In yesterday’s post, I talked about how current gridlock in the U. S. Senate reminds me of the intractable problems that confront King Hrothgar in Beowulf. Grendel, I said, is the spirit of fratricidal rage that sets colleagues against each other and brings activity in the great hall of Heorot to a halt. Upon further reflection, […]
Tag Archives: politics
Sarah Palin and All the King’s Men
The political world seems to be agog over Sarah Palin these days, with Joel Klein of Time and David Broder of The Washington Post, two columnists I respect, telling us to take her very seriously. This has got me thinking of fictional populists, especially Willie Stark in Robert Penn Warren’s All the King’s Men (1946), one of […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Alexander Pope, All the King's Men, Epistle to Arburthnot, Populism, Robert Penn Warren, Sarah Palin Comments closed
Beware Gazing at the Palantir in 2010
John Noble as Denethor A palantir, as readers of J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings know, is a crystal ball into which one may gaze and see events occurring around the world. Although a seeming marvel, it can warp those who gaze into it. The palantir holds lessons for us on how we to […]
You, Sir, Are No Jay Gatsby
Everyone has something to say about Barack Obama, who has been the subject of non-stop scrutiny since last year’s Democratic primaries. It therefore is not surprising that some would turn to literature to understand what he means. Including, in recent weeks, two New York Times columnists. Stanley Fish, the subject of three posts this […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged "Oven Bird", American Dream, Julius Caesar, Nationalism, Obama, Robert Frost, Roger Cohen, Stanley Fish, William Shakespeare Comments closed
Literature about Health Care Reform
At present I am one of those liberals in a high state of anxiety about the prospects of Obama’s attempts to bring us universal health care. I find myself careening through the highs of hope and the lows of fear. I watch the political proceedings minutely, then turn away discouraged, then read some columnist […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Emily Dickinson, George Eliot, health care, Hope is that thing with feathers, J. R. R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings, Middlemarch, Old Ironsides, Oliver Wendell Holmes Comments closed
Poetry Standing Firm in the Face of Fire
“But maybe stories and poetry can help open our minds to possibilities that are very real but extremely hard to see; and in that sense, they can be very practical.” – Rachel Kranz in a response to yesterday’s post I love the two responses to yesterday’s post (from the two major women in my life) […]
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Alfred Lord Tennyson, Azar Nafisi, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Herbert Marcuse, Martin Luther King, Reading Lolita in Tehran, Simin Belbahani, Ulysses, Uncle Tom's Cabin Comments closed
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, James Baldwin, Nancy Drew, Native Son, Richard Wright, Sonia Sotomayor, Soul on Ice, The Fountainhead Comments closed
Swift’s Attack on Cynicism
Venturing into the heated atmosphere of Supreme Court confirmation politics yesterday is a nice lead-in to my topic for today, which is the temptation to become so disgusted with human behavior that we throw up our hands and walk away. Or, since walking away is not really an option, the fantasy of doing so. Jonathan […]
