Articles by Jerome Shea
Jerome Shea is an emeritus professor of English at the University of New Mexico, where he still teaches his classical tropes course every fall and his prose style course every spring. He has been the Weekend Wonk since January of 2007. His email is shea@macinstruct.com.
Stuff & Such
July 7, 2009
Yes, a grab bag in which will squirm Sonia Sotomayor, some medieval theologians, PBS folks, and anything else that strikes my fancy. My local public television station is having yet another pledge drive. I hate those things with a hatred that should be reserved for serial killers. And I don’t really know why. Clearly, the “pledge breaks,” groaning on interminably, would tax the patience of a saint (gee, what could be more exciting than watching a phone bank while some fidgety guy assaults us with banalities).
J. Laurence Shea, 1907-1966
June 20, 2009
On this Father’s Day I am taking the liberty of reprinting an essay that I wrote for Century magazine more than 20 years ago. This is for you, Pop, one more time. It’s three a.m. and I’m up for the second time. Now, at least, I have figured out why. Yesterday my six-year-old son, anticipating donuts, reminded his mother that Father’s Day was getting closer. My father, long dead, keeps me awake.
Reigning Cats and Dogs
June 8, 2009
Chuppie gave us a scare this week. He disappeared for a couple of days and reappeared much the worse for wear. More on Chup in a bit, but that’s what got me thinking about our pets. And we’ve had a slew of them over the years. I will have to skip over all the guinea pigs, the tarantula (ugh), Dan’s horned toad, the parakeets (“What made you think I’d want parakeets, Dad?
Zamani Revisited
May 30, 2009
Well, I thought that Sasa and Zamani, this hobby horse I’ve been riding, was finally going to become Sasa. Then I heard from Joe, my old friend and trusty correspondent from Colorado. So he gets the credit (or the blame) for this one last look. Sasa is a concept we can warm to; Zamani, though, is troublesome. Last week I noted that James Loewen (Lies My Teacher Told Me) applies the Sasa and Zamani concepts to historical events, not just people: the Vietnam War is Sasa for many of us, while the War of 1812 is definitely Zamani.
Potholes on Memory Lane
May 11, 2009
James Loewen’s point about Sasa and Zamani actually has to do with events, not people. Like people, history begins “live,” exists for a time as Sasa, and eventually becomes Zamani. A simple rule of thumb: what you are still seeing on the six o’clock news is “live” history. The auto company bailouts are still happening. A couple of years from now, when Chrysler dealers are selling Fiats and when GM is limping along hawking Cadillacs, Buicks, and Chevrolets—when, in short, the bailouts are a thing of the past (a telling phrase)—then they will be Sasa, past events that millions of people will be alive to remember (and argue about).
The Grace of Memory
May 4, 2009
James Loewen wrought more than he knew when he picked up the idea of Sasa and Zamani from John Mbiti’s treatise.* For one thing, it caused a flurry on Google. Yes, there is a helpful Wikipedia entry for it, especially helpful because it directs you to Mbiti’s book, which, lo and behold, was available at the UNM library. Then an old friend emailed me the other morning to steer me to a wonderful recent novel, Kevin Brockmeier’s The Brief History of the Dead.
Sasa and Zamani
April 24, 2009
In his very commendable Lies My Teacher Told Me, James W. Loewen gives new life to the Swahili terms “Sasa” (“Sasha,” for Loewen) and “Zamani.” We will get back to Loewen presently, but first let me try my best to explain the terms. I warn you that my best may not be good enough, because Sasa and Zamani represent highly sophisticated African notions of time, religion, and philosophy. The best source for these terms, and Loewen gives due credit, is John Mbiti’s African Religions and Philosophy, first published in 1970.
Traveling with Rhoda
April 19, 2009
Recently, just in time for our trip to Taos and then our trip to El Paso, Diana bought a GPS (Global Positioning System), an electronic device for getting you from point A to point B with the least fuss, the best mileage, or something. Satellites are involved, that much I know, causing road maps to pop up on a little screen that you suction-cup to your windshield, a screen that also displays your speed and computes your time of arrival.
The Voice of the Turtle
April 11, 2009
Spring and Easter have come ‘round again, and good on that. Easter, of course, is the culmination of the Christian calendar, its most important feast, much more important than Christmas. Christmas gets the ball inexorably rolling but it is with Easter, with Christ’s resurrection from the dead, that a Christian can crow, “See, we TOLD you he was the Son of God!” What is also appropriate about Easter, which really did occur in the spring as far as we know, is that Christ’s resurrection becomes the ultimate symbol of renewal, of death and rebirth, of new life.
Sailing the Mesa
April 5, 2009
Last week, Diana and I and our daughter and her family spent two nights up in Taos, New Mexico, in an “earthship.” I knew immediately that I had to wonk the experience. “What is an earthship?” you ask. It is a habitat that aims to be entirely “off the grid.” This means a house heated by the sun and cooled by the earth. A house which collects all the water you need from rain and snowmelt.