The Fake Solitude of Walden Pond
Walden Pond isn’t like it used to be. As I walked the two mile loop that Henry David Thoreau’s Walden describes as a “narrow shelf-like path in the steep hillside… as old probably as the race of man here,” my gut reaction was one of disappointment. Some time in the past 160 years, Walden has been … Continue reading
The Man Who Invented America
In a previous post, I argued that nobody reads Ralph Waldo Emerson anymore. I stand by that, sort of. As a literary milepost, Emerson has largely been overshadowed by his followers. He is The Hobbit rather than The Lord of the Rings. Disneyland instead of Disney World. Emerson fails to stand alongside giants like Herman Melville, Henry … Continue reading
Reading Emerson, writer, with Emerson, dog
There is a concept in statistics called the alignment of random points, where a series of lines and points will randomly intersect, sometimes with multiple ones meeting in the same place. Mathematicians cite this phenomenon when arguing that random chance can produce startling coincidences that would otherwise be attributed to divine providence or magic. Looking … Continue reading
Letters Republic 