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"I would like to open this site for conversation with women of all ages, convictions and styles of life – wherever situated on the gamut of experience. In principle, there is no bar to men joining in, since how one defines women has a lot to do with what it means to be a man. But it is women I invite to pull up a chair at this virtual café table and put their questions and views into the conversation. I can be wrong as often as right, so specific advice will be avoided. What will be sought is light on how best to frame the situation of women, considered as a highly interesting problematic. What kind of hand have we been dealt, as women, and how can we best play it?
Comments are warmly encouraged on any post at any point."
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Category Archives: Memoir
Situated in History
Situated in History This might be an unusual trait, but I am someone who has trouble knowing who she is, and what life asks of her, until she gets some clarity about her place in history. By “place in history” … Continue reading
Posted in Absurdism, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, bad faith, Bible, Biblical God, bigotry, books, Chivalry, Christianity, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Female Power, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, Gnosticism, Guilt and Innocence, Health, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Immorality, Institutional Power, Jews, Judaism, Law, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Martyrdom, Masculinity, master/slave relation, Memoir, memory, Messianic Age, Mind Control, Modern Women, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, non-violence, novels, Ontology, Oppression, Past and Future, Peace, Philosophy, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, Public Intellectual, Race, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, Romantic Love, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, Utopia, victimhood, Violence, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged alternate timeline, biblical archetype, Cain and Abel, cheap grace, Chilul HaShem, Christian forgiveness, curing racism, desecration of the name, ecological solutions, feminine dignity, forgetting wrongs, forgiveness as therapy, forgiving wrongs, global competition, God as Witness, God in history, God's feminine image, history and Jews, history as illusion, Isaiah's vision, Jewish forgiveness, Jewish identity, linear time and narrative, linear time and religion, messianic expectations, original sin, personal transformation, place in history, Plato's Republic, redemption, satyagraha, saving the planet, sibling rivalry, spiritually incurable, stains on conscience, the course of human events, the historical condition, time and Jews, wrestling with the angel
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The Soul Writ Large
The Soul Writ Large Plato wrote a dialogue on political justice. In English it’s titled The Republic. Besides Socrates, the major speakers are Plato’s two brothers. They are trying to solve a problem that’s been set up by an intruder … Continue reading
Posted in Absolute freedom and terror, Absurdism, Academe, Action, Alienation, Anthropology, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, bad faith, Bible, Biblical God, bigotry, books, Childhood, Chivalry, Christianity, Cities, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Courtship, cults, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Female Power, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Gnosticism, Guilt and Innocence, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, ID, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Institutional Power, Jews, Judaism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Masculinity, Medieval, Memoir, memory, Messianic Age, Mind Control, Modern Women, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Oppression, Past and Future, Philosophy, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, Romance, Romantic Love, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, social climbing, social construction, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, status, status of women, Suffering, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, Utopia, victimhood, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged Abigail L Rosenthal’s Confessions of a Young Philosopher, American in Paris, British attitudes to women, cultural density, cultural layers, culture and nature, Darwinian struggle, escape from history, Fulbright fellowship, gnostic belief system, masculine culture, personal as political, philosophy and the feminine, Plato, political justice, power as explanatory, power struggle, real-world problems, Socratic dialogue, soul writ large, spiritual exhaustion, street smarts, student life in Paris, study abroad, The Republic, Thrasymachus, unreal solutions, utopian delusions, women’s fears
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Two Types of Intelligence
Two Types of Intelligence We’ve been in California this past week. That’s where I go periodically for neuropathy treatments. This time, the improvements weren’t merely measurable but also experiential. For example, when we were trying to get to our connecting … Continue reading
Posted in Academe, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, Anthropology, Art, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, bad faith, beauty, Bible, Biblical God, books, Christianity, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, Faith, Femininity, Freedom, Friendship, Guilt and Innocence, Health, Heroes, hidden God, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Immortality, Jews, Judaism, Literature, Love, Male Power, Martyrdom, Masculinity, Memoir, memory, Messianic Age, Modern Women, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, Ontology, Past and Future, Philosophy, Poetry, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, Psychology, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, Romance, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged Aristotle, being known, biblical intelligence, biblical intensity, Biblical love, body confidence, consequential choices, Dallas Fort Worth Airport, Danielle Allen's Why Plato Wrote, Ecclesiastes, emotional intelligence, Gideon Bible, God and personal importance, God as Witness, love as knowing, love of wisdom, neuropathy treatments, particular and generic, personal and impersonal, personal life, philosophy, Plato's Academy, Plato's dialogues, principle of charity, reading Plato, reading the Bible, search for truth as hegemonic, Skylink elevated train, Socrates the model, Socratic method, spiritual intelligence, Stanley Rosen, The Bible and persons, The Book of Jeremiah, The Book of Proverbs, the philosophic life, truth claims masking dominance, understanding persons, walking capability, walking handicap, wheelchair handlers
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Pixels Thin and Thick
Pixels Thin and Thick On the day I got married, Jerry said to me after the ceremony, “Look in the mirror!” Puzzled, I pulled down the car mirror, looked, and said aloud, My God! I looked different. Like a photo … Continue reading
Posted in Absurdism, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, bad faith, beauty, books, Childhood, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Courtship, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Female Power, Femininity, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, Guilt and Innocence, Health, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Masculinity, Memoir, memory, Modern Women, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, novels, Ontology, Past and Future, Peace, Philosophy, Poetry, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Roles, Romance, Romantic Love, Romanticism, scientism, secular, Seduction, self-deception, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, Utopia, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged Abigail L. Rosenthal's "Confessions of a Young Philosopher", American Philosophical Association, animal ethology, animal flirting, animal friendships, being where I should be, dense presence, depressed animals, Eric Voegelin Society, familiar landmarks, father-daughter relation, feeling abandoned, feeling precarious, filial duty, filial obligation, first love, frontier of experience, haunting memory, interspecies friendship, life challenge, life problematic, life purpose resolved, life question, life themes, lifelong purposes, loneliness, orangutans, otters, painful memories, Parisian first love, personal history, pitching podcasts, Romantic memory, romantic terminus, story's end, thinning presence, unfamiliar situation, unmapped terrain, unprecedented experience, untrodden territory, VoegelinView, writing what you believe, zoo habitats
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Tales of My Mother
Tales of My Mother Only in Victorian novels do we find good women who are also universally beloved. Here, from the annals of literary memoir, is the view of my mother taken by the well-known writer, Diana Trilling. Diana was … Continue reading
Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, American Politics, Art of Living, bad faith, beauty, books, Childhood, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, Faith, Fashion, Female Power, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, ID, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Institutional Power, Jews, Journalism, Judaism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Martyrdom, Masculinity, Memoir, memory, Modern Women, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, motherhood, nineteenth-century, novels, Ontology, Oppression, Past and Future, Philosophy, Political, Political Movements, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, Romance, Romantic Love, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, Sexuality, social climbing, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theology, Time, TV, twentieth century, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged Abigail L. Rosenthal's "Confessions of a Young Philosopher", catching spies, charisma, college friendships, Diana Trililng's The Beginning of the Journey: The Marriage of Diana and Lionel Trilling, Diana Trilling, East Side superintendent, end of Cold War, enemy agent, Europeanism, fall of communism, FBI raid, female cattiness, female jealousy, good women, Holocaust rescue, intuitive women, Lionel Trilling, literary critic, literary memoir, Nazi supporter, no filter, personal presence, Polish pope, Pope John Paul II, short wave radio, snobbery, social fearlessness, Sovietologists, storied lives, taking center stage, traditional woman, U boats, understanding people, unflattering recollections, upstaging, Victorian novels, wife and mother, womanly wisdom
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Afghan Hope
Afghan Hope Phyllis Chesler is an Emerita Professor of Psychology and Women’s Studies at the City University of New York. She is a veteran of many feminist combats, has blazed trails where colleagues feared to venture, and authored many brave, … Continue reading
Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, American Politics, Art of Living, Autonomy, bad faith, beauty, bigotry, books, bureaucracy, Chivalry, Cities, Class, conformism, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Courtship, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Female Power, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Gnosticism, Guilt and Innocence, Health, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Immorality, Immortality, Institutional Power, Journalism, Law, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Martyrdom, Masculinity, master/slave relation, Memoir, memory, Mind Control, Modern Women, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, motherhood, non-violence, novels, Ontology, Oppression, Past and Future, Peace, Philosophy, Political Movements, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, radicalism, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, Romance, Romantic Love, Romanticism, scientism, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, Sexuality, slave, social climbing, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, terrorism, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist
Tagged Afghan wife, bohemian lovers, courtship, delusions of courtship, feminine action, feminist books, feminist combats, feminist heroes, feminist legal team, first love, first love's legacy, first love's significance, Holocaust rescue, honor killing experts, human rights, immortal politician, life-imprinting romance, losing one's rights, love transformed, Phyllis Chesler, Phyllis Chesler's An American Bride in Kabul, rescuing Afghan women, rescuing persecuted women, romantic courage, romantic trap, sex slavery activists, taking romance seriously, Taliban targets, the eternal feminine, trail blazing, welcome to Kabul, womanly victory, women without rights, young love, young sophisticates
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"Dear Abbie: The Non-Advice Column" 
Christians, Jews, and The Great Rift
Christians, Jews, and The Great Rift I prefer to think of that world-historical-fault-line as a long, reparable misunderstanding. Whether or not that’s the right view, personally I want to patch it up. Yet I recall a Jewish scholar, speaking at … Continue reading →