Friday, January 25, 2019

More wisdom for Barrett Browning...

25 January 2019:

"For say a foolish thing but oft enough,
(And here’s the secret of a hundred creeds,—
Men get opinions as boys learn to spell,
By re-iteration chiefly) the same thing
Shall pass at last for absolutely wise,
And not with fools exclusively." --Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Aurora Leigh

In class yesterday, I said this current moment--as sad, fraught, and frustrating as it is--is such great time to be teaching two upper-division classes on nineteenth-century literature. Each day, each class, reveals some "everything old is new again" insight. The selection of Aurora Leigh quoted above is no exception.

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