Breathing words THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT MAGAZINE THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT MAGAZINE

COLEGIUL NAÈšIONAL MIHAI EMINESCU BAIA MARE

THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT MAGAZINE

Breathing words AN English magazine by and for anglophiles Inaugural 2017 issue

Contributors - teachers of the English Department: Andrea Ardelean Flavia Costin Simona Dicu Luminiţa Faur Elena Iercoşan Monica Lazăr Cristina Nedelea Cristina Vişovan

Editor Andrea Ardelean Elena Iercoşan DTP Elena Iercoşan

Contents EDITORIAL............................................................................................................................................................. 3 TEACHERS’ CORNER ......................................................................................................................................... 4 RACE AND MYTHOLOGY: ............................................................................................................................................ 4 STUDENT LIFE ....................................................................................................................................................17 BECOMING A FAMILY ........................................................................................................................................... 17 A SHARED PASSION .............................................................................................................................................. 19 VOLUNTEERING ........................................................................................................................................................... 21 MY EXPERIENCE AS A VOLUNTEER ........................................................................................................................... 21 STUDENT CORNER ............................................................................................................................................25 TRANSLATIONS ...................................................................................................................................................28 CLASS WORK .......................................................................................................................................................30 LIFESTYLE PROJECT .......................................................................................................................................33 ENGLISH IS FUN .................................................................................................................................................40

Editorial

Life as a story All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages. ~William Shakespeare, As You Like It~

The world we live in nowadays is highly technological, computerized… robotic… impersonal…. Being preoccupied with the provision of life’s basic needs and the lust for more, people forget to live the life. They forget that we have been left here on Earth to write the best version of our story, to create the best version of ourselves and share all this with the wide world.

Since stories are about sharing and teaching, when reading, we meet a world of characters/people, we live innumerable lives and we learn a load of lessons and acquire a plethora of world values. If you were to synthesize all this into a few words, it would come down to being human. This is because being human means being alive, lively, sensible and sensitive, error-prone and perfect, awkward and perfectible, moody and elated, apologetic and strong, free-spirited and constrained, rebellious and obedient, insecure and determined… determined to succeed and be unique. It is this side of our existence that we overlook or ignore. People do not find the time to read and create stories. People forget to be human.

Consequently, what the present magazine targets is to reveal the buds and blossom of our humanity, as the content of this shy inaugural issue ranges from sensitive exposures of the soul to rigorous scientific research – all of them best versions of the characters we strive to shape. We all hope you revel in the beauty offered and thus help return the world its supreme value – humanity.

Andrea Ardelean Elena Iercoșan

Teachers’ corner

Race and Mythology: Contemporary Norwegian Writers and the Fear of the Unknown

Nowadays, few people know Odin, Thor and the other Norse gods from the old written sources 1 . Most of them have become acquainted with them in movies, popular series, cartoons, comic books, fantasy books, video games and some through Viking Metal music.2 In fact, it was during the second half of the 20th century that Nordic mythology started to be promoted through pop culture. But, while the world seemed to enjoy a renewed interest in it, Norway took several steps back from reverting to the old mythology as a source of inspiration due to the Nazi misuse of Nordic symbols and myths during World War II. The study of Nordic mythology became a taboo and many people started avoiding it for fear of being associated with the Nazi ideology.3 The situation began to change around the turn of the century when the interest in the mythical and historical past increased again. The Old Norse mythology is nowadays present in film adaptations such as Trolljegeren 2010 (Trollhunter), Gåten Ragnarok 2013 (Ragnarok: The Viking Apocalypse) or the forthcoming Torden (Mortal). The eddic poems have also recently been dramatized by the world The first named writer who is known to have written down the Nordic myths was Snorri Sturlason.

He was a learned Icelandic scholar who wrote a prose account of the Old Norse myths known under the name of Snorra Edda or The Younger or Prose Edda, which is the only comprehensive account of Old Nordic mythology from the Middle Ages. From his work, it is obvious that he was familiar with the old eddic poems that we know today under the name of Edda or The Elder or Poetic Edda.

This collection was rediscovered in the 17th century and the poems have no named authors while the diction and meter are less elaborate than the skaldic poetry of Snorra Edda.

2 Just to name a few: the Valhalla comic series (Denmark), Marvel’s comic series based on Thor (starting with the 1960’s); television cartoon series – The Marvel Superheroes (1966); movies – Thor (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), The Avengers (2012), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015); series – The Vikings (2013-); books – Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard (by Rick Riordan); video games – Viking. Battle for Asgard (2008); Viking metal bands – Burzum, Enslaved, Emperor.

3 This seems to be actually one of the reasons why Norwegian metal bands started to use references to Nordic mythlogy in their songs – they wanted to provoke.

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famous writer Jon Fosse in an attempt to take back the Norse inheritance from right extremists. Even a scholarly interest is revealed by new translations into modern Norwegian of such literary treasures as Heimskringla (2012), the eddic poems (the first of four volumes was published in 2013),The Icelandic Sagas (2014), as well as some other books that have never been translated before such as Flatøybok (2014).

Furthermore, mythology is also present in belletristic literature confirming once more its versatility.4 After the turn of the century, several Norwegian writers have published books in which we can trace the influence of Nordic mythology. The target audience is wide, including people of all ages, children and teenagers as well.

This is no wonder, since myths are stories that can be reinterpreted in any context and the beings that inhabit the mythological world are perfect characters for many types of tales.5 What is interesting is that mythology is preponderant in novels that have a more or less fantastic character. But since re-writing myths is not a new practice, what could possibly be new in the use of Nordic mythology in contemporary fiction?6 Why turn to something that has been told and re-told, written and re-written by so many previous generations?7

The Nostalgia of the White Man Cornelius Jakhelln is one of the contemporary Norwegian writers who use Nordic mythology as inspiration. He has published several collections of poems and other nonfictional papers. In addition, he is also a musician; in 1995, together with Lars

Siri Pettersen, a contemporary Norwegian writer who uses Nordic mythology as an inspiration for one of her novels, declared in an interview: “A new pride has grown from our culture and this has led to the fact that others appreciate it. Then we think: «Jesus, could we also maybe do it? »” (My translation of: “Det har vokst fram en ny stolthet av vår egen kultur, som har fått fart av at andre andre setter pris på den. Da tenker vi: «Jøss, kanskje vi også kan få det til?»”). (Nordbø).

5 Gro Steinsland argues that because the myths are stories, they also have an entertaining quality.

The exciting adventures are appealing to children, while adult readers use the myths as a reference point that helps them in interpreting life itself. (Steinsland 18) 6 Re-writing is a modern term used for an old practice. It is such a wide term that it is sometimes difficult to define; it can include everything from literal reproductions, transcriptions, translations, to more elaborate forms that seem to be characteristic of postmodern literature such as postcolonial, feminist or ideological re-writings. It was coined during the second half of the 20 th century, but it describes practices that have been used for a long time under various conceptual definitions and in various cultures.

7 For example, in the 18th century, Nordic mythology played a central role in the Romantic Nationalism Movement that wanted to emphasize the uniqueness of the Norwegian national identity.

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Nedland, he founded the black metal band Solefald, while in 2003 he began working on a new band, Sturmgeist. Jakhelln’s two careers blend and according to D’Amico “He has been constantly bending towards literature when playing black metal, always towards black metal when writing literature. One could even stretch the argument as long as saying that much of Jakhelln’s literature gets lost without a knowledge of black metal music[…]” (“Black Metal” 32).

In 2007 Jakhelln published his first novel entitled Gudenes fall (The Fall of the Gods) – a prefiguration for the mythological content of the book.8 Here we meet Odin, the mightiest among the Nordic gods, reduced to the status of a bystander who only watches what others come up with. Together with the other gods, they have been chased under the ground after the introduction of Christianity. Odin reminds us actually of a human being as he loves to smoke, and listens to music; he drinks whiskey and espresso and eats Freya chocolate – he is de-mystified.

Odin is understandably also a fan of black metal music and Jakhelln does not miss the opportunity to define what he understands by blækk and ublækk metal, as well as to refer to some of the famous black metal bands that have written and performed songs about the Nordic god.9 Notable in this context is the change that occurred in Scandinavian and Norwegian black metal around 1992-1993 when the ‘worship’ of Satan was replaced by the ‘worship’ of Odin. Håvard Rem identifies three different groups of black metal lyrics with Norse inspiration – historicized texts (that describe historical events that happened 1000 years ago), mythologized texts (that have a more mythological and religious influence) and projection texts (131). The latter have a sociopolitical message because “[…] they project the Viking Age upon our times or project the contemporary age upon the Viking Age in an attempt to see historical parallels, and for example to look for solutions to the contemporary challenges among the Norse values and attitudes.”10 If we apply the same categorization to literary texts, Jakhelln’s novel seems to be a projection text. Odin is no longer a god but he still exists, even if Åsgard lies in After the publication of the book, Jakhelln won the competition for ‘The Best Nordic Contemporary Novel of the Year’ as well as ‘Fabelprisen’ – an yearly prize given to the best fantastic literary work of the previous year.

9 Gudenes fall is also an experiment when it comes to language since Jakhelln transcribed in written language the oral speeches of the characters. Blækk and ublækk metal are therefore the written variants of the oral pronunciation of ‘black’ and ‘unblack’ metal.

10 My translation of: “[…] disse projiserer vikingtiden over på vår tid eller projiserer samtiden over på vikingtiden i et forsøk på å se historiske paralleller, og for eksempel lete etter løsninger på samtidens utfordringer i norrøne verdier og holdninger.” (Rem 131).

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Underheimen now. 11 The new home of the gods is actually a reflection of the contemporary view of the pagan Nordic gods – we no longer believe in them but they still exist in our consciousness as representatives of a religion that was alive before

the

introduction

of

Christianity.

As

such,

the

Nordic

gods

are

recontextualized. 12 Åsgard has been spatially and temporally moved under the ground and in a chronological time that is defined in direct relation to this new spatial location. Besides a title, most of the chapters in Jakhelln’s novel contain a chronological reference. The first chapter is thus temporally located in ‘The first month 1, year 1100 after the Fall’. 13 Time is measured not according to the Christian religion and thus related to the birth of Christ, but rather in relation to the moment when the gods were chased (‘fell’) under the ground by the new religion, Christianity. Rem argues that there is a close connection between the way we tell the time and religion or ideology; accordingly, for those who want to abolish Christianity or liquidate its influence upon a society, it is just normal to want to change the way we measure time (189).

Odin has lost his reputation and status and he feels alone and suppressed. All day long he dreams and plans how to take his power back: “I want my world kingdom and my Nordic colonies back. I want to see my temples reconstructed and images of me splashed with human and animal blood. I want to be hailed again as Odin, the ghost king, the gallows prince, lord of the revenants and of the hanged. I want to be again the father of victory that I was, the god of the war and of the warriors.”14 Odin’s discourse bears a lot in common with the intention identified by Rem back the use of Nordic mythology in Norwegian black metal. Similar to Jakhelln’s Odin, the black metalists wanted not only to provoke but to recover the pre-Christian tradition and identity as well (126).

The names of the worlds of the gods and of the humans are deliberately chosen to make us visualize the literal placement of the humans in a world above the ground (Overheimen) as opposed to the gods who live under the ground (Underheimen).

12 Olga Glebova argues that one of the most popular types of rewriting is recontextulization, placing the original plot in a new spatial and temporal context. (Glebova 19). Genette refers to these transformations as diegetic transpositions and opposes them to pragmatic transpositions that do not transpose the plot but rather modify it. (Genette).

13 My translation of “ Enmåne 1, år 1100 etter Fallet”. (Jakhelln,Gudenes fall 19).

14 My translation of: “Jei vil ha mitt verdensrike å mine norrøne kolonier tilbake. Jei vil se hovene mine bli jenreist, å bildene a mei nedspruta me blo fra menkser å dyr. Jei vil ijen bli hylla som Odin, draugkongen, hengedrotten, jengangernes å di hengtes herre. Jei vil jeninnsettes som den Sigfader jei var, krigens å strittsmennenes gud.” (Jakhelln, Gudenes fall 75) 11

The loss of his magnitude has changed Odin from a mighty god to somebody living on the edge of a society, a marginal person: “And what do I have left today from my stupid magnitude? Not a shit, not a damn shit!”15 As such, Odin is a representative of the so called ‘transnational migration literature’ coined by Frank Søren, a literature written by migrants as well as non-migrants “as a result of the increased mobility in our globalized world” (48.). 16 The former lord of Valhalla feels only bitterness for being chased under the ground as an insect and he regrets his notintervention politics at that time. He feels nostalgic about the homogenous society of his former kingdom that is described in a big contrast to today’s society.

Many of the things that Odin and the other gods do are a parody but also a critique of the modern world society and this is meant to make us reflect upon what we do on a regular basis. Snobbery, overpopulation, exhaustion of natural resources, religion, lack of time and modern stress, warfare, inequality between men and women etc. are some of the problems of the contemporary society that are brought into discussion.

According to Odin, the human beings are predators, individualists, people thirsty for revenge who are willing to kill for their own interests; they love their jealousy and smallness. The human language abounds in words that describe this smallness only in the light of their existence – fear of being hurt, fear of the unknown, thirst for revenge, intolerance. “If it weren’t for the customs and border control that human beings tried to keep the unknown outside their territory, it was through a strong selection of who and what managed to get in.”17 Nevertheless, as ironic as it may be, the gods manage to be intolerant themselves in their behavior towards the dwarfs whom they treat politely but with reservations.

These members of the Underheimen society earn well but have the status of foreign workers. For more than 1000 years they have been whining that they are treated differently and discriminated. This image of the relation between gods and dwarfs sends us once again to the contemporary Norwegian society and the way foreign immigrants are often treated. The similarity is even stronger when the things that My translation of: “Å va har jei ijen idag, a min fordums storhet? Ikkendritt, ikkendæmsjitt.”

(Jakhelln, Gudenes fall 41) 16 Søren distinguishes between the so called ‘migrant literature’, written by migrant authors and ‘migration literature’ which refers to what actually happens inside the work of art.

17 My translation of: “Om ikke det var med tollvesen og grensepoliti menneskene forsøkte å holde det fremmede utenfor sitt territorium, så var det med streng seleksjon av hvem og hva som slapp inn gjennom døren.” (Jakhelln, Gudenes fall 350) 15

distinguish the dwarfs from the gods are said to be their physiognomy and the way they speak – no matter how grammatically correct they speak, they can still be identified as foreign due to their guttural voice.

Race and its connections with such contemporary problems as immigration and fear of the unknown are issues that Jakhelln addresses by using mythology as a tool. Many Norwegians admit nowadays that discussing about race has become such a taboo that they try to avoid it as much as possible. They no longer live in a traditional society which acknowledges social differences ideologically, but rather in a democratic society based on equality and which shares common values.

Nevertheless, social differences still exist but it is the natural physical differences that are emphasized; people seem to attribute to race what they no longer have the right to attribute to social difference (Todorov 173).

Odin himself feels discriminated but he still has a dream of regaining his power and being the only one who suppresses others. In him we recognize the voice and rage of the white man, as the writer has called himself. Jakhelln is one of those writers who have written a lot about feelings and ideology. He often mentions his experience as a student in Paris where he felt unsecure and menaced as being a white man. During a radicalization process he started to nurture warlike ideas and looked for a refuge in Nordic and German identity. “I established a picture of the enemy that was made of two outgroups: young Frenchmen of Arabic and African origins, with a background in the lower strata of society.”18 The Odin of Gudenes fall is the literary representation of the white man who feels alienated and exposed to racism. The rejection of the gods and their actual location in Underheimen is symbolic for the shift from a homogenous society, typical in Jakhelln’s understanding for ancient mythic times, to a multicultural society in the contemporary meaning. The nostalgia that we trace in Odin is an echo of what Jakhelln himself feels: “We, that have grown up in a land in change, have experienced facts, relationships, joy and problems that our parents have never been close to. What once was a homogenous population has become diverse in its composition. The development is irreversible. The Norway of our forefathers is away

My translation of : ”Jeg etablerte et fiendebilde bestående av to utgrupper: Unge franskmenn av arabisk og av afrikansk herkomst, med bakgrunn i de lavere samfunnslag.”(Jakhelln ”Raseri”).

Jakhelln goes even further and admits that he recognized himself in some of Anders Breivik’s manifest ‘2083’ since by the end of his stay in Paris he nurtured similar ideas.

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forever. There remains a deep loss but also big possibilities that can be difficult to see for some of us.”19

The message Jakhelln wants his audience to get is that angry people have to be taken seriously because anger can lead to pain and destruction as proved by Anders Breivik’s actions on the 22nd of July 2011. Nevertheless, Jakhelln’s discourse is highly nationalistic and reminds us of right extremists and even fascists. He even mentions the year 1814, crucial for the history of Norway as an independent state, and his wish to be true to his country, but he considers that it has failed to support him in the pride that he feels over his own identity. As such, his re-writing of the Nordic mythology is a re-writing that molds itself on the nationalistic rewritings of the 18th century, when Norwegian writers turned to the Old Norse mythology and used it to justify their national pride while building an independent nation. He re-writes the myth about the fall of the gods twice, first as a literal fall under the earth where the gods have been chased after the introduction of Christianity and then as a final battle between bionts and giants, giants and gods. But he also rewrites the gods of the Nordic mythology as lacking their godly allure, as marginalized beings who hate being suppressed and long after their glorious days when they ruled the world.20 Odin’s discourse is provoking but also infused with irony and sometimes even selfirony because humor is a perfect defense mechanism (Jakhelln, Raseri 130). In Jakhelln’s opinion, anger is dangerous when it does not come out. While his anger is channeled through writing, Odin’s anger is undermined the whole time through irony. “But I also know my own vileness, my tendency to overestimate myself, to represent myself better than I actually am.”21 The most ironic fact is maybe that even though he plans all the time how to take his power back from the humans living in Overheimen, the final battle, Ragnarok, is a battle between gods, giants and a new race of human robots. Once the bionts are out of the picture, the giants

My translation of: “Vi som er oppvokst i et land i endring, har opplevd hendelser, bekjentskaper, gleder og problemer våre foreldre aldri har vært i nærheten av. Det som en gang var en homogen befolkning, er blitt flerfoldig i sin sammensetning. Utviklingen er irreversibel. Våre forfedres Norge er borte for alltid. Der ligger et dypt savn, men også store muligheter det kan være vanskelig å få øye på for enkelte.” (Jakhelln “Æren og demokratiet”) 20 Caroline Tromp argues that Gudenes fall is an example of a “counter-storytelling told from the perspective of a minority”, a term coined by Oxfeldt (Oxfeldt 2012), and that Odin’s story follows a postcolonial model, the gods being the ancient population that was chased away with the arrival of Christianity (Tromp 26).

21 My translation of: “Men jei sjenner åsså min egen usselhet, min hang te å oppvurdere mei sjøl, te å fremstille mei som bedre enn jei egentli er.” (Jakhelln, Gudenes fall 50).

19

turn against the gods and Odin’s voice is replaced by the writer’s; he seems puzzled by the paradox of the old sources that could relate the story of the death of the immortal Odin and the victory of the stupid giants. “…but this is a must and what being can go against it?”22

‘The Other' Siri Pettersen is another Norwegian writer who chooses Nordic mythology as a basis for the first volume in her fantastic trilogy Ravneringene (The Raven Rings) but, rather than re-writing and interweaving myths, Pettersen’s technique is inventing a new mythological world, a mythopoeia that echoes the world of Nordic mythology.23 The series introduces us to three parallel worlds – the beautiful world of Ymslanda, inhabited by beings that remind us of hulder, a rotten world where people live and which is an allegory of our world, and Dreysil, the world of the blind.24 Titles are usually the first point in a literary work at which a writer can introduce a mythological prefiguration. Nevertheless, Odinsbarn, the first book in the series, does not elaborate it into a motif-pattern. 25 Odin himself never appears in the novel, nor does the myth about Odin’s creation of the human race. He was not popular at all in Ymslanda since he had once stolen two ravens. His name is mentioned in connection with being the father of mankind and once in a story told by a puppeteer.

Place names and terms are filled with Nordic echoes: Ymslanda which basically means – ‘Ym’s Land’ reminds us of the Nordic myth about the creation of the world; Manfalla, the capital of Ymslanda, sounds like Valhalla; the ravens remind us of

My translation of: “… men slik er nødvendiheten, å vilket vesen kan gå imot den?” (Jakhelln, Gudenes fall 428).

23 The first volume, Odinsbarn, won Fabelprisen in 2014 and it was also nominated for several other literary prizes.

2424 A hulder is a supernatural creature of Scandinavian folklore. She is incredibly beautiful with one distinctive feature – she has a tale.

25 In his study about Mythology in the Modern Novel, White argues that almost all mythological novels with such titles refer again to the title-figure and follow the initial allusion with an extended motif (which designates the system of references to the prefiguration). Thus, the title is used to make us aware of the motif that is to come rather than to establish the prefiguration once and for all. They invite us to “speculate whether the rules of the game are going to be respected” (White 125).

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Odin’s Hugin and Munin who fly all over the world to gather knowledge and news; the Seer’s tree is built on the image of Yggdrasil, the world tree etc.

Hirka, a 15 year-old girl, is the main character of Odinsbarn (Odin’s child), the first book in the series. Similar to the Odin of Gudenes fall, she is a marginal person since she lacks something that everyone else has – a tale. She is perceived as different by the other inhabitants of Ymslanda and she feels excluded from their society: “Was it strange that they had lived on the road? Was it strange that they never had contact with people, other than to help them when they were sick? It was not strange at all. It was her fault. She was not the way she was supposed to be.”26 All her life she has believed that people have rejected her and her father’s company because they are poor and they provide people with illegal plants and cures, but one day she finds out her true story – she is of a different race, one that is feared and condemned – menskr.27 She is a child of Odin, a daughter of Embla and in Ymslanda they fear menskr because they can make them rotten. “She was a monster. A disease .”28 Fear of the unknown is the central idea of Pettersen’s novel. The author herself has declared that Råta (the Rot), as the menskr are called, is a real image of what it means to have contact with another race. We are often reticent of what we do not know or understand, what is different and what seems threatening.

“A stranger, a foreigner, an outsider, a social deviant, anyone speaking in an unfamiliar language or acting in unfamiliar ways, anyone whose origins are unknown or who has extraordinary powers, tends to be set apart as other, as evil.”, claims Rosemary Jacskon in her now world famous study about fantasy as a literature of subversion (52). Most often we do not even want to try to understand the unknown or the other, we just take it for granted that the general assumption is true. We are blinded by our misconceptions and prejudices, by our individual/collective/national pride.

Pettersen considers that this fear for the unknown is the reason why Norwegians/Scandinavians cling to what they believe is their Nordic culture; for My translation of: “Var det rart at de hadde levd på veien? Var det rart de aldri hadde omgang med folk, annet enn å hjelpe dem når de ble sjuke? Det var ikke rart i det hele tatt. Det var hennes skyld.

Hun var ikke som hun skulle være.” (Pettersen 23).

27 In modern Norwegian, the word ‘menneske’ is a noun and means ‘human being’, while in Old Norse ‘mennskr’ is an adjective and it means ‘human’.

28 My translation of: “Hun var et udyr. En sykdom.” (Pettersen 244).

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her, there are not only good reasons for the pride over Nordic mythology that has grown recently due to the publication of books and the production of series and movies with Viking and Nordic roots. In an interview she declares: “The grateful thing about fantasy is that you can add your own premises. You can fill terms with meaning and content, as ‘the Rot’ for example. You can work against prejudices and challenge the people’s biased attitude by writing about something that they have never met.”29

Hirka is the embodiment of our own fears when it comes to a different race. Her presence in Ymslanda is a a sign that the portals between the worlds, the Raven Rings, are open and the blind can come back and destroy the ym race in a final battle that once again reminds us of Ragnarok. But Hirka also turns out to be the only one who can save Ymslanda; and she is willing to do it. One race can destroy the world, but what if it can/will actually save it?

Conclusion National pride, racism and fear of the unknown are contemporary issues that many Norwegians seem to experience nowadays as a result of globalization. Instead of oscillating between despair, revolt, rage or violence, contemporary Norwegian writers choose art and literature to give voice to their feelings.

Fantastic literature appears to be the perfect choice because it traces “the unsaid and the unseen of culture: that which has been silenced, made invisible, covered under and made ‘absent’” (Jackson 4). Through fantastic literature, writers compensate for what they feel they cannot express in the real world and their writings gain a subversive function.

Jakhelln and Pettersen use the Nordic mythology differently. Gudenes fall rewrites and thus recontextualizes the myth about Ragnarok as well as the role and importance of Odin and of the other gods. Odin represents the literary embodiment of Jakhelln’s search of identity triggered by his experiences as a ‘white man’ in the multicultural Paris.

Odinsbarn creates a totally new mythology that is actually built on our intertextual reading and knowledge of the Old Norse myths. Hirka is both similar to Jakhelln’s

My translation of: “Det takknemlige med fantasy er at du kan legge dine egne premisser. Du kan fylle begreper med mening og innhold, som «råta» for eksempel. Du kan jobbe mot fordommer og utfordre folks forutinntatte holdninger ved å skrive om noe de ikke har møtt.” (Nordbø) 29

Odin, since she is the representative of a minority, but at the same time she is Odin’s opposite as she represents an ‘immigrant’ race rather than the aboriginal one.

The motivation behind their use of Nordic mythology is as different as it could be.

While Jakhelln is attracted by its nostalgic significance, Pettersen sees nothing good in the national pride often associated with the old mythology. Nevertheless, both manipulate the mythology in order to achieve their goal, that of sending a political/social message.

Cristina Vișovan, Teacher of English and Norwegian

Drawing by Petru Duma, 11C

References: Primary Sources Jakhelln, Cornelius. Gudenes fall : sagaroman, Cappelen Damm, 2008.

Pettersen, Siri. Odinsbarn, Gyldendal Norsk Forlag AS, 2013.

Secondary Sources D’Amico, Giuliano. “Black Metal, Literature and Mythology. The Case of Cornelius Jakhelln.” Nordicum Mediteraneum. Icelandic E-Journal of Nordic and Mediterranean Studies, volume 4, no. 1, March 2009, http://nome.unak.is/previousissues/issues/vol4_1/article.php?id=2&art=damic o. Accessed 20 April 2017 – – –. ”Sinne, selvinnsikt og det politisk ukorrekte. Raseri av Cornelius Jakheln.”

Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, edited by Massimo Ciaravalo, et al. Firenze UP, 2015, pp.307-19.

Frank, Søren. "The Emmergence of a Literature of Migration (in Europe): When, Why, What, Where (Not)" in Contemporary Developments in Emergent Literatures and The New Europe, editors César Domínguez and Manus O'Dwyer, vol. 2, Editora Clave, 2014, pp. 37-52 .

Gauer, Denis. "Writing and Re-writing. Re-inventing the Wheel: Compulsion or Curse?" Alizés, revue angliciste de la réunion, volume 20, 2001, http://oraclereunion.pagesperso-orange.fr/documents/310.html. Accessed on 5 March 2017.

Genette, Gérard. Palimpsests:Literature in the Second Degree. Translated by Channa Newman and Claude Doubinsky, University of Nebraska Press, 1997.

Glebova, Olga. "Recontextualisation as an Interpretatiev Strategy in Contemporary Novelistic Discourse". Respectus Philologicus, volume 16 (21) A, pp. 19-29.

Jakhelln, Cornelius. Raseri. En hvitings forsøk på en selvbiosofi, Cappelen Damm, 2011.

- - -. "Raseri". Tidsskrift for norsk psykologforening, volume 48, no. 12, 2011,p.1209,https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/.

Accessed on 3 March 2017.

- - -. "Æren og demokratiet", Morgenbladet, morgenbladet.no/kultur/2011/07/aeren-og-demokratiet. Accessed on 18 March 2017.

Jakson, Rosemary. Fantasy: The Literature of Subversion, Methuen, London and New York, 1981.

Miloi, Ionuţ. Cealaltă poveste. O poetică a rescrierii în literatura română contemporană, Casa Cărţii de Ştiinţă, 2015.

Nordbø, Nina.

"Norrønt ekko i norsk fantasi". www.nrk.no/kultur/bok/norront-ekko-i-norsk-fantasy-1.11249540, Accessed on 18 March 2017.

NRK, 2013.

Rem, Håvard. Innfødte skrik.Norsk svartmetall, Schibsted Forlag, 2010.

Sjølie, Bekkebråten Elin. "Bøker er magiske portaler". Av en annen verden, avenannenverden.no/?p=5186. Accessed on 25 March 2017.

Steinsland, Gro. Eros og død i norrøne myter. Oslo Universitetsforlag, 1997.

– – –. Norrøn religion. Myter, riter, samfunn, Pax forlag, 2005.

Todorov, Tzvetan. "´´Race´´, Writing and Culture". Critical Inquiry, volume 13, no. 1 1986, pp. 171-181.

Tromp, Carline. "Odin i tusenårskrise: Norrøn mytologi og nordisk identitet i Janne Tellers Odins ø og Cornelius Jakhellns Gudenes fall."

Norsk Litteraturvitenskapelig Tidsskrift, volume 18, no. 1, 2015, pp. 13-33.

White, John J. Mythology in the modern novel : a study of prefigurative techniques.

Princeton UP, 1971.

Student life

BECOMING A FAMILY Excitement, fear..., those are the feelings that every single student faces in their first day of highschool. We feel excited because we are looking forward to start the so called “best period of our school life” and meet those who will be our comrades in our 4 year journey, but we are also a little bit scared, nervous, at least the majority of us are. Well we shouldn’t. Why do we have to be afraid of not fitting in the group? Each one of us is different, that is the reason why everyone is unique, but it’s impossible not to find someone who shares the same hobbies or passions you have.

After all, making friends in your class is not difficult at all, that if you’re lucky enough you will share your future highschool experience with people who have great personalities, like I have. But, now the question is, what has brought my classmates so close? The answer lies on the walls that are behind our desks. If you take a look, you will see a drawing of this young girl caring a huge red umbrella, walking on a road that at one point diverges in two, and lots of colourful butterflies flying out from a book, all of them having inside a quotation that defines the students from our class.

Of course, around the painting, you can also observe a mass of people laughing, smiling, talking, even fighting (like a family, not in the bad way), some of them with brushes in their hands, others preparing the colours our artists need, others offering their help in anything that

could make things easier. You see, psychologists say that when people work together, they become a team and they are united by the same purpose. Believe it or not, in our case this worked out really well. I think that by trying to make everything perfect and helping each other, we see ourselves in a different way than when we first met. Step by step we are becoming a family, at least that’s what we like to think, but this project has definitely brought us together, it has made us a team, something that not anybody can reach because it takes time, patience, maybe some love too.

On one of the walls it’s written a part of Robert Frost’s poem “The road not taken”. What is really important from that piece of the poem selected by us is the part that says: “I took the one less traveled by/ And that has made all the difference.” Why is this important for us? Because, even from the beginning we established that we want to make a difference, not to take the easy way, to fight for what we want and to prove that by being yourself and not trying to be like everyone else, you can reach any goal in your life.

Contributor: Ioana Pogăciaș Photo credit: Timea Covaci Form: 9-C Coordinating teacher: Flavia Costin

A SHARED PASSION

On the 12th of May, students from “Mihai Eminescu” National College, Baia Mare and the Department of Scandinavian Languages and Literatures from Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, celebrated the National Day of Norway. The two previously mentioned institutions offer young people the possibility to study Norwegian language and culture and the idea of celebrating such a crucial day in the history of Norway together was meant to create bonds between the students involved in the activity.

Norwegians actually celebrate their national day on the 17th of May because in 1814, at Eidsvoll, the Constitution of Norway was signed on this date. It declared Norway an independent nation. Despite the fact that the celebration of the national day was forbidden at the beginning, as Norway was under Swedish rule at that time, this fact only resulted in the Norwegian people being more determined to revolt against the union. Thus, as a consequence of a great protest organised in Christiania (present day Oslo), that is known today as the Battle of the Square of 1829, the king was forced to allow Norwegians to celebrate the 17th of May. Henrik Wergeland, a famous Norwegian writer, had a key role in this resistance movement and in the following years he tried and managed to transform the day into a celebration for the children rather than a day of patriotic pride.

Today, children have a special role in the celebrations. The most important part of the event are the children’s parades where they carry flags, play and sing songs.

By celebrating the Norwegian National Day together with students from The Department of Scandinavian Languages and Literatures, we tried to recreate the Norwegian spirit by singing some typical Norwegian songs and we managed to bring a part of this day’s characteristic cheerfulness to our city and country. Songs like the National Anthem, „Ja, vi elsker dette landet”(Yes, We Love This Country), or „Norge i rødt, hvitt og blått”(Norway in Red, White and Blue) were sung by all participants, including the great teachers who teach us this language: Mrs. Cristina Vişovan, Professor Sanda Tomescu Baciu, Assistant Professor Roxana Dreve and a Norwegian visiting teacher, Fartein Thorsen Øverland. Evenmore, the youngsters also recited poems and presented a short play based on the well-known fairytale „Askeladden som kappåt med trollet”(Askeladden Who Had an Eating Match with a Troll) .

In the end, following the Norwegian habit, the students and their teachers made their way to the sports hall where they played together some specific Norwegian games and had a great time.

It was a wonderful day, full of laughter and fun, a day that brought together students and teachers from the two institutions who share the same passion for the Norwegian language.

Contributor: Denisa Goilean, 11C Coordinating teacher: Cristina Vișovan

Volunteering My Experience as a Volunteer

I do not think there is a clear definition for being a volunteer, because each of us has a different perspective on what volunteering means. I have not been able to find a single definition, for me this word represents so much and every time I discover something new with each activity.

Nonetheless, I can say that volunteering is more than an altruistic gesture, it represents an exchange of invaluable value: it's all about meeting people with an open heart.

Volunteering means change, freedom, love, learning, development and so much more but, I would like to "start with the beginning". Certainly volunteering has changed me and changed my life and these are not just big words. My story started five and half years ago and during these years I have lived different experiences which step by step had a tremendous impact on me.

I will start this story (because yes, for me being a volunteer is like a story) out of curiosity and because I really wanted to make a change in my life, to do something different; so I hear about an organization which works with children and teenagers, as well as with international volunteers on various cultural activities. So I started attending the activities organised by Team for Youth Association - a place which now is like my second home, a place where for the first time I felt so well, I felt important, a place where I grew up, where I learned to fly, to be myself and to be proud of who I am and a lot of other wonderful things which I will mention later; after two years I was completely changed, I had so much confidence in me so I have been involved in more and more activities and associations like: Deis, Foundation Baia Mare 2021, etc. All the above mentioned organisations have helped me to become the person who I am today and to arrive here writing these words about how volunteering has changed my life, but I need to mention the fact that I never imagined that helping others I will also help myself and I never knew how powerful this can be. Also, it is a little hard to express myself in a few words about volunteering because I have so much to say about it, I have a lot of things to share with the others and of course, with you who are reading this right now.

I still remember myself before becoming a volunteer, a little girl terrified by the world, by the people; I was a fairly confined person with fears, a person with certain

complexities, a fragile child who did not leave the comfort zone or society, I was very shy and I did not trust myself at all, and I was afraid of everything that was new and what people were saying about me. And now I have completely changed; I see things with different eyes and I try to help people to see the good parts, to believe on themselves.

I realized that being a volunteer means being free to choose what you like to do, to try things that you still cannot figure out if you can cope with, or if they seem interesting or useful for your personal development and career. Volunteering in general can become a chance to solve problems with so many unknowns, especially if it is thought and planned as a learning process by your own will.

Over time, with more and more projects, more and more doors opened to me, I started to be more confident, I began to feel the taste of volunteering and involvement. At one point I had so many activities that I was crying that I had no time and maybe I should give up some of these, but I could not do it; on the contrary, I was more involved in everything I found interesting and new. For the first time I began to let myself guided by instinct. The end of the day's fatigue does not compare with the satisfaction of seeing a smile on people’s faces.

All workshops, activities, events in which I participated as an organizer, coordinator, volunteer were meant to improve the day of orphan children or fewer lucky ones who needed attention, love; they have the role of embellishing the city, the citizens, creating a right context for development, recreation, culture, learning.

Many ask me why I'm doing this, why volunteering? I simply respond to them: because it makes me happy, it makes me human. Volunteering is a fairly abstract concept for many people, for some it is a kind of free work, for others volunteering means all sorts of activities without a profit or a specific conclusion. But this is not volunteering for me. It is not a free activity where you do not get anything, volunteering in the first place is a reward in itself, it is altruism and not only, you do not expect rewards in volunteering but still they come.

Let me ask you something- what is your dream? You don't need to answer me right now, but please think about it and tell me do you think that it will become reality?

Do you believe enough in your dream? Yes, I know maybe now you say something like a yes, but you are not sure about it, right? Are you scared? You should be, but let me tell you that dreams really can become reality. Actually I have just learned it, but you need to work for it, you need to have the courage to follow them, to trust yourself, to be a little crazy to choose not to follow what people say but to follow

what your heart says, I know it sounds strange or hard, but it really works. How do I know it? Because I learn all these things being volunteer, what? You don't trust me; you think I'm just saying nice words because I had to say it? No! Look, for example I have always wanted to be like a star, an actor but because of the old girl of me I never did anything about this, but one day I realized that I don't have anything to lose so I went to some auditions for a theater group and I passed it so after I started working for being an actor and I did it, months after I was on a stage with my first show being applauded by the audience, I was really proud because I did it, I made my dream come true. It was a nice feeling. That was just an example, I have more because I realized that there are no limits for dreams, goals and there is also no such word as “impossible�. I have also won the title of the best volunteer of the year on 2015 and I succeeded in the Volunteers’ Olympiad, where I won the first place. What I want to say is that with work and passion you can do everything, try it, it's free!

Thanks to volunteering, I have experienced moments that I would like to relive again. I have lived the moments of life so intensely and I have felt the importance of everything, people, events. Moreover, because I do not want to forget any of these experiences, I started writing a diary where I note down every little thing that moved me or had a certain impact on me. And to keep these memories alive, I try to talk about them every time I get the chance. I want to inspire young people, to make them try to penetrate at least a little in this world.

I think volunteering helps you open your eyes and see the world beyond standards, conformism, prejudices, you grow as a better person, as a productive member of society, as a human being. By volunteering, you make yourself useful through everything that you know, and what volunteering offers you back cannot be quantified, measured or counted, it can only be felt as you feel the best things in life.

All these projects have helped me become a better person in the true sense of the word. They helped me to be more tolerant, to understand that not all things are my fault, and I want more and more to get involved in helping people and changing the city and the life we have here. My heart has increased ten times with each person I have met through the projects, with each person who has thanked me and with each person who gave me a smile from the bottom of his/her soul and all because I am a volunteer. I was sitting a few days ago thinking about how many beautiful things, wonderful people have gone through my life and all this happened because I am a volunteer. I wonder what it would have been if I did not make the decision to become a volunteer, I do not think I would have had so many beautiful memories, not to mention the activities, irreplaceable friends, no life so active, surprising.

Even I would have been another, I would probably have been that shy girl who did not interact too much, a girl with fears, unreliable and courageous, I find it hard to describe how my world would be without volunteering, probably A world without color, boring and absorbed by the virtual world and the banality of society. But no, I have chosen to live in another story, where even if it's hard sometimes, it's

beautiful and I know I can do everything I want, because I have everything I need and I'm lucky to have I could make a change and break the barriers.

Volunteering has had a huge impact on me and I encourage anyone who thinks about doing joining this wonderful activity and not only. Now I am a girl who fights for what she wants, I have a lot more confidence in me, I have acquired different skills, I have managed to do everything I have proposed to, I have done things I did not think I would do. I always look for something new, learning to be me, to be honest, to accept me with faults, because that makes me special; being different is a good thing, I have learned not to be afraid to show this, to express myself the way I feel. Through volunteering, I learned the art of becoming an extraordinary person and, at the same time, that the big people are the simplest.

I have learned that it is important to look people in the eyes and also the fact that most things we learn, we learn from our own mistakes, so why should we be afraid to be wrong? Everything happens for a reason, so you have to be a good winner when it's the case, but also a good loser. I understand that a step, however small, can help a life. Listen to your heart, dare to be different, to be you! You must have the courage to express your opinions, to show who you are. Remember, no one succeeds alone in life! Have a grateful heart and remember those who helped you!

Take risks! Become your own hero, and then you can become someone else’s hero.

It all starts with you. Love yourself and then the others, say thank you, offer smiles, have something nice to tell them. Get involved! That's your chance. Stop when it's the right time! These are only a few things I learned through volunteering, there are too many to write them all and I have just started following this path.

Just as happiness is a way of being or should be so, it is not seen as a trophy you receive at the end of the race, no, it is a state that you must always have, it's a way of being. So volunteering for me is a way of being. It has no impact only on the beneficiaries, but also on the volunteer. Volunteering is a return to what we have more humanly. Volunteering is born in everyone's heart.

This is for you, the person who is reading this right now. Don't be afraid of trying new things, I don't know you but I know you can do it. So what are you waiting for? Come on, time doesn't wait for you, it's now or never. Good luck! Oh, and yes my story is still on, it will never have an ending, it's too great to be just a story! I need to seize the opportunities that are waiting for me, and so should you. So, see you! I hope you’ll enjoy it!

Don't forget! Smile, you're amazing!

Contributor: Andreea Săsăran, 12A Coordinating teacher: Simona Dicu

Student corner

Vivid raindrops hastily descent; I bend the knee upon my fate Intoxicated by your scent My hourglass has come to end.

Vivid raindrops touch my skin; You crawl your way out of my dream Chaotic passion: our main theme Decayed gently my self-esteem.

Don't leave me Do me a favour And don't leave me behind.

I know I'm weak But I want to be by your side.

I struggle daily To catch up with you But it looks like You are only getting further away From me, from everyone Who try to be beside you.

And don't leave just yet, Wait for me a little more...

Because I'm too stubborn To recognise that I lost.

Maybe you are far away But I'm coming fast From behind With the hope that I could be right next To YOU. Diana Buteanu, 9th C form

Vivid raindrops turn to clot; We kiss the last time on this earth.

Suffocated, left to rot I disbelieve my own rebirth.

Diana Lakner, 12th E form

Soulstealer

The five senses of love I never knew what love feels like What love looks like, What love sounds like, What love smells like, Or what love tastes like.

But one day I saw you standing there, Waiting for me to touch your soft pale skin.

Saving my electric soul from drowning In my own restless seas.

We both know that… …I’ve been a wild child, Reckless and free.

We both know that… …I’ve been taking your name in vain But I’ve always been sincere when I said: “Je ne regrette rien.”

But once you’ve changed my name, And the blood in my veins, Dancing slowly in the rain, I finally understood… …The grandeur of a sunset in mid July, That’s what love looks like. …The voice of a protecting father, That’s what love sounds like. …The fragrance of a new book, That’s what love smells like. …The aroma of a hot coffee in a winter’s morning, That’s what love tastes like. …The safety in your arms when I’m drunk and seeing stars.

That’s what love feels like.

Camelia Irimuș, 12E

skinless bones embrace me in icy cold waters; I’m diving into deep, yet wicked claws won’t let me drown.

I lose my mind in the commotion, sharp fangs listen to me confessions every night: Of which body part should I dispose, when I can’t fell the warmth anymore?

I’ve searched each crack in stones – for an escape; all I see is you, ruthless soul stealer.

Snake eyes viciously lurking, as I emerge from a venomous sleep, a demon – in the mirror, staring back at me…

Denisa Andreica, 12E

She was the Moon…

She was the Moon…

Cold and lonely Mysterious and strange Full of imperfections And covered in an odd beauty And like the Moon She had a side of her So dark, that even the stars Couldn’t shine on it Alexandra Suciu, 9E

She had a side of her so cold, That even the sun Couldn’t warm it…

My White Queen I was waitingLooking through the frozen window, Wanting to see her, But she wasn’t coming.

I was waitingI was boredAnd she heard me Then appeared.

On the dark sky In the dim light The white queen rose She was beautiful And could cast a spell on you.

I could watch her forever Even if I knew she would leave me And I’d be alone again Daydreaming about the night sky.

This queen…

She was a mystery I never tried to solve For I knew she was forever And me not.

Decisions Whatever you do, Good or bad, People will always have Something negative to say.

Even if it’s right, Even if it’s wrong, No matter what They will always judge.

You don’t have to listen, Keep your head up And never look back‘Cause you’ve already been there.

In any given moment.

Choose for yourself.

Step forward And learn to grow up.

Translations Iarna polară din noi Motto; „Sunetele au îngheţat pe fluier, Sunt Pan coborât din Laponia, Unde renii au îmbrăcat Blănile dăruite de urşii polari.”.

Cântecul rămâne-va ascuns În pântece de sloiuri de gheaţă, Precum un nedescifrat răspuns Împletit în fuioare de ceaţă.

Salvaţi-vă, vine noaptea polară, In care visele sunt albe stafii, Cu care zămislim bunăoară Lumi îngheţate în loc de copii, Peste lume, ca un semn de mirare Se aşterne în suflete iarnă Şi devenim cer zdrenţuit din care, Tristeţi, precum fulgii încep să se cearnă!

Dragomir Ignat

The Polar Winter Inside Us

by Dragomir Ignat Motto: ”The sounds have frozen around the pipe, I am Pan, I come from Lapland, Where the reindeer are clad In furs presented to them by the polar bears.”

The song will remain unheard Hidden in the depths of the ice, Like a cryptic answer Contained in fog-palls.

Save yourselves, the polar night is coming, Now dreams are turning into white ghosts, With which we are begetting Frozen worlds instead of children, Winter is settling in our souls and over the world Taking us by surprise And we are becoming a ragged sky from which Sorrow, like snow flakes, is sifting.

Translated by Diana Câmpan, 9C Drawing by Carina Talos, 9C Coordinating teacher Monica Lazăr

Rostogolindu-se ora...

Sufletul melancolic al casei, —Un ochi portocaliu— Fereastra zăvorâtă pândeşte înserarea.

Strada răsuflă din greu sub nămeţii nea, Zăpada curge din cer fără oprire, Braţe descărnate străjuiesc Clădiri pe jumătate-ngropate, Întinsă pe pat, în odaia îngustă, Cu gândul absent urmăresc Mersul firii.

Pe acoperiş, chiar deasupra mea, Moşul Omăt joacă zaruri cu vântul.

Ora rostogolindu-se prin întuneric, Cuprinde oraşul în întregime, O minge gigantică, transparentă, Coborând năvalnic panta vieţii.

Poate că pe alte străzi e vară, Poate că soarele, înfocat pârjoleşte Întinse câmpii.

Noi însă aşteptăm să treacă iarna, Şi noaptea, mai rotundă acum, În încăperi dospeşte.

Flavia Cosma

Rolling Hour

by Flavia Cosma The melancholy soul of the house, -An orange eyedeThe bolted window awaiting the dusk, The street breathing heavily under the blanket of snow, Snow falling from the sky incessantly, Hollow arms guarding Half-buried buildings.

Lying on my bed, in my narrow room, I am watching blankly the world go by.

Snow Man playing dice with the wind On the roof, right above me.

The hour rolling through the dark, Embounding the whole city, A giant, translucent ball rolling sweepingly On the downhill of life.

Perhaps it is summer on other streets, Perhaps the blazing sun is parching Vast plains.

Still, we are waiting for the winter to pass, But night, longer now, Keeps growing.

Translated by Dora Blidar and Eliza Stramb, 9C Drawing by Carmen Tuns, 9C Coordinating teacher Monica Lazăr

Class work Romanians Still View Discrimination at the Workplace as a Natural Thing The author of the article which I have summed up and translated is Dana Puscoci, a journalist who wanted to inform us about the main reasons of discrimination against women. From this article, you can also learn which are women’s rights and how women can protect themselves against discrimination.

Discrimination is a form of shutting off people (on all sorts of grounds, be them sexual, racial or of disabilities) at the margins of society, and is still so present in Romania that many of us regard it as quite a natural phenomenon.

Nevertheless, our country has the legal framework (e.g.Law 48/2002) that punishes discrimination, and we also set up institutions to deal with acts of discrimination since 2003.Their main role is to shape our democratic society in such a way so as to educate our society and induce respect, solidarity and trust among its citizens.

A special interest by these institutes and our authorities have been given to the discrimination of disabled people and that of women.

With regard to the discrimination of women, they are generally seen as inferior to men, and there are two main ways in which they are acted against at their workplace: 1. in payment-they get a lower pay than men for the same work; 2. as professional segregation-women have an obstructed access to certain professions that are better paid or qualified.

The main reasons for discriminating women are: 1.employers’ prejudices-men regard them as inferior labor force compared to men; 2. employers’ personal preferences-generally a man who disregards women on grounds of male solidarity; 3.the employers’ negative expectations with regard to a woman’s likely low efficiency, since a woman’s personal life implies time lapses when she is temporarily incapacitated for work due to marriage, childbirth and childcare.

Romanian laws stipulate the equality of chances between men and women taking into account the specific needs and goals of a woman when compared to a man, and this equality can actually take place if: 1.women have unobstructed access to all professions and job vacancies, irrespective of level of hierarchy professional; 2.equal income for equal work; 3.professional promotion to all levels; 4.professional counselling and training to ensure their access to all workplaces; 5.good working conditions.

Employers will not discriminate women in any way and will not abuse of their position to prevent women from personal or professional fulfillment in any way. For instance, Romanian laws stipulate that the maternity leave cannot and will not be used against women before and during employment and is utterly forbidden to be used as a means of discrimination. For instance, employers ought not to require a potential woman employee to provide a pregnancy test before employment.

Other forms of discrimination against women are sexual and psychological harassment at the workplace, although they are difficult to be proved in legal courts since psychological terror is often a question of personal perception and, sometimes, even subsequent to community outlook or customs.

Therefore, many women prefer to say nothing and not report an abuse at the moment of discrimination. The fear of not being paid anymore or of having problems later in their careers and their personal lives, of being misjudged or ‘labeled’ in some way make them ‘shut up’ and refrain from revealing the harsh truth.

To conclude, I would say that, if you feel discriminated, do not hesitate to announce the authorities because the law is on your side! I hope my lines have helped you realize your own rights as women in order that you will protect yourselves from those who think they can discriminate against you.

Translated and adapted by Cristina Gyory, former 12 grader, Edited and coordinated by Luminita Faur

On reading Money Talks by D J Enright To begin with, I would quote a phrase which originates in the Bible that says: ”The love of money is the root of all evils” Well, especially today, this saying seems to be express a genuine truth.

First of all, we are living in an age when people appreciate money more than anything else. In the past, as the poem says, ’money used to keep its voice down’, to be more discreet, though also useful. Only a small number of people used to have loads of it and, even if their wealth was a source of prosperity and respectability, they also knew to value other important things in life and behave accordingly.

Secondly, in the world we are now living, money has become the essential ingredient of life for most of the people to the extent in which nothing else seems to matter. Everything is made of money and about money, nowadays ‘it is welcomed everywhere’, and only money can open doors and save lives. For instance, unfortunately, when a person is severely ill and needs medical assistance otherwise they might die, they cannot get it unless they possess a big bank account. That is a sad fact since traits like character strength, artistic skills, generosity or spiritual beauty, even the life or death of a human being seem to value less than ’the devil’s eye’.

Last, but not least, money seems to be the main reason people are no longer happy nowadays, as the lack of it makes them feel insecure or despised. That is why, many of them begin to wonder how they can make more of it and give up life principles, neglect the simple joys of life, turn vain or embittered. This idea is well illustrated in ‘City Sorrows’ by the same poet in the metaphor “the agony of making money”. In order to make lots of it, many choose to use underhand, illegal means, desperate to make sure that their families, their offspring will have so much of it so that they will not only never worry about basic life necessities, but stand above everybody else in wealth and fortune. Unaware of their wrong conduct, what often happens is they do not take into account the consequences of their false life values, which will lead to their children becoming lonely, unhappy and immoral, too, choosing wrong paths, in their turn.

To sum up, ‘Money Talks’ by D J Enright is a satire in blank verse whose main subject is approached in a humorous way but which makes us probe deeper into human nature, makes us ponder more on our life choices and think deeper about the false values that seem to prevail in our society today.

Contributor - Dora Muresan, former 11 grader, Edited and coordinated by Luminita Faur

Lifestyle project Interview with Dan Morasan, the owner of RE-FRESH -What’s your name and how old are you?

D: - My name is Dan Morasan and I am 41 years old.

-When did you start the ‘Re-fresh’ business? And why?

D: -In 2015. I started designing this business because of the lack of such a place in Baia Mare.

-What difficulties did you encounter along the way?

D: -It was difficult to find qualified and dedicated staff and the lack of managerial experience made it quite hard.

-Do you consider the business a successful one?

D: -Yes. -How old are the people who visit this place?

D:- Here, you will see people of all ages. In general, devoted and informed people.

-What do you think about the price-quality?

D: - The ratio is good because the price is dictated by the price of the vegetables, fruits and ingredients we need. Otherwise, we could not stay on the market.

-How important are fruits and vegetables for a healthy lifestyle?

D: -They are essential for a healthy lifestyle. If they are not consumed in the right amount, diseases will appear sooner or later. Fruits are powerful energizers but their vibration frequency is not as high as that of vegetables. They are also very good detoxifiers at the intestinal and lymphatic level.

The leaves alkalize and detoxify the blood and the organs, for example the liver or the kidneys. The fibres and seeds offer amino acids. Vegetables help in cell reconstruction and detoxification. Besides the intake of nutrients, vitamins, minerals they bring into the body, they also give us a strong vitality.

In the intestines we have more neurons than in the brain. So what we eat affects our state of mind deeper than we realize. As the intake of raw ingredients will increase, the livelihood will also grow.

Juice absorption rate is 90% higher than 45% of solid food. They go straight into the blood, unlike classic nutrition like meal 1, meal 2 and dessert, where the energy expenditure of the body for their absorption is equivalent to the running of five stadiums.

Interview by Karina Bartha, XG, coordinating teacher Cristina Nedelea

Food is important for me. I do a lot of sport.

A healthy lifestyle means that you have to be very careful with what you eat or drink. From my experiences as an athlete I’ve learned a lot about this. I always have to be very careful with what I put in my mouth, because it’s very important for me to be fit.

First of all, I eat a lot of meat. It’s important for me to gain proteins every day, because I lose them at training. The water has a very important role in my life too, I have to keep hydrated more than a normal teenager. I drink a lot of water, like 3 liters per day. Also, I don’t eat sweets, instead of that, I eat a lot of fruits like bananas or apples every day. I can’t do without eating at least a fruit per day. And if you think I don’t eat chocolate, you’re wrong, because I do, but just one piece every day because my coach says that one piece helps my muscles stay strong and get rid of muscles soreness.

Secondly, I don’t eat pasta or fast food, and I eat just two pieces of bread a day. I am 1.72 height and 55 kg because an athlete has to be 15 kg less than a normal teenager. Some people said that I’m too skinny but I’m not. I’m exactly as I want to be for gaining what I want So, the conclusion is that if you want a healthy lifestyle, you don’t have to eat exactly like me but try not to eat a lot of nonsense food, like fast food, sweets, and try to eat more fruits, vegetables, drink a lot of water. Also, for a healthy lifestyle you can go jogging and have daily exercise.

I’m happy in my body, and that’s all that matters.

Adnana Matyus,9G coordinating teacher, Cristina Nedelea

My experience as a vegetarian I started being a vegetarian 6 years ago, at the age of 8. What determined me to make this radical change was simply the taste of meat. I used to eat chicken meat because my mom forced me to. She said I needed protein, but one day I decided it was time to stop and get protein and all that stuff from other foods.

First, I wanted to see how long it would take my mom to bother me again. It was only a week, but I kept refusing meat and ignored all the arguments she used to make me eat meat again. I started eating a lot of vegetables with fries and fruit salads, I also took extra vitamins to keep the nutrients in my organism at standard levels.

Even though I was trying to get the benefits (that meat used to give me) from other places, it was just not enough. I started losing weight and felt weak after a couple of months because of my anemia. So, I consulted a doctor (which you should definitely do before you go veggie) and he prescribed me meat at least once a week, because I was too young and my body was asking for certain nutrients at that age.

I was so disappointed that my body couldn’t help me stick to my plan. The couple of months of progress and motivation just washed away.

I definitely didn’t want to go back to the meat I used to eat, so I started eating fish meat for two more years. No other meat, only fish. After two years of struggling with the awful taste, I tried to refuse eating any kind of meat, again. And guess what? It worked! My organism grew older, stronger and I was able to handle the weakness a lot easier. After that, it wasn’t even noticeable anymore.

But what I could obviously notice, was my happiness; I was happy in my body, I was happy with the food I was craving for, I was happy with my choice, with my state of mind, with myself. My skin cleared up incredibly well, and I also got rid of my acne, which boosted my confidence. If you are willing to make such a choice, remember, it is NEVER too late! Here are some pros and cons that I experienced, just in case you’re curious:

PROS:

CONS:

-you’re going to feel more purified

-in the first weeks you are going to feel some kind of weakness -your skin is going to clean up -the veggie burger doesn’t taste as good -vegetarian foods are extremely delicious as the regular one at certain fast foods -if your family are meat eaters, it will - your body is going to cleanse cost you some time, motivation and patience -you are going to lose weight

Diana Rednic, 10G coordinating teacher, Cristina Nedelea

THIS IS WHAT WE EAT - Survey 1. Do you feel healthy in your body? a) Yes, I feel good most of the time b) No, not really, I feel overweight c) No, not really, I feel too weak and tired most of the time d) No, not really, I am too skinny e) Other 2. How often do you eat fruit? a) Every day b) Three times a week c) Never/rarely d) Sometimes e) Other 3. How much meat do you consume? a) Every day - a lot - 70% b) 1 or 3 times a week – 40% c) No meat at all – 0% d) Very little – 20% e) Other 4. Do you drink enough water? a) Yes, 2 L/day b) No, less than 1 L/day c) More than 2 L d) I don’t pay attention e) Other 5. How often do you eat fast food? a) Everyday b) Very often - 3 time per week c) Once a week d) Never/very rarely e) Other 6. How often do you eat sweets? a) 0% - 3% b) A lot - every day - 15% c) Only occasionally - rarely d) Only when I feel the need e) Other 7. What do you usually eat for dessert? a) only fruits b) only sweets c) more fruits than sweets d) more sweets than fruits e) other 8. How often do you eat soup?

a) Once a week b) Every day c) Never d) Three times a week e) Other 9. What do you usually eat for breakfast? a) Milk b) Sandwich c) Fruit d) Nothing e) Other 10. How often do you eat a day? a) Three times b) Two times c) Between 3 and 6 meals d) I do not have a routine e) Other 11. How often do you eat cooked meal? a) Always b) Once a day c) Tree to five times a week d) Less than three times a week e) Others 12. How much of your diet consists of vegetables? a) A lot – 50-70% b) 30-50% c) 10-30% d) Less than 10% e) Other 13. Are you aware of the importance of food for your health? a) Yes, I read a lot about it. b) Yes, I pay attention to The nutrients I consume daily c) No, I eat what comes d) No, food does not matter for my heath e) Other 14. Do you eat after 8 am? a) Yes, I love eating in the evening b) No, it is unhealthy c) Sometimes d) Rarely e) Other

Survey results analysis

Two hundred students answered some questions related to their eating habits. Most of their answers reflect the realities of these days. Students can hardly resist to fast food, sweets and evening eating. Also, the figures clearly illustrate that only around half of our students are interested in the quality of their food (102 students). The other half simply eats in order not to feel hungry.

The survey presents worrying figures when it comes to breakfast serving since 54 of 200 students do not have breakfast at all or when it comes to having cooked meals, they consume this type of home-made food rarely. There is a large number of students who consume cooked meal less than three times a week (58).

The following charts show some of the most relevant findings: 1. Do you feel healthy in your body?

Students feeling healthy 72

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Students feeling too skinny or overweight

2. How much fruit do you consume?

Students eating fruits at least 3 times a week Students eating fruits sometimes

3. How much meat do you eat?

Students eating much meat - at least 3 times a week

4. How often do you eat cooked meal?

Students eating cooked meal at least once a day Students eating cooked meal three times a week

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5. Vegetables in your diet

7. Sweets in your diet Students who eat sweets rarely

Students eating 30% to 60% vegetables in their diet

Students who eat sweets every day

6. Fast food in your diet Students who eat fast food at least once a week Students who eat fast food rarely

Fun with food • •

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, what does an onion do? Keeps everyone away.

What's the difference between broccoli and glue? Kids don’t eat broccoli.

Source: www.jokes4us.com

Did you know? ✓ Apples float in water because they are 25% air. ✓ A strawberry is not an actual berry, but a banana is. ✓ Tomatoes are a fruit not a vegetable. Tomatoes are the most popular fruits in the world. ✓ An average strawberry has around 200 seeds. ✓ Pumpkins and avocados are fruits not vegetables. ✓ Dark green vegetables include more vitamin C than light green vegetables. ✓ The Banana is not a fruit in

reality, it is a herb. ✓ An apple tree can produce up to 400 apples a year. ✓ There are over 7000 different types of apples grown all over the world. ✓ Some horticulturists suspect that the banana was the earth's first fruit. Eating an apple is a more reliable method of staying awake than consuming a cup of coffee. The natural sugar in an apple is more potent than the caffeine in coffee.

Source: www.fruitsinfo.com

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Key ALMONDS, APPLES, WALNUTS, BEANS, RICE, CORN, EGGS, OATMEAL, SALMON, TOMATOES, WATERMELON, ZUCCHINI, CARROTS, CHEESE, CRANBERIES, LEMONS, ORANGES, SPINACH, BANANAS, BROCCOLI, CASHEWS, CUCUMBERS, LETTUCE, POTATOES, TOFU, WATER, YOGHURT

coordinating teacher, Cristina Nedelea Alexandra Sălăjan 9G, source: ro.pinterest.com Find the 27 articles of healthy food Fun time

English is fun 1.

A: Hey, I got a great knock-knock joke, but you have to start me off.

B: OK. Knock-knock!

A: Who’s there?

B: confused silence

2. Whoever invented knock-knock jokes should get a no bell prize.

3. What’s Forrest Gump’s password? 1forrest1 4.

A: Is your refrigerator running?

B: Yes. A: Good, mine too. I will see you at the refrigerator race tomorrow.

5. What is brown and sticky? – A stick.

6. What did one lawyer say to the other lawyer? – We are both lawyers.

7. Two fish are in a tank. One turns to the other and says: “How do you drive this thing?”

8. A magic tractor drives down the road and turns into a field.

9. What’s red and bad for your teeth? – A brick.

10. Walk up to someone.

You: pick a number.

Wait for them to pick a number.

You: Multiply it by 3.

Them: OK. You: Divide it by 2.

Them: OK. You: Add 6.

Them: OK. You: OK, thanks.

Then walk away.

11. Why can’t your nose be 12 inches long? – Because then it’d be a foot!

12. What’s white and can’t climb trees? – A fridge.

13. Why does a chicken coop only have 2 doors? – Because if it had 4, it would be a chicken sedan.

14. Why can’t you hear a pterodactyl going to the bathroom? – Because the “P” is silent.

15. What do you call a camel with no humps? – Humphrey.

16. A man with carrots in his ears walks into a bus. The bus driver says: “Sir, why do you have carrots in your ears?” The man says: “What? I can’t hear you! I have carrots in my ears!” (source: www.pinterest.com) 40