OVERCOMING LIMITS

The most interesting oral exam I've listened to in these days was this morning. A girl, one of my students, talked about "OVERCOMING LIMITS". It was a very interesting and original work presented with beautiful power point slides. It had links with all the Literatures she studies as well as History, Philosophy and Art. It just lasted 10 minutes but ... it was so involving. Maybe it was also because the girl was so anxious and completely concerned in what she was talking about. When she came to Art, she didn't talk about the Impressionists, Van Gogh, Munch, Picasso or any other of the painters she had studied. She introduced us in the world of Simona Atzori, a painter and a dancer who has to cope with life without her arms. It was touching and the paintings she showed to us were so beautiful! Simona is an effective example of how a person has to fight but can finally succeeds in overcoming his/her own limits, how a human being can turn "borders to bridges", can take strength from his/her own weaknesses.

HERE IS A SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF SIMONA I'VE FOUND ON LINE

Simona Atzori is an Italian artist and dancer who was born in Milan. She was born without arms, and uses her feet to draw, write and perform all other daily activities.
Attempts were made to fit Simona with prosthetic arms at an early age, but she very quickly rejected them. She has said that she found the prosthetics extremely heavy and impractical, and it was much easier to use her own feet to perform tasks.
She started painting at the age of 4 and her talent was soon noticed by the artist, Mario Barzon, who encouraged and supported her. In 1983, she was awarded a scholarship from the Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists of the World. A defining moment in her early career was an audience with Pope John Paul II, at which she presented him with a portrait of the Holy Father.
Simona also started to dance at the age of 6. Despite some initial opposition from teachers who felt that it was not appropriate, her own determination and the strong support of her mother enabled her to succeed in a discipline normally associated with the fully able-bodied.
In 1996 she commenced her studies at the University of Western Ontario in Canada. Her course in Visual Arts enabled her to combine the two passions of her life, and she graduated with honors in 2001.
In recent years, Simona has been associated with the Pescara Dance Festival, and has endowed this event with the Atzori Award, given to dancers and choreographers. She continues to perform and exhibit her work all over the world.
On March 10, 2006, Simona performed a dance routine during the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic Games in Turin.

NOW ... ARE YOU READY TO SEE HER ... FLY WITHOUT HER WINGS? Incredible but true!

Listening to this touching real story, I remembered that I still have to complete posting my reviews of BBC Moving On episodes and that one of the two missing ones was DRESSED TO IMPRESS which deals just with a case of... diversity.

The touch paper is lit when a 17 year old boy's secret love of dressing in women's clothes is discovered and a turn of events ignites a ticking time bomb that threatens to destroy his parent's marriage and his family forever. He can't talk about his diversity to his parents, especially to his father. It is another very well written story, coping with a delicate serious problem but with a light comedy touch. HERE'S A CLIP WITH MY BEST WISHES FOR A VERY GOOD WEEKEND TO ALL OF YOU, MY FRIENDS!

P.S. THANKS TO ANASTASIA

READING (AND MUCH MORE) ACCORDING TO RICHARD ARMITAGE

READ THIS INTERESTING INTERVIEW POSTED TODAY AT VULPES LIBRIS AND DISCOVER MORE ABOUT "SIR GUY OF GORGEOUS"...Ooops...RICHARD ARMITAGE!
ENJOY AND HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY!
MG

MOVING ON 2 - BULLIES AND VICTIMS

Not long ago I was thinking and posting about "baddies". Do you remember? I started like this:

"WHERE DO BADDIES COME FROM? I’ve always been convinced that those we consider bullies, evil beings, even criminals were not born like that. If they do not suffer from a psychic pathology then they must be the product of a lack of love or the result of a wrong system : family, society, education". (IF YOU WANT TO READ THE REST CLICK HERE)

A fortunate coincidence brought evidence to my very simple theory. In MOVING ON episodes I've recently seen there are two examples of people made bad by their social background, their education or their family environment. I'm not a fatalist, I do believe in human beings' free will but I'm also sure we hypocritically and too easily judge other individuals without ever asking for the reasons of their actions. Extenuating circumstances is the legal term for that, isn't it?
Let's start from the first touching story I want to tell you about: Episode 2 , "BULLY"

(CLICK HERE TO SEE THE TRAILER OF THE BBC SERIES)

Being a teacher I know much about this terrible phenomenon which can turn fragile kids' lives into hell. Have you heard about "bullycide" ? Sometimes to put an end to the tortures and vexations they must bear the poor victims of bullying kill themselves. Where do, instead, those aggressive young creatures, the bullies, come from?

Marc Pye, who wrote the script for this TV drama, tries to tell us that can happen next door and to very ordinary families ...

Ken is a husband and father who wants the best for his family. He works hard at the local factory and does well at his job. Ken is disappointed that his son Andrew, a sweet naive boy, isn't more like him and encourages him to be tougher, but he doesn't realise that his actions may very well destroy his family.

Les is Ken's work colleague. Ken and Les are good friends but their relationship becomes strained after they take a family holiday together. Les sees Andrew (the sweet naive boy) badly hurt his son, Ryan, so he becomes angry and threatens him... A series of fast dramatic turns takes place till Andrew disappears and Les is suspected of being involved in that.

Andrew was not a bully at first, he loved birdwatching and playing games with his mates but his father's education in order to toughen him up and his silly mates calling him "gordo chico" = fat boy turned him into a bully.

Just have a look at this clip ... It is not fiction ... Bullying is part of our kids' life ... We must watch on them, be very careful and do not leave them alone.

The second story I'm going to write about tonight is "DROWNING NOT WAVING" , episode 3 in the series, starring Christine Tremarco and Richard Armitage.

Ellie is indebted, she's forced to sell her house at a reduced price to face her debts.(Rather contemporary drama, again, isn't it?)

John Mulligan is an enigma, not particularly bright at school and from a fairly deprived background. A childhood lived with holes in his kecks and on an estate where the kids rubbed shoulders with the druggies.

But when he comes back into Ellie’s life, he’s a successful property developer, with designer clothes and a flash car. When he arrives on Ellie's door-step, disarmingly charming, suited and booted, and armed with a swift, irresistible solution to Ellie's financial troubles, he is almost too good to be true. John and Ellie had a childhood love affair, of which he has a vivid, accurate memory. He woos Ellie once more, that school fling rekindled into a potentially rosy future.
But there is something too perfect about this new John. He is apparently flawless and his social elevation appears to have cost him little effort, but John has perfected his skills and leaves nothing to chance. He is brilliant, effortless and confident.
Ellie is completely charmed by this knight in his shining armour just arrived to rescue her but... Has "Mulli the bully" - good kisser, though - really changed?

If Ellie had seen BBC Robin Hood she wouldn't have trusted him! Jokes apart, John Mulligan tries to advocate his cause to a very disappointed Ellie come to visit him to understand why he did what he did... IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A LOOK AT THIS CLIP, MIND, THERE ARE SPOILERS, OF COURSE! But I wouldn't miss Richard's brilliant performance.

BY THE WAY ... TO ALL RICHARD'S FANS

The book blog Vulpes Libris have announced that they'll be publishing an interview with Richard Armitage on Wednesday 9th July. It's part of their occasional series "In Conversation with...", in which interviewees are asked about their reading habits. Richard talks not only about what he reads but also about how he reads, as well as how he prepares a character. There's much else besides, including his thoughts on the fate of Guy of Gisborne, and some hints about his future work. THANKS TO ANNETTE AT http://www.richardarmitageonline.com/ for these good news!

RELATED POSTS & SITES:

• MOVING ON 1 - LIFE NEVER STANDS STILL
• IT IS EASIER TO FORGIVE AN ENEMY THAN TO FORGIVE A FRIEND

EVERYTHING AUSTEN CHALLENGE

Well, if you know me just a bit, you can understand I couldn't resist. I've read about this challenge in several of my favourite blogs and I must join it! For instance, I read about in ENCHANTED BY JOSEPHINE and AUSTENPROSE. Everything started from STEPHANIE'S WRITTEN WORD and lots of Austenettes have promptly "enlisted".

What is this challenge in detail?

The Everything Austen Challenge will run for six months (July 1, 2009 – January 1, 2010)! All you need to do is pick out what six Austen-themed things you want to finish to complete the challenge.

HERE IS MY LIST:

To be read

• Sanditon - J. Austen unfinished work completed by Juliette Shapiro


• The Works of Jane Austen: Minor Works


• Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

Comparative watching of ...

• Sense and Sensibility (1995 and 2008)


• Mansfield Park (1999 and 2007)


• Emma (1972, 1996 film version and ITV1996 series )

DO YOU WANT TO TAKE PART IN THE CHALLENGE?

CLICK ON THE IMAGE HERE AND READ ABOUT THE DETAILS .

I'll post once a month about the items in my list. In July I'm starting reading SANDITON. It'll be fun. I'm sure of that.

"I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of anything than of a book! When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library" . Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, 1811

MOVING ON 1 - LIFE NEVER STANDS STILL...

Not my case, though! Examination work at this time of the year and with this hot weather can be rather exhausting. It seems I’m always sitting there, uninterruptedly, and doing the same boring stuff , day after day, while the others are enjoying their summer holidays. I know it is not correct and I try to do my best for my students’ sake. They’re there trembling nervously in front of all of us – and I’m there feeeling imprisoned and dreaming to be on a sunny beach… It happens also that, once I am at home, I don’t feel like doing anything: housework, reading or simply concentrating on very easy tasks (just like my teenage students all the year round!). So , for example, I’m reading a very good book but it is going on so slowly and I need to hold on tightly to my desire to know … but … pointlessly, I often have to close it ‘cause my mind refuses to go on working… I NEED SOME PROPER REST.

Now, after the “lamentation premise,” – I know it was a bit boring but ,please, let me do it , my friends –let’s get to the real pointof my writing .
I’ve recently got (last Friday, 26th June and had been released only on the 22nd – Amazon can be amazingly rapid) a new acquisition for my DVD collection: BBC MOVING ON series. I was so glad, I really needed something new to watch. It took me an entire week to watch the whole series and , here I am, ready to write about it .The five 45 minute dramas were commissioned by the BBC for its daytime schedule, and were shown each day over the course of one week in May. Each drama stands alone, but they all concern characters moving on in their lives. They deal with contemporary issues that range from the property slump to transvestism. I had read very positive reviews on line and …ehm… of course … I’ve already told you … I’ll risk to be repetitive … but I can’t avoid it … I really appreciate Richard Armitage’s … acting skills and, yes, he is in one of the episodes (the third, Drowning not Waving) . Of course that was the first episode I watched (not only once) but it is not the one I’m writing about today. I’ll start from “The rain has stopped” , which I also greatly enjoyed .

First some reflections:

• Children can be tremendously selfish and unrewarding to their parents


• Prejudices, especially racial prejudices, are profoundly natural in a human being but definitely irrational in a civilized human being.

These ideas are at the basis of the plot of the first TV drama of the series: “THE RAIN HAS STOPPED” .

Liz is used to being at the beck and call of her family; she regularly babysits for her daughter, and her son seems to think she is his personal cash machine. She doesn't realise how unhappy she is until she meets Damar on holiday and falls in love. When he proposes she says yes, but isn't prepared for the reaction from her family when she returns with her new love: Damar, a retired Nepalese soldier. All they want is to hold on to the bit of sunshine that they've found . Unacceptable to her grown-up children : they do not accept the fact that another man, that other man, could live in their dead father’s house. They are not at all interested in their mother’s happiness, they suppose her duty is to die alone and live the rest of her days mourning their father.
Parallel to Liz’s tragic dilemma, Damar’s terrible disillusionment takes place: he was a soldier in Nepal, one of the British ex-colonies, and his father, too, had fought, being a soldier in the Imperial police. And now how does the great country he expected to be grateful to him and his father thank him? There’s no place, no job, no respect for the poor man.
I do not want to tell you too much because “The Rain Has Stopped” is actually worth watching . I hope you have the chance to do it. I think BBC was really brave to offer their audience such good, well written , contemporary drama. That’s usually soap time and you don’t certainly expect you have to think or reflect on anything.

At the end of this moving story, I needed to re-read one of my best-loved poems and now I’d like you to read it, too . It can be linked to Liz and Damar’s love story, but it can be also interpreted in many other ways (like any poem or literary text).

Its title is LOVE AFTER LOVE by DEREK WALCOTT :

The time will come when,

with elation you will greet yourself arriving

at your own door, in your own mirror

and each will smile at the other's welcome,

and say, sit here. Eat.

You will love again the stranger who was your self.

Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart

to itself, to the stranger who has loved you

all your life, whom you ignored

for another, who knows you by heart.

Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,

the photographs, the desperate notes,

peel your own image from the mirror.

Sit. Feast on your life.

I couldn’t find any clip from this episode so, if you want, you can have a look at this beautiful trailer with the five stories. I know, I’ve already used it in another of my posts, but… it is really well made.

Shelia Hancock is incredibly touching in her playing Liz. She is one of Britain’s best known actresses. She has appeared in numerous roles in television, film and the theatre.
Television appearances include Bleak House. Her stage roles include The Cherry Orchard, The Duchess Of Malfi and The Critic, all at the National Theatre. She is also about to open in the new musical version of The Sister Act.

Till next episode then. Now I have to wish you a wonderful evening and go to bed. I have to be ready for a hard working examination Satur- day! Hugs. MG

EXAMS - DAY 3 & 4

I've briefly posted about days 3 and 4 of our exams on LEARN ON LINE

IF YOU WANT,

JUST CLICK HERE.

YOU'LL BE WELCOME.

TILL VERY SOON!

MG

GUY OF GISBORNE: "I LIVED IN SHAME BUT BECAUSE OF YOU I DIE PROUD...AND FREE."

I apologize, I don’t want to sound monotonous. I don’t want to bother you but … I must talk about it. I need to share my sadness (SOB!). Do you remember? I wrote about baddies some days ago in one of my posts (HERE) and didn’t hide my fondness for Sir Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood (BBC 1). Why am I writing about this again? Terrible news. Unexpected, at least to me, terrible news. Anybody interested in the show knew from the beginning of series 3, at the end of March, that Jonas Armstrong would leave the show, so that his Robin Hood would die in the last episode. But they tightly kept secret the fact that Richard Armitage too was going to leave the show and that his Guy would meet his fate in the same final fight as Robin. Incredible, this episode 13 was a slaughter: Allan, Guy and finally Robin die. How can they commission a series 4? However, Robin Hood ends with this episode for me. I just started watching it because of Richard Armitage - and once you meet his brilliant portrayal of Gisborne you can’t stop watching it . I couldn’t see the whole series 3, not yet though. But I could see several clips all over the NET , especially Utube. Here are some I’ve chosen for you.

As I told you in my previous post, after killing Marian, Guy started a troubled guilt - ridden life which led him to a change. He and Robin had to accept a difficult truce and started fighting side by side in the last episodes.

THIS CLIP TELLS IN FEW MINUTES THE STORY OF GUY’s “CONVERSION TO GOOD”. (By SPIKESBINT)

ROBIN HOOD 3 DVD will be released on 29th June.

It is possible to buy it on line HERE

EXAMS - DAY 2

I've posted about day 2 of our exams on

LEARNONLINE

If you want to know about my students' and mine

(mis)adventures

CLICK HERE

AMOR VINCIT OMNIA (Love wins All)

( Paolo and Francesca by Amos Casioli)

My students had their first written examination in Italian this morning. Their half sleepy - half terribly anxious pale faces were waiting outside our school building very early this morning. Once they were all sitting at their desks, at about 9, we handed out the tasks. Nothing special: nor difficult, nor original, nor very interesting: "triviality fair" . After an even too obvious text analysis of an excerpt from Italo Svevo's "La coscienza di Zeno", there were tasks about the Social networks and Internet (32% Italian students wrote about that: not a surprise, indeed) , the Berlin Wall, Creativity and Technology, The history of the Italian State, Youth Culture from 50s to Facebook days and , last but not least, Love in Art and Literature. Did we read anything original? Not much. But poor students, how could they have been original in front of such trivial, obvious proposals? Anyhow, though we tried to appreciate all their efforts and creative achievements , we were quite bored in the end.

By the way, our students didn't mirror the national trend. The most successful task among them was that about love. Most of our students are girls, of course. We reflected on the fact they still have a very romantic, lyrical, "totalitarian" vision of love. To them love is all or nothing, Heaven or Hell, inescapable and essential.

They had to write an article or an essay after reading some poems or excerpts ( all the texts were by Italian writers) but they also had visual suggestions:

1. Magritte LOVERS

2. Chagall, WALK

3. Canova, LOVE AND PSYCHE

Which is your favourite love image? Not only among the ones above...there are lots of beautiful ones. Which task would you have chosen? I would have been rather embarassed...but I think I 'd have written about love, too. Tomorrow Mathematics for some of my students and Latin for the others. I don't think I'll have much to write about tomorrow night... HAVE A VERY GOOD EVENING! SWEET DREAMS TO ALL OF YOU.

MG

If you want to read about EXAMS - DAY 2 CLICK HERE

NO MERE HUMAN CAN STAND IN A FIRE AND NOT BE CONSUMED

Another Sunday gone, another huge pile ironed. Also this time in very good company.

I watched one of the latest acquisitions in my DVD collection, POSSESSION. It is a 2002 movie I hadn’t had the occasion to see when it was released nor managed to see on Tv. So I decided to buy the DVD after reading about the movie in one of the text-books I use at school. Based on A.S. Byatt's 1990 novel of the same name, and filmed on wonderful locations in the U.K., the romantic mystery tracks a pair of literary scholars who unearth the amorous secret of two Victorian poets - only to find themselves falling under a passionate spell. Maud Bailey( Gwyneth Paltrow), a brilliant English academic given to doing things by the book, is researching the life and work of poet Christabel La Motte (Jennifer Ehle). Roland Michell (Aaron Ekhart) is an upstart American scholar in London on a fellowship to study the great Randolph Henry Ash (Jeremy Northam), now best-known for a collection of rapturous, late-life poems dedicated to his wife. When Maud and Roland discover a cache of love letters that appear to be from Ash to La Motte, they follow a trail of clues across England to the Continent, echoing the journey of the impassioned couple over a century earlier.

In this way Byatt measures the distance between a world in which some notion of absolute value still prevailed and the cultural relativism of today, in which notions of what is profound and what is superficial have become hopelessly entangled. In her ambitious novel Byatt invents an entire body of Victorian poetry in the style of the two poets for her modern academics to interpret, which are like false documents of a simulated history
The story of the two poets, inspired to the love story between Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett, is set in the victorian Age. It was a multifaceted time of transition which in many ways paved the way for the structure of contemporary society, announcing many of the changes (such as the predominance of city life, the decline of religion and traditional morality, the emancipation of women, the prevalence of mechanical production and the advent of consumer society) that have become commonplace features of the modern Western world view.

I'll leave you with the trailer of the film. Pay attention to the final lines ... they are really beautiful and very romantic. Just like the film!