Maybe This Year Will Be As Good as the Last
Digest No. 17 - January 2025
On Commonplacing
Was it the heart and not the mind that really informed a man's actions? And if so, who of his own people had been concerned with the education of the heart? The mind—oh, certainly!—they forever ceaselessly trained. But the heart— Well, where? Certainly in no university he knew about. He wondered if there was an age beyond which the heart could not be further educated. If there was, it existed and was passed only in childhood. And if it was, what of himself and any others who so late had found what they lived by meaningless, their profession misused, a kind of darkness on everything they had done? Not unerringly could conscience guide them with nuanced unease. Nor for them, save rarely, an angel by the hair or hand.
Harry Sylvester, Dayspring: A Novel (New York: D. Appleton-Century, 1945), p. 263.
Great Ideas: Mind, Science, Virtue & Vice, Education
For anyone who knows me and the work I’ve been doing the last few years, a Harry Sylvester quote probably comes across as blase. But this quote strikes at the heart of the educational enterprise I’m also engaged with every day, making it something of double value to me.
Sylvester is writing in 1945. 1945! And already then there was concern that college professors had lost the ability to educate beyond the mere mental (or worse, mechanical) aspects of learning. The character thinking this is a social scientist, making the condemnation partly based on his chosen profession as a researcher immersed in data. I think Bain’s thoughts here are worth taking seriously in 2025.
On Reading & Researching
I’ve been diving into two specific streams of thought this month. First, I’m engaged in some reading on literary theory, though I’m intentionally trying to come at it from the angle of someone who loves literature. This probably excludes me from being taken seriously in some quarters. Good. Matt Smith’s recent post on his time editing Christianity & Literature only confirms what I’ve suspected, and lamented, for many years. The vast majority of people writing and speaking about literature either hate it or are afraid to admit they love it. That’s just not a crowd whose opinion matters to me anymore. To that end I’ve been working through some familiar texts, including Plato’s Ion, Aristotle’s Poetics, and more. It’s a collection of readings I enjoy, which makes it feel more like visiting old friends than “doing research.”
I’m also doing a lot of reading for the Character Education program at the University of Birmingham. The readings range from quantitative projects in education to philosophical arguments about the virtues. I’m already aiming this kind of work at my dissertation, centered around a concept I’m got in my mind connecting reading aloud and virtue education. This meant I’ve had the opportunity to re-read books like Brian Wright’s Communal Reading in the Time of Jesus and James Taylor’s Poetic Knowledge. I’ve also worked through new readings like Understanding Virtue: Theory and Measurement and Byung-Chul Han’s The Burnout Society.
Casually, I’m continuing to work through some Michael Crichton books, which are re-reads for me. The Terminal Man was my most recent one, and I was surprised at how salient some it seemed to current A.I. discussions. I might have more to say about that in the future. I’ve also picked up Robert Howard’s Hyborian stories because I felt the need to understand
’s references to Howard’s work. Plus, as a long-time fan of Conan the Barbarian (both in film and animated form), it seemed like exploring the source materials would be fun. I’m still hoping to finish off the Burroughs universe as well in the coming months.
On Traveling & Speaking
I’ve had no travel engagements this month, nor are there any on the horizon for February. This is a nice relief in many respects, since March, April, May, and now June look increasingly busy. Plus, we have a move looming in July. So, I will take the relative peace of the moment and hopefully use it to knock out some projects.
On Listening
Marc Broussard came to my attention in college with his breakout hit “Home.” And while I still love that song, I am quite fond of his later music. This track, which has a more rocking sound to it on the album, showcases his strengths in terms of vocals and music arrangement. And ruminating on being “lucky” is a fine way to kick off a new year.