Czech koruna
17/07/2019
There are 23 Czech koruna to the dollar and I have to know this since I have not been able to convince my computer I am not Czech. How it got this idea I am not sure. Axé.
…finishing the post
17/07/2019
Back to Da Silva and the modernity thesis. Of course Dussell has pointed out the colonialist tropes in Hegel, etc., with juicy quotations. Greg McCarthy’s summary of Da Silva is better than mine, for its concision. Note that Da Silva can help with Anzaldúa too. My thesis for paper #1 is that the evoke-and-elide movement … More …finishing the post
Very well (an unfinished post)
16/07/2019
(According to Reeducation, your baseline should be that you are too unhappy to function and your goal should be to function minimally nonetheless, or attain feelings of happiness, just for the day. Before Reeducation I did not think a great deal about happiness, although I was happy most of the time. If your baseline is … More Very well (an unfinished post)
On Weltlitteratur and transnational literature
16/07/2019
Transnational is a present but obscured, and often pirated quality of “World Literature:” i.e., Goethe tells us in Dichtung und Wahrheit that as a child, he got a tutor to teach him “Judendeutsch” (Yiddish) and that he composed in it for his seven-language epistolary novel he wrote then (it is not extant now, unfortunately). If … More On Weltlitteratur and transnational literature
Vijay Seshadri, Werner Herzog
15/07/2019
I was taken with this poem and discovered its author is well known. And it seems Herzog is still working, I do not necessarily approve of him or like all of his work but effectively he seems to be my favorite filmmaker, so what can one do. Life, pleasure, art. Axé.
Action alert!
13/07/2019
Here’s an action alert: write The Nation and complain about their faux-lefty piece. The Arnautoff murals are not there to “remind black people of oppression.” They are there as a critique of the canonization of George Washington and yes, they remind one that this progenitor of American liberty held slaves. They don’t have any of … More Action alert!
More books to put on that iPad
12/07/2019
Gloria Anzaldúa. I need whatever she has that I don’t and the library doesn’t, but in particular Light in the Dark AND the Spanish translation with its introduction. Things I must read are not necessarily things I should read, but here we go. And here is some 2017 Anzaldúa bibliography. Axé.
The Sommer paper
09/07/2019
Titles, notes, and phrases I did not use in the abstract, but must think about, include: 1. Fractured families and dystopian romance in 19th century Latin American narrative 2. Fictional foundations: anti-national non-romance (or anti-national fantasy, colonial rhapsody) 3. Celui n’est pas mon père (yet more fun: Ceci n’est pas mon père) 4. Colonial rhapsody … More The Sommer paper
Language corruption, “public choice,” and more
09/07/2019
I had almost finished a very good post and it was lost. In it, I had talked about some pieces of LARR 40:3 (2005), a great issue of the journal but that I am going to put in the café bookshelf because not only do I have electronic access to it but also, the wonderful … More Language corruption, “public choice,” and more
Walters Museum, and student evaluations
07/07/2019
Last summer I visited this museum and received its lovely magazine. Sticking with me in particular are the ceramics of Roberto Lugo and John Singer Sargent’s watercolor The Alhambra Vase. In the store, a bronze reproduction of a Chinese owl figurine, eight inches high. ∞∞∞∞∞∞ How to get high evaluations? Old and new suggestions include … More Walters Museum, and student evaluations
coldhearted scientist وداد 