Paul Kalinithi’s “When Breath Becomes Air” represents an ideal blending of science and the humanities, including literature. It’s a book we all should be reading.
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Tag Archives: death and dying
Doctor Faustus: Lessons in Grieving
After watching two students turn to Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus” as they grieved the death of parents, I have come to see the play as a powerful meditation upon how we respond to death.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Christopher Marlowe, Doctor Faustus, grieving | Comments closed
In Memory of Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Berrigan, Jesuit activist and poet, died this past Saturday. His “A Dark Word” is a fitting way to note his passing.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Dark Word", analysis, Daniel Berrigan, John Donne, Meditation 17 | Comments closed
I Am the Dance and the Dance Goes On
At my eldest son’s funeral 16 years ago we sang “The Lord of the Dance.” Justin was a joyous dancer and I imagine him dancing somewhere, in some plane, whenever I hear the hymn.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Lord of the Dance", "Tis a Gift To Be Simple", "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day", hymns, Justin Bates, Shiva, Sydney Carter | Comments closed
On the Death of a Controversial Judge
How long should one pause following the death of a public figure like Justice Antonin Scalia before considering the political implications? It’s an issue that also arises in Anthony Trollope’s “Barchester Towers.”
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Anthony Trollope, Antonin Scalia, Barchester Towers, politics, SCOTUS, Supreme Court | Comments closed
Child Heroines Who Die for Our Sins
The child heroine who dies, a common trope in the 19th century, continues to fascinate us, appearing in “Bridge to Tarabithia” and “The Fault Is in Our Stars.” One of my students has this as a senior project topic.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Annabel Lee", Bridge to Tarabithia, Charles Dickens, Charlotte Bronte, Children, Edgar Allan Poe, Feminism, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Jane Eyre, Katherine Paterson, Little Women, Louisa Mae Alcott, Old Curiosity Shop, Uncle Tom's Cabin | Comments closed
Hearing the Sound of Roses Singing
For Mary Oliver, going into the woods and paying attention to nature is a form of prayer.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "How I Go to the Woods", Mary Oliver, Nature | Comments closed
He Doth Sit By Us and Moan
Last week I was honored by my friend Jean Yeatman when she asked me to sit with her at her mother’s deathbed. We talked about childhood excursions that our families took together and also about the importance of ritual in our lives. Today’s William Blake poem is for her and her brother Clay. Blake finds […]
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "On Another's Sorrow", grieving, mourning, William Blake | Comments closed
Please Go Gentle into That Good Night
Dylan Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle” can be read as a narcissistic desire by young people that their elders will go out on young people’s terms.
Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night", Christopher Marlowe, Death of Ivan Ilych, Doctor Faustus, Dylan Thomas, Leo Tolstoy | Comments closed