Added by: stovokor | Karma: 1758.61 | Fiction literature | 26 March 2008
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The Razor's Edge is a novel by W. Somerset Maugham written in 1944. Its epigraph reads, "The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over; thus the wise say the path to Salvation is hard." —Katha-Upanishad.
The Razor's Edge tells the story of an American, Larry Darrell, who, traumatized by his experiences as a fighter pilot in World War I,
decides to search for some transcendant meaning in his life. The novel
tells its story through the eyes of Larry's friends and acquaintances
as they witness his personality change after the War. His rejection of
conventional life and search for meaningful experience allows him to
thrive while the more materialistic characters suffer reversals of
fortune. The book was twice adapted into film, first in 1946 starring Tyrone Power and Gene Tierney, and then a modern adaptation 1984 version starring Bill Murray, with Tibet replacing India as the place of Larry's enlightenment. (Source: Wikipedia)
Charles Dikkens - Great Expectations[abridged audiobook with text] Great Expectations is written in a semi-autobiographical style, and is the story of the orphan Pip, tracing his life from his early days of childhood until adulthood. The story can also be considered semi-autobiographical of Dickens, like much of his work, drawing on his experiences of life and people.
Good News, Bad News is a listening and conversation text based on an entertaining collection of actual news reports about interesting characters and events. Eighteen three-page units are presented in a radio news-story format. All units feature a series of task-based activities designed to guide students from general to detailed understanding of the news report and to provide meaningful fluency practice related to the story's theme.
Good News, Bad News features:
Short, focused units that can be completed in one class period
Interesting, light-hearted listening passages based on actual stories from the news
Vocabulary-building exercises that introduce and practice new vocabulary
A wide variety of communicative, task-based listening and speaking activities
An optional "Extra Practice" section to consolidate new vocabulary
Each unit offers:
"Tuning In," a visual activity designed to introduce the context of the story. It offers a vocabulary building exercise to identify and teach the new language contained in the listening passage.
"Good News, Bad News," a series of task-based listening activities that leads students from general to detailed understanding of the story
"Signing Off," communicative speaking tasks that build on the theme of the story and provides opportunities for student personalization
"Extra Practice" activities to consolidate the new vocabulary in each unit
(36 lectures, 30 minutes/lecture)
Course No. 1600
Taught by John McWhorter
Manhattan Institute
Ph.D., Stanford University
"I never met a person who is not interested in language," wrote the bestselling author and psychologist Steven Pinker. There are good reasons that language fascinates us so. It not only defines humans as a species, placing us head and shoulders above even the most proficient animal communicators, but it also beguiles us with its endless mysteries. For example:
How did different languages come to be?
Why isn’t there just a single language?
How does a language change, and when it does, is that change indicative of decay or growth?
How does a language become extinct?
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The best thing about all of the Wee Sing books is that the singing is done by children for children. The choice of songs is quite comprehensive, including patriotic selections as well songs from our American history. The songs tell the story of the struggles and successes of our young country.
Good News, Bad News
Story of human language
