Aphorisms: From Ideas to Action

Posted on June 3, 2012
Filed Under Aphorisms, metaphor | 4 Comments

Over the past few months, I had the great good fortune to devise and teach a course called Aphorisms: From Ideas to Action at Bennington College’s Center for the Advancement of Public Action. This was a special experience for me, since it was from here that I graduated in 1985, here that I included a collection of aphorisms as part of my senior thesis, here that I started doing my ‘aphorisms in the globe’ shtick, and here that I met my wife. The experience was all the more special because of the great group of students I had in my class. We read and talked about aphorisms in every possible permutation during the course of the term and, of course, we wrote aphorisms, too. Some students opted to write a collection of aphorisms as their final paper, but we all composed aphorisms (sometimes inadvertently) as part of the course. The students’ work was exceptional. Below is a selection of some of the aphorisms they came up with over the past 13 weeks…

 

For the sake of the writers’ ideas, ‘less is more’ is a proverb to be applied to candy and glue, not to aphorisms. —Catherine Lentini

 

Aphorisms help you overhear yourself thinking. —Molly Case

 

I cannot see past myself, yet all that I see is beyond me. —Silas van der Swaagh

 

To rebel one must wear the right uniform. —Devan Marques

 

Be your own definition. —Amanda Haggerty

 

Secure your own mask before helping others. —Jan-Erik Asplund

 

There’s no point criticizing the rules of a game you can’t change; you’ve just got to learn them and play them as best as you can. —Corey Ecay

 

You can only understand the power of language once you have lost it. —Lauren Glading

 

Sometimes a dumb thing is a thing worth saying. —Alan Dupont

 

College is a place where the people who need it least are told things that the world needs to know. —Dylan Scott

 

Jealousy is affinity plus allergy. —Emma Schmelzer

 

The constant is that things are always being torn down. —Samuel Mayer

 

Visit a city to observe the behavior of animals. —Anna Eckert-Kramer

 

First impressions are the last chance to impress. —Lila Cutter

 

Even the most sophisticated dinner party has trouble under its tabletop. —Hannah Davidson

Comments

4 Responses to “Aphorisms: From Ideas to Action”

  1. Raquel Berman on June 3rd, 2012 5:15 pm

    I read your book ‘I is Another’last year and ever since I’ve thought to ask you if you have heard an emerging trend in teaching body awareness, posture and movement called Ideokenesis.

    This concept was coined by Mabel Elsworth Todd circa early 20th century, Columbia University(http://www.ideokinesis.com/pioneers/todd/todd.htm
    i beleive you will find this fascinating, especially as you scroll down to the last illustration)

    I really enjoyed your book and you can expand on the next edition by looking into this whole concept of teaching body awareness through metaphor. I beleive it’s the only way to truly help a person experience their body in a new and clarifying way which leads to self healing.

    I hope to hear your comments about this.

    Thank you, Raquel Berman,physical therapist, personal trainer

    Miami Beach, FL
    US

  2. marty rubin on June 4th, 2012 3:00 pm

    I especially like, “I can’t see past myself, yet all that I see is beyond me”-but they’re all great. Teaching this course must’ve been so much fun. Aphorisms have more than repaid you for your love of them.

  3. Jim Finnegan on June 5th, 2012 6:46 pm

    Very nice collection from your class.

    If you ever teach a class in or near Hartford CT, I’d love to sign up as an auditor.

  4. Aphorisms by Norton Juster > All Aphorisms, All the Time on July 29th, 2012 1:55 pm

    [...] glee in violating the laws of logic and of physics. I assigned a chapter from it for my Aphorisms: From Ideas to Action course as an example of the linguistic tricks at play in aphorisms … to [...]

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