Tag Archives: meaning

Wonder: My New Year’s Resolution

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Boz

Among the saddest lines in literature are the ones with which Nick Carraway describes his last glance at the sprawling estate on Long Island from which Gatsby watched the green light on Daisy’s dock: As the moon rose higher the … Continue reading →

Posted in Arizona, art, creativity, Globe, memories, metaphor, narrative, photography, poetry, wonder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Dostoevsky in Beulah Land

Posted on November 8, 2020 by Boz

Despite the glorious, almost too-warm temperatures for a day six weeks into autumn, I took off for my late-morning walk with a heavy heart. I was depressed, outraged, and frightened over lost hopes for a return to American values, a … Continue reading →

Posted in current events, divisiveness, hope, photography, politics | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Everything Not Forbidden Is Compulsory

Posted on August 26, 2020 by Boz

When I first passed this sign yesterday morning on the way to class, I thought it was an instruction in etiquette: “Don’t sit here because this is a table, and sitting on tables is rude.” Silly me.

Posted in Bill of Rights, books, COVID-19, critical thinking, current events, divisiveness, education, First Amendment, free speech, freedom, history, language, literature, news, novel coronavirus, politics, society, totalitarianism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

«Une vendetta» de Guy de Maupassant: Une analyse avec une touche existentialiste

Posted on May 8, 2020 by Boz

Comme autres écrivains du 19e siècle (par ex. Charles Dickens en Angleterre et Alexandre Dumas en France), Guy de Maupassant a d’abord publié son histoire «Une vendetta» dans un journal, Le Gaulois le 14 octobre 1883. L’histoire se déroule en … Continue reading →

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Measuring Life in Semesters: I Am a Teacher

Posted on December 20, 2019 by Boz

During what was probably the most important ten-plus years of my life, I was a member of a tiny parish in the Episcopal Church. Actually, it was so small that it was officially a mission, dependent upon the diocese for … Continue reading →

Posted in critical thinking, education, writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Grammar, Meet God

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Boz

Although I care deeply about language and am passionately interested in its origins and characteristics, I have no claims as a linguist. Therefore, what follows comes more from my heart than my head–mostly emotion tempered with a bit of knowledge … Continue reading →

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Among: Advent Word 14

Posted on December 16, 2017 by Boz

Among all the Advent words for this year, only today’s is a preposition. The remainder of the list comprises seven nouns and fourteen verbs (including, of course, some crossovers). These are the  draft horses of the language–the persons, places and … Continue reading →

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Let Me Count the Ways

Posted on October 14, 2017 by Boz

I am not certain I ever heard the name Harvey Weinstein before October 5, when The New York Times published its initial exposé of sexual-misconduct allegations and hush-money payoffs. Nor have I followed the increasing media firestorm with any interest though the … Continue reading →

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Naming Evil

Posted on October 8, 2017 by Boz

I write today in the bloody wake of the most recent in an increasingly frequent series of mass killings–this time, the deaths of 58 country music fans at the hands of a gunman poised 32 floors above the concert venue … Continue reading →

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Biology, Destiny, and the Politics of Dys-

Posted on December 16, 2016 by Boz

I am aware that when Freud pronounced his now-vilified dictum of biological determinism, “anatomy is destiny,” he was referring specifically to sexuality, which is not my subject here–at least not my only subject. However, because I like to be well … Continue reading →

Posted in language, politics, sexuality | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments