One of the founders of the French New Wave movement in cinema, which rejected the classic narrative style of filmmaking, French director Jean-Luc Godard introduced a number of then-radical stylistic tools in his films, including jump cuts, character asides, and documentary-style techniques, to blur the boundary between fact and fiction. Though he is regarded as one of the late 20th century’s great filmmakers, one of his films was condemned by the Catholic Church for alleged heresy. Which one? Discuss
Month: December 2022
be in with (someone)
To be in close association with someone or some group. Watch the video
Topiary
Topiary is the art of clipping or trimming live shrubs or trees into decorative shapes. The earliest topiary was probably the simple development of edgings, cones, columns, and spires to accent a garden scene. This architectural use gave way to elaborate shapes such as ships, hunters, and hounds. Although the fashion reached its height in 17th-century Britain, many topiary gardens are popular tourist destinations today. What writer’s essay helped to undermine the topiary trend in Britain? Discuss
recidivist
Definition: (noun) Someone who is repeatedly arrested for criminal behavior, especially for the same criminal behavior.
Synonyms: habitual criminal, repeater.
Usage: After his third arrest for petty theft, it became clear to the local police that they had a recidivist on their hands.
Discuss
Benazir Bhutto Becomes First Female Leader of a Muslim Nation (1988)
The daughter of a Pakistani prime minister executed following a coup, Bhutto was keenly aware of the risks of political life. Nevertheless, she chose to follow in her father’s footsteps and in 1988 became prime minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to lead a Muslim nation. Dogged by allegations of corruption, she fled the country in 1999. She returned in late 2007 and, after escaping one attempt on her life, was assassinated. Who stood accused of the 1996 murder of her brother? Discuss
Gianni Versace (1946)
A dressmaker’s son, Gianni Versace was exposed to fashion from a young age. After working for several Italian ateliers, in 1978 he opened his own Milan studio in partnership with his siblings Santo and Donatella. Over the next two decades, he built a fashion empire that grew to include 130 boutiques worldwide and had annual sales above $800 million. But his career was cut short in 1997, when a fugitive serial killer murdered him on the steps of his Florida mansion. Was the murderer ever caught? Discuss
I'll be hanged if I (do something)
I am determined not to do something. Watch the video
Rice Paddies
In Asian countries where traditional methods of rice cultivation are practiced, rice is grown in flooded fields called rice paddies. The fields are first prepared by plowing, fertilizing, and smoothing, and seedlings are started in seedling beds. They are then transplanted by hand to the fields, which have been flooded by rain or river water. Irrigation is maintained by dike-controlled canals or by hand watering until the fields are drained for harvesting. What is the origin of the word “paddy”? Discuss
bellicose
Definition: (adjective) Warlike in manner or temperament; pugnacious.
Synonyms: battleful, combative, contentious.
Usage: She had always found him to be bellicose and was not surprised when he was expelled from the military academy for his belligerent and violent behavior.
Discuss
Rosa Parks Refuses to Give Up Her Seat (1955)
Dubbed the “Mother of the Modern-Day Civil Rights Movement” by the US Congress, Rosa Parks was an African-American civil rights activist who became famous in 1955 for refusing to vacate her seat on a municipal bus for a white man. This act of civil disobedience sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which launched Martin Luther King, Jr., into prominence and became one of the largest and most successful movements against racial segregation. How many thousands of commuters took part in the boycott? Discuss