Hamlet Questions

a) What do you know about Hamlet, the "Melancholy Dane"?
I know that the story is fairly dark and sad, and I also know that it has a sad ending but besides that nothing.

 b) What do you know about Shakespeare?
I know that if all my english teachers were 12 year old girls he'd be their Jonas Brothers in that they all admire him imensely.  He was apparently a genious for only having so few words to work with, I respect him in that he was able to write entire plays in iambic pentameter.

c) Why do so many students involuntarily frown when they hear the name "Shakespeare"?  
I think students frown when they hear Shakespeare because students never read him on their own time which means he's just another word for an assignment.  If students didn't think of him as a complex assignment and just another author with a message I think he'd be more likeable.

d) What can we do to make studying this play an amazing experience we'll never forget?
I have a pretty bad memory so I might just forget it no matter what we do but it'd be great if we could have a Hamlet parade that'd be awesome because parades are really fun and that would make Hamlet more exciting.

Vocab #7

Aberration - (noun) an optical phenomenon resulting from the failure of a lens or mirror to produce a good image; a disorder in one's mental state; a state or condition markedly different from the norm
The scientist couldn't identify the aberration in his microscope.
Ad hoc- (adverb) for the special purpose or end presently under consideration
The verdict was ad hoc.
bane - (noun) something causes misery or death
Crashing into the ocean was the pilot's bane.
bathos - (noun) triteness or triviality of style; a change from a serious subject to a disappointing one; insincere pathos
The political debate turned into a bathos of unwanted information.
cantankerous - (adj.) having a difficult and contrary disposition; stubbornly obstructive and unwilling to cooperate
The crowd was cantankerous with the comedian.
casuistry - (noun) moral philosophy based on the application of general ethical principles to resolve moral dilemmas; argumentation that is specious or excessively subtle and intended to be misleading
The docile priests practiced casuistry.
de facto - (noun) in fact; in reality
The criminal was sentenced to life time imprisonment when de facto he was innocent.
depredation - (noun) an act of plundering and pillaging and marauding; (usually plural) a destructive action
Pirates are a depredation to villages.
empathy - (noun) understanding and entering into another's feelings
Mother's have empathy towards their daughters.
harbinger - (noun) an indication of the approach of something or someone; verb foreshadow or presage
Michael Jackson dying was a harbinger of his songs suddenly becoming popular again.
hedonism - (noun) an ethical system that evaluates the pursuit of pleasure as the highest good; the
pursuit of pleasure as a matter of ethical principle
Hedonism can be compared to capitolist America.
lackluster - (adj.) lacking luster or shine; lacking brilliance or vitality
The old woman was lackluster after her husband died.
malcontent - (adj.) discontented as toward authority; noun a person who is discontented or disgusted
The revolutionists were malcontent.
mellifluous - (adj.) pleasing to the ear
Chubby Checker has a mellifluous voice.
nepotism - noun favoritism shown to relatives or close friends by those in power (as by giving them jobs)
Old Town Market's owners have nepotism.
pander - (noun) someone who procures customers for whores (in England they call a pimp a ponce); verb arrange for sexual partners for others; yield (to); give satisfaction to
A pander might say "Pimpin ain't easy."
peccadillo - (noun) a petty misdeed
The seven year old child commit a peccdillo but was arrested by the cop anyway.
piece de resistance - (noun) the most noteworthy or prized feature, aspect, event, article, etc., of a series or group; special item or attraction.
The piece de resistance of Paris is the Eiffel Tower.
remand - (noun) the act of sending an accused person back into custody to await trial (or the continuation of the trial); verb refer (a matter or legal case) to another committee or authority or court for decision; lock up or confine, in or as in a jail
The trial had to wait so the alleged criminal was remanded into jail.
syndrome - (noun) a complex of concurrent things; a pattern of symptoms indicative of some disease
He had spots on his body which is a syndrome of chicken pox.

Vocab #6

beatitude- Supreme blessedness
The goddess possesed extreme beatitude.
bete noire- a detested person (disliked or avoided)
Mr. Eudall was a bete noire.
bode- Be an omen of a particular outcome
The rainbow bode a great day.
dank- Disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold
My first grade teacher's heart was dank.
ecumenical- Universal
The knowledge that we're all diferrent is edumenical.
fervid- Intensely enthusiastic or passionate
The crowd was fervid for a new president.
fetid- Smelling extremely unpleasant
His breath was fetid.
gargantuan- of great mass
My procrastination has led to a gargantuan amount of work.
heyday- The period of a person's or thing's greatest success or popularity
During Tupac's heyday he had the whole west coast behind him.
incubus- A cause of distress or anxiety like a nightmare
The test was an incubus of my fears.
infrastructure- The basic physical and organizational structures and facilities needed for the operation
The infrastructure for the building was sound.
inveigle- Persuade (someone) to do something by means of deception or flattery
The crafty student inveigled her teacher into giving her an A.
kudos- Praise and honor received for an achievement
Kudos to Ron Paul for being an excellent human being.
lagniappe- Something given as a bonus or extra gift
Gold medals are a lagniappe at the Olympics compared to the title.
prolix- Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy
Romney's speech was prolix.
protege- a person who receives support and protection from an influential patron who furthers the protege's career
It is an honor to be a protege to a prestigious person.
prototype- A first or preliminary model of something, esp. a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied
If a prototype is successful it alludes to further success.
sycophant- A person who acts obsequiously toward someone in order to gain advantage; a servile flatterer
Sycophants aren't very fond of insulting people.
tautology- The saying of the same thing twice in different words
Dr. Preston gave an example of a tautology in class.
truckle- Submit or behave obsequiously
The servant had to truckle before the king.

Vocab #5

acumen-keen insight.
He seemed to have an acumen for all my problems.
adjudicate- to settle or determine.
Can you adjudicate this volatile situation?
anachronism - something or someone that is not in its correct historical time.
Back to the Future is an example of an anachronism.
apocryphal - of doubtful authorship or authenticity.
The forged letter was of apocryphal background.
disparity - inequality
There is a disparity of successful and unsuccessful people.
dissimulate - to disguise or conceal under a false appearance.
The under cover agent had to dissimulate his identity.
empirical - derived from or guided by experience or experiment
The scientist was empirical with his methods.
flamboyant - strikingly bold or brilliant; showy
The parade was flamboyant and exciting.
fulsome - offensive to good taste, especially as being excessive;overdone or gross
The Queen of England's decor is fulsome.
immolate - to sacrifice
He had to immolate his freedom after being arrested.
imperceptible- very slight, gradual, or subtle.
There was an imperceptible smile on the comedian's face.
lackey - a servile follower
Mr. Malaina has a loyal lackey that resembles the KFC colonel.
liaison - a person who initiates and maintains such a contact or connection.
He was a liaison between the two countries.
monolithic - consisting of one piece; solid or unbroken
The Washington Monument is monolithic.
mot juste - the exact, appropriate word
He couldn't think of a mot juste.
nihilism - total rejection of established laws and institutions.
Anarchy is a form if nihilism.
patrician - a person of noble or high rank; aristocrat.
The Queen of England is a patrician.
propitiate - to make favorably inclined; appease; conciliate.
He had to propitiate himself at the interview.
sic-to incite to attack
Don't sic your dog on me bro.
sublimate-to make nobler or purer
Catholic priests sublimate children.

AP Book

I chose to read the book Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe because the plot seems really interesting that a doctor responsible for saving peoples' lives would sell his soul to the devil to gain the knowledge of saving lives.  I think thats really ironic and an original plot that should contain insight as to what the doctor was thinking at the time.