In the basement of my family’s first house, there was a closet filled with all types of costumery, from faux raccoon hats for when we played frontiersmen to puffy pink ballgowns for when, more frequently, my sister and I played princesses. Long hours were spent devising elaborate stories for these princesses; quite often, our brothers […]
Ballgowns and Boas: Let Girls Be Real Princesses Again Read More »
In the book of Genesis, Abraham entertains three angels as honored guests and is rewarded with the promise of Isaac’s birth. In The Iliad by Homer, Diomedes and Glaukon exchange armor and swear friendship to each other on the basis of their great-grandfathers’ guest-host relationship (χενια). In Beowulf, wanderers are treated to hearty meals and
A Return to Χενια: The Importance of the House-Guest Relationship Read More »
I had the great fortune to be classically educated by my parents. It involved, of course, a great deal of language and literature and a more than bountiful serving of poetry. I encountered “Hiawatha” and “Ring, Wild Bells,” “The Ruin” and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Shakespeare, Donne, Browning, Dickinson, Rossetti, Dante, and Frost
Putting Poetry Back in Brains Read More »
“Reading is not a hobby. Find something else to do.” Those words, uttered on the phone by my boyfriend as I read to him an old backlist from seventh grade (including such titles as Gone With the Wind and the Oresteia) raised my defenses. Fortunately, he continued, “Reading is not a hobby, it is an
Reading Is Not A Hobby Read More »
