Perhaps Plato banished poets from his ideal society because he appreciated the destructive potential of stories. He’s relevant in light of today’s conspiracy theories.
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Tag Archives: Donald Trump
A Partial Defense of Plato’s Poet Ban
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged 1Q84, Aeschylus, conspiracy theories, Euripides, Haruki Murakami, Homer, philosophy vs. poetry, Plato, QAnon, Republic, Sophocles Comments closed
Song of Hope: The Night Cloud Is Hueing
With the passage of the Covid relief bill and increased vaccinations, Hardy’s “Song for Hope” seems appropriate.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "Song of Hope", Covid relief bill, COVID-19, hope, Joe Biden, Thomas Hardy Comments closed
Will Trump Pay? Literature Is Unsure
Will Trump escape all accountability? Literature weighs in.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Beggar's Opera, Bertolt Brecht, Candide, Dante, Henry Fielding, impeachment hearings, Importance of Being Earnest, Inferno, John Gay, Oscar Wilde, Threepenny Opera, Tom Jones, Voltaire Comments closed
Ahab & Trump, Two Master Demagogues
For a demagogue with the skills of Donald Trump, check out Captain Ahab. Both know how to get people to act against their best interests.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Capitol insurrection, demagoguery, Herman Melville, Moby Dick Comments closed
Impeachment and the Scarlet Letter
“The Scarlet Letter” provides several lessons for Trump’s impeachment trial.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Derangement syndrome, impeachment, John Milton, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Paradise Lost, Scarlet Letter Comments closed
Trump Resembles Dante’s Corrupt Popes
Trump’s resemblance to Antipope Benedict XIII spells trouble for America’s immediate future. We’ve already seen his resemblance to Dante’s Boniface VIII.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged 2020 election, Antipope Benedict XIII, Boniface VIII, corruption, Dante, Nicholas III, public corruption Comments closed
Hawthorne Understood Mobs
Hawthorne writes about the kind of mob that invaded the U.S. Capitol in “My Kinsman, Major Molineux.”
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged 2020 election, GOP, January 6 insurrection, mob rule, My Kinsman Major Molineux, Nathaniel Hawthorne Comments closed
Trump: Hemingway Wastrel, Le Carré Con
Trump has some things in common with Campbell in “Sun Also Rises” and even more with Rick in “A Perfect Spy.”
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Ernest Hemingway, John le Carré, Perfect Spy, Sun Also Rises Comments closed