From kobrem at queens.edu Fri Oct 2 16:15:38 2015 From: kobrem at queens.edu (Michael Kobre) Date: Fri, 2 Oct 2015 20:15:38 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question Message-ID: After a long, long delay, I'm happy to join the Percy-L community. I'm a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I'm the author of Walker Percy's Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there's that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy's work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I've had the opportunity to write about Percy, I've tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who's a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). I'm working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. Yates' signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books-at least on a superficial level-occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates' work has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is-here's an important component of my argument-a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. By contrast however, it seems as though Percy's work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I'm reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn't taught and discussed in the same way that Yates' work is now. At least that's my perception. And this is one reason why I'm reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy's work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing Queens University of Charlotte 1900 Selwyn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28226 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From rhonda_mcdonnell at msn.com Mon Oct 5 23:08:00 2015 From: rhonda_mcdonnell at msn.com (RHONDA MCDONNELL) Date: Mon, 5 Oct 2015 20:08:00 -0700 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Michael, Welcome to the list. One thing that works in Yates favor was the film version of Revolutionary Road, which brought him to a broader audience (it seems) and certainly prompted me to read him for the first time. Percy interest has fallen off a bit of late. My evidence--listings in the MLA Bibliography. I don't know about Yates. I happen to be researching Percy at the moment, so I saw a graphic representation of the peaking and decline of academic interest in Percy. On the upside, however, the South Atlantic MLA conference has two sessions dedicated to Percy. So perhaps a revival of interest in him is building a bit too. One can hope at least. Best wishes, Rhonda Sent from my iPhone > On Oct 5, 2015, at 12:24 PM, Michael Kobre wrote: > > After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author of Walker Percy?s Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). > > I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. Yates? signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books?at least on a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. > > By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. > > At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. > > Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. > Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing > Queens University of Charlotte > 1900 Selwyn Avenue > Charlotte, NC 28226 > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy From lesliemarsh at gmail.com Tue Oct 6 07:29:26 2015 From: lesliemarsh at gmail.com (Leslie Marsh) Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2015 13:29:26 +0200 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Michael, I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance. I too had been concerned with the wane in interest in WP but that happens to most thinkers and I think things are now on the up. I for one am editing a volume for Louisiana State University Press on WP's philosophy and a symposium for the journal ZYGON on WP on religion and science. I will be on the SAMLA WP panel looking at WP's political philosophy. I'll drop you a line at QUC. Cheers, Leslie Marsh Medical School University of British Columbia On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 10:15 PM, Michael Kobre wrote: > After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a > professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at > Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author > of *Walker Percy?s Voices* which was published a long, long time ago > (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other > life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our > MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian > interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of > polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the > opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and > connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and > more famous than Bakhtin). > > > > I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes > of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. > Yates? signature novel *Revolutionary Road* had been nominated for the > National Book Award alongside *The Moviegoer*, and both books?at least on > a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of > their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to > very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book > Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his > books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his > work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work > has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and *Revolutionary > Road* is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and > is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the > discipline of creative writing in particular. > > > > By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more > celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention > these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m > reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and > discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. > > > > At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching > out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have > become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think > of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help > will be much appreciated. > > > > Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. > > Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing > > Queens University of Charlotte > > 1900 Selwyn Avenue > > Charlotte, NC 28226 > > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com Tue Oct 6 11:12:53 2015 From: lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com (Lauren Stacy Berdy) Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2015 11:12:53 -0400 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5613E4F5.4030608@gmail.com> Dear Mr. Kobre, Dr Percy knew that our thoughts are illusions. (all those questions of his brought us back on ourselves) Above all he also knew that Kierkegaard was onto something when he wrote that the work of religions in natural man leads him to to the acquisition of the self ( soul) and the attainment of freedom. This last word is the most important word for me about Dr Percy. He pointed a way towards freedom. He showed that we cannot see our own nothingness without submission to something higher. What one loves about Dr Percy is the transformation part. Mans possible freedom. The /search/ is the search for our soul. Dr Percy gave us a taste of our human ableness. Readers aren't drawn to these things. Its too much work. And yet....... let us not forget that "The Moviegoer" too had disappeared from just about everyone's sight before it was seen anew. and about Bakhtin The ever changing boundary where two people meet is a most important occurrence in the novels. ( think Sutter Vaught and Barrett, in "The Last Gentleman") He takes dialogue seriously. Something exchanged between two people is better than a monologue. You exchange news. What you do with it is another thing....... Good wishes On 10/6/2015 7:29 AM, Leslie Marsh wrote: > Hi Michael, > > I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance. I too had been concerned > with the wane in interest in WP but that happens to most thinkers and > I think things are now on the up. I for one am editing a volume for > Louisiana State University Press on WP's philosophy and a symposium > for the journal ZYGON on WP on religion and science. I will be on the > SAMLA WP panel looking at WP's political philosophy. > > I'll drop you a line at QUC. > > Cheers, > > Leslie Marsh > Medical School > University of British Columbia > > On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 10:15 PM, Michael Kobre > wrote: > > After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L > community. I?m a professor and Chair of the Department of English > and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to > the point though, I?m the author of /Walker Percy?s Voices/ which > was published a long, long time ago (there?s that theme again) by > the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, > before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA > program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian > interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the > sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, > when I?ve had the opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to > examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce > Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). > > I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing > fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates > respectively. Yates? signature novel /Revolutionary Road/ had > been nominated for the National Book Award alongside /The > Moviegoer/, and both books?at least on a superficial level?occupy > a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in > the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different > effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award > dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of > his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life > virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the > last decade or so, Yates? work has enjoyed a significant revival. > Everything is back in print, and /Revolutionary Road/ is now seen > as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is?here?s an > important component of my argument?a canonical work within the > discipline of creative writing in particular. > > By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was > far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives > less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of > Percy fans (I?m reaching out to many of you right now), but his > work isn?t taught and discussed in the same way that Yates? work > is now. > > At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m > reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and > reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at > large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this > perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. > > Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. > > Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing > > Queens University of Charlotte > > 1900 Selwyn Avenue > > Charlotte, NC 28226 > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy > > > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -- Lauren Stacy Berdy Lauren.Stacy.Berdy at gmail.com AmericanGarum at gmail.com LaurenStacyBerdy.com/Garum.html -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From mrs.rachel.humphries at gmail.com Tue Oct 6 13:18:13 2015 From: mrs.rachel.humphries at gmail.com (Rachel Humphries) Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2015 12:18:13 -0500 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I've actually noticed that Percy has been popping up more frequently lately, at least in the NYT. There was the article, linked to on this list, on Percy's "Theory of Hurricanes" a month or two ago, and he gets name-dropped in the discussion of the "novel of ideas" in the Book Review last week. I've been out of academia for a long, long time (to continue a theme), but I might be able to comment on his prominence in the "culture at large." It seems to me that Percy is still quite well-known, and studied, within certain spheres of interest: literature & religion, Southern/regional literature, literature & philosophy. However, outside of those, it does seem that his work does seem to grow more obscure with the passage of time. I haven't noticed that it comes with a reassessment of the *quality* of his work; it's not like people are saying "Meh, it wasn't as good as we thought it was." When it is discussed, it is with respect; it is just discussed less. This, too, is merely perception. I have no concrete evidence besides the total mystification of that guy at the gym who wanted to know what I was reading on the stationary bike (*The Moviegoer). *In pursuit of your evidence, it might be interesting to see if Percy is increasingly "siloed"--in other words, if he is mentioned most often by people who are also discussing another specific topic (Catholicism, e.g.). Best, Rachel Humphries On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 3:15 PM, Michael Kobre wrote: > After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a > professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at > Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author > of *Walker Percy?s Voices* which was published a long, long time ago > (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other > life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our > MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian > interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of > polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the > opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and > connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and > more famous than Bakhtin). > > > > I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes > of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. > Yates? signature novel *Revolutionary Road* had been nominated for the > National Book Award alongside *The Moviegoer*, and both books?at least on > a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of > their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to > very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book > Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his > books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his > work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work > has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and *Revolutionary > Road* is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and > is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the > discipline of creative writing in particular. > > > > By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more > celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention > these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m > reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and > discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. > > > > At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching > out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have > become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think > of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help > will be much appreciated. > > > > Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. > > Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing > > Queens University of Charlotte > > 1900 Selwyn Avenue > > Charlotte, NC 28226 > > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From janetcantor37 at yahoo.com Tue Oct 6 19:17:00 2015 From: janetcantor37 at yahoo.com (janetcantor37 at yahoo.com) Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2015 23:17:00 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: <5613E4F5.4030608@gmail.com> References: <5613E4F5.4030608@gmail.com> Message-ID: <783338844.1293930.1444173420851.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com> Lauren Stacy Berdy always says things very well here.?"Readers aren't drawn to these things. It is too much work." How true. More and more I find readers self congratulatory and superficial. reading things and discussing them so?that they validate themselves instead of rising to a challenge.Anyway, Percy was surely a challenge for me, in every way. Yet somehow he fascinates me.Thank you for this letter.Janet Cantor From: Lauren Stacy Berdy To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion Sent: Tuesday, October 6, 2015 11:12 AM Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question Dear Mr. Kobre, Dr Percy knew that our thoughts are illusions. (all those questions of his brought us back on ourselves) ?Above all he also knew that Kierkegaard was onto something when he wrote that the work of religions in natural man leads him to to the acquisition of the self ( soul) and the attainment of freedom. This last word is the most important word for me about Dr Percy. He pointed a way towards freedom. He showed that we cannot see our own nothingness without submission to something higher. What one loves about Dr Percy is the transformation part. Mans possible freedom. The search is the search for our soul. Dr Percy gave us a taste of our human ableness. Readers aren't drawn to these things. Its too much work. And yet....... let us not forget that "The Moviegoer" too had disappeared from just about everyone's sight before it was seen anew. and about Bakhtin The ever changing boundary where two people meet is a most important occurrence in the novels. ( think Sutter Vaught and Barrett, in "The Last Gentleman") He takes dialogue seriously. Something exchanged between two people is better than a monologue. You exchange news. What you do with it is another thing....... Good wishes On 10/6/2015 7:29 AM, Leslie Marsh wrote: Hi Michael, I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance. I too had been concerned with the wane in interest in WP but that happens to most thinkers and I think things are now on the up. I for one am editing a volume for Louisiana State University Press on WP's philosophy and a symposium for the journal ZYGON on WP on religion and science. I will be on the SAMLA WP panel looking at WP's political philosophy.? I'll drop you a line at QUC. Cheers, Leslie Marsh Medical School University of British Columbia On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 10:15 PM, Michael Kobre wrote: After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community.? I?m a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte.? More to the point though, I?m the author of Walker Percy?s Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press.? In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses.? Since then, when I?ve had the opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). ? I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively.? Yates? signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books?at least on a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects).? Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print.? And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work has enjoyed a significant revival.? Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. ? By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days.? Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now.? ? At least that?s my perception.? And this is one reason why I?m reaching out to all of you.? Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large?? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception?? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. ? Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing Queens University of Charlotte 1900 Selwyn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28226 ? * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -- Lauren Stacy Berdy Lauren.Stacy.Berdy at gmail.com AmericanGarum at gmail.com LaurenStacyBerdy.com/Garum.html * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kterrell at stokeswagner.com Tue Oct 6 21:14:46 2015 From: kterrell at stokeswagner.com (Karl M. Terrell) Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2015 01:14:46 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: , Message-ID: It was wonderful to read Isaacson's NYT piece on Percy's hurricane theory. Wonderful to see our man discussed in the popular media. Beyond that observation, I have nothing really to add to the interesting question posed from the academic perspective, except to say ... more power to you, and best wishes. For what it's worth from a layman reader, the good doctor's observations of Wednesday afternoon despair in juxtaposition to Earth-rattling events are at the heart of what drew me to Percy in the first place. I then recall someone on this list once responding to a heavily worded question, which asked, essentially ... what draws us to WP? The response: "The charm of the man." Perfect, I thought. It captured the beauty of his writing, those marvelous sentences that flowed and flowed into our thoughts, and the grandeur of his ideas expressed with the grace and humor of a certain class of Southerner now disappearing from view. My recommendation to all, come next weekend, is to locate Percy's remarks on the virtue of a mint julep. But don't just read about it; make one and pour it into a tumbler, and then sit on your porch and focus for awhile. Karl Montague Terrell Sent from my iPhone On Oct 6, 2015, at 6:41 PM, Rachel Humphries > wrote: I've actually noticed that Percy has been popping up more frequently lately, at least in the NYT. There was the article, linked to on this list, on Percy's "Theory of Hurricanes" a month or two ago, and he gets name-dropped in the discussion of the "novel of ideas" in the Book Review last week. I've been out of academia for a long, long time (to continue a theme), but I might be able to comment on his prominence in the "culture at large." It seems to me that Percy is still quite well-known, and studied, within certain spheres of interest: literature & religion, Southern/regional literature, literature & philosophy. However, outside of those, it does seem that his work does seem to grow more obscure with the passage of time. I haven't noticed that it comes with a reassessment of the quality of his work; it's not like people are saying "Meh, it wasn't as good as we thought it was." When it is discussed, it is with respect; it is just discussed less. This, too, is merely perception. I have no concrete evidence besides the total mystification of that guy at the gym who wanted to know what I was reading on the stationary bike (The Moviegoer). In pursuit of your evidence, it might be interesting to see if Percy is increasingly "siloed"--in other words, if he is mentioned most often by people who are also discussing another specific topic (Catholicism, e.g.). Best, Rachel Humphries On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 3:15 PM, Michael Kobre > wrote: After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author of Walker Percy?s Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. Yates? signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books?at least on a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing Queens University of Charlotte 1900 Selwyn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28226 * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From RGray at montreat.edu Wed Oct 7 12:06:57 2015 From: RGray at montreat.edu (Gray, Rich) Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2015 16:06:57 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: , , Message-ID: My introduction to Percy's hurricane/disaster theory came in reading "The Loss of the Creature": "It [authentic life] may be recovered in time of national disaster." Again in "The Man on the Train," Percy says, "Do we have here a clue to the secret longing for the Bomb and the Last Days? Does the eschatological thrill conceal the inner prescience that it will take a major catastrophe to break the partition?" [presumably between alienation and authenticity]. Yet in Lancelot, the hurricane seems to spur Lance Lamar to seek revenge on his wife and her friends. Or is the hurricane an agent ultimately of Lance's recovery? Rich Gray ________________________________ From: Percy-L on behalf of Karl M. Terrell Sent: Tuesday, October 06, 2015 9:14 PM To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question It was wonderful to read Isaacson's NYT piece on Percy's hurricane theory. Wonderful to see our man discussed in the popular media. Beyond that observation, I have nothing really to add to the interesting question posed from the academic perspective, except to say ... more power to you, and best wishes. For what it's worth from a layman reader, the good doctor's observations of Wednesday afternoon despair in juxtaposition to Earth-rattling events are at the heart of what drew me to Percy in the first place. I then recall someone on this list once responding to a heavily worded question, which asked, essentially ... what draws us to WP? The response: "The charm of the man." Perfect, I thought. It captured the beauty of his writing, those marvelous sentences that flowed and flowed into our thoughts, and the grandeur of his ideas expressed with the grace and humor of a certain class of Southerner now disappearing from view. My recommendation to all, come next weekend, is to locate Percy's remarks on the virtue of a mint julep. But don't just read about it; make one and pour it into a tumbler, and then sit on your porch and focus for awhile. Karl Montague Terrell Sent from my iPhone On Oct 6, 2015, at 6:41 PM, Rachel Humphries > wrote: I've actually noticed that Percy has been popping up more frequently lately, at least in the NYT. There was the article, linked to on this list, on Percy's "Theory of Hurricanes" a month or two ago, and he gets name-dropped in the discussion of the "novel of ideas" in the Book Review last week. I've been out of academia for a long, long time (to continue a theme), but I might be able to comment on his prominence in the "culture at large." It seems to me that Percy is still quite well-known, and studied, within certain spheres of interest: literature & religion, Southern/regional literature, literature & philosophy. However, outside of those, it does seem that his work does seem to grow more obscure with the passage of time. I haven't noticed that it comes with a reassessment of the quality of his work; it's not like people are saying "Meh, it wasn't as good as we thought it was." When it is discussed, it is with respect; it is just discussed less. This, too, is merely perception. I have no concrete evidence besides the total mystification of that guy at the gym who wanted to know what I was reading on the stationary bike (The Moviegoer). In pursuit of your evidence, it might be interesting to see if Percy is increasingly "siloed"--in other words, if he is mentioned most often by people who are also discussing another specific topic (Catholicism, e.g.). Best, Rachel Humphries On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 3:15 PM, Michael Kobre > wrote: After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author of Walker Percy?s Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. Yates? signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books?at least on a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing Queens University of Charlotte 1900 Selwyn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28226 * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kobrem at queens.edu Wed Oct 7 13:41:35 2015 From: kobrem at queens.edu (Michael Kobre) Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2015 17:41:35 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: , Message-ID: Thanks to everyone for your words of welcome and your responses to my questions. Just being able to participate in this dialogue has helped me think about these issues. For what it's worth-and building from observations by Rachel and Rhonda-I think that one reason why we all seem to perceive a lessening of interest in Percy stems from changes in the academic world. Literary works live on, in a significant measure, because they're included as assigned readings on syllabi, and this is reflected, I think, in the changing reputations of Yates' and Percy's work. Yates now has a comfortable place on syllabi in creative writing programs. I've seen evidence of this over and over again in my work co-directing an MFA program for the last 15 years. Yates, who had a long career of his own as a creative writing professor, is held forth-rightly-as a model of craft. We might say of him, in comparison to Percy, that he is indeed "the better craftsman." Where Percy struggled to respond to Stanley Kauffmann's repeated requests to work on the structure of The Moviegoer, Yates was a master of structure-and well-constructed scenes, manipulation of point of view, carefully selected details, etc.: in short, the very fundamentals of fiction-writing technique that creative writing students must master. But, by contrast, the sly, nuanced, shifting voice of Binx's narration in The Moviegoer is largely inimitable. And if Percy appears only occasionally in creative writing classes, he's also proven to be-at least in our current context-a harder figure to recover in literary studies, partly because his demographic profile (a white, male southerner who's self-consciously descended from an elite class) and of his politics (sort of, kind of right-of-center). What does this say about the qualities of each work? I don't think it diminishes either, but it also perhaps leads to questions about what we look for in great novels. To use Flannery O'Connor's terms, Yates is a novelist of manners and Percy of mystery. At least that's my theory today. Anyway, thanks for listening to these ideas in progress and helping me to think about them. Now if I can only find the time to actually write that damn essay . . . Michael Kobre From: Percy-L [mailto:percy-l-bounces at lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Karl M. Terrell Sent: Tuesday, October 06, 2015 9:15 PM To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question It was wonderful to read Isaacson's NYT piece on Percy's hurricane theory. Wonderful to see our man discussed in the popular media. Beyond that observation, I have nothing really to add to the interesting question posed from the academic perspective, except to say ... more power to you, and best wishes. For what it's worth from a layman reader, the good doctor's observations of Wednesday afternoon despair in juxtaposition to Earth-rattling events are at the heart of what drew me to Percy in the first place. I then recall someone on this list once responding to a heavily worded question, which asked, essentially ... what draws us to WP? The response: "The charm of the man." Perfect, I thought. It captured the beauty of his writing, those marvelous sentences that flowed and flowed into our thoughts, and the grandeur of his ideas expressed with the grace and humor of a certain class of Southerner now disappearing from view. My recommendation to all, come next weekend, is to locate Percy's remarks on the virtue of a mint julep. But don't just read about it; make one and pour it into a tumbler, and then sit on your porch and focus for awhile. Karl Montague Terrell Sent from my iPhone On Oct 6, 2015, at 6:41 PM, Rachel Humphries > wrote: I've actually noticed that Percy has been popping up more frequently lately, at least in the NYT. There was the article, linked to on this list, on Percy's "Theory of Hurricanes" a month or two ago, and he gets name-dropped in the discussion of the "novel of ideas" in the Book Review last week. I've been out of academia for a long, long time (to continue a theme), but I might be able to comment on his prominence in the "culture at large." It seems to me that Percy is still quite well-known, and studied, within certain spheres of interest: literature & religion, Southern/regional literature, literature & philosophy. However, outside of those, it does seem that his work does seem to grow more obscure with the passage of time. I haven't noticed that it comes with a reassessment of the quality of his work; it's not like people are saying "Meh, it wasn't as good as we thought it was." When it is discussed, it is with respect; it is just discussed less. This, too, is merely perception. I have no concrete evidence besides the total mystification of that guy at the gym who wanted to know what I was reading on the stationary bike (The Moviegoer). In pursuit of your evidence, it might be interesting to see if Percy is increasingly "siloed"--in other words, if he is mentioned most often by people who are also discussing another specific topic (Catholicism, e.g.). Best, Rachel Humphries On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 3:15 PM, Michael Kobre > wrote: After a long, long delay, I'm happy to join the Percy-L community. I'm a professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I'm the author of Walker Percy's Voices which was published a long, long time ago (there's that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian interpretation of Percy's work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I've had the opportunity to write about Percy, I've tried to examine the parallels and connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who's a lot louder and more famous than Bakhtin). I'm working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. Yates' signature novel Revolutionary Road had been nominated for the National Book Award alongside The Moviegoer, and both books-at least on a superficial level-occupy a similar territory, following the lives of their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates' work has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and Revolutionary Road is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and is-here's an important component of my argument-a canonical work within the discipline of creative writing in particular. By contrast however, it seems as though Percy's work, which was far more celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I'm reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn't taught and discussed in the same way that Yates' work is now. At least that's my perception. And this is one reason why I'm reaching out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy's work and reputation have become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help will be much appreciated. Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing Queens University of Charlotte 1900 Selwyn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28226 * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From mrs.rachel.humphries at gmail.com Wed Oct 7 21:42:39 2015 From: mrs.rachel.humphries at gmail.com (Rachel Humphries) Date: Thu, 08 Oct 2015 01:42:39 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Amazon's algorithms have an opinion on the matter. I just found *The Moviegoer *in the list of "Well-Loved but Little Known Classics" . On Wed, Oct 7, 2015 at 7:44 AM Karl M. Terrell wrote: > It was wonderful to read Isaacson's NYT piece on Percy's hurricane > theory. Wonderful to see our man discussed in the popular media. Beyond > that observation, I have nothing really to add to the interesting question > posed from the academic perspective, except to say ... more power to you, > and best wishes. > > For what it's worth from a layman reader, the good doctor's observations > of Wednesday afternoon despair in juxtaposition to Earth-rattling events > are at the heart of what drew me to Percy in the first place. I then > recall someone on this list once responding to a heavily worded question, > which asked, essentially ... what draws us to WP? The response: "The charm > of the man." Perfect, I thought. It captured the beauty of his writing, > those marvelous sentences that flowed and flowed into our thoughts, and the > grandeur of his ideas expressed with the grace and humor of a certain class > of Southerner now disappearing from view. > > My recommendation to all, come next weekend, is to locate Percy's remarks > on the virtue of a mint julep. But don't just read about it; make one and > pour it into a tumbler, and then sit on your porch and focus for awhile. > > Karl Montague Terrell > > Sent from my iPhone > > On Oct 6, 2015, at 6:41 PM, Rachel Humphries < > mrs.rachel.humphries at gmail.com> wrote: > > I've actually noticed that Percy has been popping up more frequently > lately, at least in the NYT. There was the article, linked to on this list, > on Percy's "Theory of Hurricanes" a month or two ago, and he gets > name-dropped in the discussion of the "novel of ideas" in the Book Review > last week. > I've been out of academia for a long, long time (to continue a theme), but > I might be able to comment on his prominence in the "culture at large." It > seems to me that Percy is still quite well-known, and studied, within > certain spheres of interest: literature & religion, Southern/regional > literature, literature & philosophy. However, outside of those, it does > seem that his work does seem to grow more obscure with the passage of time. > I haven't noticed that it comes with a reassessment of the *quality* of > his work; it's not like people are saying "Meh, it wasn't as good as we > thought it was." When it is discussed, it is with respect; it is just > discussed less. > This, too, is merely perception. I have no concrete evidence besides the > total mystification of that guy at the gym who wanted to know what I was > reading on the stationary bike (*The Moviegoer). *In pursuit of your > evidence, it might be interesting to see if Percy is increasingly > "siloed"--in other words, if he is mentioned most often by people who are > also discussing another specific topic (Catholicism, e.g.). > Best, > Rachel Humphries > > On Fri, Oct 2, 2015 at 3:15 PM, Michael Kobre wrote: > >> After a long, long delay, I?m happy to join the Percy-L community. I?m a >> professor and Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing at >> Queens University of Charlotte. More to the point though, I?m the author >> of *Walker Percy?s Voices* which was published a long, long time ago >> (there?s that theme again) by the University of Georgia Press. In my other >> life as a scholar, before spending the last 15 years as co-director of our >> MFA program in creative writing, I focused primarily on a Bakhtinian >> interpretation of Percy?s work and tried to hear in his prose the sort of >> polyphony of voices that Bakhtin discusses. Since then, when I?ve had the >> opportunity to write about Percy, I?ve tried to examine the parallels and >> connections between Percy and Bruce Springsteen (who?s a lot louder and >> more famous than Bakhtin). >> >> >> >> I?m working now, however, on an essay that examines the changing fortunes >> of the literary reputations of Percy and Richard Yates respectively. >> Yates? signature novel *Revolutionary Road* had been nominated for the >> National Book Award alongside *The Moviegoer*, and both books?at least >> on a superficial level?occupy a similar territory, following the lives of >> their protagonists in the new suburban landscapes of America (although to >> very different effects). Yates felt that his loss of the National Book >> Award dramatically altered the trajectory of his career; the sales of his >> books were at best uneven, and by the end of his life virtually all of his >> work was out of print. And yet, over the last decade or so, Yates? work >> has enjoyed a significant revival. Everything is back in print, and *Revolutionary >> Road* is now seen as a classic work of post-war American fiction and >> is?here?s an important component of my argument?a canonical work within the >> discipline of creative writing in particular. >> >> >> >> By contrast however, it seems as though Percy?s work, which was far more >> celebrated when both Percy and Yates were alive, receives less attention >> these days. Yes, there remains a loyal audience of Percy fans (I?m >> reaching out to many of you right now), but his work isn?t taught and >> discussed in the same way that Yates? work is now. >> >> >> >> At least that?s my perception. And this is one reason why I?m reaching >> out to all of you. Do you agree that Percy?s work and reputation have >> become a little more obscure to the culture at large? If so, can you think >> of evidence that supports this perception? Any thoughts on this or help >> will be much appreciated. >> >> >> >> Michael Kobre, MFA, Ph.D. >> >> Chair, Department of English and Creative Writing >> >> Queens University of Charlotte >> >> 1900 Selwyn Avenue >> >> Charlotte, NC 28226 >> >> >> >> * Percy-L Discussion Archives: >> http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ >> >> * Manage Your Membership: >> http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l >> >> * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org >> >> * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy >> >> > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From janetcantor37 at yahoo.com Thu Oct 8 11:03:07 2015 From: janetcantor37 at yahoo.com (janetcantor37 at yahoo.com) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 15:03:07 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2091455078.687475.1444316587333.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com> It is ironic?that Percy usually identified himself as liberal to my knowledge. He was decidedly pro life. But his activities in support of civil rights were brave in the south, I think. He hated the phony piety of big churches from the establishment. Am I wrong in my perceptions here?Janet Cantor From: Michael Kobre To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion Sent: Wednesday, October 7, 2015 1:41 PM Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question #yiv4075232206 #yiv4075232206 -- _filtered #yiv4075232206 {panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;} _filtered #yiv4075232206 {font-family:Calibri;panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;} _filtered #yiv4075232206 {font-family:Georgia;panose-1:2 4 5 2 5 4 5 2 3 3;}#yiv4075232206 #yiv4075232206 p.yiv4075232206MsoNormal, #yiv4075232206 li.yiv4075232206MsoNormal, #yiv4075232206 div.yiv4075232206MsoNormal {margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:12.0pt;}#yiv4075232206 a:link, #yiv4075232206 span.yiv4075232206MsoHyperlink {color:blue;text-decoration:underline;}#yiv4075232206 a:visited, #yiv4075232206 span.yiv4075232206MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple;text-decoration:underline;}#yiv4075232206 span.yiv4075232206EmailStyle17 {color:#1F497D;}#yiv4075232206 .yiv4075232206MsoChpDefault {font-size:10.0pt;} _filtered #yiv4075232206 {margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}#yiv4075232206 div.yiv4075232206WordSection1 {}#yiv4075232206 Thanks to everyone for your words of welcome and your responses to my questions.? Just being able to participate in this dialogue has helped me think about these issues.? For what it?s worth?and building from observations by Rachel and Rhonda?I think that one reason why we all seem to perceive a lessening of interest in Percy stems from changes in the academic world.? Literary works live on, in a significant measure, because they?re included as assigned readings on syllabi, and this is reflected, I think, in the changing reputations of Yates? and Percy?s work. ? Yates now has a comfortable place on syllabi in creative writing programs.? I?ve seen evidence of this over and over again in my work co-directing an MFA program for the last 15 years.? Yates, who had a long career of his own as a creative writing professor, is held forth?rightly?as a model of craft.? We might say of him, in comparison to Percy, that he is indeed ?the better craftsman.?? Where Percy struggled to respond to Stanley Kauffmann?s repeated requests to work on the structure of The Moviegoer, Yates was a master of structure?and well-constructed scenes, manipulation of point of view, carefully selected details, etc.: in short, the very fundamentals of fiction-writing technique that creative writing students must master. ? But, by contrast, the sly, nuanced, shifting voice of Binx?s narration inThe Moviegoer is largely inimitable.? And if Percy appears only occasionally in creative writing classes, he?s also proven to be?at least in our current context?a harder figure to recover in literary studies, partly because ?his demographic profile (a white, male southerner who?s self-consciously descended from an elite class) and of his politics (sort of, kind of right-of-center). ? What does this say about the qualities of each work?? I don?t think it diminishes either, but it also perhaps leads to questions about what we look for in great novels.? To use Flannery O?Connor?s terms, Yates is a novelist of manners and Percy of mystery.? ? At least that?s my theory today.? Anyway, thanks for listening to these ideas in progress and helping me to think about them.? Now if I can only find the time to actually write that damn essay . . . ? Michael Kobre ?? -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From larsonovic at gmail.com Thu Oct 8 19:55:40 2015 From: larsonovic at gmail.com (Michael Larson) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 18:55:40 -0500 Subject: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Message-ID: Janet, I think it depends on how one defines the terms, "liberal" and "conservative." Modern Americans tend to define that continuum based on positions taken with regard to certain divisive moral issues--like abortion and gay rights, at present (though the issues have been different at different times)--and leave it at that. The root of conservatism, however, lies in the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it. The root of liberalism lies in the belief that there is no objective moral order and that therefore the will of the individual or, when there is conflict between individuals, the will of the greatest number of individuals, is best for society. By these definitions, at least, Percy was a conservative. Best wishes, Mike Larson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From MPorter at fslegal.com Thu Oct 8 17:17:33 2015 From: MPorter at fslegal.com (Marc Porter) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 16:17:33 -0500 Subject: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question In-Reply-To: <2091455078.687475.1444316587333.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com> References: <2091455078.687475.1444316587333.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <028023C52AED384C88CC1A421759F8A1F5B32E01B3@EXSERV.figsilv.local> Janet I would agree that Percy as a staunch Catholic believed all that the Church taught in regard to faith and morals and would have followed the social teaching of the Church as it pertained to the dignity of the human person. He would of recognized himself as a sinner in need of Grace to live out the demands of that teaching. He definitely was against racism and any ?phony piety?. Thanks for all the great comments and incites. Marc S. 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From: Percy-L [mailto:percy-l-bounces at lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of janetcantor37--- via Percy-L Sent: Thursday, October 08, 2015 10:03 AM To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion Cc: janetcantor37 at yahoo.com Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question It is ironic that Percy usually identified himself as liberal to my knowledge. He was decidedly pro life. But his activities in support of civil rights were brave in the south, I think. He hated the phony piety of big churches from the establishment. Am I wrong in my perceptions here? Janet Cantor ________________________________ From: Michael Kobre > To: Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion > Sent: Wednesday, October 7, 2015 1:41 PM Subject: Re: [percy-l] A New Member and a Question Thanks to everyone for your words of welcome and your responses to my questions. Just being able to participate in this dialogue has helped me think about these issues. For what it?s worth?and building from observations by Rachel and Rhonda?I think that one reason why we all seem to perceive a lessening of interest in Percy stems from changes in the academic world. Literary works live on, in a significant measure, because they?re included as assigned readings on syllabi, and this is reflected, I think, in the changing reputations of Yates? and Percy?s work. Yates now has a comfortable place on syllabi in creative writing programs. I?ve seen evidence of this over and over again in my work co-directing an MFA program for the last 15 years. Yates, who had a long career of his own as a creative writing professor, is held forth?rightly?as a model of craft. We might say of him, in comparison to Percy, that he is indeed ?the better craftsman.? Where Percy struggled to respond to Stanley Kauffmann?s repeated requests to work on the structure of The Moviegoer, Yates was a master of structure?and well-constructed scenes, manipulation of point of view, carefully selected details, etc.: in short, the very fundamentals of fiction-writing technique that creative writing students must master. But, by contrast, the sly, nuanced, shifting voice of Binx?s narration in The Moviegoer is largely inimitable. And if Percy appears only occasionally in creative writing classes, he?s also proven to be?at least in our current context?a harder figure to recover in literary studies, partly because his demographic profile (a white, male southerner who?s self-consciously descended from an elite class) and of his politics (sort of, kind of right-of-center). What does this say about the qualities of each work? I don?t think it diminishes either, but it also perhaps leads to questions about what we look for in great novels. To use Flannery O?Connor?s terms, Yates is a novelist of manners and Percy of mystery. At least that?s my theory today. Anyway, thanks for listening to these ideas in progress and helping me to think about them. Now if I can only find the time to actually write that damn essay . . . Michael Kobre -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com Thu Oct 8 21:17:16 2015 From: lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com (Lauren Stacy Berdy) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 21:17:16 -0400 Subject: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5617159C.8000808@gmail.com> I believe that Dr. Percy had what Marcel called " the gift of presence" he looked at us with unblinking eyes. He knew that we humans, including himself, were all unique messy specimens. He sucked crayfish with Klansman ( citizen council ) and he spoke up for integration. we were all equally in his sights. Liberalism and conservatism are just rotations...yes? ( better than everydayness!!) Take gd care, Lauren Stacy Berdy On 10/8/2015 7:55 PM, Michael Larson wrote: > Janet, > > I think it depends on how one defines the terms, "liberal" and > "conservative." Modern Americans tend to define that continuum based > on positions taken with regard to certain divisive moral issues--like > abortion and gay rights, at present (though the issues have been > different at different times)--and leave it at that. The root of > conservatism, however, lies in the belief that there is an objective > moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has > been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in > harmony with it. The root of liberalism lies in the belief that there > is no objective moral order and that therefore the will of the > individual or, when there is conflict between individuals, the will of > the greatest number of individuals, is best for society. > > By these definitions, at least, Percy was a conservative. > > Best wishes, > Mike Larson > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -- Lauren Stacy Berdy Lauren.Stacy.Berdy at gmail.com AmericanGarum at gmail.com LaurenStacyBerdy.com/Garum.html -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From janetcantor37 at yahoo.com Thu Oct 8 20:44:29 2015 From: janetcantor37 at yahoo.com (janetcantor37 at yahoo.com) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 17:44:29 -0700 Subject: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <1444351469.90627.YahooMailAndroidMobile@web165704.mail.gq1.yahoo.com> I am glad to hear these days descriptions. It is what I have always thought but hesitated to say. ?Do you think Percy would like these definitions? Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android From:"Michael Larson" Date:Thu, Oct 8, 2015 at 8:31 PM Subject:Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Janet, I think it depends on how one defines the terms, "liberal" and "conservative." Modern Americans tend to define that continuum based on positions taken with regard to certain divisive moral issues--like abortion and gay rights, at present (though the issues have been different at different times)--and leave it at that. The root of conservatism, however, lies in the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it. The root of liberalism lies in the belief that there is no objective moral order and that therefore the will of the individual or, when there is conflict between individuals, the will of the greatest number of individuals, is best for society. By these definitions, at least, Percy was a conservative. Best wishes, Mike Larson * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jp at jlarsp.com Thu Oct 8 21:37:54 2015 From: jp at jlarsp.com (John Pearson) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 20:37:54 -0500 Subject: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Wow. As a self-described liberal there is virtually nothing in your definition that I recognize about the definition of liberal (it frankly sounds like a definition given by a conservative, so that they can easily knock it down), and little about your definition of conservative. This is an interesting discussion, and one of the many reasons I love the work of Percy is that he is not easy to categorize, and to some extent, each reader is moved to think and in some sense can find something in his writing they connect with, even when coming from vastly disparate parts of the political spectrum. I think the list has proven this?over the years there have been plenty of conservative and plenty of liberal arguments for and interpretations of Percy?s work. This has been an interesting discussion and it?s great to see the list jump to life. Something I think Janet said about Percy not being easy made me wonder if living in the twitter age is part of why?in some circles anyway?his popularity has for the moment waned. He deals with complex ideas that cannot be easily summed up in 140 characters. (I?m not saying Yates can, so at best this is relevant to Percy?s decline). It does seem that these things often run in cycles. I also agree that part of Yates renaissance is due to the movie of Revolutionary Road, which was well done and caught the zeitgeist of the moment. There is much in Percy that is universal, and if there was ever a film made of one of his novels, I?m guessing that would boost the sales and readership of all of them. (And of course that is a cart/horse question.) In the meantime, it is wonderful to have a little corner of the internet where those who have been influenced by Percy?s work can gather and discuss. I don?t post here often, and am always thankful when I see the list spring to life. It inspires me not only to reread Percy, but to think, and to write. So thanks to all who read and post and keep the list going. Best wishes, Joh Pearson > On Oct 8, 2015, at 6:55 PM, Michael Larson wrote: > > Janet, > > I think it depends on how one defines the terms, "liberal" and "conservative." Modern Americans tend to define that continuum based on positions taken with regard to certain divisive moral issues--like abortion and gay rights, at present (though the issues have been different at different times)--and leave it at that. The root of conservatism, however, lies in the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it. The root of liberalism lies in the belief that there is no objective moral order and that therefore the will of the individual or, when there is conflict between individuals, the will of the greatest number of individuals, is best for society. > > By these definitions, at least, Percy was a conservative. > > Best wishes, > Mike Larson > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy From kterrell at stokeswagner.com Thu Oct 8 23:01:46 2015 From: kterrell at stokeswagner.com (Karl M. Terrell) Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2015 03:01:46 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Interesting comments, Michael. Thank you. I agree with your observation on the root of conservatism: "... the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it." William F. Buckley, Jr. once colorfully expressed it thusly (paraphrasing): "A conservative stands astride the horse of so-called progress, and hollers, Halt!" But I respectfully take issue with the characterization of the "root of liberalism" as lying within the "belief that there is no objective moral order." I'll comment further ... but I should, first, address this issue as it relates to our man Percy: Percy was a son of the Old South, and a beneficiary (in material terms) of an Old South patriarchy. But he came of age in one of the iterations of the so-called New South, and so identified himself (writing once, somewhere, as evidence of this, that his "earliest memories" were of a "golf course"). In short, he was of his times, and he certainly wasn't oblivious to the 'conservative vs. liberal' issues of his day (i.e., preservation of the ways of Jim Crow vs. civil rights). That said, it appears to me, this particular divide didn't interest him all that much. He did use the contretemps of the day, however, as comic fodder in Love in the Ruins, and in some of his essays (comic and otherwise). As I read these efforts by Percy, though, he endorsed neither the conservatives of his day (racists, on the whole) nor the liberals of his day (which, I think, he viewed as boats without a mooring). He was also a convert to Catholicism, certainly suggesting a conservative bent. But, I don't believe Percy adopted that particular faith with a view toward preserving, or in adoration of, "an objective moral order." The so-called "objective" standard has been concocted by man. Percy was highly suspicious of man's ability in this regard. Those more knowledgeable than me of Kierkegaard's brand of existentialism, I am sure, could add to this. As for the root of liberalism ... my understanding, for what it's worth: It is the belief that mankind, through learned experience, can improve. This belief doesn't reject or negate an "objective moral oder" (whatever that might be). Liberalism, in fact, seeks this out - and tries to take it into account - while considering also other evidence. In my humble opinion, this is what Percy was up to. Thanks for reading, Karl Montague Terrell From: Michael Larson > Reply-To: "Percy-L: Discussion" > Date: Thursday, October 8, 2015 at 7:55 PM To: "Percy-L: Discussion" > Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Janet, I think it depends on how one defines the terms, "liberal" and "conservative." Modern Americans tend to define that continuum based on positions taken with regard to certain divisive moral issues--like abortion and gay rights, at present (though the issues have been different at different times)--and leave it at that. The root of conservatism, however, lies in the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it. The root of liberalism lies in the belief that there is no objective moral order and that therefore the will of the individual or, when there is conflict between individuals, the will of the greatest number of individuals, is best for society. By these definitions, at least, Percy was a conservative. Best wishes, Mike Larson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From larsonovic at gmail.com Sat Oct 10 00:38:33 2015 From: larsonovic at gmail.com (Michael Larson) Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2015 23:38:33 -0500 Subject: [percy-l] Percy-L Digest, Vol 117, Issue 8 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: *Lauren*, I don't think liberalism and conservatism are rotations but are rather fundamentally different postures toward reality. It's true that someone might convert (rotate) from one to the other in the event of a sea-change in beliefs, but that would not be rotation in the Percyan sense, which, as I understand it, is caused by boredom with one's current method of reentry (thus the need to rotate to a new one). I think you're right, though, that Percy wasn't satisfied with simply categorizing people and then using that label as a means of pigeonholing them or, worse yet, dismissing them. *Janet*, I never got the sense that Percy liked *any *categorical definitions. Which is not to say that he himself did not have any classifiable characteristics, only that he was leery of the tendency to reduce people to labels. The individual is always more complex than the set of labels that describe him--even if they are true as far as they go. *John*, it's always tenuous (and probably unwise) to give one-sentence definitions of complex concepts like liberalism and conservatism, so there is, by nature of the concision, much elaboration, clarification, and nuance left unsaid. But I was responding to Janet's comment about Percy's having had seemingly contradictory views, some "liberal," some "conservative." My thought was that these litmus-test issues usually don't go deep enough, as a means of identifying a person's orienting beliefs, to be very useful. And that's why you can have apparent contradictions in the same man--because the surface-level litmus tests may appear to be opposed, even if the underlying convictions are not actually so. And this is what I was trying to address with my definitions: I was trying to get a level below (i.e. "the root") the knee-jerk label associations and identify the philosophical orientation that makes a person tend toward one or the other posture. Without belief in an objective moral order, there is little, if anything, to conserve, except individuality--that is to say, individual liberty. You could argue, I suppose, that this principle (of individual liberty) is, in fact, the objective moral code of liberalism, but that is something of an illusion, because individualism is subjective by nature, which means, among other things, that it is subject to change, depending on the influence of the age in which the individual lives; and in all ages, the will of some individuals is inevitably going to clash with that of other individuals. Out of this clash comes democracy as the liberal solution to government, whereby individual liberty is still the highest good, but conflicts are resolved by the will of the majority. And before the modern democracies came the preparatory Reformation, which was the liberal principle applied to Christendom, whereby the State would be eventually loosed from the bonds of the Church, and the individual would be eventually freed to make of his religion what he will ... as an individual. And so it has come to pass. We live in the age of the liberal principle. In that sense, we're all liberals. Shoot, the United States was founded on the idea, and we've taken now to exporting it, in its economic and governmental forms, for decades, so the world is being made in our image (though it doesn't always go so well with Islamic states ... or with Russia!). My contention that Percy was a conservative, though, is based primarily on his conversion to Catholicism in 1947. By his own admission, he accepted that, in matters of faith and morals, the Catholic Church was the arbiter of truth. To my knowledge, he never retained for himself the liberty of choice to be at variance with any of those teachings. In other words, he was not an a la carte Catholic. Such submission to what he understood to be the objective moral order of things, the true nature of things, had an obvious and lasting effect on his life and his work. He had a thing outside himself that was the *object *of his personal liberty, the *reason *for his free will. By this subtle demotion of individual freedom to the role of means rather than of end, he took the path of conservation rather than liberality. There's always more to be said, of course, but I've gone on too long already. Let me say, though, that I agree with your assessment of Percy's broad appeal. Seems like just about anybody who likes to think, likes Walker Percy. I thought I heard once that Tim Robbins was going to star in *The Moviegoer*. But that was back when he was Binx's age. Alas. *Karl*, Thanks for your comments. Percy was, no doubt, a man living in the new South, and I think he liked to acknowledge that about himself just to make it clear, in case anybody wondered, that he did not retain any airs from having been *to the manor born*. And I agree that he stayed persistently clear of endorsing or identifying himself with either liberals or conservatives. An aversion to labels, I think. But one label he never avoided was that of Catholic. I would think that this is because he took it quite seriously. That is to say, I don't think he viewed the Church's teachings on faith and morals as "man's concoction." Rather, like most converts, and especially maybe those who converted before Vatican II, he saw the Catholic Church as a divine institution, though peopled by humans. Regarding your definition of liberalism, it sounds more like what I would call progressivism or even evolutionism. Not that those three ideas are unrelated. I think liberalism, in its elevation of individual human liberty, grows faith naturally in the collective human experience as well--the idea that we are progressing or evolving as a species. But I think this belief is a *result *of liberalism and not its root. My reason for thinking that liberalism, at its root, rejects an objective moral order is that it simply must do so in order to give individual liberty its elevated place. If my obligation is to adhere to something outside myself, to a truth that exists indifferent to my personal preference, then my liberty is curtailed, and the fundamental principle of liberalism is thereby undercut. Best wishes all, Mike Larson _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Message: 1 Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 21:17:16 -0400 From: Lauren Stacy Berdy To: "Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion" Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Message-ID: <5617159C.8000808 at gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252"; Format="flowed" I believe that Dr. Percy had what Marcel called " the gift of presence" he looked at us with unblinking eyes. He knew that we humans, including himself, were all unique messy specimens. He sucked crayfish with Klansman ( citizen council ) and he spoke up for integration. we were all equally in his sights. Liberalism and conservatism are just rotations...yes? ( better than everydayness!!) Take gd care, Lauren Stacy Berdy Message: 2 Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 17:44:29 -0700 From: "janetcantor37 at yahoo.com" To: percy lists Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Message-ID: < 1444351469.90627.YahooMailAndroidMobile at web165704.mail.gq1.yahoo.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" I am glad to hear these days descriptions. It is what I have always thought but hesitated to say. ?Do you think Percy would like these definitions? Message: 3 Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 20:37:54 -0500 From: John Pearson To: percy list Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Wow. As a self-described liberal there is virtually nothing in your definition that I recognize about the definition of liberal (it frankly sounds like a definition given by a conservative, so that they can easily knock it down), and little about your definition of conservative. This is an interesting discussion, and one of the many reasons I love the work of Percy is that he is not easy to categorize, and to some extent, each reader is moved to think and in some sense can find something in his writing they connect with, even when coming from vastly disparate parts of the political spectrum. I think the list has proven this?over the years there have been plenty of conservative and plenty of liberal arguments for and interpretations of Percy?s work. This has been an interesting discussion and it?s great to see the list jump to life. Something I think Janet said about Percy not being easy made me wonder if living in the twitter age is part of why?in some circles anyway?his popularity has for the moment waned. He deals with complex ideas that cannot be easily summed up in 140 characters. (I?m not saying Yates can, so at best this is relevant to Percy?s decline). It does seem that these things often run in cycles. I also agree that part of Yates renaissance is due to the movie of Revolutionary Road, which was well done and caught the zeitgeist of the moment. There is much in Percy that is universal, and if there was ever a film made of one of his novels, I?m guessing that would boost the sales and readership of all of them. (And of course that is a cart/horse question.) In the meantime, it is wonderful to have a little corner of the internet where those who have been influenced by Percy?s work can gather and discuss. I don?t post here often, and am always thankful when I see the list spring to life. It inspires me not only to reread Percy, but to think, and to write. So thanks to all who read and post and keep the list going. Best wishes, Joh Pearson Message: 4 Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2015 03:01:46 +0000 From: "Karl M. Terrell" To: "Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion" Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Interesting comments, Michael. Thank you. I agree with your observation on the root of conservatism: "... the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it." William F. Buckley, Jr. once colorfully expressed it thusly (paraphrasing): "A conservative stands astride the horse of so-called progress, and hollers, Halt!" But I respectfully take issue with the characterization of the "root of liberalism" as lying within the "belief that there is no objective moral order." I'll comment further ... but I should, first, address this issue as it relates to our man Percy: Percy was a son of the Old South, and a beneficiary (in material terms) of an Old South patriarchy. But he came of age in one of the iterations of the so-called New South, and so identified himself (writing once, somewhere, as evidence of this, that his "earliest memories" were of a "golf course"). In short, he was of his times, and he certainly wasn't oblivious to the 'conservative vs. liberal' issues of his day (i.e., preservation of the ways of Jim Crow vs. civil rights). That said, it appears to me, this particular divide didn't interest him all that much. He did use the contretemps of the day, however, as comic fodder in Love in the Ruins, and in some of his essays (comic and otherwise). As I read these efforts by Percy, though, he endorsed neither the conservatives of his day (racists, on the whole) nor the liberals of his day (which, I think, he viewed as boats without a mooring). He was also a convert to Catholicism, certainly suggesting a conservative bent. But, I don't believe Percy adopted that particular faith with a view toward preserving, or in adoration of, "an objective moral order." The so-called "objective" standard has been concocted by man. Percy was highly suspicious of man's ability in this regard. Those more knowledgeable than me of Kierkegaard's brand of existentialism, I am sure, could add to this. As for the root of liberalism ... my understanding, for what it's worth: It is the belief that mankind, through learned experience, can improve. This belief doesn't reject or negate an "objective moral oder" (whatever that might be). Liberalism, in fact, seeks this out - and tries to take it into account - while considering also other evidence. In my humble opinion, this is what Percy was up to. Thanks for reading, Karl Montague Terrell -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com Sat Oct 10 09:20:46 2015 From: lauren.stacy.berdy at gmail.com (Lauren Stacy Berdy) Date: Sat, 10 Oct 2015 09:20:46 -0400 Subject: [percy-l] Percy-L Digest, Vol 117, Issue 8 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Dear Michael Large scale principles are particularities We are alive and limited with a given range of experience The thrust of our actions during this time has import We touch one person then another The point being that we ought not to try to declare precisely how all this happens Chance!!!!!! Is crucial unintentionally too As Piece says somewhere A nod here A touch there Words have consequences "all human affairs rest on probabilities rather than certainties" Being a liberal or conservative has consequences Symbols carry people along The thinker is the thought and Dr. Percy knew it Sent from my iPad On Oct 10, 2015, at 12:38 AM, Michael Larson wrote: > Lauren, I don't think liberalism and conservatism are rotations but are rather fundamentally different postures toward reality. It's true that someone might convert (rotate) from one to the other in the event of a sea-change in beliefs, but that would not be rotation in the Percyan sense, which, as I understand it, is caused by boredom with one's current method of reentry (thus the need to rotate to a new one). > > I think you're right, though, that Percy wasn't satisfied with simply categorizing people and then using that label as a means of pigeonholing them or, worse yet, dismissing them. > > > Janet, I never got the sense that Percy liked any categorical definitions. Which is not to say that he himself did not have any classifiable characteristics, only that he was leery of the tendency to reduce people to labels. The individual is always more complex than the set of labels that describe him--even if they are true as far as they go. > > > John, it's always tenuous (and probably unwise) to give one-sentence definitions of complex concepts like liberalism and conservatism, so there is, by nature of the concision, much elaboration, clarification, and nuance left unsaid. But I was responding to Janet's comment about Percy's having had seemingly contradictory views, some "liberal," some "conservative." My thought was that these litmus-test issues usually don't go deep enough, as a means of identifying a person's orienting beliefs, to be very useful. And that's why you can have apparent contradictions in the same man--because the surface-level litmus tests may appear to be opposed, even if the underlying convictions are not actually so. And this is what I was trying to address with my definitions: I was trying to get a level below (i.e. "the root") the knee-jerk label associations and identify the philosophical orientation that makes a person tend toward one or the other posture. > > Without belief in an objective moral order, there is little, if anything, to conserve, except individuality--that is to say, individual liberty. You could argue, I suppose, that this principle (of individual liberty) is, in fact, the objective moral code of liberalism, but that is something of an illusion, because individualism is subjective by nature, which means, among other things, that it is subject to change, depending on the influence of the age in which the individual lives; and in all ages, the will of some individuals is inevitably going to clash with that of other individuals. Out of this clash comes democracy as the liberal solution to government, whereby individual liberty is still the highest good, but conflicts are resolved by the will of the majority. And before the modern democracies came the preparatory Reformation, which was the liberal principle applied to Christendom, whereby the State would be eventually loosed from the bonds of the Church, and the individual would be eventually freed to make of his religion what he will ... as an individual. And so it has come to pass. We live in the age of the liberal principle. > > In that sense, we're all liberals. Shoot, the United States was founded on the idea, and we've taken now to exporting it, in its economic and governmental forms, for decades, so the world is being made in our image (though it doesn't always go so well with Islamic states ... or with Russia!). > > My contention that Percy was a conservative, though, is based primarily on his conversion to Catholicism in 1947. By his own admission, he accepted that, in matters of faith and morals, the Catholic Church was the arbiter of truth. To my knowledge, he never retained for himself the liberty of choice to be at variance with any of those teachings. In other words, he was not an a la carte Catholic. Such submission to what he understood to be the objective moral order of things, the true nature of things, had an obvious and lasting effect on his life and his work. He had a thing outside himself that was the object of his personal liberty, the reason for his free will. By this subtle demotion of individual freedom to the role of means rather than of end, he took the path of conservation rather than liberality. > > There's always more to be said, of course, but I've gone on too long already. Let me say, though, that I agree with your assessment of Percy's broad appeal. Seems like just about anybody who likes to think, likes Walker Percy. I thought I heard once that Tim Robbins was going to star in The Moviegoer. But that was back when he was Binx's age. Alas. > > > Karl, Thanks for your comments. Percy was, no doubt, a man living in the new South, and I think he liked to acknowledge that about himself just to make it clear, in case anybody wondered, that he did not retain any airs from having been to the manor born. And I agree that he stayed persistently clear of endorsing or identifying himself with either liberals or conservatives. An aversion to labels, I think. But one label he never avoided was that of Catholic. I would think that this is because he took it quite seriously. That is to say, I don't think he viewed the Church's teachings on faith and morals as "man's concoction." Rather, like most converts, and especially maybe those who converted before Vatican II, he saw the Catholic Church as a divine institution, though peopled by humans. > > Regarding your definition of liberalism, it sounds more like what I would call progressivism or even evolutionism. Not that those three ideas are unrelated. I think liberalism, in its elevation of individual human liberty, grows faith naturally in the collective human experience as well--the idea that we are progressing or evolving as a species. But I think this belief is a result of liberalism and not its root. My reason for thinking that liberalism, at its root, rejects an objective moral order is that it simply must do so in order to give individual liberty its elevated place. If my obligation is to adhere to something outside myself, to a truth that exists indifferent to my personal preference, then my liberty is curtailed, and the fundamental principle of liberalism is thereby undercut. > > > Best wishes all, > Mike Larson > > > _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 21:17:16 -0400 > From: Lauren Stacy Berdy > To: "Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion" > > Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative > Message-ID: <5617159C.8000808 at gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252"; Format="flowed" > > I believe that Dr. Percy had what Marcel called > " the gift of presence" > he looked at us with unblinking eyes. > He knew that we humans, including himself, were all unique messy specimens. > He sucked crayfish with Klansman ( citizen council ) and he spoke up for > integration. > we were all equally in his sights. > > Liberalism and conservatism are just rotations...yes? ( better than > everydayness!!) > > Take gd care, > Lauren Stacy Berdy > > > Message: 2 > Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 17:44:29 -0700 > From: "janetcantor37 at yahoo.com" > To: percy lists > Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative > Message-ID: > <1444351469.90627.YahooMailAndroidMobile at web165704.mail.gq1.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > I am glad to hear these days descriptions. It is what I have always thought but hesitated to say. > > ?Do you think Percy would like these definitions? > > > > Message: 3 > Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 20:37:54 -0500 > From: John Pearson > To: percy list > Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 > > Wow. As a self-described liberal there is virtually nothing in your definition that I recognize about the definition of liberal (it frankly sounds like a definition given by a conservative, so that they can easily knock it down), and little about your definition of conservative. > > This is an interesting discussion, and one of the many reasons I love the work of Percy is that he is not easy to categorize, and to some extent, each reader is moved to think and in some sense can find something in his writing they connect with, even when coming from vastly disparate parts of the political spectrum. I think the list has proven this?over the years there have been plenty of conservative and plenty of liberal arguments for and interpretations of Percy?s work. > > This has been an interesting discussion and it?s great to see the list jump to life. Something I think Janet said about Percy not being easy made me wonder if living in the twitter age is part of why?in some circles anyway?his popularity has for the moment waned. He deals with complex ideas that cannot be easily summed up in 140 characters. (I?m not saying Yates can, so at best this is relevant to Percy?s decline). It does seem that these things often run in cycles. I also agree that part of Yates renaissance is due to the movie of Revolutionary Road, which was well done and caught the zeitgeist of the moment. There is much in Percy that is universal, and if there was ever a film made of one of his novels, I?m guessing that would boost the sales and readership of all of them. (And of course that is a cart/horse question.) In the meantime, it is wonderful to have a little corner of the internet where those who have been influenced by Percy?s work can gather and discuss. > > I don?t post here often, and am always thankful when I see the list spring to life. It inspires me not only to reread Percy, but to think, and to write. So thanks to all who read and post and keep the list going. > Best wishes, > > Joh Pearson > > > Message: 4 > Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2015 03:01:46 +0000 > From: "Karl M. Terrell" > To: "Percy-L: Literary and Philosophical Discussion" > > Subject: Re: [percy-l] Percy, liberal or conservative > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > > Interesting comments, Michael. Thank you. I agree with your observation on the root of conservatism: "... the belief that there is an objective moral order and that society is best when it conserves whatever has been learned (or revealed) about that order and tries to live in harmony with it." William F. Buckley, Jr. once colorfully expressed it thusly (paraphrasing): "A conservative stands astride the horse of so-called progress, and hollers, Halt!" > > But I respectfully take issue with the characterization of the "root of liberalism" as lying within the "belief that there is no objective moral order." I'll comment further ... but I should, first, address this issue as it relates to our man Percy: > > Percy was a son of the Old South, and a beneficiary (in material terms) of an Old South patriarchy. But he came of age in one of the iterations of the so-called New South, and so identified himself (writing once, somewhere, as evidence of this, that his "earliest memories" were of a "golf course"). In short, he was of his times, and he certainly wasn't oblivious to the 'conservative vs. liberal' issues of his day (i.e., preservation of the ways of Jim Crow vs. civil rights). That said, it appears to me, this particular divide didn't interest him all that much. He did use the contretemps of the day, however, as comic fodder in Love in the Ruins, and in some of his essays (comic and otherwise). As I read these efforts by Percy, though, he endorsed neither the conservatives of his day (racists, on the whole) nor the liberals of his day (which, I think, he viewed as boats without a mooring). > > He was also a convert to Catholicism, certainly suggesting a conservative bent. But, I don't believe Percy adopted that particular faith with a view toward preserving, or in adoration of, "an objective moral order." The so-called "objective" standard has been concocted by man. Percy was highly suspicious of man's ability in this regard. Those more knowledgeable than me of Kierkegaard's brand of existentialism, I am sure, could add to this. > > As for the root of liberalism ... my understanding, for what it's worth: It is the belief that mankind, through learned experience, can improve. This belief doesn't reject or negate an "objective moral oder" (whatever that might be). Liberalism, in fact, seeks this out - and tries to take it into account - while considering also other evidence. In my humble opinion, this is what Percy was up to. > > Thanks for reading, > > Karl Montague Terrell > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From wppdirector at gmail.com Fri Oct 23 21:29:49 2015 From: wppdirector at gmail.com (Henry Mills) Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2015 21:29:49 -0400 Subject: [percy-l] Walker Percy Memorial coming to life through efforts of St. Tammany Parish Library Foundation Message-ID: <562ADF0D.80509@gmail.com> Dear Percy-L Community: Below, I hope you might enjoy these excerpts from a recent article in the /New Orleans Times-Picayune/ about the Walker Percy Memorial, soon to be unveiled at a new library in St. Tammany Parish, La. A photograph is included in the article of the bronze statue in progress of Percy that will be located in the garden (see link below). The opening of the "Walker Percy Serenity Circle" garden through the extended efforts of the St. Tammany Parish Library Foundation is most appropriate for 2016 given that the year marks the centennial of Percy's birth. Enjoy! Henry Mills Percy-L Administrator Director, The Walker Percy Project ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Walker Percy Memorial coming to life* "Bill Binnings is finishing his clay cast for a statue of author and Covington resident Walker Percy. Binnings's bronze statue of Walker Percy will grace the yard outside the new Madisonville library. The statue depicts Walker sitting on a bench with his little Welsh corgi, Sweet Thing, with room for someone to sit down with him. (Photo by Julia Kumari Drapkin, Nola.com | /The Times-Picayune/, Tuesday, May 27, 2014) Article: "The St. Tammany Library Foundation is closer to their dream of memorializing one of the most prominent American writers of the 20th century who was also a St. Tammany resident, Walker Percy... "The library organization recently completed phase one of the Walker Percy Serenity Circle at the Madisonville Branch library on Mabel Drive and phase two is on its way... "President of the organization, Ann Shaw said the serenity circle honoring Percy is the vision of the organization's past president, Dr. Argiro Morgan and supported by board members... "Benches have already been installed and the first set of pavers has been laid down. Plans are underway to add additional pavers, landscaping, signage and a life-sized bronze sculpture of Walker Percy and his faithful dog, Sweet Thing, which is being created by Bill Binnings of Waldheim...The sculpture will be in place by the ribbon cutting set for February 2016. "Shaw said the public and local businesses are invited to purchase pavers ranging in price from $125 to $250. To purchase a paver or to become a member of the foundation, contact smjonesmyers at charter.net. To learn more about the foundation, you can go to their website at http://www.sttammanylibraryfoundation.org. The full /Times-Picayune /article is located at: http://www.nola.com/community/st-tammany/index.ssf/2015/10/percy_walker_memorial_coming_t.html -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From wppdirector at gmail.com Fri Oct 23 23:20:59 2015 From: wppdirector at gmail.com (Henry Mills) Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2015 23:20:59 -0400 Subject: [percy-l] Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member Message-ID: <562AF91B.1070107@gmail.com> *Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member* At this time the Walker Percy Project would like to recognize and remember with gratitude Garic "Nikki" Barranger, who died on April 15, 2015, in Covington, La. Nikki was a close friend and neighbor of Walker and Bunt and had a longtime law practice in Covington. An active supporter of the arts, he played an instrumental role in helping the Percy Project both as an initial board member and by assisting in its incorporation as a non-profit. An author, Nikki's book, /Southern Karma/, features writings on his friendship with Walker and Bunt as well as his and Percy's involvement, in his words, of the "stormy kerfuffles" involved in their relationships with Thelma Toole over the publication of /A Confederacy of Dunces/. Those interested in information about/or purchasing /Southern Karma/ (Red Bluff Press, 2012) should contact Judy Waiz at , who we also thank for assisting the Percy Project. Speaking for all longtime members of Percy-L - - we express appreciation for his many insightful, and often wry, humorous comments offered during our community discussions. To wit, members will enjoy Nikki's /posthumous interview/ with "the late Doctor Percy through a spirit guide" about Percy's thoughts on the 1993 publication of /More Conversations with Walker Percy/, which he contributed to the online stores of the Percy Project. Nikki characterizes the piece as an "interview to end all Percy interviews." Enjoy Nikki's interview-review at: . A /New Orleans Times-Picayune/ article following Nikki's death that details his many cultural involvements in the surrounding New Orleans area is viewable at: . An extended interview with Nikki of his remembrances of Percy is printed in the collection, /Walker Percy remembered: A Portrait in the Words of Those Who Knew Him/, as compiled by David Horace Harwell (UNC Press, 2006). We thank you, Nikki, and trust you are back to having many fine, and more than spirited discussions with your old neighbors and friends Walker and Bunt somewhere beyond our present world. Henry Mills Percy-L Administrator Director, The Walker Percy Project -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kterrell at stokeswagner.com Fri Oct 23 23:58:00 2015 From: kterrell at stokeswagner.com (Karl M. Terrell) Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2015 03:58:00 +0000 Subject: [percy-l] Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member In-Reply-To: <562AF91B.1070107@gmail.com> References: <562AF91B.1070107@gmail.com> Message-ID: <5FA150B8-0189-4E19-8005-A2A27352BFEA@stokeswagner.com> I recall Mr. Barranger's response, among lofty others, to the question of why we are attracted to the words and ideas of WP. "It was the charm of the man," he said. No further elaboration. The simplicity of his comment, given his knowledge of the man, struck me as sound and true. R.I.P. Sent from my iPhone On Oct 23, 2015, at 11:21 PM, Henry Mills > wrote: Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member At this time the Walker Percy Project would like to recognize and remember with gratitude Garic "Nikki" Barranger, who died on April 15, 2015, in Covington, La. Nikki was a close friend and neighbor of Walker and Bunt and had a longtime law practice in Covington. An active supporter of the arts, he played an instrumental role in helping the Percy Project both as an initial board member and by assisting in its incorporation as a non-profit. An author, Nikki's book, Southern Karma, features writings on his friendship with Walker and Bunt as well as his and Percy's involvement, in his words, of the "stormy kerfuffles" involved in their relationships with Thelma Toole over the publication of A Confederacy of Dunces. Those interested in information about/or purchasing Southern Karma (Red Bluff Press, 2012) should contact Judy Waiz at , who we also thank for assisting the Percy Project. Speaking for all longtime members of Percy-L - - we express appreciation for his many insightful, and often wry, humorous comments offered during our community discussions. To wit, members will enjoy Nikki's posthumous interview with "the late Doctor Percy through a spirit guide" about Percy's thoughts on the 1993 publication of More Conversations with Walker Percy, which he contributed to the online stores of the Percy Project. Nikki characterizes the piece as an "interview to end all Percy interviews." Enjoy Nikki's interview-review at: . A New Orleans Times-Picayune article following Nikki's death that details his many cultural involvements in the surrounding New Orleans area is viewable at: . An extended interview with Nikki of his remembrances of Percy is printed in the collection, Walker Percy remembered: A Portrait in the Words of Those Who Knew Him, as compiled by David Horace Harwell (UNC Press, 2006). We thank you, Nikki, and trust you are back to having many fine, and more than spirited discussions with your old neighbors and friends Walker and Bunt somewhere beyond our present world. Henry Mills Percy-L Administrator Director, The Walker Percy Project * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From rhonda_mcdonnell at msn.com Sat Oct 24 12:40:04 2015 From: rhonda_mcdonnell at msn.com (RHONDA MCDONNELL) Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2015 09:40:04 -0700 Subject: [percy-l] Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member In-Reply-To: <562AF91B.1070107@gmail.com> References: <562AF91B.1070107@gmail.com> Message-ID: This is solemn news. Nikki Barranger was a kind and generous man. Although I only knew him through our discussion list, I benefitted immensely from that association. He will be missed. Rhonda Sent from my iPhone > On Oct 23, 2015, at 8:21 PM, Henry Mills wrote: > > Garic "Nikki" Barranger (1934-2015): Friend of the Percys, Author, and WPP Board Member > > At this time the Walker Percy Project would like to recognize and remember with gratitude Garic "Nikki" Barranger, who died on April 15, 2015, in Covington, La. Nikki was a close friend and neighbor of Walker and Bunt and had a longtime law practice in Covington. An active supporter of the arts, he played an instrumental role in helping the Percy Project both as an initial board member and by assisting in its incorporation as a non-profit. > > An author, Nikki's book, Southern Karma, features writings on his friendship with Walker and Bunt as well as his and Percy's involvement, in his words, of the "stormy kerfuffles" involved in their relationships with Thelma Toole over the publication of A Confederacy of Dunces. Those interested in information about/or purchasing Southern Karma (Red Bluff Press, 2012) should contact Judy Waiz at , who we also thank for assisting the Percy Project. > > Speaking for all longtime members of Percy-L - - we express appreciation for his many insightful, and often wry, humorous comments offered during our community discussions. > > To wit, members will enjoy Nikki's posthumous interview with "the late Doctor Percy through a spirit guide" about Percy's thoughts on the 1993 publication of More Conversations with Walker Percy, which he contributed to the online stores of the Percy Project. Nikki characterizes the piece as an "interview to end all Percy interviews." Enjoy Nikki's interview-review at: . > > A New Orleans Times-Picayune article following Nikki's death that details his many cultural involvements in the surrounding New Orleans area is viewable at: . > > An extended interview with Nikki of his remembrances of Percy is printed in the collection, Walker Percy remembered: A Portrait in the Words of Those Who Knew Him, as compiled by David Horace Harwell (UNC Press, 2006). > > We thank you, Nikki, and trust you are back to having many fine, and more than spirited discussions with your old neighbors and friends Walker and Bunt somewhere beyond our present world. > > Henry Mills > Percy-L Administrator > Director, The Walker Percy Project > > > * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ > > * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l > > * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org > > * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- * Percy-L Discussion Archives: http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/percy-l/ * Manage Your Membership: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/percy-l * Contact the Moderator: percy-l-owner (at) lists.ibiblio.org * Visit The Walker Percy Project: http://www.ibiblio.org/wpercy