The Painful Nowning Process

Not-so-randomly, I thought I would recommend one of my husband’s and my favorite authors, Thomas Perry, who writes suspense thrillers that are better than just about anyone’s. And no wonder—he has a Ph.D. in English! But that’s not all—anybody can get a few letters after his name—Perry also knows how to listen, observe, and write, and he has a sense of humor. But also, unlike a lot of dime-a-dozen thriller authors, Perry understands that ultimately, this is serious:

Death is not a joke. It’s not a little thing. It’s not a funny thing. There is a temptation on the part of people who write this kind of book, to make it very elegant. I don’t want that. I want the five quarts of blood to go out on the ground so that people know that this is real, a big deal to kill somebody. When I write something violent, afterwards, I am depressed. It depresses me. What I am trying to do is have other people affected by it in the same way I am. That is, both to be afraid and then to be sad about it. I am not sure why I write about violence except that there are certain things about people who are involved in those situations that I admire very much. People who display a lot of courage, for instance, or people who are very cunning.

Demonstrating once again that anything worth doing is worth doing well, including “genre” literature. Here’s a list of Perry’s books, most of which can be obtained from your local library. And Perry’s list of five essential novels by other people.

This week the World Lit. class begins reading—well—world literature, with myths of ancient Mesopotamia. The introduction to one of the oldest texts, possibly a preserved temple ritual that reflects even older myths, “The Descent of Inanna,” describes its story as “the type of journey undertaken by mythological heroes in cultures throughout the world and throughout literary history; Persephone, Attis, Orpheus, Osiris, and Jesus are among the many figures . . . who make such a descent and return” (Bedford Anthology of World Literature 25).

Turns out the latest anthropological and archaeological views are somewhat different from the popularized mythic-mysticism of Frazer and Campbell, according to this blog, which begins with, of all things, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Do their clarifications amount to more of a distinction without much difference? In any case, C.S. Lewis’s points as described in parts III-IV of this essay remain valid [n.b., despite the many strengths of the essay, a spellcheck snafu appears to have resulted in the name "Aslan" appearing as "Asian" throughout part V---let this be a lesson to us all].

Now I have to look up Smith, and Wright for more details…

CU classes began on Wednesday, which means students and professors met each other at least once before Friday afternoon’s Drop/Add free-for-all. Actually, it’s not a free-for-all—there are some rules (for example, when a classroom is full, the class is full)—but when the fortieth beagle-eyed young person is asking if you haven’t got just one more space in your [name of course here] section at 10:00 a.m., because [insert heart-rending tale of woe here]…the day can get pretty long. I imagine the students find it trying as well.

Eventually, somehow, almost everyone seems to end up with a schedule they can live with. The real work begins next week.

To make this entry more edifying, I’ll end by linking to an essay on poetry in films, “The Well-Versed Movie.” Because, as Willow once said, “It’s all connected.” (”Lessons,” Buffy 7.1). And as E.M. Forster instructed, “Only connect.”

I thought about titling this post “My church is back!” but that would be misleading, since Trinity Church, Fuquay-Varina, never went away.

The website crashed, however, and was down for about a week, which was frustrating, as I like to point people to it, and now, it’s back! 

If you’re in the neighborhood on Sunday, Trinity is on Hwy. 401 at the southern edge of F-V. Always something new, something old, and never blue.

Among the “blog-roll” on the right side of these posts is a link to “Third Culture Kids,” a blog/site which explains the peculiar syndrome of more and more young people growing up in today’s highly mobile society—we’re people without home-towns, people whose passports may identify us as citizens of one country, but whose experiences and emotions have caused us to feel identified with two or more. So when someone asks, “Where are you from?” we either hesitate, or we tell you were we live now, or where we were born, or else you hear the whole, long, story.

My home town? I don’t really have one, but thanks to the miracle of modern satellite-mapping, we can now see Bulape, D.R. Congo, where my family spent three very important years of my childhood. OK, it’s just a name on a map from 1.5 miles up, but you get the idea!

I hope your home town is near and dear to you. Or else, I hope you enjoyed the varied experiences of your own travelling childhood.

And everyone else. Saturday was move-in day for the first-year students (I was just kidding about calling them “freshpersons”—really, who does that? At least, I hope…) Sunday afternoon the university throws a big welcome deal for them. Faculty dress up like academics (oh, right, we are academics—just checking to be sure you were paying attention) and salute the incoming students. Monday and Tuesday—registration. Wednesday—first day of classes. Summer is OVER. Here we go!

…and a lot of other TV shows are not. This question came up Thursday in conversation with the university curriculum media librarian. I hope she won’t mind if I try to answer it.

Evidently the seven seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer are among the most popular DVD items in the university’s collection, which pleases me—people watching BtVS—definitely a Good Thing. The problem is, now people are asking for more of what they see as entertainment: “Can we have One Tree Hill? Dawson’s Creek?” Um—probably not. Here’s why.

1. BtVS, and in fact, all the more or less “entertaining” videos and DVDs in the University Library, are part of the collection called “Curriculum Materials/Media.” The operative word is “curriculum”—audio-visual media and other materials that support the university’s teaching mission. A few years ago, I co-taught an Honors course that examined popular culture. The Library acquired a number of movies and TV series to support that course, including Buffy. I and a few other professors occasionally use episodes from BtVS in our other classes. And we’re not alone—other colleges and universities have offered entire courses devoted to Buffy. Which leads to

2. BtVS is, as far as I know, the only television show that has had three or four international scholarly conferences devoted entirely to discussing it. Another will take place in Istanbul(!) this fall, and another (including Joss Whedon’s other shows, Angel and Firefly) is planned for next summer. Academic conferences, not fan conventions where people dress up and get autographs from actors. It has its own peer-reviewed journal—not a fan-magazine—Slayage (yes the title is a little tongue-in-cheek, just like the title of the TV show. The academic area designated “popular culture” is broad, and if you check the program of the Popular Culture Association or table of contents of the Journal of Popular Culture, you’ll find many TV shows referenced, but (so far) none of them have their own conferences/journals.

In conclusion, if you want to find your favorite film or TV show in the University media center, convince your professor that it offers worthy material for study or academic discussion. Otherwise, there’s a reason for the existence of services such as Netflix, which has certainly made living in Harnett County much more entertaining for my husband and me.

It depends on what you mean by “dreadful”! Paul Spears explains why Harry Potter is dreadful and vulgar and that’s a good thing. It’s all in Chesterton, says Spears:

So much of what is considered important and thought provoking in sophisticate literary circles is really just a veneer over truly despicable ideas….

It is good that Harry Potter is dreadful and vulgar. It appeals to those of humanity who, according to Chesterton, “have never doubted and never will doubt that courage is splendid, that fidelity is noble, that distressed ladies should be rescued, and vanquished enemies spared.”

Made my day! Now I’m off to see Stardust—which I hope will be similarly “dreadful” in a good way.

My esteemed colleague Ken Morefield has begun blogging his own “close reading” of Jane Austen’s novel Emma. Whether you want to read along and understand Emma better, or follow a master’s example in your own reading—especially useful for those taking literature courses—it’s educating and entertaining. Think of Dr. Morefield as your guide through the literary wilderness. (Thinking of Jane Austen’s novels as uncharted jungle territory makes me laugh, but whatever helps!)

For more nuts-and-bolts on this close-reading stuff, also useful for non-fiction and poetry, check out some close-reading advice from Harvard U or a model close-reading of a Tennyson poem.

Did I say classes would be resuming in “a few” weeks? I meant two! Yikes! With that in mind, your major is the least of your worries. Read the wise words of JMNR on Getting Ready for Fall.

For those who do want to prepare for Life while improving their minds, hearts, and spirits, USA Today notes the inestimable value of internships, and points to Intern Memo newsletter—you can have it e-mailed, or read it online. Nifty!