Monthly Archives: July 2020

Cather’s Handling of the 1918 Flu

By Robin Bates | Published: July 9, 2020

In her Pulitzer-winning “One of Ours,” Cather shows the impact of the 1918 flu.

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A Fable about Cancel Culture

By Robin Bates | Published: July 8, 2020

While the left doesn’t practice cancel culture to the degree that the right does, it is still a concern, as a recent open letter to “Harper’s” makes clear. So does this Scott Bates fable.

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Le Guin on Differing Disaster Responses

By Robin Bates | Published: July 7, 2020

An Ursula LeGuin sci-fi story captures how different cultures respond to catastrophes differently. It’s very relevant to a world confronting Covid.

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Flowers for Algernon, Parable on Aging

By Robin Bates | Published: July 6, 2020

With regard to my improving tennis game, I see my present–and my future–in the Daniel Keyes novel “Flowers for Algernon.”

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Looking Back at Past Covid Posts

By Robin Bates | Published: July 5, 2020

I look back at previous post on Covid-19. There are a lot of them.

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The Glory of the Coming of the Lord

By Robin Bates | Published: July 4, 2020

“The Battle of the Hymn of the Republic” is one of the most influential set of lyrics in American history–for good and for bad.

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We All Sing America

By Robin Bates | Published: July 3, 2020

Between them, Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes do a good job of defining America.

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Black Cat Fights for the Day He’ll Be Free

By Robin Bates | Published: July 2, 2020

Friday Attempts to demonize Black Lives Matter take me back to 1968, when the Black Panthers were similarly demonized. Their response to murderous cops was to arm themselves, which was the last time that Republicans supported significant gun control legislation. It also led to some shootouts and to the police assassination of Fred Hampton and […]

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Black Lives Matter Changes the Canon

By Robin Bates | Published: July 1, 2020

Black Lives Matter is getting some professors to rethink works they had previously defended

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