To remember is to restore. To return to one’s memories, particularly the painful ones, is to revisit a place of holy ground. It is to return to the breaking ground and the winnowing field. In drear nighted December John Keats, 1817 In drear nighted December, Too happy, happy tree, Thy branches ne’er remember Their green felicity— The north cannot undo them With a sleety whistle … Continue reading Waiting to Remember
“He remembered as though it were but a few days ago that winter night, himself too young even to know the meaning of beauty, when he had looked up at a delicate tracery of bare black branches against the icy glittering stars: suddenly something that was, all at once, pain and longing and adoring had welled up in him, almost choking him. He had wanted … Continue reading Shadow of Joy
This famous novel written by Miguel de Cervantes is often presented as the story of a man who seems to have lost his mind after reading too many chivalric books and starting to see the world in a distorted way. The adjective “quixotic” is a synonym of “impossible”, “imaginary” or “unrealizable”; denoting the folly of the acts and thoughts of the novel’s protagonist: Don Quixote … Continue reading Don Quixote: A tale of Sanity in Times of Madness
“We’ll Meet Again,” Vera Lynn Let’s say goodbye with a smile, dear Just for a while, dear We must part Don’t let this parting upset you I’ll not forget you, sweetheart We’ll meet again Don’t know where Don’t know when But I know we’ll meet again some sunny day Keep smiling through Just like you always do ‘Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far … Continue reading Coming Home and Other Memories: The Heart (or Art) of the Story
For fall break this year, one of my best friends invited me to come home with her to stay with her family. They were just getting ready to renovate their new farmhouse, and she wanted to see it before they made changes. I’ve visited her family a couple of times in the past, and feel very comfortable with them. They have a gift for hospitality, … Continue reading Shut Up and Feast
How far do the bonds of love go? What makes a monster? What makes a man? These are some questions that Guilleromo Del Toro’s sprawling fantasy-fairytale The Shape of Water seeks to ponder. Aside from being a visual treat, the film is an emotive, layered social commentary on the nature of man that will pull on the heartstrings. If Del Toro is a master of … Continue reading The Shape of Water
Within the first two minutes of this film, director Kogonada knocks you off your feet with his commitment to symmetry. The visual symmetry in each shot mirrors a dramatic parallelism drawn between the lives of two people struggling to break free from the past. Casey is a recent high school grad and architecture enthusiast who has forgone going to college in order to take care … Continue reading Columbus
Lady Bird simply sings. It is a triumph—an era-defining coming of age story in the same vein as The Graduate, The Breakfast Club, and The Garden State—that is sure to have a similar impact on those who grew up in the early 2000s. While being wholly novel and refreshing in its approach, Greta Gerwig’s coming-of-age debut seems so well-known, so personal, and so honest that … Continue reading Lady Bird
All work stops at The Washington Post when everyone feels the whole building lurch and groan. The press is running. Steven Spielberg’s The Post recounts the story of The Washington Post, at that point a small, family owned newspaper, crashing onto the public scene as the editors attempt to publish classified White House documents on the Vietnam War. The paper owner, Katherine Graham (Meryl Streep), … Continue reading The Post
By Chandler Ryd An essay is a room. In writing, the author chooses words with which to furnish it before inviting you all, the readers, to enter. Nouns are the chairs and couches where you can rest; verbs are the tables—hard surfaces—that allow you to lean forward and work; metaphors are well-placed lamps and windows, illuminating and casting contrast. The sum total, the atmosphere … Continue reading Letter From the Editor, March 2017
Hillsdale Forum 