Lettura e Traduzione per le Discipline Umanistiche 1

ANNO ACCADEMICO 2007-2008 FACOLT DI LETTERE E FILOSOFIA

Dispensa per gli studenti del corso LINGUA INGLESE B Filosofia, Lettere, Storia, TARS Geraldine LUDBROOK
http://lettere2.unive.it/lingue/index.htm

I am indebted to the following for permission to reproduce copyright material: James Shelley for 18th Century British Aesthetics; How to do things.com for How to become a journalist; Peter Lathan for Shakespeare and Cognition - Aristotles Legacy and Shakespearean Drama.

Every effort has been made to trace the owners of copyright material used in this handout. We should be pleased to hear from any copyright holder whom we have been unable to contact.

CONTENTS

1. London: The Great Fire 2. Imitation and forgery 3. Dubbing American in Italy 4. The African Foundations of New York 5. Prehistoric Britain: Barrows, stone circles, henges 6. Access to the Middle Ages: Medieval Manuscripts in Facsimile 7. Searching For Wittgenstein 8. 18th Century British Aesthetics 9. The Celtic Druids 10. The Cabinet War Rooms 11. Shakespeare and Cognition: Aristotles Legacy and Shakespearean Drama 12. Hadrians Wall 13. How to become a journalist 14. The Long Childhood

p. 4 p. 6 p. 8 p. 9 p. 11 p. 13 p. 15 p. 16 p. 18 p. 20 p. 22 p. 24 p. 26 p. 28

1. London: The Great Fire

In September 1666 the heart of Englands capital, the City of London (now Londons financial district) was devastated by fire. The fire started in a bakers shop in the aptly named Pudding Lane. Fires in London were common, even inevitable, given the capitals largely timber construction. Yet, for years there had been warnings of Londons total destruction by fire: in 1559 Daniel Baker had predicted Londons destruction by a consuming fire. However, the greatest fear among Londoners was not fire. Plague had killed over 68,000 people in the previous two years. Although Charles II had returned to Whitehall in February 1666, London remained unsafe, with deathcarts still commonplace. At 2.00 am on Sunday 2nd September the workman at the house of Thomas Farynor, the Kings baker in Pudding Lane, smelled smoke and woke up the household. The family fled across the nearby roofs. With only narrow streets dividing wooden buildings, the fire took hold rapidly, but the mayor was not impressed and thought it could be contained. However, by dawn London Bridge was burning, and for the next four days the fire would destroy 373 acres of the City - from the Tower in the East to Fleet Street in the West - and burn around 13,200 houses, and 84 churches, as well as demolish St Pauls Cathedral. Officially only four people died, but the true toll is likely to have been much higher. Following decades of political and religious upheaval, the restoration in 1660 of the Protestant Charles II ensured that suspicion lingered around republicans and Catholics. So once the fire was beaten, paranoid xenophobia was rife, and blame for the fire fell on foreigners. The Kings Guard assaulted strangers for speaking poor English, and the Spanish Ambassador opened his house to all foreigners in fear of their lives - Protestant Dutch as well as Catholic French. Charles travelled to Moorfields to address the 100,000 people made homeless, one-sixth of Londons population. He declared that the fire had not been started by foreign subversive powers, but had been an act of God. Few were convinced. A scapegoat was needed: the more foreign, the better. Conspiracy theories would proliferate for the next two centuries, the blame placed on whoever seemed subversive. The Parliamentary committee reported in January 1667 that nothing hath yet been found to argue it to have been other than the hand of God upon us, a great wind, and the season so very dry. It was not until 1831 that the inscription on the fires commemorative monument, blaming the treachery and malice of the Popish faction, was removed. An inferno caused by a forgetful baker, fuelled by a strong wind and indecisive leadership, was blamed on Catholics for over 150 years.

From: Bruce Robinson, Red Sky at Night http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/society_culture/society/great_fire_print.html

Great Fire of London 1666: Victorian Engraving after Visscher, from Robert Chambers Book of Days

2. Imitation and forgery

A forged work of art can be defined as possessing the intent to deceive, usually for financial gain, by proffering an art object as representing something other than it is. Forged artworks can be subdivided as follows; deliberate imitations offered as originals; genuine objects that have been altered by partial repainting or reworking to increase their value; early copies (not initially intended to deceive) passed off later as originals; pastiches comprised of original parts of different works passed off as homogeneous originals; products of a workshop that have been erroneously attributed to the master of the workshop. Throughout the entire history of art, forgeries have been made whenever the market accommodated and creative works were desired for collection: the Romans copied and adapted Greek sculptures, many of which were believed to be originals in later centuries. Today these copies are in museums, valued for what they are - art - understood both by their imitative nature and Roman context. Although in the 21st century viewers and critics generally conceive of artistic imitation as an artists lack of creativity and originality, Renaissance thinkers held a different opinion. Many artists, in all sorts of media, engaged in imitation of the antique styles and pieces. The fine arts in particular are full of imitations, especially in the areas of painting and sculpture. Renaissance artists not only imitated Classical forms, but also each others recent works. The Latin terms imitatio and aemulatio were coined in discussion of the contemporary reaction and adoption of antiquity. One of the earliest forms of forgery was coin counterfeit. Coins have been counterfeited ever since 670 BC, when they were minted by King Gyges of Lydia. Copies were produced by making castings from moulds of original coins. Various Byzantine emperors debased their coinage with base alloys and coins were even produced in base metals and gilded in order to be passed off as solid gold. Counterfeit coins were made for a different type of individual profit by Jean Duc de Berry of France (1340-1416). An art patron and coin collector, he commissioned modern copies of old Dutch and French coins to fill in gaps in his collection. The Italian artists Giovanni Cavino and Pirro Ligorio (c. 1500-83) were master coin counterfeiters of the 16th century. This form of forgery eventually led to the forging of works of art for profit and also exhibition. Even the highly esteemed Michelangelo had forged an antique marble cupid for his patron, Lorenzo de Medici. Perhaps the most prolific production of art forgeries has occurred in the 19th and 20th centuries during periods of avid collecting, when profits for forgers have been astronomical. The Louvre Museum in Paris bought its gold Tiara of Saphernes for 200,000 gold francs and declared it a genuine work of the third century BC, although it had actually been made in 1880 by the goldsmith Israel Ruchomovsky of Odessa, Russia. The Italian artist Giovani Bastianini (1830-68) executed in good faith a number of fine sculptures in the manner of Donatello, Verrocchio, Mino di Fiesole, and other Italian old masters. These were subsequently sold as genuine to reputable museums, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Louvre Museum. Perhaps the most famous art forger of all time was Alceo Dossena (1876-1936), who successfully produced sculptures of such high quality that they were accepted as genuine by many art critics, museum directors, and famous collectors. Apparently, Dossena did not know he was defrauding a third party, as he merely supplied work in various styles: Archaic, Hellenistic, Roman, Gothic, and Renaissance. When he discovered that a Madonna and Child he had sold for 50,000 lire was in turn sold for 3 million lire, he stepped forward and proclaimed that the works were modern.

Forgery in the Internet Age In todays world of rapid technological advances, one must consider forgery in all facets of the media, including the Internet. How can one trust the authority of a document on the web, when anyone who wishes can put up a website? In the print age, one was at least required to proceed through a publisher to get ones ideas in print and thereby available to the masses. But in the digital age, anyone can publish information or even copy anothers work and appropriate it as their own. Thus the two main concerns that the facility of web publication raises are: How can one know that the person that posts the work is actually the author? And how can one know that the information is valid? We lack the necessary safeguards, quality control and regulations in this new age to prevent forgers from wreaking havoc on all of us. Thus forgery of works and authorship are of utmost concern in this day and age. The Internet and email have exponentially increased the problem of validating the quality of a source or author. How do we know that any website is providing truth and not forged, copied, partly false, or completely false information? But then, how can we ever trust the label? For all we know, each website source provided could be forged, copied, or a fake. Therefore, until regulations and quality controls are established, computer users are left with only this, caveat emptor: May the user beware.

From: Notes on Imitation and Forgery http://www.umich.edu/~engtt516/forgerysource.html

3. Dubbing American in Italy

A good deal has been written over the years about how English has influenced other languages. Vocabulary is clearly the main field of influence: other languages have adopted and adapted a whole range of English words, and nowadays many new products and trends are referred to by an English or English-based term the world over. More subtle influences involve such aspects as word order, word forms, and changes in meaning. For example, permissivo (relating to permission) has also come to mean tolerant, behaving freely as in English. Or else direct translations are made to provide a new concept in a foreign language: Italian has maggioranza silenziosa (the silent majority), parola-chiave (key-word) and le pubbliche relazioni (public relations). A very specific kind of translation from English - dubbing - has had a number of effects on foreign languages that are worth looking at. The world watches films and programmes that were originally made in English. In some non-English-speaking countries they are shown with subtitles, but more often they are dubbed into the local language. This dubbing process is a highly skilled technique and often requires a rather imaginative translation if the dubbers words are to be successfully synchronised with the actors lip movements. A good dialogue translator is aware that some of the most noticeable lip movements come at the beginning of speech segments, and certain consonant sounds (/m/b/p/f/v/) have distinct lip movements. Likewise, the number of syllables in the original and translated versions should be as similar as possible. The need for a close match becomes particularly critical for short speech items, especially short one-word expressions such as Great! When Italians want to express similar approval, they normally say something like Magnifico! Meraviglioso! Favoloso! or Splendido! But none of these are successful translations for Great! when lip and mouth movements are considered. Watch a few films or TV programmes in Italy that have been dubbed from English and you will hear a Grande! voiced over a Great! This is not really a natural Italian expression, but after years and years of hearing Grande! or Grandioso! on their screens, Italians have now begun to use them spontaneously. In the same manner, the expression Sure! is usually translated as Sicuro! (i.e. sure, secure, safe), and this perhaps explains why it seems to be gaining ground over alternatives such as Senzaltro or Naturalmente! Pronouns are another area where we can notice imaginative translations. Although Italians usually miss out personal pronouns, saying sono rather than io sono for I am, dubbers will often include the io as it gives closer lip movements. Vowel sounds are also a problem. An English expression of pain such as Ow! or Ouch! cannot be dubbed very well with the usual Italian Ahi! or Ahia!, and so a less natural sound such as Ohi! is usually employed. The ubiquitous opening Well, is nearly always translated with b, and this generally works reasonably well. However, while well is used by all classes of English speakers, the shortened Italian b would normally be avoided by upperclass Italian speakers, except of course on the screen. Consequently b seems to be moving up-class thanks to the influence of dubbing. Pronunciation is a final area where the dubbing process has actually had an impact on the language. This can be seen particularly clearly with names. Whereas in the past the standard Italian pronunciation of Canada accentuated the final syllable, the English stress in the first syllable is now preferred. Likewise the older pronunciation of Florida with a stress on the middle syllable has been superseded by the English stress pattern. From: Sharon Godman and David Graddol (ed.), Redesigning English: new texts, new identities Routledge London New York 1996

4. The African Foundations of New York

By Jane Beresford BBC producer of I Too Am America The remains of 20,000 African men, women and children have lain beneath the busy streets of New York for 300 years, waiting to tell their stories on the extent of slavery in the city. In March 1992, leading African-America archaeologist Michael Blakey arrived at the burial ground in downtown Manhattan. I had read about these people documented as chattel, he said. Now I was going to learn about these Africans in New York as human beings. A haunting sight greeted him. Being winter, work was taking place under a translucent plastic tent. Id really never seen an excavation like that one, he said. There were mini excavators working and kerosene heaters going. By the time I got there, about a dozen burials were in the process of being exposed. One could see very clearly the positions that were meant to put them at peace when they were buried. Many had their arms crossed. One female skeleton had tiny bones by her side, suggesting a woman cradling a new born child. They had devastating secrets to share, information that would reveal the extent of slavery in New York. Quite early on, we found the skull and thorax of an individual with filed or culturally modified teeth - and that stunned me because that is very rare, Mr Blakey said. There are only about nine skeletons in the whole of the Americas that have been discovered with filed teeth, he said. In the African burial ground we found at least 27 individuals with filed teeth. This suggested these people had come to New York directly from Africa before importation was banned in 1808 and American slaveholders started breeding slaves on the plantations in the South. These kinds of irreversible identifiers put people at risk who might want to escape, Mr Blakey said. Runaway adverts in newspapers seeking to re-capture the many escaped enslaved Africans often mentioned dental modification, he said - so no one would not choose to have that kind of marker. Worked to death? But these enslaved Africans helped create the city of New York. They worked as stevedores in the docks and as labourers building the fortification known as Wall Street, which protected the city against attack from Native Americans. Evidence from the burial site revealed, for the first time, the enormous human cost of such work. Half of the remains were of children under the age of 12. Women were usually dead by 40. It seems that it was cost effective for slave traders to work people to death and then simply to replace them, so they sought to get Africans who were as young as possible, but ready to work, said Mr Blakey. From royalty to slavery? The woman designated Burial 340 was a very intriguing person. She was in her 40s - and for the burial ground population that makes her kind of old, said archaeologist Sherrill Wilson, now director of interpretation at the African Burial Ground. Around her waist the woman wore a belt of over 100 beads and cowrie shells, she said. In some parts of Africa in the 1700s, its illegal for people who are not members of royal families to own even one of these beads - and she has over 100 buried with her, she added. Such treasures are known to belong to Akan-speaking people. Had this woman been born into royalty in Ghana and died a slave in New York City? And who chose to bury her with the waist belt of beads? These are very valuable items, said Ms Wilson. It implies that whoever buried her... could have chosen to sell those items to feed themselves - but they made the choice to bury them 9

with her. Perhaps it was a tradition, a rite, or an act of defiance against those who had enslaved a woman of noble birth. The skeletons of 18th Century slaves have spoken to those living free today to remind us that New York - one of the worlds great immigrant cities - destroyed as well as created destinies. From: Jane Beresford, BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/3659397.stm Published: 2004/04/26 11:36:18 GMT

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5. Prehistoric Britain: Barrows, stone circles, henges

Causewayed camps - These are some of the oldest remains in the English landscape, dating from around 3500 B.C. They consist of a series of from one to four concentric rings of banks and ditches enclosing an area up to 9 hectares. The ditches are bridged by ramps of earth, or causeways, in several places, sometimes with corresponding gaps in the banks to form an obvious place of entry. Archaeologists have named these enclosures camps, but there is little evidence of even a temporary dwelling within the enclosed space. They were probably used as a multi-purpose gathering place, combining the functions of livestock pen, trading centre, church, feasting area, and ceremonial arena. The best preserved and perhaps the most important camp is Windmill Hill near Avebury in Wiltshire. Long barrows - These are Neolithic (New Stone Age) tombs which are roughly contemporary with the causewayed camps. There are two main types of long barrows; those made entirely of earth, called earthen long barrows, and those made with a chamber of large stones, called megalithic or chambered long barrows. The long barrows were communal tombs, holding from one to fifty adults and children. They were also centres of religious activity around a cult of the dead and fertility. The bones of the dead were often used in ceremonies performed at the recessed entrance to the barrow. The long barrows, ranging up to 350 feet in length, were oriented with the large end pointing roughly east, and the tapering small end pointing west. It has been speculated that this orientation had to do with the importance of the rising sun in Neolithic religions. The actual burials are always at the large, eastern end of the barrows. Some of the more rewarding long barrows to visit are Watlands Smithy, in Oxfordshire, West Kennet in Wiltshire, and Belas Knap in Gloucestershire. Stone Circles - Beginning as early as 3300 B.C. standing stones, often in the form of a circle or flattened oval, began to be erected around the British Isles. At least 900 of them still exist, though many more must have been destroyed in the march of progress. The most famous is Stonehenge in Wiltshire. Most of the stone circles would have been an evolved form of the earlier henges and causewayed camps, functioning as multi-purpose tribal gathering places for ritual observances having to do with the seasons and the fertility of the earth. Aside from Stonehenge, the most visitable stone circles are Avebury in Wiltshire, Castlerigg in Cumbria, and the Rollright Stones in Oxfordshire. Hill figures - Throughout England, usually on the slopes of the chalk hills of the south, are incised figures of huge proportions cut into the earth. Often visible for miles around, these hill figures give off an air of ancient sanctity., but many of the hill figures are recent copies, laid out in the past 150 years. Of the legitimate hill figures, the most famous are, unfortunately, of an indeterminate age. The Giant of Cerne Abbas in Dorset, and the Long Man of Wilmington, in Kent, have defied the best efforts of archaeologists to date them. Conjecture ranges from the Iron Age to Saxon times. The White Horse of Uffington has recently been dated to 2000 B.C., a good millennium older than had been thought. Henges - Basically a simple bank and ditch enclosing an area of land. The bank is outside the ditch, so they would not have been defensive enclosures, but were more likely a form of religious and ceremonial gathering place. The henges are younger than causewayed camps, with the oldest built about 3300 B.C. The largest henges enclose up to 12 hectares. Some, though not all henges have stone circles within them, while others show remains of wooden rings. The first phase of Stonehenge belongs to this class of monument, though it has now been overshadowed by the famous standing stones which were added at several later dates.

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Hill Forts - Dating from the Iron Age (approximately 700 B.C. to 50 A.D.) these hilltop enclosures are the youngest of the prehistoric remains to be seen. They are defensive structures enclosing high places with rings of ditches and banks. Often there were wooden or stone walls atop the banks as a further barrier. In some cases a series of concentric ditches and banks were built. The hill forts do not seem to have been places of permanent settlement, but may have been emergency assembly points for tribes, or the case of the smaller forts, even single families. There are thousands of hill forts throughout the British Isles in various stages of repair, though the most spectacular is without a doubt Maiden Castle in Dorset, while Uffington in Oxfordshire is well worth a visit. From: http://www.britainexpress.com/History/prehistoric_monuments.htm

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6. Access to the Middle Ages: Medieval Manuscripts in Facsimile

Up until the end of the Middle Ages, when the art of printing first allowed a measure of mass production, books were made by hand one at a time. Every manuscript is therefore unique: even when the scribes and artists copied a model text or image, the result is marked by their own taste and training, not to mention the wishes of their patron. The medieval manuscripts that survive are also precious because of the mere fact of being old; they are witnesses to a culture which prevailed a long time ago (from about AD 500 to AD 1500) and strongly influenced the world in which we now live. In addition to transmitting the texts which interested people at that time, many of these manuscripts still provide much aesthetic pleasure, due to their fine layout and script, and of course, the illuminations. Manuscripts in Facsimile Art history, as well as interest in the Middle Ages, blossomed during the nineteenth century. There was a demand for reproductions of medieval art, and also for samples of the various scripts. While the standards and expectations for manuscript reproductions -- or facsimiles -- have certainly risen since the nineteenth century, the central goal has remained the same: to facilitate access to manuscripts that are unique in their visual and historical characteristics and are dispersed in libraries throughout the world. Manuscripts need to be carefully preserved, and libraries must be quite restrictive in allowing scholars to consult the originals. Much of the work that needs to be done -- studying the layout, comparing scripts, etc. -- can be done with an accurate facsimile without the risk of damage to the original. Moreover, the publication of a facsimile usually involves the simultaneous publication of a companion volume bringing together and updating the scholarship on various aspects of the original. And, of course, facsimiles also appeal to those who love beautiful books for their own sake. Facsimile Technology Lithography (first developed around 1800) soon became the preferred process in the production of facsimiles. A drawing is first made of the desired image, which is then traced in reverse onto a smooth stone slab (lithos means stone in Greek); in order to accommodate cylindrical rotary presses, the stone was eventually replaced by plates of more flexible metal alloys. The chemicals used in this process ensure that the areas to be printed are completely ink-repellent. After the plate is inked, the image is printed on paper. Chromolithography, the adaptation of this process to the production of colour facsimiles, was first used in the 1830s, and yielded some lovely images when it was perfected. It still depended, however, on the care and accuracy of the artist reproducing the original image, so that it did not always satisfy the rising expectations for realistic reproduction fanned by the birth of photography in the late nineteenth century. It took a long time to develop the techniques and chemical processes which allowed the transfer of the photographed image onto the printers plate. In some form or other, photolithography is now the most commonly used method for high-quality reproduction, and even though computers are often called upon to assist in the task, the human element remains of paramount importance for obtaining good results, not least the care of the photographer who first records the image. The Book of Kells is a Gospel Book, which means that it contains the full text of the four Gospels, preceded by some traditional introductory materials. Such books were usually elaborately illuminated in the early Middle Ages; this one is especially ornate. Duplicating such complex 13

designs involves the intermingling of photographic, printing and computer technology with the craftsmanship provided by experienced lithographers. First, a special device was invented for the sole purpose of photographing the Book of Kells, which because of its fragility could neither be unbound nor pressed under glass for the purpose of taking photographs. The new device uses gentle suction to pull the manuscript pages flat so that photographs can be taken at an angle. When a photograph is taken, a colour transparency is made and examined under a computer scanner, which analyzes the shapes and colours of the design. The computer then assigns numbers corresponding to formulas for the mixing of inks which are sent to a printing machine. A preliminary facsimile print is thus made for each page, which is then flown to Dublin for comparison with the original. As many as five lithographers, printers, and photographers travel with each page to Dublin and note necessary changes in the intensity and visual quality of colours that were not picked up by the computer. After hundreds of refinements are made for each page, the printing machine is programmed to print a definitive facsimile page. Tiny holes in the original manuscript -- imperfections in the original parchment or the result of aging -- are cut into the facsimile by another machine, which also cuts each page to the original, irregular outline of the parchment. Despite the accuracy of this process, facsimile technology is as yet unable to duplicate the sensation of parchment. Original parchment, usually the skin of a sheep or a goat, is leathery to the touch and look, has a smooth side and a rougher hair side, and is uneven in texture, sometimes being thin to the point of translucency. Facsimile pages made of paper, by contrast, are of uniform thickness, and all sensual subtleties such as translucency, softness or thickness of texture, are lost.

Adapted from The New York Times, June 2, 1987 http://www.nd.edu/~medvllib/facsimiles.html 14

7. Searching For Wittgenstein

David Breeden Somebody told me Wittgensteins grave Was just over there, up the street Past downtown Cambridge. How could I After three pints of ale refuse to find The daddy of language as we use it? I went, looking. For Wittgensteins trace, The man who got the metaphysical slap Reading Tolstoy in the trenches. Prisoner Of war. Schoolmaster. Man who gave His living away. Who did a one-eighty In his beliefs without apology. I crossed The Cam on a bridge, searched the alleys. Backtracked. Began to suspect Wittgensteins Grave is in Cambridge might be a linguistic Game, a situation beyond the path of my Expectations. Every day is April Fools Day, After all, when we havent read the rules Of the game. Wittgensteins grave, an old Lady said when I asked. I dont know. Theres a graveyard tucked away there. I searched the overgrowth. The mangled Stones. Searched. At last, a flat white stone. Ludwig Wittgenstein 1889-1951 is all it said. Enough. Enough for the philosopher of language as we use it. Enough to say theres nothing here but a brisk wandering.

From: David Breeden, Stigmata. March Street Press, 2006

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8. 18th Century British Aesthetics

First published Thu 6 Jul, 2006 18th-century British aesthetics addressed itself to a variety of questions: What is the nature of taste? What is the nature of beauty? Is there is a standard of taste and of beauty? What is the relation between the beauty of nature and that of artistic representation? What is the relation between one fine art and another, and how ought the fine arts be ranked one against another? What is the nature of the sublime and ought it be ranked with the beautiful? What is the nature of the picturesque and ought it be ranked with the beautiful and the sublime? What is the nature of genius and what is its relation to taste? Although none of these questions was peripheral to 18th-century British aesthetics, not all were equally central. The question on which the others tended to turn was the question concerning the nature of taste. But this question was not simply how best generally to define taste. Everyone seems to have been in at least rough agreement with Joseph Addisons early definition of taste as that faculty of soul, which discerns the beauties of an author with pleasure, and the imperfections with dislike (Addison and Steele 1879, no. 409). But agreeing with Addison meant agreeing only to use taste to refer to that faculty and to acknowledge that such discerning has something of the phenomenology of sensation. The central question was how to think of taste so defined. Is taste a higher, cognitive faculty, akin perhaps to reason, with objects of a primarily intellectual nature? Or is it a lower, bodily faculty, more akin to the five bodily senses, and with objects of a primarily material nature? The major theories that arose in response to this question can be grouped into three main lineages: (a) internal-sense theories, of which the theories of Shaftesbury (1711), Hutcheson (1725), and Reid (1785) are representative; (b) imagination theories, of which theories of Addison (1712) and Burke (1757/59) are representative; and (c) association theories, of which the theories of Gerard (1757) and Alison (1790) are representative.

Shelley, J., 18th Century British Aesthetics, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2003 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.)URL = <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2006/entries/aesthetics-18th-british/>.

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David Hume, Of the Standard of Taste (1757) Many and frequent are the defects in the internal organs which prevent or weaken the influence of those general principles, on which depends our sentiment of beauty or deformity. Though some objects, by the structure of the mind, be naturally calculated to give pleasure, it is not to be expected, that in every individual the pleasure will be equally felt. Particular incidents and situations occur, which either throw a false light on the objects, or hinder the true from conveying to the imagination the proper sentiment and perception. One obvious cause, why many feel not the proper sentiment of beauty, is the want of that delicacy of imagination, which is requisite to convey a sensibility of those finer emotions. This delicacy everyone pretends to: everyone talks about it; and would reduce every kind of taste or sentiment to its standard. But as our intention in this essay is to mingle some light of the understanding with the feeling of the sentiment, it will be proper to give a more accurate definition of delicacy than has been hitherto attempted....

Joseph Addison, The Pleasures of the Imagination in The Spectator, No. 416, July 2, 1712 It is possible this defect of imagination [the inability to get ones brain around the very, very large or the very, very tiny] may not be in the soul itself but as it acts in conjunction with the body. Perhaps there may not be room in the brain for such a variety of impression, or the animal spirits may be incapable of figuring them in such a manner as is necessary to excite so very large or minute ideas. However it be, we may well suppose that beings of a higher nature very much excel us in this respect, as it is probable the soul of man will be infinitely more perfect hereafter in this faculty - as well as in all the rest - insomuch that perhaps the imagination will be able to keep pace with understanding and to form in itself distinct ideas of all the different modes and quantities of space.

John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) If it were the design of my present undertaking, to enquire into the natural causes and manner of perception, I should offer this as a reason why a privative cause might, in some cases as least, produce a positive idea, viz. That all sensation being produced in us, only by different degrees and modes of motion in our animal spirits, variously agitated by external objects, the abatement of any former motion, must necessarily produce a new sensation, as the variation or increase of it; and so introduce a new idea, which depends only on a different motion of the animal spirits in that organ.

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9. The Celtic Druids

John Michell The question of who invaded Britain in prehistoric times, and when these incursions took place, was much debated by earlier generations of scholars. Bloody battles were imagined, in which one race virtually exterminated another and populated the country anew. Mysterious Beaker folk were said to have arrived in the third millennium B.C. introducing metalwork and burying their chiefs in barrow tombs along with their favorite beakers. After them came the Celts; around 600 B.C. was the accepted date for their appearance in Britain. The nature of these invasions and their supposed dates are all now disputed. Archaeological science earlier in this century was much concerned with racial types, and it was fashionable to argue that successive invaders prevailed because they were of superior stock to the natives. At the root of these theories was Darwins theory of evolution and belief in progress. The influence of such theories has now waned, and scholars are more inclined to regard social changes as being produced by migrations of culture at least as much as by warfare. In ancient times, as today, new ideas spread quickly enough around the world without violence. Nor is there any more certainty about the date of the Celts arrival. One can speak of Celtic culture and languages, but there is no single Celtic race; Celtic speakers vary in appearance from short and swarthy to tall and fair. Evidence of Celtic culture appears in Britain from the second millennium B.C., and it is now suggested that the Celtic priesthood could have been responsible for the Stonehenge temple, built in about 2000 B.C. Celtic society in Britain preserved many features from the previous order, including shrines and feast days. Its calendar combined lunar and solar cycles, as in megalithic times. The social structure was similar to that advocated by Plato, based on a religious cosmology and democratic idealism. Each tribe had its own territory with fixed borders, and that land, held by the tribe as a whole, consisted of forest and wilderness, common lands and agricultural holdings. Under a complicated system of land tenure, everyones rights and obligations were carefully defined. Some of the land was worked in common for the chieftain, the priests, and the old, poor, and sick tribesfolk; the rest was apportioned as family farms. Grazing and foraging rights were shared on the common lands. Much of the tribal business was conducted at annual assemblies where land disputes were decided, petty offenders were tried, and chiefs and officials, both male and female, were appointed by popular vote. A great many old farmsteads in Britain, today, are on Celtic sites. During his raid on Celtic Britain in 55 B.C., Julius Caesar commented on its high population and numerous farms and cattle. The unifying bond between all the Celtic tribes was their common priesthood, the Druids. Their efforts preserved common culture, religion, history, laws, scholarship, and science. They had paramount authority over every tribal chief and, since their office was sacred, they could move where they wanted. settling disputes and stopping battles by compelling the rival parties to arbitration. They managed the higher legal system and the courts of appeal, and their colleges in Britain were famous throughout the Continent. Up to twenty years of oral instruction and memorizing was required of a pupil before being admitted into their order. Minstrels and bards were educated by the Druids for similar periods.

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Knowledge of the Druids comes directly from classical writers of their time. They were compared to the learned priesthoods of antiquity, the Indian Brahmins, the Pythagoreans, and the Chaldean astronomers of Babylon. Caesar wrote that they know much about the stars and celestial motions, and about the size of the earth and universe, and about the essential nature of things, and about the powers and authority of the immortal gods; and these things they teach to their pupils. They also taught the traditional doctrine of the souls immortality. They must have professed detailed knowledge of the workings of reincarnation, for one writer said that they allowed debts incurred in one lifetime to be repaid in the next. A significant remark of Caesars was that Druidism originated in Britain, which was its stronghold. Indeed, it has all the appearance of a native religion, being deeply rooted in the primeval native culture. Its myths and heroic legends are related to the ancient holy places of Britain, and they may largely have been adapted from much earlier traditions. In Celtic, as in all previous times, the same holy wells and nature shrines were visited on certain days for their spiritual virtues. The overall pattern of life was scarcely changed. In the course of time, society became more structured and elaborate and the Druid laws more rigid, but the beginning of the Celtic period in Britain was evidently not marked by any major break in tradition. Nor was there any great shift in population; the British today, even in the so-called Celtic lands, are predominantly of native Mesolithic ancestry. The Druids religion and science also have the appearance of belonging to an earlier Britain. Their knowledge of astronomy may have descended from the priests of megalithic times, together with the spiritual secrets of the landscape. Yet there is an obvious difference between the Celtic Druids and the megalithic priests before them. The Druids abandoned the great stone temples and reverted to the old natural shrines, the springs and groves where they held their rituals. A religious reformation is here implied. It is characteristic of state priesthoods that their spiritual powers wane as their temporal authority grows; and the less confidence they inspire, the more tributes and sacrifices they demand of the people In its latter days the rule of the megalithic priesthood probably became so onerous that it was overthrown. Whether as a native development or prompted by outside influences, a spiritual revival seems to have occurred in Britain in about 2000 B.C. with the building of the cosmic temple of Stonehenge and the first evidences of Celtic culture. Stonehenge is a unique monument, a symbol of a new revelation. The tendency in modern scholarship is to see it once more as the temple of the Druids, If so, it proclaims the high ideals on which Druidism in Britain was founded.

From: Britannia The Celtic Durids, http://www.britannia.com/wonder/michell2.html

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10. The Cabinet War Rooms

Among the many new weapons and threats which the First World War introduced to mankind was the aerial bombardment of cities: the attempt to destroy centres of commerce, civilian life and, above all, government, which until then had been remote from the physical impact of conflict. The bombing of undefended cities was practised during the First World War and the Spanish Civil War, causing many civilian casualties The fear that cities, and particularly London, would be the first targets of an enemy conducting a war against Great Britain troubled successive British governments in the 1920s and 1930s. It seemed that the nightmare of mass slaughter of civilians and the destruction of ordered government might be realised and the question became more urgent as to how the Prime Minister, his Cabinet and the central core of the military command could be protected in the event of a war involving the European powers. RAF planners drew a horrifying picture of 600 tons of bombs raining down on the capital, causing 200,000 casualties in just the first week of a war. Schemes for the evacuation of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet, and its administrative machinery were prepared as early as the 1920s. Numerous competing schemes were studied, costed and even constructed throughout the 1930s, among them the adaptation of basement offices and the tunnelling of deep shelters in central London and in the capitals north-west suburbs. The site chosen was nothing grander than the basement chambers of the Office of Works building which faced St. Jamess Park and Horseguards Road on one side and Great George Street on the other. Known properly as the New Public Offices - so called when it was constructed at the turn of the century - but referred to throughout the war simply as George Street, this building offered the strongest structure of any in Whitehall and was conveniently situated between Parliament and the Prime Ministers office-residence at Number 10 Downing Street. Work began in June 1938 on adapting these humble storage areas, ten feet below ground, to house the central core of government and a unique military information centre to serve the Prime Minister and the Chief of Staff of the air, naval and land forces. The events of the Munich crisis in the early autumn speeded up the process. Seen by most planners as no more than temporary, the rooms were constructed under the watchful eye of Major-General Sir Hastings (later Lord) Ismay, assisted by Major (later Major-General Sir Leslie) Hollis, and became fully operational on 27 August 1939, exactly a week before the German invasion of Poland and Britains declaration of war. This temporary measure was to serve as the central shelter for government and the military strategists for the next six years. With the surrender of the Japanese forces in the Far East in August 1945, the Rooms were no longer needed and, on 16 August 1945, the lights in the Central Map Room were switched off for the very first time since the start of the war and the door was locked. This room, its annexe, Churchills office-bedroom and the Cabinet Room were then left intact and undisturbed until an announcement in the Parliament in 1948 ensured their preservation as an historic site. Restricted access was subsequently possible, but few were even aware of the existence of this previously top secret installation and it was only in 1981 when the Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, decided that the site should be made more easily accessible that its history became more widely known. 20

During the next three years the Imperial War Museum and the Department of the Environment arranged for the careful preservation and restoration of the complex and made the adaptations which were necessary to give visitors an intimate view of the contents of the Rooms and the routines of life in them. http://cwr.iwm.org.uk/server/show/nav.00f00k

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11. Shakespeare and Cognition - Aristotles Legacy and Shakespearean Drama

by Arthur F Kinney Routledge 16.99 In his previous book Shakespeares Webs Kinney examined the use of stage props in Shakespeares theatre. He now turns his attention to those objects and images - particularly crowns, bells, rings and wills - that are visible to the audience only in their imaginations, mention of which sparks memories of the same or similar objects together with their cultural/emotional connotations. Aristotles Metaphysics opens with the words All men by nature desire to know, and the philosopher goes on to posit that knowledge is gained by the process of sight, perception and memory. As Kinney says, We enlarge on this when we claim knowledge is the vision of some thing that is processed by the brain along neural pathways and across synapses worn down by frequent usage. The fact that memories of a particular object or event change slightly every time they are retrieved leaves plenty of scope for ambiguity and reinterpretation, and Shakespeare writes his plays in such a way that certain key moments have potentially conflicted meanings, that there is only indeterminacy at the heart of the most lasting drama. One such key moment is Julius Caesars off-stage refusal of a crown. But what exactly is this unseen crown, or one of these coronets as Casca describes it? Is Brutus correct in assuming that Caesar intends to accept the offer of kingship on the Ides of March? If we assume that Mark Antony did in fact present Caesar with a crown, it could have been one of laurel in recognition of his victory over Pompey. This unseen incident is what makes Brutus decide to kill Caesar, but as Kinney points out, in the seventeenth century coronets were worn by earls, not by kings - and Shakespeare was always careful to differentiate between the two. Off-stage bells also play an important role in Shakespeare, particularly in Macbeth. Kinney contends that memories of Englands recent Catholic past, in which the ringing of a bell during mass signified sacred acts performed by ordained persons, may have influenced audiences response to the scene in which the bell rung by Lady Macbeth to tell her husband that his drink is ready is interpreted by him as the bell that signals the time for him to murder the saintly Duncan. Kinneys chapter on rings is particularly interesting. Rings appear in many of Shakespeares plays but never more poignantly than in The Merchant of Venice, in which Shylocks runaway daughter Jessica steals the turquoise ring given to him - possibly as a betrothal gift - by his late wife Leah. To add insult to injury Jessica exchanges it for a monkey, a symbol of lust. Kinney reminds us that Jewish lineage passes through the female line, so because of Jessicas conversion Shylocks descendants will be Christians. It is the loss of this treasured ring, unseen by the audience, that determines Shylock to make Antonios pound of flesh, formerly an obviously absurd condition, into gruesome reality. Finally, Kinney discusses Shakespeares use of wills. Primogeniture, the notorious wardship system and illegitimacy were topics of keen interest in Shakespeares lifetime, so it is no wonder that absent wills and present heirs feature so prominently in his work. The plots of Alls Well, As You Like It, The Merchant of Venice - to name but a few - revolve around the power of a dead parent or guardian over a young person. And of course, the history plays would be a great deal shorter without the themes of usurpation and bastardy Shakespeare and Cognition is a fascinating and wide-ranging examination of why his plays, whilst rooted in the late sixteenth-early seventeenth century, have retained their appeal for four centuries. 22

In Kinneys words, Shakespeares key moments have potentially conflicted meanings, apparently endless readings and controversy that makes his plays appreciated both by native English speakers and by those in states unborn and accents yet unknown. J D Atkinson From: British Theatre Guide, http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/articles/171006.htm

King Henry IV. John Stow, The Chronicles of England, [1580]

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12. Hadrians Wall

Frontier of the Roman Empire Hadrians Wall is the most important monument built by the Romans in Britain. Internationally celebrated as a World Heritage Site, it is the best known frontier in the entire Roman Empire, and stands as a reminder of past glories of one of the worlds greatest civilisations. Being there still invokes a sense of standing at the edge of the world. Spanning nearly 2000 years of history, a visit to Hadrians Wall is a must for anyone living in or visiting the North of England. Forts, museums and events bring Roman history to life, walks lead you through spectacular countryside. Time spent exploring this unique Roman heritage in its everchanging setting will leave you with an unparalleled sense of awe and wonder. Who Built the Wall and Why? The Wall was built by order of the Emperor Hadrian, who came to Britain in AD 122. Over the next six years, the army built a wall 80 Roman miles long (117km or 73 modern miles), some 5 metres (15 feet) high, east to west from Wallsend to Bowness. Hadrians Roman biographer says that the Wall was built to separate the Romans from the Barbarians. By the early 400s, the empire had declined and Britain was abandoned. The Wall became derelict and stones were re-used in local building and field walls. What we see today is all the more precious for being the last remains of such an incredible Roman structure. A project is currently being carried out by the Aerial Survey of English Heritage, mapping the entire length of the Wall and all archaeological features in its vicinity from aerial photographs. The results of the project will help inform the management plan for the World Heritage Site covering the Wall. Every footstep counts, taking care of the Wall During the winter months the World Heritage Site is an especially fragile environment. You can help protect one of the great wonders of the world by following the advice below. Always keep to the signed path Visit the organised paying sites, which are more robust and can accommodate visitors, but please avoid walking alongside the Wall when the ground is very wet. Please walk beside the wall and not on it Respect livestock and land Keep dogs on a lead Use public transport whenever you can

From: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.875 Building the Wall Hadrian came to Britain in AD 122 determined to make the troubled province secure. His planned wall, running from the Tyne to the Solway, was a means of controlling northern Britain, both north and south of the frontier, for the areas on each side were equally unsettled. The wall would create a powerful chain of military bases, which could be supplied by sea and river in the event of rebellion. 24

Hadrians original plan was that his wall would be ten Roman feet (around 3m) thick, with a small fort and gateway (milecastle) every mile, and two look-out turrets between each pair of milecastles. Most of the troops would be based in large forts a mile behind the wall, along the Stanegate - the Roman road between the Tyne and Solway. The wall was built by the soldiers of the three legions based in Britain, the II Augusta, VI Victrix (Victorious) and XX Valeria Victrix (Valorous Victorious) - each building stretches of around 5-6 miles (8-10km) at a time. They began in the east, and gradually worked their way west. Each legion had its own distinctive style of building, which can be seen in the three different types of milecastle, varying in plan and in the form of the gateway. While the eastern three-fifths of the wall was built in stone, the western two-fifths was originally made from turf, later replaced with stone. North of the wall, apart from in places where it ran along high crags, they dug a defensive ditch. When construction was well advanced, changes were made to the plan. A dozen large garrison forts were placed along the line of the wall, which was also narrowed by two feet, to speed up construction. This suggests that the soldiers had met opposition from the local tribes, and needed to defend themselves while they continued their building work. Another late addition was a wide road running immediately behind the wall, defended on its south side by the vallum, a ditch flanked by earth embankments. Hadrians Wall was never thought of as an absolute barrier, but as a way of supervising the movement of local tribes, like a modern border checkpoint. The Romans also thought of lands immediately north of the wall as under their control, for they built seven outpost forts here.

From: Hadrians Wall, http://www.icons.org.uk/theicons/collection/hadrian-swall/iconfolder.2006-02-24.2691242264/why-was-the-wall-built 25

13. How To Become a Journalist

Elizabeth Grace Monday, May 15, 2006 The world of journalism can be very exciting. Journalists are on the cutting edge of local and global events helping to keep the world informed about both hard news and gossip. Here are a few tips to becoming a journalist: Education comes first. A degree in journalism, English or communications is beneficial for those wishing to pursue a career in journalism. In addition to helping you gain the necessary knowledge, many universities offer job placement services to new graduates and alumni. Some journalists are able to find employment without the benefit of a college degree, but most often, those jobs are at community newsapers or very small publications. If you are hoping to work for a large publication or production company, your best bet is a solid education. Attending journalism school, also called J-school, is an investment in your future. Enrolling in shortcut programs, such as seminars and classes offering certificates of completion, although tempting, should be avoided. Additionally, be wary of online universities that promise a degree based on life experience. Many of these are not affiliated in any way with an accredited university. There are a number of good online colleges, but most--if not all--are sister schools to a brick and mortar university. Publishers, especially those with worldwide recognition, will respect your commitment to getting a solid education. Since your salary will increase with each level of education that you complete, it is wise to look for employment with a mid-sized publisher after completing your bachelors degree. At that education level, many employers will be able to meet your salary expectations, opening up a nice variety of options for your first job in journalism. As you continue to pursue an advanced degree, you will be making many valuable contacts through your work for future job opportunities. This combination of actively working your craft as you advance your education is your best recipe for success. Pick a specialty. Jobs in journalism vary immensely, so it is important to decide exactly what path you wish to take. Here are just a few types of journalists: Newspaper reporters cover stories for community, metropolitan or national publications. Stories are often fast-breaking, so you must be flexible and able to think on your feet. Deadlines are typically tight, so be prepared to write with speed and accuracy. Investigative reporters are employed by newspapers, magazines and television networks. Investigative journalism entails getting to the bottom of stories about politics, crime and various scandals. Necessary traits include the ability to discern fact from fiction and being a resourceful researcher. This is a no fluff type of job. Foreign correspondents are employed by a media source in one country and stationed in a foreign land. They often cover government, religion, situations of political unrest, and are frequently placed in potentially dangerous environments. Although this line of journalism can be well-paying and quite high profile, in addition to the danger, foreign correspondents must travel extensively and often for extended periods of time. Broadcast journalists include television and radio reporters and news anchors. Such journalists specialize in straight reporting, with an emphasis on concise--rather than in-depth--coverage. In 26

addition to needing sharp reporting and research skills, broadcast journalists must also have pleasing voices and a certain level of physical attractiveness. A less often considered area of broadcast journalism are writers of documentaries for both film or television. Documentaries give a journalist the opportunity to delve deeper into stories of interest. Photojournalists use both film and still images to capture news events. Photojournalists are widely employed by all sources of media, including newspapers, magazines and television. An artistic eye as well as the ability to choose just the right moments to record for history are necessary. Photojournalists must be in the moment and are in place at events ranging from celebrity-rich awards shows to natural disasters. Youve got to have the right stuff. No matter which branch of journalism interests you, there are a number of necessary traits that are common to all. Journalists must be inquisitive and have a nose for news. Good journalists must employ high ethics at all times. They must verify facts, be trustworthy with sensitive information and occasionally, must be willing to protect the source of their information if revealing it would put someone at risk. Additionally, they must be able to relate well to a wide variety of people and to adapt to constantly changing circumstances. Lastly, an unbiased attitude is required for almost all areas of journalism; these jobs require a neutral reporting of facts rather than opinions. The one exception to this rule is for columnists, who are employed specifically to offer personal commentary. Get your foot in the door. Actively seek internships during your last two years of college. Many newspapers, magazines, television and radio stations offer internships (often unpaid) to both undergraduate and graduate students. Check out the websites of media companies in your town; many will advertise their internships online. Networking works. One of the best ways to secure a job in journalism is to let friends and family members know that you are looking. Spread the word to members of any clubs or associations that you belong to, as well as to trusted co-workers. Look for opportunities to meet people in the field. Sign up for writing workshops and journalism classes. Think big, but start small. It is highly unlikely that your first job as a journalist will be highpaying or high profile (unless you are one terrific net-worker!), but getting a job at a community newspaper or local television station is a good start. Once you are working in the field, youll have the chance to prove yourself and actively seek advancement.

From: http://www.howtodothings.com/careers/a2730-how-to-become-a-journalist.html

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14. The Long Childhood

J. Bronowski Knowledge is not a lose-leaf notebook of facts. Above all, it is a responsibility for the integrity of what we are, primarily of what we are as ethical creatures. You cannot possibly maintain that informed integrity if you let other people run the world for you while you yourself continue to live out of a ragbag of morals that come from past beliefs. That is really crucial today. You can see it is pointless to advise people to learn differential equations, or to do a course in electronics or in computer programming. And yet, fifty years from now, if an understanding of mans origins, his evolution, his history, his progress is not the commonplace of the schoolbooks, we shall not exist. The commonplace of the school books of tomorrow is the adventure of today, and that is what we are engaged in. And I am infinitely saddened to find myself suddenly surrounded in the west by a sense of terrible loss of nerve, a retreat from knowledge into into what? Into Zen Buddhism; into falsely profound questions about, Are we not really just animals at bottom; into extra-sensory perception and mystery. They do not lie along the line of what we are now able to know if we devote ourselves to it; an understanding of man himself. We are natures unique experiment to make the rational intelligence prove itself sounder than the reflex. Knowledge is our destiny. Self-knowledge, at last bringing together the experience of the arts and the explanations of science, waits ahead of us. It sounds very pessimistic to talk about western civilization with a sense of retreat. I have been so optimistic about the ascent of man; am I going to give up at this moment? Of course not. The ascent of man will go on. But do not assume it will go on carried by western civilisation as we know it. We are being weighed in the balance at this moment. If we give up, the next step will be taken but not by us. We have not been given any guarantee that Assyria and Egypt and Rome were not given. We are waiting to be somebodys past too, and not necessarily that of our future. We are a scientific civilisation: that means, a civilisation in which knowledge and its integrity are crucial. Science is only a Latin word for knowledge. If we do not take the next step in the ascent of man, it will be taken by people elsewhere, in Africa, in China. Should I feel that to be sad? No, not in itself. Humanity has a right to change its colour. And yet, wedded as I am to the civilisation that nurtured me, I should feel it to be infinitely sad. I, whom England made, whom it taught its language and its tolerance and its excitement in intellectual pursuits, I should feel it a grave sense of loss (as you would) if a hundred years from now Shakespeare and Newton are historical fossils in the ascent of man, in the way that Homer and Euclid are. I began this series in the valley of the Omo in East Africa, and I have come back there because something that happened then has remained in my mind every since. On the morning of the day that we were to take the first sentences of the first programme, a light plane took off from our airstrip with the cameraman and the sound recordist on board, and it crashed within seconds of taking off. By some miracle the pilot and the two men crawled out unhurt. But naturally the ominous event made a deep impression on me. Here was I preparing to unfold the pageant of the past, and the present quietly put its hand through the printed page of history and said, It is here. It is now. History is not events, but people. And it is not just people remembering, it is people acting and living their past in the present. History is the pilots instant act of decision, which crystallises all the knowledge, all the science, all that has been learned since man began.

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We sat about in the camp for two days waiting for another plane. And I said to the cameraman, kindly, though perhaps not tactfully, that he might prefer to have someone else take the shots that had to be filmed from the air. He said, Ive thought of that. Im going to be afraid when I go up tomorrow, but Im going to do the filming. Its what I have to do. We are all afraid for our confidence, for the future, for the world. That is the nature of the human imagination. Yet every man, every civilisation, has gone forward because of its engagement with what it has set itself to do. The personal commitment of a man to his skill, the intellectual commitment and the emotional commitment working together as one, has made the Ascent of Man.

From: J. Bronowski, The Ascent of Man, British Broadcasting Corporation, 1973.

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