The Call of the Wild

Here is a link to the original, full-length novel, which was first published in 1903 as a magazine serial over a two-month period. Many famous novels (notably several by Charles Dickens) first appeared in magazine serial format. It was an effective way of getting an audience "hooked" on the story and boost magazine sales while giving the author time to write the rest of the book. If the story was good enough, readers were sure to buy the next issue to see what would happen next. I'm not sure that this was true in Jack London's case, but it's said that Dickens often did not know how his stories would end before they became serialized. Stephen King is the most recent practioner of this method of publishing fiction. His novel "The Green Mile" was printed in six parts, one month at a time.

This photograph of Jack London was taken three years before "The Call of the Wild" was published.

VOA Special English

Voice of America (VOA) is an unparalleled resource for improving your reading, listening, and pronunciation skills. Listening to what you read, as you read it, will accelerate your comprehension. Click here for a direct link. Check out the American History Series and deepen your understanding of how America became what it is today, with all of its complexities and contradictions.

Context and Culture

The dictionary defines context as the verbal or written environment in which a word or group of words occurs, or as the circumstances (setting, situation) in which an event occurs. This environment (surrounding text) helps determine meaning.

We use context to guess (figure out) the meaning of an unknown word according to what we understand the surrounding text (words and sentences) to mean. However, contextual meaning has many different dimensions attached to it.

In an article about Ray Charles, readers will experience many layers of meaning, depending on their background knowledge of the following: Ray Charles; blues and gospel music; race relations in America in 1930, when Ray was born; the way blind people learn how to read with their fingers; the Grammy awards.

If you have zero background knowledge about any of these topics, it is almost impossible to appreciate the many dimensions associated with Ray Charles. Unless you have been steeped (see def. 2) in American history and popular culture, you won't fully understand the meaning of the article, beyond the fact that it's about a guy who was orphaned and blind by the age of 15, who was credited with inventing a new type of music, and who won numerous awards.

Linguistic context draws its meaning from culture, and culture is the sum total of history, art, traditions, customs, religious beliefs, ways of speaking, kinds of food, and the shared experiences of a tribe, community, or nation whose members assign meaning to all of these things, and whose meaning is shared by all members. It is the thing we indentify with, and how we identify each other -- our way of thinking, talking, eating, and interacting with one another.

Language and culture are two interdependent strands, woven together and storing information like the double helix of a DNA molecule. The genetic code of language and culture, like DNA, is carried in these interwoven strands. 

If I could convey one small piece of advice, it is this: immerse yourself in American culture for as long as you are studying in the USA. I'm not saying that you should lose your native cultural identity. I'm suggesting that you learn to think like an American and learn the cultural ways of Americans. As you absorb American culture, I guarantee that you will learn English much faster.That means watching TV, reading American magazines and newspapers, and interacting and speaking with Americans as much as possible. Your experience studying in the USA will be the richer for it. Don't sacrifice your cultural identity, but don't be afraid to wear a new one either, even temporarily. To understand another person (or culture, in this case) sometimes requires you to walk in their shoes.

Neither language nor culture exists in isolation, which is why an understanding of American culture will accelerate your progress in learning English. To understand the environment in which something exists is to understand the thing itself.

Ray Charles

On page 25 of Book A we read a short passage about the late Ray Charles, a giant of American music. Take a listen and watch him perform one of his signature songs, "Georgia On My Mind."

Here is another one of his classic hits, "Hit the Road, Jack."

Fact or Opinion?

You can expect the last paragraph (the conclusion) of a typical academic text to include a summary of the main idea. Sometimes the author will also add his or her opinion to the conclusion. Learn to understand the difference between facts and opinions. Facts are supported by evidence. Facts have a basis in reality and are difficult to argue or dispute. On the other hand, an opinion is a belief or judgment not supported by proof (evidence). Learn to be skeptical of opinions. Which is not to say that you shouldn't respect them. Most of the time, opinions can be reliable, based on the author's experience. Depending on how much you trust the author, his or her opinion could make sense. Just be careful to keep an open mind when an opinion is offered. It could indeed be based on sound judgment based on experience and facts. Or it could simply be hot air. If you trust the source, you can generally trust the opinion. You decide.

Fact: If you take the TOEFL, you'll be expected to understand the difference between fact and opinion.

Opinion: To accelerate your progress, you should read in English for at least 30 minutes a day outside the classroom.

Synonyms and Flash Cards

Synonyms are an important part of the vocabulary-building process. They allow you to say the same thing using different words that mean the same. Synonyms add variety to your speech and writing, allowing nuance, or shades of meaning. Synonyms also help you figure out the meaning of a reading passage, should you run across an unknown word and you don't have time to look it up in the dictionary. Finally, learning the synonym for each new word added to your English vocabulary allows you to double the number of new words that you learn.

The root of synonym is syn, which comes from Greek, meaning the same or together. Other words in English that use the syn root are synchronize, syndrome, synthesize, and synopsis.

When keeping a word list or making flash cards, be sure to include the synonym. Looking up the word in any dictionary should yield a synonym or two. A better source, as I discussedr in class today, is a thesauraus, which is available wherever dictionaries are sold. Owning a thesaurus is highly recommended.

When making flash cards, write everything in English, but include a translation in your native language if necessary. Study your flash cards any time you have a free moment. You'll be pleasantly surprised by how rapidly your vocabulary will increase. Index cards can be purchased at any store that sells stationery (CVS, Walgreens, Wal-Mart, Publix, Staples). Or simply cut a sheet of regular size paper into small units.