Category Archives: literature

One Doomed Youth–and 17 Million More

Posted on November 4, 2018 by Boz

From July to November 1917, Wilfred Edward Salter Owen was a shell-shocked second lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment, under the care of W. H. R. Rivers at Craiglockhart War Hospital. There, he became close friends with Siegfried Sassoon, who became … Continue reading →

Posted in history, literature, poem, poetry, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Nothing’s Fair

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Boz

For more than two years, I have been immersed in a project designed to commemorate the centenary of World War I in my freshman composition classes and–this November–across the campus of the community college where I teach. I have already … Continue reading →

Posted in books, history, literature, love, World War I | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The English Major and Ford Madox Ford: A Tale of Passion

Posted on July 25, 2018 by Boz

                  The Chemistry Major At this late date, newly minted Medicare card tucked safely in my wallet, I suppose it’s time to admit, mostly to myself, that I have always been what … Continue reading →

Posted in education, history, language, literature, review, World War I, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Bearing Witness: Reading and Telling the Great War

Posted on June 30, 2018 by Boz

Midway through the World War I centenary, I decided that I would use that largely unacknowledged anniversary as the theme for my freshman composition class on writing across the curriculum. The students write a literature review about shell shock for … Continue reading →

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The Mother of Beauty: War in Words and Music

Posted on April 14, 2018 by Boz

For the past two years, I have immersed myself in a personal and professional commemoration of the centenary of World War I. For a freshman composition class I designed in writing across the curriculum, I have read extensively in the … Continue reading →

Posted in history, literature, music, peace, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

100 at 65

Posted on February 19, 2018 by Boz

Arbitrarily, we deem specific anniversaries more significant than others. The numbers that would seem the most noteworthy are the primes, but we have opted to recognize the boring and uncreative numbers instead. We celebrate multiples of 5 and 10 for … Continue reading →

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The Armistice: A Remembrance

Posted on November 25, 2017 by Boz

The 99th anniversary of the Armistice that ended World War I took center stage in my English 112 class on Friday, November 10. For more than a year, I have been preparing to guide my students on this journey through … Continue reading →

Posted in books, education, history, literature, movies, poem, World War I, writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Erasing History: The 2017 Version

Posted on July 24, 2017 by Boz

“In February 1948, the Communist leader Klement Gottwald stepped out on to the balcony of a Baroque palace in Prague to harangue hundreds of thousands of citizens massed in Old Town Square. That was the great turning point in the … Continue reading →

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Reading, Watching–and Smelling–World War I

Posted on June 13, 2017 by Boz

More than a year ago, I decided to observe the centenary of World War I by using it as the theme of my English composition classes devoted to writing across the curriculum.  To that end, I have immersed myself in a wide assortment of … Continue reading →

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I Never Saw a Moor; I Never Saw the Sea

Posted on May 4, 2017 by Boz

              I never even had a passport. But I know the heather because I have walked the moonlit moors with Catherine and Heathcliff. I know the roiling sea because I sailed on the Pequod and clung … Continue reading →

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