Poetry and Romanticism

FROM nature doth emotion come, and moods
Of calmness equally are Nature’s gift:
This is her glory; these two attributes
Are sister horns that constitute her strength.
Hence Genius, born to thrive by interchange
Of peace and excitation, finds in her
His best and purest Friend, from her receives
That energy by which he seeks the truth,
From her that happy stillness of the mind
Which fits him to receive it, when unsought.

Mormonism and the Family

For members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (i.e., Mormons) the family plays a major role both in everyday life and as an integral part of Mormon theology. “Family: a Proclamation to the World” states that, the family is the “fundamental unit in society” and that “the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.”

At least two ideological paradigms (e.g. Romanticism and the Enlightenment) are represented in the Mormon concept of the family.

Romanticism

The romantic period was an artistic movement where the ideals of beauty, nature, imagination, idealization of the past were emphasized. According to the Bible and Book of Mormon, the first earthly family, Adam and Eve, began their journey in nature in a beautiful garden (the Garden of Eden) in an idealized state.

Connect: Oliver Twist and Prezi

So, as it turns out… Prezis are awesome. The final product that you get is, in today’s vernacular, “pretty sweet”. My first Prezi took me a while (a couple of hours) to build, as I was learning how to navigate and use the software.

I ended up teaching my roommates about Oliver Twist using my Prezi presentation. The first thing they noted was how much more engaging the Prezi software is. I think they also enjoyed how presentation was divided into a plot and two theme sections.

One of my roommates commented how he thought it is was neat to use cutting-edge technology to talk about themes and topics of the past. Additionally, I found that knowing my Prezi inside and out helped me give an effective presentation as I was better able to anticipate what was coming next and also better respond to questions and insights.

Create, Connect: Prezi for Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist –THIS JUST IN!

In a surprise landslide victory, Oliver Twist gained enough votes in both the House and the Senate to become our group’s next official read. Politicians are hesitant to comment on why such a book, which has been a classic for so many years, has only now surfaced as a bi-partisan favorite. The answer is, as I will unfold, a very simple one.

It all started with a Google doc. My fellow group members and I thought we would take advantage of free cloud computing and decided to take our brainstorming/decision making to the internet (i.e. a series of tubes).

After months of intense partisan debate, meeting together a few days later in class, and consulting with a technical expert and national poet laureate (Dr. Burton), we came to the conclusion that not only was reading Oliver Twist the ethical decision, but it was generally the right thing to do.

Key media outlets have questioned what the potential ramifications of such a decision could be. All the White House’s official Press Secretary has been quoted to say is that a critical read and review of Oliver Twist would lead to an “intense and vibrant analysis of the one of the most provocative and life-changing periods of my great-great-great-great grandfather’s time: The Industrial Revolution.”

A Book List

So this is Dave’s awesome-booklist-of-love:

1) 1776 – This is a book by David McCollough about the founding year of the United States, focusing on George Washington, the amateur army, and other struggles for independence year. It's a national best-seller. (Democracy and the Social Contract)

2) The Jungle – This book by Upton Sinclair is an exposé on the deplorable sanitary conditions of meatpacking plants of America in the early 20th century. A classic! (From what I hear) (The Industrial Revolution)

3) Oliver Twist – This is a novel by Charles Dickens about a young orphan in industrial England. Another classic. (The Industrial Revolution).

Stay tune for our group's final choice…