The English Degree – Pursuing a Life Less Ordinary
A little learning is a dang’rous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring …
Alexander Pope’s famous lines were written at a time when earnest pilgrims, seeking and finding (after a wearying search) the very fountain of knowledge, could kneel to cup their humble hands in the deep but clear water and bring wisdom to their lips to quench their thirst with slow, contemplative draughts. Poor mortals of the twenty-first century who seek the precious wellspring of education, however, invariably find that the (‘readily accessible’) fountain has flooded, too full of learning, and the muddied water is hurriedly swallowed. Information is everywhere and, as a result, increasingly difficult to sift through, accommodate and put to use — let alone savour.
Those who find themselves fortunate enough to pursue higher education (a population group that has more than doubled in the last twenty years)1 are weighed down by the burden of choice between an apparently limitless range of studying options. This uncomfortable freedom is immediately restricted, however, by the constraints of necessity. For younger people leaving school or college, more often than not, foremost among these constraints is the need for parental consent: a consent that, in turn, invariably hinges on the likelihood of financial or other tangible returns at the end of a sizeable three — or more — year investment. For most mature students, first degrees or further qualifications are similarly tailored to a financial bottom line, either to increase earning potential or as part of a subsidised employee development programme. Insofar as higher education is seen as a means to an end, it is only seen as valuable or...
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...tance in any workplace. Moreover, for those who are inclined to believe that there is more to human experience than the exchange of goods and services for commercial profit, the English Degree offers a life less ordinary for students past, present and future.
1 National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education, Summary Report (http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/ncihe).
2 Peter Maasen et al., The European Commission New Perspectives for Learning — Briefing Paper 6: Government Policy on Higher Education Institutions’ Economic Role (http://www.pjb.co.uk/npl/bp6.htm).
3 Ibid.
4 Cited by David Johnson, Shakespeare and South Africa (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996), p. 208.
5 John Keats, The Letters of John Keats, ed. M.B. Forman (London: Oxford University Press, 1948), p. 72.
6 National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education, Summary Report.
Keats’ poetry explores many issues and themes, accompanied by language and technique that clearly demonstrates the romantic era. His poems ‘Ode to a Nightingale’ and ‘Bright Star’ examine themes such as mortality and idealism of love. Mortality were common themes that were presented in these poems as Keats’ has used his imagination in order to touch each of the five senses. He also explores the idea that the nightingale’s song allows Keats to travel in a world of beauty. Keats draws from mythology and christianity to further develop these ideas. Keats’ wrote ‘Ode To A Nightingale’ as an immortal bird’s song that enabled him to escape reality and live only to admire the beauty of nature around him. ‘Bright Star’ also discusses the immortal as Keats shows a sense of yearning to be like a star in it’s steadfast abilities. The visual representation reveal these ideas as each image reflects Keats’ obsession with nature and how through this mindset he was able
2.Ives, Charles, and John Kirkpatrick. Memos. Edited by John Kirkpatrick. New York: W.W. Norton, 1972. Print.
The right and privilege to higher education in today’s society teeters like the scales of justice. In reading Andrew Delbanco’s, “College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be, it is apparent that Delbanco believes that the main role of college is to accommodate that needs of all students in providing opportunities to discover individual passions and dreams while furthering and enhancing the economic strength of the nation. Additionally, Delbanco also views college as more than just a time to prepare for a job in the future but a way in which students and young adults can prepare for their future lives so they are meaningful and purposeful. Even more important is the role that college will play in helping and guiding students to learn how to accept alternate point of views and the importance that differing views play in a democratic society. With that said, the issue is not the importance that higher education plays in society, but exactly who should pay the costly price tag of higher education is a raging debate in all social classes, cultures, socioeconomic groups and races.
Dutton, R., & Howard, J.E. (2003). A Companion to Shakespeare’s Works.(p. 9) Maiden, MA: Blackwell Pub.
John Keats’s illness caused him to write about his unfulfillment as a writer. In an analysis of Keats’s works, Cody Brotter states that Keats’s poems are “conscious of itself as the poem[s] of a poet.” The poems are written in the context of Keats tragically short and painful life. In his ...
Cohen, Walter, J.E. Howard, K. Eisaman Maus. The Norton Shakespeare. Vol. 2 Stephen Greenblatt, General Editor. New York, London. 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-92991-1
Keats, John. “The Eve of St. Agnes”. The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Romantic
In Caroline Bird’s “College is A Waste of Time and Money”, it’s argued that there are many college students who would be better off if they were to begin working after high school graduation. Colleges and universities can no longer ensure that one will go on to get a better job, getting paid more than they would have without a higher education. However, high school seniors still stress about where they will be attending college, how they’re going to pay for it and what they’re going to study for the next four years. Bird points out how college has changed over the past few decades and how, in turn, it has set many young adults up for disappointment, if nothing else.
John Keats employs word choices and word order to illustrate his contemplative and sympathetic tone. The tone could be interpreted as pessimistic and depressing because the majority of the poem focuses on Keats’ fear of death. However, if the reader views the last two lines of the poem in light which brings redemption, one might see that Keats merely wants to express the importance of this dominant fear in his life. He does not desire for his audience to focus on death, but to realize that man does not have control of when it comes. The poet uses poetic diction, a popular technique of the early nineteenth century. The poem also demonstrates formal diction that Keats is often known for. Although Keats meant for most of his words to interpret with denotative meanings, he does present a few examples of allusion and connotation. His connotations include “teeming,” defined as plen...
To conclude it has been firmly established that Keats had a profound ability to use literary techniques. Throughout his all his Odes he uses a variety of different devices, bringing forth our senses of taste, sight, smell, hearing and touch, creating an overall unique sensual experience. In reading his poetry I have gained a new found adoration and insight to the world of poetry. Reading deeper into the use of certain words and images has demonstrated that each word is as important as the previous, or next in this establishment of arousing ones senses. The world of sense has truly been evoked throughout Keats masterpieces.
Ed. Cambridge, GB: Cambridge University Press, 1987. 56-74 The Works of William Shakespeare, ed. Samuel Johnson, 8 vols. (London, 1765).
In order to experience true sorrow one must feel true joy to see the beauty of melancholy. However, Keats’s poem is not all dark imagery, for interwoven into this poem is an emerging possibility of resurrection and the chance at a new life. The speaker in this poem starts by strongly advising against the actions and as the poem continues urges a person to take different actions. In this poem, the speaker tells of how to embrace life by needing the experience of melancholy to appreciate the true joy and beauty of
Recent discoveries involving cloning have sparked ideas of cloning an entire human body (ProQuest Staff). Cloning is “the production of an organism with genetic material identical to that of another organism” (Seidel). Therapeutic cloning is used to repair the body when something isn’t working right, and it involves the production of new cells from a somatic cell (Aldridge). Reproductive cloning involves letting a created embryo develop without interference (Aldridge). Stem cells, if isolated, will continue to divide infinitely (Belval 6). Thoughts of cloning date back to the beginning of the twentieth century (ProQuest Staff). In 1938, a man decided that something more complex than a salamander should be cloned (ProQuest Staff). A sheep named Dolly was cloned from an udder cell in 1997, and this proved that human cloning may be possible (Aldridge). In 1998, two separate organizations decl...
Over recent decades, the proportion of young people studying at university has increased significantly. As the nature of employment has changed, many feel that obtaining a degree is essential to securing a successful and satisfying career. However, university study provides far more than just a qualification. This essay will explore some of the wider advantages of higher education, namely with regard to the individual 's social and cultural development, networking opportunities and the development of independence.
...ncements in their current employment. Over all, a good English education will help with enhancing a person’s life.