End of Course

2017.04.24 (月)

This course finished in January of 2014.


If you are interested in my more recent work, please see my Random Eikaiwa blog.

Music Is Creatve -- The 4th Winter Mini-debate 冬季第４のミニ討論 (updated)

Proposition: Music is creative. [un-edited]

Pro:

From my viewpoint, music is a way to express yourself. So, for example, hip hop, or rap, is a perfect way to express yourself to listeners.

Con:

I think music is not creative because I think people don't always listen to the music carefully. So it means it doesn't make any feelings to the people, so it's not creative.

Pro:

Music is creative because songs can change, depends on who sings, or the mood they are in.

Con:

I don't completely think music is creative. Originality is not always creative. Music should move people or make people pleased. Music which doesn't do those is only a mass of sounds.

Pro:

Music can change people. When I was doing DJ work, I felt happy every time. Consequently, music made a happy person like me.

Con:

I think music is not creative because some people don't like DJ or rap music. So  it sometimes makes people feel bad. So it's not creative.

[I think the students were pretty creative, so I don't want to "fix" their sentences. But they need to study for the tests, so the following is edited heavily to standard American English:]

Pro:

The way I think, music is a way to express yourself. Hip hop and rap are perfect ways to express yourself to listeners.

Con:

I don't think it's creative when people don't listen to the music carefully. And if they don't really listen, it doesn't cause them to feel anything So if it doesn't make people feel anything to people, it's not creative.

Pro:

Songs can change, depending on who sings, and on the mood they are in, and I think that's creative.

Con:

I don't completely think music is creative. Originality is not always creative. Music should move people or make people pleased. Music which doesn't do those is only a mass of sounds.

Pro:

Music can change people. When I was doing DJ work, I felt happy all the time. When music makes a person like me happy, that's creative.
.

Con:

People who don't like DJ or rap music will not find much pleasure in listening to it. So  it sometimes makes people feel bad and un-creative.

Music Is Creatve -- The 3rd Winter Mini-debate 冬季第３のミニ討論 (updated)

Proposition: Music is creative. [very lightly edited]

Pro:

Music is creative because writing the lyrics and songs takes imagination. So it's creative.

Con:

I don't think music is creative. If you have two different poems along with the same music, you will feel they are the same.

Pro:

Different people can imagine various things, and when I listen to songs of many genre, for example, classical music, Japanese popular music, western music, and so on, they let me feel many different feelings.

Con:

I think music is not creative, for example, enka (演歌). Because when I listen to enka it is not exciting. It doesn't excite me.

Pro:

I think music is creative, for example, song writers always use their imagination to make songs. They put in their feelings, such as sad, happy, angry, and so on.

Con:

Playing the instruments just following on the musical score is not interesting and not creative.

[I think the students were pretty creative, so I don't want to "fix" their sentences. But they need to study for the tests, so the following is edited heavily to match standard American English:]

Pro:

Music is creative because writing lyrics and songs takes imagination.

Con:

But if you set two different poems to the same music, you they will feel the same. So I don't think it's very creative.

Pro:

Different people imagine different things when they listen to the same song. And when I listen to songs of many genre, classical music, Japanese popular music, western music, and so on, I feel many different feelings.

Con:

I think some music is not creative, enka (演歌), for example. When I listen to enka it is not exciting. It doesn't excite me at all.

Pro:

But song writers always use their imagination to write songs. And they put their feelings in the songs -- sadness, happiness, anger, and so on.

Con:

But playing instruments just following a musical score is neither interesting nor creative.

Music Is Creatve -- The 2nd Winter Mini-debate 冬季第２のミニ討論 (updated)

Proposition: Music is creative. [very lightly edited]

Pro:

Even if it's the same song, it changes the atmosphere according to the player.

Con:

Music is not creative because it just imitates other's songs.

Pro:

Music is creative. Even if we use a score, we have to think about the expression of the music. For example, when there is forte in a score  we have to think how loud we play it.

Con:

I think music is not creative, for example, singing. When you sing a song which you can't understand the meaning or you can't imagine its background, it's not creative.

Pro:

I think music is creative because it makes many people happy, and we can express ourselves. And,, if you sing you don't need equipment.

Con:

I think music is not creative. For example, studying music theory is not creative. Music theory is the rules of music, so we can't change it.

[I think the students were pretty creative, so I don't want to "fix" their sentences. But they need to study for the tests, so the following is edited heavily to match standard American English:]

Pro:

Even when people perform the same song, there is a creative atmosphere that changes according to the performer.

Con:

But performing music is not really creative because performers just imitate other's songs.

Pro:

But even if we follow a score, we have to think about the expression of the music. For example, when there is a forte in the score, we have to think how loud to play it. That thinking is a creative activity.

Con:

But many people do not sing expressively, and when you sing a song with a meaning that you can't understand or a background that you can't imagine, it's not creative.

Pro:

I think music is creative when it makes many people happy and we can express ourselves. Also, when you sing, you don't need instruments.

Con:

But there is much about music that is not creative. For example, music theory is the rules of music, and we can't change them, so that's not creative.

Cooking Is Creative -- The 1st Winter Mini-debate 冬季の最初のミニ討論 (updated)

Proposition: Cooking is creative. [un-edited]

Pro:

Coooking is creative. Even if everyone makes the same dishes, the taste is different.

Con:

To make different flavors is not creative. We just imitate other people's recipes, one food stuff (ingredient) has just one flavor so the taste is the same.

Pro:

It is creative because we can make different tastes. For example, miso soup. My mother's and my grandmother's food stuff (ingredients) are different, so the tastes are different tastes.

Con:

When you cook with a recipe another person makes, it is not creative, because it can be said that you just copied someone's ideas. There are already many dishes, so more or less, you will be influenced by them.

Pro:

Cooking is creative because there are many kinds of recipes and I think they are not the same taste.

Con:

Cooking makes something like same. The same food stuff only makes the same dishes, so cooking is not creative.

[I think the students were pretty creative, so I didn't want to "fix" their sentences. But they need to study for the tests, so the following is edited heavily to standard American English:]

Pro:

I think cooking is creative. Even when many people prepare the same dish, each person's dish will have a unique taste because of the person who prepared it.

Con:

It is not creative just to make variations on the flavor of a dish. We just imitate other people's recipes, and the flavor of an ingredient does not really change. So the taste ends up the same.

Pro:

We can make the taste different. Take miso (味噌) soup, for example. My mother and my grandmother each make miso with different ingredients, so the taste ends up different.

Con:

When you cook with another person's recipe, you might as well be copying their ideas. That is not creative. And there are already so many dishes that you can't avoid being influenced by dishes other people have made.

Pro:

But there are many kinds of recipes, each tasting differently. So there is creativity in cooking.

Con:

But the ingredients will always be the same, so the results are the same dishes, and that's not creative.

Outline of the Last Class -- 最後の授業の概略

I'm really sorry about the blog.
I've been busier than I expected.

For the last class, we started with a review of the planned debate. We weren't very ready, so I asked you (again) to prepare six sentences on either cooking or music:

• "Cooking is creative." -- three sentences, and
• "Cooking is not creative." -- three sentences.

or

• "Music is creative." -- three sentences, and
• "Music is not creative." -- three sentences.

I made up some more examples:

Being creative: Dance
Dance is creative.

• Making up a new dance performance – choreography -- is creative. It requires imagination.

• When a dancer performs a dance expressively, that is creative, too. The dancer must use his imagination to express himself.

Dance is not creative.

• When a dancer simply mimics (imitates) someone he thinks is cool, he is not very creative.

I offered these words and phrases for help:

• make  (make up new things – create)
• express, expression, expressive
• copy, imitate, mimic
• many patterns of ___
• many ways to ____
• many kinds of ____

While you were thinking about that, I offered some advice on test taking in general and about the TOEIC, in particular. I said about the same as in the last class of the summer session, I think.

Then we took some time to divide into groups and prepare the debates.

After that, we had the debates, and had more fun with them than I think we expected.

I'll post the contents of your debates as soon as I can, either Tuesday or Wednesday, please bear with me.

I have to apologize about not getting the notes up.

I'll try to get the mini-debates up on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Please Don't Miss the Last Class! -- 最後の授業は欠席しないでください。

Also, please prepare.
それに、用意してください。

As I mentioned in the outline, we want to have a mock-debate. The topics will be music and cooking. Pick one of the topics and write six sentences, three on each side of the debate:
概略に伝えたように、模擬討論を行いたいのです。話題は音楽とお料理になります。そのうちの一つを選んで六つの文章を、討論の両側それぞれ三つずつ作って来てください。

• Three sentences explaining why, how, and/or when music is creative. 音楽がどうして、どういう風に、いつ創造的になるのを説明する三つの文章。
• Three sentences explaining why, how, and/or when music is not creative. 音楽がどうして、どういう風に、いつ創造的ではないことを説明する三つの文章。

Or
若しくは

• Three sentences explaining why, how, and/or when cooking is creative. お料理がどうして、どういう風に、いつ創造的になるのを説明する三つの文章。
• Three sentences explaining why, how, and/or when cooking is not creative. お料理がどうして、どういう風に、いつ創造的ではないことを説明する三つの文章。

I've prepared a model debate on the topic of gymnastics, which may help. Also, we had mini-debates last summer, here, and here.

体操の話題にたついて討論例を用意しました。役に立ったらご参考ください。ちなみに、去年の夏もミニ討論を行いました。ここ、やここにご覧になっていただけます。

(My apologies for being so late with these notes again.)

Example Debate: Gymnastics -- 見本の討論、体操

Proposition: Gymnastics is creative.
提案　体操は創造的・独創的なのです。

Prepared statements in the affirmative included
先から用意された賛成言明

• Gymnastics requires creative use of both the body and the mind.（体操には、体も脳も創造的に使う必要あります。）
• Gymnastics competitions include specifically creative events, including dance and performance with apparatus.（体操の大会には、ダンスや器械体操など、創造力や独創力を指摘する項目があります。）
• Even learning to perform set skills requires creativity.（決まった技能の演義にも独創力が必要です。）
• Each event include difficulty elements, which require creativity.（各項目は、独創力を要求する難儀要素を含めています。）
• Coaches and gymnasts work together to hone individual skills and create performance routines.（コーチと選手は協力して個人の技能を訓練し、演技を創りあげるのです。）

Prepared statements in the negative included
先から用意された否定言明

• Gymnastics uses muscles more than the mind.（体操は脳よりも身体を使う競技です。）
• Gymnastics is all about the body, but creativity requires mental processes.（創造も独創も精神力を使うのに、体操は身体を中心にするものです。）
• Gymnastic competition consists of set, predetermined, skills, techniques, and apparatus.（体操競技は決まった技能や機械しかありません。）
• The coach determines what a gymnast practices and performs.（選手の練習と演技はコーチ次第です。）
• Even so-called creative events, such as dance, are pre-choreographed and predetermined.）（ダンスなど、いわゆる独創的項目でさ、先から振り付けられるのです。）

Team A position: Affirmative.（チームＡの姿勢　賛成側）
Team B position: Negative.（チームＢの姿勢　否定側）

Proceeding from the negative.

否定側から入ります。

Opening statements:

開演の発言

Team B:

Gymnastics uses muscle more than mind.
It's all about the body, but creativity requires mental processes.

Team A:

Even learning set skills requires creativity.
Learning and performing gymnastics requires creative use of both the body and the mind.

Rebuttal:
反論

Team B:

The coach determines what a gymnast practices and performs.
Even so-called creative events in competition are pre-choreographed.

Team A:

Coaches and gymnasts work together to hone skills and create performance routines.
Choreography is a creative activity.

Conclusion:
結論

Team B:

Gymnastics may seem creative, but it is mostly just predetermined exercises.

Team A:

Gymnastics is creative, requiring creativity in both preparation and performance.

[You might want to check out the summer session's mini-debates: part 1 and part 2]