I have just started a new blog called 'Love to Learn' which I hope to update every 1-2 weeks with items of interest stemming from my love of learning. I hope to cover a wide variety of topics which will illustrate my many interests. Posts to look forward to this Autumn include 'Oscar Wilde and how Dorian Gray depicts the Gothic imagination', 'Milton, Marlowe, King and ideas of the devil in literature' and 'Myth in translation: How myth is interpreted from Homer to Joyce'.
Find it here http://oulovetolearn.blogspot.co.uk/
Friday, 14 September 2012
Thursday, 9 August 2012
Word and Self Estranged in English Texts book review
‘Word and Self Estranged in English Texts, 1550-1660, by Philippa Kelly and L.E. Semler (Eds).
When I received this book for review, my first thoughts were, ‘I hope it’s not as dry to read as the title suggests’; I’m pleased to report that it isn’t at all. I was impressed that the editors have taken great care in choosing, not only accessible scholarly articles but those which create debate and inform about Shakespeare’s texts in a mostly new and exciting way.
The hardback book crams a lot into its 231 pages, admittedly 12 of which are an index. By having each individual article put its references at the close rather than in a bunch at the end of the book, I think makes it easier for the student to find related points of follow up or interest, rather than wading through the final chapters for the odd relevant article or book title.
Although this review will focus on the three chapters relating to Shakespeare, the book also contains many other contributions and illustrations on subjects such as Milton
For me, Chapter 5 held the most fascination and (surprisingly, given the title and subject) the most interest. Jean E. Howard has to be commended for merging a scholarly look at teaching Shakespeare in Australia with a very in depth discussion of how the very way we look at Shakespeare’s work is related to the individual contexts we bring to it as individuals. She uses a fascinating example (pp 102-104) of the Baz Luhrmann film Romeo + Juliet, explaining how the film and play can both be deemed ‘authentic’ in their own way, despite derision to the contrary, mainly due to the films use of language, blended and mixed with its vibrant imagery for sure, but the original text none the less. This appears to students as being easier to understand than the text itself, surprising them when she reveals it is identical to many copies of the play published as ‘serious’ play texts.
The next chapter Estranging Word and Self in Twelfth Night, is again a lot more interesting to read and absorb than the title suggests, by the way this is a book which may be improved by the odd glance at a dictionary! R.S.White focuses on a different look at how language shapes what we see and read into a play text, as well as an idea of what Shakespeare was thinking when he wrote both King Lear and Twelfth Night. White shows how conversation and dialogue in a play, both between characters and often to the audience allows the viewer/reader to drive the plot. He illustrates this by a long section about the handkerchief in Othello where the audience is privy to more than the characters, and how the multi layered plot, driven by the questions and responses of those involved in the scene. The whole chapter itself illustrates nicely the link between words spoken and the individual self, as perceived by others and the individual, something which is inherently complicated but is made almost understandable by White in an easy to comprehend way.
The two remaining chapters focusing on Shakespeare do not succeed quite as much in their attempts to find new ways of linking Shakespeare and language. In Chapter 7, Lawrence Warner focuses on parallels of Dido and St Thomas Beckett, both better known to c1600 audiences and the way in which Shakespeare took the oral history of Othello as a Moor and blended his story into the wooing of Desdemona. This chapter doesn’t succeed as well as the other two in creating debate and a new way of looking at the play texts as it focuses too much on how Shakespeare ‘borrowed’ and was influenced by others, this is well known to many and doesn’t really fit with the tone of the other chapters.
Chapter 8 is a little more interesting, although not hitting the heights of chapter 5. Christine Couche looks at ‘a Mind Diseased’ and its links to Lady Macbeth’s Madness, as presented in Macbeth. This is one of my favourite Shakespeare plays and I for one am pleased to see some recognition of how both Macbeth and his wife’s mental issues are created by circumstances, both those that we see such as the murder of Duncan as well as those only implied in the text, such as the possibility of lady Macbeth’s loss of a child. Couche goes on to examine how madness would have been perceived and understood in the time the play was first performed and how mental illness in general creates more questions than answers within the play. Although this chapter succeeds on a general level, as one who has studied mental health in a historical context, I can’t help but wonder why Couche insists on retro-diagnosing Lady Macbeth with post natal depression, as if Shakespeare had chosen to illustrate a point about Mothers and mental health in the play, instead of simply leaving the cause of her madness ambiguous by design.
All in all, worth a read if you can afford the £50+ price tag, or are willing to wait for a paperback or Kindle version a few months from now. If not, a trip to the library may reward students and enthusiasts who are able to look past some parts and see the book as a whole.
Monday, 23 July 2012
Antigone at the national Theatre, London
Antigone review: a version by Don Taylor
21 July at The National Theatre
Starring Christopher Eccleston as Creon
It can't be said that Greek tragedy is everyones cup of tea. Some prefer their human drama to be a little more subtle, less ethical and moralistic. For those who enjoy the full spectacle of the human condition and the ability to be judged then Antigone, written by Sophocles in around 440 BC (est) is the play for you. This version of the play by Don Taylor is even less subtle in its message, yet can (if you so wished) read many alternative ideas about loyalty, betrayal, honour, totalitarianism and democratic ideals.
The beauty of Sophocles most famous tragedy is not so much the story, like all tragedies it can be condensed into a very few words. Sister wishes to honour her dead brother after his traitorous death, against the express wish of her future Father in law and new King, Creon. She rebels against this, as well as societies attitudes in general and carries out a funeral and is convicted to die, despite (and in some ways because of) her family connections.
Modern dress productions of older plays, I feel, often run the risk of losing the plot as the audience identifies too much with one or other characters, be they positive or negative. In this case, much has been made of Creon as a type of Tony Blair figure, his ignorance of society's attitude towards his power as well as his decisions are, his undoing. In the 1940's Jean Anouilh perceived Creon as a Hitler type figure, Antigone as a pseudo freedom fighter of the French resistance. However you see the play, whatever you read into it, Sophocles basic premise of respect for life (even after death) is one which is worth remembering.
Antigone by Frederic Leighton, 1882
c Wikipedia 2012
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
New historical novel
Really excited to be reading the new historical novel by Orange prize winner Madeline Miller 'The Song of Achilles'.
As I am embarking on myth studies in September I should really read the Illiad first but I have made the fatal mistake of just reading a few chapters...now I'm hooked.
I can't describe how much I enjoyed this book, despite being sadly ignorant of the Iliad on which the story is based. It kept me gripped from start to finish ( with my tissues) even though some of the linguistic style wasn't really something I would have said was my thing I fell in love with the characters and the tale and was so sad when the book ended. I can only hope that the author's take on the Odyssey is as good.
I can't describe how much I enjoyed this book, despite being sadly ignorant of the Iliad on which the story is based. It kept me gripped from start to finish ( with my tissues) even though some of the linguistic style wasn't really something I would have said was my thing I fell in love with the characters and the tale and was so sad when the book ended. I can only hope that the author's take on the Odyssey is as good.
Thursday, 29 March 2012
Random acts of kindness
Was inspired to write today when faced with the idea of random acts of kindness to others and how you go about repaying them. Recently I was offered most of the course books for my future MA course for free by a student of the OU who had completed their MA and wanted to ensure the books went to a good home. I received them gratefully but despite my efforts the student declined to let me pay for the postage, so instead I suggested making an equivalent donation to charity.
After reading about the RSPCA inspector Emma Hoskins, who successfully completed the Freedom Challenge in 2011 to raise funds for the RSPCA Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery in Nantwich, Cheshire
What Emma's website says about her trip
'The Run
In October 2011 I will be running 1,500 miles across South Africa , from Durban to Cape Town
I will be following the Freedom Trail, which is a mountain bike trail used for a race called the Freedom Challenge. This journey will take me approximately two months including a few days for rest and travel. I will need to be running on average 25 miles per day depending on where I can eat and sleep.'
Tuesday, 27 March 2012
Finally registered
Hooray, finally got my registration sorted for A330 'Greek and Roman Myths' Open University course for September this year. The OU have been forced to change the fees for adult learners (by the UK government) as they are losing fee contributions. I am lucky that as I am half way through my BA Literature I can carry on at the same fee structure of £750 per annum +/- instead of £2500 which new students will have to fork out...
It looks like a great course and i'm already very excited (as always).
As you can see I'll be kept busy for a good while with this one :)
The course consists of an introduction and four main blocks.
In the first two blocks the main emphasis is on obtaining knowledge of a specific range of myths and mythical characters and their function, and on critical analysis of the presentation of myths in a variety of sources, such as history, poetry, drama and art.
The later blocks add more detailed analysis of poetry and its very influential reception in medieval and Renaissance poetry and visual art. In the final block, philosophy is added to the range of sources to be studied and analysed.
As the course progresses, you are expected to develop a degree of independence in learning to the extent that you are able to complete independent analyses using the skills you have learned in the course of your study, leading to a project-type essay at the end of the course.
The course makes use of a DVD-ROM relevant to each of the blocks to present audio discussions by experts of key issues raised in the written material. The DVD-ROM also illustrates key sites and architectural features, as well as images depicting mythical subjects.
ICT is also used to give access to the range of specialist websites that comprise works of reference and scholarship in the field, as well as more general works of reference (e.g. Wikipedia).
You are introduced to the course content as follows:
In a short Introduction, we ask basic questions like ‘What is myth?’, and ‘Why Greek and Roman myth?’ There are sections on ‘catch-up’ reading for those unfamiliar with classical antiquity, learning outcomes and the basic structure of the course. This leads to a ‘taster’ that introduces you to the mythical narrative of the Roman poet Ovid, and how the famous myth of the Fall of Icarus is represented in Renaissance and modern art and poetry.
In Block 1: The myth of Hippolytus and Phaedra you trace the development of a particularly influential myth through the Greek and Roman worlds. This is the myth of the Greek youth Hippolytus, whose tragic fate is explored through the contrasted presentations of a range of sources from Greek drama to Roman and early Christian art. This block concludes with a study of the cult of Hippolytus at Nemi near Rome and the famous treatment by Sir James Frazer in the Golden Bough.
In Block 2: Myth in Rome: power, life and afterlife you concentrate on how myths of origin and power functioned in the Roman Empire. You investigate the role of myth in the validation of Roman imperial rule, and how myth related to history. At the other end of the social scale, you explore how myth impacted on everyday life and related to Roman attitudes to death.
In Block 3: Ovid and the reception of myth you focus on Ovid’s Metamorphoses as a key source for the literary interpretation of Greek and Roman myth. There is close reading of selected sections from this seminal poem, with a concentration on different types of interpretation. This includes recent scholarship and with reference to its influence in medieval and Renaissance reception in literature and visual art, in particular looking at allegorical interpretation of the classical myths.
In Block 4: Myth and reason you examine the relations and tensions between ‘mythical’ and ‘rational’ thought in Greek culture. Starting with origins, i.e. how the world began, this block progresses to consideration of emerging rational and scientific modes of thought. This is principally in the Presocratic philosophers and in Hippocratic medicine, of the sixth to fourth centuries BCE and then progressing to a consideration of how human life ends, i.e. myths of the afterlife in Mystery religion and the philosopher Plato.
It looks like a great course and i'm already very excited (as always).
As you can see I'll be kept busy for a good while with this one :)
The course consists of an introduction and four main blocks.
In the first two blocks the main emphasis is on obtaining knowledge of a specific range of myths and mythical characters and their function, and on critical analysis of the presentation of myths in a variety of sources, such as history, poetry, drama and art.
The later blocks add more detailed analysis of poetry and its very influential reception in medieval and Renaissance poetry and visual art. In the final block, philosophy is added to the range of sources to be studied and analysed.
As the course progresses, you are expected to develop a degree of independence in learning to the extent that you are able to complete independent analyses using the skills you have learned in the course of your study, leading to a project-type essay at the end of the course.
The course makes use of a DVD-ROM relevant to each of the blocks to present audio discussions by experts of key issues raised in the written material. The DVD-ROM also illustrates key sites and architectural features, as well as images depicting mythical subjects.
ICT is also used to give access to the range of specialist websites that comprise works of reference and scholarship in the field, as well as more general works of reference (e.g. Wikipedia).
You are introduced to the course content as follows:
In a short Introduction, we ask basic questions like ‘What is myth?’, and ‘Why Greek and Roman myth?’ There are sections on ‘catch-up’ reading for those unfamiliar with classical antiquity, learning outcomes and the basic structure of the course. This leads to a ‘taster’ that introduces you to the mythical narrative of the Roman poet Ovid, and how the famous myth of the Fall of Icarus is represented in Renaissance and modern art and poetry.
In Block 1: The myth of Hippolytus and Phaedra you trace the development of a particularly influential myth through the Greek and Roman worlds. This is the myth of the Greek youth Hippolytus, whose tragic fate is explored through the contrasted presentations of a range of sources from Greek drama to Roman and early Christian art. This block concludes with a study of the cult of Hippolytus at Nemi near Rome and the famous treatment by Sir James Frazer in the Golden Bough.
In Block 2: Myth in Rome: power, life and afterlife you concentrate on how myths of origin and power functioned in the Roman Empire. You investigate the role of myth in the validation of Roman imperial rule, and how myth related to history. At the other end of the social scale, you explore how myth impacted on everyday life and related to Roman attitudes to death.
In Block 3: Ovid and the reception of myth you focus on Ovid’s Metamorphoses as a key source for the literary interpretation of Greek and Roman myth. There is close reading of selected sections from this seminal poem, with a concentration on different types of interpretation. This includes recent scholarship and with reference to its influence in medieval and Renaissance reception in literature and visual art, in particular looking at allegorical interpretation of the classical myths.
Sunday, 18 March 2012
New poem
I float in the water
By Carla Riley
I float in the water,
And you drag me under.
I try to reach the bottom,
To stabilise myself,
But it, and I
Are in too deep.
If I let you go,
I can swim to safety.
If I keep holding on to you
We may both reach the side,
Or sink.
I cannot decide,
Which is what I want, or need to do.
Each moment in the water
Is different,
Guilt, sadness, anger, loss and loneliness,
Of what could have been,
Or, the more frightening,
What might still be?
(c) 2008
By Carla Riley
I float in the water,
And you drag me under.
I try to reach the bottom,
To stabilise myself,
But it, and I
Are in too deep.
If I let you go,
I can swim to safety.
If I keep holding on to you
We may both reach the side,
Or sink.
I cannot decide,
Which is what I want, or need to do.
Each moment in the water
Is different,
Guilt, sadness, anger, loss and loneliness,
Of what could have been,
Or, the more frightening,
What might still be?
(c) 2008
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