Douglas Cameron of the BBC Symphony Orchestra giving a cello lesson to a second-year student at the Royal College of Music’s sister institution, the Royal Academy of Music, in 1944. Parry, Director of the RCM from 1895 to 1918, was a classic British liberal, holding that personal initiative and the freedom to make mistakes are essential to progress, while the examples set by others help to ensure those mistakes do not became too serious. Thus young and old are essential to each other, and a healthy society does justice to both.
Introduction
In an address to the students of the Royal College of Music in April 1918, Sir Hubert Parry said they were fortunate that when the College was founded in 1882, teachers were beginning to understand that the young respond better to respect and persuasion than to drill-ground severity.
NOWADAYS when people go to work to teach they try to get into sympathy with the humanity of those who have to be taught. They recognise them as their equals in many respects, and try to get into touch with their motives and the springs of their minds, and to see things from their point of view — and this brings youth and age happily together.
The young have the delightful privilege of pushing the old along and not letting them get into humdrum ways; and the old have an equally delightful privilege of helping the young not to make too many mistakes, or tumble over obstacles which they have not, in their eagerness, foreseen.
Life is a very complicated affair, and it cannot always move ahead as fast as the young think it ought to do; and sometimes it might move faster than the old think safe. So it is as well that both parties should be patient with one another and try to see if there is any sense of the other party’s apparent misconceptions.
Abridged
Abridged from ‘College Addresses, Delivered to Pupils of the Royal College of Music’ (1920), by Sir Hubert Parry (1848-1918).
Questions for Critics
1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?
2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?
3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?
Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.
Précis
In 1918, composer Sir Hubert Parry told students at the Royal College of Music that they were fortunate that the teachers of their day tried to understand the mindset of their students, rather than simply tell them what to do. It made for a better world, he said, in which young and old contribute to each another’s happiness. (58 / 60 words)
In 1918, composer Sir Hubert Parry told students at the Royal College of Music that they were fortunate that the teachers of their day tried to understand the mindset of their students, rather than simply tell them what to do. It made for a better world, he said, in which young and old contribute to each another’s happiness.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 65 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 55 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: besides, if, just, may, must, not, until, whereas.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Humanity. Life. Many.
2 Do. Person. Privilege.
3 Make. Sense. Should.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Opposites Find in Think and Speak
Suggest words or phrases that seem opposite in meaning to each of the words below. We have suggested some possible answers; see if you can find any others.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1.
Delight.
2.
Go.
3.
Happy.
4.
Over.
5.
Patient.
6.
Push.
7.
Teach.
8.
Work.
9.
Younger.
Variations: 1.instead of opposites, suggest words of similar meaning (synonyms). 2.use a word and its opposite in the same sentence. 3.suggest any 5 opposites formed by adding un-.
Add Vowels Find in Think and Speak
Make words by adding vowels to each group of consonants below. You may add as many vowels as you like before, between or after the consonants, but you may not add any consonants or change the order of those you have been given. See if you can beat our target of common words.
tng (9+1)
eating. outing. tang. tango. teeing. teenage. tinge. toeing. tongue.
ting.
Post Box : Ask Nicholas
Grok : Ask Grok
You are welcome to share your creativity with me, or ask for help with any of the exercises on Clay Lane. Write to me at this address:
See more at Post Box.
If you like what I’m doing here on Clay Lane, from time to time you could buy me a coffee.
Buy Me a Coffee is a crowdfunding website, used by over a million people. It is designed to help content creators like me make a living from their work. ‘Buy Me a Coffee’ prides itself on its security, and there is no need to register.
Related Posts
Sir Hubert Parry advised students at the Royal College of Music to respect their teachers, but to think for themselves too.
Picture: By John White Alexander (1856-1915), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted May 10 2018
Sir Hubert Parry explained to students at the Royal College of Music that some mistakes are creative whereas others are destructive.
Picture: From ‘College Addresses’ by Sir Hubert Parry (1920).. Source.
Posted March 27 2018
The chapel of Bede’s monastery in Sunderland was full of the colours and sounds of the far-off Mediterranean world.
Picture: Mattana, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted March 13 2015