“Raisin in the Sun” was a hit with both white and black audiences when it appeared in 1959 but for very different reasons.
Monthly Archives: January 2018
Murakami and Millennials’ Identity Quests
Murakami’s novels appeal to millennials because they are existential parables, and young people are grappling with life’s big questions, especially identity and purpose.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged existential quest, existentialism, Hard Boiled Wonderland, Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore, millennials, Wild Sheep Chase, Wind-Up Bird Chronicle Comments closed
Pope Describes Triumph of Stupidity
Book IV of Pope’s “Dunciad” captures the triumph of Trumpism. In Pope’s poem, the goddess dullness (stupidity) has conquered the world.
A President Who Hates Books
No president has been so adverse to reading as Donald Trump, whose contempt for books conjures up images of “Fahrenheit 451.”
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Donald Trump, Fahrenheit 451, Fire and Fury, GOP, Michael Wolff, Ray Bradbury, social media, twitter Comments closed
A Pause in Time and the Soul’s Awareness
John Thorkild Ellison has two Epiphany poems in which the spirit enters when the poet has all but given up hope.
How to Celebrate a Winter Storm
Here’s a January poem by Dante Gabriel Rossetti that will cheer you up if you’re being currently battered.
A Herculean Task: Purging Old Files
I’ve spent the last couple of days going through my father’s files (and throwing most of them away). I feel like Heracles cleaning out the Augean stables, as described by Seamus Heaney.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "at last we killed the roaches", Augean stables, Herzog, Lucille Clifton, Saul Bellow, Scott Bates, Seamus Heaney Comments closed
Austen: Standing Up to Harassers
Jane Austen has powerful lessons for those battling systemic sexism.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, MeToo, Pride and Prejudice, sexual harassment Comments closed
Black Women as Saviors? Clifton Objects
Some are sanctifying black women voters for saving America from itself after Democratic victories in Virginia and Alabama. Lucille Clifton points out that sanctification isn’t much better than demonization.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "note to self", Alabama senate race, black women, Lucille Clifton Comments closed
