“The writer in the Western literary imagination is an individual observer, an individualist, experiencing and observing the world and its structures from the outside, with some amount of skepticism and humor and empathy. If that’s what you’re trying to do, or to be, it can feel really uncomfortable to realize that, within the story you’re trying to write about, there is an equally real sense in which you are actually also the beneficiary and representative of, an insider of, a world-dominating superpower.”
Tag: 04.07.17
Ah, The Aromas Of Old Books (And The Science Behind Them)
A group of London researchers have analyzed samples of various tomes and developed a vocabulary for describing books’ scents similar to the language used for discussing wines. (Yes, this can have some practical uses.)
Once Upon A Time, ‘Sesame Street’ Was Actually Controversial
Most of us take the show’s educational purpose (learning letters, numbers, and the like) for granted now, but in Sesame Street‘s early years on the air in the 1970s, experts differed enormously over how effective the program was, and the results of studies were all over the place. Some even argued that the Muppet monsters promoted antisocial behavior and aggression.
When Furtwängler Reopened Bayreuth After The War – With Beethoven
Given all the particular, er, associations attached to Wagner and his operas, the reopening of his own opera house and festival six years after Germany’s defeat was a fraught, touchy affair. Yet conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler pulled it off, forgoing any of Wagner’s own operas in favor of everyone’s favorite German expression of uplift. Sappy? On the contrary, argues Colin Fleming: the performance, newly reissued on disc, “is as viscerally intense as 20th-century classical recordings get … simultaneously draining, in what it pulls from you emotionally, and emboldeningly triumphal.”
Euphemisms May Be Useful, But They Can Erode Your Moral Sense
“Beating around the bush serves a valuable purpose: Not only can it ease potentially awkward social situations, but it also lets people get away with things they otherwise wouldn’t. … [Yet] indirect speech also serves a more personal purpose, helping people to preserve a positive moral self-image even in the face of wrongdoing – which, in turn, may actually facilitate bad behavior.”
High-Level Arts Donors In Chicago Can Get Some Pretty Fabulous Perks
Give enough money, and the Goodman Theater will invite you to cast parties (occasionally in London as well as Chicago), the Lincoln Park Zoo might take you to Tanzania, the Adler Planetarium might take you to view a solar eclipse in China, and the Chicago Symphony might take you along on tour.
Pennsylvania Ballet Dances On As Lights Go Out In Orchestra Pit
The company was performing its “Romance” program last Thursday (April 6) when the lights on the musicians’ stands flickered and then, in the woodwind and brass sections, went out completely. Yet the musicians played on and the dancers danced on. Peter Dobrin has the details.
Five Ways Reading Fiction Can Help You In Your Job
“To run a business, you have to be deeply involved in all the minutiae, from strategy to product to hiring. Diving into the story, identifying with the characters, and trying to solve the mystery has two effects on me. First, it is a very efficient way to disconnect from all the problems I face in the business. Second, it immediately unlocks my creativity. My mind has no limits while I’m reading, and it shouldn’t while I’m conducting business.”
Yes, Let’s Do Talk About Hollywood’s Gender Gap
The director of “Whale Rider” and “The Zookeeper’s Wife” always turned down invitations to speak on panels about being a woman director … until she realized nothing had changed during her decades of being in the industry. Nikki Caro says, “It was less ‘Why can’t I?’ and more ‘What the fuck is going on here?'”
Is It Time To End Gender-Specific Awards?
In Britain, the National Television Awards have been gender-neutral for a while, like the Grammys in the U.S. Could this ever work for something like the Oscars?