Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Language

Differences Between Synonyms

Bloomfield points out that complete synonyms do not exist. W. E. Collinson highlights the typical differences between synonyms.

Synonymic Patterns

Synonyms are organized according to two main principles, though there is also a third type:

The Double Scale: Saxon vs. Latin

The Saxon word is normally more spontaneous, informal, and unpretentious—warmer and homelier. The Latin word is normally longer and phonetically different. Example: Bodily – corporal; Answer – reply. Sometimes the native term is rarer and more literary than the foreign one. This can be explained through the history of the two words involved.

The Triple Scale: Native, French, and Latin or Greek

The native synonym is the simplest and most ordinary... Continue reading "Linguistic Patterns and Stylistic Uses of Synonyms" »

Process of Structural Engineering

The construction of structures, such as bridges, roads, buildings, dams, and stadiums, requires careful consideration of various factors. Engineers must propose the most convenient criteria, ensuring the structure is functional, strong, durable, and economical, while also considering environmental and aesthetic aspects. The realization of a work begins with stating the problem and ends with execution, following this order:

1. Planning: This stage involves examining the program, analyzing needs and resources, and establishing the general approach to construction.
2. Project: This stage proposes the general geometry and distribution, including the structural system, according to the services the structure will provide

1. Time

Antonio Machado identified himself as a "poet of time," understanding time not as an abstract concept but as something living and personal. It is the limited, individual history of each person, which exists and passes, yet remains in memory. Within memory, personal boundaries and anecdotes blur, leaving behind universal, refined sentiment. The poet expresses a keen sensitivity to time, facing the fatal passage of hours and days.

Symbols of Time:

• Water: The flow of a river symbolizes the passage of time and, consequently, inner life. However, water can also represent death.
• Afternoon: Expresses a melancholy feeling, a spiritual voice.
• Roads: Symbols of life or associated with it. When depicted in a poem, the road often blurs, clearing into

This is an argumentative-expository text where the author presents a claim and argues their opinion.

Regarding adequacy, the author aims to inform readers of their findings on (...), specifically on (...); thus, the informative function is predominant. However, as common in such texts, the argument serves a secondary purpose: guiding the reader's opinion, adding a persuasive function.

The intended audience is clearly journalistic, as the text is for publication (... in a newspaper, in this case, the newspaper "..."). It's a (...) (article/editorial/letter to the editor = opinion; news/feature/interview = news genre; chronicle/critical = hybrid genre), typical of argumentative expository journalistic texts that address current issues. This was... Continue reading "Analysis of an Argumentative-Expository Text" »

Climate Change, Media, and Societal Awareness

In the times we live in, where the hustle and bustle are routine, stopping for a second to reflect on the issues that concern us is a valuable exercise. The media serves as the main connector between global events and the average citizen, addressing concerns and curiosities.

In recent years, natural disasters that have plagued humanity have fueled a continuing debate about the reality of climate change. The earthquakes we see on television, trailing tidal regions of Southern Asia, are proof that there is a real problem. In this context, the media should act as the conscience of mankind.

Analyzing the Newspaper Article

We have before us a newspaper article that requires critical commentary and cataloging... Continue reading "The Orchid, Climate Change, and the Media's Conscience" »

Characteristics of the Realist Novel

European realist novels showcase a great variety, yet share common features reflecting new literary principles.

• Bourgeois Movement: Realism is a bourgeois literary movement, rooted in practicality and progress. Unlike romantic authors, realist novelists are ordinary citizens committed to reflecting their society's everyday problems and conflicts.
• Focus on Contemporary Reality: The story centers on contemporary life, aiming to provide a comprehensive picture of social life, customs, and ideas. Realistic novels depict scenes from streets, markets, factories, gatherings, cafes, and casinos. Protagonists are ordinary people, not heroes.
• Striving for Objectivity: Writers aim to be reporters, photographers, and faithful

ICT's Impact on Business Innovation

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have driven significant advances that reshape how businesses operate and innovate. Key developments include:

• Computers: A Business Revolution

  The rapid advancement of computer technology has revolutionized daily life and fundamentally changed business operations. Today, it is almost unthinkable for any company, regardless of size, not to utilize computers. This adoption leads to significant savings in both money and time, and the use of advanced software serves as a powerful competitive weapon for many organizations.

• The Internet: Information and Opportunity

  The internet revolution provides an impressive amount of information. The challenge for businesses lies in

Additional and Safety Power Supplies

A normal supply is provided by a primary supplier. An additional supply is provided by the same company, where independent energy distribution facilities are available. Additional supplies are classified as follows:

• Relief Supply: Limited to receiving 15% of the total power contracted for the normal supply.
• Backup Supply: Limited to receiving at least 25% of the power contracted for the normal supply.
• Duplicate Supply: Capable of maintaining service at more than 50% of the total power contracted for the normal supply.

Emergency Lighting Systems

The purpose of emergency lighting is to ensure illumination during a failure of the normal lighting system. It illuminates premises and access to exits for a potential... Continue reading "Electrical Safety in Potentially Explosive Atmospheres" »

Francisco de Quevedo: Beyond Satire and Mockery

Francisco de Quevedo is best known for his satirical and mocking poetry, his love poetry being little known. Yet, according to critics, this body of work reaches the highest levels of the Spanish lyric. This is certainly the case with “Amor constante más allá de la muerte” (Constant love beyond death), considered one of the most beautiful love sonnets ever written in Spanish.

Mythology and the Law of Forgetting

In just fourteen lines, Quevedo condenses part of Greek mythology concerning the afterlife. After death (“the final shadow I'll take the white day”), the soul separates from the body and must cross the sinister River Styx, led aboard the boat of Charon. The law of the underworld... Continue reading "Francisco de Quevedo: The Immortal Flame of Spanish Love Poetry" »

means of "you" or a number of nicknames: "hilarious ladies, dear ladies, young ladies, young valuable..."

The Youth:

• Their meeting
• Their decisions
• Their adventures

It is a well-defined framework, characters, scenario, historical time.

Narrative Planes:

• The 'own stories, each with its own characteristics. The first two planes are related by the main narrator, but from different functions.
• In the foreground, the first-person narrator fully identifies with the author and has no narrative function, but expository or argumentative: Boccaccio not "tells", but reflects and expresses his ideology, world view, and value of literature itself.
• In the second, an omniscient third-person voice acts as narrator. This map is dotted with the first interference, as comments