed, and these will take the place of pillows.
2. "He was already a movie lover-his dad gets credit for his taste in films." - Esquire, March 2024.
3. In one George Eliot novel, she writes, "Time heals all wounds."
4. Aristotle suggests that when people sing, you can hear in their voices if they're being timid, or sneaky, or aggressive, or shy, or funny, etc.



Thursday, February 29, 2024

A Treatise on Government, by Aristotle
1. ... he conceives that nature will then produce bad men, who will not submit to education, and in this, probably, he is not wrong; for it is certain that there are some persons whom it is impossible by any education to make good men; but why should this change be more peculiar to what he calls the best-formed government, than to all other forms, and indeed to all other things that exist? and in respect to his assigned time, as the cause of the alteration of all things, we find that those which did not begin to exist at the same time cease to be at the same time; so that, if anything came into beginning the day before the solstice, it must alter at the same time.
2. Suggests that an education makes "good men."
3. But we will first consider what particular sort of democracy is fitted to a particular city, and also what particular oligarchy to a particular people; and of other states, what is advantageous to what. It is also necessary to show clearly, not only which of these governments is best for a state, but also how it ought to be established there, and other things we will treat of briefly.
4. All founders of states endeavour to comprehend within their own plan everything of nearly the same kind with it; but in doing this they err, in the manner I have already described in treating of the preservation and destruction of governments. I will now speak of these first principles and manners, and whatever else a democratical state requires.
5. Suggests that the founders of government should not be surprised if they meet with a unique circumstance while governing. This is like saying that parents shouldn't be surprised if they meet a unique circumstance while parenting.

6. Now the foundation of a democratical state is liberty, and people have been accustomed to say this as if here only liberty was to be found; for they affirm that this is the end proposed by every democracy... This, then, is another criterion of a democracy.
7. In the next place we must inquire how this equality is to be procured. Shall the qualifications be divided so that five hundred rich should be equal to a thousand poor, or shall the thousand have equal power with the five hundred? or shall we not establish our equality in this manner? but divide indeed thus, and afterwards taking an equal number both out of the five hundred and the thousand, invest them with the power of creating the magistrates and judges.
8. Cautions against ruling based on episodes of anger.
9. It is also the business of the legislator and all those who would support a government of this sort not to make it too great a work, or too perfect; but to aim only to render it stable: for, let a state be constituted ever so badly, there is no difficulty in its continuing a few days: they should therefore endeavour to procure its safety by all those ways which we have described in assigning the causes of the preservation and destruction of governments; avoiding what is hurtful, and by framing such laws, written and unwritten, as contain those things which chiefly tend to the preservation of the state; nor to suppose that that is useful either for a democratic or [1320a] an oligarchic form of government which contributes to make them more purely so, but what will contribute to their duration: but our demagogues at present, to flatter the people, occasion frequent confiscations in the courts; for which reason those who have the welfare of the state really at heart should act directly opposite to what they do, and enact a law to prevent forfeitures from being divided amongst the people or paid into the treasury, but to have them set apart for sacred uses: for those who are of a bad disposition would not then be the less cautious, as their punishment would be the same; and the community would not be so ready to condemn those whom they sat in judgment on when they were to get nothing by it: they should also take care that the causes which are brought before the public should be as few as possible, and punish with the utmost severity those who rashly brought an action against any one; for it is not the commons but the nobles who are generally prosecuted: for in all things the citizens of the same state ought to be affectionate to each other, at least not to treat those who have the chief power in it as their enemies.
10. Suggests that some governments should operate by a system of rank.

11. Let us therefore be well assured, that every one enjoys as much happiness as he possesses virtue and wisdom, and acts according to their dictates; since for this we have the example of GOD Himself, who is completely happy, not from any external good, but in Himself, and because such is His nature. For good fortune is something different from happiness, as every good which depends not on the mind is owing to chance or fortune; but it is not from fortune that any one is wise and just: hence it follows, that that city is happiest which is the best and acts best: for no one can do well who acts not well; nor can the deeds either of man or city be praiseworthy without virtue and wisdom; for whatsoever is just, or wise, or prudent in a man, the same things are just, wise, and prudent in a city.
12. Thus much by way of introduction; for I could not but just touch upon this subject, though I could not go through a complete investigation of it, as it properly belongs to another question: let us at present suppose so much, that a man's happiest life, both as an individual and as a citizen, is a life of virtue, accompanied with those enjoyments which virtue usually procures. If there are any who are not convinced by what I have said, their doubts shall be answered hereafter, at present we shall proceed according to our intended method.
13. Suggests that government and being governed is a tricky task. No one wants to be in chains and governed and controlled, but government it is a “necessary evil” in our lives.
14. ...but if it was proper to determine the strength of the city from the number of the inhabitants, it should never be collected from the multitude in general who may happen to be in it; for in a city there must necessarily be many slaves, sojourners, and foreigners; but from those who are really part of the city and properly constitute its members; a multitude of these is indeed a proof of a large city, but in a state where a large number of mechanics inhabit, and but few soldiers, such a state cannot be great; for the greatness of the city, and the number of men in it, are not the same thing. This too is evident from fact, that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to govern properly a very numerous body of men; for of all the states which appear well governed we find not one where the rights of a citizen are open to an indiscriminate multitude.
15. Reminds us that one function of government is to preserve the society.

16. When, judging court cases, suggests that we consider race, class, gender, etc.
17. Besides, as in every business and art there are some things which men are to learn first and be made accustomed to, which are necessary to perform their several works; so it is evident that the same thing is necessary in the practice of virtue. As there is one end in view in every city, it is evident that education ought to be one and the same in each; and that this should be a common care, and not the individual's, as it now is, when every one takes care of his own children separately; and their instructions are particular also, each person teaching them as they please; but what ought to be engaged in ought to be common to all.
18. Suggests that an education can give you information to think about when at rest.
19. The end.




Various Notes,
1. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, the narrator indicates that the couple would often breathe together, would simply lay in the bed with one another and breathe together.
2. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, one of the characters first name is Gerineldo.



Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Omitted.
2. In Louis Armstrong: An American Genius, by James Lincoln Collier, Collier indicates that it meant something, that Louis Armstrong was proud, when he would go into a store or restaurant and hear his music playing.



Monday, February 26, 2024

Various Notes,
1. With the knowledge that the brain is in the eyes, perhaps foods and/or vitamins that benefit the eyes would be helpful.
2. Tba.



Sunday, February 25, 2024

A Treatise on Government, by Aristotle
1. CHAPTER XIII
2. Suggests that government should focus on and encourage work in certain areas. For example, encourage work in arts and science if they are areas that need work.
3. The last spoken of, and the Lacedaemonian, for the chief of the others are placed between these, which are as it were at the extremities, they having less power than an absolute government, and yet more than the Lacedaemonians; so that the whole matter in question may be reduced to these two points; the one is, whether it is advantageous to the citizens to have the office of general continue in one person for life, and whether it should be confined to any particular families or whether every one should be eligible: the other, whether it is advantageous for one person to have the supreme power over everything or not.
4. Suggests that if in experimenting with different forms of government, one form fails, members can revert to the old forms of government, in part or in entirety.
5. ...but if he did it sooner it was at his own peril: from whence it is evident, on the very same account, that a government of written laws is not the best; and yet general reasoning is necessary to all those who are to govern, and it will be much more perfect in those who are entirely free from passions than in those to whom they are natural. But now this is a quality which laws possess; while the other is natural to the human soul. But some one will say in answer to this, that man will be a better judge of particulars.

6. It will be necessary, then, for a king to be a lawgiver, and that his laws should be published, but that those should have no authority which are absurd, as those which are not, should. But whether is it better for the community that those things which cannot possibly come under the cognisance of the law either at all or properly should be under the government of every worthy citizen, as the present method is, when the public community, in their general assemblies, act as judges and counsellors, where all their determinations are upon particular cases, for one individual, be he who he will, will be found, upon comparison, inferior to a whole people taken collectively: but this is what a city is, as a public entertainment is better than one man's portion: for this reason the multitude judge of many things better than any one single person.
7. Moreover, let the people be free, and they will do nothing but in conformity to the law, except only in those cases which the law cannot speak to. But though what I am going to propose may not easily be met with, yet if the majority of the state should happen to be good men, should they prefer one uncorrupt governor or many equally good, is it not evident that they should choose the many? But there may be divisions among these which cannot happen when there is but one. In answer to this it may be replied that all their souls will be as much animated with virtue as this one man's.
8. Suggests that it is better to have a good king rule, than a group of corrupt councilors.
9. Asks, should the laws be written, or spoken or a mixture of the two.
10. BOOK IV - CHAPTER I

11. There is, moreover, a third sort, an imaginary one, and he ought, if such a one should be presented to his consideration, to be able to discern what sort of one it would be at the beginning; and, when once established, what would be the proper means to preserve it a long time. I mean, for instance, if a state should happen not to have the best form of government, or be deficient in what was necessary, or not receive every advantage possible, but something less. And, besides all this, it is necessary to know what sort of government is best fitting for all cities: for most of those writers who have treated this subject, however speciously they may handle other parts of it, have failed in describing the practical parts.
12. He, therefore, who aspires to the character of a legislator, ought, besides all we have already said, to be able to correct the mistakes of a government already established, as we have before mentioned. But this is impossible to be done by him who does not know how many different forms of government there are: some persons think that there is only one species both of democracy and oligarchy; but this is not true: so that every one should be acquainted with the difference of these governments, how great they are, and whence they arise; and should have equal knowledge to perceive what laws are best, and what are most suitable to each particular government: for all laws are, and ought to be, framed agreeable to the state that is to be governed by them, and not the state to the laws: for government is a certain ordering in a state which particularly respects the magistrates in what manner they shall be regulated, and where the supreme power shall be placed; and what shall be the final object which each community shall have in view...
13. We ought not to define a democracy as some do, who say simply, that it is a government where the supreme power is lodged in the people; for even in oligarchies the supreme power is in the majority. Nor should they define an oligarchy a government where the supreme power is in the hands of a few: for let us suppose the number of a people to be thirteen hundred, and that of these one thousand were rich, who would not permit the three hundred poor to have any share in the government, although they were free, and their equal in everything else; no one would say, that this government was a democracy. In like manner, if the poor, when few in number, should acquire the power over the rich, though more than themselves, no one would say, that this was an oligarchy; nor this, when the rest who are rich have no share in the administration.
14. Suggests that you maybe divide the country into parts with people of similar interests, then have a spokesperson in government for each group of people with similar interests.
15. These parts would still have to observe certain universal laws.

16. CHAPTER VII
17. Commotions also arise in aristocracies, from there being so few persons in power (as we have already observed they do in oligarchies, for in this particular an aristocracy is most near an oligarchy, for in both these states the administration of public affairs is in the hands of a few; not that this arises from the same cause in both, though herein they chiefly seem alike): and these will necessarily be most likely to happen when the generality of the people are high-spirited and think themselves equal to each other in merit...
18. Maybe the day will come when the separate parts of the country can get unified.
19. Indeed an oligarchy and a tyranny are of all governments of the shortest duration.
20. To be continued.



Saturday, February 24, 2024

Various Notes
1. In one of the books that I've read, in the Russian literature category, some of the characters snack on bread and butter.
2. Tba.



Friday, February 23, 2024

A Treatise on Government, by Aristotle
1. Ethics - Every art, and every science reduced to a teachable form, and in like manner every action and moral choice, aims, it is thought, at some good: for which reason a common and by no means a bad description of the Chief Good is, “that which all things aim at.”
2. Government
3. And when many villages so entirely join themselves together as in every respect to form but one society, that society is a city, and contains in itself, if I may so speak, the end and perfection of government: first founded that we might live, but continued that we may live happily.
4. As we see that every city is a society, and every society Ed. is established for some good purpose; for an apparent good is the spring of all human actions; it is evident that this is the principle upon which they are every one founded, and this is more especially true of that which has for its object the best possible, and is itself the most excellent, and comprehends all the rest.
5. Suggests that people should not be slaves to their government, should not feel oppressed by their government.

6. Those men therefore who are as much inferior to others as the body is to the soul, are to be thus disposed of, as the proper use of them is their bodies, in which their excellence consists; and if what I have said be true, they are slaves by nature, and it is advantageous to them to be always under government.
7. Suggests that rather than lock everyone up or classify everyone as mentally ill, government should encourage people to learn and use their skills and follow their dreams.
8. Of beasts, some live in herds, others separate, as is most convenient for procuring themselves food; as some of them live upon flesh, others on fruit, and others on whatsoever they light on, nature having so distinguished their course of life, that they can very easily procure themselves subsistence; and as the same things are not agreeable to all, but one animal likes one thing and another another, it follows that the lives of those beasts who live upon flesh must be different from the lives of those who live on fruits; so is it with men, their lives differ greatly from each other...
9. Suggests that in many ways, our lives are totally unconnected, that at times, one’s life is completely unconnected from his neighbors.
10. Now of all the works of art, those are the most excellent wherein chance has the least to do, and those are the meanest which deprave the body, those the most servile in which bodily strength alone is chiefly wanted, those most illiberal which require least skill; but as there are books written on these subjects by some persons, as by Chares the Panian, and Apollodorus the Lemnian, upon husbandry and planting; and by others on other matters, let those who have occasion consult them thereon...

11. our consideration. The members of every state must of necessity have all things in common, or some things common, and not others, or nothing at all common. To have nothing in common is evidently impossible, for society itself is one species of community; and the first thing necessary thereunto is a common place of habitation, namely the city, which must be one, and this every citizen must have a share in.
12. And upon what principles would they do it, unless they should establish the wise practice of the Cretans? for they, allowing everything else to their slaves, forbid them only gymnastic exercises and the use of arms.
13. ...notwithstanding Socrates says they will not want many laws in consequence of their education, but such only as may be necessary for regulating the streets, the markets, and the like, while at the same time it is the education of the military only that he has taken any care of. Besides, he makes the husbandmen masters of property upon paying a tribute; but this would be likely to make them far more troublesome and high-spirited than the Helots, the Penestise, or the slaves which others employ; nor has he ever determined whether it is necessary to give any attention to them in these particulars, nor thought of what is connected therewith, their polity, their education, their laws; besides, it is of no little consequence, nor is it easy to determine, how these should be framed so as to preserve the community of the military.
14. Besides, if he makes the wives common, while the property continues separate, who shall manage the domestic concerns with the same care which the man bestows upon his fields?
15. Suggests that countries with large populations, can just give their citizens instructions in basic combat send them to war with other countries, or defend their homeland, and win.

16. It may also be considered whether the quantity of each person's property may not be settled in a different manner from what he has done it in, by making it more determinate; for he says, that every one ought to have enough whereon to live moderately, as if any one had said to live well, which is the most comprehensive expression.
17. Asks, if you’re rich, how far do you want your riches to take you?
18. And upon the same principle there are laws which forbid men to sell their property, as among the Locrians, unless they can prove that some notorious misfortune has befallen them. They were also to preserve their ancient patrimony, which custom being broken through by the Leucadians, made their government too democratic; for by that means it was no longer necessary to be possessed of a certain fortune to be qualified to be a magistrate. But if an equality of goods is established, this may be either too much, when it enables the people to live luxuriously, or too little, when it obliges them to live hard. Hence it is evident, that it is not proper for the legislator to establish an equality of circumstances, but to fix a proper medium. Besides, if any one should regulate the division of property in such a manner that there should be a moderate sufficiency for all, it would be of no use; for it is of more consequence that the citizen should entertain a similarity of sentiments than an equality of circumstances; but this can never be attained unless they are properly educated under the direction of the law. But probably Phaleas may say, that this in what he himself mentions; for he both proposes a equality of property and one plan of education in his city. But he should have said particularly what education he intended, nor is it of any service to have this to much one; for this education may be one, and yet such as will make the citizens over-greedy, to grasp after honours, or riches, or both.
19. For men are not guilty of crimes for necessaries only (for which he thinks an equality of goods would be a sufficient remedy, as they would then have no occasion to steal cold or hunger), but that they may enjoy what they desire, and not wish for it in vain; for if their desire extend beyond the common necessaries of life, they were be wicked to gratify them; and not only so, but if their wishes point that way, they will do the same to enjoy those pleasures which are free from the alloy of pain. What remedy then shall we find for these three disorders. And first, to prevent stealing from necessity, let every one be supplied with a moderate subsistence, which may make the addition of his own industry necessary; second to prevent stealing to procure the luxuries of life, temperance be enjoined; and thirdly, let those who wish for pleasure in itself seek for it only in philosophy, all others want the assistance of men.
20. As he was very desirous of the character of a universal scholar, he was the first who, not being actually engaged in the management of public affairs, sat himself to inquire what sort of government was best; and he planned a state, consisting of ten thousand persons, divided into three parts, one consisting of artisans, another of husbandmen, and the third of soldiers; he also divided the lands into three parts, and allotted one to sacred purposes, another to the public, and the third to individuals.

21. He also made a law, that those should be rewarded who found out anything for the good of the city, and that the children of those who fell in battle should be educated at the public expense; which law had never been proposed by any other legislator, though it is at present in use at Athens as well as in other cities, he would have the magistrates chosen out of the people in general, by whom he meant the three parts before spoken of; and that those who were so elected should be the particular guardians of what belonged to the public, to strangers, and to orphans.
22. We know, indeed, that it is possible to propose to new model both the laws and government as a common good; and since we have mentioned this subject, it may be very proper to enter into a few particulars concerning it, for it contains some difficulties, as I have already said, and it may appear better to alter them, since it has been found useful in other sciences.
23. Suggests that officials get creative with government rewards, advancements and enhancements.
24. Thus the science of physic is extended beyond its ancient bounds; so is the gymnastic, and indeed all other arts and powers; so that one may lay it down for certain that the same thing will necessarily hold good in the art of government. And it may also be affirmed, that experience itself gives a proof of this; for the ancient laws are too simple and barbarous; which allowed the Greeks to wear swords in the city, and to buy their wives of each other.
25. Nor is it, moreover, right to permit written laws always to remain without alteration; for as in all other sciences, so in politics, it is impossible to express everything in writing with perfect exactness; for when we commit anything to writing we must use general terms, but in every action there is something particular to itself, which these may not comprehend; from whence it is evident, that certain laws will at certain times admit of alterations.

26. For a law derives all its strength from custom, and this requires long time to establish; so that, to make it an easy matter to pass from the established laws to other new ones, is to weaken the power of laws. Besides, here is another question; if the laws are to be altered, are they all to be altered, and in every government or not, and whether at the pleasure of one person or many? all which particulars will make a great difference; for which reason we will at present drop the inquiry, to pursue it at some other time.
27. CHAPTER IX
28. There are two considerations which offer themselves with respect to the government established at Lacedaemon and Crete, and indeed in almost all other states whatsoever; one is whether their laws do or do not promote the best establishment possible? the other is whether there is anything, if we consider either the principles upon which it is founded or the executive part of it, which prevents the form of government that they had proposed to follow from being observed; now it is allowed that in every well-regulated state the members of it should be free from servile labour; but in what manner this shall be effected is not so easy to determine; for the Penestse have very often attacked the Thessalians, and the Helots the Lacedaemonians, for they in a manner continually watch an opportunity for some misfortune befalling them.
29. Suggests that if the laws are too harsh, simply try lessening them, decreasing their severity.
30. But we are not now considering where the fault lies, or where it does not lie, but what is right and what is wrong; and when the manners of the women are not well regulated, as I have already said, it must not only occasion faults which are disgraceful to the state, but also increase the love of money.

31. Suggests that we should first, give a general description of a good citizen.
32. There are many sorts of slaves; for their employments are various...
33. I have already mentioned in my treatise on the management of a family, and the power of the master, that man is an animal naturally formed for society, and that therefore, when he does not want any foreign assistance, he will of his own accord desire to live with others...
34. Formerly, as was natural, every one expected that each of his fellow-citizens should in his turn serve the public, and thus administer to his private good, as he himself when in office had done for others; but now every one is desirous of being continually in power, that he may enjoy the advantage which he makes of public business and being in office; as if places were a never-failing remedy for every complaint, and were on that account so eagerly sought after.
35. If what is now said does not make this clear, we will explain it still further: if there should be any one, a very excellent player on the flute, but very deficient in family and beauty, though each of them are more valuable endowments than a skill in music, and excel this art in a higher degree than that player excels others, yet the best flutes ought to be given to him; for the superiority in beauty and fortune should have a reference to the business in hand; but these have none.
36. To be continued.



Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Mesh basketball (or running) shorts are way more comfortable than conventional pajamas! They can be found for low prices at Walmart, Marshall’s, or Burlington. And women can wear them as pajamas too!
2. Omitted.



Monday, February 19, 2024

A Doll's House, Henrik Ibsen
1. Krogstad - “That job in the bank was like the first step on the ladder for me. And now your husband wants to kick me off the ladder again, back into the mud.”
2. Suggests that sometimes, people in society wear masks, (figurative) masks that conceal their true selves.
For example, the Banker wears the mask of a strict businessman, but when he comes home to his children, he is actually a kind, loving father.
3. Nora - “If only…I mustn’t think about it.”
4. Helmer - “My dear little Nora, there is a considerable difference between your father and me.”
5. Rank - “Anyway, you know now that I’m at your service, body and soul. So you can speak out.”

6. Rank - “Give me a chance, I’ll do anything that’s humanly possible.”
7. One of the character's continually finds ways to embarrass his friend.
8. Nora - “You can do nothing for me now…It’s all just my imagination, really it is.
9. Nora - “I always think it’s tremendous fun having you.”
10. Krogstad - “You can’t frighten me either. People don’t do that sort of thing, Mrs. Helmer."
11. Helmer - “Now, now, not so wild and excitable! Let me see you being my own little singing bird again."



Sunday, February 18, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Some people just know how to talk. They can talk about anything; there is no real problem, and no real solution, they can just talk and make things up and ramble on about any given subject.
2. "No, whatever makes you think that?"
3. “Any bad feeling is someone somewhere talking about you.”
4. “Just think about being without a care in the world.”
It’s like with children, life is without a care in the world; but once you’re an adult, life becomes more complicated.
5. Omitted.
6. Nora - “What makes you think I’ve got any influence of that kind over my husband?”
7. The previous quotes were drawn from A Doll’s House, by Henrik Ibsen.



Saturday, February 17, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Omitted.
2. Tba.



Friday, February 16, 2024

The Collected Poems of William Wordsworth,
1. An Evening Walk
2. Omitted.
3. "A mind that, in a calm angelic mood,"
4. Omitted.
5. "Sweet are the sounds that mingle from afar,"
6. Omitted.
7. "Upward he looks--'and calls it luxury:"
8. Omitted.



Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Added to Favorite Notes 2.
2. Added to Favorite Notes 2.
3. "The Saint Valentine's Day Massacre was the murder of seven members and associates of Chicago's North Side Gang that occurred on Saint Valentine's Day 1929.
The murders resulted from the competition for control of organized crime in the city during Prohibition between the largely Irish North Siders, headed by George "Bugs" Moran, and their largely Italian Chicago Outfit rivals led by Al Capone." - Wikipedia, & Trivial Pursuit.



Monday, February 12, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Omitted.
2. In The Bible, the Book of Proverbs contains a passage which says that "night, though long, is a good opportunity for rest, thought, and reflection." This is a great passage, and it also hold true for the daytime.
3. Omitted.


Four Major Plays, by Henrik Ibsen
1. Introduction
2. "In an age when literature addressed itself to the debating of problems, Henrik Ibsen waited for question time and cast his dramas in an interrogative mould. 'I do but ask,' he at one point insisted, 'my call is not to answer.'"
3. “Nevertheless in the intervening years between the two pairs—a distinct shift in the author’s preoccupations is evident; from the social to the visionary, from the naturalistic to the symbolic, from the problematical to the psychological, from the demonstrative to the evocative.”
4. Power is a theme of one of Ibsen’s plays, particularly the power of one mind to influence and impose itself upon another.
5. Omitted.



Sunday, February 11, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Please see Item 7. & 20., in today's James Fenimore Cooper reading.
2. Instead of saying "White world, and black world, and boys world, and girls world," just say "We as humans share the world together." That statement is simple, not confusing, and effective.



The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper
1. Chapter VII
”From Sesquehanna’s utmost springs,
Where savage tribes pursue their game,
His blanket tied with yellow strings,
The shepherd of the forest came.”
—Freneau

2. Before the Europeans, or, to use a more significant term, the Christians, dispossessed the original owners of the soil, all that section of country which contains the New England States, and those of the Middle which lie east of the mountains, was occupied by two great nations of Indians, from whom had descended numberless tribes. But, as the original distinctions between these nations were marked by a difference in language, as well as by repeated and bloody wars, they were never known to amalgamate, until after the power and inroads of the whites had reduced some of the tribes to a state of dependence that rendered not only their political, but, considering the wants and habits of a savage, their animal existence also, extremely precarious.
3. These two great divisions consisted, on the one side, of the Five, or, as they were afterward called, the Six Nations, and their allies; and, on the other, of the Lenni Lenape, or Delawares, with the numerous and powerful tribes that owned that nation as their grandfather The former was generally called, by the Anglo-Americans Iroquois, or the Six Nations, and sometimes Mingoes. Their appellation among their rivals, seems generally to have been the Mengwe, or Maqua. They consisted of the tribes or, as their allies were fond of asserting, in order to raise their consequence, of the several nations of the Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas; who ranked, in the confederation in the order in which they are named. The Tuscaroras were admitted to this union near a century after its foundation, and thus completed the number of six.
Of the Lenni Lenape, or as they were called by the whites, from the circumstances of their holding their great council-fire on the banks of that river, the Delaware nation, the principal tribes, besides that which bore the generic name, were the Mahicanni, Mohicans, or Mohegans, and the Nanticokes, or Nentigoes. Of these the latter held the country along the waters of the Chesapeake and the seashore; while the Mohegans occupied the district between the Hudson and the ocean, including much of New England. Of course these two tribes were the first who were dispossessed of their lands by the Europeans.
The wars of a portion of the latter are celebrated among us as the wars of King Philip; but the peaceful policy of William Penn, or Miquon, as he was termed by the natives, effected its object with less difficulty, though not with less certainty. As the natives gradually disappeared from the country of the Mohegans, some scattering families sought a refuge around the council-fire of the mother tribe, or the Delawares.
4. Chapter XXIX
5. “The court awards it, and the law doth give it.”
—Merchant of Venice

6. When the curtain rises on the reader, the Judge is seen walking up and down the apartment, with a tender melancholy in his air, and his child reclining on a settee, with a flushed cheek, and her dark eyes seeming to float in crystals.
7. Suggests that overall, people are supposed to be calm.
8. “Of what didst thou think, love? where did thy thoughts dwell most, at that fearful moment?”
“The beast! the beast!” cried Elizabeth, veiling her face with her hand. “Oh! I saw nothing, I thought of nothing but the beast. I tried to think of better things, but the horror was too glaring, the danger too much before my eyes.”
“Well, well, thou art safe, and we will converse no more on the unpleasant subject. I did not think such an animal yet remained in our forests; but they will stray far from their haunts when pressed by hunger, and—”
A loud knocking at the door of the apartment interrupted what he was about to utter, and he bid the applicant enter. The door was opened by Benjamin, who came in with a discontented air, as if he felt that he had a communication to make that would be out of season.
“Here is Squire Doolittle below, sir,” commenced the major-domo.
9. “Ay, ay, you have it, sir,” cried Benjamin; “it’s summat about a complaint that he has to make of the old Leather-Stocking, who, to my judgment, is the better man of the two. It’s a very good sort of a man is this Master Bumppo, and he has a way with a spear, all the same as if he was brought up at the bow-oar of the captain’s barge, or was born with a boat-hook in his hand.”
10. There’s some folks talk of a deer or two being killed out of season, over on the west side of the Patent, by some of the squatters on the ‘Fractions.’”

11. “I congratulate you, sir; from the bottom of my soul, I congratulate you, Judge Temple. Oh! it would have been too horrid to have recollected for a moment! I have just left the hut, where, after showing me his scalps, old Natty told me of the escape of the ladies, as the thing to be mentioned last. Indeed, indeed, sir, no words of mine can express half of what I have felt “—the youth paused a moment, as if suddenly recollecting that he was overstepping prescribed limits, and concluded with a good deal of embarrassment—“what I have felt at this danger to Miss—Grant, and—and your daughter, sir.”
But the heart of Marmaduke was too much softened to admit his cavilling at trifles, and, without regarding the confusion of the other, he replied:
“I thank thee, thank thee, Oliver; as thou sayest, it is almost too horrid to be remembered. But come, let us hasten to Bess, for Louisa has already gone to the rectory.”
12. But Hiram, emboldened by the advance of the deputed constable, now ventured to approach also, and took up the discourse with the air of authority that became his commission. His first measure was to read the warrant aloud, taking care to give due emphasis to the most material parts, and concluding with the name of the Judge in very audible and distinct tones.
13. I demand entrance into this house,” said Hiram, summoning all the dignity he could muster to his assistance, “in the name of the people; and by virtue of this war rant, and of my office, and with this peace officer.”
“Stand back, stand back, squire, and don’t tempt me,” said the Leather-Stocking, motioning him to retire, with great earnestness.
“Stop us at your peril,” continued Hiram. “Billy! Jotham! close up—I want testimony.”
Hiram had mistaken the mild but determined air of Natty for submission, and had already put his foot on the threshold to enter, when he was seized unexpectedly by his shoulders, and hurled over the little bank toward the lake, to the distance of twenty feet. The suddenness of the movement, and the unexpected display of strength on the part of Natty, created a momentary astonishment in his invaders, that silenced all noises; but at the next instant Billy Kirby gave vent to his mirth in peals of laughter, that he seemed to heave up from his very soul.
“Well done, old stub!” he shouted; “the squire knowed you better than I did. Come, come, here’s a green spot; take it out like men, while Jotham and I see fair play.”
“William Kirby, I order you to do your duty,” cried Hiram, from under the bank; “seize that man; I order you to seize him in the name of the people.”
But the Leather-Stocking now assumed a more threatening attitude; his rifle was in his hand, and its muzzle was directed toward the wood-chopper.
“Stand off, I bid ye,” said Natty; “you know my aim, Billy Kirby; I don’t crave your blood, but mine and your’n both shall turn this green grass red, afore you put foot into the hut.”
While the affair appeared trifling, the wood-chopper seemed disposed to take sides with the weaker party; but, when the firearms were introduced, his manner very sensibly changed. He raised his large frame from the log, and, facing the hunter with an open front, he replied:
"I didn’t come here as your enemy, Leather-Stocking; but I don’t value the hollow piece of iron in your hand so much as a broken axe-helve; so, squire, say the word, and keep within the law, and we’ll soon see who’s the best main of the two.”
14. But no magistrate was to be seen! The instant the rifle was produced Hiram and Jotham vanished; and when the wood-chopper bent his eyes about him in surprise at receiving no answer, he discovered their retreating figures moving toward the village at a rate that sufficiently indicated that they had not only calculated the velocity of a rifle-bullet, but also its probable range.
15. Nothing now remained but to collect the fine and assert the dignity of the people; all of which, it was unanimously agreed, could be done as well on the succeeding Monday as on Saturday night—a time kept sacred by large portion of the settlers. Accordingly, all further proceedings were suspended for six-and-thirty hours.

16. Chapter XXXI
17. "It seems that the old man has been out in the hills, and has shot a buck this morning, and that, you know, is a criminal matter in the eyes of Judge Temple.”
“Oh! he has, has he?” said Edwards, averting his face to conceal the color that collected in his sunburnt cheek. “Well, if that be all, he must even pay the fine.”
18. “Why, killing the buck is but a small matter compared to what took place this afternoon,” continued Mr. Lippet, with a confidential and friendly air that won upon the youth, little as he liked the man. “It seems that a complaint was made of the fact, and a suspicion that there was venison in the hut was sworn to, all which is provided for in the statute, when Judge Temple granted the search warrant.”
“A search-warrant!” echoed Edwards, in a voice of horror, and with a face that should have been again averted to conceal its paleness; “and how much did they discover? What did they see?”
“They saw old Bumppo’s rifle; and that is a sight which will quiet most men’s curiosity in the woods.”
“Did they! did they!” shouted Edwards, bursting into a convulsive laugh; “so the old hero beat them back beat them back! did he?” The lawyer fastened his eyes in astonishment on the youth, but, as his wonder gave way to the thoughts that were commonly uppermost in his mind, he replied:
“It is no laughing matter, let me tell you, sir; the forty dollars of bounty and your six months of salary will be much reduced before you can get the matter fairly settled. Assaulting a magistrate in the execution of his duty, and menacing a constable with firearms at the same time, is a pretty serious affair, and is punishable with both fine and imprisonment.”
“Imprisonment!” repeated Oliver; “imprison the Leather-Stocking! no, no, sir; it would bring the old man to his grave. They shall never imprison the Leather-Stocking.”
19. “Well, Mr. Edwards,” said Lippet, dropping all reserve from his manner, “you are called a curious man; but if you can tell me how a jury is to be prevented from finding a verdict of guilty, if this case comes fairly before them, and the proof is clear, I shall acknowledge that you know more law than I do, who have had a license in my pocket for three years.”
20. Suggests that Mr. Lippy would be an interesting name for a character.

21. Notwithstanding the confused state of his mind, Oliver soon discovered that most of the expedients of the lawyer were grounded in cunning, and plans that required a time to execute them that neither suited his disposition nor his necessities. After, however, giving Mr. Lippet to under stand that he retained him in the event of a trial, an assurance that at once satisfied the lawyer, they parted, one taking his course with a deliberate tread in the direction of the little building that had a wooden sign over its door, with “Chester Lippet, Attorney-at-law,” painted on it; and the other pacing over the ground with enormous strides toward the mansion-house. We shall take leave of the attorney for the present, and direct the attention of the reader to the client.
22. Miss Temple, when I first heard of your horrid situation, my feelings were too powerful for utterance; and I did not properly find my tongue, until the walk to Mr. Grant’s had given me time to collect myself. I believe—I do believe, I acquitted myself better there, for Miss Grant even wept at my silly speeches.” For a moment Elizabeth did not reply, but again veiled her eyes with her hand. The feeling that caused the action, however, soon passed away, and, raising her face again to his gaze, she continued with a smile:
23. “No one, I believe, doubts the sense of justice which Judge Temple entertains!” returned Edwards bitterly.
“But let us converse calmly, sir. Will not the years, the habits, nay, the ignorance of my old friend, avail him any thing against this charge?”
“Ought they? They may extenuate, but can they ac quit? Would any society be tolerable, young man, where the ministers of justice are to be opposed by men armed with rifles? Is it for this that I have tamed the wilder ness?”
24. "Yes, he is my friend,” cried Edwards, “and I glory in the title. He is simple, unlettered, even ignorant; prejudiced, perhaps, though I feel that his opinion of the world is too true; but he has a heart, Judge Temple, that would atone for a thousand faults; he knows his friends, and never deserts them, even if it be his dog.”
25. "I should think, sir, that the appearance of Mohegan and the Leather-Stocking, stalking through the country, impoverished and forlorn, would wither your sight.”

26. To be continued.




Friday, February 9, 2024

Various Notes,
1. The Bible has many passages which represent Arabic influence: interesting. This makes sense, however, since many biblical traditions were passed down by Arabic peoples. For example, in the Book of Proverbs, one passage says, "the night, though long, is a good opportunity for thought, rest, and reflection," and this passage like many others, seems, instead of European in origin, like Arabic wisdom.
2. Tba.



Thursday, February 8, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Bewick's British Birds: Over 180 Classic Illustrations by the Famed Engraver and Naturalist, by Thomas Bewick, is a book that has appeared frequently in my research. The book gives a rather comprehensive review of a wide variety of birds. It is a great book!
A. I learned that of the birds where I live, some are more common than others, and some have more distinctive markings, etc. than others.
B. Additionally, I learned for example that, "The Eagle Owl, is one of the largest of the British Owls, and has a powerful as well as a dignified look." Additionally, Bewick indicates that the Eagle Owl hunts rabbits and grouse.

2. Gustave Flaubert, Three Tales - First published in 1877, these three stories are dominated by questions of doubt, love, loneliness, and religious experience--together they confirm Flaubert as a master of the short story. "A Simple Heart" relates the story of F licit , an uneducated serving-woman who retains her Catholic faith despite a life of desolation and loss.
3. I looked up Henrik Ibsen books. One of his books suggests that “nothing’s there, that is, often times, people just make up and invent the problems in their lives.”



Monday, February 5, 2024

Various Notes
1. Reading The History of the Yorubas from the Earliest Times... by Samuel Johnson, I learned that sometimes, the Yoruba speak just to be "nice." That is, their speech often does not have the same purpose as English speech.
2. Added to Favorite Notes 2.
3. Added to Favorite Notes 2.



Saturday, February 3, 2024

Various Notes
1. Minute Rice, with a little bit of Soy Sauce, and a little bit of Orange Sauce on the side, all found at Wal Mart, tastes great!
2. Stove Top Stuffing is a great side dish!



Friday, February 2, 2024

Various Notes
1. A character in one of the books I've read, taught his pet parrot not to fear people.
2. Tba.



Thursday, February 1, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. Tba.



Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.
3. Omitted.
4. Pasta & Tuna is easy to make like Tuna Casserole, just don’t add the cheese to the Kraft cup near the end.
4B. In principle, ANY macaroni dish is easy to make with Kraft Mac and Cheese Cups, they save you time making macaroni (whether you add the cheese or not)!



Thursday, January 25, 2024

Various Notes
1. “The memory of the elderly sometimes is not so strong. Consequently, this is a reason for the youth to help them.” - A philosopher who I’ve read.
2. “So what are you trying to say? What are you getting at? What are you accusing me of?" - The Vicomte de Bragelonne, Alexander Dumas
3. Essentially, George Eliot is saying, in a man's voice, “Since many men are slow, can barely read, only possess a high school education, and have multiple other flaws about them, why should I be jealous of them? I am confident in who I am."
4. Additionally, when Alexander Pushkin writes that one of his character’s “lightly scolded his girlfriend, the princess" that meant you don’t have to shout or scream at your girlfriend, if anything just lightly talk to them.
4B. In fact, if you take this a few steps further, you’ll see that if you’re in a healthy relationship, “just let your girlfriend get you,” you don’t have to get upset at all because of her actions.
5. George Eliot also suggests that in a relationship, your girlfriend in many ways is like your sister, or your mother.

6. Towards the end of one of Plato’s philosophy texts, he describes The “Spindle of Necessity.”



Wednesday, January 24, 2024

Various Notes
1. I posted The Tree of Evil, about a tree with poison, and "vile venom" in it, by Alexander Pushkin, to this page (Thursday, December 28, 2023). Apparently there are several versions of the poem, and the version that I posted came from a very reputable source.
2. Omitted.
3. Updated: Food Ideas.



Saturday, January 20, 2024

Various Notes
1. The Affirmative Action Debate: do you overlook the established rules in society’s institutions for racial equality, and if so, how much?
2. Omitted.
3. The White Pine is the State Tree of Maine.



American Notes for General Circulation, by Charles Dickens,
1. CHAPTER IV - AN AMERICAN RAILROAD. LOWELL AND ITS FACTORY SYSTEM
2. Indicates that despite trains being segregated by race— negroes in some cabs, whites in the others, despite this, the negroes can enjoy themselves through their own forms of entertainment.
3. Describes a charismatic conductor.
4. "...which is an unspeakable comfort to all strong politicians and true lovers of their country: that is to say, to ninety-nine men and boys out of every ninety-nine and a quarter."
5. "The train calls at stations in the woods, where the wild impossibility of anybody having the smallest reason to get out, is only to be equalled by the apparently desperate hopelessness of there being anybody to get in. It rushes across the turnpike road, where there is no gate, no policeman, no signal: nothing but a rough wooden arch, on which is painted 'WHEN THE BELL RINGS, LOOK OUT FOR THE LOCOMOTIVE.'"

6. Approaches a house, then says, “Looks like this house was built on a deck of cards. It’ll probably come down if I have to sneeze.”
7. The very river that moves the machinery in the mills (for they are all worked by water power), seems to acquire a new character from the fresh buildings of bright red brick and painted wood among which it takes its course; and to be as light- headed, thoughtless, and brisk a young river, in its murmurings and tumblings, as one would desire to see. One would swear that every 'Bakery,' 'Grocery,' and 'Bookbindery,' and other kind of store, took its shutters down for the first time, and started in business yesterday. The golden pestles and mortars fixed as signs upon the sun-blind frames outside the Druggists', appear to have been just turned out of the United States' Mint; and when I saw a baby of some week or ten days old in a woman's arms at a street corner, I found myself unconsciously wondering where it came from: never supposing for an instant that it could have been born in such a young town as that.  
8. These girls, as I have said, were all well dressed: and that phrase necessarily includes extreme cleanliness. They had serviceable bonnets, good warm cloaks, and shawls; and were not above clogs and pattens. Moreover, there were places in the mill in which they could deposit these things without injury; and there were conveniences for washing. They were healthy in appearance, many of them remarkably so, and had the manners and deportment of young women: not of degraded brutes of burden. If I had seen in one of those mills (but I did not, though I looked for something of this kind with a sharp eye), the most lisping, mincing, affected, and ridiculous young creature that my imagination could suggest, I should have thought of the careless, moping, slatternly, degraded, dull reverse (I HAVE seen that), and should have been still well pleased to look upon her.
9. Suggests, “The people in the pictures of the slave trade, where’d they get these people? The dust bowl? They’re all dirty and unkempt.”
10. It is their station to work. And they DO work. They labour in these mills, upon an average, twelve hours a day, which is unquestionably work, and pretty tight work too. Perhaps it is above their station to indulge in such amusements, on any terms. Are we quite sure that we in England have not formed our ideas of the 'station' of working people, from accustoming ourselves to the contemplation of that class as they are, and not as they might be? I think that if we examine our own feelings, we shall find that the pianos, and the circulating libraries, and even the Lowell Offering, startle us by their novelty, and not by their bearing upon any abstract question of right or wrong.

11. For myself, I know no station in which, the occupation of to-day cheerfully done and the occupation of to-morrow cheerfully looked to, any one of these pursuits is not most humanising and laudable. I know no station which is rendered more endurable to the person in it, or more safe to the person out of it, by having ignorance for its associate.
12. Writes, "I know it was slavery, but geez, there's no one cheerful in the pictures or smiling, or playing...that's just not right. No one learning religion or literature...really?"
13. Reminds us that farmers are usually strong, muscular men, not puny women and children.
Or become at least, after years of farming, muscular and strong.
Strong enough and in enough numbers, to start their own organizations.
14. But glancing all the way out at window from the corners of my eyes, I found abundance of entertainment for the rest of the ride in watching the effects of the wood fire, which had been invisible in the morning but were now brought out in full relief by the darkness: for we were travelling in a whirlwind of bright sparks, which showered about us like a storm of fiery snow.
15. CHAPTER V - WORCESTER. THE CONNECTICUT RIVER. HARTFORD. NEW HAVEN. TO NEW YORK

16. These towns and cities of New England (many of which would be villages in Old England), are as favourable specimens of rural America, as their people are of rural Americans. The well-trimmed lawns and green meadows of home are not there; and the grass, compared with our ornamental plots and pastures, is rank, and rough, and wild: but delicate slopes of land, gently-swelling hills, wooded valleys, and slender streams, abound. Every little colony of houses has its church and school-house peeping from among the white roofs and shady trees; every house is the whitest of the white; every Venetian blind the greenest of the green; every fine day's sky the bluest of the blue. A sharp dry wind and a slight frost had so hardened the roads when we alighted at Worcester, that their furrowed tracks were like ridges of granite. There was the usual aspect of newness on every object, of course. All the buildings looked as if they had been built and painted that morning, and could be taken down on Monday with very little trouble. In the keen evening air, every sharp outline looked a hundred times sharper than ever. The clean cardboard colonnades had no more perspective than a Chinese bridge on a tea-cup, and appeared equally well calculated for use. The razor-like edges of the detached cottages seemed to cut the very wind as it whistled against them, and to send it smarting on its way with a shriller cry than before. Those slightly-built wooden dwellings behind which the sun was setting with a brilliant lustre, could be so looked through and through, that the idea of any inhabitant being able to hide himself from the public gaze, or to have any secrets from the public eye, was not entertainable for a moment. Even where a blazing fire shone through the uncurtained windows of some distant house, it had the air of being newly lighted, and of lacking warmth; and instead of awakening thoughts of a snug chamber, bright with faces that first saw the light round that same hearth, and ruddy with warm hangings, it came upon one suggestive of the smell of new mortar and damp walls.
17. It rained all day as I once thought it never did rain anywhere, but in the Highlands of Scotland.
18. The river was full of floating blocks of ice, which were constantly crunching and cracking under us; and the depth of water, in the course we took to avoid the larger masses, carried down the middle of the river by the current, did not exceed a few inches. Nevertheless, we moved onward, dexterously; and being well wrapped up, bade defiance to the weather, and enjoyed the journey.
19. After two hours and a half of this odd travelling (including a stoppage at a small town, where we were saluted by a gun considerably bigger than our own chimney), we reached Hartford, and straightway repaired to an extremely comfortable hotel: except, as usual, in the article of bedrooms, which, in almost every place we visited, were very conducive to early rising.
20. Met a person who shows him a gun then says, "that's a big gun, but I've seen guns bigger than that."

21. New Haven, known also as the City of Elms, is a fine town. Many of its streets (as its ALIAS sufficiently imports) are planted with rows of grand old elm-trees; and the same natural ornaments surround Yale College, an establishment of considerable eminence and reputation. The various departments of this Institution are erected in a kind of park or common in the middle of the town, where they are dimly visible among the shadowing trees. The effect is very like that of an old cathedral yard in England; and when their branches are in full leaf, must be extremely picturesque. Even in the winter time, these groups of well-grown trees, clustering among the busy streets and houses of a thriving city, have a very quaint appearance: seeming to bring about a kind of compromise between town and country; as if each had met the other half-way, and shaken hands upon it; which is at once novel and pleasant.
22. Reminds us that each state has a State Tree.
23. After a night's rest, we rose early, and in good time went down to the wharf, and on board the packet New York FOR New York. This was the first American steamboat of any size that I had seen; and certainly to an English eye it was infinitely less like a steamboat than a huge floating bath. I could hardly persuade myself, indeed, but that the bathing establishment off Westminster Bridge, which I left a baby, had suddenly grown to an enormous size; run away from home; and set up in foreign parts as a steamer. Being in America, too, which our vagabonds do so particularly favour, it seemed the more probable.
24. But I woke from my nap in time to hurry up, and see Hell Gate, the Hog's Back, the Frying Pan, and other notorious localities, attractive to all readers of famous Diedrich Knickerbocker's History. We were now in a narrow channel, with sloping banks on either side, besprinkled with pleasant villas, and made refreshing to the sight by turf and trees. Soon we shot in quick succession, past a light- house; a madhouse (how the lunatics flung up their caps and roared in sympathy with the headlong engine and the driving tide!); a jail; and other buildings: and so emerged into a noble bay, whose waters sparkled in the now cloudless sunshine like Nature's eyes turned up to Heaven.
25. Then there lay stretched out before us, to the right, confused heaps of buildings, with here and there a spire or steeple, looking down upon the herd below; and here and there, again, a cloud of lazy smoke; and in the foreground a forest of ships' masts, cheery with flapping sails and waving flags. Crossing from among them to the opposite shore, were steam ferry-boats laden with people, coaches, horses, waggons, baskets, boxes: crossed and recrossed by other ferry-boats: all travelling to and fro: and never idle. Stately among these restless Insects, were two or three large ships, moving with slow majestic pace, as creatures of a prouder kind, disdainful of their puny journeys, and making for the broad sea. Beyond, were shining heights, and islands in the glancing river, and a distance scarcely less blue and bright than the sky it seemed to meet. The city's hum and buzz, the clinking of capstans, the ringing of bells, the barking of dogs, the clattering of wheels, tingled in the listening ear. All of which life and stir, coming across the stirring water, caught new life and animation from its free companionship; and, sympathising with its buoyant spirits, glistened as it seemed in sport upon its surface, and hemmed the vessel round, and plashed the water high about her sides, and, floating her gallantly into the dock, flew off again to welcome other comers, and speed before them to the busy port.

26. CHAPTER VI - NEW YORK
27. THE beautiful metropolis of America is by no means so clean a city as Boston, but many of its streets have the same characteristics; except that the houses are not quite so fresh-coloured, the sign- boards are not quite so gaudy, the gilded letters not quite so golden, the bricks not quite so red, the stone not quite so white, the blinds and area railings not quite so green, the knobs and plates upon the street doors not quite so bright and twinkling. There are many by-streets, almost as neutral in clean colours, and positive in dirty ones, as by-streets in London; and there is one quarter, commonly called the Five Points, which, in respect of filth and wretchedness, may be safely backed against Seven Dials, or any other part of famed St. Giles's.
28. The great promenade and thoroughfare, as most people know, is Broadway; a wide and bustling street, which, from the Battery Gardens to its opposite termination in a country road, may be four miles long. Shall we sit down in an upper floor of the Carlton House Hotel (situated in the best part of this main artery of New York), and when we are tired of looking down upon the life below, sally forth arm-in-arm, and mingle with the stream?
29. Warm weather! The sun strikes upon our heads at this open window, as though its rays were concentrated through a burning-glass; but the day is in its zenith, and the season an unusual one. Was there ever such a sunny street as this Broadway! The pavement stones are polished with the tread of feet until they shine again; the red bricks of the houses might be yet in the dry, hot kilns; and the roofs of those omnibuses look as though, if water were poured on them, they would hiss and smoke, and smell like half-quenched fires. No stint of omnibuses here! Half-a-dozen have gone by within as many minutes. Plenty of hackney cabs and coaches too; gigs, phaetons, large-wheeled tilburies, and private carriages - rather of a clumsy make, and not very different from the public vehicles, but built for the heavy roads beyond the city pavement. Negro coachmen and white; in straw hats, black hats, white hats, glazed caps, fur caps; in coats of drab, black, brown, green, blue, nankeen, striped jean and linen; and there, in that one instance (look while it passes, or it will be too late), in suits of livery. Some southern republican that, who puts his blacks in uniform, and swells with Sultan pomp and power. Yonder, where that phaeton with the well-clipped pair of grays has stopped - standing at their heads now - is a Yorkshire groom, who has not been very long in these parts, and looks sorrowfully round for a companion pair of top-boots, which he may traverse the city half a year without meeting. Heaven save the ladies, how they dress! We have seen more colours in these ten minutes, than we should have seen elsewhere, in as many days. What various parasols! what rainbow silks and satins! what pinking of thin stockings, and pinching of thin shoes, and fluttering of ribbons and silk tassels, and display of rich cloaks with gaudy hoods and linings! The young gentlemen are fond, you see, of turning down their shirt-collars and cultivating their whiskers, especially under the chin; but they cannot approach the ladies in their dress or bearing, being, to say the truth, humanity of quite another sort. Byrons of the desk and counter, pass on, and let us see what kind of men those are behind ye: those two labourers in holiday clothes, of whom one carries in his hand a crumpled scrap of paper from which he tries to spell out a hard name, while the other looks about for it on all the doors and windows.
30. Irishmen both! You might know them, if they were masked, by their long-tailed blue coats and bright buttons, and their drab trousers, which they wear like men well used to working dresses, who are easy in no others. It would be hard to keep your model republics going, without the countrymen and countrywomen of those two labourers. For who else would dig, and delve, and drudge, and do domestic work, and make canals and roads, and execute great lines of Internal Improvement! Irishmen both, and sorely puzzled too, to find out what they seek. Let us go down, and help them, for the love of home, and that spirit of liberty which admits of honest service to honest men, and honest work for honest bread, no matter what it be.

31. This narrow thoroughfare, baking and blistering in the sun, is Wall Street: the Stock Exchange and Lombard Street of New York. Many a rapid fortune has been made in this street, and many a no less rapid ruin. Some of these very merchants whom you see hanging about here now, have locked up money in their strong-boxes, like the man in the Arabian Nights, and opening them again, have found but withered leaves. Below, here by the water-side, where the bowsprits of ships stretch across the footway, and almost thrust themselves into the windows, lie the noble American vessels which have made their Packet Service the finest in the world. They have brought hither the foreigners who abound in all the streets: not, perhaps, that there are more here, than in other commercial cities; but elsewhere, they have particular haunts, and you must find them out; here, they pervade the town.  

We must cross Broadway again; gaining some refreshment from the heat, in the sight of the great blocks of clean ice which are being carried into shops and bar-rooms; and the pine-apples and water- melons profusely displayed for sale. Fine streets of spacious houses here, you see! - Wall Street has furnished and dismantled many of them very often - and here a deep green leafy square. Be sure that is a hospitable house with inmates to be affectionately remembered always, where they have the open door and pretty show of plants within, and where the child with laughing eyes is peeping out of window at the little dog below. You wonder what may be the use of this tall flagstaff in the by-street, with something like Liberty's head-dress on its top: so do I. But there is a passion for tall flagstaffs hereabout, and you may see its twin brother in five minutes, if you have a mind.
32. That's well! We have got at the right address at last, though it is written in strange characters truly, and might have been scrawled with the blunt handle of the spade the writer better knows the use of, than a pen. Their way lies yonder, but what business takes them there? They carry savings: to hoard up? No. They are brothers, those men. One crossed the sea alone, and working very hard for one half year, and living harder, saved funds enough to bring the other out. That done, they worked together side by side, contentedly sharing hard labour and hard living for another term, and then their sisters came, and then another brother, and lastly, their old mother. And what now? Why, the poor old crone is restless in a strange land, and yearns to lay her bones, she says, among her people in the old graveyard at home: and so they go to pay her passage back: and God help her and them, and every simple heart, and all who turn to the Jerusalem of their younger days, and have an altar-fire upon the cold hearth of their fathers.
33. Again across Broadway, and so - passing from the many-coloured crowd and glittering shops - into another long main street, the Bowery. A railroad yonder, see, where two stout horses trot along, drawing a score or two of people and a great wooden ark, with ease. The stores are poorer here; the passengers less gay. Clothes ready-made, and meat ready-cooked, are to be bought in these parts; and the lively whirl of carriages is exchanged for the deep rumble of carts and waggons. These signs which are so plentiful, in shape like river buoys, or small balloons, hoisted by cords to poles, and dangling there, announce, as you may see by looking up, 'OYSTERS IN EVERY STYLE.' They tempt the hungry most at night, for then dull candles glimmering inside, illuminate these dainty words, and make the mouths of idlers water, as they read and linger.
34. What is this dismal-fronted pile of bastard Egyptian, like an enchanter's palace in a melodrama! - a famous prison, called The Tombs. Shall we go in?  

So. A long, narrow, lofty building, stove-heated as usual, with four galleries, one above the other, going round it, and communicating by stairs. Between the two sides of each gallery, and in its centre, a bridge, for the greater convenience of crossing. On each of these bridges sits a man: dozing or reading, or talking to an idle companion. On each tier, are two opposite rows of small iron doors. They look like furnace-doors, but are cold and black, as though the fires within had all gone out. Some two or three are open, and women, with drooping heads bent down, are talking to the inmates. The whole is lighted by a skylight, but it is fast closed; and from the roof there dangle, limp and drooping, two useless windsails.
35. 'Pray, why do they call this place The Tombs?'   'Well, it's the cant name.'   'I know it is. Why?'   'Some suicides happened here, when it was first built. I expect it come about from that.'
36. The prison-yard in which he pauses now, has been the scene of terrible performances. Into this narrow, grave-like place, men are brought out to die. The wretched creature stands beneath the gibbet on the ground; the rope about his neck; and when the sign is given, a weight at its other end comes running down, and swings him up into the air - a corpse.  

The law requires that there be present at this dismal spectacle, the judge, the jury, and citizens to the amount of twenty-five. From the community it is hidden. To the dissolute and bad, the thing remains a frightful mystery. Between the criminal and them, the prison-wall is interposed as a thick gloomy veil. It is the curtain to his bed of death, his winding-sheet, and grave. From him it shuts out life, and all the motives to unrepenting hardihood in that last hour, which its mere sight and presence is often all- sufficient to sustain. There are no bold eyes to make him bold; no ruffians to uphold a ruffian's name before. All beyond the pitiless stone wall, is unknown space.  

Let us go forth again into the cheerful streets.
37. But how quiet the streets are! Are there no itinerant bands; no wind or stringed instruments? No, not one. By day, are there no Punches, Fantoccini, Dancing-dogs, Jugglers, Conjurers, Orchestrinas, or even Barrel-organs? No, not one. Yes, I remember one. One barrel-organ and a dancing-monkey - sportive by nature, but fast fading into a dull, lumpish monkey, of the Utilitarian school. Beyond that, nothing lively; no, not so much as a white mouse in a twirling cage.
38. Writes, "In New York, the streets are quiet, in Louisiana, by contrast, there are bands that play music in the streets."
39. Are there no amusements? Yes. There is a lecture-room across the way, from which that glare of light proceeds, and there may be evening service for the ladies thrice a week, or oftener. For the young gentlemen, there is the counting-house, the store, the bar- room: the latter, as you may see through these windows, pretty full. Hark! to the clinking sound of hammers breaking lumps of ice, and to the cool gurgling of the pounded bits, as, in the process of mixing, they are poured from glass to glass! No amusements? What are these suckers of cigars and swallowers of strong drinks, whose hats and legs we see in every possible variety of twist, doing, but amusing themselves? What are the fifty newspapers, which those precocious urchins are bawling down the street, and which are kept filed within, what are they but amusements? Not vapid, waterish amusements, but good strong stuff; dealing in round abuse and blackguard names; pulling off the roofs of private houses, as the Halting Devil did in Spain; pimping and pandering for all degrees of vicious taste, and gorging with coined lies the most voracious maw; imputing to every man in public life the coarsest and the vilest motives; scaring away from the stabbed and prostrate body-politic, every Samaritan of clear conscience and good deeds; and setting on, with yell and whistle and the clapping of foul hands, the vilest vermin and worst birds of prey. - No amusements!
40. Let us go on again; and passing this wilderness of an hotel with stores about its base, like some Continental theatre, or the London Opera House shorn of its colonnade, plunge into the Five Points. But it is needful, first, that we take as our escort these two heads of the police, whom you would know for sharp and well-trained officers if you met them in the Great Desert. So true it is, that certain pursuits, wherever carried on, will stamp men with the same character. These two might have been begotten, born, and bred, in Bow Street.  

41. To be continued.



Various Notes,
1. Russian Literature
2. Tales of Belkin: The Undertaker
3. The Undertaker is the third short story in the collection.
4. In the story, the Russian-drinker stereotype is explored. We meet an undertaker who "is a very straight-forward man, and does not tolerate deviation from the norm." After attending a party, however, we learn that the undertaker get's drunk and the next day, does not do his job as he is supposed to, and gets into a good deal of trouble.
5. A similar story by Pushkin, also explores this theme in the Russian army. Due to a soldier playing cards, getting drunk, and failing to do his job, he has to explain himself to his superior officer, who lets him off the hook with only a warning.

6. In one Russian short story, the author describes a woman who goes into the forest, and finds a baby bear who lost his mother. Then the woman is kind to this baby bear, and brings him home with her and raises him.
7. The short story mentioned above, may be related to the popular painting, Morning in a Pine Forest, by Ivan Shishkin and Konstantin Savitsky, as well as the overall symbolism of the bear in Russian culture.

8. Scorpio (1981) is a good song by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, off their genius album, The Message.
9. Many of the books that I’ve read include characters who have impressive sharp shooting skills, often times being able to display great accuracy with a gun.
10. In one novel that I’ve read, one of the characters says, after being questioned by another character, “I don’t want to tell you, because I don’t want you to know my feelings.”

11. Ramen noodles taste great with Bacon Bits!



Thursday, January 18, 2024

Various Notes
1. Walmart sells, in their Asian Foods section, Neoguri Ramen. Neoguri Ramen tastes great with canned lump crabmeat. I put the ramen in one bowl, and the lump crabmeat in another. Then I take out some ramen noodles, and dip them into the crabmeat bowl to get both on the fork, then eat, then I repeat this, until finished. Next, I want to try the Kimchi Ramen, which is also sold in the Asian foods section.
2. Great Value Iced Tea with Peach Drink Mix, makes great peach iced tea!
3. Kraft Mac & Cheese cups, mixed with a Tuna Pouch, makes great tuna casserole! - Added to Food Ideas.
4. Alexander Pushkin suggests that readers should look at a map of Russia, Mongolia, and China, as well as a map of Europe.



Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Various Notes
1. In Louis Armstrong: An American Genius, by James Lincoln Collier, Collier indicates that early in his career, Louis Armstrong and his band would play, or perform music on the steamboats in Louisiana, and this was good exposure for Louis.
2. Tba.



Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Various Notes
1. On my Facebook page, I added several pages of notes from this blog.
2. Tba.



Monday, January 15, 2024

Various Notes
1. A. Perhaps foreign librarians with little or no access to digital ebooks, could coordinate with American librarians, with access to millions of digital ebooks, a way to allow their foreign patrons online access to American library ebook applications. I use a library digital ebook application to reserve books for work on this blog, which is really helpful.
B. This would allow library patrons in foreign countries access to the same digital ebooks that American libraries present to their patrons. Then, library patrons across the globe -- who otherwise would not have access to so many digital ebooks -- will now have access to more digital ebooks, in order to then pursue their studies.
C. My libraries' digital ebook application (that I use on my iPhone) even has a link on their website which allows users to "Get [the digital ebook company's application] for your library."
2. I can no longer run the maximum length of time, or the distance, that I was able to run when I began running. I guess I had more stamina when I was beginning. I'm lucky if I can run 3 minutes these days. However, I feel healthy, well I don't feel very unhealthy, and I feel as though I enjoyed moderate gains since beginning to run.
3. I learned that different magic (poisonous) mushroom pills, enable users to talk based on different emotions and other stimuli.
4. Updated: Item XXIII. on Notes about Psychiatry. This Item directs visitors to Favorite Notes 2, Item XII. Notes about Law, on this page.
5. Larry Bird said, about basketball, "But it is a black man's game, and it will be forever."



Saturday, January 13, 2024

American Notes for General Circulation, by Charles Dickens,
1. CHAPTER III - BOSTON
2. IN all the public establishments of America, the utmost courtesy prevails. Most of our Departments are susceptible of considerable improvement in this respect, but the Custom-house above all others would do well to take example from the United States and render itself somewhat less odious and offensive to foreigners. The servile rapacity of the French officials is sufficiently contemptible; but there is a surly boorish incivility about our men, alike disgusting to all persons who fall into their hands, and discreditable to the nation that keeps such ill-conditioned curs snarling about its gates.  

When I landed in America, I could not help being strongly impressed with the contrast their Custom-house presented, and the attention, politeness and good humour with which its officers discharged their duty.  

As we did not land at Boston, in consequence of some detention at the wharf, until after dark, I received my first impressions of the city in walking down to the Custom-house on the morning after our arrival, which was Sunday. I am afraid to say, by the way, how many offers of pews and seats in church for that morning were made to us, by formal note of invitation, before we had half finished our first dinner in America, but if I may be allowed to make a moderate guess, without going into nicer calculation, I should say that at least as many sittings were proffered us, as would have accommodated a score or two of grown-up families. The number of creeds and forms of religion to which the pleasure of our company was requested, was in very fair proportion.

Not being able, in the absence of any change of clothes, to go to church that day, we were compelled to decline these kindnesses, one and all; and I was reluctantly obliged to forego the delight of hearing Dr. Channing, who happened to preach that morning for the first time in a very long interval. I mention the name of this distinguished and accomplished man (with whom I soon afterwards had the pleasure of becoming personally acquainted), that I may have the gratification of recording my humble tribute of admiration and respect for his high abilities and character; and for the bold philanthropy with which he has ever opposed himself to that most hideous blot and foul disgrace - Slavery.
2. To return to Boston. When I got into the streets upon this Sunday morning, the air was so clear, the houses were so bright and gay: the signboards were painted in such gaudy colours; the gilded letters were so very golden; the bricks were so very red, the stone was so very white, the blinds and area railings were so very green, the knobs and plates upon the street doors so marvellously bright and twinkling; and all so slight and unsubstantial in appearance - that every thoroughfare in the city looked exactly like a scene in a pantomime. It rarely happens in the business streets that a tradesman, if I may venture to call anybody a tradesman, where everybody is a merchant, resides above his store; so that many occupations are often carried on in one house, and the whole front is covered with boards and inscriptions. As I walked along, I kept glancing up at these boards, confidently expecting to see a few of them change into something; and I never turned a corner suddenly without looking out for the clown and pantaloon, who, I had no doubt, were hiding in a doorway or behind some pillar close at hand. As to Harlequin and Columbine, I discovered immediately that they lodged (they are always looking after lodgings in a pantomime) at a very small clockmaker's one story high, near the hotel; which, in addition to various symbols and devices, almost covering the whole front, had a great dial hanging out - to be jumped through, of course.

The suburbs are, if possible, even more unsubstantial-looking than the city. The white wooden houses (so white that it makes one wink to look at them), with their green jalousie blinds, are so sprinkled and dropped about in all directions, without seeming to have any root at all in the ground; and the small churches and chapels are so prim, and bright, and highly varnished; that I almost believed the whole affair could be taken up piecemeal like a child's toy, and crammed into a little box.  

The city is a beautiful one, and cannot fail, I should imagine, to impress all strangers very favourably. The private dwelling-houses are, for the most part, large and elegant; the shops extremely good; and the public buildings handsome. The State House is built upon the summit of a hill, which rises gradually at first, and afterwards by a steep ascent, almost from the water's edge. In front is a green enclosure, called the Common. The site is beautiful: and from the top there is a charming panoramic view of the whole town and neighbourhood. In addition to a variety of commodious offices, it contains two handsome chambers; in one the House of Representatives of the State hold their meetings: in the other, the Senate. Such proceedings as I saw here, were conducted with perfect gravity and decorum; and were certainly calculated to inspire attention and respect.

There is no doubt that much of the intellectual refinement and superiority of Boston, is referable to the quiet influence of the University of Cambridge, which is within three or four miles of the city. The resident professors at that university are gentlemen of learning and varied attainments; and are, without one exception that I can call to mind, men who would shed a grace upon, and do honour to, any society in the civilised world. Many of the resident gentry in Boston and its neighbourhood, and I think I am not mistaken in adding, a large majority of those who are attached to the liberal professions there, have been educated at this same school. Whatever the defects of American universities may be, they disseminate no prejudices; rear no bigots; dig up the buried ashes of no old superstitions; never interpose between the people and their improvement; exclude no man because of his religious opinions; above all, in their whole course of study and instruction, recognise a world, and a broad one too, lying beyond the college walls.  

It was a source of inexpressible pleasure to me to observe the almost imperceptible, but not less certain effect, wrought by this institution among the small community of Boston; and to note at every turn the humanising tastes and desires it has engendered; the affectionate friendships to which it has given rise; the amount of vanity and prejudice it has dispelled. The golden calf they worship at Boston is a pigmy compared with the giant effigies set up in other parts of that vast counting-house which lies beyond the Atlantic; and the almighty dollar sinks into something comparatively insignificant, amidst a whole Pantheon of better gods.

It is a great and pleasant feature of all such institutions in America, that they are either supported by the State or assisted by the State; or (in the event of their not needing its helping hand) that they act in concert with it, and are emphatically the people's. I cannot but think, with a view to the principle and its tendency to elevate or depress the character of the industrious classes, that a Public Charity is immeasurably better than a Private Foundation, no matter how munificently the latter may be endowed. In our own country, where it has not, until within these later days, been a very popular fashion with governments to display any extraordinary regard for the great mass of the people or to recognise their existence as improvable creatures, private charities, unexampled in the history of the earth, have arisen, to do an incalculable amount of good among the destitute and afflicted. But the government of the country, having neither act nor part in them, is not in the receipt of any portion of the gratitude they inspire; and, offering very little shelter or relief beyond that which is to be found in the workhouse and the jail, has come, not unnaturally, to be looked upon by the poor rather as a stern master, quick to correct and punish, than a kind protector, merciful and vigilant in their hour of need.

The maxim that out of evil cometh good, is strongly illustrated by these establishments at home; as the records of the Prerogative Office in Doctors' Commons can abundantly prove. Some immensely rich old gentleman or lady, surrounded by needy relatives, makes, upon a low average, a will a-week. The old gentleman or lady, never very remarkable in the best of times for good temper, is full of aches and pains from head to foot; full of fancies and caprices; full of spleen, distrust, suspicion, and dislike. To cancel old wills, and invent new ones, is at last the sole business of such a testator's existence; and relations and friends (some of whom have been bred up distinctly to inherit a large share of the property, and have been, from their cradles, specially disqualified from devoting themselves to any useful pursuit, on that account) are so often and so unexpectedly and summarily cut off, and reinstated, and cut off again, that the whole family, down to the remotest cousin, is kept in a perpetual fever. At length it becomes plain that the old lady or gentleman has not long to live; and the plainer this becomes, the more clearly the old lady or gentleman perceives that everybody is in a conspiracy against their poor old dying relative; wherefore the old lady or gentleman makes another last will - positively the last this time - conceals the same in a china teapot, and expires next day. Then it turns out, that the whole of the real and personal estate is divided between half-a- dozen charities; and that the dead and gone testator has in pure spite helped to do a great deal of good, at the cost of an immense amount of evil passion and misery.

The Perkins Institution and Massachusetts Asylum for the Blind, at Boston, is superintended by a body of trustees who make an annual report to the corporation. The indigent blind of that state are admitted gratuitously. Those from the adjoining state of Connecticut, or from the states of Maine, Vermont, or New Hampshire, are admitted by a warrant from the state to which they respectively belong; or, failing that, must find security among their friends, for the payment of about twenty pounds English for their first year's board and instruction, and ten for the second.

3. Suggests that music schools are good because they focus on the talents of their students. Similar to the benefits of cooking schools, for helping people learn how to cook.

4. Her name is Laura Bridgman. 'She was born in Hanover, New Hampshire, on the twenty-first of December, 1829. She is described as having been a very sprightly and pretty infant, with bright blue eyes. She was, however, so puny and feeble until she was a year and a half old, that her parents hardly hoped to rear her. She was subject to severe fits, which seemed to rack her frame almost beyond her power of endurance: and life was held by the feeblest tenure: but when a year and a half old, she seemed to rally; the dangerous symptoms subsided; and at twenty months old, she was perfectly well.

'Then her mental powers, hitherto stinted in their growth, rapidly developed themselves; and during the four months of health which she enjoyed, she appears (making due allowance for a fond mother's account) to have displayed a considerable degree of intelligence.

'But suddenly she sickened again; her disease raged with great violence during five weeks, when her eyes and ears were inflamed, suppurated, and their contents were discharged. But though sight and hearing were gone for ever, the poor child's sufferings were not ended. The fever raged during seven weeks; for five months she was kept in bed in a darkened room; it was a year before she could walk unsupported, and two years before she could sit up all day.

It was now observed that her sense of smell was almost entirely destroyed; and, consequently, that her taste was much blunted.   'It was not until four years of age that the poor child's bodily health seemed restored, and she was able to enter upon her apprenticeship of life and the world.  

'But what a situation was hers! The darkness and the silence of the tomb were around her: no mother's smile called forth her answering smile, no father's voice taught her to imitate his sounds:- they, brothers and sisters, were but forms of matter which resisted her touch, but which differed not from the furniture of the house, save in warmth, and in the power of locomotion; and not even in these respects from the dog and the cat.  

'But the immortal spirit which had been implanted within her could not die, nor be maimed nor mutilated; and though most of its avenues of communication with the world were cut off, it began to manifest itself through the others. As soon as she could walk, she began to explore the room, and then the house; she became familiar with the form, density, weight, and heat, of every article she could lay her hands upon. She followed her mother, and felt her hands and arms, as she was occupied about the house; and her disposition to imitate, led her to repeat everything herself. She even learned to sew a little, and to knit.'

'At this time, I was so fortunate as to hear of the child, and immediately hastened to Hanover to see her. I found her with a well-formed figure; a strongly-marked, nervous-sanguine temperament; a large and beautifully-shaped head; and the whole system in healthy action. The parents were easily induced to consent to her coming to Boston, and on the 4th of October, 1837, they brought her to the Institution.

The first experiments were made by taking articles in common use, such as knives, forks, spoons, keys, and pasting upon them labels with their names printed in raised letters. These she felt very carefully, and soon, of course, distinguished that the crooked lines SPOON, differed as much from the crooked lines KEY, as the spoon differed from the key in form.  

'Then small detached labels, with the same words printed upon them, were put into her hands; and she soon observed that they were similar to the ones pasted on the articles.' She showed her perception of this similarity by laying the label KEY upon the key, and the label SPOON upon the spoon. She was encouraged here by the natural sign of approbation, patting on the head.  

'The same process was then repeated with all the articles which she could handle; and she very easily learned to place the proper labels upon them. It was evident, however, that the only intellectual exercise was that of imitation and memory. She recollected that the label BOOK was placed upon a book, and she repeated the process first from imitation, next from memory, with only the motive of love of approbation, but apparently without the intellectual perception of any relation between the things.  

'After a while, instead of labels, the individual letters were given to her on detached bits of paper: they were arranged side by side so as to spell BOOK, KEY, &c.; then they were mixed up in a heap and a sign was made for her to arrange them herself so as to express the words BOOK, KEY, &c.; and she did so.

'Hitherto, the process had been mechanical, and the success about as great as teaching a very knowing dog a variety of tricks. The poor child had sat in mute amazement, and patiently imitated everything her teacher did; but now the truth began to flash upon her: her intellect began to work: she perceived that here was a way by which she could herself make up a sign of anything that was in her own mind, and show it to another mind; and at once her countenance lighted up with a human expression: it was no longer a dog, or parrot: it was an immortal spirit, eagerly seizing upon a new link of union with other spirits! I could almost fix upon the moment when this truth dawned upon her mind, and spread its light to her countenance; I saw that the great obstacle was overcome; and that henceforward nothing but patient and persevering, but plain and straightforward, efforts were to be used.

5. Added to Various Notes.

6. She was exercised for several weeks in this way, until her vocabulary became extensive; and then the important step was taken of teaching her how to represent the different letters by the position of her fingers, instead of the cumbrous apparatus of the board and types. She accomplished this speedily and easily, for her intellect had begun to work in aid of her teacher, and her progress was rapid.

This was the period, about three months after she had commenced, that the first report of her case was made, in which it was stated that "she has just learned the manual alphabet, as used by the deaf mutes, and it is a subject of delight and wonder to see how rapidly, correctly, and eagerly, she goes on with her labours. Her teacher gives her a new object, for instance, a pencil, first lets her examine it, and get an idea of its use, then teaches her how to spell it by making the signs for the letters with her own fingers: the child grasps her hand, and feels her fingers, as the different letters are formed; she turns her head a little on one side like a person listening closely; her lips are apart; she seems scarcely to breathe; and her countenance, at first anxious, gradually changes to a smile, as she comprehends the lesson. She then holds up her tiny fingers, and spells the word in the manual alphabet; next, she takes her types and arranges her letters; and last, to make sure that she is right, she takes the whole of the types composing the word, and places them upon or in contact with the pencil, or whatever the object may be."  

The whole of the succeeding year was passed in gratifying her eager inquiries for the names of every object which she could possibly handle; in exercising her in the use of the manual alphabet; in extending in every possible way her knowledge of the physical relations of things; and in proper care of her health.  

'At the end of the year a report of her case was made, from which the following is an extract.  

'"It has been ascertained beyond the possibility of doubt, that she cannot see a ray of light, cannot hear the least sound, and never exercises her sense of smell, if she have any. Thus her mind dwells in darkness and stillness, as profound as that of a closed tomb at midnight. Of beautiful sights, and sweet sounds, and pleasant odours, she has no conception; nevertheless, she seems as happy and playful as a bird or a lamb; and the employment of her intellectual faculties, or the acquirement of a new idea, gives her a vivid pleasure, which is plainly marked in her expressive features. She never seems to repine, but has all the buoyancy and gaiety of childhood. She is fond of fun and frolic, and when playing with the rest of the children, her shrill laugh sounds loudest of the group.  

'"When left alone, she seems very happy if she have her knitting or sewing, and will busy herself for hours; if she have no occupation, she evidently amuses herself by imaginary dialogues, or by recalling past impressions; she counts with her fingers, or spells out names of things which she has recently learned, in the manual alphabet of the deaf mutes. In this lonely self-communion she seems to reason, reflect, and argue; if she spell a word wrong with the fingers of her right hand, she instantly strikes it with her left, as her teacher does, in sign of disapprobation; if right, then she pats herself upon the head, and looks pleased. She sometimes purposely spells a word wrong with the left hand, looks roguish for a moment and laughs, and then with the right hand strikes the left, as if to correct it.  

'"During the year she has attained great dexterity in the use of the manual alphabet of the deaf mutes; and she spells out the words and sentences which she knows, so fast and so deftly, that only those accustomed to this language can follow with the eye the rapid motions of her fingers.  

'"But wonderful as is the rapidity with which she writes her thoughts upon the air, still more so is the ease and accuracy with which she reads the words thus written by another; grasping their hands in hers, and following every movement of their fingers, as letter after letter conveys their meaning to her mind. It is in this way that she converses with her blind playmates, and nothing can more forcibly show the power of mind in forcing matter to its purpose than a meeting between them. For if great talent and skill are necessary for two pantomimes to paint their thoughts and feelings by the movements of the body, and the expression of the countenance, how much greater the difficulty when darkness shrouds them both, and the one can hear no sound.

'"When Laura is walking through a passage-way, with her hands spread before her, she knows instantly every one she meets, and passes them with a sign of recognition: but if it be a girl of her own age, and especially if it be one of her favourites, there is instantly a bright smile of recognition, a twining of arms, a grasping of hands, and a swift telegraphing upon the tiny fingers; whose rapid evolutions convey the thoughts and feelings from the outposts of one mind to those of the other. There are questions and answers, exchanges of joy or sorrow, there are kissings and partings, just as between little children with all their senses."  

'During this year, and six months after she had left home, her mother came to visit her, and the scene of their meeting was an interesting one.  

'The mother stood some time, gazing with overflowing eyes upon her unfortunate child, who, all unconscious of her presence, was playing about the room. Presently Laura ran against her, and at once began feeling her hands, examining her dress, and trying to find out if she knew her; but not succeeding in this, she turned away as from a stranger, and the poor woman could not conceal the pang she felt, at finding that her beloved child did not know her.

'She then gave Laura a string of beads which she used to wear at home, which were recognised by the child at once, who, with much joy, put them around her neck, and sought me eagerly to say she understood the string was from her home.  

'The mother now sought to caress her, but poor Laura repelled her, preferring to be with her acquaintances.  

'Another article from home was now given her, and she began to look much interested; she examined the stranger much closer, and gave me to understand that she knew she came from Hanover; she even endured her caresses, but would leave her with indifference at the slightest signal. The distress of the mother was now painful to behold; for, although she had feared that she should not be recognised, the painful reality of being treated with cold indifference by a darling child, was too much for woman's nature to bear.  

'After a while, on the mother taking hold of her again, a vague idea seemed to flit across Laura's mind, that this could not be a stranger; she therefore felt her hands very eagerly, while her countenance assumed an expression of intense interest; she became very pale; and then suddenly red; hope seemed struggling with doubt and anxiety, and never were contending emotions more strongly painted upon the human face: at this moment of painful uncertainty, the mother drew her close to her side, and kissed her fondly, when at once the truth flashed upon the child, and all mistrust and anxiety disappeared from her face, as with an expression of exceeding joy she eagerly nestled to the bosom of her parent, and yielded herself to her fond embraces.

'After this, the beads were all unheeded; the playthings which were offered to her were utterly disregarded; her playmates, for whom but a moment before she gladly left the stranger, now vainly strove to pull her from her mother; and though she yielded her usual instantaneous obedience to my signal to follow me, it was evidently with painful reluctance. She clung close to me, as if bewildered and fearful; and when, after a moment, I took her to her mother, she sprang to her arms, and clung to her with eager joy.  

'The subsequent parting between them, showed alike the affection, the intelligence, and the resolution of the child.  

'Laura accompanied her mother to the door, clinging close to her all the way, until they arrived at the threshold, where she paused, and felt around, to ascertain who was near her. Perceiving the matron, of whom she is very fond, she grasped her with one hand, holding on convulsively to her mother with the other; and thus she stood for a moment: then she dropped her mother's hand; put her handkerchief to her eyes; and turning round, clung sobbing to the matron; while her mother departed, with emotions as deep as those of her child.

'Her social feelings, and her affections, are very strong; and when she is sitting at work, or at her studies, by the side of one of her little friends, she will break off from her task every few moments, to hug and kiss them with an earnestness and warmth that is touching to behold.  

'When left alone, she occupies and apparently amuses herself, and seems quite contented; and so strong seems to be the natural tendency of thought to put on the garb of language, that she often soliloquizes in the FINGER LANGUAGE, slow and tedious as it is. But it is only when alone, that she is quiet: for if she becomes sensible of the presence of any one near her, she is restless until she can sit close beside them, hold their hand, and converse with them by signs.

7. I had previously been into another chamber, where a number of blind boys were swinging, and climbing, and engaged in various sports. They all clamoured, as we entered, to the assistant-master, who accompanied us, 'Look at me, Mr. Hart! Please, Mr. Hart, look at me!' evincing, I thought, even in this, an anxiety peculiar to their condition, that their little feats of agility should be SEEN. Among them was a small laughing fellow, who stood aloof, entertaining himself with a gymnastic exercise for bringing the arms and chest into play; which he enjoyed mightily; especially when, in thrusting out his right arm, he brought it into contact with another boy. Like Laura Bridgman, this young child was deaf, and dumb, and blind.

As I rose to quit the room, a pretty little child of one of the attendants came running in to greet its father. For the moment, a child with eyes, among the sightless crowd, impressed me almost as painfully as the blind boy in the porch had done, two hours ago. Ah! how much brighter and more deeply blue, glowing and rich though it had been before, was the scene without, contrasting with the darkness of so many youthful lives within!  

* * * * * *

At SOUTH BOSTON, as it is called, in a situation excellently adapted for the purpose, several charitable institutions are clustered together. One of these, is the State Hospital for the insane; admirably conducted on those enlightened principles of conciliation and kindness, which twenty years ago would have been worse than heretical, and which have been acted upon with so much success in our own pauper Asylum at Hanwell. 'Evince a desire to show some confidence, and repose some trust, even in mad people,' said the resident physician, as we walked along the galleries, his patients flocking round us unrestrained. Of those who deny or doubt the wisdom of this maxim after witnessing its effects, if there be such people still alive, I can only say that I hope I may never be summoned as a Juryman on a Commission of Lunacy whereof they are the subjects; for I should certainly find them out of their senses, on such evidence alone.

8. This,' he said aloud, taking me by the hand, and advancing to the fantastic figure with great politeness - not raising her suspicions by the slightest look or whisper, or any kind of aside, to me: 'This lady is the hostess of this mansion, sir. It belongs to her. Nobody else has anything whatever to do with it. It is a large establishment, as you see, and requires a great number of attendants. She lives, you observe, in the very first style. She is kind enough to receive my visits, and to permit my wife and family to reside here; for which it is hardly necessary to say, we are much indebted to her. She is exceedingly courteous, you perceive,' on this hint she bowed condescendingly, 'and will permit me to have the pleasure of introducing you: a gentleman from England, Ma'am: newly arrived from England, after a very tempestuous passage: Mr. Dickens, - the lady of the house!'  

We exchanged the most dignified salutations with profound gravity and respect, and so went on. The rest of the madwomen seemed to understand the joke perfectly (not only in this case, but in all the others, except their own), and be highly amused by it. The nature of their several kinds of insanity was made known to me in the same way, and we left each of them in high good humour. Not only is a thorough confidence established, by those means, between the physician and patient, in respect of the nature and extent of their hallucinations, but it is easy to understand that opportunities are afforded for seizing any moment of reason, to startle them by placing their own delusion before them in its most incongruous and ridiculous light.

Every patient in this asylum sits down to dinner every day with a knife and fork; and in the midst of them sits the gentleman, whose manner of dealing with his charges, I have just described. At every meal, moral influence alone restrains the more violent among them from cutting the throats of the rest; but the effect of that influence is reduced to an absolute certainty, and is found, even as a means of restraint, to say nothing of it as a means of cure, a hundred times more efficacious than all the strait-waistcoats, fetters, and handcuffs, that ignorance, prejudice, and cruelty have manufactured since the creation of the world.  

In the labour department, every patient is as freely trusted with the tools of his trade as if he were a sane man. In the garden, and on the farm, they work with spades, rakes, and hoes. For amusement, they walk, run, fish, paint, read, and ride out to take the air in carriages provided for the purpose. They have among themselves a sewing society to make clothes for the poor, which holds meetings, passes resolutions, never comes to fisty-cuffs or bowie-knives as sane assemblies have been known to do elsewhere; and conducts all its proceedings with the greatest decorum. The irritability, which would otherwise be expended on their own flesh, clothes, and furniture, is dissipated in these pursuits. They are cheerful, tranquil, and healthy.

The orphans and young children are in an adjoining building separate from this, but a part of the same Institution. Some are such little creatures, that the stairs are of Lilliputian measurement, fitted to their tiny strides. The same consideration for their years and weakness is expressed in their very seats, which are perfect curiosities, and look like articles of furniture for a pauper doll's-house. I can imagine the glee of our Poor Law Commissioners at the notion of these seats having arms and backs; but small spines being of older date than their occupation of the Board-room at Somerset House, I thought even this provision very merciful and kind.  

Here again, I was greatly pleased with the inscriptions on the wall, which were scraps of plain morality, easily remembered and understood: such as 'Love one another' - 'God remembers the smallest creature in his creation:' and straightforward advice of that nature. The books and tasks of these smallest of scholars, were adapted, in the same judicious manner, to their childish powers. When we had examined these lessons, four morsels of girls (of whom one was blind) sang a little song, about the merry month of May, which I thought (being extremely dismal) would have suited an English November better. That done, we went to see their sleeping-rooms on the floor above, in which the arrangements were no less excellent and gentle than those we had seen below. And after observing that the teachers were of a class and character well suited to the spirit of the place, I took leave of the infants with a lighter heart than ever I have taken leave of pauper infants yet.

9. The Boylston boys, as may be readily supposed, have very much the advantage of the others in point of personal appearance. They were in their school-room when I came upon them, and answered correctly, without book, such questions as where was England; how far was it; what was its population; its capital city; its form of government; and so forth. They sang a song too, about a farmer sowing his seed: with corresponding action at such parts as ''tis thus he sows,' 'he turns him round,' 'he claps his hands;' which gave it greater interest for them, and accustomed them to act together, in an orderly manner. They appeared exceedingly well-taught, and not better taught than fed; for a more chubby-looking full-waistcoated set of boys, I never saw.

America, as a new and not over-populated country, has in all her prisons, the one great advantage, of being enabled to find useful and profitable work for the inmates; whereas, with us, the prejudice against prison labour is naturally very strong, and almost insurmountable, when honest men who have not offended against the laws are frequently doomed to seek employment in vain. Even in the United States, the principle of bringing convict labour and free labour into a competition which must obviously be to the disadvantage of the latter, has already found many opponents, whose number is not likely to diminish with access of years.  

For this very reason though, our best prisons would seem at the first glance to be better conducted than those of America. The treadmill is conducted with little or no noise; five hundred men may pick oakum in the same room, without a sound; and both kinds of labour admit of such keen and vigilant superintendence, as will render even a word of personal communication amongst the prisoners almost impossible. On the other hand, the noise of the loom, the forge, the carpenter's hammer, or the stonemason's saw, greatly favour those opportunities of intercourse - hurried and brief no doubt, but opportunities still - which these several kinds of work, by rendering it necessary for men to be employed very near to each other, and often side by side, without any barrier or partition between them, in their very nature present. A visitor, too, requires to reason and reflect a little, before the sight of a number of men engaged in ordinary labour, such as he is accustomed to out of doors, will impress him half as strongly as the contemplation of the same persons in the same place and garb would, if they were occupied in some task, marked and degraded everywhere as belonging only to felons in jails. In an American state prison or house of correction, I found it difficult at first to persuade myself that I was really in a jail: a place of ignominious punishment and endurance. And to this hour I very much question whether the humane boast that it is not like one, has its root in the true wisdom or philosophy of the matter.  

I hope I may not be misunderstood on this subject, for it is one in which I take a strong and deep interest. I incline as little to the sickly feeling which makes every canting lie or maudlin speech of a notorious criminal a subject of newspaper report and general sympathy, as I do to those good old customs of the good old times which made England, even so recently as in the reign of the Third King George, in respect of her criminal code and her prison regulations, one of the most bloody-minded and barbarous countries on the earth. If I thought it would do any good to the rising generation, I would cheerfully give my consent to the disinterment of the bones of any genteel highwayman (the more genteel, the more cheerfully), and to their exposure, piecemeal, on any sign-post, gate, or gibbet, that might be deemed a good elevation for the purpose. My reason is as well convinced that these gentry were as utterly worthless and debauched villains, as it is that the laws and jails hardened them in their evil courses, or that their wonderful escapes were effected by the prison-turnkeys who, in those admirable days, had always been felons themselves, and were, to the last, their bosom-friends and pot-companions. At the same time I know, as all men do or should, that the subject of Prison Discipline is one of the highest importance to any community; and that in her sweeping reform and bright example to other countries on this head, America has shown great wisdom, great benevolence, and exalted policy. In contrasting her system with that which we have modelled upon it, I merely seek to show that with all its drawbacks, ours has some advantages of its own.

The House of Correction which has led to these remarks, is not walled, like other prisons, but is palisaded round about with tall rough stakes, something after the manner of an enclosure for keeping elephants in, as we see it represented in Eastern prints and pictures. The prisoners wear a parti-coloured dress; and those who are sentenced to hard labour, work at nail-making, or stone- cutting. When I was there, the latter class of labourers were employed upon the stone for a new custom-house in course of erection at Boston. They appeared to shape it skilfully and with expedition, though there were very few among them (if any) who had not acquired the art within the prison gates.   The women, all in one large room, were employed in making light clothing, for New Orleans and the Southern States. They did their work in silence like the men; and like them were over-looked by the person contracting for their labour, or by some agent of his appointment. In addition to this, they are every moment liable to be visited by the prison officers appointed for that purpose.

The arrangements for cooking, washing of clothes, and so forth, are much upon the plan of those I have seen at home. Their mode of bestowing the prisoners at night (which is of general adoption) differs from ours, and is both simple and effective. In the centre of a lofty area, lighted by windows in the four walls, are five tiers of cells, one above the other; each tier having before it a light iron gallery, attainable by stairs of the same construction and material: excepting the lower one, which is on the ground. Behind these, back to back with them and facing the opposite wall, are five corresponding rows of cells, accessible by similar means: so that supposing the prisoners locked up in their cells, an officer stationed on the ground, with his back to the wall, has half their number under his eye at once; the remaining half being equally under the observation of another officer on the opposite side; and all in one great apartment. Unless this watch be corrupted or sleeping on his post, it is impossible for a man to escape; for even in the event of his forcing the iron door of his cell without noise (which is exceedingly improbable), the moment he appears outside, and steps into that one of the five galleries on which it is situated, he must be plainly and fully visible to the officer below. Each of these cells holds a small truckle bed, in which one prisoner sleeps; never more. It is small, of course; and the door being not solid, but grated, and without blind or curtain, the prisoner within is at all times exposed to the observation and inspection of any guard who may pass along that tier at any hour or minute of the night. Every day, the prisoners receive their dinner, singly, through a trap in the kitchen wall; and each man carries his to his sleeping cell to eat it, where he is locked up, alone, for that purpose, one hour. The whole of this arrangement struck me as being admirable; and I hope that the next new prison we erect in England may be built on this plan.

I wish by this account of them, imperfect in its execution, but in its just intention, honest, I could hope to convey to my readers one-hundredth part of the gratification, the sights I have described, afforded me.  

* * * * * *  

10. To an Englishman, accustomed to the paraphernalia of Westminster Hall, an American Court of Law is as odd a sight as, I suppose, an English Court of Law would be to an American. Except in the Supreme Court at Washington (where the judges wear a plain black robe), there is no such thing as a wig or gown connected with the administration of justice. The gentlemen of the bar being barristers and attorneys too (for there is no division of those functions as in England) are no more removed from their clients than attorneys in our Court for the Relief of Insolvent Debtors are, from theirs. The jury are quite at home, and make themselves as comfortable as circumstances will permit. The witness is so little elevated above, or put aloof from, the crowd in the court, that a stranger entering during a pause in the proceedings would find it difficult to pick him out from the rest. And if it chanced to be a criminal trial, his eyes, in nine cases out of ten, would wander to the dock in search of the prisoner, in vain; for that gentleman would most likely be lounging among the most distinguished ornaments of the legal profession, whispering suggestions in his counsel's ear, or making a toothpick out of an old quill with his penknife.

11. I could not but notice these differences, when I visited the courts at Boston. I was much surprised at first, too, to observe that the counsel who interrogated the witness under examination at the time, did so SITTING. But seeing that he was also occupied in writing down the answers, and remembering that he was alone and had no 'junior,' I quickly consoled myself with the reflection that law was not quite so expensive an article here, as at home; and that the absence of sundry formalities which we regard as indispensable, had doubtless a very favourable influence upon the bill of costs.  

In every Court, ample and commodious provision is made for the accommodation of the citizens. This is the case all through America. In every Public Institution, the right of the people to attend, and to have an interest in the proceedings, is most fully and distinctly recognised. There are no grim door-keepers to dole out their tardy civility by the sixpenny-worth; nor is there, I sincerely believe, any insolence of office of any kind. Nothing national is exhibited for money; and no public officer is a showman. We have begun of late years to imitate this good example. I hope we shall continue to do so; and that in the fulness of time, even deans and chapters may be converted.  

In the civil court an action was trying, for damages sustained in some accident upon a railway. The witnesses had been examined, and counsel was addressing the jury. The learned gentleman (like a few of his English brethren) was desperately long-winded, and had a remarkable capacity of saying the same thing over and over again. His great theme was 'Warren the ENGINE driver,' whom he pressed into the service of every sentence he uttered. I listened to him for about a quarter of an hour; and, coming out of court at the expiration of that time, without the faintest ray of enlightenment as to the merits of the case, felt as if I were at home again.

The tone of society in Boston is one of perfect politeness, courtesy, and good breeding. The ladies are unquestionably very beautiful - in face: but there I am compelled to stop. Their education is much as with us; neither better nor worse. I had heard some very marvellous stories in this respect; but not believing them, was not disappointed. Blue ladies there are, in Boston; but like philosophers of that colour and sex in most other latitudes, they rather desire to be thought superior than to be so. Evangelical ladies there are, likewise, whose attachment to the forms of religion, and horror of theatrical entertainments, are most exemplary. Ladies who have a passion for attending lectures are to be found among all classes and all conditions. In the kind of provincial life which prevails in cities such as this, the Pulpit has great influence. The peculiar province of the Pulpit in New England (always excepting the Unitarian Ministry) would appear to be the denouncement of all innocent and rational amusements. The church, the chapel, and the lecture-room, are the only means of excitement excepted; and to the church, the chapel, and the lecture-room, the ladies resort in crowds.

Wherever religion is resorted to, as a strong drink, and as an escape from the dull monotonous round of home, those of its ministers who pepper the highest will be the surest to please. They who strew the Eternal Path with the greatest amount of brimstone, and who most ruthlessly tread down the flowers and leaves that grow by the wayside, will be voted the most righteous; and they who enlarge with the greatest pertinacity on the difficulty of getting into heaven, will be considered by all true believers certain of going there: though it would be hard to say by what process of reasoning this conclusion is arrived at. It is so at home, and it is so abroad. With regard to the other means of excitement, the Lecture, it has at least the merit of being always new. One lecture treads so quickly on the heels of another, that none are remembered; and the course of this month may be safely repeated next, with its charm of novelty unbroken, and its interest unabated.

12. The fruits of the earth have their growth in corruption. Out of the rottenness of these things, there has sprung up in Boston a sect of philosophers known as Transcendentalists. On inquiring what this appellation might be supposed to signify, I was given to understand that whatever was unintelligible would be certainly transcendental. Not deriving much comfort from this elucidation, I pursued the inquiry still further, and found that the Transcendentalists are followers of my friend Mr. Carlyle, or I should rather say, of a follower of his, Mr. Ralph Waldo Emerson. This gentleman has written a volume of Essays, in which, among much that is dreamy and fanciful (if he will pardon me for saying so), there is much more that is true and manly, honest and bold. Transcendentalism has its occasional vagaries (what school has not?), but it has good healthful qualities in spite of them; not least among the number a hearty disgust of Cant, and an aptitude to detect her in all the million varieties of her everlasting wardrobe. And therefore if I were a Bostonian, I think I would be a Transcendentalist.  

13. The only preacher I heard in Boston was Mr. Taylor, who addresses himself peculiarly to seamen, and who was once a mariner himself. I found his chapel down among the shipping, in one of the narrow, old, water-side streets, with a gay blue flag waving freely from its roof. In the gallery opposite to the pulpit were a little choir of male and female singers, a violoncello, and a violin. The preacher already sat in the pulpit, which was raised on pillars, and ornamented behind him with painted drapery of a lively and somewhat theatrical appearance. He looked a weather-beaten hard- featured man, of about six or eight and fifty; with deep lines graven as it were into his face, dark hair, and a stern, keen eye. Yet the general character of his countenance was pleasant and agreeable. The service commenced with a hymn, to which succeeded an extemporary prayer. It had the fault of frequent repetition, incidental to all such prayers; but it was plain and comprehensive in its doctrines, and breathed a tone of general sympathy and charity, which is not so commonly a characteristic of this form of address to the Deity as it might be. That done he opened his discourse, taking for his text a passage from the Song of Solomon, laid upon the desk before the commencement of the service by some unknown member of the congregation: 'Who is this coming up from the wilderness, leaning on the arm of her beloved!'  

He handled his text in all kinds of ways, and twisted it into all manner of shapes; but always ingeniously, and with a rude eloquence, well adapted to the comprehension of his hearers. Indeed if I be not mistaken, he studied their sympathies and understandings much more than the display of his own powers. His imagery was all drawn from the sea, and from the incidents of a seaman's life; and was often remarkably good. He spoke to them of 'that glorious man, Lord Nelson,' and of Collingwood; and drew nothing in, as the saying is, by the head and shoulders, but brought it to bear upon his purpose, naturally, and with a sharp mind to its effect. Sometimes, when much excited with his subject, he had an odd way - compounded of John Bunyan, and Balfour of Burley - of taking his great quarto Bible under his arm and pacing up and down the pulpit with it; looking steadily down, meantime, into the midst of the congregation. Thus, when he applied his text to the first assemblage of his hearers, and pictured the wonder of the church at their presumption in forming a congregation among themselves, he stopped short with his Bible under his arm in the manner I have described, and pursued his discourse after this manner:

'Who are these - who are they - who are these fellows? where do they come from? Where are they going to? - Come from! What's the answer?' - leaning out of the pulpit, and pointing downward with his right hand: 'From below!' - starting back again, and looking at the sailors before him: 'From below, my brethren. From under the hatches of sin, battened down above you by the evil one. That's where you came from!' - a walk up and down the pulpit: 'and where are you going' - stopping abruptly: 'where are you going? Aloft!' - very softly, and pointing upward: 'Aloft!' - louder: 'aloft!' - louder still: 'That's where you are going - with a fair wind, - all taut and trim, steering direct for Heaven in its glory, where there are no storms or foul weather, and where the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest.' - Another walk: 'That's where you're going to, my friends. That's it. That's the place. That's the port. That's the haven. It's a blessed harbour - still water there, in all changes of the winds and tides; no driving ashore upon the rocks, or slipping your cables and running out to sea, there: Peace - Peace - Peace - all peace!' - Another walk, and patting the Bible under his left arm: 'What! These fellows are coming from the wilderness, are they? Yes. From the dreary, blighted wilderness of Iniquity, whose only crop is Death. But do they lean upon anything - do they lean upon nothing, these poor seamen?' - Three raps upon the Bible: 'Oh yes. - Yes. - They lean upon the arm of their Beloved' - three more raps: 'upon the arm of their Beloved' - three more, and a walk: 'Pilot, guiding- star, and compass, all in one, to all hands - here it is' - three more: 'Here it is. They can do their seaman's duty manfully, and be easy in their minds in the utmost peril and danger, with this' - two more: 'They can come, even these poor fellows can come, from the wilderness leaning on the arm of their Beloved, and go up - up - up!' - raising his hand higher, and higher, at every repetition of the word, so that he stood with it at last stretched above his head, regarding them in a strange, rapt manner, and pressing the book triumphantly to his breast, until he gradually subsided into some other portion of his discourse.  

I have cited this, rather as an instance of the preacher's eccentricities than his merits, though taken in connection with his look and manner, and the character of his audience, even this was striking. It is possible, however, that my favourable impression of him may have been greatly influenced and strengthened, firstly, by his impressing upon his hearers that the true observance of religion was not inconsistent with a cheerful deportment and an exact discharge of the duties of their station, which, indeed, it scrupulously required of them; and secondly, by his cautioning them not to set up any monopoly in Paradise and its mercies. I never heard these two points so wisely touched (if indeed I have ever heard them touched at all), by any preacher of that kind before.

14. CHAPTER IV - AN AMERICAN RAILROAD. LOWELL AND ITS FACTORY SYSTEM

15. BEFORE leaving Boston, I devoted one day to an excursion to Lowell. I assign a separate chapter to this visit; not because I am about to describe it at any great length, but because I remember it as a thing by itself, and am desirous that my readers should do the same.  

I made acquaintance with an American railroad, on this occasion, for the first time. As these works are pretty much alike all through the States, their general characteristics are easily described.

There are no first and second class carriages as with us; but there is a gentleman's car and a ladies' car: the main distinction between which is that in the first, everybody smokes; and in the second, nobody does. As a black man never travels with a white one, there is also a negro car; which is a great, blundering, clumsy chest, such as Gulliver put to sea in, from the kingdom of Brobdingnag. There is a great deal of jolting, a great deal of noise, a great deal of wall, not much window, a locomotive engine, a shriek, and a bell.  

The cars are like shabby omnibuses, but larger: holding thirty, forty, fifty, people. The seats, instead of stretching from end to end, are placed crosswise. Each seat holds two persons. There is a long row of them on each side of the caravan, a narrow passage up the middle, and a door at both ends. In the centre of the carriage there is usually a stove, fed with charcoal or anthracite coal; which is for the most part red-hot. It is insufferably close; and you see the hot air fluttering between yourself and any other object you may happen to look at, like the ghost of smoke.

In the ladies' car, there are a great many gentlemen who have ladies with them. There are also a great many ladies who have nobody with them: for any lady may travel alone, from one end of the United States to the other, and be certain of the most courteous and considerate treatment everywhere. The conductor or check-taker, or guard, or whatever he may be, wears no uniform. He walks up and down the car, and in and out of it, as his fancy dictates; leans against the door with his hands in his pockets and stares at you, if you chance to be a stranger; or enters into conversation with the passengers about him. A great many newspapers are pulled out, and a few of them are read. Everybody talks to you, or to anybody else who hits his fancy. If you are an Englishman, he expects that that railroad is pretty much like an English railroad. If you say 'No,' he says 'Yes?' (interrogatively), and asks in what respect they differ. You enumerate the heads of difference, one by one, and he says 'Yes?' (still interrogatively) to each. Then he guesses that you don't travel faster in England; and on your replying that you do, says 'Yes?' again (still interrogatively), and it is quite evident, don't believe it. After a long pause he remarks, partly to you, and partly to the knob on the top of his stick, that 'Yankees are reckoned to be considerable of a go-ahead people too;' upon which YOU say 'Yes,' and then HE says 'Yes' again (affirmatively this time); and upon your looking out of window, tells you that behind that hill, and some three miles from the next station, there is a clever town in a smart lo-ca-tion, where he expects you have concluded to stop. Your answer in the negative naturally leads to more questions in reference to your intended route (always pronounced rout); and wherever you are going, you invariably learn that you can't get there without immense difficulty and danger, and that all the great sights are somewhere else.

If a lady take a fancy to any male passenger's seat, the gentleman who accompanies her gives him notice of the fact, and he immediately vacates it with great politeness. Politics are much discussed, so are banks, so is cotton. Quiet people avoid the question of the Presidency, for there will be a new election in three years and a half, and party feeling runs very high: the great constitutional feature of this institution being, that directly the acrimony of the last election is over, the acrimony of the next one begins; which is an unspeakable comfort to all strong politicians and true lovers of their country: that is to say, to ninety-nine men and boys out of every ninety-nine and a quarter.

The train calls at stations in the woods, where the wild impossibility of anybody having the smallest reason to get out, is only to be equalled by the apparently desperate hopelessness of there being anybody to get in. It rushes across the turnpike road, where there is no gate, no policeman, no signal: nothing but a rough wooden arch, on which is painted 'WHEN THE BELL RINGS, LOOK OUT FOR THE LOCOMOTIVE.' On it whirls headlong, dives through the woods again, emerges in the light, clatters over frail arches, rumbles upon the heavy ground, shoots beneath a wooden bridge which intercepts the light for a second like a wink, suddenly awakens all the slumbering echoes in the main street of a large town, and dashes on haphazard, pell-mell, neck-or-nothing, down the middle of the road. There - with mechanics working at their trades, and people leaning from their doors and windows, and boys flying kites and playing marbles, and men smoking, and women talking, and children crawling, and pigs burrowing, and unaccustomed horses plunging and rearing, close to the very rails - there - on, on, on - tears the mad dragon of an engine with its train of cars; scattering in all directions a shower of burning sparks from its wood fire; screeching, hissing, yelling, panting; until at last the thirsty monster stops beneath a covered way to drink, the people cluster round, and you have time to breathe again.

16. There are several factories in Lowell, each of which belongs to what we should term a Company of Proprietors, but what they call in America a Corporation. I went over several of these; such as a woollen factory, a carpet factory, and a cotton factory: examined them in every part; and saw them in their ordinary working aspect, with no preparation of any kind, or departure from their ordinary everyday proceedings. I may add that I am well acquainted with our manufacturing towns in England, and have visited many mills in Manchester and elsewhere in the same manner.  

I happened to arrive at the first factory just as the dinner hour was over, and the girls were returning to their work; indeed the stairs of the mill were thronged with them as I ascended. They were all well dressed, but not to my thinking above their condition; for I like to see the humbler classes of society careful of their dress and appearance, and even, if they please, decorated with such little trinkets as come within the compass of their means. Supposing it confined within reasonable limits, I would always encourage this kind of pride, as a worthy element of self- respect, in any person I employed; and should no more be deterred from doing so, because some wretched female referred her fall to a love of dress, than I would allow my construction of the real intent and meaning of the Sabbath to be influenced by any warning to the well-disposed, founded on his backslidings on that particular day, which might emanate from the rather doubtful authority of a murderer in Newgate.  

These girls, as I have said, were all well dressed: and that phrase necessarily includes extreme cleanliness. They had serviceable bonnets, good warm cloaks, and shawls; and were not above clogs and pattens. Moreover, there were places in the mill in which they could deposit these things without injury; and there were conveniences for washing. They were healthy in appearance, many of them remarkably so, and had the manners and deportment of young women: not of degraded brutes of burden. If I had seen in one of those mills (but I did not, though I looked for something of this kind with a sharp eye), the most lisping, mincing, affected, and ridiculous young creature that my imagination could suggest, I should have thought of the careless, moping, slatternly, degraded, dull reverse (I HAVE seen that), and should have been still well pleased to look upon her.

The rooms in which they worked, were as well ordered as themselves. In the windows of some, there were green plants, which were trained to shade the glass; in all, there was as much fresh air, cleanliness, and comfort, as the nature of the occupation would possibly admit of. Out of so large a number of females, many of whom were only then just verging upon womanhood, it may be reasonably supposed that some were delicate and fragile in appearance: no doubt there were. But I solemnly declare, that from all the crowd I saw in the different factories that day, I cannot recall or separate one young face that gave me a painful impression; not one young girl whom, assuming it to be a matter of necessity that she should gain her daily bread by the labour of her hands, I would have removed from those works if I had had the power.

17. Firstly, there is a joint-stock piano in a great many of the boarding-houses. Secondly, nearly all these young ladies subscribe to circulating libraries. Thirdly, they have got up among themselves a periodical called THE LOWELL OFFERING, 'A repository of original articles, written exclusively by females actively employed in the mills,' - which is duly printed, published, and sold; and whereof I brought away from Lowell four hundred good solid pages, which I have read from beginning to end.  

It is their station to work. And they DO work. They labour in these mills, upon an average, twelve hours a day, which is unquestionably work, and pretty tight work too. Perhaps it is above their station to indulge in such amusements, on any terms. Are we quite sure that we in England have not formed our ideas of the 'station' of working people, from accustoming ourselves to the contemplation of that class as they are, and not as they might be? I think that if we examine our own feelings, we shall find that the pianos, and the circulating libraries, and even the Lowell Offering, startle us by their novelty, and not by their bearing upon any abstract question of right or wrong.  

For myself, I know no station in which, the occupation of to-day cheerfully done and the occupation of to-morrow cheerfully looked to, any one of these pursuits is not most humanising and laudable. I know no station which is rendered more endurable to the person in it, or more safe to the person out of it, by having ignorance for its associate. I know no station which has a right to monopolise the means of mutual instruction, improvement, and rational entertainment; or which has ever continued to be a station very long, after seeking to do so.

Of the merits of the Lowell Offering as a literary production, I will only observe, putting entirely out of sight the fact of the articles having been written by these girls after the arduous labours of the day, that it will compare advantageously with a great many English Annuals. It is pleasant to find that many of its Tales are of the Mills and of those who work in them; that they inculcate habits of self-denial and contentment, and teach good doctrines of enlarged benevolence. A strong feeling for the beauties of nature, as displayed in the solitudes the writers have left at home, breathes through its pages like wholesome village air; and though a circulating library is a favourable school for the study of such topics, it has very scant allusion to fine clothes, fine marriages, fine houses, or fine life. Some persons might object to the papers being signed occasionally with rather fine names, but this is an American fashion. One of the provinces of the state legislature of Massachusetts is to alter ugly names into pretty ones, as the children improve upon the tastes of their parents. These changes costing little or nothing, scores of Mary Annes are solemnly converted into Bevelinas every session.

It is said that on the occasion of a visit from General Jackson or General Harrison to this town (I forget which, but it is not to the purpose), he walked through three miles and a half of these young ladies all dressed out with parasols and silk stockings. But as I am not aware that any worse consequence ensued, than a sudden looking-up of all the parasols and silk stockings in the market; and perhaps the bankruptcy of some speculative New Englander who bought them all up at any price, in expectation of a demand that never came; I set no great store by the circumstance.

18. To be continued.



Various Notes,
1. Suggests that mental health classes should give students: education on literacy, how to read and write; education on the art of other cultures; on music, classical and jazz; etc.
Added to Notes about Psychiatry.
2. Charles Dickens suggests that you can read, and reread over interesting books or articles, like those contained on this blog, for entertainment!
3. Upon rereading An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, by William Godwin, the paper presented on this blog, I learned that Godwin, "Suggests that the mind is very subtle in its operations." He also, "Briefly discusses political justice," and writes, "Nothing can be more certain than the omnipotence of truth." He also, "Discusses being logical and not eloquent in speech." This information was valuable to learn.




Friday, January 12, 2024

Various Notes,
1. YouTube has videos of people jogging and army marching music.
2. Tba.



Thursday, January 11, 2024

Various Notes,
1. In Louis Armstrong: An American Genius, by James Lincoln Collier, Collier indicates that Louis Armstrong could play a piece by ear better than professional white musicians could play it by reading it on paper. He couldn’t afford to learn like the white musicians, but still he could play better music than most of them.
2. Louis Armstrong also smoked a lot, many people did those days. I learned that another musician who I admire, Nat King Cole, also smoked a lot, and died of cancer in his 40s. I guess this is the tragic element of their lives.
Added to Favorite Notes 2, Item IX.
3. Updated: Notes about Psychiatry,
Item XXI. 1, and XXII. 1.
4. I recently learned reading that actors should get to play the right role for their movies. For example, a kind mother should play a nice mother in a movie, and an intelligent guy should play a college professor in a movie, because it fits their personalities.




Tuesday, January 9, 2024

American Notes for General Circulation, by Charles Dickens,
1. CHAPTER II - THE PASSAGE OUT  
2. WE all dined together that day; and a rather formidable party we were: no fewer than eighty-six strong.
3. The vessel being pretty deep in the water, with all her coals on board and so many passengers, and the weather being calm and quiet, there was but little motion; so that before the dinner was half over, even those passengers who were most distrustful of themselves plucked up amazingly; and those who in the morning had returned to the universal question, 'Are you a good sailor?' a very decided negative, now either parried the inquiry with the evasive reply, 'Oh! I suppose I'm no worse than anybody else;' or, reckless of all moral obligations, answered boldly 'Yes:' and with some irritation too, as though they would add, 'I should like to know what you see in ME, sir, particularly, to justify suspicion!'
4. Notwithstanding this high tone of courage and confidence, I could not but observe that very few remained long over their wine; and that everybody had an unusual love of the open air; and that the favourite and most coveted seats were invariably those nearest to the door.
5. Omitted.

6. I had left the door open, a moment before, in the bosom of a gentle declivity, and, when I turned to shut it, it was on the summit of a lofty eminence. Now every plank and timber creaked, as if the ship were made of wicker-work; and now crackled, like an enormous fire of the driest possible twigs. There was nothing for it but bed; so I went to bed.
7. It is the third morning. I am awakened out of my sleep by a dismal shriek from my wife, who demands to know whether there's any danger. I rouse myself, and look out of bed. The water-jug is plunging and leaping like a lively dolphin; all the smaller articles are afloat, except my shoes, which are stranded on a carpet-bag, high and dry, like a couple of coal-barges. Suddenly I see them spring into the air, and behold the looking-glass, which is nailed to the wall, sticking fast upon the ceiling. At the same time the door entirely disappears, and a new one is opened in the floor. Then I begin to comprehend that the state-room is standing on its head.   Before it is possible to make any arrangement at all compatible with this novel state of things, the ship rights. Before one can say 'Thank Heaven!' she wrongs again. Before one can cry she IS wrong, she seems to have started forward, and to be a creature actually running of its own accord, with broken knees and failing legs, through every variety of hole and pitfall, and stumbling constantly. Before one can so much as wonder, she takes a high leap into the air. Before she has well done that, she takes a deep dive into the water. Before she has gained the surface, she throws a summerset. The instant she is on her legs, she rushes backward. And so she goes on staggering, heaving, wrestling, leaping, diving, jumping, pitching, throbbing, rolling, and rocking: and going through all these movements, sometimes by turns, and sometimes altogether: until one feels disposed to roar for mercy.
8. A steward passes. 'Steward!' 'Sir?' 'What IS the matter? what DO you call this?' 'Rather a heavy sea on, sir, and a head-wind.'
9. A head-wind! Imagine a human face upon the vessel's prow, with fifteen thousand Samsons in one bent upon driving her back, and hitting her exactly between the eyes whenever she attempts to advance an inch. Imagine the ship herself, with every pulse and artery of her huge body swollen and bursting under this maltreatment, sworn to go on or die. Imagine the wind howling, the sea roaring, the rain beating: all in furious array against her. Picture the sky both dark and wild, and the clouds, in fearful sympathy with the waves, making another ocean in the air. Add to all this, the clattering on deck and down below; the tread of hurried feet; the loud hoarse shouts of seamen; the gurgling in and out of water through the scuppers; with, every now and then, the striking of a heavy sea upon the planks above, with the deep, dead, heavy sound of thunder heard within a vault; - and there is the head-wind of that January morning.
10. I say nothing of what may be called the domestic noises of the ship: such as the breaking of glass and crockery, the tumbling down of stewards, the gambols, overhead, of loose casks and truant dozens of bottled porter, and the very remarkable and far from exhilarating sounds raised in their various state-rooms by the seventy passengers who were too ill to get up to breakfast. I say nothing of them: for although I lay listening to this concert for three or four days, I don't think I heard it for more than a quarter of a minute, at the expiration of which term, I lay down again, excessively sea-sick.

11. Once - once - I found myself on deck. I don't know how I got there, or what possessed me to go there, but there I was; and completely dressed too, with a huge pea-coat on, and a pair of boots such as no weak man in his senses could ever have got into. I found myself standing, when a gleam of consciousness came upon me, holding on to something. I don't know what. I think it was the boatswain: or it may have been the pump: or possibly the cow. I can't say how long I had been there; whether a day or a minute. I recollect trying to think about something (about anything in the whole wide world, I was not particular) without the smallest effect. I could not even make out which was the sea, and which the sky, for the horizon seemed drunk, and was flying wildly about in all directions. Even in that incapable state, however, I recognised the lazy gentleman standing before me: nautically clad in a suit of shaggy blue, with an oilskin hat. But I was too imbecile, although I knew it to be he, to separate him from his dress; and tried to call him, I remember, PILOT. After another interval of total unconsciousness, I found he had gone, and recognised another figure in its place. It seemed to wave and fluctuate before me as though I saw it reflected in an unsteady looking-glass; but I knew it for the captain; and such was the cheerful influence of his face, that I tried to smile: yes, even then I tried to smile. I saw by his gestures that he addressed me; but it was a long time before I could make out that he remonstrated against my standing up to my knees in water - as I was; of course I don't know why. I tried to thank him, but couldn't. I could only point to my boots - or wherever I supposed my boots to be - and say in a plaintive voice, 'Cork soles:' at the same time endeavouring, I am told, to sit down in the pool. Finding that I was quite insensible, and for the time a maniac, he humanely conducted me below.
12. There I remained until I got better: suffering, whenever I was recommended to eat anything, an amount of anguish only second to that which is said to be endured by the apparently drowned, in the process of restoration to life. One gentleman on board had a letter of introduction to me from a mutual friend in London. He sent it below with his card, on the morning of the head-wind; and I was long troubled with the idea that he might be up, and well, and a hundred times a day expecting me to call upon him in the saloon. I imagined him one of those cast-iron images - I will not call them men - who ask, with red faces, and lusty voices, what sea-sickness means, and whether it really is as bad as it is represented to be. This was very torturing indeed; and I don't think I ever felt such perfect gratification and gratitude of heart, as I did when I heard from the ship's doctor that he had been obliged to put a large mustard poultice on this very gentleman's stomach. I date my recovery from the receipt of that intelligence.   It was materially assisted though, I have no doubt, by a heavy gale of wind, which came slowly up at sunset, when we were about ten days out, and raged with gradually increasing fury until morning, saving that it lulled for an hour a little before midnight. There was something in the unnatural repose of that hour, and in the after gathering of the storm, so inconceivably awful and tremendous, that its bursting into full violence was almost a relief.
13. And yet, in the very midst of these terrors, I was placed in a situation so exquisitely ridiculous, that even then I had as strong a sense of its absurdity as I have now, and could no more help laughing than I can at any other comical incident, happening under circumstances the most favourable to its enjoyment.
14. When I approached this place with my specific, and was about to administer it with many consolatory expressions to the nearest sufferer, what was my dismay to see them all roll slowly down to the other end! And when I staggered to that end, and held out the glass once more, how immensely baffled were my good intentions by the ship giving another lurch, and their all rolling back again! I suppose I dodged them up and down this sofa for at least a quarter of an hour, without reaching them once; and by the time I did catch them, the brandy-and-water was diminished, by constant spilling, to a teaspoonful. To complete the group, it is necessary to recognise in this disconcerted dodger, an individual very pale from sea- sickness, who had shaved his beard and brushed his hair, last, at Liverpool: and whose only article of dress (linen not included) were a pair of dreadnought trousers; a blue jacket, formerly admired upon the Thames at Richmond; no stockings; and one slipper.
15. Of the outrageous antics performed by that ship next morning; which made bed a practical joke, and getting up, by any process short of falling out, an impossibility; I say nothing. But anything like the utter dreariness and desolation that met my eyes when I literally 'tumbled up' on deck at noon, I never saw. Ocean and sky were all of one dull, heavy, uniform, lead colour. There was no extent of prospect even over the dreary waste that lay around us, for the sea ran high, and the horizon encompassed us like a large black hoop. Viewed from the air, or some tall bluff on shore, it would have been imposing and stupendous, no doubt; but seen from the wet and rolling decks, it only impressed one giddily and painfully. In the gale of last night the life-boat had been crushed by one blow of the sea like a walnut-shell; and there it hung dangling in the air: a mere faggot of crazy boards. The planking of the paddle-boxes had been torn sheer away. The wheels were exposed and bare; and they whirled and dashed their spray about the decks at random. Chimney, white with crusted salt; topmasts struck; storm-sails set; rigging all knotted, tangled, wet, and drooping: a gloomier picture it would be hard to look upon.   I was now comfortably established by courtesy in the ladies' cabin, where, besides ourselves, there were only four other passengers. First, the little Scotch lady before mentioned, on her way to join her husband at New York, who had settled there three years before. Secondly and thirdly, an honest young Yorkshireman, connected with some American house; domiciled in that same city, and carrying thither his beautiful young wife to whom he had been married but a fortnight, and who was the fairest specimen of a comely English country girl I have ever seen. Fourthly, fifthly, and lastly, another couple: newly married too, if one might judge from the endearments they frequently interchanged: of whom I know no more than that they were rather a mysterious, run-away kind of couple; that the lady had great personal attractions also; and that the gentleman carried more guns with him than Robinson Crusoe, wore a shooting-coat, and had two great dogs on board. On further consideration, I remember that he tried hot roast pig and bottled ale as a cure for sea-sickness; and that he took these remedies (usually in bed) day after day, with astonishing perseverance. I may add, for the information of the curious, that they decidedly failed.

16. The weather continuing obstinately and almost unprecedentedly bad, we usually straggled into this cabin, more or less faint and miserable, about an hour before noon, and lay down on the sofas to recover; during which interval, the captain would look in to communicate the state of the wind, the moral certainty of its changing to-morrow (the weather is always going to improve to- morrow, at sea), the vessel's rate of sailing, and so forth. Observations there were none to tell us of, for there was no sun to take them by. But a description of one day will serve for all the rest. Here it is.
17. The captain being gone, we compose ourselves to read, if the place be light enough; and if not, we doze and talk alternately. At one, a bell rings, and the stewardess comes down with a steaming dish of baked potatoes, and another of roasted apples; and plates of pig's face, cold ham, salt beef; or perhaps a smoking mess of rare hot collops. We fall to upon these dainties; eat as much as we can (we have great appetites now); and are as long as possible about it. If the fire will burn (it WILL sometimes) we are pretty cheerful. If it won't, we all remark to each other that it's very cold, rub our hands, cover ourselves with coats and cloaks, and lie down again to doze, talk, and read (provided as aforesaid), until dinner-time. At five, another bell rings, and the stewardess reappears with another dish of potatoes - boiled this time - and store of hot meat of various kinds: not forgetting the roast pig, to be taken medicinally. We sit down at table again (rather more cheerfully than before); prolong the meal with a rather mouldy dessert of apples, grapes, and oranges; and drink our wine and brandy-and-water. The bottles and glasses are still upon the table, and the oranges and so forth are rolling about according to their fancy and the ship's way, when the doctor comes down, by special nightly invitation, to join our evening rubber: immediately on whose arrival we make a party at whist, and as it is a rough night and the cards will not lie on the cloth, we put the tricks in our pockets as we take them. At whist we remain with exemplary gravity (deducting a short time for tea and toast) until eleven o'clock, or thereabouts; when the captain comes down again, in a sou'-wester hat tied under his chin, and a pilot-coat: making the ground wet where he stands. By this time the card-playing is over, and the bottles and glasses are again upon the table; and after an hour's pleasant conversation about the ship, the passengers, and things in general, the captain (who never goes to bed, and is never out of humour) turns up his coat collar for the deck again; shakes hands all round; and goes laughing out into the weather as merrily as to a birthday party.
18. As to daily news, there is no dearth of that commodity. This passenger is reported to have lost fourteen pounds at Vingt-et-un in the saloon yesterday; and that passenger drinks his bottle of champagne every day, and how he does it (being only a clerk), nobody knows. The head engineer has distinctly said that there never was such times - meaning weather - and four good hands are ill, and have given in, dead beat. Several berths are full of water, and all the cabins are leaky. The ship's cook, secretly swigging damaged whiskey, has been found drunk; and has been played upon by the fire-engine until quite sober. All the stewards have fallen down-stairs at various dinner-times, and go about with plasters in various places. The baker is ill, and so is the pastry-cook. A new man, horribly indisposed, has been required to fill the place of the latter officer; and has been propped and jammed up with empty casks in a little house upon deck, and commanded to roll out pie-crust, which he protests (being highly bilious) it is death to him to look at. News! A dozen murders on shore would lack the interest of these slight incidents at sea.
19. "...when suddenly the ship struck upon a bank of mud... and much backing of paddles, and heaving of the lead into a constantly decreasing depth of water, we dropped anchor in a strange outlandish-looking nook which nobody on board could recognise, although there was land all about us, and so close that we could plainly see the waving branches of the trees."
20. It was strange enough, in the silence of midnight, and the dead stillness that seemed to be created by the sudden and unexpected stoppage of the engine which had been clanking and blasting in our ears incessantly for so many days, to watch the look of blank astonishment expressed in every face: beginning with the officers, tracing it through all the passengers, and descending to the very stokers and furnacemen, who emerged from below, one by one, and clustered together in a smoky group about the hatchway of the engine-room, comparing notes in whispers. After throwing up a few rockets and firing signal guns in the hope of being hailed from the land, or at least of seeing a light - but without any other sight or sound presenting itself - it was determined to send a boat on shore. It was amusing to observe how very kind some of the passengers were, in volunteering to go ashore in this same boat: for the general good, of course: not by any means because they thought the ship in an unsafe position, or contemplated the possibility of her heeling over in case the tide were running out. Nor was it less amusing to remark how desperately unpopular the poor pilot became in one short minute. He had had his passage out from Liverpool, and during the whole voyage had been quite a notorious character, as a teller of anecdotes and cracker of jokes. Yet here were the very men who had laughed the loudest at his jests, now flourishing their fists in his face, loading him with imprecations, and defying him to his teeth as a villain!

21. The boat soon shoved off, with a lantern and sundry blue lights on board; and in less than an hour returned; the officer in command bringing with him a tolerably tall young tree, which he had plucked up by the roots, to satisfy certain distrustful passengers whose minds misgave them that they were to be imposed upon and shipwrecked, and who would on no other terms believe that he had been ashore, or had done anything but fraudulently row a little way into the mist, specially to deceive them and compass their deaths. Our captain had foreseen from the first that we must be in a place called the Eastern passage; and so we were. It was about the last place in the world in which we had any business or reason to be, but a sudden fog, and some error on the pilot's part, were the cause. We were surrounded by banks, and rocks, and shoals of all kinds, but had happily drifted, it seemed, upon the only safe speck that was to be found thereabouts. Eased by this report, and by the assurance that the tide was past the ebb, we turned in at three o'clock in the morning.
22. I was dressing about half-past nine next day, when the noise above hurried me on deck. When I had left it overnight, it was dark, foggy, and damp, and there were bleak hills all round us. Now, we were gliding down a smooth, broad stream, at the rate of eleven miles an hour: our colours flying gaily; our crew rigged out in their smartest clothes; our officers in uniform again; the sun shining as on a brilliant April day in England; the land stretched out on either side, streaked with light patches of snow; white wooden houses; people at their doors; telegraphs working; flags hoisted; wharfs appearing; ships; quays crowded with people; distant noises; shouts; men and boys running down steep places towards the pier: all more bright and gay and fresh to our unused eyes than words can paint them. We came to a wharf, paved with uplifted faces; got alongside, and were made fast, after some shouting and straining of cables; darted, a score of us along the gangway, almost as soon as it was thrust out to meet us, and before it had reached the ship - and leaped upon the firm glad earth again!
23. The town is built on the side of a hill, the highest point being commanded by a strong fortress, not yet quite finished. Several streets of good breadth and appearance extend from its summit to the water-side, and are intersected by cross streets running parallel with the river. The houses are chiefly of wood. The market is abundantly supplied; and provisions are exceedingly cheap. The weather being unusually mild at that time for the season of the year, there was no sleighing: but there were plenty of those vehicles in yards and by-places, and some of them, from the gorgeous quality of their decorations, might have 'gone on' without alteration as triumphal cars in a melodrama at Astley's. The day was uncommonly fine; the air bracing and healthful; the whole aspect of the town cheerful, thriving, and industrious.
24. The indescribable interest with which I strained my eyes, as the first patches of American soil peeped like molehills from the green sea, and followed them, as they swelled, by slow and almost imperceptible degrees, into a continuous line of coast, can hardly be exaggerated. A sharp keen wind blew dead against us; a hard frost prevailed on shore; and the cold was most severe. Yet the air was so intensely clear, and dry, and bright, that the temperature was not only endurable, but delicious.
25. 'Dinner, if you please,' said I to the waiter.   'When?' said the waiter.   'As quick as possible,' said I.   'Right away?' said the waiter.   After a moment's hesitation, I answered 'No,' at hazard.   'NOT right away?' cried the waiter, with an amount of surprise that made me start.

26. The hotel (a very excellent one) is called the Tremont House. It has more galleries, colonnades, piazzas, and passages than I can remember, or the reader would believe.
27. End of chapter. To be continued.




Various Notes,
1. Hotkeys, or Keyboard shortcuts are very popular in Windows, learn some!
2. I’m not sure of the validity of this, but maybe locations can end a drought, and make it rain, by making adults who are 18+ run 🏃‍, jog for a few minutes for a few days. This is because in the summer when I run 🏃‍, it consistently causes it to rain a few days afterwards.
3. Pillsbury Cookie Dough, on Parchment paper, on a cookie pan, can be a great way to bake cookies! The parchment paper prevents the dough from sticking to the pan, and all of these ingredients can be found at your local Walmart.
Added to Food Ideas.
3. Updated: Favorite Notes 2.



Monday, January 8, 2024

Various Notes,
1. At all times, I have three different pitchers filled with three different flavors of Kool-Aid (or pre-sweetened drink mix), in my refrigerator, in order to drink an increased variety of liquids!
2. Tba.




Sunday, January 7, 2024

American Notes for General Circulation, by Charles Dickens,
1. Writes, buy all the meat in the store, the sausages, the corned beef, the chicken wings, all the poultry, the pork chops…
2. It’s like, buy all the toys in the store for Christmas presents.
3. As opposed to the Native citizen, who scorns materialism and excess consumer goods, and lives a life with as little as possible, and is focused on religion and spiritual enlightenment.
4. "My own opinion is, that whether one is discreet or indiscreet in these particulars, on the eve of a sea-voyage, is a matter of little consequence; and that, to use a common phrase, 'it comes to very much the same thing in the end.'"
5. Omitted.

6. "And there she is! all eyes are turned to where she lies, dimly discernible through the gathering fog of the early winter afternoon; every finger is pointed in the same direction; and murmurs of interest and admiration - as 'How beautiful she looks!' 'How trim she is!' - are heard on every side."
7. The kind of force that makes, “the lazy gentleman with his hat on one side and his hands in his pockets,” get up and dance with excitement.
8. The kind of force that makes the poorest student in the class the genius of the class.
9. That makes the slowest runner the fastest runner.
10. That makes serious, hardened men, soft, gentle creatures.

11. That makes the person who is constantly late, always early.
12. That makes the person who doesn't like music, a music aficionado.
13. "It is the boat we wait for! That's more to the purpose. The captain appears on the paddle-box with his speaking trumpet; the officers take their stations; all hands are on the alert; the flagging hopes of the passengers revive; the cooks pause in their savoury work, and look out with faces full of interest. The boat comes alongside; the bags are dragged in anyhow, and flung down for the moment anywhere. Three cheers more: and as the first one rings upon our ears, the vessel throbs like a strong giant that has just received the breath of life..."
14. To be continued.




Various Notes,
1. Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert, taught me that:
A. One of the character's had knowledge about some things, but not about other things.
B. Omitted.
2. Charles Dickens suggests that people should be judged based on their effort and natural talent, instead of otherwise predefined means.
3. Playing the drums, playing a drum beat on the furniture in your home can be rewarding and fun. I learned this reading either Chinua Achebe or Gabriel Garcia Marquez.




Saturday, January 6, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.
3. After the Races, a story in Dubliners, by James Joyce gave me a great movie idea! The story is about a time of celebration and victory among friends in Ireland, and the movie could be about the victory and celebration that of a group of friends in America experience, who are involved in organized crime, and are victorious. In the movie, the friends would enjoy lavish food, good clothes, luxurious houses, expensive cars, steady income, and happiness, for years, until the end of their lives. A movie with no conflict, a celebratory movie.
4. Omitted.



Friday, January 5, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Omitted.
2. One author says, "we shouldn’t let a flower pass our eyes without appreciating it."
3. "Helios, the sun god, drove a four-horse chariot across the sky each day, giving the earth its hours and seasons. Each night, with his team and chariot, he boarded a golden ferry to sail home."




Thursday, January 4, 2024

Various Notes,
1. Edited, or arranged numerically, Hip Hop the paper on Book Reviews X: Various.
2. Updated: Notes about Psychiatry, with an item about Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire.
3. Added: Items No. 5, 10, 11, & 12 to Hip Hop on Book Reviews X: Various (denoted with an asterisk).



Wednesday, January 3, 2024

Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire,
1. Persecution: Persecution
2. In this chapter, Voltaire explains the process through which a persecutor persecutes other people, and he cites historical instances when this has happened. He also speaks critically of this behavior.
3. Philosophe: Philosopher
4. Indicates that throughout history, there have been philosophers who have given men examples of virtue and lessons in moral truth.
5. Quotes the sage Confucius in writing,
A. "Regulate a state as you regulate a family; a man can govern his family well only by setting an example."
B. "Virtue must be common to the laborer and the monarch."
C. "Do to others as to yourself."
D. "Love men in general, but cherish those who are good."

6. Peter
7. "Christian society only took shape at about the end of the second century."
8. "As for Peter personally, it must be admitted that Paul was not the only one who was shocked by his behavior...Paul bitterly reproached him for eating forbidden flesh, that is, pork...hare, eel, ixion and griffin."
9. Prejuges: Prejudices
10. "A prejudice is an irrational opinion. Thus throughout the world all sorts of opinions are instilled into children before they are able to use judgement."

11. "In all countries children are taught to acknowledge a god who rewards and avenges; to respect and love their fathers and mothers; to regard theft as a crime..."
12. "There are therefore very good prejudices: they are those ratified by the judgement when one is able to use reason."
13. "When one is twelve one takes these fables for truths, at twenty-one regards them as ingenious allegories."
14. Pretre: Priest
15. Religion

16. "One always begins with the simple, then comes the complex, and by superior enlightenment one often reverts in the end to the simple. Such is the course of human intelligence."
17. "All children see the sky with indifference, but they tremble and hide themselves when it thunders. The first men undoubtedly behaved in the same way. Only philosophers of a sort noticed the movements of the stars, and caused them to be admired and worshipped."
18. "The name Israel translated into Greek can achieve nothing, but pronounce it in Hebrew, with the other words required, and you will operate the conjuration."
19. "After our holy religion, which is undoubtedly the only good one, which would be the least bad? Would it not be the simplest? Would it not be that which taught much morality and very little dogma? that which tended to make men just without making them absurd?...which taught only the worship of one god, justice, tolerance and humanity?"
20. Resurrection

21. "It is said that the Egyptians built their pyramids only to use them as tombs; and that their bodies, embalmed inside and outside, waited for their souls to revive them after a thousand years."
22. "...but we must consider that most of the ancients believed that the soul is in the chest."
23. "In the Acts of the Apostles is recorded a very odd incident...Saint James and several of his companions advised saint Paul, Christian as he was, to go to the temple of Jerusalem to observe the ceremonies of the ancient law..."
24. "The kingdoms of Sidon and Tyre flourished. Surrounded by powerful estates he certainly displayed his intelligence in remaining at peace with all of them. The extreme abundance which enriched his country could have been the fruit only of this profound wisdom..."
25. Omitted.

26. "Can it be believed that an enlightened king compiled a collection of sayings among which there is not one about government, politics, the morals of courtiers, the customs of the court?"
27. "Would he have said that 'the terror of a king is as the roaring of a lion?'"
28. Secte: Sect
29. "Now on what dogma are all minds in accord?...All the philosophers on earth who had a religion said at all times: 'There is a god, and we must be just.' So here we have the universal religion established in all times among all men.
The point on which they all agree is therefore true, and the systems about which they differ are therefore false."
30. "'My sect is the best,' a Brahman told me. But, my friend, if your sect is good, it is necessary; for if it were not absolutely necessary, you must agree that it would be useless; if it is absolutely necessary, it is so to all men."

31. "It has been demonstrated that god spoke to the sybils, for the word sybil means god's council. They must have had long lives, for it is only to be expected that people to whom god speaks should have this privilege. There were twelve of them, for this number is sacred. They had certainly foretold all the events of the world..."
32. Sens commun: Common sense
33. "How can this strange mental disorder come about?" Questions the origin(s) of mental disorders in patients.
Added to Notes about Psychiatry.
34. Songes: Dreams
35. "But all the sense being dead during sleep, how can there be an internal one that is alive? When our eyes no longer see and our ears hear nothing, how do we nevertheless see and hear in our dreams?"

36. Superstition
37. "Protestants regard relics, indulgences, mortifications, prayers for the dead, holy water, and nearly all the rites of the Roman church as superstitious dementia. According to them superstition consists of taking useless practices to be necessary practices."
38. Tolerance: Toleration
39. "What is toleration? It is the prerogative of humanity...let us forgive one another's follies, it is the first law of nature."
40. "Why did Rome tolerate these cults? It was because neither the Egyptians, nor even the Jews, tried to exterminate the ancient religion of the empire."

41. "Dissension is the great evil of mankind, and toleration is its only remedy."
42. Transsubstantiation: Transsubstantiation
43. "Not only a god in bread, but a god in place of bread; a hundred thousand crumbs become in a flash as many gods...whiteness without a white body; roundness without a round body...and contempt in the enemies of the catholic, apostolic and Roman religion..."
44. Tyrannie: Tyranny
45. "The sovereign who knows no laws but his own whim, who seizes the property of his subjects, and who then enlists them to seize that of his neighbors is called a tyrant."

46. "Under which tyranny would you like to live? Under none, but if I had to choose I should detest less the tyranny of one than the tyranny of several... If I have only one despot I can get off by drawing back against the wall when I see him pass...but if there is a company of a hundred despots I am in danger of having to repeat this ceremony a hundred times a day..."
47. The end.




Various Notes
1. Cultural Psychology, included a lesson suggesting that some intellectual concepts are like math, you have to know addition and subtraction before you can understand multiplication and algebra, for example, you have to know how to spell, and then how to compose a persuasive essay before you can write a newspaper article.
2. I was thinking that maybe one reason why I don't sleep so much is because of my fitness level from running, being able to breathe a lot of air, related to the fact that you fall asleep from being almost suffocated or smothered with heavy comforters and lack of fresh air to breathe.



Tuesday, January 2, 2024

Various Notes
1. Omitted.
2. Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, by Arnold Schwarzenegger, is a popular bodybuilding book!
3. Omitted.



Monday, January 1, 2024 -Happy New Year!

Various Notes
1. Updated: Favorite Notes, Item II. No. 2. - 5.
2. Tba.




Saturday, December 30, 2023

Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire,
1. "Many miracles that pass for authentic in the Greek church have been called into question by several Latin ones, just as some Latin miracles have been doubted in the Greek church."
2. "Is it not probable in the highest degree that this people, so new, wandering for so long, so recently known, established so late in Palestine, took over the Phoenician fables with the Phoenician language, and embroidered them still further, as do all crude imitators? So poor a people, so ignorant, so unaware of all the arts, could it do anything but copy its neighbors?"
3. "Confucius did not invent a system of morality as one constructs a system in natural philosophy. He found it in the hearts of all men."
4. "There is no morality in superstition, it is not in ceremonies, it has nothing in common with dogmas."
5. Necessaire: Necessary

6. Osmin: Aren't you saying that everything is necessary?
Selim: If everything weren't necessary it would follow that god had made useless things.
Osmin: Anyway I want to talk to you about another necessity.
Selim: Which? Of what is necessary to an upright man to live? Of the wretchedness to which one is reduced when one lacks necessities?
Selim: Yes. I have travelled with Paul Lucas, and wherever I went I saw that people repsected their fathers and mothers, felt it necessary to keep their promises, pitied the oppressed innocent, looked upon liberty of thought as a natural right, and the enemies of this liberty as the enemies of mankind.
7. Osmin: Are these necessary things necessary always and everywhere?
Selim: Yes, otherwise they wouldn't be necessary to mankind.
Osmin: So a new belief was not necessary to our species. Men could live very well in society and accomplish their duties to god before they believed that Mohammed had frequent conversations with the angel Gabriel... If Mohammedanism had been necessary for the world it would have existed everywhere. God, who gave us all eyes to see the sun, would have given us the intelligence to see the truth of the Moslem religion.
Selim: Yes, as he permits the world to be filled with nonsense, errors and calamities. This doesn't mean that men are all essentially made to be stupid and unhappy.
Osmin: I'd have reason to complain of a doctor who explained to me which plants are harmful, but never showed me a beneficial one.
Selim: I'm not a doctor and you're not ill, but it seems to me that I should be giving you a very good prescription if I said to you: 'Beware of all the inventions of charlatans, worship god, be upright, and believe that two and two make four.'
8. On popery: Dialogue, the papist and the treasurer
9. The Treasurer: What does it matter, so long as you are well fed, well clothed, well housed?
10. The Papist: But, sir, they don't believe in eternal punishment.
The Treasurer: Neither do I. Be damned for ever if you like; as for me I don't in the lest expect to be.

11. Patrie: Fatherland
12. "It is impossible to love tenderly too numerous a family which we hardly know."
13. "Every man wants to be sure of his fortune and his life."
14. "Eight republics without monarchs remain in our Europe: Venice, Holland, Switzerland, Genoa, Lucca, Ragusa, Geneva and San Marino. Poland, Sweden, England can be regarded as republics under a king; but Poland is the only one that takes the name.
Is it better today for one's country to be a monarchical or a republican state? This question has been debated for 4,000 years. Apply for a solution to the rich, they all prefer an aristocracy. Question the people, they want democracy. Only kings prefer a monarchy.
15. Refers to Fables, by Jean de la Fontaine. "Charming and elegant, Jean de La Fontaine's (1621-1695) animal fables depict sly foxes and scheming cats, vain birds and greedy wolves, all of which subtly express his penetrating insights into French society...."
16. "In a word, the Jews knew original sin no better than Chinese ceremonies, and although theologians find whatever they want in the scriptures, it can be asserted that no reasonable theologian will ever find this surprising mystery in it."



Thursday, December 28, 2023

Best Poems of Alexander Pushkin Lost in Translation?, translated by Yuri Menis
1. Translator’s Note
A sage once said that poetry was the only defense against the drudgery of life. Yes, it elevates and inspires. Yes, it is music to one’s ears and food to one’s mind. But is it translatable? Mozart cannot be translated into other kinds of music, can he? And if poetry is merely food for thought, why rhyme those rhythmic lines turning them into delectable tunes? In every attempt to translate poetry, where is the borderline, the balance between the heart and the mind? When does the beautiful yet torturous moment arrive for the translator to say: yes, now the music and meaning are in perfect harmony – I cannot do any better. But what if someone else might? What if someone else could still get closer to the original, having gained the most and lost the least? And those are the moment and the impetus that drive translation of poetry. That’s why the translator aspires to do better every time and catch a glimpse of perfection after so much strenuous work. Enigmatically, my inspiration to translate the poetry of Boris Pasternak and Alexander Pushkin has come out of frustration with other translators’ inadequacies and failures. And there has been a lot of them! All you need to do is compare with the original. But, of course, there is always the great desire to make magnificent Russian poets heard and appreciated by English speakers. There is no one more important in the Russian literature and poetry than Alexander Pushkin. There is no task more difficult and noble than translate him into other languages. That said, Pushkin’s poetry is an inseparable blend of delicious music and profound thought. Now we are back to beating our heads against the proverbial wall, which is really an elusive and obscure line for the translator to find and negotiate. Let’s see how it has worked out this time.

2-5. Omitted.

6. The Tree of Evil

The upas, like a fearsome guard In sands of dearth and deprivation, Stands firm on soil by swelter scarred - Alone it stands in all creation.  

The nature of the thirsty steppes Begot it on a day of mayhem And soaked its tangled roots in depth And dead green leaves with lethal venom.  

The poison oozes through its bark And melts at noon with sunlight blazing, Then hardens as the night grows dark Into translucent, thickened resin.  

No bird flies over to the tree, No tiger prowls, but just a vicious Black gust assails it on a spree And backs away, now turned pernicious.  

And if a random cloud should spray The torpid leaves before it passes, The rain, hence noxious, slips away Through fiery sands, off wicked branches.

A man, though, sent another man By powers he had rights to foist on To find the tree - the other ran And in the morning fetched its poison.  

He brought vile resin and a dead Lone branch with leaves innately morbid, And in profusion deathly sweat Streamed down the runner’s ashen forehead.  

He did bring poison! Sick indeed, He lay down drained beneath the rafter And died, poor servant, at the feet Of the unconquerable master.  

The tsar with poison then imbued His loyal arrows – on his orders A deadly carnage soon ensued At neighbors’, well beyond his borders.



American Notes for General Circulation, by Charles Dickens,
1. PREFACE TO THE FIRST CHEAP EDITION OF "AMERICAN NOTES"
2. Omitted.
3. Omitted.
4. CHAPTER I - GOING AWAY
5. I SHALL never forget the one-fourth serious and three-fourths comical astonishment, with which, on the morning of the third of January eighteen-hundred-and-forty-two, I opened the door of, and put my head into, a 'state-room' on board the Britannia steam- packet, twelve hundred tons burthen per register, bound for Halifax and Boston, and carrying Her Majesty's mails.

6. From Dickens, I am inspired to write, a man went to search for a hotel room. He reserved the biggest room he could find. Then he places a tiny mouse in the middle of the room who it was reserved for. Then we learn that this mouse was depressed, then this mouse meets a female mouse. Then we learn that this mouse is smart, very educated. Upon learning this, we learn that all the people including the mouse wanted to leave the room after less than two minutes. They remain in the room, however. Then we learn that this mouse is very holy and religious, and has quite an interesting history about him from a foreign land.
7. To be continued.



Various Notes
1. A close family friend years ago told me that he knew a group of people who lived with mattresses on the floor in their living room instead of a couch.
2. I plan to work on either David Copperfield, or Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens for my next project.




Wednesday, December 27, 2023

The Complete Poems, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge,
1. In Names, Coleridge picks up on the philosophical idea of the existence of the soul, and reminds us that we are often associated by our names. In the poem, through his examination of Roman and Grecian names from antiquity, he also reminds us that our names often have a story behind them.
2. Tba.


Various Notes
1. In Boris Godunov and Other Dramatic Works, by Alexander Pushkin, Pushkin describes "an old man from a wandering tribe who was happy to be warmed by the fire."
2. In Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire, Voltaire discusses "the wisdom of the old women of Egypt."
3. One of the philosophers I've read suggests that our sense of the days are based on man, not time. For example, it feels like it's New Year's Day because men make it feel that way, rather than it being connected inherently to the Earth's time.
4. "What is time, in the face of eternity?" -One of the authors I've read.




Tuesday, December 26, 2023

The Complete Poems, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge,
1. Hymn to the Earth, to summarize, is a poem where Coleridge says, "...Everything that goes on under the Earth, from tribes in Africa, to Gods in Greece, to the romance of every day men and women, remember that we are on Earth."
2. In another one of his poems, Coleridge discusses the moonshine, just like there is sunshine, there is moonshine, he suggests.


Various Notes:
1. Maybe some people just look like they don't belong in jail.
This is in reference to Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire, Items 7. & 8., Saturday, December 23, 2023.
2. Omitted.




Monday, December 25, 2023 -Merry Christmas!

Various Notes:
1. I stopped working on A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye. It declined too much into areas about world history that I do not believe. I also omitted some of the questionable comments.
2. Now that Kool-Aid has been added to my diet, it is great, only I have to remember not to be wasteful of it!




Saturday, December 23, 2023

Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire,
1. "Though nobody knows when men started to make idols, we know that they are of the highest antiquity."
2. "But what precise notion did the ancient nations have of all these simulacra?"
3. "Neither the Chinese nor the Parsees nor the Indians were ever guilty of these abominations, but according to Porphyry men were immolated at Hieropolis, in Egypt."
4. "But that water once covered the entire globe at the same time is a chimera absurd in natural science, demonstrated impossible by the laws of gravitation, by the laws of fluids, by the insufficient quantity of water. I do not claim to undermine in any way the great truth of the universal flood reported in the Pentateuch. On the contrary, it was a miracle, therefore it must be believed; it was a miracle, therefore it was not performed by physical laws."
5. "Thus the story of the universal flood is like that of the tower of Babel...the fall of Jericho by the sound of trumpets, water changed into blood, the passage of the Red Sea...These are profundities beyond human comprehension."

6. Questions under what conditions people require miracles.
7. "He simply ordered the tiller to remain in the air until further notice, and ran to tell his prior how things stood. The prior gave him absolution of the sin he had committed in beginning a miracle without permission, and allowed him to finish it, provided that he stopped there and did not do it again."
In summary, here he is saying that despite one's sins, his or her honest, hard work should count in their defense.
8. Suggests that in some instances, Saints and other holy persons, can be cleared of murder if their past deeds were noble and worthy enough.




Daniel Deronda, by George Eliot,
1. Examines the influence of large families versus small families on children.
2. “You like nez retrousse then, and long narrow eyes?”
3. “What did you say was the name of that gentleman near the door?”
”Deronda—Mr. Deronda.”
”What a delightful name! Is he an Englishman?”
4. “But I shall never reproach you, my dear child; I would save you from all trouble if I could.”
5. "What was the use of going to bed?"

6. “Anything seemed more possible than that she should go on bearing miseries, great or small.”
7. “Gwendolyn felt the bitter tears of mortification rising and rolling down her cheeks.”
8. To be continued.




Friday, December 22, 2023

A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye,
1. In the Ikale country, the Abodi’s kingdom of Ikoya seems to have emerged early as the most powerful kingdom. However, the nature of the Ikale country — thick forests broken up by lagoons, rivers and swamps — compelled each Ikale kingdom to remain fixed in its own forest patch. Much as among the Ekiti, the Ikale kings remained a family of equal brothers throughout their history, with hardly any traditions of conflicts among them.
2. In Ijebu, the Awujale early became the richest and most powerful king — acquiring a specially exalted status and influence among the Ijebu kings, as well as certain privileges which no other Ijebu king could claim. Among such privileges may be mentioned the exclusive ownership of odi (a special kind of court official) and apebi (a special priest who performs the crowning of the Awujale), and the right to have brought to him from all over Ijebuland the skins and some other parts of certain animals regarded by the Yoruba as royal property — such as elephants, bushcows (African buffalo), and leopards. The Awujale also occupied the very influential position of patron of the powerful Osugbo (the Ijebu version of Ogboni) council of Ijebu-Ode, to which all other Osugbo councils in the Ijebu country were subordinate. And he enjoyed the important ritual supremacy of holding certain great and colorful festivals annually, one of which culminated in the gathering in Ijebu-Ode once every year of the sixteen Agemo priests (earth fertility high priests), each accompanied by large numbers of followers, and each bringing a sacred load to bless and to honor the Awujale. In short, then, the Awujale was supreme among the Ijebu kings, and, by and large, he could, whenever there was need to, influence the affairs of all kingdoms in the Ijebu forests.
3. Considering the large expanse and the wealth of the country over which he was thus the most influential ruler, the Awujale would seem to have regularly been the most powerful king in the southern Yoruba forests, and, in the centuries of the greatness of the Alaafin, second only to the Alaafin in Yorubaland. This political picture in the Ijebu forests would seem to have been generated mostly by the magnitude of trade in the Ijebu country and the nodal position of Ijebu-Ode on the overall complex of trade routes in that part of Yorubaland.
4. In Igbomina, the Orangun of Ila was generally regarded as the most senior king from the earliest, because of his descent from a line clearly traced to Oduduwa. However, research by Funso Afolayan, to whom we are indebted for an impressive study of Igbomina history, shows that while the cultural antecedents and political seniority of the Orangun were generally acknowledged all over the Igbomina country, he does not appear to have exercised any form of serious political hegemony over the Igbomina kingdoms before the nineteenth century. A few of the Igbomina kings, most notably the Olomu of Omu Aran and the Olupo of Ajase Ipo, increasingly came to challenge and threaten whatever paramountcy might have originally been attributed to the Orangun. One important cause of this state of affairs was the constant Nupe aggression on the Igbomina country, a military pressure which became intensified in the eighteenth century and resulted in the destruction of Ila. The failure or inability of the Orangun to resist and contain the Nupe threat weakened his prestige and influence among the Igbomina kings. In this situation, when, during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Oyo-Ile kingdom of the Alaafin became a great power in northern Yorubaland, some of the Igbomina kings (especially the Olomu of Omu Aran and the Olupo of Ajase Ipo) happily established military alliances and political association with the Alaafin, and thus considerably enhanced their power, prestige and influence vis-à-vis that of the Orangun.
5. Migrations and Other Folk Movements

Migrations of people in large or small groups, families and individuals, within Yorubaland, were a very important phenomenon in the history of the Yoruba kingdoms and of the Yoruba national society. The primary, kingdom-creating, migrations had resulted in the emergence of kingdoms and cities in Yorubaland, and the populations of the cities had been generally enhanced by migrations from their neighboring forests. After these, a second generation of migrations moved significant groups and elements from kingdom to kingdom and imparted what one might call a “national flavor” to every significant city and kingdom of the Yoruba people.

A substantial part of the second-generation migrations were protest migrations — of persons going away from a city where they felt that they had been unfairly denied a royal title or chieftaincy or other position. As earlier pointed out, most leaders of such migrations ended up as chiefs in other cities and kingdoms. Every Yoruba royal city had at least a few such chiefs, always heading quarters constituted by the followers who had come with them. Besides this, Yoruba people seem to have very commonly reacted to disasters (communal troubles, famines, epidemics, etc.) by migrating to other parts of their country — as individuals, lineages, or even whole settlements. And, moreover, the Yoruba elite in general appear to have been very prone to migrating. It was common that if a famous king ruled over a kingdom, persons of substance and fame came from far and near to live in his city, share in his glory, and contribute to his fame. Kingdoms or kings or other accomplished persons who prospered or became famous usually attracted distinguished persons. This represents a major theme in Yoruba folklore.

6. Finally, most really good musicians, dancers and other entertainers (male and female) usually traveled the country extensively to ply their trade. The best often spent most of their lives traveling and living away from home, sometimes as guests and clients of kings. Widespread traditions indicate quite strongly that alarinjo (traveling entertainment) groups were constant features of social life in all Yoruba cities. To the itinerant entertainers must be added masked entertainers (egungun), the best of whom usually traveled far from home. Some kingdoms were famous all over Yorubaland for their egungun. Egungun from parts of Ekiti are said to have been eagerly awaited annually (during the dry season) in even distant towns like Otta and others in the Awori and Egbado countries. Egungun from various towns in the Oyo country were usually the most numerous, most diversified in the types of their masks, offered the most varied entertainments, and were leaders in traversing the country from end to end. Igunu, the Nupe type of egungun, were also often drawn into Yoruba culture as regular entertainers in Yoruba towns, far from their own country on the banks of the Niger. Visual artists (especially sculptors) are treated as special national assets in Yoruba traditions. The best of them usually became widely famous, and usually lived their lives sojourning in town after town (as guests or under the patronage of kings, chiefs and priests), carving decorative posts, doors, and other pieces for palaces, shrines and famous lineage compounds. Some families of great sculptors remained nationally famous for generations.

All of the above was also generally true of some other types of artists and artisans — like the makers of beaded products (crowns and insignia), and the makers of bodily decorations (facial marks and body tattoos). In short, the Yoruba national community in the era of the kingdoms, cities and towns, commonly circulated its brightest and best. All these trends in the cultural, political and economic behavior of Yoruba people in the long era of the Yoruba kingdoms (eleventh to eighteenth century) were profoundly influential in molding the Yoruba nation into a strongly intermixed, and continually intermixing, people. They account for the fact that countless Yoruba towns and villages, as well as quarters, chieftaincies and significant lineages in practically every Yoruba town, are traceable to distant places of origin within the Yoruba homeland. And they played a great part in the molding of the remarkable homogeneity of Yoruba civilization, in the enrichment of Yoruba culture, and in the reinforcing and strengthening of Yoruba national consciousness.
7. Omitted.
8. Omitted.
9. 9 - The Kingdoms and the Economy: Part I
10. Omitted.

11. The Main Pillar: Peasant Farming

The civilization that ultimately produced the Yoruba kingdoms was developed over many hundreds of years by a farming people whose agricultural economy became progressively more efficient and more productive as a result of the growing sophistication of iron tools as well as increasing numbers of cultivated crops. Agriculture was the pillar of the economy before and after the creation of the Yoruba kingdoms. The emergence of the royal cities, as well as other major towns, as the kingdoms were springing up, widened opportunities in other occupations — like house building, government and military service, the arts, artisanship, entertainment, priestly occupations, health care and herbal occupations and, very importantly, commerce. But agriculture remained the employer of the vast majority of people in the Yoruba kingdoms.
12. The raising of livestock was not a significant feature of Yoruba farming. Unlike their northern neighbors (the Hausa and Fulani and others beyond the Niger), the typical Yoruba farmer did not rear herds of cattle or flocks of goats or sheep. In the extreme northwestern part of the Yoruba country, in the Oyo grassland, it was common for rich families to own some heads of cattle (and also goats and sheep), for the care of which they procured labor (as employees or slaves) from beyond the Niger. For the rest, the typical Yoruba livestock were goats and sheep — and birds like chickens, ducks, pigeons, and sometimes turkeys — all of which were raised free range around the home, and almost all of which were owned by the women. Most women owned one or two goats or sheep and a few birds, which they raised in their compound homes; some of the wealthier women had many, and frequently derived considerable income from sending a few to the marketplace for sale from time to time.
13. Urbanism

A active peasant-based urbanism evolved all over Yorubaland. Surrounding each city or town were farmlands spreading out for miles. Members of the predominantly peasant population of each urban center left home in the morning to work on their farms, and returned to their city or town in the late afternoon. On their farms they built the barns for preserving the harvest, and usually makeshift huts (called aba) where they cooked and sheltered from sun and rain while away on their farms. These were the daily farms called oko etile (neartown, or precinct, farms), which were normally not farther than five miles from the city. Of the farmers who owned precinct farms, a few would also have farms in the more distant forests near the ultimate boundaries of the land that belonged to their city. In such distant farm locations called oko egan (farms of the forests), there developed small outposts called abule consisting of small, fragile, family homes. Farmers could stay in the abule for many days; a few turned the abule into semi-permanent homes. Small towns or villages called ileto existed in every kingdom, but the pattern of life in them was the same as in the city — with family compounds, near-home farms and distant farms. Even in such villages, most residents would claim that their ultimate homes belonged in a lineage compound in the large local town or city. By and large, the ideal home for the Yoruba person came to be an apartment in a lineage compound in a city or town. Emotionally, and almost completely in fact, the Yoruba people, after the creation of their kingdoms and cities, became a nation of urban dwellers.
14. Krapf-Askari describes Yoruba towns and their farms as follows:

The classical plan of a Yoruba town resembles a wheel: the Oba’s palace being the hub, the town walls the rim, and the spokes a series of roads radiating out from the palace and linking the town to other centers. Beyond the walls lie the farmlands; first the oko etile or “farms of the outskirts”, then the oko egan or “bush farms”, merging imperceptibly with the oko egan of the next town.
15. Manufactures

The emergence and growth of many cities and towns in all parts of Yorubaland, and the consequent growing demands of an urbanizing people, stimulated manufacturing in general. In the process, regional specialization was also generated. Over time, the country looked to the towns of the Osun Valley for its best quality dyes,3 certain types of dyed cloth, and iron goods; to Ife, Ijebu, Ilesa and Ondo for iron products; to western Ekiti (especially Ogotun) and eastern Ijesa (especially Ipetu) for the best mats and raffia products; to the towns of the northern Oyo country for leather and the best quality leather goods; to certain Ekiti towns for different types of pots as well as certain types of cloth; to the Akure and Owo areas for the best cosmetic camwood and some types of cloth, to Ife for beads and beaded products.

16. Commerce

All the developments of the period added up to create enormous benefits for trade. The emergence of kingdoms, cities and towns opened up the country by developing and strengthening the channels of transportation and communication. Regional diversity in agricultural products, and the growth of regional specialization in manufactures, pushed up the volumes of internal trade. Generally increasing agricultural and industrial productivity generated increasing exports to places within and beyond Yorubaland. Increasing sophistication of economic demands consequent upon growing urbanization boosted the volume of imports from distant lands. The Yoruba became a great trading people, their women, especially, ranking among the best traders in Africa. Long-distance traders called alajapa began to rank among the elite. Every one of the Yoruba cities, with its king’s marketplace, became an emporium, generating, receiving, distributing and sending out merchandise on a large scale. In very distant parts of the West African region, Yoruba trading colonies emerged — as far north as the Hausa country beyond the River Niger and the Kanuri country on Lake Chad, and also far eastwards and westwards. Some Yoruba traditions even seem to suggest that Yoruba trading colonies might have existed as far west as the valley of the Senegal River and as far east as the lands of the Congo. Inside Yorubaland itself, Hausa and Nupe trading communities arose in most cities, and traders from even further north (especially Tuaregs from the Sahara) became frequent features of the trading population. So much regard was had for the Hausa and Nupe trading communities that Yoruba kings generally became their patrons, and many a king set aside space for them to live in or near his palace, close to the king’s marketplace. When increasing numbers of the Hausa traders came to be Muslims, Yoruba cities usually gave them land to build their mosques close to the marketplace — so they could observe their prayer breaks near their merchandise. In eastern and southern Yorubaland, Edo resident trading communities emerged in many towns.
17. - 19. Omitted.
20. The Yoruba marketplace, then, was typically a pleasant place, laid out in order so that merchandise of the same type was displayed side by side. Shade trees, planted in some order, provided both shelter and decoration. Traders built their own tents in accordance with specifications acceptable to the authorities (especially to the leaderships of the market associations), or used portable tents. Sellers and buyers alike paid careful attention to the preservation of law and order, even though their haggling usually generated a lot of noise. Commotion or disruption in a market place was, among all Yoruba, regarded as a terrible omen, and saying that a town’s marketplace broke down was equivalent to saying that the town itself broke down. Therefore, any breach of the peace in the marketplace was visited with very severe penalties and called for ritual sacrifices. The Yoruba marketplace was much more than a place of buying and selling; it was the heart of its community — a place which exercised powerful influence on the government, the place of some of society’s most powerful shrines and rituals, the place where young people found and courted their future spouses. Sellers of the same or similar merchandise formed a commodity association, with its own officers, rules, rituals and festivals. These market commodity associations were the richest, and among the most influential, associations in every Yoruba community. Between them, they established the site rules for the market place and bore most of the responsibility for maintaining law and order there. The president of each association, with the title of Iyalaje, was one of the most influential persons in society.

21. Rooted in a local market, but operating far and wide in order to serve it and other markets, there were two classes of big traders. The first, known as the alarobo, did business as gatherers of local produce from the producers, for wholesale distribution to retailers in local markets. The other, known as the alajapa, did business as long-distance traders all over the Yoruba homeland and beyond, taking the products of one part of the country to local retailers in other parts. Persons engaged in these levels of commerce were usually the richest in society, and commanded large trading establishments employing large numbers of porters. The alajapa usually became very knowledgeable about trading conditions in various parts of Yorubaland. Those of them who took trade beyond Yorubaland often became fluent in foreign languages.
22. The trade routes were paths trodden by humans (and, in some areas, horses) over many centuries. In accordance with ancient practices, each town cleared the sections of the paths that traversed its territory, the clearing being done on the days of certain festivals by the male population. According to Samuel Johnson, the paths in the Oyo area of northwestern Yorubaland were cleared twice a year — during the egungun and ayan (drum music) festivals. In the thick forests of the south (in the Ijebu, Egba, Ondo and Owo areas) clearing was done more often. Each kingdom was responsible for maintaining peace on the paths that went through its territory. Usually the paths were well maintained and protected. The authorities of kingdoms, towns and villages, had vested interests in ensuring good paths, since the best and safest paths attracted the most traders and trade. If there was some threat of danger on a road, the local authorities would usually send armed escorts to accompany the caravans. The English explorer, Clapperton, traveled on the road from Badagry on the coast to Oyo-Ile in 1825–6 and his general assessment was that the road was good and peaceful, and quite pleasant in some sections.12 Unfortunately, the transcriber of his notes had difficulty with the Yoruba place names, as a result of which some of the towns visited by him are now impossible to identify. Between a town named “Dagmoo” in his diary and the town of Ihumbo, Clapperton noted that the road surface was “rather uneven” and that the forest on either side of it was thick and impenetrable. Soon after, however, between “Atalaboloo” and Ilaro, the road lay “through fine plantations of yams” and was “nearly as level as a bowling green.” Between Ilaro and Ijanna, the road lay “through large plantations of corn and yams and fine avenues of trees” in some sections, and through “plantations of millet, yams, avalanches (sic), and Indian corn” in other sections. Between “Ega” and “Emado,” the road was “a long broad and beautiful avenue of the tallest trees.” Between “Washoo” and Saki, the road lay through a mountain pass that was “grand and imposing, sometimes rising almost perpendicularly, and then descending in the midst of rocks into dells, then winding beautifully round the side of a steep hill.” Of the towns that lay on Clapperton’s route, he noted of Eruwa that it was “large and very populous,” and of “Kooso” (Koso) that it was “a large walled town.” These western parts of Yorubaland had started to experience minor political troubles by the time of Clapperton’s 1825 visit. For instance, he wrote of one small town that it had suffered destruction and that its “gate and the ditch are now all that remain.” In spite of such political conditions, Clapperton met streams of traders on the road, all going about their business without trouble. He himself commented at a point that he had done sixty miles in eight days and changed carriers many times, and yet he had not had even the smallest thing stolen from him.
23. In 1855, A.C. Mann, a missionary based in Ijaye, traveled from Ijaye to Ilorin, passing through Ogbomoso and the ruins of the formerly great city of Ikoyi. In 1858, Hinderer traveled the road from Ibadan to Iwo, Ede, Osogbo, Ilesa, Ile-Ife and Apomu. And in the same year, the American Baptist missionary, T J. Bowen, and the English commercial traveler, Daniel May, traveled various roads that led to the Ijesa, Igbomina and Ekiti countries.14 It was during his travels in northern Ekiti that May met Esugbayibi building the town of Aiyede close to Isan. All of these travelers found that, in spite of wars in many places, the roads through Yorubaland were reasonably well maintained and safe, and carried a heavy traffic of traders.
24. - 28. Omitted.
29. To be continued.




Various Notes,
1. Added: Food Ideas, III. 12.
2. In A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye, Akintoye suggests that going to the market is not only for buying things, but is also an opportunity for cultural exchange and socialization.
3. Daniel Deronda, by George Eliot, and Ferdydurke, by Witold Gombrowicz suggest that we think about ideas, simple or complex, and think of the beginning, middle, and end of the ideas, as well as people involved and key events.
4. "How to bake dog biscuits," is a great search term. So is the search term "homemade cat treats." I also searched for "Homemade dog food," and got good results.
A. I got the ideas for the first term after studying German vocabulary (Oxford Essential German Dictionary) and learning:
hund - dog
kuchen - cake
hundekuchen - dog biscuit




Thursday, December 21, 2023

A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye,
1. 8 - The Politics of Kingdom Rule
2. The Yoruba kingdoms came into existence during the long period of about six or seven centuries starting in about the eleventh century. The present chapter will attempt to describe general trends and themes in their history, with the exception of the Oyo-Ile kingdom, in the period ending with 1800. From the sixteenth century, Oyo-Ile achieved such successes that set it above the general family of Yoruba kingdoms and made its history a significant chapter in the history of the Yoruba people. Consequently, a subsequent chapter will be devoted to the outstanding history of the Oyo-Ile kingdom.
3. The immediate, most visible, result of the creation of each kingdom was the emergence of the new king’s city, Ilualade, which we shall here call the royal city or royal town. In every kingdom, the royal city amalgamated the populations of the pre-existing settlements and the immigrant founders of the kingdom. The most important consequence of the amalgamation was the almost sudden rise of a town of considerable population. From about the eleventh century to about the eighteenth century, then, Yoruba people saw such significant centers of population springing up all over their homeland.
As soon as one of these cities arose, inhabitants of settlements in the neighboring forests tended to migrate into it and thereby quickly increase its population. Usually, most of these people came as single families or lineages; but sometimes whole settlements moved. The total effect of all this was that the Yoruba became increasingly an urban-dwelling people. Ultimately, they became the most urbanized people in the tropical African forests.
4. In most cases, it would seem, the creation of the royal city was effected by destroying the pre-existing settlements and massing all their population and that of the immigrants together in one area, just as had happened in the case of Ile-Ife. The founders of Ilesa destroyed many pre-existing settlements, and so did the founders of Owo through a long-drawn-out war. In Ijebu-Ode, however, Obanta and his followers simply took control of the place as they found it, and then began to build the structures of one common city — a palace, the king’s marketplace, and city walls. The founders of the Ado kingdom under Awamaro in Ekiti did much the same as Obanta. The old settlements here were stretched out around the foot of the Olota Rock. Awamaro left them where they were, and settled his immigrant followers as a continuation of the chain around the foot of the rock. Then he established a palace and the king’s market place, and began to build the city walls.
5. Thus, as would be remembered from an earlier chapter, the population of each royal city or town was made up of many distinct segments — many distinct old settlements each under its own ruler, and many distinct segments of the immigrant group, each under a sub-leader who accepted the leadership of the overall immigrant leader. In the new royal city or town, each of these segments settled as a quarter under its own leader as quarter chief, and they and their quarter chiefs acknowledged the over-all leader of the immigrant group as king.

6. Creating the Royal Government
7. From the above steps, there followed the formulation of the system of royal government in the royal cities — a process that was apparently made easy for most cities by the fact that the basic outlines of a Yoruba monarchical system had become generally familiar. The initial order of seniority among the quarter chiefs was based on various factors. In general, the leading chiefs of the largest quarters became, in principle, the most senior chiefs in the new kingdom. But in practice, almost in every kingdom, other factors influenced the order of seniority — such as how high the ancestry of the new quarter chief had been in the place from which the immigrant group came; whether the new quarter chief had been, in his own right, a famous person before joining the migration; and how personally close to the new king the new quarter chief was. If, subsequently, a migrant group arrived to join the king’s city, the King’s Council met to decide the appropriate slot in the whole system for the newly arriving immigrant leader. Over time, the King’s Council established lower chieftaincies for the streets of each quarter, to assist the quarter chief. A quarter chief could recommend to the king’s government the creation of such a lower chieftaincy, and also recommend the lineage to be vested with it.
8. The initial highest group of the quarter chiefs became the King’s Council (or Inner Council), and its membership usually numbered five (occasionally more, but hardly ever more than seven). In addition to providing leadership in their quarters, the members of the King’s Council met with the king daily in the palace (as the King-in-Council) to take all decisions affecting the kingdom.
9. The King-in-Council also served as the kingdom’s highest Court of Appeal. The king was prohibited from taking decisions of state outside this King-in-Council, but all its decisions were presented to the people as the king’s decisions.
10. The highest council of state bore different names in different kingdoms (Olori-Marun, Oyo Mesi, Ihare, etc.) but its composition and functions were roughly the same in all kingdoms. The composition of this council was deemed as perpetual; the chieftaincies included in it could not, usually, be removed, and the number of its members could not be increased or decreased without an exceptionally important decision of the council itself.
Below this highest level of government, there were other important councils on which the other quarter chiefs served. Each of these met in the palace also, not every day but each on its traditionally appointed day of the week. The “kings decisions” on any matter were reported first to these meetings as appropriate and, at this level, they would be discussed and the message could be sent up to the king to modify them.

11. When the “king’s decisions and orders” had been thus formulated and finally settled, they were communicated to the populace through well established channels. Usually, the simpler decisions and orders were announced to the people of the royal city through an official town crier who would go through the streets in the cool of the late evening, at short intervals strike a gong to attract attention, and then proclaim, “The king, the owner of the world, greets you all, and says so and so”. At the sound of the gong, the citizens would stop everything and listen, and when the announcement was completed, they would answer back from their homes, “May the king’s will be done.” Besides this occasional process, royal decisions and orders in general reached the citizenry through the detailed and powerful channels laid out in the system. Each quarter chief informed meetings of the lower chiefs and lineage heads of his quarter; each lower chief informed meetings of the people of his street; each lineage head informed the meeting of his lineage compound. The high chief who served as the official liaison between the royal government and the Baale (ruler or minor king) of a subordinate town or village informed the Baale, and the processes carried out in the royal city were then replicated in the subordinate town or village. All the chiefs and officials involved in these processes also bore the very important responsibility of seeing to the implementation of the king’s decisions and orders in their respective areas of authority.
12. In addition to serving on the various councils of state and as the executive in their various spheres of authority, most highly placed chiefs also bore some executive responsibility in the kingdom at large. The most senior member of the King’s Council served as Prime Minister and was regarded as second-in-command in the kingdom. Holders of other titles served in lower, but important positions — special friend of the king, liaison officer between the king and other organs of state, bearers of particular duties in the king’s installation ceremonies, overseer of the palace, overseer of the marketplace, officer in charge of particular city gates, keeper of the king’s regalia and crowns, officer in charge of the purse, etc. Of these various special functions, perhaps the most important was the selection of a new king. The monarchy was hereditary in the royal family, but, as earlier pointed out, all male members of that family (sons and grandsons of former kings) qualified to be selected as king. In general, the Yoruba people rejected the principle of primogeniture (automatic succession of a king by his oldest child) and even any succession of a king directly by his own biological son. In some kingdoms, this was carried so far that certain categories of a king’s offspring were totally excluded from selection as king. For instance, at different points in the history of the kingdoms, it came to be laid down in the Ado (Ekiti) kingdom that the Ewi’s first son (titled Abilagba) could never be selected as Ewi, and in the Oyo-Ile kingdom that the Alaafin’s first son (titled Aremo) could never be selected as Alaafin.
13. A small standing committee of the highest quarter chiefs served as the Council of Kingmakers. Selection by this body was always final, and any agitation after the selection was deemed an extremely high crime. While the Council of Kingmakers was still busy considering the candidates, however, its members could be lobbied by agents and supporters of the candidates and by other members of the public. But while the council was obliged to keep itself open to the currents of opinion in the public, it owed the very critical responsibility of not letting any citizen have any idea how its mind was working. Its members were forbidden, on oath, to divulge its information even to members of their own families. For this reason, its members would reject no candidate’s gifts — or, if the decision were to accept no gifts, would reject gifts from all candidates and their agents. The level of accountability and discipline expected of the Council of Kingmakers was very high. And once the selection was made, the chosen prince was handed immediately to the officials and priests responsible for the first steps in the process of installation. Usually, most members of the public might not even be aware a king had been chosen until the heavily ritualized installation process had gone some way.
14. Another small standing committee of high chiefs bore a responsibility that could occasionally be far from pleasant. the Yoruba system provided that a king could be removed if he habitually acted beyond the established controls on royal power, or if he made himself repulsive through greed, tyrannical tendencies or immorality. In such situations, a committee of the high chiefs existed to counsel, admonish or even rebuke the king in strict privacy. If the king would not mend his ways, the situation could develop to the point that this committee would bring the matter before the other councils of state as well as before the Ogboni (described in Chapter 4) — and the decision could be taken to remove the king. Once, however, a Yoruba man had been installed king, he could never revert to ordinary citizenship in his kingdom or in any other kingdom. Deposition or exile was therefore not an option. The small committee of chiefs would approach him respectfully and urge him to “go to sleep” because the duties of kingship had become too burdensome for him. In some kingdoms they would present him with a covered empty calabash, in others a parrot’s egg. All these symbols had only one meaning — the king was being asked to remove himself with dignity by committing suicide, and he would do so. Briefing the incoming king about all this (and instructing and equipping him for it) was part of the process of installation. Usually, the new king lived in a special compound outside the palace for a few months for such briefing as well as for important rituals, while the palace was being prepared to receive him.
15. All the chieftaincies touched upon above, from the very highest quarter chieftaincies to the lowest street chieftaincies, were, like the monarchy, hereditary in particular lineages. When the holder of any hereditary chieftaincy died, his lineage selected from among its members a suitable candidate for the king’s government to accept and install. Being suitable meant that the candidate enjoyed strong support of his lineage and was adjudged by the king and his council as deserving of the position and as an asset to the interests of the kingdom. The use of selection in the appointment of public officials (kings and chiefs) usually meant that each Yoruba kingdom or community was served by very capable persons. To earn selection as a chief, for instance, one had to be strongly acceptable to one’s lineage, be broadly respectable in the community, be a manifestly good manager of one’s own nuclear family, be a hard-working and achieving person. The selectors of kings looked for these same qualities in the princes, as well as for a modest yet princely bearing. In short, to be selected and inducted into the formal titled elite, the Yoruba person had to belong to an elite of character and personality.

16. Besides the hereditary titles, there were some titles that were not hereditary — like those of the war chiefs, commanders of the citizen armies in time of war. Usually, the king’s government appointed from the citizenry for these titles, men who had distinguished themselves in some way; an arrangement which usually produced very capable military commanders. Holders of military chieftaincies held their titles for life.
17. Over this whole system, the Yoruba king or Oba reigned in every kingdom of the Yoruba people, surrounded unceasingly by grandeur, pomp and ceremony. To his subjects, he was so high above all humans that it was prohibited to call him by his personal name; instead, he and the high chiefs chose an appropriate cognomen for him — some grand composition from the history or circumstance of their kingdom, or from their hopes for the new reign. In the various kingdoms and dialects, the Oba’s inexhaustible oriki included countless names — such as Ekeji Orisa (companion or lieutenant or likeness of the gods), Alaye (owner of the world), Alase (owner of all power or authority), Agbogbomojaekun (the all-powerful leopard that stalks the wicked and the lawless, and therefore the strength of the weak against the injustice of the strong), Iku (death — that kills, so that society, and order in society, may live), and Babayeye (father and mother — for every one of his subjects). He was too much like a god to visit any private home or to be seen ordinarily in the streets, and if his natural parents were alive, he must never set eyes on them. He must never step on any floor that had not been broom-swept that day, and he must drink or otherwise use only water that was freshly fetched from the springs that day. Those who fetched his water had to be unmarried young females, and they had to do so naked — and protected from meeting anybody on their way. Those who prepared his food did so under the strictest supervision. He must not be seen by anybody while he ate or drank. If he needed to drink when people were present, he must be screened off in the act. For his subjects, it was a great blessing to see their king on the few festivals when he ceremonially showed his person — adorned, on his throne, in gorgeous clothes, and wearing the beaded crown with the dangling beaded frills veiling his face. If he graciously spoke to the assembled crowd, no citizen would hear his voice; one of the high chiefs would echo his words. On a daily basis, even the highest chiefs greeted the Oba on their knees before the throne (even if he was not there), and any citizen passing by the gate of the palace paid respect on bended knees.
18. Universally, Yoruba people thought of the title of king as a title exclusively for men. In reality, however, many Yoruba kingdoms had women rulers in their history.
19. Most of what has been written in the above paragraphs concerns the commanding heights of the governmental system of the Yoruba kingdoms. However, it is important to note that, on the whole, governance involved the broad spectrum of the community — that is, that the system was considerably open and participatory. Thus, for instance, the political system featured, from the lowest to the highest levels, important, established, meetings. The primary level, or base, of the system, was the lineage in its compound. The lineage had many important corporate assets, interests and functions, for which general and special lineage meetings were held. There were all-member meetings to take decisions on the care, maintenance, improvement, or expansion of the lineage’s sprawling compound, the management of issues arising from members’ use of parts of the lineage farmland and the conditional admission of non-members thereto, the sharing of certain common goods (like the tolls paid by non-members for permission to use the lineage’s farmland), arrangements for weddings and funerals of members (and for participation in such events in other closely related lineages), arrangements for festivals and rituals, selection of the chief (if a chieftaincy title was domiciled in the lineage), reception and consideration of decisions and directives from higher levels of government. And then there were special leaders’ meetings for the settlement of disputes and quarrels, for trying cases of indiscipline and assigning punishment, for consultation of the oracles and carrying out of sacrifices for the welfare of the lineage, and for the disposal of a deceased member’s belongings. Beyond the lineage compound, the age-grade associations, of which all citizens were members, had appointed days for their all-member meetings — for the purpose of carrying out their duties to the community, and for mobilizing support for members during important events in their lives (and also for holding association feasts and festivals). Each chief of a street had appointed days for meetings with lineage heads in his street (and also held occasional meetings of all the people of his street) — mostly for the purpose of disseminating the decisions and directives of the king’s government, and for other matters affecting the street. For these types of purposes too, each quarter chief had appointed days of meetings with the street chiefs, and with the lineage heads, in his quarter. Over most important matters, it was established practice that the palace government consulted directly with leaders of lineages and age-grade associations, as well as with leaders of professional and trade associations — like the hunters’ association, market commodity associations, the diviners’ association, the herbalists’ association, the priestly leaders of all cults, etc. Very important also was the fact that, as would be remembered, every citizen was in a position to influence the selection of a prince as king, through contact with the Council of Kingmakers or its members. In every kingdom, there were days traditionally designated as days of town meetings, when citizens who cared to come would solemnly gather at the palace (always early in the morning) with the high chiefs (with the king in usually concealed attendance), hear their chiefs over important current issues, ask questions and express opinions. In every kingdom also, there were one or two special festival days in the year on which people paraded peacefully in crowds through the streets and openly voiced criticisms of their chiefs and king (and satirized them), usually in impromptu and crudely composed songs — without any intervention from the authorities and without any repercussions whatsoever. Also, in every Yoruba community, certain classes of persons (like musicians, singers, humorists, egungun masquerades, and certain categories of priests) enjoyed a near sacred freedom to voice their feelings or thoughts (whether serious or humorous) about kings, chiefs, prominent citizens, and everyone else.
20. On the whole, therefore, the typical system of government of a Yoruba kingdom had a considerably democratic character, and the Yoruba people in general were strongly established in the tradition of participation in the making of decisions that affected their lives in the community. At every level, (even on the occasions when ordinary citizens gathered for meetings with the chiefs in the palace), the system enshrined freedom of speech; in fact, at certain levels (such as in the lineage), it was regarded as a sacred duty of the leader to ensure that every component section of the lineage and every individual had a say before a decision was concluded — because every member was regarded as a chip of the ancestors. As for the women of the lineage (called obirin-ile — women married into the compound), no compound would take an important decision without involving and hearing its women. In fact, in certain matters (like weddings and some aspects of some festivals), leadership in the compound sometimes belonged more to the women than to the men. Lineages took meticulous care to involve their children in everything, and children’s celebrations were common in lineages. For their part, the age-grades operated in a tradition of very conscious respect for the opinions of members. In the affairs of age-grade associations, it was not uncommon for a well-attended meeting to decide to suspend decision on an issue if it was felt that absent members needed to be given a chance to voice their opinion. And if things were shared in a meeting, the association would go to great lengths to see that absent members received their shares, no matter how small the shares were. Participation in an age-grade’s community tasks was compulsory for all members, and members who were absent for reasons other than sickness had to make some payment to their association. The effect of all this on the individual was that he or she was usually confident to speak (and could be quite eloquent) as a member of the community, and was used to being respected by those who held positions of authority over him or her in the community. This, then, is the basic outline of the system of government under which Yoruba people lived in their many kingdoms until Europeans came and imposed foreign rule on Yorubaland. To complete the description, a number of facts need to be briefly noted. Although each kingdom gave its own unique institutional and functional interpretations to various details of the system, the governments of the kingdom’s were, in essence, remarkably similar. Chieftaincy titles, and the functions assigned to titles, might vary somewhat from kingdom to kingdom, but a Yoruba person traveling through, or relocating to, another part of the country knew broadly what to expect in terms of governance, the laws, and the functionaries of state. This served to a great extent to facilitate contacts, internal migrations and relocations, and broad intermixture and integration of Yoruba people throughout the Yoruba homeland.

21. The system was not without significant weaknesses, however. One of the most important weaknesses inhered in the system of selection of kings from members of the royal family. In spite of the Olympian solidity and responsibility presumed of the Council of Kingmakers, selection occasionally generated an open contest and dispute, with all that this implied. The laws made it a high crime to protest after the selection had been made, and that sometimes meant criminal trials and stiff punishments — including executions. But even though an aggrieved prince might not be able to protest (with his supporters) in the streets, he could cause other painful troubles for the state: he was free to emigrate, taking family, friends and sympathizers with him — usually a very sad event in the life of a royal town. The fear of provoking this painful outcome always weighed heavily with the Council of Kingmakers and made its members usually meticulously cautious and responsible; but sometimes, its very best performance proved insufficient to prevent this trouble. One cumulative consequence of all this was that interregnums or short-term disruptions were not unknown in the system. Similar problems also attended the selection of chiefs at lower levels of the system. Given the large number of chiefly positions in each kingdom, chieftaincy contests and disputes tended to be a rather frequent feature of the life of every city.
22. Another source of weakness was the provision for the removal of kings. Ordinarily, this provision was very infrequently invoked and, whenever invoked, usually passed quite quietly. But it was not unknown for kings who were urged to “go to sleep” (or who saw it coming) to slip out of the palace and flee into exile, and whenever that happened, it usually shut down the high functions of the monarchy — because then the royal funeral rites could not be performed, a new king could not be enthroned, and vacant chieftaincy titles could not be filled. In such a tight predicament, the high chiefs commonly fabricated legends (such as that the king turned into a great animal and went into the wild, or that he simply entered into the earth) — in order to calm the populace, and in order to manipulate the priests into agreeing to undertake alternative rituals. But the problem would usually not end with the installation of another king; the authorities of the kingdom would for long be engaged in efforts to ensure that the news of their self-exiled king would not seep back home. It could be a very destabilizing circumstance. And, therefore, it was quite common for self-exiled kings to be quietly invited back to their thrones.
23. Finally, the limited monarchy of the Yoruba presupposed a king who was well adjusted to, and respected, the systemic limitations placed on royal power, and the whole system was managed in ways that were designed to ensure this. For instance, it was for this reason that the Council of Kingmakers took care, ideally, not to select as king a prince who was powerful, rich or influential in his own right — for fear that their king might claim later that he had obtained the throne on his own strength. Consequently, the history of every kingdom is replete with stories of rich or influential princes who were passed over for their humbler brothers or cousins. Many details in the installation rituals, and the intensive briefing of the new king in a special compound for some months before being taken to the palace, were designed to communicate and inculcate the true nature of the kingship. So too were many seasonal and annual rituals, including the ritualized recounting of the kingdoms history during certain festivals. In spite of all this sophisticated structuring, however, and in spite of all the grandeur attending to kings, it sometimes happened that a kingdom would find itself with a king who exhibited inappropriate ambition or troublesome independence — a king who thereby brought stress upon the whole system by threatening the balances crucial to its stability. Also, though much more rarely, Yoruba traditions tell of chiefs below the level of king who became ambitious and aggressive, and sought to readjust the systemic balances in favor of their particular chieftaincies — thus setting off unhealthy rivalry or conflicts among chiefly lineages. Whenever any of these situations developed, the monarchical system experienced troubles and even instability.
24. Religion and the State
As had been the case in the small ancient settlements before Oduduwa’s time, the governance of every Yoruba kingdom was deeply rooted in religion. The king was, as earlier pointed out, a “companion of the gods.” Every act, function or affair of state was anchored on the gods of the nation. The annual calendar of every kingdom was marked with many days of public festivals, holidays and feasts for the gods, some such festivals occasioning mammoth public celebrations usually centered on the palace. Shrines, large or small, stood at significant locations in every town or village — at town gates, at many locations in the palace, at the market place, and in every quarter. Besides such public shrines, every lineage compound had a small shrine of its own, at which the leader and elders of the lineage performed rituals and offered sacrifices to the gods and the ancestors for the welfare of the lineage.
25. The Yoruba king was a sacred king. His selection, installation and daily life as king were all shrouded in religious mystery, rituals, observances and sacrifices. The installation of a newly selected king involved a round of rituals at many shrines (located not only in the royal city but also in some towns and villages in his kingdom), as well as initiation into various mysteries. When the process was completed, the king emerged from it a sacred being. Therefore, for any citizen to touch the person of a king (not to talk of striking him) was ultimate sacrilege. Typically, there were, in the year, only a very few days in which some sacrifices were not offered in the palace to one or more of the hundreds of gods worshipped by the Yoruba people. The king was the highest priest of the kingdom, and all the high priests of all the cults were, in principle, his assistants. Unlike all other persons, he was supposed to be a priest in the worship and rituals of all gods in his realm. The cult of Ogun (the god of all working men, of iron, and of war) was the special royal cult to which the king paid more attention than he did to other cults. In the Oyo-Ile kingdom, however, the cult of Sango (the god of thunder and lightning) early developed as another, and somewhat higher, royal cult. For the welfare of his kingdom, the king bore the important duty of regularly seeking counsel from Ifa, the god of divination, and of offering prescribed sacrifices to the other gods. The king’s highly ritualized burial and the location of his grave were perhaps the most closely guarded secrets of every kingdom.

26. The Yoruba were very sophisticated in the use of symbols and icons to express deep and powerful statements, and everything around the king conveyed profound messages. Thus, every significant detail of the palace building — the carvings of the wooden pillars and doors, the murals on the walls, etc. — all were iconographic statements relating to aspects of the origins of the kingdom, the Oduduwa source of its royal dynasty, the all-pervading oversight and care of the gods, the perpetual presence of the kings who had ruled in the palace, and the visible and invisible powers or authority of the king.
27. The crown therefore was no ordinary ceremonial head covering, but the object holding in itself the unification of the life forces (ase or power) of the progenitor of the Yoruba nation, and the royal ancestors of the reigning king. When, therefore, the crown was put on the king’s head, his life force was added to the powerful combination of life forces inherent in the crown — thus making it a sacred object with unimaginable visible and invisible powers, the visible totemic image of the invisible essence, power and authority of the kingdom. For this reason, the Yoruba regarded the king’s crown as an orisa or deity. The conical crown usually had a beaded figure of a bird on its top, and sometimes other smaller birds (usually numbering from four to sixteen) attached to the sides near the top. Pemberton and Afolayan (writing specifically about the crown of the Orangun of Ila) wrote as follows:
Henry and Margaret Drewal have shown in their studies of bird imagery in Yoruba iconography that birds are associated with the power ... of women or “our mothers” ... It is their hidden, procreative power, a power that can give birth but can also be used to deny others their creative power. It is woman’s power upon which the continuity of a husband’s patrilineage depends. And ... “without the mothers” (a king) “could not rule”. Furthermore, the large bird at the peak of the crown is attached to a peg the other end of which is bound to a packet of powerful ingredients ... placed in the top of the crown ... The packet touches the top of the Oba’s head ... which is thought to contain (his) life force ... It makes the Oba powerful over all kinds of spirits ...
28. If the Oba left the palace (only on festival or ritual processions), he was surrounded by his entourage (made up of his chiefs and priests and servants) and was barely visible to his other subjects. Nobody must walk to meet him and his entourage; all must stand by the roadside, and those who wished to join his entourage could only do so after he had passed them by. The king must not witness the birth of a child, and he must not see a baby who had not yet had its birth hair shaved — the hair on the head of a newborn baby came from the spirit realm, and this property of the spirit realm must not encounter the spirit of the king. Also, the Oba must not see or touch a dead body or see a grave dug for burial; a corpse was a threat to the king’s life-giving power.
29. The King’s Palace
Usually the first public facility constructed in every royal city was the palace. For this, an effort was usually made to find a distinctive location, normally a low hill around which the new city could evolve.
30. In every kingdom, therefore, the palace buildings tended to grow into a sprawling establishment with many, and ever increasing, halls and courtyards. In most palaces, the oldest buildings became, in a few centuries, no more than a museum or curiosity, visited only on certain festivals and rituals by persons in the innermost circles of government. Somewhere in some deep recesses of the palace grounds, the bodies of deceased kings were buried. However, the popular myth, propagated by the highest chiefs and priests, was that kings never died but turned to rocks or other objects or simply entered into the earth. Partly for this reason, partly to preserve the awe attaching to the king, cultivation of any part of the palace grounds was strictly forbidden in every kingdom — forbidden even to the king himself. In many kingdoms, the palace forest was known as igbo-orunkoja (“the forest through which even ants may not crawl”) or some other such fearsome name.

31. City Walls
The typical Yoruba city wall, calledyara or odi, was a combination of trench and earthworks. The deeper and wider the trench, the higher were the earthworks. Against the weapons employed in warfare in their times, the Yoruba city walls provided a reasonably formidable defense. The invader must first climb to the top of the outside earthworks, then drop to the bottom of the trench, and then attempt to climb up the perpendicular wall of the trench, with the inner earthworks still waiting for him to scale on the inner top of the trench. The trenches were usually some fifteen feet deep, the better ones being considerably deeper, and, in most cities, much more than twenty feet wide at the top, with the earthworks heaped on both sides, higher on the inside than on the outside. Nature usually helped to increase the efficacy of these walls. Good rainy seasons left considerable depths of water at the bottom of most trenches, making a descent into them very dangerous. A stretch of thick vegetation was usually planted, or allowed to grow, on the outside of the wall, to make an approach to the outside earthworks difficult. Gates, called bode, punctuated the wall system, each gate secured with a guard post under the command of a palace official with the title of Onibode, some of whose staff also collected the customs and tolls on merchandise. Some of the highest chiefs acted as superintendents over particular gates. Most walls enclosed considerable acreages of farmland with their cities, as a sort of reserve for times of prolonged emergencies.
32. Besides the Oyo-Ile walls (which will be described in another chapter), the greatest city walls in the country seem to have belonged to Ijebu-Ode, Owo, Ilesa and Owu-Ipole. The total destruction of Owu-Ipole in 1822 makes a description of that city and its walls impossible; but Yoruba traditions speak of that city and its defenses as truly magnificent. According to Owo traditions, Owo embarked, under Osogboye in the early seventeenth century, on the construction of very mighty city walls. The end product was widely regarded as one of the greatest in Yorubaland. Of the Ilesa city walls, we have some midnineteenth century descriptions by a literate visitor — William H. Clarke, who traveled extensively in Yorubaland in 1857–8 and spent three days in Ilesa. His assessment was that Ilesa surpassed Ilorin in size, population, and in the strength of its defenses. Of Ilesa’s defenses he wrote: “Four or five miles from the town, my attention was drawn to three separate ditches ten feet wide, cut through the woods and running, how far I could not tell.”9 The missionary David Hinderer visited Ilesa about the same time and described it as one of the larger towns of the country, in extent perhaps next to Ibadan.... The walls are at least fifteen feet high and no less than six feet thick, with a trench around it of about twenty feet in depth, whereas inside there are high trees close to it all at a distance of about ten yards one from the other, so that a scaffolding can be erected between their branches to defend the walls from it. Hundreds of human skulls are tempered into these walls; at the north gate I counted upwards of a hundred, all of which are of war captives.
33. Most other royal towns of Ekiti had similarly fortunate locations owing to the hilly nature of the Ekiti country. Ijero, Ikere, Ara and Ido perched partly on the slopes of hills, and Effon and Imesi-Igboodo (now Okemesi) on top of steep-sided hills. The Olosunta Hill and rock provided a near perfect defense for much of the city of Ikere. “The hills,” says an Ekiti proverb, “make the Alaaye (king of Effon) defy all invasions.” Even these, as well as most other Ekiti towns, had some wall systems. In the Ekiti, Akoko, Igbomina and other hilly areas of Yorubaland, some towns arranged large rocks to form balustrades and ramparts serving as walls.
34. The King’s Marketplace
The creation of a king’s marketplace or oja-oba was one of the most important developments in every new royal city. Trade was very important to the Yoruba people, and the kings took seriously the provision of facilities for its proper running. As soon as the building of the palace commenced, therefore, an area in its foreground, a short distance beyond the palace gate, was cleared and measured out for the king’s marketplace. A marketplace close to the palace, usually located just outside its front walls, became an unalterable attribute of the Yoruba royal city or town.
35. The king himself was the grand patron of the marketplace, although one of the chiefs would traditionally stand in for him as master in charge. Palace messengers laid out the marketplace to the satisfaction of the traders themselves, ensuring that vendors of each particular article of merchandise had one area (called iso) allocated to them. While the traders constructed their sheds and the facilities for spreading out their wares, palace messengers planted shade trees, needed to prevent excessive heat in the marketplace and also to provide some decoration. When the marketplace became functional, senior palace messengers did patrol duties in it as peace officers and also collected tolls authorized by the king’s government. The sellers of each article usually formed a market commodity association — of which the king was usually patron, even though each association would also appoint other citizens as additional patrons. In short, then, the influence of the king pervaded the marketplace. In fact, the creation of the king’s market place was a major item in his establishment of sovereignty over his new kingdom. The king’s marketplace was a special and symbolic banner of royal sovereignty; therefore, whenever it was time for the authorities to announce the death of a king, they would order the symbolic act of having the tops of the shade trees of the king’s marketplace trimmed.

36. Photo: Market scene, Ibadan. Photo:R. Mauny, 1949, IFAN.
37. Subordinate Towns and Villages
Many kingdoms never expanded their sovereignty beyond the royal city and its farmland. All of the Akoko and Ikale kingdoms, some of the Ekiti, Ijesa and Egbado kingdoms, and most of the far western Yoruba kingdoms stagnated in their royal cities.
Of the rest, some acquired only a few towns and villages, while others acquired quite considerable territory with many towns and villages in it. The Ekiti kingdoms were generally small territorially, the three largest ones being Ado, Akure, and Moba (with Otun as capital). During the first two or three centuries of the history of the Ado kingdom, it gradually expanded the territory under its control until it came to rule over twenty subordinate towns in a kingdom stretching from northwest to southeast for some sixty miles, the largest kingdom in Ekiti. The Owo kingdom was somewhat larger than that, consisting of forest territory more than seventy miles in length from north to south with more than twenty towns. The Ilesa kingdom quickly became the largest Ijesa kingdom, while the Olowu’s kingdom dwarfed the other kingdoms of the Owu. The Osemowe of Ondo ruled over a large forest kingdom extending all the way from the Oni River in the north to boundaries with the Ikale and Ilaje in the coastal lagoon country, and from the Owena River in the east to indefinite forest boundaries with the Ijebu in the west, certainly one of the largest kingdoms in Yorubaland.
38. Subordinate towns and villages were known as ereko — that is, settlements of the farmlands. Usually, a subordinate town or village retained the line of rulers it had had before coming under the authority of the city. In some cases, however the city authorities placed their own nominee over an ereko town or village, usually in instances where some vital interest (like an important road junction) required special control.
39. All this must be seen against the backdrop of a national culture in which reference to Ife’s name was a constant, unavoidable, factor in all worship, all rituals and all divination. Moreover, Yoruba and Benin traditions have it that whenever a Yoruba kingdom or the Benin kingdom enthroned a new king, envoys were sent to the palace of Ife to inform the Ooni that “a new sun had arisen” over their kingdom, and that the Ooni would then send gifts back to the new king as a token of his pleasure.
40. Among the many things which the King Dom Joao learnt from the ambassador of the King of Beni, and also Afonso de Aveiro, of what they had been told by the inhabitants of those regions, was that to the east of the King of Beni at twenty moons’ journey — which according to their account and the slow pace at which they travel, would be about two hundred and fifty of our leagues — there lived the most powerful monarch of those parts whom they called Ogane.

41. Among the pagan princes of the territories of Beni he was held in a great veneration, as are the Supreme Pontiffs with us. In accordance with a very ancient custom, the Kings of Beni, on ascending the throne, sent ambassadors to him with rich gifts to inform him that by the decease of their predecessor they had succeeded to the Kingdom of Beni, and to request him to confirm them in the same.
42. In short then, by the fifteenth century, Ife’s control of almost all the trade of Yorubaland was beginning to unravel, while Nupe incursions into Ijesa threatened the kingdom. All this compelled Ife to invest in large, prolonged, military ventures, a step which it had never had to take in all the centuries since the fight against Igbo-Igbo in the eleventh century. The military ventures appear to have been successful in the short run. Benin avoided a direct clash with Ife by shifting its operations largely eastwards where, to some extent in Akoko and on a large scale in Afenmai (called Kukuruku by the Nupe), Benin forces came into heavy clashes with the Nupe. The armies of Ilesa also repulsed the Nupe in Ijesa.
43. Brothers against Brothers
Another face of the relationships among Yoruba kingdoms, however, featured conflicts and wars. In spite of the undoubted acceptance by all Yoruba kings of the brotherhood of all of them, differences in success, prosperity and power led, in the end, to territorial and other ambitions that produced conflicts. Ultimately, the general picture came to be that a successful and ambitious kingdom tended to aspire to dominance over kingdoms in its own subgroup — that is, to unify the subgroup into just one kingdom. In a number of cases, indeed, very successful kingdoms aspired to even greater expansion than that, into Yoruba territories beyond their own subgroup territory.
44. The Ijesa kingdom of Ilesa, as would be remembered, embarked on a career of conquests even before it had fully established itself in the eleventh or twelfth century. It became, early in its history, a meeting point of very important trade routes, and grew to become one of the most powerful kingdoms in Yorubaland. Local wars feature strongly in the traditions of this kingdom, wars against the other kingdoms of the Ijesa country. These wars appear to have resulted in the splitting up of some Ijesa royal towns like Imesi and Otan. A section of Imesi migrated up the hills into the Ekiti country and founded the Ekiti kingdom of Imesi-Igboodo (now Okemesi), and a section of Otan moved northeastwards and founded Otan-Koto (now Otan Aiyegbaju). Igbajo was the most fortunate of these other Ijesa kingdoms. Secure on top of a hill, it was able to resist Ilesa. The power of the Ilesa kingdom reached its peak in the late seventeenth century in the reign of Atakunmosa, reputed to be the greatest warrior king of the later eras of Ilesa history. On the whole, although the Ilesa kingdom did not achieve its ambition of making its Owa the ruler of all the Ijesa, it did make the Owa the highly exalted senior brother among the Ijesa kings. The Ilesa kingdom also brought pressure to bear on kingdoms of western Ekiti, notably Ogotun and Effon, in the seventeenth century. Effon’s location on the hills made repeated aggressions against it futile; but Ogotun appears to have become tributary to Ilesa for some brief period.
45. In the Ondo forests, the kingdom of Epe, for reasons that remain unclear, remained small, poor and stagnant. The Idanre kingdom was largely isolated because of its hill location, but derived considerable wealth from the trade that flowed through the ancient paths in the valley below its hills. It is not known whether this kingdom ever developed territorial ambitions or some military power. The Osemowe’s kingdom of Ode-Ondo, therefore, controlled almost all the Ondo forests. It became a fairly rich trading and military power, taking advantage especially of trade with the Ikale and Ilaje on the coastal lagoons, and with the Ijebu to the west and southwest, the Owo to the east, and the Ife to the north.

46. To be continued.




Wednesday, December 20, 2023

A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye,
1. Like all status ritualistic objects connected with the monarch, the brass sculptures were produced in secluded workshops and facilities. Each was produced during the lifetime of the Ooni whose head was being represented in brass or bronze, and it was most probably meant to be an exact portrait of him — accomplished through the lost-wax method of metal casting.
2. The production of these sculptures went on for about five centuries and then came to a more or less abrupt end in the fifteenth century. For five centuries, the sculptures had been a very important component of the symbolism of the Ooni’s royal majesty. What seems to have happened is that, as the economic foundations of Ife’s greatness eroded during the fifteenth century, much of the political greatness came to be lost, and economic and political realities brought some symbols of the Ooni’s power and pageantry, such as the naturalistic brass representations of royalty, to an end.
3. The above naturalistic sculptures in brass or bronze for royal purposes were only part of a very rich and vibrant artistic culture in the kingdom of Ife, and in Yorubaland in general, in the centuries beginning with Oduduwa’s time. The quality of wood scultures improved continually. Brass and bronze were also used in the making of accessories like bangles for ankles (ide ese), wrists (ide owo), and necks (egba orun), and for various ritual or decorative objects like stools, staffs, bells, vessels, and ceremonial or official rods. Silver also came into use - in accessories like bangles and rings, as well as in some decorative items for lineage compounds and palaces.
4. In addition to many impressive sculptural products in wood, clay, brass/ bronze, and iron, this period in Ife and Yoruba history also produced many important stone products — in stone carvings and stelae for shrines, and in human figures, many of which are naturalistic. Of all the stone works done in Ife, the most famous is the sculpture known as Opa Oranmiyan (Staff of Oranmiyan), which is located in a small shrine in the heart of Ile-Ife. Opa Oranmiyan is a shaft made of granite, standing over eighteen feet high (with an estimated one foot buried in the ground), and having iron nails studded in a curious pattern along its whole height. This stone sculpture was most probably produced to commemorate some important event in Ife’s history, while its pattern of nail studs must also have had some symbolic meaning; unfortunately, both meanings are unknown to us today.
5. Because these sculptures, as naturalistic art, stand far above and beyond any other found in tropical Africa, there has been much debate concerning them. Frobenius expressed the opinion that, since no indigenous African civilization could have produced this level of naturalistic art, it must be that “a race far superior to the Negro had settled here.” Such opinions persisted for decades, for quite understandable reasons. First, it seemed as if the tradition of brass or bronze casting was unknown in the modern city of Ile-Ife. Secondly, it seemed that similar art traditions did not exist in the region to which Ile-Ife belongs, including all the rest of Yorubaland. In short, then, the naturalistic sculptural art of ancient Ile-Ife seemed like an isolated occurrence in the history of the region, an isolation that thus raised legitimate doubts about its indigenous origins. However, in the course of the twentieth century, most of the supposed isolation disappeared. Some survivals of the brass/bronze sculptural tradition have been discovered in modern Ile-Ife; and evidence has come to light that the art tradition existed in many other places in Yorubaland (for instance in Owo, and in Obo-Aiyegunle in northern Ekiti, in Ijebu-Ode, etc). By the late twentieth century, therefore, there was no serious doubt left that the Yoruba people were in fact the creators of this naturalistic art tradition that ranks easily with the best in the history of the world.

6. Kings and Reigns
7. It is against the general background described above, then, that the reigns of Ife kings from the eleventh century to the fifteenth century must be viewed. By and large, it was a long period of economic growth and political stability, punctuated by comparatively minor political troubles and short periods of drought and famine. Historical interpretations that see apparent intrusions into the royal line as proof of violent political disturbances most probably exaggerate.
7. Finally, from looking at the names of the kings as well as some versions of the traditions, some historians have come to the conclusion that the pre-Oduduwa ruling families must have somehow made their way to the throne of Ile-Ife at certain times in the years after Oduduwa. Such an occurrence is not necessarily improbable. However, since we do not have definitive information to this effect, we need to look also at other possibilities. For instance, intermarriages among the leading families must have been common. Intermarriages would produce situations in which the pre-Oduduwa ruling families would have members born into the royal family. In the contest for the selection of king, an influential family would normally support the princely candidate close to itself by blood - and the victory of such a candidate could be couched in the traditions as the victory of the influential family that pushed his candidature. Also, intermarriages could have resulted in the interposition of typical family names - so that some royal princes could bear names drawn from their maternal ancestry. We do not know for sure whether either of these things happened at any point, but the possibility of either needs to be borne in mind.
8. Oduduwa was succeeded by a man identified in the traditions as his son. However, the picture at this point is not too clear. Whoever succeeded him was, of course, officially his son; but the traditions are so complicated that this successor may have been his biological son or grandson, a close relative of his, one of his most loyal followers, or even one of his closest adherents from among the leading families of the pre-Oduduwa settlements. Some traditions name this successor as Ogun, but the name by which he has come down most clearly is Obalufon Ogbogbodinrin (probably Obalufon, follower, or maker, of the straight path) Obalufon Ogbogbodinrin is said to have been a very impressive personality. His subjects said of him that he shone like a large sun in the sky; hence, his other cognomen Osangangan-Obamokin (roughly, “the great sunlight that illuminates the earth at the height of day”). All traditions agree that his reign was long, and that it was peaceful most of the way. Towards the end of his life, he seems to have done something (or some things) that caused trouble with some sections of the kingdom’s leadership. Whatever the problem was, it spilled into the reign of his son and successor, Obalufon Alayemore. By then, the dissidents had grown so strong that the king himself died fighting them. Alayemore’s son or younger brother, Obalufon Ejigimogun, who was crowned after him, plunged straight into the same trouble.
9. At this point, there appeared on the scene one of the greatest, one of the most enigmatic, characters in the early history of the Ife kingdom, Oranmiyan. One of the youngest grandsons of Oduduwa, Oranmiyan was probably the foremost warrior prince and adventurer that the Ife kingdom ever produced. According to many traditions, after prolonged adventures that took him to Benin in the southeast and to the Niger Valley in the northwest, he returned to Ile-Ife, welcomed back by all as Akinlogun (hero in battle). Finding the king, Obalufon Ejigimogun, confronted by strong opponents led by a personage named Orisateko, he intervened, crushed Orisateko and his followers, drove Ejigimogun into exile, and accepted the throne. His intervention brought the troubles to a complete end. His reign was peaceful and long, lasting seventy years according to some traditions.
10. The tradition, made popular by Samuel Johnson in his The History of the Yorubas, of a radical change of the royal line from Oduduwa’s descendants to some older Ife family, probably derives from the traditions relating to this period.

11. Some traditions indicate that a woman Ooni reigned during this time. The political picture of this period is so cloudy, however, that a clear statement of its happenings and developments is extremely difficult. On the whole, what we seem to have here is a period characterized by frequent and tortuous succession disputes. The chosen system of selection of a king was still in its infancy, and it was prone to pitfalls, interferences and dissonance. Stories of seizures of power and change in the line of succession fit temptingly easily into the picture, but none of them are easy to authenticate. In the final analysis, the clearest feature in the picture is that the kingdom of Ife, in these its apparently stormy early years, continued to move forward as one kingdom, continued to grow in economic and cultural prosperity at home, and continued to rise in luminance, adoration and influence in the rest of Yorubaland.
12. Meanwhile, the system of government of the Ife kingdom evolved slowly but surely. About the ultimate form of that government, more will be said in another chapter. In the kingdom of Ife, the final outlines of the monarchical government of the Yoruba people were developed in the first few centuries after Oduduwa.
13. The Ife kingdom gradually became the exalted leader of the world around, not by the use of arms, but by the influence of its commerce and the expansion of its enormous cultural heritage. As the other Yoruba kingdoms emerged, each of them acknowledged Ife as head, and looked up to Ife as source of life and light rather than as a rival.
14. 6 - Traditions of Kingdom Founders
15. It is known that in other parts of Yorubaland, the following are also mentioned among the earliest kingdoms founded by princes from Ife: the Ilesa kingdom founded by Ajibogun (also known as Obokun), the Ijebu-Ode kingdom founded by Obanta, the Owo kingdom founded by Ojugbelu (and his son Imade), the Ado kingdom in Ekiti founded by Awamaro, some other Ekiti kingdoms, the Ode-Ondo kingdom founded by the Osemowe, and others.
16. Causes of the Migrations
17. All this raises the question: Why did people go out on these kingdom-founding adventures? What factors or incentives were at work in Yoruba society that made so many prominent persons leave their homes to go and found kingdoms and that made many ordinary folks go with them into largely unknown forests?
The Ife palace traditions quoted above present the earliest kingdom founders as only loyally responding to the expressed desire of their great progenitor. However, some verses of Odu Ifa offer a purely economic explanation. According to those verses, the Ife kingdom, very early in its history, suffered a severe famine caused by a long drought. The famine was made the more devastating by the fact that the city was overpopulated. The rulers of the kingdom therefore sought counsel from the Ifa oracle and, through a priest named Agirilogbon (a resident of Ita Asin in Ile-Ife), the oracle counseled that some of the people of Ile-Ife should migrate to other parts of the country. The rulers accepted the counsel and embarked on encouraging the Ile-Ife citizens, led by their princes, to go out and found new kingdoms like the Ife kingdom.
18. This tradition would, therefore, make Ketu the oldest existing kingdom established in other parts of Yorubaland by persons from Ife.
19. Reminds me of the cultural and intellectual contributions that I have personally made to American society.
20. Concerning this, some historians have, rightly, counseled caution in our acceptance of the traditions of the origins of Yoruba ruling dynasties, pointing out that, in particular, probably many of the traditions of origin from Ife are open to question or even doubt. Yet there is a sense in which all Yoruba kingdoms can be said to originate in Oduduwa and Ife. Oduduwa and Ife gave the Yoruba people their first kingdom, elaborated the structure of their type of kingdom, and pointed all of the Yoruba people in the direction to this higher level of political existence.

21. No decline in the fortunes of the Ife kingdom itself seems to have been enough to shake this belief. For instance, at the time that Samuel Johnson made our first written collection of the traditions in the last decades of the nineteenth century, there was no incentive for any Yoruba kingdom to claim an Ife origin for its ruling dynasty. Ife was in ruins (for the second time in about three decades), its badly shrunken population was camped in a small farm village called Isoya, the site of the ancient city itself was covered by thick bush, and there was not even a king over Ife (the man selected as Ooni remained uncrowned in exile some forty miles to the south, in the village of Oke-Igbo in the Ondo country).
22. In spite of this situation, the strongest and proudest states of the Yoruba people of the time unhesitatingly, and with all gravity, recounted to Johnson and other writers the traditions of the coming of Yoruba dynasties from Ife. Obviously, the most that we can say about this subject is that our knowledge of this important development in Yoruba history — the processes of the emergence of the Yoruba kingdoms and the growth of the powerful belief in Ife and Oduduwa as the source and springhead of Yoruba kings — is still limited.
23. Ways and Means of the Kingdom Founders
24. The end result was always a new community, the beginning of an Ile-Ife type of city. At its beginning, the new community always comprised many clearly defined groups. First, there was each of the old settlements led by its own ruler. The immigrant group too consisted of segments. The overall immigrant leader had his own personal following (his family and relatives and other persons directly attached to him). Then there were prominent men who had agreed to come with him, each bringing a group comprising his own personal following (family, relatives and persons directly attached to them).
25. The Kingdoms of Yorubaland

26. The other considerable kingdom in the Ife forests was Ifewara, a short distance to the southeast. Ifewara was founded, as would be remembered, probably about one century after the foundation of Ife, by a prince, Olojo Agbele, who migrated from Ile-Ife after being rejected for the Ife throne. Olojo Agbele came with his large following to a group of old settlements, and these were glad to receive him as their king.
27. Not much is known about the pre-nineteenth century history of the Ilaje. The nature of their country made large centers of population impossible. But it does not seem to have made the concept of kingdom, of a group of settlements owing allegiance to a king, impossible. During the centuries marked by the creation of kingdoms in Yorubaland, the coastal spread of Ilaje settlements appears to have gradually come to recognize two kingdoms — an eastern kingdom with its royal center at the small old settlement of Ugbo ruled by the Olugbo, and a western kingdom with its royal center at another small settlement called Mahin ruled by the Omopetu. Roughly, the eastern Ilaje villages accepted the Olugbo as their king, and the western Ilaje villages acknowledged the Omopetu as their king.
28. The details of the process that resulted in the emergence of these two kingdoms are obscure. Like all the other peoples living in the lagoons, the Ilaje were principally a fishing people living in small, mostly remote, settlements. Their traditions, and even surviving practices, indicate that these settlements were shrouded in spiritual rituals based on the worship of various traditional Yoruba gods and water spirits. These deities and spirits mediated disputes on conflicting claims over fishing rights and enforced high standards of probity.
29. According to the Ondo palace traditions, a royal wife in Oduduwa’s palace in Ife had twins, one female and one male. Since having twins was regarded with horror or fear in those early days among the Yoruba, the woman was driven from the town with her twin babies.
30. The Extreme Northeastern Subgroups

31. The Northern Kingdoms
32. The country of the Ibolo, sandwiched between the Igbomina and Oyo countries, is small. The Ibolo and their much larger Igbomina neighbors were so closely related in their history that some Igbomina traditions regard the Ibolo as a branch of Igbomina. A number of kingdoms were founded in the Ibolo country — Offa, Ikirun, Okuku and others. Of these, the most prominent in history was Offa. Offa traditions trace the origin of the founder of the kingdom to the Oyo country. The Offa kingdom takes great pride in its peacock (or okin) symbol (for which reason Offa people are known as “omo-olokin”), and the Offa people are reputed among all Yoruba people for their passion for wrestling — hence the saying, “Ijakadi l’oro Offa” (“wrestling is Offa’s favorite festival”). According to Okuku traditions, the founder of the Okuku kingdom was a prince of the Ara kingdom in Ekiti who emigrated in protest after he was passed over in a selection to the Ara throne.
33. To be continued.
34. Omitted.




Various Notes,
1. Curry seasoning, added to Perdue Chicken Strips, with Minute Rice on the side, tastes great -- Curry Chicken!
Added to Food Ideas, III. 3.
2. Tba.




Tuesday, December 19, 2023

A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye
1. Yoruba people also began, after the coming of iron, to produce individuals who practiced art as a profession. The earliest sculptures would seem to have been done in terra cotta (that is clay) — almost certainly a development from the profession of pottery. The earliest carvings, made possible by iron tools, were presumably in wood — most of it, probably, for the decoration of houses and shrines. By the later parts of the first century AD, sculpture in stone appears to have become well developed also — as well as sculpture in metals, especially cast or wrought iron. Most of the growing sculptural art was devoted to the worship of gods and spirits and the celebration of rulers, leaders and heroes. A fuller attention will be given to this subject of the development of early Yoruba art in the next chapter dealing with the early history of Ife.
2. The improvement of tools and skills enabled the Yoruba farmer to incorporate more and more crops into his farming. At some point in this long process, cotton became one of the crops he cultivated. It would seem from some folklore connected with the cloth industry that cotton and the weaving of cotton cloth first appeared in the broad belt comprising the Yoruba savannah and derived savannah countries of the Oyo, Igbomina, northern Ekiti, northern Ijesa, Akoko, and the Okun Yoruba. This broad area was the vegetation belt most suitable in Yorubaland for cotton cultivation, and was also the natural home of most of the shrubs from which the Yoruba people obtained their dyestuff; over time, some of these shrubs came to be regularly cultivated (such as indigo). Cotton cultivation spread only slowly into the deep forests of southern Yorubaland, mostly into areas where agricultural activity resulted in more open vegetation. Even in such places, the cotton crop was prone to diseases because of the higher humidity of the southern Yoruba forest country. From the beginning, therefore, cotton cloth weaving in southern parts of Yorubaland depended heavily on cotton wool and dyestuff from the middle belt and the northern territories. Some Ekiti proverbs seem to indicate that the Igbomina were probably the earliest leaders in cotton cloth production in Yorubaland. Like the practitioners of other trades, weavers evolved early into local associations or guilds, with rules and obligations and a guardian deity.
3. is not known what mode of exchange was employed in this earliest of Yoruba trade. Some traditions, reinforced by some surviving traces of practice, suggest some sort of barter of products for products. The use of cowry shells as currency almost certainly, as will be seen later, began in times before Oduduwa — that is, before the tenth century. In the context of this age of varied growth and development, political organization of society also began and developed.6 Each settlement had a rudimentary government from very early, under the leadership of a headman. The oldest living male member of the group, he was a sort of ruler and priest. His religious authority and ritual functions sprang naturally from his being the group’s “father” and the nearest person to the departed ancestors of the group as well as to the primordial sprits inhabiting the earth upon which the settlement stood. He was keeper of the totem and other “secrets” of the group. The group’s totem was an object treasured by the first father of the group (a charm, article of personal adornment, favorite tool or artifact, etc.) and believed to have been bequeathed by him to the group on his deathbed, to be kept as the symbol of the group’s unity and identity. Sometimes, copies of the totem were made and given to members to keep or to wear on their persons, but the original was kept by the group leader and passed on to his successor. The group leader also kept and tended the group shrine, made the daily, periodic and seasonal rituals, and offered the sacrifices. His authority in trying and punishing offences was conceived of as flowing naturally from his religious authority and ritual powers. In modern political language, then, he was ruler, priest, judge and enforcement authority.
4. From this point, Yoruba traditions generally paint an implausible picture of sudden transformation of each village or settlement into one that had a government with an exalted ruler, subordinate chiefs, rituals and orderly laws. Such phenomenal transformation is made to seem as if it all happened in one generation, such as from father to son; but we are certainly right to assume a development that lasted many centuries and many generations. What most probably happened is that each group, which later became a settlement, started off as one small family whose surviving members kept in close association for generations until they became a lineage — that is, a group of families bound together by belief in common descent from a known ancestor. As the group grew larger, it kept regarding itself as one family, even if other persons joined it from time to time. The original family values of mutual loyalty and support, and individual acceptance of family rules and authority, continued as the group norm. The authority exercised by the father in the foundational family became institutionalized in the leader of the group. The original family demands on interpersonal behavior, and of group duty, became institutionalized into group rules and law. Continued expansion of group size and needs slowly generated devolution in the performance of group duties, which then gradually produced institutionalized offices and officers (that is, chiefs and priests) below the level of the group leader, complete ultimately with titles and insignia. The leader’s own title had to proclaim that he was father, head, and embodiment of the spirit, of the settlement. Hence, in practically every settlement, the leader’s title came to include the name of his settlement — as in Elefene (of Efene), Obajio (of Ijio), Olowagbon (of Igbon), Aro (of Ilaro) and so on.
5. Fittingly too, in addition to these specific titles, the evolving national culture began to identify and address the rulers with general, exalted, titles that set them apart from the rest of humankind. The Elefene, Obajio or Aro belonged to a special level of humans known as Olu or Osin or Oba — king. It seems probable that which common title people used for ‘king’ depended on which region they lived in. In some regions people used Olu, in others Osin, and in yet others Oba. An Ekiti tradition has it that in most parts of Yorubaland people first used Olu or Osin as leader titles.

6. At some very late point in the evolution of these settlements, their leaders began to wear a distinctive skull cap. Since the crowns of Yoruba kings have continued till our times to be regarded as sacred objects, it seems very probable that crowns started off as part of religious and ritual attire. For reasons unknown to us today, the ruler seems to have begun to wear some special cap as part of his religious garb as he performed the rituals and sacrifices at the shrine. Over time, wearing such a cap became a generalized part of his clothing while performing any of his other functions, even though the ruler’s skull cap never ceased being regarded as a sacred, religious object. We have very clear descriptions of these earliest Yoruba “crowns” in the traditions. Moreover, some ancient recesses of some Yoruba palaces are believed to have samples of them. They were simple looking caps woven from pieces of certain types of raffia yarn at first, and much later from certain types of cotton cloth and yarn — not anything like the elevated dome-shaped or cone-shaped crowns of a later period of Yoruba history.
7. The important consequence of the emergence of many compounds in each settlement is that each compound slowly, over many centuries, took on some life of its own — a latter day lineage. Each settlement thus became a sort of super lineage comprising many small lineages. Particular leadership roles in the settlement became domiciled in particular compounds. When the bearer of any such title died, the inhabitants of the compound became responsible to the village for selecting his successor from within their compound. But since the title (and its duties) belonged to the whole settlement and not just the compound, the village must accept the appointee and install him. The system whereby the chiefs gathered in council around the ruler to manage the affairs of the settlement gradually evolved. In each compound, the oldest member was the compound head, vested by practice over time with judicial and other authority in the compound. As earlier indicated also, the farms pushed farther and farther away from the villages, even though the areas immediately outside each village remained the most intensively farmed. Moreover, from each village, paths radiated into the neighboring forests — to the sites of the palm oil mill or eku, the pottery, the iron smelter, the brooks and springs (sources of the village’s supply of water). From the earliest times, these special forest locations and the farmlands were conceived of as common property of the village. In this way, the Yoruba laid the foundation of the system of land ownership that later became a very significant feature of their culture.
8. Although the oral traditions speak almost entirely of the roles of men in the ancient Yoruba villages, there are nevertheless glimpses of women’s roles. The traditions are clear that, from the very beginning, women were the makers of pots — a very important service to their settlements. For reasons not entirely clear to us, women were also the traders from the beginning. It is probable that this was a consequence of an early division of labor whereby the men cleared and prepared the ground and raised the crops (with significant assistance and back-up services from the women), and the women harvested most of the crops and offered the surplus for exchange (or sale). When yarn making and cloth weaving came too, they became exclusive industries of the women. The typical Yoruba loom, from early times, was the vertical loom installed over a shallow pit in the house. The other type of loom which also became common in Yorubaland, the horizontal draw-loom, a specialty of the men, came much later — and it long remained exclusive to northwestern Yorubaland, that is to the Oyo country.
The women were, in early times, the greater actors in the spinning, weaving and dyeing processes which, over time, gave Yorubaland its very important cloth industry.
9. But early Yoruba women may have been more active in the political process than the oral traditions would admit. For instance, it is possible that some very early influential position for women is what we have in very many folktales about a woman with the title of Anosin, represented always as first wife of the Osin (king).
Within the palace of the Osin, the Anosin wielded authority second only to that of the Osin himself. This very influential female official always starts off in each folktale as a glowing embodiment of power and authority (and feminine beauty), and then she is shown as coming to a tragic end on account of her wicked use of her power over the other women of the palace. It is significant, however, that in none of these folktales is the legitimacy of her authority ever questioned; her tragic end is always caused by the manner of her use of her authority. This seems to imply either that having women in positions of authority was acceptable, and perhaps even common, in early Yoruba settlements, or that women did in fact occupy leadership positions but were, in a generally male-dominant culture, depicted as temperamentally incapable of using leadership positions well. The Anosin was probably commonly “mother” of the settlement while the Osin was “father” of it.
Admittedly, the Anosin folktales do not rank as direct information about influential roles for women in early Yoruba settlements. About such roles for women in the kingdoms of later periods of Yoruba history, the oral traditions are replete with direct information. Women did become crowned rulers of Yoruba kingdoms in these later periods — and it does seem improbable that such eminence would have had no root whatsoever in earlier periods of Yoruba history.
10. Yoruba traditions hold up the development of herbal medicine as one of the triumphs of early Yoruba history.7 Slowly, over many centuries, the Yoruba people in their villages accumulated solid knowledge of countless herbs and herbal preparations for various sicknesses, as well as considerable knowledge of the nature of many diseases. Professional herbalists called onisegun emerged, on whom the people of the village depended for the treatment of their sicknesses. Over time, indeed, specialization developed in this profession — so that there were those (called onisegun aremo) who specialized in the treatment of infertility in women, the management of pregnancy problems, the delivery of babies and the treatment of childhood diseases, those who specialized in the treatment of mental and nervous diseases, those who specialized in the fixing of bone fractures, and so on. From those early times, the profession gradually set up rules and procedures for the training of those to be admitted to it; fourteen years of apprenticeship becoming a sort of general standard. The profession also evolved meetings of members for the exchange of knowledge, and established strictly binding rules of professional assistance of member to member.

11. However, Yoruba herbal medicine, in spite of its ever growing knowledge of diseases and treatments, never freed itself from its origins — the belief that sicknesses were often caused by malevolent spirits. Therefore, even the soundest of herbalists continued to mix with his practice the appeasement of, or combat with, spirits, as well as divinations, sacrifices, rituals, incantations, protective amulets (around neck, waist and wrist), protective magical preparations (of powder or liquid) inserted into parts of the body through lacerations. All these started early and continued through later periods of Yoruba history as part of the herbalist’s art.
12. In the context of high rates of infant mortality, the belief early developed that some children (especially of mothers who lost many babies in succession) were not ordinary children but spirits who came to the world as babies only for the purpose of tormenting certain women. Called abiku (born to die), these special children became the subject of a whole complex of lore, rituals and magical practices, all aimed at either warding them off from the women who were their victims, or forcing them to convert to real, ordinary, children if they were already born.
13. In The History of the Yorubas, by Samuel Johnson, Johnson indicates that Yoruba speech often has a different goal than English speech.
14. In earliest times also, having twin babies was regarded as a bad omen or a visitation by malevolent spirits. Yoruba people never ceased regarding twin babies as beyond the ordinary, but the attitude to twins gradually softened — until, in much later times, twin babies came to be regarded as friendly spirits or bearers of good luck, to be related to with special rituals and celebrations.
15. Belief in witches and witchcraft also became an important feature of Yoruba life — a witch being, according to Yoruba belief and folklore, a man or woman (most often a woman) who consented to hosting in her own person a malignant spirit sworn to causing harm to humans. Sicknesses which could not be explained or healed were usually attributed to witchcraft or the hostility of some spirit or deity. This usually provoked a heavy investment in sacrifices and rituals, and, if witchcraft was suspected, efforts to find and punish or appease the witch or to neutralize her powers. Herbalists developed potions which were believed, when ingested by suspects, to be efficacious in detecting the witch among them. And the penalty for being so publicly identified as a witch was death, sometimes by public stoning.

16. The religion of the people of the early Yoruba settlements, started in their earliest days, grew and amplified. To the original earth spirits and protector spirits of the neighborhood hill or rock or stream were, over centuries, added more and more gods and goddesses and spirits. Settlements and lineages deified prominent departed members and set up shrines to them — as special friends and protectors in the spirit world.
17. As various occupations developed, patron gods and goddesses emerged for them — for farming and other working folks, for women traders in marketplaces, for weavers and dyers of cloth and yarns, for potters, for herbalists, etc. Certain natural phenomena (such as lightning and thunder, and the sea), certain diseases — all came to have gods or goddesses associated with them. Over time, some deities became generally accepted and worshipped throughout Yorubaland. The god later known as Ogun (originally patron god of all working people) seems to have been the first of such pan-Yoruba gods — hence his salutation as “Osinmole” (first, or king, among the earliest spirits or gods).
18. By the tenth century, or perhaps even considerably earlier, the main outlines of Yoruba cosmology and religion had evolved. The Yoruba conceived of all existence as located in two realms — a lower realm known as aye (the earth or the world, the abode of humans), and a higher realm known as orun (heaven, the home of the spiritual beings). The realm of the spirits was conceived as consisting of two spheres — a higher and a lower.
19. The higher was the place of the Supreme Olodumare who created all things and ruled over all of existence. This Supreme Being was first given the name Orisa — roughly meaning “the source from which all things emanated.” Later, to his name was added Olorun (king of heaven) and Oluwa (king over all). Though some Yoruba groups (especially the southern and eastern peoples like the Ijesa, Ondo, Ikale, Owo and Ekiti) continued to apply the name Orisa to the Supreme Being, that name generally came to be used for the highest heavenly beings who were said to have been with the Supreme Being at the time when the Supreme Being created all things, and whom the Supreme Being later sent to the lower spiritual sphere where they became the most senior gods.
20. The Supreme Being’s sphere was so far above the human’s world that humans could not worship or relate directly with him. Therefore, only in a very few places in Yorubaland did shrines emerge for his worship. Generally, Yoruba people believed that no human could know what sacrifices would be acceptable to Olorun or Oluwa. At some late time, Olorun or Oluwa also acquired the name Olodumare, a difficult name that has been variously translated or deciphered. The central word in this name is odu, which means “fullness”, or “totality.” For this reason, Olodumare has been translated by some as “the absolute fullness that encompasses all.” Olu Alana suggests that its best translation would be “the king — who holds the scepter, wields authority and has quality which is superlative in worth and ... permanent, unchanging and reliable.

21. The second heavenly sphere existed in very close proximity to the world of humans and was the home of all the other gods (collectively known as imole) and the spirits, all arranged in grades from the highest to the lowest. The highest category consisted of the orisas — namely, Orisanla (arch divinity), Ifa (god of wisdom and divination), Ogun (god of working people and of iron), Esu (messenger of the senior gods), and others. Of these, Orisanla came to be regarded as the most senior; he was believed to have assisted Olodumare in the act of creating man. A goddess named Odudu was regarded as wife of Orisanla and mother of the gods (Eye umole or Iya imole). In certain liturgies and localities, the name of this goddess later became confused with the name Oduduwa, the name of an important male personage in later Yoruba history. (Oduduwa was later deified, as a male god.) Odudu is still worshipped in some places in Yorubaland as Odudu, not Oduduwa; Odudu’s shrine and rituals still exist in Ado (in Ekiti), where she is worshipped as mother of all mothers and their little children.
22. The total number of the gods (imole) varied from region to region of Yorubaland — but 401 appears to have been the commonest count. By the tenth century, many of the gods were already pan-Yoruba in acceptance and worship. Such pan-Yoruba gods increased in number in later periods of Yoruba history. Each imole was concerned with a particular department or pursuit of human life and demanded a particular type of sacrifice and rituals. Below the level of the imole were countless spirits, each in its own way in frequent contact with human life.
23. It is clear in the traditions that there were many kinds of divinatory practices and traditions in early Yoruba history, but over a long time they almost all became consigned to the province of Ifa. Some Yoruba traditions indicate a Nupe contribution to the earliest rudiments of the Ifa system in Yorubaland, but the extent of such contribution is uncertain. According to traditions recorded in the late nineteenth century by Samuel Johnson, there lived in Ife in pre-Oduduwa times a man of Nupe extraction named Setilu or Agboniregun (the latter being probably the name given him by his Ife hosts). Agboniregun, practicing Ifa divination, lived in some places in eastern Yorubaland (including Ado in Ekiti, and Owo) before he came to settle in Ife, where he acquired considerable influence on account of his Ifa divination, and where he initiated many people into Ifa mysteries and divination.
24. Thereafter,Yoruba creativity elevated Ifa divination and mysteries and enriched them with a profound body of folklore, until the whole Ifa system became a sophisticated theme in Yoruba religion and culture, and Ifa became a very important Yoruba god — the god of divination and of hidden knowledge, the mouthpiece of the gods. In the long history of their development of Ifa and of Ifa mysteries, practices, divination and folklore, the Yoruba people gradually evolved a rarified body of lore, knowledge and wisdom known as Odu Ifa (roughly, the body or fullness of Ifa wisdom).
25. In its final form, Odu Ifa became the longest corpus of poetry in Yoruba folklore, a massive and ever-growing cultic body of wisdom encompassing historical and mythological accounts, exalted precepts, snippets of divine wisdom, life-related instructions, and the profoundest in Yoruba philosophy.

26. It developed, most certainly, from very many generations of the loftiest in Yoruba folk wisdom, and it was meant to be, and was, the special preserve of the select elite known as the babalawo (father of the secrets), the priests of Ifa. As the exalted profession of the babalawo developed, the initial “schooling” of a babalawo, consisting of intensive, unbroken, instruction in the practice of divination and in spiritual development, and unfaltering memorization of the entire Odu Ifa, was generally supposed to last for fourteen years, but in reality his education was a lifelong pursuit. The nature of the babalawo’s life and profession demanded that he should be in regular contact, sharing and collaboration with other babalawo. In every settlement and in every elu, an association or guild of babalawo early came into being.
27. Another very important development in Yoruba religion and cosmology was the belief in the afterlife. the Yoruba believed that the dead went on to live in another place of existence (some part of the heavenly realm), from where they could see, interact with, and help humans in this world. For that reason, articles of clothing and of personal adornment, articles of food and of domestic value, were buried with the dead — in order to help them settle in their new other-world homes. The newly dead was believed to be welcomed “home” by family members who had earlier died. The quality of life that one would have in the afterlife was believed to be determined by the good or evil life that one had lived in one’s earthly life — and, for this reason, Yoruba society thought of its aged members as typically honest and trustworthy, in preparation for the afterlife. But there were also ways in which the living could assist their dead into a place of status and honor in the afterlife. One such way was a big, expensive, and prestigious funeral — the objective of which was to put on show (to both the living in this world and the people of the afterlife) the wealth and high status of the deceased, as well as his or her success in having many prosperous children. Another way, especially for the great and influential, was that the deceased’s children would add a second burial ceremony far more expensive and more demonstrative than the first. For this second burial, the children of the deceased would commission a life-size naturalistic sculpture of their dead parent, which they would then dress in gorgeous clothes, put on show for a couple of days, and then bury. This is the second funeral ceremony known as Ako in Owo.11 For the deceased who had been a great hunter in his earthly life, another kind of help was also commonly given. This was made necessary by the belief that the spirits of the animals that the deceased had killed as a hunter could ambush and harass him on his journey to the afterlife and make his journey unpleasant. To prevent such, the hunter’s children would mount a standing, life-size, effigy of their deceased father, dressed in his clothes, on the way to his farm — and the belief was that the animals would fix their attention on the effigy as if it was the hunter himself, while the hunter made an undisturbed journey to the afterlife. This practice was known as epade or ipade.
28. The dead were also believed to reincarnate in their descendants, and to come occasionally to visit their communities. The belief in reincarnation led to the practice of giving personal names that identified some persons in every Yoruba family as reincarnations of departed parents, and the belief in the occasional visits of loved ones from the other world produced the egungun cult. The annual calendar of religious rituals and festivals in every Yoruba community included one or two celebrations when egungun — represented by masked persons believed to be loved ones from the afterlife — walked the streets and visited homes. The egungun came in various types of masks (in combinations of cloth, fronds, varieties of raffia, beautifully carved wooden pieces, decorations with beads, cowry shells, etc.), and for various purposes. Some were very serious, very portentous manifestations specializing in performing rituals beneficial to society. Others went from home to home praying for and blessing people. Yet others entertained people with dancing or with sayings loaded with deep folk wisdom or with tales from Yoruba folklore. Some of the lighter ones just roused their community by fighting mock fights with people in the streets or by bearing whips and playfully chasing young people from compound to compound. In most communities, some prominent lineages came to have unique masks and egungun of their own. The egungun cult in every community had a highly revered priesthood, made up usually of men (since women were not supposed to be exposed to egungun mysteries), but always including one or two highly placed priestesses.
29. From a complex interplay of Yoruba religion and ritual practices and mysteries, of Yoruba knowledge of herbs, the power of herbs and of herbal preparations, of the mysteries of Ifa and divination, and of witchcraft and the occult, there ultimately evolved a more or less distinct profession whose practitioners came to be known as adahunse. The adahunse concerned himself very little (if at all) with herbal medications for health delivery purposes, or with treatment of the sick, or with divination as such. While he would usually know and employ any or all of these skills, his real focus was on the occult employment of herbs and other materials from nature, as well as the use of incantations, curses, charms, and amulets, to enable his clients to accomplish stated social purposes — good purposes such as success and wealth, evil purposes such as hostile occult interference in the lives and affairs of other persons, or power purposes such as protection from certain weapons, or ability to de-materialize, or the ability to engage in out-of-body actions. Usually feared by all the people of his community, the adahunse, in the full maturity of his art, had as his clients mostly rulers (kings, chiefs, warriors), the powerful, the influential and the ambitious, the practitioners of hazardous occupations such as hunting, and other persons seeking success or wealth, or seeking protection from physical or spiritual harm.
30. There were, altogether, many types of associations, guilds and cults in the early Yoruba settlements. But the most visible associations, to which everyone belonged, were the age-grade associations — called egbe, otu or igbamo. Agegrade associations very probably evolved in the earliest days of Yoruba settlements, no doubt in response to the needs of the settlements — to provide an appropriate pool of labor for each of the various functions for which the ruler needed to mobilize people. Depending on age, one team could be called upon to keep the open places in the settlement clean, another to keep paths clear of in-growing bush, another to effect repairs on public houses and shrines, another to give back-up services during large rituals and festivals, etc. Over time, the originally informal teams became formalized and institutionalized into age-grade associations. The youngest association in a settlement was constituted about every third year, and was made up of youths about nine to twelve years of age. The inauguration of the youngest age-grade association became a festival featuring consultations of the Ifa oracle, the ruler’s giving of a name to the new association, and the association’s election of its officers. Persons so elected held the offices for life, and there were two lines of offices — male and female. Over time, age-grade associations developed meetings, rules and regulations, seasonal and annual festivals, etc. Outside one’s own family and lineage, the members of one’s age-grade association came to be one’s closest associates and support in all phases and happenings in one’s life. The public duty of an association depended on its age — from the youngest who kept public places clean, to able-bodied youths whose males could be called to military service, all the way up to the most senior citizens who were revered as the very essential pool of wisdom and guidance for their village.

31. The primary building block of the village was the agbo-ile, the lineage compound.11 Each constituting a home where many families lived together, all of them believing themselves to be one family, the agbo-ile was a wonderfully fertile ground for cultural development, growth and refinement. Almost all the adult male residents lived by farming, supported by their wives and children. A typical day in the agbo-ile, we may imagine, dawned with most residents, in their nuclear families, heading out to the farms, leaving behind the very old, the children, the nursing mothers, and those engaged in home-based occupations (like traders, weavers and dyers and, if there were any, herbalists, babalawo, blacksmiths, etc.). For much of the day, these home-bound folks kept the agbo-ile alive and busy with their various pursuits, while the children played various games in the dust in the open courtyards, under the eyes of the aged and the nursing mothers. The farming folks returned in the late afternoon, bringing head-loads of farm produce and firewood. In the rest of the evening, each family cooked for supper, the main meal of the day. The hours after supper were the great time for socializing in the compound — the men in groups around kegs of palm wine, and the women (still doing all sorts of light domestic chores, like spinning yarn on spindles) gathering the children, if there was no moonlight, to tell stories (usually folktales accompanied with songs and refrains). These night folktale sessions were beautiful experiences in education and artistic expression, and a major contributor to the famed Yoruba wealth in folklore. If the moon was up, the children, joined by those older children who had spent much of the day on the farms, played in the courtyards. Moonlit nights could be very lively, beautiful and noisy in the compound, as the children played running games, engaged in wrestling contests, or put up some drama from their perception of adult life — a wedding, a chieftaincy installation, a festival, a dance, an inter-group disagreement, or a group meeting. In this whole context, Yoruba people invented many types of one-to-one and team games. Lineage meetings were frequent in the compound — some for lineage business, others for the elders to settle quarrels or to try infringements of lineage rules of conduct.
32. Days of celebrations were many in the agbo-ile — village and lineage festivals and rituals, chieftaincy rites, domestic rituals, funerals of departed aged members, weddings. A wedding was a celebration of a new pact and relationship between two (usually unrelated) lineages (the bride’s and the bridegroom’s) and was always accompanied with colorful celebrations in both. In the full development of the Yoruba wedding over the centuries, the processes of the introduction of the contracting lineages to each other, the betrothal ceremony, and the ceremonial journey of the bride to her husband’s lineage compound, all became greatly beautified by Yoruba creativity with dramatized banter, the giving of gifts, and the sharing of feasts. When all these were completed, the two lineages became linked together (ideally in perpetuity) by a bond of love and honor. The birth of a baby was a joyful event in the lineage compound — and for weeks, the oldest women members would serve the baby and its mother as nurses and house-help. Days of mourning were also quite frequent, and every death pulled the whole agbo-ile powerfully together in sorrow. Probably more children died in infancy than survived it. The death of a young adult kept an agbo-ile in mourning for days.
33. The agbo-ile buried its dead in the soil of its own compound and regarded them as continuing to be part of the lineage and as continuing to participate in its affairs. Children — both those who were living and those yet to be born — were regarded as important members of the lineage; in fact, the universal Yoruba belief was that the adults of a lineage held all its things in trust for its living and yet unborn children. In lineage caucuses, respectful references were commonly made to “the ones who went before” and “the ones who will come”; and some of the latter were regarded as direct reincarnations of some of the former — a belief often expressed in the names given to new babies. The agbo-ile took great care to involve its children in its affairs and rituals.
34. Every lineage raised its young in its own image, and equipped them with a strong knowledge of its history — especially its importance in the history of its village. This was the primary root of societal decency, and of the general historical consciousness, of Yoruba people. Children also learned the professions and trades common in their agbo-ile, and this is why trades and professions tended to run in lineages.
35. The professions of the herbalists (onisegun) and the diviners (babalawo) seem to have early developed some built-in dynamic that impelled their practitioners to go further and further afield in order to learn more and more and make wider and wider contacts. It became ultimately a character of the two professions that the onisegun or babalawo who was known to have traveled widely, to have resided in many parts of the country, to have established bonds with many members of his profession in distant places, was regarded as belonging to the peak of his profession. Such persons constituted a specially respected elite that traversed the country regularly and knew it quite well.

36. There was an ancient trade in herbal preparations, mostly a preserve of the herbalists. According to Robin Horton, by the ninth century AD, the Ife zone in central Yorubaland was becoming an area of some importance on the southernmost reaches of the trans-Sahara trade routes from the Mediterranean coast, through the Sahara Desert and the grasslands south of it and across the River Niger. More will be said about this later. Suffice it to say now that this would mean that by the ninth century some goods from the Mediterranean and the Sahara Desert region were entering into the trade of Yorubaland. It would also mean that Yorubaland was by then on the verge of the development of rapidly increasing long-distance trade.
37. Some village markets, as earlier pointed out, became known as the best places to sell or buy particular products, so that people from every village increasingly went there for those products. Over time, it became the way of life in the elu that some village markets were open on certain days and others on other days. In this way, the four-day market cycle peculiar to Yoruba commercial life evolved — each village market being open only every fourth day.
38. The great surprise is that in the face of all these unifying realities, the rulers and people of the villages in the elu setting persisted in regarding each of their villages as separate from its neighbors and as self-contained.
39. The explanation, earlier stated, is that the religious or spiritual guarantees which sustained separateness as the norm were so powerful that no groups internal to an elu could challenge them. That, as far as everybody knew, was the way people lived, and nobody knew any person or group of persons who lived any other way. All of the linkages among the villages in the elu were looked upon, not as negating the separateness of each settlement, but as necessary support for it. The individual settlement was home; beyond that was the outside world. The rules of inheritance and succession fitted perfectly into, and reinforced, such a world view.
40. 3 - Before Oduduwa: Ife in the Ninth to Tenth Century

41. As pointed out in previous chapters, then, we have the suggestion that there were thirteen settlements in the elu in the “Ife bowl” by the ninth or tenth century: Omologun, Parakin, Okeoja, Iloran, Odin, Ideta, Iloromu, Iwinrin, Oke-Awo, Ijugbe, Iraye, Imojubi, and Ido. However, it is important to note that there have also come down to us a few other important names not included in this list of thirteen. These include Ita Yemoo, Ilara, Orun Oba Ado and Idio. Also, some of the bigger settlements among the thirteen had quarters that were quite substantial in their own right, whose names keep showing up as separate settlements — a fact which tends to introduce some confusion into our attempts to ascertain the list of settlements. Finally, once the revolution commenced, the events occasioned by it were violent, tumultuous and long drawn out, and they caused the destruction of many settlements and the temporary emergence of others. The fact that the names of these settlements tossed about in the whirlwind of events also keep occurring in the traditions tends to add much to our difficulties. The consequence of all this is that, in the present state of our knowledge, our list of the tenth century Ife settlements is no more than tentative.
42. According to his findings, Iloromu lay along a stretch of today’s Ife-Ilesa road; Ideta, remembered as the largest of the settlements, lay along today’s road to Mokuro; Odin lay along the modern road to Ifewara; Ijugbe, Okeoja and Iraye were situated a few kilometers west of modern Modakeke, with Iraye being the farthest southwestwards; Ilare and Esije occupied the sites of today’s Sabo and Eleyele, respectively; Iwinrin covered the area of today’s Koiwo and Oronna quarters; Omologun covered part of what is now the campus of Obafemi Awolowo University; Imojubi lay along the modern Ife—Ondo road on the outskirts of today’s city of Ile-Ife. The sites of Ido (which is said to have been a large settlement), Oke-Awo, Iloran and Parakin are difficult to ascertain.
43. If some physical difficulty (like a stream, a piece of marshy ground or a rock) had made it necessary to leave a sizeable gap between quarters, some quarters could look like selfcontained settlements in their own right. Thus, for instance, Ijugbe consisted of four contiguous “villages” — Eranyiba, Ita-Asin, Ipa and Igbogbe; and Ideta consisted of three — Ilale, Ilesun and Ilia. Each agbo-ile was a large sprawling building consisting of a number of courtyards.
44. All relations in this whole system of government of a settlement were deeply rooted in religion — religious and spiritual bonds, proprieties, obligations, rituals. It is very clear in the traditions that a ruler in any of those Ife settlements of the tenth century was, much of the time, more a priest than anything else. The king, or chief, and the shrine belonged together, and the shrine was the heart of the settlement. The power of religion, the reality of supernatural sanctions, upheld and preserved the whole system.
45. Some Ekiti traditions strongly indicate that one Ife marketplace acquired the stature of a central marketplace in the Ife area. According to Olomola (relying on some versions of these Ekiti and Ijesha traditions), such a central marketplace did exist under the name of Oja Igbomoko, and traders came to it from as far away as parts of Ekiti. In early times, the people of the Ife settlements were known collectively as the Igbo — and Igbomoko therefore probably meant “a place for the gathering of the Igbo” (for buying and selling).

46. The settlements in the elu at Ife were therefore very close, not only physically but in many other respects — in their day-to-day pursuits, in their commercial life, in their sharing of special services, etc. The exogamous nature of their marriages interconnected all the settlements in a giant cobweb of human relationships. Consequently, significant events in any settlement (a festival, a wedding or a funeral) drew relatives from all the other settlements. By the tenth century, each settlement had grown so old and so diversified that some marriages could be contracted between persons of the same settlement, but most persons were the offspring of mothers married from other settlements. Some farmlands happened to be more desirable than others — because they were known to receive more rains usually, because they drained better, or because particular crops were known to do especially well on them. Therefore, farms belonging to farmers from different settlements tended to get interlocked in some areas, even though rigid respect for the traditional boundaries remained the norm. Some settlements became known as the leading producers of certain farm products. For instance, Ijugbe became generally recognized as the leader in the production of yams, which means that Ijugbe regularly produced large quantities of yam surpluses for sale. The other settlements generally believed that Ijugbe’s success with yam cultivation was the result of a special favor from its protector god, but the cause, probably, was that Ijugbe’s part of the farmlands was more suitable for certain types of yams. All the settlements also accepted the god of Ijugbe as the special giver of rains, the god to make sacrifices to for better rains for the farms — hence, the saying, “If the rains fail, make sacrifices to the god of Ijugbe.” In consequence, Ijugbe acquired some special prestige among the settlements.
47. In an article first published in the Journal of the Historical Society of Nigeria in 1979,2 Robin Horton looks at the agricultural, commercial, and industrial sectors of the economy of Ife by the ninth century, and concludes that by that date Ife’s economy generally was experiencing great expansion. As indicated in Paul Ozanne’s article earlier referred to, the Ife farmlands were mostly very fertile, received adequate rains in the rainy season, were mostly well drained, and were not prone to catastrophic erosion. These conditions provided the base for successful farming from the earliest history of the Ife settlements. That the settlements took good advantage of them and accorded agriculture the highest priority is shown in their traditions. Thus, we have the traditions relating to Orisateko, who is said to have been the hero (or god) who brought yam from heaven — a tradition which, most probably, suggests that some species of yams were domesticated in the Ife farmlands. Another version of the Orisateko traditions, however, has it that Orisateko was one of the most prominent people in the revolution that occurred in the tenth century, a strong man who resisted Oduduwa very successfully for some time. We can be sure that this means that big farmers were heroes in the settlements, and that farming was a very prestigious occupation there by the ninth century. This would seem to be confirmed by the traditions, earlier referred to, that Ijugbe enjoyed special prestige as a settlement because it produced rich surpluses of yams.
48. Also, the cultivation of the kolanut appears to belong to early times, and this crop seems to have become a very important one in the economy of the Ife area by the ninth century. The same appears to be true of the type of kola known as orogbo (Cola garcinia). By the ninth century, before Oduduwa, Ife was already a major producer of oil-palm products (palm oil, palm-kernel oil, palm wine, etc.) as well as of the raffia palm, Raffia vinifera — mostly palm wine. As will be related later in this chapter, Obatala (Oduduwa’s most important opponent) was much given to these wines.
49. The interaction of production surpluses and trade established the foundations of wealth. Ife thus began the journey into greatness - economic, cultural and political - much earlier than the rest of Yorubaland.
50. Perhaps the earliest export merchandise of Ife to the north was kolanut. The earliest scholars to study early kolanut trade in West Africa came to a conclusion that left out the Yoruba forests as a source of kolanut for the trade with the savannah. They postulated that the principal type of kolanut involved in the trade was the Cola nitida (gooro) which existed in the western parts of the West African forests (modern Ghana, etc.) but not in the Yoruba forests; and that the typical Yoruba type of kolanut - obi abata - was not a significant part of the trade. They also thought that the principal route of the kolanut trade started around Kumasi in modern Ghana and ran through the Niger bend to Hausaland, by-passing Yorubaland. In more recent times, however, these opinions have undergone some serious modifications. Babatunde Agiri has pointed out that Cola acuminata was also almost certainly a very significant item in the trade (as was perhaps also orogbo.4 This would make Ife a major player in the kolanut trade.

51. By the ninth century, then, Ife was a center of considerable agricultural and commercial prosperity. But Ife was also prospering as a center of industrial production and already experiencing increasing manufactures of iron, beads and various other products that were to make it by the twelfth century the greatest manufacturing and artistic center in the West African forests.
For the existence of a very strong iron industry in Ife by the ninth century, before Oduduwa, the evidence is unambiguous. Ife appears, indeed, to have already become the major center of iron production in much of West Africa by that date, as well as a supplier of raw iron and iron manufactures (tools, implements, artifacts) to much of Yorubaland. The shrine of Ogunladin (deified blacksmith of Oduduwa), in front of the Ooni’s palace, has a pear-shaped hundredweight of wrought iron which was made in Oduduwa’s time. This, clearly, is a work of very skilled blacksmiths - a level of skill which already existed before Oduduwa. Abundant evidence of a vibrant early iron industry has been found in other parts of Ife. For instance, excavations by P. Garlake at Obalara’s land and at Woye Asiri have revealed, among other things, large quantities of iron nails, some of which seem to have been used in some large wooden construction.
52. 4 - The Revolution in Ife: Tenth to Eleventh Century
53. That direction was initiated by the Reverend Samuel Johnson in his famous The History of the Yorubas which was written in the final years of the nineteenth century and first published in 1921. According to Samuel Johnson, Oduduwa was leader of a group which left Arabia in the Middle East as a result of clashes between Islam and the traditional polytheistic religion of the place, and which finally found its way to Yorubaland and established itself over Ife. Until deep into the twentieth century, some of the best minds available to us in historical scholarship took up Johnson’s lead and followed it, and therefore it is important that we briefly examine the roots of Johnson’s ideas concerning early Yoruba history.
54. A son of Yoruba emigrants (liberated slaves returning home) from Sierra Leone in the nineteenth century, Samuel Johnson was educated for the service of the church. After elementary education in the Church Missionary Society (CMS) mission school in Ibadan, he was sent, for secondary education, to the CMS Training Institution in Abeokuta, where he studied from the age of 16 until he graduated at 20 (in 1866). He then returned to teach in Ibadan until 1882, after which he repeatedly featured in the peace-making missions seeking to end the wars among various Yoruba states in the last two decades of the nineteenth century. The book The History of the Yorubas, which he started to write in these years, was completed in 1897. At the Training Institution in Abeokuta, he had schooled under a German teacher named G.F. Buhler who, while training his students as church workers, gave them a very solid grounding in ancient history - the history of Egypt, Babylon, Greece and Rome. From such beginnings, Johnson developed a strong interest in the history and mythology of the Middle East. Moreover, Johnson’s Yorubaland of the late nineteenth century was increasingly affected by the growth of Islam and Christianity, two world-shaping products of the Middle East.
55. Ultimately, a different direction in the study of Yoruba history developed (as part of a more scientific study of African history in general) which focused on the indigenous evidence, as well as other source material, for the reconstruction of early Yoruba history. Consequent upon these efforts, we now stand able to lay aside, with respect, the Johnsonian hypothesis about the origins of Oduduwa and of the Yoruba. All who study the history of Ife and of the Yoruba people are now generally agreed that the great political changes which began in Ife in about the tenth century were indigenous in their origin, in their unfolding and in their dramatis personae. It is on the soil of Yorubaland that Oduduwa was born and raised; it is only in that soil that his roots can be found.

56. Nevertheless, by carefully sifting through the infinite variety of traditions and versions, we can put together the basic traditional narrative that follows.2 Some small settlements had, for a long time, existed on hills beyond the immediate environs of the settlements in the Ife bowl. At some point in time, one of them moved down, staked claims to some land within the area and started to build a new settlement. Its leader was a man named Oduduwa. Before this group came, there was already an area that the old settlements generally regarded as land for strangers. It was into this area that the group now commonly represented in the traditions as the Oduduwa group moved. From the moment that this group arrived, it was unprepared to accept the claims of precedence by the older settlements; it was also not willing to have any dealings with the existing alliance of kings. All this led to the beginning of conflicts between the Oduduwa group and some of the older settlements, and these conflicts got worse over a long time.
57. Explains that Oduduwa was responsible for the expansion and economic development of the Yorubas.
58. 5 - The Primacy of Ife: Eleventh to Fifteenth Century
59. The period from Oduduwa to the fifteenth century was a period of growing economic and political prosperity and power in the history of Ife.
60. After Oduduwa’s departure from the scene, his aura continued to glow over everything and everybody. His subjects had, of course, seen kings before — indeed some of them had been kings themselves, many were descendants of kings, and most adults had lived in the small pre-Oduduwa kingdoms. But nobody had ever seen a king with the sort of stature and glory that Oduduwa had had as king of Ile-Ife. Not only did the chiefs and priests take steps to deify him, the collective imagination of the masses began to represent him as larger than life.

61. The ancient god of divination, Ifa, also came to bear the name Orunmila, the name of perhaps the greatest Ifa priest in about the time of Oduduwa. Of the other Yoruba kingdoms, only the kingdom of Oyo-Ile shared a little of such religious honor: the ancient god of lightning and thunder (very probably originally known as Jakuta) had his name changed to Sango, the name of an Oyo-Ile king. But even Sango was usually thought of as originating ultimately from Ife.
62. The emergence of other centers of urban population in other parts of Yorubaland (of which an account will be given later) most definitely improved the channels of trade. This meant that more and more trade flowed into and out of Ile-Ife. After some time, some of the newly arisen kingdoms became important secondary centers of trade. Of these, perhaps the earliest were Oyo-Ile in the north, Ijebu-Ode in the southwest, Ilesa in the east, Owo in the southeast and some of the Ekiti kingdoms. Meanwhile, the coastal east-west lagoon trade was producing a significant center of trade in the far southeast, namely Benin.
63. Continuing a trend initiated in Oduduwa’s time, certain aspects of Ife’s industrial production became special buttresses of the political system and, therefore, matters for close royal regulation. The most important of these was the bead industry. In the first place, increasingly from Oduduwa’s time, beads became the distinctive material component of royal grandeur - beads in the making of crowns, insignia, scepters, ceremonial royal fans and horse-tail fly-whisks, beads on the royal person as necklaces, bracelets and anklets, beads woven into the royal regalia and into the braided hair of royal females.
64. In The History of the Yorubas, by Samuel Johnson, Johnson indicates that early on, many of the Yorubas do not see the necessity in writing.
65. To be continued.




Various Notes,
1. After running since September 2021, I have achieved a comfortable and stable level of breathing/respiratory health. I also believe that additional quick gains are unlikely, and I think that it is wise to run just once a week or so to retain all previous gains.
2. Updated: Running Log.




Monday, December 18, 2023


The History of the Yorubas, by Samuel Johnson
1. Indicates that the speech of the “Yoruba belongs to the agglutinated order of speech, not the inflectional.” Perhaps one thing that this means is that Yoruba speech starts from a different place than English.
2. The Yoruba language has no article.
3. In the Yoruba language, the word Baba means father.
4. "The Yoruba language is very defective in distinctive terms…One word must do service for different terms in which there is a shade of difference of meaning."
5. The Yoruba have their own system of counting.
"In numbers that go by tens, five is the intermediate figure, five less than the next higher stage. In those by 20 , ten is used as the intermediate. In those by 209, 100 is used, and in those if 2,000 1,000 is used."

6. “The Yorubas are certainly not of the Arabian family, and could not have come from Mecca — that is to say, the Mecca universally known in history…”
7. Oduduwa, the God of the Yorubas, was a great warrior, whose legendary story represents early Yoruba history.
8. “The king of Benin inherited his money (which consisted of cowry shells), the Orangun of Ila his wives…the Olupopo the beads of the Oluwo, and the Alaketu the crowns, and nothing was left for Oranyan but the land.”
The above is an exerpt from Johnson's story about the early history of the Yorubas.
9. There are seven principal Yoruba tribes which sprang from the seven grandchildren of Oduduwa. Many travelled and became spread out over the land.
10. Several Yoruba tribes are known for taking human sacrifices.
11. Here, the book indicates that the Yorubas admit the existence of many Gods. Johnson writes that the Yorubas believe in the existence of one Almighty God, whom they term Olurun, i.e. Lord of Heaven.
12. According to Johnson, the British outlawed the Yoruba practice of human sacrifice, in the late 1800s.
13. A Yoruba proverb says that God created all men, black, white, and yellow, in one place, and they spread out over time across the globe.

A History of the Yoruba People, by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye
1. Akintoye indicates that some Yoruba were farmers, others hunters. Women who were skilled at hair braiding became hair braiders. He indicates that some men held positions in Yoruba government, and implies that others were teacher-scholars.
2. With a population variously estimated at between thirty and forty million, the Yoruba are perhaps the largest single ethnic group, or nationality, in Black Africa. Moreover, their history is one of the most researched and analyzed of any people in Africa. For this latter fact there are various reasons, of which one is the traditional structure (and the consequent historical consciousness) of Yoruba society, another is the high level of literacy among the Yoruba people today, and yet another is the growing importance of Yoruba Studies in the overall spectrum of African and Black Studies.
3. The Yoruba were the most urbanized people in the history of the tropical African forestlands, having largely lived in walled cities and towns since as early as the eleventh or twelfth century. In those towns and cities they evolved a sophisticated monarchical system of government, whose governing elites established detailed institutions and processes for preserving society’s history and passing it on — a circumstance that has both encouraged and facilitated the study of Yoruba history in our times.
4. Then, since the beginning of the twentieth century, the Yoruba have invested more in education than any other African people and, by the end of the twentieth century, were widely regarded as the most literate people in Africa. A significant consequence of this growing literacy has been that much indigenous effort has gone into the writing of Yoruba history. Venturing into written reconstruction of the past began as soon as there were some literate Yoruba in the nineteenth century; then it flowered vigorously in the course of the twentieth century; and it has been augmented by contributions from many professional historians, indigenous and foreign. Finally, to black people in general, and especially to the people of the Black African Diaspora in the Americas (in the United States, Brazil, Central America, Cuba, Haiti, Trinidad, and other parts of the West Indies), a knowledge of Yoruba history has been growing in importance. This is not merely because of the size of the Yoruba population, but also because of the high level of civilization attained by the Yoruba people in the past, the growing knowledge of Yoruba contributions to Black cultures in the New World, and the continued dynamism of Yoruba civilization in modern times — all of which have attracted increasing interest into Yoruba research.
5. The present book is an attempt by a student and teacher of Yoruba and African history to synthesize for popular education the data that has become available to us on Yoruba history at the beginning of the twenty-first century. It is a product of my life-long participation in the development of Yoruba and African History Studies — in universities in Africa and the United States. I offer it in the humble hope that it will contribute something to the growing knowledge of Yoruba history in particular and the history of Africa and black people in general, that it will provoke further interest in Yoruba and African history, and, above all, that it will increase the Yoruba people’s love of, and romance with, their impressive and fascinating heritage.

6. Because most of the Yoruba people have lived in the modern country of Nigeria since the beginning of European imperialist rule over Africa in the early twentieth century, there now exists a tendency to write of the Yoruba as if they are entirely a Nigerian people — to the dismay of those who are now citizens of the Republics of Benin and Togo. The Yoruba people and country are split by two international boundaries, and while the largest portion is to be found in Nigeria, some substantial parts are to be found in Benin and Togo. This book presents a history of all Yoruba people.
7. All these stemmed from my belief that a study of the experience of Africans transplanted to the Americas in the era of the Atlantic slave trade needs to be seen by scholars and peoples of Africa as a part of the African experience in general. In recent years, happily, considerable advances have been made worldwide in the study of the African Diaspora in the Americas. Since the 1990s, that study has moved beyond the computing of the numbers of Africans transported to the Americas, and beyond the impact of American slavery on enslaved Africans; it has deepened to include studies of the contributions of transplanted African heritages to the evolution of African-American and American cultures. In the context of this deeper approach, much light has been thrown on the contribution of the Yoruba heritage in particular to the development of the cultures of the African Diaspora in the Americas. People of Yoruba descent, and the heritage of Yoruba civilization, constitute a very significant component of African-American cultures in most parts of the Americas.
8. Therefore, I have ventured to include a short chapter on the history of the Yoruba Diaspora in the Americas in this book to highlight the unavoidable continuity between the history of Africa and the history of the African Diaspora, in the hope that the Yoruba people in the West African homeland will become more actively interested in the history of their people across the Atlantic, and in the hope that black people in the Americas will become more proactive in searching and proudly interacting with their African roots and heritage.
9. The Yoruba had gradually evolved as a group of many small fragments; each of the fragments spoke some dialect of the evolving common Yoruba language. Thousands of years followed the initial emergence of the Yoruba as a group, and their many mutually intelligible dialects remained more or less clearly distinct, and ultimately came to define the internal differentiations that constituted the Yoruba subgroups that we have today — the Oyo, Ijebu, Ekiti, Ijesa, Ife, Ondo, Egba, Ibarapa, Egbado, Akoko, Owo, Ikale, Ilaje, Itsekiri, Awori, Ketu, Sabe, Ifonyin, Idasa, Popo, Ife (also known as the Ana, and found today in Togo Republic), Ahori, Itsha, Mahi, Igbomina, Ibolo, Owe, Oworo, Jumu, Bunu,Yagba, Gbede, Ikiri — some large and some small.
10. A small subgroup — the Ibolo — lived to the southwest of the Igbomina, sandwiched between the Igbomina and the Oyo. All the territory of these northern Yoruba subgroups was grassland.

11. The Yoruba spread out and occupied much of Nigeria, including: the south, the forest belt, the grasslands of the north, near the coast.
12. There was considerable closeness between the Yoruba and the Aja. Like the Yoruba language, Aja belonged to the Kwa subfamily within the larger Niger-Congo family of languages. It seems obvious that when the Yoruba stream encountered the Aja people in this area, it continued and flowed past them westwards, so that over time Yoruba subgroups existed to the east, west and north of the Aja. With the Aja thus almost enveloped by the Yoruba, profound cultural affinities further developed between the two, with the smaller (the Aja) greatly influenced by the larger (the Yoruba) — in language, religion, and social and political institutions. Ultimately, the Yoruba and Aja became more or less one cultural area, and the Yoruba language became a sort of lingua franca for the two peoples, which means that while the Aja spoke their own language (which was strongly influenced by the Yoruba language) most of the Aja also spoke Yoruba.
13. Being considerably isolated from other Yoruba subgroups, the Popo subgroup (and the kingdom which was founded among them at a later time) probably became absorbed over time into the cultures of non-Yoruba neighbors...
14. In general, the subgroups differed from one another in dialect. But this must not be understood as meaning that each subgroup was completely homogenous in dialect. There were shades of local differentiations within the dialect of every subgroup. The most profound of such local differentiation existed in the Akoko subgroup, among whom dialect varied from village to village.
15. About the earliest settlements of Yoruba farming people in the forests, there are bodies of traditions in most parts of Yorubaland. Such traditions are found in nearly every town with a long history of existence in its present location. According to these traditions, some settlers inhabited, in great antiquity, the location where each of these towns now stands.

16. In an article entitled “Before Oduduwa,” published in the 1950s, Beier identified many of these early settlements and the towns into which they later became absorbed.9 Since then, interest in these early settlements of the Yoruba forests has grown, with the result that what we now know about the subject is quite considerable.
17. The traditions concerning these early settlements are integral to the traditions of the founding of the Yoruba kingdoms. When, in a period from about the tenth or eleventh century AD (the period usually regarded as the Oduduwa period of Yoruba history), various groups went out (mostly from Ife) to establish kingdoms in the Yoruba forests, they came upon some pre-existing settlements everywhere, and it was among these settlers that they established kingdoms.
18. In most parts of ancient Yorubaland, especially in central and eastern Yorubaland, it would seem that each such group was known as an elu, and therefore, for simplicity, the name elu will be adopted in this book, and each settlement in the elu will be called simply a settlement or village.
Each elu evolved slowly over a very long time. First, one small settlement lived in an area; then, over a long time, other small settlements came one by one to take locations in the same area. Each settlement had evolved, according to the traditions, in the nearby forests and, under pressure of some difficulties there, had moved and relocated to what it saw as a better place. In this way, the elu came into being, surrounded by virtually unoccupied virgin forests on all sides.
19. However, it would seem that the people of the time gave purely supernatural explanations to their troubles. Thus, to appease the wild beasts, people began to worship the spirits that were believed to materialize through some of them, especially such large carnivores as the hyena and the leopard, and large reptiles like the crocodile and the boa constrictor, and set up shrines and rituals for the purpose. The mysterious sicknesses and deaths were attributed to the anger and malevolence of the spirits inhabiting the land over which people had come to establish their dwellings. The worship of primordial spirits of the earth (called ore or ere or erele) became the major cornerstone of their religious life. In time, each settlement that managed to survive “discovered” a protector spirit in a local physical entity like a body of water (a river, stream, lake or spring), a rock, a hill or a tree that was believed to have magical powers.
20. Settlements also tended to relocate, repeatedly in many cases, in order to flee their terrifying experiences. To this, the end result was that settlements tended to relocate close together in places which came to be regarded as suitable (having reliable water supply, good for the crops, etc.) and, above all, safe. The process seems to be that when a settlement survived for long in a place and seemed to prosper there, other settler groups, seeking to share in the advantages of the place, would come and establish their own settlement nearby — and a group of small settlements (or an elu) would gradually emerge.

21. In many communities in Yorubaland, it is still quite easy to identify the descendants of the earliest settlement in a place, because the rulers of earliest settlements usually held (and their descendants still hold) the priesthood of the local protector god or spirit. For instance, in the Ado kingdom in Ekiti, the Elesun, ruler of Ilesun (the oldest settlement in the place) is still much revered, even though the last holder of that title was defeated in battle and executed as far back as about the fourteenth century AD by the immigrant founders of the Ado kingdom.
22. 2 - The Development of Early Yoruba Society
23. The history of the beginning of the Iron Age in Africa south of the Sahara is, in general, markedly different from its history north of the Sahara, in the Middle East and in the Mediterranean world.
24. The coming of iron, and consequently the general improvement in tools and skills and in people’s management of their natural environment, also resulted over time in improvements in the dwellings in which they lived.
25. Architectural and aesthetic improvements to the agbo-ile made it gradually stronger, safer, more comfortable, and more beautiful. The preparation of the earthen plaster for walls, and the setting up of walls, became more skillful, thus increasing the intricacy, safety and durability of wall structures. The weaving of the roof thatch became an art in itself, making it possible for roofs to last many generations with only minor repairs every few years. Minor roof repairs were done often, but roof replacements were done at intervals of generations, and each such replacement job was usually taken as an opportunity to improve, and restructure if necessary, the whole agbo-ile. Decorations became a standard part of the construction of an agbo-ile, and grew more and more detailed. It became standard practice to carve (using iron tools) and paint (or stain) the wooden pillars that supported eaves, typically in stylized anthropomorphic or animal idioms, and to carve wooden doors in bas-relief, especially the large main door to the agbo-ile. Decorations also came to include murals (called iwope) on wall surfaces — some of them frescoed or engraved. All these features improved gradually in quality and beauty from generation to generation. Ultimately, with the broad and sweeping verandahs, carved and painted posts holding up the eaves, and the murals on the walls (many in elaborate geometric compositions), the courtyards of some agbo-ile could look quite imposing. And

26. Rivalries and competition between settlements and between compounds in settlements resulted in other forms of artistic expression also. One such was the oriki, a form of poetry in which each group glorified itself and preserved in cryptic language the high points of its history. Over time, as the oriki tradition grew, every unit of society (the settlement, the lineage, the leadership titles, and even the individual) came to have oriki, and every oriki tended to be amplified and grow richer in the course of history. Group pride also produced facial markings given to children at birth, to proclaim their ancestry; as well as exclusive group festivals, seasonal and annual, filled with special group songs and exhibitions of masks; and loud, elaborate, funerals for departed parents.
27. The Yoruba responded to this by evolving a rigidly patrilineal kinship system. By this system, every child belonged only to its father’s lineage, had to be raised in its lineage compound, and could only inherit title from it. As a corollary to this, when a woman married into another lineage, she became a member of her husband’s group; she could never revert to membership of her father’s group, and if she died her body had to be buried in the land of her husband’s group. Hence, the Yoruba saying that after parents give their daughter in marriage, the appropriate thing to do is to remove her favorite childhood seat from their home and burn it (B’ a ba m’omo f’oko, a njo oota re ni). This was most probably the root of the norm whereby Yoruba girls were given in marriage only when they were adjudged to be mature (usually about twenty years or older) and capable of being independent of their parents as well as of being able to fit quickly and maturely into their roles in their new homes. Yoruba folklore has many tales of very serious penalties for mothers who dared to cling to their newly married daughters.
28. The general improvement in tools and skills also accelerated the growth of division of labor, and the rise of distinct professions.4 We do not know whether the making of stone tools ever developed into a special profession; but in any case, the making of stone tools ultimately ceased as a result of the coming of iron. Pottery remained the oldest craft profession. For many centuries before the knowledge of iron, women potters had made pots at locations where suitable clay deposits could be found in the forests near their homes. Almost certainly, the potter’s possession of iron tools for her work (for instance for cutting the covering vegetation and digging up the clay) increased her production capacity, and may also have improved the quality of her pots. The association or guild of potters was probably the oldest professional guild or association in Yoruba history.
29. Hunting, too, developed into a distinct profession. Although all men continued to be involved in farming the land and doing some hunting, using the greatly improved tools (iron-bladed machetes, knives, arrows, spears, traps), over time some men came to be more employed in hunting than farming, and the group of professional hunters ultimately came into existence. From the folklore and rituals surrounding the profession of hunting, it would seem that hunters were highly regarded from the beginning. Not only did they contribute to the meat supply, they also served society in some other ways. People depended on them to help find in the forests good clay deposits for the potter and the iron smelter, as well as springs and brooks — sources of good water supply. But most importantly, according to the traditions, hunters provided security for their settlements. Closely allied to this, if a group or settlement needed to move and relocate, it usually depended on its hunters to find a good relocation site and the easiest path to it. The group of hunters in every settlement early became a highly regarded professional association or guild which developed its own unique folklore, its own chants, music and dance, and acquired a near-sacred public image — almost akin to that of the iron smelters or that of the blacksmiths.
30. What was true of hunting as a profession came also to be true of many other pursuits. Most women could plait women’s hair, but some became professional hair plaiters in their community. Most farmers could climb palm trees and harvest palm wine, but it became a profession for some.

31. To be continued.



The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper,
1. The dogs knew their master’s voice, and after swimming in a circle, as if reluctant to give over the chase, and yet afraid to persevere, they finally obeyed, and returned to the land, where they filled the air with their howlings and cries.
In the mean time the deer, urged by his fears, had swam over half the distance between the shore and the boats, before his terror permitted him to see the new danger.
2. As the buck swam by the fishermen, raising his nose high into the air, curling the water before his slim neck like the beak of a galley, throwing his legs forward, and gliding along with incredible velocity, the Leather-stocking began to sit very uneasy in his canoe.
3. "Hold!” exclaimed Edwards. “Remember the law, my old friends. You are in plain sight of the village, and I know that Judge Temple is determined to prosecute all, indiscriminately, who kill the deer out of season.”
4. The buck was now within fifty yards of his pursuers, cutting the water most gallantly, and snorting at each breath with his terror and his exertions, while the canoe seemed to dance over the waves, as it rose and fell with the undulations made by its own motion. Leather-stocking raised his rifle and freshened the priming, but stood in suspense whether to slay his victim or not.
5. "Shall I, John, or no?” he said. “It seems but a poor advantage to take of the dumb thing too. I won’t; it has taken to the water on its own nater, which is the reason that God has given to a deer, and I’ll give it the lake play; so, John, lay out your arm, and mind the turn of the buck; its easy to catch them, but they’ll turn like a snake.”
The Indian laughed at the conceit of his friend, but continued to send the canoe forward with a velocity that proceeded much more from his skill than his strength. Both of the old men now used the language of the Delawares when they spoke.
"Hooh!” exclaimed Mohegan; “the deer turns his head. Hawkeye, lift your spear.”

6. Natty never moved abroad without taking with him every implement that might, by possibility, be of service in his pursuits. From his rifle he never parted; and although intending to fish with the line, the canoe was invariably furnished with all of its utensils, even to its grate. This precaution grew out of the habits of the hunter, who was often led, by his necessities or his sports, far beyond the limits of his original destination. A few years earlier than the date of our tale, the Leather-stocking had left his hut on the shores of the Otsego, with his rifle and his hounds, for a few days’ hunting in the hills; but before he returned he had seen the waters of the Ontario. One, two, or even three hundred miles had once been nothing to his sinews, which were now a little stiffened by age. The hunter did as Mohegan advised, and prepared to strike a blow with the barbed weapon into the neck of the buck.
7. "Lay her more to the left, John,” he cried, “lay her more to the left; another stroke of the paddle, and I have him.”
8. While speaking, he raised the spear, and darted it from him like an arrow. At that instant the buck turned, the long pole glanced by him, the iron striking against his horn, and buried itself, harmlessly, in the lake.
9. "Back water,” cried Natty, as the canoe glided over the place where the spear had fallen, “hold water, John.”
The pole soon reappeared, shooting upward from the lake, and as the hunter seized it in his hand, the Indian whirled the light canoe round, where it lay, and renewed the chase. But this evolution gave the buck a great advantage; and it also allowed time for Edwards to approach the scene of action.

10. "Hold your hand, Natty,” cried the youth, “hold your hand; remember it is out of season.”
11. This remonstrance was made as the batteau arrived close to where the deer was struggling with the water, his back now rising to the surface, now sinking beneath it, as the waves curled from his neck, the animal sustaining itself nobly against the odds.
12. "Hurrah!” shouted Edwards, inflamed beyond prudence at the sight; “mind him as he doubles — mind him as he doubles; sheer more to the right, Mohegan, more to the right, and I’ll have him by the horns; I’ll throw the rope over his antlers.”
13. The dark eye of the old warrior was dancing in his head, with a wild animation, as bright and natural as the rays that shot from the glancing eyes of the terrified deer himself, and the sluggish repose in which his aged frame had been resting in the canoe, was now changed to all the rapid inflections of practised agility.
14. The canoe whirled with each cunning evolution of the chase, like a bubble floating in a whirlpool; and when the direction of the pursuit admitted, for a short distance, of a straight course, the little bark skimmed the lake with a velocity that urged the deer to seek its safety in some new and unexpected turn. It was the frequency of these circuitous movements, that, by confining the action to so small a compass, enabled the youth to keep near his companions. More than twenty times both the pursued and the pursuers glided by him, just without the reach of his oars, until he thought the best way to view the sport was to remain stationary, and, by watching a favourable opportunity, assist as much as he could in taking their intended victim.

15. He was not required to wait long, for no sooner had he adopted this resolution, and risen in the boat, than he saw the deer coming bravely towards him, with an apparent intention of pushing for a point of land at some distance from the hounds, who were still barking and howling on the shore.
16. Edwards caught the painter of his skiff, and, making a noose, cast it from him with all his force, and luckily succeeded in drawing its knot close around one of the antlers of the buck.
17. Natty kills the deer with his knife.
18. The Indian had long been drooping with his years, and perhaps under the calamities of his race, but this invigorating and exciting sport had caused a gleam of sunshine to cross his swarthy face that had long been absent from his features. It was evident that the old man enjoyed the chase more as a memorial of his youthful sports and deeds, than with any expectation of profiting by the success.
19. "I am afraid, Natty,” said Edwards, when the heat of the moment had passed, and his blood began to cool, “that we have all been equally transgressors of the law. But keep your own counsel, and there are none here to betray us. Yet, how came those dogs at large? I left them securely fastened, I know, for I felt the thongs, and examined the knots, when I was at the hut.”

20. "No, no — I didn’t say it had been cut, lad; but this is a mark that was never made by a jump or a bite.”
21. In the mean time, Mohegan had been examining, with an Indian’s sagacity, the place where the leather thong had been separated. After scrutinising it closely, he said, in Delaware —
22. "Your suspicions are just,” cried the youth, “Give me the canoe: I am young and strong, and will get down there yet, perhaps, in time to interrupt his plans. Heaven forbid, that we should be at the mercy of such a man!”
23. WHILE THE CHASE WAS OCCURRING ON THE LAKE, MISS TEMPLE AND her companion pursued their walk with the activity of youth.
24. "Say!” echoed Louisa, with a look of surprise; “why every thing that seemed to me to be satisfactory; and I have believed it to be true. He said that Natty Bumppo had lived most of his life in the woods, and among the Indians, by which means he had formed an acquaintance with old John, the Delaware chief.”

25. He then added, that the kings of England used to keep gentlemen as agents among the different tribes of Indians, and sometimes officers in the army, who frequently passed half their lives on the edge of the wilderness.”
"Told with a wonderful historical accuracy! And did he end there?”
26. “Often; but not on this subject. Mr. Richard Jones, you know, dear, has a theory for every thing; but has he one which will explain the reason why that hut is the only habitation within fifty miles of us, whose door is not open to every person that may choose to lift its latch?”
27. "It is sometimes dangerous to be rich, Miss Temple; but you cannot know how hard it is to be very, very poor.”
28. "There cannot be actual misery,” returned the other, in a low and humble tone, “where there is a dependence on our Maker; but there may be such suffering as will cause the heart to ache.” “But not you — not you,” said the impetuous Elizabeth — “not you, dear girl; you have never known the misery that is connected with poverty.” “Ah! Miss Temple, you little understand the troubles of this life, I believe. My father has spent many years as a missionary, in the new countries, where his people were poor, and frequently we have been without bread; unable to buy, and ashamed to beg, because we would not disgrace his sacred calling.
29. The day was becoming warm, and the girls plunged more deeply into the forest, as they found its invigorating coolness agreeably contrasted to the excessive heat they had experienced in their ascent. The conversation, as if by mutual consent, was entirely changed to the little incidents and scenes of their walk, and every tall pine, and every shrub or flower, called forth some simple expression of admiration.

30. Cooper suggests that the deer mentioned previously could have been someone's pet.
31. The reader need not be told the nature of the emotions which two youthful, ingenuous, and well-educated girls would experience at their escape from a death so horrid as the one which had impended over them, while they pursued their way in silence along the track on the side of the mountain; nor how deep were their mental thanks to that power which had given them their existence, and which had not deserted them in their extremity; neither how often they pressed each other’s arms, as the assurance of their present safety came, like a healing balm, athwart their troubled spirits, when their thoughts were recurring to the recent moments of horror.
32. "The law, Squire! I have shook hands with the law these forty year,” returned Natty; “for what has a man who lives in the wilderness to do with the ways of the law?”
33. "Well, let us go down to your hut, where you can take the oath, and I will write out the order. I s’pose you have a bible? all the law wants is the four Evangelists and the Lord’s prayer.”
34. "Look you here, Mr. Doolittle,” he said, striking the breech of his rifle violently on the ground; “what there is in the wigwam of a poor man like me, that one like you can crave, I don’t know; but this I tell you to your face, that you never shall put a foot under the roof of my cabin with my consent, and that if you harbour round the spot as you have done lately, you may meet with treatment that you won’t over and above relish.”

35. When the intruder was out of sight, Natty proceeded to the hut, where he found all quiet as the grave. He fastened his dogs, and tapping at the door, which was opened by Edwards, asked —
36. What more was uttered by the Leather-stocking, in his vexation, was rendered inaudible by the closing of the door of the cabin.
37. “There has always been one point of difference between us, Judge Temple, I may say, since our nativity; not that I would insinuate that you are at all answerable for the acts of nature; for a man is no more to be condemned for the misfortunes of his birth, than he is to be commended for the natural advantages he may possess; but on one point we may be said to have differed from our births, and they, you know, occurred within two days of each other.
38. “To do justice to any subject, sir, the narrator must be suffered to proceed in his own way,” continued the Sheriff. “You are of opinion, Judge Temple, that a man is to be qualified by nature and education to do only one thing well, whereas I know that genius will supply the place of learning, and that a certain sort of man can do any thing and every thing.”
39. "What, that dissatisfied, shiftless, lazy, speculating fellow! he who changes his county every three years, his farm every six months, and his occupation every season! an agriculturist yesterday, a shoemaker to-day, and a schoolmaster to-morrow! that epitome of all the unsteady and profitless propensities of the settlers without one of their good qualities to counterbalance the evil! Nay, Richard, this is too bad for even — but who is the third?”

40. But Marmaduke was too much in the habit of examining both sides of a subject, not to perceive the objections, and reasoned with himself aloud: —
41. "Well, well, thou art safe, and we will converse no more on the unpleasant subject. I did not think such an animal yet remained in our forests; but they will stray far from their haunts when pressed by hunger, and” —
42. I s’pose the law gives a bounty on the scalps,” continued Hiram, “in which case the Leather-stocking will make a good job on’t.”
"It shall be my care, sir, to see that he is rewarded,” returned the Judge.
43. To be continued.




Sunday, December 17, 2023


Various Notes,
1. In one Alexander Pushkin poem, the hero tugs his beard, and in one Alexander Dumas novel, one of the heroes strokes his beard.
Added to Item VI. 10., Favorite Notes 2.
2. Edited: Item V. 13., on Favorite Notes 2.
3. In one Charles Dickens novel, Dickens describes a mutual hatred that existed between two men.
4. In one book I’ve read, in the women’s literature genre, the author describes a child who was brought up so as to never harm anything, never do any wrong, and always behave well.
5. Voltaire also suggests that it can be rewarding to acquire an understanding of the different religions of the world.
Added to Item III. 5., on Favorite Notes.




Saturday, December 16, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. But the youth explained to her the buoyant properties of the boat, and its perfect safety, when under proper management, adding, in such glowing terms, a description of the manner in which the fish were struck with the spear, that she changed suddenly, from an apprehension of the danger of the excursion, to a desire to participate in its pleasures.
2. But the motion of the canoe gave rise to new ideas, and fortunately afforded a good excuse to the young man to change the discourse.
3. It appeared to Elizabeth that they glided over the water by magic, so easy and graceful was the manner in which Mohegan guided his little bark.
4. It was at the shallow points, only, that the bass could be found, or the net cast with success. Elizabeth saw thousands of these fish swimming in shoals along the shallow and warm waters of the shore; for the flaring light of their torch exposed all the mysteries of the lake, laying them open to the eye, with a slight variation in colour, as plainly as if the limpid sheet of the Otsego was but another atmosphere.
5. Elizabeth then saw a fish of unusual size, floating above the small pieces of logs and sticks that were lying on the bottom. The animal was only distinguishable, at that distance, by a slight, but almost imperceptible motion of its fins and tail. The curiosity excited by this unusual exposure of the secrets of the lake seemed to be mutual between the heiress of the land and the lord of these waters, for the “salmon-trout” soon announced his interest by raising his head and body, for a few degrees above a horizontal line, and then dropping them again into the position of nature.

6. While they are in the canoe, Natty catches the big fish with his spear.
7. "Haul off, haul off, Master Bumppo,” cried Benjamin; “your top-light frightens the fish, who see the net and sheer off soundings. A fish knows as much as a horse, or, for that matter, more, seeing that it’s brought up on the water. Haul off, Master Bumppo, haul off, I say, and give a wide birth to the seine.”
8. A loud burst of merriment, to which the lungs of Kirby contributed no small part, broke out like a chorus of laughter, and rung along the eastern mountain, in echoes, until it died away in distant, mocking mirth, among the rocks and woods.
9. The arrival of the nostrils of Benjamin into their own atmosphere, was announced by a breathing that would have done credit to a full grown porpoise.

10. Mohegan saves Benjamin, the drowning man.
11. All this time Benjamin sat, with his muscles fixed, his mouth shut, and his hands clenching the rushes, which he had seized in the confusion of the moment, and which, as he held fast, like a true seaman, had been the means of preventing his body from rising again to the surface. His eyes, however, were open, and stared wildly on the group about the fire, while his lungs were playing like a blacksmith’s bellows, as if to compensate themselves for the minute of inaction to which they had been subjected. As he kept his lips compressed, with a most inveterate determination, the air was compelled to pass through his nostrils, and he rather snorted than breathed, and in such a manner, that nothing but the excessive agitation of the Sheriff could at all justify his precipitous orders.
12. The bottle [of rum], applied to the steward’s lips by Marmaduke, acted like a charm. His mouth opened instinctively; his hands dropped the rushes, and seized the black glass; his eyes raised from their horizontal stare, to the heavens; and the whole man was lost, for a moment, in a new sensation. Unhappily for the propensity of the steward, breath was as necessary after one of these draughts, as after his submersion, and the time at length arrived when he was compelled to let go of the bottle.
13. The wood-chopper was seen broiling his suppe-on the coals, as they lost sight of the fire; and when the boat approached the shore, the torch of Mohegan’s canoe was shining again under the gloom of the eastern mountain. Its motion ceased suddenly; a scattering of brands was exhibited in the air, and then all remained dark as the conjunction of night, forests, and mountains, could render the scene.
14. The thoughts of the heiress wandered from the youth, who was holding a canopy of shawls over herself and Louisa, to the hunter and the Indian warrior; and she felt an awakening curiosity to visit a hut, where men of such different habits and temperament were drawn together, as if by one common impulse.

15. Chapter XXV
16. MR. JONES AROSE, ON THE FOLLOWING MORNING, WITH THE SUN, AND ordering his own and Marmaduke’s steeds to be saddled, he proceeded, with a countenance that was big with some business of unusual moment, to the apartment of the Judge. The door was unfastened, and Richard entered, with the freedom that characterized not only the intercourse between the cousins but the ordinary manners of the Sheriff.
17. “Well, ’duke, to horse,” he cried, “and I will explain to you my meaning in the allusions I made last night. David says, in the Psalms — no, it was Solomon, but it was all in the family — Solomon said, there was a time for all things; and in my humble opinion, a fishing party is not the moment for discussing important subjects — Ha! why, what the devil ails you, Marmaduke? an’t you well? let me feel your pulse: my grandfather, you know”
18. “Read it,” said Marmaduke, waving his hand for silence, and pacing the floor in excessive agitation.
Richard, who commonly thought aloud, was unable to read a letter without suffering part of its contents to escape him in audible sounds.
19. "What will you do next, cousin Marmaduke?” “What can I do, Richard, but trust to time and the will of Heaven?"

20. "We have certainly heard bad news,” returned Elizabeth, “and it may be necessary that my father should leave his home for a short period; unless I can persuade him to trust my cousin Richard with the business, whose absence from the county, just at this time, too, might be inexpedient.”
21. "Surely, you know me, Miss Temple!” he added, with a warmth that he seldom exhibited, but which did sometimes escape him, in the moments of their frank communications — “Have I lived five months under your roof, and yet a stranger?”
22. Elizabeth was engaged with her needle also, and she bent her head to one side, affecting to arrange her muslin; but her hand shook, her colour heightened, and her eyes lost their moisture in an expression of ungovernable interest, as she said — “How much do we know of you, Mr. Edwards?”
23. “On reflection, I must acknowledge that my situation here is somewhat equivocal,” said Edwards, “though I may be said to have purchased it with my blood.”
“The blood, too, of one of the native lords of the soil!” cried Elizabeth, whose melancholy had vanished in the excitement of their dialogue.
24. The first person encountered by Mr. Edwards, as he rather rushed than walked from the house, was the little, square-built lawyer, with a large bundle of papers under his arm, a pair of green spectacles on his nose, with glasses at the sides, as if to multiply his power of detecting frauds, by additional organs of vision.

25. “I shall be always glad to see you, sir, at my office, (as in duty bound, (not that it is obligatory to receive any man within your dwelling, (unless so inclined,) which is a castle,) according to the forms of politeness,) or at any other place; but the papers are most strictly confidential, (and as such, cannot be read by any one,) unless so directed (by Judge Temple’s solemn injunctions) and are invisible to all eyes; excepting those whose duties (I mean assumed duties) require it of them.”
26. Chapter XXVI
27. IT WAS A MILD AND SOFT MORNING, WHEN MARMADUKE AND RICHARD mounted their horses, to proceed on the expedition that had so long been uppermost in the thoughts of the latter; and Elizabeth and Louisa appeared at the same instant in the hall, attired for an excursion on foot.
28. “Grand-children, you mean, cousin Bess,” said the Sheriff. “But on, Judge Temple; time and tide wait for no man; and if you take my counsel, sir, in twelve months from this day, you may make an umbrella for your daughter of her camel’s-hair shawl, and have its frame of solid silver."
29. "Here, Brave, — Brave — my noble Brave!” The huge mastiff that has been already mentioned, appeared from his kennel, gaping and stretching himself, with a pampered laziness; but as his mistress again called — “Come, dear Brave; once have you served your master well; let us see how you can do your duty by his daughter” — the dog wagged his tail, as if he understood her language, walked with a stately gait to her side, where he seated himself, and looked up at her face, with an intelligence but little inferior to that which beamed in her own lovely countenance.

30. There were several places in the Otsego that were celebrated as fishing-ground for the perch. One was nearly opposite to the cabin, and another, still more famous, was near a point, at the distance of a mile and a half above it, under the brow of the mountain, and on the same side of the lake with the hut.
31. “He craves dreadfully to come into the cabin, and has as good as asked me as much to my face; but I put him off with unsartain answers, so that he is no wiser than Solomon. This comes of having so many laws that such a man may be called on to intarpret them.”
32. trouble.” “If he harbours too much about the cabin, lad, I’ll shoot the creater,” said the Leather-stocking, quite coolly.
“No, no, Natty, you must remember the law,” said Edwards, “or we shall have you in trouble; and that, old man, would be an evil day, and sore tidings to us all.”
33. The old hunters yielded to his wish, which seemed to be their law.
34. "No, no, John,” said Natty, “I was no chief, seeing that I know’d nothing of scholarship, and had a white skin."

35. "Where! why up on the Cattskills. I used often to go up into the mountains after wolves’ skins, and bears; once they bought me to get them a stuffed painter; and so I often went. There’s a place in them hills that I used to climb to when I wanted to see the carryings on of the world, that would well pay any man for a barked shin or a torn moccasin. You know the Cattskills, lad, for you must have seen them on your left, as you followed the river up from York, looking as blue as a piece of clear sky, and holding the clouds on their tops, as the smoke curls over the head of an Indian chief at a council fire. Well, there’s the High-peak and the Round-top, which lay back, like a father and mother among their children, seeing they are far above all the other hills. But the place I mean is next to the river, where one of the ridges juts out a little from the rest, and where the rocks fall for the best part of a thousand feet, so much up and down, that a man standing on their edges is fool enough to think he can jump from top to bottom.” “What see you when you get there?” asked Edwards. “Creation!” said Natty, dropping the end of his rod into the water, and sweeping one hand around him in a circle — “all creation, lad. I
36. "Why, there’s a fall in the hills, where the water of two little ponds that lie near each other breaks out of their hounds, and runs over the rocks into the valley. The stream is, maybe, such a one as would turn a mill, if so useless a thing was wanted in the wilderness. But the hand that made that ‘Leap’ never made a mill! There the water comes crooking and winding among the rocks, first so slow that a trout could swim in it, and then starting and running just like any creater that wanted to make a far spring, till it gets to where the mountain divides, like the cleft hoof of a deer, leaving a deep hollow for the brook to tumble into. The first pitch is nigh two hundred feet, and the water looks like flakes of driven snow, afore it touches the bottom; and there the stream gathers itself together again for a new start, and maybe flutters over fifty feet of flat-rock, before it falls for another hundred, when it jumps about from shelf to shelf, first turning this-away and then turning that-away, striving to get out of the hollow, till it finally comes to the plain.” “I have never heard of this spot before!” exclaimed Edwards; “it is not mentioned in the books.” “I never read a book in my life,” said Leather-stocking; “and how should a man who has lived in towns and schools know any thing about the wonders of the woods!"
37. "No, no, lad; there has that little stream of water been playing among them hills, since He made the world, and not a dozen white men have ever laid eyes on it. The rock sweeps like mason-work, in a half-round, on both sides of the fall, and shelves over the bottom for fifty feet; so that when I’ve been sitting at the foot of the first pitch, and my hounds have run into the caverns behind the sheet of water, they’ve looked no bigger than so many rabbits."
38. "What becomes of the water? in which direction does it run? Is it a tributary of the Delaware?” “Anan!” said Natty. “Does the water run into the Delaware?” “No, no, it’s a drop for the old Hudson; and a merry time it has till it gets down off the mountain."
39. "It is a spot to make a man solemnize. You can see right down into the valley that lies to the east of the High-Peak, where, in the fall of the year, thousands of acres of woods are before your eyes, in the deep hollow, and along the side of the mountain, painted like ten thousand rainbows, by no hand of man, though without the ordering of God’s providence.”

40. Edwards started, as a full cry broke on his ear, changing from the distant sounds that were caused by some intervening hill, to the confused echoes that rung among the rocks that the dogs were passing, and then directly to a deep and hollow baying that pealed under the forest on the lake shore. These variations in the tones of the hounds passed with amazing rapidity, and while his eyes were glancing along the margin of the water, a tearing of the branches of the alder and dog-wood caught his attention, at a spot near them, and at the next moment a noble buck sprung on the shore, and buried himself in the lake.
41. To be continued.




Various Notes:
1. Added: Items XXI. 8, 9, & 10, on Favorite Notes 2.
2. Added: Items V. 13 & 14, on Favorite Notes 2, with notes from the above reading.
3. Voltaire, in Philosophical Dictionary, suggests that it can be rewarding to look at the art of different cultures.
Added to Item III. 4. on Favorite Notes.




Friday, December 15, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Do Sveedania ee Preevyet, on College Notes, my Russian poem, updated. Essentially, it’s a Russian poem that goes on and on, in a pattern.
2. A. William Wordsworth: A Life, by Stephen Gill: Gill indicates that often, you see the end result, but not the pains that it took to achieve it. In fact, he indicates that often, hours of painstaking labor, go unnoticed.
B. He also indicates that Wordsworth ‘tinkered’ a great deal with his poems, paying close attention to punctuation, words and phrases. Wordsworth was always 'tinkering' with his poems.
C. Much of the time that Wordsworth spent in England, reminded him of early rising and long days walking in France and Switzerland.



Thursday, December 14, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Added: Various Notes 2, Item V. 12.
2. Tba.




Wednesday, December 13, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. AS THE SPRING GRADUALLY APPROACHED, THE IMMENSE PILES OF snow, that by alternate thaws and frosts, and repeated storms, had obtained a firmness that threatened a tiresome durability, began to yield to the influence of milder breezes and a warmer sun.
2. The gates of Heaven at times seemed to open, and a bland air diffused itself over the earth, when animate and inanimate nature would awaken, and for a few hours, the gayety of spring shone in every eye, and smiled on every field.
3. While the snow rendered the roads passable, they had partaken largely in the amusements of the winter, which included not only daily rides over the mountains, and through every valley within twenty miles of them, but divers ingenious and varied sources of pleasure, on the bosom of their frozen lake.
4. Richard led the way, on this, as on all other occasions, that did not require the exercise of unusual abilities; and as he moved along, he essayed to enliven the party with the sounds of his experienced voice.
5. “Now, sir, I assert that no experiment is fairly tried, until it be reduced to practical purposes. If, sir, I owned a hundred, or, for that matter, two hundred thousand acres of land, as you do, I would build a sugar-house in the village; I would invite learned men to an investigation of the subject, — and such are easily to be found, sir; yes, sir, they are not difficult to find, — men who unite theory with practice; and I would select a wood of young and thrifty trees; and instead of making loaves of the size of a lump of candy, dam’me, ’duke, but I’d have them as big as a haycock.”

6. “It is very true that we manufacture sugar, but the inquiry is quite useful to make, how much? and in what manner? I hope to live to see the day, when farms and plantations shall be devoted to this branch of business."
7. "This is next to hunting for coal! Poh! poh! my dear cousin, hear reason, and leave the management of the sugar-bush to me. Here is Mr. Le Quoi, he has been in the West Indies, and seen sugar made often. Let him give an account of how it is made there, and you will hear the philosophy of the thing. — Well, Monsieur, how is it that you make sugar in the West Indies; any thing in Judge Temple’s fashion?”
8. The gentleman to whom this query was put was mounted on a small horse, of no very fiery temperament, and was riding with his stirrups so short, as to bring his knees, while the animal rose a small ascent in the wood-path they were now travelling, into a somewhat hazardous vicinity to his chin. There was no room for gesticulation or grace in the delivery of his reply, for the mountain was steep and slippery; and although the Gaul had an eye of uncommon magnitude on either side of his face, they did not seem to be half competent to forewarn him of the impediments of bushes, twigs, and fallen trees, that were momentarily crossing his path.
9. With one hand employed in averting these dangers, and the other grasping his bridle, to check an untoward speed that his horse was assuming, the native of France responded as follows —
“Sucre! dey do make eet in Martinique: mais — mais eet is not from von tree; eet is from — ah — ah — vat you call — Je voudrois que ces chemins fussent au diable — vat you call — von steeck pour le promenade.”
10. A deep and careless incision had been made into each tree, near its root, into which little spouts, formed of the bark of the alder, or of the sumach, were fastened; and a trough, roughly dug out of the linden, or basswood, was lying at the root of each tree, to catch the sap that flowed from this extremely wasteful and inartificial arrangement.

11. The men begin singing:
The Eastern States be full of men,
The Western full of woods, Sir,
The hills be like a cattle pen,
The roads be full of goods, sir!
Then flow away, my sweety sap,
And I will make you boily;
Nor catch a woodman’s hasty nap,
For fear you should get roily.
‘The maple tree’s a precious one,
’Tis fuel, food, and timber;
And when your stiff day’s work is done,
Its juice will make you limber.
12. "Why, much as usual, Billy,” returned Richard. “But how is this! where are your four kettles, and your troughs, and your iron coolers? Do you make sugar in this slovenly way! I thought you were one of the best sugar-boilers in the county.”
13. "I’m all that, Squire Jones,” said Kirby, who continued his occupation; “I’ll turn my back to no man in the Otsego hills, for chopping and logging; for boiling down the maple sap; for tending brick-kiln; splitting out rails; making potash, and parling too; or hoeing corn. Though I keep myself, pretty much, to the first business, seeing that the axe comes most nateral to me.”
14. "You are not exempt from the censure yourself, Kirby, for you make dreadful wounds in these trees, where a small incision would effect the same object. I earnestly beg you will remember, that they are the growth of centuries, and when once gone, none living will see their loss remedied.”
15. "Why, I don’t know, Judge,” returned the man he addressed: “It seems to me, if there’s a plenty of any thing in this mountaynious country, it’s the trees. If there’s any sin in chopping them, I’ve a pretty heavy account to settle; for I’ve chopped over the best half of a thousand acres, with my own hands, counting both Varmount and York states; and I hope to live to finish the whull, before I lay up my axe. Chopping comes quite nateral to me, and I wish no other empl’yment..."

16. "Our notions on such subjects vary much, in different countries,” said Marmaduke; “but it is not as ornaments that I value the noble trees of this country; it is for their usefulness. We are stripping the forests, as if a single year would replace what we destroy. But the hour approaches, when the laws will take notice of not only the woods but the game they contain also.”
17. The wood-chopper was left alone, in the bosom of the forest, to pursue his labours. Elizabeth turned her head, when they reached the point where they were to descend the mountain, and thought that the slow fires, that were glimmering under his enormous kettles, his little brush shelter, covered with pieces of hemlock bark, his gigantic size, as he wielded his ladle with a steady and knowing air, aided by the back-ground of stately trees, with their spouts and troughs, formed, altogether, no unreal picture of human life in its first stages of civilization.
18. Kirby begins singing:
And when the proud forest is falling,
To my oxen cheerfully calling,
From morn until night I am bawling,
Woe, back there, and hoy and gee;
Till our labour is mutually ended,
By my strength and cattle befriended,
And against the musquitoes defended,
By the bark of the walnut-tree.
— “Away! then, you lads who would buy land,
Choose the oak that grows on the high land,
Or the silvery pine on the dry land,
It matters but little to me.”
19. End of chapter. To be continued.

20. THE ROADS OF OTSEGO, IF WE EXCEPT THE PRINCIPAL HIGHWAYS, were, at the early day of our tale, but little better than wood-paths of unusual width.
21. The nag of Richard, when it reached this barrier, laid its nose along the logs, and stepped across the difficult passage with the sagacity of a man; but the blooded filly which Miss Temple rode disdained so humble a movement. She made a step or two with an unusual caution, and then on reaching the broadest opening, obedient to the curb and whip of her fearless mistress, she bounded across the dangerous pass with the activity of a squirrel.
22. "Gently, gently, my child,” said Marmaduke, who was following in the manner of Richard — “this is not a country for equestrian feats. Much prudence is requisite to journey through our rough paths with safety. Thou mayst practise thy skill in horsemanship on the plains of New-Jersey with safety, but in the hills of Otsego they must be suspended for a time.”
23. “But thou dost not feel all the secret motives that can urge a man to endure privations in order to accumulate wealth."
24. "Even so, my child,” said her father. “Those who look around them now, and see the loads of produce that issue out of every wild path in these mountains, during the season of travelling, will hardly credit that no more than five years have elapsed, since the tenants of these woods were compelled to eat the scanty fruits of the forest to sustain life, and, with their unpractised skill, to hunt the beasts as food for their starving families.”
25. “Ay!” cried Richard, who happened to overhear the last of this speech, between the notes of the wood-chopper’s song, which he was endeavouring to breathe aloud; “that was the starving-time, cousin Bess."

26. "Remember, my child, it was in our very infancy; we had neither mills, nor grain, nor roads, nor often clearings; — we had nothing of increase, but the mouths that were to be fed; for, even at that inauspicious moment, the restless spirit of emigration was not idle; nay, the general scarcity, which extended to the east, tended to increase the number of adventurers.”
27. "The sufferings of their families, and the gloomy prospect before them, had paralysed the enterprise and efforts of my settlers; hunger drove them to the woods for food, but despair sent them, at night, enfeebled and wan, to a sleepless pillow. It was not a moment for inaction. I purchased cargoes of wheat from the granaries of Pennsylvania; they were landed at Albany, and brought up the Mohawk in boats; from thence it was transported on pack-horses into the wilderness, and distributed among my people."
28. "Seines were made, and the lakes and rivers were dragged for fish. Something like a miracle was wrought in our favour, for enormous shoals of herring were discovered to have wandered five hundred miles, through the windings of the impetuous Susquehanna, and the lake was alive with their numbers. These were at length caught, and dealt out to the people, with proper portions of salt; and from that moment we again began to prosper.”
29. "No, Bess,” cried the Judge, in a more cheerful tone, utterly disregarding the interruption of his cousin, “he who hears of the settlement of a country knows but little of the actual toil and suffering by which it is accomplished."
30. "He considered the introduction of the settlers as an innovation on his rights, I believe; for he expressed much dissatisfaction at the measure, though it was in his confused and ambiguous manner."

31. "The error of Mr. Le Quoi was not noticed by the Sheriff; and the rest of the party were yielding to the influence of the changeful season, that was already teaching the equestrians that a continuance of its mildness was not to be expected for any length of time. Silence and thoughtfulness succeeded the gayety and conversation that had prevailed during the commencement of their ride..."
32. All of the party were now busily engaged in making the best of their way to the village, though the badness of the roads frequently compelled them to check the impatience of their animals, which often carried them over places that would not admit of any gait faster than a walk.
33. Marmaduke followed his daughter, giving her frequent and tender warnings as to her safety and the management of her horse.
34. "Suddenly the voice of young Edwards was heard shouting, in those appalling tones that carry alarm to the very soul, and which curdle the blood of those that hear them —"
35. "The sudden falling of the trees,” said Marmaduke, “are the most dangerous of our accidents in the forest, for they are not to be foreseen, being impelled by no winds, nor any extraneous or visible cause, against which we can guard.”

36. "The reason of their falling, Judge Temple, is very obvious,” said the Sheriff. “The tree is old and decayed, and it is gradually weakened by the frosts, until a line drawn from the centre of gravity falls without its base, and then the tree comes of a certainty; and I should like to know, what greater compulsion there can be for any thing, than a mathematical certainty. I studied mathe — — ”
37. But how is one to guard against the danger? canst thou go through the forests, measuring the bases, and calculating the centres of the oaks? answer me that, friend Jones, and I will say thou wilt do the country a service.”
"Answer thee that, friend Temple!” returned Richard; “a well-educated man can answer thee any thing, sir.
38. "That would be excluding us entirely from the forests,” said Marmaduke. “But, happily, the winds usually force down most of these dangerous ruins, as their currents are admitted into the woods by the surrounding clearings, and such a fall as this has been is very rare.”
39. End of chapter. To be continued.

40. FROM THIS TIME TO THE CLOSE OF APRIL, THE WEATHER CONTINUED to be a succession of great and rapid changes.
41. The snow, however, finally disappeared, and the green wheat fields were seen in every direction, spotted with the dark and charred stumps that had, the preceding season, supported some of the proudest trees of the forest.
42. Large flocks of wild geese were seen passing over the country, which hovered, for a time, around the hidden sheet of water, apparently searching for an opening, where they might find a resting-place; and then, on finding themselves excluded by the chill covering, would soar away to the north, filling the air with their discordant screams, as if venting their complaints at the tardy operations of nature.
43. For a week, the dark covering of the Otsego was left to the undisturbed possession of two eagles, who alighted on the centre of its field, and sat proudly eyeing the extent of their undisputed territory. During the presence of these monarchs of the air, the flocks of migrating birds avoided crossing the plain of ice, by turning into the hills, apparently seeking the protection of the forests, while the white and bald heads of the tenants of the lake were turned upward, with a look of majestic contempt, as if penetrating to the very heavens with the acuteness of their vision. But the time had come, when even these kings of birds were to be dispossessed.
44. The gentlemen were impatiently waiting for their morning’s repast, each being equipt in the garb of a sportsman.

45. Well! the Lord won’t see the waste of his creaters for nothing, and right will be done to the pigeons, as well as others, by-and-by.
46. The fire from the distant part of the field had driven a single pigeon below the flock to which it had belonged, and frightened with the constant reports of the muskets, it was approaching the spot where the disputants stood, darting first from one side, and then to the other, cutting the air with the swiftness of lightning, and making a noise with its wings, not unlike the rushing of a bullet.
47. "Put an ind, Judge, to your clearings. An’t the woods his work as well as the pigeons? Use, but don’t waste. Wasn’t the woods made for the beasts and birds to harbour in? and when man wanted their flesh, their skins, or their feathers, there’s the place to seek them. But I’ll go to the hut with my own game, for I wouldn’t touch one of the harmless things that kiver the ground here, looking up with their eyes on me, as if they only wanted tongues to say their thoughts.”
48. Whatever impression the morality of Natty made on the Judge, it was utterly lost on Richard. He availed himself of the gathering of the sportsmen, to lay a plan for one “fell swoop” of destruction.
49. THE ADVANCE OF THE SEASON NOW BECAME AS RAPID AS ITS FIRST approach had been tedious and lingering. The days were uniformly mild, and genial to vegetation, while the nights, though cool, were no longer chilled by frosts.

50. The gay and fluttering blue-bird, the social robin, and the industrious little wren, were all to be seen enlivening the fields with their presence and their songs; while the soaring fish-hawk was already hovering over the waters of the Otsego, watching, with his native voracity, for the appearance of his prey.
51. The tenants of the lake were far-famed for both their quantities and their quality, and the ice had hardly disappeared, before numberless little boats were launched from the shores, and the lines of the fishermen were dropped into the inmost recesses of its deepest caverns, tempting the unwary animals with every variety of bait that the ingenuity or the art of man had invented.
52. But the slow, though certain adventures with a hook and line were ill-suited to the profusion and impatience of the settlers.
53. "And you shall be present, cousin Bess,” he added, when he announced this intention, “and Miss Grant, and Mr. Edwards; and I will show you what I call fishing — not nibble, nibble, nibble, as ’duke does when he goes after the salmon-trout. There he will sit for hours, in a broiling sun, or, perhaps, over a hole in the ice, in the coldest days in winter, under the lee of a few bushes, and not a fish will he catch, after all this mortification of the flesh. No, no — give me a good seine that’s fifty or sixty fathoms in length, with a jolly parcel of boatmen to crack their jokes the while, and with Benjamin to steer, and let us haul them in by thousands, and I shall call that fishing.”
54. The whole group were seated around the fire, on the ground, with the exception of Richard and Benjamin; the former of whom occupied the root of a decayed stump, that had been drawn to the spot as part of their fuel, and the latter was standing, with his arms a-kimbo, so near to the flame, that the smoke occasionally obscured his solemn visage, as it waved around the pile, in obedience to the light night-airs, that swept gently over the surface of the water.

55. "Why, look you, Squire,” said the Major-domo, “you may call a lake-fish that will weigh twenty or thirty pounds a serious matter; but to a man who has hauled in a shovel-nosed shirk, d’ye see, it’s but a poor kind of fishing after all.”
56. Softly, softly, Benjamin,” said the Sheriff, using a soothing manner, as if he wished to save the credit of his favourite; “why some of the pines will measure full two hundred feet, and even more.”
“Two hundred or two thousand, it’s all the same thing,” cried Benjamin, with an air which manifested that he was not easily to be bullied out of his opinion, on a subject like the present — “Haven’t I been there, and haven’t I seen? I have said that you fall in with whales as long as one of them there pines; and I’ll stand to what I have once said.”
57. "I’ve a notion,” said the wood-chopper, “that there’s water in this lake to swim the biggest whale that ever was invented; and, as to the pines, I think I ought to know so’thing consarning them; and I have chopped many a one that was sixty times the length of my helve, without counting the eyes; and I b’lieve, Benny, that if the old pine that stands in the hollow of the Vision Mountain, just over the village, and you may see the tree itself by looking up, for the moon is on its top yet; — well, now I b’lieve, that if that same tree was planted out in the deepest part of the lake, there would be water enough for the biggest ship that ever was built to float over it, without touching its upper branches, I do.”
58. “Where! why on the North River, and maybe on Champlain. There’s sloops on the river, boy, that would give a hard time on’t to the stoutest vessel King George owns. They carry masts of ninety feet in the clear, of good, solid pine, for I’ve been at the chopping of many a one in Varmount state. I wish I was captain of one of them, and you was in that Board-dish that you tell so much about; and we’d soon see what good Yankee stuff is made on, and whether a Varmounter’s hide an’t as thick as an Englishman’s.”
59. The echoes from the opposite hills, which were more than half a mile from the fishing point, sent back the discordant laugh that Benjamin gave forth at this challenge; and the woods that covered their sides, seemed, by the noise that issued from their shades, to be full of mocking demons.

60. Fishes of various sorts now were to be seen, entangled in the meshes of the net, as it was passed through the hands of the labourers; and the water, at a little distance from the shore, was alive with the agitated movements of the alarmed victims. Hundreds of white sides were glancing up to the surface of the water, and glistening in the fire-light, when frightened at the uproar and the change, the fish would again dart to the bottom, in fruitless efforts for freedom.
61. Inflamed beyond the bounds of discretion at the sight, and forgetful of the season, the wood-chopper rushed to his middle in the water, and began to drive the reluctant animals before him from their native element.
62. "This is a fearful expenditure of the choicest gifts of providence. These fish, Bess, which thou seest lying in such piles before thee, and which, by to-morrow evening, will be rejected food on the meanest table in Templeton, are of a quality and flavour that, in other countries, would make them esteemed a luxury on the tables of princes or epicures. The world has no better fish than the bass of Otsego: it unites the richness of the shad to the firmness of the salmon.”
63. "But this is always the way with you, Marmaduke; first it’s the trees, then it’s the deer, after that it’s the maple sugar, and so on to the end of the chapter. One day you talk of canals through a country where there’s a river or a lake every half-mile, just because the water won’t run the way you wish it to go; and the next, you say something about mines of coal, though any man who has good eyes like myself — I say with good eyes — can see more wood than would keep the city of London in fuel for fifty years; wouldn’t it, Benjamin?”
64. WHILE THE FISHERMEN WERE EMPLOYED IN MAKING THE PREPARATIONS for an equitable division of their spoils, Elizabeth and her friend strolled to a short distance from the group, along the shores of the lake.

65. "Did you ever hear the singular ways of this Natty spoken of, Miss Temple? They say that, in his youth, he was an Indian warrior, or, what is the same thing, a white man leagued with the savages; and it is thought he has been concerned in many of their inroads, in the old wars.”
66. A light appears on the river. "The Leather-stocking struck his spear lightly against the short staff which upheld, on a rude grating framed of old hoops of iron, the knots of pine that composed the fuel, and the light, which glared high, for an instant fell on the swarthy features, and dark, glancing eyes of Mohegan."
67. "If they had fur like a beaver, or you could tan their hides, like a buck, something might be said in favour of taking them by the thousands with your nets; but as God made them for man’s food, and for no other disarnable reason, I call it sinful and wasty to catch more than can be eat.”
68. "And you fish and hunt out of rule; but to me, the flesh is sweeter, where the creater has some chance for its life; for that reason, I always use a single ball, even if it be at a bird or a squirrel; besides, it saves lead, for, when a body knows how to shoot, one piece of lead is enough for all, except hard-lived animals.”
69. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Update: Favorite Notes, Item II. 7.
2. Addition: Favorite Notes 2, Item XIV. 6.




Tuesday, December 12, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. “Wait a minute, cousin Bess,” cried Richard; “there is an uncertainty about the rules of this sport, that it is proper I should remove. If you will appoint a committee, gentlemen, to wait on me this morning, I will draw up in writing a set of regulations — — ”
2. “I do think, Judge Temple, that such dangerous amusements should be suppressed by law; nay, I doubt whether they are not already indictable at common law.”
3. "Your manner, notwithstanding appearances, is a sufficient proof of your education, nor will thy shoulder suffer thee to labour, for some time to come. My doors are open to thee, my young friend, for in this infant country we harbour no suspicions: little offering to tempt the cupidity of the evil disposed. Become my assistant, for at least a season, and receive such compensation as thy services will deserve.”
4. Suggests that the way you carry yourself is a reflection of your level of education.
5. "Listen to your Father,” he said, “for his words are old. Let the Young Eagle and the Great Land Chief eat together; let them sleep, without fear, near to each other. The children of Miquon love not blood; they are just, and will do right. The sun must rise and set often, before men can make one family; it is not the work of a day, but of many winters."

6. "Really, my dear sir, I think you did exercise the Christian virtue of patience to the utmost."
7. “Well, ’duke, I call this democracy, not republicanism; but I say nothing; only let him keep within the law, or I shall show him, that the freedom of even this country is under wholesome restraint.”
8. On the other hand, the foresters — for the three hunters, notwithstanding their great difference in character, well deserved this common name — pursued their course along the skirts of the village in silence.
9. "When the people were dispersing, the clouds, that had been gathering all the morning, were dense and dirty; and before half of the curious congregation had reached their different cabins, that, were placed in every glen and hollow of the mountains, or perched on the summits of the hills themselves, the rain was falling in torrents. The dark edges of the stumps began to exhibit themselves, as the snow settled rapidly..."
10. THE CLOSE OF CHRISTMAS DAY, AD. 1793, WAS TEMPESTUOUS, BUT comparatively warm.

11. With her arm locked in that of Miss Grant, the young mistress of the mansion walked slowly up and down the hall, musing on the scenes that were rapidly recurring to her memory, and possibly dwelling, at times, in the sanctuary of her thoughts, on the strange occurrences that had led to the introduction to her father’s family, of one, whose manners so singularly contradicted the inferences to be drawn from his situation.
12. Suggests that it is acceptable to think about past memories.
13. Much mirth, and that, at times, of a boisterous kind, proceeded from the mouth of Richard; but Major Hartmann was not yet excited to his pitch of merriment, and Marmaduke respected the presence of his clerical guest too much, to indulge in even the innocent humour, that formed no small ingredient in his character.
14. "How now, Master Pump!” roared the newly appointed Sheriff; “is there not warmth enough in ’duke’s best Madeira, to keep up the animal heat through this thaw?"
15. Elizabeth and her friend had not yet lost their senses in sleep, when the howlings of the north-west wind were heard around the buildings, and brought with them that exquisite sense of comfort, that is ever excited under such circumstances, in an apartment where the fire has not yet ceased to glimmer; and curtains, and shutters, and feathers, unite to preserve the desired temperature in the air.

16. “The enterprise of Judge Temple is taming the very forests!” exclaimed Elizabeth, proudly, throwing off the covering, and partly rising in the bed. “How rapidly is civilization treading on the foot-steps of nature!” she continued, as her eye glanced over, not only the comforts, but the luxuries of her apartment, and her ear again listened to the distant, but often repeated howls from the lake.
17. But it was the appearance of the boundless forests, that covered the hills, as they rose, in the distance, one over the other, that most attracted the gaze of Miss Temple. The huge branches of the pines and hemlocks, on the western mountains, bent with the weight of the ice they supported, while their summits rose above the swelling tops of the oaks, beeches, and maples, like spires of burnished silver issuing from domes of the same material.
18. Elizabeth turned in amazement, to hear such a skeptical sentiment from one educated like her companion; but was surprised to find that, instead of looking at the view, the mild, blue eyes of Miss Grant were dwelling on the form of a well-dressed young man, who was standing before the door of the building, in earnest conversation with her father.
19. "He is certainly a genteel savage,” returned the smiling Elizabeth. “But let us go down, and give the Sachem his tea; — for I suppose he is a descendant of King Philip, if not a grandson of Pocahontas.”
20. "Oh! I am not much troubled, sir, with that laudable thirst after knowledge, that is called curiosity. I shall believe him to be the child of Cornstalk, or Corn-planter, or some other renowned chieftain; possibly of the Big Snake himself; and shall treat him as such, until he sees fit to shave his good-looking head, borrow some half-dozen pair of my best earrings, shoulder his rifle again, and disappear as suddenly as he made his entrance."

21. The village was alive with business; the artisans increasing in wealth with the prosperity of the country, and each day witnessing some nearer approach to the manners and usages of an old-settled town.
22. The intercourse between the three hunters was maintained with a certain air of mystery, it is true, but with much zeal and apparent interest to all the parties.
23. Even Mohegan seldom came to the Mansion-house, and Natty, never; but Edwards sought every leisure moment to visit his former abode, from which he would often return in the gloomy hours of night, through the snow, or, if detained beyond the time at which the family retired to rest, with the morning sun.
24. End of chapter. To be continued.




Various Notes:
1. Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire, Chapter: Languages, on Project Gutenberg, has taught me a great deal. Please review it for yourself.
2. Tba.




Monday, December 11, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Updated: Food Ideas Item III. 6.
2. Tba.




Sunday, December 10, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. THE ANCIENT AMUSEMENT OF SHOOTING THE CHRISTMAS TURKEY, IS one of the few sports that the settlers of a new country seldom or never neglect to observe.
2. The owner of the birds was a free black, who had been preparing for the occasion a collection of game, that was admirably qualified to inflame the appetite of an epicure, and was well adapted to the means and skill of the different competitors, who were of all ages.
3. He had offered to the younger and more humble marksmen divers birds of an inferior quality, and some shooting had already taken place, much to the pecuniary advantage of the sable owner of the game.
4. The order of the sports was extremely simple, and well understood. The bird was fastened by a string of tow, to the base of the stump of a large pine, the side of which, towards the point where the marksmen were placed, had been flattened with an axe, in order that it might serve the purpose of a target, by which the merit of each individual might be ascertained. The distance between the stump and this point was one hundred measured yards: a foot more or a foot less being thought an invasion of the right of one of the parties
5. The throng consisted of some twenty or thirty young men, most of whom had rifles, and a collection of all the boys in the village.

6. The heavy and brisk blows that he struck were soon succeeded by the thundering report of the tree, as it came, first cracking and threatening, with the separation of its own last ligaments, then thrashing and tearing with its branches the tops of its surrounding brethren, and finally meeting the ground with a shock but little inferior to an earthquake.
7. Between him and the Leather-stocking there had long existed a jealous rivalry, on the point of their respective skill in shooting. Notwithstanding the long practice of Natty, it was commonly supposed that the steady nerves and quick eye of the wood-chopper rendered him his equal.
8. The turkey was already fastened at the “mark,” but its body was entirely hid by the surrounding snow, nothing being visible but its red swelling head, and long proud neck. If the bird was injured by any bullet that struck below the snow, it was still to continue the property of its present owner, but if a feather was touched in a visible part, the animal became the prize of the successful adventurer.
9. "...you’ll get but one shot at the creater, for if the lad misses his aim, which wouldn’t be a wonder if he did, with his arm so stiff and sore, you’ll find a good piece and an old eye coming a’ter you. Maybe it’s true that I can’t shoot as I used to could, but a hundred yards is but a short distance for a long rifle."
10. While these indications of apprehension were exhibited in the sable owner of the turkey, the man who gave rise to this extraordinary emotion was as calm and collected, as if there was not to be a single spectator of his skill.

11. I was down in the Dutch settlements on the Scoharie,” said Natty, carefully removing the leather guard from the lock of his rifle, “jist before the breaking out of the last war, and there was a shooting-match among the boys; so I took a hand in it myself.
12. The shooter shoots, but misses the turkey on the first shot.
13. As this opinion came from such a high quarter, and was delivered with so much effect, it silenced all murmurs, — for the whole of the spectators had begun to take sides with great warmth, — except from the Leather-stocking himself.
14. "I think Miss Elizabeth’s thoughts should be taken,” said Natty. “I’ve known the squaws give very good counsel, when the Indians have been dumb foundered in their notions. If she says that I ought to lose, I agree to give it up.”
15. "Heigho! it seems to me, that just as the game grows scarce, and a body wants the best of ammunition, to get a livelihood, every thing that’s bad falls on him, like a judgment."

16. Elizabeth regarded his proud, but forced manner, and even thought that she could discern a tinge on his cheek, that spoke the shame of conscious poverty.
17. The boys rushed to the mark, and lifted the turkey on high, lifeless, and with nothing but the remnant of a head.
18. She even blushed a little as she turned to the young hunter, and, with the insinuating charm of a woman’s best manner, added — “But it was only to see an exhibition of the far-famed skill of Leather-stocking, that I tried my fortunes. Will you, sir, accept the bird, as a small peace-offering, for the hurt that prevented your own success?”
19. "I do think, Judge Temple, that such dangerous amusements should be suppressed by law; nay, I doubt whether they are not already indictable at common law.”
20. “Ah! ’duke, my dear cousin,” he said, “step a little on one side; I have something I would say to you.” Marmaduke complied, and the Sheriff led him to a little distance in the bushes, and continued — “First, ’duke, let me thank you for your friendly interest with the Council and the Governor, without which, I am confident, that the greatest merit would avail but little. But we are sisters’ children — we are sisters’ children; and you may use me like one of your horses; ride me or drive me, ’duke, I am wholly yours. But in my humble opinion, this young companion of Leather-stocking requires looking after. He has a very dangerous propensity for turkey.”
21. End of chapter. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Shaving Tip: with an inexpensive full length mirror, and the mirror on your bathroom wall, and an inexpensive electric clipper set, you can shave the sides and the back of your head. I learned this shaving tip growing up in Brooklyn, New York.
2. If you start by first eating the broth, and then eat the rest, Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup is great! This is in reference to the soup in the small, red and white can (25% low sodium). This is related to the statement, in a Jane Austen novel, that soup broth is good for you.
Added to Food Ideas Item III. 7.
3. My next shopping trip, I plan to buy Dinty Moore Beef Stew, and Hormel Compleats Meatloaf & Gravy with Mashed Potatoes. They should be great menu additions!




Saturday, December 9, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. IT WAS FORTUNATE FOR MORE THAN ONE OF THE BACCHANALIANS, WHO left the “Bold Dragoon” late in the evening, that the severe cold of the season was becoming, rapidly, less dangerous, as they threaded the different mazes, through the snow-banks, that led to their respective dwellings.
2. The rising sun was obscured by denser and increasing columns of clouds, while the southerly wind, that rushed up the valley, brought the never failing-symptoms of a thaw.
3. It was quite late in the morning, before Elizabeth, observing the faint glow which appeared on the eastern mountain, long after the light of the sun had struck the opposite hills, ventured from the house, with a view to gratify her curiosity with a glance by daylight at the surrounding objects
4. "Merry Christmas, merry Christmas to you, cousin Bess. Ah, ha! an early riser, I see; but I knew I should steal a march on you."
5. I never was in a house yet, where I didn’t get the first Christmas greeting on every soul in it, man, woman, and child; great and small; black, white, and yellow.

6. “Oh! he got the plans of the new Dutch meeting-house for me, I suppose; but I care very little about it, for a man, of a certain kind of talent, is seldom aided by any such foreign suggestions: his own brain is the best architect.”
7. "Eh! what! it is, I declare, a commission, appointing Richard Jones, Esquire, Sheriff of the county. Well, this is kind in ’duke, positively. I must say ’duke has a warm heart, and never forgets his friends. Sheriff!"
8. "It shall be done, cousin Bess — it shall be done I say. — How this cursed south wind makes my eyes water.”
9. "...yes, Benjamin would do extremely well, in such an unfortunate dilemma, if he could be persuaded to attempt it."
10. "Surely you do not contemplate building houses, very soon, in that forest before us, and in those swamps."

11. "We must run our streets by the compass, coz, and disregard trees, hills, ponds, stumps, or, in fact, any thing but posterity."
12. "...in truth, the only mark of improvement that was to be seen, was a neglected clearing along the skirt of a dark forest of mighty pines, over which the bushes or sprouts of the same tree had sprung up, to a height that interspersed the fields of snow with little thickets of evergreen."
13. "Let us withdraw,” whispered Elizabeth; “we are intruders, and can have no right to listen to the secrets of these men.” “No right!” returned Richard, a little impatiently, in the same tone, and drawing her arm so forcibly through his own as to prevent her retreat; “you forget, cousin, that it is my duty to preserve the peace of the county, and see the laws executed.
14. Notwithstanding the lady’s reluctance, Richard, stimulated doubtless by his nice sense of duty, prevailed; and they were soon so near as distinctly to hear sounds.
15. "The bird must be had,” said Natty, “by fair means or foul. Heigho! I’ve known the time, lad, when the wild turkeys wasn’t over scarce in the country; though you must go into the Virginy gaps, if you want them for the feathers. To be sure, there is a different taste to a partridge, and a well-fattened turkey; though, to my eating, beaver’s tail and bear’s hams makes the best of food. But then every one has his own appetite.

16. John has a true eye for a single fire, and somehow, my hand shakes so, whenever I have to do any thing extrawnary, that I often lose my aim.
17. “When John was young, eyesight was not straighter than his bullet. The Mingo squaws cried out at the sound of his rifle. The Mingo warriors were made squaws. When did he ever shoot twice! The eagle went above the clouds, when he passed the wigwam of Chingachgook; his feathers were plenty with the women."
18. "I thought that lad had Indian blood in him,” whispered Richard, “by the awkward way he handled my horses last night. You see, coz, they never use harness. But the poor fellow shall have two shots at the turkey, if he wants it, for I’ll give him another shilling myself; though, perhaps, I had better offer to shoot for him. They have got up their Christmas sports, I find, in the bushes yonder, where you hear the laughter; — though if is a queer taste this chap has for turkey; not but what it is good eating too.”
19. "But I’ll give the lad a chance for his turkey, for that Billy Kirby is one of the best marksmen in the country; that is, if we except the — the gentleman.”
20. "I should think, Miss Temple,” he said, so soon as the others were out of hearing, “that if you really wished a turkey, you would not have taken a stranger for the office, and such a one as Leather-stocking. But I can hardly believe that you are serious, for I have fifty at this moment shut up in the coops, in every stage of fat, so that you might choose any quality you pleased."
21. End of chapter. To be continued.




Friday, December 8, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. SOME LITTLE COMMOTION WAS PRODUCED BY THE APPEARANCE OF the new guests, during which the lawyer disappeared from the room.
2. “…but then, I s’pose that, as it was a written discourse, it is not so easily altered, as where a minister preaches without notes.”
3. “Well, well,” cried Marmaduke, waving his hand for silence, “there is enough said; as Mr. Grant told us, there are different sentiments on such subjects, and in my opinion he spoke most sensibly.
4. He was to give me ten dollars an acre for the clearin, and one dollar an acre over the first cost, on the wood-land; and we agreed to leave the buildins to men.
5. "And what do you mean to do with your time this winter? you must remember that time is money.”

6. If times doosn’t get wuss in the spring, I’ve some notion of going into trade, or maybe I may move off to the Genessee; they say they are carryin on a great stroke of business that-a-way.
7. "The legislature have been passing laws,” continued Marmaduke, “that the country much required. Among others, there is an act, prohibiting the drawing of seines, at any other than proper seasons, in certain of our streams and small lakes; and another, to prohibit the killing of deer in the teeming months. These are laws that were loudly called for, by judicious men; nor do I despair of getting an act, to make the unlawful felling of timber a criminal offence.”
8. "Armed with the dignity of the law, Mr. Bumppo,” returned the Judge, gravely, “a vigilant magistrate can prevent much of the evil that has hitherto prevailed, and which is already rendering the game scarce. I hope to live to see the day, when a man’s rights in his game shall be as much respected as his title to his farm.”
9. “Yes, sir,” returned Marmaduke, “the Jacobins of France seem rushing from one act of licentiousness to another."
10. "The province of La Vendée is laid waste by the troops of the republic, and hundreds of its inhabitants, who are royalists in their sentiments, are shot at a time. — La Vendée is a district in the south-west of France, that continues yet much attached to the family of the Bourbons; doubtless Monsieur Le Quoi is acquainted with it, and can describe it more faithfully.”

11. “The French are good soldiers,” said Captain Hollister; “they stood us in hand a good turn, down at York-town; nor do I think, although I am an ignorant man about the great movements of the army, that his Excellency would have been able to march against Cornwallis, without their reinforcements.”
12. “No, no, Major,” returned the hunter, with a melancholy shake of the head, “I have lived to see what I thought eyes could never behold in these hills, and I have no heart left for singing. If he, that has a right to be master and ruler here, is forced to squinch his thirst, when a-dry, with snow-water, it ill becomes them that have lived by his bounty to be making merry, as if there was nothing in the world but sunshine and summer.”
13. "Hear how old John turns his quavers. What damned dull music an Indian song is, after all, Major. I wonder if they ever sing by note.”
14. While Richard was singing and talking, Mohegan was uttering dull, monotonous tones, keeping time by a gentle motion of his head and body. He made use of but few words, and such as he did utter were in his native language and consequently only understood by himself and Natty. Without heeding Richard, he continued to sing a kind of wild, melancholy air, that rose, at times, in sudden and quite elevated notes, and then fell again into the low, quavering sounds, that seemed to compose the character of his music.
15. The attention of the company was now much divided, the men in the rear having formed themselves into little groups, where they were discussing various matters; among the principal of which were, the treatment of mangy hogs, and Parson Grant’s preaching; while Dr. Todd was endeavouring to explain to Marmaduke the nature of the hurt received by the young hunter.

16. His hand seemed to make a fruitless effort to release his tomahawk, which was confined by its handle to his belt, while his eyes gradually became again vacant.
17. End of chapter. To be continued.
18. The sea, Mistress Remarkable, is a great advantage to a man, in the way of knowledge, for he sees the fashions of nations, and the shape of a country.
19. “Afeard! who the devil do you think was to be frightened at a little salt water tumbling about his head?"
20. "I wonder now!” exclaimed Remarkable, to whom most of the terms used by Benjamin were perfectly unintelligible, but who had got a confused idea of a raging tempest.

21. "And a long time have you left your anchors down in the same place, mistress. I think you must find that the ship rides easy?”
22. "...a parrot; that will hold a dialogue, for what an honest man knows, in a dozen languages; mayhap in the Bay of State lingo; mayhap in Greek or High Dutch. But dost it know what it means itself? canst answer me that, good woman?"
23. “You talk of mustering yourself with a lady! you’re just fit to grumble and find fault. Where the devil should you larn behaviour and dictionary?"
24. End of chapter. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Edited: Item 8., Boris Godunov... Tuesday, December 5, 2023
2. I learned that in some places where people wear face masks, they are wearing them because they are “strongly recommended,” but not required. People are not required to wear them, the masks are only “strongly recommended.”
3. Updated: Item XXI. 5. - Favorite Notes 2.
4. Aristotle mentions that it is more difficult to feel some parts of the body than it is to feel other parts.



Boris Godunov and Other Dramatic Works, by Alexander Pushkin:
1. KURBSKY. (Galloping at their head.) There, there it is; there is the Russian frontier! Fatherland! Holy Russia! I am thine! With scorn from off my clothing now I shake The foreign soil, and greedily I drink New air; it is my native air.
2. PRETENDER. (Moves quietly with bowed head.) How happy Is he, how flushed with gladness and with glory His stainless soul! Brave knight, I envy thee! The son of Kurbsky, nurtured in exile...To shed thy blood, to give the fatherland Its lawful tsar. Righteous art thou; thy soul Should flame with joy.
3. KURBSKY. And dost not thou likewise Rejoice in spirit? There lies our Russia; she Is thine, tsarevich! There thy people's hearts Are waiting for thee, there thy Moscow waits, Thy Kremlin, thy dominion.
4. TSAR. Is it possible? An unfrocked monk against us Leads rascal troops, a truant friar dares write Threats to us! Then 'tis time to tame the madman!
5. TSAR. The Lord of Sweden hath by envoys tendered Alliance to me. But we have no need To lean on foreign aid; we have enough Of our own warlike people to repel Traitors and Poles. I have refused.—Shchelkalov!

6. Thou wilt wait quietly, until delusion Shall pass away; for pass away it will, And truth's eternal sun will dawn on all.
7. This is my counsel; to the Kremlin send The sacred relics, place them in the Cathedral Of the Archangel; clearly will the people See then the godless villain's fraud; the might Of the fiends will vanish as a cloud of dust.
8. POLES. Victory! Victory! Glory to the tsar Dimitry!
DIMITRY. (On horseback.) Cease fighting. We have conquered. Enough! Spare Russian blood. Cease fighting.
9. PRETENDER. An enviable life for the tsar's people! Well, how about the army?
PRISONER. What of them? Clothed and full-fed they are content with all.
10. A POLE. Tomorrow, battle! They are fifty thousand, And we scarce fifteen thousand. He is mad!
ANOTHER. That's nothing, friend. A single Pole can challenge Five hundred Muscovites.

11. The Pole looks at him haughtily and departs in silence. All laugh.
12. PRETENDER. Ah, my poor horse! How gallantly he charged Today in the last battle, and when wounded, How swiftly bore me. My poor horse!
13. PRETENDER. (Goes to his horse.) My poor horse!—what to do? Take off the bridle, And loose the girth. Let him at least die free.
14. TSAR. No, I am ill content with them; thyself I shall despatch to take command of them; I give authority not to birth, but brains. Their pride of precedence, let it be wounded!
15. Again his scattered forces, and anew Threatens us from the ramparts of Putivl. Meanwhile what are our heroes doing?

16. BASMANOV. A great thought Within his mind has taken birth; it must not Be suffered to grow cold.
17. TSAR. Let all depart—alone Leave the tsarevich with me. (All withdraw.) I am dying; Let us embrace. Farewell, my son; this hour Thou wilt begin to reign.—O God, my God! This hour I shall appear before Thy presence— And have no time to purge my soul with shrift. But yet, my son, I feel thou art dearer to me Than is my soul's salvation—be it so!
18. The royal voice must never lose itself Upon the air in emptiness, but like A sacred bell must sound but to announce Some great disaster or great festival.
19. Dear son, thou art approaching to those years When woman's beauty agitates our blood. Preserve, preserve the sacred purity Of innocence and proud shamefacedness; He, who through passion has been wont to wallow In vicious pleasures in his youthful days...
20. FEODOR. (On his knees.) No, no; live on, my father, and reign long; Without thee both the folk and we will perish.

21. Our army is mere trash, the Cossacks only Rob villages, the Poles but brag and drink; The Russians—what shall I say?—with you I'll not Dissemble; but, Basmanov, dost thou know Wherein our strength lies? Not in the army, no. Nor Polish aid, but in opinion—yes, In popular opinion.
22. Dost remember The triumph of Dimitry, dost remember His peaceful conquests, when, without a blow The docile towns surrendered, and the mob Bound the recalcitrant leaders? Thou thyself Saw'st it; was it of their free-will our troops Fought with him? And when did they so? Boris Was then supreme. But would they now?—Nay, nay,
23. Dishonour to deserve from age to age! The trust of my young sovereign to requite With horrible betrayal! 'Tis a light thing For a disgraced exile to meditate Sedition and conspiracy; but I? Is it for me, the favourite of my lord?— But death—but power—the people's miseries...
24. MOSALSKY. People! Maria Godunov and her son Feodor have poisoned themselves. We have seen their dead bodies. (The People are silent with horror.) Why are ye silent? Cry, Long live the tsar Dimitry Ivanovich! (The People are speechless.) THE END




Thursday, December 7, 2023

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. His countenance expressed extraordinary uneasiness, and the occasional unquiet glances, that he had thrown around him during the service, plainly indicated some unusual causes for unhappiness. His continuing seated was, however, from respect to the Indian chief, to whom he paid the utmost deference, on all occasions, although it was mingled with the rough manner of a hunter.
2. “Father, I thank you. The words that have been said, since the rising moon, have gone upward, and the Great Spirit is glad. What you have told your children, they will remember, and be good.” He paused a moment, and then, elevating himself to all the grandeur of an Indian chief, he added — “if Chingachgook lives to travel towards the setting sun, after his tribe, and the Great Spirit carries him over the lakes and mountains, with the breath in his body, he will tell his people the good talk he has heard; and they will believe him: for who can say that Mohegan has ever lied?”
3. "Let him place his dependence on the goodness of Divine mercy,” said Mr. Grant, to whom the proud consciousness of the Indian sounded a little heterodox, “and it never will desert him. When the heart is filled with love to God, there is no room left for sin."
4. "But, young man, to you I owe not only an obligation, in common with those you saved this evening, on the mountain, but my thanks, for your respectful and pious manner, in assisting in the service, at a most embarrassing moment. I should be happy to see you sometimes, at my dwelling, when, perhaps, my conversation may strengthen you in the path which you appear to have chosen. It is so unusual to find one of your age and appearance, in these woods, at all acquainted with our holy liturgy, that it lessens at once the distance between us, and I feel that we are no longer strangers. You seem quite at home in the service: I did not perceive that you had even a book, although good Mr. Jones had laid several in different parts of the room.”
5. “I doubt not, my friend, that you have been both a valiant soldier and skilful hunter, in your day,” said the divine; “but more is wanting, to prepare you for that end which approaches. You may have heard the maxim, that ‘young men may die, but that old men must.’”

6. “I’m sure I never was so great a fool as to expect to live for ever,” said Natty, giving one of his silent laughs: “no man need do that, who trails the savages through the woods, as I have done, and lives, for the hot months, on the lake streams. I’ve a strong constitution, I must say that for myself, as is plain to be seen; for I’ve drunk the Onondaga water a hundred times, while I’ve been watching the deer-licks, when the fever-an-agy seeds was to be seen in it, as plain and as plenty as you can see the rattle-snakes on old Crumhorn. But then, I never expected to hold out for ever; though there’s them living, who have seen the Garman Flats a wilderness; ay! and them that’s larned, and acquainted with religion too; though you might look a week now, and not find even the stump of a pine on them; and that’s a wood that lasts in the ground the better part of a hundred years.”
7. “This is but time, my good friend,” returned Mr. Grant, who began to take an interest in the welfare of his new acquaintance, “but it is for eternity that I would have you prepare."
8. “It must be a young hand in the woods,” interrupted Natty, with another laugh, “that didn’t know how to dress a rod out of an ash sapling, or find a fire-stone in the mountains. No, no, I never expected to live for ever; but I see, times be altering in these mountains from what they was thirty years ago, or, for that matter, ten years. But might makes right, and the law is stronger than an old man, whether he is one that has much larning, or only one like me, that is better now at standing at the passes than in following the hounds, as I once used to could."
9. Next to him moved the Indian, with his hair falling about his face, his head uncovered, and the rest of his form concealed beneath his blanket. As his swarthy visage, with its muscles fixed in rigid composure, was seen under the light of the moon which struck his face obliquely, he seemed a picture of resigned old age, on whom the storms of winter had beaten in vain, for the greater part of a century; but when in turning his head, the rays fell directly on his dark, fiery eyes, they told a tale of passions unrestrained, and of thoughts free as the air he breathed.
10. Mr. Grant was surprised by the interruption of the Indian, and, stopping, faced the speaker. His mild features were confronted to the fierce and determined looks of the [Delaware] chief, and expressed all the horror that he felt at hearing such sentiments from one who professed the religion of his Saviour.

11. “John, John! is this the religion that you have learned from the Moravians? But no — I will not be so uncharitable as to suppose it. They are a pious, a gentle, and a mild people, and could never tolerate these passions."
12. "‘But I say unto you, love your enemies; bless them that curse you; do good to them that hate you; and pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you.’ — This is the command of God, John, and without striving to cultivate such feelings, no man can see him."
13. On the tomb were the names, with the dates of the births and deaths, of several individuals, all of whom bore the name of Grant.
14. Mohegan turned solemnly to the speaker, and, with the peculiarly significant gestures of an Indian, he spoke: —
"Father, you are not yet past the summer of life; your limbs are young. Go to the highest hill and look around you. All that you see, from the rising to the setting sun, from the head waters of the great spring, to where the ‘crooked river’ is hid by the hills, is his. He has Delaware blood and his right is strong. But the brother of Miquon is just: he will cut the country in two parts, as the river cuts the lowlands, and will say to the ‘Young Eagle,’ Child of the Delawares! take it — Keep it — and be a chief in the land of your fathers.”
15. "Never!” exclaimed the young hunter, with a vehemence that destroyed the rapt attention, with which the divine and his daughter were listening to the earnest manner of the Indian. “The wolf of the forest is not more rapacious for his prey, than that man is greedy for gold; and yet his glidings into wealth are as subtle as the movements of a serpent.”

16. "Forbear, forbear, my son, forbear,” interrupted Mr. Grant. “These angry passions must be subdued. The accidental injury you have received from Judge Temple has heightened the sense of your hereditary wrongs. But remember that the one was unintentional, and that the other is the effect of political changes, which have, in their course, greatly lowered the pride of kings, and swept mighty nations from the face of the earth. Where now are the Philistines, who so often held the children of Israel in bondage! or that city of Babylon, which rioted in luxury and vice, and who styled herself the Queen of Nations, in the drunkenness of her pride? Remember the prayer of our holy litany, where we implore the Divine Power — “that it may please thee to forgive our enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, and to turn their hearts.” The sin of the wrongs which have been done to the natives is shared by Judge Temple only in common with a whole people, and your arm will speedily be restored to its strength.”
17. “It is the hereditary violence of a native’s passion, my child,” said Mr. Grant, in a low tone, to his affrighted daughter, who was clinging in terror to his arm. “He is mixed with the blood of the Indians, you have heard; and neither the refinements of education, nor the advantages of our excellent liturgy, have been able entirely to eradicate the evil. But care and time will do much for him yet.”
18. Although the divine spoke in a low tone, yet what he uttered was heard by the youth, who raised his head, with a smile of indefinite expression, and spoke more calmly.
19. There is no saying where this desultory conversation would have led the worthy couple, had not the men, who were stamping the snow off their feet, on the little platform before the door, suddenly ceased their occupation, and entered the bar-room.
20. "It would so, sir,” returned the attorney. — “The law, gentlemen, is no respecter of persons, in a free country. It is one of the great blessings that has been handed down to us from our ancestors, that all men are equal in the eye of the law-as they are by nater. Though some may get property, no one knows how, yet they are not privileged to transgress the laws, any more than the poorest citizen in the state. This is my notion, gentlemen; and I think that if a man had a mind to bring this matter up, something might be made out of it, that would help pay for the salve — ha! Doctor?"

21. "...but little did I ever expect to see him enlisted in the cause of Christianity, and civilized like old John.”
22. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Updated: Item I. D. - Food Ideas.
2. Updated: Item XXII. 1. - Favorite Notes 2.



The Bible:
1. 1 Samuel 3 explains that the Lord called Samuel several times. This is much like the story my parents tell me about how parents call children. It is a simple, yet powerful concept about interaction between people.
2. Tba.




Wednesday, December 6, 2023:

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. "How often have I forbidden the use of the sugar-maple for fires, in my dwelling…Fuel in these hills, cousin ’duke!” exclaimed Richard in derision — “fuel for our fires! why, you might as well predict, that the fish will die, for the want of water in the lake.”
2. "But I must, and will, the instant that the snow is off the earth, send out a party into the mountains to explore for coal.”
”Coal!” echoed Richard; “who the devil do you think will dig for coal, when in hunting for a bushel, he would have to rip up more roots of trees, than would keep him in fuel for a twelvemonth? Poh! poh! Marmaduke, you should leave the management of these things to me, who have a natural turn that way.
3. "To be sure I do,” cried Richard; “here is a turkey to carve; and I flatter myself that I understand carving a turkey, or, for that matter, a goose, as well as any man alive..."
4. "Take a thing from the fire, this cold weather, and it will freeze in five minutes. Mr. Grant! we want you to say grace. ‘For what we are about to receive, the Lord make us thankful. ’ Come, sit down, sit down. Do you eat wing or breast, cousin Bess.”
5. The table-linen was of the most beautiful damask, and the plates and dishes of real china, an article of great luxury at this early period in American commerce.

6. The host seemed to think some apology necessary for the warmth he had betrayed on the subject of the firewood, and when the party were comfortably seated, and engaged with their knives and forks, he observed —
7. Why, I can hardly tell which way the wind blows, when I’m out in the clearings, they are so thick, and so tall; — I couldn’t at all, if it was’nt for the clouds, and I happen to know all the points of the compass, as it were, by heart.
8. "It is well, Benjamin,” interrupted Marmaduke, observing his daughter, who manifested evident displeasure at the major-domo’s familiarity; “but you forget there is a lady in company, and the women love to do most of the talking themselves.”
9. "The boy is not a miracle,” exclaimed Richard; “I’ve known children that were sent to school early, talk much better, before they were twelve years old. There was Zareed Coe, old Nehemiah’s son, who first settled on the meadow, he could write almost as good a hand as myself, when he was fourteen; though it’s true, I helped to teach him a little, in the long evenings.
10. He is the most awkward fellow about a horse I ever met with. I dare say, he never drove any thing but oxen in his life.

11. "Ay! I have seen the boy before,” said Benjamin, who wanted no other encouragement to speak: “he has been backing and filling in the wake of Natty Bumppo, through the mountains, after deer..."
12. The Leather-stocking said, in my hearing, before Betty Hollister’s bar-room fire, no later than the Tuesday night, that the younker was certain death to the wild beasts. If-so-be he can kill the wild-cat, that has been heard moaning on the lake side, since the hard frosts and deep snows have driven the deer to her, he will be doing the thing that is good. Your wild-cat is a bad ship-mate, and should be made to cruise out of the track of all Christian men.
13. You are not to credit all the idle tales, sir, that you hear of Natty,” said the Judge: “he has a kind of natural right to gain a livelihood in these mountains; and if the idlers in the village take it into their heads to annoy him, as they sometimes do reputed rogues, they shall find him protected by the strong arm of the law.
14. “I am glad to see you, Mrs. Hollister,” returned the voice of Elizabeth. “I have been trying to find a face that I knew, since we left the door of the Mansion-house, but none have I seen except your own."
15. The readiness with which he mentioned the names of even the children, showed how very familiarly acquainted he was with their circumstances; and the nature of the answers he received, proved that he was a general favourite.

16. At length one of the pedestrians from the village stopped also, and fixed an earnest gaze at a new brick edifice, that was throwing a long shadow across the fields of snow, as it rose, with a beautiful gradation of light and shade, under the rays of a full moon.
17. It had been built under the strong conviction of the necessity of a more seemly place of worship than “the long room of the academy,” and under an implied agreement, that, after its completion, the question should be fairly put to the people, that they might decide to what denomination it should belong.
18. The task of erecting the building had been unanimously transferred to Mr. Jones and Hiram Doolittle. Together they had built the mansion-house, the academy, and the jail; and they alone knew how to plan and rear such a structure as was now required.
19. Availing himself of this advantage, Richard silently determined that the windows should have the Roman arch, as the first positive step he would take in effecting his wishes. As the building was made of bricks, he was enabled to conceal his design, until the moment arrived for placing the frames: then, indeed, it became necessary to act. He communicated his wishes to Hiram with great caution; and without in the least adverting to the spiritual part of his project, he pressed the point a little warmly, on the score of architectural beauty.
20. At first, there was a scarcity in the right kind of material necessary to form the frames; but this objection was instantly silenced, by Richard running his pencil through two feet of their length at one stroke. Then the expense was mentioned; but Richard reminded Hiram that his cousin paid, and that he was his treasurer. This last intimation had great weight, and after a silent and protracted, but fruitless opposition, the work was suffered to proceed on the original plan.

21. "No — no — no,” returned Richard, speaking quickly, but making a significant pause between each negative — “it requires reflection."
22. "It ees ver apropos to saircumstonce,” said the Frenchman — “ver judgement — but it is in de catholique country dat dey build de — vat you call — ah a ah-ha — la grande cathedrale — de big church."
23. To be continued.
24. He well understood the character of his listeners, who were mostly a primitive people in their habits; and who, being a good deal addicted to subtleties and nice distinctions in their religious opinions, viewed the introduction into their spiritual worship of any such temporal assistance as form, not only with jealousy, but frequently with disgust.
25. When we consider the great diversity of the human character, influenced as it is by education, by opportunity, and by the physical and moral conditions of the creature, my dear hearers,” he earnestly concluded, “it can excite no surprise, that creeds, so very different in their tendencies, should grow out of a religion, revealed, it is true, but whose revelations are obscured by the lapse of ages, and whose doctrines were, after the fashion of the countries in which they were first promulgated, frequently delivered in parables, and in a language abounding in metaphors, and loaded with figures.
26. On points where the learned have, in purity of heart, been compelled to differ, the unlettered will necessarily be at variance. But, happily for us, my brethren, the fountain of divine love flows from a source too pure to admit of pollution in its course; it extends, to those who drink of its vivifying waters, the peace of the righteous, and life everlasting; it endures through all time, and it pervades creation. If there be mystery in its workings, it is the mystery of a Divinity.
27. If we are required to believe in doctrines that seem not in conformity with the deductions of human wisdom, let us never forget, that such is the mandate of a wisdom that is infinite.
28. It teaches us a lesson of humility, by impressing us with the imperfection of human powers, and by warning us of the many weak points, where we are open to the attacks of the great enemy of our race; it proves to us, that we are in danger of being weak, when our vanity would fain sooth us into the belief that we are most strong; it forcibly points out to us the vainglory of intellect, and shows us the vast difference between a saving faith, and the corollaries of a philosophical theology; and it teaches us to reduce our self-examination to the test of good works.




Tuesday, December 5, 2023:

The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. An old shirt was procured by Benjamin, and placed in the hands of the other, who tore divers bandages from it, with an exactitude, that marked both his own skill, and the importance of the operation.
2. "Here, Squire Jones, you are well acquainted with these things; will you please to scrape the lint? It should be fine, and soft, you know, my dear sir; and be cautious that no cotton gets in, or it may p’ison the wownd. The shirt has been made with cotton thread, but you can easily pick it out.”
3. These were arranged, in due order, by the side of the murderous saws, knives, and scissors, when Elnathan stretched his long body to its utmost elevation, placing his hand on the small of his back, as if for support, and looked about him to discover what effect this display of his professional skill was likely to produce on the spectators.
4. The intense cold of the evening had stopped the bleeding, and Dr. Todd, casting a furtive glance at the wound, thought it by no means so formidable an affair as he had anticipated. Thus encouraged, he approaches his patient, and made some indication of an intention to trace the route that had been taken by the lead.
5. "Such things run in families,” observed Richard, rising with alacrity to render the desired assistance. “My father, and my grandfather before him, were both celebrated for their knowledge of surgery..."

6. "A twelve-pounder!” echoed Benjamin staring around him, with much confidence; “a twelve-pounder! ay! a twenty-four pound shot can easily be taken from a man’s body, if-so-be a doctor only knows how."
7. "Certainly, more important operations than that have been performed,” observed Richard; “the Encyclopædia mentions much more incredible circumstances than that, as, I dare say, you know Doctor Todd.”
8. They consisted of the tribes, or, as their allies were fond of asserting, in order to raise their consequence, of the several nations of the Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas; who ranked, in the confederation, in the order with which they are named.
9. Of the Lenni Lenape, or as they were called by the whites, from the circumstance of their holding their great council-fire on the banks of that river, the Delaware nation, the principal tribes, besides that which bore the generic name, were, the Mahicanni, Mohicans or Mohegans, and the Nanticokes, or Nentigoes.
10. Of these, the latter held the country along the waters of the Chesapeake and the seashore; while the Mohegans occupied the district between the Hudson and the ocean, including most of New-England. Of course, these two tribes were the first who were dispossessed of their lands by the Europeans.

11. As the natives gradually disappeared from the country of the Mohegans, some scattering families sought a refuge around the council-fire of the mother tribe, or the Delawares.
This people had been induced to suffer themselves to be called women, by their old enemies, the Mingoes, or Iroquois, after the latter, having in vain tried the effects of hostility, had recourse to artifice, in order to circumvent their rivals. According to this declaration, the Delawares were to cultivate the arts of peace, and to intrust their defence entirely to the men, or warlike tribes of the Six nations.
12. The Delawares were also known as the Lenin Lenape.
13. Several fierce and renowned warriors of the Mohegans, finding the conflict with the whites to be in vain, sought a refuge with their Grandfather, and brought with them the feelings and principles that had so long distinguished them in their own tribe.
14. It was fortunate that the ball was extracted before this Indian came in; but any old woman can dress the wound now. The young man, I hear, lives with John and Natty Bumppo, and it’s always best to humour a patient...
15. But Richard had, at the bottom, a great deal of veneration for the knowledge of Mohegan, especially in external wounds; and retaining all his desire for a participation in glory, he advanced nigh to the Indian, and said —
“Sago, sago, Mohegan! sago, my good fellow! I am right glad you have come; give me a regular physician, like Dr. Todd, to cut into flesh, and a native to heal the wound.

16. Do you remember, John, the time when I and you set the bone of Natty Bumppo’s little finger, after he broke it by falling from the rock, when he was trying to get the partridge down, that fell on the cliffs. I never could tell yet, whether it was I or Natty, who killed that bird: he fired first, and the bird stooped, but then it was rising again, just as I pulled trigger.
17. Indeed, the Indian gave him but little opportunity for the exercise of a forbearing temper, as he had come prepared for the occasion. His dressings were soon applied, and consisted only of some pounded bark, moistened with a fluid that he had expressed from some of the simples of the woods.
18. "I will just take this bark home, and analyze it; for, though it can’t be worth sixpence to the young man’s shoulder, it may be good for the toothach, or rheumatis, or some of them complaints. A man should never be above learning, even if it be from an Indian.”
19. It was fortunate for Dr. Todd, that his principles were so liberal, as, coupled with his practice, they were the means by which he acquired all his knowledge, and by which he was gradually qualifying himself for the duties of his profession.
20. Some ten years after this event, when civilization and its refinements had crept, or rather rushed, into the settlements among these wild hills, an affair of honour occurred, and Elnathan was seen to apply a salve to the wound that was received by one of the parties, which had the flavour that was peculiar to the tree, or root, that Mohegan had used. Ten years later still, when England and the United States were again engaged in war, and the hordes of the western parts of the state of New York were rushing to the field, Elnathan-presuming on the reputation obtained by these two operations, followed in the rear of a brigade of militia, as its surgeon!

21. You will soon be well again; though the jerk you gave my leaders must have a tendency to inflame the shoulder, yet, you will do, you will do.
22. “Well, ’duke, you are your own master, but I would have tried law for the saddle, before I would have given it to the fellow. Do you not own the mountains, as well as the valleys? are not the woods your own? what right has this chap, or the Leather-stocking, to shoot in your woods, without your permission? Now, I have known a farmer, in Pennsylvania, order a sportsman off his farm, with as little ceremony as I would order Benjamin to put a log in the stove."
23. Now, if a man has a right to do this on a farm of a hundred acres, what power must a landlord have, who owns sixty thousand — ay! for the matter of that, including the late purchases, a hundred thousand? There is Mohegan, to be sure, he may have some right, being a native; but it’s little the poor fellow can do now with his rifle. How is this managed in France, Monsieur Le Quoi? do you let every body run over your land, in that country, helter-skelter, as they do here, shooting the game, so that a gentleman has but little or no chance with his gun?
24. But if I were in ’duke’s place, I would stick up advertisements to-morrow morning, forbiding all persons to shoot, or trespass, in any manner, on my woods.
25. Heaven knows no difference in colour; nor must earth witness a separation of the church.

26. "The Great Spirit overlooks none of his children; and the man of the woods is as much an object of his care, as he who dwells in a palace. I wish you a good night, and pray God to bless you."
27. It was a long, narrow house, of wood, painted white, and more than half windows; and when the observer stood at the western side of the building, the edifice offered but a small obstacle to a full view of the rising sun.
28. The “steeple” was a little cupola, reared on the very centre of the roof, on four tall pillars of pine, that were fluted with a gouge, and loaded with mouldings. On the tops of the columns was reared a dome, or cupola, resembling in shape an inverted tea-cup without its bottom, from the centre of which projected a spire, or shaft of wood, transfixed with two iron rods, that bore on their ends the letters N. S. E. and W., in the same metal.
29. The whole was surmounted by an imitation of one of the finny tribe, carved in wood, by the hands of Richard, and painted, what he called, a “scale-colour.” This animal Mr. Jones affirmed to be an admirable resemblance of a great favourite of the epicures in that country, which bore the title of “lake-fish;” and doubtless the assertion was true; for, although intended to answer the purposes of a weathercock, the fish was observed invariably to look, with a longing eye, in the direction of the beautiful sheet of water that lay imbedded in the mountains of Templeton.
30. For a short time after the charter of the regents was received, the trustees of this institution employed a graduate of one of the eastern colleges, to instruct such youth as aspired to knowledge, within the walls of the edifice which we have described. The upper part of the building was in one apartment, and was intended for gala-days and exhibitions; and the lower contained two, that were intended for the great divisions of education, viz. the Latin and the English scholars.

31. Time, patience, and zeal, however, removed every impediment; and the venerable men, who had been set apart by the American churches, at length returned to their expecting diocesses, endowed with the most elevated functions of their earthly church.



The Bible:
1. 1 Samuel 2 is a great chapter.
Samuel 2:1 - “My heart rejoiceth in the Lord; mine horn is exalted in the Lord.”
In this passage, The Bible is expressing joy, or happiness in the blessings of God.
Samuel 2:2 - “There is none holy as the Lord; for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.”
In this passage, The Bible is expressing the goodness of strong ideas and stability.
Samuel 2:17 - “Wherefore the sin of young men was very great before the Lord; for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.”
In this passage, The Bible is drawing the distinction between young men who sin, and old men who sin.



Various Notes:
1. Updated: Item XXIII., 14., on Favorite Notes 2.
2. Updated: Item II., 11, on Food Ideas.



Boris Godunov and Other Dramatic Works, by Alexander Pushkin:
1. Scene I is set in The Palace of the Kremlin.
2. “Men have become tradesmen and publicans; they think only of their worldly riches and not of the salvation of their souls.”
3. “I’ll tell you why: a certain wicked heretic, one Grishka Otrepev by name, has escaped from Moscow.”
4. “All that you say, my friend, bewilders me,
Compels my head to spin with dizzy thoughts."
5. “And in due course, this fate awaits us too,
This wretched life! Our very homes besieged…”

6. “Why, even the reign of dread Ivan, Such evils never were.”
7. "Nurse: Come now, Tsarevina, hush! A maiden’s tears are like the falling dew, when the sun comes up, the dewdrops dry."
8. "Here's Novgorod…And here’s Siberia, The Volga."
9. It becomes clear that they are studying a map of Russia.
10. “From Poland, Tsar, comes troubling news.”

11. “No matter, prince: I need all sorts of tales,
To weigh them in my mind; for otherwise—
We’ll never learn the truth."
12. “Have barricades put up, that not a soul May pass, that not a raven or a hare Dare cross from Poland into Russia. Go!"
13. “No majesty, there is no doubt: Dimitri Speeps in his grave.”
14. The Pretender says, “let’s go to Cracow, to your palace, known for its hospitality, and the lustrous splendor of its halls, where the young and charming mistress Marina will greet us there.”
15. “A brilliant mind. In war and counsel both.
But since those days when he, a dark avenger…”

16. Of Kurbsky’s father writes, “For easement he immersed himself in study.”
17. A scene follows which includes Marina, then Pushkin writes, “Don’t let Dimitri get away…He’s caught within her web.”




Monday, December 4, 2023:

Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. "They considered the gods to be present at men's actions as witnesses and judges."
2. "But, since here we must always contrast the custom of a true religion with those of a false religion, have we not had for several centuries more devotion at certain altars than at others?"
3. "We do not know who invented clothes and footwear, and we want to know who first invented idols."
4. Indicates that Christianity includes a mixture of Greek and Roman ideas.
5. "Though nobody knows when men started to make idols, we know that they are of the highest antiquity."
6. To be continued.




The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. The sleigh was whirled from its dangerous position, and upset with its runners outwards. The German and the divine were thrown rather unceremoniously into the highway, but without danger to their bones. Richard appeared in the air, for a moment, describing the segment of a circle, of which the reins were the radii, and was landed at the distance of some fifteen feet, in that snow-bank which the horses had dreaded, right end uppermost. Here, as he instinctively grasped the reins, as drowning men seize at straws, he admirably served the purpose of an anchor, to check the further career of his steeds.
2. Here, Dickon, are a few articles of Bess’s trumpery, that you can throw into your sleigh when ready, and there is also a deer of my taking, that I will thank you to bring — Aggy! remember there will be a visit from Santaclaus to your stocking to-night, if you are smart and careful about the buck, and get in in season.”
3. “It is a buck indeed! I am amazed! Yes, here are two holes in him; he has fired both barrels, and hit him each time... There will be no such thing as living with him — they are both bad shots though, mere chance — mere chance; — now, I never fired twice at a cloven hoof in my life; — it is hit or miss with me — dead or runaway: — had it been a bear, or a wildcat, a man might have wanted both barrels. Here! you Aggy! how far off was the Judge when this buck was shot?”
4. "Ten rod!” echoed the other; “why, Aggy, the deer I killed last winter was at twenty — yes! if and thing it was nearer thirty than twenty. I wouldn’t shoot at a deer at ten rod: besides, you may remember, Aggy, I only fired once.”
5. Owing to the religious scruples of the Judge, Aggy was the servant of Richard, who had his services for a time, and who, of course, commanded a legal claim to the respect of the young negro.

6. But when any dispute between his lawful master and his real benefactor occurred, the black felt too much deference for both to express any opinion. In the mean while, Richard continued watching the negro as he fastened buckle after buckle, until, stealing a look of consciousness toward the other, he continued, “Now, if that young man, who was in your sleigh, is a real Connecticut settler, he will be telling every body how he saved my horses, when, if he had just let them alone for one half a minute longer, I would have brought them in much better, without upsetting, with the whip and rein — it spoils a horse to give him his head.
7. "How was it, Aggy? the lad shot the buck, and the Judge bought it, ha! and is taking him down to get the pay?”
8. Old Natty too, that is the best of it — Well, well — ’duke will say no more about my deer — and the Judge fired both barrels, and hit nothing but a poor lad, who was behind a pine-tree. I must help that quack to take out the buck shot for the poor fellow.
9. "In this manner Richard descended the mountain; the bells ringing, and his tongue going, until they entered the village..."
10. To them, the road, that made the most rapid approaches to the condition of the old, or, as they expressed it, the down countries, was the most pleasant; and surely nothing could look more like civilization than a city, even if it lay in a wilderness!

11. On either side of the highway were piled before the houses huge heaps of logs, that were daily increasing rather than diminishing in size, notwithstanding the enormous fires that might be seen lighting every window through the dusk of the evening.
12. Even the heartless, but bright rays of a December sun were missed, as they glided into the cold gloom of the valley.
13. It was lucky for the whole fabric, that the carpenter, who did the manual part of the labour, had fastened the canopy of this classic entrance so firmly to the side of the house, that, when the base deserted the superstructure in the manner we have described, and the pillars, for the want of a foundation, were no longer of service to support the roof, the roof was able to uphold the pillars.
14. "By the lord, Squire,” commenced Benjamin in reply, first giving his mouth a wipe with the back of his hand, “if this here thing had been ordered sum’at earlier in the day, it might have been got up, d’ye see, to your liking. I had mustered all hands, and was exercising candles, when you hove in sight; but when the women heard your bells, they started an end, as if they were riding the boatswain’s colt; and, if-so-be there is that man in the house, who can bring up a parcel of women when they have got headway on them, until they’ve run out the end of their rope, his name is not Benjamin Pump.
15. The instant that Remarkable Pettibone had executed her portion of the labour in illuminating, she returned to a position near Elizabeth, with the apparent motive of receiving the clothes that the other threw aside, but in reality to examine, with an air of mingled curiosity and jealousy, the appearance of the lady who was to supplant her in the administration of their domestic economy.

16. Although there was much incongruity in the furniture and appearance of the hall, there was nothing mean. The floor was carpeted, even in its remotest corners. The brass candlesticks, the gilt lustres, and the glass chandeliers, whatever might be their keeping as to propriety and taste, were admirably kept as to all the purposes of use and comfort. They were all clean, and each glittering, in the strong light of the apartment, with its peculiar lustre.
17. Her eye had not time to detect in detail the little errors, which, in truth, existed, but was glancing around her in delight, when an object arrested her view, that was strongly contrasted to the smiling faces and neatly attired personages who had thus assembled to do honour to the heiress of Templeton.
18. Uses the idiom of “turning a blind eye.”
19. "Now I own that you have beat me, I never did such a thing in all my life.”
20. "You know that my grandfather was a doctor, but you haven’t got a drop of medical blood in your veins; these kind of things run in families. All my family by the father’s side had a knack at physic. There was my uncle that was killed at Brandy-wine, he died twice as easy as any other man in the regiment, only from knowing how to do the thing as it ought to be done.”
“I doubt not, Dickon,” returned the Judge playfully, after meeting the bright smile, which, in spite of himself, stole over the stranger’s features, “that thy family understood the art of letting a life slip through their fingers with great facility.”

21. You may affect to smile, Judge Temple, at hereditary virtues, if you please; but there is not a man on your Patent who don’t know better. Here, even this young man, who has never seen any thing but bears, and deers, and wood-chucks, knows better than not to believe in virtues being transmitted down in families.
22. Richard paused, and looked earnestly at the speaker, a little astonished at the language, and a good deal appalled at the refusal. He instantly construed the latter into an act of hostility, and placing his hands in the pockets again, he walked up to Mr. Grant...
23. DOCTOR ELNATHAN TODD, FOR SUCH WAS THE UNWORTHY NAME OF the man of physic, was commonly thought to be, among the settlers, a gentleman of great mental endowments; and he was assuredly of rare personal proportions.
24. Elnathan was indebted for this exemption from labour, in some measure to his extraordinary growth, which, leaving him pale, inanimate, and listless, induced his tender mother to pronounce him “a sickly boy, and one that was not equal to work, but who might earn a living, comfortably enough, by taking to pleading law, or turning minister, or doctoring, or some sitch-like easy calling.”
25. Still there was a great uncertainty which of these vocations the youth was best endowed to fill with credit and profit; but, having no other employment, the stripling was constantly lounging about the “homestead,” munching green apples, and hunting for sorrel; when the same sagacious eye, that had brought to light his latent talents, seized upon this circumstance, as a clue to direct his future path through the turmoils of the world.

26. Omitted.
27. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. James Fenimore Cooper suggests that it is unlawful to cut down a tree without a permit or license.
2. Omitted.
3. Until further notice, I will update my Running Log on a floating basis, that is, when I feel that it is appropriate.




Sunday, December 3, 2023:

Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. "The centurion or military tribune who looked on war simply as a trade in which a little fortune could be made, went calmly into battle like a thatcher climbing a roof."
2. "How can reason govern enthusiasm? This is because a poet first sketches the structure of his canvas: the reason then holds the brush. But when he proceeds to animate his personages and to endow them with passions, then the imagination kindles, enthusiasm takes over: it is a race horse carried away headlong, but its course has been properly laid out."
3. "I am talking about all the other men who, at a supper or in their studies, display their systems of governments, reforming the armies, the church, the law, and the economy."
4. I imagine that a great French landowner would not object to being born in Germany: he would be master instead of being subject.
5. Omitted.

6. “It is well enough known nowadays that ancient practices must not be judged by modern ones.”
7. “We must get rid of all our prejudices when we read ancient authors and travel in distant nations.”
8. Fables: “Are not the most ancient fables obviously allegorical? According to our method of reckoning the eras is not the oldest fable we know that reported in the ninth chapter of the book of Judges.”
9. “Most other fables are either the corruption of ancient tales or caprices of the imagination.”
10. “The ancient fables are like our modern stories: there are moral ones, which are charming; others are insipid.”

11. End, final causes - “One would really have to be insane to deny that the purpose of stomachs is to digest, of eyes to see, of ears to hear.”
12. Here, the discussion gets complicated. “…it can never be said that man was created by god to be killed in war.”
13. Fanaticism - “Fanatics are usually guided by rascals, who put the dagger into their hands.”
14. Faith - “Vishnu incarnated himself 500 times; this is very astonishing, but after all it is not physically impossible, for if Vishnu has a soul, he can have put his soul in 500 bodies for fun.”
15. Faith - "'My son,' answers the bonze, 'give twenty rupees, and god will give you the grace to believe everything you don't believe.'"
16. Madness - "If the doctors still have a little sense they would reply: 'We don't know.' They will never understand why a brain has incoherent ideas; they will understand no better why another brain has regulated and consistent ideas. They will believe themselves to be wise, and they will be as mad as the lunatic."

17. Fraud - "We must imitate the supreme being, who does not show us things as they are. He makes the sun appear to us as if it has a diameter of two or three feet, although this star is a million times bigger than the earth...In short, he surrounds us with errors appropriate to our nature."
"We really perceive, and we can only perceive, the sun that is painted on our retina at a fixed angle."
18. "...you must admit that doctors always deceive children for their good: they tell them that they are giving them sugar, and really give them rhubarb."
19. "Wang: I admit that all men should not be equally educated, but there are things that all must be. It's necessary for everybody to be just, and the surest way to instill justice in all men is to instil them with relgion without superstition."
"Bambabef: That's a fine project, but it's impracticable."
"Wang: That's where you're wrong. You imagine that men will shake off an idea that is honest, convincing, useful to everybody, an idea that is in harmony with human reason, because they reject things that are dishonest, abusrd, useless, dangerous, that make good sense shudder. The people ar equite disposed to believe their magistrates: when their magistrates offer them only a reasonable belief, they willingly embrace it...This idea is too natural to be opposed...I assure you that I've seen entire cities which had practically no other dogmas, and they were those in which I saw the most virtue."

20. Idea - “'What is an idea?'
'It’s an image that paints itself in my brain.'”
21. “I don’t know what makes my heart beat, and my blood run in my veins; I don’t know the cause of all my movements; and you want me to tell you how I feel and how I think! That’s not fair."
22. To be continued.




Saturday, December 2, 2023:

notes about Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. In his chapter David, indicates that David was at the head of 600 brigands, and killed old men, women, and children, under the excuse that these people would “carry the news to king Achish,” and harm David and his army indirectly.
2. These bandits got angry with him, and wanted to stone him. What did this Jewish Mandrin do? He consulted the Lord, and the Lord replied that he must set out to attack the Amelekites, that the bandits would win great spoil there and get rich.
3. After David made war with Ishbosheth, father of Saul, “David seized the whole kingdom.”
4. After these expeditions, there was a three years famine in the land.

5. In his chapter Fate, he writes, “Of all the Western books that have come down to us Homer is the oldest. It is there that we find the customs of profane antiquity, gross heroes, gross gods made in the image of man. But it is also there that we find the seeds of philosophy, and above all the notion of fate, which is the master of the gods as the gods are the masters of the world."
6. “The Pharisees, among the little Jewish people, did not adopt fate until several centuries later; for these Pharisees, who were the first literate Jews, were themselves quite new.”
7. “In Alexandria they mixed part of the dogmas of the Stoics with ancient Jewish ideas.”
8. "If you could alter the fate of a fly there would be nothing to prevent you from creating the fate of all the other flies, all the other animals, all men, all nature." Here, you are more powerful than God.
9. “Other idiots, who affect to know better, say: The prudent man makes his own fate.”
10. “But the prudent man, far from making his own fate, often succumbs to it.”

11. Criticism
12. Describes “an illustrious chain,” like a chain of explanations, for example.
13. "Such is human nature."
14. "But success made their glory; and if the seal of victory had not consecrated these half-gods Alexander would have been no more than a dare-devil and Caesar a rebel in the eyes of the vulgar."
15. "This author, he said, was a wise man who more than once lent to philosophy the charm of poetry."
16. "He persecutes him everywhere. Everywhere he reproaches him with coldness and lack of harmony."
17. "The boring beauty of his discourses."

18. "The goodness that shines in her, the sweetness of her charms, is an image of the goodness she sees shine in you. And, enriched by you alone, her courtesy, freed from the slightest obscurities, is the reflected light of your sublime effulgence."
19. "They have seen the fears of their people, disturbed by terror, happily mastered by your good faith..."
20. To be continued.

21. Voltaire indicates that the fox’s organs are different from those of a crane and a lark.
22. Suggests that in many instances, to help someone, instead of professional treatment, just let nature take its course.
23. Questions whether drugs actually cure you.
24. Suggests that the world should be logically arranged.
25. Reminds us of our freedoms, and of liberty.




The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
1. “The black drew up, with a cheerful grin upon his chilled features, and began thrashing his arms together, in order to restore the circulation to his fingers, while the speaker stood erect, and, throwing aside his outer covering, stept from the sleigh upon a bank of snow…”
2. Cooper, suggests that living in the country is like living in the wilderness, in nature.
3. A storm of sleet had fallen and frozen upon the surface a few days before, and but a slight snow had occurred since to purify, without weakening its covering.
4. Cooper suggests that from an aerial view of New York, there are lots of trees.
5. In the scene previously mentioned with the deer, "The whole scene had passed with a rapidity that confused the female, who was unconsciously rejoicing in the escape of the buck..."

6. As the speaker concluded, he drew his bare hand across the bottom of his nose, and again opened his enormous mouth with a kind of inward laugh.
7. “The gun scatters well, Natty, and has killed a deer before now,” said the traveller, smiling good humouredly. “One barrel was charged with buck shot; but the other was loaded for birds only."
8. "...I can live without the venison, but I don’t love to give up my lawful dues in a free country."
9. "...yet he thought it prudent to utter the close of the sentence in such an undertone, as to leave nothing audible but the grumbling sounds of his voice."
10. “...see where the wolves bit his throat, the night I druve them from the venison I was smoking on the chimbly top — that dog is more to be trusted nor many a Christian man; for he never forgets a friend, and loves the hand that gives him bread.”

11. One of the characters, with warm footwear, and warm clothing, was appropriately dressed for the cold weather.
12. “It’s far easier to call names, than to shoot a buck on the spring; but the cretur come by his end from a younger hand than ’ither your’n or mine, as I said before.”
13. Here are two to one, indeed,” replied the Judge, with a smile; “I am outvoted — overruled, as we say on the bench. There is Aggy, he can’t vote, being a slave; and Bess is a minor — so I must even make the best of it.
14. "The meat is none of mine to sell,” said Leather-stocking, adopting a little of his companion’s hauteur; “for my part, I have known animals travel days with shots in the neck, and I’m none of them who’ll rob a man of his rightful dues.”
15. "You are tenacious of your rights, this cold evening, Natty,” returned the Judge, with unconquerable good nature..."

16. “...but what say you, young man, will three dollars pay you for the buck?”
17. "First let us determine the question of right to the satisfaction of us both,” said the youth, firmly but respectfully, and with a pronunciation and language vastly superior to his appearance; “with how many shot did you load your gun?”
18. "With five, sir,” said the Judge, gravely, a little struck with the other’s manner; “are they not enough to slay a buck like this?”
19. One would do it; but,” moving to the tree from behind which he had appeared, “you know, sir, you fired in this direction — here are four of the bullets in the tree.”
The Judge examined the fresh marks in the rough bark of the pine, and shaking his head, said with a laugh...
20. “Here,” said the youth, throwing aside the rough over-coat that he wore, and exhibiting a hole in his under garment, through which large drops of blood were oozing.

21. “Good God!” exclaimed the Judge, with horror; “have I been trifling here about an empty distinction, and a fellow-creature suffering from my hands without a murmur? But hasten — quick — get into my sleigh — it is but a mile to the village, where surgical aid can be obtained; — all shall be done at my expense, and thou shalt live with me until thy wound is healed — ay, and for ever afterwards, too.”
22. “I thank you, sir, for your good intention, but must decline your offer. I have a friend who would be uneasy were he to hear that I am hurt and away from him. The injury is but slight, and the bullet has missed the bones; but I believe, sir, you will now admit my title to the venison.”
23. "Admit it!” repeated the agitated Judge; “I here give thee a right to shoot deer, or bears, or any thing thou pleasest in my woods, for ever."
24. Here, Cooper also raises the question, whether it's legal to discharge (shoot) your firearm outside, in public.
25. There’s them living who say, that Nathaniel Bumppo’s right to shoot in these hills, is of older date than Marmaduke Temple’s right to forbid him. But if there’s a law about it at all, though who ever heard tell of a law that a man should’nt kill deer where he pleased! — but if there is a law at all, it should be to keep people from the use of them smooth-bores.

26. Excuse me, sir, I have need of the venison.”
“But this will buy you many deer,” said the Judge; “take it, I entreat you,” and lowering his voice to nearly a whisper, he added — “it is for a hundred dollars.”
27. For an instant only, the youth seemed to hesitate, and then, blushing even through the high colour that the cold had given to his cheeks, as if with inward shame at his own weakness, he again proudly declined the offer.
28. “I had lost my bullet mould in crossing the Oneida outlet, and so had to make shift with the buck shot; but the rifle was true, and did’nt scatter like your two-legged thing there, Judge, which don’t do, I find, to hunt in company with.”
29. Natty’s apology to the delicacy of the young lady was unnecessary, for, while he was speaking, she was too much employed in helping her father to remove certain articles of their baggage to hear him.
30. “Trust old Leather-stocking,” returned the hunter, significantly; “he has’nt lived forty years in the wilderness, and not larnt from the savages how to hold his tongue — trust to me, lad; and remember old Indian John.”

31. The old man gave another of his remarkable laughs, which partook so largely of exultation, mirth, and irony, and shaking his head, he turned, with his rifle at a trail, and moved into the forest with short and quick steps, that were between a walk and a trot.
32. At each movement that he made his body lowered several inches, his knees yielding with an inclination inward; but as the sleigh turned at a bend in the road, the youth cast his eyes in quest of his old companion, and he saw that he was already nearly concealed by the trunks of the trees, while his dogs were following quietly in his footsteps, occasionally scenting the deer track, that they seemed to know instinctively was now of no further use to them.
33. CHAPTER II
34. AN ANCESTOR OF MARMADUKE TEMPLE HAD, ABOUT ONE HUNDRED and twenty years before the commencement of our tale, come to the colony of Pennsylvania, a friend and co-religionist of its great patron. Old Marmaduke, for this formidable prenomen was a kind of appellative to the race, brought with him, to that asylum of the persecuted, an abundance of the good things of this life. He became the master of many thousands of acres of uninhabited territory, and the supporter of many a score of dependants. He lived greatly respected for his piety, and not a little distinguished as a sectary: was intrusted by his associates with many important political stations; and died just in time to escape the knowledge of his own poverty. It was his lot to share the fortune of most of those who brought wealth with them into the new settlements of the middle colonies.
35. "...and it was their “religious duty,” so the Major always expressed it: “it was their religious duty to have supported him.”

36. "At no time was the old soldier an admirer of the peaceful disciples of Fox. Their disciplined habits, both of mind and body, had endowed them with great physical perfection; and the eye of the veteran was apt to scan the fair proportions and athletic frames of the colonists..."
37. In this chapter, Cooper continues to discusses at length, the history and character of Marmaduke and Mr. Effingham.
38. CHAPTER III
39. "All that thou see’st, is nature’s handy-work..."
40. "More able to do either, my dear father,” said a playful voice from under the ample enclosures of the hood, “than to kill deer with a smooth-bore.”

41. On the road, one of the travellers says, "See, Bess, there is thy resting-place for life! And thine too, young man, if thou wilt consent to dwell with us.”
42. "...which, in that early day, wound along the precipices. The negro reined in his impatient steeds, and time was given to Elizabeth to dwell on a scene which was so rapidly altering under the hands of man, that it only resembled, in its outlines, the picture she had so often studied, with delight, in her childhood."
43. "...that it was not difficult for the imagination of Elizabeth to conceive they were enlarging under her eye, while she was gazing, in mute wonder, at the alterations that a few short years had made in the aspect of the country."
44. Before the doors of these pretending dwellings, were placed a few saplings, either without branches, or possessing only the feeble shoots of one or two summer’s growth, that looked not unlike tall grenadiers on post, near the threshold of princes.
45. These, which in the language of the country are termed stubs, abounded in the open fields adjacent to the village, and were accompanied, occasionally, by the ruin of a pine or a hemlock that had been stripped of its bark, and which waved in melancholy grandeur its naked limbs to the blast, a skeleton of its former glory.

46. Five years had here wrought greater changes than a century would produce in older countries, where time and labour have given permanency to the works of man.
47. The cheerful sound of sleigh-bells, however-soon attracted the attention of the whole party, as they came jingling up the sides of the mountain, at a rate that announced both a powerful team and a hard driver. The bushes which lined the highway interrupted the view, and they were close upon this vehicle before they discovered who were its occupants.
48. CHAPTER IV
49. He was the charioteer, and he guided the mettled animals that he drove along the prece pice, with a fearless eye, and a steady hand. Immediately behind him, with his face toward the other two, was a tall figure, to whose appearance not even the duplicate over-coats which he wore, aided by the corner of a horse-blanket, could give the appearance of strength.
50. A fair, jolly wig furnished a neat and rounded outline to his visage, and he, as well as the other two, wore martin-skin caps as outward coverings for their heads.

51. A very considerable excavation had been made into the side of the hill, at the point where Richard had succeeded in stopping the sleighs, from which the stones used for building in the village were ordinarily quarried, and in which he now attempted to turn his team.
52. Thus appealed to, it was not in the nature of the Frenchman to disappoint expectations that were so confidently formed; although he sat looking down the precipice which fronted him, as Richard turned his leaders into the quarry, with a pair of eyes that stood at least half an inch from his visage. The German’s muscles were unmoved, but his quick sight scanned each movement with an understanding expression, that blended amusement at Richard’s dilemma with anxiety at their situation. Mr. Grant placed his hands on the side of the sleigh, in preparation for a spring, but moral timidity deterred him from taking the leap that bodily apprehension strongly urged him to attempt.
53. On the contrary, finding that the cries and blows of their driver were redoubled at this juncture, the leaders backed upon the pole-horses, who, in their turn, backed the sleigh. Only a single log lay above the pile which upheld the road, on the side toward the valley, which was now buried in the snow.
54. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Please review Items 23, & 24, in today's Cooper reading.
2. Added: Items 22 & 23 from today's Volataire reading, to Notes about Psychiatry.




Friday, December 1, 2023:

Various Notes:
1. Cultural Psychology was a college course that I was enrolled in that taught me that sometimes, the media, or the press in their coverage of a case, often favors the prosecution.
2. Tba.




Thursday, November 30, 2023:

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.
3. Updated: Items IV. 9, V. 7-11, VI. 8 & 9, X., XXII. 8, & XXIII. 13, on Favorite Notes 2.
4. Book Reviews: Various, including a piece on "Hip Hop," and "Modern Marvels: Fireworks," added.




Wednesday, November 29, 2023:


The Pioneers, by James Fenimore Cooper:
Introduction
1. "The face of the country, the climate as it was found by the whites, and the manners of the settlers, are described with a minuteness for which the author has no other apology than the force of his own recollections."
2. "Otsego is said to be a word compounded of Ot, a place of meeting, and Sego, or Sago, the ordinary term of salutation, used by the Indians of this region."
3. “The war drove off the agent in common with the other officers of the crown, and his rude dwelling was soon abandoned.”
4. Cooper freely admitted that some of the places in The Pioneers, including the Lake and its surrounding forested hills, were based on his memories. So were some of the buildings in the story, including “the Academy,” the jail and courthouse, and the Bold Dragoon tavern.
4B. Similarly, in populating his imagined village, Cooper drew on memories of a few real people: the German “Fritz Hartmann” of the story resembles Hendrick Frey of the Mohawk Valley — a Cooper family friend — and “Monsieur Le Quoi” even bears the name of a French refugee who was for a time a Cooperstown shopkeeper
5. THE PIONEERS, OR THE SOURCES OF THE SUSQUEHANNA; A DESCRIPTIVE TALE (1823) is both a novel in the romantic tradition — a tale of love, hidden identity, and forest adventure — and a vivid description of life in a newly settled village on the American frontier, where people of varied ethnic and racial backgrounds have come together to build a new community.

6. His woodland skills, his love of nature, and his honesty and bravery, as well as his cross-cultural friendship with American Indians have for almost two centuries made Natty Bumppo a favorite for readers around the world. Cooper would make him the central character of four more very popular “Leatherstocking Tales,” and he would become the inspiration for much of the American “Western” tradition down to The Lone Ranger and Tonto.
7. It was a very modest success, and Cooper was astonished when his second attempt, The Spy (1821), based on the Revolution in Westchester County, proved to be a runaway best seller. In it American readers found their first real opportunity to read an exciting story based on their own history. His third novel, published in 1823, was The Pioneers. Over the next thirty years, until his death in 1851, Cooper would write thirty-two novels as well as a dozen other works including the first major history of the United States Navy.
8. The Pioneers tells a fictional story set in the picturesque surroundings of Cooper’s childhood, on what was then New York’s frontier with the wilderness. It tells a basic American story of how pioneers pushing westward (it was the first novel to use the word “pioneers” in this American sense) established the new communities that would grow into the cities, towns, and villages of today, and was immediately recognized for its accuracy.
9. The creation of flourishing towns and cultivated fields, where but a few years before . . . forests stood, are events now so familiar to us, that they scarcely excite surprise.
10. The “Templeton” of The Pioneers thus includes not only settlers from New England and the Middle Colonies, and the Dutch who were New York’s original colonists, but newer immigrants from England, Ireland, Germany, and France, as well as African Americans (both slave and free). In Natty Bumppo’s Indian friend Chingachgook there is even a reminder of New York’s original Native American inhabitants. Moreover, as Cooper noted, people of different social classes and backgrounds mingled more freely on the frontier than in older towns and cities.

11. Like most of Cooper’s thirty-two novels, The Pioneers has a standardized “romantic novel” plot of the sort made popular by Sir Walter Scott, and expected by novel readers of his time.
14.The romantic formula is based on a love story between an eligible young man and woman of respectable backgrounds, with whom most readers can identify, who are kept apart by events or misunderstandings, but come together in the last chapter to marry and live happily ever after. On the way, they undergo adventures in what is to the average reader an exotic setting, and encounter unusual sorts of people that average readers might never meet.
15. For today’s readers, The Pioneers is memorable less for this romance formula, which it shares with hundreds of long-forgotten novels, than for its vivid portrait of life in a frontier community, and for its discussion of cultural and environmental issues that still confront Americans. Cooper is a pioneer both in criticizing the “wasty ways” of the tree-chopping settlers destroying everything around them, and in the person of Natty Bumppo reminding his readers of nature’s ethical and esthetic values that mankind destroys at his peril. And, in describing frontier life, he includes an inevitable conflict between law and ethics, questioning when strict enforcement of the law violate commonsense morality, so that ethical people must break it.

16. But what has made The Pioneers most memorable to readers at home and abroad is its introduction of the character of Natty Bumppo. Though portrayed as an old man, Natty Bumppo is still unequalled in the wilderness skills of shooting and tracking, while at the same time he is sternly honest with himself, generous toward men, and protective and chivalrous toward women. As a loner, living on the outskirts of the community but never a real part of it, Natty appreciates nature and the wilderness as the destructive settlers do not. His closest companion is the Indian Chingachgook, known to the settlers as John Mohegan.
17. The deep friendship between Natty and Chingachgook, men of different races, pioneers a new element in American literature, one that Cooper would expand upon in the later Leatherstocking novels, and that would powerfully influence American literature from Herman Melville and Mark Twain down to the present.
18. And though The Pioneers gives it less attention, Cooper also shows how a community that is in many ways egalitarian, where rich and poor come together, nevertheless excludes African Americans, both free and enslaved.
19. Natty Bumppo appears in the opening chapter of The Pioneers, and one suspects that Cooper originally considered him just one of the varied frontier characters who enliven the novel. But his role in the story keeps growing; he becomes so involved in both the twists of the plot and in adventures in the woods as to almost dominate the story.
20. See item 4B.

21. Indicates that one of the main characters, Natry Bumppo, was known for his honesty and bravery.
22. Natty Bumppo is often said to have been modeled on a squatter and former wilderness scout named David Shipman, living near Cooperstown, whom Cooper once called “the Leatherstocking of the region.” Others writers have sought to link him with Daniel Boone. But Natty’s importance, both in The Pioneers and in the four other Leatherstocking Tales, is as a unique character in whom Cooper sought to portray a virtuous man untainted by the corruptions of “civilization.”
23. "In reading Cooper for pleasure, it is important to remember that, like other writers of his time, he writes at a leisurely pace, in which the opening chapters slowly introduce the setting and characters, before the novel speeds up to a more exciting and event-filled conclusion. In a world before photography, Cooper spends much time in using words to describe scenery and scenes, an art in which he is an acknowledged champion. His ability to make the village, and the lake and forested hills that surround it, come alive to readers was a major inspiration for the so-called Hudson River School of landscape painting that dominated American art for much of the nineteenth century. Moreover, Cooper’s language is often almost musical, with carefully orchestrated phrases that are intended to be listened to, and not scanned rapidly with the eye. Read slowly and enjoy the sound and the view."
24. A second difference from most modern novels is the role of the author in the story. Today we expect a novel to immerse itself in the story, so that the reader forgets the author. But Cooper, following the tradition of his times, remains very much in the story, often letting us watch the characters through his eyes, rather than our own. Moreover, he is descriptive, telling us what the characters say and do, but rarely entering into their minds to tell us what they are thinking, except as it can be interpreted from their actions.
25. James Fenimore Cooper would go on to write thirty-one more novels, located in time over many centuries, and in space all over the globe. His novels of the sea created a whole new genre of novels about sailors and the ocean, just as his Leatherstocking Tales created one about the wilderness. But in many ways, The Pioneers, written with all the personal intensity of Cooper’s nostalgia for his childhood on the American frontier, can give the modern reader both enjoyment as a story and a better understanding of what it means to be an American.

26. INTRODUCTION [1832]
27. AS THIS WORK PROFESSES, IN ITS TITLE PAGE, TO BE A DESCRIPTIVE tale, they who will take the trouble to read it, may be glad to know how much of its contents is literal fact, and how much is intended to represent a general picture.
28. Gen. James Clinton, the brother of George Clinton, then Governor of New York, and the father of De Witt Clinton, who died Governor of the same state in 1827, commanded the brigade employed on this duty.
29. Soon after the close of the war, Washington, accompanied by many distinguished men, visited the scene of this tale, it is said with a view to examine the facilities for opening a communication by water, with other points of the Country. He staid but a few hours.

30. In order to prevent mistake, it may be well to say that the incidents of this tale are purely a fiction. The literal facts are chiefly connected with the natural and artificial objects, and the customs of the inhabitants.
31. There is also some liberty taken with the truth in the description of the principal dwelling: the real building had no “firstly” and “lastly.” It was of bricks and not of stones, and its roof exhibited none of the peculiar beauties of the “composite order.” It was erected in an age too primitive for that ambitious school of architecture. But the author indulged his recollections freely, when he had fairly entered the door.

32. CHAPTER I
33. NEAR THE CENTRE OF THE GREAT STATE OF NEW YORK LIES AN extensive district of country, whose surface is a succession of hills and dales, or, to speak with greater deference to geographical definitions, of mountains and valleys.
34. Beautiful and thriving villages are found interspersed along the margins of the small lakes, or situated at those points of the streams which are favourable to manufacturing; and neat and comfortable farms, with every indication of wealth about them, are scattered profusely through the vales, and even to the mountain tops. Roads diverge in every direction, from the even and graceful bottoms of the valleys, to the most rugged and intricate passes of the hills
35. "In short, the whole district is hourly exhibiting how much can be done, in even a rugged country, and with a severe climate..."
36. Only forty years have passed since this whole territory was a wilderness.
37. Very soon after the establishment of the independence of the States by the peace of 1783, the enterprise of their citizens was directed to a developement of the natural advantages of their widely extended dominions.
38. A narrow belt of country, extending for a short distance on either side of the Hudson, with a similar occupation of fifty miles on the banks of the Mohawk, together with the islands of Nassau and Staten, and a few insulated settlements on chosen land along the margins of streams, composed the country that was then inhabited by less than two hundred thousand souls. Within the short period we have mentioned, her population has spread itself over five degrees of latitude and seven of longitude, and has swelled to the powerful number of nearly a million and a half, who are maintained in abundance, and can look forward to ages before the evil day must arrive, when their possessions will become unequal to their wants.
39. "In the vale, which lay at a distance of several hundred feet beneath them, there was what in the language of the country was called a clearing, and all the usual improvements of a new settlement; these even extended up the hill to the point where the road turned short and ran across the level land, which lay on the summit of the mountain; but the summit itself yet remained a forest," a wilderness.

40. There was a glittering in the atmosphere, as if it were filled with innumerable shining particles, and the noble bay horses that drew the sleigh were covered, in many parts, with a coat of frost.
41. Huge saddles, studded with nails of the same material, and fitted with cloth that admirably served as blankets to the shoulders of the animals, supported four high, square-topped turrets, through which the stout reins led from the mouths of the horses to the hands of the driver, who was a negro, of apparently twenty years of age.
42. His face, which nature had coloured with a glistening black, was now mottled with the cold, and his large shining eyes were moistened with a liquid that flowed from the same cause; still there was a smiling expression of good humour in his happy countenance, that was created by the thoughts of his home, and a Christmas fire-side, with its Christmas frolics.
43. The sleigh was one of those large, comfortable, old-fashioned conveyances, which would admit a whole family within its bosom, but which now contained only two passengers besides the driver. Its outside was a modest green, and its inside of a fiery red, that was intended to convey the idea of heat in that cold climate. Large buffalo skins, trimmed around the edges with red cloth, cut into festoons, covered the back of the sleigh, and were spread over its bottom, and drawn up around the feet of the travellers...
44. The mountain on which they were journeying was covered with pines, that rose without a branch seventy or eighty feet, and which frequently towered to an additional height, that more than equalled that elevation. Through the innumerable vistas that opened beneath the lofty trees the eye could penetrate, until it was met by a distant inequality in the ground, or was stopped by a view of the summit of the mountain which lay on the opposite side of the valley to which they were hastening. The dark trunks of the trees rose from the pure white of the snow, in regularly formed shafts, until, at a great height, their branches shot forth their horizontal limbs, that were covered with the meager foliage of an evergreen, affording a melancholy contrast to the torpor of nature below.

45. A storm of sleet had fallen and frozen upon the surface a few days before, and but a slight snow had occurred since to purify, without weakening its covering.
46. In a few moments the speaker succeeded in extricating a double-barrelled fowling-piece from among a multitude of trunks and bandboxes.
47. After throwing aside the thick mittens which had encased his hands, that now appeared in a pair of leather gloves tipped with fur, he examined his priming, and was about to move forward, when the light bounding noise of an animal plunging through the woods was heard, and directly a fine buck darted into the path, a short distance ahead of him.
48. As it came first into view he raised the fowling-piece to his shoulder, and, with a practised eye and steady hand, drew a trigger; but the deer dashed forward undaunted, and apparently unhurt.
49. To be continued.




Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Updated: the last paragraph of the article "Why I Don't Believe The Story About The Slave Trade, And Why..."




Tuesday, November 28, 2023:


Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. "It is not enough to do no evil, you will do good."
2. "I know enough medicine to explain simple remedies to [my parishioners] when they're ill."
3. "The Japanese: After men have disputed for a very long time, and it has been realized that all these quarrels teach men only to harm one another, they finally decide that mutual toleration is unquestionably best."
4. "The father of Flavius Josephus must nevertheless have been one of the witnesses of all Jesus' miracles. Josephus was of the priestly caste, related to queen Mariamne, Herod's wife."
5. "Be this as it may, it was about the year 60 of our era that the Christians began to separate themselves from the Jewish community."
6. The Heaven of the ancients
7. "The ancient Greeks, seeing that the rulers of towns lived in citadels at the tops of mountains, judged that the gods should also have a citadel, and placed it in Thessaly, on mount Olympus, whose summit is sometimes hidden in the clouds, so that their palace was on the same level as their heaven."
8. "The stars and the planets, which seem to be attached to the blue vault of our atmosphere, afterwards became the homes of the gods...The general council of the gods was held in a great hall which was reached by the milky way, for it was clearly necessary for the gods to have a hall in the air since men had town halls on earth."
9. "At the opera, and in more serious writings, the gods are made to descend in the midst of winds, clouds and thunder, that is, god is dragged through the vapors of our little globe."
10. "The ancients believed that to go to heaven was to ascend..."

11. Indicates that it is not unlikely that an entire race of people, at some time, became extinct.
12. Circoncision: Circumcision
13. Suggests that circumcision originated with the Egyptians, and writes, "It is evident from Herodotus that several peoples (the Phoenicians and the peoples of Palestine for example,) had taken circumcision from Egypt."
14. "Genesis says that Abraham had been circumcised earlier. But Abraham had travelled in Egypt, which had long been a flourishing kingdom, governed by a powerful king."
15. "Now before Joshua the Israelites, by their own admission, took many customs from the Egyptians. They imitated them in several sacrifices, in several ceremonies, as in the fasts which they observed on the eve of the festivals of Isis, in the ablutions, in the custom of shaving the priest's head. The incense, the candelabra, the sacrifice of the red cow, the putrification with hyssop, the abstention from pork, the horror of strangers' kitchen utensils, all attest that the little Hebrew people, despite an aversion for the great Egyptian nation, had kept an infinit number of its former masters' customs."
16. "The Arabs too have always been faithful to it. But the Egyptians, who circumcised boys and girls in the earliest times, eventually stopped performing this operation on girls, and finally restricted it to priests, astrologers and prophets."
17. "It is this Arabian circumcision that has passed to the Ethiopians, who still circumcise boys and girls."

18. Confession
19. The abbots began by demanding that their monks come to them twice a year to confess all their faults. After their confession, the abbotts usually absolved the monks as much as they could.
20. Body
21. Suggests that sensations are powerful forces.
22. Credo
23. Discusses saint Augustine's sermon 115, in writing, "I believe in god the all-powerful father, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ his only son, our lord."
24. Discusses Saint-Pierre's book on the purity of religion, in writing:
I believe in one god only, and I love him. I believe that he illuminates every soul that comes into the world, as saint John says...
I believe in one god only, because there can be only one soul of the great all, only one vivifying being, a unique creator.
I believe that it is our duty to regard all men as our brothers since god is our common father.
25. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. I believe that my blog presents a fresh new perspective on many subjects, and new ideas, in a literary, rather than a journalistic method.
2. Omitted.




Sunday, November 26, 2023:

Various Notes:
1. “Life involves patience, patience, and patience.” -Jane Austen
2. Updated: Item XXI, on Favorite Notes 2.




Saturday, November 25, 2023:




Various Notes:
1. Sleep, by Toren Spencer-Gray
"It's like when I was a kid,
The feeling that I used to get when I would sleep for eight whole hours,
But it's just a feeling that I get now, nothing more..."
2. My Sky, by Mirra Lokhvitskaya (1896-1905), is a great poem, because in it, the poet suggests that the night sky is hers.
3. 7A., and 8A., and 19A., added to an update to today's reading.
4. Trivial Pursuit taught me that clinical death is the medical term for cessation of blood circulation and breathing, the two criteria necessary to sustain the lives of human beings and of many other organisms.
5. Cultural Psychology, was a college course that I was enrolled in. I learned that people have similarities and differences. I also learned that certain cultures are better at certain things. For example, blacks are better at singing soul music, and Asians are better at martial arts.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.

6. In one scene of Boris Godunov, by Alexander Pushkin, where there is a large crowd, the author writes that if you die as a people, you die as a people. Here, he is suggesting that there is something noble in dying together.
7. "Beginning crocheting stitches," may be a good way to learn how to begin crocheting stitches.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.




Friday, November 24, 2023:


Various Notes:
1. I made an update to the last paragraph of the article entitled Why I Don't Believe The Story About The Slave Trade….
2. Tba.




Thursday, November 23, 2023:
Happy Thanksgiving!🍂


Various Notes:
1. Leaving the windows open in your house is like camping outside.
2. According to the Oxford Essential German Dictionary: squirrel - Eichhornchen.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.
3. Friedrich Schiller suggests that the will of man, or the will to survive, is a powerful force.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.




Wednesday, November 22, 2023:


Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. Does it really matter if one is on on medication? Does the medication actually change one's behavior in any noticeable way or another?
2. Omitted.
3. 1., Added to Notes about Psychiatry.
4. Omitted.
5. Bornes de l'esprit humain: Limits of the human mind.
6. Suggests that there is a mystery of God, as well as a mystery of death.
7. If God is omniscient, then he would know all the thoughts, emotions, and memories of all mankind.
8. Why was this soul given to this body? Why was I born to this time period? This location on Earth?
9. Hope to the future, "hope to live."
10. Briefly discusses the philosophers Thomas Aquinas and John Duns Scotus.

11. "You promise God to do all the good in your power."
12. Do everything in the name of God.
13. "You want everybody to do the work for you. You have to do the work yourself."
A quote I formulated during this reading.

14. Chain of events
15. "...it is hardly a discovery that there is no effect without a cause, and that the smallest cause often produces the greatest effects."
16. "Lord Bolingbroke admitted that the petty quarrels of the duchess of Marlborough and lady Masham gave him the opportunity to make the special treaty betweeen queen Anne and Louis XIV. This treaty led to the peace of Utrecht. This peace of Utrecht confirmed Philip V on the throne of Spain."
17. In a previous chapter mentions that one editor scrutinized the punctuation, spelling, and grammar of an author.
18. Suggests that many recipes for foods have existed since antiquity.
19. Suggests that one should only take medication for mortal illnesses.




Tuesday, November 21, 2023:

an Introduction to Astronomy:
1. The sky is vast and distances between objects can be very large.
2. The nearest star to our solar system is 4 light years away, which is 20 trillion miles.
3. The stars may all look the same distance away, as if they were pasted on the wall of a giant dome. But that's an illusion too. Some stars are tens of thousands of light years farther away from Earth than others.
4. How can we tell how far away a star is? One clue is its brightness. Distant stars look dimmer than they would if we were close to them. But that clue isn’t very reliable, because stars vary a lot in their brightness. Some stars that stand out in the sky aren’t actually very far away compared to other stars—they’re just incredibly big and bright. And some nearby stars are dim. In fact, our Sun’s closest star neighbor, Proximus Centuri, is so faint and tiny that we need a telescope to see it!
5. So astronomers rely on measurements of something called parallax to figure out the distances of stars.

6. Everything in space is moving all the time.
7. You might feel like you’re sitting still, but you’re actually flying through space incredibly fast! That’s because Earth is carrying you like a spaceship. 
8. Earth is spinning. If you were standing on the equator, you and the spot under your feet would be rotating at a speed of about a thousand miles per hour. But Earth is also orbiting around the Sun, moving even faster: 67,000 miles per hour. And the Sun itself is moving around the center of our galaxy, carrying everything in the solar system with it, at a rate of 490,000 miles per hour. And that’s not all. Our galaxy, the Milky Way , is moving too—at a rate of 872,405 miles per hour. Our cluster of galaxies is moving too. And so is everything else in the universe.
9. Gravity holds everything together.
10. Source: AMNH.



Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. Skeptics, Skepticism:
There is no God, the sun is not controlled by any greater force, there are no mysteries of life.
2. Briefly discusses the Yalkut, a rabbinically annotated text of the Old Testament.




Sunday, November 19, 2023:


William Wordsworth: A Life, by Stephen Gill:
1. For some years Wordsworth had been moving towards a more explicit declaration of faith in Man's immortal destiny and apparently tiny bibliographical detail speaks loudly now.
2. “At this moment in Wordsworth’s life, though, the question shaping itself…must have been, ‘What next?’ Wordsworth was in his late forties…"
3. “What he told his brother Christopher was, ‘I write chiefly for posterity.’”
4. “…and the painter became uproarious over Homer, Shakespeare, Milton, Voltaire, and Newton."



Philosophical Dictionary, by Voltaire:
1. “The Jews boasted that they were descended from him [Abraham].”
2. “For the rest, this name Bram, Abram, was famous in India and Persia…Others say that he was Brahma of the Indians, but this has not been proved.
3. Suggests that it was the destiny of the Greeks to teach other peoples.
4. “They say that it was hard to see how Adam, who was ruddy and hairy, could have been the father of the Negroes, who are as black as ink, and have black wool on their heads.”
5. “His book was burned because it was said to ridicule the Bible; but I can certify that he did not realize what he was doing.”

6. Omitted.
7. Soul
8. Reminds is that we cannot see our soul.
9. "The first philosophers said, 'There must be something in us that produces our thoughts; this something must be very subtle; it's a breath... 'It is atoms in us that think...'"
10. It is the nature of the soul to think.

11. Discusses digestion and walking, then writes, “The Greeks saw clearly that thought often had nothing to do with the play of our organs; they attributed an animal soul to these organs, and to thought, a finer, subtler soul."
12. "But this soul of thought frequently has the ascendancy over the animal soul."
13. This animal soul "is nothing but the movement of your organs."
14. There is the eternal object of the disputes of mankind; I say eternal object; for not having any first notion from which we can descend in this examination, we can only rest for ever in a labyrinth of doubt and feeble conjecture.
Suggests that certain things are the objects of eternal disputes of mankind, while certain things mankind agrees on.
15. How should we have? we should have had to see life and thought enter a body. Does a father know how he has produced his son? does a mother how she conceived him? Has anyone ever been able to divine how he acts, how he wakes, how he sleeps? Does anyone know how his limbs obey his will? has anyone discovered by what art ideas are marked out in his brain and issue from it at his command?

16. Quotes one philosopher who suggests that right and wrong are a feeling.
17. Suggests that the soul wants to think in a certain way.
18. Gives evidence suggesting that the soul is immortal, and exists beyond the limits of the body.
19. Gives evidence of dreams and visions, of aspects of the nature of the soul.
20. Let us leave to each man the liberty and consolation of seeking himself, and of losing himself in his ideas.

21. Amitie: Friendship
22. Suggests that we examine what friendship is, in this chapter
23. In his chapter Love, suggests that love involves attraction.
24. Writes, "what has misled us, is this word love."
25. To be continued.




Friday, November 17, 2023:


William Wordsworth: A Life, by Stephen Gill:
1. Many of Wordsworth’s poems are meditations on natural phenomenon, and “an intense exercise of the imagination to disclose meaning in an experience.”
2. “Wordsworth’s return to his lyric formulae, however, is a highly self conscious one, which exploits, even indulges, a retrospective, autumnal tone. As always with this poet, retrospection involves private allusion, a gathering together of past and present visible only to his intimates.”
3. In one of Wordsworth’s poems, “the poet celebrates the beauty of the sunset…”
4. Though accomplished, the poems of 1817 suggest in their tone a poet aware that a movement in his imaginative life is coming to a close. The ebullience of earlier lyrics is missing the energy that suggested the limitless possibilities for poetry in the play of the imagination upon the everyday.



Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen:
1. The parents exchange stories about their children's triumphs, in one scene.
2. "Friendship is certainly the finest balm for the pangs of disappointed love."



Various Notes:
1. Eugene Onegin, an Opera by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, is also a book that I’ve read.
2. Many of the books that I have read on the Book Reviews VI: Tolstoy, Chekhov, Pushkin page, are also adapted to film or music, on YouTube. In fact, many of the books that I've reviewed are available in some format or another, on YouTube.




Thursday, November 16, 2023:


William Wordsworth: A Life, by Stephen Gill:
1. “Wordsworth’s response to these social portents was complex.”
2. Discusses the importance of sensibility in social matters.
3. “Thanksgiving Ode ‘is, in effect, Wordsworth’s primary act of reconciliation with the Church of England.”
4. Suggests that sometimes we can be emotional instead of rational.
5. "Education for the ignorant masses would have to be a priority, but something more would be needed for the advance of the whole nation.”

6. “A new course of education, a higher tone of moral feeling, more of the grandeur of the imaginative faculties, and less of the petty processes and purblind understanding, that would manage the concerns of nations in the same calculating spirit with which it would set about building a new house.”
7. The Statesman's Manual: or, The Bible the Best Guide to Political Skill and Foresight: a Lay Sermon, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, is an essay that is discussed.
8. “...Hazlitt vilified its author as a windbag apostate and after publication he repeated the attack not once but three times, once in the Edinburgh Review and twice in the Examiner."
9. At one point, Wordsworth and Coleridge had a disagreement about publishing a poem that one poet thought would be injurious to both men’s careers.
10. To be continued.




Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. "As much as you may hate him now, you'll miss him when he's gone," is what one of the sisters said in one of the stories in Dubliners, by James Joyce.
3. In the pictures, where are the cities? Where are the rest of the houses? Where are the stores? Where are the bridges, roads and tunnels? Where were the police? There are just too many inaccuracies, so I don't believe the story about the slave trade and other events in U.S. history. Slaves from forts in Africa? How'd they get food? How'd they get fresh water? Where was the formal declaration of war? This method of questioning is a quick explanation why I don't believe the story about the slave trade and many other events in U.S. history.
Added to my paper.




Wednesday, November 15, 2023:


Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Cherelle Parker, a Lincoln University alum (my old college), is now the Mayor of Philadelphia: good news!
3. To encourage learning, library e-book applications should be accessible to people in underdeveloped countries where there are few actual libraries available.




Tuesday, November 14, 2023:


Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. “Who knows the ways of Providence?”
2. Suggests that you can search for “How to begin crocheting.”
3. Suggests that to entertain people, you simply offer them food and drinks.
4. Between you and me, and in order to empty my sack, and make confession to my pastor, as it behooves me to do, I will admit to you that I have good sense.
5. Immortality, Bishop, is a chance, a waiting for dead men’s shoes. Ah! what a charming promise! trust to it, if you like! What a fine lot Adam has! We are souls, and we shall be angels, with blue wings on our shoulder-blades. Do come to my assistance: is it not Tertullian who says that the blessed shall travel from star to star? Very well. We shall be the grasshoppers of the stars. And then, besides, we shall see God. Ta, ta, ta! What twaddle all these paradises are!

6. In order to furnish an idea of the private establishment of the Bishop of D_____, and of the manner in which those two sainted women subordinated their actions, their thoughts, their feminine instincts even, which are easily alarmed, to the habits and purposes of the Bishop, without his even taking the trouble of speaking in order to explain them...
7. Suggests that you can decorate your home with decorative paper.
8. At certain moments, without his having occasion to mention it, when he was not even conscious of it himself in all probability, so perfect was his simplicity, they vaguely felt that he was acting as a bishop; then they were nothing more than two shadows in the house.
9. Thus, even when believing him to be in peril, they understood, I will not say his thought, but his nature, to such a degree that they no longer watched over him. They confided him to God.
10. ...I should have liked to last until the dawn, but I know that I shall hardly live three hours. It will be night then. What does it matter, after all? Dying is a simple affair. One has no need of the light for that. So be it. I shall die by starlight.

11. In his clear glance, in his firm tone, in the robust movement of his shoulders, there was something calculated to disconcert death. Azrael, the Mohammedan angel of the sepulchre, would have turned back, and thought that he had mistaken the door.
12. Bear this well in mind sir: the French Revolution had its reasons for existence; its wrath will be absolved by the future; its result is the world made better. From its most terrible blows there comes forth a caress for the human race.
13. To be continued.




🇺🇸🎖️ Saturday, November 11, 2023: Happy Veterans Day!


Veterans Day Notes:
1. The Poetry Foundation has a great collection of Veterans Day poems. I read all of the poems listed including:
Veterans of the Seventies, by Marvin Bell, which describes a military hero,
Facing It, by Yusef Komunyakaa, which explores the experience of blacks in the military, as well as the war against communism,
The City's Oldest Known Survivor of the Great War by James Doyle, which describes an old man who is a veteran,
Debridement, by Michael S. Harper, which causes readers to examine the true meaning of a "black man,"
A Veteran by Reginald Gibbons, which exploress the heroic "military man" personification,
Pacemaker, by W. D. Snodgrass, which examines the physical rigors of military life,
The Grand Army of the Republic, by John Spaulding, which examines the various (other) rigors of military life,
Soldier from the wars returning, by A.E. Housman., which examines the image of the "soldier from the wars returning," and
Elegy for Daniel, by Jennifer Kwon Dobbs, the last poem listed, which explores the impact that casualties of war have on their loved ones, and reminds us of the sanctity of life.





Various Notes:
1. Ablade Glover is a talented African artist!
Added to Favorite Notes.
2. I’m actually trying to limit the amount of time that I watch tv, and trying for 24hours without television, as well as watching tv only in an emergency. This makes me enjoy life more, appreciate patience more, and slows the world down around me in a more pleasant way.





William Wordsworth: A Life, by Stephen Gill:
1. “He said he would not pollute his fingers by touching Jeffrey’s book.”
2. “Nevertheless, Wordsworth struck back once more—it was another tactical mistake.”
3. In a preamble to the review of one of his students, John Wilson’s poems, “Wordsworth confessed to being in awe of true poets.”
4. Of one of the characters actions writes, she feared that it would do more harm than good.
5. “Coleridge’s speculation had already been quoted, but it was not for Wordsworth’s eyes.”

6. “Coleridge wrote that what he learned from Lady Beaumont had perplexed rather than enlightened him."
7. Discusses a theoretical misunderstanding which existed between Wordsworth and Coleridge.
8. Briefly discusses the meaning of one’s true religion.
9. “To the consideration of Mr. Wordsworth’s sublimities, we are entering upon holy ground.”
10. “‘Human nature’ he wrote, ‘demands to be vindicated from the slur that has been cast upon her…and hardening her heart against all native affections & heavenly impulses.’”

11. “All modern poetry is nothing but the old genuine poetry, new vamped, and delivered to us at second, or twentieth hand.”
12. “Haydon, too, heard the story, and was convinced that the merest gesture from Wordsworth would have stopped the breach from widening.”





Friday, November 10, 2023:


Various Notes:
1. One book that I’ve read, about car engines for children, also suggests that the human body operates much like an automobile, and should be treated as such.
2. In one Chinua Achebe novel, he suggests that the atmosphere changes at night.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.




Thursday, November 9, 2023:


Various Notes:
1. In Duty Surviving Self-Love, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Coleridge suggests that self-love is "the only sure friend of declining life," that is, he reminds us of the importance of self-love.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.
2. Tba.




Wednesday, November 8, 2023:


Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. In 1804, M. Myriel was the Curé of B_____ (Brignolles). He was already advanced in years, and lived in a very retired manner.
2. There are thirty-six of you, in five or six small rooms. There are three of us here, and we have room for sixty.
3. This holy woman regarded Monseigneur of D_____ as at one and the same time her brother and her bishop, her friend according to the flesh and her superior according to the Church.
4. It was like water on dry soil; no matter how much money he received, he never had any.
5. The diocese of D_____ is a fatiguing one. There are very few plains and a great many mountains; hardly any roads, as we have just seen; thirty-two curacies, forty-one vicarships, and two hundred and eighty-five auxiliary chapels. To visit all these is quite a task.

6. One day he arrived at Senez, which is an ancient episcopal city. He was mounted on an ass…. "You think it very arrogant in a poor priest to ride an animal which was used by Jesus Christ. I have done so from necessity, I assure you, and not from vanity."
7. In the course of these trips he was kind and indulgent, and talked rather than preached. He never went far in search of his arguments and his examples.
8. "For a whole century, there has not been a single murderer among them.”
9. Look at the mountaineers of Devolny, a country so wild that the nightingale is not heard there once in fifty years.
10. ...“Mon Dieu, cousin! What are you thinking about?” “I am thinking,” replied the Bishop, “of a singular remark, which is to be found, I believe, in St. Augustine,—‘Place your hopes in the man from whom you do not inherit.’”

11. At another time, on receiving a notification of the decease of a gentleman of the country-side, wherein not only the dignities of the dead man, but also the feudal and noble qualifications of all his relatives, spread over an entire page: “What a stout back Death has!” he exclaimed.
12. When it was a question of charity, he was not to be rebuffed even by a refusal, and on such occasions he gave utterance to remarks which induced reflection.
13. Suggests that the whole population of France was poor.
14. My brethren, have pity! behold the suffering on all sides of you!
15. He was perfectly at home in the thatched cottage and in the mountains.

16. Man has upon him his flesh, which is at once his burden and his temptation. He drags it with him and yields to it. He must watch it, check it, repress it, and obey it only at the last extremity. There may be some fault even in this obedience; but the fault thus committed is venial; it is a fall, but a fall on the knees which may terminate in prayer.
“To be a saint is the exception; to be an upright man is the rule. Err, fall, sin if you will, but be upright.
"The least possible sin is the law of man. No sin at all is the dream of the angel. All which is terrestrial is subject to sin. Sin is a gravitation.”
17. He was indulgent towards women and poor people, on whom the burden of human society rest. He said, “The faults of women, of children, of the feeble, the indigent, and the ignorant, are the fault of the husbands, the fathers, the masters, the strong, the rich, and the wise.
18. He said, moreover, “Teach those who are ignorant as many things as possible; society is culpable, in that it does not afford instruction gratis; it is responsible for the night which it produces. This soul is full of shadow; sin is therein committed. The guilty one is not the person who has committed the sin, but the person who has created the shadow.”
19. They sent for the curé. It seems that he refused to come, saying, “That is no affair of mine. I have nothing to do with that unpleasant task, and with that mountebank: I, too, am ill; and besides, it is not my place.” This reply was reported to the Bishop, who said, “Monsieur le Curé is right: it is not his place; it is mine.”
20. On his return to the humble dwelling, which he designated, with a smile, as his palace, he said to his sister, “I have just officiated pontifically.”

21. It is wrong to become absorbed in the divine law to such a degree as not to perceive human law.
22. His mass said, he broke his fast on rye bread dipped in the milk of his own cows. Then he set to work.
23. A Bishop is a very busy man: he must every day receive the secretary of the bishopric, who is generally a canon, and nearly every day his vicars-general. He has congregations to reprove, privileges to grant, a whole ecclesiastical library to examine,—prayer-books, diocesan catechisms, books of hours, etc.,—charges to write, sermons to authorize, curés and mayors to reconcile, a clerical correspondence, an administrative correspondence; on one side the State, on the other the Holy See; and a thousand matters of business.
24. Omitted.
25. If, however, the Bishop had one of his curés to supper, Madame Magloire took advantage of the opportunity to serve Monseigneur with some excellent fish from the lake, or with some fine game from the mountains. Every curé furnished the pretext for a good meal: the Bishop did not interfere. With that exception, his ordinary diet consisted only of vegetables boiled in water, and oil soup.

26. He was a man of letters and rather learned. He left behind him five or six very curious manuscripts; among others, a dissertation on this verse in Genesis, In the beginning, the spirit of God floated upon the waters. With this verse he compares three texts: the Arabic verse which says, The winds of God blew; Flavius Josephus who says, A wind from above was precipitated upon the earth; and finally, the Chaldaic paraphrase of Onkelos, which renders it, A wind coming from God blew upon the face of the waters. In another dissertation, he examines the theological works of Hugo, Bishop of Ptolemaïs, great-grand-uncle to the writer of this book, and establishes the fact, that to this bishop must be attributed the divers little works published during the last century, under the pseudonym of Barleycourt.
27. Ecclesiastes calls you the All-powerful; the Maccabees call you the Creator; the Epistle to the Ephesians calls you liberty; Baruch calls you Immensity; the Psalms call you Wisdom and Truth; John calls you Light; the Books of Kings call you Lord; Exodus calls you Providence; Leviticus, Sanctity; Esdras, Justice; the creation calls you God; man calls you Father; but Solomon calls you Compassion, and that is the most beautiful of all your names.
28. It is necessary that we should, in this place, give an exact idea of the dwelling of the Bishop of Digne.
29. And since we are now painting the Bishop of Digne as he was in reality, we must add that he had said more than once, “I find it difficult to renounce eating from silver dishes.”
30. Madame Magloire had once remarked, with a sort of gentle malice: “Monseigneur, you who turn everything to account, have, nevertheless, one useless plot. It would be better to grow salads there than bouquets.” “Madame Magloire,” retorted the Bishop, “you are mistaken. The beautiful is as useful as the useful.” He added after a pause, “More so, perhaps.”

31. "Read books about medical terminology."
32. How Are Collective Expert Judgments Made in Medicine?





Various Notes:
1. 🏃‍ …Jogging is a great way to reverse the negative, "slowing" effects of cigarette smoking and other similar choices in life.
Updated to Favorite Notes.
2. The Lucy Show, with Lucille Ball, suggests that when you’re home, act like you’re home: eat food, listen to music, lounge around, etc.
3. Many of the characters and symbols in the literature that I've read, as well as in the art that I admire, and in the music that I've listened to, represent universal themes that are common to all world peoples.
Added to Favorite Notes 2.
4. James Fenimore Cooper, in one of his novels, indicates that many Indians didn't fear death, that is, they faced death bravely. For the American Indian, you see, life was simply blood and nerves, so why fear death?
Added to Favorite Notes 2.
5. Victor Hugo suggests that you should only trust the judgment of experts.




Tuesday, November 7, 2023:


Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen:
1. Of Catherine Morland, writes,
"...and her mind about as ignorant and uninformed as the female mind at seventeen usually is."
2. Reminds us that women have a maternal instinct, that, at times, may be more or less severe. Then, reminds us that violence, in any respect, is wrong.
3. It appears that Austen was advocating for a gentle, kind woman.



Various Notes:
1. Campbell's Chunky Old Bay Seasoned, Manhattan (or New England) Clam Chowder mixed with an extra can (or two, or three,) of chopped clams tastes great!
Added to Food Ideas.
2. In Bleak House, Charles Dickens reminds us that houses are often worn, having had two or more previous owners.
3. I plan to make home made lemonade at least once weekly, for physical fitness, as well as to drink more fresh juice.
4. This blog can also be viewed as a journal. I learned this reading Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen.

5. ...During this time, Chief Albert Luthuli was the new African National Congress president. "He was a man of patience and fortitude, who spoke slowly and clearly as though every word was of equal importance."
6. Nelson Mandela believed that there was something magical in every sunrise.
7. Nelson Mandela was an important figure in the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. He spent 27 years in jail and was released when he was 72 years old.
8. One of the things that Nelson Mandela did when he was released, was visit the grave site of, and pay his respects to his mother who passed away while he was in prison.
9. On May 10, 1994, Nelson Mandela, at the age of 77, was inaugurated as South Africa's first black president.
10. In the end of his autobiography, Nelson Mandela writes, "I have completed my journey, now I pass the torch on to the next person, the next individual." - Added to Favorite Notes 2

11. "Ah, Balducci, if life were as simple as you conceive it." - The Agony and the Ecstasy, Irving Stone.
12. Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa is the current president of South Africa. He may be from the Xhosa tribe, the same tribe as Nelson Mandela. He was born November 17, 1952, 27 years after I was born, on the same birth date.




Sunday, November 5, 2023

Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen:
1. Of Catherine Morland, writes, “She never could learn or understand any thing before she was taught; and sometimes not even then, for she was often inattentive..."
2. Tba.




Saturday, November 4, 2023

Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo:
1. Introduction
2. “Les Miserables is a vast novel built to the measure of Victor Hugo’s humanity and vision.”
3. “Undoubtedly readers come to the book for the deeply engrossing characters and stay on, as the author himself predicted, for the wider social and historic panorama.”
4. Victor Hugo was also active in the political scene of Paris throughout his life, and his novels represent his efforts as a champion of democracy and social reform.
5. Hugo wrote amidst the same literary atmosphere as Francois-Renes de Chateaubriand, Alphonse de Lamartine, George Sand, and Honore de Balzac, as well as Gustave Flaubert and Charles Baudelaire.

6. In Les Miserables, many of the characters show traces of Hugo’s own personal experience, and the book’s philosophical stance mirrors the concerns of his political existence. “His first published story, of a black slave in Santo Domingo betrayed by an influential white friend, shows the same concern for outcasts that pervades the novel and that later led Hugo to plead for the life of American abolitionist John Brown.”
7. The principal action opens in 1815, while France was ruled by Napoleon.
8. “Very early, Hugo conceived of the book as the story of a saint, a man, a woman, and a little girl…demonstrates Hugo’s deliberate method of alternating dramatic action and passages of historic background, a process that produces an account of astonishing depth and clarity.”




Friday, November 3, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Manhattan (or New England) Clam Chowder mixed with an extra can (or two, or three,) of chopped clams tastes great!
Added to Food Tips.
2. Omitted.
3. Since cats and dogs can drink milk and water, maybe you can leave a bowl of another drink (juice) out for them next to their water bowl, to drink (if they want) also; kind of like an experiment to see if they like other drinks, and if they enjoy the other juices, then it is successful.



Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Night is a long period of darkness, followed by a short period when it gets light, instead of gradual light over several hours. -Honore de Balzac
2. Several people recommend leaving your lamp or night light on all night.
3. My memory is not that accurate in these events, but I did my best to accurately describe what happened. In one episode of The Lucy Show, Lucille Ball is in her bedroom, where there are bunk bed a for her and her roommate. Lucy is wiping the dirt off her feet to get in bed, in a funny way, then that tickles her, and she falls into the bottom bunk.
Then she’s laughing so hard that she bumps her head on the top bunk and frightens her roommate who wakes up, and the audience laughs.
In another episode, Lucy is playing on a baseball team. There were only uniforms too large available, so Lucy gets a uniform that is too big. She’s up at bat, and testing three bats at a time, and when she flings two of the bats away, she flies back herself a few feet. Then, when she finally hits the ball, she runs in a very funny way to first base, which makes us laugh. Then, she has trouble playing in the outfield, because of her oversized uniform. All this while her teammate is the perfect woman baseball player on the team. Very funny.
In another episode, her house is falling apart. When the respectable businessman comes to visit her, he sits down in the sofa and sinks in one of the cushions. Then, Lucy and her roommate try to pull him out, one girl on each arm, they all fly back and fall down, and the business man falls back into the sofa. Another funny scene.



The Queen of Spades and other Stories, by Alexander Pushkin:
1. “I did not deem it necessary to act based on his actions.”
2. “You’re spending too much time on reflections, try to get some sleep.”
3. “What does this mean?’ I asked frantically? ‘Has he lost his senses?’”
4. To be continued.
7:30pm 5. "Throughout the journey I pondered over the interrogation awaiting me…thinking this to be the simplest as well as most reliable way of proceeding."




🎃 Tuesday, October 31, 2023 Happy Halloween! 🎃

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. Various comments on Eve and the first and the last sin might be made on that; but don’t be uneasy, you are here as our guest.
2. “The power and influence of journalism is still in its dawn,” said Finot. ‘The newspaper is now a babe, but it will grow. Ten years hence everything will be subjected to publicity. Thought will illumine everything and — ”
3. "...blast everything,” said Blondet, interrupting him.
4. "Consequently,” said Blondet, “if the press did not exist, it ought never to be invented; but here it is, — we live by it.”
5. "The government,” said Blondet; “I am tired of shouting that. Intellect is the ruling power in France, and journalism has not only all the intelligence of the best minds, but it has the hypocrisy of Tartufe as well.”

6. Reminds us that many biblical figures were guilty of sins.
7. "Blondet is right,” said Claude Vignon. ‘Journalism, instead of being, as it ought to be, a priesthood, has become an engine of parties; being an engine, it is now an article of commerce, and, like all other forms of commerce, it regards neither law nor gospel.'
8. A newspaper is no longer written to enlighten public opinion, but to cajole it. Within a given time all papers will end by being base, hypocritical liars, — murderers if you please; for they will kill ideas, theories, men, and live by that alone. And they’ll have every apparent reason on their side; the evil will be done and no one will be guilty. I, Vignon, you, Lousteau, Blondet, Finot, will be Platos, Aristides, Catos, Plutarch’s men, — all of us innocent, and able to wash our hands of infamy.
9. "The authorities will make repressive laws,” said Du Bruel. “They are preparing them already.”
10. "Ideas can only be neutralized by ideas,” continued Vignon. “Terror, despotism alone can stifle French genius; and even so, our language is well-fitted for allusion and double-meaning."

11. If the paper invents an infamous calumny, it has been told it by others.
12. To gain subscribers, a newspaper will do anything, — serve up its own father raw with the salt of its atticisms rather than not amuse and interest the public.
13. Napoleon was right enough in wishing to muzzle the press!
14. The more concessions are made to newspapers, the more exacting those papers will become. Successful journalists will be constantly succeeded by poor and hungry journalists. The evil is incurable; it is getting more and more malignant, more and more dangerous; and the greater the evil, the more it will be tolerated, until the day when confusion shall overtake journalism as it did Babylon.
15. This sally made everybody laugh; but Coralie liked it. The three tradesmen were eating and drinking as they listened.

16. "In what nation can you find such a mixture of so much good and so much evil?” said the minister to the Duc de Rhétoré. “Ah, gentlemen! You are prodigals who somehow don’t ruin yourselves.”
17. Lousteau himself had tried to warn him from the gulf, for a selfish reason, by revealing journalism and literature in their practical aspects.
18. These remarkable men, in the polished armor of their vice and the shining helmets of their analyses, he thought far superior to the grave and sober members of the brotherhood. Besides, he was tasting the first delights of wealth; he was under the spell of luxury, the influence of choice food; his volatile instincts were all awakened; he drank for the first time the rarest wine; he made acquaintance with the delicacies of Parisian cookery; he saw a diplomatist, with a duke and his mistress, mingling with journalists and admiring their dangerous power; he felt a horrible craving to rule this society of kings, and he felt within him the power of mastering it.
19. "Does monsieur dine with madame?” asked Bérénice.
"No, my mouth is parched.”
20. The poet was intoxicated with delight; Coralie, made beautiful by happiness, wore an elegant toilet in charming taste. The Paris of the Champ Élysées admired these lovers.

21. 14. A LAST VISIT TO THE BROTHERHOOD
22. "But there are agents — ” began dʼArthèz.
“Yes,” said Bianchon, “he is now only cataleptic; we might make him imbecile.”
23. 15. THE ARCANA OF JOURNALISM
24. That highly moral critic is considerate of no one, not even his own children.
25. She began to dance her Spanish fandango with a vim which showed the ardor of her passion.
26. To be continued.




Various Notes:
1. This is the pefect season for warm tea or hot chocolate. I learned this watching old tv westerns. Westerns also suggest that life involves a lot of up-and-go, up-and-go, instead of long periods of inactivity.
2. Westerns also suggest that eating snacks like potato chips are good.
3. To Autumn, by John Keats is a popular Fall poem.
A Chilly Night, by Christina Rossetti is a popular Halloween poem.
Song of the Witches: “Double, double toil and trouble”, by William Shakespeare is another popular Halloween poem.
4. Old tv westerns also suggest that you set aside a small portion of your day for intellectual pursuits.




Sunday, October 29, 2023

Various Notes:
1. The Lucy Show, with Lucille Ball, was a great sitcom from the 1960s. I also enjoy watching old tv westerns, which are like reading a James Fenimore Cooper novel.
2. Tba.



Saturday, October 28, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Homemade lemonade and Kool-Aid are easy to make, with the following items:
a measuring cup for the sugar, a pitcher that can hold a gallon of water, and a wooden spoon for stirring.
The above note was added to Food Tips (below).
2. Tba.




Monday, October 23, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I reduced the frequency (days) that I run 🏃‍♂️, because I stopped making significant gains , and leveled out at a comfortable health (breathing) level.
2. Tba.



Sunday, October 22, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. In three days, provided we succeed, you will be able with thirty sarcasms, printed at the rate of three a day, to make a man curse his life and wish he was never born; you can get mortgages of pleasure on all the actresses of the four theatres; you can break down a good play and send all Paris to applaud a bad one.
2. When you are in a like position you will be able to judge of Finot, and not till then; a man can’t be judged except by his equals in condition.
3. When you have a vengeance of your own against any one all you have to do is to say to me, ‘Lousteau, I want that man smashed,’ and we can put into our own little paper any day and every day something that will kill your enemy.
4. "That’s another piece of nonsense. One would suppose we were robbing him,” cried Lousteau.
5. 12. HOW JOURNALISM IS DONE

6. "More events have happened to me, my dear Lousteau, within the last two months than in all the previous years of my life put together.”
7. That baron is an old beau of the Empire who has made himself a ministerialist; I know all about him, he’ll suit us to a T. I have often seen your great lady, too, in Madame d’Espard’s box at the Opera; the baron is usually there, making love to your ex-mistress, who is as dry as a cuttlefish.
8. That slang typographical word, “copy,” means the manuscript from which the type is set up; perhaps because authors are supposed to send only a copy of their writing; or it may be an ironical use of the Latin word copia (abundance), for copy is always lacking.
9. "As your promise does not commit me to anything, go, and save your piece,” said Lucien, with the air of a sultan.
10. “Florine and Coralie!” cried a number of voices. The curtain rose and Bouffé appeared leading the two actresses, to whom Matifat and Camusot flung wreaths. Coralie picked up hers and held it out to Lucien.

11. As for Lucien, the two hours spent in the theatre were like a dream. The work of fascination had begun behind the scenes, odious as those surroundings were.
12. Among those dirty passages, choked with machinery and hung with smoking lamps, lurks a pestilence which kills the soul. Life cannot continue real or saintly there. Serious things are laughed at, impossible things seem true.
13. The whole scene acted like a narcotic on Lucien, and Coralie completed its effect by plunging him into a species of joyous intoxication.
14. "Will you do me the honor to give me your arm,” said Coralie, trembling. “Willingly,” said Lucien, who now felt the girl’s heart beating beside him like that of a bird when caught in the hand. The actress, pressing against him, was like a cat rubbing against her master’s leg with soft satisfaction.
15. "Do leave him his independence,” cried the actress, “he shall write what he chooses. Papa Camusot, buy me carriages, but not flattery.”

16. "And I one,” said Lousteau.
“Well, then, Nathan, Vernou, Du Bruel, fill up the rest with witticisms.
17. "A German always drinks well and listens well. We’ll tell him a lot of queer stories and he’ll write them to his court!” cried Blondet.
18. "The common-sense of that boy actually frightens me,” remarked Finot.
19. When Lucien, trembling with fear, had finished reading, the salon rang with applause, the actresses kissed him, the tradesmen in their delight almost squeezed the breath out of him; Du Bruel seized his hand with a tear in his eye, and the manager asked him to dinner.
20. "Such a fine young man!” exclaimed the minister.

21. 13. THE SUPPER
22. THE supper, served on new plate and Sèvres china and double damask, exhaled an atmosphere of substantial magnificence.
23. "I would love you ill and ugly!” she said in his ear as they sat down to table.
24. Blondet counteracted any effect of the jealousy Lousteau was beginning to feel by telling Finot he must make terms with a talent as good as that.
25. This advice influenced Lousteau’s conduct; he resolved to remain Lucien’s friend, and arrange with Finot to secure the services of the dangerous new-comer by keeping him dependent and needy.

26. "I thank God that there are no newspapers in my country,” continued the minister after a pause. “I have not yet recovered from my fright at that little printer’s devil who was here just now in his paper-cap, and the abnormal common-sense of his ten years. I fancy I am now to sup with lions and panthers, who will do me the favor to cushion their claws.”
27. To be continued.



Saturday, October 21, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I updated the Notes about Psychiatry page.
"Maybe it is wrong for doctors to say that people are mentally ill (schizophrenic or bipolar), because they have problems that are normal problems for human beings to have."
2. Tba.



Friday, October 20, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Aristotle suggests that a goal for mankind is simply to roam the Earth.
2. "Unlike the Roman barons, they did not wage war against him, they just prayed fervently." - The Agony and the Ecstasy, Irving Stone.
3. I made some edits to Favorite Notes II.
4. "So what it's raining? A little water won't kill you." An idea I acquired reading a James Fenimore Cooper novel.
5. Italian Folktales, by Italo Calvino, included several stories that I read:
Dauntless Little John, The Man Wreathed in Seaweed, The Count’s Beard, Silver Nose, and several others.
A. Dauntless Little John, and another story that I read were great, after a friend explained to me what they meant, because they included Italian symbols which represented universal themes that I admire.
B. The Man Wreathed in Seaweed was good because in the end, the underdog won.
C. The Count’s Beard was a great story about a wise count with a beard.
D. Silver Nose was a great story because one of the sisters outsmarts the devil, has him doing her laundry, and is victorious in the end.
E. I liked one of the stories I read, I forget the title, where, after the younger sister unfairly exploited their work, the two older sisters get their revenge.

6. Peaceful surrender, may be a viable option for Hamas, in the event of an invasion by Israel.



Thursday, October 19, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.



Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. Believe me, my friend, work is not the secret of success in literature; that secret is, mark my words, to live by the work of others. The owners of newspapers are contractors, we are masons and journeymen. The more commonplace or second-rate a man may be, the sooner he will advance himself; he can swallow toads, he can resign himself to anything, and gratify the low and petty passions of the literary sultans…
2. Your conscience, pure today, will yield to the will of others when you see your success or failure in their power, — the power of men who with a word could give you life, and will not say it!
3. Yes, you’ll write rather than act; you’ll sing instead of fighting; you will love and hate and live in your books; and when you have spent all your riches on your style, all your gold and purple on your characters, when you are walking the streets of Paris in rags, happy in the production of personages called Adolphe, Corinne, René or Manon, when you have ruined your own life and your stomach in giving life to your creation, you will see it vilified, betrayed, thrust into oblivion by journalists, buried by your best friends.
4. This harsh tirade, delivered in the diverse tones of the various passions it expressed, fell like an avalanche of snow upon Lucien’s heart and turned it cold as ice.

5. “I shall never forget this day,” said Lucien.
6. His lively mind saw a weapon to his hand in journalism; he felt himself able to handle it, and he resolved to take it. Dazzled by the proposals of his new friend, whose hand grasped his with easy cordiality, how could he know that in the great Press army every man needs friends, as generals need soldiers?
7. 9. A THIRD VARIETY OF PUBLISHER
8. In short, it was a literary bivouac, supplied with little or nothing, of a bareness the mind can scarcely imagine.
9. On the night-table, piled with books read during the morning, shone the scarlet roll of “Fumade;”...

10. Besides that, here are two copies of ‘A Voyage in Egypt,’ which they say is fine; it swarms with engravings, and is sure to sell. Finot has been paid for two articles which I am going to write about it. Next, the last two novels of Victor Ducange, illustrious in the Marais; also, two copies of the second work of a rising young man, Paul de Kock, who writes in the same style; also, two copies of ‘Yseult de Dole,’ a very pretty provincial tale, — one hundred francs retail price for the books, call it fifty. Therefore, my little Barbet, pay me one hundred francs.
11. ...that other book on the chimney-piece, ‘Observations on Symbolism,’ — I’ll throw that in; mystical things are such a bore, I’ll give it away sooner than see the mites run out of it.
12. No, Barbet, he isn’t; he’s a poet, — a great poet, who will put Canalis, and Delavigne, and Béranger into the shade. He is bound to make his way, unless he flings himself into the Seine, — and even then, he’ll go to Saint-Cloud.
13. His round face, enlivened with two eager eyes, was not without a certain good-humor; but his glance had the vague uneasiness of a man accustomed to be asked for money, and who has it.
14. He liked small enterprises, useful books, the copyright of which did not cost him more than a thousand francs, and which he could put on the market in his own way; such, for instance, as the “History of France adapted for Children,” “Book-keeping in twenty lessons,” “Botany for Young Ladies.”
15. To be continued.

16. "Forty francs!” exclaimed the publisher, with the screech of a frightened hen. “Twenty at the utmost! And I may lose those,” added Barbet.
"Let me see the twenty francs,” said Lousteau.
“Faith! I don’t know if I’ve got them,” said Barbet, rummaging his pockets. “There they are. You are robbing me; you get the better of me -”
17. As for the ‘Voyage in Egypt,’ I did open the book and read here and there without cutting the leaves; I found eleven mistakes in grammar; I can make a column out of that by saying that though the author may have learned the hieroglyphic language of those Egyptian milestones called obelisks, he doesn’t know his own, and I’ll give the blunders, for I wrote them down.
18. ...and yet delicate and refined persons were no more kept away by these horrible things than princes in fairytales recoil from dragons and other obstacles interposed by evil genii between them and the princesses.
19. The construction of these wooden buildings, which had sprung up heaven knows how, made them singularly resonant. Bursts of laughter echoed through them; not a quarrel could take place at one end that the other end did not know what it was about.

20. Up to the time when this strange colony disappeared under the wand of Fontaine the architect, the booths in the centre were entirely open, supported by pillars, like booths at a country fair, and the eye could look across and through them to the gallery on the other side.
21. The shops of the milliners were full of wonderful bonnets, which seemed to be there less for sale than for show, hanging by hundreds on iron trees and enlivening the galleries with a thousand colors.
22. Saleswomen, for the most part ugly, but brisk, hooked the female sex adroitly in the style and language of marketwomen. One grisette, whose tongue was as free as her eyes were active, stood on a stool and attacked the passers: “Buy a pretty bonnet, madame!” “Let me sell you something, monsieur.” Their rich and picturesque vocabulary was varied by inflections of the voice, and interspersed with knowing looks and criticisms on those who passed them.
23. There, gentlemen, you see that which throughout all eternity God can never see; namely, your like, - God has no like.
24. Omitted.
25. They drew such crowds to the Galeries de Bois that every one was compelled to walk at a snail’s pace as they do in the procession at a masked ball. But this slowness, which annoyed no one, enabled persons to examine each other.

26. All this picturesque infamy is now done away with. The license of solicitation and answer, that public cynicism so in keeping with the place itself, is no longer to be seen, either there or at masked balls, nor in the celebrated public balls which are given in the present day.
27. 10. A FOURTH VARIETY OF PUBLISHER
28. In those days this was rare; a newspaper was a privilege as much run after as a theatre. One of the influential stockholders of the “Constitutionnel” happened to form one of this group.
29. Money! Yes, money was the key to the whole enigma. Lucien felt himself alone, helpless, clinging only by the weak thread of an uncertain friendship to success and fortune.

10:00pm 30. No one is admitted here unless his reputation is made. If you are celebrated you shall have floods of gold, not otherwise...There’s Nathan, who wants six thousand francs for the second edition of his book, which has cost me three thousand francs in reviews, and hasn’t yet brought me in a thousand.
31. For the last two years poets have swarmed like cockchafers; I lost twenty thousand francs on them last year! — ask Gabusson.
32. What is this anyhow?” he said tapping the manuscript.
“A collection of sonnets that would make Petrarch ashamed,” replied Lousteau.
33. 11. BEHIND THE SCENES
34. A good, old-fashioned melodrama, called “Bertram,” was just ending, — a play adapted from a tragedy by Maturin, greatly admired by Nodier, Lord Byron, and Walter Scott, but wholly without success on the French stage.

35. And you, little one,” said Finot to a pretty peasant-girl who was listening to them, “where did you get those diamond earrings ? Have you captured an Indian rajah?”
36. A general laugh followed this inquiry of the worthy druggist. “What does that matter to you if I don’t say it to you, old stupid ?” said the actress.




Various Notes:
1. The two families gathered regularly to have feasts, or dinners where they ate together, in one Chinua Achebe novel.
2. I realized that this blog can be used as a tool to teach others useful information.
3. Strawberries and Cool Whip (cream) tastes great! - Honore de Balzac.



Tuesday, October 17, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. EXTERNALS OF JOURNALISM
2. Satisfied that he was fully the equal of the cleverest of their writers, he practised their gymnastics of thought in secret until, at last, he set out one fine morning with the full determination of taking service under some colonel of what we may call the Light Brigade of the Press.
3. Under its financial aspect, broum! broum!” said the old officer, disposing of the phlegm that was in his throat.
4. 8. THE SONNETS
5. Do not your gold and silver symbolize
The treasures that we strive so hard to gain?
6. Don’t think, either, that the political world is a bit better than the literary world; it is all corruption in both; every man is either corrupted or corrupting.
7. Poor beggars, they glean, glean, facts for biographical articles, or items for the columns of a newspaper, or they write books for prudent publishers who would rather have trash written in a fortnight than masterpieces which take time to place and sell.



Monday, October 16, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. FIRST FRUITS OF PARIS
2. Lucien, who had never travelled post in his life, was aghast at seeing nearly the whole sum on which he counted for a year’s support scattered along the road between Angoulême and Paris.
3. The travellers stopped before daybreak at the hotel du Gaillard-Bois, rue de l‘Echelle. They were both so fatigued that Louise went to bed immediately, but not until she had ordered Lucien to take a room on the floor above her.
4. I don’t wish to do injustice to the man you love, but you must permit me to consider your interests before his and say to you: ’Study him! Know the full bearings of what you do.’

5. ...the world does not know why; but the Navarreins, the Blamont-Chauvrys, the Lenoncourts, all stand by her the most straight-laced women visit her and treat her with the utmost respect; in short, the Marquis d‘Espard is entirely in the wrong.
6. "Dear Lucien,” she said, “do you not think that if we have committed a folly which will injure us both it would be wise to undo it?"
7. "Dear child...that I foresaw the result, and prayed you at the start to master the world by obeying its laws.”
8. "Louise,” he answered, clasping her, “it frightens me to see you so wise. Remember that I am but a child in the world’s ways, and that I have already given myself up to your dear will in everything."
9. "It is fortunate for you,” he went on, “that you have Gentil to go about with you and Albertine to dress you, for Parisian servants are ruinous; and with such an introduction into society as you have, you will seldom eat a meal at home.”

10. ...she felt the need of friendly goodwill at the start, and saw the necessity of not missing any element to success.
11. During Lucien’s first rambling walk along the boulevards and through the rue de la Paix, he was, like all new-comers, far more interested by things than by persons. The first things that strike a mind new to Paris are the great masses, the luxury of the shops, the height of the houses, the multitude of carriages, the violent contradiction between extreme luxury and extreme poverty.
12. ...he found with her the Baron du Châtelet, who carried them both to dine with him at the Rocher de Cancale.
13. The baron had put his journey to the score of his ambition; he hoped, he said, to be appointed secretary-general of one of the ministries, and to enter the Council of State as master of petitions; and he had come to Paris to remind the government of the promises made to him, — a man of his pretensions could not remain a director of taxes; he would rather be nothing, or become a deputy, or return to diplomacy.
14. Du Châtelet smiled at the hesitations, amazements, questions, all the little mistakes into which want of knowledge cast his rival, like the old seadogs who laugh at greenhorns before they get what are called their sea-legs.

15. "What will they say about me?” he was thinking as he went up the stairs to his dismal chamber.
16. "It is always so with those who have a world of thought in their heart and brain,” said Madame de Bargeton.
17. "I grant you that,” said the baron, “but we live with persons, and not with books
18. In two hours’ time he spent four francs, which gave him much to think of as to the financial demands of Parisian life.
19. What a contrast that terrace presented to the Promenade of Angoulême! The birds of this magnificent aviary were very different from those of Beaulieu! Here was a wealth of all the colors of the ornithological families of India and America compared to the gray tones of the birds of Europe.

20. Those apparently trifling things have made the misery of many a brilliant existence. These petty matters are, moreover, of enormous importance to those who wish to appear to have what they have not; often they are their only means of possessing such things later.
21. A voice cried in Lucien’s soul: “Intellect is the lever with which to move the world;” but another voice cried as loudly, that the fulcrum of intellect was money.
22. THE GREAT MAN’S ENTRANCE INTO THE GREAT WORLD
23. The first was Monsieur de Marsay, a man famous for the passions he had inspired, and personally remarkable for a species of girlish beauty, a soft, effeminate beauty, counteracted however by a fixed, calm, clear, and rigid glance like that of a tiger; he was loved, but he terrified those who loved him...whereas de Marsay had a vigor of mind, a consciousness of pleasing, a style of dress appropriate to his character which crushed all rivals who approached him.
24. Though de Marsay was less than six feet from him, he took up his eyeglass to look him over, then his glances went from Lucien to Madame de Bargeton, and from Madame de Bargeton back to Lucien, uniting them in one sarcastic look which mortified them cruelly; he examined them as though they were curious animals, then he smiled. That smile was like the thrust of a dagger to the great man of the provinces. Félix de Vandenesse seemed more charitable, and Armand de Montriveau gave Lucien a look which sounded him to the core.

25. Omitted.
26. Omitted.
27. Lucien was amazed to the last degree at this abrupt desertion; but he did not think long about it, for the reason that it was utterly inexplicable.
28. Those absurdly fine clothes he is wearing prove that he is neither rich nor a gentleman; his face is handsome, but he strikes me as very dull; he does not know how to carry himself, nor how to talk; in short, he has never had any social education. How came you ever to take him up?”
29. ...Lucien returned to his box and sat in a corner of it, where he stayed during the rest of the opera, absorbed partly by the splendid spectacle of the ballet in the fifth act, partly by the aspect of the boxes along which his eyes ranged, and partly by his own reflections in presence of this great world of Parisian society.

30. ONE LOST ILLUSION
31. There is an indefinable way in which a man must wear a hat; too far back and it gives him a bold look; too far forward and you think him suspicious; over to one side and his air is cavalier; but a well-bred woman may put on her bonnet precisely as she fancies, and she always looks well.
32. The angry poet went towards the calèche, walking slowly, and when he was within full view of the two women he bowed to them.
33. TWO VARIETIES OF PUBLISHER
34. The waiters came and went without lingering; all were busy; all were needed. The viands were not various; the potato was perpetual. Ireland might not possess a potato; the root might be lacking everywhere else, but at Flicoteaux’s never. For the last thirty years it has flourished there, of that beautiful golden color loved of Titian...

35. But my book is serious; its object is to depict in a true light the struggle of the Catholics who stood for absolute government against the Protestants who wanted a republic.
36. THE FIRST FRIEND
37. "What is Art, monsieur? It is Nature concentrated.”
38. This little circumstance shows the delicacy of his senses, — a sure indication of an exquisite sensibility.
39. But each authentic reign, from Charlemagne down, demands at least one work, — sometimes four or five; especially those of Louis XIV, Henri IV, and François I.

40. THE BROTHERHOOD OF HEARTS AND MINDS
41. Equals in nobility of heart, equals in strength of feeling, they could think all and say all to each other on the common ground of science and of intellect; hence the candor of their intercourse, the gayety of their speech. Certain of understanding each other, their minds could ramble as they pleased; they kept nothing back, neither their hopes and fears, nor their griefs and joys; they thought and suffered with open hearts. The precious delicacy which makes the well-known fable of the “Two Friends” a treasure to fine souls, was habitual with them.
42. When, in 1832, Michel Chrestien fell, Horace Bianchon, Daniel d’Arthèz, Léon Giraud, Joseph Bridau, and Fulgence Ridal went, in spite of the danger of such a step, and recovered his body at Saint-Merri, to pay it their last honor in the face of burning Politics. They took the dear remains to Père-Lachaise by night. Horace Bianchon faced all difficulties and yielded to none; he implored the sanction of the ministers, telling them of his long friendship for the dead Federalist.
43. Once admitted to the friendship of these choice souls and accepted as an equal, Lucien stood among them for poesy and beauty. He read them his sonnets, and they admired them. They would ask him for a sonnet as he would ask Michel Chrestien to sing a song. In the desert of Paris Lucien found an oasis in the rue des Quatre-Vents.
44. To fully understand Lucien’s feelings in the midst of this living encyclopedia of young minds, all of diverse originality and all equally generous...

45. My wife has taken charge of the printing-office, and does her task with a devotion, a patience, a business activity which make me bless heaven daily for having given me such an angel.
46. I would rather suffer a hundred evils than have you fall into any of those Parisian mud-holes I have known of. Have the courage to avoid, as you have already done, bad places and bad friends, also heedless minds and a certain class of literary men whom I learned to estimate at their true value during my stay in Paris.
47. Read Goethe’s Tasso, — the finest work of his fine genius; there you will see how the poet loved brilliant stuffs and festivals, and triumphs, and all that dazzled him.



Various Notes:
1. Ferdydurke, by Witold Gombrowicz, suggests that life is comprised of many ideas, some simple, and some complex.
2. One thing that the cod liver oil soft gel pills has done is coat my throat with a thin, almost undetectable layer of protective liquid that has made my breathing more comfortable. It has also lubricated my brain, and made my head feel better.




Sunday, October 15, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. …Astolphe, who had committed to memory the description given in a newspaper of a novel kind of plough, was describing it to the baron. Lucien, poor poet, was not aware that none of these minds, except that of Madame de Bargeton, could understand poetry.
2. The words “beauty,” “glory,” “poesy,” have a witchcraft about them which fascinates the commonest mind.
3. To render poetry by the voice and seize it by the ear, exacts an almost sacred attention.
4. Now, in circumstances which develop their faculties, persons of intellect have the circumferential sight of snails, the nose of dogs, the ear of moles; they see scent, and hear everything about them.
5. Don’t you think that the French language is very unsuitable for poetry?” said Astolphe to Sixte du Châtelet. “For my part, I think Cicero’s prose far more poetic.”
“The true French poetry is lyric,” replied du Châtelet, “songs — ”
"Ah, yes, songs prove how musical our language is,” said Adrien.

6. "You have been a diplomat,” said Amélie, addressing du Châtelet. “Can’t you manage it for us?”
7. The former secretary of her Imperial Highness being used to such little manoeuvres, went to find the bishop, and persuaded him to come forward.
8. This ode, complacently cherished and beautified with all the love his heart contained, seemed to him the only one of his poems that was fit to compete with those of Chénier.
9. “Can you make anything out of that?” said Amélie to Monsieur du Châtelet, with a coquettish glance.
“They are verses such as we all make when we leave college,” replied the baron with a bored air, carrying out his rôle of critic who must naught admire.

10. "After all, they are only phrases,” said Zéphirine to Francis; “love is poetry in action.”
11. He imitated the example of du Châtelet when it was a question of making Lucien recite his own poetry; he went to the bishop, pretending to share his enthusiasm for the ode; then he told him that Lucien’s mother was a most superior woman, of extreme modesty, who inspired her son with all his compositions.
12. Yes, poesy is a holy thing. To speak of poesy is to speak of suffering. How many wakeful nights were the cost of those stanzas you have just admired! Let us bow in love before a poet who leads, I may say, always, a troubled life, but for whom God has reserved a place in heaven among his prophets. This young man is a poet,” he added, laying his hand on Lucien’s head; “can you not see his fate upon that noble brow?”
13. Our pains are ignored; no one comprehends our labor. The miner, extracting gold from the bowels of the earth, does not toil as we do, to tear our images from the most refractory of languages. If the end of poesy be to bring ideas to the precise point where all the world can see them and can feel them, the poet must incessantly run the gamut of all human intellects, so that he may meet and satisfy them all; he must cover with glowing colors both sentiment and logic, — two powers antagonistic to each other; he must inclose a world of thoughts in a line, sum up philosophies in a picture; his poems are seeds which must fructify in hearts, finding their soil in personal experience.
14. There is no glory to be had without cost,” said Madame de Bargeton, taking his hand and pressing it. “Suffer, yes, you must suffer, my friend, to be great, and sufferings will be the price of your immortality. Would that I too had a struggle to endure! God keep you from an enervated, sterile life without contests, where the wings of the eagle find no space to spread. I envy your trials, for at least you live! You exercise your strength! You aspire to victory! Your struggle will end in fame. When you reach the imperial sphere where great minds sit enthroned, remember those poor souls whom fate has disinherited, whose intellect is annihilated, suffocated, by moral nitrogen; who have to die knowing what life is, but never having lived it; whose eyes are keen, and yet see nothing; whose sense of smell is delicate, and knows no fragrance but that of poisoned flowers.

15. Lucien, however, excused himself from repeating the poem on the ground of want of memory. When he re-entered the salon no one showed the slightest interest in him. The company were talking or playing cards.
16. AN EVENING BY THE RIVERSIDE
17. I thought you so beautiful I could find no words,” said David, naively.
“Am I less beautiful now?” she asked.
"No; but I am so happy in being allowed to walk alone with you that -”
18. How can he maintain himself in the great world for which you have encouraged his tastes? I know him; his is a nature that loves the harvests without the toil.
19. You have taught him to think himself a great man, but before society admits any man’s greatness he must attain to some marked success. Now literary success cannot be won except in solitude and by arduous toil.

20. "Dear Eve, I receive more than I give. I shall always love you more than you love me, for I shall have more reason to love you, — you are an angel, I am a man.”
21. The three young people hastened to tell their astonished mother of their charming plans, giving free rein to one of those gay family talks in which young hearts delight in gathering every seed, and in tasting, by anticipation, every joy.
22. You will read me the whole of Chénier, will you not? He is the poet of lovers.
23. "Have I any other interest in the world than my Lucien? Become great; win fame; that is your business — and mine.”
24. But there are others whom society combines to treat with extraordinary severity; they are required to do right in everything; never to be mistaken, never to fail, never to commit the smallest folly; one might liken them to those admired statues which are taken from their pedestals and put away in winter lest the frost should crack a finger or chip a nose; they are not allowed to be human; they are expected to be perpetually perfect and divine.

25. CATASTROPHES OF PROVINCIAL LOVE
26. ...he now saw every prospect that the historical romance at which he had been working for two years (“he Archer of Charles IX”) and a volume of poetry entitled “aisies” would spread his name through the literary world and bring him sufficient money to pay back his indebtedness to his mother and sister and David.
27. The obstacles that are met with at the beginning of a passion alarm inexperienced persons; and those that our present lovers encountered were very like the threads with which the Lilliputians shackled Gulliver.
28. All was virtuous to the last degree. Monsieur de Bargeton roamed about the rooms like a beetle, without the least idea that his wife would prefer to be alone with Lucien.
29. The next day Lucien happened to be in one of those moods when young men tear their hair and swear to themselves that they will not continue any longer in the mortifying position of a supplicant.

30. She took her seat, as in the middle-ages, under the dais of a literary tournament, and Lucien was only to win her after multiplied victories; he was to emulate and excel “l’enfant sublime,” Lamartine, Walter Scott, Byron.
31. I will send Gentil on horseback to l’Escarbas and summon my father, who must be your second.
32. Ah, my friend,” said his wife, much moved, “you are what men should be, what I love in a man, — you are a gentleman.”
33. I will pick you up between Mansle and Ruffec, and we shall soon be in Paris. There, dear Lucien, is the only true life for superior minds. We shall feel at ease among our equals; here we can only suffer. Paris, the capital of the intellectual world, will be the theatre of your success.
34. When you personally attain a high position, your works will acquire enormous value. For all artists, the great secret to solve is how to get into the public eye.

35. Therefore choose the wise path and come with me to Paris, where all men of genius gather.
36. Paris and its splendors — Paris, which is to provincial imaginations an Eldorado — stood before him with her robe of gold, a circlet of royal jewels in her hair, her arms wide open to embrace all talent.
37. Moreover, the thought came into his mind that after such a journey, when circumstances seemed to marry them, Madame de Bargeton would certainly be his and they would live together.
38. You have only had one new pair of nankeen trousers this year; those of last year have shrunk.
39. "To give a thousand francs to your brother is to give away our own bread and risk our peace and comfort. If I were alone I know what I should do, but we are now two; you must decide.”

40. PART II. A GREAT MAN FROM THE PROVINCES IN PARIS




Saturday, October 14, 2023

Various Notes:
1. An October Garden, by Christina Rossetti.
"To Autumn’s languid sun and rain
When all the world is on the wane!"
A Christmas Carol, by Christina Rossetti.
"Yet what I can I give Him,
Give my heart."
A Chilly Night, by Christina Rossetti is a great Halloween poem.
2. In The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Irivng Stone, there is a man whose last name is Balducci. Balducci's is a well-known grocery store in New York City.
3. Attempting to understand the mysteries of life, is a theme that I learned reading classic literature.



Thursday, October 12, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. Not to succeed is a crime of sociallèse-majesté.
2. He did love, but he wished to raise himself; a double desire natural to young men who have a heart to satisfy and indigence to escape. Society, which in these days bids all her children to the same table, awakens all ambitions in the dawn of life. It deprives youth of its graces, it vitiates generous sentiments, mingling selfish calculation with all things.
3. But reading with David those poems of Chénier, his secret passed from his heart to his lips, stung by a reproach which he felt as a patient feels the finger a surgeon lays upon his wound.
4. AN EVENING IN SOCIETY

5. The manners of good society, when they are not a gift of birth... or transmitted in the blood, are the result of education, which accident often seconds by native elegance of form, distinction of feature, or tones of the voice.
6. Born a gentleman through his mother, he had the signs of breeding, even to the arched instep of a Frank; whereas David Séchard was flat-footed as a Gaul, and clumsy as his father the pressman.
7. Thus, after an hour of poetry and devotion, after reading André Chénier and beholding with his friend new fields of literary possibilities lighted by a new sun, Lucien dropped back into social policy and calculation.
8. As he walked back to l’Houmeau he repented his letter and wished he could recover it; the pitiless laws of society came in a flash before his mind. Remembering how acquired fortune would promote even a poet’s ambition, he could not endure to take his foot from the first rung of the ladder by which he was to mount to greatness. But soon the recollections of a simple, tranquil life, made beautiful with the flowers of feeling; of David, that soul of genius, who had nobly succored him and would, if need be, give him his very life...
9. The odor of camomile, peppermint, and other distilled herbs filled the courtyard and penetrated to the modest apartment above the shop, which was reached by one of those straight, narrow stairways called millers’ stairs, without other balusters than a couple of ropes.

10. Your sister is mighty pretty! You are not bad-looking yourself; your father did things well.
11. Eve was a tall, dark girl, with black hair and blue eyes. Although she showed several signs of a virile character she was personally gentle, tender, and devoted. Her frankness, her naivete, her tranquil resignation to a hard-working life, the propriety of her conduct, which no gossip ever slandered, had won the heart of David Séchard.
12. Lucien did not answer. Eve brought a little plate daintily arranged with vine-leaves and placed it on the table with a jug of cream.
“See, Lucien, I have got you some strawberries."
13. Then she removed his empty plate and the earthenware tureen, and put before him the dish she had cooked for his dinner.
14. When their emotion had passed off, David remarked to Lucien that his poem of “Saint John at Patmos” was rather too Biblical to be read before a company who probably knew little of apocalyptic poetry.

15. David advised him to take the volume of André Chénier with him and change a doubtful pleasure into a certain one; Lucien read admirably; he could not help delighting an audience, and his modesty in choosing another poet would be put to his credit.
16. Like most young men he believed in the intelligence and virtue of persons of rank. If youth which has never sinned is without mercy for the known sins of others it also attributes to others its own magnificent faiths. We must experience life before we recognize that, as Raffaelle finely said, comprehension alone makes us equal to it.
17. The poor lover dared not say a word which might seem to ask for thanks; all words appeared to him compromising, and therefore he kept silence with the air of a criminal.
18. David had a momentary idea of prostrating himself before that enchanting girl, who had put into her voice certain tones of hope rewarded. By the tenderness of those tones she meant to solve the difficulties of the situation.
19. Generally he escaped this difficulty by having recourse to the naive ways of his childhood ; he thought aloud; he revealed every detail of his life, and expressed all his wants and sensations, which, to him, took the place of ideas.

20. “To please Madame de Bargeton,” he would say, “I ate veal this morning for breakfast ; she likes it, but my stomach aches in consequence. I knew how it would be, I am always taken so; can you explain it?” Or he would remark, “I shall ring for a glass of eau sucree, will you have one?”
21. When the party was gay and he saw every one well employed, he would stand mutely, planted on his two long legs like a stork, apparently listening to a political conversation (of which he heard not a word), or studying the cards of a player without understanding the game (for he knew none), or else he walked about snuffing tobacco, and trying to work off his indigestion.
22. Anais was the one happiness of his life; she gave him infinite enjoyment. When she played her part as mistress of the house he lay back in his easy chair and admired her — she was talking for him. He took pleasure in searching out the meaning of her sentences, and as it frequently came to him long after they were uttered, his smiles would often explode unexpectedly, like torpedoes that have been buried in the ground. His respect for his wife amounted to adoration; and, we may ask, is not adoration, of whatever kind it be, sufficient to make the happiness of a life? Anaïs, who was generous and intelligent, had not abused her power, recognizing in her husband the facile nature of a child, which asks nothing better than to be governed.
23. She pitied him, and never did she complain of him; so that some persons, misunderstanding her proud silence, supposed Monsieur de Bargeton to be possessed of hidden merits.
24. The baron took up his eyeglass and surveyed Lucien’s nankeen trousers, waistcoat, boots, and blue coat, made in Angoulême, - in short, the whole of his rival from top to toe.

25. Monsieur de Bargeton, having nothing to say, was in consternation at the silence maintained by the rivals, who were eyeing each other; but when he found himself in a crisis of this kind, he had one question which he reserved, like a pear for a thirsty moment, and he now thought the time had come to launch it with a businesslike air.
26. The invited guests began to arrive. The first to enter were the bishop and his grand-vicar, two solemn and dignified figures, forming, however, a violent contrast to each other. Monseigneur was tall and thin; his acolyte was fat and short. Both had brilliant eyes, but the bishop was pale, while the vicar was crimson with abounding health. In each — and here there was no difference between them — gesture and movement were extremely rare. Both seemed prudence itself; their reserve and their silence intimidated others, and they passed for being very intellectual.
27. The husband of Amélie (the woman who was posing as Madame de Bargeton’s antagonist), Monsieur de Chandour, called Stanislas, was a would-be young man, still slender at forty-five years of age, with a face like a sieve.
28. He read the papers slowly, carved corks with his penknife, drew fantastic figures in his blotting-book, turned over Cicero in search of a sentence or passage applicable to some event of the day, so that he might lead the conversation in the evening to a topic which enabled him to say: “There is a passage in Cicero which seems actually to have been written for these days.”
29. The art of music became to him a monomania; he never brightened unless the subject were talked of; he was miserable the whole evening until asked to sing. But as soon as he had bellowed a tune, life began for him; his chest swelled, he rose from his heels to receive compliments; he pretended modesty though he went from group to group to gather flattery; then, when there was no more to be had, he would open a discussion on the piece he had just sung and praise the composer.
30. To be continued.



Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. The king’s court was less pretentious than this society of blockheads.
2. ...for among the intimates of this clan, as among the Spanish grandees and the cream of Viennese society, men and women are known by their Christian names, — a device invented to procure exclusiveness, and the practice of which gave distinction to the inner circles of the Angoulême aristocracy.
3. Naïs was loved as all young men love the first woman who flatters them; and she did this by prophesying a great future and vast fame for his talents. Madame de Bargeton put all her natural cleverness to use in giving her young poet a foothold in her house. Not only did she place him intellectually very high, but she represented him as a youth without fortune whose future she desired to secure. She made him her reader and secretary, but she loved him more than she had thought herself capable of loving after the great catastrophe of her life.
4. She arraigned herself mentally; declaring in her own mind that it was folly to love a boy of twenty, whose social position was far beneath her.
5. The poet, thus emboldened, called the great lady “Naïs.” Hearing this, she was angry, with the anger so bewitching to youth; she reproached him for employing a name which all the world used, and she offered her handsome genius the name by which no one called her; to him she would be Louise, — Louise de Nègrepelisse. Lucien was in the third heaven.

6. One evening he entered the room unexpectedly while Louise was gazing at a portrait, which she hastily put away. He asked to see it. To calm this first attack of jealousy, Louise showed him the portrait of young Cante-Croix, and told him, not without tears, the mournful history of her love, so pure and so cruelly extinguished...Their discussions on duty, on conventions, on religion, are redoubts which they like their lovers to take by assault. But the innocent Lucien did not need such coquetries; he would have fought the battle of love quite naturally.
7. ...he had promised for the first page of her album, and tried to make a quarrel of his delay in writing them, declaring that it proved she was incapable of inspiring him.
8. Lucien was a great man, whom it was her mission to train; she would teach him German and Italian, and improve his manners.
9. She took up her music to reveal a world of harmony to her poet, whom she ravished with Beethoven.
Suggests that it is good to listen to the classical music of all the great composers.

10. Happy in his delight she said one day, hypocritically, seeing him as it were transported, “Is not this happiness enough for us?” To which the poor poet had the stupidity to answer, “Yes.”
11. ...Angoulême is saying?” she cried. “That little rhymester is the son of Madame Charlotte who took care of my sister-in-law in her last confinement.”
12. ...she said that if noblemen were unable to become Molières, Racines, Rousseaus, Voltaires, Massillons, or Diderots, the least they could do was to welcome among them the sons of tradesmen after they had proved themselves great men. She declared that genius was nobility.
13. In short, she talked a great deal of nonsense which might have enlightened a set of people who were not ninnies; her friends, however, set them all down to the score of her great originality.
14. When Lucien, on her invitation, first entered the faded old salon where the company were playing whist at four tables, she welcomed him graciously, and presented him to her friends, like a queen who expects to be obeyed.

15. But Madame de Bargeton’s salon was open every evening, and the guests who frequented it were such creatures of routine, so used to looking at the same carpets, playing with the same chequers, seeing the same servants, the same torches, putting on their cloaks, overshoes, and hats in the same antechamber, that they loved the very steps of the stairway as much as they did the mistress of the house.
16. "Before the Revolution,” he said, “the highest personages received Duclos, Grimm, Crébillon, all men of no consequence like this little poet of the suburbs; but they never admitted a tax-collector, and that, after all, is what Châtelet is.”
17. Du Châtelet was made the scape-goat for Chardon; every one gave him the cold shoulder. Finding himself thus attacked, du Châtelet, who, from the day Madame de Bargeton called him Châtelet, had vowed to bring her under his thumb, acquiesced in all the views of the mistress of the house. He openly declared himself a friend of the young poet.
18. Baron Sixte du Chatelet flattered himself that the little rhymester would sooner or later wilt in this hot-house of praise, or else, intoxicated with the idea of coming fame, he would be guilty of some impertinence which would send him back to his original obscurity.
19. She announced throughout the department a soiree with ices, cakes, and tea, — an immense innovation in a town where tea was sold at the apothecaries’ as a drug for indigestion.

20. Louise concealed her conquered difficulties from her poet; but she gave him a few hints as to the cabal formed against him by society; for, she said, she did not wish him to be ignorant of the dangers which beset the career of all men of genius, and the obstacles which are insurmountable to inferior minds.
21. She showed him, one after the other, the successive strata of the social world, and made her poet count how many steps of the ladder he would mount at once through this brilliant determination.



Various Notes:
1. I updated Favorite Notes II (below).
2. In Pere Goriot, by Honore de Balzac, Balzac suggests that if you have the talent, etc., you can bargain with businesses or the administration to get what you want.
3. Honore de Balzac had a love for learning, he encouraged learning in all forms; many of the classical authors also possessed this quality.
4. Honore de Balzac suggests that it is good to listen to the classical music of all the great composers.
🆕 5. Repost: My library's e-book application that I downloaded is great, it allows me to easily copy text from the open window, and paste it into my web editor for publishing!



Tuesday, October 10, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. But philosophers have recorded that the habits of youth are wont to return with added strength in old age. Séchard was an example of this moral law; the older he grew, the more he loved drink. This passion left upon his ursine countenance certain marks which gave it originality; his nose had taken the form and development of a capital A; his veiny cheeks, like vine-leaves covered with purple gibbosities and streaked with various colors, gave to his head the appearance of a monstrous truffle clasped by the shoots of autumn. Hiding behind thick eyebrows, which resembled bushes covered with snow, his small gray eyes, glittering with the avarice which had killed every other emotion within him, even that of paternity, kept their intelligence when he himself was drunk.
2. He was short and corpulent like the old-fashioned church lamps which consume more oil than wick; for excess in anything forces the body in the direction of its own tendencies; drunkenness, like study, makes a fat man fatter and a thin man thinner.
3. His waistcoat and trousers were of greenish velveteen, and he wore an old brown coat, blue and white cotton stockings, and shoes with silver buckles.
4. This costume, in which the workman and the tradesman were combined, was so well suited to his habits, it expressed his being so admirably, that he seemed to have been born ready dressed; you could no more imagine him without his clothes than you could see an onion without its layers of skin.
5. Old-fashioned, indeed! Yes, old fashions, which will give you porridge; old fashions, which your father has handled these twenty years, and which served him to make you what you are now.
Suggests that in school, memorization of facts, and understanding of principles of grammar, are old-fashioned skills that are necessary for success today.

6. I’m not a learned man like you, but just remember this that I tell you; the life of stanhopes is the death of type. These three presses will do you good service, the work will be properly done, and what more do you want?
7. David asked himself whether or not the matter were feasible.
8. Seeing that his son was silent after hearing the amount demanded, old Séchard became uneasy; for he much preferred a violent discussion to a silent acceptance. In such dealings as these a discussion is the test of a business man who is able to hold his own. “He who demurs to everything,” old Séchard was wont to say, “pays nothing.”
9. Remember this, my lad, the provinces are the provinces, and Paris is Paris.

10. Generous souls are defective in business faculty.
11. All passions are essentially jesuitical.
The Jesuits, members of the Catholic religious order the Society of Jesus, were credited with always finding a justification for any sin.
12. This old man, who considered education useless, endeavored to believe in the influence of education.
13. "...David was indifferent to the religious reaction which the Restoration produced in the government of the country, and he was also indifferent to liberalism; consequently, he maintained a neutrality most injurious to his interests in all matters political or religious."
14. He wished to cure all kinds of gout. Gout is a malady of the rich, and the rich will pay dear for health when they lose it; for which reason the chemist had chosen this problem from among the many his meditations had led him to consider. Forced to choose between science and quackery, the late Chardon had seen plainly that science only would make his fortune. He therefore studied the malady and based his remedy on a certain regime regulated to each patient’s temperament. He died in Paris while soliciting the approval of the Academy of Sciences, and the fruit of his toil was lost. He not only left his family in poverty, but he had, unfortunately, brought them up to expect a brilliant future, which ended with his life.

15. The mainspring of his ambition was his passionate love for his wife, a last scion of the noble family of de Rubempré, whom he had, almost miraculously, saved from the scaffold in 1793.
16. Their children, like all the children of true love, inherited the marvellous beauty of their mother, a gift that is often fatal when poverty accompanies it.
17. Stimulated by his father, who had a passion for the natural sciences, Lucien was one of the most brilliant scholars in the college at Angoulême, where he happened to be in the third class during the last year of David Séchard’s course.
18. This injustice in their destiny was a powerful bond.
19. Active and industrious men would have bought new type, and changed their wooden presses for iron ones; but master and foreman, lost in absorbing mental occupations, contented themselves with printing the work their few remaining customers brought to them.

20. 2. MADAME DE BARGETON
21. The sunlight, which was dancing among the vine-shoots, played on their heads and circled them as it were with a halo.
22. David had the frame that Nature gives to those who are destined for great struggles, whether secret or illustrious. His stalwart chest was flanked with strong shoulders in keeping with the amplitude of his whole figure.
23. ...the undying fire of a single love, the sagacity of a thinker, the ardent melancholy of a soul which could see both extremities of the horizon and penetrate all labyrinths, — a soul that soon palled of ideal enjoyments, bringing the lights of analysis to bear upon them.
24. His face had the clear-cut lines of antique beauty; the forehead and nose were Greek, the skin of a dewy whiteness like a woman’s; his eyes were so deep a blue that they seemed black, — eyes full of love, the balls of which were pure and fresh as those of childhood.

25. These beautiful eyes were surmounted by brows that were surely traced by a Chinese pencil and fringed with lashes that were long and dark.
26. The smile of a saddened angel flickered on his coral lips and showed the contrast of his beautiful teeth. He had the hands of a man of birth, — elegant hands, which men obey and women love to kiss.
27. One of the trials to which great intellects are subjected is to be forced to know all things, evil as well as good, vice as well as virtue.
28. Whereas Lucien, gifted with an enterprising, restless spirit, had an audacity which was out of keeping with his soft, almost feeble physique and tender feminine graces. Lucien’s nature was in the highest degree gascon, — bold, brave, and adventurous; a nature which magnifies good and glosses evil; which recoils from no wrong-doing if there is profit in it, and laughs at vice while making it a stepping-stone.
29. Such ambitious tendencies were at the present time repressed in Lucien by the beautiful illusions of youth, by the ardent impulses which led him to noble means, such as all ambitious men amorous of fame, seek first. He was, as yet, only grappling with his desires, and not with the difficulties of life; with his own forces, not with the baseness of other men — which sets a fatal example to impulsive spirits.

30. David, keenly fascinated by the brilliancy of Lucien’s mind, admired him, and at the same time corrected some of the errors into which the furie française flung him.
31. The physical beauty of his friend carried with it to his mind a superiority which he accepted, recognizing his own personality to be heavy and common.
32. "Farming for the patient ox, a life of airy freedom for the bird,” thought he. “I will be the ox, Lucien shall be the eagle.”
33. For the last three years these friends had mingled their existence. They read the great works which had appeared on the literary and scientific horizon since the Peace, — the works of Schiller, Goethe, Byron, Walter Scott, Jean-Paul, Berzelius, Davy, Cuvier, etc. They heated themselves at those great fires, attempting works, which they pursued, abandoned, and again took up with equal ardor. They worked continually without fatiguing the inexhaustible powers of youth. Equally poor, yet passionately in love with art and science, they forgot their present misery in laying the foundations for their future fame.
34. Balzac mixes here the names of well-known Romantic writers with those of eminent scientists and chemists in order to show that a poet is not only someone who writes verses but above all else is an exceptional individual. Both Lucien and David are “poets” in the etymological sense of the word. In ancient Greek, the verb poiein meant “to make,” “to fashion,” and by extension “to invent.”

35. And David read, as only poets read, the idyl of André Chénier, entitled “Néère;” next “Le Jeune Malade,” and then the elegy on suicide, and the last two iambics.
36. The golden dream was their life; the treasures of earth were at their feet.
37. They saw the glittering spot on the horizon to which Hope points, as her siren voice says to those whose life is troublous, “Fly thither! you shall escape your misery through that little space of gold, of silver, or of azure."
38. The will of lovers can triumph over everything,” said Lucien, dropping his eyes.
39. In spite of my love, and all the divers interests which urge me to become of consequence in her house, I have told her that I cannot return there if...

40. "Heart of gold!” cried David, following Lucien with his eye as he crossed the press-room.
41. None other than Lamartine and Victor Hugo, Casimir Delavigne and Jouy, Béranger and Chateaubriand, Villemain and M. Aignan, Soumet and Tissot, Etienne and Davrigny, Benjamin Constant and Lamennais, Cousin and Michaud; in short, all the old as well as the new glories of literature, — liberals and royalists both.
42. Circumstances that were somewhat rare in the depths of the provinces had inspired Madame de Bargeton with a taste for music and literature.
43. Not only was the abbé a musician, but he possessed a wide knowledge of literature and also knew Italian and German. He taught those languages and counterpoint to Mademoiselle de Nègrepelisse; explained the great lit erary works of France, Italy, and Germany, and practised with her the music of the chief composers. Besides this, he taught her Greek and Latin, as a resource against the weary inoccupation of solitude to which political events condemned him, and he gave her a fair inkling of natural science.
44. The Abbé Niollant, with a poetic soul full of enthusiasm, was remarkable for the sort of mind peculiar to artists, which, while possessing many other precious qualities, rises above the bourgeois and philistine ideas by the breadth of its perceptions and its freedom of judgment.

45. The lack of companionship is one of the greatest drawbacks to country life. For want of practising the little sacrifices of dress and behavior due to others, we lose the habit of constraining ourselves in their service. Habits and thoughts become vitiated.
46. The boldness of the young girl’s thoughts gradually passed into her manners and into her eyes; she acquired the cavalier air which seems at first sight original, but which really belongs only to women of loose lives.
47. It was repugnant to her to submit her mind and her person to the men of small worth and no personal dignity with whom she was acquainted. She wished to rule, and marriage would force her to obey.
48. This disparity was the more unpleasant because Monsieur de Bargeton seemed at least seventy, whereas his wife could very well pass as a girl, dress in pink, and wear her hair down her back.
49. Men born to greatness, and women who might be charming if trained to a better life by superior minds, perish in this way.

50. A sunset is certainly a grand poem, but a woman who depicts it in grand words to material minds is absurd. There are delights which can be really felt only when two souls meet, poet to poet, heart to heart. She made the mistake of using long sentences larded with magniloquent words, and was prodigal of superlatives, which overweighted her conversation so that trifling things assumed gigantic proportions.
51. She adored Lord Byron, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and other poetic and dramatic beings.
52. ...in short, a love without a lover. This was, indeed, the truth.
53. The works of distinguished foreigners, till then untranslated and unknown, which were published from 1815 to 1821, the great essays of Monsieur de Bonald and Monsieur de Maistre, those eagles of thought, and the lighter works of French literature which were beginning to put forth vigorously, occupied and embellished her solitude.
54. Monsieur du Châtelet possessed all the incapacities required for that position. Well-made, handsome, a good dancer, clever billiard-player, an adept at all bodily exercises, a rather poor amateur actor, a singer of ballads, applauder of other people’s witticisms, ready for anything, wily and envious, he knew and was ignorant of most things.

55. He claimed to be clever in diplomacy, the science of those who have no other, and whose depth seems the greater because they are empty, — a science extremely convenient because, while professing to be discreet, it allows an ignorant man to say nothing, to confine himself to mysterious becks and nods; in fact the ablest man in the science of diplomacy is he who swims with his head well up above the current of events which he thus appears to lead, — a question of specific levity. Here, as in the arts, we find a thousand commonplace talents for one man of genius.
56. After studying the manners and customs of that provincial high life, Monsieur le Baron Sixte du Châtelet conducted himself accordingly.
57. As for the women, the greater part of them were awkward, silly, and ill-dressed; all had some defect which detracted from their merit; nothing was complete or perfect about them; neither their dress nor their conversation, their flesh nor their spirit.
58. ... of Parisian grandeur; and at times a true attachment to the Bourbons quand meme †showed itself. This society can be compared (if we may use the simile) to a silver service of antique form, tarnished, but solid and weighty. The immovableness of its political opinions had a character of fidelity.
59. Du Châtelet began his siege of Madame de Bargeton by lending her all the new books, and reading to her the poems of the day. Together they went into ecstacies over the new school of poets, she in good faith, he with inward weariness, though patiently enduring the romanticists, who, as a man of the Empire, he was wholly unable to comprehend.

60. Saddened at the thought that she should only know genius from afar, she longed for Paris, the centre of great minds.
61. She foresaw little ignorant absurdities; for instance, Lucien had a habit of leaning on his elbows whenever he sat down; he would even draw a table to his side for that purpose.
62. When he reached the house in the rue de Minage, Lucien found nothing astonishing in its exterior.
63. Madame de Bargeton wore, as the fashion then was, a head-dress of black velvet which suggested recollections of the middle-ages, and to Lucien’s eyes gave a certain stateliness to her head. From beneath it fell a wealth of hair of a reddish auburn, gold in the sunshine, ruddy in the curve of its waves.
64. The three hours passed beside her were to him one of those dreams which we would fain make eternal.

65. Her defects, which her manners exaggerated, pleased him; for young men begin by liking exaggeration, — the falsehood of fine souls.
66. To be continued.



Various Notes:
1. Soup broth is good for you, and knowing this, I enjoy eating Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup (red and white, 25% less sodium) more often!
Added to Food Tips.
2. The Classical or Light-Classical music channels are great to watch at night!
Added to Favorite Notes II.
3. Honore de Balzac suggests that in school, memorization of facts, and understanding of principles of grammar, are old-fashioned skills that contribute to success after graduation.



Monday, October 9, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. For example, David’s father, Jérôme-Nicolas Séchard, lives in a world of his own. This miser can turn anything into gold... He resents every penny he has spent toward the education of his son, and throughout Parts I and III, he remains determined not to help his son in any way. At first he does not even approve of David’s marriage to Eve, though toward the end he will warm up to his daughter-in-law. In many ways Old Séchard is one of the most pathetic characters in the novel: selfish, heartless, and manipulative.
2. Petit-Claud is not an ordinary man. Balzac, who was well versed in physiognomy (the “science” of perceiving character through outward appearance), describes the provincial lawyer as follows: “Despised by his schoolmates, Pierre Petit-Claud seemed to have had a certain amount of gall infused into his blood. His face had the dirty, muddy tints which indicate former illnesses, privations, nights of anxiety, and, nearly always, evil feelings”
3. In the end, Petit-Claud becomes one of the king’s attorneys, and Boniface Cointet is elevated to the rank of peer of France. Pierre Petit-Claud and Boniface Cointet have become great men of the province.
4. This strategy is part of a narrative process through which Balzac focuses on the philosophical import of his exploration of the socio-cultural substratum of the provinces and Paris.

5. In Part I, Balzac lays the groundwork for an exploration of Romanticism that he continues in Part II when Lucien immerses himself into the literary, journalistic, and intellectual milieu of Paris. In “The Two Poets,” Lucien is called the “Chateaubriand of L’Houmeau” and “another Chatterton.” Lucien owes his invitation to the salon of Madame de Bargeton to his ability to write verses in the manner of Chatterton (see endnote 25 to Part I). The Baron Sixte du Châtelet comments : “Poor and modest, the lad was another Chatterton, but without... the ferocious hatred against social grandeur which drove the Englishman into writing pamphlets to insult his benefactors” (p. 43). Chateaubriand and Vigny were about the same age, and as mentioned earlier, the two men were members of the same social circle. Balzac was not a poet but a sharp observer of society who longed to become a profound philosopher, yet he understood and appreciated lyric poetry. Few passages are as moving as the one where David and Lucien read to one another poems by André Chénier, the true precursor of French Romantic poetry:
6. Lucien read aloud the epic fragment of the “Aveugle” and several elegies. When he chanced upon the line — “If they have no joy, is there joy upon earth?” he laid down the book, and they both wept, for each loved to idolatry.
7. Paris offers a sharp contrast to this idyllic and idealistic view of poetry. Aesthetic values do matter, but so do sales. Thus the publisher Dauriat deals a severe blow to the “Chateaubriand of L’Houmeau” when he declares: “For the last two years poets have swarmed like cockchafers; I lost twenty thousand francs on them last year!” and adds: “There are but four poets: Béranger, Casimir Delavigne, Lamartine and Victor Hugo”
8. In those days, newspapers regularly ran articles about the fate of young persons from the provinces who had come to Paris in search of literary fame. Most of them were duped and disappointed; they starved, became ill, and sometimes committed suicide. The satirical newspaper Vert-Vert went as far as to suggest that suicide had become a contagious disease among young writers. In Angoulême, Lucien had written a novel, L Archer de Charles IX ( The Archer of Charles IX) , and a volume of poetry, Daisies. Lucien dreamed of fame; he fancied his name displayed in the windows of Parisian bookstores. Yet he could not find a publisher for his work; he was starving. Could he ever earn money with his pen? Circumstances worked in his favor. Lucien often ate in a cheap restaurant called Flicoteaux. There he befriended Etienne Lousteau, who would introduce him to the world of journalism.
9. Newspapers proliferated, and journalists were in demand. Their reviews of literary works, plays, and concerts influenced the public and helped drive the sales of books and tickets to the opera and the theater. As a group, journalists, like actors and actresses, are capable of thriving on rivalry, greed, and insincerity.

10. Lost Illusions is certainly not an autobiographical novel. Yet, as one would expect, in it Balzac incorporated many aspects of his views on the role of the writer in society.
11. The narrator’s description of d’Arthèz is worth quoting because it represents Balzac’s own ambitions, which were philosophical in nature:
[D’Arthèz] believed in no great, incomparable talent without a deep, a profound metaphysical knowledge. At the present moment he was culling the philosophic riches of ancient and modern times to assimilate them. He wished, like Molière, to be a deep philosopher before making comedies. He studied the written world and the living world; the thought and the fact (p. 200).
12. In that novella, the painter Frenhofer is obsessed with painting a woman in an absolutely perfect way.
13. PART I. THE TWO POETS
A PRINTING-HOUSE IN THE PROVINCES
14. Séchard was formerly a journeyman printer, of the kind which the workmen whose duty it was to collect the letters called, in typographic slang, a “bear.” The incessant coming and going and turning, very like that of a bear in his cage, with which the pressmen moved from the ink to the press, and from the press to the ink, was no doubt the origin of the nickname. In return, the bears called the compositors “monkeys,” on account of the agility with which those gentry were obliged to catch up the letters from the hundred and fifty little cases which contained them.
15. The solitary bear could not be transformed into a monkey for the reason that, in his capacity as a pressman, he had not known how to read or write.
16. Avarice begins where poverty ends.



Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. In the recent Gaza−Israel conflict, many reports are making Hamas out to be the aggressor, when what actually happened was Israel attacked Hamas first, and then Hamas retaliated in self-defense. This kind of false news is not good.
3. There should be peace between both sides in the recent Gaza-Israel conflict.
4. It would be positive to see more educational films or documentaries about black history, and blacks in sports and the arts, on tv.
5. Many people know advanced concepts, but not the basic concepts on which the advanced concepts were based.

6. One of the characters imitates the sound of music with his voice, in Pere Goriot, by Honore de Balzac.
7. Omitted.
8. In Pere Goriot, we learn that often, ideas have the capacity of being expanded, and made into other ideas.
9. Omitted.
10. Money can give you happiness. -Pere Goriot, by Honore de Balzac.



Sunday, October 8, 2023

Lost Illusions, by Honore de Balzac:
1. “But,” said Lucien, “if you don’t read the books, how will you write your articles?”
If you don't cook, you won't eat.
2. I must reappear to the eyes of the prefect’s wife, and recover my influence over her at any price. Isn’t it frightful to think that David Séchard’s future depends on a handsome pair of boots, gray silk stockings (mind you don’t forget them), and a new hat?
3. I hope to read novels by Balzac, Flaubert, Hugo, and Zola.
4. Introduction

5. With the wit of a seasoned Parisian, Rastignac asks his friends to look at “the mummy whom Madame d’Espard called her cousin, and the precaution that lady took to have an apothecary in her train”...
6. In Part III, “An Inventor’s Tribulations,” as Lucien is contemplating suicide a Spanish prelate and diplomat named Carlos Herrera comes to his rescue.
7. The intellectual gap between father and son, if shocking, results from the many social upheavals that took place in the wake of the Revolution.
8. Illustrates the contrast between the aristocracy and the working-class.
9. On another occasion [Madame de Bargeton] opts for the Oriental look — also in vogue among the Romantics: “She wore a turban fastened with an oriental buckle. A gauze scarf, beneath which could be seen a cameo necklace, was gracefully twined about her throat. The short sleeves of her painted muslin gown enabled her to wear several tiers of bracelets on her beautiful white arms”. In other words, Madame de Bargeton’s outfits reflect her literary taste and her ambitions.
10. She played with an elegant vinaigrette [a small bottle of smelling salts] fastened to one of the fingers of her right hand by a little chain, exhibiting thus her slender and well-gloved hand without apparently intending it.



Saturday, October 7, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
3. Maybe American sports like baseball and basketball are prejudicial toward Native Americans, Asian Americans, and other groups because they do not represent enough of them in their games.
4. Affirmative action has helped blacks and other groups in many ways, according to a book I've read.
5. People have many dimensions, and society also has many dimensions, according to Honore de Balzac.



Friday, October 6, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I added notes #8 and #52 from today's Balzac reading, to Favorite Notes II.
2. Maybe people need to learn more about U.S. history, because U.S. history impacts our lives today. Maybe people also need to learn more about the U.S. Constitution, because the constitution also impacts our lives today.



Thursday, October 5, 2023

Various Notes:
1. People have different dimensions. That is, they are defined by several different elements. I learned this reading Honore de Balzac.
Addd to Favorite Notes.
2. "Some people can understand ideas, but not grammatical concepts." -Pere Goriot, Honore de Balzac.
Added to Favorite Notes II



Wednesday, October 4, 2023

Various Notes:
1. "Maybe we should look at the reasons for committing the act, instead of the act itself.” - A book I’ve read.
Added to Favorite Notes II
2. "He expects you to go straight at full speed, in which case, you should go left or right."
-Pere Goriot, Honore de Balzac.
Added to Favorite Notes II



Tuesday, October 3, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Please refer to Favorite Notes II - #1, on William Wordsworth, for an update to the post.
3. According to the Oxford Essential German Dictionary: backward - zuruckgeblieben. There is an old saying, "Don't do a thing backwards."
4. In the current reading by Balzac, please see today's note #46.



Monday, October 2, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I learned reading Balzac that some people have a mania or an obsession with their job.
2. Omitted.
3. 🎄 I enjoy singing Christmas carols! These songs include: Silent Night, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Jingle Bells, Winter Wonderland, O Tannenbaum, I Saw Three Ships, Jingle Bell Rock, The First Noel, and Caroling, Caroling (Christmas Bells are Ringing). The Christmas Song, by Nat King Cole, is a favorite holiday album.
Added to Favorite Notes II.



Sunday, October 1, 2023

Various Notes:
1. “I did all I could do; I couldn’t do any more.” -A character in a James Joyce novel.
2. In the current book I'm reading, one of the characters feeds her pet cat milk, on a saucer, after boiling it. Moloko dlya koshka!
Balzac also suggests that pets enjoy eating scraps.
3. We learn that Honore de Balzac presents complex novels. The protagonists are round, dynamic characters rather than flat characters. There are also several different protagonists.
4. "I have to wait just a few hours, it should be easy." -One of the books I'm reading.
5. Calypso, in Greek mythology, the daughter of the Titan Atlas (or Oceanus or Nereus), a nymph of the mythical island of Ogygia. The current reading on Balzac discusses this myth.
6. Please see today's notes #9, #19, #26, #34 ,#60, #79, #116 on the present Honore de Balzac novel.
7. In the Honore de Balzac reading, there is a character who has daughters who he is very fond of. When his daughters treat him well, he gives them gifts.
8. #109, "Suggests that money can enliven people, and make them happy."
9. “If you think that you’re doing good now, and enjoying yourself, why go backwards? Keep up these victory days!"



Saturday, September 30, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Maybe mental health classes are flawed because after attending them for months, or even years, students are not healed. The classes do not give students grades, although students are expected to do college-level work, and maybe the classes do not teach students marketable skills.
Added to Notes about Psychiatry
2. The Triumph of Life, by Percy Bysshe Shelley is a noble, inspiring poem.
In the poem, Shelley praises the power of life. In addition to this, classic authors also praise the power of romance. In the poem, Shelley suggests that we draw inspiration from notable figures of antiquity. He also suggests that you look not at the dull and dreary, but at the flowers and fruit, the sun and Heaven.
3. I completed Bleak House, and added the review to Book Reviews VII. I also removed past reviews from this page, and added them to Book Reviews IX.
4. Manhattan or New England clam chowder mixed with an extra can of chopped clams tastes great!
Added to Favorite Notes II
5. Instead of typing, I copy and paste the text that I like from the online book application on my phone then to the website editor then publish it online.



Sunday, September 24, 2023

Various Notes:
1. A saying in religious circles is that the people in the church are like a flock of sheep, and the pastor, or reverend is the shepherd.
2. The Pathfinder, and other James Fenimore Cooper novels are a lot like Clint Eastwood movies and other westerns!
3. Maybe tv game shows are biased because some people have different physical abilities than others.
4. They play cards a lot in the old westerns. Maybe this is to encourage others to do the same.
5. Since I enjoy watching old westerns, I also enjoy watching old sitcoms.

6. Drawing on the concepts mentioned in #2 and #5, now I enjoy watching cable tv more!
7. Many people froze to death during harsh winters in Russia, according to one book I've reviewed.



Friday, September 22, 2023

Various Notes:
1. The expression every cloud has a silver lining, according to Wikipedia, "is a metaphor for optimism which means that a negative occurrence may have a positive aspect to it.”
2. Tba.



Thursday, September 21, 2023




Saturday, September 16, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.
3. One character in “Bleak House,” by Charles Dickens, always kept his rooms "fresh and airy."
4. Omitted.
5. Omitted.

7. I learned about "Philosophical Transactions," a scientific journal, reading "Bleak House," by Charles Dickens.
8.



Friday, September 15, 2023

Various Notes:
Thursday, September 14, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In Bleak House, by Charles Dickens, Dickens suggests that it can be entertaining to look at the lives of other people.
2. Tba.



Wednesday, September 13. 2023

Various Notes:
1. Reading John Donnes poetry, one of the characters had a glaze over their eyes. His poem An Anatomy of the World suggest that you can view the world anatomically, like the human body, with the water in the oceans representing blood and the rocks and mountains representing bone.
2. Tba.



Tuesday, September 12. 2023

Various Notes:
1. I find it useful to think that people are okay if you chip away and analyze their actions…if you have time to do all that.
2. Omitted.
3. Here are some things I learned that running 🏃‍♂️ does to your body:
A. Strengthen your heart and lungs.
B. Develop fatigue-resistant muscles.
C. Build healthy joints.
D. Improve memory and mood.
E. Accelerate your metabolism.
Source: Abbott - 5 Benefits of Running
4. I came to the following conclusion, reading The Clever Cat, an African fairy tale: if you are with a friend and the two of you do not want to speak, you can just listen, listen to the world around you.
5. Since I like living in the country, and since I am of African descent, perhaps it’s best to look at life as though I was in a small African village, like Nelson Mandela’s.



Monday, September 11, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Evidence suggests that there is a limited amount of knowledge available (in the form of literature) to research. This means that when all the knowledge has been researched, other means of time-occupation will have to be explored.



Friday, September 8, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Here on NotD, I added some main points from my book review on the autobiography of Louis Armstrong.
2. I think that I will only run 🏃‍ once or twice a week from now on, to remain healthy and decrease the chance of injury.



Thursday, September 7, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Charles Dickens suggests that it is okay to write down your opinions.
2. Omitted.



Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In one of the books I’ve read, the narrator suggests that many times, slight problems resolve themselves in a matter of seconds or minutes.
2. Tba.



Monday, September 4, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. In one scene of Wuthering Heights , of one character, the narrator writes, “She took a book and pretended to read it."



The Complete Poems, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge:
1. I enjoyed reading Coleridge's
The Faded Flower,
Sonnet To William Godwin, Author of 'Political Justice,', which praise political theorists for shaping society, and
On Donne's Poetry
2. I also enjoyed reading Coleridge's The Hour When We Shall Meet Again, which suggests that when he awakens is when he shall meet his friend again.
3. I also enjoyed reading Coleridge's The Destiny of Nations, which suggests that men should all peacefully inhabit the world.
4. One line in Frost at Midnight soothes our concerns, and reminds us that outdoor wildlife has, for centuries survived harsh winters.



Sunday, September 3, 2023

Various Notes:
1. There is a character in a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel who, along with his cousins, eats the baked goods his family makes. There is another scene in a Marquez novel where one of the character's eats crackers and guava jelly.
2. "...another of the character's has a jewelry box filled with different kinds of jewelry."
3. I learned that sometimes, people "double up," or "triple up," on acid tabs.
4. I added the previous three notes to Favorite Notes II.
5. I learned that one thing that writing with the left hand, in script does, is make me more inventive and creative, that is, it allows me to better invent new ideas. Writing with the right hand, in script also contributes to this.



Saturday, September 2, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I like Coleridge’s On Imitation.
”All are not born to soar — and ah! how few…"
2. I learned some Russian proverbs today, one of my favorites is:
Хлеб всему́ голова́.   Bread is the staff of life. / Bread - whole head!
Literal: Bread is head of everything.
3. Earlier I learned that bread is a good carbohydrate, and apparently, bread is very popular in Russian culture.
4. Did you know that I have a wooden yoga block that I often use to sit on at home? I also have led strip lights for effect.
5. In one of the books I've read, the narrator suggests that it is okay to be simple and plain, and not entertaining.



Friday, September 1, 2023

Various Notes:
1. There is a character in Jane Austen’s Persuasion, who only read poetry, and only read the first-rate poets.
2. The Nose, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge was written in 1789, and The Nose, by Nikolai Gogol was written in 1835. Perhaps Gogol was inspired by Coleridge.
3. One poem that I like by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is Genevieve.
4. Coleridge’s poem entitled Honour suggests that you invent your own code of honor.
5. I like Coleridge’s Absence: A Farewell Ode on Quitting School for Jesus College, Cambridge. In it he describes fond memories of a school that he left.



Tuesday, August 29, 2023

Various Notes:
1. "The forces of good are always one step ahead of the forces of evil."
- The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Irving Stone.
2. Omitted.



Monday, August 28, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. "...then retiring to his room to hammer down on paper the lines, forms, interrelation of feature and expression that makes every human being different from another."
- The Agony and the Ecstasy, Irving Stone
3. I decided to slow down and not work on any books for a while, although I'll still post if I get any other good ideas.



Sunday, August 27, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I completed A Tale of Two Cities, and added the review to Book Reviews VII.
2. I learned that it can be rewarding to have books in different languages. In Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte, there is a character who has several books in Latin and Greek. This character also has several books in different subjects.
3. The Greek word for "eye," suggests that the eyes are just small slits through which we can see.
4. Of one of the characters in Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert, Flaubert writes, “We saw him working conscientiously, looking up every word in the dictionary, and taking the greatest pains.”
5. One of the characters in Wuthering Heights read over the books in his library “like twenty times each.”
6. Omitted.
7. 10:45pm - I learned that many of the ancients studied Greek and Latin.





Various Notes:
1. It is great that my local library has a way for me to read books online. This makes blogging a lot easier!!
2.Omitted.
3. Charles Dickens and Gabriel Garcia Marquez suggest that many medications are like poison.
-Added to the Notes about Psychiatry page.



Friday, August 25, 2023

Various Notes:
1. 10:15pm - I revised the article, "Why I Don't Believe The Story About The Slave Trade...," kindly review it.
2. I did some research on Google about LSD. I learned that Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD, or acid, is a drug that affects the nervous system. Apparently, LSD can cause an “acid trip,” or “bad trips.” Google has a lot of information about it.
3. Omitted.



Monday, August 21, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Omitted.



Sunday, August 20, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Project Gutenberg has a free version of "An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Volume 2," by John Locke. Kindly review it.
2. “CHAPTER VIII.
Some Propositions bring no Increase to our Knowledge.”
- Essay #2, John Locke
2. Tba.



Saturday, August 19, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I plan to study the French philosophers. One interesting thing that I learned is that Auguste Comte, who was very influential in the field of sociology, argued that social systems should keep up with the progress of humanity.
2. I learned that many of the French philosophers attempted to make contributions to political thought and influence the way that government was shaped.
Added to the Notes about Psychiatry page.



Friday, August 18, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Jane Austen, in Persuasion, suggests that it is rewarding to read “summer poems.” I like Sonnet 18, by William Shakespeare, "Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?"
I also enjoy poems about summer's ending by famous poets.
2. Tba.



Monday, August 14, 2023

Here are some Various Notes:
1. Blacks might have benefited from slavery, but Regents studies suggest that the disadvantages of slavery far outweighed the advantages, and it is important to note that slavery represented a very ugly time in U.S. history. And how could the tools that blacks gained through slavery be used to help them in today’s fast-paced world? That approach represents a narrow-minded way of thinking.
2. I learned that I do not have to search as much for words. When speaking or thinking, just let the words come to me. This is related to recent philosophical concepts that I've learned, such as the mind's unexplained but proven ability to retain and retrieve information.


Thursday, August 10, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Maybe a pillowcase that fits two pillows (vertically), would make stacking easier. Or maybe those of us who are a bit talented, can sew two pillowcases together to make one pillowcase that fits two pillows.
2. My idea to sew two pillowcases together worked, stacking is now easier!!
3. I learned reading the Introduction to Mrs Warren’s Profession, by George Bernard Shaw, that sometimes, it is acceptable to deal with adult subjects.
4. Omitted.



Tuesday, August 8, 2023

Various Notes:
1. One character in Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen, paid little attention to the observation of nature, inanimate nature.
2. James Fenimore Cooper suggests that there are moments when the line of justice between black and white is clear, and there are moments when the line of justice is not so clear, and questions how this factors in to the law.
3. I added the two preceding Various Notes to Favorite Notes II (below).



Sunday, August 6, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I learned that my approach towards learning is friendly, but effective. Due to the number of friendships in the academic world, and my love of learning, I aspire to be an intellectual in some field. I mention this not to arouse any feelings of malign or scorn, but rather because I am greatly inspired to learn and encourage others to do the same. Consequently, just as Theseus did in Parallel Lives by Plutarch, I will get my metaphorical boots and sword, or patience and literature, and begin my journey.
2. Tba.



Friday, July 28, 2023

Various Notes:
1. "Eat, because when you eat, it will make you feel better." - A George Eliot novel.
2. I read an article on Wikipedia on the Biafran Civil War, or the Nigerian Civil War. Apparently, this was a war in Nigeria which involved the Fulani, Hausa, and Igbo peoples about food shortages, or starvation, as well as colonial rule. I also learned that the Biafran Civil War occurred concurrent to the Vietnam War. Additionally, I learned that bia means food in Irish.



Thursday, July 27, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I was thinking that birds could help humans if they said in a chirp, “Shrooms make you shout! Poisonous mushrooms, shrooms make you shout.”
It’s bird to human language. I learned that birds can learn to say just about anything that humans say.
2. Omitted.



Monday, July 24, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In one scene of The Deerslayer, by James Fenimore Cooper, Cooper speaks highly of the chameleon, for its ability to blend in with its environment.
2. Omitted.



Sunday, July 23, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I like the YouTube app for smart tv's!
2. Perhaps Father McKenzie from Eleanor Rigby, by The Beatles was a personage drawn from James Joyce's Dubliners.



Saturday, July 22, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Perhaps it would be good to see an American Indian playing baseball, or even several American Indians playing baseball.
I got this idea reading The Deerslayer, by James Fenimore Cooper.
2. In one scene of The Deerslayer, by James Fenimore Cooper, the narrator writes that verses in the Bible are often read and then a year later the reader gets an idea from the verse, and draws the analogy to how God planted seeds in the earth, which in time, grew into trees.



Friday, July 21, 2023

Various Notes:
1. ...There are also the benefits that me running causes to the environment, the atmosphere. It benefits the atmosphere more when I run than when I don’t run. Makes the wintertime seem warmer, and more pleasant, and increases the amount of flowers that bloom in the summer, for example. How exactly me running does this, I don’t know.

2. Omitted.



Friday, July 7, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. In one of the books I’ve read, the author reminds us of the importance of being polite and respectful.
3. I saw in the retail store sturdy memory foam pillows. These would be great for stacking!
4. In one of the books that I've read, Adam Bede by George Eliot I believe, one of the male characters calls his female companion a "silly." He says sometimes, "You're a silly."
5. In one scene of Adam Bede, one of the female characters says, “If he’d date an ugly girl, just imagine how he'd treat a pretty girl.”



Thursday, July 6, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Stack up pillows to help you sit up in bed.
2. Maybe they should make “stackable pillows.” Pillows designed exclusively for stacking. These pillows would have to be sturdy and durable enough to be stacked over and over again.
3. Maybe the "stackable pillow," should be a set, with a durable sleeve and a plush insert.
4. In another scene of Adam Bede, one character describes another male character as looking "young and soft."



Monday, July 3, 2023

The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. "Did you not tell me that this abduction was entirely political?"
2. "I have, at least, two of the three qualifications which you require."
3. "No, he has too superficial an intellect."
4. "It is nothing less, than that the honor--and perhaps the life--of the queen is at stake."



Saturday, July 1, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Dogs overheat easily in the summer, be careful! This is because they have fewer sweat glands that are only confined to the nose and foot pads. I learned this reading Dog Trivia.
2. In a George Eliot novel, she uses the formal definition of the verb "moon" skillfully. Moon - to behave or move in a listless and aimless manner. "Lying in bed eating candy, mooning around." - Merriam-Webster
3. For me, the German language is very comforting, meditative, and relaxing. I own a German-English dictionary and learn from it.



Thursday, June 29, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. I learned that many languages aren't spoken with 100% accuracy.



The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. “All these operations were performed nearly mechanically, as far as he was concerned.”
2. “The officer took the papers indicated, gave them to him who asked for them, bowed to the very ground, and left the room.”
3. ”Then you do not know what became of your wife, since her escape?”
”Not positively, my lord; but she has probably returned to the Louvre.”
4. “In that case, my lord, do you believe that the cardinal will tell me what has become of my wife?”
5. “Why did she not tell you sooner?”

6. “Nevertheless, she arose, and in an agitated voice, said…”
7. “There was no certainty about the matter.”
8. “It was just what I was about to say, if your eminence had permitted me to finish the sentence."
9. “Now, do you know where the Duchess and the Duke concealed themselves?”
10. Highlights the importance of staying positive.

11. “May repair the errors of my agent. Is that what you mean?"
12. “Would your eminence wish me to arrest them both?”
13. "When shall we meet again?"
"It shall be often, for I have found your conversation quite charming.”
14. “…which proved what consequence he attached to the intelligence he expected from the count.”
15. “Athos, then, said nothing for fear that” he might jeopardize the situation.

16. Discusses the prejudices of the king against the queen.
17. Suggests that you leave some things to the imagination. “…addressing the cardinal, M. de Cahusac is entirely recovered, is he not.”
18. “Do you not suspect this young man of having led Athos astray?”
19. "Your majesty has a good memory.”
20. “But his majesty has judges—let them decide upon the affair.”

21. “…and regarding the cardinal with a supplicating air, said…”
22. “Great harmony exists between the officers and the soldiers of the musketeers. It is beneficial to the service."
23. “I believe, and I repeat it to your majesty, that the queen plots against the king.”
24. To be continued.



Monday, June 26, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In one of the books I've read, the author indicates that it is okay to be a plain and simple person, not showy or extravagant.
2. Tba.


The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. "Come, sir, let us be bored together."
2. Suggests that a moral dilemna exists where you want to tell your psychiatrist everything, but you know that if you do, they can prosecute you, so you do not tell the truth.
3. Suggests that in psychiatry the problems lie not in the person, but in the problems of society as a whole.

4. "Moreover, the man wore the uniform of the musketeers."
5. "Yet though thus deserted, as it were, the duke, it must be confessed, did not feel the slightest fear."
6. "He began by asking M. Bonancieux his christian name and surname, his age, profession, and place of abode."
7. "...and exhorted him to reflect upon the seriousness of the situation."
8. "Bonancieux recognised each street by its corners, its lamps, and its signs."



Various Notes:
1. In The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Irving Stone, Stone writes that one of the characters is ugly until he begins to speak, and then his words make him beautiful. Perhaps this is true for many people today, to a degree.
2. Of one modern book, Virgina Woolf suggests that one must read it as if it were the last volume in a fairly long series. "For books continue each other, in spite of our habit of judging them separately."
3. I completed A Room of One's Own, and added the paper to Book Reviews VIII.



Friday, June 23, 2023

Various Notes:
1. According to the Collins Irish Dictionary:
bia - food; meal
2. According to the Oxford Essential German Dictionary:
bad - adj schlect; (serious) schwer, schlimm
3. I added my paper on Adam Bede, by George Eliot to Book Critiques VIII.
4. I updated Various Notes from Past Days (located directly above Favorite Notes) with a few notes.
5. Some songs in the classical genre that I like include: Bizet's Habanera, Strauss' The Blue Danube Waltz, and Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers. In the jazz genre, I like Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue.


The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. "'Sire,' said M. de Treville, with the utmost composure, 'I have, on the contrary, come to demand justice.'"
2. "...seeing it merely a nest of Huguenots, but which, nevertheless, in time of peace, is a bad example."
3. "...who manages everything within and without the realm; in Europe, as well as in France?"
"'Your majesty no doubt means God, said M. de Treville, 'for I know no other being who can be so far above your majesty.'
4. "But in coming too early in the morning, I fear I may wake your majesty!"
"Wake me! Do I sleep? I never sleep now, sir! So come as early as you like..."
5. Dumas employs a skillful use of the word venery, which meant, in an archaic definition, to hunt.

6. "Does your majesty require anything else? You have but to speak and you shall be obeyed!"
7. "M. de Treville, his majesty sent for me; to inquire into the affair that happened. I have told him the truth..."
8. "The cardinal was in reality as furious as his master had anticipated... But this did not prevent the king from putting on the most charming face, and asking, every time he met him..."
9. Discuss a pleasant occasion on the bridge of Latournelle, in Paris.
10. "His words were brief and expressive; saying what he wished them to express, but no more."

11. Although Athos was scarcely thirty, he was very experienced and wise.
12. In one scene, Dumas writes that the musketeers were brave because they would not draw their swords unless in a war.
13. "Porthos, as easy to see, had a character diametrically opposed to that of Athos: he not only spoke a great deal, but in a loud voice... he talked for the mere pleasure of speaking, or of hearing himself talk..."
14. "He had not such an aristocratic air as Athos, and the sense of his inferiority on that point had, made him often unjust towards that gentleman, whom he endeavored to surpass by the splendor of his dress."
15. One character is Mousqueton. "Mousqueton was a Norman, whose pacific name was Boniface..."

16. Athos lived in a two bedroom apartment that needed work. Porthos lived in a stately mansion, and was rich, but never let anyone enter, so no one knew how luxurious the estate was inside. Aramis lived in a one bedroom apartment, but it was very nicely furnished and comfortable, and he enjoyed living in it.
17. The forty pistoles of Louis XIII had also an end; and after the end, our four companions fell into difficulties.
18. “He conceived that this coalition of four brave, enterprising, and active young men, ought to have some nobler aim than idle walks, fencing lessons, and more or less amusing jests.”
19. “His meditations were disturbed by a gentle knock at the door.”
20. One of the musketeers says, "…I shall at one blow perform two acts of revenge.”

21. “You return to your hesitation; but permit me to observe, that you have now advanced too far to recede.”
22. “…and as for the three months that you have been in my house, you have forgotten to pay me my rent, and as, likewise, I have not once asked you for payment…”
23. “Reckoning, moreover, that as long as you will do me the honor of remaining in my house, I should make no reference to rent.”
24. Suggests that you behave like a good citizen.
25. Athos says, “I have always said that D’Artagnan has the best head of the four,” as displayed by his bravery and courage.

26. “Woman was created for our destruction; and from her all our miseries arise.”
27. Suggests that it is impossible to avoid joking.
28. Four guards force their way into one of the apartments.
29. “‘And now, gentlemen,’ said d’Artagnan, ‘All for one—one for all!’ this is our motto, is it not?”
30. Porthos says, “All for one; and one for all!”

31. “Then D’Artagnan entered into a long story about the queen..."
32. “A white and fine stocking, a silken dress, a lace kerchief, a pretty little shoe, do not make an ugly woman pretty, but they make a pretty woman irresistible.”
33. Describes Saint Denis and St Germaine, communes in France.
34. “Love is the most selfish of all our passions.”
35. Reminds us that doctors should use proper judgment when dealing with patients.
36. To be continued.



Thursday, June 22, 2023

The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. There are several musketeers, including Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artagnan.
2. Discourages people from being rude.
3. Omitted.
4. "Athos would have died rather than call for assistance."
5. "Athos, Aramis, and d'Artagnan, therefore, surrounded Biscarrat, and summoned him to surrender."
6. "M de Treville strongly censured his musketeers in public; but privately they heard only his congratulations."
7. "No, bring the other three. I wish to thank them all as the same time. Men so brave are rare, Treville, and such devotion ought to be rewarded."
8. Encourages people to be polite.
9. "It may be readily imagined, therefore, that the conversation turned upon the two defeats which the cardinal's guards had sustained," although one of the musketeers had saved the day.
10. King Louis XIII says to one of his courtiers, "Come, sir, let us be bored together."


Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Various Notes:
1. According to the Oxford Essential German Dictionary: backward - zuruckgeblieben.
2. Tba.


The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
1. "Upon a signal from Monsieur de Treville, every one now retired except d'Artagnan..."
2. "D'Artagnan drew himself up with a proud air, which seemed to say, 'I ask charity of none.'"
3. "D'Artagnan, quite furious, had reached the staircase, which he was about to descend by four steps at a time..."
4. "'Not entirely so, sir,' answered d'Artagnan..."
5. Highlights the value of friendship.
6. "...no one is received among the musketeers who has not passed the ordeal of some campaigns, performed certain brilliant actions, or served for two years in some less favored regiment than our own."
7. One of the characters says, “You speak for yourself in saying that D’Artagnan was wrong.”



Tuesday, June 20, 2023

The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas:
Chapter I - Three Presents of M. D'Artagnan.
2. Perhaps The Three Musketeers (1844) influenced the short story The Three Hermits, by Leo Tolstoy (1886): the title of the first chapter in the former sounds strikingly similar to the title of the latter.
3. "The cooking demanded some salt, oil, and rosemary."
4."His was one of those rare organizations with the intelligence and obedience of the mastiff, and a blind courage, and a ready hand..."



Monday, June 19, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Stack up pillows to help you sit up in bed.
2. “‘Yes,’ said Mr Poyser, secretly proud of his wife’s superior power of putting two and two together.” - Adam Bede



Various Notes:
1. I learned that Irish, Italian, and German fairytales emphasize traditional values, whereas Russian folktales are more centered on modern themes.
2. I say “you can speak to the dead if you can find them, if you can find their souls."
3. Nightlights, desk lamps are good to help you read at night. It’s best to invest in a good one because I bought one and it smelled like smoke, but I have two others that work well.
4. Repost: Renes Descartes suggests that the soul is not always thinking.
5. Here's a good idea: text friends at night the ideas you learn reading, then at a later date, make a digest of the texts for publication. A rewarding way to occupy your time, works during the day too! It's like a book club, or a way to earn some college credits!!



Thursday, June 8, 2023


Various Notes:
1. Alexander Pushkin had Abyssinian blood. Today, Abyssinia is known as Ethiopia.
2. Here are numbers 1-5, in French: 1. un, 2. deux, 3. trois, 4. quatre, 5. cinq.






Monday, May 29, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I learned a lot when I did a web search for “basketball tips,” including what a crossover is.
2. Tba.



Friday, May 26, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Perhaps English is a command language, like Russian, suitable for instruction, and commands.
2. Tba.



Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I did a web search for "dog trivia," to learn more about our animal friends.
2. Completed: Plays, by Anton Chekhov.



Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. I decided to suspend studies on Emma for the time being, and begin studies on a popular classic, "A Tale of Two Cities," by Charles Dickens.
3. In one book by William Wordsworth, Wordsworth describes "the unchanging landscape."



Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I learned that many New York State county seals contain elements of symbols present on the old flag of the Soviet Union.
2. One of the books that I’ve read discusses sleeping under the stars, sleeping outdoors during the day or night.
3. I added the concept of "the mystery of death," to Various Notes from Past Days, above Favorite Notes (below).
4. It is clear that many of the chapters in "Emma," by Jane Austen, discuss dances, balls, and similar social gatherings.
5. In "Three Sisters," by Anton Chekhov, Chekhov suggests that it is good to acquire "superfluous knowledge."



Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Various Notes:
1. “Dauntless Little John,” by Italo Calvino, is the first short story that I read in Italian Folktales. I also read “The Count’s Beard,” “The Man Who Came Out Only At Night,” and “Money Can Do Everything.” Many of these stories are available online.
2. Perhaps Alexander Pushkin had been alluding the peasant woman in "Money Can Do Everything," when he wrote "The Queen of Spades."



Monday, May 1, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In Italian Folktales, by Italo Calvino, I read the story "Money Can Do Everything." In the story, a prince meets an old woman who saves him and allows him to marry the king's daughter. Perhaps Alexander Pushkin had been alluding the peasant woman in this story, when he wrote The Queen of Spades. -Added to "The Queen of Spades" paper on Book Critiques VI.
2. I have come to view death as a universal puzzle.
3. One of the author’s who I’m reading suggests that every day is a new adventure.



Monday, April 10, 2023

Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. Because of a multitude of reasons, perhaps one should adopt a moral objection to medication. -Added to Notes about Psychiatry.
3. After visiting the homepage of RuVerses, I read several Russian poems. I enjoyed Pushkin’s “The Rose,” and many others.
4. In one poem, “The Peasant and Death,” the poet Ivan Krylov explains that for the peasant, death is never far away.
5. I learned a running tip, that you can tone your arms by focusing on moving them when you run.


Various Notes:
1. "With nearly 2,000 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines."
2. In the History of the Conquest of Mexico, by William H Prescott, Prescott examines how the Spaniards, under the command of Hernando Cortes, conquered Mexico, which was ruled by Montezuma II, emperor of the Aztecs.
3. In The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, one character attempts to deceive the detective with the fact that she was trained as an actress.



Thursday, April 6, 2023

The Ecologues by Virgil:
1. “His gift it is that, as your eyes may see,
My kind may roam at large, and I myself
Play on my shepherd's pipe what songs I will.”

2. “Trust not too much to colour, beauteous boy.” Here, I believe he is saying that a person’s color doesn’t mean anything.


Various Notes:
1. I combined the notes on Jane Eyre from previous days, and added them to Book Critiques VI.
2. There is a character in Anna Karenina who read: Plato, Spinoza, Kant, Schelling, Hegel, and Schopenhauer -- "those philosophers who explained life otherwise than materialistically."
3. Other books or authors that are discussed in the novels that I'm reading include: St. Thomas Aquinas, Thackeray, Ruskin, George Sand, Hazlitt, Robert Southey, Tobias Smolett, Flavius Publius (History of Israel books), Herodotus, and Sir Walter Scott (Ivanhoe.)



Various Notes:
1. Do not judge. In Luke 6:37-38, The Bible says "Judge not and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned." I believe that it is saying here that if you judge me, then you too can be judged. We must also remember that the bible often discusses that man will not be punished, as well as the theme of forgiveness of one's sins."
2. Tba.



Friday, March 31, 2023


The Renaissance: Studies in Art and Poetry, by Walter Pater:
1. Pater points out that French writers are fond of connecting the creations of Italian Renaissance genius to a French origin.
2. Discusses imagination and feeling, as opposed to intellect and reason when judging works of art.
3. For many, the Renaissance simply represents new subjects of poetry, and new forms of art.
4. Tells the story about how one night God sent his angel Raphael to a man.



Various Notes:
1. I made an addition to "Various Notes #3," on Monday, March 27, 2023.
2. I learned that The Iliad and The Odyssey contain elements of philosophical wit as well as elements of adventure.
3. The author of one of the books that I’ve read suggests that Mourning Doves are birds who are mourning the death of famous ancient people.
4. Cod liver oil pills are good for your health. - Charles Dickens
Maybe it would also be good to experiment and try different kinds of vitamins and/or supplements.



Tuesday, March 28, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, one character says, "Time is money.”
2. I learned about Klopstock’s Messiah reading Middlemarch by George Eliot.


various notes:
1. Did you know that bestie means beast in German?
2. In one of the books I've read, one of the characters says, “pretend, pretend, pretend, that’s how you remember pretence."
3. Omitted.
4. In one of the books I've read, one of the characters describes the city as a madhouse.



Saturday, March 18, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I learned reading the Oxford Essential German Dictionary the following:
Omitted.
cathedral - Dom
cookie - Keks
lettuce - salat
water - wasser



Saturday, March 11, 2023

Various Notes:
1. I read the first story of Dubliners, by James Joyce, "The Sisters." It is a short story about the death of The Rev. James Flynn, aged sixty-five years. Flynn was a nice man to all, in fact, the narrator's aunt said, "it's when it's all over that you'll miss him." However we learn that in the end of the story, his mind became affected, and when he died, many of his actions "made them think that something was gone wrong with him..."
2. Did you Know? Many of the short stories in Dubliners by James Joyce are available online. In addition to "The Sisters," I also enjoyed his "After the Race."
3. I received several more books in the mail: Plays by Anton Chekhov, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot, Dubliners by James Joyce, and Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin. I'll be posting what I learn from them as I read them.



Today's Notes Friday, March 3, 2023

Here are some Various Notes:
1. According to Merriam-Webster's Italian-English Dictionary and The Oxford New Greek Dictionary:
1. cookie - biscotto; μπισκότο - mpiscoto
2. planet - planeta
3. Omitted.
5. soup - minestra, ...
6. water - acqua
2. Tba.



Today's Notes Friday, February 17, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In one novel I've read, the characters discuss miracles, and say that when electricity was first discovered it was considered a miracle, but it can be viewed as an ordinary phenomenon.
2. Tba.



Today's Notes Sunday, February 12, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In The Collected Poems of William Wordsworth, Wordsworth describes: the huge rocks, the winter sky, the grassy field, all imagery relevant to where I am staying in New York.
2. Tba.



Today's Notes Saturday, January 28, 2023

quotes, etc. from The Collected Poems of William Wordsworth:
1. Omitted.


quotes, etc. from Middlemarch by George Eliot
1. Omitted.
2. “We must have thought; else we shall be landed back in the dark ages.”




Various Notes:
1. I learned reading Letters from a Stoic by Seneca, of the existence of biblical commentaries.
2. Tba.



Today's Notes Saturday, January 21, 2023


Various Notes:
1. Omitted.
2. The History of British India by James Mill, John Stuart Mill’s father, is a book I learned about reading Autobiography by John Stuart Mill.
3. Some popular books I’ve learned about include: Grimms' Fairy Tales by the Grimm Brothers, Italian Folktales by Italo Calvino, and Plutarch's Lives.



Today's Notes Thursday, January 19, 2023

Various Notes:
1. In Autobiography by John Stuart Mill, Mill writes that his early education consisted of a great deal of literature which included: the Greek philosophers, The Fairie Queen by Edmund Spenser, Shakespeare, political science, historical texts, etc.
2. American Women - Fifteen Hundred Biographies, by Frances Willard and Mary Livermore, is a two-volume collection that includes photographs and biographical sketches of approximately 1,500 women in America during the Nineteenth Century.
3. I learned reading Autobiography by John Stuart Mill that his father was stern, yet loving. One of the things his father taught him when reading was to pay close attention to the tone of the speaker. Mill's father also taught him in speech to regularly add a profound word, for eloquence.



Thursday, January 12, 2023

I. 1.Studies in the History of the Renaissance by Walter Pater:
2. The art of the Renaissance transports you to the Middle Ages.
3. You can also imagine the kind of music that individuals in the Renaissance listened to.
4. In Autobiography by John Stuart Mill the author indicates that Mill's father's belief in the divine authority of Christianity was established reading Butler's Analogy.
5. In Ray Charles: Man and Music, by Michael Lydon, Lydon suggests that blacks helped invent rock and roll. He indicates that Ray Charles helped the Beatles create music, and the Beatles helped Ray Charles create music, and they would work together in the recording studio to create music. Additionally, he notes that Eleanor Rigby, written by the Beatles, was a Lennon-McCartney song that intrigued Ray.
6. In Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye by David Ritz, Ritz indicates that Marvin Gaye was from the Baltimore-D.C. area. The author also indicates that Marvin Gaye was fond of listening to music. He would listen to The Orioles and "it was like a lighting bolt had struck him, tears would be streaming from his eyes." The author also indicates that Marvin Gaye admired control as an artist, that is, how other artists could control themselves while performing.
7. Cultural Psychology, was a college course that I was enrolled in. I learned that people have similarities and differences. I also learned that certain cultures are better at certain things. For example, blacks are better at singing soul music, and Asians are better at martial arts. The course also included a lesson suggesting that some intellectual concepts are like math, you have to know addition and subtraction before you can understand multiplication and algebra, for example, you have to know how to spell, and then how to compose a persuasive essay before you can write a newspaper article.


II. 1. The History of the Yorubas from the Earliest Times... by Samuel Johnson is popular book. Johnson indicates that Oduduwa is a god of the Yoruba people. He also indicates that different patterns of tribal markings denote different family or tribal membership.
2. L'Homme du Soudan en costume algérien, by Charles Cordier, is a popular sculpture in the Musee d'Orsay, in Paris. It was created to illustrate the beauty of black people.



Wednesday, January 11, 2023




Hip Hop: A Positive Black Tradition

1. "Like other contemporary (or mostly black) traditions of music in America, hip hop music is a hybrid form traceable to speech and songs of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, at least, and perhaps to traditions that are much older. Traditions of eloquence in black America.”
2. In African American literature, the vernacular refers to church songs, blues, ballads, sermons, stories, and, in our own era, hip hop songs that are part of the oral, nor primarily the literate (or written-down) tradition of black expression.
3. Eighteenth- and nineteenth-century observers, black and white, recorded their fascination with black oral forms. Thomas Jefferson, for example, observed that musically the slaves "are more generally gifted than the whites with accurate ears for tune and time." Nearly fifty years later, a Mississippi planter used conventionally racialized language to inform Frederick Law Olmstead that "niggers is allers good singers nat'rally. I reckon they got better lungs than white folks, they hev such powerful voices."

4. Hip hop music also comes from the stylized talk between verses that is characteristic of blues and rhythm and blues (and, some observers say, of all black American) song forms... It derives from playground, pool hall, barber shop, and beauty salon narration and argumentation and from the highly competitive boasts and toasts and from the dozens.
5. More immediately, hip hop sprang from the streets of uptown New York City in the late 1970s. According to historian Nelson George, it arrived 'via block parties and jams in public parks, sparked by the innovative moves of a handful of pioneering men.'
6. It was not long before the highly cadenced and highly competitive extended verbal play brought a new level of word artistry to the hip hop experience... hip hop music elicited a national excitement that soon spun through the Americas to Europe, Africa, and Asia.

7. Once "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugar Hill Gang--released on vinyl in twelve-inch sleeves and sold in store as Birdel's in the Bronx--unleashed a hurricane of enthusiasm among buyers, hip hop music elicited a national excitement that soon spun through the Americas to Europe, Africa, and Asia. The title of this first hit fastened the name rappers onto the performers, but old-school artists and new ones alike seem to prefer hip hop, and in the case of the oldest old schoolers, the performer's correct title was not rapper but M.C.
8. …But, as Nelson George and others have argued, if the themes of hip hop lyrics are often intense, do they not also echo such themes in U.S. culture at large?...by detailing in rivetingly raw terms life in the no-exit realm of the black urban poor. At times there is a political critique embedded in the lyrics...raises issues that our nation is still struggling to address.
9. In one section, indicates that sometimes blacks, like many other races, can be an insular people, that is, they can be unwilling to accept other people.

10. Other hip hop artists are explicitly progressive in their critiques of the socio-political systems that surround them. They even tap into the black prophetic tradition by urging listeners to awaken to new levels of political and spiritual consciousnesses, to read, and to prepare to take forthright action in a far-downfallen world.
11. It is vital to note that hip hop music began and to some degree still thrives not as an isolated phenomenon but as part of a larger hip hop culture. Like its parents, rhythm and blues and jazz, hip hop is at once an in-group ritual music, a performance music, and a dance music designed to make listeners move together. Hip hop culture includes social dances associated with its incredibly athletic spins, turns, robotic movements, and even possession-like trances. Hip hop culture embraces graffiti artists. Hip hop affects styles of dress, haircut, and self-decoration. Hip hop language influences everyday spoken language as well as formal writing: journalism, poetry, fiction, drama.
12. Usually eclipsed in discussions of hip hop's sociologiccal implications is this styles value as music and poetry. In the work of some, the alliteration is as startlingly inventive as the rhyme schemes, which depend on end rhymes and complex interlocking internal rhymes. This is an art of what one performer calls "verbal fire and ice," performed with and against a background of sounds pulled from any and every previously recorded music. Such sampling has given the music a self-conscious postmodern mix.

13. Omitted.
14. At times there is a political critique embedded in the lyrics: for all its vulgarity and violence, N.W.A.'s "Fuck da Police" raises issues of racial profiling and other forms of harassment that our nation is still struggling to address.
15. When hip hop is at its best, its lines vary in length without seeming forced or distended. The sense of humor--the impulse to parody and to signify--drives the work at least as much as its impulses to detail the lives of the urban underclass.

16. Hip hop is a music that makes room for young black performers to address black audiences concerning serious matters of disempowerment and the urgent need for fundamental change. Some of the most intriguing questions about this music involve its quest for authenticity; its relation to postmodernism; its geography beyond the confines of New York City and the urban northeastern United States; its international appeal; and its attractiveness to middle- and upper-class white Americans. To what degree is hip hop a youth culture as it is a black culture? How are these lines drawn? And again, how do we measure the art of musicians who play no instruments (in the conventional sense), vocal artists who generally do not sing, and poets whose rhymes are not written to be read on a page and that, alas, are generally too profane for anthologies such as this one."
17. Some artists/albums discussed in the Hip Hop section of this anthology include:
A. Gil Scott-Heron: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
B. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five: The Message
C. Public Enemy: Don't Believe the Hype
D. Queen Latifah: The Evil That Men Do
E. Eric B. & Rakim: I Ain't No Joke
F. Biggie Smalls (The Notorious B.I.G.): Things Done Changed
G. Nas: N.Y. State of Mind
H. N.W.A.: Straight Outta Compton

Source: The Norton Anthology of African American Literature, by Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Nellie Y. McKay.




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Favorite Notes 2:

Updated: 8/12/2024     Item I.

I. Omitted.

II. 1. The characters and symbols in the literature that I've read, as well as in the art that I've seen, and in the music that I've listened to, represent universal themes that are common to all world peoples.
2. Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela:
3. ”…Chief Joyi said that the African people lived in relative peace until the coming of the abelungu, the white people, who arrived from across the sea with fire-breathing weapons.
4. The diet in Mandela's village consisted of only a few foods.
5. After one ritual was performed, Nelson Mandela exclaimed, ‘Ndiyindoda!’ (I am a man!)."
6. When stick-fighting, Nelson Mandela wouldn't dishonor his opponents after defeating them.
7. One of Nelson Mandela's friends was Walter Sisulu.
8. Nelson Mandela writes, “No one ever said that life would be easy.” In his village, he had to collect water from the river every morning.
9. Many of the people in Mandela's village were believed to be a "backwards thinking" people.
10. Nelson Mandela was responsible for organizing statewide boycotts of sectors which he believed were discriminatory.

11. It is easier to speak to a female. --Nelson Mandela
12. Nelson Mandela, like William Wordsworth, believed that there was something magical in every sunrise.
13. In his autobiography, Mandela indicates that travelers would often see wild animals such as baboons and elephants crossing the roads in South Africa.
14. During this time, Chief Albert Luthuli was the new African National Congress president. "He was a man of patience and fortitude, who spoke slowly and clearly as though every word was of equal importance."
15. Nelson Mandela was an important figure in the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. He spent 27 years in jail and was released when he was 72 years old.
16. One of the things that Nelson Mandela did when he was released, was visit the grave site of, and pay his respects to his mother who passed away while he was in prison. Apparently, making a shrine to one's deceased parents, is a tradition common to Yoruba and Xhosa peoples.
17. On May 10, 1994, Nelson Mandela, at the age of 77, was inaugurated as South Africa's first black president.
18. "I have completed my journey, now I pass the torch on to the next person, the next individual." --Nelson Mandela


III. Chinua Achebe novels:
1. "In Africa, a character named Afo invented the Afro."
2. Young Chike uses his hand as a pillow.
3. Some people are better talking to a large group, and some people are better talking to only a few people, according to one Chinua Achebe novel.
4. The atmosphere changes at night.
5. The two families gathered regularly to have feasts, or dinners where they ate together, in one Chinua Achebe novel.
6. Life in Africa is tough, that is, there is little or no plumbing, and there are only a few luxuries there that we enjoy in America.


IV. James Fenimore Cooper novels:
1. “Since we’re friends, we shouldn’t let a small disagreement get between us.”
2. Often, an Indian moves by feeling instead of spoken commands.
3. An Indian gets his name from the members of his tribe, for performing brave or courageous acts.
4. Cooper indicates that from habit, the frontier-men get accustomed to the motion of the canoes.
5. The natural world, nature teaches lessons all on her own. James Fenimore Cooper also indicates that a war is different than needfully massacring innocent civilians.
5. Many Indians didn't fear death, that is, they faced death bravely.
6. You can out-walk and out-talk some people.
7. "The face of the country, the climate as it was found by the whites, and the manners of the settlers, are described with a minuteness for which the author has no other apology than the force of his own recollections." -The Pioneers, James Fenimore Cooper.
8. In one James Fenimore Cooper novel, the Indian protagonist is being chased, and escapes by going over a waterfall in a canoe.
9. "The original handshake, the strong and powerful handshake, the minute long handshake, the lots of shakes handshake, the Englishman's handshake..."
10. One of the townspeople hears the light bounding noise of a deer while sleigh-riding. He lifts up his rifle and fires at the deer, but the deer is unmoved, and keeps running towards him.

11. "Some people like hot showers, some people like warm showers, and some people like cold showers."
12. A drowning man is restored with a drink of rum.
14. There are people who have been neighbors for years, and still don't know each other.
15. It would be great to watch Indians, or Native Americans, playing baseball.
16. "There are good whites, and there are bad whites, just like there are good Indians, and there are bad Indians."
17. Sometimes it's good to act based on signs and intuition rather than on speech.



V. Louis Armstrong: An American Genius, by James Lincoln Collier:
1. Music was an integral part of life in New Orleans and that jazz begins in New Orleans.
2. Although most people called him Louie, Armstrong preferred Louis.
3. "The history of jazz goes back to Africa."
4. The tapping of one foot of the listener of the blues is deliberate, keeps a beat -- too fast would be a different style altogether.
5. Collier indicates that Louis Armstrong could play a piece by ear better than professional white musicians could play it by reading it on paper. He couldn’t afford to learn like the white musicians, but still he could play better music than most of them.
6. Louis Armstrong also smoked a lot, many people did those days. I learned that another musician who I admire, Nat King Cole, also smoked a lot, and died of cancer in his 40s. Perhaps this is the tragic element of their lives.
7. Different blacks who settled different areas became known for their music -- perhaps one can draw the analogy to the Charleston dance, known for blacks from Charleston, South Carolina.
8. "New Orleans musicians realize that there is a market for their music across America, in the cities of the North, where the white man intruded less than he did in the South. So they moved North. This creates an enormous and growing market in the cities of the North for black music. A boom in black entertainment was beginning."
9. Armstrong is believed to be linked to crime and the underworld, and one of his managers, Joe Oliver, was known for his temper.
10. Collier indicates that it meant something, that Louis Armstrong was proud, when he would go into a store or restaurant and hear his music playing.
11. "In 1925, then, Armstrong had established himself as a force in the music business, and was somebody whom people in the business respected."



VI. Russian Literature
1. Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, is a popular novel. In the book, Tolstoy indicates that the symbols on the old flag of the Soviet Union represent the tools that the peasants used to work the land. He describes a scene where the peasants work the land using these tools; apparently, it was quite a sight!
The Three Hermits, (Russian: Три Старца) was also written by Leo Tolstoy. It is a short story that suggests that we live our lives as though we are hermits. In the story, there are three devout religious hermits who live happily together on a deserted island.
2. Alexander Pushkin was born in Moscow, and his maternal great-grandfather was an Abyssinian (Ethiopian) princeling who was sent as a gift to Peter the Great. The Stationmaster, by Alexander Pushkin is a popular story. The story begins by speaking badly about stationmasters, people whose job it is to administer duties of a clerk in a train station. Toward the story's end however, we meet a stationmaster face to face, and learn that he is actually a human being after all, after which, he dies. It is believed that Pushkin was using his story to describe the struggles of Negroes abroad.
3. The Queen of Spades is another short story by Alexander Pushkin. The Queen of Spades is an elegant, graceful Russian woman who often attends grand balls. The woman meets a man, who murders her, and once she is dead, her face appears on the Queen of spades, a card that the man has been playing with. Additionally, when the man looks at the card, the woman on the card winks at him, and haunts him, ultimately causing his ruin. I believe that Pushkin intended this story to be a lesson, to encourage people to treat each other kindly.
4. Item moved to Favorite Notes 1. -Wednesday, February 28, 2024.
5. Alexander Pushkin suggests that Russian nesting dolls, or matroyshka dolls, can represent the members of a family.
6. Many people froze to death during harsh winters in Russia, according to one book I've read.
7. Russian literature indicates that decades ago, a participant choked during a pancake-eating contest.
8. It is acceptable to use the gifts, or talents that God has given you. -Boris Godunov, Alexander Pushkin.
9. "And you shall not escape the court of man, No more than you'll escape the court of God!" -Boris Godunov, Alexander Pushkin.
10. In one Alexander Pushkin poem, the hero tugs his beard, and in one Alexander Dumas novel, one of the heroes strokes his beard.

11. In one Alexander Pushkin poem, one of the characters says, after being questioned by another character, “I don’t want to tell you, because I don’t want you to know my feelings.”
12. The Tree of Evil, by Alexander Pushkin, is a great poem about a tree with poison, and "vile venom" in it. See Notes for Thursday, December 28, 2023, Item No. 6 for more information.
13. Tales of Belkin: The Undertaker
14. The Undertaker is the third short story in the collection.
15. In the story, the Russian-drinker stereotype is explored. We meet an undertaker who "is a very straight-forward man, and does not tolerate deviation from the norm." After attending a party, however, we learn that the undertaker gets drunk and the next day, does not do his job as he is supposed to, and gets into a great deal of trouble.
16. A similar story by Pushkin, also explores this theme in the Russian army. Due to a soldier playing cards and getting drunk, he does not perform his job as he should. Consequently, he has to explain himself to his superior officer, who fortunately, lets him off the hook with only a warning.
17. In one Russian short story, the author describes a woman who goes into the forest, and finds a baby bear who lost his mother. Then the woman is kind to this baby bear, and brings him home with her and raises him.
18. The short story mentioned above, may be related to the popular painting, Morning in a Pine Forest, by Ivan Shishkin and Konstantin Savitsky, as well as the overall symbolism of the bear in Russian culture.
19. "The capacity to seize a cue and transform it is a valuable talent" -Boris Godunov, Alexander Pushkin.



VII. Gabriel Garcia Marquez novels:
1. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, Marquez suggests that you should not be afraid of the shadows at night.
2. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, there is a character who wraps himself up in a blanket, which is apparently a common custom of the peoples of South America.
3. Gabriel Garcia Marquez writes that you should show a man respect when you see him with his family.
4. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, one of the character's says "I don't see the point in going to the movies to watch other people's problems, I have problems of my own."
5. Omitted.
6. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel the narrator mentions that he won't care about his material possessions once he's dead, because he's dead after all.
7. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, one of the character's tells another, "If you want to go to a water park, run around in the rain."
8. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, the narrator indicates that the couple would often breathe together, would simply lay in the bed with one another and breathe together.
9. In one Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, one of the characters first name is Gerineldo.



VIII. Italian Folktales, by Italo Calvino
A. "Dauntless Little John," is a story about a fearless young hero named John who courageously explores a castle.
B. "The Man Wreathed in Seaweed" is a story about a sailor who goes on a lot of adventures, and in the end, gets the princess.
C. "The Count’s Beard" was a great story about a wise count with a beard.
D. "Silver Nose" was a great story because one of the sisters outsmarts the devil, has him doing her laundry for example, and is victorious in the end.
E. In the end of one story, after the younger sister unfairly exploited their work, the two older sisters get their revenge.


IX. Renaissance, or, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Artists:
A. Donatello - a sculptor, one of his works is in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, where it is also believed that an apostle of Jesus Christ is buried.
B. Raphael - painter of several works, including School of Athens, which depicts Plato and Aristotle.
C. Michelangelo - painter of several works, including the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
D. Leonardo da Vinci - painter of several works including the Mona Lisa, as well as sketches including a representation of an early helicopter.


X. 1. Dry locations might be able to end a drought, and make it rain, by making adults who are 18+ run, jog for a few minutes for a few days. This is because in the summer when I run, it consistently causes it to rain a few days afterwards.
2. "Politics is a dirty business." - A book I've read.
3. Historically, tribal governments have been admirable, particularly in Native American and African societies.
4. According to linguists, some communication involves two types: voiced and unvoiced.
5. "Your girlfriend can be a lot like your mother, or your sister." --Jane Austen
6. Rather than get upset, view one’s role in a relationship as a sacrifice. --Jane Austen
7. “‘Yes,’ said Mr Poyser, secretly proud of his wife’s superior power of putting two and two together.” --George Eliot
8. Omitted.
9. He paid little attention to the observation of nature, inanimate nature. --Jane Austen
10. Omitted.

11. Perhaps one should apologize for any mistakes one might have made in the past.
12. Conserves your energy at all times, that is, he don't waste your energy. --James Fenimore Cooper
13. Let us examine the unchanging natural world, how many aspects of nature (such as the rocks or mountains) are permanent. --William Wordsworth
14. "From far away, houses should be viewed as though there was a religious figure, such as a priest living in them." --James Joyce
15. One should acquire an appreciation for all forms of art. --Jane Austen
16. Powder deodorants are great: they contain powder which washes away in warm water.
17. Cut and paste, and copy and paste, are great computing commands, they make transferring text easy!
18. During WWII, the U.S. Army issued its female soldiers brown underwear. -Trivial Pursuit
19. Electric hairdryers are inexpensive and have been around since the '30s. -Trivial Pursuit
20. "You can learn through observation, rather than through spoken commands."


XI. 1. "Throughout the journey I pondered over the interrogation awaiting me…thinking this to be the simplest as well as most reliable way of proceeding." - The Queen of Spades and other Stories, Alexander Pushkin
2. Latin is "the language of word origins."
3. There is a character in A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens who decorates his house with trinkets from thrift stores. Another of the character's has a jewelry box filled with different kinds of jewelry. The novel also discusses the theme of restoration of life from death.
4. "The world feels better when you do what's easiest for you."
5. "It is okay to be simple and plain, and not entertaining."
6. "Many times, slight problems resolve themselves in a matter of seconds or minutes."
7. "Many languages are spoken by native speakers with errors, that is, without keeping strict grammatical form."
8. There have been instances when animals die of being 'worked to death,' or worked too hard.
9. “After the rain, she walked shoeless in the grass.” --Charles Dickens
10. "How did he die? Was it by deliberate methods, or was it by accident, unintentional?" --Charles Dickens

11. "If I'm honest with you, and tell you everything, can you guarantee that you won't have me arrested?" --Alexander Dumas
12. “...when her heart had been beating enough to burst her body…while she had been under the doctor’s care." --George Eliot
13. "It can be entertaining to look at the lives of other people." --Charles Dickens
14. It is fun to have books in different languages. In Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte, there is a character who has several books in Latin and Greek. This character also has several books about different subjects.
It is also good to learn proverbs in different languages, from different cultures.
15. "Eat, because when you eat, it will make you feel better." --Jane Austen
16. One character in Bleak House, by Charles Dickens, always kept his rooms "fresh and airy."
17. Charles Dickens reminds us that there are a limited number of colors in the world.
18. A gentleman brings his pet mouse to a big, huge castle. Then he lets it roam around, including in the green maze out back. I drew the inspiration for this humorous account from a Charles Dicken novel.
19. "Although she was an 'old dog,' she could still represent." --Charles Dickens
20. "Let's examine the difference between an elephant and an ant." --Charles Dickens


XII. 1. In Bleak House, Charles Dickens reminds us that houses are often worn, having had two or more previous owners.
2. Many of the characters eat boiled beef and vegetables, in one Charles Dickens novel.
3. Night is a long period of darkness, followed by a short period when it gets light, instead of gradual light over several hours. -Honore de Balzac
4. "Ah, Balducci, if life were as simple as you conceive it." --Irving Stone.
5. "She feeds her pet cat milk, on a saucer, after boiling it." --Honore de Balzac
6. "There was a time, before 'pet food,' when pets ate table scraps, or the foods prepared for them by their owners. --Honore de Balzac
7. “Sometimes it’s best to speak in short, simple sentences.”
8. "Men should do all the hard work because women are built smaller."
9. Maybe tv reality shows are biased because some people have different physical abilities than others. In fact, maybe physical game shows endanger the well-being of contestants, and maybe people on some shows display mental health problems such as signs of depression, when they cry, or signs of aggression, when they get angry, for example.
10. Maybe questions and answers about black history, music, and culture on television game shows would be good.

11. "Some people can understand ideas, but not grammatical concepts." --Honore de Balzac. Balzac also suggests that in school, memorization of facts, and understanding of principles of grammar, are old-fashioned skills that contribute to success after graduation.
12. Learn about U.S. history and government, because these impact our lives today. For example, learn about the U.S. Constitution, because the constitution affects our lives today.
13. My library's e-book application that I downloaded is great because it allows me to easily copy text from the open window, and paste it into my web editor for publishing.
14. Affirmative action legislation has enabled blacks and other minority groups to enter various sectors of U.S. business and industry.
15. "He was already a movie lover-his dad gets credit for his taste in films." - Esquire, March 2024.
16. "Time heals all wounds." George Eliot
17. Honore de Balzac presents complex novels. The protagonists are round, dynamic characters rather than flat characters. There are also several different protagonists.
18. Honore de Balzac fueled himself with potent coffee, and slept very little. In one scene of Pere Goriot, Sylvie drinks three cups of coffee in the morning.
19. "He expects you to go straight at full speed, in which case, you should go left or right." --Honore de Balzac.
20. “So what are you trying to say? What are you getting at? What are you accusing me of?" --Alexander Dumas


XIII. 1. "Often, ideas have the capacity of being expanded, and made into other ideas." --Honore de Balzac
2. Money can give you happiness. --Honore de Balzac.
3. "Beginning crocheting stitches," or "how to begin a crochet stitch," may be a good search term to learn how to begin crocheting stitches.
4. Item moved to Favorite Notes.
5. "So what it's raining? A little water won't kill you." -James Fenimore Cooper.
6. “Life involves patience, patience, and patience.” -Jane Austen.
7. Readinge the Bible 'at hazard,' or in such a way that you read the passages randomly, is good. And reading the Bible is useful when readers want to learn more about the holy nature of man. --Jane Austen
8. Item moved to Favorite Notes.
9. Self-love is important. --Samuel Taylor Coleridge
10. "In one town, there were several churches and religious structures." --Victor Hugo

11. "You should only trust the judgment of experts." --Victor Hugo
12. "He is a man, what do you expect him to do?" --Honore de Balzac.
13. One person blamed another for his actions. --Honore de Balzac.
14. "We should face difficult topics bravely, and with courage.”
15. Life consists of many ideas, some simple, and some complex. --Witold Gombrowicz
16. Squirrel - Eichhornchen --Oxford Essential German Dictionary


XIV. 1. There is an Islamic ritual which involves rinsing, or washing of the feet in a mosque.
2. Honore de Balzac presents characters who have many dimensions, who are round, dynamic characters.
3. The world was rough during ancient times, and today this makes us question how far we have actually progressed since then.


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Favorite Notes:

Updated: 10/27/2024 Item III. 30 - 32.

I. 1. Human Biology Trivia - There are twenty-four ribs in a human body.
2. The large and small intestine actually contain muscles. Google “What are the large and small intestine?” for images showing these organs.
3. Perhaps the large and small intestine are not that long.
4. When I inhale, my stomach expands, and when I exhale, my stomach contracts.
5. Maybe a person's normal heartbeat is irregular, that is, does not beat to a "normal" rhythm.
6. 🍄 Magic (poisonous) mushrooms make you shout. They are a talkative drug.
7. Psilocybin (Sylosibin,) and Psilocin (Sylosin) are two types of magic mushroom medication.
8. Some people have never smoked weed before. Everyone hasn't smoked weed. In Ray Charles: Man and Music, by Michael Lydon, Ray Charles encouraged marijuana use because he believed that it made people more soulful. Additionally, many people suggest that being soulful involves having rhythm.
9. Some people double up or triple up on acid/lsd tabs, which can make them shout.
10. Magic (poisonous) mushrooms are also called shrooms, and a mycophagist is a person who eats mushrooms.

11. Stack up two or more pillows, to help you elevate your head, neck and shoulders when lying in bed, or stack up pillows to help you sit up in bed.
12. If you don't have pillows available, you can stack up clothes, sheets, or blankets to help you elevate in bed, in order to take the place of pillows. And it can also be useful to put a towel on top of the pillow.
13. Lamps are great at night too, and sometimes you can leave your lamp on all night.
14. Lanterns, candles, and old fashioned lamps have historically been used at night.
15. "Read each book with a different voice: history, philosophy, plays and poems, science and mathematics, respectively." --How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler
16. A good writing exercise, is just to write a series of connecting loops, loop after loop, as though you were writing in script -- a "fake script," if you will.
17. "Store the notes that you take reading, in a chest or notebook, or on your social media page."
18. William Wordsworth enjoyed collecting pebbles as a boy. This concept is like walking down a road and choosing what direction you want to go. The directions you choose are the pebbles. You can choose left, or right or straight: three different pebbles. Or listening to music, the kind of music you choose are the pebbles: classical, jazz, or soul, those are the three pebbles.
19. "You can learn the Greek alphabet if you first learn the vowels, then learn the consonants." --George Eliot
20. "Look at the art of different cultures." --Voltaire
21. In one book, one of the characters pet dog gets poisoned and dies.
22. Hip Hop: A Positive Black Tradition, directly above Favorite Notes 2, above, is a good essay about rap music and black culture.
23. "Black music originated in Africa." --James L. Collier
23. Some people just know how to talk. They can talk about anything; there is no real problem, and no real solution, they can just talk and make things up and ramble on about any given subject.
24. Some people use cosmetic surgery to appear healthier than they actually are. -Trivial Pursuit
25. Roku tv's are fun -- in addition to hundreds of cable channels, they allow you to access Youtube and watch music videos on your smart tv!
26. Many cable companies have music channels that you can watch on your tv.
27. "It's fun to watch the cable music channels (classical, 70's, jazz,) on your tv at night!"


II. 1. "It is unlawful to cut down a tree without a permit or license, or hunt without a hunting license, or fish without a fishing license. And much of the 'free' land in America belongs to Native American tribes or the government. It is unlawful to drastically change the exterior of your house in such a way that alters it from the original look intended for your neighborhood." --James Fenimore Cooper
2. "It is important to be polite, and not be rude." --Jane Austen
3. "When speaking, should a man have an androgynous, or sexless voice, or should speak to reflect his manhood?" --Virginia Woolf
4. "Cheap tobacco is trash, it's best to smoke expensive tobacco, and roll your cigarettes a few at a time." --Leo Tolstoy and James Joyce
5. "Some people are fast walkers, and some people are slow walkers." --Jane Austen
A similar concept is that some people walk in two's and three's.
6. "Houses are often worn, having had one or more previous owners." --Charles Dickens
7. “Life involves patience, patience, and patience.” --Jane Austen
8. "Repeat thinking about the ideas that you’ve learned, it’s like rereading a book."
9. Housing for women in abusive relationships, housing to help women escape abusive relationships, would be a good solution.
10. A pen and a pad, for the hearing impaired, as well as already-written index cards, could help them express themselves. Perhaps the hearing impaired can also draw pictures to express themselves.

11. "History of the Conquest of Mexico," by William H Prescott, examines how the Spaniards, conquered Mexico, under the command of Hernando Cortes, which was then ruled by Montezuma II, emperor of the Aztecs.
12. "When the king rose, the other kings rose with him." --Homer.
13. Omitted.


III. 1. "What is time, in the face of eternity?" -Alexander Pushkin.
This quote means that you can view time in terms of one hour in the future, or five thousand hours in the future.
2. “Time, sometimes flies fast like a bird, sometimes crawls slowly like a worm.” --Ivan Turgenev.
3. There is a saying, "Don't do a thing backwards." Backward - zuruckgeblieben --Oxford Essential German Dictionary.
4. Honore de Balzac reminds us of a time, before "pet food," when pets ate table scraps, or the foods prepared for them by their owners.
5. "Some things cannot be captured in words."
6. "Try to describe a picture in words."
7. "It is good to talk, to talk about anything, to discuss an article in a magazine, for example." --Henrik Ibsen.
8. "After speaking, he felt a sensation in his lower jaw."
9. "Sometimes, a deck of playing cards can be fun."
10. "To have knowledge of music, listen to classical and jazz." --George Eliot.

11. "Become familiar with all the works of the great classical composers." --Honore de Balzac
12. Friendship is important. --Alexander Dumas
13. "I did all I could do; I couldn’t do any more.” --James Joyce
14. "Some people try to talk to other people who are 100 miles away, a world away."
15. "No one looks good sleeping."
16. "Sometimes, acts of disrespect, insults, or petty disputes, have influenced historical events." ---Elizabeth Gaskell
17. "There was a gentleman, an elderly man, and a young woman. This gentleman loved the young woman as he would a daughter, and treated her as such." --Leo Tolstoy
18. "If you're in danger and you need help, don't be silent, make noise, say something." --Alexander Dumas.
19. "The supermarket is not just for shopping, it is also for socializing." --S.A. Akintoye.
20. "Even though some people may look like they're master builders, they are not actually master builders." --Henrik Ibsen.

21. A schedule of brisk walking or running can improve your breathing and overall health.
22. During days of antiquity, it was common for people to live well over a hundred (120, 130, 140) years.
23. Sometimes, our neighbors get on the phone with their friends, and they are quiet, and this makes us mad.
24. “Because she was scared for her life, she killed her husband.” —Honore de Balzac
25. “The woman said, ‘either give me a lump sum of money monthly, or I won’t do any work for you in this relationship.’” —Honore de Balzac
26. “Before they were married, they drew up a marriage contract which included $50,000 in savings, which the wife could take if they divorced. And she was not obligated to leave with the children either.” —Honore de Balzac
27. “An education can prepare you for death.” -Preparation for Death, St Alphonsus
28. “Being close to nature can prepare you for death.” —St Alphonsus
29. “There may be moments of life in death.” — St Alphonsus

30. "The government (military) should be responsible for helping citizens recover from natural disasters such as floods and storms." --Herodotus
31. "To improve your country, build more buildings. To structure government, let government operate on an as-needed instead of 24hour basis. Delegate some people to record and store records, and then structure your government based on the models of existing countries." --Herodotus
32. “If you build more farms (animal/vegetable) then you can avoid food shortages.” —Herodotus


IV. 1. A big person needs a big car, a big house, has a big appetite, etc. --Leo Tolstoy. Tolstoy was known for writing comic stories for a newspaper he worked for.
2. We are reading the words of Aristotle spoken directly by Aristotle. --Richard McKeon
3. Separate people in a country based on similar interests. --Aristotle. Divide a country into three or four states based on people with similar interests. --Homer. Grouping people on land with apartments, who are all friends with each other, might be a good idea. In this case, friendship is the common interest.
4. "It is important to remain calm at all times, and use calm language at all times."
5. "God give me energy, God give me strength!"
6. “No one ever said that life would be easy.” --Nelson Mandela. In his village, he had to collect water from the river every morning.
7. “Cucumber slices on the eyes feel good."
8. "Cod liver oil pills are good for your health."
9. "You can not display all of the world's history and wisdom in only three sentences."
9. "Also, he had an irritable disposition -- he constantly got angry, losing his temper over the merest trifles." --Fyodor Dostoevsky
10. "Day to day life involves nothing spectacular going on, often, nothing spectacular happens for a long amount of time." --Homer
11. "In our class, it was Jim, the Russian kid, Tom, the Irish kid, Jacob, the Jewish kid, and me, I was the black kid, and we were all friends."
12. You can play with anyone's name. --James Joyce
13. "Good job kid, you made your money, don't spend it all in one place."
14. Omitted.
15. "I can't answer you at this exact moment, please ask me the question at a later date when I will be more ready to give you an answer."
16. Learn what a crossover is in basketball.
17. "Don't believe everything you read, and don't believe everything you hear." --Leo Tolstoy
18. In the past, it was relatively common to educate children at home.
19. "Some people are rabble rousers who know how to fire up a crowd."
20. "For centuries, wild animals have survived cold winters." --Samuel Taylor Coleridge


V. Love/Relationship Advice ❤️
1. Some people just know how to lie, they can lie about anything. "Oh, I took this of yours, I did that to yours— No, you just know how to lie, you didn’t do anything to my anything.” —Henrik Ibsen
2. "Some people become jealous for no apparent reason." --Leo Tolstoy
3. "Love, or relationships, involve several different elements (friends, family, etc.)"
4. "You can control memories of a previous relationship, if you work on them in your current relationship." --Henrik Ibsen
5. The prince "lightly scolds his girlfriend," Princess Tanya, in one scene of Eugene Onegin, by Alexander Pushkin. This means that in a relationship, you do not have to shout at your partner, instead, talk to them calmly at all times.
6. "Even though we don't always understand our partner, don't get upset. Just let your girlfriend get you; your partner is still your friend." --James Joyce
7. "Remember that in a relationship, your partner is also your friend." --Homer
8. The man and the woman can love each other equally in the relationship, but the woman may express it differently.
9. “There in each other’s arms, they found pleasure in making love.” —-Homer
10. “Come, my beloved, let us go to bed and find pleasure in love." --Homer

11. You can say “I love you,” and mean it, even though you express it differently than someone else.
12. Ovid refers to the Sicani, a tribe of whites who practice nudity and other strange traditions.
13. Sometimes in relationships, we do not achieve the exact union which we desire, but it is still a pleasant relationship.
14. Even though she was going out with him, she had an affair with three men from his workplace.
15. “When the man made the woman mad, she didn’t pay him any attention, and instead paid attention to everyone else around her.” —Ovid
16. She only dated muscular men.


VI. Notes about Alcohol 🍻🍻
1. “She sipped her drink slowly, while he gulped his down quickly.” —James Joyce.
2. "Some drinks have low alcoholic content, and some drinks have high alcoholic content." --James Joyce
3. "He cursed people out when he got drunk."
4. "After getting drunk, his friends sent him to the store, and then he got into a lot of trouble." --The Arabian Nights
5. "He drinks alcohol diluted with water."
6. "Drink water scented with alcohol."
7. "He drinks beverages which contain only a few drops of alcohol."
8. "When he was drunk, he would shout."
9. "After drinking, he pretended to be drunk."
10. "When he drank, he sang songs."

11. Omitted.
12. "Use food coloring and water, to make it look like an alcoholic beverage."
13. Omitted.
14. "After drinking, he went to sleep."
15. Explores the jolly drinker archetype.
16. "I don't know, it came like this from the factory." --James Joyce
17. "Why are you drinking alcohol to begin with?"
18. "The conquistadors were drunk with a heroic dream of conquest over the Western world."
19. James Joyce told the secrets of the Irish.
20. “When he drank, he waited until the drink went to his head.”

21. “The two men drank wine together, and one of the men encouraged the other man to sing and shout.”
22. “Drink all day long and all night long.”
23. "He could not refuse a drink of wine when his companions asked him to drink. It could have gotten him drunk."
24. "Beware of drinking wine. This is the source of all evil; it does away with reason and brings the drinker into contempt."
25. “Beware of drinking wine. This is the source of all evil; it does away with reason and brings the drinker into contempt."
26. "He could not refuse a drink of wine when his companions asked him to drink. It could have gotten him drunk."
27. “The caliph gave orders that Abu be given drink until he became drunk,” then Abu got into some trouble.
28. Beer, whiskey, or wine, he would drink anything.
29. He was a happy drunk, when he drank, he would sing songs.
30. In the pub, he drank, sang and ate.
31. "Wine makes you sleepy."


VII. Notes about Fighting 🤼‍♂️🤼‍♂️
1. "Yes, you lost the fight, but you’re still a man with courage and heart.”
2. In one fight, one man was quicker and more skilled.
3. If one soldier didn't fight one man, he would have faced ten.
4. In one war, there were heavy casualties on both sides, unfortunately.
5. In many armies, there is a chain of command.
6. Normally, wars should be fought over tangible goods, such as treasure, or land.
7. “The crowd were bloodthirsty savages, and would have cheered for anything.”
8. "You kids be good and stop fighting. You shouldn't be fighting to begin with."
9. “Certain people, due to their physical ability, are better equipped for certain sports.”
10. “A good stride, when running is best.”

11. “If you lose the battle, even using a small amount of energy, displays your heart and courage.”
12. “The more losses you take in a battle, the closer to becoming a martyr or a saint you become.” —
13. “Examine the case of bullies, who beat up on people weaker than them."
14. “What good is our hard work, when it can be ruined in an instant by war?”
15. “All progress is suspended now, because of this war.”
16. “The war doesn’t only affect the two sides involved, it also affects the entire world.”
17. “They perceived how to stop fighting, and thought about how to stop fighting, then they just decide to flat out stop fighting.”
18. "Now that we have decided to end the war, let us focus on peace, eternal peace."
19. "Borders are merely imaginary lines, people come and go as they like."
20. "I am assured that I can count on your good will and your word."

21. Omitted
22. To the crowd, "Why don't you come down here and play the sport that I'm playing."
23. "If you enjoy this sport so much, why don't you arrange to have it played more often."
24. In addition to a victory in this match, I want your pride as well.
25. One of the things that the queen knew how to do well was shout.
26 Omitted.
27. "But good Aeneas, consoling them all with heartfelt words, weeps as he commends them to Acestes, their blood kin."
28. "Some sports are more civilized than others."

29. After the crown taunts him, asks, “Where’s your humanity?”
30. “What did I do to deserve this treatment?
31. “Have you no sympathy for me?”
32. “You’re expending all that energy taunting me, save your energy and be reasonable.”
33. "Be a man of your word, a person who represents honesty and integrity, ideas which nations were founded on.”
34. “A good race/match is when the men match each other, stride for stride, blow for blow.”


VIII. Philosophy Notes
1. An education gives you information to think about.
2. An education positively influences your behavior.
3. The soul, a person's soul, is responsible for movement and thought. Each soul is unique, based on a person’s appearance and experiences. --Aristotle.
4. There are five elements: air, fire, water, earth, and another factor that exists but cannot be named, an unnamed factor. --Aristotle
5. Memory, or the brain's ability to retain and retrieve information works in such a way that we do not fully understand it, but still, we can be certain that it works. --Aristotle
6. A person is not always thinking. --Aristotle
7. There are simple ideas, and complex ideas, and simple ideas make up complex ideas. --John Locke
8. You don't have to reduce sentences down to word meaning and sentence structure in order for someone to understand you, just talk. --Aristotle
9. We can only have three or four ideas present in our minds at a time (we can have a cluster of multiple ideas, but these represent one main idea.) --John Locke
10. With certain ideas, you're going to keep coming to the same point of disagreement with some people. With some ideas, you're never going to agree with certain people. --John Locke
11. We think, or we process information through our eyes rather than in our brains, and perhaps the human brain is in the eyes. --Renes Descartes.

12. The author is also the philosopher.
13. Establish an order-of-importance in your daily tasks. --Immanuel Kant
14. A person cannot stay mad forever, and after a good deal of debate or discussion, a person always returns to a starting-point, or a beginning-point.
15. A goal for mankind is simply to roam the Earth. --Aristotle
16. "Our thoughts have an origin, usually a person."
17. The recipes for many foods have existed since antiquity. --Voltaire.
18. Our sense of the days are based on man, not the earth. For example, it feels like it's New Year's Day because men make it feel that way, rather than it being connected inherently to the Earth's time.
19. Omitted.
20. Each successive generation is better than the previous generation. --Aristotle
21. “All animals are furnished to eat, sleep, voice, etc., and compare this to the lives of humans. A horse was made to pull things, an apple was made to be eaten, humans were made to walk and talk and live.” —Aristotle
22. Preparation for death includes the knowledge that whether there is an afterlife or not, doesn’t depend on your actions at the exact time of death. For example, you don't have to declare belief in god at the time of death in order to be admitted into heaven.
23. “Some things are easier to do than others.” —Ancient Egyptian philosopher


IX. 1. For more great notes, see Favorite Notes 2 (above).
2. Cee 7 Allah is a positive African American brother who I spoke to. Visit his channel on Youtube to learn more about him.
3. Ablade Glover is a talented African artist! He was featured on the Africa Channel. Much of his art illustrates the uniqueness of the individual in a crowd.

4. Help others: link to Scholarlyinformation.com from your site.
5. Recommend this blog to others:
“Scholarlyinformation.com, like school, scholarlyinformation.com -- check it out.”


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Food Ideas:

Updated:      12/20/2024     Item I. 2 & III. 7.

I. 1. Cold cuts dipped in dipping sauce taste good. And cold cuts with slices of sushi ginger on the side also taste good.
2. Chicken Rice-a-Roni, Perdue Chicken Strips, Tomato Slices, & Mayonnaise Sauce - Friday, December 20, 2024 post - Instructions.
3. Rice with sweet sauce tastes good. And Minute Rice is easy to make.
3-A. "He ate rice sweetened with sugar."
4. Chicken and vegetables is a good dish.
5. Frozen french fries taste good after you put them in the oven.
6. Yams are eaten as snacks in many African villages.
7. Canned corn cooked is boiled corn, which tastes good. And you can season canned corn with ingredients from your local supermarket, such as ramen noodle seasoning.
7-A. Pork bouillon cubes can be used to season canned corn.
8. Goya Black Bean Soup tastes good, it’s a Spanish dish.
9. Canned beets and canned sweet peas taste good. A beet is a good tasting vegetable, and so is a sweet pea.
9-A. Canned yams and canned collard greens taste good.
10. Green Bean Casserole (soup) is easy to make in a pot, on the stovetop. This is in reference to the recipe on the back of French's Crispy Fried Onions' box.


II. 1. A box of macaroni is cheaper than a mac cup, it also gives you more pasta for your dollar.
2. Make it a Stove Top night, have stuffing for dinner!
3. Chicken breast cold cuts taste good dipped in BBQ sauce.
4. Alfredo Pasta and Chicken is easy to make, with the pasta from a Kraft Mac & Cheese cup (microwaved), Alfredo sauce, and Perdue chicken strips (McCormick and Knorr sell Alfredo sauce mix packets).
5. Cold cuts or Perdue chicken strips on pita bread taste good.
6. Toasted sandwiches taste good.
7. Cereal tastes good, just keep buying it because it gets stale fast.
8. A variety of potato chips is good, different kinds of potato chips are good.
9. 🍅 Tomato slices with salad dressing taste good. A tiny sprinkle of salt on tomato slices also taste good - keyword: tiny.
10. Using plastic storage containers to store leftover canned vegetables is helpful.
11. Ranch dressing is good, it's like living on a ranch.

III. 1. "Breakfast is as simple as a frying pan, butter, eggs, and a couple of strips of bacon." --Charles Dickens.
2. "It's better to use the stove or oven instead of the microwave."
3. “Soup broth is good for you.” —Jane Austen. Consequently, you can eat Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle, if you first eat some of the broth, and then eat the noodles, and while cooking, remember to dilute it with a half can of water.
4. You can eat beef soup, if you view it as beef stew.
5. Ramen noodles taste good, just add salt.
6. Beef tea, or tea made from beef ramen seasoning, is good for a cold.
7. When cooking meat, you know when the meat is cooked by the smell. If the meat smells burnt then you know that it's been overcooked.

IV. 1. All you need is a wooden stirring spoon, a large pitcher, and a measuring cup, in order to make drink mix powder (such as Kool-Aid) into juice.
2. Orange soda is good, it contains vitamin C, and is similar to orangeade and sherbet.
2-A. "He enjoyed eating sherbet." --The Arabian Nights.
3. "Homemade lemonade is simply a mixture of lemons, water, and sugar." --Charles Dickens
4. Fruit salad tastes good.
5. Cream cheese's different flavors on white bread tastes good.
6. Jam (cherry, blueberry) on white bread is a good snack.
7. Iced coffee is easy to make at home, and different kinds of coffee have different potencies.
8. Soy milk (or almond milk) tastes good: it goes down silky smooth.
9. Lemon or mint candy tastes good.
10. "Happiness can be increased by eating more fresh fruits and vegetables." --Horace
11. The generous amount of food in our supermarkets is great!

V. Sea Food 🦐
1. Campbell's Chunky New England clam chowder, with two extra cans of canned clams, tastes great!
2. Campbell's Chunky Old Bay clam chowder tastes great, it's like a fragrant stew or bouillabaisse with fragrant peppercorns, bay leaves, potatoes and clams.
3. A Kraft Mac & Cheese cup and a tuna pouch makes tuna casserole. You can also make a variation of this which does not contain any cheese, and only contains pasta, tuna, a little mayonnaise, and a little bit of relish (Sweet Relish).




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