The Most Unkindest Cut of All

The Most Unkindest Cut of All The Most Unkindest Cut of All The Most Unkindest Cut of All By Maeve Maddox Some of my readers and I experienced an episode of mutual astonishment the other day. In a post about the abbreviation e.g., I wrote the following sentence: The most unkindest cut of all regarding the use of  e.g.  and its ilk came to my attention in 2008 when I read an article in the  London Telegraph  about a movement in Britain to purge English of such long-established Latin shortcuts. The emails began to fly: Were you serious in the use of the following sentence?   I am making reference to the use of most unkindest. The most unkindest cut   Hmm.   This one threw me, Maeve. most unkindest assuming thats an editing error and not a grammatical error! Most unkindest. Did you really mean that? Isnt it, most unkind?   Would you please comment? â€Å"The most unkindest cut of all†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I think one should use either â€Å"The unkindest†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or â€Å"The most unkind†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Can you believe he/she wrote the most unkindest. It should be the most unkind  or the unkindest. At the time I wrote the sentence, I had the feeling that someone might twit me for the use of a word like ilk, but it never occurred to me that anyone would turn a hair at the quotation from Julius Caesar. Many years have passed since I studied Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar in the ninth grade, but I still remember the speech in which Antony refers to the dagger thrust made by Brutus as â€Å"the most unkindest cut of all.† Antony’s funeral oration over the corpse of Caesar is very long. My classmates and I memorized the first section, beginning with these lines: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. We memorized up to where Antony pauses the first time to let his words sink in: My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, And I must pause till it come back to me. The speech continues. It’s an excellent example of the way a clever speaker can manipulate the sentiment of a hostile, ignorant crowd. Antony pulls out all the rhetorical stops. At the very end, he wins the mob with a sentimental â€Å"show and tell,† making Caesar’s death personal and tangible. He holds up Caesar’s bloody mantle and spreads the holes with his fingers, putting names to them: Look, in this place ran Cassius dagger through. See what a rent the envious Casca made. Through this the well-belovà ¨d Brutus stabbed. And as he plucked his cursà ¨d steel away, Mark how the blood of Caesar followed it, As rushing out of doors, to be resolved If Brutus so unkindly knocked, or no. For Brutus, as you know, was Caesar’s angel. Judge, O you gods, how dearly Caesar loved him! This was the most unkindest cut of all. NOTE: According to the historical record, Caesar’s assassins stabbed him twenty-three times. â€Å"Most unkindest cut of all† is nonstandard English. The rule for comparison, as my dismayed readers point out, does not permit a most to attend an adjective ending in -est. But Shakespeare was writing iambic pentameter. He needed a line with ten syllables. And besides, his intention was to have Antony wring out as much emotion as he could from the mob. The cut made by Brutus wasn’t simply unkind or most unkind, or the unkindest, it was absolutely the pinnacle of unkindness, hence the most, the -est, and the â€Å"of all.† When I quoted Shakespeare’s line, I was emphasizing the dismay I felt at the thought that branches of officialdom- in Britain of all places- could believe that it could be in the public interest to purge words from the English vocabulary. The very idea calls to mind a quotation from another of my favorite authors: Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined and all its subsidiary meanings rubbed out and forgotten.- Orwell, 1984 I don’t have a conclusion to this post. We’re living along a seam in time. Some of us have had one kind of education, others a different kind. The practice of quoting from the English literary canon in articles intended for a general audience belongs to a passing generation. Is this is a bad thing? According to Hamlet, â€Å"there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.† As King Arthur says at the end of Tennyson’s Idylls of the King, The old order changeth, yielding place to new. Related posts: When Most Is Enough Slipping into Newspeak Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:16 Substitutes for â€Å"Because† or â€Å"Because Of†Empathy "With" or Empathy "For"?While vs. Whilst

The Best Ways to Soothe Hot Pepper Burning

The Best Ways to Soothe Hot Pepper Burning Hot peppers can add a kick to spicy foods, but if you get it on your hands or in your eyes or eat one thats just too hot, you should know how to take away the burn. Why Hot Peppers Burn In order to soothe the burn of a hot pepper, it helps to understand why it feels hot. The sensation of heat comes from capsaicin, the active compound in hot peppers, binding to the sensory receptors in your mouth or skin that detect heat. These neurons fire off a painful warning when they detect a temperature hot enough to harm tissue. Your body reacts to capsaicin the same as it would to a high temperature, even though no actual heat is present. To stop the burn, you have to remove the capsaicin from the binding site or dilute it so the sensation isnt as intense. How to Make Hot Peppers Stop Burning The key is to either absorb the capsaicin or dissolve it. If you have hot peppers on your hands, youll just spread it around if you try to rinse it with water. You can remove capsaicin by wiping it away using vegetable oil or butter or you can use dishwashing soap to lift it off the skin. Rinsing your hands in dilute bleach solution also helps. Any food that acts like a sponge due to sheer bulk will help absorb the heat and mellow it. You can dissolve capsaicin in alcohol, but it cant be too diluted. A shot of tequila might help, while a sip from a margarita would be pointless. Food thats high in oil or fat dissolves the capsaicin, so it cant continue to bind heat receptors. Your best bet? Full fat sour cream or ice cream. Dairy (sour cream, milk, cheese, ice cream): The fat helps dissolve the capsaicin.Oil or oily foods: If you can stand it, swish oil around in your mouth and spit it out to clear the burn. For a tastier option eat a spoonful of peanut butter or honey.Acidic food: Acidic foods, like lemons, limes, and tomatoes, help to neutralize some of the activity of alkaline capsaicinoids.Bulky food, like chips, rice or bread: Starchy foods act like sponges, soaking up excess capsaicin. These foods wont cool the burn, but theyll keep it from getting worse over time.Sugar: The Scoville scale, used to measure the heat of a pepper, was based on how much sugar water it takes to dilute a pepper to where it doesnt burn. How to Make It Even Worse If youve eaten a spicy pepper and you think the heat is unbearable, depending on what you eat or drink to soothe the burn you can make it a lot worse! Foods that are mostly water just spread the capsaicin around, sort of like an oil spill on water. Even if your food or drink is icy cold, it wont help the problem. Liquids that will only make the burn worse include water, beer, coffee, and soda. The alcohol in beer or wine wont dissolve the capsaicin, but if you ingest enough alcohol, the burn from hot peppers wont be as uncomfortable. Thats simply intoxication dulling your senses and not any reaction with the hot pepper.

Democratic or Undemocratic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Democratic or Undemocratic - Essay Example Congress and as well get a better idea as to what takes place within the Congress as well. This is what will be dissertated in the following. Basically the United States has three different branches of government, which are: legislative, executive, and judicial. Each of these different branches has its own features and works in its own separate way. Laws are able to evolve from the action of each branch however, and a legislative history will basically and generally trace its bill from its introduction into Congress through the legislative process. The conference committee is a committee of Congress which is considered as being incredibly major in the process of a bill being passed; the committee is appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve any disagreements on any particular bill. The first thing that happens when a bill is going to be passed has to do with these conference committees, and they only operate "after the House and the Senate have both passed different versions of a bill. Bills must be printed. Conference committees exist to negotiate a compromise bill that both houses can accept." (45) . Then, both houses of Congress must end up eventually passing the identical legislation in order for the bill to become a law, thus proving their extreme importance in this process overall.

In what respects does the postmodern city differ from its modern Essay

In what respects does the postmodern city differ from its modern counterpart - Essay Example The way in which the cities are built and expanded, as well as the framework for different buildings and components create this difference and lead to an understanding of how the city has changed while those living in a specific society have also altered. The Postmodern City The concept of the postmodern city became associated with the 1960s and was parallel to the changing lives of those in Western cities. The buildings as well as the structure of the city was known to construct with the cultural components, specifically with individuals moving out of the industrial age of mass production and into the entrepreneurial spirit. This was combined with the desire to build a sense of diversity, both in terms of the structures and architecture of buildings as well as the way in which the economics of different neighborhoods were able to work together. It was the two concepts of diversity and expansion out of the mass production that began to drive forward the ideology of the city. This was combined with the imperialist thought that was still associated with the elite, specifically which became interested in cities that could express a sense of wealth and power in various areas. Each of these proponents changed the city as well as the architecture and designs associated with each neighborhood. The concept of capitalism and the growth of urban renewal that could offer restructuring for money then became the most important component to building structures (Harvey, 1990: 6). The idea of development and the associations with postmodernism became reflective of the culture in several ways. While there was a movement outside of the mass production, there was also an increase in the consumer society. Individuals were interested in expansion specifically from the viewpoint of capitalism and economic structures that would assist in the building of wealth. Building a consumer culture followed this, specifically by building diverse neighborhoods that combined systematic areas whi ch allowed individuals to consume easily and to maintain a heightened lifestyle through various products and goods. The consumption not only became relevant in the basic needs but also became reflective of one’s personality, social status and meaning of lifestyle which was associated with those in society. The result was the desire to create a sense of utopia by presenting the perfect image and by associating this with the neighborhoods which had been built, all which were based on consumer behaviors (Clarke, 2003: 167). Development of Modernism The concept of consumerism and diversity in is one which arose from a backlash among those interested in architecture and the transformations of society and culture. This came from the modernist approach of society. Many began to believe that the culture which was a part of each community was reflective of the values or loss of morality which occurred, specifically with the concept of creating and developing while maintaining a balanc e with those in society. Modernist thought was based first on the need to develop, specifically so individuals could come out of the communities and recognize a sense of diversity that was associated with a given region. The development was followed by reflecting this with the values and morality which one held as well as how this could create a reflection from the architecture and construction of the city (Berman, 1988: pg. 90). The idea of value which was built formed into the development of moving back into the natural and into

Supreme Court of the United States Essay Example for Free

Supreme Court of the United States Essay During United States history, the U. S. government, particularly the Supreme Court, has played a major role on our nations society. The decisions made by our nations Supreme Court influenced the way we live as present day Americans. Decisions made by our Supreme Court concerning our rights and freedoms as individuals can limit or impact day-to-day activities. One court case that illustrates the power the Supreme Court has over our daily rights is Brown v.  Board of Education. This case emphasizes the Supreme Courts influence throughout history. From the late 1800s to this case in 1954, public places were segregated for Blacks and whites and was said to be acceptable as long as they were equal. The Jim Crow Laws were set up to support segregation which significantly impacted African American rights. This separate but equal formula had been maintained by the court case Plessy v. Ferguson, which therefore separate bathrooms, water fountains, schools etc were set up for blacks but these public facilities werent equal whatsoever; Black public facilities had a lower quality. Brown v. Board of Education ruled in African American equality and civil rigghts. The supreme court declared segregated public schools was unconstitutional since separating children based on race wasnt right. As a result of this ruling, all schools were required to integrate black and white students but african american students still faced difficulties. This ruling also inspired Blacks to fight against other racial oppressions. Brown v. Board of Education subsequently helped establish a more equal African American society. Another case that spotlights the power the United States Supreme Court has over our daily rights or freedoms is Schneck v. U. S. Since the United States was brought into World War 1, there was a decision to put a draft into place, or demand to enroll into military services from any qualifying person during war time. In 1919, Schneck, an american citizen, spoke out against this war-time decision but was arrested for handing out circulars that encouraged draftees to oppose the draft, which violated the Espionage Act by attempting to cause insubordination in the military and to obstruct recruitment . Schneck insisted that an arrest like this violated his First Amendment Right to freedom of Speech and Press. Ultimately, this case was brought all the way up to the Supreme Court, stating that during a time of war individual freedoms or rights can be limited or shrunken to protect national security. This case formed the phrase clear and present danger. Supreme Court ruled that Schneck proposed a clear and present danger to american society. This is why we cant yell fire! in a movie theater or in any crowded public facility. The United States Supreme Court has a massive influence on forming american society. The decisions made by the Spreme Court played a major role on the Civil Rights of African Americans, First Amendment Rights of individuals and all other forms of american society.

Advertising Industry Should Market America to the Islamic World :: Argumentative Persuasive Argument Essays

The American Advertising Industry Should Market America to the Islamic World The real power in the world today is not in the western technology, economy or military. Rather it is in images and their use in a system of communication called symbolism. In effect, the real power of the world today is in the symbolism of western culture. It is this power which threatens the religion of Islam. The power of the western world to create and communicate this symbolism to other parts of the world, and particularly the middle eastern world of the Islamic religion, is at the root of the problem the Judeo-Christian west faces with the Islamic middle east. If one accepts the hypothesis that symbolism might be at the root of the problem, it seems important to understand 1) the basic messages of this symbolism and 2) whether these messages might be manipulated or â€Å"recruitedâ€Å" as â€Å"warriorsâ€Å" in the coming battle. Certainly the western world has been adept at directing its symbols mainly inward towards western culture in the form of propaganda and the persuasion of our advertising into a consumer culture. American consumer culture was created by the application and manipulation of these symbols. Emerging questions of today are 1) whether Americans can come to see coming events of the world in a symbolic context and 2) whether this knowledge of symbolic context will help them direct their symbol making powers outward rather than inward. Right now, America's symbol making powers are directed inward at persuasion and propaganda of the populace. Anyone who doubts this simply needs to push the button to CNN for about an hour. But, might it be directed outward towards propaganda of the western civilization into the Islamic culture? We might say that it is not right to use propaganda to achieve goals. Yet, there is a vast amount of evidence that America's enemies use many forms of propaganda against America. If our enemies can use propaganda against America, why shouldn't America enlist its greatest propaganda machines in Hollywood and Madison Avenue in the great coming battle? Of course we do this on a simple Coke or McDonalds type of global expansion philosophy for American brands and the unrelenting promotion of that rather ambiguous beehive archetype symbol of ideas and emotions called â€Å"globalism.â€Å" But here I mean more of a â€Å"kick assâ€Å" Marine philosophy of putting Madison Avenue and Hollywood into the coming war that CNN constantly advertises to us in a ubiquitous logo.

The Raven Tpcastt

â€Å"The Raven† TPCASTT Title This poem could be about a multitude of things with the title Poe chose, but one thing that is clear is that it is about a Raven. Judging from Poe's other works, it is likely about some kind of a rabid/demonic raven. Also, it is very likely that this Raven will torture someone in some unimaginable way that will destroy the person more so psychologically than physically. Paraphrase I was laying in my bedroom pondering life when I heard a knocking at my door. Maybe it is my dead wife Lenore.No, that can't be it. It must just be someone coming by to visit me. I called down the hall apologizing for taking so long to answer the door, but no one was there. This really freaked me out, so I called for Lenore, but again, there was no answer. I heard the knocking again, maybe it's my window. I will check so I can confirm it's darkness and not anything more than that. When I opened up my window a raven came flying in and landed above my door. I decided to a sk the raven his name, and his only response was â€Å"nevermore. I was really freaked out and amazed that there was a bird with the odd name of â€Å"nevermore. † The bird will for sure leave tomorrow, as everything else does. But the bird responded with â€Å"nevermore. † He must have just learned this word from a bitter owner or someone passing by. There is no way it can be speaking to me. So, I just sat back down in my bed to ponder this. Wow, he actually must be a gift from god. I have to ask him if I will ever forget Lenore. He responded with â€Å"nevermore. † If anything will the pain of Lenore's death ever fade?But, the raven said â€Å"nevermore. † Will I ever be able to see my Lenore again, whether in this life or the afterlife? But, the raven said â€Å"nevermore. † Get out of my house Raven! Get out of my house and get your beak out of my heart. But, the raven said â€Å"nevermore. † The raven won't leave and my soul will never be lifted and I'll never be happy. Connotation This poem uses many poetic devices. The first, and possibly most important, is point of view. Poe uses first person because during the time period this was extremely scary material.And putting the readers directly into the narrator's shoes did nothing but increase the fear factor. Also, unlike much literature of that time, Poe uses a lot of imagery to pull readers into story. Phrases such as â€Å"tapping on my chamber door† and describing the echo of his voice give you a sense of auditory imagery. He deeply describes the looks of everything in the house from the bird's crest to the shadows being cast on the floor. Lastly, he takes advantage of the tactile sense by describing the bird's beak digging into his heart. Attitude Poe had a very depressing attitude toward this whole poem.He wrote it while his wife was dying of tuberculosis, a disease that had plagued him his entire life. Also, during this time he was very poor and wasn 't having any success making it as a poet. He used this poem as a way to describe how the â€Å"demons† in the world felt toward him. He used sad and depressing language throughout the poem to really convey to the reader what he was feeling at the time. Also, he uses a techhnique where the poem starts off making the reader think it is going to be a happy poem where he is reunited with his dead wife and they all live happily ever after.But instead, he is disappointed by a bird that is constantly telling him he will never be able to achieve true happiness. Shifts In the poem there are some, but not many shifts. The primary shifts come at the beginning but then the poem almost stables out and stays fairly level. The poem starts off on a sense of boredom with him drifting off in his chair. Then there is a sense of excitement when there is a knocking at the door. Then it is hope and happiness that it could be Lenore. But then it goes back to boredom and almost curiosity when there is nothing but darkness at the door.He goes back to answer the window when he hears the knocking again which causes fear and excitement. When the bird flies in he is mostly scared and curious as to why the bird is there. There is next a sense of hope that this bird will be able to help him connect to his Lenore. From here on out it is almost nothing but anger at the bird as it refuses to say anything other than â€Å"nevermore,† and tells the narrator he is never going to be happy. Title After reading the poem my prediction was very close to correct.I did know that the bird would be torturing him. I didn't think that it would be in any way like he did, but that part was correct. Also, the bird was supernatural. Other than that, the entire story line was very different than what I had initially expected. Theme The theme of this poem is that one's own head can often be the cause of his misery or grief. The man continues to ask the bird questions when he knows exactly what the bird will say. It's almost as though he had wanted to be upset and was intentionally doing this to himself.