I’ve always been fascinated by I.A. Richards, the British philosopher and literary critic who lived most of his life in the early 20th century. What draws me to him is the way he seemed to be constantly questioning himself –…
I’ve been thinking a lot about Albrecht Durer lately, ever since I stumbled upon his self-portraits in an art history textbook. There’s something about the intensity of his gaze that unsettles me – it’s as if he’s daring me to…
I’ve been reading Helene Cixous for weeks now, and I’m still trying to wrap my head around her ideas about women’s writing and the body. As a writer myself, I’m drawn to her emphasis on the importance of personal experience…
George Gissing – the author who’s been quietly lingering in my thoughts for months now. I first picked up his novel “New Grub Street” after a friend recommended it, and since then, I’ve found myself drawn back to his writing…
I’ve been thinking a lot about Frantz Fanon lately, and it’s hard to pinpoint exactly why he fascinates me so much. Maybe it’s because his writing is like a mirror held up to my own experiences as a young woman…
A.R. Ammons. The more I think about him, the more I get tangled up in my own thoughts. His poetry, with its dense language and sprawling lines, always made me feel like I was trying to catch a fish with…
I’ve always been fascinated by Joyce Carol Oates, partly because she seems to embody the contradictions that I’m still trying to navigate myself. As a writer, she’s prolific – I mean, over 160 books? That’s mind-boggling. And yet, her work…
Wilhelm Dilthey’s name keeps popping up in my philosophy of history class, but it wasn’t until I stumbled upon his concept of “objectivity” that I felt a spark of curiosity. As someone who’s always struggled to find her footing in…
Isabelle Eberhardt’s life has been a persistent presence in my thoughts lately, like a gentle hum that refuses to fade into the background. I’ve found myself drawn to her story, again and again, as if searching for some hidden thread…
Lewis Mumford – the name has been stuck in my head for weeks now, ever since I stumbled upon one of his essays while working on a paper about urban planning. At first, it was just another name, another face…
I’ve always been fascinated by Robert Frost’s poetry, but it wasn’t until I read his biography that I started to feel a strange kinship with him. Not because we share similar experiences or interests, but because of the way he…
Anna Comnena – the Byzantine princess who wrote a monumental history of her father’s reign, the Alexiad. I’ve been fascinated by her for a while now, and as I delve deeper into her life and work, I find myself drawn…
I’ve been reading Giorgio Agamben for months now, and I still can’t quite shake the feeling that he’s speaking directly to me. Or rather, that his words are echoing through my mind long after I close his books. It started…
I’ve always been drawn to Sarah Orne Jewett’s writing, but it’s not just her stories that captivate me – it’s the way she explores the complexities of human relationships and the quiet, unassuming ways people navigate life’s difficulties. As someone…
Claude Shannon has been on my mind a lot lately, which is weird because I never thought about him before college. My professor assigned us to read his paper “A Mathematical Theory of Communication,” and at first, I was like,…
I’ve always been drawn to Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poetry, but lately, I find myself more fascinated by her life than her words. As a writer, I’m trained to dissect language and meaning, but with Millay, it’s the messy entanglement…
I’ve been thinking a lot about Arthur Schopenhauer lately, and it’s become clear that my fascination with him has less to do with his philosophical ideas than with the way they make me feel. I find myself drawn to the…
I’ve always been fascinated by Jeanette Winterson’s unflinching gaze at the self. Her writing is like a mirror held up to my own complexities, and I find myself drawn to her unwavering commitment to exploring the inner workings of her…
Thomas Kuhn’s name keeps popping up in my philosophy of science class, and I have to admit, it’s been a bit disorienting. At first, I thought I was familiar with him – the “paradigm shift” phrase is ubiquitous enough, after…
I’ve been drawn to Maria Irene Fornes for a while now, but it’s only recently that I’ve started to grasp why her work speaks to me on such a deep level. As a writer myself, I’m fascinated by the way…
