the exhaustion of criticism and “pseudo-modernism”
A recent entry in this blog entitled “the exhaustion of criticism” (published July 9th, 2011) accused academic critical studies in general, and Biblical Criticism in particular, of exhausting itself (and its potential readership), to the point of a complete disciplinary unraveling. I do believe that scholars working in the Humanities (Philosophy, Theology, Religious Studies, History, [...]
Republicans are crazy about taxes
Republican leaders weathered the recent debt ceiling debate with aplomb, fiercely and tirelessly resisting all calls for increases in Government Revenues through new taxes. Their opposition to new taxes is so absolute, so unrelenting, that it effectively rests on a total renunciation of belief in the legal morality of taxation. Republicans would be more philosophically [...]
Lapore is wrong about meaning in Poetry
Ernie Lapore, “Poetry, Medium, and Message.” The Stone. New York Times Online. 7.31.2011. Rutgers philosopher Ernie Lepore writes about poetry in yesterday’s installment of “The Stone,” a philosophy “blog” on the New York Times. Something about the article rankled me and inspired this cranky response. Lapore says the New Critics locate meaning, and the resistance [...]
the exhaustion of criticism
The last lines of Qohelet (Ecclesiastes, aka “The Teacher”) are those of an editor, who advises us to value the straightforward words of a single wise person far more than all the many books produced by the scholars and seekers in the world; he laments: “of making many books there is no end, and much [...]
weiner public tweeter
Well, you know, when you mean to send a private message and it ends up going on your main twitter feed… that’s pretty embarrassing. When it’s a scandalous message… and gets attention, and you thereafter claim that someone else did it, that you were hacked, when you blame the muckraking blogger who reported the issue [...]
(Reading List) Eric Foner: Tom Paine and Revolutionary America
On my reading list: Eric Foner, Tom Paine and Revolutionary America (New York: Oxford University Press, 1976; paperback in 1977; LCCCN: 75-25456). Eric Foner probably should have been one of my professors when I was at Columbia, but alas, Epimetheus! I suppose most schools offer more opportunities than students can use. Nevertheless, I do have [...]
The Garden and the Wall
My favorite character among the first generation New England Puritans is doubtless Roger Williams. Williams became the founder of Rhode Island after his libertarian impulses in matters of religion and politics led him into conflict with the magistrates and divines of the Puritan theocracy at Massachusetts Bay Colony. According to Williams, the Massachusetts colony lacked [...]
a statement on Wikipedia by a college professor
Wikipedia.org is often berated by college professors as an unacceptable source in undergraduate papers. I, however, have no qualms whatsoever about college students using Wikipedia as a source in their papers. It must be assumed, with respect to almost any topic a human person can give name to, that a Wikipedia article on the subject [...]
Manunkind on “Cyber Monday”
This Monday morning, I spent about 50 minutes trying to convince a group of 12 students, 18-20 year olds, that they should share the moral philosopher Philip Hallie’s outrage about Nazis torturing Jewish and Gypsy children… almost 70 years ago… and that they should enter into his professional concern — his puzzlement — over the [...]