Culture
Facing Zhang Fei: Hero or Villain or Man
I’m the only foreigner on a bus from Chengdu to Langzhong Ancient Town, over three hours away north-east. A middle-aged lady, Wu Yahua, is next..
Section
Non-Fiction
Showing 217-240 of 362 pieces
Literature
The Consolation of Joy Williams
Can we incorporate and treasure and be nourished by that which we do not understand? Of course. — Joy Williams It was a fresh day..
Literature
Holden, Charlie, and the Fight for the Coming of Age
Ally H. Campanozzi delves deep into the psyche of adolescence and sexual trauma from the eyes of Holden and Charlie.
Literature
A Light to Read By: A Tribute to William Maxwell
Gretchen Comba writes a tribute to William Maxwell and discusses how his pivotal moments take place in insignificant moments that occur after the tragedy.
Creative Non-Fiction
Sympoetics
I bought this pen (the one I am writing with now) from the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. It is a small pen,..
Literature
Literary Shorthand: What Hemingway’s “A Moveable Feast” Can Teach Readers About a Useful Writing Technique
Vincent Larson offers this fun, exploratory literary criticism on Hemingway’s work, intended to help writers discover a type of literary notation that they might use in their own work.
Literature
Re-Thinking Thoreau: Between the Lines of His Life and Work
“Re-Thinking Thoreau” is John Roman’s attempt to correct the legacy of Thoreau and explores how Henry was able to surmount his “issues’ during a time when medical attention and prescription drugs were not available.
Literature
The Nocilla Trilogy: The End of Literature?
Someone sometime said their paintings represent the end of painting; I think it was Ad Reinhardt. Years before, Piet Mondrian sought to be the world’s..
Nature & Environment
Bird Feeder Simulation
At our house in the woods, we often put out a bird feeder in winter once the bears hibernate. This year we were late about..
Cinema
Fantastic Men and Where to Find Them
Lucy Mills writes about the representation of masculinity in Hollywood films and how it affects the representation of other genders.
Creative Non-Fiction
So Much New York!
Marie-Laure and I frequently met in the Manhattan School of Music hallways as we staggered out of practice rooms at closing time. We were both..
Creative Non-Fiction
How I Used Cooking to Rebel Against My Mother
There’s nothing as dark as a Swedish winter day long after the leaves have fallen but before snow brightens the ground. With the sun eclipsed..
Creative Non-Fiction
The Home Front
In October 1941, my father found himself in Reykjavik, tried to get back to Charleston. Orders arrived: he was to sail on the USS Salinas,..
Nature & Environment
We are Milkweed for Monarchs
In January 2019, the annual monarch butterfly count in California showed an 86% population decline from the previous year. Bradley Waters researches and reports on what could be done.
Literature
Writing Terror Without Terrorizing the Reader
In writing, the emotions terror and dread are easy to evoke, yet difficult to evoke well. One of the common follies present in beginning writing..
Music
Preservation Hall: At the Feet of My Voice
A long weekend in New Orleans immersed me in a world populated by exceptional music at every turn, except, perhaps in the hotel restaurant. Jazz,..
Culture
Franz at Müritz
Elana Wolff visits Graal-Müritz, tracing Kafka’s time in this old town, where he found rest and love.
Nature & Environment
the aftermath
We begin to believe in the collapseof trees / sky folded like a hand,an hourglass wasting sand. Can we contain the catastrophe?The park is in..
Creative Non-Fiction
Seen Anew
The restoration of sight is nothing short of miraculous. The most treasured of our senses, sight helped the first humans differentiate safe from unsafe food,..
Literature
Ethics & Environmental Stewardship in The Road
Cormac McCarthy’s The Road can best be described as an exploration of human complexity in the wake of life-threatening conflict. It follows the story of..
Book Reviews
Side Effects of Living: A Book Review
Side effects of Living: An Anthology of Voices on Mental Health (Edited by Jhilmil Breckenridge and Namarita Kathait)Publisher: Speaking Tiger I grew up in a..
Creative Non-Fiction
A Woman named Samantha
Coming up from the West Fourth Street subway, I texted that I was a block away from the Washington Square Diner. Don’t rush, I’m early…
Creative Non-Fiction
What Might Have Been
I always thought population control was a necessary trait in every nation. By that I simply mean not having kids, not genocide. From a social..
Creative Non-Fiction
Kyle
The kids have worked months for this weekend. They’ve stayed late after school, drawn complex plans, built up structures, and milled down wood. They’ve measured..