Islamophobe is a word that should not be used lightly. Let the word go over your lips once again…slowly, Islam-O-phobe. Arachnophobes (there isn’t such a word but I’m nounifying it :p ) are afraid of spiders, logically Islamophobe would imply fear of Islam. The word however has become associated with a racist anti-Semitic sentiment and generally applied to all those who express anti-Islamic views. Pat Condell is not an Islamophobe. He expresses no irrational fear of Islam. He is merely anti-Islam in his views. Recently a video was posted by him entitled ‘Shame on you Netherlands’, in which he spoke about the arrest and prosecution of a Dutch minister for criticising Islam.

If you haven’t seen it watch it here:

He also has many other videos which I found very interesting.

Without a doubt that was completely shameful, critical thinking of any religion should be encouraged, the same goes for Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism’s, Judaism, the flying spaghetti monster etc. No one should be able to claim asylum under the guise of ‘that’s racist!’ critical thinking is one of the key skills any mind can posses. Under that logic I should be locked up. Christianity in particular takes a lot of flak in Britain and Europe, however I think we are now passed the stage of locking people for criticising Jesus. The same should be true of all religions. So why should Islam be given special status in western culture? For god’s sake if you can’t take a joke you need to get a life (I’m being facetious). Pat also goes on to say that Islam is whinging about its unfair treatment. And Okay I’ll go as far as to agree with him on that, not wanting to forget that I live in a country which grinds to a halt every year for Christmas (we also have word processors that automatically capitalise the ‘c’ in Christmas) and pretty much stops every Sunday. Whilst Muslim holidays remain largely unobserved, fair? Methinks not. When was that last time we had Britain stop for Id-Ul-Fitar? (spelling?) Should we really be observing any religious holidays as part of our working week anyway?

Whilst I can understand Pat’s thoughts, Islam doesn’t appear to be the enemy that recent political affairs (or Pat) have made out to be. In Britain how many sucessful terrorist plots have we actually had? Hundreds… These range from the supposed guilt of Guido Fawkes; to the IRA to the current state of affairs. I count one successful plot carried out by a radical Muslim cell in Britain. The London bombings…all the others (so far) have been foiled. Is this a good enough reason for the zeitgeist of our times to be of a divide between Muslim (and pretty much) Christian? There were far more bombings carried out by the IRA but we didn’t go in there and level their houses. As for British troops being killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, we’re the terrorists there. What realistic threat did Saddam pose to Britain or the US? None. No he wasn’t a humane leader but let’s not forget who put him there. *CoughsUSACoughs* Essentially Saddam was a fall guy for Bush who had to be seen to be doing something in reaction to the world trade centre attacks. Afghanistan looks to be a similar thing with Al-Qaeda, despite a lack of proof that they committed the attacks. Put simply the vast majority of Muslims in Britain are as peace loving as you and me.
Lastly, we need to look at sources for this anti-Islam sentiment and primarily it appears to be right wing newspapers and we all know some of the filth which comes from their print….

I’d also like to stress that I don’t entirely agree with Pat on some of his views, I’d like to defend his freedom to express them.

How do you feel about Islam’s position in the west?

Sonnet Form

The word Sonnet is derived from the Italian word Sonnete which means song. The Sonnet form has 10 syllabus per line, this is otherwise know as Iambic Pentameter. Sonnets are also always 14 lines long. Petrach invented the Sonnet form hence the Petracan Sonnet.

Petracan Sonnets can be divided into an octet and sextet.

Petracan Sonnet form:| abbaabba | cddcee |
The first section was rigid and never changed, the second section is variable as Petrach liked to play around with this section.

Shakespeare later changed Petrach’s Sonnet form.
Shakespearian Sonnets:| ababcdcd | efefgg |
Shakespearian Sonnets were far more rigid than Petracan sonnets.

A pneumonic to remember the difference:

Shakespeare rides into the sunset on a horse called GG.
Petrach listens to ABBA.

text, withouth actually using the noun. We typically use deictics in speech because we rely on context in natural conversation.

An example:

Come here and look at this mess.

Go over there and look at that mess.

As see can see we have two very different situations. The first is where the mess is close to the speaker. The second is where the speaker is further away. It is worth noting however that in both situations the mess is still in sight.

Deictics are also used to describe the ways in which a text links the world of the narrative with that of the reader. For example, in poetry, deictics can be used to imply that the reader takes part in or watches a scene or events alongside the poet, as in this extract:

Say what you will, there is not in the world

A nobbler sight than from this upper down,

No rugged landscapes here…

In plays or prose, as well as within poetry, deictics or deictic expressions help to create and sustain the world of the play or narritive by refferring to places, people, times and events that have occured within it. Equally a further important function of deictics is to extend the world of the play or narrative to places, times, people and things we have not seen, rather than confining us to the world created by the text in front of us.

The four demonstrative deteriminers and pronouns are the prime deictics, this and these are POINTING to

what is here and now, while that and those point to there or then.

Other words commonly included in this category are here and there, now and then, today, yesterday and tomorrow, and the personal pronouns (I,we,you,us,they,etc.) Tense is also a deictic category.

In pragmatics and linguistics, deixis is a process whereby words or expressions rely absolutely on context. The origo is the context from which the reference is made - in other words, the viewpoint that must be understood in order to interpret the utterance.  For example if Dick is speaking with Harry and he says “I”, he refers to himself, but if he is listening to Harry and he says “I” the origo is then with him and the reference is to himself.) A word that is dependant on deictic clues is called a deictic or a deictic word.

Deictics are in contrast to proper nouns and definitive descriptions, that refer to real objects and states of affairs independant of their context, deixis denotes other linguistic signs in a given text, or extralinguistic elements in a given speech situation.

Deixis is all about context.

Impressionism

General:

The impressionist movement that took place mainly in European Classical Music largely occurred in France. The impressionist movement occurred in the late 19th century and carried on roughly to the middle of the 20^th century. Theoretically; the aim of impressionism is to convey the emotional impact of the subject as opposed to accurately depicting it. Claude Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune is an example of this, it’s is not an accurate representation of the poem but merely conveys the feeling of it.

Impressionism came about as a reaction against the musical conventions of the romantic period where intense emotion was directly addressed, otherwise known as program music.

Technical:

Whilst the impressionist era was still essentially tonal in the sense that they used the diatonic system of music the composers often used dissonances, often ninths and thirteenths. Mathematical scales were sometimes also used for example the whole tone scale. It is also worth noting that in contrast to the romantic era, impressionist composers favoured shorter musical forms like prelude, nocturne and arabesque, almost completely abandoning forms like symphony and concerto.

Often in Debussy’s pieces a large orchestra is require to perform the piece however it is rarely used to make a loud sounds. String sections are often divided and muted; harps are used to add a distinctive touch. Woodwind is heavily used, the flute in the lower registers as well as the oboe and the English horn feature in solos. Con sord brass is often used in pianissimo sections. Percussion is also used in many forms; kettledrums, tamtams, celesta, glockenspiel and xylophone add yet more colour to the mix.

Other techniques used by impressionists are extensive use of crossed rhythms to ‘blur’ the bars lines and the pulse of the music. Minutia is also a large part of impressionistic music, this is where subtleties in the music can be picked out that convey meaning. Once again Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune is a prime example of this.

Influence

So who did the impressionists influence?

Manuel de Falla (Spanish); Frederick Delius (English); Isaac Albéniz (Spanish); Erik Satie (French); Camille Saint-Saëns (French); and Ottorino Respighi (Italian) to name but a few. Impressionistic passages are common in earlier music by Frédéric Chopin, and can also be found in the music of Béla Bartók and George Gershwin.

Post-impressionism

Impressionism like Romanticism was eventually seen as uncouth and ‘too impressionistic’ Erik Satie was a key player in this school of thought which led to the school of post-impressionism where the limitations of impressionism were abandoned. Ironically the term impressionism was never widely liked by ‘impressionist’ composers. Debussy most notably said the term was woefully inaccurate and that he was ‘just trying to do something different.’

One of the most important things that impressionism achieved however was the weakening of the concept tonality. Non-functional chords and chromatic harmonies paved the way for the likes of Schoenberg and the second Viennese school and their atonality.

Stream of consciousness ( SOC ) is a literary technique in the form of a narrative mode. It’s been around a while and is generally attributed to May Sinclair. It is worth noting that the term ( SOC ) has crossed over from the realms of psychology.  The first author which pops into mind when I think of this technique is Salman Rushdie although he doesn’t over use this technique I’ve noticed him using it in ‘Midnight Children.’

Now unfortunately for me, I’m not a talented writer. I don’t have a natural gift to just pick up new techniques, this meant that my first attempt at this was an abysmal failure. In defiance of my lecturer I’ve decided to research this and try and make a really good go of this.

I can simple say to you that I’m approaching this piece by writing down all the internal vocalisations that the character is having. What do I mean by internal vocalisations you ask? Well it’s merely the little voice you get in your head when you think. ( Well at least I get one ) I’m sure there is more to this however this seems like a good starting place.

And now without much adue my first second attempt at the stream of consciousness.

No one knows

Oh god… Why do I do this to myself? Bleergh! Not again. I feel so weak. What did I dri- Bleergh! Oh my god, my head hurts. I can’t feel my face. Hnngh Hnngh Hnnnn-Blergh! I’m shaking. At there’s nothing left in me. Hnn-ack ack! I’ve gotta get up. The floor is moving… Shit my knee! Oh no… I’ve gotta get up. I can’t stay here. Hnnngh… What was his name again? It’s not good being stuck to the toilet. Hnngh… The floor is cold. It’s chilling. My hands, my knees, my face my breasts. It’s all grey. Why is it all grey? It’s freezing. Who is he?! I’ve gotta get up. I don’t get it. I didn’t drink that much last night. Shit… I cant remember his name. Is he still in the house?

….

Christopher Nemo watched his latest victim from a distance. It was a sick voyeuristic pleasure that he took viewing, like a cheap stripper, Jen stumbling around the bathroom naked and otherwise incapacitated. Nemo was a predator a nasty piece of work to say the least. Normally he hunted the girls… Last night however was a treat, Jennifer Forlorne came to him. The bar she walked into was well known, her clothes, respectable and above all her demeanour friendly . All the things you’d expect from a young London bank clerk on a night out.

Jennifer spotted Nemo from across the bar. At first… A wink then a ‘come hither.’ One word ‘Hello’ turned into many utterances. Many utterances led to one drink. One drink turned into many… and when the fine young lady pops to the loo… Ro-hyp-nol. Nemo’s little white friend rears his ugly head once again. Jen and Chris go back to her place and make sweet, sweet love.

Nemo gets a free place to stay, a woman to stay with and anything he can lay his hands on and get away with. She gets sex she didn’t want, her things stolen, a hangover that won’t go away anytime soon and a damn dirty feeling

Too bad… you lose.

This brings us back to this pretty little scene. Nemo does this for a living and takes great satisfaction in his work.

In order to respect the privacy of the people involved in this I am not going to name names. However yesterday was a profound experience for me indeed.

One of my best friends has a sister who sadly and unfortunately had a miscarriage very late in the pregnancy. I’ve never really felt at ease with her because the child which lost his life shared a name with me. Although the spelling is different our names are pronounced in exactly the same way. Yesterday I went to visit the little boy’s grave which was in a local area, I don’t really know why but it seemed the right thing to do.

It was a dreay day. The skys were overcast, the air was chilled, the grass was plush under our feet. A light rain was falling. A truly Welsh day on the coast. A little chapel, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, completely lonely lost in the Welsh hills. This was where my friend’s family had come to for many things. He was christened there, his siblings were married there and Kai was buried in the graveyard outside.

My blood ran icy cold, my heart slowed and my nerves wavered as we approached the grave. There was no gravestone as such but merely some of Kai’s toys marking where the boy was laid to rest.

Being there was definitely on of the strangest moments of my life thus far. The fact that we completely coincidentally shared a name and that this person had had a contact (however small) with my life was enough to make me get sort of stuck in a kind of loop.

I’m an atheist…completely. I don’t believe in god or an afterlife but grave yards completely fly in the face of what I know. Looking at that grave my soul felt pressed, uneasy and stirring. From what I know I can’t explain it. It took my friend to drag me away and to try and lighten the mood before I sort of came out of it.

Thinking about the value of names they are incredibly valuable. If you consider Romeo and Juliette, ‘What is in a name?’ says Juliette musing to herself on her balcony. Unfortunately it’s all in the name, they die because of their names. If Romeo wasn’t a Montague there would be no problem. Without a name who are you? How can you achieve anything? Although it’s not impossible it would certainly be very hard to exist with no name at all.

It’s strange to think that in some far off corner of Wales a boy that I never knew but with the same name as me has a grave… chilling

I’m sorry If I offend anyone with this but I thought the experience was worth sharing.

Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

Recently watching a documentary on ancient China has set me about thinking. The program focused on the traditional Chinese philosophical concept of the mandate of heaven. The mandate of heaven was concept that was used to decide the legitimacy of ancient Chinese emperors. The ancient Chinese believed that Heaven (in an ancient Chinese sense) would bless the authourity of a just ruler, however despotism would lead to the emperor losing the mandate of heaven. Once the mandate of heaven was lost China would fall upon bad times and it would be purely a matter of time until the currently ruling dynasty would fall.  Later, introduced from this pattern of rising and falling dynasties, came the concept of a dynastic cycle which outlined a relatively detailed process whereby dynasties came into power, prospered and became decedent and fell again.

The big implication of the mandate of heaven is that leaders need not be of noble birth. They need only be the person most fit to rule and that the rulers of ancient were obliged to treat their subject fairly and well.

This is a opposed to the concepts of divine right on which modern Islamic denominations are based (a lot of tension stems from the arguments as to who was prophet Mohammad’s legitimate successor). The divine right of kings and hereditary rule is a more European (forgive the expression) concept which is very similar to the divine right. The big implications of both these systems were that the monarch has no obligations to his people and so can treat them as a despot if he so wishes (and can get away with it.)

China for many centuries was ahead of Europe. This is unsurprising in the light of the difference in systems that they had for choosing their leaders. Where as the Europeans were getting mis-treated by monarch after monarch until 1215 A.D. when Magna Carta was signed. Magna Carta introduced some responsibility into the monarchy. Compare this to when the Mandate of heaven came into being with the Zhou dynasty in 1122 B.C. and we can see that the Chinese empire had one heck of a head start on the Europeans.

It is therefore pretty easy to see why the Chinese were far superior to Britain back in the days of yore.

Comments anyone?

Well in all honesty I don’t really know… Recently my A level English teacher has spoken about the wonders of blogging and how it give authours a chance to publish (nearly) anything they like. So here I amexploring what this is all about.