Monthly Archives: July 2017

Ferreting Out Trump’s Purloined Letter

By Robin Bates | Published: July 20, 2017

Why does Trump seem to get away with his brazen flirtation with Vladimir Putin. Maybe he’s like the nefarious D– in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Purloined Letter.”

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A World of Books amid a World of Green

By Robin Bates | Published: July 19, 2017

Treat yourself to two delightful poems about books and gardens by the Victorian/Edwardian poet Richard Le Gallienne.

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Mourning Jane Austen’s Early Death

By Robin Bates | Published: July 18, 2017

Despite the feminist revolution, many people still Jane Austen, who died 200 years ago, as a shy and retiring writer. In point of fact, she was probably very ambitious and wanted to make a lot of money. If this comes as a shock, check your stereotypes of women.

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Caves of Ice, Prophecies of War

By Robin Bates | Published: July 17, 2017

Scientists are detecting faster-than-predicted melting of the Greenland glaciers, which would lead to catastrophic sea level rise. Coleridge’s “Kubla Khan,” with its caves of ice and prophecies of war, comes to mind.

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Please God, Prepare a Fruitful Place

By Robin Bates | Published: July 16, 2017

William Cowper has a lovely poem about the parable of the sower and the seed. Cowper wrestled with crippling depression and was afraid that his heart was too stony to receive God’s grace.

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Trump’s Unseen Playmate Jim

By Robin Bates | Published: July 14, 2017

Trump apparently has an imaginary friend Jim who no longer likes Paris. Robert Louis Stevenson has a great poem about an imaginary friend.

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Federer, Unlike Ulysses, a Family Man Hero

By Robin Bates | Published: July 13, 2017

Time and again with Roger Federer, thinking he is nearing his end, I have cited Tennyson’s “Ulysses.” He keeps proving me wrong. One reason may be because he has a different relationship with his family than Tennyson’s protagonist has.

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Sustaining Narratives Can Become Traps

By Robin Bates | Published: July 12, 2017

In Atwood’s “Life before Man,” a little girl turns to “The Wizard of Oz” to make sense of a chaotic life. Later in life, she learns that she must abandon this narrative that sustained her.

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Is Chick Lit Bad for You?

By Robin Bates | Published: July 11, 2017

Some see mass produced fantasies for women, including “chick lit,” as damaging. Some who defend them put down critics who wish such readers would choose better literature. I examine the arguments in today’s post.

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