Monday, January 11, 2021
Sunday, January 10, 2021
Faith is not for sissies …
… John Berryman’s Letters Reveal a Confounding Catholic Faith. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Once a Catholic — to turn the baptismal theology into a slogan — always a Catholic. While the full sense of Berryman’s religious belief might rightly remain a mystery, the publication of his selected letters suggests that a new look at the poet’s faith is not merely warranted but essential to understanding his art.
I think of this every time I attend Mass, including this morning, when I kept thinking that I have been coming here since I was born (my mother took me with her when she went to Mass; even when I was much older, we attended Mass together). There is more than people think in that phrase “cradle Catholic.”
I was very moved by Berryman’s suicide. I even made a sort a pilgrimage to the site once.
Something must be done …
… about Twitter and Facebook, etc. — Russian Dissident: Dictators Cheer Twitter Ban on Trump.
Who the hell do Dorsey and Zuckerberg think they are? I don’t do Facebook, and I rarely tweet — except to asshole politicians — but I don’t think they would have been as successful if they had told people beforehand that only what they approved of would be permissible on their platforms. Rich, arrogant pricks.
Something to think on …
Long live freedom and damn the ideologies.
— Robinson Jeffers, born on this date in 1887
Saturday, January 09, 2021
Not just a singer …
… Write Like I’m Hungry. (Hat tip, Rus Bowden.)
With Unlikely Angel: The Songs of Dolly Parton, musicologist Lydia Hamessley wants to return focus to Parton’s formidable skill as a songwriter. Hamessley argues persuasively that even after decades of prolific composition, resulting in dozens of studio albums and hundreds of recorded original songs, Parton has never received the public recognition that she deserves for her accomplished body of work.
Nice to know …
… Facts Win Out: Peter Wood’s learned and thoughtful demolition of the 1619 Project. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
… National Association of Scholars president Peter W. Wood reveals in 1620: A Critical Response to the 1619 Project, the larger purpose of the Times’s project appears to have been to promote racial grievances and resentment. Most damningly, Wood points out that a Times fact-checker who contacted a radical historian to weigh the claim that the revolution was fought to protect slavery was told that this was nonsense. But the paper ignored that input, and 1619’s creator, Nikole Hannah-Jones, herself recently said that the project was not intended to serve as history (after nearly a year of claiming the opposite).
Something to think on …
It's not possible to search for God using the methods of a detective... There is no way. You can only wait till God's axe severs your roots: then you will understand that you are here only through a miracle, and you will remain fixed forever in wonderment and equilibrium.
— Karel Čapek, born on this date in 1890
Happy birthday, Joseph Epstein …
… Anecdotal Evidence: 'I Read in the Hope of Discovering the Truth'. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
In 2000, five years after the death of his formidably well-read friend Edward Shils, Epstein published in First Thingsthe only poem of his I have ever read, “Edward Shils in Heaven.” In it he asks: “Are there good books and journals in the place for you to read?” A Heaven without books sounds like a shoddy, low-rent Heaven, like a cheap motel.
Friday, January 08, 2021
Me, too …
… I Now Better Understand the 'Good German', by Dennis Prager | Creators Syndicate. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
The ease with which tens of millions of Americans have accepted irrational, unconstitutional and unprecedented police state-type restrictions on their freedoms, including even the freedom to make a living, has been, to understate the case, sobering.
It has indeed. We thought it couldn't happen here. But it looks like it has..
Well, maybe not …
zmkc: Get with the Programme.
Since when have we started judging fiction by subject matter? So much for - well the list of books that would be found wanting if that's the standard is so long that I really don't know where to begin. The idea that subject matter should be the first port of call when making a judgment about a work of art is a very dangerous one - it points directly to a road marked “censorship”.
I think that I too shall “ retreat into the glorified past of literature published before this year.”
Strangely contemporary …
… Melville’s Rejection of Utopia. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Rather than seeing Ahab as a representative of the old order—a theocrat who takes his people on a wild chase to “comprehend” and vanquish evil—Morrisey argues he is a modern man who is driven by a desire to conquer nature. Quaker though he may be, he is a Quaker of a strange sort—one who is happy to kill, with no particular interest in piety, and who rules over his “brothers” with an iron hand. Ahab may profess egalitarianism, but in reality he merely uses it as whetstone to sharpen his tyrannical axe.
Just a start …
… A chance to rectify Penn Station’s grime. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
The Moynihan Train Hall is a step in the right direction
to re-welcome workers to the city, to be sure. By building on McKim, Mead & White’s Beaux-Arts masterpiece, the new hall could begin a Midtown classical revival. Each New York neighborhood has its own unique character; what New York doesn’t need is another sterile mall.
A choice of essays …
… Opinion | The Sidney Awards - The New York Times. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Rauch was the subject of an interview by Nick Gillespie in Reason magazine, called “How to Tell if You’re Being Canceled,” which gets the first Sidney of 2020, the awards I give out for the best long-form essays of each year. Rauch was an early vocal champion of the movement for same-sex marriage, which was led by people who, in the early years, said things that seemed shocking and offensive to others. All they had back then was their freedom of speech, Rauch observes.
In Reason, he takes up the argument that certain ideas should be unsaid because they make other people feel unsafe. “The emotional safety argument, I argue, is fundamentally illiberal, and there is really nothing about it that can be salvaged. It is just inconsistent with the open society,” Rauch says.
True and lovely …
… The poetry of American novelist John Updike | San Diego Reader. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Something to think on …
There is only one world; the world pressing against you at this minute. There is only one minute in which you are alive; this minute here and now. The only way to live is by accepting each minute as an unrepeatable miracle.
— Storm Jameson, born on this date in 1891
Thursday, January 07, 2021
The mice against the frogs …
… A Nony Mouse. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Now comes a new translation [of the Batrachomyomachia] in rhyming iambic pentameter by A.E. Stallings, with illustrations by the etcher Grant Silverstein. The handsome large-format book, and the ingenious heroic couplets recounting the deeds of ‘King Pufferthroat’, ‘Morselsnatcher’ et al, suggest Mother Goose or Aesop. That’s one way to look at it. But with two introductions – one under Stallings’s name and another by ‘A. Nony Mouse’ – plus a glossary of dramatis personae, an appendix and the notes of an erudite classicist, this is a playful yet serious work of scholarship in miniature.
A closer look …
… Poe in the City - Law & Liberty. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Peeples … expertly tacks a course between Poe’s various locales and the way in which they might reflect his stories, or may have influenced them. In most cases, Peeples explains the stories that were produced in each of the principal cities in which he lived, or the way in which the character of those cities might be suggested in various Poe stories; he may even go so far as to suggest correlations and affinities. For the most part, however, Peeples lets the reader draw his own conclusions regarding the extent to which those places might have influenced the 19th century writer. It is always nice when readers are treated like adults.
Hmm …
… Death to the Negative Restaurant Review | The New Republic. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
I remember editing a review by The Inquirer's excellent restaurant critic Craig LaBan. His reference to "the rubble of roast potatoes on my plate" has stayed with me ever since. But Craig does not go out of his way to be negative. As he pointed out, when I asked him to "tell me what you really think," the restaurant under review was very expensive and if you're going to ask for a lot of money for a meal, the food should measure up.
A genre-straddling epic …
… Review: 'Aftershocks' is a powerful, poetic memoir about identity, family and belonging | Datebook. Hat tip, Rus Bowden.)
When we leave Nadia in Rome at 7, we’re taken next to a chapter titled “Resettlement Registration Form” and enter the storytelling present: Nadia is 28, living in New York City. The chapter is written as its title suggests, a form. “Citizenship: United States of America; Ghana.” … “Occupation/Skill: Waitress, Graduate Student, Writer.” Short answers give way to longer ones. “Ethnic Origin: Black. Biracial. Indo-European? Central Asian? Although I identify as Black, I am more literally Caucasian than most people who call themselves Caucasian.”
Something to think on …
We shall never know how many acts of cowardice have been motivated by the fear of appearing not sufficiently progressive.
— Charles Peguy, born on this date in 1873
Wednesday, January 06, 2021
A lovely book …
… zmkc: Book 1 Reading 2021 - Tea with Walter de la Mare by Russell Brain. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Indeed it is. I read it some years ago, and still have a copy. Here is my review of De La Mare's Memoirs of a Midget.
The uses of faith …
… Adult Life > Theodore Dalrymple. (Hat tip, Dave Lull)
Thee, of course, is God, in whose existence personally I do not believe: and yet there is wisdom (is there not?) in the Psalm. If you can’t believe in the God of the Bible, it is sometimes best to act as if you did, for the faith that one’s suffering has some value or meaning beyond itself is the best way to transcend it, even if there are no indubitable metaphysical grounds for holding such a faith.
Looking for the invisible …
… Can’t Explain — ‘Hotly in Pursuit of the Real’. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
… one should not underestimate the strangeness of Mariette to its audience in 1991, even to some Catholics: it was already some decades since Vatican II’s reforms and the more complete integration of Catholics into American life. A novel about an ecstatic nun in 1906, where even the unecstatic ones wear cinctures, was bound to remind people that Catholicism can be odd. Among the other striking passages in Mariette is one in which Hansen recounts a discussion between two nuns about their lives before they entered the convent: “We talked about our childhoods.... She played in a habit just like the one that her sister wore. She whipped herself with knotted apron strings. She rebuked temptations against chastity by lying naked on thorns.” And this is before we get to the stigmata.
Still creating after all these years …
… Paul McCartney on creating "McCartney III" in lockdown, and remembering John Lennon - CBS News. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
"It's very difficult for me, and I occasionally will have thoughts and sort of say, 'I don't know, why don't I just break down crying every day?' Because it's that bad."
"Do you sometimes?"
"Not every day, you know? There will be times that I just have memories and just think, 'Oh my God, it was just so senseless.'"
Something to think on …
Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be.
— Alan Watts, born on this date in 1915
Hmm …
… Best Pop Music of 2020 | National Review. (Hat tip, Paul Davis.)
In 2020, listeners could find edification in music that met their best standards and shared their ethical concerns, or else they endured Taylor Swift selling narcissism alongside political smugness. Pop stars who place their brand on progressive ideology make pop culture seem inseparable from hive-mind conformity, but Dylan, Morrissey, Morrison, and others launched a musical offensive by releasing the best pop music of the year.
Tuesday, January 05, 2021
A prophet unheeded …
… Jacques Barzun and the Tragedy of ‘Race Thinking’. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
One of the consequences is the family tradition of “no religion or politics at the dining table”. He wrote about these pressures long before formalhouse rules on conversation appeared on campus with laws and codes related to “hate speech”, trigger warnings and the demand for safe spaces where only approved ideas may be expressed. Barzun advocated practices and procedures to free the flow of conversation and facilitate the nuanced consideration of divisive issues, noting any rules dictating what can and cannot be discussed will always be designed to restrict free speech, avoid controversial issues and kill the capacity of students to think critically and imaginatively about them.
Something to think on …
The more immoral we become in big ways, the more puritanical we become in little ways.
— Florence King, born on this date in 1936
Monday, January 04, 2021
Just so you know …
… Warning: Facebook And Twitter Are ‘Dangerous’ Even If You’ve Never Used Them.
… the bits and pieces of information your friends, family and acquaintances share about you on social media, could equip AI-based algorithms or bots to effectively ‘clone’ your online persona.
In other words, there’s the real you—the one whose never used any social media platform, for example—and the cloned you: which is an online representation of your thoughts, behaviors and responses.
Something to think on …
The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants.
— Albert Camus, who died on this date in 1960
Sunday, January 03, 2021
Something to think on …
Living by faith includes the call to something greater than cowardly self-preservation.
— J. R. R. Tolkien, born on this date in 1892
The music of crows …
… FROM THE ARCHIVES – WINTER VISITATION BY PETER VERTACNIK. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Here's an idea …
(5) Ivor Cummins on Twitter: "Idea for passive resistance to the madness, just sent to me by email - what do you think? (three pics attached with the idea) https://t.co/qQHf8O5Nn7" / Twitter. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
I don't have a problem wearing a mask in stores. It's minimally inconvenient and may be common-sense. But I don't wear one in the open air, because sunlight kills the virus and, if it didn't, a mask would be about as useful as putting up a chain link fence to keep mosquitoes out of your garden. I would don the mask if I were in the open and in a crowd — unless, of course, I was rioting. I wu]ill, though, try to get a smiley mask button.
Hmm …
… An American Coup > Daniel Mallock.
While it is true that the press has always been under the protection of the Constitution (due to its “watchdog” role in American politics and society) its track record in fulfilling its duties is spotty at best. Political players with dubious ethics have always understood the power of the press and the benefits to be had by corrupting and controlling it. Thomas Jefferson, like Donald Trump today, was no stranger to a false, lying, corrupt press. Jefferson wrote during his first term that the press had,
". . . by pushing it’s licentiousness and it’s lying to such a degree of prostitution as to deprive it of all credit. and the fact is that so abandoned are the tory presses in this particular that even the least informed of the people have learnt that nothing in a newspaper is to be believed. this is a dangerous state of things, and the press ought to be restored to it’s credibility if possible.
Saturday, January 02, 2021
Learning from a mentor …
… ‘Studying With Miss Bishop’ Review: Learning His Lines. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Elizabeth Bishop’s approach to teaching makes the reader long to be transported back to the mid-1970s, to sit in her class. After all, there was no shortage of places. She began by asking the dozen or so students who were denied the opportunity to study with Lowell to propose “three or four poets they would like to read and talk about. Does anyone have a suggestion?”
Something to think on …
The value of life does not depend upon the place we occupy. It depends upon the way we occupy that place.
— Thérèse of Lisieux, born on this date in 1873
Friday, January 01, 2021
Happy New Year again …
… The Writer's Almanac for Friday, January 1, 2021 | Garrison Keillor. (Hat tip, Rus Bowden.)
Here’s a thought …
… Life’s a Boar. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
I was immersing myself in the refinements of their conversation—inter alia, Walter de la Mare wished that someone would write the most vulgar novel possible so that no one would then feel obliged to go beyond it—when I became aware of the distant yelping of a dog. It sounded to me like that of a dog that had lost its way and was calling for its master, so I left the tea table of my imagination and went looking for it.
About 300 yards from our house down a sloping meadow is a small river. On the far bank was a sight that horrified me.
Something to think on …
The man of science, like the man of letters, is too apt to view mankind only in the abstract, selecting in his consideration only a single side of our complex and many-sided being.
— James George Frazer, born on this date in 1854
Thursday, December 31, 2020
Some quite interesting fare …
… The Tin Cannoisseur: More Spiced and Tinned Treats from a Tier 4 Christmas. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
I’ll have to try some of these.
They’re pretty sound …
… Reviews and Reflections: Rules for teaching American history.
And not just American history. History is populated by — surprise! — human beings. We study it not to find out how we ought to be, but how we are. Of course, there are those people who know how we ought to be, but they’re best avoided.
Here's to 2021
It's been a trying year, a difficult one. But next year is coming soon. Let's hope it brings improved health, increased civility, and a renewed sense of generosity and purpose. To all our readers, please continue to stay safe and to care for yourselves and your families. 2021, you're just around the bend.
* * *
As is customary, I wanted to list a few highlights about the blog: this past year, we passed 65,000 posts, 22,000 comments, and over 5,000,000 visits. Not bad at all for a blog about books and literary culture! Here's to the next set of milestones under the steady hand of Frank Wilson.
A useful reminder …
… for today’s pusillanimous prelates:
Burning the candle at both ends for God’s sake may be foolishness to the world, but it is a profitable Christian exercise for so much better the light! Only one thing in life matters: Being found worthy of the Light of the World in the hour of His visitation. We need have no undue fear for our health if we work hard for the Kingdom of God; God will take care of our health if we take care of His cause. In any case, it is better to burn out than to rust out.
— Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
Something to think on …
There are many people for whom 'thinking' necessarily means identifying with existing trends.
— Marshall McLuhan, who died on this date in 1980
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