The Palace of Winds (rereading “The English Patient”)
Our love for certain books or movies or pieces of music are so intense that we like to imagine our … Continue Reading The Palace of Winds (rereading “The English Patient”)
Kafka Executes Josef K.
Josef K. is arrested for no reason at the beginning of Kafka’s The Trial, and at its conclusion he is … Continue Reading Kafka Executes Josef K.
The Great Myths #49: Odin Sacrifices Himself (Norse)
Read the other Great Myths Here Here are a handful of translations of verses 138-145 of the Hávamál, found in … Continue Reading The Great Myths #49: Odin Sacrifices Himself (Norse)
Kafka’s Great Fable: “Before the Law”
From Kafka’s novel The Trial: Before the Law stands a doorkeeper. A man from the country comes to this doorkeeper … Continue Reading Kafka’s Great Fable: “Before the Law”
Virginia Woolf Meets T. S. Eliot
From Virginia Woolf’s Diary on November 21, 1918: I was interrupted somewhere on this page by the arrival of Mr … Continue Reading Virginia Woolf Meets T. S. Eliot
A Twelfth Century Love Letter: Heloise Remembers Abelard
An amazing passage from a letter of Heloise to Abelard, those twelfth-century lovers who ended up in a nunnery and … Continue Reading A Twelfth Century Love Letter: Heloise Remembers Abelard
The best job application letter that didn’t work
James Murray (1837-1915), the Scottish lexicographer and philologist, sent the following letter regarding a job at the British Museum in … Continue Reading The best job application letter that didn’t work
Ted Hughes: “Devon Riviera” (poem)
Strange to find a Hughes poem more populated by people than animals; & you can tell he’s not happy about … Continue Reading Ted Hughes: “Devon Riviera” (poem)
The Great Myths #48: Creation as a Question (Hindu)
Here is the great Nāsadīya hymn, from the Rig Veda, where the mystery of creation is illustrated by a collection … Continue Reading The Great Myths #48: Creation as a Question (Hindu)
Nero & His Mother (poem)
Nero & His Mother I arranged to have her murdered at sea but she just swam to shore as the … Continue Reading Nero & His Mother (poem)
Picasso & the Gestapo
from Simon Schama’s Power of Art In the winter of 1941, Pablo Picasso was living and working at the top … Continue Reading Picasso & the Gestapo
Hart Crane & His Father
In early January, 1924, the poet Hart Crane, twenty-four and basically broke, received a letter from his father offering to … Continue Reading Hart Crane & His Father
T. S. Eliot & His Father
Here is a favorite bit from a youthful T. S. Eliot (he’s just turned thirty but that’s young to me … Continue Reading T. S. Eliot & His Father
Fire Houses (poem)
If forced to choose a favorite short poem of mine, one that brings together nearly everything I’m interested in, it … Continue Reading Fire Houses (poem)
The Goddess Instructs the Gods (Kena Upanishad)
Here’s one of my favorite bits from the Hindu Upanishads, chapters three and four from the Kena Upanishad. The goddess … Continue Reading The Goddess Instructs the Gods (Kena Upanishad)
The Sun Sets into the Sea (poem)
The Sun Sets into the Sea The sun sets into the sea with a hiss and rises with … Continue Reading The Sun Sets into the Sea (poem)
