I would say that this year there has been a big improvement in my writing technique, both from the point of view of gaming material and from the point of view of academic writing. An improvement that hasn't been without its retrograde moments - my Kim essay for example - but which has sharpened my writing focus and technique immeasurably; perhaps ( Read more... )

My approved topic is Shakespeare's use of combat (either duels or battles) as a means for exploring character, particular the character of a statesman. A topic suggested by numerous discussions with panda_pitt essentially, and discussed a few times in relationship with other cinematic and literary works ( Read more... )

Troilus and Cressida is Shakespeare's perspective on the Trojan War, not so much from Homer, but from Chaucer, whose source was apparently Italian ( Read more... )

Recently I bought a third translation of Homer: the translation by Alexander Pope. It, alas, lacks the famous preface where he decried the Odyssey as unworthy of translation. You see, he loved the Iliad, and only translated the second work because of financial reasons. Pope was one of the very first commercially successful writers: he supported ( Read more... )