Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen

Well Carpe Diem I have frantically finished all my final exams in an attempt to fly home early tomorrow morning. Since I will be on a plane tomorrow I decided I would post my final blog early tonight. I would first like to say its been a great semester and I was really glad I was able to learn from such fine bright peers. You guys have been very helpful in my attempt to gain as much knowledge as possible in this class. During the Salon my discussion always seemed to lead to one subject: the distinction between the Sophic view of knowledge and Mantic, what is spiritual knowledge and what is worldly and what are the implications of both? So naturally that is what I decided to make my thesis and final blog post about. Here it is:

While some would argue that certain types of knowledge are sophic and others mantic, there are elements of both the sophic and mantic in all four types of knowledge that we studied in class. Both views of knowledge are appropriate in certain contexts, while the mantic yields more effect in the transmitting of spiritual knowledge and the sophic has more effect with the transmission of more conventional and scientific knowledge. The question arises with the sophic vs. mantic, what are the different implications and spectrums of effectiveness between knowledge that is transmitted in a spiritual manner and knowledge communicated by worldly means.

Final Exam Notes

Well Carpe Diem it has been great working with you this semester and exploring the different ways of transmitting and learning knowledge. As the Final Exam is upon us I have prepare my notes for the Salon based of what I believe to be the most relevant and important examples of my learning this semester. I really like Scott's system of color coding so I also have color coded my notes in the same manner so that you may see which activites related to which learning outcome(s). Enjoy! And I'll see you tomorrow.

	Unit 1: Folk Knowledge	Unit 2: Oral Knowledge	Unit 3: Written Knowledge	Unit 4: Print Knowledge
Self-directed learning	- Learning Bugling - Japanese Art of Encoffinment - Coming of Age in Sparta	- General Conference - Church Talks - Anglo Saxon Epic Poetry -Priesthood Blessings	- Anglo Saxon Old English - Ancient Asian Universities of Knowledge - Japanese Calligraphy	- Chinese Movable Type /Wood Block Printing - Library Research on Censorship
Others' blogging	- Jenna's Magic of Music - Marc's Olympics religious and national	- Marc's Concrete - Sam's Communicating spiritual knowledge	- Alicia's written scientific languages (chemistry) - Scott's shorthand written knowledge	- Alicia's changes of printing - Jenna's pro plagiarism
Collaborative learning	- Sophic vs. Mantic - empiricism vs. rationalism - Culture effect on language and knowledge	- Practicing Shakespeare Speeches - Interview with english teacher on Anglo Saxons	- Japanese Calligraphy Sesh - Class Discussion and Group Discussion - Rosetta Stone	-Peer Review In Class - Collaborative Essay on Censorship
Projects / Activities	-Teaching Tennis - Group Exam and Skype Video	- King Benjamin Speech - Macbeth Speech	-Rosetta Stone Project -Teaching Calligraphy	-KJB Exhibit -Research Library -Censorship

Learning Objectives Key

1. HISTORY
   Students can characterize historical periods from antiquity through the Renaissance and identify and discuss representative texts, cultures, events, and figures.
2. KNOWLEDGE INSTITUTIONS
   Students can describe and analyze the characteristics and differences among knowledge institutions and media.
3. COMMUNICATING KNOWLEDGE
   Students recognize differences in the forms through which knowledge is preserved, communicated, and experienced and can interpret the consequences of these differences historically and personally.
4. KNOWLEDGE SKILLS
   Students become aware of and take responsibility for their knowledge skills and develop new learning strategies, including collaboration.
5. SHARING KNOWLEDGE
   Students can represent and share their knowledge of the history of civilization through formal and informal writing, oral communication, and teaching others.

Well that's it everyone, once again it has been great to be able to learn from you guys and teach you knowledge (like calligraphy). This is Andrew Whittle, knowledge seeker, officially signing off with a last quote (sorry I couldn't help myself):"A day may come when the knowledge of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the knowledge of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we learn! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you learn, Men of the West!"

Thesis Statement on "Censorship"

Hey Guys sorry for the late post, I originally posted my outline and thesis statement yesterday, but for some reason it did not load on to our blog. So here is my second attempt, I will just give you guys my brief outline and thesis/intro and will give a more elaborate draft on my paper on my blog posting day when it is due! But for now here are my basic outline thoughts:

Thesis: While many believe censorship to be a necessity in certain contexts, the concept of censorship is intrinsically at fault in its attempt to control and thus halt the advance of knowledge, as seen evident in the censorship of Enlightenment thinkers after the creation of the printing press in sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Outline: 1. Introduce censorship methods in antiquity
2. Discuss invention of printing press and its implications of censorship
3. Discuss enlightenment thinkers and how censorship limited their transmitting of knowledge
4. Discuss origin of censorship (laws, etc)
5. Refute opposition
6. Conclude
and here is my first draft intro paragraph:
The concept of censorship in its true essence is control. Censorship is created as a direct result of an authority that has a set system of beliefs or morals, weighing knowledge and information with that moral system. These authorities have historically been organized religions, governments, and leaders of civilizations. If these authorities believe a certain work of knowledge to be contradictory to their set principles or laws then they use censorship as a way to control that knowledge so as to avoid corruption and dissent. In antiquity, the form of censorship was usually simple: arrest, destroy, silence, kill, or threaten the voice that is acting against the established belief system. But a man named Johannes Gutenberg unknowingly created a paradigm shift in the history of censorship with the invention of the printing press. The ability to spread knowledge through the form of text and print suddenly was available to the public. This new process of communicating knowledge so seamlessly posed new and much more complex issues to authorities in the control of knowledge that was contrary to their systems of belief. While the censorship of certain controversial works and texts are considered a necessity, the censorship of such works is still a halt to the free communication of knowledge, the consequences of this limitation of knowledge has historically been negative and proves the intrinsic fault in the method of censorship.

Movable Type Printing from... Asia?!

There is a common misconception that in 1450 Johannes Gutenberg created the first movable type with his invention of the printing press. The reason this statement is false is that like with many other western inventions, the Chinese figured it out way before we thought of it! The Chinese began using the movable type system for printing around 1040 AD. A man by the name of Bi Sheng created this system during the Song Dynasty. This movable type system replaced what was called woodblock printing.


With woodblock printing, one printing plate could be used for thousands of books, this played a signifcant role in spreading culture in China. But carving the plate was very time consuming and required much labour. Larger books required many years of work and effort. The plates needed a lot of room for storage space, and were often damaged by deformation, worms, and corrosion. If books had a small print run, and were not reprinted, the printing plates would become nothing but waste and if a mistake was found, no matter how minor, it was difficult to correct it without discarding the whole plate. These difficulties led to the popularity of the new invention of the movable type printing process.


The first form of movable type was created using ceramic materials.This system created by Bi Sheng was much more efficient than woodblock printing. The process was described by the Chinese scholar Shen Kuo:
"When he wished to print, he took an iron frame and set it on the iron plate. In this he placed the types, set close together. When the frame was full, the whole made one solid block of type. He then placed it near the fire to warm it. When the paste [at the back] was slightly melted, he took a smooth board and pressed it over the surface, so that the block of type became as even as a whetstone.
For each character there were several types, and for certain common characters there were twenty or more types each, in order to be prepared for the repetition of characters on the same page. When the characters were not in use he had them arranged with paper labels, one label for each rhyme-group, and kept them in wooden cases.
If one were to print only two or three copies, this method would be neither simple nor easy. But for printing hundreds or thousands of copies, it was marvelously quick. As a rule he kept two forms going. While the impression was being made from the one form, the type was being put in place on the other. When the printing of the one form was finished, the other was then ready. In this way the two forms alternated and the printing was done with great rapidity"


The ceramic movable type was then replaced by wood and eventually metal. Although the first metal movable type was created in 1234 during the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea and is credited to Choe Yun-ui, the credit goes to Gutenberg for the invention of the metal movable type printing press. He was able to master the printing press using metals such as alloy of lead, tin and antimony for his plates which were much more efficient than the iron used in Asia. Those same components are actually still used today in the printing press! So now you know that many Asian inventors experimented with different forms of movable type printing systems, but the reason we only hear about Gutenberg is that his mastery of the movable types had the greatest impact on the way we learn and transmit knowledge.

My Annotated Bibliography on Censorship of Printed Knowledge!

Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., with a collection that fills about 838 miles (1,349 km) of bookshelves, and holds about 147 million items with 33 million books, the Library of Congress is the largest library in the world by shelf space and number of books. I visited this place at a young age during a junior high school trip to DC. The first thing that popped into my head as I say the seemingly infinite expanse of bookshelves surrounding me was "how in the world would I be able to find the book I am looking for!?"As I read the assignment requirements for this blog, that memory came to mind and the same fear arose. How in the world was I going to find all these printed books by means of other printed sources. Would I actually have to go to the library and browse real books?! The answer was yes. And in doing so, I found that the actual process of finding these sources became just as interesting as the information each source yielded. Here is my annotated bibliography on the use of censorship in printed knowledge before 1700:

Milton, John. Areopagitica. London, N. Douglas, 1644.This book was written during the english civil war and is considered by many to be one of history's most influential philosophical defences of the basic foundational principal to the right to freedom of speech and expression. Milton wrote the prose as a statement against licensing and censorship. [I found this work as I read the collection of periodicals called "Freedom of the Press." After reading the online digital copy I went to the Harold b. Lee Library and they actually had a copy of Areopagitica, it was the 1922 publication, obviously not the one from 1644!!]

Defoe, Daniel. An Essay on the Regulation of the Press. . London, 1704. Defoe’s writings on politics and economic affairs were highly influential in their own day, they have also constantly been drawn upon by modern political, social and economic historians, as well as by literary scholars. This specific essay covers the implications over the government creating licenses and copyrights that limit the press. (I found this work through the referenced works at the Harold B. Library under the "Historical & Political Reference Works" section. I initially found it online in the Oxford referenced online section and saw that it was in printed form at the Library.)

Sova, Dawn B. Dawn B. Banned Plays: Censorship Histories of 125 Stage Dramas. Facts on File, 2004. This novel is particularly of interest as it covers the regulation required of playwrights who used the stage as a forum to express their own views on religion and politics. Registration provided an opportunity for the monarchy to invoke a form of censorship and the means to suppress too much freedom of thought and criticism of the crown and public affairs. This was a main reason for Shakespeare never publishing any of his plays and therefore none of the original manuscripts have survived. (I found this book by just browsing the library shelves and started skimming and was intrigued by the forms of censorships that plays have had through the centuries and even to today!)

Robertson, Randy. Censorship and Conflict in Seventeenth-Century England. Pennsylvania State University Press, 2009. Robertson covers the issues of the workings of the licensing machinery, the designs of art under a regime of censorship and differs from the other works I have cited in its analysis of both the mechanics of early modern censorship and the poetics that the licensing system produced the forms and pressures of self-censorship.( I found this work in the bibliography of an earlier printed source found in the library that analyzed Milton's works in the English Civil war, this book was used in researching the conflict of censorship in that time period.)

Heady,Katy. Literature and censorship in Restoration Germany: repression and rhetoric Camden House, 2009. Heady discusses the effects of censorship on literary writing in Post-Napoleon Germany and Austria. It focuses on the great extent of repression the authors Grabbe, Heine and Grillparzer were exposed to, and the creative techniques they had to use to get their artistic messages across. (I found this novel online through google books. By far the easiest locating process I had throughout this whole assignment!)


As I researched the effects and implications of censorship among nations during the 1600s and 1700s I realized that the hardest process of locating relevant texts was trying to find them through other printed sources at the library. It was much easier to look up them up online. But as I progressed in my research through skimming the printed sources I realized I became much more in tune with how to effectively find relevant sources that connected with my topic. I found that instead of just having a linear form of research such as looking up source online and then reading it, I had a much more integrated approach at the library with cross referencing printed sources and being sent to different departments for different texts. By the end I felt I had a good scope of the different authors and figures who had an influence on censorship of printed sources during the time period before the 1700s. So is it really that hard to find what your looking for in the Library of Congress? Not if you know where to look and how to look for it!

Writing: Caveman Style!

Ok people so yeah we actually did carve our phrase into stone. No biggie. The funny part is that the actual carving took the least amount of time. The two most difficult parts of creating our phrase was the actual attempt of finding an authentic phrase in our language and then trying to get the phrase to fit on the stone.

The difficulty in finding an authentic phrase for our group was that we had to first find a phrase in the Brythonic language that we wanted to use, after that we had to write down that same language using the phonetic Ogham writing system. This is the writing system that you can see inscribed on the stone itself.

The second difficulty was in making sure the whole phrase fit on the stone. I mentioned to the group that there was not much room for error on stone and that it would probably be a good idea to write the phrase on paper that was the same length as the stone as a rough draft. Then we used this draft as a model to CAREFULLY chisel and hammer the letters into the stone and we successfully completed our phrase! My job was to document the process with photos and videos, I did take a stab (no pun intended) at the chisel and hammer on the stone and ended up cracking the stone so I figured it would be best to let Dane take over again.

The finished product was beautiful, it really did look like an ancient record of some important speech or memorial. I was able to learn the challenges of trying to recreate a medium and language and the little tips and nuances you learn with going through the painstaking process. When Dr. Burton mentioned in class that the people who created books and other forms of print patented the process itself, i thought for a moment that i almost knew enough little tips just from the nigh before of the process of inscribing Ogham onto stone to patent it!

I look forward to the challenge of adding to the stone the Mayan and english languages and actually create our own rosetta stone. Hopefully all will go well and I this time the process will go a little smoother as we have become more masterful at our craft of stone carving.

King James Bible Exhibit Visit!

Today I visited the King James Bible exhibit in the bottom floor of the Harold B. Lee Library. I was especially excited when Professor Burton posted about this as a possible field trip to blog about because I have had some challenging and intriguing thoughts and questions about the King James Bible for quite some time now. These questions first arose in my Theory of Knowledge high school class. The format of the class was much like this one, where we blogged about how knowledge is communicated and transmitted and the different forms of knowledge. One day we discussed the different forms of translations and how they can change and distort knowledge. My teacher mentioned that in the King James Bible it states that it was written for the "Common Man" meaning it was the translation into english that most men could read when it was published. The latin bible and hebrew old testament versions could only be read by priests and rabbis who understood latin and hebrew. So many complex doctrines and concepts were made simple to allow the "common man" of that day to understand them. He said that we lost many truths and intellectual concepts from this translation and that we would not know what we missed from the latin and hebrew versions.


This made me start to question how accurate the Bible that I had been reading all my life actually was. Was I reading about things that never happened? I thought about this as well in my Book of Mormon class this semester when we study that one of the reasons why the Book of Mormon is so important is because it includes covenants of the Lord that were lost in the "original book" or the Bible. The book of mormon states in 2nd Nephi that plain and precious truths were lost from the bible by those false priests who translated it. They purposely left out the revelations in the old testament of christ and foreshadowing to his coming so that those of the Jewish faith would not believe that Jesus was the true messiah. The Book of Mormon places most of the blame not on the translation process but on the false priests who took out the plain and precious truths. So now I was really concerned because I did not know what I could believe sincerely from the Bible and what was not true or distorted from many years of translating. I went to the exhibit to enlighten myself on the effect translating print has for how we can successfully still transmit and communicate knowledge through the ages.
The exhibit was very informative and i learned about the many versions of the Bible and how the King James Bible is actually the product of multiple translations put together to form the "one principal good one." I also learned that the Latin version of the bible that was common among monks was translated from greek and hebrew by Saint Jerome in 382 AD. It took him 23 years to translate from greek and hebrew into latin. There were many other versions and translations that followed and then of course the first edition of the King James Bible was translated by Robert Barker in 1611. It is amazing when the translating of the Bible is compared to the translating of the Book of Mormon. It took a whole host of Bible scholars at least a day to translate one page, while Joseph Smith was translating almost 10 pages a day. He took around 90 days to translate the Book of Mormon while the King James Bible took 7 years! Anyway this just goes to show the accuracy and precision of Joseph Smith's translating process, he did not have to delve over what to include and what not to because he was translating everything as it was written.

By going to the King James Bible Exhibit I may not have found the answer I was looking for to figure out how true the Bible actually is, but I realized that it doesn't matter how accurate the Bible is compared to the Book of Mormon. I realized as I saw the different versions and quotes from famous figures such as Lincoln and Shakespeare, that the importance of the bible comes from its sharing of stories and doctrine that has inspired us through the ages. It may not have all the plain and precious truths and covenants of the Lord, but it has enough for me. (And anyway, I have the Book of Mormon to make up for the rest!)


Fun little side note, many famous writers at the time the bible was translated were asked to make revisions to make it sound smoother and flow better. Many believe William Shakespeare to be one of them. In 1610, Shakespeare was 46. In Psalms 46, the 46th word from the front is "shake" and the 46th word from the end is "spear" COINCIDENCE ?! I THINK NOT!

Stay tuned for my next blog on our Rosetta project where the production process behind an ancient language on a stone tablet will be revealed!!! Here is a sneak preview:

Ancient Universities of Knowledge in China!

Hey everyone!! こんにちは! I would like to thank everyone who came to the Japanese calligraphy learning session on tuesday night. I hope it was an informative basic lesson on understanding the writing system and hopefully fun was had by all. I realized that it takes some patience and specific skills to not only learn a complex writing system like japanese, but to teach it as well! Please try to keep up those calligraphy skills!

I uploaded our little midway through the session video which shows all of your great progress and all the characters you already learned within the first 30 minutes of writing! You can watch it below:

Now that you have a basic understanding of the history of the characters from my previous post and how to write some of those characters from our calligraphy session, I'd like to inform you a little bit on how the writing system was taught to students through ancient universities of knowledge. I first researched the way in which students were taught writing in ancient japan, but realized that until the 1800s, most japanese was taught in the household. The father usually taught the son how to write and read kanji and kana, and the writing system was thus passed down the family. There were not nearly as many organized schools or universities to teach writing in ancient japan as I thought, this skill was taught either domestically or at religious institutions such as the temple. This example contrasts with the Reinventing Knowledge book's focus on the notion that knowledge can only be passed down through some form of institutions. But since the focus for our posts is on the learning of writing systems through knowledge institutions such as universities, schools, monasteries, etc., I decided to write this post on the schooling system in China. This seems only fitting, seeing as China was the one to first teach kanji characters, and then it waS brought to Japan. So in essence I will be talking about the origin of which the japanese writing system was taught through schooling.

Boys in China would usually begin schooling when they were around six years old. The elementary schools were very small, with usually only one teacher for the whole school. Most schools were held in religious temples, similar to in Japan.School began every morning at 6:00 in the morning until about 4:00 in the afternoon. And get this, there were no weekend breaks! I thought we had it bad.The teacher would sit in a chair, but all the boys had to sit on stools. The focus of study was on learning how to read and write chinese characters and understand the writing system. Math and Science were rarely taught in ancient china at elementary school age. Students would instead learn to write essays and poetry, and how to use the method of calligraphy in writing and in art. Students would stay at this elementary level school until they were sixteen or seventeen, or until they could pass the first examinations. Some especially gifted boys could pass the test early and go to more advanced programs.

By the time of the Ming Dynasty, beginning about 1400 AD, many rich women were allowed to learn to read and write at home. This marked the point were not only men would be considered for a formal education. Some rich women wrote poetry and eventually were studied in later years by students in modern China.Starting at around 500 AD, some boys and girls started to learn in Buddhist monasteries. Here children also learned how to read and write, but they did not learn painting or poetry. But rather Buddhist readings and doctrine.

As you can see there are multiple methods in which chinese writing systems were taught at an early age in ancient China. What do you think were the causes behind being taught in a different context? Social/economic status? Religious standings? Demographics?

Japanese Calligraphy and Writing Systems!

In preparation for our Japanese calligraphy session this weekend, ( And yes, I am so EXCITED!) I thought it would be a good idea to post about the origins of calligraphy in Japan and how it translated in to the current writing system that they have today! This way when you are learning all the crazy characters and stroke orders on Saturday, you will know not only what they mean, but where they came from and how they are used today to communicate written knowledge!

Old English/ Anglo Saxon Writing!!

Just as Marc discussed in the previous post, although English uses the Latin alphabet, it is a Western Germanic Language. The form of english that was spoken during the time of the Anglo Saxons (5th-11th centuries) in England was called Old English. Old English started to appear in the Anglo Saxon's records and writing during the early 8th century. The majority of their texts were written in what is called West Saxon: one of the four main dialects. The other dialects were Mercian, Northumbrian and Kentish.

Old English Alphabet:


Old English was first written in what is called "runes" (futhorc), which consist of many symbols that were written on stones and solid objects, but it shifted to a script of the Latin alphabet introduced by Irish Christian missionaries from around the 9th century. This form was replaced by insular script, a cursive and pointed version of the Latin script. Notice how the long vowels are marked with macrons. These originally weren't used in Old English but have been created more recently to distinguish between long and short vowels.The original forms of g and w (yogh and wynn/wen) were based on the letters used at the time of writing Old English. Even today they are still used for g and w in modern translations of Old English. As you can see, the form of Old English has evolved and transformed through the different centuries, mainly from the 5th-11th.

Old English Pronunciation:



Anglo Saxon Futhorc:


This was the runic alphabet used to write Old English before the Latin alphabet was introduced, it was brought to Britain by the Anglo-Saxons and used for writing until about the 11th century. Runic inscriptions are mostly found on jewellery, weapons, stones and other objects. There are very few examples of Runic writing on manuscripts that have survived and are available to see today.

The main theme to focus on in the Anglo-Saxon's progress in their written language is that it was constantly changing with the introduction of new pronunciations and alphabets such as the Latin Alphabet. The way they taught and learned the ever-changing written languages and forms of Old English will be addressed in my next post on Anglo-Saxon schooling and education systems. So tune in for next time to learn about how they actually taught the written languages addressed in this post!

Church Talks: A Segue from Oral to Written Knowledge

So because we are shifting units from oral to written knowledge and I have already discussed my civilizations eloquence and philosophy with reference to both a written work and interview, I have decided to discuss a topic on a way I think we all use oral and written knowledge to communicate concepts and doctrine. For this blog I would like to talk a little bit about how we prepare for and present our talks given at sacrament!

Anglo Saxon Epic Poetry: An Interview with My High School English Teacher!

I know that Apple founder and previous CEO Steve Jobs does not have much to do with my topic today of Epic Poetry. But I would just like to begin my blog with a short tribute to a man who passed away today who I believed revolutionized the way we transmit knowledge in the digital age. 10 years ago he came up with a product that allowed us to listen and buy music digitally through the invention of iTunes and the iPod, the knowledge of millions of musicians was now at our fingertips where we were desperate buying CDs before. He knew what consumers wanted before they even did: a computer that was simple and consumer friendly, an iPad that was easy to use, a phone that could be used for music and business. He was someone who knew how to analyze the best ways we could digitally transmit knowledge and inspired eventual founders of web portals such as Yahoo and Google to help with the communication of knowledge. To segway to my topic for today of the oral tradition of epic poetry, I'd like to mention how Steve Jobs was able to put the world at the end of their seat every time he announce a new product. Steve Jobs was probably most famous for the way in which he orally presented each new product in what is called his "keynote address." He dresses up in a black turtle neck and jeans, and orally communicates how well products have done and the exciting new announcements of products to come. In this way he used oral knowledge as a way of communication to consumers and as a selling point. This was unique to Apple and its CEO, and I believe one of its most valuable marketing tools. I'd like to relate Apple's form of oral tradition back to 1400 years earlier when the Anglo Saxons were also able to pass down knowledge by communicating their Epic poetry. This blog will explore how exactly they were able to do that.

I decided that I would use a digital form of oral communication as a way to interview an expert on the subject of Anglo Saxon Poetry, I called up my high school senior english teacher. She taught IB (International Baccalaureate) English and included a lot of epic poetry in her curriculum, having the students analyze certain poems and then give what IB calls an Oral Commentary on the poem. The oral commentary was the final assessment for the oral component of the IB course in which a student randomly chooses a poem from a stack at the teacher's house and has 20 minutes to annotate it and plan what to say and then must present their thoughts for 15 min, being recorded by the IB teacher. It is a seemingly frightening experience, but really helps the students learn to orally communicate their ideas on poetry. So I knew she would have a lot of stuff to say on the oral tradition of Epic Poetry in the Anglo Saxon germanic tribes. She did not disappoint!
She explained to me that Old English is not simply a uniform language. It consists of many various dialects, but as far as literature goes, we need to treat it as a language. She told me that we receive our syntax from the Anglo-Saxons. They provide us with our context for and greater ease with use of nouns, the ability to condense grammar and shorten up words, and what is called "law of recessive accent" which is when we place the accent over the first syllable and slur over subsequent syllables.

She explained that the Anglo-Saxon gods' names are the basis for the days of the week: Tuesday from Tiw, the dark god, Wednesday from Woden, the war god, Thursday from Thor, the thunder god, Friday from Frigga, goddess of home.


The connection she made to oral knowledge was really exciting! She told me that the majority of Anglo-Saxon poetry emerges from the oral tradition at the time that was meant for entertaining lords and their families at what was called a "mead-hall." There were poet oral performers called Scops (the poets) and Gleemen (harpists) who sung or recited the poetry. These men were considered to be the only historians of that time. The way she told me we know of the oral nature of Anglo Saxon poetry is through the poetic structure, that is based on accent and alliteration, not rhyme and meter. She said that Epithets were used as a tool for alliteration, this way a God could be called a numerous amount of titles such as "Weard" (guardian) or "Meatod" (measurer) or "Drihten" (lord) or "Frea" (master), and so on. A king could be called a "noble lord" or a "ring-giver" or a "righteous guardian." The anglos saxons also loved to insert what were called "ironic understatements", these were another favorite rhetoric of the Anglo-Saxons in which the affirmative is expressed by the negation of its contrary. For example, I found online that an ironic statement could be: "Not easily did I come through it with my life."


I believe a lot of the manner in which the Anglo Saxon's orally passed down and recorded epic poetry connects to my theme from last post of the importance of fame for Anglo Saxon heroes and legends. I am really happy that my IB english teacher was able to help me learn more about the oral traditions and technique of Anglo Saxon poetry. She was even upset that I hadn't let her known earlier as she would of sent me a copy of an original written down form of epic poetry from the Anglo Saxon period to show the class, but she had just sent it to a museum a few days earlier! I know that I don't have a video of myself entertaining others through orally communicating poetry. But I did want to show a couple of films I made for IB history where I believe my group members and I were able to successfully use eloquence and oral communication as a way to teach my classmates about certain important conflicts during the cold war. I present to you UN NEWS!! Enjoy! (Oh and if you want to skip through some of the boring montage parts most of the entertaining stuff is on set with the anchormen and interviews with outside corespondents, the Fidel Castro bit in the third one is I think our best piece of work).

Here is our first production on the US involvement in the Iran Coup of 1953, entertaining highlights: 0:00-3:50. 7:30-8:15


Here is our second production on the Angolan War of Independence,entertaining highlights: 0:00-1:30, 4:40-5:15


Here is our final production on the events of the Cold War in Latin America, starring Fidel Castro! entertaining highlights: 0:00-4:00, 11:00-12:00

From Paganism to Christianity

The Anglo-Saxon use of philosophy and eloquence to effect others was largely changed and affected by the shift from paganism to christianity with the arrival of christian missionaries in the 6th century to the germanic tribes in Britain. The philosophical concepts of "Fame" and "Fate" brought on by heroic traditions were contradicted by christian beliefs and the poetic tradition in germany was losing its value as an oral tradition. To understand the great change this shift had to their oral knowledge and ability to use philosophy and poetry to communicate, we first must analyze the basis for poetry and philosophy in the Anglo Saxon germanic tribes.


After rebelling against the Christian Britons, the Anglo-Saxons set up Germanic kingdoms, thus beginning the The Anglo-Saxon era of England which lasted from approximately 450-1066 A.D. Each kingdom was ruled by a certain lord. In the new Anglo-Saxon society, the closest relationships were between a lord and his kin. The Germanic clan or "Comitatus" consisted of men who followed their lord with strong loyalty and sacrifce. The comitatus held their duty to their lord as their most important task in life and believed it to be the greatest loss to be separated from lord and kin. This sorrow from loss can be seen in the Anglo Saxon poems "The Wanderer" and "The Seafarer". "The Wanderer" describes a man that has been exiled from his lord and clan, and must wander aimlessly. The man speaks of how horrible it is to be separate from his clan and lord, considered to be the worst punishment and dishonor:

"When friendships are no more. His fortune is exile,
Not gifts of fine gold; a heart that is frozen,
Earth’s wisomeness dead. And he dreams of the hall-men,
The dealing of treasure, the days of his youth,
When his lord bade welcome to wassail and feast.
But gone is that gladness, and never again
Shall come the loved counsel of comrade and king."
(II. 27-34)

Similarly the poem "The Seafarer" describes the same horrible loss and misery of a sailor who is isolated at sea, he describes his loneliness as “Wretched and anxious, in the paths of exile/ Lacking dear friends, hung round by icicles.” (II. 14-15) He has truly lost everything, his kin, lord, and duty.


When the Germanic Tribes came to Britain in the fifth century, they brought the language of Old English with them. They also brought this tradition of poetry that was usually mournful, conveying the suffering and loss of the burdened and miserable lives of the people who wrote them. The Anglo-Saxon poems, “The Wanderer,” and "The Seafarer" convey how this tradition of eloquence captures the culture’s philosophical concepts of "Fame" and "Fate" and the importance of a Lord to the Germanic tribes. The Anglo-Saxons did not believe in an afterlife, only the idea that they are assigned a certain fate that could be good or bad depending on the hero's circumstance. If one had the courage to fight his fate and create "Fame" than he would be remembered and spoken of as a hero in poems following his death. This was the goal for peoples of the germanic tribes, as seen in the famous poem Beowulf, the Anglo-Saxon culture saw Fame as a worthy and honorable objective: “So fame/ Comes to the men who mean to win it/ And care about nothing else!”17 (II. 507-509)


Once the Christian missionaries came to Briton in the 6th century, they began converting the Anglo Saxons to christianity. Christianity introduced new concepts such as an afterlife of heaven and hell and the cause and effect pattern of our actions on earth resulting in where we go in the afterlife. This contradicted the pagan beliefs of the Anglo Saxons and their main philosophical foundation of "Fame" and "Fate." This would cause the poems such as "The Wanderer" and "The Seafarer" to lose value and change the oral tradition of using poetry and philosophy to pass down pagan beliefs. The use of eloquence and philosophy in the Anglo Saxon culture would change forever after this point. This shift conveys the importance the pagan beliefs and philosophies of the Anglo Saxons were for their basis of knowledge that could be communicated through their rhetoric to convince others of their view on life.

So why do you think the Anglo Saxons placed such great importance on Fame and Fate? How does their poetic tradition show their ability to use language as a way to communicate philosophical ideals?

Priesthood Blessings

So I decided to shift focus a little bit from domestic folk knowledge to a little bit more religious context. I think an intriguing religious aspect of our life is priesthood blessings. Whether you are the one with the ability to give blessings or not, both men and women of our age have been present for enough of them to understand what they mean and how to give one physically. I know that there is a certain amount spiritual guidance that one must have while giving a blessing or ordaining someone to a position. But i believe that some part of ordination and blessings is a folk knowledge we as members gain from being in the church all our lives and seeing priesthood holders exercise this amazingly important ability.

I hope it isn't too sacrilegious to say that a part of knowing what to say in a blessing comes from the Lord, but also from the great examples we have had in our lives of worthy priesthood holders. These men could be fathers, bishops, ward members, missionaries, or complete strangers, it doesn't really matter. What matters is that have seen a model of how this knowledge is not only taught orally in church, but actually lived out by someone. I think the really only way we are able to pass down this folk knowledge of giving a religious blessing or ordination is by example and modeling it to others. There is not some manual or set of instructions that tells you what to say (or if there is I haven't been diligent in studying it...).


I also don't want to be exclusively speaking about the Mormon church either, although that is the church I have had the most experience with, I believe that other churches exercise priesthood and other blessings that can be deemed as folk knowledge. I am sure for some religions there may be some sort of code or guidelines, but it really does comes mainly from the heart, god, and examples they have had of men modeling this knowledge. I hope that I can take from the great examples and models I have had and be able to combine there knowledge passed down to me with the spirit I feel in the moment.


Food for thought!: After reading this post, think about the examples you have had in your life of men giving a blessing, and try to come up with how they may have learned that folk knowledge and combined it with the spirit to ordain someone or give a blessing.

Kiss My Ace!! Teaching Tennis!

In 1873, the first form of the sport tennis was invented. Since then, the sport has evolved into an intensely athletic and powerful game popular in all corners of the world. I have loved to watch and play this sport since a young age and consider myself pretty skilled with a racket. But what I learned today is that their is a big difference between mastering a folk knowledge such as playing tennis, and being able to teach someone that folk knowledge. Today I taught (or attempted to teach) someone how to play tennis. In the process I learned that teaching a sport takes patience and, more importantly, the ability to transform your complicated knowledge into basic knowledge so that a beginner can learn enough to be able to enjoy the sport and want more.


I first explained to James a brief history of Tennis and told him who the best players in the world and arguably history, Federer and Nadal, are blessing us every grand slam tournament with amazing matches full of incredible points and shots. Many view them to be the best of all time although a new up and comer named Novak Djokovic is emerging into the spotlight at the moment, challenging the two tennis greats. Above is a video of the highlights of arguably the greatest match of all time. It was played by the two greats Nadal and Federer in the final of the biggest and most prestigious tournament of the year: Wimbledon. It seems as if every point is match point, that's how intense these guys are. I gave James this brief Tennis history and player recap before we actually hit the courts just so he had an idea of how popular and historic the sport has become.

I taught James the basic shots of tennis and how it was scored and we got to the point in which we could play a full game without stopping which I was very happy about. But it was frustrating at times trying to get someone to mimic what came so easily to me. In this way I realized how in many cases the best teachers and coaches are not star players with natural talents (not that I'm saying I'm a star, well actually I kind of am...) but rather they are the ones that work hard and strategize to become good at their sport. This is how folk knowledge of any sport is passed down to others, through the ones who can explain it best and teach the natural talents of each generation the wisdom of the veterans. This realization came to me as I tried to teach this kind of folk knowledge myself.

Here is a list of the skills I considered teaching, I went with tennis because James asked me too and I love it the most:
- Rock Climbing
- Rubix Cubing
- Longboarding
- Throwing a frisbee
- Magic Tricks
- Swimming
- Knot tying
- Teaching tennis
- Teaching basketball
- Teaching golf
- Table tennis

"Mister, I'll Make a Man Out of You!"

"Boy who followed the Spartan code: He captured a live fox and intended to eat it. Although boys were encouraged to scrounge for food, they were punished if caught. The boy noticed some Spartan soldiers coming, and hid the fox beneath his shirt. When the soldiers confronted him, he allowed the fox to chew into his stomach rather than confess, and showed no sign of pain in his body or face. This was the Spartan way." - History Whiz

Reveille!! Wake Up!! It's Bugle Time.

When James Williams, a fellow classmate, posted about his love for the trumpet and announced his offer to teach bugling to anyone who wanted, a little dream of mine that had been hiding away somewhere inside me jumped out from within me and shouted for joy. I would do whatever it took to find my way to his apartment and learn what I have always wanted to learn, how to wake people up in the morning (and also lull them to sleep at night...) with the beautiful sound of a bugle. It was difficult and confusing at first, but I had a good teacher and we were able to make beautiful (maybe I'm exaggerating a little) music by the end of the night, while managing to also wake up the neighbors and then lull them back to sleep.

Frist attempt at Bugling!!:

おくりびと! (Departures) Japanese Art of Encoffinment

I just recently saw a beautiful japanese film called "おくりびと," or in english, "Departures." I strongly recommend it to people of all cinematic tastes as I was moved by this film. I won't ruin it for those who haven't seen it but I will give a general idea of what it is about. The film presents a man who accidentally takes on the job as an "encoffiner," someone who in Japanese culture has the important task of preparing the deceased to be taken onward. This preparation consists of a beautiful ceremony in which the encoffiner delicately washes, dresses, and applies makeup to the body to return its appearance to when it was most beautiful and alive. By doing this, the encoffiner can send them on their way in their most beautiful form to the beyond. After doing some research I found that this ancient ritual is rarely performed nowadays in the more and more secular society of Japan and only limited to rural areas where the tradition has been maintained.

As I attempted to research the origin of this practice I came up empty handed. The history in Japan of this practice is no where to be found! This has led me to hypothesize that the knowledge required to become an encoffiner in Japan is passed on orally and is considered to be a form of folk knowledge. A knowledge that is slowly being lost as Japanese no longer feel the need to perform the ceremony. This brings up an intriguing observation on how the society in Japan is changing in its placing priority on certain knowledges to retain over others. What are the motives behind what knowledge to keep and what to retain? Why has the demand for the beautiful and seemingly important ritual of encoffinment gone down? I have speculated that as Japan has become more integrated into Western culture after WWII with its political and social transformation to a parliamentary democracy, it has also adopted the western belief that religion is no longer an important part of modern life. The japanese have adopted what Hugh Nibley would call a "Sophic" view of the world. The supernatural and afterworld have become more and more superstitious and unbelievable causing a ceremony such as the one shown in おくりびとto become obsolete in their society. The basic foundational principles in the ritual of encoffinment is the belief of a life after death and the encoffiner acting as an intermediary force between this world and the next. But unfortunately Japan has forgotten its ancient roots and beliefs of otherworldly beings and life after death that Nibley would label as "Mantic." They have followed the path the world is following which is the secular and sophic view that everything has a natural order and encoffinment is not necessary as we need not worry of what happens after death.

The form of folk knowledge that is encoffinment in Japan is losing its purpose to a sophic society. This is an example of our perception of knowledge and how we choose to retain some and forget some depending on our world view. But regardless of whether we have a sophic or mantic view of our world, we cannot deny that someday an encoffinment of sorts is waiting for us. We also cannot deny that there is true beauty in how the japanese once viewed this as a sendoff to something greater, something eternal.


Here is a link to the trailer for Departures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13--XX-LmsU