Sports Saturday As we move towards the NFL’s conference championships, one of the most interesting stories continues to be loud-mouthed Rex Ryan, the 350-pound coach of the New York Jets. If his team were to win its third straight road game tomorrow, it would be, in the words of Sport Illustrated’s Rick Reilly, the “greatest […]
Monthly Archives: January 2011
Rex Ryan, a Modern Day Falstaff
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Football, Henry IV Part I, New York Jets, Rex Ryan, Sports, William Shakespeare Comments closed
Poems That Help Us See the Economy
Andrew Sullivan’s Daily Dish has alerted me to a fascinating article in the January issue of Poetry entitled “Haiku Economics: Money, Metaphor, and the Invisible Hand.” In it, Professor of Economics Stephen Ziliak talks about how poetry can help illuminate the dismal science (as economics has been described). The problem with economic models, Ziliak says, is […]
Revolution in Tunisia–A Good Thing?
While I want to be optimistic about the recent Tunisian overthrow of its dictatorial ruling family, I also appreciate Anne Appelbaum’s pessimistic assessment in a Washington Post column. Her caution brings to mind one of my father’s witty animal fables entitled “The Revolutionary Mice.” You can read it below. Appelbaum succinctly expresses her concern thus: […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "The Revolutionary Mice", politics, Revolution, Scott Bates, Tunisia, William Blake Comments closed
Damn the N-Word, Full Speed Ahead
Writing about interracial friendships in yesterday’s post brings to mind the most famous interracial friendship in literature, that between Huck and Jim. The novel is once again in the news (is it ever out of it?) with a new edition of the novel where the n-word is changed to “slave.” The edition is the brainchild […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged censorship, Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain, racism, teaching literature Comments closed
Behn & Friendships across Race Lines
Recalling an interracial friendship from my days in my newly integrated high school, I turn to Aprha Behn’s “Oroonoko” to understand why such friendships are so difficult, even for the best intentioned people.
A Poem for Every Playoff Team
Sports Saturday For the football games this weekend, I found a passage from a poem or passage from a poem that pertains to the name of each team. Enjoy. Atlanta Falcons vs. Green Bay Packers The high-flying Atlanta Falcons boast, among other things, the incomparable receiver Roddy White, who soars skyward to pull down passes. […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry Ohio", "Death of a Ball Turret Gunner", "Heavy Bear Who Goes with Me", "Osprey", "Raven", "The Patriot", "Windhover", Delmore Schwartz, Edgar Allan Poe, Football, Gerald Manley Hopkins, James Wright, Jungle, Kay Ryan, Randall Jarrell, Robert Browning, Sports, Upon Sinclair Comments closed
A Gritty Child in a Tough World
Film Friday (Warning: The following essay contains spoilers) I watched Ethan and Joel Coen’s remake of True Grit last Friday and now can’t help but think about it in terms of the Arizona shootings. Will our young people, faced with all this violence, grow up as tough as 14-year-old Mattie Ross? Yesterday’s Washington Post had […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Arizona shootings, Clint Eastwood, Film, True Grit, Unforgiven, violence Comments closed
