Thursday Political scientists will debate for years how Donald J. Trump took over and “Trumpified” the modern Republican party. Multiple explanations exist, including George Packer’s theory that Trump represents a longtime rot within the GOP (I blogged about this on Monday). Nevertheless, it still boggles the mind that a disreputable realtor to whom no one […]
Tag Archives: GOP primary
Trump’s Taming of the GOP
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Donald Trump, Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare Comments closed
Prospero and the Presidential Primaries
Think of Shakespeare’s “Tempest” as an allegory for the current state of American politics, especially the presidential primaries. It contains visionaries and cynics, orchestrators and disrupters. If Prospero is the island “establishment,” then he enjoys some success but it is qualified.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Bernie Sanders, Democratic primary, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, politics, Ted Cruz, Tempest, William Shakespeare Comments closed
Ted Cruz–Dark and Satanic?
When NYT columnist David Brooks called Ted Cruz “dark and satanic,” he was referencing a Blake poem. But although the allusion is apt, it struck most people as weird or offensive because they didn’t recognize the source.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "Jerusalem", David Brooks, electoral politics, Marco Rubio, politics, Ted Cruz, William Blake Comments closed
Jeb! Agonistes: An Unsettling Parallel
Does Jeb Bush resemble at the moment Samson Agonistes? His rivalry with Marco Rubio also resembles any number of Shakespeare tragedies. There’s an Oedipus parallel as well.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged 2016 election, GOP, Henry IV Part II, Jeb Bush, John Milton, Joseph Campbell, Julius Caesar, King Lear, Macbeth, Marco Rubio, Oedipus, politics, Samson Agonistes, Sophocles, William Shakespeare Comments closed
