Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts
Monday, June 4, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Farewell to Maurice Sendak
He was a bit of a misanthrope, but a charming and talented misanthrope. He certainly didn't suffer fools gladly. This delightful interview appeared earlier this year on The Colbert Report.
And here is part 2:
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Grim Colberty Tales with Maurice Sendak Pt. 1 | ||||
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| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Grim Colberty Tales with Maurice Sendak Pt. 2 | ||||
| ||||
Monday, March 28, 2011
Kiss Me, Kate
In Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew, a strong-willed woman named Katherina (Kate for short) is brainwashed (through the withholding of food and clothing, among other forms of psychological abuse) into becoming the ideal submissive wife. Her husband, Petruchio, tests her obedience by insisting that the sun is the moon and that a man is a woman. Having given up her free will and any desire to think for herself, Kate agrees with Petruchio's absurd assertions.
A frighteningly large segment of American voters have become modern Katherinas. No longer interested in checking facts for themselves or questioning their lords and masters, they willingly accept (contrary to Occam's Razor and all observable evidence) that President Obama was born in Kenya. They not only refuse to believe that human-released greenhouse gases have anything to do with climate change (which is not an outrageous position, since evidence of a strong correlation is not proof of causation), but that average global climates are even rising at all. They believe the expertise of a pampered English aristocrat with degrees in classics and journalism studies over that of actual climate scientists at NOAA or the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Some of them continue to insist that homosexuality is simply a lifestyle choice or a condition that can be "cured" (despite a growing body of scientific evidence to the contrary, not to mention numerous sex scandals by conservative clergymen who have strong incentives to play it straight), and that it is therefore OK to discriminate against homosexuals.
Some right-wingers will undoubtedly claim that the left are the ones who are uncritically accepting a belief in global warming or the normality of homosexuality. They do not seem to realize (or care) that lefties are more likely to question everything. There are some on the left who form their opinions based on tribalism or a desire to rebel against their parents, but the left is not monolithic. There are all manner of free-thinkers and skeptics on the left, and for an idea to survive, it needs to fit the evidence. When new evidence is discovered, ideas and models to explain the world are adjusted and/or discarded as appropriate. That is part of the scientific method.
From time to time, I find myself in a discussion that feels like I'm being told that the sun is the moon. At that point, I usually despair of having a rational and productive debate. Once someone has submitted to Petruchio, trying to debate the issue is like banging one's head against a brick wall.
A frighteningly large segment of American voters have become modern Katherinas. No longer interested in checking facts for themselves or questioning their lords and masters, they willingly accept (contrary to Occam's Razor and all observable evidence) that President Obama was born in Kenya. They not only refuse to believe that human-released greenhouse gases have anything to do with climate change (which is not an outrageous position, since evidence of a strong correlation is not proof of causation), but that average global climates are even rising at all. They believe the expertise of a pampered English aristocrat with degrees in classics and journalism studies over that of actual climate scientists at NOAA or the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Some of them continue to insist that homosexuality is simply a lifestyle choice or a condition that can be "cured" (despite a growing body of scientific evidence to the contrary, not to mention numerous sex scandals by conservative clergymen who have strong incentives to play it straight), and that it is therefore OK to discriminate against homosexuals.
Some right-wingers will undoubtedly claim that the left are the ones who are uncritically accepting a belief in global warming or the normality of homosexuality. They do not seem to realize (or care) that lefties are more likely to question everything. There are some on the left who form their opinions based on tribalism or a desire to rebel against their parents, but the left is not monolithic. There are all manner of free-thinkers and skeptics on the left, and for an idea to survive, it needs to fit the evidence. When new evidence is discovered, ideas and models to explain the world are adjusted and/or discarded as appropriate. That is part of the scientific method.
From time to time, I find myself in a discussion that feels like I'm being told that the sun is the moon. At that point, I usually despair of having a rational and productive debate. Once someone has submitted to Petruchio, trying to debate the issue is like banging one's head against a brick wall.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
The Eumenides
The Oresteia is a trilogy of ancient Greek plays by Aeschylus. The first, Agamemnon, deals with the victorious Trojan War general's return home, not to a hero's welcome, but to a murder at the hands of his wife. The second, the Libation Bearers, is the account of how the hero's children avenge his death by conspiring to kill their mother.
The third play, the Eumenides, follows Orestes after his matricide. He is pursued by ancient female vengeance demons called the Erinyes (or Furies) in punishment for his deed, even though he acted at the instigation of the god Apollo and thus believed that right was on his side. Even the Olympians who govern the universe could not give him sanctuary from the lowly (literally chthonic, or subterranean) deities who insist on tormenting him.
In the end, it was settled in court, with Apollo acting as attorney for the defense, the Furies as prosecutors, and Athena as judge. There was a hung jury, which Athena declared should result in an acquittal. The Furies would not accept this, however, unless they received something in return. Giving them their propers, Athena declared that a temple would be built in their honor in Athens, and from henceforth, they would be known as the Eumenides (or "Kindly Ones").
It has been over 20 years since I've read that play, but today I was suddenly reminded of it. Governor Walker and Republican state legislators have found themselves greeted by hundreds of protesters in cities all over Wisconsin. To escape the heat (and raise some much-needed cash for media buys), the chief actors have gone to the nation's capital for a big fundraiser, like Orestes seeking sanctuary in the temple of Athena. However, a crowd of Furies have tracked them down.
Meanwhile, back in Madison, a Kindly One tormented Glenn Grothman.
The third play, the Eumenides, follows Orestes after his matricide. He is pursued by ancient female vengeance demons called the Erinyes (or Furies) in punishment for his deed, even though he acted at the instigation of the god Apollo and thus believed that right was on his side. Even the Olympians who govern the universe could not give him sanctuary from the lowly (literally chthonic, or subterranean) deities who insist on tormenting him.
In the end, it was settled in court, with Apollo acting as attorney for the defense, the Furies as prosecutors, and Athena as judge. There was a hung jury, which Athena declared should result in an acquittal. The Furies would not accept this, however, unless they received something in return. Giving them their propers, Athena declared that a temple would be built in their honor in Athens, and from henceforth, they would be known as the Eumenides (or "Kindly Ones").
It has been over 20 years since I've read that play, but today I was suddenly reminded of it. Governor Walker and Republican state legislators have found themselves greeted by hundreds of protesters in cities all over Wisconsin. To escape the heat (and raise some much-needed cash for media buys), the chief actors have gone to the nation's capital for a big fundraiser, like Orestes seeking sanctuary in the temple of Athena. However, a crowd of Furies have tracked them down.
Meanwhile, back in Madison, a Kindly One tormented Glenn Grothman.
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