INDIAN ENGLISH - PREPOSITION

INDIAN ENGLISH - PREPOSITION

Speaking any language comes with some challenges. Spoken language is much different than the language is written on the paper. We use a word ‘literature’ for written text; it can be read and rewrite. The spoken language is used in interpersonal, group communication. It is the most sensitive aspect of language as it is considered more casual and not formal. At the same time it is the most sensational aspect. It motivates, trigger and seduce people.

As ‘English’ being second language in India and much part of the world, it is normally overshadowed with mother tongue of that country.

Today we will be discussing the example of an event that began in the past and continues into the present? In English, we often use prepositions to place a noun, pronoun or noun phrase in time. This way, we can communicate the passage of time.

The very common problem English learners face is how to use prepositions of time. Two of the most common prepositions of time are ‘for’ and ‘since’.

We will be studying the use of for, from and since
For - This preposition is talk about an amount of time or space. The amount of time could be seconds, minutes, hours, days, months or even years. In short -  for is used to specify a period of time.
There are common phrases derived out of this preposition

1.     for the weekend

2.     for ages

3.     for a long time

This can be used to talk about vague periods of time.
‘For’ can be used when talking about the past, present or future.
Here are three example sentences that use similar vocabulary, but use different verb tenses.

(Past) Last year, I traveled for four weeks.
(Present Continuous) I'm travelling for six weeks.
(Future) Next year, I will travel for three months.

Since - In English, we use since to refer to a point of time. Since can refer to a point after a specific time or event of past. We need to mention year, month or date. It is also refer to a particular point beginning sometime in the past and continuing until the present time. The best example we find in the advertisement, read the name plates of old bakeries and cake shops. Time of India use it on front page. Read carefully, ‘since 1835’. The important point is that since is used with a particular point in time.
The basic way of using since is this:

since + a particular point in time.

We normally use present perfect and past perfect tenses in the main clause of the sentence. You cannot use since when you are talking about the future because, by definition, since refers to specific point in the past.
Here are two examples in the present perfect tense:

It has been running since 8 a.m.
I have been driving since 10 p.m.

Esteemed confectioners since 1935

For - it is always used with a period of time. For is used to describe time but not specific time.
we can use for and since with similar verb tenses.

I have been driving for three hours.
I have been waiting since 11 p.m.

We have lived here for 30 years.
We have lived here since 1980.

In the example sentences, both for and since show an event that began in the past and continues into the present.
Always remember: for can be used with other verb tenses, including the future!

Example. I will be working for ‘TIME magazine’ for next two years.

From – It is used with certain "non-movement verbs". It show
someone's origin. If be from or come from are followed by the name of country, place or district.

Whenever we use ‘from’ to define time, we need to specify the time,

Example-       1. I work in office from 9.00am to 6.00pm.

2. We work from Monday to Friday.

When we use ‘from’ to define time we also need to specify it by using ‘to’. It is alsoways used for the purpose of past.

When from is used for travel or movement we again have to use it with to

Example –     1. I am traveling from Jaipur to Patna.

                        2. I will be traveling from 6^thJune to 17^th June this month.

In India many graduates, post graduates and professionals makes silly mistakes in English language. The usage of for, from and since is the trio of confusion. I am sure you must have liked my penmanship. Do write your feedback to me. Do contact me.

About Writer, -Writer is a Professor Mass Communication, film critic, writer, journalist and copywriter. I have been teaching cinema since 2005. I teach cinema and its roots in sociology, politics, history and psychology.

World's Biggest Man Made Famine unfold in Bitter Harvest film

World's Biggest Man Made Famine unfold in Bitter Harvest film 

Bitter Harvest narrates the saga of devastating famine of Josef Stalin 1930s era in Ukrain. Film becomes more interesting when it narrates the story of characters; director takes us close to their aspirations, dreams and reality.

Ukrain is the border nation for German and Russians. What we read in press about red revolution of 1930s which is glorified by films such as October, Battleship of Potemkin. We forget how Stalin had already set for mass-murder by deliberate starvation of millions of Ukrainians.

Today Ukrain being the eastern European country does not get space in news paper. If you are a world cinema student and enthusiast or may be a social, political or Mass Communication expert do watch the film and you will see how your perception about communism changes. We do not find any difference of fascism and communism. It is one of the most overlooked tragedies of the 20th Century, BITTER HARVES

The film is based on real life history from Soviet-era man-made famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in the 1930s. More than 3.5 million people died, some say 10 million.

We follow tepid love story between Yuri and his childhood sweetheart, Natalka (Samantha Barks). Directed showcased the armed struggle by kulaks and their sympathizers.

Bitter Harvest is a film which talks about the social and political turmoil and its roots deeply engulfed in corruption, politics and communism. 1930 is known for the year of economic depression and biggest man made famine. Ukraine is the newly joined part to USSR and how the biggest man made famine is created is depicted in the film. Indian audience can relate this film as the story progresses with the love story of the characters. The literature students will relish it with span of time shown from the birth of child to their love and mature years. Historical scholars and political pundits will like this film as it takes us close to the people of Ukraine.  

DIE WELLE 2008 - GERMAN SOCIOPOLITICAL THRILLER

DIE WELLE 2008  - GERMAN SOCIOPOLITICAL THRILLER

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Die Welle (English: The Wave) is a 2008 German sociopolitical thriller directed by Dennis Gansel. It is starring Jürgen Vogel, Frederick Lau, Jennifer Ulrich and Max Riemelt in the leads. Die Welle is based on Ron Jones' social experiment The Third Wave. The film was produced by Christian Becker for Rat Pack Filmproduktion, It one of the hot favorite German cinema among critics.

The Wave is one of the movies to convert a social experiment into a fictionalized plot. As the Stanford prison experiment of 1971 was adopted 2001 production Das Experiment by Oliver Hirschbiegel, and the 2015 production directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez.

Die Welle Gansel's Wave is based on teacher Ron Jones's "Third Wave" experiment, which took place at a Californian school in 1967. He explains the concept of National Socialism through live experiment of totalitarian, strictly-organized "movement" and harsh punishments led by him autocratically. The warm sense of community trigger wave of enthusiasm from students and they form a league. Jones admitted to having enjoyed the project but he aborts the project on the fifth day. He confess students how he implemented the parallels towards the Nazi youth movements.

In 1981Morton Rhue published his book "The Wave", which was published in Germany in 1984 and has since enjoyed great success as a school literature text. It has sold a total of over 2.5 million copies.

The screenplay is based on an article written by Ron Jones in which he talks about the experiment and how he remembers it. The major difference we find is physical violence and the bloody end part of the movie. “Gansel claimed in an interview that it was extremely important to him to ensure that his movie would not differ as much from the experiment as Rhue’s book.”

The narrative style is linear and the film is narrated from the perspective of a third person. Wenger is filmed in low angle shot and sings rock music in the opening sequence; on the other hand he seems depressed in this last scene. Slow motion shots reflect tormenting self-reproaches. The subjective view of the thoughtful character relates to the dramatic composition throughout the film. Gansel justifies the radical end with the necessity of shocking the audience.  We find the ‘modus operandi’ and nature of students who like 'real', when something is real; they get aggressive about it and accept it. Anyone if they broke the rules, they get in trouble with these secret police, who were the motivated students. This film offers real fear and intimidation. It was like a police state.

Professor- broke up lines of communication between students. Some had been friends for 10 years, but he creates the atmosphere where no one could trust anybody. If you had any doubts or questions or thoughts of resistance, you couldn't tell anyone because you would get in trouble. You didn't dare ask whether it was real or not.

Each day come with more surprises. And each time you thought you had understood it, there would be a new twist.

Die Welle film becomes near to my research as most of the countries today are following these ‘modus operandi’ to rule the masses. The innocent nationals are either become zealots or get disillusioned with system.

Die Welle is set in modern-day Germany. Jones says it depicts the experiment well.  Denis Gansel, the director, has successfully captured the nature of kids at this time in life and history in a refreshing and accurate way - kids being techno-friendly, who resist the global economy by burning Nike.

As in Economic we have macro and micro economics we have same view in politics. The regular citizens always look at micro level and never understand what is happening at macro level. This sheer negligence always takes its toll on civilization. The work of mass media is to analyze the situation and put it in front of the people. Be it a news paper we get editorial and news stories and news features. On TV we get special shows and documentaries. Internet offers many web portals with in-depth analysis. It is the technology which becomes our extension and we become lethargic to take a panoramic view.

Die Welle is the unique example which demystifies the concept of ‘National Socialism’. It is a World Cinema, embrace it with me. 

2016 The year that shaped Oxford Dictionary

The year that shaped Oxford Dictionary

US election and EU referendum and problems of terrorism have shaped the social psychology, means of media and marketing trends. The complete global political scenario went under a sea change.

When we say language it is the reflection of your life. I remember the once Sir David Cristal has said, Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people’s anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they see as their language.

Sir David Cristal said it in a discussion in Oxford University, it is worth noting how the Oxford dictionary people have took it seriously. The post articles of US election and EU referendum as BREXIT made readers think about the need of a new word. 'Post-truth' the new word coined in journalism and media and used it repeatedly. It became the word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries.

US President Donald Trump increasingly used the word ‘post-truth’ as it attributed for his presidential nomination

It is an adjective - circumstances in which facts are less influential for building public opinion than it appeals to emotion or personal belief. 

New Word of 2017 added in Oxford English Dictionary

The rapidly changing technology added some word to English language.

We will take a look at some words,

1. alt-right - noun- shortened from the fuller form “alternative right” and defined as “an ideological grouping associated with extreme conservative or reactionary viewpoints.
2. Brexiteer – A man pro Brexit
3. Coulrophobia - the fear of clowns, and hygge, the Danish concept of cosiness.
4. 'Post-truth'- adj- circumstances in which facts are less influential for building public opinion than it appeals to emotion or personal belief.

There is an interesting background behind the word, ‘post-truth’, First time the term post-truth was used in his essay of 1992 by late Serbian-American playwright Steve Tesich in the Nation magazine. Tesich, used it when writing about the Iran-Contra scandal and the Persian Gulf war. He said “we, as a free people, have freely decided that we want to live in some post-truth world”.

5. adulting: noun, informal -The practice of behaving in a way characteristic of a responsible adult, especially the accomplishment of mundane but necessary tasks.
6. chatbot: noun -A computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet.
7. coulrophobia: noun -Extreme or irrational fear of clowns.
8. glass cliff: noun- Used with reference to a situation in which a woman or member of a minority group ascends to a leadership position in challenging circumstances where the risk of failure is high.
9. hygge: noun- A quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or wellbeing (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture).
10. Latinx: noun- A person of Latin American origin or descent (used as a gender-neutral or non-binary alternative to Latino or Latina).
11. woke: adjective, US informal- [Originally in African-American usage] Alert to injustice in society, especially racism.