Monthly Archives: February 2024

Gandalf and Saruman, Biden and Trump

By Robin Bates | Published: February 19, 2024

The both-siderism that equates Trump with Biden would probably equate Saruman with Gandalf.

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Alexei Navalny as Harry Potter?

By Robin Bates | Published: February 18, 2024

Some Russians saw Navalny, recently killed by Putin, as a Harry Potter “boy who lived.” That dream is gone but others live on.

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African-American Lit for Lent

By Robin Bates | Published: February 17, 2024

In which I set forth this year’s Lenten discipline: reading novels by African American authors.

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A Swift Birthday Poem for Julia

By Robin Bates | Published: February 15, 2024

In which I use one of Swift’s birthday poems to celebrate my Julia’s birthday.

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Erotic Dreams of a Wild Sea

By Robin Bates | Published: February 14, 2024

Dickinson’s “Wild Nights” is an astonishing love poem, perfect for Valentine’s Day.

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Poet Hart Crane on Forgetting

By Robin Bates | Published: February 13, 2024

Crane’s poem “Forgetfulness” captures the ambiguity of this mental state.

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Lit’s Invention of “The Second Look”

By Robin Bates | Published: February 12, 2024

One of the literary “inventions” featured in Fletcher’s “Wonderworks” is the second look, partly invented by Akutagawa in “Rashomon.”

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A Poem Honoring Wide Receivers

By Robin Bates | Published: February 11, 2024

A “Wide Receiver” poem by Mark Halliday to honor the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs.

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The Transfiguration’s Green Promise

By Robin Bates | Published: February 10, 2024

Christian environmental scholar Gatta believes the Transfiguration story offers a religious paradigm for environmentalists.

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