When Ralph Ellison published Invisible Man in 1952, America was still congratulating itself on having beaten the Nazis and saved democracy. Yet here was a novel calmly pointing out that a good chunk of its own citizens were treated as if they didn’t exist - or rather, as if they existed only when they could … Continue reading Invisible, My Eye – Reflections on Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man
Tag: Literature
Gaslight and Gossamer: Reflections on Iolanthe and the Art of British Satire
There’s something deliciously subversive about walking into a Victorian comic opera knowing full well that you are about to be lampooned, along with everyone else in the room. Iolanthe has always struck me as a peculiar miracle - one of those rare works of art that wears its mischief lightly, yet rests on a foundation … Continue reading Gaslight and Gossamer: Reflections on Iolanthe and the Art of British Satire
Through Darkness, Light: A Reflection on Helen Keller
I sometimes wonder how many of our modern idols would survive without their filters. Strip away the stage-managed profiles, the publicists, the polished platitudes - and what are we left with? Often, very little. But every now and then, we encounter a figure whose inner world shines even brighter than their public image. Helen Keller … Continue reading Through Darkness, Light: A Reflection on Helen Keller
Maugham’s Cakes and Ale: On the Sacred Art of Not Taking Oneself Too Seriously
There are books one reads, and books one is quietly read by. Somerset Maugham’s Cakes and Ale falls into the latter camp - it observes you from over the rim of its brandy glass, raises a bemused eyebrow, and says absolutely nothing. Not because it’s shy, but because it knows better than to interrupt the theatre of … Continue reading Maugham’s Cakes and Ale: On the Sacred Art of Not Taking Oneself Too Seriously
On the Road – Jack Kerouac and the Cult of Going Absolutely Nowhere Very Fast
I’ve never had the constitution for jazz. It makes me feel like I’m trapped in a lift with a methed-up trumpet and no discernible plot. And yet, somewhere in the post-war fug of America’s caffeine-sweating adolescence, Jack Kerouac managed to convince a generation that the meaning of life could be found in bebop, Benzedrine, and … Continue reading On the Road – Jack Kerouac and the Cult of Going Absolutely Nowhere Very Fast
Wording 