The Death of History
My old pal Jared recenlty wrote a post about the fact that many Americans have no understanding of American history. On a similar note, today at the library I overheard a grandfather discussing history with his two grandsons. They were browsing in the American history section and the kids wanted to know all about the Civil War. The grandfather said, "Well, the Civil War began all because of George Washington." It made me sad.
Friday, February 18, 2005
Mas Noticias . . .
(1.)
My dad is in Pakistan right now (he's been there for the past week). He'll be back sometime Sunday night with plenty of photos and stories. I'll try to post some stuff related to his trip soon.
(2.)
Lessons in situational irony: In my contemporary American and British novels class last week we were discussing The History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters (a fascinating, if somewhat unconventional novel). The professor was pointing out a few instances of Julian Barnes’ view on the concept of time when the clock on the wall behind my chair dropped to the floor and shattered at my feet. I think I was startled more than anyone since the clock nearly hit me.
(3.)
Another Valentine's Day has passed. Yes, indeed. In honor of this utterly worthless, greeting-card-company-made-up-day, enjoy this comic:
(BookSmarts)
(4.)
Very little is going on in my life right now, just the routine of going to class, going to work, then going to sleep, hence the lack of posts recently. Someday, perhaps this summer, I will do something exciting and interesting.
(1.)
My dad is in Pakistan right now (he's been there for the past week). He'll be back sometime Sunday night with plenty of photos and stories. I'll try to post some stuff related to his trip soon.
(2.)
Lessons in situational irony: In my contemporary American and British novels class last week we were discussing The History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters (a fascinating, if somewhat unconventional novel). The professor was pointing out a few instances of Julian Barnes’ view on the concept of time when the clock on the wall behind my chair dropped to the floor and shattered at my feet. I think I was startled more than anyone since the clock nearly hit me.
(3.)
Another Valentine's Day has passed. Yes, indeed. In honor of this utterly worthless, greeting-card-company-made-up-day, enjoy this comic:
(BookSmarts)
(4.)
Very little is going on in my life right now, just the routine of going to class, going to work, then going to sleep, hence the lack of posts recently. Someday, perhaps this summer, I will do something exciting and interesting.
Sunday, February 06, 2005
“Nothing and Everything” (2)
(1.)
In my Chaucer class on Monday, we had to select actors who would fit well in the roles of various pilgrims from the Canterbury Tales (it was just for fun). Literally ten people selected Brad Pitt for a role, and a few people chose teenage pop stars to play the Prioress (who in the Canterbury Tales is a very mannerly older woman). When my professor asked me who I would cast in the role of the Pardoner, I said Peter Cushing. I know him best for his role as Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars: A New Hope. He used to be in old horror movies, though, so I figured that at least one person, maybe only the professor, had heard of him. No one had. Peter Cushing, or perhaps Boris Karloff, would make a great Pardoner; both are lanky, cadaverous men, and they both have an air of evil surrounding them. Maybe I should have said Keanu Reeves or Ben Stiller just to fit in with everyone else. So, in short, I think I was the only person in class who chose an actor who could actually perform the role appropriately (subjective opinion only, of course). And I didn’t even mention the girl who thought that Jennifer Lopez would make a great Nun. Oh, the evils of popular American culture. Sigh.
(2.)
Maybe my college experience is skewed since I spent my first two years at John Brown University. I did have the impression, though, that most professors tried to respect the beliefs of their students. After all, we live in a postmodern society, and theoretically every belief should be equally valid as long as no one tries to force their beliefs on anyone else. Right? In the few class periods I have had in my contemporary novels seminar, the professor has managed to disparage the beliefs and practices of every major world religion. He also swears constantly. I’m not offended by swear words in movies or when I hear people talking in the mall or something (and I have been known to use one or two over the years, as most of my friends can confirm), but in the classroom, the realm of higher learning, swear words seem so vulgar . . . both in the modern and antiquated definitions of the word. I guess I’ve just come to expect my professors to use literary terms such as “tragic flaw” instead of “major f*** up” (and no, I am not making that up).
(3.)
This is a little crazy, but a photo of my dad is actually in this week’s issue of TIME magazine. No, he’s not Man of the Year or anything; there’s an article about the pastor of our church, and my dad happened to be standing near our pastor when the photo was taken. His back is to the camera, and the focus is on our pastor’s face so my dad is a little blurry, but it’s undeniably him.
(1.)
In my Chaucer class on Monday, we had to select actors who would fit well in the roles of various pilgrims from the Canterbury Tales (it was just for fun). Literally ten people selected Brad Pitt for a role, and a few people chose teenage pop stars to play the Prioress (who in the Canterbury Tales is a very mannerly older woman). When my professor asked me who I would cast in the role of the Pardoner, I said Peter Cushing. I know him best for his role as Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars: A New Hope. He used to be in old horror movies, though, so I figured that at least one person, maybe only the professor, had heard of him. No one had. Peter Cushing, or perhaps Boris Karloff, would make a great Pardoner; both are lanky, cadaverous men, and they both have an air of evil surrounding them. Maybe I should have said Keanu Reeves or Ben Stiller just to fit in with everyone else. So, in short, I think I was the only person in class who chose an actor who could actually perform the role appropriately (subjective opinion only, of course). And I didn’t even mention the girl who thought that Jennifer Lopez would make a great Nun. Oh, the evils of popular American culture. Sigh.
(2.)
Maybe my college experience is skewed since I spent my first two years at John Brown University. I did have the impression, though, that most professors tried to respect the beliefs of their students. After all, we live in a postmodern society, and theoretically every belief should be equally valid as long as no one tries to force their beliefs on anyone else. Right? In the few class periods I have had in my contemporary novels seminar, the professor has managed to disparage the beliefs and practices of every major world religion. He also swears constantly. I’m not offended by swear words in movies or when I hear people talking in the mall or something (and I have been known to use one or two over the years, as most of my friends can confirm), but in the classroom, the realm of higher learning, swear words seem so vulgar . . . both in the modern and antiquated definitions of the word. I guess I’ve just come to expect my professors to use literary terms such as “tragic flaw” instead of “major f*** up” (and no, I am not making that up).
(3.)
This is a little crazy, but a photo of my dad is actually in this week’s issue of TIME magazine. No, he’s not Man of the Year or anything; there’s an article about the pastor of our church, and my dad happened to be standing near our pastor when the photo was taken. His back is to the camera, and the focus is on our pastor’s face so my dad is a little blurry, but it’s undeniably him.
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