Where do superstitions come from?

Where do superstitions come from?

I Lead in. Answer the questions:

1)    Do you believe that some objects have magic powers?

2)    Do you believe that some human actions can bring good or bad luck? What actions are believed to bring good luck? What actions can result in bad luck?

3)    Do you know a person who is superstitious (believes in old ideas about magic, for example thinks that certain numbers are unlucky)?  

II Watch the video and tick (√) the superstitions from the list that the video mentions.

a)    Friday the 13^th

b)    walking under a ladder

c)    breaking a mirror

d)    finding a horseshoe

e)    opening an umbrella inside

f)     knocking on wood

g)    throwing salt over your shoulder

h)    whistling inside

i)      black cats

j)     number 13

III Vocabulary focus. Match the words to the definitions.

origin; confidence; purpose; irrational; familiar; whistle; supernatural; spirit; folklore

a)  a ghost or supernatural being

b)  not based on clear thinking

c)  the reason you do something

d)  a feeling of someone’s powers

e)  make sounds by forcing your breath out between your lips or your teeth

f)   the beginning of something

g)  caused by forces that science cannot explain

h)  easy to recognize because you saw it before

i)    the traditional stories and culture of a group of people

   

IV Vocabulary focus. Follow the link below. Focus on the words and expressions (study definitions), match the terms to their definitions, solve the crossword puzzle, complete the quiz, chase down the correct answer to earn, unscramble words and phrases (correct order of letters), type in words to fill in the blanks, test your knowledge of  vocabulary.

V Watch the video and match the superstitions to their origin.

1.	the number thirteen	is associated with	A.	the word for ‘death’ in Cantonese,  Japanese, Korean
2.	knocking on wood		B.	the rules for people who work with theater scenery
3.	the number 17		C.	the biblical Last Supper, where Jesus Christ dined with his twelve disciples
4.	the number four		D.	soldiers who could draw attention from an enemy sniper
5.	whistling inside		E.	the protection or blessing of the spirit that lived in the trees
6.	lighting three cigarettes from the same match		F.	the Roman numeral XVII and the word vixi, meaning ‘my life had ended’
7.	wearing ‘lucky’ socks		G.	having greater control over events and confidence

VI Watch the video and fill in the gaps with the words from the list. There are some words you don’t need to use

unlucky; death; protection; supernatural; wood; family; sense; forgot; countries; religion; arrested; headsets; whistle; hotels; folklore; irrational; associations; match; cultural; play; socks; remember; enemy; buildings; sports; spirits; fourteen; Supper; beliefs; thirteen

Well, although they have no basis in science, many of these weirdly specific 1)______ and practices do have equally weird and specific origins. Because they involve 2)______ causes, it's no surprise that many superstitions are based in 3)______. For example, the number thirteen was associated with the biblical Last Supper, where Jesus Christ dined with his twelve disciples just before being 4)______ and crucified. The resulting idea that having thirteen people at a table was bad luck eventually expanded into 5)______ being an 6)______ number in general. Now, this fear of the number thirteen, called triskaidekaphobia, is so common that many 7)______ around the world skip the thirteenth floor, with the numbers going straight from twelve to fourteen. Of course, many people consider the story of the Last 8)______ to be true but other superstitions come from religious traditions that few people believe in or even 9)______.

Knocking on wood is thought to come from the 10)______ of the ancient Indo-Europeans or possibly people who predated them who believed that trees were home to various 11)______. Touching a tree would invoke the 12)______ or blessing of the spirit within. And somehow, this tradition survived long after belief in these spirits had faded away.

Many superstitions common today in 13)______ from Russia to Ireland are thought to be remnants of the pagan religions that Christianity replaced. But not all superstitions are religious. Some are just based on unfortunate coincidences and 14)______. For example, many Italians fear the number 17 because the Roman numeral XVII can be rearranged to form the word vixi, meaning ‘my life had ended’. Similarly, the word for the number four sounds almost identical to the word for ‘15)______’ in Cantonese, as well as languages like Japanese and Korean that have borrowed Chinese numerals. And since the number one also sounds like the word for ‘must’, the number 16)______ sounds like the phrase ‘must die’. That's a lot of numbers for elevators and international 17)______ to avoid.

And believe it or not, some superstitions actually make 18)______, or at least they did until we 19)______ their original purpose. For example, theater scenery used to consist of large painted backdrops, raised and lowered by stagehands who would 20)______ to signal each other. Absentminded whistles from other people could cause an accident. But the taboo against whistling backstage still exists today, long after the stagehands started using radio 21)______. Along the same lines, lighting three cigarettes from the same match really could cause bad luck if you were a soldier in a foxhole where keeping a 22)______ lit too long could draw attention from an 23)______ sniper. Most smokers no longer have to worry about snipers, but the superstition lives on.

So why do people cling to these bits of forgotten religions, coincidences, and outdated advice? Aren't they being totally 24)______? Well, yes, but for many people, superstitions are based more on 25)______ habit than conscious belief. After all, no one is born knowing to avoid walking under ladders or whistling indoors, but if you grow up being told by your 26)______ to avoid these things, chances are they'll make you uncomfortable, even after you logically understand that nothing bad will happen. And since doing something like knocking on 27)______ doesn't require much effort, following the superstition is often easier than consciously resisting it. Besides, superstitions often do seem to work. Maybe you remember hitting a home run while wearing your lucky 28)______. This is just our psychological bias at work. You're far less likely to remember all the times you struck out while wearing the same socks. But believing that they work could actually make you 29)______ better by giving you the illusion of having greater control over events. So in situations where that confidence can make a difference, like 30)______, those crazy superstitions might not be so crazy after all.

VII Watch the video and mark the sentences as True or False. Correct the false statements.

1.    The number thirteen was associated with the biblical Last Supper.

2.    The idea that having twelve people at a table was bad luck expanded into twelve being an unlucky number in general.

3.    There is a (psychological) condition that results from fear of the number thirteen.

4.    Many buildings around the world don’t have the twelfth floor.

5.    Knocking on metal comes from the folklore of the ancient Indo-Europeans

6.    Ancient people touched a tree to get the protection of the spirit living in the tree.

7.    Many superstitions are associated with the pagan religions.

8.    Many Italians fear the number 15.

9.    In Cantonese the word for the number four sounds like the word for ‘death’.

10.Whistling inside brings bad luck because it could cause an accident in theatres in the past.

11.Lighting three cigarettes from the same match really could cause good luck.

12.The superstition associated with cigarettes originated during the war.

13.Today a lot of smokers still worry about snipers, so the superstition lives on.

14.For many people, superstitions are based on conscious belief.

15.People in certain cultures are born knowing to avoid walking under ladders or whistling indoors.

16.Knocking on wood doesn't require much effort.

17.Following the superstition is often more difficult than consciously resisting it.

18.Superstitions never work because of psychological associations.

19.Sometimes superstitions can make athletes play better by giving the illusion of having greater control over events.

 VIII OVER TO YOU.

A) Research superstitions common to your country or region. What are the origins of those superstitions?

B) Find information about one superstition common for an English-speaking country (but different from your country).

C) Give a brief (3 minutes) talk comparing and contrasting the superstitions you researched. Do you think that superstitions can really work or make the difference?

The Art of Seeing Art: Movement

The Art of Seeing Art: Movement

I Study the active vocabulary and focus on Ukrainian equivalents of English words.

direct – спрямовувати

shape – пласка фігура

form – об’ємна фігура

suggested – уявний

motion – рух

implied – що мається на увазі

wave – хвиля

rough – бурхливий

seascape – морський пейзаж

rock – скеля

jut – виступати

steep – крутий

pitch – нахил

turbulent – неспокійний

foreground –передній план

frothiness – пінність

comparison – порівняння

stark – абсолютний

background – фон

blurred – розмитий

emphasize – підкреслювати

chaotic – хаотичний

 artwork – витвір мистецтва

II Look at the painting below (or go to https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/sunlight-on-the-coast/3wEESaV2H-hQyA).

1) What do you see in the picture (remember the Art Criticism Description stage). What are your associations with the painting?

2) Open the image in Adobe Photoshop. Find the lines that the artist used in the painting. Use colours to show different types of lines, e.g. use black to show diagonal lines.  

3) How are all these lines placed on the canvas (do they cross each other, etc.)? What effect does this use of lines create?

4) What colours does the artist use? What effect does the use of colour and lines create?

5) What feeling and emotions do you have when you look at the picture? Is there dynamics or movement in the picture? What mood does the use of diagonal and curved lines create?

6) Watch the video below. Compare the lines you drew on the picture to the ones shown in the video. Did you have the same ideas as the speaker?

III Watch the video and fill in the gaps with the words from the list.

waves; lines; composition; artists; foreground; curved ; vertical; movement ; white ; horizontals; blurred ; feel; movement ; colours; seascape ; diagonal; direct ;contrasted ; ocean; corner; sky; artwork; motion; implied ; chaotic ; background ; piece; background; contrast ; moving; water; shapes

 When we talk about 1)_____ we are talking about how 2)_____ use elements to 3)_____ the eye around a 4)_____. The elements we’re mostly going to review in this process are 5)_____, lines, 6)_____, and forms. But it’s not just about 7)_____ around a work of art, it’s also seeing motion or suggested 8)_____. And frankly many artists today also create 9)_____ that physically moves.

The first 10)_____ we’re going to look at is Sunlight on the Coast by Winslow Homer. This painting is great for discussing an 11)_____ movement. Homer is undoubtedly getting us to feel the 12)_____, to feel this rough Maine 13)_____ and he’s doing this primarily through the use of 14)_____ and colour. Here we see these sharply painted 15)_____ lines. We see them in waves and also in these rocks. Notice the way they are jutting out of the 16)_____. We also see 17)_____ diagonals. And this is all 18)_____ against steep 19)_____ pitches. Until finally we get over to the far left 20)_____, where it is a kaleidoscope of diagonals, verticals, 21)_____, all adding up to create this turbulent 22)_____. But it isn’t just the lines of the waves that are helping create the sense of 23)_____ in the painting. We also have the stark 24)_____ between the foreground here which contains an intense 25)_____ to mimic the frothiness of the 26)_____ waves in comparison to the stark black 27)_____. Look how the horizon line is 28)_____ between the ocean and the 29)_____. So Homer has created this dark 30)_____ and he’s used it to contrast against the intense bright 31)_____ emphasizing the 32)_____ movement of the waves.

IV Watch the video and read the text above. Say if the statements below are true or false. Correct the false statements.

1) Artists can suggest motion when they use lines, colours, graphite, matte paper and digital equipment in their artwork.

2) There are works of art that physically move.

3) Sunlight on the Coast by Winslow Homer uses horizontal lines to show calm sea on a sunny day.

4) Winslow Homer used diagonal lines to make viewers feel that the waves were moving.

5) The artist combines different types of lines to create the turbulent feel.

6) There is no contrast between foreground and background in the painting.

7) The horizon line is blurred between the ocean and the rocks.

8) Chaotic movements of the waves is emphasized through the use of texture and space.

V Look at the sculpture below (or go to https://www.flickr.com/photos/hanneorla/3878874949). Answer the questions:

a) What do you see in this artwork (remember the Art Criticism Description stage). 

b) What are your associations with the artwork? What kind of lines did the artist use in the sculpture? 

c) What effect does the use of lines create?

VI Image in the previous exercise shows a kinetic sculpture by George Rickey Triple N Gyratory III. Study two more sculptures "Breaking Column" and “Two Lines Oblique Gyratory II” by the same artist. Watch the videos and answer the questions:

1) What is kinetic sculpture?

2) How is kinetic sculpture different from traditional sculpture?

3) What elements of art does the artist use in his works?

4) How does the artist show movement?

VII Study the active vocabulary and focus on Ukrainian equivalents of English words.

  

physical – фізичний

kinetic – кінетичний (пов'язаний з рухом)

sculpture – скульптура

dedicate – присвячувати

investigate – досліджувати

 poetic – поетичний

 possibility – можливість

 weight  – вага

balance – рівновага

comparable – порівняний

painter – художник

musician – музикант

sound  – звук

pivot – надівати на стрижень

rotate – обертати

space – простір

  

VIII Watch the video and fill in the gaps with the words you hear.

All right, next we’ll talk about the 1)______ movement in 2)______ today. Here we have a kinetic 3)______ by George Rickey Triple N Gyratory III. Rickey  dedicated his career to investigating the poetic possibilities of 4)______. In his words he’s using 5)______ of weight and 6)______ and also time, which he sees is comparable to how a 7)______ would use 8)______ and form or how a musician would use 9)______ to express themselves. Again you can see the way these 10)______ are pivoting on each other, the way that the 11)______ is rotating them around the space. So Rickey has moved beyond the 12)______ of movement to include 13)______ motion as a new 14)______ in this work.

IX Watch the video and read the text above. Say if the statements below are true or false. Correct the false statements.

1) Kinetic sculpture is a type of sculpture that moves.

2) George Rickey believed that painters use colour and lines, but sculptors can use weight, balance, and time to show movement.

3) The sculpture in the video rotates.

4) George Rickey includes texture and patterns as new elements of his work.

X Study the active vocabulary and focus on Ukrainian equivalents of English words.

skillful – майстерний

focal point  – точка фокусу

King Herod  – Цар Ірод

 stepdaughter  – падчерка

Salome  – Саломія

platter  –  блюдо

John the Baptist  – Іоанн Хреститель

New Testament  – Новий Заповіт

saint  – святий

reward  – нагорода

emphasize   – підкреслювати

highlight  – виділяти

stand out  –  виділятися

porcelain  – порцеляна

angle – рухатись під кутом

gaze  – погляд

steep  – крутий

stack  – нагромаджувати

trap  – заманювати в пастку

drape – портьєра

triangle – трикутник

embody  – втілювати

 XI Look at the painting Feast of King Herod by Mattia Preti (or go to https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mattia_Preti_-_Feast_of_Herod_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg). Answer the questions:

1) What do you see in the picture (remember the Art Criticism Description stage). What are your associations with the painting?

 2) Open the image in Adobe Photoshop. Find the lines that the artist used in the painting. Use colours to show different types of lines, e.g. use black to show diagonal lines.  

3) In this picture lines are used to guide viewer around the composition. How are the lines used to show where people in the painting are looking? Draw the axis lines that show where people are looking.

4) What effect does this use of lines create? What is the focus of viewer’s attention or the most important part of the composition?

5) What colours does the artist use? What effect does the use of colour and lines create?

6) What feeling and emotions do you have when you look at the picture? Is there dynamics or movement in the picture? What mood does the use of lines create?

7) Watch the video. Compare the lines you drew on the picture to the ones shown in the video. Did you have the same ideas as the speaker?

XII Watch the video again and choose the correct option to complete the sentences.

And lastly let’s take a look at this painting/sculpture/image, the Feast of King Herod a 17th century watercolour/pastel/oil painting by Mattia Preti. There isn’t the illustration/illusion/allusion of movement like in the Homer’s or painting or actual motion/emotion/movement like in Rickey’s sculpture/sculptor/sculpting, but rather this painting illustrates/demonstrates/implicates the way a artful/crafty/skillful artist can move our eye around a exposition/composition/composer. The focal point/centre/part of this painting is King Herod’s stepdaughter, Salome, as she’s serving up a platter of John the Baptist’s arm/forehead/head. According to this legends/fables/story, taken from the New Testament, Salome has requested the saint’s head as a reward for painter/singer/dancing for the King. To emphasize her parts/role/important in the story the artist is highlighted/highlighter/highlighting Salome. She stands out because of her porcelain-like/fragility/portion alike white sheen/chin/skin. We can see the way the eyes of all the other figures/forms/persons are angled toward her including her father’s/brother’s/mother’s eyes. Herod himself is gazing rightly/straight/later at Salome, and we can free/foresee/see the way their eyes seem to greet/meet/fleet. There are other elements/elemental/mental that help dissect/correct/direct our eyes around the painting. Notice the way this steep pitch directs us up/down/forward. We have these stacked steps/lapse/caps and we have the urns on the steps, and they’re all reading/leading/mislead us down to this point. So the painting is pushing us to the lower left-alone/right-handed/left-hand portion, but you can see the artist doesn’t trap us in the corner/coroner/forerunner. He helps us groove/stove/move around the painting. Look at the drapes/capes/steps and the way they pitch themselves back out from where Herod is, creating the suggestion of the angle/anger/triangle. And this triangle helps us move through/to/throwing the painting. So it’s not just about looking at Salome and the head of John the Baptist, but it’s also about how our key/eye/lie is moving around the painting.

As we have just seen by looking at free/tree/three very different works of part/dart/art movement is the principle/particle/parts of design that body/embodies/erodes action in art, whether that action is applied/implied/supplied, real, directive or aesthetic/kinetic/magnetic.

 XIII Watch the video and read the text above. Say if the statements below are true or false. Correct the false statements.

1) The painting  the Feast of King Herod shows the illusion of movement.

2) The artist uses lines and colour to guide viewer’s eyes around the painting.

3) The painting shows a scheme from Irish myths.

4) Drapes and steps play the most important role in the painting.

5) Axis lines in the painting show that all people are looking at Salome making her the focal point of the picture.

6) Diagonal lines guide the viewers’ eyes away from the focal point and trap them in the upper right corner.

7) Lines around drapes form a triangle around one of the characters in the painting.

8) The function of lines in this painting is to help viewers see Salome’s beautiful dance.

9) Motion in art can only be directive and kinetic.

XIV Vocabulary focus. Study the words and  word combinations, check your understanding using flashcards, practise their translation, spelling. Check your knowledge in the test. Play matching vocabulary game (match words to their translations to make cards disappear)  and save the planet from asteroids by typing in correct translation of the words.

https://quizlet.com/282614063/the-art-of-seeing-art-movement-vocabulary-focus-flash-cards/

 XV OVER TO YOU. Find your own examples of artwork that inspires you and:

 (A) uses lines and colour to show movement;

(B) uses physical movement as an element of art;

(C) uses lines to guide viewer’s eyes around the painting.

Prepare a brief description of the work of art (what lines it uses, what movement it shows, etc.) and share your ideas and examples with other students.