Now we will look at part of the Wikipedia’s article on Janteloven, namely: “The Jante Law (Danish and Norwegian: Janteloven Swedish: Jantelagen Finnish: Janten laki Faroese: Jantulógin) is a concept created by the Norwegian/Danish author Aksel Sandemose in his novel A refugee crosses his tracks (En flyktning krysser sitt spor, 1933), where he portrays the … More Janteloven

Hypothesis. a. Reality can be difficult to diagnose. b. Malicious misdiagnosis is a control mechanism deployed more often than we realize. Goals. Eject misdiagnoses. Discover missed diagnoses. I Misdiagnosis abounds. For example, I have been assigned an assistant with a weak skill set. He is shared by two departments. The relevant department chairs hired him … More Misdiagnosis/Missed Diagnoses

One might have thought of sight, but who could think Of what it sees, for all the ill it sees? Speech found the ear, for all the evil sound, But the dark italics it could not propound. And out of what sees and hears and out Of what one feels, who could have thought to … More Esthétique du Mal

 I One book I like is Steen Steensen Blicher’s Brudstykker af et Landsbydegn’s Dagbog, published in 1824 but set beginning in 1708. It is a curious text which I came across by chance, many years ago. And yes, there is good information on Blicher available in English. The sentence from this book which has always … More Et plaisant Veir

Does everyone realize how many lively Mexicans are blogging against the government? Blog de blogs can give an idea. It links everywhere. My favorite title currently is Blogotitlan. El cantón de la neta. I also like Renegados hasta la democracia, which just would be from Jalisco. This blog, of course, keeps its eyes on what’s … More Turkish Bath

One reason I like the blog Slaves of Academe is the title itself. When I wonder, what are we doing here? How did we get here? Why is it like this? I can remember, it is because we are slaves of academe. That clarifies things. I Assiduous readers may have guessed that one reason I … More Slaves of Academe

The first time I heard the word subaltern was in the context of postcolonial literary studies. The subaltern classes seemed to be colonized peoples. I thought “subaltern” was a good term, for that Other (alter) which is, of course, always Underneath (sub). I then discovered that “subaltern” was originally a military term, referring to lower … More The Word Subaltern

Algo de música I like the way Monteverdi’s music moves between chant, polyphony, and dance. Voice and lyrics are foregrounded, but suffused with lilting and jumping. Now I am playing the instrumental introduction to Chiome d’oro [Chiome d’oro, bel tesoro, tu mi leghi in mille modi…], whose lyrics I will reproduce, illustrated with Botticelli’s Birth … More Secret Lives

I As of this writing, Daniel Ortega, not a ‘leftist’ but a chameleon, is winning the presidential election in Nicaragua. My candidate, Edmundo Jarquín, is in fourth place, and Edén Pastora, not just a ‘former Contra rebel’ as the delusional CBS news proclaims, but also, in his complicated life, a former Comandante Cero, is coming … More Elecciones

Here is a brilliant post on, among other things, the way in which the language of the Bush Administration has moved beyond the Orwellian, straight into Lewis Carroll territory. I have often considered writing a parodic analysis of the discourse of some universities in which I have worked, based on Alice in Wonderland. Jack Balkin … More Alice in Wonderland