Monthly Archives: July 2010

THE AESTHETICS OF INDUSTRIALIZATION—LANDSCAPES.

Posted on July 24, 2010 by Philip

THE AESTHETICS OF INDUSTRIALIZATION—LANDSCAPES. I seized on de Botton’s views on the possibility of admiring gas tankers and of finding pylons beautiful because I agree with them. I have always preferred landscapes that reflect human activity—think of Constable and Brueghel. … Continue reading →

Posted in art, Economics | 1 Comment

RACKSHAW DOWNES.

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Philip

RACKSHAW DOWNES. I posted here on Alain de Botton’s position that there is “an unwarranted prejudice which deems it peculiar to express overly powerful feelings of admiration towards a gas tanker or a paper mill ” and here on de … Continue reading →

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“THE SEAMY SIDE” IN SHAKESPEARE.

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Philip

“THE SEAMY SIDE” IN SHAKESPEARE. I sent Mary Jane Professor Biberman’s article, and she was reminded of some of Emilia’s lines in Othello. (Mary Jane played Emilia in college). Emilia is protesting to Iago against the accusation that Emilia has … Continue reading →

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UNSEAMING IN SHAKESPEARE.

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Philip

UNSEAMING IN SHAKESPEARE. Professor Biberman gives the example of the word “unseamed” in Macbeth, in the phrase “he unseamed him from the nave to th’ chops.” This is the only appearance of the word “unseamed” in Shakespeare. We saw a … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Shakespeare | 2 Comments

SHAKESPEARE’S INVENTED WORDS.

Posted on July 21, 2010 by Philip

SHAKESPEARE’S INVENTED WORDS. The discussion of Sarah Palin’s use of the new word “refudiate” led to this informative article by Professor Matthew Biberman about Shakespeare’s neoligisms. (link via realclearpolitics). (My position on the controversy is that I am in favor … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Politics, Shakespeare | 3 Comments

COLLEGE ADVICE FROM MY PARENTS.

Posted on July 20, 2010 by Philip

COLLEGE ADVICE FROM MY PARENTS. My parents often repeated the advice to us that we should choose college courses for the teacher and not for the subject matter. All too true.

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ARE BAD TEACHERS GOOD FOR YOU?

Posted on July 20, 2010 by Philip

ARE BAD TEACHERS GOOD FOR YOU? The witty Lucy Kellaway called attention in yesterday’s Financial Times (July 19) to a controversy in the United Kingdom over comments by the head of Ofsted. (According to wikipedia, “The Office for Standards in … Continue reading →

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JOUSTS OF WAR.

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Philip

JOUSTS OF WAR. As with the combatants today, there were knights who courted danger. In jousts of war, the lances were uncapped. Mortimer describes one joust in 1351—a “behourd”, an older form of jousting in which two teams of knights … Continue reading →

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JOUSTING BACK IN THE DAY—JOUSTS OF PEACE.

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Philip

JOUSTING BACK IN THE DAY—JOUSTS OF PEACE.. For my birthday, Nick gave me THE TIME TRAVELER’S GUIDE TO MEDIEVAL ENGLAND by Ian Mortimer. It shows that in the 1300′s there was the same split between the two versions of the … Continue reading →

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THE SPORT OF JOUSTING.

Posted on July 18, 2010 by Philip

THE SPORT OF JOUSTING. This article in the New York Times Magazine reports on the modern sport of jousting. There are estimated to be 200 competitive jousters in the world. They are intent on making it what the article calls … Continue reading →

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