Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues,” about two brothers learning to bond, captures some of the bonding I am doing with my second brother over our father’s illness.
Tag Archives: James Baldwin
Tiger on the Prowl Again
After years of quietude, Tiger Wood is once again as hungry as a–well, you know what. James Baldwin describes it.
Horror Steps onto the Court
The horror of witnessing Kevin Ware’s horrific basketball injury reminds me of a moment of comparable horror in Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues.”
The White Liberal in Civil Rights Lit
White Liberals suffer a downward spiral in 1960’s Civil Rights Literature, from heroic Atticus Finch to “Radical Chic” Leonard Bernstein.
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Blues for Mister Charlie, Civil Rights Movement, Eldridge Cleaver, Harper Lee, Radical Chic, Soul on Ice, To Kill a Mockingbird, Tom Wolve, White Liberals Comments closed
Inside These Wrappings, a Brighter Life
Spiritual Sunday Yesterday we had a white Christmas in Sewanee, Tennessee, where I am visiting my parents. The world was brown when we went to bed and white when we awoke. The symbolism of Christmas snow lies in the promise of wiping everything clean and starting anew. Grace appears to enter our fallen world. That’s […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "Messiah (Christmas Portions), Christmas, Mark Doty, Music, Religion, Sonny's Blues Comments closed
Nuanced Race Talk Savaged by a Cleaver
Given the uptick in racist language and increased enrollment in white supremacist groups since Barack Obama’s election, I’m going to devote one or two more posts to racism in America and then give the subject a rest for a bit. Today I want to return to my shift from southern race relations to northern when […]
Clarence Thomas and Native Son
The focus in this week’s posts is on Supreme Court justices and literature. I notice that, in his New York Times column today, moderate conservative David Brooks endorses Sonia Sotomayor for just that restrained balance that we discussed yesterday as we explored her early love for Nancy Drew novels. Today I’m going to talk about […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Ayn Rand, Clarence Thomas, Eldridge Cleaver, Everybody's Protest Novel, Nancy Drew, Native Son, politics, Richard Wright, Sonia Sotomayor, Soul on Ice, The Fountainhead Comments closed
