Entry 1_ Nguyễn Xuân Dương

Item 1: Cartoon

           

Rhetorical devices:

 Symbol:       +    the waterfall: economic recession

        +          the rowing boat: G20 meeting

 Irony

Message: People at G-20 economic crisis meeting do not know where thay are heading( they’re rowing blindly and no one on the deck to guide the way). The result of the meeting is unclear( where the boat will go is unknown). The only certain thing is that G-20 is getting away from economic recession.

Source: http://crisiscartoon.blogspot.com/2008/11/g-20-economic-crisis-meeting.html

Item 2: Poem

True friends are not dream-slashers

By David Leohardt

Choose friends wisely, the portrait they paint
Is who you are and who you ain't.
Friendship is life's great support
When friends are of the right sort.
For all your dreams do they make room,
Or bring you down with doom and gloom?
You will know a friendship is true
When it brings out the best in you.

Rhetorical devices:

  Rhyme:            paint-ain’t, support- sort, room-gloom, true- you

 Antithesis:        “…do they make room or bring you down with doom and gloom?”

Message: A true friend is the one who supports you, encourages you to live your dream and brings out the best in you.

Source: http://www.thehappyguy.com/friendship-poem.html

Item 3: Story

Busy

                                     by: Stephen Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Once upon a time a very strong woodcutter ask for a job in a timber merchant, and he got it. The paid was really good and so were the work conditions. For that reason, the woodcutter was determined to do his best.

His boss gave him an axe and showed him the area where he was supposed to work.

The first day, the woodcutter brought 18 trees

"Congratulations," the boss said. "Go on that way!"

Very motivated for the boss’ words, the woodcutter try harder the next day, but he only could bring 15 trees. The third day he try even harder, but he only could bring 10 trees.Day after day he was bringing less and less trees.

"I must be losing my strength", the woodcutter thought. He went to the boss and apologized, saying that he could not understand what was going on.

"When was the last time you sharpened your axe?" the boss asked.

"Sharpen? I had no time to sharpen my axe. I have been very busy trying to cut trees..."

Rhetorical devices:

-          Metaphor: 

o   The woodcutter: any person

o   The axe: a person’s skill or his/ her important things in life

Message:

-           Sometimes people pay too much attention to getting a good result that they accidentially neglect sharpening their skills, thus they loose their effectiveness.

-                We may sometimes get too busy that we forget the truly important things in our life.