An Electronic Magazine by Omar Villarreal and Marina Kirac ©

Year 3 Number 73 July 13^th 2002

______________________________________________________________

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being SHARED

_______________________________________________________________

Dear SHARERS,

Lovely sunny winter morning (Marina says that if we keep opening our SHARE with these phrases people will not care to go on reading because they might think somebody e-mailed them the weather forecast) (And she also says I shouldn´t make parenthetical comments so long). Anyway coming back to our topic, the weather: it´s a lovely sunny winter morning. What can be better than a few rays of warm sunshine in a winter day. We are lucky to have each other and to have our two rays of sunshine with us most of the time: Martin and Sebas. Look around you. We are sure you will also find those tiny and warm rays of sunshine that can make a world of difference in a winter day. There´s always a good reason to be happy. Just look inside and look around and you will see a smile grow in your mouth and in your eyes.

Love

Omar and Marina

In SHARE 73

1.- Grammar and Power.

2.- Semióticas de la Vida Cotidiana.

3.- An Interactive Online Teacher Community.

4.- Language Challenge.

5.- Traductores: Fortalezas y Desafíos.

6.- An Invitation from The Suburban Players.

7.- Gangster Slang.

8.- The Buenos Aires Players Winter Season.

9.- Hey You: Bernieh comes to our rescue.

10- TEFL Web Journal : Call for Papers.

11.- Free Seminars in Southern Greater Buenos Aires.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.- GRAMMAR AND POWER

Our dear SHARER Mónica Valentini from Santiago de Chile sends us this article which in turn she received from a colleague in the University of Oregon. It was obviously part of an IATEFL Newsletter but we lack any other detail about it.

I know this might now start to look like one of those dreaded e-mail chains but it isn´t. WE found the article really enlightening and we did not want you to miss it.

GRAMMAR, POWER AND BOTTLED WATER

Scott Thornbury

This issue of the IATEFL Newsletter is about language; I have just been to a conference about language; I have even written a book about language. I love language. Nevertheless, I have some misgivings about the way language - or more, specifically, grammar - is being mythologised. The myth that concerns me here is the one in which grammar went away and then came back again. Why is this myth being disseminated? That is the question I wish to address in this article.

You may have noticed that a number of recent books seem to be celebrating, in the words of one of them, "the return of grammar to the centre stage of language teaching and learning" (Tonkyn, 1994, p.12). Yet, for as long as I have been teaching, grammar has never been anywhere but centre stage. As evidence, one has only to look at the contents page of any coursebook that has topped the best-seller lists over the last three decades. (Even the functional-notional courses that flowered in the late 1970s could not wholly disguise their hidden grammatical agenda).

What's more, as a professional teacher-watcher, all I have ever seen in the classes I have observed is grammar. Grammar is the engine that drives classroom practice. It is in grammatical terms that pedagogical aims are articulated; it is for linguistic purposes that texts are chosen and exploited; it is the reproduction of specific forms that motivates classroom interactions; it is their lack of accuracy that prompts teacher feedback; and it is mastery of form that is still largely the standard by which learning is evaluated. This has been the case for as long as I have been privileged to watch other people teach.

Appropriation

If grammar has been around so long, why suddenly is its "return" being trumpeted? And by whom? Or, to put it another way, whose interests are being served by trumpeting the return of grammar? A glance at the list of contributors in the "grammar revival" literature suggests that claims such as the following are not entirely disinterested:

Professional development for language teachers must be strengthened by theories of language (Burns, 1990, p. 57). [Lecturer in Linguistics at Macquarie University]

Language teaching will not make significant advances...until more teachers become convinced of the importance of grammar (Odlin, 1994, p. ix). [Associate Professor of English at Ohio State University]

Much more systematic attention to descriptive linguistics and to applied linguistics will be needed, both in all kinds of language-linked first degrees and in inservice education (Mitchell, 1994, p. 222). [University of Southampton]

Am I imagining things, or do these claims strike you as just a little self-serving? Let's ignore, for the moment, the fact that, by implying a straightforward connection between theories of language and theories of learning, the authors of such claims appear to be ignoring the evidence of SLA research. No, what is at issue here is a question of ownership. By claiming ownership of grammar the applied linguistics departments assert their influence over the industry that trades in that commodity - and their right to muscle in on the profits as well. Teachers, construed here as being grammatically challenged, have no choice but to beat a path, cap in hand, to the grammar bank. (Language-as-commodity has recently become almost tangible - has been "embodied", even - as universities and publishers scramble to set up - and market - corpora. Note also, in the promotion of corpora, the use of banking metaphors). And speaking of corpora, grand claims, such as Sinclair's (1997), to the effect that "those who teach languages depend on those who describe them" ( p. 29) not only, assert the hieratic role of linguists as guardians of the sacred mysteries, but serve to disenfranchise teachers by undervaluing the pedagogical power of their experience and intuitions. This is a clear case of the kind of dysfunctional discourse described by Clarke (1994), in which "the voices of teachers are subordinated to the voices of others who are less centrally involved in language teaching" (p. 13).

Selling grammar

Publishers, of course, want a share of the pie, too. By swearing allegiance to grammar, they are guaranteed a slice. John Soars, co-author of the phenomenally successful Headway series, admitted recently that their intention had been to "reinstate grammar" (EL Gazette, Issue 209, June 1997, p. 20). Sound familiar? Since the advent of Headway publishers have been falling over themselves to produce copycat courses. Despite paying lip-service to communication (Thornbury, 1996), current ELT materials are resolutely form-driven, to the point that, as Grady (1997) points out, they represent "all types of issues and all types of discourse as not requiring much thought or action beyond the decision as to the appropriate grammatical structure" (p. 9). Grammar effectively sanitises and trivialises learning. It also makes language "safe", and therefore more easily and more widely marketable.

In an article in the ELT Journal Allwright (1981) challenged the hegemony of coursebooks, at least in their traditional role as "teaching materials". His point was that what we now need are "learning materials" and alluded to a "general change in the conception of teacher and learner responsibilities for the management of language learning" (p. 143). How would this power shift impact on published materials? Allwright suggests that "something much less ambitious, probably locally produced, would seem preferable" (p. 142). Bang goes the global coursebook.

The sense of a devolution of power to the learner echoes Candlin's (1994) claim for task-based learning - that it "empowers learners to make meanings for themselves". While grammar-based materials work on the assumption that there is something learners don't know, task-based materials work on the assumption that there is something learners can do. Unsurprisingly, task-based learning has not been heavily marketed. The notion of localised, learner-driven lessons sits uneasily with the concept of globalisation. Instead, by creating a dependency culture, by construing the learner as grammatically-challenged, grammar-based materials ensure a market. By getting learners hooked on grammar, the publishers are guaranteed not just any old market but a global one, because, after all, what is language if not grammar? Only the marketing of bottled water could be simpler. Just as consumers have been taught to trust bottled water more than tap water (despite blind-tastings that prove there is no difference [Brown, 1997]) so have learners been conned into choosing packaged language over some natural, home-grown, more eco-friendly product.

In short, and as a critical reading of university- and publisher-speak reminds us, when the need for "more grammar" is invoked it is invariably in the cause of maintaining and strengthening existing power structures. As Cameron (1995) writes, in her critique of the moral panic recurrently triggered by liberal educational reformers: "A panic about grammar is ... interpretable as the metaphorical expression of persistent conservative fears that we are losing the values that underpin civilization and sliding into chaos" (p. 95). I am not suggesting that it was moral panic that inspired John and Liz Soars to want to reinstate grammar when they wrote Headway. Nevertheless, grammar, order, and rules are related concepts, and in a profession that is desperately trying to project a measure of respectability, not to say academic credibility, grammar rules.

Class struggle

Grammar rules in the classroom, too. Just as grammar bolsters the hegemony of university departments and publishers, so too do teachers use grammar to prop up a benign classroom autocracy. Why have teachers - traditionally of a liberal persuasion - colluded? The answer is simple: grammar is order. From the point of view of course design, materials choice, and assessment, a discrete-item, grammatical organisation is a lot less messy than, say, a functional or a procedural or a lexical one. At the level of classroom practice, explicit attention to grammar provides structure, literally, to an otherwise potentially anarchic situation, and is one reason why teachers who lack either classroom experience or confidence in their own linguistic competence, or both, embrace grammar so eagerly. A meaning-driven (as opposed to a form-driven) pedagogy presents seemingly intractable management problems to the novice and non-native teacher, whereas explicit instruction of pre-selected de-contextualised discrete-item linguistic forms offers the teacher safe passage through the minefield.

But grammar is not just order. Grammar is power. Grammar invests EFL teachers with transmittable knowledge, thereby propping up a status that is often felt to be dodgy, to say the least. As Wright (1991) warned, "one great danger of acquiring specialist knowledge about language is the possible desire to show learners that you have this knowledge" (p. 68-9). Combined with what Curran (1972) called "the sickness to teach" (p. 114) the grammar revival legitimises lessons of excruciating boredom and irrelevance. Classroom discourse is not so much discourse as metadiscourse (Scollon & Scollon, 1995). It is talk about talk. It is content teaching where the only content is grammar. Real language use, if it occurs at all, occurs in the interstices and marginalia of lessons. The effect of this "overt teacher grammar display behaviour" is not only to deprive learners of valuable practice opportunities but to maintain the unequal power relationship that already exists in many classrooms.

To sum up: grammar represents the imposition of order and the maintenance of power, both at the level of the global culture of ELT, and in the culture of the ELT classroom. One final example of how these cultures are interconnected: in a response to Allwright's (1981) critique of teaching materials, O'Neill (1982) - a coursebook writer - came to the defence of coursebooks. (He would, wouldn't he?) One argument he used was the generalisability of grammar to multiple contexts. What is interesting is that he situated his arguments in a specific instance when he was teaching English in a German shipyard to "a small group of German technicians who were expecting to train a contingent of Iranians how to maintain and repair six submarines" (p. 148). He adds, without apparent irony, that "this was a few months before the downfall of the Shah" (ibid. p. 149). See how it works? COURSEBOOK WRITER USES GRAMMAR TO PROP UP AILING DICTATORSHIP!

Post-grammar

What is the alternative? What is EFL tap-water like? I'll leave you to imagine (if you don't already know) a pedagogy where grammar is deconsecrated, where learners are empowered to make their own meanings, where teachers are emboldened to subvert the dictates of non-teachers, and where teachers and learners together construct a shared discourse of possibility. As a taster, I offer this extract from Edmund White's autobiographical novel The Farewell Symphony (1997) in which he describes Lucrezia, his Italian teacher:

Her teaching method was clever. She invited me to gossip away in Italian as best I could, discussing what I would ordinarily discuss in English; when stumped for the next expression, I'd pause. She'd then provide the missing word. I'd write it down in a notebook I kept week after week. ... Day after day I trekked to Lucrezia's and she tore out the seams of my shoddy, ill fitting Italian and found ways to tailor it to my needs and interests.

References:

Allwright, R. 1981, 1990. What do we want teaching materials for? In Rossner, R. & Bolitho, R.,(eds.) Currents of change in English language teaching, pp. 131-147. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Brown, P. 1997. Bottled water is "vast con". Guardian Weekly, 157 p. 14.

Burns, A. 1990. Focus on language in the communicative classroom. In Brindley, G. (ed.) The Second Language Curriculum in Action, pp. 36-58. Sydney: NCELTR.

Cameron, D. 1995. Verbal hygiene. London: Routledge.

Candlin, C. 1994. Task-based teaching; cognition, communication and cooperation. Paper given at APAC ELT Conference, Barcelona.

Clarke, M. 1994. The dysfunctions of the theory/practice discourse. TESOL Quarterly, 28, 9-26.

Curran, C. 1972. Counseling-Learning: A whole person model for education. New York: Grune & Stratton.

Grady, K. 1997. Critically reading an ESL text. TESOL Journal, 6, 7-10.

Mitchell, R. 1994. Foreign language teachers and the teaching of grammar. In Bygate, M., Tonkyn, A., & Williams, E. (eds). Grammar and The Language Teacher, pp 215-23. Hemel Hempstead: Prentice Hall.

Odlin, T. (ed.) 1994. Perspectives on Pedagogical Grammar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

O'Neill, R. 1982, 1990. Why use textbooks? In Rossner, R. & Bolitho, R.,(eds.) Currents of change in English language teaching, pp. 148-156. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Scollon, R., & Scollon, S.W. (1995) Intercultural communication: A discourse approach. Oxford: Blackwell.

Sinclair, J. 1997. Corpus evidence in language description. In Wichmann, A., Fligelstone, S., McEnery, T., & Knowles, G. (eds.) Teaching and language corpora, pp. 27-39. Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman.

Thornbury, S. 1996. Paying lip-service to CLT. ELICOS Association Journal, 14, 51-63.

Tonkyn, A. 1994. Introduction: grammar and the language teacher. In Bygate, M., Tonkyn, A., & Williams, E. (eds). Grammar and The Language Teacher, pp 1-14. Hemel Hempstead: Prentice Hall.

White, E. 1997. The farewell symphony. London: Chatto & Windus.

Wright, T. 1991. Language awareness in teacher education programmes for non-native speakers. In James, C., & Garret, P. (eds.). Language Awareness in the Classroom, pp. 62-77. Harlow: Longman.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2.- SEMIÓTICAS DE LA VIDA COTIDIANA

V Congreso Internacional de la Federación Latinoamericana de Semiótica

Semióticas de la vida cotidiana

28 al 31 de agosto de 2002

Centro Cultural Gral. San Martin Buenos Aires Argentina.

Organizado por la Federación Latinoamericana de Semiótica -FELS-, la Asociación Argentina de Semiótica AAS, el Instituto de Lingüística de la UBA, la Sociedad de Estudios Morfológicos de la Argentina -SEMA- y la Dirección de Cultura del Gobierno de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires.

Recordamos así mismo la dirección de nuestra pagina web en donde podrá

encontrar mas informaciones acerca del evento:

http://www.congresofels.com

El Comité Organizador

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.- AN INTERACTIVE ONLINE TEACHER COMMUNITY

Dear Omar,

I am the Community Director at TeacherFocus.com, an interactive online educator community. I am writing to you today to tell you about our services and to ask for your support and the support of your publication in spreading the word about us.

In my work as a high school teacher and later a college professor, I have found that outside of conferences there was relatively little opportunity for those working in our profession to communicate and share information and experience. I also felt that there is a real gap in the utilization of the resources that the Internet offers to my colleagues.

While teaching, I have found that there is not enough communication between teachers across the country and around the world. As an example: every year educators "invent" a method of teaching that has been around for years, instead of actually building on that method of teaching and allowing it to evolve. I feel that I can help change all that, with one simple goal in mind: together teachers can achieve more.

With that in mind, in partnership with the talented designers at ThinkHost.com, I have set up an online community forum where educators can easily communicate with each other through threaded online discussions. Our site gives teachers a place to put their ideas and questions to be discussed and answered by other educators just like them through our extensive software suite that allows nearly real-time communication between educators through a very user-friendly web interface.

Please take a moment to visit the site at http://www.teacherfocus.com and see what we have to offer. If you like what you see then I would appreciate it if you could help us spread the word about the site by mentioning us in your publication.

I am very much open to hearing any other ideas and suggestions about how we may be able to work together, and look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thank you for your time,

Lucy Vaysman

Founder and Community Director

TeacherFocus.Com

---------------------------------------------------------------------

4.- LANGUAGE CHALLENGE

Here´s a challenge by our dear friend and SHARER Graciela Pascual :

Dear colleagues, students and English-speaking friends,

I thought some of you would probably be interested in twisting your brains a little with this *text-reconstruction activity* I got from a site.

It came from the TESLCA elist in a thread on Dictation software, and it's by a teacher from Spain who offered the URL (below) with this activity she's prepared for her students.

Have fun and challenge your English!!!!!

Connect Internet Explorer and go to:

http://www.eoiweb.com/~birgit/text_reconstruction/artistic_value.htm

You'll find a frame with the blanks for a text on the 'Value of Art'.

First, you have to make all the guesses you can, considering the number of letters of each word and grammar clues. Only when you're done with that, listen to the recording. And only when you're finished or have exhausted your mind (or your time!), have a look at the full text.

After finishing you can count the number of wrong guesses you made.

NO cheating, guys!!!!!

A good weekend to all,

Graciela Pascual

-----------------------------------------------------------------

5.- TRADUCTORES: FORTALEZAS Y DESAFÍOS

Our dear SHARER Ana María Gentile, Secretaria Círculo de Traductores Públicos de La Plata, sends us this announcement to SHARE with all of you.

II JORNADA BONAERENSE PARA TRADUCTORES E INTÉRPRETES

"Fortalezas y Desafíos para el Traductor en la Argentina de 2002"

24 de agosto de 2002 - de 8:30 a 16:00

Programa de Actividades

Manejo del Español como ventaja internacional del traductor

"La lengua española, íntegra y universal"

Dra. Alicia Zorrilla: Doctora en Letras por la Universidad del Salvador: Asesora en Lengua Española de la Academia Argentina de Letras; Coordinadora del Postítulo sobre Español como segunda lengua en la Universidad Católica Argentina; Presidenta de la Fundación Litterae

"La formación universitaria en lengua materna: el caso de la carrera de Traductor Público en la UNLP"

Ana María Gentile: Traductora Pública FR/ESP y Profesora de Letras - Universidad Nacional de La Plata.

Herramientas Informáticas

"Memorias de traducción: Qué son, cómo funcionan y para qué sirven"

Introducción al tema de las memorias de traducción,

presentación de la metodología de trabajo con las mismas, de las ventajas

para el traductor y de lo que ofrecen los principales programas que existen

en el mercado.

Paula Irisity: Traductora Pública uruguaya, reside y trabaja como traductora independiente de los idiomas francés, portugués e inglés. Miembro del CTP de Uruguay y de la ATA.

"Memorias de Traducción: contenedores y contenidos"

Mela Bosch: Profesora de Letras, Profesora Titular e Investigadora Científica de la UNLP.

"Experiencia práctica con la memoria de traducción - Trados"

Traductoras Públicas Angela Ciocca; Estela Lalanne de Servente; Astrid Wenzel

Evento organizado por:

Círculos de Traductores Públicos de la Zona Norte, de La Plata, del Oeste y del Sur

Sede: Colegio de Abogados de San Isidro - San Isidro - Buenos Aires - Argentina

Institución anfitriona: Círculo de Traductores Públicos de la Zona Norte

Informes: info@traductoreszonanorte.org

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

6.- AN INVITATION FROM THE SUBURBAN PLAYERS JUNIOR

Our dear SHARER Ximena Faralla from the Suburban Players sends us this invitation:

The Suburban Players Junior presents its -Winter Holidays Season- 2 Shows for the Whole Family!

Come share the Darkness with Count Dracula from Romania, in his eternal quest for Mina and join them in eternal love...

Luciano Dodero-Carolina Echeverría-Lucas R. Tsolakian-Veronica Taylor- Roman Chlapowski- Victor Taylor-Lucas Santucci-Martin Taylor-Fernando Armesto-Fernanda Bigotti- Melanie Green - Andrea Drocco Montal-Jackie Bousquet-Thomas Wright

July 20, 21, 27 & 28 - 6 pm

...plus...

The Wicked Witch has finally come up with a plan to become the Fairest of them all. Little Mirror on the Floor has his doubts about it while Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Lazy Dwarf will help Prince Charming in his quest for the last Princess on his "to be kissed" list...

Lucas Tsolakian-Veronica Taylor-Carolina Alfonsín-Lisandro Berenguer-Grassi

August 3 & 4 - 6 pm

Both shows written and directed by Ximena Faralla

Music: Julián Vidal - Songs: Marcelo Andino & Julieta Milea

Vocal Coaching: Florencia Rovere - Choreographies: Mara Santucci, Guadalupe Halfón, Natalia Salerno & Ana Laura Panizza. –

Costumes: Andrea Drocco & Sylveen Smith - Scenery: Patsy Fiore

$6 each show - Special Promo: Get 1 ticket for Dracula and 1 for Snow White at $8.

Reservations: 4747-4470 thesuburbanplayers@unete.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7.- GANGSTER SLANG

In a veeeeeery long posting , our dear SHARER Gustavo Buzzato sent us a delicious collection of “hardboiled slang”. We are just copying a few of the words and phrases he sent. The glossary runs obviously from A to Z and is much more extensive. We can send the rest to you by private e-mail if you request it from us or if you wish follow the instructions to access the direct source below:

If you're gripped by the odd (and, it must be said, often invented) slang of fictional gangsters in the period of Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade and Mike Hammer, this site will interest you. William Denton has put together a glossary he titles "Twists, Slugs and Roscoes". See http://www.miskatonic.org/slang.html .

If you've ever read a detective story, you may have come across a sentence like,

"I jammed the roscoe in his button and said, 'Close your yap, bo, or I squirt metal.'"

Something like this isn't too hard to decipher. But what if you encounter,

"The flim-flammer jumped in the flivver and faded."

"You dumb mug, get your mitts off the marbles before I stuff that mud-pipe down your mush - and tell your moll to hand over the mazuma."

"The sucker with the schnozzle poured a slug but before he could scram out two shamuses showed him the shiv and said they could send him over."

You may need to translate this into normal English just to be able to follow the plot.

Or maybe you want to seem tougher. Why get in a car when you can hop in a boiler? Why tell someone to shut up when you can tell them to close their head? Why threaten to discharge a firearm when you can say, "Dust, pal, or I pump lead!"

This is the language spoken by Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Mike Hammer and the Continental Op. When Cagney, Bogart, Robinson and Raft got in a turf war, this is how they talked.

Now, with the help of this glossary, you too can speak it like a native!

* Alderman: A man's pot belly.

* Ameche: Telephone

* Ankle: o (n) Woman o (v) To walk

* Bangtails: Racehorses

* Barber: Talk

* Be on the nut, To: To be broke

* Bean-shooter: Gun

* Beezer: Nose

* Bent cars: Stolen cars

* Berries: Dollars

* Bindle : of heroin: Little folded-up piece of paper (with heroin inside)

* Bing: Jailhouse talk for solitary confinement, hence "crazy"

* Bird: Man

* Bit: Prison sentence

* Blip off: To kill

* Blow: Leave

* Blow one down: Kill someone

* Blower: Telephone

* Bo: Pal, buster, fellow, as in "Hey, bo"

* Boiler: Car

* Boob: Dumb guy

* Bop: To kill

* Breeze: To leave, go; also breeze off: get lost

* Broderick, The: A thorough beating

* Bruno: Tough guy, enforcer

* Bucket: Car

* Bump: Kill

* Bump gums: To talk about nothing worthwhile

* Bump off: Kill; also, bump-off: a killing

* Bunny, as in "Don't be a bunny": Don't be stupid

* Burn powder: Fire a gun

* Button man: Professional killer

* Buttons: Police

* Cabbage: Money

* Caboose: Jail (from "calaboose," which derives from the Spanish calabozo

* Can house: Bordello

* Can-opener: Safecracker who opens cheap safes

* Canary: Woman singer

* Cat: Man

* Century: $100

* Cheaters: Sunglasses

* Cheese it: Put things away, hide

* Chew: Eat

* Chicago lightning: gunfire

* Chicago overcoat: Coffin

* Chick: Woman

* Chilled off: Killed

* Chin: Conversation; chinning: talking

* Chin music: Punch on the jaw

* Chiv, chive: Knife, "a stabbing or cutting weapon" (Speaking)

* Chopper squad: Men with machine guns

* Clammed: Close-mouthed (clammed up)

* Clean sneak: An escape with no clues left behind

* Clip joint: In some cases, a night-club where the prices are high and the patrons are fleeced (Partridge's), but in Pick-Up a casino where the tables are fixed

* Clipped: Shot

* Close your head: Shut up

* Clout: Shoplifter

* Clubhouse: Police station

* Con: Confidence game, swindle

* Croak: To kill

* Croaker: Doctor

* Crushed out: Escaped (from jail)

* Cush: Money (a cushion, something to fall back on)

* Cut down: Killed (esp. shot?)

* Dance: To be hanged

* Dangle: Leave, get lost

* Darb: Something remarkable or superior

* Dark meat: Black person

* Daylight, as in "let the daylight in" or "fill him with daylight": Put a hole in, by shooting or stabbing

* Diapers, as in "Pin your diapers on": Clothes, get dressed

* Dip the bill: Have a drink

* Dish: Pretty woman

* Dive: A low-down, cheap sort of place

* Dogs: Feet

* Dough: Money

* Droppers: Hired killers

* Drum: Speakeasy

* Dry-gulch: Knock out, hit on head after ambushing

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

8.- THE BUENOS AIRES PLAYERS WINTER SEASON

Our dear friend and SHARER Celia Zubiri sends us this message:

THE BS. AS. PLAYERS present

Peter Pan, the King of Neverland.

Join Peter Pan's magic full of adventure, suspense and fun. Help him fight against Captain Hook's new plot. (A 60- minute musical comedy for children aged 5 to 9)

July, Thursday 25 - 7 pm

Frankenstein, a defrosted truth.

Be Dr. Frankenstein's guest and feel at home in his mansion but beware of his thrilling secret. (A 60-minute musical comedy for children aged 9 to 12)

August, Thursday 1 - 7 pm

A Midsummer Night's Dream - by W. Shakespeare

A happy comedy embodying innocence, poetic beauty and universal love. Based on William Shakespeare's play in a free version by Celia Zubiri.

July, Tuesday 23, 30 -8 pm-

Teatro Santamaría - Montevideo 842 –

If you mention SHARE : ticket $ 5 for any of these dates

Reservas: 4812-5307 / 4814-5455 - thebap@thebasaplayers.com

www.thebsasplayers.com

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9.- HEY YOU : BERNIEH COMES TO OUR RESCUE.

Last week we published a poem that Julia Roncoroni, a dear SHARER of ours, sent to us. Well, the case is she never said it was not her own´s but the lyrics of a famous (now even to us “famous”) song by Roger Daltrey. We sincerely apologize for the

blooper which not only shows that I am an ignoramus when it comes to rock (and a lot of other things, too many to mention) but also that we basically trust our dear SHARERS.

But should come to our rescue in the face of disaster? Who else but our dearest webmaster Bernieh. We shared our “concern” with him and this is what he wrote:

Hello, dear Omar!

I've noticed some readers are telling you that "Hey, you" isn't a poem but a song (which is right), and that the lyrics weren't written by Julia Roncoroni (which is right) but "Pink Floyd" (... which is somewhat wrong). In fact, Pink Floyd is the name of a BAND, not a person; thus, to tell that Pink Floyd wrote "Hey, you" is like saying that "Yesterday" was written by The Beatles. See below for two brief biographies of the band (watch out for misspellings, I copied these right from the webpages); there you'll find the origins of their name and a lot of interesting details too.

So the question still remains... who authored "Hey, you", indeed? Apparently it was Roger Waters. Check http://www.new.co.za/~currin/lyricswall.html
for the whole lyrics and authors in "The Wall". You'll see that Waters wrote all of the lyrics, having Gilmour also intervening in a couple of songs.

And if you read the biographies you'll find that the band split and there were some legal battles around the use of the name "Pink Floyd" and the rights on the songs. In fact, there were two "Pink Floyds", and Rogers Waters seems to have played as a floydean the same strong influential role John Lennon played among The Beatles.

A bear hug,
Bernieh.

=====================================
http://www.angelfire.com/ok2/wall/history.html

Pink Floyd formed in 1965 when guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett met an existing band of architects, bassist/vocalist Roger Waters, keyboardist/pianist Richard Wright, and drummer Nick Mason. They tried many names such as the Architectural Abdabs, The Screaming Abdabs, The Tea Set, Sigma 6, and others before settling on the Pink Floyd Sound. A name that Barrett came up with combining the names of two of his favorite bluesmen Pink Anderson and Floyd Council, later as we all know, the word "sound" was dropped from the name.

The Floyd toured for several years in the London "underground" scene with several revolutionary stage techniques, namely the use of lights to match their music, 30+ minute "freak out" jams, and the use of movies on stage. They eventually caught the eye of Peter Jenner and Andrew King, who became their managers. Pretty soon they also landed a recording contract with Capitol Records.

At their first recording session in 1966 Pink Floyd recorded several songs including Nick's Boogie and an early version of Interstellar Overdrive (later released on the London '66 '67 album). Later, they released their first single Arnold Layne, which became a hit on the British charts. See Emily Play came next and went Top 10. The third single Apples and Oranges didn't fare nearly as well but their new album did.

The Piper At the Gates of Dawn (after a chapter in Kenneth Graeme's book The Wind In The Willows) was released in 1967, with Norman Smith producing. It too was successful in England and sold respectably in the United States. Barrett however, (due to his acid use among other things) was becoming increasingly less stable. Many times on stage he would play out of key, play the same note for the entire concert, and even not play at all. The rest of Pink Floyd knew that something needed to be done about this, so they got in touch with a friend of theirs David Gilmour who was playing in the band Jokers Wild.

A Saucerful of Secrets was released in 1968. Saucerful was a far cry from the mostly "poppy" sounding Piper, with most of the songs being more like the Piper instrumental Insterstellar Overdrive. It was a transitional album, sowing the seeds for what was to come.

In 1969, Pink Floyd released a soundtrack to the French hippie movie More. They were now producing themselves, due to their ever-increasing experimentation, and More was not entirely well-received. It is still considered by many to be the worst PF album, but it is also liked by many people. Later that year the Floyd released their most experimental album so far. Ummaguamma consisting of 4 live tracks and 12 tracks of solo experimentation by the 4 band members was released, and is generally considered one of the worst Pink Floyd albums.

In 1970 the Floyd released their first substantial "hit" album in the U.S., Atom Heart Mother. Consisting of a mere 5 tracks including the 23+ minutes orchestrated title track, as well as 4 other songs showed that the Floyd were on their way.

Meddle was released in 1971, this time with another 23 minute epic, the legendary Echoes, as well as concert favorite One of These Days. Meddle was the first appearance of the Pink Floyd "sound", with atmospherics (mainly Wright's organ work) and Gilmour's guitar style taking the forefront. Waters' lyrics were also becoming a bigger and bigger part of Pink Floyd.

On their '72, '73 tour the Floyd were developing a new concert piece that was drawing rave reviews from critics, it was called Eclipse. Eclipse was renamed The Dark Side of The Moon. That album was released in 1973 and was Pink Floyd's breakthrough record. The Pink Floyd sound had asserted itself fully by now and Waters' lyrics had reached thematical status. Also sound effects were becoming a bigger part of the band's sound. Dark Side went on to ride the Billboard charts until 1987, when it finally dropped off, accumulating the most weeks of any lp ever, and becoming one of the bestselling all-time albums.

Pink Floyd had difficulty making a commercial follow-up to Dark Side and used this fact, along with the absence of the long-departed Barrett to create what many fans consider their magnum opus in 1975, Wish You Were Here. WYWH contained the epic Shine On You Crazy Diamond, a song about Syd, who ironically showed up at the studio during its recording. The title track has also gone on to become on the of the most-known PF songs.

By 1977 Waters had almost complete artistic control of the group and Pink Floyd was becoming more and more lyric-oriented, based mostly on Roger's strong political and social views. Animals released that year, contained 4 songs (two holdovers from WYWH) and went on to become one of the most popular of the band's albums, but friction within Pink Floyd was increasing.

On the Animals tour Waters was becoming increasingly frustrated with the audience at Pink Floyd's large staduim shows saying that most of them were "just there for the beer" among other things. This came to a climax in Motreal, Canada where Waters spat in a fans face who was cheering loudly during "Pigs On The Wing". This, along with his feeling that there was an invisible wall between him and his audience inspired him to write Pink Floyd's first full-blown concept album.

That album, The Wall, released in 1979 was a huge commercial success. Bob Ezrin was brought in as an outside producer to what was now essentially a two man band, with Wright forced out of Pink Floyd by Roger during these sessions, and Nick Mason being virtually nothing more than a session drummer. Still, The Wall with it's #1 single Another Brick In The Wall Part II as well as other major Floyd tracks, like Comfortably Numb (widely considered their best song, closing with it's now legendary guitar solo), Hey You, Run Like Hell, and more sold incredibly. It went #1 in every
country except Japan and of all places, the U.K. Nonetheless, the battles between Gilmour and Waters were ever-increasing.

A movie version of The Wall was released in 1982, directed by Alan Parker, starring Bob Geldof, with screenplay by Roger Waters, it later went on to become a cult favorite.

The next "real" Pink Floyd album wasn't released until 1983, when The Final Cut came out. Essentially Roger's solo album, TFC sold well, but nothing on the scale of The Wall. Frictions within the band were at an all-time high and Waters eventually left Pink Floyd thinking that Gilmour and Mason would follow suit.

1984 saw the release of many Floyd solo albums, David Gilmour's About Face, Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports, Waters' The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking, and Wright's collaboration with Dave Harris, Zee: Identity. Dave and Roger also toured to support their albums.

A few years later, Roger heard word that Dave and Nick were recording a new album under the name Pink Floyd, furious, he filed a lawsuit. Throughout many legal battles, Gilmour and Mason were awarded the name Pink Floyd, as well as the use of "Mr. Screen", "the pig" and others. Waters got the rights to the stage presentation of The Wall, among other things. Both sides also received (and still do receive) royalties when one plays songs credited to the other.

Eventually the new Floyd album from Gilmour and Mason (with Wright and many other sessionists) was released in 1987. Fans were split: Some couldn't bear listening to the band without Waters, but many others were glad to hear the return of the Pink Floyd "sound". Momentary went on to sell more albums than The Final Cut, despite mixed reviews from fans and critics. A live document of their first Waters-less tour was released the following year, Delicate Sound of Thunder (and it's video), considered by many to be the best live Floyd album. This tour, their longest ever at 200 shows, climaxed with their appearance at the Knebworth benefit show.

During this time Waters also released his fourth solo album Radio KAOS, which he toured for. He also released another one in 1992, the critically acclaimed Amused To Death.

After nearly 4 years of inactivity Pink Floyd returned in 1994 with a stadium tour and a new album. The Divison Bell (with Wright back up to full-member status) went to #1 on the Billboard charts, and is drew far better reviews than did Momentary Lapse, some fans even consider it the best Floyd album. The tour only lasted about half a year, and a live document of it was released in 1995 called Pulse. The album and it's video went on to become multi-platinum sellers.

Richard Wright released his second "real" solo album in 1996 title Broken China, a concept album themed on clinical depression.

In 2000, after numerous delays a live document of The Wall tour was finally released, titled Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live. It peaked at #19 on Billboard, and drew mainly strong reviews, but left fans clamoring for original material. Other than releasing ITAOT, the Floyd have had very little activity during the post-DB years, but Roger Waters is currently touring the U.S. and planning to release a new album in 2000 or 2001.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10.- TEFL WEB JOURNAL : CALL FOR PAPERS

Hi Omar,

This is a call for papers from the TEFL Web Journal. We are always looking too expand this project, so please tell others.

TEFL Web Journal http://www.teflweb-j.org is a free, Web based forum for adult level teachers, teacher trainers and researchers world-wide. It is an inclusive journal that aims to give English teaching professionals the opportunity to share their research and teaching practices with the international, academic teaching community. The TEFL Web Journal is a peer reviewed quarterly publication that aims to help teachers improve their classroom teaching and develop professionally while generating discussion and an open exchange of information. The journal also provides the means for those same teachers to access information about appropriate materials for classroom and research use. The target audience is the professional teacher of adults in either ESL or EFL inclusive of all pertinent interest areas. Also, TEFL Web Journal seeks to fill the gap created by limited access to materials and
research experienced by many professionals in EFL and ESL contexts.

Thanks,

Kevin Schoepp - http://www.kevinschoepp.com
403-244-6921 - Calgary AB Canada

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

11.- FREE SEMINARS IN SOUTHERN GREATER BUENOS AIRES

Chritian Kunz, official representative for Anglia Examination Syndicate writes to us to announce these seminars:

Monday, 15th July, 2002 - 01.00 - 03.00 p.m.

Making the most of video clips

Peter Brown

International English Language Exams for overseas candidates

Peter Brown and Christian Kunz

Anglia Diploma in TESOL for teachers of English as a foreign language

Peter Brown and Christian Kunz

Venue: Kensington School of English

Colombres 590, Lomas de Zamora, Buenos Aires

Monday, 15th July, 2002 - 07.00 - 09.00 p.m.

Young Learners

Peter Brown

International English Language Exams for overseas candidates

Peter Brown and Christian Kunz

Anglia Diploma in TESOL for teachers of English as a foreign language

Peter Brown and Christian Kunz

Venue: The Bridge School of English

Lavalle 154, Bernal, Buenos Aires - 4252-5321 - thebridgeschoo@aol.com

Both events are free of charge. Early registration strongly encouraged.

Registration: Kensington School of English Tel/Fax: (011) 4243-3589 -

Email: kensangliarep@infovia.com.ar

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time to say goodbye again. This time with a reflection that a dear SHARER from Zárate, Pcia de Buenos Aires, Adriana Losinno sent us. It´s a masterful piece of canine philosophy, which she calls “ Hacé como el perrito” :

“Cuando te sientas feliz, baila y balancea tu cuerpo

Mantente siempre alerta pero tranquilo

Da cariño con alegria y deja que te acaricien

No importa cuantas veces seas censurado, no asumas culpas que no te pertenecen, no guardes rencor y no te entristezcas....... corre inmediatamente hacia tus amigos”.

Thank you, dear Silvia. And you know we try…

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEK !

Omar and Marina.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SHARE is distributed free of charge. All announcements in this electronic magazine are also absolutely free of charge. We do not endorse any of the services announced or the views expressed by the contributors. For more information about the characteristics and readership of SHARE visit: http://groups.yahoo.com/sharemagazine

VISIT OUR WEBSITE : http://www.shareeducation.com.ar There you can read all past issues of SHARE in the section SHARE ARCHIVES.