Here's more on my March visit to Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, "Where Concord's Legends Lie." Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) According to Alcott's obituary in the New York Times, March 7, 1888: For a long time Miss Olcott [sic] had been ill, suffering from nervous prostration. Last Autumn she appeared to be improving and went to the … Continue reading Offerings for Alcott at Sleepy Hollow
Offerings for Thoreau at Sleepy Hollow
On March 13, I visited Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, MA. The weather was fair and mild; the snow was melting into rivulets; the mud was copious. As Emily Dickinson wrote: Dear March - Come in - How glad I am - I hoped for you before - Put down your Hat - You must … Continue reading Offerings for Thoreau at Sleepy Hollow
We Need to Talk About Ellipses
"Colonial discourse takes over as it takes cover." -David Spurr, The Rhetoric of Empire An ellipsis, like grief, calls attention to the presence of an absence. It can can do so in a couple of different ways. It can help a sentence trail off suggestively, opening the reader's mind to thoughts unexpressed or still to … Continue reading We Need to Talk About Ellipses
Repurposing Twain: We Need Another Film Version of “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court”
There are very few film versions of Mark Twain's works. Given the quality of the existing crop, we should probably consider that a blessing. Connecticut Yankee has been filmed a few times. There's a version from 1921, only 11 years after Twain's death, and a televised version from 1978, starring Richard Basehart, Bill Bixby, and … Continue reading Repurposing Twain: We Need Another Film Version of “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court”
U.S. Grant and H.G. Wells
I've been reading through Grant's Memoirs again, this time focusing more on the Conclusion. It's classic Grant: dry and to the point. Here's the opening sentence: "The cause of the great War of the Rebellion against the United Status will have to be attributed to slavery." It can't be put any more plainly than that, … Continue reading U.S. Grant and H.G. Wells
Some Thoughts on Group Conferences
So anyway, I decided to try something new this semester: small group conferences. Why? Well, with over a hundred students, single meetings are unworkable, even if I were detail-oriented, which I’m not. Also, I’m learning that conferences can be stressful for students, especially those with social anxiety, and asking them to come to my office … Continue reading Some Thoughts on Group Conferences
“Black Panther” and the Morality of Power
"With great power comes great responsibility." Uncle Ben was right. After all, it's the underlying ethos of all the superhero movies I've ever seen, from both the Marvel and the DC universes. The climax of most of the movies, especially the origin stories, seems to be that moment of self-actualization--"I am Iron Man!"--where the acceptance … Continue reading “Black Panther” and the Morality of Power
