Phantomaths Weekly Challenge #4

Phantomaths Weekly Challenge #3

Phantomaths Weekly Challenge #2

Phantomaths Weekly Challenge #1

Solution:

Being sad in a French Way

Recently I have came across an absolutely great essay by my sister. It is about the motive of French language used in a novel 'Bright lights, big city' and it really captures the nature of the book and ideas behind it.

The author uses French words just for the sake of spicing up the text, due to lack of interest in the English language. Many people claim that that is the reason why Jay McInerney uses these words. My belief is that the words or sentences having something to do with France isn’t there to grab reader’s attention, but rather to point the readers into the right direction of the of the plot and update them with main character’s physical well-being.

The first time the author pointed out France and its national language was on page 2, when you were in a bar with a girl. On “I do not speak English” you immediately asked: “Français?” This being the first language you thought of shows that you has some kind of a personal relationship with this European country. A few lines after that, the author uses a French phrase: “vis-à-vis”, which means “face to face”. That is a key sentence, because it shows, that you even thinks in a different language occasionally, even though you does “not speak French” (p. 10). This first association with France was right before you stated that “You hate Tad Allagash” (p. 2). You obviously feels lonely, due to the fact that Tad left him, that just made him use French words.

You has been given a French piece by Clara. This article made you almost “hang yourself” (p. 8). This paragraph not only speaks about France and the article, you is about to write about it, but it also includes a French sentence: “je ne comprends pas” (p. 8), which means “I do not understand it”. As stated before, you does not speak French, even though he has “the claim of fluency in French on your resume” (p. 8).

Page 21 shows us your clear disappointment, when you find out, that the girl, Elaine, that you have been trying to get together with the whole night, is actually a homosexual a you find “Elaine and Theresa engaged in an unnatural act” (p. 21).  “Bon appetite” (p. 21) is your answer to seeing this, which once again proves that whenever you find out something rather unpleasant or you feel casted down, you find a way to cope with it through French words.

Chapter five begins with you meeting Amanda. The author describes how you have felt about her from the beginning, obviously these are unpleasant memories for you. “LES JEUX SONT FAITS„ (p. 27) is the name of this chapter, which distinctly indicates what the atmosphere of this chapter will be. Not only does the chapter start with the meeting of you and Amanda, but it continues to show us the end of their relationship as well. „I’m staying“ (p. 30) is Amanda’s way of telling you that they may never meet again. After calling her several times, you has only been given „Au contraire, Pierre“ (p. 30) as an aswer, that followed her „ripping the last strained tissues that held your heart intact“ (p. 30).

On the contrary, when you finally meats Vicky, he becomes nearly a freshly new person. He forgets about most of his problems, doesn’t have the need to take cocaine and basically feels fortunate again. Page 38 shows us the longest French sentence ever used in this book. “Style-joie de vivre, je ne sais quoi, savoir-faire, sprezzatura” (p. 38). My translator did detect these words as being French, but did not submit any meaning. The only possible way of interpreting this French input is that you has been shocked with pleasure of how perfect Vicky actually is. All he imagined was nothing like she was. You uses French phrases in any kind of emotional shift – not only in being sorrowful, but also in being cheerful.

Julia Cerna, 31.3.2015

A Small Measure of Peace

A small measure of peace. This is the way. Each of us is constantly looking for this. Trying to find a path to the small measure of peace of our lives. And while listening to the Hans Zimmer’s composition A small measure of peace, I think I do understand this phrase. What does it really mean. A small measure of peace. A moment in life when everything stops, nothing else matters, being united with the past, present and future, looking at your life from outside, not really thinking about it, but feeling that "yes, I have found my small measure of peace". Not everybody finds it. Majority of people don’t. But it exists.

And it’s not something one can aim for, but something one can achieve. Find itself standing in.

"And so the days of the Samurai had ended. Nations, like men, it is sometimes said, have their own destiny. As for the American Captain, no one knows what became of him. Some say that he died of his wounds. Others, that he returned to his own country. But I like to think he may have at last found some small measure of peace, that we all seek, and few of us ever find." -The Last Samurai

Lukas Cerny, 20.3.2015

Porno - tvrdá droga dnešní společnosti

O pornu se moc nemluví. Jakoby to bylo sprosté slovo. Něco zakázaného, čeho se naše konverzace nemůžou dotknout. Přitom to je tak důležité téma, které ovlivňuje svět a životy miliony jedinců. Každý kluk i holka se někdy koukli na porno. Proč ne. Je to vzrušující. Vždyť to má být vzrušující. Ale bohužel porno nese sebou i několik problémů. Samozřejmě, i já jsem se nespočetněkrát kouknul na porno, ale možná právě proto bych vám chtěl říct, co si teď o pornu myslím.

Je to jedna z nejtvrdších drog. Kluci i holky, už v mladém věku, se začnou dívat na porno. Proč by ne. Je to jejich jediná sexuální stimulace, ještě před tím než začnou chodit s holkami (budu mluvit z pohledu kluka, protože to je mi trošku bližší). Jenže po chvíli pravidelného koukání na porno jejich sexuální představy začnou být zahlceny těmi nejhoršími sexuálními praktiky. Chlap, který vždy je silnější než žena a ukazuje svou dominanci při sexu. Porno je tak nepřirozené, přesto se to vštěpí do mozků většině lidí a začne to být pro ně normální. A nejen normální, ale slabé a mírné. Lidský mozek si zvykne na danou dávku sexuální stimulace a vyžaduje silnější a tvrdší porno s funkcí silnější sexuální stimulace. Nejenže je těžké se už odpoutat od koukání na porno, ale zároveň mozek vyžaduje ještě silnější. A pro kluka, v jehož fantazii by žádné masochistické, či jiné nepřirozené sexuální praktiky nemohli být nikdy vůbec zrozeny, se stanou tyto představy normální. A nemůže se jich zbavit.

A mnozí to ani nepovažují za problém, natož, aby si to veřejně přiznali. Proč by to byl problém? Vždyť to je jenom porno. Tak ať si zkusí se na to po co nejdelší dobu nedívat. A ještě smutnější je fakt, že to je další síla, udržující chlapce doma, místo toho, aby šel za holkami. S holkou si může facebookovat a při tom mám dostačující sexuální stimulaci porna. Vše je v pořádku. Před sto lety Facebook ani porno nebyly. Oboje dvoje jsou smutné výmysly dnešní doby.

Nechci znít jako někdo, kdo by kohokoliv odsuzoval a povyšoval se nad lidmi, co se koukají na porno. Jen chci předat můj názor, se kterým v hloubi duši mnozí souhlasí, jen si to možná nechtějí přiznat (podle mého názoru). A chci se dotknout tématu, které je pro mnohé tak důležité, ale přesto se ho naše konverzace nikdy nedotknou.

„About 64-68% of young adult men and about 18% of women use porn at least once every week.“ - http://www.covenanteyes.com/2013/02/19/pornography-statistics/

Lukas Cerny, 21. 2. 2015