I recently read Pierre and Virginia by Bernardin St. Pierre, which is set on the island of Mauritius, like The Prospector. St. Pierre’s novel, one of the most popular books of the late 18th century, and the first half of the 19th century, is mirrored repeatedly in Le Clezio’s novel. Alexis and his sister Laure are Pierre and Virginia. Alexis and his love Omou are Pierre and Virginia. Throughout, in both novels, we see the theme of loss, nostalgia and the adoration of nature. The Prospector is much more elegiac than Pierre and Virginia, which has a strong shot of sensation and melodrama in it.

Reading The Prospector is a little like putting a shell to your ear and hearing the sea inside of oneself. It’s quiet and hypnotic, meditative, entrancing.

A few weeks ago I finished 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. The novel was a page turner although I found myself feeling uncomfortable trying to interpret it as a whole. Then I stumbled on a blog post by Jay Voss about the enduring value of the book at his blog called Viz. In his post, titled “Who said the book was on its way out?”, Voss talks about the aesthetic power, and the value of the book artifact in this digital age. In his post, he alerts us to an essay that Haruki Murakami published in The New York Times in November of 2010, titled: “Reality A and Reality B“. I just read it and find that it helps me with my understanding of Murakami’s novel.

Murakami argues that our age, our mentality and the ways we read, write and understand stories has undergone a profound shift since the fall of the Berlin Wall and 9/11. Not only have political and economic structures shifted because of these twin events, but also the way we process, produce and disseminate information. It would seem that all systems have been dismantled, and that we have lost criteria for evaluating what is real and what is not. One of the metaphors for this phenomenon, according to Murakami, is the imagery of 9/11 itself, which though real, cannot be digested as realistic. The reality of our reality (in which 9/11 occurred) cannot feel as real as what we imagined the world to be like if 9/11, and everything that followed, had not happened. In other words, we live in a time of interpretive chaos, separated from key mechanisms for judging what is real. All of this impacts literature as well… how we read, understand and write stories.

Murakami writes that “the role of a story is to maintain the soundness of the spiritual bridge that has been constructed between the past and the future…fiction has always been assigned responsibility and questions to deal with in every age, but surely the responsibility and questions are especially great now…To transform the things and events around us into the metaphor of the story form and to suggest the true nature of the situation in the dynamism of that substitution: that is story’s most important function. ” He goes on to describe 1Q84 as a metaphor for an exploration of the fundamental problem of our age, of the search for a new language for speaking about (defining, judging, tracing, evaluating) a new reality. In facing the conflict between realities (one real and one less real), what is gained, lost and learned? How do we digest the chaos of a new reality and adapt to it? These seem to be the questions and concerns that define 1Q84 in Murakami’s own view. I love the way he closes his article: “as a hopefully humble pilot of the mind and spirit, I cannot help but feel this way — that the world, too, after a good deal of trial and error, will surely grasp a new confidence that it is getting it, that the world will undoubtedly discover some clues that suggest a solution because, finally, both the world and story have already crossed the threshold of many centuries and passed many milestones to survive to the present day.”

Aomame and Tengo have crossed over into a world that seems real, but is a bit off kilter. They are in a reality that seems real, but is also fundamentally unreal in comparison the world they once new. The fall of the Berlin Wall took place in 1989, five years after 1984. The setting of Murakami’s novel in 1984 situates it on the cusp of the profound, epochal, reality challenging shift that he describes in his New York Times article.

I am still wrestling with how to deal with the little people and the air chrysalis and many details. But I don’t question their place in the novel. I just wish I had a filter, a way to make this unreality (or Murakami would call it chaos perhaps) more real and more comfortable. But if Murakami is right, then this too is a symptom of our present crisis: the desire for outmoded notions of order, hierarchy, transparent allegory and predictability.

Drood by Dan Simmons. Simmons is one of my favorite novelists. In particular, I’m a fan of his novels The Terror and Hyperion. 

Summer of 2010

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Unlike most, I was not crazy about it.

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. The representation of Diego and Frida seemed trite.

Harry Potter and Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Fun.

Hombre is the first novel by Elmore Leonard that I have ever read, and it was lean and sharp and satisfying.

The Missing by Tim Gautreaux. It starts out and you think, this is a World War I novel, and it’s beautiful and evocative. Then you think, wait, no, this is going to be a noirish mystery set in New Orleans. But no, it’s not that either. The novel is a lush atmospheric story about a riverboat, and about vengeance, redemption, hope and the nature of good and evil. Gautreaux loves his characters (he’s the opposite of Phillip Roth who seems to get some perverse delight from humiliating his characters after rendering them in compelling ways.) Anyway, The Missing is one of those novels that stays with you, it’s touching too.

Matterhorn by Karl Malantes. Hard to put down. Epic and horrible and wonderful.

Fall 2010/Spring 2011

Freedom by Jonathan Franzen, which I really enjoyed.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig/

Deep Rivers by José María Arguedas, for the third time.

Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs, for the second time.

Summer of 2011:

The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachmann is exceptional, I loved it.

The Diary of Elizabeth Drinker.

Memoirs of Alexander Herzen.

A little bit on my great great grandfather…Harvey was the son of Eli C. Taylor (1837-1864?) of Connecticut and Cordelia Morse / Kingston (1841-1925) of New York or Ohio.[2]  His siblings include William D. Taylor (1859-)[3] and Henry S. Taylor (1863-1876).  Since the Census of 1860 lists him as living in Bangor, we know he was raised in Michigan. When Harvey was seven years old, his father Eli Taylor died in a hospital in Philadelphia, probably because he fought in the Civil War. His mother Cordelia Morse married James Kingston (1825-1902) and became Cordelia Kingston. In 1870, the Kingstons were living together, 12 year old Harvey included, in Van Buren County, Michigan.[4]

The man in this cameo may be Harvey Taylor (1858-1931). This is a guess based on a guess, so you need to take it with a grain of salt. I have a photograph of my great grandfather Bruno Shefler and a separate photograph of an unnamed woman I believe to be Bessie Taylor, Harvey Taylor’s daughter. This is my first guess. The reason I believe this cameo to be Harvey Taylor is because in the photograph I have of Bessie Taylor (once again, I’m guessing the photo is of Bessie Taylor), Bessie is wearing a cameo like this one but with a woman on it. I believe the cameo I have to be the male counterpart of the one “Bessie” is wearing. Not quite pure speculation, but a lot of speculation indeed. Take it for what it’s worth. To see the Bessie photo, go here.

The minister who officiated at the Taylor/Willis nuptials was connected to the mother’s side of Harvey’s family: Joseph P. Morse, Minister of the Gospel. Father Morse was either the bride’s grandfather (J.P. Morse 1814-1890) or brother (1847-1903)! The witnesses were Marion E. Morse and Phebe Morse.

Sarah was the daughter of Thomas S. Willis (1829-1883) from Tenessee [5] and Anna M. Lamb (1830-) from Indiana. Sarah Willis was raised, however, in Bangor, Michigan. In 1870, her father’s real estate was valued at $2,000 and her personal estate at $600. (According to a Consumer Price Index calculator, $2,000 of 1870 dollars would be worth $34,000 today, and $600 would be worth over $10,000.) According to the Census of 1880, Harvey and Sarah were living with her family, and Harvey was helping them farm their land.

In 1900, Harvey and Sarah are living in Geneva Township, South Side in Van Buren, Michigan. Their children are Bert T. Taylor, Bessie E. Taylor (1885-1923), Delia E. Taylor and Velma A. Taylor (1894-1937).

At 19, Harvey and Sarah’s daughter Velma Taylor (1894-1937) married 22-year-old Otto Schaner or Schauer (1891) on December 2, 1913 in South Haven, Van Buren, Michigan. Otto’s father was Fred and Sophia Schaner. After Otto’s death, Velma married Charles Ritsema (1889-?) in Decatur, Van Buren, Michigan on July 26, 1920. Charles’s parents were Dick Ritsema and Eva Spoolma.

Bessie Taylor married Bruno Scheffer  (Shefler) on January 13, 1912, in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The Shefler household was composed of the following children: John L. Shefler (1906 or 1908-July 6, 1927); Harvey A. Shefler (1913) [6] Velma E. Shefler (1914-); Bertha H. Shefler (December 15, 1915-April 27, 1992); Francis B. Shefler (1918-), Glenn Shefler (1908?-1967?) and Pat Shefler (?).

Notes.

1. Census of 1860 says 1858, the Census of 1900 says 1857.

2. Different Censuses give different information. In the Census of 1870, she is listed as being born in New York. In the Census of 1910, Ohio, with her parents being from New York. Eli Taylor and Cordelia Morse were married on May 10, 1857 in Van Buren, Michigan. According to the Census of 1850, Cordelia Morse was the daughter of John Morse (1815-) and ?Susan (1814-), and her siblings were Allen (1840-); Martha (1845-); Perry (1848-), Adelaide (1850-); Rhoda (1855-); Rufus C (1857-) and Willard (1859-). Cordelia’s brother Allen named his daughter Lucy Cordelia   (1879-). Interestingly, he became a lawyer. Cordelia grew up in Otisco, Ionia, Michigan.

3. At age 53, on July 6, 1912, William D. Taylor married 50-year-old Gertrude E. Hogmire Wilcox (1862-), daughter of M.H. Hogmire and Jane Hogmire. Gertrude was widowed.

4. Information about the Kingston marriage from Find a Grave Memorial website.

5. His father was Robert Willis and his mother Mary Willis.
6. According to Social Security death index, one Harvey Shefler, born in 1912, died on July 1979 in Cleveland, Oklahoma. Perhaps this is him. SS: 446-28-5844. This man was married to Lucille C. Meyer (1916-1999), and served in World War II as a first Sergeant. He is buried at St. Joseph’s in Norman, OK.

Bruno A. Scheffer (later Shefler) was born in Poland in 1883 to Johann Gustav Bruno Scheffer (1859-) and his mother was Bertha Belka. We do not know when the Scheffers emigrated to the United States. Bruno married Bessie Estella Taylor (September 20, 1885-December 17,1923) on January 13, 1912 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The bride’s parents were Harvey E. Taylor and her mother was Sarah Ellen Willis of Indiana. The bride was born in Bangor Township, Van Buren, Michigan. At the time of their marriage, Bruno had a son (John L.) who was either six or four years old.  Since John L’s military death certificate lists his place of birth as Illinois, it is possible that Bruno arrived in Michigan via Illinois. Bruno’s occupation on the marriage certificate is listed as a galvanizer. At some point between 1920 and 1930, he anglicized the family name to Shefler and dropped Scheffer. According to the 1935 City Directory for Kalamazoo, he lived on 1424 Olmsted and was a station fireman (which may be the same as galvanizer, some kind of iron worker?).

Bruno Shefler

This photograph is not labeled but I believe it to be my great grandmother Bessie Shefler. Note the cameo she’s wearing with a face on it. I have a cameo with a man’s face on it. If my guesses are correct, the cameo Bessie is wearing contains the image of her mother Sarah Ellen Willis Taylor, and the cameo I own has Bessie’s father on it, Harvey Taylor.

This picture came with the two above… is it Bessie’s parents? The Taylors were farmers, so I don’t think so. I wonder if they are Bruno’s parents. I think the man looks like Bruno Shefler? What do you think?

The Shefler household was composed of the following children: John L. Shefler (1906 or 1908-July 6, 1927); Harvey A. Shefler (1913)*; Velma E. Shefler (1914-); Bertha H. Shefler (December 15, 1915-April 27, 1992); Francis B. Shefler (1918-), Glenn Shefler (1908?-1967?) and Pat Shefler (?).

This is a photo of Bertha Shefler (1915-1992), my grandmother:

Here’s a photo of Francis Shefler (1918-?), my grandmother’s sister:

Interestingly, in 1930, seven year’s after their mother’s death, Velma (16 years), Bertha (15 years) and Francis (14 years) were all listed as “inmates” in the Census. According to the record, their household is located near W. Dutton Street. The census lists the House Number as  827, which is significant, because around the corner from W. Dutton Street, at “827” Westnedge Avenue, was an institution called the Kalamazoo Children’s Home. According to the census document, Della F. Harris (61, widowed) is listed as matron , Flora Bissell (67) as housekeeper. I suppose that after my great grandmother Bessie’s death, Bruno put his daughters in a home because he couldn’t take care of them? More research on the way…

Also, more photographs on the way…

*According to Social Security death index, one Harvey Shefler, born in 1912, died on July 1979 in Cleveland, Oklahoma. He was married to Lucille C. Meyer (1916-1999), and served in World War II as a first Sergeant. He is buried at St. Joseph’s in Norman, OK.

Happy Times at Brown University, circa 2000 or 2001, with Carlos Fuentes, his lovely wife Silvia (second from left), Julio Ortega (far right), yours truly (next to Julio) and friends.

Today we all received news that the Peruvian/Spanish novelist and essayist Mario Vargas Llosa won the Nobel Prize in Literature. (I say “Peruvian/Spanish” novelist because he holds dual citizenship. I will always consider him a Peruvian writer).

One of the first things I thought of when I heard the news is how happy Helen Lane would have been. I also thought how wonderful it is that Helen Lane will now have so many new readers. You see, Helen Lane was one of the greatest American translators of the twentieth century, and one of Vargas Llosa’s main translators (along with Edith Grossman, another wonderful translator). To think that now, curious readers in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. will experience some of Vargas Llosa’s greatest works through Helen’s beautiful translations warms my heart.

Here is a list of some of Helen’s translations:

Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter by Mario Vargas Llosa (my favorite!)

Death in the Andes by Mario Vargas Llosa

The Storyteller by Mario Vargas Llosa

In Praise of the Stepmother by Mario Vargas Llosa

The Perpetual Orgy by Mario Vargas Llosa

Fish in the Water by Mario Vargas Llosa

The War of the End of the World by Mario Vargas Llosa

I, The Supreme by Augusto Roa Bastos

The Double Flame by Octavio Paz (Nobel winner, 1990)

Alternating Current by Octavio Paz

Convergences by Octavio Paz

Essays on Mexican Art by Octavio Paz

The Other Voice by Octavio Paz

Massacre in Mexico by Elena Poniatowska

Santa Evita by Tomás Eloy Martínez

The Perón Novel by Tomás Eloy Martínez

On Heroes and Tombs by Ernesto Sábato

State of Siege by Juan Goytisolo

Count Julian by Juan Goytisolo

Pen, Sword, Camisole by Jorge Amado

The Back Room by Carmen Martín Gaité

Cecilia Valdés by Cirilo Villaverde

Amalia by José Mármol

Peruvian Traditions by Ricardo Palma

[and many, many more...]

That last book, Peruvian Traditions, was how I met and came to know Helen Lane. I edited that book, which proved to be very difficult, and Helen and  I traded numerous emails and enjoyed many phone conversations about how to resolve certain translation problems. Twice, my partner and I were blessed with the opportunity to visit with her in her home in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I only knew her for 2 or 3 years, but I am so grateful for her warm, solicitous friendship in that brief period of time. She was a classy, learned, magnificent lady.

Helen would be tickled pink to know that the Nobel Prize committee is sending her thousands of new readers. So, congratulations to Mario Vargas Llosa. He is a great, deserving novelist. But for all those who cannot read Spanish, I am grateful for Helen Lane and what she did in her distinguished career to bring world literature, especially literature in Spanish, to the English-speaking world. Thank you Helen, wish you were here so that we could celebrate together…

Anti-Semitism thrives on the idea of Jewish conspiracy for world domination, famously posed by a hateful tract called The Protocols of the Elders of Zion at the beginning of the twentieth century. “Three hundred men, each of whom knows all the others,” runs a famous quote, “govern the fate of the European continent, and they elect their successors from their entourage.” The Protocols remain popular to this day, and its theses continue to be used to demonize jews as a conspiratorial sect. All this matters, of course, because of how such ideas have been put to use in the past. So…back to Sánchez– in talking about a shadowy group of “them” (Jews) who control the media, even his own network, and of how “they” oppress “real” people of color such as himself, Sánchez just went too far. He said things that are easily classifiable and easily recognizable as anti-Semitic. Now he has paid the price for venting.

At the heart of Sánchez’s complaint against Stewart is a great deal of personal hurt over how the comedian has skewered him. Sánchez feels that the so-called northeastern, liberal, Jewish elites personified by Stewart and his bosses at CNN, reject him because he is too brown (like fellow journalist John Quiñones). But Jon Stewart is not a bigot for making fun of Sánchez on his show. Stewart makes fun of Sánchez because Sánchez presents himself as a larger than life, bombastic personality that always craves chummy rapport with his viewers. Sánchez also says stupid or silly things, and seems completely devoid of any self-awareness. Sánchez’s attack on Stewart says a lot about how the newscaster views himself: he sees himself as a victim of classism and racism, and implies that his own employers are racist Jews who want to keep him “down” rather than recognize his talents and contribution. I was shocked to realize that beneath Sánchez’s overconfident exterior was such a deep-seated sense of hurt and racial persecution. Unfortunately for him, his lack of personal boundaries and his venting about this hurt led him to say things that ended his career at CNN.

CNN did not fire Rick Sánchez because of Jon Stewart. CNN fired Sánchez because he made wholly inappropriate comments about Jews and was wholly unprofessional (even hostile) in how he represented his role at CNN. Maybe there’s more to this story, relating to low ratings and previous problems with Sánchez at the network, but he was not fired because he attacked Stewart.

Below, some poignant images of how Mexico has commemorated the passing of its “last” and greatest public intellectual.

I started mixing things up. I changed a recent quiz from multiple choice to short essay. I also set the quiz so that students could repeatedly open and close it and return to it as needed. I thoroughly enjoyed reading and manually grading the student responses because I was able to gauge what readings and topics were having the most impact and sparking the most interest. What’s hard is getting students to understand what is expected of them in a short essay, so I went easy on them this first time around, but after the closing of the quiz I posted my favorite responses on the course message board. Now, for the next quiz, they know how expansive they need to be.

I had an interesting problem while grading, though. I felt better about grading the answers per question, as opposed as to doing each student quiz separately. Half-way through the process, I got upset emails from students complaining about their low scores (because they had only received credit for the answers I had graded). I have not yet figured out how to do the grading in such a way so that students do not get a partial tally of their grade before I have graded all of their responses.