The UReview's Daily Muse

I believe that we have a responibility to ourselves and to those around us to be the best version of ourselves we can possibly be, and we should do our utmost to fulfil this obligation because we are all works in progress, continuously evolving and making our world a better place.

Just by learning something new everyday we are accomplishing this and this is what I want to achieve with my blog. I hope you will find it interesting.

THE DAILY MUSE

It seems fitting that I should start off by saying a thing or two about why I have chosen this particular title, and before I continue there is something I'd like to say :
I am an English teacher and am also qualified to teach English to foreigners, so if it sometimes seems as if I am stating the obvious it is because I want those who are not fluent in English to understand as much as possible.

So, back to the daily muse which today centres on why I chose this title, keeping in mind that my objective is to share information and knowledge that I hope you will find interesting and inspirational.

First of all, muse is pronounced 'myooz' and sounds like (or rhymes with) news.

The verb 'to muse' basically means to think about, but not casual thinking; it is to reflect quietly about something for some time, go over every aspect and consider every angle. The closest synonyms (words which have the same meaning) are to reflect, to ruminate, to ponder or to mull over.

'The muse' is what artists, poets and writers call the sudden surge of motivation which stimulates their creative energy and inspires their great works and masterpieces.
The same is said about a person who inspires the creativity and genius of another.

Now that I've explained the main motivating factor for The Daily Muse and gone over what the word means, my choice of title is obvious, not to mention somewhat anti-climactic, so you will be relieved to learn that there is a little more to it then that.

Since I am easily distracted and enormously inquisitive, it is impossible for me to be limited to anything fixed or routine, so I must say, I was quite pleased with myself for coming up with this final feature. First of all it is a fitting introduction to one of the most fascinating subjects ever, but whatsmore, it allows for - you might even say demands - diversity.

So without further ado, I would like to introduce the most spectacular set of sisters in the ancient world; Meet THE NINE MUSES

According to Greek Mythology the Nine Muses were the daughters of Zeus (the king of the gods) and Mnemosyne (the goddess of memory.

Considered to be the source of all knowledge and creativity, their vocation was to support the arts and bring culture to the people. This was accomplished by infusing poets, artists, writers and musicians with their exclusive brand of divine inspiration.

The muses were the goddesses of literature, the arts and the sciences and they each had their own particular domain

Calliope's was Epic Poetry and Polyhymnia had the Songs Of The Gods, while Clio was keeper of things past having History as her domain. Euterpe presided over Lyrical Poetry, Terpsichore's charge was Dance and true to her name Erato was the lady to see about Love Poetry. This left Melpomene - the mistress of Tragedy, Thalia for Comedy and last but not least Urania's area was Astronomy.*

And there you have it. When I refer to the daily muse, I might be talking about the subject I have chosen on a given day OR I might be referring to the muse in whose area my intended topic fits in best. So if I want to write a review a bout a book I finished an hour ago, a literary review can be my way of paying homage to Calliope, and the 'daily muse' remains as apt and valid as it would have been if I'd continued on in the same vein as the day before. . . . to be continued

*I have to stop here for now, but I hope you will visit soon, after I've had time to edit and update this first post. I wish you all a good night or day.