WoK3: Puzzle #5

Anthony and Cleopatra are lying dead on the floor of a villa in Egypt. Nearby is a broken bowl. There is no mark on either of their bodies and they were not poisoned. How did they die?

WoK3: Puzzle #4

Deep in the forest was found the body of a man who was wearing only swimming trunks, snorkel and face mask. The nearest lake was eight miles away and the sea was 100 miles away. How did he die?

WoK3: Puzzle #3

A man is lying dead in a field. Next to him there is an unopened package. There is no other creature in the field. How did he die?

WoK3: Puzzle #2

Not far from Madrid, there is a large wooden barn. The barn is completely empty except for a dead man hanging from the middle of the central rafter. The rope around his neck is ten feet long and his feet are three feet off the ground. The nearest wall is twenty feet away from the man. It is not possible to climb up the walls or along the rafters. The man hanged himself. How did he do it?

WoK3: Puzzle #1

A man lives on the tenth floor of a building. Every day he takes the elevator to go down to the ground floor to go to work or go shopping. When he returns, he takes the elevator to the seventh floor and walks the stairs to reach his apartment on the tenth floor. He hates walking so why does he do it?

WoK3: Reason

Rationalism comes from the Latin ratio, meaning 'reason'. While our sense perception, language, and emotion provide us with some valid ways of knowing, each has their limitations. As a result, philosophers often turn to reason as a rational attempt to find logically persuasive ways of knowing. Rationalists, in fact, believe that reason plays the main role in understanding the world and obtaining knowledge -- and they seek to prove their ‘knowledge’ through reasoned arguments.

From our viewing of Monty Python's 'Argument Clinic', we learned that an argument:

1. is an intellectual process;
2. is a connected series of statements intended to establish a proposition; and
3. involves supporting claims and judging those of others.

In short, an argument = a set of statements which is such that one of them (the conclusion) is supported or implied by the others (the premise). In lesson 2, we will explore the two main types of arguments –- i.e. deductive and inductive.

In preparation for next lesson, I would like you to attempt the puzzles #1-#5. To do so successfully, you will be testing your lateral thinking skills – i.e. solving problems by employing unorthodox and apparently illogical means, so that the usual thinking patterns are challenged and restructured.

Please have a go at least two of the five puzzles above... and post your solution as a comment to your attempted puzzles by Tuesday, December 4th.

Romeo & Juliet -- Cole

1.

The two families of Romeo and Juliet, are sworn enemies, therefore, it is forbidden that Romeo and Juliet are together, So Romeo decides to hide outside Juliets window in the hedges as he overhears Juliet confessing her love for Romeo and how she wishes He could change his name so that it would be okay for them, surprisingly he agrees to this.

We can relate this to our lesson on what language is because although this play was written a very long time ago, all the same purposes were intended, they are trying to express themselves and we all use language to communicate and express ourselves and our thoughts and feelings and this is exactly what they are doing. We know our language and the way we speak it is dependant on our culture and hthis is why the passage has different way of being spoken and language has changed to create more moderness or simplicity.

As we know, language is a skill, words are tools of the skills, since we know our mother tongue language comes from our culture etc, we know how to speak it but nevr ponde the question why? why? why is a dog called a dog?, Why is a horse called a horse? Why dont we change it, and what does it mean, and where does it come from? This is the exact problem, we all use words to communicate but the six billion and more of us in the world all speak different languages due to our cultures which creates many complications due to our communicative sustainability. Therefore we need to try to influence the new people in this world to speak a union, a universal language.

Cole Pamuk 6U1

Romeo & Juliet -- Karriena

1.Retell in one or two sentences what's going on, in terms of the central issue for Juliet and what Romeo is prepared to do.

Well basically just before this scene Romeo and Juliet met at a party hosted by the Capulets which is Juliets family. They meet on the bases of complete strangers until the end of the party where they find out that they arent allowed to be together because both their families have had a history and they dont get along. But as Romeo and Juliet realise that what they have is something special, Romeo finds his way back to Juliets house after the party, whilst Juliet is thinking about her situation with Romeo. She realises that this is true love and nothing should get in the way of it.

2. Relate this passage to our introductory class activities/discussion on language.

In this passage Juliet says What's Montague? its nor hand, nor foot, nor arm, nor face, nor any other part, Blonging to a man" this relates to what we are studying which is language because Juliet is implying that Montague is just a name it doesnt change the way it is same if you change the name of the rose it will still smell sweet. We have discuss the language is a main element in our lives because it helps with communication, creates who you are, for entertainment, gives your perspective on the world, emotions, relationships, sign language/body language. In my opinion without language there would be no point on living because without these elements of the language you wouldnt know who you are and you wouldnt be able to communicate with anyone or wouldnt be able to do anything in life.

3.Reflects what its taught you about 'language' and 'words', in particular.

From this scene it has taught me that things are the way they are and to put a name infront of it doesnt change the object or person. This also ties in with some of the points made above.

By: Karriena s Wadwani

Romeo and Juliet - Jason

This is the scene after the capulet mansion party, where Romeo sneaked into the Capulet's orchard trying to see Juliet again. It started of with Juliet's monologue, describing her frustrations and fear that she can never see Romeo again because he is a Montague and she is a Capulet. When Romeo interupted Juliet, he said he is willing to drop his 'Montague' title in order for them to be together.

The Shakespearian play Romeo and Juliet is written nearly 6 centuries ago. So it can be understood why the english it uses is so different from the english we use today. When Mrjabal first shown us the scene from the 'Modern' movie version which i didnt understand clearly at first. After reading it several times, it does kind of resemble to 'modern english'. It is still 'english' but the changes are significant. I think it is partly because societies and enviroments are becoming more civilised which lead to people change in style and world.

Language is used for communication and expressing our emotions in a society. Culture is the key reason why we have different mother tongue and first language. Our background and external influence also has an effect on how you communicate through language.

William Wong : Romeo and Juliet, ACTII, SCENE II

Scene II of the second act in one of Shakesphere's most famous plays is set in the Capulet orchard. Romeo has sneaked in and is waiting under Juliet's window hoping to see her. Juliet goes out onto the balcony and, thinking she is alone, speaks. While proclaiming her love, she wishes Romeo was not a Montague and that she was not a Capulet, “What’s Montague? It is not hand, nor foot nor arm nor face, nor any other body part … So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d retain that dear perfection which he owes” Romeo then speaks out and agrees to change his name for her. Juliet is surprised and is worried that he will be discovered. However Romeo does not care and longs to stay longer but time is running out. The couple then agrees to marriage.

In this scene, Juliet wonders what a word is. However I believe that a word is a tool to communicate ideas and expressions. A group of people should have to know what a word sounds like, how it is written and what it means to able to communicate with each other. It is possible to have an established word mean something else then what it is. For example, a stone does not have to be defined as the hard substance, formed of mineral matter and can mean a pen. This is why it is possible to have different languages. A language is simply a set of words and can even include gestures made with our hands.

During the Stone Age is when scientists think Homo sapiens were first developing language and because of many factors, humans have travelled and lived in different areas across the world creating several different communities. As these communities developed and evolution taking place, the difference between humans has become greater. Different sets of words, language, have been created. This allowed us our civilization and societies to become ever some complex. Humans until recently have been thought to be the only animal to communicate with languages. This is perhaps why humans by far have the most advanced civilization.

Romeo And Juliet - Ming

In the Scene, Juliet stands on her balcony talking to herself. Then Romeo comes along, hiding listening to what she is saying. Juliet loves Romeo, but because of their family issues they cannot be together. Juliet thinks family name is not important, and Romeo could be called anything but still be the Romeo she loves.

When Juliet said "What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet" I think she means no matter what name we give something it would still be the thing that it originally is. Rose is just a code name we give for a flower, and we relate to that "name"to the object as though they are one. When the name does not really matter of what the thing is. So what is the purpose of a name? Do we turn to someone else with another name?

Also, I cannot imagine people speaking like how Romeo and Juliet did in real life. Ignoring how they use metaphors frequently and how emotional they would get. Maybe this is because the age of the play, maybe they did speak like this at Shakespeare's age. But the english language sure had evolved. As I had still remember, someone telling me the word "Silly" meant serious instead of the meaning we have nowadays, which is quite a big difference.

Zoha Jamil- Act 2 Romeo and Juliet

In Act II, Scene ii of Romeo and Juliet, we meet with the scenario of Juliet at her balcony at night reminiscing about her encounter with Romeo. She expresses her frustration towards the fact that the family rivalry between the Montague and Capulet will result as an obstruction between her relationship with Romeo. Below, at Juliet’s orchard garden hides Romeo. Secretly listening to her words and only hoping himself to give up his family name so that he could freely be with Juliet.

As concluded through our class discussions there were various opinions about the significance and importance of different words and languages. From this scene we can deduce that Shakespeare has used emotive English language in an attempt to create an impact on the audience and to help convey the thoughts and feelings of the characters.
This highlighting how language can be used to show an expression or perhaps even a physical feeling.

Reflecting on this passage one can gather how the use and significance of language connotes a meaning. For example the fact this scene utilizes olden day lexis such as “thy” or “thou” helps the reader or viewers know about the setting and period of time one is making reference to this implying to where, and when.
Shakespeare has taught me how language and words are used as a tool to expresses or convey across not only human feelings but to communicate basically anything.

Response to Romeo and Juliet scene - Robert Win

At the start of the scene, Romeo sneaks into Juliet's back garden without her knowing and hides under her room balcony. Romeo and Juliet come from two different conflicting families, therefore any relationship between them is considered 'forbidden'. In the scene, Romeo startles Juliet and eventually tells her that he loves her, and that he would change his last name, (if that was the only thing forbidding their relationship).

In the play, Romeo is from the Montague family where as Juliet is from the Capulet family, and as mentioned above, due to the hatred their families have for eachother's, the two main character's love is 'forbidden'. This links to the discussion in class, about how we may judge one group of people from a single experience with a single individual of the group (the discusiion was about Norbert and his experiences with tourists from China). An incident between a Capulet and Montague may have occured many generations before the start of the play's plot, which caused the families to hate one another, and be taught to hate.

The language used in the play is poetic and frequently uses metaphorical language to convey emotions, feelings and ideas. In class, we discussed the definition, and purpose of language, and how we can use language to communicate and allow the audience to understand what is being stated. The use of language in the play, has taught me that language is an important tool to convey and to get the intended message across. It is also clear from the script that words do not have to be literal for one to understand the intended meaning of a phrase or sentence.

Chloe Chan: Language - Romeo and Juliet

Romeo has snuck into Juliet’s orchard without anyone’s knowledge in the hope of seeing Juliet who suddenly appears and talks about her situation with her family name, Capulet, and her lover Romeo, whose family name is Montague, the sworn enemy of the Capulet family. Juliet suggests that Romeo gives up his family name so that they can be together, Romeo is more than willing to do so.

In class we concluded that language can affect our relationships and the social groups we belong to. We can see that this is also true in this passage where Juliet and Romeo’s family name decide what enemies they have once they are born, and without their opinions. For years their names have kept the two families’ relationship poor and it is because of the rigid concepts the two words hold that Romeo and Juliet cannot be together.

This scene suggests that a name is just a word to generally distinguish something from something else, for example a clock is just a general word used to identify an object that tells time, and nothing else about the clock. Therefore if a name should change, the personality and appearance of the thing will always remain the same and unchanged, as described by “that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet”. This has taught me that there are limits to words as they only describe something generally and will never really reflect well enough how the thing actually is in reality.

Jacqui.W - Language: Romeo & Juliet :)

I think that in Act II Scene 2, what’s happening is the confession of love between Romeo and Juliet. They both know and realized they love each other however Juliet is starting to question the so called ‘importance’ of their family name. Is it not just a word?
But through the language of what they said and the actions they did, it proved the love between them and it shows that a message may not only be conveyed through words but through different other types of ‘languages’ as we’ve discussed in class. Sometimes, a message may even be understood simply by the mutual feeling between 2 people, like Romeo and Juliet.

“'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself.”

When Juliet says this, is shows her questioning of a name. It’s only a word but it has the power to not let Romeo and Juliet get together although they’re in love. But this also relates to a person’s perception of the word. If a person perceives the word “Montague” and “Capulet” as nothing more than a normal name, Romeo and Juliet would have been able to be together. However when a person perceives these two names as two opposing families, it would be impossible to allow Romeo and Juliet to be together. Though some ‘words’ have such power to them, it all comes down to perception of the meaning.

Norbert-Romeo and Juliet- Words and Language

From what I can tell, they were confessing their love to each other. It is at night in Juliet’s House in Verona at the balcony, Romeo is saying if Juliet loves him, then he will change his name. The reason this happened at the balcony is that they are from different families and should not love each other. 

The way how Romeo and Juliet spoke was very heartfelt by the other person. The scene did not have strong body movements, and yet it is a very emotional scene, famous and important to the world of Literature. To convey the meanings, Romeo and Juliet gave eyes contacts directly to the person’s, with facial expressions. 

In this scene as a study example, the language in terms of the style is very old-fashioned, as it was written by Shakespeare in the late 1500s.  Words like thee and thy (you and your) are no longer used today. This also indicates how the culture has varied. The tone of voice of Romeo and Juliet in the video is also very calm and refined by poetic devices. This suggests their background was simple, and the families was strict on how they can speak, in particular if they are rich, as it may show what kind of family you come from.

Hey Tou Chiu: Response to Romeo and Juliet Balcony Scene

In Act II, Scene ii of Romeo and Juliet, we see Juliet at her balcony window talking to herself about her love for Romeo. Due to both of their family backgrounds, they are unable to be together as the Capulet’s and Montague’s are sworn enemies. Juliet wants Romeo to change his name and Romeo, who is hiding amongst the hedges overhears her issue, surprises her by offering to take another name.

At first, I was puzzled about what the characters were doing, but after re reading the script several times, the scene formed a question in my mind – “Does a word mean anything?”

In my understanding, a word is a tool we use to understand or describe something. Taking a book as an example, the book we see in front of us can be replaced by another ‘word’ that can still mean the object ‘book’. We know that the object we see is a ‘book’ because we have been taught so since we were young. Yet, we never questioned why it is called a ‘book’ and nothing else! Juliet points this out when she says “What’s in a name...Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d, Retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title”. Romeo will still be the same person with the same qualities, just that he would not be called Romeo but some other name. Similarly, the ‘book’ will still have a square shaped, still have pages that we read, even without it being called a book!

This issue leads me to question whether we can change words that we have always been using, replacing them with different words. When I think more about it, I think this is possible. I guess we never thought about this because we never had this idea of using a different word to replace an existing one already and when we do question why we don’t do this, we never actually get an answer.

Yixia Gu: Response to "Act 2 Scene II" post

In an elegant orchid garden, with the moonlight peeking through the clouds, Juliet is leaning over the high balcony of her house morose because she might never see Romeo again and frustrated that the only barrier between her and her beloved Romeo is that he is a Montague and she is a Capulet. Unknown to Juliet, Romeo who is hiding underneath her balcony is just as willing to drop his Montague name so that the two lovers can be united in love.

In this scene Shakespeare utilizes emotional dialogue such that even without stage directions, one can almost sense the body language of the characters such as sigh, or a shaking of the head. In addition, what Juliet and Romeo say reflect their inner thoughts and both characters use metaphorical and poetic language to converse.

Initially, I was confused about what Juliet and Romeo were talking about, and the words didn’t make sense because this type of language isn’t what I usually learn of speak in school and in my culture, however as I re-read the scene, I realized that I could relate to the subject of their conversation. In addition despite the old lexis, I have still managed to understand the holistic meaning of the scene because the words such as “thy” and “thee” are the ancient versions of “you” and “your”. This applies to our discussion in class as the words that Shakespeare chose to use was a communication too in his time period, and people would have understood it, and gradually these words have evolved to English of our time.

William Wong : Sight

Sight is the power or faculty of seeing; visual perception of objects. For humans, the organ of vision is the eye where light rays reflected from objects are passed first to our cornea where it will be slightly refracted into our pupil. Our pupil can then control the amount of light that can pass through to help maintain image quality. Then the light rays are further focused by our lens into the rods at the back of the eye. These rods help process the light rays into electrical impulses to be sent to the brain. This makes the eye with no doubt the most complex sensory organ.

In the modern world of today, sight is perhaps the most important sense of all as I believe it is needed to get on with every day life. However there are people who cannot see because of various reasons such as sickness or genetic defects. Fortunately, most societies with its moral beliefs and values has helped and allowed the blind to contribute to society.

Source: http://www.nfb.org/, Encarta 2005, http://www.wikipedia.org/

WoK2: Language -- Romeo&Juliet

Drawing on your sensitive appreciation of the Act II, scene ii passage viewed in class and handed-out, you are now to post a brief response (250 words) that:

1. retells in one or two sentences what's going on (i.e. setting, characters, action) in terms of the central issue for Juliet (and what Romeo is prepared to do);
2. relates this passage to our introductory class activities/discussion on language; and
3. reflects what it's taught you about 'language' and 'words', in particular.

Make sure to include your first name in your post's title.

Please post your response by 8pm Tuesday night (Nov. 2oth) -- and please comment briefly on some else's post before our next ToK class on Thursday, November 22nd. (Tell them what you liked about their post... and what they got you thinking about).

To view the 1968 Franco Zeferelli version of this famous balcony scene, please go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jas0DT-mtPA