Benjamin and Jasper Enjoy Creating Rainbows at the Sea Shore
I love going to the sea shore. There are so many fun things to do: collect sea shells, watch the water, swim, surf, boogie board, sand castles... the list goes on! However, one thing I have never mastered is creating my very own rainbows from scratch. Benjamin and Jasper have no problem with this. Benjamin and Jasper are brothers and they discovered as children that when they work together they have the ability to create rainbows. They go to the sea shore specifically to create rainbows. It is easier to make rainbows with salt water than it is with fresh water. The flat surface of the sand helps too, along with the reflective quality of the sea itself. Creating rainbows really is an art.
Right now I am listening to the audio book 'War and Peace' by Leo Tolstoy. I am at a part in the book where two characters are about to duel. This isn't the first time I've come across dueling in an old novel. It is handled with a nonchalance that I don't at all understand. Two people disagree, feelings are hurt, pride is bruised, and the next thing you know, they are fighting to the death! I wanted to understand the historical context of dueling a little better so I read the wikipedia article on dueling. It still is a bit of a mystery but the article mentioned that 'dueling was an alternative to a less regulated conflict.' I guess that is a plus, but avoidance of chaos does not seem like enough motivation to duel. I also learned that only gentlemen dueled and that the winner of a duel was not condemned as a murder but respected. A duel winners social standing even increases after the success. It seems like more importance was placed on pride and honor in the past than in modern times, so fighting for ones honor seemed like a worthy pursuit. My theory is that people had less opportunity to change their situation than they do now. So more emphasis was put on the importance of honor because if ones honor was blemished there would be less opportunity to regain it.
Something else interesting that I learned from the 'Dueling' article was that it is rumored that in 1808 a duel was fought in hot air balloons over Paris. Each dueler was striving to puncture the opponents hot air balloon. That's the sort of thing that would happen in a Victorian adventure novel for kids.
Right now I am listening to the audio book 'War and Peace' by Leo Tolstoy. I am at a part in the book where two characters are about to duel. This isn't the first time I've come across dueling in an old novel. It is handled with a nonchalance that I don't at all understand. Two people disagree, feelings are hurt, pride is bruised, and the next thing you know, they are fighting to the death! I wanted to understand the historical context of dueling a little better so I read the wikipedia article on dueling. It still is a bit of a mystery but the article mentioned that 'dueling was an alternative to a less regulated conflict.' I guess that is a plus, but avoidance of chaos does not seem like enough motivation to duel. I also learned that only gentlemen dueled and that the winner of a duel was not condemned as a murder but respected. A duel winners social standing even increases after the success. It seems like more importance was placed on pride and honor in the past than in modern times, so fighting for ones honor seemed like a worthy pursuit. My theory is that people had less opportunity to change their situation than they do now. So more emphasis was put on the importance of honor because if ones honor was blemished there would be less opportunity to regain it.
Something else interesting that I learned from the 'Dueling' article was that it is rumored that in 1808 a duel was fought in hot air balloons over Paris. Each dueler was striving to puncture the opponents hot air balloon. That's the sort of thing that would happen in a Victorian adventure novel for kids.