Category Archives: Literature

Notes on William Burroughs to Allen Ginsberg May 5th, 1951

Posted on February 5, 2018 by Lee

In a letter to Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs seems to be saying that he’s incapable of envy. Envy arises from a particular kind of ignorance, of which Burroughs has cured himself: “Envy and resentment is only possible when you can … Continue reading →

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On Ursula K. Le Guin

Posted on January 29, 2018 by Lee

The poet’s task is to find the right words, or the true names of things. And in A Wizard of Earthsea, that’s the task of wizards too. You find the thing’s true name by capturing its essence: by seeing what … Continue reading →

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A Feeling of Connection: Anthony Burgess and His Characters

Posted on January 22, 2018 by Lee

Anthony Burgess tells his story through his characters, in a way that makes him stand out among writers. Many writers of fiction tell their stories primarily through the narrator’s voice, and characters are presented to the reader through this medium. … Continue reading →

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A Sad Note: Henry Miller’s Aller Retour New York

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Lee

Henry Miller believed that a real writer can find inspiration in anything, be it “a smokestack or a button”. I always enjoy Miller, whatever he’s writing about, because whatever the subject matter he’ll make it interesting. But some of his … Continue reading →

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“Try going in reverse”: Henry Miller’s advice to writers

Posted on September 1, 2017 by Lee

“For him who is obliged to dream with eyes wide open all movement is in reverse, all action broken into kaleidoscopic fragments. I believe, as I walk through the horror of the present, that only those who have the courage … Continue reading →

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The Greatest Gift

Posted on June 12, 2017 by Lee

Father Zossima tells his followers that the greatest torment is discovering the meaning of love too late to profit by it. You’re on your deathbed, in your dying brain you seem already at the gate of Paradise itself, and soft … Continue reading →

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Mitya’s Certainty (Karamazov pp. 438-9)

Posted on April 25, 2017 by Lee

“She may be there . . .” Mitya is jealous. He hides in the bushes in the dark outside the window, wondering whether his beloved is inside with the old man. He’s already peeked in through the window. He can’t … Continue reading →

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Salut Au Monde!

Posted on October 23, 2016 by Lee

Walt Whitman was a writer of light and vision. He invites us to see: cloud-topped mountains, great lakes and rivers, the oceans and those who sail on the ocean, the many different countries of the earth and the people that … Continue reading →

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Notes on Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl”

Posted on October 20, 2016 by Lee

Allen Ginsberg gives us picture after picture of the lost minds, “the best minds of my generation”, images of entire lives lived and lived out and used up, flashes of light and life like the images in Whitman, who also … Continue reading →

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Decline according to Spengler

Posted on October 12, 2016 by Lee

Oswald Spengler tells us that Western civilisation is in decline. This doesn’t mean the end is nigh, this doesn’t mean the end of days. We have centuries left, and when civilisation as we (in the West) know it finally comes … Continue reading →

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