June 9, 2007
27 photos
27 photos
It's almost time for me to wave goodbye to my seniors... graduation is only a few days away. What an incredible journey it has been! I thank all of my kids for an amazing year and I will always hold a special place in my heart for all of you - you're my first graduating class!! ok, enough of the emotional stuff. I'm happy to see you go off into the world!! All I ask is that you occasionally drop me a line and let me know how you're doing. mskrenzel@jkrenzel.com or mskrenzel on AIM.
xo,
Ms. K
January 4, 2007
| Shakespeare's Influence | |
 |
|
The English language owes a great debt to Shakespeare. He invented over 1700 of our common words by changing nouns into verbs, changing verbs into adjectives, connecting words never before used together, adding prefixes and suffixes, and devising words wholly original. Below is a list of a few of the words Shakespeare coined, hyperlinked to the play and scene from which it comes. When the word appears in multiple plays, the link will take you to the play in which it first appears.
If you are looking for more words invented by Shakespeare be sure to read the wonderful book Coined By Shakespeare by Jeffrey McQuain and Stanley Mallessone. Each entry in the book comes with a history of the word.
Shakespeare also invented many of the most-used expressions in our language. Bernard Levin skillfully summarizes Shakespeare's impact in the following passage from The Story of English:
If you cannot understand my argument, and declare "It's Greek to me", you are quoting Shakespeare; if you claim to be more sinned against than sinning, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you recall your salad days, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you act more in sorrow than in anger, if your wish is father to the thought, if your lost property has vanished into thin air, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you have ever refused to budge an inch or suffered from green-eyed jealousy, if you have played fast and loose, if you have been tongue-tied, a tower of strength, hoodwinked or in a pickle, if you have knitted your brows, made a virtue of necessity, insisted on fair play, slept not one wink, stood on ceremony, danced attendance (on your lord and master), laughed yourself into stitches, had short shrift, cold comfort or too much of a good thing, if you have seen better days or lived in a fool's paradise - why, be that as it may, the more fool you, for it is a foregone conclusion that you are (as good luck would have it) quoting Shakespeare; if you think it is early days and clear out bag and baggage, if you think it is high time and that that is the long and short of it, if you believe that the game is up and that truth will out even if it involves your own flesh and blood, if you lie low till the crack of doom because you suspect foul play, if you have your teeth set on edge (at one fell swoop) without rhyme or reason, then - to give the devil his due - if the truth were known (for surely you have a tongue in your head) you are quoting Shakespeare; even if you bid me good riddance and send me packing, if you wish I were dead as a door-nail, if you think I am an eyesore, a laughing stock, the devil incarnate, a stony-hearted villain, bloody-minded or a blinking idiot, then - by Jove! O Lord! Tut, tut! for goodness' sake! what the dickens! but me no buts - it is all one to me, for you are quoting Shakespeare. (Bernard Levin. From The Story of English. Robert McCrum, William Cran and Robert MacNeil. Viking: 1986).
December 15, 2006
neologism \nee-OLL-uh-jiz-um\, noun:
1. A new word or expression.
2. A new use of a word or expression.
3. The use or creation of new words or expressions.
4. (Psychiatry) An invented, meaningless word used by a person with a psychiatric disorder.
5. (Theology) A new view or interpretation of a scripture.
December 12, 2006
- Abominably –
unpleasantly; terribly - Accrue –
to come as gain; accumulate - Adversary –
an enemy; opponent - Agility –
an ability to move quickly and easily, nimbleness - Avarice –
an excessive desire for wealth; greed (similar to covetousness) - Bequeath –
to leave in a will; give as an inheritance - Castigate –
to criticize harshly - Concede –
to grant or acknowledge, often unwillingly - Contemptuous –
scornful; openly disrespectful - Cosset –
to treat like a pet; to pamper - Courtliness –
refined behavior, elegance - Covetousness –
an excessive desire for wealth or possessions (similar to avarice) - Crone –
an ugly old woman; hag - Defer –
to postpone - Dejected –
sad; depressed - Diligent –
painstaking; hard-working - Disdain –
a show of contempt; scorn - Dispatch –
promptness; efficiency - Ecstasy –
intense joy or delight; bliss - Eminent –
standing out above others, high-ranking; prominent - Frugal –
careful with money; thrifty - Implore –
to plead; beg - Maim –
to disable or permanently wound - Malady –
a disease or disorder; ailment - Mode –
a current fashion or style - Pallor –
lack of color; extreme paleness - Parley –
a discussion or conference - Personable –
pleasing in behavior, appearance - Prowess –
superior skill; great ability - Rebuke –
to criticize - Repine –
to complain; fret - Saunter –
to walk in a slow and leisurely manner; stroll - Sedately –
in a composed, dignified manner; calmly - Statute –
a law - Temporal –
of the material world; not eternal - Transcend –
to go beyond; surpass - Tribulation –
suffering; great distress - Vermin –
small animals that are destructive or carriers of disease - Wary –
cautious; on one’s guard - Wield –
to handle skillfully
November 14, 2006
1. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
2. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
3. American Beauty (1999)
4. American History X (1998)
6. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
7. Casablanca (1942)
8. Cool Hand Luke (1967)
9. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
10. Forrest Gump (1994)
11. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
12. Gone with the Wind (1939)
13. Grease (1978) (and Grease 2 (1982))
14. Jaws (1975)
15. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
16. North by Northwest (1959)
17. Pretty in Pink (1986)
18. Schindler's List (1993)
19. Stand by Me (1986)
20. Star Wars (1977)
21. The Breakfast Club (1985)
22. The Exorcist (1973)
23. The Godfather (1972)
24. The Matrix (1999)
25. The Princess Bride (1987)
26. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
27. The Usual Suspects (1995)
28. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
29. Young Frankenstein (1974)
September 7, 2006
Today was the first day of school - great job!!! With all of the construction, congestion and confusion (alliteration for those paying attention) things went really well today. A note to students from last year: it was wonderful to see you! Please stop by anytime to chat, I'd love to hear what's new in your lives. For my new students - I hope you had an enjoyable first day and I'm really looking forward to starting up with Anglo-Saxon History on Monday! I know - something wonderful to look forward to :)
Ms. K
July 14, 2006
Update - as of this moment, I will be teaching 12th grade at Neshaminy High School during the 2006-2007 school year. 
hope you are having a wonderful (and safe) summer!
June 13, 2006
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence. Common sense is not so common. The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet. What a distressing contrast there is between the radiant intelligence of the child and the feeble mentality of the average adult. The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.
Aristotle
Robert Frost
Voltaire
Aristotle
Sigmund Freud
F. Scott Fitzgerald
27 photos
27 photos
My last day at NMS <sob> and the pizza party at MPMS. Check out Ali and Phil break dancing! If only I had video of that....
Browse the photos...