Class of 2014! :D

[Splash-Tackle-Flail]

I think you might be misconstruing his argument. He has a point, a lot of people exaggerate their emotional reactions, mourning for people they never cared about, and if they were to be honest with themselves, for people they never really will either. I don't think there is anything wrong with that, at least legally, but isn't it insensitive to the real victims when every second person is looking for sympathy? Seems like that might have some moral concerns surrounding it. Given Hughes lived a life of relative privilege, isn't Fareseru also correct in suggesting that the child who died in the most horrific conditions possible, without having ever experienced luxury, perhaps deserves more attention? Of course, the media does not cater to the 'deserved', as someone earlier pointed out, but that doesn't mean Fareseru is being callous like you seem to be intimating. I suppose, ultimately, grief is a strange emotion that affects people in all manners of ways, but there is no reason we can't have an open discussion about a pretty prominent news story without getting somewhat incendiary

I'm not really a cricket fan but whoa you guys on Atarnotes use big words (probably not even that big but my vocabulary is terrible) I hate to go off topic but how would I go about learning more words like this? (I really hope this doesn't come off the wrong way considering I just interrupted a what seems to be a really (insert word I don't know that describes like a serious debate over big ideas or whatever) debate for english advice)

[psyxwar]

I mean, isn't it obvious we're able to empathise better with people closer to us? The death of a family member is going to hold more weight than the death or someone we've never met; in the same vein the death of a loved sportsman is going to affect us more on a personal level than African children.

[appleandbee]

I'm not really a cricket fan but whoa you guys on Atarnotes use big words (probably not even that big but my vocabulary is terrible) I hate to go off topic but how would I go about learning more words like this? (I really hope this doesn't come off the wrong way considering I just interrupted a what seems to be a really (insert word I don't know that describes like a serious debate over big ideas or whatever) debate for english advice)

Reading more works of literature and newspaper editorials, and just appreciate the way language (like using certain words, phrases, expressions) can convey a different/stronger meaning or message. Also look at the English writing submissions board on AN as there are some high - quality pieces of writing there. 

[nikegod]

I'm not really a cricket fan but whoa you guys on Atarnotes use big words (probably not even that big but my vocabulary is terrible) I hate to go off topic but how would I go about learning more words like this? (I really hope this doesn't come off the wrong way considering I just interrupted a what seems to be a really (insert word I don't know that describes like a serious debate over big ideas or whatever) debate for english advice)

Funnily enough wrote a response earlier today on pretty much the same topic to someone else:

Work on your vocab. Compile a list, work them into sentences, memorise phrases - expanding your lexical arsenal will pay in dividends when you're faced with 50-55 mins to write an 800-1200 word essay, with the ultimate goal of impressing the examiners, three times over. Don't use ridiculous language, but rather, choice words, with very specific meanings that more accurately convey your intentions, as these will help you stand out. Easy to do from the get go, but also whilst doing your own reading. I defined any words I didn't know using my phone, and then screenshotted those definitions and saved them into an album that I would look over once a week or so. Really helped with the exam, as you don't want to be repeating words, especially in section C where some students use 'suggests' and 'shows' in every second sentence.

To do that - read. Honestly, the most efficient method of adding to your "lexical arsenal", would be to read other people's essays, as suggested by someone above. If you are looking for some particularly impressive vocab options, check out literature reports from the last couple years. Words like 'apostasy', 'proselytise', 'sophism', 'promulgate' and 'expatiate' will prove their worth sooner than you may expect. Of course, the side effect is sounding like a pretentious bastard, but getting a good score in English might just be worth the risk!

[fareseru]

Words like 'apostasy', 'proselytise', 'sophism', 'promulgate' and 'expatiate' will prove their worth sooner than you may expect. Of course, the side effect is sounding like a pretentious bastard, but getting a good score in English might just be worth the risk!

I don't think that they're the key to doing well though. Not only do you sound like a pretentious bastard, you also come across as someone who's memorized a whole ton of synonyms rather than actually working on improving their writing in general. I guess for describing tone etc they're good but other than that...

[Splash-Tackle-Flail]

Woo Thanks guys, english is definitely my worse subject, so hopefully this will help me bring it up before oct next year

[chasej]

this will be resolved pretty soon when we get results haha.

wow  yeh, 2 and a half weeks to go :0

[nikegod]

wow  yeh, 2 and a half weeks to go :0

fuaaar man

closer we get, the more I realise I have no idea what im going to get

how does this shit work

vcaa give me my damn atar

[fareseru]

Given he asked how to improve his vocabulary, doesn't my answer match his question? For sure, the quality of your prose, and the way in which it flows is important, but being able to use a wide variety of words helps to establish a rhythm in the piece, without the jarring repetition of words (a sort of misophonia derived from unpleasant parallelism). Is the second part of your response true either? I'm not suggesting (or, rather, giving countenance to, or say, espousing the belief) that you throw in as many pentasyllabic words as you possibly can, but are you seriously suggesting that having a wide vocab is the same as (or, analogous) to unoriginality? Why can't the two go together? Of course you have to memorise synonyms, don't you do that for every word? Unless your piece sounds forced (or, say, contrived), why would they penalise you for a broad vocab base? Also, if you were to look at the words I put in brackets, you might notice that they take up less room than the alternative. Accurate, concise writing allows you to spend more of your 1000 words writing about (or say, explicating) the topic in depth, rather than just trying to convey what your impressions and beliefs are through sprawling sentences and paragraphs.

edit: do I sound pretentious enough yet?
edit 2: i had a thought - this will be resolved pretty soon when we get results haha. If I fuck up english, then I will think of you and smile ^{whilst I enotionally implode}

Yeah I mean it answers his question but at the same time I don't think that it's correct for you to suggest that employing a large number of words will lead to a 'good score'. I don't think that it's worth taking the 'risk' and learning a heap of extravagant words that could essentially be written in a much simpler way.

There's a huge difference between being able to use a large vocabulary well and being able to memorize and regurgitate a ton of words. Reading your message literally hurt my brain. The Chief Assessor for English told us specifically not to use ridiculous words because it leads to verbose writing. Not only do they make you sound like a pretentious idiot, they also tend to create texts that are difficult to read and also texts that don't flow correctly. They won't sit down with an essay and say 'what a beautiful piece of writing, yet the student's vocab is too wide, therefore - 1 mark', but they will sit down with an essay and say 'great content but it doesn't flow'. 

And no, our results won't mean anything. You fucking up English could just be because your content was shit. Or vice versa.

[nikegod]

Yeah I mean it answers his question but at the same time I don't think that it's correct for you to suggest that employing a large number of words will lead to a 'good score'. I don't think that it's worth taking the 'risk' and learning a heap of extravagant words that could essentially be written in a much simpler way.

There's a huge difference between being able to use a large vocabulary well and being able to memorize and regurgitate a ton of words. Reading your message literally hurt my brain. The Chief Assessor for English told us specifically not to use ridiculous words because it leads to verbose writing. Not only do they make you sound like a pretentious idiot, they also tend to create texts that are difficult to read and also texts that don't flow correctly. They won't sit down with an essay and say 'what a beautiful piece of writing, yet the student's vocab is too wide, therefore - 1 mark', but they will sit down with an essay and say 'great content but it doesn't flow'. 

And no, our results won't mean anything. You fucking up English could just be because your content was shit. Or vice versa.

yeah, fe, I don't think you are wrong

I didn't mean to give the impression that it would be resolved by whoever got the highest score, I meant I could think about it when I got my own mark back (like regardless of how you perform). I have no idea how you write, and I don't write quite like the dickhead you saw in my earlier post, but I will pretty quickly find out how assessors value heavy vocab. I don't want you to think I'm some overly-competitive ass!

[psyxwar]

There's nothing wrong with having a large vocabulary and using big words, provided you're using them correctly. No two words are exactly identical in meaning, and this nuance in semantics can be important and make your meaning clearer. Granted, this only works if you actually understand what the words mean; rote learning a bunch of synonyms for the sake of using longer and more wanky words isn't going to do you any good.

[katiesaliba]

I'm not really a cricket fan but whoa you guys on Atarnotes use big words (probably not even that big but my vocabulary is terrible) I hate to go off topic but how would I go about learning more words like this? (I really hope this doesn't come off the wrong way considering I just interrupted a what seems to be a really (insert word I don't know that describes like a serious debate over big ideas or whatever) debate for english advice)

Contentious debate
Ah, so this will seem incredibly nerdy but I found that by reading extensively and using (or rather reading) a thesaurus regularly, I was able to augment my vocabulary! Of course, it's also necessary to continuously revise the words you learn otherwise you'll forget them haha which happened to me all the time. But yeah, I strongly suggest reading classic literature to expand your word bank! 

[fareseru]

yeah, fe, I don't think you are wrong

I didn't mean to give the impression that it would be resolved by whoever got the highest score, I meant I could think about it when I got my own mark back (like regardless of how you perform). I have no idea how you write, and I don't write quite like the dickhead you saw in my earlier post, but I will pretty quickly find out how assessors value heavy vocab. I don't want you to think I'm some overly-competitive ass!

Yeah all good. Anyway, enough arguing. I've had enough for one evening How did you go with the beers?

[Fyrefly]

So just because InNeedForHelp wasn't crawling up your ass when he made a fair call about that horrible "GTFO of our thread" comment, seven of you decided to downvote his apology?

Edit: Fight me mods 

Sure thing

Moderator Action: Locked.

Admin might unlock this pending discussion, given that the most recent posts have returned to civility. But this will stay locked for now.

[Fyrefly]

Following discussion between the mods and with certain members, we've resolved to unlock this thread.

You're free to carry on as normal, but there's something I ask you to keep in mind that relates to my earlier warning:

A kind reminder that this thread doesn't belong to anyone. If you want your own private party, take your conversation to PM and I'll be very happy to lock this.

What has developed in this thread is an "us" vs. "them" mentality, where a few key posters have developed their own popular circle and readily exclude others. This isn't okay. AN shouldn't be a reflection of petty schoolyard politics. AN is an educational forum designed to support students in their studies, so we need this to be a welcoming place. Instead, recent discussion in this thread left more than one person feeling isolated and targeted, and I found myself having to apologise on behalf of AN for your behaviour.

You guys have all finished high school and are now adults. I respect that you've got each others' backs and want to look out for each other. However, I ask that you please only do so while demonstrating maturity and good grace. I KNOW you're all mature people which is why we're going to unlock this, but you need to know that your good qualities haven't come across well in the last few pages of discussion.

Oh, and now that the Class of 2014 has finished VCE, this thread has been moved to the "Forum Games and Casual Chat" board along with the Class of 2013 thread.

Mod Action: Unlocked, moved.