Vico on the Origin of Language

[This is last part of a longer series - previous post ("Joyce, Vico and the Homeric Question")] One of those questions that intellectuals in the 18th and early 19th century seem to have taken really seriously, one that perhaps we don't, is the question of how spoken and written language began. My sense is that most contemporary … Continue reading Vico on the Origin of Language →

Who Wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey?

Nates asks a set of questions on a recent thread about Joyce and Homer: I still find it odd to think of the Odyssey (or the Iliad, which I know much better) as a communal text. I don’t disagree with the claim; I just find it an odd truth–and a difficult one to explicate. I … Continue reading Who Wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey? →

Vico Contest

Who doesn't like a good game of "interpret-that-frontispiece"? Below is the frontispiece for The New Science, by Giambattista Vico, about which Vico writes, in the helpfully titled opening section, "EXPLANATION OF THE PICTURE PLACED AS FRONTISPIECE TO SERVE AS INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK", that "As Cebes the Theban made a table of moral institutions, we … Continue reading Vico Contest →

In Praise of James Joyce

It's quite common, even among well-read people, to joke about Joyce's willful obscurity, and to suggest that people don't really read or enjoy most of his books, except to say they have done so. For me though, these books have been a nearly endless source of joy, the word that forms the root of their … Continue reading In Praise of James Joyce →

Joyce, Vico, Oral Poetry and the Homeric Question – A Joyce Writing Project

[This is part of a longer series – previous post ("Deeper into the Night") - next post ("Vico on the Origins of Language")] My Master's program culminates in writing a thesis. I'm writing this post to describe what I'm planning on working on, as much to share as to work out for myself what I'm actually going to … Continue reading Joyce, Vico, Oral Poetry and the Homeric Question – A Joyce Writing Project →

First Thoughts about The Grand Budapest Hotel

I want to keep my place in the old world Keep my place in the arcane 'Cause I still love my parents and I still love the old world (The Modern Lovers, "Old World") When we were walking in the theater, a River East employee handed us a survey, since it was "opening weekend." The … Continue reading First Thoughts about The Grand Budapest Hotel →

Jackson Pollack

So I don't remember the exact details, but this is Jackson Pollack. I decided to write about it because, well, obviously, it poses a challenge. The first idea I had was - a work like this asks you much more to react to it than to understand it. And my first reaction is … Continue reading Jackson Pollack →

True Detective?

If you want the short version of this review, it resides in that question-mark. I just finished the last of the eight episodes of the first season. Apparently this will be the last featuring these characters - Rust Cole (Matthew McConaughey), Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) and assorted others. Next season it will be different characters … Continue reading True Detective? →

Top Five Glenn Gould Bach Recordings

Glenn Gould recorded more than sixty records, and while the majority of them may not be Bach, the plurality certainly are. And though many of the rest of the records are a joy to listen to, the greatest joy for me always comes from the Bach. The liner notes on numerous Gould-Bach records repeat a … Continue reading Top Five Glenn Gould Bach Recordings →

Should we Take Paul Ryan Seriously? And other related questions

One of my favorite passages, one I read to my students on a yearly basis, comes from the opening page of The Great Gatsby: In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. “Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,” he told … Continue reading Should we Take Paul Ryan Seriously? And other related questions →