Catching Grief from the Falling Leaves
Digest No. 13 - September 2024
On Commonplacing
“Look,” said Arthur, “Would it save you a lot of time if I just gave up and went mad now?”
Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (New York: Pocket Books, 1985), p. 165.
Great Ideas: Courage, Fate, Reasoning, Prudence
My oldest son has been asking to read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy for a while now, I think because he thought the cover looked interesting. I finally broke down and we bought a copy, which he promptly sped through. I read it after he did, so we could chat about it, and it is just as funny as I remember. This first book is almost one long joke, and there has been a lot of “Why?”, “No, ‘why?’ ‘42’, doesn’t work” going on in conversations around here. It would appear my second son is now hooked as well on the trilogy of five, which should make for interesting dinner conversations. The charm of Arthur Dent’s story is its very Englishness. The film adaptation with martin Freeman was, in my opinion, a smart way of approaching what would make a straight-on adaptation very difficult. On the whole, Adams really produced something fun, with just that occasional humorous insight that keeps the books from devolving into complete nonsense.
On Reading & Researching
I’m not sure why, but I’ve read quite a bit of science fiction this month. Some of it considered “classic,” like Dune: Messiah, and some of it of a low-brow status, like Mass Effect: Ascension. I’m not sure I’ll make it all the way through the Dune books, but I will hold judgement for now. I have every intention of finishing the Mass Effect books, though they are horribly written. I’ve completed the three books written as companions to the original three games, and I’ve finished the four graphic novels that fit alongside the series as well. Now I will just need to complete the Andromeda novels to have the whole thing polished off. The prose is just, well, awful. But the stories intrigue me because of my love for the Mass Effect games, which I’m sure is what the publisher was banking on in the first place.
I’ve also started Edgar Rice Burroughs’s Venus series, finishing The Pirates of Venus and Lost on Venus. These books are not as engrossing as the Barsoom books, but I can see how a well-laid out agenda could create a shared media universe (TV series? films? games?) that connect the worlds of Barsoom-Tarzana-Pellucidar-Amtor into something really strong as a singular franchise. Tarzan seems to be out of step with the other three series, and I’ve never found the Tarzan books as interesting as the others. But my sons have enjoyed Tarzan as much as the others, so it could just be me. My goal is to have read through all four series by the time my contract here in Arkansas comes to a close next Summer.
On Writing
Too much to adequately summarize here, as the month has been dedicated to writing and editing. Unfortunately, a lot of it has been cover letters, CVs, and the like. It is open season on the academic job market. Hopefully, this is a limited endeavor which will be over soon.
On Publishing
While I don’t have any new publications out this month, I do have news on some previously submitted work. One essay on Gadamer and reading in the Classical Classroom has been accepted for publication. Another essay, this one on Livy as a model for bridging aesthetics and literature, has been sent back to me with some revision for a resubmit. The Livy project will require some dedicated time to get it smoothed out, which I welcome. Anything is appreciated that makes me a better writer and my projects clearer.
On Traveling & Speaking
This week, my family and I are on the road for the Philadelphia Society Fall conference. It is being held in McLean, VA, a place I’ve never been. From there, we’ll head to Annapolis where we are staying with a family from Christ Reformed Evangelical Church. I have some work to do next week, while Sarah and the kids are going to do some D. C. things as a part of our homeschool plan for the semester. Then, it’s back to Fayetteville for my family while I press on for a bit longer to do some more work and conferencing.
On Listening
If you’ve never seen High Society (1956) with Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, consider this an invitation.