How To Live Before You Die | Exercise With Summary | Grade 11 | English
0Summary: In "How to Live Before You Die," Steve Jobs reflects on his life and shares his insights on living a meaningful existence. He begins by recounting his adoption and his early experiences, which shaped his worldview. Jobs emphasizes the importance of following one's passion and intuition, even when it leads to unconventional choices. The climax of the speech comes when he learns about his pancreatic cancer diagnosis at age 30. This experience becomes a pivotal moment in his life, leading him to appreciate the fragility of life and the importance of living each day to the fullest. Jobs also discusses the role of love and the pursuit of excellence in achieving great things. He concludes by urging the audience to never settle and to embrace their own unique paths.
Understanding the text:
a. Steve Jobs was born to a young unwed mother who gave him up for adoption. He was adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs, a couple who lived in California.
b. By saying "you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards," Jobs means that it is impossible to see how seemingly unrelated experiences will come together in the future. However, looking back, one can often see how past events led to present outcomes.
c. When Steve Jobs turned 30, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, a rare and aggressive form of the disease. This experience was a wake-up call for him, and it led him to reassess his priorities and live his life more fully.
d. Jobs contends that you need to love to do what you do in order to be great at it. He believes that passion is essential for achieving excellence and that if you are not passionate about your work, you will never be truly successful.
e. Death, according to Jobs, is life's greatest invention because it is the ultimate motivator. Knowing that death is inevitable helps us to appreciate the preciousness of life and to make the most of our time.
Reference to the context:
a.
i. The baby boy was Steve Jobs.
ii. 'Do you want him?' means whether they wanted to adopt the baby boy.
iii. 'They' refers to Steve Jobs' biological parents.
b.
i. "You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever." This line means that we need to have faith in something larger than ourselves, such as our intuition, destiny, or a higher power. This faith will help us to make difficult decisions and to navigate life's challenges.
ii. "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life." This line means that we should not waste our lives trying to live up to the expectations of others. We should live our lives according to our own values and passions.
c. By "don't settle," Jobs means that we should never be satisfied with mediocrity. We should always strive to be the best that we can be and to achieve our full potential.
d. Steve Jobs uses a persuasive style of speech to engage and motivate the audience. He uses personal anecdotes, rhetorical questions, and emotional appeals to connect with the audience and to inspire them to live their lives to the fullest.
e. Steve Jobs' speech is inspiring because it is authentic and relatable. He shares his own personal experiences and struggles, which makes him relatable to the audience. He also speaks with passion and conviction, which helps to motivate and inspire the audience.
f. Steve Jobs uses the personal narrative storytelling technique in his speech because it is an effective way to convey his message and to connect with the audience. By sharing his own story, Jobs is able to make his message more personal and impactful. The audience is able to relate to his experiences and to see how his insights can apply to their own lives.
Reference beyond the text:
a. Thinking differently can help a person succeed in life by enabling them to come up with new and innovative ideas. However, there are also challenges associated with thinking differently, such as the risk of being misunderstood or rejected by others.
b. The slogan "Stay hungry; stay foolish" means that we should never be satisfied with our current achievements. We should always be hungry for knowledge and new experiences, and we should never be afraid to take risks.
c. A visionary is a person who has the ability to see into the future and to anticipate future trends. Steve Jobs was a visionary because he was able to see the potential of personal computers and to revolutionize the technology industry. He was not just a fortune teller because he was also able to turn his vision into a reality.