Success

HOPE

2011-06-16T18:48:00.000-07:00

I have so many goals and i wish that i can achieve them successfully. Should i tell them to the rest of the world in detail. I promise i will but not now! So stay tuned and stay in touch! Pray for me as i without fail pray for your success everyday!
p/s: i feel awkward typing my entry here as i haven't updated any news of me for ages!

HI, DEAREST READERS

2010-11-07T11:58:00.001-08:00

I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO UPDATE THIS BLOG DUE TO MY HECTIC STUDY SCHEDULE AND MANY OTHER REASONS. ANYWAY, PLEASE STAY TUNED WITH MY BLOG. THE LATEST ENTRY WILL BE OUT SOON!!!!

WITH LOVE,
PADA CINTANYA

Comparative Literature

2010-01-29T17:19:00.000-08:00

Based on the articles written by Remak and Bassnett, write a critique of what Comparative Literature is and the scope it encompasses.
Undeniably, comparative literature has always been an effective means of deepening and broadening one’s knowledge and horizons about the similarities and dissimilarities shared by people as far as arts, social sciences, sciences and religions are concerned. Definitely, it plays a vitally significant role in promoting and sharpening one’s critical thinking as the study of comparative literature necessitates ones to widen their viewpoints and put their individual sentiments aside. However, it is important to note that ones firstly must equip themselves with the fundamental aspects of comparative literature in order to be critical comparatists. They have to be exposed to what comparative literature is all about and the scope it encompasses and this will later assist them to critically evaluate the literary texts. Thereby, the ultimate aims of this paper are to discuss the definitions as well as the scope of comparative literature in greater detail.
In order to grasp the basic notion of comparative literature, it is a must to deeply understand its definition in the first place before concisely elaborating on the other aspects of comparative literature. According to Remark (1971), he provided us with 2 definitions of comparative literature in which comparative literature is viewed as a study of literature beyond national boundaries and it is concerned with the study of the relationships between literature and other areas of knowledge and beliefs. Bassnett (1993), on the other hand, suggests that comparative literature is the study of texts from different cultural contexts and origins to identify their points of convergence and divergence. With reference to these two highly reliable and credible sources, it is best to summarise that comparative literature is basically portrayed as the study of literature beyond national boundaries that aims to highlight the relationships between literature and other areas of knowledge and belief as well as to ascertain their points of convergence and divergence. The study of Cinderella, for example, is said to be comparative provided that it involves with two or more short stories of Cinderella written by different authors belonging to different national boundaries and it underscores the dissimilarities and similarities shared by those literary texts. By keeping this condensed definition in mind, it is very helpful in drawing a line between what is said to be a study of comparative literature and what is not meant to be a study of comparative literature.
In addition to its definition, comparative literature has also been inextricably and mutually linked to American school and French school that account for the criteria or standard of comparative literature used by learning institutions at this very moment. Both American school and French school have something in common whereby they acknowledge the very fist definition of comparative literature put forward by Remark (1971). Nevertheless, the endless dispute between both of these schools of thought is that only French school declines or rejects the latter definition of comparative literature in which it does not favour the study of literature with other disciplines. This is due to the fact that the systematic study of the relationship between literature and other areas without doubt leads to the accusation of charlatanism and thus bringing deleterious impacts on the acceptance of comparative literature by public at large or students, lecturers of higher learning institutions in particular. American school, on the other hand, is more flexible as compared to French school in which it advocates the interdisciplinary method. It is believed that a better, comprehensive understanding of literature can be achieved by geographically and generically extending the investigation of literature. This is primarily because literature indubitably deals with people in communities and many factors, namely, social, political, economical, psychological do come into play. Therefore, it is hoped that by integrating literature with other spheres of human expression, a better insight into literature as a whole can be realized and students especially learn even better when the information they receive is presented in a comprehensive manner.
Aside from debatable and questionable arguments on the relationships between literature and other areas of knowledge and beliefs, there is also another important facet of comparative literature that has always remained controversial over the years. Both of these schools of thoughts have different approaches to solving the issues found in the text. This is proven when French school is only concerned about the issues that can be ironed out based on factual evidence. Rather, its avid interests are in “questions of reception, intermediaries, foreign travel, and attitudes towards a given in the literature of another country during a certain period”. Nonetheless, this principle adopted by French school is said to be detrimental to the innovative methods and topics. This is truly true that all data will never be collected and most importantly, the similar facts will be differently interpreted by different interpretations or assumptions. Again, this will definitely bring us the hazardous impacts on the developments of current methods and recent subjects studied and we will surely be left behind. That is why American school is adamant in not blindly following the principles used by French school whilst evaluating the literary texts. In other words, it does not totally count on factual evidences. Instead, it prioritizes the textual content in seeking answers and justifications as to what it is retained, what it is rejected, why and how the material is absorbed and integrated and so forth. This , again, through the lens of American comparatists, clearly signifies that facts can be obtained by means of textual analysis rather than waiting till all the data are in which is unlikely plausible and possible. Finally, the scope of comparative literature is another crucial aspect that must be carefully discussed and studied in order to deeply comprehend its significance as well as to effectively critique the text. In brief, scope of comparative literature can be broken down into three kinds which are national literature, world literature and general literature. At the same time, its relationship between national literature, world literature and general literature will also be pointed out as to gain better comprehension. There are some differences and similarities that can be found when making a comparison and contrast amongst four of them. To begin with, comparative literature and national literature share same methods of research, for example, “a comparison of Racine with Corneille and of Racine with Goethe”. However, the difference is that issues or subjects found in comparative literature can go beyond national-literature research, for instance, the contact or collision between different cultures generally and the problems related to translation specifically. This is due to the nature of the comparative literature study in which it desires to study literature beyond national boundaries and thus they can read foreign texts in their original form.
Comparative literature vis-a- vis world literature, on the other hand, exhibits clear-cut differences and enable the readers to identify whether the literary texts studied are best classified as comparative literature research or otherwise. As far as the element of time and quality are concerned, world literature is one that can withstand the test of time and contains the finest input of all time. In other words, it is something that people still highly appreciate the beauty of the literary art or the messages albeit it was produced or written for example a century ago. The impeccable example would be “Sonnnet 18” beautifully written by William Shakespeare remains evergreen and is still being studied by students worldwide. Therefore, the comparison made is always between the texts that are capable of standing the test of time and embody the messages of highest quality. Meanwhile, comparative literature may simply compare anything regardless of how old or how new the works are and of quality of messages conveyed. Besides element of time, element of space does also contribute to the significant difference between comparative literature and world literature. Comparative literature, insofar the element of space is concerned, is often viewed as a more restricted one since it always looks into the relationships of only two countries written by two authors of different nationality as compared to word literature that suggests acknowledgment all over the globe.
The very distinct difference between comparative literature and general literature is that general literature is referred to as foreign literature in English translation or works which cannot be categorized as world literature/national literature or sectional literature whereas comparative literature, as mentioned earlier, is very distinctive in its own terms and basically about two or more literary texts being compared in order to point out and address the similarities and dissimilarities found in those texts. This very detailed description of the scope of comparative literature as explained in the previous paragraphs obviously draws our attention in classifying the study of literary texts in a systematic and effective manner and it is undeniable that comparative literature is directing towards world literature provided that it can successfully mesmerize and captivate everyone’s attention throughout the world and become a phenomenal success. Nothing is impossible.
In summary, this paper has thoroughly discussed the definition of comparative literature, the standard or criteria of comparative literature shaped by American and French school and the scope of comparative literature that can be further divided into 3 subcategories, namely, world literature, national literature and general literature including their relationships with comparative literature. It is greatly hoped that everyone will be motivated in studying, exploring the outside world and thus understanding the world generally and people specifically.

regret and repent

2010-01-19T21:55:00.000-08:00

i know that i am at fault and i am going to repent
i know that i am wrong for breaking the rules
i know that i am stupid
i know that i am paranoid
but
i am sure that i am gonna make it through thick and thin
i am gonna be strong facing challenges
i am confident that i am gonna be a better person
i am certain that god loves me........................

Ceritera Ayahku

2009-11-15T06:42:00.000-08:00

Sukar untuk meluahkan kisah lama yang terpendam dilubuk hatiku. Tetapi, aku akan tetap coretkan ceritera cinta ayahku terhadapku agar aku sentiasa bersyukur kepada Allah kerana memberikan aku seorang ayah yang memahami diriku ini. Dahulu, ayahku sanggup melabur segala wangnya untuk menjadikan aku pandai berbicara bahasa Inggeris. Di saat itu, naluriku memberontak dan meronta-ronta tidak mahu ke kelas tuisyen Bahasa Inggeris di Chendering, Kuala Terengganu. Namun, ayahku tetap memaksaku belajar Bahasa Inggeris. Keazamanku makin menebal untuk belajar bahasa Inggeris ini ketika diriku menyedari pengorbanan yang ayahku tempuhi pada suatu petang. Kejadian ini bermula ketika ayahku berdegil untuk menghantarku ke kelas tuisyen walhal ayahku mengalami demam yang teruk. Aku menangis dan terus menangis menyedari niat mulia ayahku. Aku merasa terharu dengan pengorbana ayahku yang tak pernah jemu mahu memberikan yang terbaik untuk anaknya. Aku nekad aku akan membayar segala jasa baik ayahku waluapun tak terbayar nilai wang ringgit. Aku nekad dan aku akan bekerja keras untuk memberi kehidupan yang sempurna kepada ayahku.
"Abang Chik sayang ayoh".............................................

Ayah

2009-11-15T06:38:00.000-08:00

You are always by my side
You do understand me
You brighten up my days
You give me hope
You make me stronger
You are my one and only ayoh(ayah)
I miss you
I will repay your kindness,love, and warmth
I will give you a better life
I will make you proud
I will take care of you for the rest of your life

Taking advantage of one's kindness

2009-11-10T08:26:00.000-08:00

Now i know who you really are. This incident happened when i vehemently asked for somebody's help to give a slice of cake to her roomate. To my consternation, she profusely refused or declined it. It was a total shock since i had relentlessly been helping her whenever she was in trouble. A friend of hers realized this and therefore she willingly lend a helping hand to help me give a piece of cake to the person concerned. The conclusion is you are the one who always takes advantage of one's kindness and you are the one who will approach somebody whenever you are in the middle of difficulties.

To a friend of hers, i was so glad that you helped me and it was proven that you are the one that i can count on and turn to for support.

Pada CintaNya

2009-10-08T04:45:00.000-07:00

Hidup ini penuh dengan dugaan dan cabaran yang kadang kadang membunuh diriku ini, Ya Allah. Ku mohon kepadaMu berikan segala kekuatan dalam menghadapi jerih perih kehidupanku ini. Ramai temanku mengaanggapku ini sepertri rama rama yang terbang bebas, ceria menghinggap di dahan dahan bunga bungaan cinta. Tapi, apakah sedar mereka akan masalah hidupku yang sememangnya mampu mencabar keimanan dan keutuhan mereka. Tidakkah mereka sedar akan nikmat yang diberikan oleh Allah, tapi mensia -siakannya. Ku tahu Ya Allah menyanyangi diriku lantas menguji dengan bebanan ini. Aku seorang manusia yang inginkan kejayaan di dalam hidupku lantas membri cahaya nur kasih pada masa hadapanku. Namun, apakan daya dalam meniti perjalanan kejayaan ini, aku dilanda ribut taufan gelora cinta yang memabukkan diriku dan mencabar kesabaran yang ku pegang selama ini. Seketika, aku menjerit, menangis, meraung kesedihan akan gelora bandai yang senantiasa kunjung tiba. Aku lemas dan lemas di lautan kekufuran manusia jahanam yang pasti dilaknat oleh Allah S.W.T. Kendatipun, aku bangun merayu dan meminta minta pada Alllah agar diberikan lembaran kesabaran dalam mengharungi pentas lakonan yang pasti bakal berakhir. ....................

11 OUT OF 20

2009-09-27T03:42:00.000-07:00

The main focus of this paper aims at analyzing the themes and characteristics of Pak De Samad in the short story entitled ‘Pak De Samad’s Cinema’ written by one of the most prominent Malaysian writers, Che Husna Azhari. After studying this short story meticulously, there are probably four main themes such as the novelty of something will soon wear off, education is a tool to behave in an acceptable way, changes are needed for survival purposes and resistance to change. Aside from the themes, there are two characteristics of Pak De Samad which are creative, and committed. These aspects play a vital role in enhancing one’s understanding of this short story.

Themes

The very first theme that is obviously illustrated in this short story is none other than the novelty of something will soon wear off. With reference to this statement “the schools no longer needed to resort to using Pak De’s Panggung for school concerts and speech days”, it is highly proven that something will no longer be used after ones have finally found the thing that works more effectively. Pak De Samad’s cinema, which is regularly used for school concerts, Speech Days, and to name a few, is finally “dead”. The death of Pak De Samad’s cinema was due to the existence of the state-of-the-art facilities and the rapid advancement of electronic mass media. It is definitely clear to the readers that everything will eventually come to an end. Therefore, the hidden message is to encourage the readers to be far sighted, optimistic and make use of the latest development. Otherwise, ones will surely be left behind and will not go far. Another theory that can explain the death of Pak De Samad’s cinema is “It was cursed by Pak De’s late father”. This theory suggests that ones must seek for their parents’ blessings before doing something so that this blessing will help them achieve their missions, goals throughout their lives. In other words, the parents’ blessings and commitment to one’s job is an indispensable key to the success of one’s life.

In the beginning of the short story, the readers are told that the gedebers, most of the time cut off their enemies’ ears and therefore there are few probabilities as to why the gedebers resort to cutting of their enemies’ ears. One of the probabilities is that most of the gedebers are uneducated and therefore will result in taking impulsive action. These actions shown by the gedebers indicates to us that education is an effective tool to differentiate what is considered as right actions and wrong actions. By receiving education, it will enable ones to live in a civilized way of life with reference to these two statements “we have become much more civilized” and “one hardly hears of any mini-axe attacks now”. In other words, the author also highlights the importance of being educated so as to behave in an acceptable way and to make an appropriate decision or wise judgement. Besides that, it is hoped that education will help ones to take a decisive action on dealing with problems. Conflicts, for instance, can be resolved without recourse to violence. Otherwise, ones will simply take immediate action as illustrated by Pak De Samad’s action “to go an amok” when his late father refused to give his share of the family land.

The next theme depicts to the readers that there will be some changes in one’s attitudes in order to adapt or survive in a new environment. This theme reflects the changes in Pak De Samad’s personalities in which he, who initially starts “his life in a very un-gedeber-like fashion” finally ends up being one of the author’s home-grown gedebers. This change has something to do with the survival purposes as “there were the marauding Japanese, always asking for food(and other things beside), and then there were the roving bands of robbers, hit-men and gangsters also going around looking for food and loot” at that time. Thereby, “desperate times called for desperate measures” and his solution was to be gedeber .The readers may conclude that particular circumstance compels ones to completely change their attitudes and these sudden changes in attitudes will affect their personal development either negatively or positively. Although his attitudes help him to survive during the war time, for example, it without no doubt affects his personal development negatively in which the gedeber’s attitudes are deeply embedded in him even if he stops being gedeber by referring to this statement “ but acquired habits die hard, so Pak De continued.” It is apparent when he threatened to go on rampage because his father did not want to give his share of the family land and the author seems to make a conclusion of Pak De Samad’s personalities by saying “ once a gedeber, always a gedeber…….”

Aside from that, the author also underlines the theme of resistance to change in this short story. The readers find out that Pak De Samad’s idea of opening the cinema was strongly opposed by his very own father, Awang Kecik (the little Awang). The rejection of the notion of opening the cinema was due to the fact that “ his father was not going to be party to the building of a house of sin” and “only ingrates and infidels go to the cinema”. Based on these two statements, there are two interpretations that accounts for the rejection of Pak De Samad’s idea as well as his father’s resistance to change. Firstly, the readers may discover that religious excuses have simply been used to disapprove of the new idea or new change. Ones will simply resort to using religious excuses without really understanding the positive effect of new change on the community itself. In fact, Islam especially never discourages people to make new change as long as it is in accordance with the Islamic teachings. In addition, Islam greatly encourages Muslim people to make change in improving standard of living instead of staying remaining in the comfort zone for example. Secondly, the narrow-mindedness shown by Awang Kecik reflects the vast differences in idea between the old generation (Awang Kecik) and the young generation (Pak De Samad). It is undeniable that the gap between these 2 generations causes new change to be hardly accepted and it implies to the readers that being a senior member of the community does not necessarily mean the symbol of ultimate power whereby he or she can simply brush aside other people’s ideas and take them for granted. By looking at different angle, it also gives the readers a new perspective on the best way of dealing with the new idea that requires ones to listen to the new ideas put forward by someone, study the possible effect of the new idea and finally work the new ideas out collaboratively and cooperatively in order to make it a great success.

Characteristics

The final aspect that should be taken into account when analyzing this short story is the study of Pak De Samad’s characteristics since he plays a major role in the short story. Pak De Samad is undoubtedly a creative individual since he comes up with the idea of opening the cinema in Molo which is “the very first ever cinema in the whole district too’. The notion of opening the cinema stems from his determination of doing something different which anybody has not done at that time. Although Pak De Samad has not received any formal education, he is amazingly able to think of this wonderful idea and most importantly, he is keen to make this idea an auspicious success. Even though his father deplores, loathes his idea and refuses to give him his share of the family land, he is extremely resolute to carry out his mission by “threatening to go on an amok”. The readers will also realize that by being creative shown by Pak De Samad benefits them since they actually open their minds to all the probabilities and ultimately, a successful outcome is actually within the realms of possibility. This is proven when Pak De Samad’s cinema is “used for everything” in which the use of Pak De Samad’s cinema is not limited to showing films only but also to performing school concerts and Speech Days as well as performing bangsawan plays like “Puteri Cendawan Merah” and “Puteri Cendana Biru” and indubitably, it is indeed a phenomenal success. In other words, ones never know the potential of something until they try it out and are willing to take risks.

Aside from being creative, Pak De Samad is also viewed as someone who is passionately interested in being gedeber and committed to this job. This is evident when Pak De Samad “takes his vocation even more seriously” and “becomes a full-time gedeber” during “zaman ka’ak” (“hard times”). Moreover, he also does a few successful commissions on disposal jobs, teach-a-lesson jobs, the send-a-salam jobs and never turns down “any member of the family to run errands”. Therefore, some readers may look at this attitude embodied by Pak De Samad in a positive way in which commitment to ones’ work is a primary key to one’s success and triumph. Without doubt, this kind of attitude plays a very significant role in improving the quality of one’s work. Several readers, however, see this attitude does not go hand in hand with Pak De Samad’s profession since this kind of profession is against any religious teaching. In the point of religious teaching’s view, this job is morally wrong in which requires ones to barbarically or violently punish for example his or her preys. It is totally different from someone who is absorbed in his or her work which is in accordance with religious teaching. Although many interpretations made by the readers, ones above all should bear in their minds that positive attitudes towards ones’ work will enable them to enjoy the fruit of their labour at the end of the day. All in all, Pak De Samad is seen as an epitome of man of his work in which he consistently tries his very best carrying out his duty.

Conclusively, the themes and the characteristics that have been discussed such as the novelty of something will soon wear off, education is a tool to behave in an acceptable way ,changes are needed for survival purposes ,resistance to new change and being creative as well as being committed to the job enable the readers to understand this short story better and explicitly, the study of the themes benefits the readers since it help broaden their minds and deepen their horizons. Most importantly, the readers will appreciate the beauty of the literature as it undeniably enriches their lives and their souls by reading such a thought-provoking story.

Food for thought

2009-09-27T03:39:00.001-07:00

Babies’ Grammar Development

Baby Talk

The grammar development of infants is best referred to as “Baby Talk”. Baby talk, according to Steinberg (2006), is a form of Parentese but with its own characteristics. Ii is also best decribed as something that parents learn from other adults and involves standard vocabulary. Insofar Baby talk is concerned, it involves the use of vocabulary and syntax that is overly simplified and reduced. In comparison with Parentese, syntax plays a less vital role in Baby Talk. It is proven that parents at times use standard syntax in Baby Talk. The comparison between the syntactically correct sentence in Parentese and syntactically incorrect sentence in Baby Talk is shown below so as to compare and contrast the lexical items used and thus highlighting the unique traits of both Parentese and Baby Talk.

Mommy give Jimmy apple

I will give you an apple

Based on the two examples of sentences given above, it can be deduced that neither the modal “will” nor the indefinite article “an” has been included. Aside from that, substituting proper names such ( “Mommy” and “Tony” ) for personal pronouns (“I” and “You”) is very common in Baby Talk considering that the baby must have difficulty understanding the speaker-listener relationship. Prior to using suitable personal pronouns in their daily discourse, in other words, ones must learn and master the usage of personal pronouns. The substitution proper names for personal pronouns are not solely a trait for Baby Talk, but Parentense also shares this similar feature.

Parentese

Parentese is a sort of speech that children receive when they are young. Parentese, according to Reich (1986), is also best known as “Motherese”, “caregiver speech”, “Adult-to-Child Language”. All the above terms takes into account the fact that children gain knowledge and receive input from many immediate sources and the input received ha unique linguistic characteristics. As far as speech is concerned, it is highly grammatical and simplified. However, ungrammatical sentences are found to occur but rarely. On the other hand, speech directed to children mainly comprises of short sentences with simple structure rather than complex structure. For instance, this short sentence with simple structure as in “Julia is Karim’s spouse” is commonly uttered by parents to their children as compared to this complex sentence as in “ Julia who is sitting on the bench is Karim’s spouse”

Children’s Grammar Development

Holophrastic function: one-word utterances

Not only children use single words to refer to objects, but they also use single words to express complex thoughts that involve those objects. A three-year-old girl, for instance, who has lost her mother in a shopping complex, may cry out “mama”, meaning “I want mama”. Based on this example, it has shown to us that the use of single words by children can express a variety of semantic functions and complex ideas. Bear in mind that the strings of words produced by children at this stage are not yet sentences since the child pauses slightly and uses a falling intonation of the sort at the end of each word that is commonly used by mature speakers to indicate the completion of a sentence.

Telegraphic speech: two-and three-word utterances

Children generally begin to produce two-and-three-word utterances at the age of two. Below is a table that lists a number of common two-word utterances along with the grammatically correct sentence that might be produced by mature speakers in the same situations. The possible purpose of each utterance and several semantic relations involved are also indicated in the table below.

Table 1: Two-word child utterances and their semantic analysis

Child utterance	Mature-speaker utterance	Purpose	Semantic relations (expresses or implied)
Want cookie	I want a cookie	Request	(Experiencer)-State-Object
More milk	I want some more milk.	Request	(Experiencer)-State-Object; Quantification
My cup	This is my cup	Warning	Possession
Mommy chair	Mommy is sitting in the chair	Answer to question	Location
Big boy	I am a big boy	Bragging	Attribution
Not tired	I am not tired	Refusal	Experiencer-State-Negation
Where doll?	Where is the doll?	Question	Location
Dady run	Daddy is running	Informing	Agent-Action
Joe push	I (Joe) pushed the cat	Informing	Agent-Action-(Object)
Give candy	Give me the candy	Request	(Agent)-Action-Receiver-Object

(Adapted from An Introduction to Psycholinguistics)

The acquisition of morpheme

Morpheme acquisition begins once two-and three-word utterances have been acquired. As far as morpheme acquisition is concerned, the children start to add function words and inflections to their utterances. In other words, function words like the prepositions, the articles and the modals as well as the auxiliaries start to appear in children’s utterances along with inflections and tense marking.

Explanation of the order of acquisition

The order of acquisition, according to Steinberg (2006), is based on three variables which are (1) Ease of observability of referent (2) Meaningfulness of referent, and (3) Distinctiveness of the sound signal that indicates the referent.

Variable 1: Ease of observability of referent

The more easily a child can see, hear or experience the referent, the more likely are such referents to be stored in memory.

Variable 2 : Meaningfulness of referent

Referents objects, situations, and events that interest children will be learned faster than those lack such interest.

Variable 3 : Distinctiveness of the sound signal that indicates the referent

The greater the sound distinction involved, the easier it will be for a morpheme signal to be learned.

The Brown morpheme acquisition research

According to Roger Brown’s research on morpheme acquisition, the children are said to acquire the morphemes in a relatively similar order. The list of morphemes and the general order in which they were acquired are shown in the following table.

Morpheme name and concept	Examples	Observability of referent	Meaningfulness of referent	Sound signal for referent
(Present) Progressive	Mary playing	High	High	High
Prepositions	in,on	High	High	High
Plural	/s/, /z/, /iz/	High	High	Low
Past Irregular	came,went,sold	Low/ Medium	High	High
Possessive	/s/, /z/, /iz/	High	High	Low
Copula ‘be’ Uncontractible	What is it?	Low	Low	High
Articles	a, an, the	Low	Medium	High
Past Regular	/t/, /d/, /id/	Low/ Medium	Medium	Low
Third Person Regular	/s/, /z/, /iz/	Low	Low	Low
Third Person Irregular	does, has	Low	Low	High
Auxiliary ‘be’ Uncontractible	Is Mary happy?	Low	Low	High
Copula ‘be’ Contractible	Mary’s hungry	Low	Low	Low
Auxiliary ‘be'	Mary’s playing	Low	Low	Low

(Adapted from An Introduction to Psycholinguistics)

Later speech stages: rule formation for negatives and other complex structures

It is undeniable that one of the earliest sentence structure rules acquired by children is negation. There are three main periods, according to the classic research of Klima and Bellugi (1966) and others who later replicated their work, that account for the negative and other complex structures.

Period 1

No money, No play that, No fall

A negation marker (NEG) is placed or inserted at the front of an affirmative sentence. Therefore, we see the utterances commonly of the form, Neg t U (‘No fall’). It is also said that children all over the globe seem to use the same pattern in their early acquisition of negation.

I don’t want it, We can’t talk

Period 2

The negative marker, in this second period, tends to appear within the utterance as compared to the earliest period and the negation marker “Not” is preceded by the auxiliaries ‘do’ and ‘can’.

This can’t sick, I didn’t did it, Donna won’t let go, I am not a doctor, This not ice cream, Don’t touch the fish

Period 3

Insofar the third period is concerned, the copula ‘be’ (am not) and the modal ‘will’ (won’t) appear with negation. On the other hand, imperative negatives are formed with do instead of the simple negative. The children have a good idea of when ‘do’ must be included in the sentences (Don’t touch the fish,etc) and when ‘do’ must not be included in the sentences ( I am not a doctor). Even if the children’s mastery of negation at this period is almost complete, there are a number of minor problems such as the reassignment of tense from Verb to AUX remain to be resolved.

Language developments with advanced age including young adults

Elders have also been reported to produce more disfluencies, such as stuttering, word repetitions, and sentence fragments in speech, but they are able to repair speech errors as well as younger adults. Kemper and her colleagues found that syntactic complexity (e.g., the number of propositions or clauses in a sentence, types of syntactic structure used) declines gradually across the lifespan. Based on his research, he presented young participants aged between 18 to 24 years and older participants with 2,3,4 words and asked them to produce sentences that included the presented words. The result shows that the older participants performed as accurately as the young participants when 2 and three words were presented but less accurately when 4 words were presented. Apart from that, it also reveals that older participants produced correct, shorter, grammatically less complex sentence in comparison with young participants. In addition to that, older participants performed as accurately as the young participants when they produced sentences that included a verb with simple argument structure but less accurately when they used a verb with a more complex argument structure.

In another research, Kemper, Herman, and Liu (2004) gave both young and older participants sentence fragments to memorize that varied in syntactic complexity. Participants then had to produce a complete sentence using the fragment. The length, complexity, and propositional content of the young participants' responses were all affected by the complexity manipulation, whereas this was not the case for the older participants’ responses. One explanation of this finding is that the difficulty for older adults lies in the comprehension of the material to be retained for elaboration. Also, young adults produce more syntactically complex sentences than older adults when the verb provided takes a complement (Kemper, Herman,& Lian, 2003). Thus, this line of research provides evidence that working memory limitations constrain language production in older adults.

The Dead Crow

2009-09-26T19:11:00.000-07:00

This paper aims at analyzing the poem entitled “The Dead Crow” written by one of prominent Malaysian poets, A. Samad Said by using stylistic approach. The analysis of this poem includes the study of language used by the poet to bring out the message, tone and mood, style and structure, speaker and persona as well as the literary devices. The study of this poem will definitely enhance and deepen one’s understanding of the poem.

Message

The very first aspect that should be taken into consideration when analyzing the poem is the study of language used by the poet to bring out the important messages to the readers. For example, the very first line of this poem suggests the vital message that should become the central attention of the readers. The readers may interpret that the poet is terribly upset to see a dead crow in the drain next to the post office and therefore, the readers may interpret that the polluted environment has adversely affected the survival of the animals. It is very apparent when the crow, which feeds on rubbish, is found dead and it clearly indicates that the quality of the environment is at risk. This interpretation is probably based on the choice of word “crow” used by the poet with the intention of showing how polluted environment can become a serious threat to animals.

The polluted environment does not negatively affect the survival of animals only but also the survival of human beings. This message is clearly illustrated when the poet mentions about “seeing an old man gasping for air and a baby barely able to breathe”. The readers will also notice that the poet intelligently uses the words like “gasping” and “barely” in describing the difficulty faced by the elderly generations represented by “old man” and young generations represented by “baby”. The noun phrases like “old man” and “baby” suggests that these two generations are mostly vulnerable to the negative effects of polluted environment. This is because they most probably have a very weak immune system and therefore potentially afflicted with diseases.

The prepositional phrase like “in a crowded morning clinic” also conveys particular message that will make the study of this poem become more meaningful. This phrase actually describes the scene in clinic which is heavily congested with people seeking for immediate health treatment on account of the polluted environment that is happening at that time. This is definitely not a good sign to discover many people suffering from pollution related ailments. If there are no actions taken to reduce or minimize the polluted environment, the number of people suffering from diseases will be rapidly increasing in the foreseeable future. This phrase does not only suggest people seeking for immediate health treatment but also suggests the mentality of Malaysian people which are difficult to be changed although they have become much more civilized and well-educated individuals. This interpretation is solely based on the existence of “morning clinic” which indicates the development that has been achieved by their beloved country, Malaysia, yet it still cannot change the mentality of Malaysian people about keeping the environment clean all the times. Indirectly, it also means that the people are by nature irresponsible due to the fact that the main contributor of air pollution is none other than the people themselves.

The last two lines in the first stanza as in “This land is so rich, why should we suffer like this” contain meaningful message that the readers should take note when analyzing this poem. “The rich land” actually symbolizes the wealthy country, Malaysia, that we are now living in. In this context, the richness of Malaysia can not only be gauged through the massive development and rapid advancement of technology but it can also be measured through the richness of the natural resources like clean air and clean water. However, these natural resources that play a very significant role in ensuring the good quality of environment as well as people’s health are now increasingly depleting. This makes the poet wonder why the people are still suffering when they have a country that is abundant with natural resource. In another interpretation, these two lines imply that wealth cannot buy health if nothing is done to prevent the pollution. Implicitly, it means that happiness is all gone when we are sick or suffering from diseases. Then, the readers will also realize that the real happiness when ones feel healthy and able to do their daily routines. In order to experience the real happiness, the perseveration of the environment must come into operation as soon as possible. All in all, human beings and the environment are by nature interdependent as we mutually support each other.

Moving on to second stanza the readers make several interpretations to these few lines “I want clean air for my grandchildren”, “I want the damned fools to leave the forest alone”, and “I want the trees to grow”. By studying these lines at a very surface level, the readers may conclude that the poet wants clean air for his grandchildren, and wants the forest to be left alone. This literal meaning of these few lines actually has some implications that should be paid careful attention when analyzing the poem. The first implication of this literal meaning is the indication of poet’s deep concern towards the health of the next generation which can be seriously affected by unchecked air pollution. This implication is made based on the word “want” used by the poet. Interestingly, the word “want” is repeated many times and it seems to emphasize the poet’s demand for clean air and greener environment and indirectly, it establishes a sense of urgency towards providing his next generation with a safe and sound environment. The second implication underlines the repercussions of excessive logging in which it can cause soil erosion as well as land slides by referring to these two phrases which are “damned fools” and “leave the forest alone”. The “damned fools” is probably referred to those who cut down the trees excessively until disrupt the ecology system as well as the imbalance of oxygen and carbon dioxide. The excessive logging, which has been perpetually carried out, definitely brings the disastrous effects upon the public which can be clearly seen in the first stanza in which “an old man gasping for air and a baby barely able to breathe”. These few lines also suggests that human beings are naturally materialistic in which they are willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of massive development devoid considering the impacts of their obsession on the public. This obsession can be seen from the people’s idea of building skyscraper although they have built so many tall buildings before. There is actually nothing wrong with the idea of building the skyscraper but the implementation of building the skyscraper must be regularly monitored and must be ensured that the implementation must go hand in hand with the perseveration of environment. Otherwise, this will put many people in jeopardy.

The last two lines of the second stanza “let the politicians plan how we may live with dignity” seems to make the politicians responsible for finding solutions or remedy to pollution so that people can live healthier and decent lives. This message is clearly illustrated through the word “let” which means allowing the politicians to carefully plan the development and the poet undeniably reiterates the roles and responsibilities of the politicians with sarcasm. This is probably because the politicians themselves are not aware of the seriousness of the polluted environment and tend to take this matter for granted.

Tone and Mood

The second aspect of the analysis of the poem is how the poet uses the language to convey the particular tone and mood. In this poem, the tone is one of anger and indignation. This can be clearly seen in the first stanza of this poem with reference to these two lines “This land is so rich” and “Why we should we suffer like this”. The poet seems to be very indignant at the country that is abundant with natural resources and yet we are still suffering and afflicted with the diseases. The interrogative question like “why” suggests the anger in the poet. The use of the interrogative question “why” can also suggest that the poet actually laments the destruction of the natural resources aside from the poet’s anger towards the inability of the natural resources to prevent ones from getting sick. Apart from anger and indignation, there is also a didactic tone in which the poet suggests several ways of what must be done to preserve the environment. This tone is strongly expressed when the poet wants the irresponsible individuals or so-called “damned fools” to stop destroying the forest and he also wants the politicians to plan any development carefully so that a clean and healthy environment may be preserved for the next posterity.

Speaker and persona

In this poem, there are two personas. In the first stanza, the persona is the third person narrator whereas in the second stanza, the persona is the first person narrator. This can be identified through the use of pronoun in each stanza. For example, the pronoun “he” is used in the first stanza and thereby indicating the third person narrator. Therefore, it also suggests to the readers that the persona is actually looking from the outside and talks about the dire consequences of polluted environment due to Man’s negligence of the environment. As for the second stanza, the pronouns used are like “I” and “we” and thus signifying the first person narrator. The pronoun “I” is used to refer to the persona’s own feeling of despair, sadness and disappointment with the situation that is occurring at that time. Then, he is also demanding a better environment for everyone. Everyone in this context accounts for the reason why the pronoun “we” is used in the second last line of the second stanza. By looking at different angle, the purpose of using the pronoun “we” is to remind that pollution is everyone’s concern. All of the human beings including the politicians and the people in authoritative, in other words, are responsible for preserving the environment as well as the natural heritage for the next generation.

Literary/Poetic Devices

The literary or poetic devices that are used in this poem are meant to make the poem intriguing and worth reading. The very obvious poetic device that can be easily identified is the repetition of particular words. This is very evident when the poet use the word “saw” twice as in “ he saw a dead crow” and “he saw an old man gasping for air and a baby barely able to breathe” The repetition of word “saw” is intended to show the importance of a certain concept. So, in this context, the word “saw” is repeated to show the horror of the effects of pollution with reference to the difficulty in breathing faced by the old man and the baby. Another example is the repetitions of the word “want” as in “I want clean air for my grandchildren”, “I want the damned fools to leave the forest alone” and “I want the trees to grow, the rivers run free, and the earth covered with grass”. The repetition of the word “want” in those lines is to show the poet’s demand for his right to have a clean and green environment to live in.

Aside from the repetition, there is also a significant symbol found in the poem. The function of the symbol is to represent an idea intended by the poet. A crow, for example, represent death, bad luck or premonition, an old man symbolizes the older generation whereas a baby symbolizes the young or new generation, the politician implies the people in power, the crowded clinic is a bad sign that many people are affected by the polluted environment and finally grass represents a green environment that becomes one of the poet’s wishes.

Apart from the symbol, the personification can also be ascertained and found in this poem. For instance, the word “run” used as in “the rivers run free” is indeed a perfect example of personification in which the human quality or action of running is given to the non-living thing, river. This line simply means that the rivers are able to flow freely and untainted by pollution. Besides that, this poem also contains the element of alliteration and assonance. Alliteration generally means the repetition of similar consonants at the beginning of words put close to each other. As for the alliteration, the readers can easily notice the repetition of consonant /b/ as in “baby barely able to breathe” in the first stanza of this poem. Other examples of alliteration are the repetition of consonant /r/ as in “rivers run”, the repetition of consonant /p/ as in “politicians plan”, the repetition of consonant /c/ as in “crowded…..clinic”, and lastly the repetition of consonant /d/ as in “dead….drain”. The assonance, on the other hand, basically refers to the repetition of vowel sounds in words put close to each other. The instances of assonance in this poem include the repetition of vowel sound /o/ as in “post office”, the repetition of vowel sounds /a/, and /i/ as “in gasping….air”, the repetition of vowel sound /a/ as in “baby barely able”, and the repetition of vowel sound /e/ as in “earth covered”.

Style and structure

The style of writing that is used by the poet is pretty simple, direct and straightforward. This is proven when the poem is presented in two stanzas of nine line each and the choice of words used by the poet is quite easy to understand as well as the message of this poem can be easily deduced and interpreted by the readers. Another uniqueness of this poem is that it is written in blank verse and there is no definite or fixed rhyming pattern. This style of writing is in line with the poet’s demand or wish for a pollution-free environment.

On the whole, ones will definitely benefit from the study of this poem by using stylistic approach as it helps them develop their creative and critical thinking skill when interpreting words used by the poet to convey the tone and mood, style and structure, literary devices used, the identity of speaker and persona as well as important messages in the poem to the readers. This is certainly in line with the aims of stylistic approach to produce the individuals who are able to analyze the words as well as the sentence structure in a critical way and able to come up with meaningful interpretation. As a result, this will deepen ones’ minds and broaden their horizons.

What do you think?

2009-09-26T19:08:00.000-07:00

The issue of complexities of human beings is very apparent in “Inem” and “The Hajji”. These two beautifully written short stories expose the readers to the intricacies of life faced by human beings and thus bringing the issue of complexities of human beings to the reader’s attention. In detail, the complexities of human beings can be analysed through the decisions made that change one’s life, the ambivalent feelings, their personalities and the society’s expectations of them as well as one’s misconception on society’s expectations of them.

One of the complexities of human beings can be seen through the decisions made that adversely change one’s life. In Inem, for example, the readers might realize that Inem’s mother still wants to marry off Inem to Markaban although she has been told about the risks of getting married at an early age by Inem’s employer as in “not only will they be stunted, but their health will be affected too”. At the end of the story, it is proven that Inem has terribly suffered from her marriage and become a nine-year-old divorcee. Instead of feeling sympathetic towards Inem’s circumstances, she is seen as “a burden to her family-could be beaten by anyone who wanted to: her mother, her brothers, her uncles, her neighbours, her aunts”. In this case, Inem is actually a victim of situation and depressingly, she has no one to turn for emotional and physical support. Meanwhile, “The Hajji” reveals that the main character of the story, Hassan, adamantly refuses to forgive his brother’s sin even if being advised by the priest, Mr. Mia that “Karim is still a Muslim” as “he has never rejected the religion and espoused Christianity”. Hassan eventually changes his mind to forgive and forget all his brother’s sins. Unfortunately, his last desire to forgive and “to embrace his brother in a final act of love” is unfulfilled and he, as a result, is left with a sense of guilt. With reference to these two scenarios, it signifies that human beings are truly complex in which the decision made might result in something that they do not expect or the other way around. It is also important to note that the state of the decision problem changes over time, either autonomously (because of the system), or as a consequence of decision makers’ actions.

The ambivalent feelings do greatly contribute to the complexities of human beings. It is clearly manifested in these two short stories in which the main character of The Hajji, Hassen and the supporting character of Inem, Inem’s employer feel some ambivalence towards the other people around them. In The Hajji, for instance, although Hassen seems to loathe his very own brother, Karim still has a special place in Hassen’s heart. This is very evident as “a fervent longing to embrace his brother comes over him, to touch dear form before the soil claims him” despite at the beginning of the story, he, keeps declining Hassan’s wife’s last wish to pay Karim a final visit. In addition to that, Inem’s employer also displays these ambivalent feelings in which she, in the middle of the story, expresses her sympathy towards Inem and promises that she would of course take Inem back if she does not have a husband. Paradoxically, at the end of the story, she breaks her promise and she seems indifferent to Inem. This can be seen when she continues “to uphold the respectability of her home” even though “Inem’s screams of pain are often heard”. Based on these two circumstances, the readers might have come to a conclusion that the emotions of human beings are changeable instead of remaining unchangeable at all times. These changeable emotions of human beings, as far as these two short stories are concerned, might be due to Hassan’s massive ego that accounts for his unwillingness to forgive his brother’s sin in the first place and the society’s perception that causes Inem’s employer to completely ignore the unbearable sufferings faced by Inem.

Apart from that, the personalities of the characters in these two short stories are pretty different and thus making human beings by nature even more complex. The short story of The Hajji highlights different personalities possessed by Hassan and Inem’s employer. Insofar the story of The Hajji is concerned, Hassan has an inflexible attitude towards his brother or the white people but ironically, his inflexibility at times can be compromised. His inflexible attitude is apparent when he continues rejecting and refusing Mr. Mia’s wish to visit his brother who is on the verge of the death. This constant rejection can be seen when Mr. Mia’s first attempt and second attempt to persuade Hassan are proven to be fruitless and frustrating endeavours. Nonetheless, his inflexibility is shaken when he lastly succumbs to Catherine’s request to see his brother. This can be seen when “ Hassen softened. He is overcome by the argument that she has been responsible for taking Karim away. He could hardly look on her responsibility as being in any way culpable”. As for the story of Inem, Inem’s employer is said to have dual personalities at different times. At first, she is seen as someone who cares and expresses her concern about Inem’s marriage with Markaban. However, this caring disposition turns into indifferent disposition when she knows that Inem has been divorced by her seventeen-year-old husband. By referring to these two different personalities of Hassen and Inem’s employer, it clearly signifies to the readers that personalities of human beings are complicated and incomprehensible. According to the research on the consistency of various personality traits, it signals that what people do, think, and feel may depend very much on the specific conditions in which their behaviour occurs. In other words, people may be honest in one situation and dishonest in another or they may be passive in some situations but aggressive in other situations or with different people. This really explains why there is a change in Hassen and Inem’s employer personalities.

The final factor that justifies the complexity of human beings is the society‘s expectations and one’s misconception about society’s expectations of them. As far as the story of Inem is concerned, the expectations of the society make Gus Muk feel that this world is really meant for adults only. It can be seen when Gus Muk’s mother scolds him for going to Inem’s house. The reason why Inem’s employer gets angry with her son is due to the fact that it is considered inappropriate and indecent to mingle with someone’s wife in the eyes of the society at that time. That is the reason why she is “almost certain to repeat the sentences that she utters so often: What’s the point to your playing with her? Aren’t there lots of other children you can ask to play with you? What’s more, she’s a woman who’s going to be married soon’’. However, the complexity of society or adult’s expectations of children adversely affects the freedom of children and indirectly robs the happiness of children’s lives as evidenced by “the prohibitions and restrictions that are heaped on their heads”. On the other hand, the story of The Hajji underlines how one’s misconception on society’s expectations attributes to the complexity of human beings. For instance, Hassen thinks too much of how society will see or perceive him if he pays his brother a visit. In his opinion, his friends and relatives are going to accuse him of “his softness, weakness” considering the fact that the blacks should not give in to the whites’ wishes or demands. Nevertheless, his notion of society’s expectations proves to be wrong when Mr. Mia willingly helps Catherine persuade Hassen to go and visit his dying brother. His misconception on society’s expectations continues as he is unsure of how to “face the congregation, the people in the streets, his neighbours” and he thinks that “everyone would soon know of Karim and smile at him half sadly, half ironically for having placed himself in such a ridiculous position”. Ironically, his unrealistic expectation again proves to be wrong when several people led by Mr. Mia still continue trying their best to ask him to come and see his brother for the last time, but to no avail. With close reference to the situations above, it has proven that misconception on society’s expectations somehow complicates Hassen’s life since his expectations are not in line with what society expects from him. To conclude, it is undeniable to note that society’s expectations plays a significant role in creating the complexities of lives as some people find it difficult to fulfil the society’s expectations of them.

On the whole, the fact that human beings are by nature complex is unarguable and unquestionable. The complexities of human beings as portrayed by the characters in these two short stories can be seen in terms of the decision made that change one’s life, their changeable emotions, their different personalities and the society’s expectations of them as well as one’s misconception about society’s expectations of them. These complexities in turn make human beings interestingly unique on their own ways and the subject on this matter can be viewed as an indispensable tool for broadening our minds and deepening our horizons about the world, generally, or the human beings, specifically that revolves around us.

The fragility of Butterfly (Part 1)

2009-07-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

I would like to take this chance to apologise to all my dear readers for not updating this one and only blog. This is due to the fact that some unknown changes have adversely affected my life,my love and my trust, thus killing my keen interest to share the secrets of my life with all my beloved readers. I truly hope that you will deeply understand the circumstance that i have gone through. Seriously, i do prioritize my academic performance and unbelievably, my result for last semester was a total disaster .Perhaps, i put high expectation on it and consequently, i suffer from it. Anyway, i do believe that every cloud has a silver lining and thus motivating,inspiring me to work hard and make my dream a reality. Nonetheless, this ultimate failure all of a sudden pop into my mind and i will cry over it. Some people might say there is no point of crying over the spilt milk. However, in my viewpoint, it does help me to alleviate or lessen the unbearable sorrow that i am having at this very moment.

With all my love,
Saiful

The ugly truth of love

2009-01-08T04:24:00.000-08:00

First and foremost, i would like to apologize for not updating my blog. This is primarily due to my hectic schedule. I am so sorry. Regarding the title above, i would like to share my experiences with others. Many people do think that to love and to be loved is amazingly wonderful. I do agree with that statement but to the certain extent, it is not really true. I did put a high expectation on someone so that xxxx will realize it. I have endeavoured many avenues to show my love towards xxx, but to no avail. It is futile and it really makes me depressed. I did vow to myself that i don't want to have any intimate feeling/relationship with xxxx. Whenever i see xxxx, however, i succumb to it. In other words, i can't resist it and it is such an insurmountable problem. Thereby, i do hope someone will help me deal with this cirrcumstance that i am going through right now.

Exam

2008-11-09T23:46:00.001-08:00

Everything is fine and i think i have tried my best in performing well in the exam. To Abang Hakim, Abang Ashairi, Kak Zack, Kak Dewi, Kak Yana, i would like to thank them for always supporting me. You brighten up my life!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Exam week: Unplugged Concert

2008-11-05T03:57:00.000-08:00

To me, exam week is the most crucial and excruciating moments. Undoubtedly, it drives me crazy. In order to alleviate the unbearable pressure that I am having at this time, i will always assume that sitting for exam is similar to beautifully singing the wonderfully interesting songs during the unplugged concert. Each exam paper that i am going to sit for will be accompanied by particular songs. These songs or so called exam theme songs will never fail to mesmerize and captivate your attention. The following are the theme songs for each exam paper.

Khidmat Masyarakat 2= Dingin
Teaching of Listening and Speaking Skill in An ESL Context= Medley of Puncak Kasih and Jerat Percintaan.
Learner Diversity and Differentiated Teaching= Aku Cinta Padamu
Literature in English for Malaysian Schools= Syurga Di Hati Kita
Methods in TESL= My heart Will Go On

Wish me luck

Successful outcome is within the realms of possibility.

Thank you my ********* for continuously supporting. Indeed, you are the greatest source of my inspiration.

i love xxxxxx

2008-11-02T21:49:00.000-08:00

All hopes are gone.

2008-10-20T05:30:00.000-07:00

Undeniably, i feel so stressed at this time. This is definitely because of the marks given by the people in authoritative. Sometimes, it is so hard for me to accept this ugly truth; you have tried your best to do the written assignment especially and yet you still don't get the desired marks . In other words, the successful outcome is beyond the realm of the possibility. Perhaps, that is my mistake to put high expectation of something and presuppose everything will go according to our plan. However, that is the hurdles that every student must go through in order to succeed in their study. Hopefully, i will be able to regain my control as well as strength to pursue my dreams. Seriously, i don't want people to perpetually look down upon me. Never ever!!!!!!. I have had enough bad experience during my childhood and i don't want that to happen again. ........

Special thanks to Heritos for always listening to my problems and offering practical solutions. I really appreciate it.

English

2008-08-20T05:32:00.000-07:00

Why do i choose 'English' as my topic for this entry? Basically, i would like to share the trials and tribulations in learning English as a second language with all of the readers. Frankly speaking, English is the most complicated language that i have ever learned. One of the most compelling reasons is the structure of English sentence keeps changing and it seems unpredictable. At times, i get confused and i just don't know the solution to this insurmountable problem. Besides that, learning English really requires your gritty determination and patience. I, for example, was implicitly taunted and ridiculed by my friends and lecturers when i first started speaking this international language. I without doubt felt extremely upset and it deteriotated and killed my keen interest to learn English. Whenever i thought of my parents' sacrifices spending lots of money in my study,nevertheless, i felt motivated and continued the journey of learning English.
However, the lectures will always label their students in terms of their proficiency, fluency and accuracy. Regarding th e issue of labelling the students, i have an ambivalent feeling towards it.On one hand, i feel bad when the lectures deliberately mention about one's proficiency. On the other hand, it will make you realize your weakness and therefore you will strat brushing up your English .

Unbearable Pressure

2008-07-28T00:24:00.000-07:00

At this moment, i feel extremely stressful and i don't know how to cope with this situation. Lecturers are always trying their very best to deliver their messages/lessons to students. Paradoxically, their endeavour make me go mad and it is hard to absorb the information and internalize them. Some people may not care about this difficulty and just take it for granted. To me, it is a big issue that i by hook or by crook must deal with it in a professional way.

Regarding the issue of quiz, i am actually under pressure and i can't force myself anymore to remember all the facts pertaining to methods in TESL. In other words, i have to stop pushing myself and alaways look at the positive, bright side of this life. When people have unrealistically high expectations of you, i find it is so difficult to satisfy them; you may feel what i am feeling right now if you try to put yourself in my shoes. This difficulty is also expressed by our best singer in Malaysia through her song called 'Biarlah Rahsia.'

'Pernahkah kau bermimpi seketika

'Berada di tempatku'

Anyway, I am not going to dwell on this issue since it will not make me feel good.

Butterflies in my stomach.................

2008-07-16T00:56:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, i will be presenting my oral presentation on thematic approach and schema theory. I was undeniably extremely nervous as my lecturer will be asking questions while delivering my oral presentation. I am so afraid of her challenging questions and i don't know how to cope with this situation. Anyway, her lecture was highly satisfactory and i at times feel comfortable expressing my views on certain issues. Even though i am feeling nervous right now, i will try the very best presenting that topic tomorrow morning. Hopefully, i can successfully answer her questions and make it through the rain. Pray for my success. For your information, i have got a new roommate and i will briefly explain about him for the next entry.

Very sincerely,

Butterfly

Heartfelt Appreciation to Seniors

2008-07-08T00:51:00.000-07:00

To tell the truth, i am indebted to my beloved seniors who already left for UKM 2 days ago.

Dearest Abang Ashairi,

Your temporary disappearance have brought a titanic impact on my life. Without you, I have to be self-reliant and i will always remember your words of encourangement. Indeed, you have made a difference in my life.

Very sincerely,

The big fan of Ashairi.

Dearest Kak Zack, Kak Dewi and Kak Yana,

I really miss you all and thank you for always giving me tips on how to do well in the examination. To Kak Zack, i am so lucky to have you as my senior since you are very supportive of me. To Kak dewi, i thank you for being a great senior and relentlessly giving your worthwhile advice. To Kak Yana, i thank you for always sharing your exam tips with me and i no doubt will strive for excellence.

Yours sincerely,

Zz

Teaching profession is not suitable for me?

2008-06-26T23:36:00.000-07:00

I think this is the right time to reveal all the major problems that have haunted my life for years. Aside from friendship, the teaching profession is the problem that I am going through right now. After i have finished my pre practicum at one of the schools in the state of Kuching, I realized that this profession doesn't suit my interest. In addition, the students nowadays are rebellious and it is hard to control them. Even if you reprimand them for their misconducts, they will never ever listen to you. Conversely, they are getting worst and it seems out of control. To tell the truth, you can't never ever imagine the circumstances that i have gone through because you are a normal man or a normal woman. At the same time, i would like to take this golden opportunity to thank Abg Ashairi for always understanding me. Your words make me stronger and boulder.

Everything changes

2008-06-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

It sounds unbelievable but it is true. Some of my friends do change and it is hard to accept. Mr. j, for example, who always keep in touch with feminine side, have become a masculine guy. Can you believe it?. I undeniably find hard to accept this ugly truth. I know this is a great, positive change but then u can't despise your effiminate friend. From now on, i vow to myself that i must be selective in choosing friend since friend does change and he or she will purposely ignore you when they are at the height of success. Saiful, learn from your mistake and never ever trust those friends.

Interested in earning an extra income?

2008-06-24T23:49:00.000-07:00

Big surprise.!! I have just received RM 350 after joining the perigi duit. I can't believe it. This is the website that can be visited by those who are interested in earning an extra income. What are you waiting for? Don't miss out the opportunity.

http://www.perigiduit.com/?ref=neeraz

Siti Nurhaliza and Ziana Zain are my inspirations.

2008-06-23T20:07:00.000-07:00

These two notable artistes in the music industry don't need any introduction. They have been my favourite artistes since i was little and both have great influnce on me. Siti Nurhaliza, for example, always strive for the best while Ziana Zain often endeavour to produce a great album. Implicity, i have tried my best to follow these kinds of attitudes embodied by these women and achieve a tremendous success in the near future. Ziana Zain, for instance , invariably make her fans proud of her by performing a striking performance and ahe at last enjoy the fuit of her labour. She is now known as a legendary icon and Malaysians certainly love and adore her. On the whole, I just want to be like them and hopefully, i can meet them face to face.

With Love
Butterfly

Sharing my dreams with the readers

2008-06-23T02:33:00.000-07:00

This is actually my first experience of blogging and it was such a great experience. Regarding the title's today, i would like to tell you about my dreams throughout the year of 2008.
1. Make money
2. Score a great result for this new semester.
3. Start looking for a loved one.
4. May God bless my life.

There is one more dream that i am dubious to share with you. Perhaps, this is not the right time and i am not ready for it. Just wait and see.

With love,
Butterfly