Autodidacticism

Autodidacticism is a word I love.  According to wikipedia it means  “self-education or self-directed learning” and I am totally in love with that concept.  Having been home-schooled for most of my school years I discoved how much fun learning was on my own with my own agenda, instead of being told what to learn by someone else. I read the classics because I wanted to not because I had to, studied foreign languages because they intrigued me, and watched classic films because they were all I knew and I loved them (I have great parents).

Now after moving between two continents during the last year, I’ve finally settled into a semi-permanant place, and I want to take up my self-education again.  With that in mind I’m sending myself back to school, a school of one.  I’ve got languages, great books, and art appreciation all on the table for this “semester”.  The plan is flexible.  Courses can be added or deleted at will.  It’s so much  more enjoyable than any real university, because I call the shots on what I want to learn.  This idea has gained momentum with others as well.  Two wonderful sites to start your own autodidactic journey are:

• The Art of Self Education
• Self Made Scholar

I especially love Self Made Scholar’s six article installment on how to get an Ivy League Education on your own for free.

Education doesn’t have to cost money or be tedious.  Instead learning should be exciting and a bit overwhelming with its array of choices.  Don’t let your brain stagnate, even if just for 15 minuntes a day exercise it.

“Learning is not compulsory… neither is survival.” ~ W. Edwards Deming

The Epic of Gilgamesh

The oldest widely-known work of literature, The Epic of Gilgamesh, deserves the title of epic. Discovered in the 19th century on clay tablets almost 3,000 years old, the main theme is the fear of death and trying to avoid it. The hero, Gilgamesh, tries of outsmart death in several ways. First he tries to make a great name by performing heroic acts of bravery with his friend Enkidu. After Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh is distraught. He then travels to the edge of the earth to talk with Utnapishtim, the survivor of the great flood, to learn the secret of immortality (Utnapishtim was granted it by the gods, after surviving the flood). After much work he learns that his quest is pointless, the gods decided that no more humans may live forever after the flood. After finally accepting this truth and becoming wise, Gilgamesh goes home and takes comfort that the walls of his great city will endure after his death, and that in this way he can live forever.
The irony is that after he dies, the gods decide to make him a sort of demi-god of the underworld, so he does achieve immortality in the end.
I found it fascinating how The Epic of Gilgamesh shows that over thousands of years, humans haven’t changed. We still fear death and wish to avoid it at all costs. We need close friends and mourn when we lose them. We want fair rulers who don’t oppress us (Gilgamesh starts out as a despot, but becomes a wise ruler through his experiences). We want the same basic things that people did 4,000 years ago.

Books in October

I’ve read a lot recently. In fact my to be reviewed pile has gotten a little backlogged. So instead of devoting a separate post to each of the books I read. I’ll just give you a brief sum up of them now.

First up…

Queen’s Play by Dorothy Dunnett

I LOVE Dorothy Dunnett. This is my third re-reading of the second book in the Lymond Chronicles, and it’s still just as great if not better (because I actually know somewhat what’s going on this time). The complexity of her plots, her rich characterizations, and attention to historical detail never ceases to amaze me. It was also great, because this time round a friend of mine was also reading through the series for the first time (and got bitten by the Lymond bug) so I could have someone new to rave to about these books (my husband hears about it from us constantly).
Second…

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan

Wow. Until I read this I never realized how deceived I had been the food industry, and I’m a certified personal trainer! I literally read this in a state of semi-shock, dazed by the revelation that what I’m told is good for me has nothing to do with my own good and everything to do with the good of food scientists and political food lobbies. I especially realized I had been fooled by health claims on food (Now with antioxidants! Now with Omega-3s!). As Pollan brings out, it’s foolish to try and extract the nutrients we think are responsible for making a certain food healthy. Food is more than the sum of it’s parts. There’s so much at work that we really don’t know why a certain food reduces cancer for example. It just does. So instead of eating fortified “food-like products” we should return to just eating food, real food, mostly plants, and not too much. I highly recommend it.
Number three…

Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran

I LOVED this book. (I’ve read a lot of good books recently :)) Clocking in at 448 pages this was supposed to keep me busy for a week that included a road trip and backpacking. Instead I blazed through it in four days (lightning speed for me). With most books after an hour or so I begin to tire and crave a rest from reading, but not with this one. I read it for hours on end without wishing to stop.

Focusing on Cleopatra the VII’s (the one who committed suicide) daughter, Cleopatra Selene, the book follows her early years as a pre-teen and teen in Rome being raised by her father’s ex-wife Octavia (yikes!) and the assorted bizarre family of Caesar Augustus (Octavia’s brother). There’s intrigue, strife, unrequited love, romance (great anti-hero btw!), murder, all the stuff that makes a book fast moving and compelling. However it’s not shallow fluff, a great portion is spend discussing the horrific treatment of slaves and women (who were basically slaves) in ancient Rome.

Incidentally I had always been fascinated by the story of Cleopatra Selene, and had every toyed with the idea of writing a story about her. So initially I was disappointed that someone else had discovered her and written her story. But in all honesty Michelle Moran did a much better job, that I could ever hope to do. This might be my canidate for best novel of the year.

And finally…

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf

Ok, technically not a book, but an essay, it still deserves mention. This was my first foray into Virginia Woolf’s writing and I was a little anxious, having heard much about her complex style. However after a brief adjustment I was swept along with her in her musings about women writers. I had often noticed that when you look at lists of great books, women so seldom appear. I had blamed this on the fact that they had received very scanty if any education. But Virginia Woolf showed that it was so much more. Women were constantly barraged with the message of their own inability to think or create. They had little control over their lives and were often married off and raising children at a young age. They had no place to go for peace and quiet if they did want to write. Everything was stacked against them. It’s really only been since the beginning of the 19th century that women finally begin to break out of their confinement and express themselves. When we look now at the bookshelves and see how many female writers there are, it’s obvious to see we’ve come a long way in a relatively short period of time.

Free Audiobooks (legally!)

So have you heard about Librivox yet?

This is for audiobooks what Project Gutenberg is for normal (text) books.  Librivox offers free recordings of public domain publications made by volunteers.  I had looked at it before, but hadn’t been to impressed by the quality of some of the recordings.

I must have hit a dud though, because while perusing for an audiobook version of Jane Eyre, I came upon a version available on Librivox which is highly recommended.  The reader, Elizabeth Klett, is so good she’s getting a large following online.  I tried it out today, and it’s great.  I breezed through the first three chapters and didn’t want to stop.  Klett’s voice is perfect, not grating, and her impersonation of the many characters impressive.  I highly recommend it.  Plus she has an exciting array of other projects she’s done on Librivox and has more in the works, all free.  Audiobook heaven!

In other book news:  I’ve returned from my long vacation in Bulgaria.  The entire trip was non-stop, so I really didn’t get to read at all.  However I began Queen’s Play on the way back in earnest, and am now about 1/3 through.  This is my (I think) third reading of the book and it truly gets better every time.

Non-Fiction Choice

So I picked up my non-fiction book for my trip at the bookstore.

I know, I know it’s not on the Kindle, but I really couldn’t find a book that appealed to me on the subject of mindful eating that was available for the Kindle.  Thankfully the book is small and won’t add a lot of weight to my baggage.

I’m excited about reading it.  The concept of eating by your hunger cues, not because of emotion, boredom or because you have the calories, really fascinates me.  I think it’ll be beneficial for me as a trainer.  (Extra bonus about being a trainer, all books, magazines, videos, equipment etc… that I buy connected to health and fitness can be justified as continuing education.  He he.)