Archive by Author
Why I, I Wonder? Posted by Gary Locke on Apr 14, 2017
In the English language, I is the nominative singular pronoun, used in reference to oneself, and it is always capitalized. No other language singles out and capitalizes this pronoun, only English. We don’t capitalize any other pronoun, me, my, mine, we, us, our… The question is – why? The most obvious answer is because English…
Reciting Poetry Posted by Gary Locke on Apr 7, 2017
Emily: Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it–every, every minute? Stage Manager: No. (pause) The saints and poets, maybe they do some. From “Our Town” by Thornton Wilder April is the month which brings us in the United States…
Understanding Irony Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 31, 2017
“The supreme irony of life is that hardly anyone gets out of it alive.” Robert A. Heinlein Understanding irony can be challenging. Explaining irony may be far more difficult. And yet, many people seem to recognize it when they see it. How ironic. Irony, in its simplest form may be defined as a situation in…
Nonetheless, Nevertheless, Notwithstanding Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 23, 2017
Here they are again: Words which sound so much alike, have similar meanings, and everybody uses them. What, then, is the difference? Let’s begin with the fact that nonetheless, nevertheless, and notwithstanding are all compound words. This means that you can break the word up into separate words. By doing so, you can find clues…
Where’d You Get That Drawl, Y’all? Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 17, 2017
Where did the famous Southern drawl of the American South come from, and why is it so often imitated? As I’ve mentioned before, I sometimes work in the theater. Lately, I’ve been in rehearsal for All the Way, a play about President Lyndon Johnson, and the passage of the United States Civil Rights Bill. I’m…
The “King” of Comic Books Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 9, 2017
If you’ve been to the movies in recent years, or even if you’ve been watching TV, you are probably aware of the popularity of comic book characters, and their influence on popular culture. Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, The Hulk and others are all figures in what is known as the Marvel universe. They are…
Don’t Be So Sure! Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 3, 2017
Has this happened to you? As an English learner we all know the pitfalls of homonyms, but what happens when you encounter words which have the same cognate, a thesaurus tells us they all are synonyms, but you know instinctively they must somehow have different meanings? As an experiment, try looking up the word ensure…