Toibin’s Ireland Dear friends and readers, It’s about time I wrote in praise of Colm Toibin, of his biographical and critical essays, of his novels, his biographical fiction, his travel books. I can’t think of any writer as originally thoughtful, perceptive, humane, quietly iconoclastic, informative, absorbing, who reads authors as interesting or simply writes as [...]
Archive for the ‘men’s memoirs’ Category
In praise of Colm Toibin: un-put-downable
Posted in 20th century culture, colm toibin, henry james, Henry James, men's memoirs, novels of sensibility, sexual experience, women's ilves, tagged Colm Toibin on April 25, 2012 | 4 Comments »
Prime Suspect 7: Full Circle
Posted in 20th century culture, gothic, history play, men's memoirs, mystery-murder book, mystery-suspense, political novels/films, politics, Theater, tagged current-events, hatred of women, Helen Mirren, heroine's text, jane tennison, Prime Suspect, society on March 9, 2012 | 3 Comments »
Helen Mirren, final shots: walking quietly away from a lifetime of work Dear friends and readers, I have now watched this last mini-series (two episodes of well over an hour each) and found it did not disappoint. The final act shows Jane Tennison understandably faltering before her own need for companionship with a girl as [...]
Atul Gawande: realities of medicine hidden and mostly misunderstood
Posted in 20th century culture, medicine, men's memoirs, science, tagged Atul Gawande on December 5, 2011 | 5 Comments »
Dear friends and readers, Another blog where I’m turning my lecture notes into a blog for my students and in the hope other readers involved in some aspect of medicine (and which of us is not?) will find them of interest. I begin with Gawande’s Complications: A Surgeon’s Notes on an Imperfect Science, his introduction, [...]
Prime Suspect 2 & 3: The Walking Wounded
Posted in 20th century culture, film studies, gothic, men's memoirs, mystery-murder book, political novels/films, rape, women's art, womens' films, tagged Helen Mirren, heroine's text, police procedural, Prime Suspect on October 25, 2011 | 6 Comments »
Jimmy Jackson (David Thewlis), Prime Suspect 3 Dear friends and readers, This blog may be read as a continuation of my blogs on Lynda LaPlante’s Prime Suspect (1), starring Helen Mirren, and “New hook-up culture another name for “old” casual encounter. In the first I showed the first mini-series was feminist, progressive, advanced ideas of [...]
David Powell’s Charles James Fox, Man of the People
Posted in 18th century, historical fiction, men's memoirs, political novels/films, politics, tagged political study on August 27, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Charles James Fox (1790s?) by Karl Anton Hickel Dear friends and readers, As part of my project reading towards my paper to be given at the EC/ASECS, “‘I have a right to choose my own life:’ Liberty in Winston Graham’s Poldark novels,” I’m rereading the first 7 Poldark novels, reading a couple other historical novels [...]
Scholem Aleichem, or, Laughing in the Darkness
Posted in 20th century culture, biography, Edith Wharton, film studies, gothic, Life Writing, men's memoirs, museums, politics, teaching, Theater, tagged Identity politics on August 22, 2011 | 3 Comments »
Solomon Naumovich Rabinovich, pen-name Scholem Aleichem (1859-1916) Dear friends and readers, Izzy and I went to see Scholem Aleichem, or, Laughing in the Darkness late Sunday afternoon. Bob (on Trollope19thCStudies) had recommended it a couple of weeks ago now. So now I’ll repeat the recommendation: it’s a fine film, one of the best I’ve seen [...]
Graham’s The Angry Tide: Failure in London; Elizabeth’s death (Poldark novel 7, Cornwall 1798-99) (2)
Posted in 18th century, Film adaptations, historical fiction, men's memoirs, Poldark, political novels/films, Winston Graham, tagged Angry Tide, Jill Townsend, marital rape on December 6, 2010 | 12 Comments »
Monk Adderley (Malcolm Tierney), actually a twisted sick man Dear friends and readers, The failure: Ross and Demelza cannot make a new life for themselves in London because they carry over all that they are to London, which includes Ross’s own angers, bitterness, and he ends up murdering a provocative scum-rake type; Elizabeth dies in [...]
Graham’s The Angry Tide: A Murder brings A Reprieve (Poldark Novel 7, Cornwall 1798-99) (1)
Posted in 18th century, historical fiction, men's memoirs, Poldark, political novels/films, Winston Graham, tagged Angry Tide, marital rape on December 5, 2010 | 10 Comments »
Ross (Robin Ellis) turns to embrace Demelza (Angharad Rees), Enys (Michael Cadman) looking on Dear Friends and readers, At long last, Graham’s The Angry Tide (Poldark novel 7). This is the first of another two-part blog on one of Graham’s novels. To explain the subtitle: when Rowella’s husband, Solway in a maddened rage murders Whitworth [...]
Routs coming slow: (just) past & coming conferences
Posted in 18th century, 18th century novels, 20th century culture, Austen, Autobiographical, conference report, Conferences, Costume drama, Film adaptations, historical fiction, history play, later 17th century, men's memoirs, Poldark, women's memoirs, women's art, tagged marge piercy on November 15, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Kenilworth, 1575 reconstructed Dear friends and readers, As you may know, for the last two weekends I have been away: for 4 days in Portland, Oregon, for JASNA AGM, preceded by the Burney conference, whose topics were the Abbey (NA) and gothic respectively. Kenilworth, popular 1814 print And for 1 night, 1 day and 1 [...]
