Archive for the ‘University’ Category
Posted by Colin Temple on April 24, 2009 in Classics, Religion, University
My course in Greek Mythology this term had quite a bit of discussion about heroes. Heroes from all mythologies, both ancient and modern, tend to have remarkable similarities in their stories — in their origins, their lives and their deaths. It happened for the ancient Greek heroes, it happened in legends, it happens in modern films, and it happens for superheroes in comic books. These are the heroic motifs.
As the professor went through the list of motifs, I couldn’t help but think of The Amory Wars.
I’m a big Coheed and Cambria fan. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with this band, their four albums (and upcoming fifth) are all part of a story called The Amory Wars, which is, essentially, a science-fiction story about a teenage boy, Claudio Kilgannon, who becomes messianic figure meant to bring about the apocalyptic end to his solar system.
In addition to being filled with philosophically interesting situations, The Amory Wars (and the related Good Apollo albums and graphic novel) are filled with heroic motifs. When our final exam presented us with an essay option to compare heroic motifs in ancient and modern sources, I couldn’t help but to develop that idea.
Consider a few examples:
- Heroes often begin their journey with a prophecy. Perseus’ grandfather was warned that Perseus would kill him. Oedipus’ father, Laius, is told that his son would kill him and marry his wife. The Amory Wars has the prophecy of The Crowing, the messianic figure who young Claudio must become, but also has a distorted prophecy given to his parents, Coheed and Cambria Kilgannon, that their children would bring a more negative destruction to their world.
- Heroes often narrowly escape death because of that prophecy. Perseus’ grandfather tries to prevent his birth, and when he is born, attempts to rid himself of the problem by sending Perseus and his mother out to sea in a wooden box. Similarly, the infant Oedipus has his feet pinned together and is left on a mountainside to die by exposure. And Coheed and Cambria, misled into believing their children were a threat, killed three of them. Only Claudio escaped.
- Heroes are usually aided in their quest. The Greek heroes were usually aided by gods or goddesses, by demi-gods, other humans or lesser heroes. Claudio is aided both by his “uncle” Jesse, and by Ambellina — a member of an angel-like race known as the Prise, who is meant to guide Claudio towards his role as the Crowing. (”Dear Ambellina, the Prise wishes you to watch over me” – The Crowing, on In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3)
- Heroes of prophecy usually try to avoid their prophecies – especially if they are tragic in some way. Oedipus tries very hard to avoid killing his father and marrying his mother — fleeing his adoptive parents, believing that he was escaping the prophecy. Claudio is skeptical when Ambellina tells him that he’s the Crowing, and consistently seems to struggle with the whole idea. Claudio also begins to fall in love with Ambellina, which isn’t exactly making him want to do the whole destroy-the-world thing.
- …but in the end are forced to fulfill them. Oedipus feels confident when he learns of the death of his adoptive parents, but does not realize that he has already killed his birth father, and married his birth mother. Claudio receives a more direct intervention from his ‘God’. The Writer, who is actually penning the Amory Wars story, (after being persuaded by a hallucination – his talking bicycle) actually writes himself into the story. He appears before Claudio, kills Ambellina, and tells him that he must fulfill his role as Crowing. “Your time has come. Crowing. You’re burning Star IV.” (Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV,Volume 1: From Fear Through The Eyes of Madness)
There are more — The Amory Wars is a very complex story, and it’s not done yet — but you get the idea. I was a bit concerned when I wrote my exam, because I was choosing a story that the professor was probably unfamiliar with, but I got an A+ on the exam, and in the course, so I guess it was the right decision. My paper mainly compared Oedipus and Claudio Kilgannon as heroes of prophecy.
I might be the only person in the class, or maybe the school, to use a rock album as a source in a paper for a Classical Studies course.
That’s probably the assignment I’ve had the most fun with so far. I have a less exciting, but still interesting, paper to finish writing on animal rights for another exam. After that, one more exam to write at the school and first year is done. Only three more years to go… for my BA, at least. I’m considering more, but it’s early.
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Posted by Colin Temple on February 2, 2009 in Philosophy, University
I was complaining the other day that, in the recession, marketing budgets are cut and it’s harder to find web marketing work these days — especially compared to a year ago. Good thing I’m working on that degree to get me all kinds of high-paying work when I’m done…
Awesome.
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Posted by Colin Temple on January 13, 2009 in Religion, University
A post per month is good, right? Yeah, yeah… it’s been a while since I’ve put pen to virtual paper and updated this blog. I should have made a resolution out of it. But life is busy and I’m back in school after a relaxing holiday.
But actually I’m expecting to have more to say as we kick off a new term. Last time, my courses included mostly History, Essay Writing and only the most basic Philosophy in Critical Thinking. This time around, I have two Philosophy courses, a Religion course (in Witchcraft & the Occult, no less), Psychology and Greek Mythology.
I spent the last couple of days resuming my reading, and I’m reacquainting myself with one of my favourite works in Philosophy, The Myth of Sisyphus. In this brief essay, and its accompanying writings, Albert Camus outlines the absurd — that is, the contrast between the human desire for meaning, and the meaninglessness of the world.
Tonight, my Fundamental Philosophical Questions lecture & discussion will center around two questions of Religion: Does religion give life meaning? How can one know whether or not God exists? We were assigned readings on Augustine, Aquinas, Camus, Kant, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche, to name a few.
Needless to say–but for some reason I say anyways–I’m excited to be studying this stuff in a school setting. That is something new for me. Hopefully I’ll have lots more to say on these matters soon.
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Posted by Colin Temple on November 3, 2008 in University
I jumped onto The University of Ottawa’s course registration service last night to take another look at my courses for the winter term. I guessed that now, after a couple of months, I’d have a better idea what classes I’ll actually enjoy.
I haven’t made many changes to my winter schedule, but I did swap one course out. I had signed up for a Media Studies course, because I registered late and had few options. I thought, with my background in marketing, that I might do well. That’s probably true — 2/3 of my English essay workshop papers have been on Internet media — but I’m not here to learn about it.
On the other hand, I’ve been dying to take a real philosophy course. This semester, I’ve had to sit through the PHI 1101 course, Reasoning and Critical Thinking, a prerequisite for any other philosophy class. Although my prof’s done a fairly good job of making this course short and light, it really is an introduction to basic logic and argument. Important for some people, but when you’re eager to dive into topics like epistemology, morality and metaphysics, it’s a bit of a drag.
I was already signed up for a course called Fundamental Philosophical Questions. That course had the most openings when I first registered, and was also the most interesting to me. But last night, I dropped my media studies course for another course in Great Philosophers.
I don’t expect that one to be too difficult, since I’ve already spent time getting to know the big names while researching Philosophy Index, and in my own reading. But the course promises a tour of the basics, and I’d like to confirm my own understanding before I move into second year and things start to move a little faster.
I’m still stuck with an English Literature class at 9:00 am on a Saturday next term. It’s the only section with space available, it seems, but I’ll try to change it again later. I really want to get that course over with early, though.
I’m eager to move onto the next semester. I enjoy a couple of my current courses, but philosophy is what I’m in this to study. Hopefully those courses will give me more to write about here!
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Posted by Colin Temple on October 28, 2008 in Resources, University
I’m a bit behind on my posting. The past couple of weeks have been very busy, between school and work. I’ve been putting in extra hours with both — we’re getting into crunch time at university, and I’m trying to crank out some extra web marketing projects to pay for it all. But I thought I’d take a quick break to provide some comments, and hopefully some helpful advice for anyone in the same boat.
We’re crossing the mid-semester threshold, in a hectic space between wrapping up midterms, writing papers and assignments, and preparing for final exams. Whether you’re working long hours or trying to keep up with the social calendar, it can be tough to get enough study time in. Here are a few things I’ve found useful:
1. Limit your study time
This may seem counter-intuitive, but hear me out. It’s easy for us to cram all of our studying into one lump right before a test. Even if you’re one of those elusive responsible students, you may be spending too much time studying in each sitting.
For most people, our attention span is pretty short. I’ve heard “average” quotes anywhere from 15-60 minutes, but a good estimate is probably about 30-40 before your brain starts jumbling things up and making it worse. So instead of dedicating hours of study time, try having more, shorter sessions. After studying, do something more relaxing or mindless to allow your brain to properly sort through the information and file it away. You’re more likely to retain the content you’re learning. Then, come back to the material after a while (later that day, or do this once a day for a week or so) for another brief session.
I’m a bit hypocritical in saying this last part, because I haven’t really started yet, but it’s best to space out your studying. It takes time to absorb it all, so begin with at least a couple of these sessions per week well before the exam. Now’s a good time to start.
2. Write it out
One thing that works very well for me is to rewrite my notes. During class, I’m usually scribbling things down in a frenzy trying to keep up with my profs. My Greek Civilization prof in particular gives us a seven-course meal of detailed information during each class, and doesn’t slow down. But everything’s fair game for the exams! So in those lectures, I’m not so much learning the information as recording it for later. There’s too much to assimilate in one go.
So as the exams approach, I like to type out my handwritten notes. This allows me to take my time sifting through the information and organizing it in a way that matches my own thinking patterns. And the simple act of re-writing it ensures that I think through each piece of information a second time as I write. I’ve found this to be way more effective than simply re-reading my lecture scribbles.
3. Make flashcards
Dividing information into little pieces makes it easier to assimilate. If you know the format of your exam — short answers, multiple choice, identification — you can make up questions that match the material. On one side of an index card, write a question, and put the answer on the other side.
This has the benefit of #2 as you rewrite the question, and provides you with a quick means of studying that’s easy to use. Carry the flashcards with you to school and ask yourself a few questions in between classes or at lunch. This enables quick studying within your busy schedule when you can’t devote time to it.
Making up your own fake exams and then taking them yourself works in a similar way, but I enjoy the flashcards as they segment things nicely. If you have time, you can run through the flashcards in reverse, reading the answers and then determining the questions Jeopardy-style. This can help you anticipate different ways that the questions may be asked.
4. Talk it out
If you can make friends in your course, or at least have a quick study session with some of your classmates, you may get some different perspectives that help you understand the material. My wife is in two of my classes with me, and I find that discussing the course content with her is a huge help. We have different learning styles, so we tend to absorb different information during the lectures. Comparing notes, we both get a better understanding of what’s important in the lecture, and pick up on some new details.
5. Learn how you learn
Everybody learns differently. I’m a very spatial learner, so visualizing things works well for me. I draw diagrams when I can, and when it comes to fine details, I tend to try and remember what the lecture slide or textbook page that had the answer looked like. The flashcards from #3 work the same way for me, as I can usually remember the different look of each one after having seen them a few times.
But that won’t work for everyone. Some people learn better by understanding the relationships between facts, while others simply have to memorize and recite the information. It takes some trial and error, but you need to find out what works best for you, and adapt your study methods to it.
So what about you? How do you study, and what wisdom can you provide? I’m sure I could use some!
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