Good stuff here.
A sharp essay about English historians of the mid-Twentieth century, such as EH Carr, Hugh Trevor-Roper, and the like. They were genuinely popular historians, that is, historians who is writing was not only for fellow professional academics, but for an intelligent general audience. What happened to render such an audience so much further away from academics today? The author of this piece suggests it may be an attitude towards their nation, an attitude that marked every page they wrote; that is, that there is something that has gone wrong with the supply side of the public intellectual economy. But I wonder if it has something else to do with the enormous diversity of products on the demand side of the equation: maybe people simply have many more devices for entertainment available to them today than ever before.
Germaine de Staël’s writings are growing increasingly more recognized (and not in the way that Donald Trump said about Frederick Douglass). Along with Benjamin Constant, I have realized she is one of the most important thank you for early formulations. This is a nice review of a very good analysis and biography of her.
Interesting study in Harvard Business Review of “knowledge workers” during the pandemic. Turns out if we (because professors are probably “knowledge workers”) are left alone, we become more productive. If so, why am I procrastinating on the web so much then, huh? Answer me that, Harvard Business Review.
An interesting article that is also an interview with, and profile of, Jaron Lanier, Virtual Reality pioneer and Silicon Valley guru and social media critic, who is as strange as you imagine, but might just be wise. It may be that Black Lives Matter, he says, “has reintroduced us to reality.”
A great little piece on six distinctive trees at UVA. I would say I have a personal relationship with four of these trees. Unsurprising, since I’ve lived here for almost a quarter century. But what I didn’t know—I didn’t know the Pratt Gingko could live for a thousand more years—wow! I hope it does.
An older piece, written when Bob Dylan won the Nobel prize for literature. Among the many pieces about that, this strikes me as actually wise:
Perhaps the perceived irrelevance of much of contemporary poetry is a function of poetry’s turning its back on song, turning a deaf ear to audience. Dylan doesn’t need the Nobel Prize in Literature, it will neither help nor hinder him, but literature is weakened without song.
A.E. Stallings, the poet who wrote it, is pretty amazing, by the way; check her work out.
Plague in the Ancient Near East. A year ago I wouldn’t have thought this would be as interesting, to so many people, as it is.
A quick review of some recent books on White Christianity in the US. A pretty good review, too, though I think it’s reading of Whitehead and Perry on “Christian nationalism” is a bit too gymnastic in attempting to include it in the other stinging critiques. As I read that book—admittedly, centrally through an article that prompted it—it was too generous towards “religiosity” and attempted to differentiate “Christian nationalism” from “Christianity.” I am worried that quarantining move is a bit too defensive and evasive.
A GameBoy that runs forever. On sunlight and the player’s own manic energy. Huh.
Ready Player One!