Jane Hirshfield, “I sat in the sun”

“I sat in the sun” (from Poetry) Jane Hirshfield I moved my chair into sun I sat in the sun the way hunger is moved when called fasting. Comment: “Hunger,” a natural need, is repositioned by us for the sake of something spiritual. We take something we would ordinarily satisfy and turn it into a …

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May 2, 2013 – 3:10 am | By ashok | Posted in poetry | Comments (0)

Links, 4/27/13

Before working on dissertation, I’ve been in the routine of cleaning up old blog entries. Some of those reworked: Emily Dickinson, “If I can stop one heart from breaking;” William Carlos Williams, “Complete Destruction;” Hopkins, “Heaven-Haven.” These should be a lot clearer, though of necessity they get dense in places. If you get a chance, …

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April 27, 2013 – 6:39 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (0)

Notes on a Lecture of Susan D. Collins – “E Pluribus Unum: Citizens, Friends, and Free Thinkers in the Ancient City”

These are my notes; feedback appreciated, I did what I could to be clear. You can watch the original lecture here. Susan Collins teaches at the University of Houston and is the co-author of a translation of Aristotle’s Ethics. If you’re interested, an interview with her. Can ancient thought guide current political practice? There are …

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April 25, 2013 – 10:20 pm | By ashok | Posted in aristotle, philosophy, politics | Comments (0)

Links, 4/16/13

Two just – well, “amazing” wouldn’t do them justice – stories about the bombing. Carlos Arredondo & this one couple that understands something I can only hope to understand. George Szirtes sums up the situation in Hungary. To say the least, “not good.” Left-liberal rant about equality is very good: “Over the past 40 years—the …

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April 16, 2013 – 10:08 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (0)

Giuseppe Ungaretti, “La Notte Bella”

With thanks to Abigail Schreiber and Charmi Vince Lovely Night (trans. Diego Bastianutti) Giuseppe Ungaretti Devetachi August 24, 1916 What song has surged tonight That weaves The stars With the crystal echo Of the heart What vernal joy Of wedded heart I’ve been a stagnant pool of darkness Now like a child at breast I …

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April 16, 2013 – 7:37 am | By ashok | Posted in poetry | Tagged | Comments (1)

Links, 4/12/13

A few of these links are really dense: Weigel on Kermit Gosnell is priceless – from the article: “If you’re pro-choice, say, and you worry that the Gosnell story is being promoted only to weaken your cause, you really should read that grand jury report. “DOH could and should have closed down Gosnell’s clinic years …

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April 12, 2013 – 5:06 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (1)

Dan Crane, “Magazine Ready, Except the Marriage”

Dan Crane, “Magazine Ready, Except the Marriage” The author shares a painful chapter in his life. He married a girl he met while competing in air guitar. She was considerably younger than him. He confesses they weren’t very “adult” about things, but at one point they bought a house that required major renovation. He ended …

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April 12, 2013 – 5:53 am | By ashok | Posted in love, media, personal | Tagged , | Comments (0)

On the pain of not being wanted

Dear Madeline: It is easy to say there are those who only want to be loved and have an imprudent and insatiable appetite. I remember one time in classical literature one of the worst tyrants working to establish his glory to be that much more attractive to a beloved. There’s a pain from not being …

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April 9, 2013 – 5:47 am | By ashok | Posted in love, personal | Comments (1)

The Impersonal University

For this discussion: Mike Rice, the administration and Rutgers faculty | Preserving class at Princeton When I first started in political philosophy, I wondered about the French “liberty, equality, fraternity” versus the whole of American history. All of American history is the tension between liberty and equality, with we the people at various times emphasizing …

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April 6, 2013 – 10:39 pm | By ashok | Posted in academia, politics | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Emily Dickinson, “Perception of an object costs” (1071)

Perception of an object costs (1071) Emily Dickinson Perception of an object costs Precise the Object’s loss — Perception in itself a Gain Replying to its Price — The Object Absolute — is nought — Perception sets it fair And then upbraids a Perfectness That situates so far — Comment: This poem seems to engage …

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April 5, 2013 – 5:47 am | By ashok | Posted in dickinson, poetry | Comments (1)