I’ve always been fascinated by Georg Simmel, the German philosopher and sociologist who lived a century ago. As I sit here with my laptop open to one of his essays, I find myself drawn into the world he described –…
Cornel West has been on my mind a lot lately, and I’m not entirely sure why. Maybe it’s because we’re around the same age, or maybe it’s because our shared experiences as educated young people grappling with social justice issues…
Evelyn Scott. I keep coming back to her, trying to grasp why she’s stuck with me like a nagging thought that refuses to fade. It’s not just her writing – though her stories are like nothing I’ve ever read before,…
I’ve been thinking about Gaston Gallimard a lot lately, not because I’m an expert on French publishing history or anything like that, but because he’s just so… complicated to me. I mean, who is this guy? A publisher, yes, but…
I’ve been fascinated by Lorine Niedecker’s poetry for a while now, but the more I read her work, the more complicated it becomes. Her life story is one of quiet dedication to art and nature, which resonates with me on…
Mikhail Bakhtin. I’m still trying to wrap my head around him, but the more I read, the more I feel like he’s speaking directly to me – or rather, to the parts of myself that get tangled up in language…
Marina Abramovic. I’ve spent countless hours staring at her face, watching her body contort into impossible shapes, and wondering what drives someone to push their physical limits like that. Her work is often described as “performative,” but that sounds too…
J.L. Austin’s name keeps popping up in my philosophy readings, but it wasn’t until I stumbled upon a lecture recording of his that I felt like I was finally meeting the man behind the theories. As I listened to him…
Ruth Benedict has been on my mind a lot lately, ever since I finished reading her classic anthropology text, “Patterns of Culture”. As I delved into the book, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of connection to this woman…
I’ve been fascinated with Judith Butler for years, but it’s only recently that I’ve started to grapple with the implications of her work on my own life. As a writer and a feminist, I’ve always been drawn to her critiques…
I’ve always been drawn to Amartya Sen’s idea that our choices, not just our circumstances, are what shape who we become. It’s a notion that resonates with me on a deep level, especially as I navigate the complexities of post-grad…
Elizabeth Jennings. Her name has been etched into my mind, but not for the reasons you might think. It’s not because of her historical significance as a conductor on the first African American women-led passenger train or her pioneering work…
Robert Lowell’s life has been on my mind a lot lately, probably because I just finished college and am trying to figure out what comes next for me. As I reflect on his experiences, I’m drawn to the tension between…
I’ve been thinking about Maria Zambrano a lot lately, and I’m not entirely sure why she holds my attention like she does. At first, it was her writing that drew me in – the way she wove together philosophy, poetry,…
I’ve always been fascinated by Bronislaw Malinowski, a Polish-British anthropologist who lived in the early 20th century. What draws me to him is the way he approached his work, which I see as both refreshing and problematic. Malinowski’s ethnographic approach…
Wislawa Szymborska – I still find myself drawn to her poetry, like a magnet to metal. Maybe it’s the way she weaves together the mundane and the monumental, making me see the world with fresh eyes. Or perhaps it’s the…
Hugh Kenner’s name keeps popping up in my mind, usually when I’m stuck on a sentence or trying to articulate an idea that’s been swimming around in the back of my head. It started with his book on Pound, which…
I’ve always been fascinated by Severo Sarduy, the Cuban writer who defied categorization. I stumbled upon his name while researching Latin American literature for a class, but what really drew me in was the complexity of his work – it’s…
I’ve been drawn to Alexandra Kollontai’s life for a while now, but it wasn’t until I stumbled upon her letters to Emilia DataBase that I felt like I was really getting under the surface of who she was. There’s something…
James Merrill’s poetry has been a constant presence in my life, even though I’ve only recently started reading him seriously. There’s something about his work that makes me feel like I’m getting lost in a world I’m not quite sure…
