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The Favorite Books of American Presidents
I’ve had fun discussing the reading of Sonia Sotomayor and Clarence Thomas over the last couple of days, and while I’ve come up dry on further posts about the Supreme Court and literature, it has...
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Obama as a Toni Morrison Character
Toni Morrison Regular readers of this blog know that I am an Obama supporter who has been confused by the intensity of the attacks directed against him. A recent Washington Post article about...
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Morrison Novel Shaped the President
Obama bestows Presidential Medal of Honor on Morrison In honor of our re-elected president, I examine one of his favorite novels, which I happen to be teaching at the moment. When Barack Obama awarded...
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An Austen Romance for Dems and GOP?
Penry-Jones, Hawkins in “Persuasion” What is a literature professor to talk about the morning after a national election, especially with students who are excited about having voted for the first time?...
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Leaping Off the Fiscal Cliff…and Flying
Are you tired yet of hearing about the fiscal-cliff-that-isn’t-really-a-cliff-but-some-other-less-riveting-metaphor? Last week I compared the “cliff” to the Reichbach Falls which swallows up a...
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Love, a Bulwark against Desolation
Marc Chagall, “Song of Songs” Spiritual Sunday Two weeks ago I shared one of the great Biblical celebrations of love, from Paul’s first letter to Christians living in Corinth. Today I look at an author...
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Morrison Helps Young Black Men Stand Tall
My student Therm (right) at the MLK Day breakfast I’m currently supervising a guided reading with an African American senior, and last week we had a fascinating discussion about Toni Morrison’s Song of...
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Discovering the Bad Girl Within
Eichenberg engraving of Jane Eyre and Bertha Today I share another of this year’s senior projects. (Monday I reported on a Kurt Vonnegut project.) Sydney Coleman, a wonderfully gracious and smart...
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“Everybody Wants a Black Man’s Life”
So we have another appalling trial verdict allowing a white man to get away with shooting an innocent black teenager. Although the jury’s hung verdict leaves open the possibility for another trial and...
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Literature as an Ethics Laboratory
Sir Joshua Reynolds, “Samuel Johnson” My friend Rachel Kranz alerted me to a Paula Moya article in The Boston Review about whether reading literature makes us more moral. I remembered the article when...
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Toni Morrison: Stand Up & Breathe
LeBron James before a Brooklyn Nets game Professional athletes have created a stir in recent weeks by expressing sympathy for unarmed victims of police killings, such as Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and...
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Top Post of 2014: Black Lives Matter
Looking over my posts this past year, I think one of the most important stories was the rise of racial tensions, caused by the continued killing of unarmed black men. Those tensions radiated outward so...
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In Praise of the Liberal Arts
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, “A Reading from Homer” (1885) It’s always heartening when political commentators in major newspapers sing the praises of literature. Nicolas Kristof, famous for traveling all...
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Obama Tells Black Graduates to Soar
Michelle Obama at Tuskegee commencement ’Tis the season for commencement addresses and Michelle Obama gave one last week at Tuskegee University that reminded me of speeches I heard regularly at...
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Obama’s Eulogy & Beloved’s Baby Suggs
Beah Richards as Baby Suggs in “Beloved” This past weekend one of my favorite talk show hosts, the African American political science professor Melissa Harris Perry of MSNBC, quoted a long passage from...
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In Praise of the Liberal Arts
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, “A Reading from Homer” (1885) It’s always heartening when political commentators in major newspapers sing the praises of literature. Nicolas Kristof, famous for traveling all...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Obama Tells Black Graduates to Soar
Michelle Obama at Tuskegee commencement ’Tis the season of commencement addresses and Michelle Obama gave a speech last week at Tuskegee University that reminded me of the talks I heard regularly at...
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Obama’s Eulogy & Beloved’s Baby Suggs
Beah Richards as Baby Suggs in “Beloved” This past weekend one of my favorite talk show hosts, the African American political science professor Melissa Harris Perry of MSNBC, quoted a long passage from...
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Children Lit’s Changing Racial Landscape
Friday I visited my two granddaughters in Atlanta yesterday—my son Toby has a post-doctoral fellowship at Georgia Tech this year—and spent the day reading books, engaging in imaginary games, and...
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Mixed Feelings after Winning a Drawing
Mondrian (some rectangles blank, others lit up) Tuesday Today I share a story about mixed feelings after winning decent money in a drawing. I am reminded of how Pilate’s daughter Reba in Toni...
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