Tag: 07.23.20

Crop Of Books Takes New View Of Old Epic Poetry

“Those second looks have turned up several shared themes. One is a new skepticism regarding the relationship that has developed between the epic and prevailing ideas about male heroism. ‘A lot of toxic masculinity has been shaped by imperfect understandings of epic poetry,'” said Maria Dahvana Headley, translator of a new edition of Beowulf. “That result, she and [Aeneid translator Shadi] Bartsch agree, is a consequence of particular choices made in reading, not the substance of the epics themselves.” – The New York Times

Composer And Writer Dmitri Smirnov Dead Of COVID At 71

While a student in Moscow in the late ’60s, he became passionately interested in William Blake, going on to translate his complete works into Russian and write the first Russian-language biography of Blake. The great English mystic became the dominant force in Smirnov’s music as well, with more than 50 of his compositions being based on or inspired by Blake. – The Guardian

Brandon Sanderson Had 13 Books Rejected Before Hitting It Big And Earning Millions

Most writers have novels that never see the light of day. But 13? That’s serious dedication. The books were written over a decade while Sanderson was working as a night clerk at a hotel – a job chosen specifically because as long as he stayed awake, his bosses didn’t mind if he wrote between midnight and 5am. But publishers kept telling him that his epic fantasies were too long, that he should try being darker or “more like George RR Martin” (it was the late 90s, and A Song of Ice and Fire was topping bestseller charts). His attempts to write grittier books were terrible, he says, so he became “kind of depressed”. – The Guardian

The Director Of Philly’s Free Library Resigns Over Her Mistreatment Of Black Staff

This isn’t a new issue at the library, but protests and action finally got the staff some of what it’s been asking for for a very long time. “Workers have raised concerns about racial discrimination in the library system for years. But their efforts gained heightened visibility in late June after they formed a group called the Concerned Black Workers of the Free Library of Philadelphia and sent an open letter to management, saying they face discrimination on a regular basis, are paid less than white colleagues, and were being asked to return to work without a plan to keep them safe from the coronavirus.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

Scientists: Earth’s Seismic Activity Plummeted During Lockdown

Writing today in the journal Science, dozens of researchers from around the world show that the seismic activity from our civilization plummeted as lockdowns went into effect. This “anthropogenic seismic noise,” as seismologists call it, comes from all manner of human activities, whether that’s running factories, operating cars or trains, or even holding concerts. So starting in China originally, then in different places in Italy, and then going through Europe. And whenever lockdowns happened in different countries, we see the effect that’s up to an 80 percent reduction in the amplitude of the seismic noise in some places.” The average was about 50 percent. – Wired

The Pandemic’s Lasting Effects On The Arts?

If, as I gloomily expect, this pandemic mushrooms into a huge, epochal shift in the social, economical and political landscape of the United States, then history teaches us perfectly clearly that there will be mirroring changes in the arts. That’s why we have concepts like “post-war literature” or “Restoration theater” or “Socialist realism.” You can’t have an earthquake without artists noticing. – San Francisco Chronicle

How A Virtuoso Got Her Antique Cello Back 40 Years After It Was Stolen

Christine Walevska got her one-eighth-size 1834 Bernardel cello when she was eight years old, and even as she went on to study with Gregor Piatigorsky, win a first prize at the Paris Conservatoire and pursue an international career, she remained attached to her childhood instrument. In 1976, it was stolen. Reporter Stacy Perman tells the story of how the little cello ultimately found its way back to Walevska — and a gifted young protégée came along with it. – Los Angeles Times

How Artists And Arts Organizations In San Francisco Are Adapting

Some of these people have taken the opportunity to begin a radical rethinking of their operations. Others are doing their best to maintain a connection with their patrons and audiences that will be strong enough to tide them over the current and coming upheavals. Wherever you look, the cultural players are busily brainstorming solutions. – San Francisco Chronicle