ELM (part 2) - Thug Notes does Hamlet

Wikipeidia/Bernhardt-Hamlet

In college, I had studied the hard sciences and pursued a technical career until retirement.  Wanting to be well rounded, I took on the task of reading many of the classic novels.  It was at that point that I gained a great respect for the liberal arts.

And hence, that was an inspiration for this thread -

ELM - English, Language, and Musings.

When tackling math, no one would think it strange to ask for help to understand calculus, for example.  And I had attended many help sessions to get through my physics homework.  But that same kind of help can be most needed to understand - and appreciate -  literature.

Though math and science deal with equations, logic, theories - none of which is trivial, literature deals with the soul, which is very complex and rich.  But classic literature can be very arduous to read and difficult to understand for some of us amateurs.  And this is even more true in our times of numerous distractions when our attention spans seem to have been shortened.  But with the internet, help is just a click away.

Let's look at one example of a classic -

Hamlet by William Shakespeare.

The entire play can be found here - William Shakespeare's Hamlet

And it can take up to 5 hours to perform the whole play - Hamlet Uncut is 5 Hours Long! | The Bard Blog - Shakespeare Info

And that can be quite painful as that point is humorously made in the following clip.  (This is a scene from Blackadder Back & Forth, in which Blackadder travels back in time and has a few words with William Shakespeare ... among which is the endless, uncut version of Hamlet.)

Below are a few example of Hamlet performed in diverse venues:

From the Sublime ...

Christopher Plummer performed this memorable scene:

To be or not to be ... 

To the ridiculous ...

Though this next scene is most serious, it is performed with humor in a cartoon - the Animaniacs.  

Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio ...

As I picked up reading the classics outside of school and outside the benefit of a teacher, I still needed help - real bad - to fully appreciate them.  So I got -

Cliff Notes ...

And that aid helped me to navigate through the history of the times and all salient points of the piece - most of which when over my head.  And in this digital age, most of these notes are now online.

For Hamlet, check out - Hamlet: At a Glance | Shakespeare | CliffsNotes

Akin to Cliff Notes are

Spark Notes ...

For Hamlet, check out - SparkNotes: Hamlet

If you wish for a graphic novel version - somewhat animated, this is the clip for you -

And then this gem recently made the scene on YouTube:  ,


Thug Notes

Thug notes gives an excellent summary and analysis of a classic in my opinion.  It's a most effective teaching tool as the presentations get the main points across with the humor of the Animaniacs and in terms that even I can understand ...

Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, Thug Notes ...

All are tools to teach us the stories that are part of our culture and civilization.

And most of all,  Hamlet is universal whether told in Elizabethan English or the language of the street in the 21st century.

I say, again ....

The soul ... it's complex, but so rich. 

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Previous post on this series:

ELM (part 1) - English, Literature, and Musings (2013)

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Photo from - Wikipeida - Sarah Bernhardt as Hamlet

Proverbs (part 1) - Information vs. Wisdom

Wikipedia/Internet map

If you are reading this blog post, you are on the Internet, my friend.  Above is a partial map of the Internet based on the January 15, 2005 data (according to the description of the image source).  And eight years later, I imagine this map looks even more hairy and tangled!

There is a lot of information out there.  

Go to google.com and google the keyword - information.  Try it here - results for information

When I did it (September 19, 2013), I came up with 6,380,000,000 hits!  That's almost as much as one hit per person on this planet, which is over 7 billion.  [reference: World Population Clock: 7 Billion People (2013) - Worldometers]

And information is growing exponentially as shown in this video clip below (which is 3 years old and already out-dated):  (reference:  http://youtu.be/yrRn7rSif2Q)

How do we manage with so much information thrown at us - ever growing, ever changing?

It takes some wisdom.

So let's go back to google.com and google the keyword - wisdom. Try it - results for wisdom

When I did it (September 19, 2013), I came up with 146,000,000 hits.  That's a little less than one hit for half the population of the United States, about 316 million.  [reference:  Population Clock]

Roughly that is a ratio of information / wisdom of 44 to 1.

Wisdom is definitely lacking here - if we only go by these raw statistics.

But wisdom is calling ...

Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
she raises her voice in the public square;
on top of the wall she cries out,
at the city gate she makes her speech:
Proverbs 1:20, 21 (NIV)

For this reason, I began a new series on *Proverbs * - a source of wisdom.

Proverbs has 31 chapters and is one book of 66 books (in the Protestant Bible).  But what it lacks in volume, it packs quite a punch in quality.

For starters, here are some proverbs on Wisdom, in this clip:  (reference: http://youtu.be/wPfKI2HOfgc)

And the entire Book of Proverbs is read here - http://youtu.be/Z9ku-DB8nxw
(It's over 90 minutes when read, but a twinkle of an eye when considering all the information out there!)

And here is an appropriate proverb on wisdom to kick off this series ... on Proverbs:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
    and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Proverbs 9:10  (NIV)


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Recent posts on similar topics:

Timeless Truths (part 3) - Hakuna Matata - No Worries? (2013)

Biblia Files (part 1) - Thru the Bible (2013)

Biblia Files (part 2) - What is the Bible Basically About? (2013)

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Photo from:  Wikipedia -  Internet map

Biblia Files (part 2) - What is the Bible Basically About?

www.sxc.hu/No compromise

Above is a stained glass depiction of the Alpha and the Omega - the first and the last letters of the Greek alphabet.

Who is this Alpha and Omega?  (Hint:  The Lamb and the Cross are a giveaway.)

A bigger question:  What is the Bible really about?  (Another hint:  The video below gives a succinct summary and great overview of the Bible)

(clip from:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkNa6tLWrqk)

The revelation from Jesus Christ
...
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Revelation 1:8 (NIV) 

The Bible ... It's all about Jesus ...

... For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.
Revelation 19:10 (NIV) 

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Recent post in this series:

Biblia Files (part 1) - Thru the Bible (2013)

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Photo from: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/291472

Signs of the Times (part 5) - Staycations

everystockphoto/fourth-july-luckenbach

Summer will be officially over September 22, and in many places, children are already back at school.  And during this transition, some of may look back at our ...

Vacations ...

As Labor Day comes this weekend, this particular holiday marks the end of the summer and * sob!* summer vacations.  Hence, I reflect on the few trips we took - on a budget.

One trip was made economical by cashing in points to stay in a national chain.  That was sweet.  Another, we stayed off the beaten path in a most reasonably priced motel - old, but clean, comfortable beds, and working AC.  (More than I get at some high price chains.)

But other trips, motels - especially in a bad economy - did not reflect that we still were in a bad economy.  Hence, we made use of ...

Daycations ...

We had looked into some short stays near some National Parks, as we are living already within reasonable driving distance from some good ones.   But we checked the prices, even the two star motels and to quote Chris Rock in the TV show -  In Living Color  [reference:  Counting Down The 12 Most Memorable Recurring "In Living Color" Characters - 8. Cheap Pete]

** Good Lord that's a lot of money! **

It seemed we were not alone in our sticker shock.  Though high tourist season, many places near the parks still had vacancies.

So instead, we took some wonderful daycations - where it is always cheaper to sleep in our own bed, though we had to tough out long days to drive to get back home.

Which brings us to another popular option ...

Staycations ...

We are retired and live in a beautiful area, so we are blessed that many of our days are extended staycations - that is, stay-at-home vacations.  It has been claimed that word was coined by the writers of the Canadian sitcom, Corner Gas.  [reference:  World Wide Words: Staycation]

This episode "Mail Fraud" may have been the vehicle to make staycations part of the culture.

Below is the first few minutes of the episode (from: http://youtu.be/5c0SzzZB9uw ) which introduces the concept:




Daycations ...  staycations  ...

It is a trend of enjoying life in a tough economy and on a budget.

And these are some 
Signs of the Times ....

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Previous posts in this series:

Signs of the Times (part 1) - Camping in the Parks (2012)

Signs of the Times (part 2) - Layaway (2012)

Signs of the Times (part 3) - Layoffs (2013)

Signs of the Times (part 4) - Doomsday Preppers  (2013)

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Photo from -  everystockphoto.com fourth-july-luckenbach

PC Watch (part 1) - Political Correctness

everstockphoto.com/yellow gaze

We have trouble, my friends, ....  That's a capital T , which rhymes with  PC and that stands for ... Political Correctness (not personal computer)

But here I am blogging about PC on my PC.  :)   Go figure.  And a succinct definition of political correctness can be found here - political correctness - definition of political correctness by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. (It's not all bad, but it can be.)

Look for the PC label

The PC label is continually punted about by both the political Left and the Right.  The Left makes a case that the Right uses the outcry of PC to trivialize policies correcting the wrongs that society had afflicted on certain classes of victims.  The Right sees PC as a mechanism to stifle free speech and shut down discussion - especially silence that discourse that challenges the Left.  Who's right?

I side with freedom ... 

That especially includes free speech, saying what some may consider as politically incorrect or even "offensive."  But that freedom stops short of inflicting deliberate harm - such as spiteful epithets - or words inciting violence.

What has been called Politically Correct can seem so ridiculous that it is downright funny.  But in reality, it is no laughing matter.  The effects of PC on freedom - freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of religion - can be downright CHILLING.  It's an assault on everything we claim to hold dear as Americans as expressed in the Bill of Rights.

And those that wrongfully wield PC to silence their opposition are - BULLIES.  I venture I would not be putting myself out there to state that most everyone hates bullies - except perhaps the bullies themselves (unless they are bullied.)

Below is a clip that give some perspective on Political Correctness via the "Sound Bite Generation" and personality, celebrity driven vice truth driven.  The PC discussion starts about 8 minutes into the broadcast.

This is a good start ... and away we go ....

With so many examples of Political Correctness, this series 
- PC Watch -
can continue for quite a while ...

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More examples and further reading ....

Ethics, Education, and Political Correctness By Marilyn Edelstein, Ph.D. (1992)

Online Speech Bank: Charlton Heston - Winning the Cultural War (1999)

Fritinancy: Word of the Week: Presentism (2011)

The origin and nature of political correctness (24/2/2013)

Michelle Malkin | Hello Kitty Bubble Gunfight at the PC Corral  (2013)


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Photo from:
everystockphoto.com - yellow gaze

Biblia Files (part 1) - Thru the Bible

Wikipedia/Family Bible

Biblia comes from the Latin/Greek word for books - (reference:  Definition of Bible - Merriam-Webster's Student Dictionary ) from which we derive the series of sacred books, known as the Bible - (reference:  SOME IMPORTANT LATIN THEOLOGICAL TERMS )  

And from the root word for Bible comes the name of a new series -

* Biblia Files *

Volumes have been written about the Bible; there are countless biblical quotes in literature and writings; it has been a great influence in law and philosophy; it offers lessons applicable to all peoples in all areas of life.  In all, this book offers a deep well of inspiration for musings as well as a never ending well spring of wisdom.

What is it all about?

For starters, this video below gives a very abridged version of what the Bible is about - http://vimeo.com/36765988

The Bible In 50 Words from Igniter Media on Vimeo.

As human nature has not changed nor have our predicaments, the stories in this collection of many books is more up-to-date than tomorrow's 24/7 news cycle.

Going deeper ...

Here is a marvelous resource - Thru the Bible at  ttb.org

Explore this site and you will find downloads for teachings through the entire Bible in a five year study as well as other resources.

And I expect this series to go on as long as I blog as our never ending story is to be continued into eternity ...

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Some related post:

Memorize this!  (2011)

Easter - The Sign of the Prophet Jonah  (2011)

The King James Bible: 1611 - 2011  (2011)

Anastasis (part 5) - Bible in the Oxyrhynchus garbage dump  (2012)

Timeless Truths (part 2) - Love  (2013)

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Photo from:  wikipedia.com - Family Bible

Signs of the Times (part 4) - Doomsday Preppers

Wikipeida/St. Gertrud

* Doomsday *

... it's coming ...

And St. John wrote about it in the first century when he recorded his vision of end times including the famous -

 The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.   

(reference:  Revelation 6:1-6  )

Below is a clip dramatizing the reading of the coming of these foreboding horsemen from the Book of Revelation - also known as the Apocalypse:

(video clip from:  http://youtu.be/_js48XLLfXk )

Since the time of St. John, the end of the age was imminent.  The apostle even said it could have happened in the 1st century - 1 John 2:18   And since the 1st century, there have been many predictions of the end of the world.  The year anno Domini 1000 (the first millennium in the year of our Lord - the big Y1K) was one of them - History’s Biggest Doomsday Prediction Fails 

Another failed prediction?  ... You betcha ... one of many

Even Jesus said of the end of the age - 

“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." 

(For context of passage on the end times, reference:  Matthew 24)

Are we smarter than Jesus? Don't think so ... many of us aren't even smarter than a 5th grader.  :)  But that doesn't stop the predictions from coming and people from thinking about doomsday. And a thousand years ago,we had

The Doomsday Book ...

Benjamin Franklin has been quoted to say  - 

In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.  (reference:  Benjamin Franklin Quotes)

And shortly after the failed Doomsday prediction of 1000 AD, anno Domini 1085 in fact, William the Conqueror commissioned  this Domesday Book - (Domesday, another spelling of Doomsday) for the purpose of assessing taxes on the English.  Because of it's extent of complying information of the subjects' assets, the records were compared to the records in the Books that were opened at the Final Judgment before the Great White Throne, as written in the Apocalypse.   (reference: Revelation 20:11-15)

Wikipedia/Domesday Book

But as seen in some examples in the article referenced above - History’s Biggest Doomsday Prediction Fails - anxious times beget anxious feelings beget anxious predictions ... such as Armageddon is just around the corner.   And among those ...

Cold War Angst ...

Baby boomers may remember the Cold War, living under the perceived threat of nuclear war and mutually assured destruction.  The big October surprise of 1962 came to the American people in the form of the Cuban Missile Crisis when John F. Kennedy was President.  And World War III nearly happened with a nuclear showdown with the Russians.  Seriously.

As fallout - no pun intended - with my classmates, I had to memorize my civil defense number.  (I still remember it: 1-37)  Our teachers made us write it under our name on all our homework assignments.  It was suppose to come in useful when the Russians fired their nukes at us over the North Pole.  When the alarms we sounded (I don't even know what they were supposed to sound like for a nuclear attack), we were to head for the coal mines in the hills for shelter (we had 20 minutes they said) and wait for the fallout to abate enough before we came out to this brave new mutant world.

Ridiculous?  The clip below punctuates the fears of the times with the false security of how to overcome a nuclear blast:

(Video clip from Duck and Cover:  http://youtu.be/89od_W8lMtA )

More Doomsday scares ...

And since then we had even more warnings of the end of the world.  Here are only a few more -

* First written in 1970, Hal Lindsey's  The Late Great Planet Earth.  (It's about the end of the age and Christ's Second Coming, but the author took his cue from Jesus and did not give any dates.)

* 2000 AD -  the Y2K scare  as the Y1K scare in 1000 AD did not come to pass 

*  December, 21, 2012 - the Mayan calender ends ... and so will the world.   Whew! Dodged that bullet.

Now we have ....

Doomsday Preppers, the series

And since the pilot 2011, this show on the National Geographic channel highlights preparing  for a time when the sh** hits the fan or even surviving Armageddon.  (reference:  Doomsday Preppers | National Geographic Channel )

Below is a clip to a promo for the season starting in February of 2012:

(Video clip from Doomsday Prepper:   http://youtu.be/XbgUZFHb9QY  )

Some prepare for surviving Armageddon; some for disasters that are all so common.  And a new season is starting soon, August 13, 2013 - Doomsday Preppers : Air Dates Guide 

Without letting fear consume us, preparing and planning for emergency situations does make sense and is prudent, especially for those areas of country in which disasters are known to happen:   earthquakes in California, tornadoes in the mid-West, hurricanes off the coasts, fires around acres of dry forests ... 

During emergencies, people can be cut off from civilization; the thin blue line of civil infrastructure - fire and police protection as well as emergency medical care and other vital services - power, water, sewage, food supplies - gone. 

One example in recent memory ...  

Hurricane Sandy  hit in October of 2012.  (reference :  A Timeline of Hurricane Sandy’s Path of Destruction – News Watch ) 

Below is a clips of the aftermath of Sandy - a very unpleasant October surprise.

(Video clip from Hoboken Is Hit by Hurricane Sandy - The Flooding Continues:  http://youtu.be/RmzIClQImW8 )

There are lots of websites on preparedness - just google and tons will pop up.  But here is one for starters - Are you prepared?

In these uncertain times, Doomsday Preppers are one of the
Signs of the Times ....

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Previous posts in this series:

Signs of the Times (part 1) - Camping in the Parks (2012)

Signs of the Times (part 2) - Layaway (2012)

Signs of the Times (part 3) - Layoffs (2013)

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Photo from Wikipedia:  St. Gertrud, Domesday book