28 20 5655 https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/71431a350db1d6b5e281f3a599687067.pdf 855ad6fb3b8e3eb940fc0f8b7f112225 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -%.(&&(/%&"%0+12(&&%345#*6'*)7%8%9: ;)&(/<*($%$*&'%=/>%.*)12%%8%9? -))+@"#*6%A"(6%B(&/"%8%9C% -#4D)*%3/"E*#(,%F+1%0"#GD+)%8%H9% !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$!,4"#$8/3$8098$.$2&+#$;;;52$.$5!!<,$0= !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Reza Djalal �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in Room 109 on the first lower level of the BBC. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Will Brown • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Jonathan Barone • Intern Contributors Montgomery Alcott Leslie Howard Gordon Greer Painter Bob Miles Steinert !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- P lease note that this week’s issue includes not only our usual supply of superior reflection and provocation, but also details about Homecoming 2012, which will take place this weekend, September 28-30. Mark for your calendars the career conversations with Mr. Jac Holzman and Mr. Michael Crawford, as well as the variety of other opportunities for students to participate in Homecoming festivities. We are excited to report that we will distribute a special Homecoming issue of the Gadfly this weekend. We hope you enjoy the special contributions. Afterward, we will be enjoying some well-deserved R&R. The next Gadfly will appear October 16. ! T o Whom It May Concern: Hackett Publishing Group, I am judging your books by their covers. I’m not sorry. So last year, I was perusing the St. John’s College library in search of a copy of Sophocles’ Oedipus Cycle. I found one translated by Peter Meineck; I was familiar with this guy’s name because one year for Christmas, my parents gave me an audiobook lecture series by Meineck about Greek mythology. So I figured his translation of Sophocles would be an okay one to get. But then I took a look at the cover. Why oh why, might I ask, is there a picture of President John F. Kennedy on my Oedipus? Did JFK marry his mother and stab his eyes out? I’m pretty sure he didn’t. The only sort-of connection I could venture to draw is that of a family curse. But that is distasteful, Hackett Publishing Group, simply distasteful. And not a witty enough reference to merit JFK on the cover. Do you think you’re clever or something? But it’s not just the Oedipus plays to whom you’ve rendered this strange injustice. Look at this: • Sophocles, Four Tragedies (Ajax, Women of Trachis, Electra, Philoctetes): Korean War Memorial. • Aeschylus, Euripides, Sophocles, The Electra Plays: Frida Kahlo. • Aeschylus, Oresteia: Some sort of parade involving an American flag. • Euripides, Alcestis, Medea, Hippolytus: some bizarre picture called “Fires #1” by someone named Diana Michener involving CHILDREN ON FIRE. FIRE. • Euripides, Bacchae: ELVIS? The only cover I found that makes a slight bit of sense is the one for Oedipus Tyrannus (on its own, not part of the Cycle). It’s a picture of a baby on top of what looks like another picture of a shadow of a man. I mean, I guess it makes sense, but it’s such an awful PhotoShop sort of thing. I mean, at least whoever publishes the Grene and Lattimore translations chooses relevant cover pictures. The Oresteia? A painting of oh god AGAMEMNON. None of this parade nonsense. Also, the Meineck translation of Sophocles just isn’t that good. There are, at least, better ones out there. It’s not really helping me at all in my language class as I translate Antigone. However, I did appreciate the use of the word “fuck” in Oedipus Tyrannus (something along the lines of “your father fucked his mother”). But really, do you think either Oedipus or John F. Kennedy would appreciate what you’ve done with this? Did you think about that? HM? Sincerely and perplexedly, Sarah Meggison St. John’s College, Class of 2015 << 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com !"#$%&"#'&((&)#(*# +,-.&((#/0123453"6#7)*0% !"#!"$"%&$'(#)*"+",(( I would like to give a shout-out and thank you to Louis Pisha, for his wonderful piano-playing during dinners. Nothing quite beats coming into dinner on Friday evenings and hearing the rapturous tones flow through the dining hall. It creates a truly wonderful and relaxing atmosphere, and I know that I do not just speak for myself in voicing my appreciation. ! �The Gadfly 03 !" !"#$%&!$' !"#$%&%#'#()* Mr. Matthew Linck How did you come to be a tutor at St. John’s? The short answer is that I applied and was fortunate enough to be interviewed and appointed to the faculty. I was attracted to teaching at St. John’s for a number of reasons. The main focus of my work during my last few years of graduate school was on Plato, and I had come to have a great deal of regard for work on Plato that had come out of St. John’s—Jacob’s Klein’s book on the Meno, Eva Brann’s essay on the Republic, and the translations produced by Ms. Brann, Mr. Kalkavage, and Mr. Salem. I had also begun to study the relationships between philosophy and science in the 16th and 17th centuries and was excited about the possibility of working on difficult books like Newton’s Principia. Most especially, perhaps, I was attracted to being able to spend my time in small groups talking about books. What classes are you teaching this year? Sophomore language (for the first time), junior math, and junior seminar. I am leading a preceptorial on Kant’s Critique of Judgment. What was the biggest adventure you’ve ever had? Living in New York City for sixteen years. It felt like one long adventure. What is the single most important piece of advice you would like to give to freshmen (or upperclassmen)? I don’t know if this is advice, but I think all of us should walk into every class expecting—hoping—to encounter something new and interesting. What is your favorite seminar book and why? The judicious answer is that it depends on what I’m doing at the time, that favorites are fugitive. The simple answer is the Iliad. It is the deepest and most beautiful book I know. What is your least favorite seminar book and why? I had a hard time getting through Locke’s Second Treatise of Government when we read it in junior seminar two years ago. I’ll try to go at it with an open mind when reading it again this year. What is your favorite non-Program book and why? There are a bunch of philosophy books on the margins of the program that are favorites: Plato’s Protagoras and Charmides, Kant’s Critique of Judgment, Hegel’s Science of Logic, and Heidegger’s Being and Time, to name a few. I have a taste for 20th century novelists: Kafka, Thomas Mann, Pynchon. Lately, I have been reading post-war American poetry and have developed a real interest in the poetry of John Ashbery. What is your biggest pet peeve (that students do) in class? Not listening to other students. (Although this rises above being just a peeve, I think.) What is your favorite St. John’s tradition and why? I don’t know that I’ve been around long enough to have a good answer for this, but if hanging around the Coffee Shop and talking to people about our work is a tradition, then I’ll say that. What is your favorite class to be a tutor for and why? The one where we get confused about something and then maybe figure it out. ! �The Gadfly 04 !"#$"#%&'()&*+'),-'(.&/)#')0 Leslie Howard I A’15 ’ve decided to write this in the fierceness of my displea- way back to your room and go onto the Student Health Portal, sure, rather than allow it time to settle into mild irritation. the College’s first feeble step into modernity. After filling in I would like to address the current state of the health system the proper search information, you find six appointment slots here—and not just the Health Center, although that is certain- open before the weekend—all of which conveniently coincide ly one of my major complaints. with your classes. You could go to back during the walk-in Imagine this scenario: You’re going through the day, mind- hours on a different day, unless you still can’t get in because ing your own business, when suddenly you notice a rash crawl- of all the other students waiting, like you, for a walk-in aping up your back. It’s horrible. Unbearable. Perhaps some kind pointment (and then you don’t get an appointment and you of bite or allergic reaction, but you really just don’t know. You miss lunch); or, of course, if it’s already Friday afternoon. In go to your dorm building to look for some hydrocortisone that case, you can look forward to enjoying a nice comfortable cream in the first aid box your RA has weekend scratching furrows into your graciously placed by the hall phone… back. Why not have one [nurse] cover or has she? Unsuccessful, you go to the You’re a college student. There’s a scheduled appointments, while next dorm building with the same end good chance that you’re too poor to in mind. This hall does have a first aid the other takes walk-ins, thereby run to the pharmacy or go to a real box. But what’s this? Condoms, and doctor, especially since it’s been alallowing those of us who don’t condoms alone (and maybe—just maymost two full weeks since your last plan our illnesses to have a fair be—a few packets of Ibuprofen). After work-study paycheck, and clearly noshot at getting medical attention? body on this campus is going to help investigating several other halls, the Switchboard office, and Public Safety you, except to deter you from having in search of relief, you decide the next best course of action unprotected sex. So, what do you do? is to go down to the Health Center, because, let’s face it, your Out of the many ways to rectify this situation, I thought I back itches a lot. You walk in, thrilled to see the waiting room should at least mention one possible solution. There are two empty. You peer into the hallway to find that all the nurses’ nurses who are more or less always on duty when the Health doors are shut, so you stand for a while…sit for a while...all the Center is open. Why not have one cover scheduled appointwhile listening to blaring instrumentals from the boombox ments, while the other takes walk-ins, thereby allowing those on the coffee table. Naturally supposing the nurses to be busy of us who don’t plan our illnesses to have a fair shot at getwith other students (although you haven’t heard a sound com- ting medical attention? Also, I’m not insinuating that we ing from any of the doors this whole time), you look around should have fewer condoms on campus—Lord knows we need the room to see if there’s a first aid kit open for Polity use; and, them—but perhaps the first aid kits could include some other lo and behold, another box of condoms. supplies useful to the poor college student, such as antibiotic Exasperated, you leave. As you close the Health Center door, cream, Benadryl, and maybe even some band-aids. you notice a sign on the glass with the walk-in hours. Perfect, Like I said, this was written with a hot temper. I’m sure evyou think, I’ll just come back then! But wait. It’s already after eryone is doing the best they can, and this is all just a big mis12:30. You’ll have to make an appointment. You scratch your understanding. ! “ !"#$"%&'(&)&*** ! Painter Bob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�The Gadfly 05 A Reply to Mr. Malka’s “Jobs, Jobs, Jobs...” Gordon Greer P A’13 &''()!*'+,))-.(/0+1-&23- icking up last week’s Gadfly, I was pleasantly surprised and more lucrative areas. Perhaps the strongest example of to find Mr. Malka’s article on the economy and a concern this is the rapid expansion over the past thirty years of serover the effects of globalization. It is a topic not commonly vices as a share of the total nominal Consumer Price Index approached in the Johnnie bubble, though its effects on the (CPI). A more familiar example is in how the worker is viewed world are staggering. I would like to discuss some aspects of as representative of national labor throughout the history of the world marketplace from my perspective. the United States. By turns he is the agrarian farmer, the facThe transnational corporation (TNC) is indeed a curious tory wage laborer, the owner of a mom-and-pop shop, and creature. As Mr. Malka points out, it is a corporation more now, perhaps, the broker of information. Globalization has dislocated from a single location than perhaps any other in done nothing more than rapidly accelerate an already occurhistory. It has the ability to move its factories to areas where ring economic tendency; this necessitates that we elevate our conditions are most beneficial to its business model. For TNCs national edge from material goods into services at an even whose focus is based upon the extraction of natural resources faster pace. This agitated metamorphosis has not hindered job and raw manufacturing, this often leads them to less devel- creation. If anything, it has increased our employment numoped countries, as labor costs bers at a fantastic rate, though are cheaper there than in the the percentages may seem developed world. less impressive in relationship This often has beneficial to population growth. The consequences for the coungraph in the center of the page tries invested in. The glut of shows payroll data from the aggregated capital deposited beginning of 1992 to the most by these TNCs, as Mr. Malka recent available information. notes, creates a rise in wag(I have chosen to begin meaes, prices, and quality of livsuring this series from 1992 ing. Without this investment, because of its relationship to these countries often remain free trade, i.e., the fall of the !"#$% in stagnant positions. This rise Iron Curtain.) Recession from 2007Q3 – 2009Q2 in development consequently This does not mean that the Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics causes TNCs to reinvest their process of developing newer capital in even less developed comparative advantages is countries, in what may be considered a race to the bottom. Over painless. For the more traditional jobs discussed above, Steve the past twenty-five years or so, such development has raised Jobs is correct. “These jobs aren’t coming back.” These workthe economic standard of living across Less Developed Coun- ers scramble to find new jobs as their old ones become outtries (LDCs) as the stimulus of foreign investment has turned dated. But this has always been a process of capitalism. Inthem into the economic powerhouses of emerging markets novation requires new ideas to take root by displacing old (BRIC, the Asian tigers, etc.) All of these are facts resultant standards. of the world getting flatter. (But not completely flat, I think. I It can be tempting to put the economy on a leash. Someprefer Mr. Smick’s views to Thomas Friedman’s; cf. 2008’s The times such action is necessary. But to do so with respect to World Is Curved.) So much for the developing world. But what individual jobs, rather than the total number of jobs is to put of developed countries such as the United States? Does this single trees before the forest. It will do more harm than help cause us to lose our livelihoods against incomparable compe- in the bigger picture, whatever the intentions are. We all know tition? Are we the losers in a global zero-sum game? I fail to what the road to Hell is paved with. It is in the nature of the hold the pessimism Mr. Malka seems to feel. economy both to be dynamic and to bite back when threatLet me explain. The race to the bottom of the less developed ened. world involves traditional professions, such as agricultural poThis is especially true regarding threats of tariffs. Let me sitions and the trade of raw materials. The output of these jobs give an example. In the 1980s, fear of Japanese competition is the cornerstone of the world economy, upon which more led the US to place tariffs on Japanese exported goods. This highly processed durables and nondurables are produced. caused Japan to retaliate with its own restrictions, causing a Mining is such a profession, and according to the logic of glo- good deal of harm to both economies, as the demand side fell balization, Australian workers would indeed feel hard pressed off sharply to both countries’ supplies. to compete with African workers over time. Thanks to globalThe economy is not a fixed mechanism you can put a lever on ization, such countries have entire economies dedicated to and expect to have benefit everyone. Under capitalism, it is an their comparative advantage in this and other such sectors, in evolutionary entity, a dynamic environment where elements’ order to attract international capital. competitive struggles for existence allow for a diversity and Such jobs are not the only ones available, however. The rel- richness no organizing telos could ever provide. Government egation of such jobs to specific markets gives a comparative certainly has its place. It has an unquestionably important role advantage and allows for greater efficiency of production. It in education and security. In regards to business, however, it also allows countries such as the United States to move their is best for it to serve as the handmaiden to the transformative own comparative advantage from traditional jobs to newer power of the markets. ! �The Gadfly 06 !""#$%&'()*%+(),+-.%)#-)/#0123"455),+6%.7( Miles Steinert & Montgomery Alcott C A’16 an you remember the last time you exchanged money Chain; and there were plenty of recent releases—The XX, Barfor art? Music is probably the most common art form we oness, Grizzly Bear—and a number of artists we didn’t recogbuy—except perhaps literature, especially around here—and nize. In the back of the store was a collection of used and rare nowadays the purchase often happens digitally. What are the records, ranging from jazz to blues to Sonic Youth. “terms and conditions” of this new exAfter much contemplation, we change? After a relatively quick look, brought our selected records to the Is the experience of art differyou will probably find that what you are counter: I walked in thinking I was ent for a person downloading buying is not the art itself—not a hard going to buy a Radiohead record, but it, particularly for free? When copy of that music—but, instead, the walked out with Daft Punk’s Discovery you no longer have to sacrifice and Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures. right to observe the art personally. to obtain the art, you will no That latter form is embodied by Monty picked up Grizzly Bear’s VeckaiTunes, and I think of that when I walk doubt appreciate its value less. timest and Vampire Weekend’s self-tiinto a record store. Undeniably, I was tled debut LP, each an indie rock classic pushed into the scene of buying records—that is, “old-fash- in its own right. At the counter we got to chatting with store ioned” vinyl—by the retro-pop-culture that has emerged over owner Matt Mona. the last decade. A record shop is exhilarating—and, of course, Reflecting on his childhood home filled with records, Mona tinged with heartache: I flip sleeve after sleeve that I recog- values the unique feel of vinyl in hand when one first opens a nize and would love to own, but the price tag is always more recently purchased record. Downloading music online creates than 99 cents a song. That is not something I am used to. I no tactile experience. He remembers the details of his personhave always been given music by my parents, or downloaded al record purchases, but not the details of zip files. In Decemit—yes, for free, online, illegally. But pardon that for a moment. ber 2010, having already started the business online, Mona Is the experience of art different for a person downloading opened up Ka-Chunk!! Records at 78 Maryland Avenue, with it, particularly for free? When you no longer have to sacrifice hopes of creating the same community around his own store to obtain the art, you will no doubt appreciate its value less. that he fondly recalls from previous employment at other reSure, you’ll download albums and songs cord stores. He hopes to bring some new with great artistry and musical skill, but ambience to Annapolis. There isn’t much in the way consider: How many iTunes songs do you “There are too many antique shops,” own that you don’t even particularly like? of a music scene in Annapo- he says, “and Baltimore and D.C. tend to They just fill digital space. lis, but Mona points out that attract most of the youth culture.” To realize the personal value of albums, There isn’t much in the way of a munational acts have recently one must simply walk into a record store. sic scene in Annapolis, but Mona points made their way to the Met- out that national acts have recently made This past Wednesday my roommate ropolitan on West Street. and I walked down Maryland Avenue to a their way to the Metropolitan on West record shop we had heard about via wordStreet. of-mouth: Ka-Chunk!! Records. I noticed immediately an Ka-Chunk!! is only a block-and-a-half away from the Colimpressive variety: post-rock artists, such as Godspeed You! lege. Stop by! Meet people, talk about music, network, and alBlack Emperor and Explosions in the Sky; ‘90s rock, such as low yourself to discover the value of vinyl. If you don’t have a the White Stripes; some punk, from classic Clash to recent al- record player, then ask someone who owns one why they like bums from the hardcore band Negative Approach; shoegaze (a it, get your own, and buy some records from Matt. Or just go to late-80s UK rock scene) and its derivatives were represented enjoy the atmosphere of the store, and watch Annapolis start by bands with names such as Yuck and The Jesus and Mary to get more interesting. ! “ “ �The Gadfly 07 Examining the Bible: A sophomore’s perspective on the Bible as a Great Book I Wyatt Hope A’15 , of course, can only speak from my experience in my own not reach any sort of truth from a book while actively avoiding seminar, but, after listening to my peers, I believe that there confrontation. We must challenge the book, whatever book it is a problem before us sophomores that spreads far beyond may be, face to face in dialectical examination if we are going one seminar, and something needs to be said. to understand it as best we can. Last Monday night we spent a great majority of our time disSo what is holding you back? Are you afraid of offending cussing Jonah, a famous story of a mere four chapters. Amos, your friends? They came here to have their faith shaken, as did which shows God as an emotional character in a way we we all, whether that faith be religious or not. Were you raised haven’t seen before, was steered away from—perhaps because to believe that this book is the true word of God? Put aside it shows God as more wrathful than ever before. Isaiah, which your faith for four hours a week, for conversation’s sake, and provides us substantial insight into what drives God, was have a reasonable discussion about this book as a book. avoided —probably due to the verses suggesting that God takes As Nathan Goldman remarked in his article “The Good responsibility for evil. Instead we flocked to the bedtime story, Book” in the first issue of the Gadfly this year, the Bible is unthe feel-good family adventure that is like any other book on the Program. Jonah. It is easy to talk about the time But that does not mean we should Rather than question [the God spared the Ninevites, but Amos’ treat it as such. The Bible is not on Bible], we rationalize it. Rather prophecy of destruction is thought too the Program because it gave rise to than criticize the parts that heavy a topic for seminar. the world’s largest religion; it is on the In freshman year we read Plato, Program despite that. To put it another don’t make sense to us at first, Sophocles, and Aristotle, and we hack way, the Bible is a Great Book for the we attempt to reconcile them them to pieces. We question every nosame reasons that people looked to it under the assumption that the tion and examine each word. We discuss, for guidance many years ago. But the argue, and speculate our way through so book must be wholly consistent. reasons to read this book are more funthat we may get to the heart of the book. damental than the influence of JudaDiscussing Homer’s works last year, we were quick to judge ism and Christianity. The point is that the Bible stands strong Zeus and Ares. But our approach to the Bible is far different. as a Great Book even when it is separated from its reputation Rather than question the book, we rationalize it. Rather than as the word of God. To let our preconceptions get in the way of criticize the parts that don’t make sense to us at first, we at- our examination of the Great Book, to refrain from questiontempt to reconcile them under the assumption that the book ing it for fear of offending someone, is to do a terrible dissermust be wholly consistent. We restrain ourselves from asking vice to our education and to the Book itself. the questions most immediately before us, and it makes for a Next month we come back to the Bible with the Gospel Matweak discussion. thew. I hope we all set aside our prejudices and talk about it This is not to say that a Bible-bashing seminar would get us the way Johnnies talk about books, because it is hard to find anywhere; in fact, that is the last thing I want. But one can- that anywhere else. ! “ �The Gadfly 08 Ian Tuttle “A A’14 nother day older and deeper in debt.” So goes a line shackled future generations, not just to the vexing question of from the song “Sixteen Tons,” first recorded by country how to diminish America’s debt, but to the consequences of singer Merle Travis in 1946 before becoming a number-one fiscal insolvency. hit when covered by Tennessee Ernie Ford nine years later. Europe’s economic woes are instructive. Do you have an Having had occasion recently to celebrate a birthday, I’m entrepreneurial idea in the Slough of Despond that is presentnot unfamiliar with the feeling. Don’t misunderstand me—I day Greece? Then the best thing you can do, as author Mark won’t demur from an opportunity for cake—but when it Steyn says, is get out of Greece. The country’s fiscal burdens, comes to debt, I’m not just deeper in it; I’m positively drown- combined with the unwillingness of its people and its leaders ing. to confront the problem in any substantive way, means that But, since it makes me feel better, I’ll add: So are you. It anyone with the ability to flee is exercising that option. The doesn’t matter if you pay taxes or are in the workforce or are older generations of Greeks pillaged future generations for of voting age. If you are alive in the United States, you owe their own welfare, and now those generations have no future. $51,093.64. That’s because the country’s That’s not just an economic problem; outstanding public debt is, as of this writthat’s a moral problem. It’s massive, unAmerica has the world’s ing, $16.02 trillion in debt. By the time you precedented intergenerational theft. worst case of oniomania: read this, that debt will have increased by The rose-colored fantasy of the modshopaholism. And a large ern welfare state was that the governanother $15.4 billion. portion of the country has ment could forever guarantee the health Worried yet? Cheer up. It gets worse. America’s $16 trillion-dollar debt is for a comorbid case of denial. and relative comfort of the aged, the poor, items already on its credit cards, and that and the sick. But forever turns out to have figure long ago surpassed the country’s Gross Domestic Prod- been, in our case, about 80 years—if you start with FDR; start uct (GDP), i.e., the United States now owes more money than with LBJ’s Great Society, and we barely made it 50. it makes in one year. But that is merely the debt we have alThe setup of the welfare state is such that its current benready accrued; it does not include the purchases the govern- eficiaries depend upon anticipated future generations. Which ment has promised to make. I’ve quoted before columnist is a swell system, until demographics and other circumstancKevin Williamson’s piece in the January 2012 issue of The es get in the way—as they are doing now, when there are not New Criterion, but it’s worth quoting again. Williamson cal- enough downy babes in the most recent generations to afford culates that we have between $130 and $140 trillion in “un- the high-hog living of the older generations, particularly the funded liabilities”—promises we’ve made but for which we Baby Boomers, who happen to be the largest generation in haven’t yet swiped our plastic—and his number is lowballing human history. The solution has been to take out the world’s it. Want to put that number in perspective? Williamson says: largest line of credit and pass the buck. Thus every new American is born into $51,000 of debt. That figure is, literally, more than all the money in the America has the world’s worst case of oniomania: shopaworld—more than every piece of currency in any denomi- holism. And a large portion of the country has a comorbid nation issued by any government, along with all of the mon- case of denial. ey in the world’s checking and savings accounts, certificates It’s not evident that November’s election will change that. of deposit, money-market funds, and other forms of ready We need a winch to tighten our belts enough to slow (let alone money. About twice that, in fact. It is more than twice the solve) this problem, and we have for so long been accustomed annual economic output of human civilization. to shopping till we drop that we may have lost altogether the required capacity for self-restraint. But we owe it to the comSoak that in. ing generations to try. It is not just about getting our financial The chief drivers of unfunded liabilities? Social Security, house in order. It is about ensuring that those who come after Medicare, and Medicaid. So in the spirit of bipartisanship, 29 us have as much of an opportunity as we have had to live free, Senate Democrats signed a letter last Friday vowing “that we prosperous lives. will oppose including Social Security cuts for future or current beneficiaries in any deficit reduction package,” i.e., We As noted in this week’s letter from the editors, the Gadfly can work on our debt problem—as long as we don’t mess with will be on hiatus until mid-October, which means that we the programs causing it. Good luck with that. will likely not print until much absentee voting is already unThe second part of the chorus of “16 Tons” goes “Saint der way, and many states’ voter registration deadlines have Peter don’t you call me ‘cause I can’t go / I owe my soul to passed. This year’s election, whichever side you favor, will be the company store.” Replace “company store” with “federal a defining moment for our country. I encourage you to visit government” and you have the situation of every American, http://www.stjohnscollege.edu/admin/AN/registrar_voting. especially the young. We frequently talk of having “saddled” shtml for information about how to register to vote and enfuture generations with debt—but that language is soft. We’ve sure that you can cast your ballot. ! “ �The Gadfly 09 The Restaurants of Annapolis An average Johnnie’s advice for eating in Downtown Annapolis Kevin Morris T A’14 he Randall Dining Hall is always able to provide hot meals to hungry Johnnies, but even those of us on the 21-a-week meal plan like to eat off-campus every once in a while. For freshmen interested in some of the local restaurants, here are some Johnnie favorites: ends, I have never been made to wait for a table in all the time I’ve been going there. They are open until ten o’clock at night Monday through Thursday and until eleven Friday and Saturday. The people working there are incredibly friendly, and the food is spectacular. Chick and Ruth’s Delly 165 Main Street An essential part of the downtown Annapolis experience is a hot meal at Chick and Ruth’s Delly. Its bright orange exterior is nearly impossible to miss when walking down Main Street, and anyone who goes to school is this town should go in at least once. One will notice the menu on the wall, which has several sandwiches named after the politicians who have eaten there and ordered their signature subs. Martin O’Malley, Bob Ehrlich, Barbara Mikulski, Anthony Brown, Ben Cardin, E. J. Pipkin, and many other Maryland politicians have special sandwiches named after them. Along the walls, customers will notice enormous glasses, which are used to hold their famous “colossal milkshakes,” which are part of a challenge undertaken on the television show Man vs. Food. Another perk: they’re open late. Ordering a pastrami sandwich and a cookies ‘n cream malt is a great way to celebrate a successful seminar Monday and Thursday nights. I will point out that it can be quite crowded. It is not the ideal venue for those seeking a quiet meal, but it is a place to experience the Annapolis community, talk to friendly people, and eat good sandwiches. They’re open early, so you can grab a quick breakfast and say the Pledge of Allegiance (which they do every morning), and they’re open late if you in the mood for some late night snacking. Sofi’s Crepes 1 Craig Street Leave campus and head down Prince George Street. Near the docks, there is a nice little restaurant called Sofi’s Crepes. As the name suggests, they specialize in making crepes, which they do at a good price. Sofi’s Crepes, unlike the previous two restaurants, is rather small and has seating outside. Customers order inside and can watch as their food is prepared. I found it amusing to see jars of Nutella, which I was happy to eat Friday night as part of my “nutty banana” crepe, stacked behind the counter. The price is fair (I paid about five dollars for the crepe I had), and they are able to serve crepes throughout the day. Eat at Sofi’s Crepes if you’re looking for a good breakfast or a light dinner at a low price. Sakura Cafe 105 Main Street Further down on Main Street, closer to the docks, you will find a nice little Asian restaurant call Sakura Cafe. Since its opening in 2010, Sakura Cafe has been serving delicious Asian food to Johnnies, Middies, and townies at a reasonable price. Particularly noteworthy is their sushi, which is made behind the counter and served with a smile. I speak so highly of this restaurant, because it is, quite simply, my favorite restaurant in downtown Annapolis. My friend Brady, who has a particular fondness for sushi, can’t visit me in Annapolis without stopping by Sakura for a roll. Though I praise them for their sushi, they have a variety of foods from Japanese to Chinese to Thai to Mexican to American. Though it can be crowded around dinner time on week- Moe’s Southwest Grill 122 Dock Street When I came to St. John’s, one of the things that I missed was eating frequently at Chipotle. I was pleasantly surprised to find a similar restaurant right here in downtown Annapolis called Moe’s Southwest Grill. It is part of a chain restaurant, so many of my fellow Johnnies may have one of their own back home, but I’ll have to venture a guess and say that many others have never been to one. You can walk in and have a burrito made the way you like and get a bag of chips. Located next to the Starbucks by the docks, Moe’s Southwest Grill is a good choice for lovers of Tex-Mex food. Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches 193 Main Street Another nice little chain restaurant in downtown Annapolis, Jimmy John’s is a place to get a fast sandwich without having to pay too much. They rightly claim to be able to make their sandwiches quickly, which is pleasing to anyone in a hurry or who simply hates having to wait. Anyone who walks in will be treated to some good rock music playing over the speakers and to some good sandwich making service. Like Moe’s or Sofi’s Crepes, Jimmy John’s is a good option for Johnnies interested in eating out without paying a lot of money. ! �The Gadfly 10 !"#$%&'(!)*(+,)-. If there is any question of the value of a St. John’s education, Jac Holzman should alleviate concerns. Holzman never completed his degree, but as the founder of Elektra Records and a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, he is among St. John’s’ best-known alumni. He will host a conversation for students about entrepreneurialism during Homecoming Weekend 2012. Nathan Goldman & Ian Tuttle T “I was an indifferent student of the Program, but somehow I absorbed the aspects of the Program that I needed most. And St. John’s showed me what a college was all about, what a college was to do for me, which was to help me find a vocation in life to which I was emotionally committed, and around which I could build a life.” “I was coming back from a Board of Visitors and Governors meeting [for St. John’s] in 1965, and I had signed my first rock band, Love. And I’m driving around Baltimore somewhere, and I turn on the radio, and I hear my first single on the air. That was a big moment for me. I’d never heard an Elektra record on AM radio.” A’14 hose who managed to sit through not because of his thinking, but because The Social Network will recall that of his conspicuous absence from the Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook from classroom. his dorm room at Harvard College. But “My attendance in class was,” he adwhile Zuckerberg’s masterstroke earned mits, “ad hoc.” him an Academy Award-winning biopic Of course, Holzman had things other and has won him a spot among the na- than the Program on his mind. The vinyl tion’s wealthiest entrepreneurs, his star record had just been invented, and rock may quickly dim, according to the for- music had been born—“the Big Bang,” he tunes of the social networking bubble. calls it, that occurred between 1948 and Maybe. That’s how entrepreneurial- 1950. It was a big time for music and auism works. dio engineering, his twin passions. Out Enter Jac Holzman. He’s not St. of his dorm room in Pinkney, he had just John’s’ Zuckerberg; he’s more like St. founded Elektra Records, which would John’s’ Bill Gates. A student in the early become the American home of art‘50s, Holzman was the ists like Queen, Tom founder and CEO of Waits, The Eagles, Enter Jac Holzman. He’s and The Doors. Elektra Records and not St. John’s’ ZuckerNonesuch Records, “[Then-dean] Dr. and has been the seJacob Klein,” he says, berg; he’s more like St. nior vice president “quite rightly sugJohn’s’ Bill Gates. and chief technologist gested that it looked for Warner Communications, a board like my mind was someplace else, and I member for Atari, head of Panavision, should take a year off and then consider and more. In 2011 he was inducted into whether I wanted to come back and finthe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame—one of ish up my final year.” only 40 non-performers to earn a spot in Holzman took Klein’s advice. He Cleveland. Which, all in all, makes him never did come back, but St. John’s left something of a rock star. Those coveted its mark on him. “St. John’s freed up spots only go to those who have changed my thinking,” he says. “I never looked the face of rock and roll. Holzman’s star at things totally logically any more. I will not fade anytime soon. was able to jumble up the pieces in my At 81 years old, he is still a confident mind, see what was interesting, and expresence, a thoughtful speaker, and a tract that stuff.” The education “helped quick wit—and happy to admit that, de- [him] know how to look at things, how spite his love of the College, he was not to frame questions, and know to take a devoted student. In fact, he is probably nothing for granted.” St. John’s’ best-known dropout—which Holzman will be returning to his goes to show how little the essential almost-alma mater for its 2012 Homequalities of a St. John’s education have coming festivities, during which he will to do with the diploma. As Holzman host a conversation with current stutells it, he squeaked by the College’s en- dents about entrepreneurialism. Does it abling exams, then a component of the start with an idea? “It starts with a good enabling process administered at the idea,” he stresses. He notes that several end of the junior year. The Instruction Continued On Pg. 11 Committee was shocked by his success: “ �The Gadfly Continued From 11 Pg. 10 entrepreneurs had similar ideas to his when he was tweaking his electronics in Pinkney—but at the end of the “marathon,” he managed to come out standing. The first few years were hardscrabble living, he says, but his dedication paid off: He mentions “[his] plane.” And he “wouldn’t trade [the difficult years] for anything,” because they trained him for the future jobs and opportunities—purchasing a small company called Atari, trying to launch a new thing called cable television. There were myriad failures along the way—the visionary’s life is one of guaranteed risk without guaranteed reward—but for Holzman, the Johnnie mindset was crucial. “Being an autodidact has saved me every time.” he says. “To have that level of curiosity so that you get the answer no matter what, so that you pursue it until you’re comfortable that you understand what you’re talking about.” Yet all the intellectual tools are insufficient if the will is divided. Commitment, he says, is imperative. Holzman lives by the words of Scottish explorer W.H. Murray, whose reflection on his 1951 Himalayan expedition Holzman set into a poem: “Regarding Commitment” Until one is committed There is hesitancy, The chance to draw back, Always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) There is one elementary truth, The ignorance of which Kills countless ideas and splendid plans: That the moment one definitely commits oneself Then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one That would otherwise never have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, Which no man could have dreamt Would come his way. For Holzman, Providence moved in Pinkney Hall. Where next? ! Editor’s Note: The full text of the interview will be posted online at www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly after Homecoming. To hear more from Mr. Holzman, join him at the Conversation on Entrepreneurship on Saturday, September 29, at 1:30 PM in the Hodson Room. !"#$%&'()*+",- Michael Crawford Senior Education Specialist, LCSHE The World Bank Michael F. Crawford is a Senior Education Specialist in the World Bank Latin America Human Development Department. He is currently responsible for management and oversight of World Bank projects and studies in the areas of tertiary education and promotion of science and technology capacity through the Latin America and the Caribbean region. He has led the development of World Bank investments in university and science and technology capacity most recently in Chile, Peru, Uganda and previously in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Venezuela. He recently led a large scale analysis of student lending policies and Chile. He has helped shape World Bank policy for the promotion of science and technology capacity through global analytical and policy work, and co-authored the September 2003 paper, “Strategic Approaches to Science and Technology in Development,” presented to the Bank’s Board of Directors. From 2002-04, he was the Assistant to the Managing Director for Human Development. He has also led or contributed to World Bank investment and analytical work on higher education and science and technology in Tanzania, Romania, Thailand, Argentina, Guyana, and Colombia. Michael holds an MA in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and a BA in Philosophy and Mathematics from St. John’s College, Annapolis, MD. ! Mr. Crawford will host a career conversation for interested students at 3:45 PM on Friday, September 28, in the Conversation Room. �The Gadfly 12 !"#$%&'() *+*',- !"#$%&"'()%&"*'+#,-&.' /01%201-&.'3%%4%&$ Friday - 9/28 Rock Party: Coffee Shop, 10:30 PM-2AM All-Star DJ Robert George (A’85) will be doing the tunes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aturday - 9/29 Pain Perdue with the President: Alumni Office & Career Services Networking Breakfast Temple Iglehart, 8:45-10:15 AM Come see President Nelson serve french toast! *Please Note: Students not on a Meal Plan will be treated Breakfast courtesty of the Alumni Office. Conversation on Entrepreneurship: Hodson Room, 1:30-2:45 PM Meet Jac Holzman, Harold Hughes, and Domnic Crapuchettes and discuss how this education cultivates an entrepreneurial spirit and what the exciting, challenging path of entrepreneurship holds in store. 75th Anniversary of the New Program Panel Discussion and Qustion Period: FSK Auditorium, 3-5 PM Chris Nelson (SF’70), Eva Brann (HA’89), Michael Dink (A’75), Mary Goldstein (A’58), Tom Simpson (A’50), Charles Nelson (A’45) & Peter Weiss (A’46) discuss the original aims of Barr and Buchanan. Welcome Home Reception & Book Signing: FSK Lobby & Fishbowl, 3-5 PM Tutors Eva Brann, Eric Salem, and Peter Kalkavage will be signing their new translation of The Statesman by Plato. Tom Simpson (A’50) will be signing copies of his new books, Maxwell’s Mathematical Rhetoric: Rethinking the Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism and Newton, Maxwell, Marx: Spirit, Freedom, and the Scientific Vision. *Please Note: The Welcome Reception will have a cash bar that will not be serving to students. Waltz & Swing Parties: Grat Hall & Coffee Shop, resp., 10 PM-2 AM � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 5 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-09-26 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 5 of The Gadfly. Published on September 26, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.05 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/b6542821a39de6a8d43a3f2608f7b6af.pdf bc60297967383e5bb25501df76a95305 PDF Text Text the gadfly Homecoming Issue St. John’s College Annapolis, MD Vol. XXXIV Issue 06 Sept. 28, 2012 photo by Matt Denci A’15 �I n an era where generational merits of the Program even as schools and the paradigm for changes are happening learning evolve. What if students do not? Surely a school that every few years, academia is available from one’s laptop is compelling. But St. John’s has not escaped unscathed: has always been a peculiar school for peculiar people—and it The whirlwind of innovation will continue to be. Johnnies experience something timeless: stemming from the computer and We relate to the books we read because we recognize our the Internet has crept into how questions, our struggles, and our whole selves in them. That we learn. Inevitably, St. John’s tension will continue to exist for as long as people are around, has found itself at odds with and, fortunately, the Program addresses that tension. St. John’s this rapid shift towards online simply needs to market itself properly, which, in my limited education. How do we compete opinion, is being done, and as long as we do not deviate from in a world where educational our core beliefs, we will remain relevant in a world so easily resources better conform to our impressed and persuaded by newfangled technologies. schedules, our locations, and our So, let us return to the question: What should St. John’s budgets? What should we do? do? My answer: Nothing. Naïve? Perhaps so. But bringing us It’s a difficult question, together into one place is not just a competitive advantage; it especially since the St. John’s is the foundation upon which the whole Program rests. This Program, perhaps uniquely school can remain an oasis only if it refuses to change. And anymore, requires the brick-and- lest you continue to think that this will somehow become Robert Malka A’15 mortar college to fulfill its aims. unattractive to future generations, see already how the hurried Where with most institutions the education adheres to the tempo of the Internet is wearing us down and dragging us classroom, St. John’s classrooms provoke the discussion, but along, preventing us from reflecting and acting and taking it thrives elsewhere—everywhere. time for detached, thoughtful inquiry. I am not only confident If we take this for granted, let us imagine an alternative that the world will push back from that overstimulation and St. John’s: Year 2112, seminars and tutorials conducted by overburdening; I am sure of it. People want to develop close sophisticated hologram technology. (I’m trying to be generous, relationships, to be around nature, to embrace the idyllic here.) During the day, you reside in Kansas City, MO, but in image of deep discussion with friends before a fireplace. the evening you dissect the Critique of Pure Those dreams are too much a part of our Reason with two tutors and fourteen other fabric to disappear. People want to develop students, all physically elsewhere. When In this tumultuous time when we are close relationships, to be still gaining our bearings on our age’s the tutors nods to signal the end of the class, everyone logs off and disappears. profound structural changes, I envision St. around nature, to emI can’t speak for everyone, but such a John’s not only coasting past the crises, but brace the idyllic image bleak scenario unnerves me. How many becoming the commonly understood ideal of deep discussion with wonderful moments have we experienced of what a liberal arts education is. You friends before a fireplace. can bet that I believe that, in 2112, when on the walk back to the Quad or the Coffee Shop? How many times have we Johnnies are riding their hoverboards to knocked on doors, peered into the fishbowl, or marched tutorials and chatting with their friends on Mars from their with determination through the Coffee Shop seeking human really cool cellphones, they will still be carrying with them contact and intellectual companionship? How about our their great-grandfather’s copy of the Republic, boasting about intramurals, our choruses, our dances? Can we imagine St. it among friends around a McDowell table, as the same bell John’s without immersion and the serendipity that makes kicks off the timeless discussion that has inflamed our hearts possible? The answer—I dearly hope—is absolutely not. again and again. Let us not be swept up in the transient fads I have, however, unceremoniously ignored a second of ever-shinier technologies, but embrace each other and our assumption in all this: that people will continue to see the books in our quest to be better people. The Beauty of Brick and Mortar “ The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student news magazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking news magazine. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in Room 109 on the first lower level of the BBC. [ 02 ] The Gadfly Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Eva Brann Nicholas Maistrellis !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- A lumni: Welcome home. For this Homecoming weekend, which commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Program, the Gadfly staff felt something special was in order. We’re happy, therefore, to present you with a special issue of the Annapolis campus’s weekly newspaper. We hope you enjoy our small contribution and that it makes you feel, well, home. Current students: For the love of Zeus, pick up your room and put the seat down—we have guests! Ahem. Pardon us: Sometimes it feels a little too much like home. �!"#$%&'(%)**+,-%#.%/*&"+$0"+,%12#"&-%34-&#"5 In honor of 50 years of intramural sports, our resident sports historian Jon Barone has compiled a special report on the overall successes (and less-thansuccesses) of St. John’s intramural sports teams since 1963. Jonathan Barone A’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`,)+40,"CP@@KP@LE",0G"[,2$%*"a*K +42$"CP>LKP66E"%,2$"./0")$+%%8 !" #$%" /0*D" 1,0" )/" .40" \')(),0G40O"Z)$*%)%" H/+" H/'+" D%,+(" .,(" b,))$%."_,+)%+:"CPL<KPLM:"PL9KPLBE8""#./"/)$%+("$,-%"2/1%"2*/(%5" !"#$%"&'()*%+("$,-%"./0")$%"1/()"2$,134/0($43("40","+/."CH/'+:" ^%0c,140"_*/(("CPL@KPLLE",0G"]/,/"R%+0,0G%("CP>BKP>FE"$,-%"%,2$" ,0G")4%G"H/+")$%"UH)$E8 ./0")$+%%8 !"#$%";',+G4,0("$,-%"0/)"./0","(/22%+")4)*%"(402%"PFF"C,"<7KD%,+" !"]8d8"A0DG%+"4(")$%"/0*D"3%+(/0")/".40")$+%%"bNd",.,+G("40"/0%" G+/'O$)E8 D%,+e"$%"G4G"4)"40"P6>"40"H//)I,**:"I,(J%)I,**:",0G"$,0GI,**8 The Gadfly [ 03 ] �Editors: Where does the liberal arts college fit into the current higher education environment? !"#$%&# '()*(+, An exclusive interview with President Chris Nelson and Dean Pamela Kraus about the future of the New Program after 75 years. President Nelson: It’s very hard to say exactly what’s going on in higher education, but there’s no question that with the growth and sophistication of technology, more and more general education courses—lecture courses and the like—are going to be delivered online [and] that the large lecture hall is going to become more and more of an antique. I can imagine, therefore, that the whole notion of a four-year residential college will undergo some shift. We know that [online] education is very difficult to square with a liberal education, the kind we do here. And it can’t replace the residential experience….On the one hand, it seems to me, this puts St. John’s in an extremely good position, because distance learning for us looks more like five to ten feet apart. But it does mean that the message about what a liberal education is becomes harder to get out. On the one hand, what we have to offer will become more distinctive, more needed, and more appreciated than ever. But we have to make sure that the message is heard. Dean Kraus: One positive effect is that many colleges and universities have taken on programs for which one just needs credentials, rather than education, and much of that may be moved out of the university proper and moved to other educational institutions that can do it more efficiently. This may refocus the university and college, away from being a marketplace of ideas, to more traditionally what ought to be going on. ED: Going forward, will St. John’s need to alter the ways it presents itself to prospective students and the outside world? P: We always have to find language that is suitable to the ear of people we’re trying to reach. It may be that one uses a different language to communicate the same message….But the one thing we could never do is try to tell one story and be something else. The thing that makes the College glorious, in my mind, is that we actually practice what we preach: we do in the classroom what we say we intend to do. We hope our students come to say, “Hey, they actually told us the truth!” I would never want to depart from a word of that. Now, the other question is more interesting: how does the College’s Program evolve? I thought maybe the dean could speak to some of the questions that are on the minds of faculty. D: We’ve had this Program for 75 years, and we attempt to study, especially in the laboratory part of our curriculum, [ 04 ] The Gadfly some recent revolutions in thought.... We’re looking right now at the entire math and lab sequence, just to make sure that we have in place what needs to be in place, and we are refining the curriculum there, so that not only are we having our students and tutors read and study the material that is most important for us to be doing, but also so that we are allowing our students to have a better experience with it. In the case of the language program, I don’t know if there’s such a thing as keeping pace with developments. But we are thinking seriously about the claim that we have a trivium. We do a minimum amount of logic—and for years we’ve fretted over how we’re going to do that—we do a minimal amount of rhetorical analysis, and we know from our own experiences as tutors, but also from the Student Committee on Instruction, that the writing aspect of the Program is not as strong as it should be. To stay as excellent and true to our aim as possible, we have to have those areas of the Program very strong, because it’s not going to be just timely or occasionally that we need the ability to speak well, to write well, and to think well. Those abilities, if honed well, and if we can come up with the best way to go about improving that curriculum—that’s going to serve our students so much better than certain courses in certain disciplines at a university. ED: How do you evaluate on what to lend emphasis in a math or lab curriculum? D: It’s a matter of discerning and choosing, from among a lot of wonderful possibilities, which are the ones we think are the most worth concentrating on…. We’re always balancing the emphasis on competence with a need to go deeply into fundamental assumptions—an evaluation of what that science is undertaking, where the technical and competence component is necessary to know about [and where it is] not so necessary to be accomplished in. That’s mainly our focus in all of our programs: to try to think deeply about fundamental assumptions and perplexities, and unearth them. There are now fewer texts to study that we know about by scientists who are reflecting in a radical way. When you read texts of Leibniz, whatever his technical genius, he’s thinking more widely than his technical competence. And with the need for specialization, that became less and less practiced. ED: How might emerging technologies affect the St. John’s classroom? D: I think we ought to be looking into these in a very serious way. I see no rea- �son why students preparing for the algebra exam aren’t using online programs. The same for juniors practicing calculus problem sets. There may be comparable programs in language. There are many things, too, we could import into the lab that wouldn’t sacrifice the vital work of the laboratory, but might enhance it. I think it’s important that we identify those things. I also think it’s important for us to reflect on the phenomenon of this kind of medium—negative and positive. Like the Internet. It’s omnipresent, it’s not going to go away. And large organizations are in charge of the content, and we are not reflecting on our assumptions, or theirs. ED: With study abroad programs now ubiquitous, does St. John’s have a future abroad? D: If we had a year-abroad program, what would we do with the community? We want students all to be talking to each other, and that we’d have to sacrifice. But neither do we feel that we want to have a summer program abroad that we would give credit for; it’s unclear how we would do that. What we’re pursuing now is to find outside funding, analogous to the Hodson Internship Program, that would allow students to make a proposal for some kind of summer study connected to a possible career choice, and we could have grants. And that could include study abroad. ED: Do you foresee any future studies in the visual arts? P: When I came to the College, we did have seminars on paintings, so we might look at that again. It’s the question of perspective. That’s a deep question that goes beyond the fine art: How do you look at something? How do you gain and how do you bring perspective into a painting? I’ve been having an ongoing electronic conversation with an art critic in Boston over one of the three Wounded Eurydice paintings by Corot. It’s my favorite painting ever….It was very funny to try to figure out what it was about that painting, and what I was seeing, and what I wasn’t. It isn’t until you start to talk about what you’re seeing that you actually see it. The first time I said this someone said, “Well, tell me about the painting. I don’t know about it,” and I couldn’t even remember whether Eurydice was standing or seated, and I had looked at this painting for 20 years! So I thought, “I’m obviously not looking at the painting in the same way that I’m feeling the painting.” So then I went to work on it a little bit, and I could imagine such a thing where you can see that those three paintings of Corot’s might be, literally, three different moments in the discovery of Eurydice: that she’s wounded, and that she’s mortal, and that she’s dying, and everything in the painting reflects those moments. In that sense it starts to open up like a good book does. I think it could be quite exciting, though I think it is true that in a certain sense you can have the book handy in a way that a reproduction of a painting is not quite the same. ED: Any possibility of studies in film? P: Yes. I’ve advised a couple of senior essays on films, and I’ve learned a lot. There are films and there are films. Some of these are really quite extraordinary. ED: Ignoring the logistics of adding and subtracting texts, are there any books written in the second half of the twentieth century that you could foresee ending up on the Program someday? P: It’s hard to say. There are authors we’ve taken much more seriously in the last 20 years than we did before. Virginia Woolf is a very good example. That would occasionally come up in a preceptorial before 1990, but it’s now regularly read in language tutorials—at least many of them, not universally. I can’t help but think that Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is a seminal kind of work that’s important in the history of ideas, as well as an extraordinary piece of its own. There’s some original thought there on the power of a personal God to determine the course of action. That’s an interesting thing to explore, and it’s had an enormous effect over the last half-century. Flannery O’Connor has come and gone, come and gone. I can imagine more being done with Faulkner, because of the power, again, of the rhetorical force. ED: Is there something about literature, specifically, that makes it hard to know what could end up on the Program? D: No, I think it’s all works. If it’s so contemporary, you might not have the distance from it. Some people are very good at that. Others of us find it more difficult, because we care a lot about certain things they’re writing about. You need a certain kind of distance. Sometimes you can get it by talking it through with others. P: I was just reading some Julian Barnes lately. I can imagine somebody like that could outlive his time, [but] it’s hard for me to see [why] right now. What I’m seeing is something that is every bit worthy of a serious seminar discussion. But I don’t know whether it’s got the depth and the greatness of some of the others, because I haven’t lived with it long enough, tested it long enough. So it’s not just the test of time and its effect on others, but somehow the test of time within the community. Lots of the books that are coming forward in the community have been around for a while, so you can look at what are the things that people keep coming back to. Some of them are big books by authors that are on the Program and we just don’t get to them too often—Emile, Anna Karenina, Moby Dick— but others are I guess I’d call them underground classics that made their way around, sometimes with students and faculty together, sometimes with just faculty—somehow they’re present, but they’re not yet on the Program. ED: Is there a possibility of the Program incorporating nonWestern works? P: Going to the way St. John’s approaches so many things, we’re looking at our tradition in order to understand the world we’ve moved into. The world we’re moving into is more international, but our tradition isn’t yet. It may be for some, but there’s something about what it means to know oneself first which is much harder than to learn something about the rest of the world. In a certain sense, it’s more difficult to learn the things you can’t see that are familiar than the things that are strange. When the familiar becomes strange, now you’re in a world of learning that’s really powerful. But when you move into the strange, you haven’t yet had the chance for what I would call a kind of “radical conversion,” which takes you outside of yourself and asks you to question. So somehow it would seem to me that if we were to do more from other traditions, we would somehow have to find the bridge in the foundation. The Gadfly [ 05 ] �!"#$%&'(%)&*+' ,-.,/.0,. Nicholas Maistrellis C Tutor urtis Wilson died recently, on August 24, 2012. He was College, under his guidance and after much anguished disone of the most important members of the generation cussion and disagreement, decided to reduce the offerings of tutors who shaped the Program in its present form. I have in laboratory science from four years to three. It had by then been asked to write this short remembrance for our alumni, so become clear that five classes in the sophomore year—semimany of whom were fortunate to have known Mr. Wilson, but nar, language, mathematics, laboratory, and music—were too I also write to those alumni and current students who never many, and that students were not able to prepare properly for had a chance to know this remarkable man. all. I was present at those discussions, and was filled with adCurtis Wilson graduated from UCLA in 1945, and received miration for the deep thoughtfulness of the faculty, but also his doctorate from Columbia in 1952. He was an eminent his- for the way Mr. Wilson guided us. He made it possible for evtorian of science. He became a tutor at St. John’s in 1948, elev- eryone to feel that his or her point of view had been heard. In en years after the founding of the New Program, and one year his “Dean’s Statement of Educational Policy and Program for before the beginning of Jacob Klein’s deanship. He was a tutor 1976” he articulated a view of our way of approaching science at the College in Annapolis from 1948-1964, and in Santa Fe that still seems to me fundamentally true. He wrote: from 1964-1966. He went to Santa Fe as part of the group of tutors that founded the Santa Fe branch. He served as dean of One aim, and surely a primary one, is to learn something the College in Annapolis from 1958-1962. In 1966 he decided about Nature and Nature’s laws. Another aim, also an imto devote himself to his research in the history of science, and portant one, is to learn something about our knowing of Nawent to the University of San Diego, first as a visiting profesture’s ways. If we are to speak of a “liberal dimension” of sor from 1966-1968, and then as a professor from 1968-1973. In the Laboratory, then I think it must mean some cognizance 1973 he returned to St. John’s. He was, of course, received with of, some reflection on, the processes—conceptual, observaopen arms. There was a joke going around at the time that he tional, logical, experimental—whereby we come to know would not be allowed to return unless he agreed to again be about Nature. dean. He did, in fact, agree to return as dean, and he held that position until 1977. He retired from teaching in 1988. I served with Mr. Wilson on the Instruction Committee During his early years he was deeply involved in thinking during the first three years of his 1973-1977 deanship. He was about the place of science and mathematics in the St. John’s to a large extent like the philosopher-king in the Republic. He Program. St. John’s was, I think, the only college at the time was an intensely private man who would, on the whole, have giving serious thought to the integration of science and math- preferred to be left alone with his family, his studies, and his ematics into a liberal arts education. Mr. students. But when duty called, he did Wilson worked long and hard on this isnot shirk the call. This was true for both He was a model for me of sue, and, among other things, produced deanships. He took on, without comquiet but firm virtue. He was plaint, all the duties of a dean, including essays describing and defending our approach to these matters, as well as a numalso extraordinarily learned, making alone difficult decisions when ber of laboratory and mathematics manuthe Instruction Committee couldn’t although it was hard to know agree. I admired him a lot, and was even als. this—he was so modest. Mr. Wilson was responsible, during his a little intimidated by him, because I two deanships, for shepherding the Colcared what he thought of me. He was a lege through two major revisions of the curriculum. In 1961- model for me of quiet but firm virtue. He was also extraordi62 he proposed the institution of preceptorials. He reasoned narily learned, although it was hard to know this—he was so that students, as they progressed in the Program, needed time modest. to study something in detail. He felt that the relatively quick An anecdote comes to mind that illustrates both his intelreading of books in the seminars needed to be supplemented lectual and moral virtues. There was some dissatisfaction, by opportunities to study some one thing closely. However, he after we went from four to three years of laboratory science, also thought that this was just as important for the faculty. It about how we were studying electricity and magnetism in juis interesting to imagine those faculty meetings in which the nior lab. This issue came up for discussion in the Instruction faculty discussed and then decided on which 28 readings to Committee. A month later Mr. Wilson came to the meeting remove from junior and senior seminars. Continued On Pg. 07 In 1976-77, during his second deanship, the faculty of the “ [ 06 ] The Gadfly �Continued From Pg. 06 with a complete electricity and magnetism manual he had written while he a tutor in the class. He could be dean and scholar at the same time. I would like to end this essay with two final examples of Mr. Wilson’s wide-ranging gifts. He gave beautiful eulogies at memorial services. I once asked him half-joking if he would do it for me. He answered that he hoped it wouldn’t come to that. He also gave wonderful Friday Night Lectures, both as dean and later as a tutor, frequently illuminating some interesting topic in science or mathematics, or some other branch of learning. His talks were a model of how to speak about technical and difficult subjects to a mixed audience, making things clear without talking down to one’s listeners: “The Archimedean Point and the Liberal Arts,” Dynamical Chaos; some implications of a recent discovery,” “Formalism in Logic and Mathematics,” and “Homo Loquens from a biological standpoint”—that is just a sample of his lecture titles. Many are available in the bookstore and the library. Read one. You will be glad you did. For further information on Curtis Wilson, go to the St. John’s College website page “News and Publications.” A memorial service for Mr. Wilson will held be at St. John’s on September 30 at 10:30 a.m. in the Great Hall. !"#$"%&'()*+(!#+,+-).#%/0$1 Exploring Curtis Wilson’s Legacy for the Program Hayden Pendergrass I A’14 n the winter of 1962, then-dean Curtis Wilson submitted to the Instruction Committee “An Unofficial Proposal Concerning the Program” to address an unintended consequence of the Program on upperclassmen: “Too often in senior year,” he wrote, “the work seems to take the aspect of a disagreeable chore which has unfortunately to be completed for the sake of a degree.” Confronting Great Books, he realized, can be a disheartening experience. “Too infrequently does the Program succeed in inducing a continuing process of independent investigation and thoughtful reflection, leading outward from the student’s natural and initial standpoint,” he wrote. Further, he wrote: The inevitable frustrations involved in confronting, one after another, great or important works which are never adequately understood, and the unavoidable distress involved in finding oneself, again and again, on uncertain ground— these effects appear to be insufficiently balanced by a positive sense of achievement and of independent, on-going inquiry. Mr. Wilson proposed a solution: biweekly meetings with a tutor “for the close reading and analysis of a text or of a series of texts, or the investigation of a problem,” which would replace one-quarter of regularly scheduled seminars in the last two years. Mr. Wilson considered the propsal a part of the College’s natural progression: I view the original rejection of the elective system at St. John’s not as in itself establishing a principle, but as a defiant call for new exploration in education. What the elective system endangers in many of its embodiments is the community and liberality of learning; but a non-elective system also tends to have serious defects, particularly insofar as it can hardly fail to present itself as the one right program of study, however frequent the warnings to the contrary. Like a natural Johnnie, Mr. Wilson framed his conclusion as a question: The question I am asking here is whether there is not a better balance of requirement and choice than we have so far achieved, one which would lead the student beyond his freshman state of shock or enthusiasm or piety into a more profound assumption of responsibility for his own education as he, a modern, confronts the problems of modern thoughts. The committee added preceptorials to the Program in the spring of 1962. Jump forward 50 years: Has the student experience changed? How has this sustained, elected form of inquiry improved the College? What is the effect of an elective feature on the Program? Susan Paalman, who, as the current assistant dean, organizes each year’s preceptorial list, has found that students enjoy the unique opportunity. “I’ve never had a bad preceptorial. It’s almost always been full of students who are really excited to be doing something they choose only, and are really ready to dig into something a little deeper than they get the chance to in seminar.” Current dean Pamela Kraus values the enthusiasm coupled with the chance for sustained inquiry. “We do give many opportunities to students to concentrate, but not in a sustained way, in many aspects of the Program,” Kraus says. “The preceptorial can reinforce some of the strengths of the Program, both the speculative strengths, but also the detailed analytic strengths, in digging into the meat of a book and getting to the deepest levels of it.” Additionally, preceptorials are unique in allowing students to study non-Program texts. As a student, current Annapolis president Chris Nelson read Frege and Gauss; as President, he has led a preceptorial on morality in Japanese fiction. “[It] is another opportunity the preceptorial offers: either to go into greater depth with a particular text on the Program, or to take a step outside and see what it might look like to do the same thing with a book that’s much more unfamiliar,” he says. As for Mr. Wilson’s concern about finding the balance between an all-required curriculum and freedom of choice, President Nelson says the question has disappeared: “What I have heard is there’s a need for close reading, and there’s something about honing the skills in the liberal arts and the skills of reading that can be done in a preceptorial, and that can’t be nearly as well done in the other kinds of classes.” The Gadfly [ 07 ] �!"#$"#%&'()&*+,$-. /0#"#%&12 Sarah Meggison I t’s how you’re thrown into freshman chorus, terribly self-conscious about your own singing abilities or lack thereof, and then a few months later you’re singing “Sicut Cervus” alongside your classmates, as well as the rest of the Polity. It’s how you begin to join in during the chorus of some Irish drinking song during New Year’s until you know the whole thing by heart. It’s how you put everything you’ve got into the “Introitus” of Mozart’s Requiem at St. John’s Chorus and feel like a lightning bolt is going through your veins. That’s how it is for me, anyway. See, I consider music my first and truest love (it’s consensual and mutual, I promise). But my time at St. John’s thus far has seen a development and growth in that love. It’s obvious that music has a firm place at the school, but the extent of that musicality has made an incredibly profound impact on me. It’s one of the things to which I’ve attached myself, and one of the things that in turn makes me feel attached to St. John’s. Of course we are a talking college, and thus music and singing fit quite well with what we do here. Singing songs or playing music with or for others makes us part of a larger conversation. Several conversations, actually, between us and our listeners, us and the writers or original musicians of the song, us and ourselves. And an intricate and passionate community is formed. Freshman chorus, “Sicut Cervus” flash mobs, New Year’s/impromptu Quad-singing, playing piano by myself, St. John’s Chorus, sophomore music, and finding new bands to love through my friends have all shaped who I am quite a bit. I enjoy and appreciate a wider variety of music than I did before. I’ll sing in public now. I compose things for my music tutorial that I’m actually proud of. Perhaps most importantly, I have this thing with which I am hopelessly infatuated. There’s something fulfilling about chasing an insatiable passion. I’m aligning my soul with the divine or something like that, right? Cool. [ 08 ] The Gadfly Living an Articulated Life A’15 Eva Brann W Tutor photo by Matt Denci A’15 hen the editors of the Gadfly gra- against “Awesome” with a freshman in ciously asked me to write some- a seminar I’d gotten very fond of—he thing for their Homecoming issue, this used to assist my elderly incompetence little homily came to mind. Not that our by finding our place in the book for alumni, our nurslings, need it. (For those me—was won, sort of, when he told me whose Latin lags behind their Greek, this fall that he’d be using “Glorious” in“alumni” are people who have taken “al- stead.) iment,” nourishment, from their school.) But upper-class students have gained They, we hope, need it less than most. I the articulateness that impresses visiwrote since I really wanted to articulate tors. It’s almost the opposite from talkwhat follows to myself, its very theme ativeness, which is practically de-linked being articulateness. from inner speech. Articulateness seems I want to claim (returning alumni and to me to have some articulable marks: present students are welcome to accost Descriptive precision replaces evalume on this when they see me on campus) ative vagueness, brisk clarity lengthy that sixty-six-and-two-thirds percent of maundering, so that saying your say the world’s despondency stems from doesn’t take ages. (My simile for talkword-poverty—not to speak of much of without-end is squeezing a tube of glue: its mayhem: think of Larry in Of Mice You’ve got quite enough out to do the and Men, or Cain, or job and then there’s anAjax, or the Cyclops, or other unneeded dribble Speak to yourself someone in your life. and yet another.) and illustrate your My theme here is But the main feature words with inner ordinary, prolonged, of articulate speech is unassuaged—and unpictures. Re-search, that it comes from the necessary—misery, the inside out: The world re-view, re-vision: mildly grey sort. I think pierces us with experire-live to have lived ences and we project that Socrates means at all. Like a Homeric them, transmogrified this grey misery when he says—not really “the being, live in similes. into ours, back into the unexamined life is not world. Which means worth living” but actually—“the un- that inner speech is the pivot. That’s searched-out life is not livable,” or sim- where things eventuate, take permanent ply, “not lived.” He’s saying that unless shape, and make meaning-fraught conyou lead a double life, once as just a hap- nections, or, to shift the sensory analogy, pening and a second time re-viewed as a resonate—each with all. Telling, you’re not all there; you’re a grey So here’s the homily: Speak to yourself shade, in Hades before your time. What and illustrate your words with inner piche says seems to me extensible into tures. Re-search, re-view, re-vision: reimagining; you can re-view and search live to have lived at all. Like a Homeric out in pictures as well as in words. It is being, live in similes: Try to see your aca sort of internal myth-making, in which tivities projected on a large likeness, as mere occurrences become Events. the campfires in the Trojan plain appear So our alumni are wandering around like stars in the cosmic vault. the campus meeting their ghosts, even To come down to earth: Get a thewhere new buildings block the venues of saurus, a dictionary of synonyms. Not, their past. How much happier a stay for Hermes help you, to find fancy alternathose who learned to articulate them- tives to plain language. But to remind selves to themselves and to their friends, you of the words available to you for to compose their speech, as my favorite picking the one that most precisely ardictionary (the Heritage) says, of “dis- ticulates your soul’s presentiments. tinct, meaningful words”! Warning label: This is a tendentious Freshmen often haven’t got enough of little preaching. Read, say the sayings of those yet. They revel in vague unmean- Zen masters, and you’ll be told the oping expectorations. (Last year’s battle posite—to achieve silence. “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 6 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-09-28 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 6 of The Gadfly. Special Homecoming issue. Published on September 28, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.06 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Homecoming Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/81cce464d5063cb540ca0fdba32c7eda.pdf 7c8c1dcd58ec0c0b2d260e11ff7cfe33 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -)%.+#*/+&*")%0%12 3+4(5%67%8+9:*(#/%;1<;%%0%1= '()*%+,-()).),/)"01$.)2"3(.0%0%1>% ?)&9"/@A*)B777C*A'+(#%CAD@+99*(%0%<1% !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$&*"#$9/3$8098$.$2&+#$;;;52$.$5!!<,$0= !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 !"#$%!"#$%& www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets where the body meets the soul. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Sebastián Abella Drew Menzer Hunter Cox Evgenia Olimpieva Michael Fogleman Louis Pisha Robert George Hollis Thoms Lucinda Dukes Edinberg !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- I t’s been awhile, Gadfly readers, but we’re pleased to be back—and with an issue chock full of amusing and provocative pieces. We hope you enjoy. Please remember that we are always looking for pictures of campus life to publish in our pages. If you happen to snap some photos of parties, athletic events, or Johnnies-in-the-wild, send them to us! Our gmail address is listed in the masthead above. Happy reading! '!()*+,-*)!./,0!"/1!2$*3# T he thank-you for my piano playing which someone anonymously published in last week’s Gadfly was very touching; you’re certainly welcome! I’m glad people enjoy it when I play. Speaking of people enjoying my playing: when the entire dining hall gives me a standing ovation, I know that the magnitude of appreciation that you are expressing is exceeding how you actually feel, which makes it feel fake. I would prefer it if everyone made their applause proportional to their actual enjoyment. If I finish a piece and some people clap, but you didn’t like that piece, don’t applaud; I’d rather know that everyone who does applaud actually means it. One more thing: I may be good at rattling off half-baked arrangements of video game music, and I’m glad if that’s what everyone likes, but I’m not really a good pianist. I know approximately one “classical” piece well; if you give me a Beethoven piano concerto to play, I will be absolutely stumped. There are a number of Johnnies who are much better pianists both technically and musically, and I think everybody knows that. So if you like my music, great, I’ll keep playing; but please don’t tell people that I’m a good pianist. Because then somebody might hire me, and then I would only play video game music, and then I would get fired, and I don’t want that. Louis Pisha << 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com << The student newspaper of St. John’s College "/1!")-4)/&!56-#$!7897! F or years I have been asking to play Kunai. I am envious of the fact that women get to play twice as much sports as men do here, with the fact that they can play in both Kunai and our coed league. And netball, they get to play netball. How awesome is that? (answer: twelve. Netball is twelve awesomes.) At least once every year, for the past four years, I have made my case to the Kunai captains of why I should be allowed to play Kunai with them, but every time I was answered with resounding nos. They would give me very reasonable explanations about how, if they let men play, the men would ruin Kunai with their testosterone and excessive competitiveness. They would explain to me that Kunai had a very special atmosphere that would be jeopardized by the introduction of men, but I wouldn’t really hear anything they said after that because by then I would be curled up in a Kunai-less ball of sadness. I had almost completely given up hope of ever getting to play kunai until I heard about Kunai’s season pass. It turns out that, while I can’t talk my way on to Kunai, I might be able to buy my way on. This is a pretty big move for Kunai, so they are understandably being very careful about who they give the season pass to. With that in mind, allow me to explain why I should be the one to get the season pass. First and foremost is the fact that I would fit in with Kunai: while I do enjoy some good competition, fun is of paramount importance. Being on the Spartan intramural team, I’ve perfected the art of having more fun than the other team while still losing the game. This takes us to the second reason I should be allowed to playing Kunai: I’m not actually that good at sports. It’s not like they would be letting Lebron James in to Kunai; I would not be having a huge impact on the outcome of games. I would not be altering the way that Kunai functions now, I would be just be adding to the fun, and that is why I should play Kunai. Drew Menzer �The Gadfly 03 !"#$%&%'()"*+"&,)"#*--).) Hunter Cox A A’13 t St. John’s we pride ourselves on the questions that we ask and our pursuit of them. As we engage in discussions with our peers, we seek not simply the answer to, What was Oedipus’s mistake?, but what this question actually points to: What is good? How do we know the truth? Does it exist? But among these great questions, one gets overlooked in the classes. I am, of course, referring to the question at the bottom of a bottle, the question that we supposedly answered in our applications: Why am I here? I propose to investigate this question through a close examination of four key texts. By looking at what motivates Achilles, in Homer’s Iliad, St. Augustine, in his Confessions, Don Quixote, from Cervantes’s novel of the same name, and the Absolute Knowing Conscious, from Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit. In Book I of the Iliad, Homer uses the jerk Agamemnon to illustrate how great Achilles is and why he came to fight. Agamemnon states: “Son of Peleus, you always want to get the chicks, but I will not give up the girl” (III. 8354). This quote shows that Achilles only decided to go to Troy to win chicks, and when he will not get the girl, he refuses to fight, for completion without chicks just isn’t worth it. In his Confessions, Augustine is tormented by the act of stealing pears when he was a youth. As he recounts the acts of his youth, he asks what it was that caused him to steal pears that were unpleasing to the eye and to the tongue. He states: “Was it for the love of friendship? Or was it done for the desire for a juicy fruit to quench my thirst? Nay, I did it for the chicks” (Confessions p. 98983). It becomes quite clear that the only reason Augustine did anything was for the ladies, even if it was just stealing pears. It is now time for us to turn from the ancient dead to the modern dead, starting with junior year and the delightful tale of Sancho Panza (later Sancho Druid, first Druid captain) and his fearless leader, Don Quixote. As Don Quixote embarks on quests of danger to prove his courage and chivalry, he frequently reminds the reader of the beautiful Dulcinea del Toboso. After facing the daunting giant windmill, Cervantes informs the reader: “Although his pride and body were hurt, Don Quixote would not allow himself to forget the beautiful Dulcinea and uttered a silent plea aloud to Sancho: ‘Sancho, if I die, tell Dulcinea that I love her. She’s the best (like the Druids)!’” (Great Books edition, p. 69). This quote, while not using the word chick, clearly shows that Dulcinea, being a lady, causes Don Quixote to do all that he does. Finally, to finish my search of why I am at St. John’s, I turn to Hegel, and then because it doesn’t make sense I turn away and look instead to Marx, but before Marx I look to perhaps the longest book on the program: War and Peace. At the end of the book (spoiler alert), right before he has his sixth child, photo by Anyi Guo Prince Andrei tells his best friend in the waiting room: “Gosh, I do everything for the chicks” (p. 1,257,842). This quote doesn’t need any explaining, and if it does, you should really ask yourself: Why are you at St. John’s? It can be seen from this investigation that the great men of action, of faith, of stories, and of nobility all do everything for the chicks. This knowledge leads me to my conclusion: I’m at St. John’s for the chicks. But how can I fulfill my time at St. John’s if I never ever ever come out for the ladies on the Kunai field? Thus, in order to actualize my potential, I seek to play Kunai. A lot of Kunai. As For how much I will pay, I turn to my friend Marx. Marx comments on the value of items, saying, “Coats are worth money, but sports and work should be shared by everyone, and the state will pay.” Thus it is seen that Kunai should accept me, and the state will pay for me to play with them in netball and all other awesome sports. But I am willing to pay for my sweet jersey and the jersey of one other player. ! !"#$%#%&'()*$ +,-./,012$34$56.7689 ! Evgenia Olimpieva, A’14 Books, balance, freedom, free men. Not an illusion freedom, but a true freedom of mind. It is only found by the ways taught here Light. Light. Joy. Euphoria. St. John’s College Forgetfulness of the world and everything, except Descartes. Grandeur of the human soul. Liberal Education, the modern world has not known you, but I have known you. Joy, joy, joy, tears of joy. I will never get a job Nothing in this world is free, neither is liberality What am I doing here!? Let me not doubt the Program ever This is the noblest life, to have experienced you, the Program, and the ones that breathe life into you, the Great Books Great Books Great Books I did not read them that well. But they are all on my bookshelf Let me never be separated from them Submission to Junior Year, total and sweet Eternal joy in math and French Amen �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%"&'()*'+," (-"./012/+1(Jonathan Barone I A’13 photo by Anyi Guo don’t think there’s one of us here that couraging. Even so, I couldn’t will mydoesn’t search for validation in one self to do better. I turned to the athletic way or another. field, hoping to find some value and selfNow, I’m not saying whether it’s worth there, but my striving in sports wrong or it’s right, healthy or unhealthy, was just as fruitless as my striving in but I do think we need to take a step class. I even contemplated leaving St. back and look at our motivations once John’s, because I had lost my passion for in a while. I seem to remember someone the school. recommending us to examine our lives One moment stands out to me as a from time to time, and I tend to think it’s turning point from this mindset. I was good advice. having tea with a tutor, and we were So, back to the matter at hand and a talking about seminar and how difficult question we all struggle with: Where do it was. She suggested that I wrestle with we find our worth? the text and make it mine, to wrestle Since we’re all here at St. John’s, I with these ideas in more than just an think it’s safe to assume we wanted to intellectual way. hat advice has helped escape the cutthroat academia of many focus me in many ways, because it brings colleges, where the object of learn- me back to the essential question: Where ing is driven largely by taking tests and do I find value? maintaining 4.0 GPAs. We’re here partly I have come to realize that more than because we’re more interested in pur- I more than I value the Great Books suing ideas and thoughts than chasing themselves, I find value in trying to comafter grades. It’s a choice we made, con- municate with my friends about these sciously or not. books that we both And yet, I think it’s It’s important to remem- love and hate. In tryeasy to get sucked ing to understand a ber that the work you into a different kind work, I shouldn’t be do and the books you of self-evaluation. At seeking validation in read do not determine least, I know I did. how much I know Ever since the beginyour meaning; you give (in pursuing knowlning of my time here, meaning to these works edge for knowlseminar has always by how much you invest edge’s sake); rather, been my most diffiI should be seeking in them. In this way, cult class. Freshman after knowledge beyour performance does and especially sophocause it’s something not dictate your worth; more year, I struggled that I enjoy and care with participation. your worth dictates your about. It’s important I constantly tried to remember that performance. to validate my perthe work you do and formance in class by comparing myself the books you read do not determine with other people. I worked very hard your meaning; you give meaning to these on making sure that I wasn’t the person works by how much you invest in them. who talked the least, and in the majority In this way, your performance does not of my seminars, I’d pay close attention dictate your worth; your worth dictates to who was (and who wasn’t) speaking. your performance. I hearken back to a I was hoping that by doing that, I would passage I’m probably misquoting from somehow persuade myself that I was a book I haven’t read called Big Game, improving. Small World by Alexander Wolff: “WinBut it didn’t work. I’d come out of ning is good, playing your hardest is betseminar feeling unfulfilled, that I hadn’t ter, but loving the game is best of all.” I tried my hardest, and it was deeply dis- think the analogy to life is pretty apt. ! “ A Response to “Examining the Bible” Robert George W A’15 hile I appreciate Mr. Hope’s concerns regarding the quality of conversation in our Old Testament seminars (cf. “Examining the Bible,” Issue 5), it seems unlikely that his recommendations for approaching this text will bring about the honest “dialectical examination” he desires. Here’s the problem, as far as I can tell, according to Mr. Hope: the Bible is being given unfair privilege amongst the Great Books. It is not being submitted to the same challenges and questions as the other books on the Program. The Bible does present a unique challenge to our conversation, as has been discussed in previous columns. To treat this challenge as above questioning would be a serious misstep. In light of this, Mr. Hope suggests that we treat the Hebrew God like we did Homer’s gods, whom “we were quick to judge.” He alleges that “we don’t criticize the parts that don’t make sense to us at first.” While rationalizing the wrathful actions of the divine with the pretense that they must adhere to an imported sense of justice and the good is a regrettable approach, relying on quick judgments and criticisms based on limited understanding seems hardly better. Near the end of his article, Mr. Hope remarks that “the Bible is a great book for the same reasons people looked to it for guidance years ago.” While I think this is true, the wrathful nature of God’s presence begs the question: Why is this the God they chose to look to for guidance? Why this God and why these prophets? A reliance on criticisms founded on knee-jerk prejudices to guide our conversation does not seem to get us closer to tackling those questions. Rather, it will leave us articulating what is most evident (the harsh nature of God’s character) and skirting more fundamental issues (how this nature is incorporated into the guidance the text provides).! �The Gadfly !"#$%&'()*+",- 05 !""#$%#&&'($!)*+ In 2009, President Barack Obama appointed a St. John’s alumna to head a life-saving federal agency. Anne Ferro, A’80, discusses her path to the nation’s capital. What is your current job? I lead the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), a federal agency that works to improve highway safety and save lives by preventing crashes involving trucks and buses. FMCSA is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation. President Obama appointed me to serve as FMCSA Administrator in November 2009. Did you attend other schools after St. John’s? Yes, University of Maryland School of Public Policy, where I received my Master’s in Public Administration in 1984. Did you know what you wanted to do while attending St. John’s? When I was young, President Kennedy’s call for volunteers to sign up for “the toughest job you’ll ever love” left a big impression. My interest in serving in the public sector evolved during my years at St. John’s and was strengthened by my service in the Peace Corps (Cote d’Ivoire, 80-81).  Did St. John’s help prepare you for work in the field? Yes. Reading, asking questions, and discussing original texts of writers and thinkers whose works influenced civilizations and democracies through the centuries gave me critical thinking skills. Also, St. John’s cemented for me the fundamentals of an effective dialogue—listening, asking, reflecting, respecting. My St. John’s education gave me a solid foundation for every job I’ve ever had. What didn’t St. John’s prepare you for? Marriage and motherhood! All kidding aside, the curriculum and St. John’s community gave me every opportunity to engage fully in all aspects of academic and college life. The campus location, in the center of one of the most beautiful and historic state capitals in the US, gave me plenty of opportunity to work in town and balance school life with the larger community. How did you feel you compared, in graduate school or early jobs, to people from different educational backgrounds, particularly those with field-related degrees? I compared well to co-workers and fellow graduate students. In fact, the confidence to ask questions, work collaboratively, and solve problems civilly were real assets in graduate school and the workplace. Can you describe a general track someone from St. John’s might take to get into a career in this field? I encourage SJC graduates to seek out jobs, education, and ex- Anne Ferro, A’80, testifies before a House subcommittee. periences that challenge them on all levels. There is no one track to pursue a career in the public sector—I chose the Peace Corps, graduate school in public policy, local government, and odd jobs in between before settling on the path I’m on today. Careers in the public sector are as diverse and exciting as the needs of communities. Any general advice, especially for an upperclassman who is interested in this field but is not quite sure what to do? Talk with SJC alumni who are in positions or fields that interest you. These conversations will help you establish a sense of the many rewarding paths people pursue in public sector careers and the range of routes they took to get there. The conversations also build a network of contacts you may use in the years to come. How did you market yourself with a St. John’s degree? I highlighted math and philosophy as my primary areas of concentration and emphasized good communication and problem solving skills with a strong work ethic. How would you characterize your field as a whole? Is it accessible to newcomers? Stable or fluid? etc. Public sector career paths are numerous and dynamic. In fact, there is such a wide range of opportunities and points of entry that it may seem daunting to figure out where to start—education, law, government, not-for-profit, community service, policy development, military service, and more. What was your senior essay topic? Billy Budd, Sailor, by Herman Melville; my senior essay was titled “When you say Budd, You’ve said it All”…allusions to our lives of thirty years ago, when the Little Campus served as our watering hole and think tank… What is your favorite book on the Program? My favorite SJC courses of study were math tutorials and seminar readings on our country’s founding documents. Like most Johnnies, I have a few favorites: Plato’s Republic, the Federalist Papers, and Gulliver’s Travels. Another favorite was Mozart’s The Magic Flute, which we studied in Miss Brann’s music tutorial. Do you find that you lead a philosophical life? I’ve led a life of inquiry, thoughtfulness, humor, reflection, and always in pursuit of a good discussion. Without question, my life is richer for my St. John’s education. I highly recommend the program whenever I speak to high school students and their parents, and would love to return myself some day. ! �!"#$%&'()*+) Hollis Thoms J AGI’06 ames A. Garfield for President in 2012! Forget Romney or uments available in the James A. Garfield Papers at the Library Obama! of Congress: his extensive personal diary, particularly during Educator, congressman, general, and 20th President of the his years as a student, teacher and school administrator, 1848United States, James A. Garfield (1831-1881) was an extraor- 1860 (James A. Garfield Papers, Library of Congress, Series dinary Statesman-Literary Man, but his life of 50 years and 1, Diaries, 1848-1881, 21 Volumes, Reel 1, Volumes 1 -12, 1848 presidency of just a few months was cut short by an assassin’s January 1873); the equally extensive ledger listing his personal bullet, causing his speeches, writings and presidency to fade collection of books that he put together in 1872 (James A. Garinto obscurity. It could be argued that Garfield was our first field Papers, Library of Congress, Series 17U, Reel 169. Library Johnnie President and in 2012 we need a Johnnie President— Catalogue 1872-1884); and the detailed ledger kept by the one who can read and think comprehensively and deeply. We Library of Congress of the books Garfield checked out from need a Garfield! the Library of Congress while Congressman during the years Garfield was deeply affected by books of literature from 1863-1867 (Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Receipt many different fields of learning, purchasing books through- Book M, 1863-1867). out his life and eventually amassing a large personal library. He loved to read, think, write, discuss, and speak about ideas Garfield’s Diary he read in the books he accumulated, as evidenced in his exGarfield kept a meticulously detailed diary, starting in tensive diary volumes, the many notes he left in preparation 1848, and one can follow his educational development as a for talks, the speeches he gave throughout his student and teacher. Early in the diary he allife, his personal collection of books, and the ready showed a love for the study of Latin and many books he checked out from the Library Greek. On April 15, 1850, he wrote “Amo Liof Congress during his tenure in Congress. bros” (“I love books”), on May 23, 1850, “PerColleague and life-long friend, B. A. Hinsseverentia vincit omnia” (“Perseverance condale, who was, like Garfield, President of quers all things”), and on December 7, 1851, Hiram College and spoke at Garfield’s memo“Lege et cogite” (“Read and think”). He loved rial service at Hiram College, after the assasreading Latin and Greek texts and became sination, noted that Garfield loved reading so proficient in reading and translating both “everywhere, on the cars, in the omnibus and that he would impress his friends by simultaafter retiring at night, and rarely, or never, neously translating Latin with one hand and went away from home, even for a few hours, Greek with another. In one of his most visionbut he took his book and kept his mind full ary speeches on education on June 14, 1867, and fresh.” Garfield’s scholarship and familihe wrote: arity with general literature was well known The cover of President James A. and respected in the educational arena and in Garfield’s ledger of his personal Greek is, perhaps, the most perfect instruthe halls of Congress. Hinsdale remembered collection of books that he put to- ment of thought ever invented by man, and its that “he had great power of logical analysis gether in 1872 kept by the Library literature has never been equaled in purity of and stood with the first in power of rhetori- of Congress style and boldness of expression. As a means cal exposition, the instincts and habits of a of intellectual discipline its value can hardly scholar, loved to roam in every field of knowledge, delighted be overestimated. To take a long and complicated sentence in creations of the imagination, poetry, fiction, and art, loved in Greek—to study each word in its meanings, inflections the abstract things of philosophy, took a keen interest in sciand relations, and to build up in the mind out of these polentific research, gathered into his capacious store-house the ished materials, a sentence, perfect as a temple, and filled facts of history and politics, and threw over the whole, the life with Greek thought which has dwelt there two thousand and power of his own originality.” years, is almost an act of creation; it calls into activity all the Garfield’s love of books can be seen by looking at three docfaculties of the mind. �In addition to being Principal of Western Reserve Eclectic Institute at age 26, he was also a teacher of Ancient Languages and Literature, teaching Latin and Greek, geology, religion, English, and history. Personal Collection of Books Among his extensive papers at the Library of Congress is a journal listing his personal collection of books, which numbered in the hundreds. He categorized all his books according to topics and also manually compiled an alphabetical listing. Garfield must have been a Johnnie; his personal collection of books closely resembles the Program: Aeschylus, Burke, Calvin, Cicero, Dante, Dred Scott Decision, Euripides, the Federalist Papers, Herodotus, Homer, Horace (his favorite writer), Plato, Plutarch, Lincoln, Lucretius, Milton, Rabelais, Rousseau, Shakespeare, Thucydides, Tocqueville, Virgil, U. S. Constitution, and, of course, the Bible. In addition to Latin and Greek grammars and texts, he had grammars and texts in German, French, Spanish, and Hebrew. He read in almost every subject area; there was nothing that escaped his interest. Library of Congress Readings By scanning the Library of Congress ledger of checked-out books for the years 1863-1867, one can see that Garfield read diversely. Some examples from the 200-plus he checked out: Jefferson’s writings, Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Rousseau’s Social Contract, Thucydides, Hobbes, Dickens’ Oliver Twist, Thackeray’s Vanity Fair, Shakespeare’s tragedies, Hamilton’s writings, Tennyson’s poems, James Fennimore Cooper’s Deerslayer, and Cicero’s letters and orations. Garfield had an amazing life, rising from the log cabin to the White House. His life can be summarized as follows: • Born November 19, 1831 • Father died May, 1833 • Student at Geauga Seminary, 1849-1850 • Taught at District Schools, 1849-1851 • Student and Teacher at Western Reserve Eclectic Institute (later Hiram College), 1851-1854 • Undergraduate Student at Williams College, 1854-1856 • Principal and Teacher of the Eclectic Institute (Hiram), 1856-1860 • Ohio Senator, 1859-1861 • Soldier and General, 1861-1862 • Representative in Congress, 1862-1878 • United States Senator from Ohio, January, 1880 • Nominated for Presidency by Republican Party, June, 1880 • Elected President of the United States, November, 1880 • Inaugurated President, March 4, 1881 • Shot by an assassin, July 2, 1881 • Died from the wound, September 19, 1881 Garfield came almost out of obscurity during the Republican National Convention in 1880 and emerged as its nominee on the 36th ballot! If you read his most famous (but today unknown) speeches you will see that he was able to balance what we would today term Republican and Democrat values. He understood a partnership role for government (common welfare and community) and citizen (individual liberty and responsibility), especially as he thought about education. Garfield might have been describing himself as a Statesman-Literary Man when he wrote about the true Literary Man in his “The Geology of Literature” essay back during his undergraduate years at Williams College: The difference is, that while the small man is a small, the great man is a broad and full, reflection of his day. But the true Literary Man is no mere gleaner, following in the rear and gathering up the fragments of the world’s thought, but he goes down deep into the heart of humanity, watches its throbbing, analyses the forces at work there, traces out with prophetic foresight, their tendencies, and thus, standing far out beyond his age, holds up the picture of what is, and is to be. If one were to measure Garfield’s stature as a StatesmanLiterary Man, one could look at two presidents who followed him. Garfield was to some extent a composite of Theodore Roosevelt, military man and man of action, and Woodrow Wilson, Christian moralist and college professor. Garfield was no “mere gleaner, following in the rear and gathering up the fragments of the world’s thought.” Hinsdale remembered, as we noted earlier, that Garfield “gathered into his capacious store house the facts of history and politics, and threw over the whole, the life and power of his own originality.” He had an ability to make sense out of the “fragments of the world’s thought,” and from those fragments created an intellectual whole. Garfield came at a time when America needed a visionary president who, with the strength of his will and imagination, could creatively take the fragments of a country still shattered by the remnants of the Civil War—educational, financial, psychological, sociological, philosophical, and political—and put these fragments together into a beautiful whole, building a unified nation. One wonders if Garfield had had the chance to fully realize his Statesman-Literary Man stature, what “prophetic foresight” he might have had for America, and “standing far out beyond his age,” what vision he might have had as to what America was and was to be. We live at a time where we need a leader that can creatively take up the fragments of a country shattered by perpetual war and economic disasters. One wonders what Garfield could do if he were elected president today in 2012 and what vision he might have had for America’s future. At least we would know that our president loved to read and think, that he read books we loved, that he cherished the discipline of study, that he was not afraid of intellectual challenges that even tested his own beliefs, that he could think deeply and expansively, and that he delighted in learning and discussing. He was a Johnnie. Garfield for President in 2012! ! �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&'("##)#'*#+,-.)#/+0"), Reza Djalal A’15 We do not often associate heartfelt appreciation with subtle taboos and social strangeness. The modern mentality, it seems, would rather we not subject ourselves to these things at all, let alone find them endearing. Circle Mirror Transformation, the College’s first theatrical production of the semester, seeks to tap into the awkwardness of human interaction, moving us to sympathize with the characters if for no other reason than acute understanding; we know how they feel, because we’ve been in their positions before. I spoke with Nicole Havranek, the director, to learn more about the method and intent behind Circle Mirror Transformation. For those of us who absolutely nothing about it, can you describe Circle Mirror Transformation in ten words? The best short description of the play that I’ve ever seen is in a review from BackStage. “[Circle Mirror Transformation] is about real people exploring their lives through tiny leaps of faith and creativity.” How is this genre of play, and this play in particular, different from other recent SJC productions? This play does diverge from St. John’s’ tendency to do older plays. Circle Mirror came out in 2009 and won the OBIE award (an award for excellence in off-Broadway theater). It is also interesting in that it has an essence of improvisation, and it is full of theater games (most of which are scripted). Yet, at the same time, I’ve never seen a play that’s felt more real. Is there a certain way you think the audience should approach Circle Mirror Transformation? The audience should be willing to give the play a chance, and to trust it. It tests the trust of the audience just as much as it tests the trust of its characters and actors. What inspired you to choose Circle Mirror Transformation as your first production at St. John’s? While I was participating in a playwriting apprenticeship at the Pittsburgh Public Theater in my senior year of high school, all of us involved got to see their entire season of shows. I ended up seeing Circle Mirror twice, as well as getting to talk to the cast, crew, and director. The show was so different from everything I’d seen and done in theater before, and I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it since then. I decided over the summer that I wanted to make my directorial debut at St. John’s College with a play that has inspired me so much theatrically. With a title like Circle Mirror Transformation should the audience expect a lot of special effects? Haha, no. Circle Mirror Transformation is actually one of the acting games in the show. It appears in Week 3 (the show is split up into six weeks). Are there any controversial topics Circle Mirror Transformation draws attention to that the audience should be aware of before coming? The only topic that could be seen as controversial is the abuse of one of the characters as a child. It sounds like emotions behind the scenes are important for Circle Mirror Transformation’s fruition as a play. Why is that? We have been rehearsing this play since the second week of school, with about three rehearsals a week. One interesting aspect of our play practices is that we begin every practice with acting games that appear in the play. At the beginning of every rehearsal, we play a game during which we lie on the floor and count to ten, and have to start over if two people say a number at the same time. It really allows us to focus at the start of practice. After that, we usually play a few other acting games that appear in the script, such as playing a game of explosion tag, using the other cast members to act out important scenes from our lives or conversing using only the words ‘ak-mak’ and ‘goulash’ (the cast favorite). The games range from silly and active to serious and revealing. Over the last six weeks, we have embarrassed ourselves and realized the need to just go for it. We have learned to trust each other. We have allowed our lives to imitate the art. Through giving ourselves completely over to the play, and trusting it, we have grown together. ! �The Gadfly 09 !"#$%&'()$*(+%&*,!"#$%&'()!*+#$)!,%&)-#(.$%/ Lucinda Dukes Edinberg Art Educator, The Mitchell Gallery Editors’ Note: Because of the Gadfly’s October printing schedule, we were not able to publish this piece before the exhibt ended on October 14, but we hope you enjoy reading, even after the fact. any reference to sex.” Owing to, in part, societal proprieties and limited educational opportunities, the usual subjects of the 19th- and early 20th-century works of women artists were domestic scenes, Yet oh! that the dames of the Scandalous School portraits, animals, and landscapes, as seen in Mary Nimmo Would but use the same acid, and sharp-pointed tool …. Moran’s 1883 Tween the Gloamin’ and the Mirk When the Kye “Etching Moralized,” To A Noble Lady, Thomas F. Hood Come’ Hame and Mary Cassatt’s c. 1905 drypoint Denise Hold(1799-1845), British humorist and poet ing Her Child. Moran’s etching style is distinctive and like many of her other prints, she used many techniques to create had the pleasure of working with the Freshman Lab classes the mood of this Long Island landscape, which hints of her while they were exploring the magnolias and other foliage native Scotland. around campus at the beginning of the semester, and while It was not until the last half of the 19th century, when the they were examining the attributes of the plant, I found myself more open society and economy of the United States facilievaluating my own observation skills. tated the entry of women artists into the art world as early Among many of the topics included in working with the in 1848, that the Philadelphia Academy of Design for Women classes was the importance of the line in art. The line has so was established. The formation of various etching societies in much work to do—curved, broken, jagged, undulating—and New York, Chicago, and California helped produce the Etchhow much that mere shift in touch changes the interpretation ing Revival movement (and the birth of American printmakof a work. ing as a fine art) but also enabled women to learn and enter the Because many students have had writing assignments, it has field of professional printmaking. In addition, the burgeoning provided me, as the Mitchell Gallery Art Educator, opportu- publishing industry offered job prospects for women with nities to discuss the works from the exhibigraphic arts skills. tion in other ways—sometimes one-on-one, By the 1930s the Works Progress AdminisBreaking the boundother times as a group. These discussions altration nurtured the employment of women, aries of art became ways renew my appreciation for the works, thus expanding their subjects and experience but they also provide other points of view the central preoccupa- of the world. Artists such as Mabel Dwight and observations. tion of late 20th-cen- (1875-1955) and Peggy Bacon (1895-1987) be“Pushing the Line: American Women came well known for caricatures and satirical tury American artists. humor. Mabel Dwight’s urban vignette of a Printmakers” comprises 54 fine prints from 1879 through 1993 by 44 American women common New York neighborhood, Backyard, artists through the generous loans of Syracuse University Art magically conveys both physical decay through the dilapiGalleries and Baltimore-area print dealer Conrad R. Graeber. dated backyard fence and vitality, seen in the cat walking on Line is the primary element in most of these works executed it, the large hovering tree, and, in a window, a man reading in drypoint, aquatint, collagraph, silkscreen, lithography, and a newspaper and smoking a cigar. Several prints demonstrate mezzotint. The selection of prints shows both the evolution of the continuing interest of women printmakers in genteel subprintmaking and the role of American women printmakers as jects, yet also their turn to new subjects. One of the wood enpractitioners, teachers, and innovators, from the 1870s-1900s gravings, Forgotten Things (1943) by Grace Albee (1890-1985) American Etching Revival to the last decade of the 20th centu- is a rural scene, which explicitly evokes a nostalgia for a vanry. While most of the 44 artists were well-established, such as ishing rural America, while one of the lithographs, Top Deck Mary Cassatt, Helen Frankenthaler, and Isabel Bishop, others (1938), by WPA artist Margaret Lowengrund (1902-1957), is an received no recognition. The works of these artists range from industrial scene. the traditional work of skilled technicians, for example, the Breaking the boundaries of art became the central preoc1879 drypoint and aquatint portrait by the self-taught print- cupation of late 20th-century American artists. Anne Ryan’s maker Anna Lea Merritt (1844-1930) of Louis Agassiz and haunting 1947 woodcut of ships at sea, Now, Ever Alack, My Mary Nimmo Moran’s multiple tool and technique method, to Master Dear, I Fear a Deadly Storm, uses the simple shapes Helen Frankenthaler’s unorthodox use of silkscreen and the and wood grain to express the horror of two figures watching traditional, but exalted, use of mezzotint by Carol Wax. the foundering ships and texture of the roiling sea. In sharp In my research for the exhibition, I found little contempo- contrast is Carol Wax’s poetic treatment of a humble and outraneous scholarly attention to early American women print- moded typewriter, Remington Return (1993), in which her full makers, in part, due to the overall number of printmakers. range of black to white mezzotint animates this ordinary, now However, New York Public Library Curator of Prints Frank out-moded, machine. In the last 50 years the achievements Weitenkampf (1866-1962) wrote a concise history of Ameri- and influence of so many American women artists, in all mecan printmaking, titled American Graphic Art, with commen- dia, have been so much more recognized that one hopes the dations on the first exhibition of prints exclusively by women gender expectations of Hans Hofmann’s comment to his stuartists held in 1887 at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and a dent Lee Krasner, “This is so good, you would not know this second one, the following year, at the Union League in New was painted by a woman,” have become, like Wax’s typewriter, York: “The best of their work deserves praise unmodified by obsolete. ! And which now your own feminine fantasy wins, Tho’ it scarce seems a lady-like work, that begins In a “scratching” and ends in a “biting”! I “ �The Gadfly 10 An Interview with Athletic Director .()/"$0%.)12"##($ Sophomore Sebastián Abella speaks with Michael McQuarrie, St. John’s’ new Athletic Director, about his background, his experience at the College so far, and his plans for the future. Sebastián Abella A’15 What were you doing before becoming the Athletic Director at St. John’s? I was hired to start the office of Recreation and Intramural Sports at The New School three and a half years ago. Before that I was the Coordinator of Intramural Sports at “the other” St. John’s in Queens, NY. I also have backgrounds in teaching sociology, experiential education, and officiating various sports. What brought you to St. John’s? What are your impressions of the school so far? I grew up in southern Montgomery County (near Takoma Park) and had heard of the academic program here. It has always intrigued me. I was also ready to leave New York City after living there for five years. The commitment of the students to the Program and athletic pursuits is amazing! How do you think the academic and athletic programs complement one another? I am still learning about the academic program, but I definitely hear some of the ties through the chants, cheers, and motivational talks during halftime. How important would you consider the athletic program to be in relation to the College community? The athletic program is obviously ingrained in the culture of the whole community. I love seeing tutors and faculty participate! What do you hope the athletic program will accomplish for the St. John’s community? Whenever I start in a new situation, my main goal is not let the program diminish. Then I can use that time to ask questions, observe, and plan what future changes we can make. Have you spoken to former director Leo Pickens? What are your impressions of him? Mr. Pickens has been in contact in all forms of communication since my appointment. We definitely come from different backgrounds, but with his knowledge and commitment to the College and my experience of running and organizing athletic events, I’m hoping for a smooth transition! Have you spoken to any upperclassmen about their experience with the St. John’s Intramural program? I have been working constantly with the Intramural and Kunai captains. They have such a passion for their programs, and I am trying to balance getting my input in but also staying out of the way when I can. If you had anything to say to freshman you are uncertain, what advice would you give to them? As I said in my orientation session with the freshmen, this is their time to redefine themselves, within athletics, academics, and through other avenues of their lives. Leaving home and becoming part of a brand new community as dynamic as this offers so many new opportunities. Any upcoming events we should be aware about? Intramural sports are still rolling. Reasonball has begun. Kunai is transitioning to netball, then handball soon. Keep an eye out for two new programs that I’m looking to implement. I don’t have a name for one, but it will be about general fitness, and the other is a running club (I’m a runner and will probably be running a marathon in the next six months or so). ! !"#$$#%&$#'()$*%+'$,-* CAREER CONVERSATION: The Skills You’re Gaining at SJC Wednesday, October 17, 5:30pm, Private Dining Room Join an open discussion about the skills you bring to the workplace. THE EX LIBRIS SYMPOSIUM: Conversations on Careers Saturday, October 20, 10am – 12:30pm, Conversation Room Open at 9:30 with a continental breakfast and with lunch following at 11:30. RSVP required if attending lunch. Panelists will include: • Talley Kovacs (A01) – law (attorney in private practice) • Louis Kovacs (A02) – medicine (family practice physician) • Jay Schwarz – architecture • Loretta Haring – journalism • Claiborne Booker (A84) – finance • Bryan Dorland (A92) – science/physics (U.S. Naval Observatory) • Ethan Bauman (A78) – government (NSA) • Julie Janicki (A06) - education �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle C 11 A’14 all it the Big Bird & Barack Barnstorming Bonanza. Capi- ally had nothing to do with the attacks. talizing on Mitt Romney’s vow, during the first presidenBut the first death of an American ambassador in 25 years tial debate earlier this month, to stop subsidizing the Public does not merit a mention on the campaign trail, nor do the Broadcasting Service (PBS), which has long enjoyed pecuni- myriad questions that arise, such as why requests for inary assistance from the United States Treasury, the president creased security at the consulate were ignored, or why the has taken to the road promising, in his second term, to “worry Obama administration trotted out a false narrative of the about Wall Street, not Sesame Street.” attack for nearly a month, when intelligence available from It’s too bad the president couldn’t think of that line dur- hours after the attack indicated a long-planned terrorist oping the debate. Instead, he stood behind the podium looking eration. more like Oscar the Grouch. Never mind, though. Threats to national security and There is a certain aura of surrealism surrounding these last American personnel abroad are not as important as (halluciweeks of campaign. T-minus 30 days and nated) threats to Count Von Count here at the sitting president of the global superhome. T-minus 30 days and the power is traveling cross-country riling up Average household income is down 8.2 supporters by promising public funding for percent since President Obama took ofsitting president of the sock puppets. You couldn’t write this stuff. fice in January 2009. Unemployment has global superpower is It’s hardly worth countering the presihovered at 8 percent for three and a half traveling cross-country dent’s bird-brained argument, but just years, despite the president’s promise of riling up supporters by to be thorough: The Sesame Workshop, 5.6 percent unemployment by July 2012. promising public fundwhich produces Sesame Street, reports an The national debt has soared to $16 trilannual operating budget of about $130 miling for sock puppets. You lion under Obama—and, in an appearance lion. Combining government grants to the couldn’t write this stuff. on “The Late Show with David LetterWorkshop directly and federal dollars that man” last month, President Obama could end up in its coffers after filtering through local PBS affili- not even remember that number. He ought to look it up: That ates, the organization receives about 10 million government figure is one of the reasons the nonpartisan Congressional bucks a year. In the meantime, it brings in $50 million from Budget Office predicts the U.S. economy will collapse in 2027. merchandising alone: must-haves like Elmo’s Potty Time DVD Obama’s Health and Human Services department has im($13), Bert and Ernie finger puppets ($8.50 each), the Grover posed a mandate on religious employers that directly violates Reusable Tote ($10), etc. And in case the numbers are not the conscience rights of religious citizens, while Obamacare enough to guarantee that this childhood staple is in no need is so unpopular that it merited only a sentence in the most reof government assistance, Sherrie Westin, executive vice cent State of the Union address and has garnered even less atpresident of the Workshop, announced on CNN recently that tention on the campaign trail. Both Iraq and Afghanistan are “Sesame Street will be here”—even without a welfare check. falling to pieces in the wake of the American military withYet last Thursday, Obama spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, drawal, and Iran is on the fast-track to a nuclear weapon, fully aboard Air Force One, “There’s only one candidate in this race aware that the present American leadership lacks the moral who is going to continue to fight for Big Bird and Elmo, and he courage to resist. The International Monetary Fund predicts is riding on this plane.” that the United States will no longer be the world’s leading In the week after the first presidential debate, Obama economy by 2016, and China fully intends to take its place. mentioned Sesame Street characters 13 times. He mentioned But those things don’t come up. Instead, the president emLibya…zero. You remember: Libya, where, on September phasizes abortion “rights,” government-funded contracep11, a mob armed with mortars and RPGs overran the poorly tion, and tax dollars for Sesame Street. protected American consulate in Benghazi and killed four During his 2008 campaign against John McCain, Obama staffers, including the American ambassador, Christopher said, “If you don’t have a record to run on, then you paint your Stevens—an attack the Obama administration blamed on a opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big “spontaneous” movie protest. That was the line from General election about small things.” Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Susan This election is huge. But the president is showing just how Rice, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations; and even Sec- small he really is. retary of State Hillary Clinton. Until last week, when the administration suddenly changed the narrative, acknowledging A reminder: The second presidential debate will take place tothat the film in question, Innocence of Muslims—whose cre- night (Tuesday, October 16) at 9pm ET. The townhall-format ator was marched out of his California home in the middle of debate will be broadcast from Hofstra University, in Hempthe night shortly after the Benghazi attack, purportedly for a stead, NY. The final presidential debate will air next Monday, probation violation, and whose family is now in hiding—actu- October 22, at 9pm ET, from Boca Raton, FL. ! “ �The Gadfly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xamining Music in the Program Michael Fogleman T A’13 his past Thursday, October 4, the cal vocabulary could be distracting and SCI convened in the Private Dining obstructive. The upperclassmen and tuHall to discuss the role of music in the tors sympathized with these complaints Program. We began the discussion with and confirmed that they were recurring a quote from J. Winfree Smith’s A Search concerns. However, they stressed that for the Liberal College, which discussed criticizing Zuckerkandl was a red herJacob Klein’s conception of the role of ring because his text is a manual and not music in a liberal arts education. Klein the content of the music tutorial. Fur“considered the study of music to be the thermore, students observed that these study of rhetoric in its purest form and difficulties are not accidental, but are acas deserving a place within a liberal arts tually the music tutorial’s central work. curriculum because of maintaining, not Just as freshman laboratory gives us a as is so often said, a balance between chance to learn to see with reason, the the intellect and emotions, but a balance music tutorial allows us to develop our within the intellectual life itself.” How is ability to hear. We can learn to supplethe study of music a study of rhetoric? ment our feelings with a rational underHow does it balance the intellectual life? standing of order and proportion. How effectively does the music program The discussion turned to finding the enable us to achieve these goals? best way of gaining that technical voThose at the meeting agreed that cabulary, so that classes can discuss music did have a rhetorical aspect. Its the shared phenomena of music. Like elements, such as chords and modes, other tutorials, the music tutorial reallow for a study of tension and resolu- quires a certain amount of preparation tion. While the music that we sing and and legwork from its students in order study often has a text, it was noted that to accomplish its goals. Students and even without words tutors shared sugmusic has rhetorigestions for how How is the study of music a students cal power. Several could upperclassmen and study of rhetoric? How does make this preparatutors mentioned tion more active, it balance the intellectual Plato’s Republic and such as copying life? How effectively does the interest Socrates scores, attempting the music program enable shows in music. to compose one’s us to achieve these goals? Freshmen may find own music, playing it helpful to keep piano, and, most this connection in mind while singing in importantly, singing. Neither Zuckerchorus, and while reading and discuss- kandl nor the score are the text of the ing the Republic. It was unclear whether class; the experience of hearing and perawareness and consideration of music forming the music is the text. While the as rhetorical began in the freshman or tutors were adamant that students have sophomore year, but it was agreed that not really prepared for class if they have freshman chorus provides a necessary not brought the music to life, they emand helpful prerequisite for that study. phasized that they were doing this work Some sophomores expressed concern on their own, too. that, while these goals seemed noble Overall, there seemed to be a consenand worthwhile, their music tutorials sus that music has a unique role in the have found it difficult to discuss mu- Program, with its own difficulties and sic, whether as rhetorical or otherwise, opportunities. Still, comparing both simply because many students limited freshman chorus and the music tutorial themselves to discussing their emotion- to other classes proved helpful for findal reactions to a piece of music. It was ing ways of overcoming the difficulties also felt that Zuckerkandl’s idiosyncrat- of music, so as to take advantage of its ic attempts to provide a common techni- opportunities. ! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 7 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-10-16 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 7 of The Gadfly. Published on October 16, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.07 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/a89d976aff6cc3be59c5293826d6a073.pdf 5bcbc256952f0e8f778063cea8b7d239 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -&.%/"')01%!""2%3#"4%5%67 8"#*&9%:+2*"%;((21%<"=>%5%67 3=?1&*)4%&'(%/"'))*(%3=@@#(%5%6A B'(%C*D*#%E+?%C"F(1%&"%-&.%/"')01%5%6G% !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$&*"#$8;3$8098$.$2&+#$<<<52$.$5!!=,$0> !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 !"#$%!"#$%& www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets at the Naval Academy. Wear your dress whites. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Contributors Bridget Bergin (ed.) Lucinda Dukes Edinberg Formaggio Elettrico Jess Kjellberg !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- W ell, Johnnies—we’re a bit sparse this week. We like to say that the Gadfly is the “voice of the Polity,” but it appears that the Polity is not speaking! Got thoughts? musings? opinions? We know you do! Send them our way! We’re also always in need of your finest photography and your impeccable design skills. Submit your work at sjca.gadfly@ gmail.com. We hope to hear from you! ! '()!*+,!'((-$,!$.!/(0 T he words “college food” have many negative connotations. We’ve all heard about the dreaded “freshman fifteen,” the inedible cafeteria food, and bizarre products like the pop-up hot dog toaster. We’ve heard that we’ll starve during college and that we’ll eat way, way too much. For most new college students, food is perhaps not as much of a concern when choosing a college. Most of us are trying to figure out financial aid, location, majors, and leaving home for the first time. But food is such a vital part of our lives. While the majority of us may have never had to run a household or cook for ourselves, the question of what and how to eat is now brought to the forefront. Must college students be resigned to four years of unhealthy eating choices? Like most decisions, the decision to eat well and eat correctly is not always easy. But it’s “for the sake of the Good,” right? To offer Johnnies some help, I’ve begun a blog focusing on dining at St. John’s from the perspective of a student. Once a week or so I will explore a single dish from the upcoming menu—its history, creation process, etc.—and I’ll provide some general information about the Dining Hall. I’ll also be writing a bit about nutrition for college students and how to eat a balanced diet while navigating the Dining Hall and college life. Pictures will be included, of course! Check it out at www.gastrokitty.blogspot.com. “Formaggio Elettrico” << 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com << The student newspaper of St. John’s College 1(%$*2!3#-$(4 P olity Radio needs more editors! Not only do we want your voice (which, by the way, we find to be suave, sonorous, and scintillating), but we want your editing skills! Never edited before? We’ll teach you! Think it’s a totally boring slog? You’ve just been doing it wrong! Come out to our meetings (Fridays, 6 PM, General Hartle Room, BBC) and we’ll schedule a time to get you editing. And not only are you doing a good thing (getting these great episodes out faster), but you’re also setting yourself on the right path to a successful hobby or career in podcasting/radio and gaining our love and praise. So what’re you waiting for?! We’ll see you this Friday! Sincerely, Archon Jess Kjellberg Vice-Archon Robert Malka �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle “M 03 A’14 r. President,” Mitt Romney asked President Obama Pardon for the moment how the ad strips Romney’s policy during last Thursday’s townhall debate, “have you recommendation of its vital qualifications (namely, that he looked at your pension?” would have proposed a structured bankruptcy for the auto in“You know, I don’t look at my pension,” the president re- dustry, which would allow a manageable rebuilding process), plied. “It’s not as a big as yours, so it—it doesn’t take as long.” and that Romney’s plan—as Washington Examiner columThe Washington Times published an interesting note in its nist (and St. John’s College alumnus) Tim Carney wrote last pages the day after that exchange: the journalists covering the month—is approximately what Obama actually did, though debate from the media room at Hofstra University erupted the president unsurprisingly called for more direct federal into applause at the president’s retort. aid. Pardon for the moment that the tone of the president’s Those same enterprising journalists certainly were not campaign has, with this ad, fallen farther than ever from his the ones who subsequently found out that, as it happens, Mr. 2004 Democratic National Convention address, in which he Obama will rake in $191,300 per year as an ex-president (not famously proclaimed, “There are no red states or blue states, including what he will get from Illinois’s just the United States.” This ad constiextravagant pension program for former tutes a blatant, unembarrassed attempt The president’s decent to paint the president’s challenger not lawmakers), while Mr. Romney, despite jump shot and familiarity simply as wrong on policy but wrong as a his time as governor of Massachusetts, has no public pension plan. It was enough for with Jay-Z lyrics has not person. It’s not, according to the ad, that them to cheer a schoolyard insult at the managed to decrease Mitt Romney’s policies are disagreeable, rich kid. the country’s $16 trillion but that he, in his person, is foreign to the And Mitt Romney’s rich, in case you’ve understood “us”—and because he is difdebt, cut spending to ferent, he is repulsive. That’s quite the forgotten. But it would be hard to: the presmanageable levels, or re- turn from 2008’s Healer-in-Chief. ident’s campaign has been built around duce unemployment. that fact. But let’s confront some reality: Neither There’s a poll that comes around every Barack Obama nor Willard Mitt Romney year that is routinely treated over-seriously by media pundits: are “typical Americans,” however many hay bales they climb the “Who Would You Rather Have a Beer With?” poll. It’s not or philly cheesesteaks they consume. Obama’s personal net particularly relevant this year, given that one major party can- worth is $11.8 million; Romney’s is 16 times that. The averdidate is a devout Mormon who, per his faith, doesn’t drink, age American family makes $50,000 a year. Obama was a state but the question of the poll goes to something deeper: Who legislator, then a United States senator, as well as a two-time do you like? Which of these guys could you pal around with? New York Times bestselling author, not to mention a graduWith which of these guys could you pop a top and watch the ate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School. Romney game? earned a joint J.D./M.B.A from Harvard before co-founding President Obama has, for four years, hung his hat on his lik- Bain Capital, after which he rescued Salt Lake City’s 2002 ability and on his own log-cabin myth: that he’s just like you Winter Olympics and spent four years as governor of Masand me, a regular guy, but suddenly elevated to the presiden- sachusetts. We can quibble about the differences, but it has cy. It could’ve happened to anybody. America—ain’t it grand?! been decades since either man has had to plunder the sofa That’s great news if you’re the next audition slot on Barack cushions. Our presidents are not “normal folk.” Obama’s My New BFF: grab a brew and catch a Bears game. That’s not to say that we ought to discard the notion of a But it’s not automatically good if you’re one of the citizens “citizen executive”—the president ought to understand life under the inept Obama administration. The president’s de- for work-a-day Americans, ideally because, at least for a cent jump shot and familiarity with Jay-Z lyrics has not man- while, he has lived it—but can we dispense with the self-agaged to decrease the country’s $16 trillion debt, cut spending grandizing conceit that we can only vote for a candidate who, to manageable levels, or reduce unemployment. as National Review’s Florence King has put it, “falls into ecstaStill, it has not yet occurred to “the smartest guy ever to sies over pickup trucks”? become president” (per “presidential historian” Michael BeThe president does not need his-and-hers G6’s and a schloss) that competence might be preferable to camaraderie. 500-strong entourage for vacations in Martha’s Vineyard; but Take the most recent television ad from the Obama cam- the president also is not campaigning to be America’s twopaign, a 30-second spot featuring workers praising the auto- on-two partner. He is campaigning to help govern the world’s industry bailout for saving their livelihoods, and condemning most powerful nation. Romney’s 2008 advice to “let Detroit go bankrupt.” The spot I don’t really want a guy like me for that job. I want a guy ends with the words: “Mitt Romney. Not one of us.” who can be president. ! “ �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%&'() !"#$ %&'&($ )*+$ %,-#.$ *+*',!,$.!/$0,"12.$%,((#3# !"#$%&'()*+,!"#$%&'()*$++& ,&-. !"#"$%&'(%)*+,"-'$%./0'1,12/%30-*42(%567589%5:;5 <=>2%!*$$2?2%@(22/%A'(('0B+C /0$1(23($4(&%#&)0(&5$++ 6(#(4$+&7$4)+(&899:;& <=>?&-. N#&J9#\"#J)%9#&Y%)0&)0(&.%)J0(++&6$+R +(4Q&(_0%*%)%9#;&KH%@%+&E$4&P4$&B4$YR %#M2& Z49:& )0(& [(J1(4& H9++(J)%9#;S& $& H%@%+& E$4& 5%(+O& 7923%)$+& P#J$:3R :(#)&Y%++&*(&2()&"3&9#&)0(&J$:3"2&9Z& /)A&F90#G2&H9++(M(A .#%/#$%&'()*+,0 8($29#*$++ 6&@2A&B;&C=,D&-. 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For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 4 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 8 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-10-23 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 8 of The Gadfly. Published on October 23, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.08 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/490b6c45901b69ee5179923f65b48839.pdf cc000cdb3e8c48e63a90fbe748123a81 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -#+&")*.%/"00((%1+#2%3%45 %'()*%+,-()).),%6(7*($(8%3%49 %1'(%:&;<==#(%3%4> %?)(%1(+@%&"%A*)8%1'(@BBB%3%4C !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$&*"#$;03$8098$.$2&+#$<<<52$.$5!!=,$0> !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Reza Djalal �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Following the storm, the Gadfly meets on Noah’s Ark. Bring a partner. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Alvaro Duran Erik G. Neave !"#$%&'()*%++,,)-#". Erik G. Neave T A’16 he Environmental Issues Club at St. and inconvenience. A few may, in John’s recently offered an incentive the process, develop a habit which for students to use reusable coffee will continue, but many will return to mugs at the Coffee Shop by offering whatever immediately costs them less, a discount in price: only 99 cents! ie. the more convenient option. “And Sounds like a well intentioned idea: to don’t they go on charmingly? For all save our hardworking, coffee-guzzling their treatment, they get nowhere, students money, while lowering the except, of course, to make their illnesses impact all those damned cups have more complicated and bigger, always on the earth. Both these things seem hoping that if someone would just good in themselves, but this sort of recommend a drug, they will be—thanks implementation does no true or lasting to it—healthy” (426a). good for either. In Plato’s Republic, For years I have hauled along Socrates says, through the words of reusable mugs for my coffee. Though Adeimantus, “It isn’t worthwhile to inconvenient, it’s worth it. I too am dictate to gentlemen. Most of these concerned by the enormous waste in our things that need legislation they will, consumer culture and I like to imagine no doubt, easily find for themselves” this makes some sort of difference. I (425e). I hold the assumption that we find pleasure in the consistency of using at St. John’s are, or are attempting to my own cup in a variety of places; it become, these types of just gentlemen. lends a kind of ritual to the act. I enjoy If so, why wouldn’t the club appeal to the sturdy feel of something real while the coffee drinker’s intellect, regardless I sip. Additionally, most establishments of the financial gain to be had? Are our recognize that they are also gaining resources truly worth something through preserving? Will a my action—they I find pleasure in the decrease in paper cups save money. People consistency of using and sleeves and plastic my own cup in a vari- running a business lids make a difference? appreciate that, and ety of places; it lends Are there other perks will often reward a kind of ritual to the of reuse? They must you on their own. act. believe these things, The choices and the but such convictions rewards are based on lose their force if in order to convince existing values in each of the persons they must appeal to our wallets, rather involved. It is rewarding to work out than our reason. these details on our own, and it fosters They are following a pattern that we a legitimate relationship between see throughout society: the appeal to base individuals using their capacity for desires to initiate noble principles. This judgement. does not promote lasting change. People For example, here at the campus use paper and styrofoam disposable Coffee Shop one of the ladies noticed cups because it is convenient. It is a that my cup was a bit smaller than the hassle to bring a mug. Those rightfully standard disposable ones that they use. concerned about the massive waste and She kindly offered to charge me for a consumption of resources implied in the small but allow me one refill. The shop desire for convenience start to think, “If benefitted because they saved a cup only we could bribe them to do what we (and lid and sleeve), and I benefitted think ought to be done, they will change.” because I got more broth for my buck. So they stretch out a fistful of quarters I enjoyed coming in and seeing her face and people start to bring reusable mugs and knowing we had created something to get “free” money so they can waste it special. It was a wordless intimacy on something else until that incentive based on mutual benefit. Everything disappears, and they are again left Continued On Pg. 03 with the choice between convenience “ �The Gadfly Continued From 03 Pg. 02 was going along swimmingly until the day after the gift of the Environmental Club descended upon us. I walked up and set down my cup as usual, but my friend looked at me with sad eyes and said she couldn’t do it anymore. Huh? She fumbled through an explanation in that unique kind of confusion that surrounds bureaucratic micro-legislation. Something like, “Won’t work . . . 99 cents . . . 14 oz . . . has to have a lid . . . liability . . . . Sorry.” I felt betrayed, and I think she did too. I proceeded to ask if I could just pay full price and not get my usual refill when she got a glimmer of hope in her eyes. “Let me ask the manager.” She said it with feeling, like she knew that what we had was gone forever, but maybe, just maybe, I could still get some coffee in the new regime. The manager hustled out and took a glance at my pathetic little cup without a certified lid and shot forth more cryptic prophecies about “liability.” Luckily, she did give permission for me to pay full price and get my one fill of coffee. My cashier friend knew something in the world was wrong, and that this transaction was the last of an era. I am not sure if she was familiar with Plato, but I could have sworn I saw Socrates in those eyes saying, “I’m sorry Erik. This is not how it was meant to be.” When laws are made in an attempt to alter social behavior, our behavior becomes more intimately linked with the law than with the ideal behind it. However good the ideal is, this method of conviction always carries certain consequences. Some of these consequences are also good, eg. using fewer paper cups, but they often come at the expense of needless tensions and purposeless “illegalities.” Why should I, who have practiced the ideal before the law, be punished once the law comes into being? Maybe it is because I will continue to schlepp my cup around whether I pay a discounted price or not. It’s a tricky business. Anyways, in the highly edited words of Plato/Socrates: Use reusable cups! For yourself and for the earth! Whether men or gods or your 99 cents acknowledge what you are doing. ! !"#$%&'("##)# *#+,-.)#/+*"), Sarah Meggison A’15 O n Saturday, October 20, and Sunday, October 21, the first play production of the semester was held in the Boathouse. Circle Mirror Transformation, a 2009 play written by Annie Baker, was directed by sophomore Nicole Havranek, and featured sophomores Slaya Nemoy and Madeline Kline, and freshmen Giancarlo Zingarelli, Christopher Hutter, and Audra Zook. Lighting duties were provided by sophomore Nicholas Loya. The story tells of a husband-wife team leading a fiveweek community acting class. The characters are mostly initially reserved and perhaps skeptical of their teachers’ methodology (“Ak mak.” “Goulash goulash, goulash,” etc.), but as the play goes on, they begin both to reveal and learn more about themselves, and to become close friends. They break down their walls to reveal some heavy subject matter, which, personally, really affected me—not in a disturbing way, but in that the actors performed with a certain subtlety that made the play’s raw humanity believable. Ms. Havranek remarked, “Circle Mirror Transformation is a very small, personal play that has meant so much to me for years. It meant the world to me to share it with the cast, and then with the St. John’s community. The show that we presented tried its hardest to be honest and open and present. The play really asked a lot of those involved, because it really required everyone to put themselves out there. Especially in the practices, when we would play the games, we all ended up revealing very personal aspects of ourselves. We chose to put ourselves out there just as much as the characters in Circle Mirror do, and it was very rewarding. The show turned out incredibly well. During the performances, it was nearly impossible at times to tell where the characters stopped and the actors started. The cast became their characters. During the show, we also asked a lot of the audience. The play is full of awkward pauses, strange games, and moments that ride the line between being extremely serious and outright silly. It’s not always obvious how one should react to what they’re seeing in Circle Mirror Transformation. Overall, we just tried to put on a play that felt real.” I went into this play not knowing anything about the story and was surprised at how much I liked it. I was also quite impressed at the warm, community-type atmosphere of the production. I also appreciated that freshmen were incorporated, and many parents and friends of the actors came to see it. “I was really happy about the audience’s openness to the play for what it was. It was refreshing to see that at St. John’s,” said Ms. Kline. It is always very lovely to see my fellow Johnnies take on a project they care about and succeed; it’s one of those things that makes me proud of St. John’s and the people around me. ! �04 !"#$%&'()*+",- The Gadfly !"#$%&'()*+$,-.. Alumnus Tim Carney, author and senior political columnist for the Washington Examiner, gives insight into the ways his career path has been shaped by a St. John’s education and offers advice for the Polity’s future journalists. Tim Carney, A’00, speaking at a Campaign for Liberty event at CPAC. What is your current job? I am a senior political columnist at the Washington Examiner. I have also written two books. give up the work experience I got in my early-to-mid 20s to have gone to J-School. In general, I felt perfectly adequate around my peers. Did you attend other schools after St. John’s? I did not. Though my second job, working under Bob Novak, I count as grad school. Can you describe a general track someone from St. John’s might take to get into a career in this field? Do a journalism internship. Get published. Use those clips and recommendations from your internship to land an entry-level reporting job, whether in a small town or a big city. Did you know what you wanted to do while attending St. John’s? Not really. Journalism always seemed like a possibility, but I had no idea I would love it as much as I do. I distinctly remember day-dreaming in tutorial about being both a U.S. Senator and a St. John’s tutor. Did St. John’s help prepare you for work in the field? I became a better and faster reader at St. John’s, and that has helped. But most importantly, I think SJC helped give me skills and confidence to learn new subject matters. Being able to engage on the substance underlying political issues—and being able to do math—has given me an advantage. Classroom discussion made me better at thinking through ideas on my feet. When I do TV appearances, that’s very important. Also, I took academics seriously at SJC. I was typically in the library until midnight on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. That was where I finally developed a work ethic that I think has helped me in my career. What didn’t St. John’s prepare you for? St. John’s didn’t provide enough opportunity to work on writing. It wasn’t until I had to start writing professionally that I really got to start thinking about the creation of sentences and paragraphs as a craft to be honed. I’ve improved over 12 years, but I’m still a fairly pedestrian writer. Any specific disadvantages to a St. John’s background? Had I gone to a college with more specialization, I could have studied economics in some depth, which would help me professionally. How did you feel you compared, in graduate school or early jobs, to people from different educational backgrounds, particularly those with field-related degrees? First of all, folks who study journalism in undergrad don’t tend to go into journalism. Reporters with MAs from top J-Schools always impress me, and I often envy them —but I wouldn’t Any general advice, especially for an upperclassman who is interested in this field but is not quite sure what to do? Write for the Gadfly. Maybe try to get published in your hometown paper. Consider a graduate degree in something that would be useful as a journalist: economics, physics, maybe Arabic or Chinese if you want to do interesting foreign reporting. Learn technological skills: video & video editing, graphic design, programming. How did you market yourself with a St. John’s degree? I explained that it gave me the confidence and the ability to learn new topics quickly and thoroughly. I found many employers already impressed by the school. How would you characterize your field as a whole? Is it accessible to newcomers or difficult to enter? Stable or fluid? Etc. It is very accessible to newcomers, I think. It’s pretty unstable (what isn’t?). The needed skills are changing rapidly. What was your senior essay topic? The ethics of lying, examining the teachings on this topic of Socrates, Kant, and Aristotle. What is your favorite book on the Program? Nicomachean Ethics. Do you find that you lead a philosophical life? Somewhat. Analytical reasoning, self-examination, discussion of The Good and the nature of human knowledge are part of my broader job, which could roughly be described as “having something to say about lots of things.” Having kids makes it hard to indulge in philosophy, but it forces you to do so, also. Finally, the thoughts, idea, questions with which I left the Program sent me down a path that led me into the Catholic Church. So my daily life is infused with Catholicism, whose teachings are grounded in philosophy. ! �The Gadfly !"#$%&'())*# 05 ing troops by 2014—in the words of the vice president, “come hell or high water.” It’s hard to find any figure in history as militarily aloof and incompetent as President Obama. He has made it clear to the Afghan people that he is not dedicated to Alvaro Duran GI their well-being beyond the next couple years, he has subverted the armed forces from the beginning of his presidency, Yesterday the belief in the absolute value of Greek; he has little interest in pursuing the war into the tribal areas The fall of the curtain upon the death of a hero; inaccessible to the nearest drone, and he acts as if ordering the Yesterday the prayer to the sunset, killing of Osama bin Laden has made him the greatest wartime And the adoration of madmen. But today the struggle. president since Lincoln. How do the Left and the isolationist Right respond? First is — W. H. Auden, “Spain 1937” the absolute revulsion toward expending any American lives hoever reads about Malala Yousafzai, the 14-year-old in the conflict—as if we didn’t bear any responsibility for the Pakistani activist shot by Taliban gunmen in early Oc- struggle. Afghanistan’s grave problem is the rampant illiteracy tober, must admit she possesses an inestimable bravery. Cour- that no amount of half-hearted “surges” can cure. Shelter and age of this caliber is fragile, rare, and—as we’ve seen these past trained instructors are required if the nation’s young are to weeks—all too easy to snuff out. It is heartening to see the pull themselves out of ignorance and serfdom. To preserve wave of disgust that has arisen in Pakistan at this brazen assas- this shelter, some amount of fighting will be required, and sination attempt, and there is the ever-present hope that ac- some lives will be lost. At the minimum, a country needs 15 to tual reform will come of it. But even were that to happen, the 20 years of security—assuming other factors—to raise a literchange required to truly liberate Pakistan would need to be ate and inquisitive generation. Is there anyone left in America revolutionary. The gruesome political figures that now haunt or Western Europe with the fortitude to make that committhe highest levels of their corrupted offices would have to be ment? The question is answered as soon as it’s asked. Another constant objection is the cry of “unclear victory put to the dock or put to the sword, and our secular, moderate brethren, full of that courage gunned down two weeks ago, conditions.” Presumably, as our forces began embarking to rout the Taliban 11 years ago, some fool imagined us sailing would need to rise to their responsibilities. But perhaps it’s unfair to expect the needed change to into the Afghan equivalent of Tokyo Bay, surrender docuhinge so much on a torn, fearful populace. Indeed, do we not ments in hand, ticker-tape parade to follow. For many, the killing of bin Laden substituted for that share some of the fault for these condimoment. But should we not forsake the tions? Since 2001, against the caution of But should we not forsake the importance of macro-historical events sounder minds, America threw $20 bilimportance of macro-histori- like these and shift our thinking to the lion in aid at Pakistan with no substancal events like these and shift struggles of the people and our troops? tial reforms or results. The tribal regions remain untrodden by the Pakistani Army. our thinking to the struggles When a girl finishes a book she’s never Figures in the Pakistani intelligence of the people and our troops? been able to read before, is that not a victory? When a village elder sacrifices agency, the ISI, openly attend anti-WestWhen a girl finishes a book his and his village’s safety by banking ern rallies and support the Islamist forcshe’s never been able to read the future on the West and turning away es that kill U.S. troops and Pakistani chilbefore—is that not a victory? the Taliban, is that not a victory? When dren. Saudi Wahhabis funnel oil money over a quarter of the Afghan parliament into the region to fuel radical madrassas and terrorist training camps. Taliban savages emerge, burning is female, is that not a victory? But so many in the U.S. are more preoccupied with what the faces of school-bound girls and shooting anyone who dethe bill will be at the end. This argument is probably the most sires that their society adopt Western values. In light of this, what are we seeing from our side? The presi- crude, sinister, and easy to wield. It was back in 2003 that Masdent, trying to placate a schizophrenic base and avoid the op- sachusetts senator John Kerry said, “We shouldn’t be opening position that grew during President Bush’s tenure, launched firehouses in Baghdad while closing them in Brooklyn.” Well, a “surge” into Afghanistan that he undercut from the begin- if our provincial political factions have their way, we will be on ning. First, the president ignored General Stanley McChrys- our way to closing schools in Afghanistan in order to, what? tal, speaking to him only once in the summer of 2009 after he reform them in Chicago? And what of the economy then? Is had taken control of the Afghan theater. The general, seeing anyone so credulous as to believe that, if the economy sudno sense of urgency from his commander-in-chief, leaked his denly roared back into gear and we stumbled on an influx of own war plan to spur the government into action and avoid a capital, the Democrats would launch an all-out offensive? As military disaster. Instead, the president spent that week per- long as demagogues can get by telling their stupid constituents sonally lobbying the International Olympic Committee to se- that their lives would be better if the people of Afghanistan lect Chicago for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Another three were miserable, we will never hear the end of this cheap talkmonths passed before he decided to send 10,000 fewer troops ing point. It is frustrating and disheartening to hear of money vanishthan McChrystal requested and announce a withdrawal date for the troops. The following summer, McChrystal was fired and the president announced a complete withdrawal of fightContinued On Pg. 08 W “ �The Gadfly 06 !"#$%#&'$()$*+",$%-#'... /$*)2'8%:@&'%"2+%&)'%#A3#'+2;#%#A@#$2#'(#%&'%3"#%@7*92'8%B#71-%+3*..#$%C&'*3"*'% D*$&'#%#A*,2'#+%3"#%>#'#B3+%*'1%1$*)>*(?+%&.%3"#%3#*,%12;2+2&'+%*'1%$2;*7$9%3"*3% *$#%*3%3"#%"#*$3%&.%3"#%E34%C&"'6+%2'3$*,:$*7%@$&8$*,4% Jonathan Barone S A’13 ince arriving at St. John’s, you’ve probably heard the their team. phrase “rediscovering the joys of amateur athletics” used Soon, we begin to attribute characteristics to our own team. to describe our athletic program. Frankly, I think it’s an ap- Now, our team is the most fun or the most competitive. Sudpropriate phrase; our intramural sports program is designed denly, the philosophy we are sporting is the greatest; other in such a way that anyone who wants to participate is able to ideas may have merit, but ours are clearly the best. Not only do so. Every student, tutor, and staff member is either allocat- have we actively degraded the other teams, but we’ve also put ed or drafted to one of the five intramural teams. Though we our philosophy on a pedestal. In this way, we’ve created a do have an Athletic Director on staff, the program’s greatest barrier between us and everyone else. We can identify with strength is that most of it is completely susmembers of our own team, but now everytained by students. It’s the students who one else is judged first and foremost by the We are not able to respect color of their shirt. lead the teams, encourage participation, and create the atmosphere where anyone And this is where respect begins to a team name, as we can’t (read: the amateur) can pursue the love of die. And I’ve personally fought against it respect a name in and of athletics. for years, trying to prove to anyone who itself. We respect what Personally, I think what we have here would listen that the Greenwaves weren’t lies behind that name, is unique. I know I have certainly grown a bunch of jerks. I would point out that and a team is, always, a because of the opportunities this athletic nearly everyone on the team was sportscollection of individuals. program offered me. However, this system manlike, and they would respond, “Yeah, is not without its flaws. The division of the but the Greenwaves as a team are [ jerks].” community into teams, though necessary in order to create My friends, if we’re not willing to look past the stereotypes competition, is the very thing that I believe causes the most we hold about other teams, then I don’t see much of a point in problems in our athletic community. We do the most harm continuing to participate. to ourselves and to each other when we start to look at our Now, I’m not saying that we abolish team spirit. Far from respective teams as the ultimate family to which we belong. it. But if we ever see ourselves as Greenwaves, as Druids, HusSince the teams are captained by different individuals, the tlers, Spartans, or Guardians before we see ourselves as memcaptains’ philosophies on how to lead their respective intra- bers of the St. John’s intramural sports program, we’ve got a mural teams differ greatly. One captain may look only at win- problem. We are not able to respect a team name, as we can’t ning, and might encourage a competitive spirit above all else. respect a name in and of itself. We respect what lies behind Another team’s captains might believe that what’s important that name, and a team is, always, a collection of individuals. is not the score of the game, but rather the team’s spirit and If we don’t respect the team, we don’t respect the individuals. effort. I think this difference of philosophy is necessary (due And respect is truly where the heart of this program lies. If to the individuality of the captains) and healthy (as it leads to we don’t respect each other, if we don’t respect the sports we discussion of practical issues like leadership, communication, play, if we don’t respect the Temple, then there is no point in and respect). The differences in athletic philosophies create participating. But if we do respect these things, then we have discussion on the court—a thumatic dialogue with words of created an environment where people can truly learn to love sweat, muscle, and bone. It’s the beauty of manifest philoso- athletics and learn about themselves. We hold the power to phy. shift the atmosphere around us, to create legacies. Our phiBut this dialogue can break down. When we start estab- losophies may differ, but at the core, one thing holds true: we lishing our identities in our respective teams, we can start are all members of the St. John’s College Intramural Team. ! to lose sight of our opponents’ individuality and in turn, our own. As soon as we begin to attribute characteristics to other teams (and not to individuals), we have cultivated an attitude destructive to ourselves and to others. We begin to stereo! Jezebel St. John, A’16 type people based on the color of the shirt they wear, not on the character they display on the field. We arrive at games !"#$#%&'(#%)*+%*%,*'-%'*,#%&.%/&''#predicting an intense physical battle, and we’ve already giv!&%)"&,%0&1%*'1%,2+3$#++%)#$#%&'#4 en ourselves a pugnacious disposition. Before we’ve even let 5677%)*8#$-%+*21%+"#-%9&:%7&;#%<2,%,&$#%3"*'%,#someone’s actions speak for themselves, we’ve already spoken ='1%)&:71%$*3"#$%>#%.:(?2'8%*%':'4 for them—not by virtue of their individuality, but by virtue of “ !"#$%"&'()*%(+*,-(.*--$ �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle L 07 A’14 ast I checked, you had to be at least 35 years old to be Think again. America managed to elect a child-president. president. Someone should check President Obama’s liJournalists of all stripes have been calling for the presicense. dent to address the avalanche of questions raised by SepDuring the 2011 debt-ceiling negotiations between the tember’s terror attacks in Benghazi, Libya, which killed the White House and Congress, President Obama repeatedly American ambassador and three others. The president’s last tried to cast himself as “the adult in the room.” Apparently formal White House news conference? March 6. But not to he has given up on that strategy. Consider the campaign’s lat- worry—he’s been busy making the rounds with serious meest online ad featuring Lena Dunham, star/director of the hit dia: The Daily Show with John Stewart (10/18), Z107.9 Hip HBO sitcom Girls, offering advice to voting “virgins”: Hop Cleveland (10/18), The View (9/24)—and, of course, an “Your first time shouldn’t be with just anybody. You want interview with Miami’s DJ Laz, aka “the Pimp with a Limp,” to do it with a great guy….My first time voting was amazing. It on the morning of September 11. An interview with Us Weekly was a line in the sand: before I was a girl, now I was a woman.” hit newsstands last Friday. The ad encouraging young women everywhere to give their The Obama campaign appears to be under the illusion “first time” to Obama has, needless to say, that the paradigmatic young American prompted a flurry of responses, particularvoter is a character on Gossip Girl. But by ly to hashtag #MyFirstTime: We have heard con- 2008 standards, a stalwart 83 percent of • Phil Kerpen (@kerpen), author and stant warnings over the the electorate is less-than-interested in economic policy analyst: “Unempast months that Re- watching their federal executive “slow ployment among women 18 to 24 is publicans are waging a jam” the news on Late Night with Jimmy 12.8%. Forget #MyFirstTime, what Fallon—or, as Fallon called him in April, “war on women”...But it’s about #MyFirstJob?” the “Preezy of the United Steezy”—and the president’s ad that • Steel Magnolia (@Southrngirl77): they are long past the point where swipmakes women seem like ing their V-card for one of “The 25 Cool“Don’t lose your job because of nothing more than vagi- est Brothers of All Time” (cf. Ebony magaan unwanted Presidency. Practice nas that vote. #ObamaAbstinence” zine, Collector’s Edition, August 2008) is • Andrea Chapman (@STL_Blonde): a seductive prospect. They think it’s im“You don’t want your first time to be with #Obama be- mature for the sitting president of the United States to call cause his stimulus package didn’t deliver as promised.” his opponent a “bullshitter” (as Obama did in his new cover We have heard constant warnings over the past months interview with Rolling Stone), and they are not swooning for that Republicans are waging a “war on women”: Mitt Rom- a president who calls himself “eye candy” (as Obama did on ney and his horde of Fright-Wing Extremists are planning to The View last month). repeal the 19th amendment and put women on never-ending Presumably the president thinks that all of this is effective sandwich duty. But it’s the president’s ad that makes women outreach to “the youth vote,” that squirrely cohort of 18-toseem like nothing more than vaginas that vote. 29-year-olds who preferred Obama to John McCain by 34 That’s not terribly surprising, though. This is the same percentage points in 2008. And maybe Dunham’s ad or apcampaign that last month posted on its official Tumblr—then pearances on Leno will sway a few young people deeply eninexplicably removed—an e-card encouraging women to amored with shiny things. “Vote like your lady parts depend on it.” As blogger Cameron But the combined effect of the pandering tactics is to reGray put it: for Obama, it’s “Labia, not Libya.” veal a person who is frighteningly unpresidential. Sometimes But while there will be much hand-wringing about the ad— he is a 16-year-old dude in the locker room, sometimes he’s a and don’t get me wrong, there’s much to wring hands about— tweenage girl with an Idol obsession, sometimes he’s avowwhat’s most revealing about the ad is, simply, how stupid it is. ing his love for Big Bird—but he never quite manages to apIt’s childish. It’s (almost literally) a political penis joke. pear post-pubescent, let alone the strong, responsible leader When did our president become 16 years old? required by our current domestic and international circumAgain, though, are we shocked? After the first presidential stances. debate in Denver, the Obama campaign determined that preThe Obama presidency has been a four-year joyride. Except serving federal funding for Sesame Street ought to be a fixture it’s only been fun for him. It’s time to hand over the keys to a of a strong domestic policy. Thought the child-king was dead? grown-up. ! “ �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&'() *+*',!"#$%&'()*+,* !"#$%&'()*$++& ,&-. /0$1(23($4(&%#&)0(&5$++ 6(#(4$+&7$4)+(&899:;& <=>?&-. -#%.#$%&'()*+,) 8($29#*$++&@9"4#$:(#) 6&A2B&C;&D=,E&-. /&A2B&F;&,&-. /)B&G90#H2&I094"2;&64($)&7$++ <&-. Continued From Pg. 05 -ing into the corrupt Karzai machine, being redirected by the ISI or apportioned for bribes to Islamists or warlords, or failing in general to alleviate the sufferings of the populace that now lives on Obama’s ticking clock. But all the while we have to hear raving politicians wail about Washington handicapping “our economy” by sending “our money” to brutal and unenlightened peoples. Our precious economy? As if we had nothing loftier to preserve! As if the pledge we’d made to our Afghan allies that we would not abandon them was dependent on our unemployment numbers. To allow a regression of the fragile advancements made until now would be a stain on our nation that would never wash out. And if that day ever comes when we see our allies standing alone while they are put to the sword by lunatic savagery, I imagine we will look at ourselves and say it was worth it because out of it we got … a tax cut. ! /01%&'())+2 J(K)"4(=&L.(+9M%(2&$#M&5$K(2=& N&!"#$%.(M%)$)%9#;O&*P& .4B&C$A%M&/)(30(#29#;& 5/!&N"M%)94%": Q=RE&-. !"#$!%& 3&4"0%&'())+, 8($29#*$++&@9"4#$:(#) I9#29+$)%9#&6$:(;&R=>?&-. I0$:3%9#20%3;&>&-. Cockle popping poppycock Is what took place whilst on the rock As two of them laughed and sighed and moaned Bobbing bemusedly betwixt brain and brawn. Everything exchanged, and something else more loaned. Giggling gratuitously they got going, then gone. I9#K(4)=&54(#K0&."2%K&S94& I(++9&$#M&-%$#9;&*P T4%K1&54%K1(&UNR,V&$#M& 54$#K9%2&8(W%2&I0$#9# 64($)&7$++;&>&-. 3".%&'())+5 !"#$%&/9KK(4 /:%)0X.KC9Y(++&I"3 R=>?&3: /9KK(4 &6&A2B&F;&>=>?&-. &'()*&.(()%#W;& J9Y(4&+(A(+&9S&)0(&ZZI <&-. [S&P9"&Y9"+M&+%1(&)9&2((&P9"4& (A(#)&9#&)0(&Y((1+P&2K0(M"+(;& 3+($2(&(:$%+&2\K$BW$M]P^ W:$%+BK9:B ! Taylor Jarrell, A’15 1 2 A congruence in courage Is what may be assumed, Upon looking at the two. Through affection over-nourished. At fault, the commonalities presumed. A two, no longer. A love’s adieu. 3 A saved man, in mid night, McDowell. A small congregation, two souls, two scowls. The service, sincere. In appreciation they scathed. A baptism from a soapbox, the two were so bathed Of a night never finished. When they misbehaved. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 9 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-10-30 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 9 of The Gadfly. Published on October 30, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.09 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/ad9a32f5e7c92d33e99373c1f3963218.pdf b5c72486957ba7248a1b7e6410f2cd2c PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -+##*).%&'(%/(&&#(%+%0""10""%!+2(%3%45 %6789&*).%&'(%:"'))*(%67;;#(%3%4< =->,%:7)*"8?=()*"8%@+).7+.(%%3%4A !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$(&2#$/3$8098$.$2&+#$;;;52$.$5!!<,$90 !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Reza Djalal �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly will meet this Sunday at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Tanner Doxsey Michael Fogleman Erik G. Neave !"#$%&'()*%+ ! Erik G. Neave, A’16 !"#"$%"&'%"()#%"( &*+&&*"$,*&*-(*".-/0 /%-+1*2+3&&*-2+3&0+2 +3&!-013/)-&*-(*".-4 5*#6)#6&*-6,3--%6,3+006%"&4 !"##$%&'()*'+*((#*'"',--.,--'/"0* Tanner Doxsey I A’14 have the faintest feeling that Mr. choice legislation in the country. She Tuttle does not approve of President said the word “vagina“ because she was Obama. Excellent. Someone needs to dealing with vagina-oriented legislation. find fault in popular figures. However, Apparently that word was too much I was left confused by his last article. for her opposition to handle, so they Apparently our president has morphed silenced her. I have noticed that children into a responsibility-denying, bong- love acting inappropriately around hitting, dick joke-loving manchild words like “vagina” and “penis.” The straight from a Seth Rogen movie under Republican contingent of the Michigan all of our noses, and I didn’t even notice. I House of Representatives fits right in. am very glad that Mr. Tuttle brought this Another favorite tactic of a child in an to my attention; otherwise, I would have argument is to yell, “Shut up, I don’t completely missed it. (It does explain even care!” every time it seems they are all the crushed cans of Natural Light losing an argument. The Republicans surrounding the Oval Office windows.) nailed that one. Mr. Tuttle brought up the way An adult makes decisions based on President Obama was portrayed as facts and logic. A Republican, apparently, the adult in the room in debt ceiling does not. On September 14th, the negotiations. This was because Obama Congressional Research Service put out understood the need to move towards a study on the way tax cuts help growth. a balanced budget and was willing to The study found that they do not. This compromise to get things done. He is devastating to Republican ideology. wanted a plan that would increase taxes So what do they do? They claim the some, as his party wanted, while still study is partisan, false, and poopy. They cutting discretionary spending, as the then make sure it is not widely released. Republicans wanted. It was an adult way Instead of dealing with criticisms of to solve the problem. The Republicans their ideas like adults, they bury them decided to wave their like a child. Bravo. hands around in the Fortunately, the air and scream, “No Republicans have Instead of dealing new taxes!” at the with criticisms of their one hope for their top of their lungs. As party: Mitt Romney, ideas like adults, [ReI have seen it, one of the man who has run publicans] bury them a campaign on being the biggest differences between an adult and an adult by treating like a child. Bravo. a child is the ability to the electorate like compromise and not throw a temper children. We as the electorate should tantrum if things do not go exactly not ask Mr. Romney about the specifics your way. This is a skill much of the of his plans. They work. Because he said Republican party has not yet mastered. so. It does not matter that many say his Let’s talk about this whole debate tax plan is impossible; we should trust about the “war on women.” Mr. Tuttle Papa Romney. He has our best interests contends that to Obama, women are at heart. It does not matter that Papa just voting vaginas. Wonderful. I’d like Romney has said he would destroy to point out that considering someone a FEMA, that his plan calls for cutting it voting vagina is actually not immature. by 40 percent, and that now he says he’ll It is rude. Perhaps it is a tactically keep it. He’ll do it. Even though it will valuable position to take, which would make his budget even more lopsided. mean Obama is a jerk, but a crafty one. The same thing goes for Pell grants, It does bring up the image of a vagina about which he has also changed his standing on two legs casting a ballot, mind. Whatever you do, don’t question which is pretty funny. Granted, I do not Romney on the way he held a relief rally think a four-year-old has my talent for to support the victims of the hurricane, personifying anatomy, so I am not sure and then sent the materials only to the how immature my thoughts are. battleground states, instead of those that You know what is immature? were hit the hardest. Barring a female representative from And please, don’t call Mitt Romney speaking because she said the word a craven, uncaring, opportunistic and “vagina.” Lisa Brown said it while immoral politician whose every decision speaking to the Michigan House of is dictated by his own gain. He is our Representatives about the harshest anti- father after all, and he loves us. ! “ �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle 03 A’14 cial wrongdoing, we convinced ourselves that Providence had moved. We convinced ourselves that we were onstage in Act V with the orchestra rising to a roar, and the call of history was clear. We convinced ourselves that we had found a savior. And we got the government that we deserved. We got a government that abandoned American breadwinners to joblessness so it could pass an unpopular, unnecessary t is hard to look back through American history and not healthcare bill. We got a government that foisted an unconbelieve that Providence has at the necessary moments scionable “health” mandate on religious employers in direct brought to power the right men: Some historians believe that violation of their First Amendment rights. We got a governGeorge Washington’s abdication of the presidency after two ment that refused to prosecute minorities in civil rights cases terms was the most important moment while covering up its involvement in a in American history, the moment that enbotched gunrunning operation that led to sured America would not succumb to kingToday we will decide the death of an American Border Patrol ship. Perhaps no man could have held the whether we want to be agent. We got a government that surrenstates together in 1860, but only Abraham dered Afghanistan to the Taliban; turned the coddled subjects its back on Israel, our sole Middle East Lincoln could have healed a nation so torn of a soft despotism, ally; and refused to support the brave men apart. With courage and good humor, Ronhowever long it should and women who tried to effect regime ald Reagan stared down the Soviet Union and brought about the collapse of a system last, or whether We the change in Iran, while encouraging the asof oppression that had threatened America People will remain sov- cendancy of the repressive Muslim Brothand the world for half a century. erhood in Egypt. We got a government ereign. “Every nation gets the government it dethat refused to come to the aid of its own serves,” wrote Joseph de Maistre in 1811. It ambassador in Libya as it watched his deis surely by sheer, gratuitous grace that we have sometimes mise in real time, and that has since misled the entire country received better. about the events surrounding his death—and the deaths of Barring some electoral confusion à la 2000, tomorrow three other Americans. morning a two-year campaign will be over. The siege of adverWe got this government because we convinced ourselves tisements, the daily polling, the campaign surrogates on the that the threads of history were converging and that, with a Sunday morning shows, every gaffe on the front page—over. pull of the lever, all could be well. At least for a moment. There will be a President Obama or a But four years later, we are worse off than before. Our savPresident Romney, and one half of the country or the other ior has been exposed: his cool arrogance, his intellectual prewill breathe a sigh of relief as the other starts in with recrimi- tense, his unsavory past, his Chicago tricks—his fundamental nations and insiders sign book deals for tell-alls. Ohioans will incompetence for the task. return to their daily lives for another three and a half years. The “mistake” wasn’t wholly Obama’s, though; it was ours. However the election turns out, though, there will be a America does not do saviors; it has never gone in for princes. markedly different tone at the victory celebrations—or, at We got an incompetent, corrupt government, happy to spend least, there should be. itself into oblivion and extend its tentacles into every moment On Election Day in 2008, Chicago’s Grant Park was the of our day-to-day lives, because we accepted that that is govscene of weeping and jubilation. “Historic” was the word ernment’s prerogative. We accepted that government could for the occasion. Since then there have been many more his- be our keeper, our provider, our paladin. torics. An historic recession. Historic unemployment. HistorToday’s election will show whether we, as a country, stand ic spending. Historic debts. by that decision. In 2008 we mistook a small moment for a History has inflection points. There are major and there are grand one. But this time the stakes are genuinely high. Today minor, but not always are we able to tell which are which in we will decide whether we want to be the coddled subjects of the moment. Victor Hugo wrote, “Waterloo is not a battle; it is a soft despotism, however long it should last, or whether We a shift in the world’s front,” but he says that it would not have the People will remain sovereign. been had Napoleon only remembered his infantry at the moThere are no saviors on the ballot today. There are two men ment the Hanoverian battalions buckled. who will lead a people content with America’s fading away, In 2008 we confused the moment. Seduced by soaring ora- or a people willing to shoulder the responsibilities of citizentory and the prospect of atoning for America’s history of ra- ship. ! Some princes are born in palaces. Some are born in mangers. But a few are born in the imagination, out of scraps of history and hope….We are the ones we’ve been waiting for, [Barack Obama] liked to say, but people were waiting for him, waiting for someone to finish what a King began. — Nancy Gibbs, “How Obama Rewrote the Book,” TIME, Nov. 5, 2008 I “ �The Gadfly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xamining Junior/Senior Language Michael Fogleman L A’13 ast Thursday, November 1, the SCI and content in the language tutorials. convened to discuss the junior and Jacques Barzun’s Essay on French Verse: senior language tutorials, and specifi- For Readers of English Poetry was mencally the French language. Why do we tioned as a possible supplementary text study French, as opposed to English, on French verse. Alternatively, reading Greek, or German? How well do we ac- a short novella or text like Flaubert’s A complish our stated goals? Simple Heart in the original could give One tutor suggested that our aim in students a more immediate experience the junior and senior language tuto- with the French language. Memorizrial was to read authors like La Roche- ing poems or other short passages also foucauld, Racine, and Baudelaire in the provides a way for students to listen to original. Because French is accessible and think about the French language to English speakers, students are able and its use by various authors. One tuto begin studying these works in the tor suggested that students put aside original relatively quickly. Additionally, their prepared English translations and the tutorials dedicate time to studying just looked at the original text in class. the elements of French verse, so that we If class discussions and student papers can discuss the effects of the sound in cited the original French instead of an individual poems. In particular, French English translation, the skills of pronunpoetry’s use of alexciation, listening, andrines is an interand speaking could Why do we study French, esting alternative to as opposed to English, be emphasized, and German and English each tutorial might Greek, or German? How find a natural synpoetry’s use of iamwell do we accomplish our thesis in its discusbic pentameter. However, it was sion of form and stated goals? felt that these goals content. are not fully reached in practice. StuFinally, the discussion turned to the dents reported that tutorials ordinar- proposal that juniors and seniors study ily consist of comparing translations the English language instead of French. before shifting to a discussion of the Students might be able to appreciate the work’s content, so that consideration of depths of our own poetry much more its form is usually abandoned for semi- quickly, and in a much fuller way, than nar-style conversations about its ideas. with French poetry. But students and One possible cause was suggested: the tutors seemed hesitant to suggest such a language manual, Palmeri and Milligan. radical change, especially since the secIts focus on reading is in one sense ex- ond semester of the sophomore and sepedient for our purposes, but it neglects nior language tutorials is spent discussan emphasis on pronunciation, speak- ing the English language. A less radical ing, and listening, so that students often alternative was standardizing the course have widely divergent skill levels in pro- of study of second semester senior lannunciation, and lack a satisfactory level guage classes. Specifically, the response of comfort with the French Language. of poets like Yates and Eliot to BaudeAdditionally, because Palmeri and Mil- laire could allow students to discuss lanligan focuses on grammar, students guage and poetry in both languages and generally learn about the elements of more generally. verse from serviceable but perhaps unAll agreed that the fact that an English necessarily concise handouts. All agreed speaker can learn the French language that it would be ideal if class discussions quickly is both a boon and a hindrance considered a work’s form and content to meaningful discussions in the lansimultaneously, but it seemed difficult guage tutorial. The adoption of various given this lack of skills. practices and policies suggested at the Various suggestions were made meeting could ameliorate these difficulfor finding this unity between form ties. ! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 4 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 10 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-11-06 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 10 of The Gadfly. Published on November 06, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.10 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/f5100f3fd64b65fe11d5d0f319d90805.pdf 887f7dc244c360f44bc13469510a04e1 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%&'()*!"#*+,-)*./0-"+0--1*2*34 *5,0*#'06//7%1/*8,911%-)*2*3: ;0-<%-$%1/*=>;()*$"%&*2*3? !9-*;0@1A*'9@'*B-&'*C')*D@0A*2*3E !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$(&2#$9;3$8098$.$2&+#$<<<52$.$5!!=,$99 5,77,$*'9-*'(#)*+*,17%1-*@'F photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly is taking a break for stuffing, potatoes, and turkey. Can you blame us? Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Matthew Dudik Alvaro Duran Michael Fogleman Henry Robert III Joe Roberts Samuel Weinberg !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- T hank you for a great final issue before the Thanksgiving holiday! The Gadfly staff will be enjoying a break during Don Rag week and the week immediately following Thanksgiving, but we’ll be back in the Coffee Shop on December 4. Until then... Happy Thanksgiving! ! !"#$%&'()#*#$+,-"'.$/0'("&12#. A Review of Two Heavy-Hitters: Part II Charles Zug A’15 In the completion of his review from Issue 4, staffer Charles Zug compares two performances of Brahms’ symphonies. T he pathos of Brahms’ first symphony is heavier and fiercer, though in no way greater, than that of his second symphony. The great, sinewy tensions of the first find their genesis in the chromatic steps of the introduction to the first movement, and, to an extent, the entire symphony is a development of the first few notes of this introduction. In the second symphony, Brahms is no less economical with his choice of developmental material: three notes and a single interval, forming a quasi-introduction, establish the temper and provide the essential material for the sprawling dimensions and cantabile of the entire symphony. In these three notes, however, is a latent darkness that dispels itself most poignantly during the development sections of the first and second movements. Dohnanyi (see below for details) draws-out this darkness by isolating various sections of the orchestra. In the case of the first movement, he isolates the trumpets and trombones and therein greatly alters the texture of orchestration. In the case of the second, he exaggerates the crescendo by making ample use of the timpani; given the symphony’s otherwise serene temper, this rapid change is profoundly stirring, because it manages to both evoke and unify all of the symphony’s darkest moments. The fourth movement, though pervaded by the same darkness, is an outpouring of elated and frantic energy. Karajan (see below for details) properly interprets this movement, because he maintains a primarily uniform tempo, drawing out the pervasiveness of motion without causing unneeded hurriedness or instability. The first movement of the third symphony is a difficult piece of music because it does not lend itself to an interpretation that makes use of uniform tempo. It is a whole of profoundly different parts and, for that reason, must be treated with delicacy. In the case of this piece, Dohnanyi reveals himself as being incapable of such delicacy: it’s a mystery why he opts for that horrendous repeat, and therein disregards all of the exposition’s accumulated energy, which so desperately desires to pour into the development; or why, once he does begin the development, he adds a sudden, unwritten crescendo. Karajan manages a balanced and faithful, though not particularly noteworthy, interpretation. I would recommend Bruno Walter’s recording with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra over either of those reviewed here. ! *Reviewed: > Brahms: Symphonies, Overtures, and Violin Concerto, by Christoph von Dohnanyi and the Cleveland Orchestra > Brahms: The Complete Symphonies, by Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic �The Gadfly 03 Limericks ! Samuel Weinberg, A’14 Macfarland who went to Social Thought Saw St. John’s as his eternal lot With its ancient tomes and planetarium’s dome In perpetual archon meetings he was caught Will Brown T A’16 his review of Taylor Swift’s lat- personalities. Fiona is secretly an est album, Red, will begin with ogress. the words “Taylor Swift” and end Red is quite obviously analogous with “What is an Ogress?” to this story. With the first track, Taylor Swift is an artist I have lit- “State of Grace,” Swift immediately tle experience with outside of Dick- shows her chops as a nuanced songensian and involuntary experiences writer; I am not aware of how this is, in shopping malls with angry par- but I am assuming it is so because I ents. I associate her with commer- just compared the album to Shrek. cials of starving cats and moments in “Sad Beautiful Tragic” features which I have found the line, “you’ve myself eating Slim got your demons, Taylor Swift is an artJims. She is altoand darling, they ist I have little experi- all look like me,” gether representaence with outside of which seems kind tive of loud, dumb incidents in my life Dickensian and invol- of depressing to that I would not me. Other than untary experiences like to repeat, and that, I think the in shopping malls as such, I would like song “I Almost Do” with angry parents. to assess her latis probably pretty est album, which I good, and “We Are believe is called Red, with a compli- Never Ever Getting Back Together” mentary analysis of the movie Shrek. is presumably about some kind of reShrek is a movie about donkeys and lationship, so if you like pretty good ogres. things and relationships, this album The movie Shrek, starring Michael is totally your thing. What I still find Myers of Halloween fame and possi- amusing, though, is how Donkey bly Will Smith, if I remember cor- falls in love with a dragon that is so rectly, is a visual love song at heart. much larger than him and can’t even For, just as with Taylor Swift’s best speak English. country tunes, there is a conflict beShrek is rated PG and is only 92 tween two lovers: Lord Farquaad, a minutes long. If I could recommend modern-day Agamemnon of sorts, it for one thing, it would be Cuba has been intruding upon the Oph- Gooding, Jr.’s fantastic voice work as elia and Macbeth archetypes of the Donkey. Nevertheless, I’ve got some franchise, who are, of course, Fiona questions for the filmmakers that and Shrek. Shrek sets out on a dra- ultimately detract from the film’s matic voyage to save his future wife, score: Why is Smash Mouth featured accompanied by a talking donkey on the soundtrack? Why do I keep who reminds me of Eric Clapton in living? What is an Ogress? that they both are sort of irritating RATING: 4 stars ! “ Meno that most stubborn man Was not wise to Socrates’ plan Can virtue be taught? From the sophist it’s bought! He then rejected philosophy’s clan. The tutor called Tom May Thought history the pedagogical way To his students he’d tell Far past the bell Of people from a bygone day James Joyce was studied by Yee The Irishman filled him with glee Joyce’s letters to his wife Exposed his whole life To men not as cultured as he The fine statesman Herman Cain Gave the GOP great pain for his 9-9-9 plan and invading Iran He boarded his Godfather’s plane Artistophanes in his Clouds Spawned laughter soft and loud Of Socrates’ school Filled with great fools But always drew quite a crowd! That huge Canto named Ted Kept most Johnnies fed While they all did eat He would warmly greet And in gourmet trends they were led Shakespeare’s great King Lear Saw that his death was near Yet Cordelia he did banish But her love did not vanish For paternal love is always most dear There once was a man called Strauss Whose body was as small as a mouse His esoteric mysteries Rejected all histories While he walked alone to his house �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%&'(&)#"*+&!"#$%&'()*"+,-$&,.+&%((/0"(,1$2""0)3 Matthew Dudik D A’13 o you know the saying “Two heads are better than one, tion of what potentially is, as such,” (once we’ve deciphered even if one is a cabbage”? I think that saying might con- what that means), and then we laugh at him with Descartes tain some encouragement for those of us who are struggling when Descartes reminds us how incomprehensible that is. here at SJC. The point of the saying is that if you have a ques- And then we laugh at Descartes when Leibniz says, “Too tion or a problem and you talk it out with another person, the much trust in genius led [him] astray.” But before Aristotle, simple act of talking will help you draw the answer out of who tried to define motion? No one! And what a struggle of yourself, Socrates-style. Even if the other head is a cabbage, a thing to do! And who decided that it was okay to stop using it’s better to talk it out with that cabbage than to meditate this definition as Descartes did? And what a struggle to let it on your own. So if you have a problem and don’t have any go! We struggle every day with these changes that happened friends, take heart! Run to the grocery store and buy yourself in Western Thought. But these books are Great for the very a cabbage; they’re cheap. The two of you can figure it out— reason that it’s a struggle to say what they say, and a struggle cabbages are such good listeners. Now, here at St. John’s we to believe them, too. give you tons of problems, but are a bit stingy on the cabbages. There’s another kind of struggle, though, a more present Instead, we give you friends and even tutors to discuss with. one. I’m talking of the struggle of comprehending Ancient These are even better help than cabbages. St. John’s, then, is Greek, of understanding Ptolemy, Copernicus, and Kepler, the ultimate problem-solving institution: the Program gives us of finding in Apollonius the fact that “All parallelograms cirthe problems, and we give each other the means of addressing cumscribed about any conjugate diameters of a given ellipsis these problems. or hyperbola are equal among themselves,” as Newton does, Most of these problems that we address because he tells us, “This is demonstrated have been worked out and neatly presentby the writers on the conic sections.” It’s At least you labored, and ed on the glossy paper of the beautifully ilthat, my friend and fellow not even sort-of-demonstrated! I’m talklustrated textbooks that real colleges use. Johnnie, is all that matters. ing of my very own struggle today of unBut really? Really, guys? Do you REALLY derstanding the wave-particle duality of That is what you get out of light, and I’m talking of a thousand other want to put up with those things again? the program, you get the They have no character, no subtlety, no struggles we face here at St. John’s. You ability to solve a problem. will find yourself reading a book today or beauty, no life! They don’t even smell like proper books! And what have you gained tomorrow, it’ll be a Great Book, and you But it’s a struggle. by reading and memorizing the answer? won’t understand it. It’s preposterous Nothing but the answer. There is no skill, no true develop- what the Program is asking you to do: to understand in a day ment in that, only an entry in the encyclopedia of your head. or two what took someone a lifetime of hard thought and inAs Plutarch says in “On Listening to Lectures,” “The mind is finite skill to understand and write. But study it! Read it carenot a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” (I’m so obnox- fully! The answer’s in there, it does make sense; it’s a work of ious—worse than a cabbage). But that obnoxious little quota- art in your hands, if you’re patient. It can change your life! tion is the thing that St. John’s is all about. It’s a kindling of But if your questions aren’t answered when you finish the the fire of the mind. reading, don’t lose heart. You have friends to help you This kindling, my friend and fellow Johnnie, is a figure it out, not just cabbages, and even if you don’t get struggle by its very nature. Why do we read original it, at least you strove for it. At least you labored, and texts? Not because they’re easy. Not even because that, my friend and fellow Johnnie, is all that matters. they said it best—they didn’t. We read original texts That is what you get out of the Program: you get because they said it first. We read the ability to solve a problem. But it’s a the ideas at their nascence, struggle. when they crawl and cry and Before I let you go, I’d like to leave scream. As we go through the you with the following. Viete claims Program, we watch the ideas (sophomore year) at the end of his Ingrow up, we watch them fall and troduction to the Analytic Art, in which hurt themselves, and we watch he invents algebra that, “THERE IS NO them make mistakes. We potty PROBLEM WHICH CANNOT BE train them and watch them SOLVED” (caps lock error his, not shove crayons up mine). I should like to their noses, and make a similar claim we watch them for St. John’s: there is no struggle to learn to problem we cannot solve, read and write and if we take the time to do it. add. At first we believe That might be a bit too much Aristotle when he says, trust in genius, but it’s “Motion is the actualizapretty true. ! “ �The Gadfly !"#$ Reza Djalal 05 A’15 Conflict has a frightening trickle-down effect. Tension that seems worlds away often originates very close to home (sometimes so subtly we barely recognize the cause). In KWP’s upcoming production of Bent, we watch a tremendous domino effect, a world collapsing and unfolding before our eyes. Political turmoil in Germany results in murder, murder results in guilt, guilt results in fear, and this fear is what generates dissension between two lovers. And all this in just the first scene. In the following article, Ms. Leila Saad, the director of Bent, answers several questions about her upcoming production. Can you give a brief summary of what Bent is about? Bent is about the struggles of Max, a gay man living in Berlin in 1935. Shortly put, Max picks up the wrong man and ends up on the run. You’ll have to come to see the rest. On a larger scale it’s about the way secrecy can twist a person. What inspired Bent to be chosen as the first KWP production of the year? Technically, Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind is the first KWP production of the year. I hope you all saw it. Honestly, performance times were mostly a matter of production value—Bent has an extremely spare set and costumes, and Fuddy Meers has a lot more going on set-wise. I also really wanted the acting to be raw and heartfelt as opposed to polished and theatrical, and shorter rehearsal time means the actors don’t have time to get comfortable, which is both a blessing and a curse. What kinds of difficulties did you have directing Bent? Bent is a fantastic play, but because it was written in the 1980s there’s a lot of political subtext that an audience wouldn’t necessarily get today. It’s my job and my actors’ job to get people to connect with the characters as people first. I also chose to put a lot of emphasis on acting instead of complicated set or technical flourishes—it’s important that the audience feels how alone and vulnerable the characters are. However, this means that my actors have a whole show to carry that they had to put together in only two months. I’m extremely proud of the work they’ve done. Bent takes place in a historically important time period. As the director, did you learn anything especially interesting about pre-WWII culture? Are there things that your audience might find useful to know before watching? World War II is historical ground that’s been covered countless times. However, it was very interesting getting into the culture of Germany before the war. Before the Nazis rose to power, Germany was actually incredibly modern in many ways—its intellectuals were experimenting with new ways of thinking, its playwrights were pushing the bounds of what a play could be. Berlin was a hotbed of ideas and sexual freedom. Of course, this sort of environment was accompanied by an economy struggling to make it back from utter ruin, and a growth of extreme conservatism and prejudice. The criminal code in Germany outlawed homosexuality, but it was not strictly enforced, and there was a thriving gay community in Berlin. This was true until the “Night of the Long Knives,” when Hitler detained and killed many of his political rivals on the (relatively) more liberal side of the Nazi Party. Homosexuality would no longer be tolerated. Bent opens on the morning after this night. Bent has several scenes that are both violent and emotionally traumatic. Were any of these scenes censored? Or, conversely, how were you able to effectively capture that level of brutality? The horror and sadness conveyed by violence is never the actual violence—it’s the expectation of violence and the reactions of the people who are witnessing it. Think of horror movies—the scariest part is always a character walking down a dark hallway with a flashlight that’s going out. To this end, we really worked to make the violence or descriptions of violence harsh, minimal, and full of tension. You have quite a line-up of performers. How did you go about selecting your cast? I love my cast! I knew going in I wanted to case “non-theatrical” actors—actors who might be a little more raw, but also a little more real. I knew if I was going to go that route, finding actors with charisma and chemistry would be incredibly important. Of course, I didn’t realize that finding actors with chemistry would mean that most of my cast would be friends already. It’s made the atmosphere during rehearsals a little more boisterous than I’d like sometimes, but also incredibly fun. Do you think Aristotle would approve of this play? Let’s not invite him. ! �The Gadfly 06 !"#$%&'(")*#+,--).)/#!"#$%&'()$(*$+(,%-./# Nathan Goldman I A’14 n June of 1992, St. John’s’ then-president John Agresto de- could consider it in relation to the English Civil War, in relivered a lecture to the Graduate Institute entitled “Read- sponse to which Leviathan was written, acknowledging that ing Great Books and the Problem of History.” Occasioned, per- Hobbes’ circumstances informed his views, without asserting haps, by the skeptical grumblings of graduate students, whose that they determined them. Other times, it is impossible to see undergrad alma maters had likely treated seriously questions the full force of an idea without contextual grounding: Aristoof history and context, the lecture is a brief criticism of histor- tle’s claim that slavery is natural derives its radicalness largely icism and an equally brief apologia for the ahistoricism found from the fact that the claim was made in a society with conin the St. John’s classroom. ventional, rather than natural, slavery. Agresto fashions three closely related straw men and claims Ahistoricism at St. John’s has been defended by variations they are the best claims to validity a historical perspective on the theory that the great ideas of great thinkers not only has. They are, briefly, that putting works in historical context transcend circumstance but in some way have basically nothmight: ing to do with it—thus foundational texts are not just complex a) let us “make reasonable excuses for why people in the and influential works, but Great Books. Maybe this is true. past did what they did, even when such actions go against con- But the way we go about things now presumes that it is. To let temporary sensibilities or knowledge,” such a huge claim—which, in separating ideas from the realm b) “allow us to see the past without being overly judgmen- of bodily circumstances, amounts to some kind of mind-body tal,” dualism—sit in the College’s methodology, unexamined, is not c) help explain things, e.g., “why did Aristotle believe in rigorously philosophical. slavery. That’s easy—he believed in slavery because he was a And though St. John’s disavows historical analysis and banGreek, and the Greeks believed in slavery.” ishes context from the classroom, it cannot actually rid itself Claims (a) and (b) constitute a certain caricature of his- of either. The St. John’s website claims, unconvincingly, that toricism: it serves merely to exonerate our heroes and help us the “chronological order in which the books [on the seminar take seriously the claims of slave-owners, list] are read is primarily a matter of conI worry that St. John’s witch-burners, and anti-Semites. Claim venience and intelligibility; it does not does its students a seri(c) presents a deeper worry I often hear imply a historical approach to the subject ous disservice by restrict- matter.” Convenience? This implies eiechoed in conversations about history at ing certain lines of questhe College: to consider anything historither that the order is arbitrary (which it cally is to consider it merely historically; tioning under the guise of clearly isn’t), or that it’s the only obvious that is, a historical examination of a text one (it’s not that, either; most schools find a reportedly more pure, will supplant formal and thematic analymore beautiful approach. discipline a more appropriate governing sis. Thus Agresto’s example, wherein the principle). And for it to be a matter of inreader explains Aristotle’s treatment of slavery in the Politics telligibility admits that there is some kind of intelligibility in as a consequence of his time and place. (A curious example, history. How can we reconcile giving credence to the idea of a since Aristotle’s notion of the natural slave is actually inher- continuing conversation—that we are better readers of Thomently critical of the slavery practiced in his own time. But more as for having read Aristotle, better readers of Leibniz for havon that later.) ing read Descartes—and thus acknowledge the importance of Why are these straw men? In the case of historicism-as- at least an ideological context, without giving history its due? apology, it’s because such an approach is not even properly Moreover, we create an arbitrary distinction between text historical. The reader whose only aim is to justify the (to mod- and context. We take many contextual points as granted: that ern readers) unappealing details of authors’ thoughts and lives there is such a thing as the Bible, that Don Quixote is a novel is just doing some kind of canon clean up. But, even for Agres- (it claims to be a history), that Plato wrote all those dialogues to, the true folly in this approach seems to rest on his other (who are we to judge that?). These may seem like obvious and worry, that historical analyses serve only to offer easy answers minor points. But once we’re blurring the distinction between to questions we find either morally troubling or difficult (as text and context, what right do we have to be making the disin an example Ms. Brann mentioned in her parents’ weekend tinction at all? lecture last year, of a freshman answering the question, “Why My fundamental concern about St. John’s’ relationship to is Achilles so unassuagably angry when Agamemnon takes his history as a discipline is not that it’s resisting the humanities’ woman away?” with the trite non-answer, “Because he feels modern turn toward historicism. I worry that St. John’s does dishonored, and in the culture of that time honor was impor- its students a serious disservice by restricting certain lines of tant”). questioning under the guise of a reportedly more pure, more Like any hermeneutic tool, historical analysis can be abused. beautiful approach. Arguments like Agresto’s caricature and But used well, it won’t explain away difficult questions; rather, distort the historical approach into the bane of serious philoit will further them, and deepen the analysis beyond what the sophical inquiry. But it isn’t historically minded readers who author has explicitly said. Take Hobbes’ Leviathan. A reader claim theirs is the only suitable method; that would be us. ! “ �The Gadfly 07 !"#$%#&'()*+$%,&-(,+$.&-/$.(0(12 Jonathan Barone J A’13 ust by the nature of this school and the numerous activi- way so that both of you can practice. You can’t be focused only ties it has, many clubs aren’t able to have their voices heard on yourself.” through the din. Unfortunately, this can lead to oversight; we Of course, Amelia admits, aikido is not for everyone, espeonly have so many hours in the day to dedicate our time to ex- cially those who are only interested in learning self-defense tracurriculars. One of the clubs that goes oft overlooked is the tactics in a short period of time. Most applicable experience St. John’s Aikido club, one of the only clubs here at St. John’s comes after thousands of hours of training, which manifests that allows you to practice and learn a martial art. For many itself in recognizing specific bodily movements and acting in of you, the closest you’ve ever come to observing this club is accordance with your knowledge. through the College Fair. But Aikido Unfortunately, St. John’s is a four-year is an exciting on-campus opportunity! program, and many will not continue Anyone has the opportunity to their activities here into their future. Aikido is a relatively new martial art, developed solely as self-defense. practice it to its fullest capacity, What is the value of aikido for the casual It is designed so that one redirects the and it offers a different oppor- practicioner? Amelia relates her testienergy of an attack, rather than meets mony: “I had to learn the value of daily tunity to dedicate oneself to a it head-on. It can be practiced and expractice,” she says. “I had to struggle and physical and mental objective. be frustrated and eventually realize that ecuted effectively by anyone, since it depends solely on the strength of the it’s impossible to perfect [aikido]. I had attacker. Aikido is also distinct in the fact that it is a “soft” to be at peace with never understanding, and restless enough martial art, designed to protect the attacker; aikido aims to de- to keep working on it.” fend by neutralizing an attack, rather than directly attacking in return. It’s because of this that aikido gets much flak. Many criticize aikido for the impracticality of the techniques and the way it is practiced. Since aikido is designed to protect the attacker, there is a great deal of falling and learning how to fall in practice. In addition, many claim that the situations people enact in practice are incredibly unlikely and thereby judge aikido to be not worth their time. I caught up with archousa Amelia Perkins, who was able to relay her experience with aikido. She argues that many of the criticisms are unfounded. “The role of the partner playing the attacker is not to look for openings or try to regain control; it is to protect himself from injury, which usually means falling down,” she observes. “Practice is unique: Your partner trusts you entirely, and the most important thing is to respect that. You both know what is coming, but you allow the opening any- “ !"#$"%&'%()*+++, ! Painter Bob !"#$%%&'("$)*"$+"*$,-"&./*"-01#* 0-*$"."(.23",$$("&$/* *$"&$43"#$2-/",0*#"/$5'"-./*6"%2)*' ,#'2'7"*$"'/*05.*'"*#'"4$/* /,''*"80210&"4$)-*'("($,-"*#'"%&$,/ ./"2$)-(".-("2$)-(",'",'-* )-*0&7".12''(7"."4$-*2.4*"2'.4#'( !"1'*"*$"#.9'".":'.*204' .-("#'7".";0+'"$+":.*# *$1'*#'27"$-"."/0-1&'"%&$437 %)*"-$*"*#'"/)%)2%/7"<&'./'7 <'2#.</"/$5'"/5.&&"4$&&'1'"+$2"*#'"&0%'2.&".2*/ ,0*#"."(0/<$/0*0$-"*$".<<'./'= Amelia’s reflections point strongly to the value of what Aikido offers. In turn, it’s easy to see how it relates to St. John’s. Anyone has the opportunity to practice it to its fullest capacity, and it offers a different opportunity to dedicate oneself to a physical and mental objective. As sophomore Daniel Koolbeck relates, “Aikido has given me a greater awareness of my own movement and my spatial relations to those around me. It’s allowed me to enter a different frame of mind. Even if I can’t find a place to train after St. John’s, aikido, like the Program, is something worth taking with me for the rest of my life.” I strongly suggest that you take the time and see for yourself what aikido can offer you. Aikido club meets at the new Naval Academy Field House on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 6:30—8pm (they typically walk over from St. John’s’ Iglehart Gym at 6pm) and in Iglehart Gym on Saturdays from 9:30— 11am. Newcomers are always welcome. ! �The Gadfly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Mr. Tuttle’s questionable, if not inde- ligence is nothing short of shocking. Secondly, why on earth fensible, criticism of Barack Obama’s does anybody, particularly any Amerforeign policy has truly got my blood ican, want an average Joe doing the Foreign policy is what affects me boiling. The line that truly stands hardest job in the world? I want a god out, “encouraging the ascendancy of and the rest of the world far more among men to be president, someone the repressive Muslim Brotherhood so fantastic that there is no way I can than the differing domestic idein Egypt” speaks volumes about a relate to them on an intellectual level. ologies, and I breathed a sigh of uniquely American stance on govDon’t settle for mediocrity, especially relief when Obama was re-elected. when the entire world has a stake in ernment: Democracy—but only if you pick who we want! The last 50 years the presidential election. of American foreign policy have been based on spreading deRegardless of your political stance, there is much to be hapmocracy and fighting oppression by government. Yet people py about with this election result, notably that Mitt Romney have the gall to get angry at the choice of the Egyptians, a right will not be in charge of the largest armed forces in the world. that minutes before they staunchly advocated, if the election We can all breathe a collective sigh of relief. ! result isn’t so favourable. American politicians in particular have to make their minds up: If they wish to spread democracy, then they actually have to allow democracy to exist and not accuse the president of allowing, even encouraging, a repres! Painter Bob sive regime to take power. Respect the choice of the Egyptian !"#$%"&"'$(("&)*+,%$)"#&people. './"(01$)"%.$"&#$203&-")2$&# To accuse the President of turning his back on Israel is %.2/+4."'/250-4"/+%".0,"6+,0-$,,"7(&-, equally ludicrous. Supporting the right to sovereignty of the 82/#"&"'$((9/0($)"(0#/+,0-$ Palestinian people is not turning his back on Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu’s lack of diplomacy has certainly not helped mat%/",&%0,8:".0,"3+,%/#$2, ters, although Obama did shoot himself in the foot when he .0,"3+,%/#"'&,"%/"420was caught talking smack about Netanyahu. That being said, '.0($",./'0-4"%.$#"&"3/-%2&3%;"%.&% Obama has stood firm in his support of Israel in regards to Ira.$",'/2$"'&,"'0%./+%",0nian aggression, but not advocating an invasion of Iran is not 3.&20,#&"0-".0,"-&%+2$ only sensible but should be widely supported by the American ):-&#03"%/"%.$"%/+3. people still reeling after two Middle Eastern wars. ,+3."102%+$".&)".$"-+2%+2$) Foreign policy is what affects me and the rest of the world %/"72/#0,$"%.$#",/"#+3. far more than the differing domestic ideologies, and I breathed &-)",/;"%.$:",04-$)"%.$")/%%$)"(0-$ a sigh of relief when Obama was re-elected. Mitt Romney as &-)",/"%.$:"/'-$)"&"./#$ commander-in-chief was a truly scary prospect. This is a can&-)",/",$3+2$;"%.$:"(&%$2"<-) didate who advocated a far more aggressive stance on Iran, .$=,"%.2/'-"%.$"./((/'"6/-$ despite the armed forces spending the last decade mired in 8/2"&,"8/2$3(/,+2$"3/#$,"%/"3&(( highly questionable wars. The United States as the World Po%.$:"3&-=%"6+%")/+6%"0%,"%2+$ lice Force already worries many people throughout the world, +-%0(;"%.$"<-&(",.$2088=,"3&2 and Romney was going to increase the defense budget, al3/#$,"6&350-4>>>:/+"5-/'"'./ ready astronomically large, by $2 trillion—which, notably, was &-)",/"%.&%"$1$-0-4;"0-"&"6&2 never requested by any U.S. military leader. Obama has been sufficiently aggressive in the Middle East with his killing of &"6&-5$2;"&-)",/#$"3/7, Bin Laden and repeated drone strikes. To elect someone even 5035"6&35"%/",.&2$"&".&2):9.&2 more bellicose would have been a catastrophe. '0%."&"(&':$2"&-)",/#$",3.-/7, Mr. Tuttle also highlights another bizarrely American phe'.0($"&"3&27$-%$2=,"'./($"(08$;"4/$,")/'nomenon that occurs when electing a president and other '0%."&"'08$;"&-)",0?",.&27"50), officials—the desire for the leaders to be relatable, to be an &)&7%0-4"%/"%.$"'&:,"+7"%/'“average Joe.” Mr. Tuttle’s criticism of Obama includes “his 82/#"%.$02"-$'"./#$"6:"%.$",50),> intellectual pretense.” First and foremost, the fact that Mr. “ !"#$%&'()*)&+&'(), �The Gadfly 10 !"#$%& '(%& )#"*+ Alvaro Duran I GI t has been an absolute gas to watch the right implode after to the right. the presidential election. The polished rind of this rotten Charles Donovan, president of the Charlotte Lozier Instifruit has sloughed off, and the maggots within have either be- tute, wrote that the “young guns” of the GOP needed to “keep gun feasting on each other or wriggled off to the nearest damp their message consistent, avoid talk of truces on the issues, corner. The resulting fibrillation of opinions shows just how learn how to speak to and represent women...rethink the fordeluded the right was before the election, how shocked they eign-policy rhetoric that implies the next war is just around were afterwards, and how useless they promise to continue the corner, and reach an accommodation on immigration.” to be. Out of the “big tent” came a bizarre crew of neo-Con- Steve Schmidt, an advisor to the McCain campaign, urged Refederates arguing the virtues of secession, anti-immigration publican leaders to repudiate “extreme statements.” Kathryn activists demanding that borders be sealed to all, armchair Jean Lopez, obviously more dazed than the rest, wrote at Naauditors decrying how welfare queens have taken over, and tional Review Online that conservatives needed to “make great evangelicals finished with our republic on Earth and await- art that uplifts the spirit...feed a generation wanting someing their kingdom in heaven. Indeed, despair and resignation thing better...[and] rebuild, starting with the basics of what is primary among the mourning calls works and what we believe, telling that across all spectra. story with confidence, enthusiasm, and So after more than $4 billion Robert Stacy McCain of The Amerilove.” And I’m told Obama is the repwas thrown into this election can Spectator was the most blunt: “Even resentative of empty rhetoric? Clearly cycle, the right gained little of before the unmitigated political disasthe “big tent” has become a big top value. Hopefully, this is the last where “moral decline” stands aside ter of November 6, 2012, a date that will we ever hear of Mitt Romney. live in infamy, the prospects of salvaging God-willing rapes and where creationthe United States were not particularly ism is as welcome as the development hopeful. Now, however, we are permanently and irretrievably of a 21st century workforce. screwed.” Donald Trump went through a histrionic meltdown, It may be that the party holds on to its constituents in the imploring, then deleting, calls for a revolutionary takeover. near future around their common dislike for Obama, but David Gelernter of National Review called the Romney loss a changing opinions on social issues like drug legalization and “battle in the slow-motion civil war the nation is undergoing” gay marriage will eventually lead to unsolvable absurdities beagainst “post-religious, globalist intellectuals.” Tea Party Pa- coming more visible in the party and forcing a schism between triots, an organization of Tea Party activists, blamed the loss the Christian right and the social libertarians. Gay marriage on Romney’s being a “weak moderate candidate, hand-picked across the nation is an eventuality that no absurd notions of by the Beltway elites and country-club establishment.” Her- “gay therapy” can reverse. All that weirdoes like Maggie Galman Cain openly called for a third party to abandon the GOP lagher and Bryan Fischer can do is wage a steadily retreating and challenge the current conservative establishment. defensive game. As the Wednesday morning hangover kicked in and RepubSo after more than $4 billion was thrown into this election licans surreptitiously peeled off their Romney/Ryan bumper cycle, the right gained little of value. Hopefully, this is the last stickers, fingers began pointing in all directions. Ann Coulter we ever hear of Mitt Romney—a man who encased himself in begged conservatives not to attack Romney, calling him “the a cocoon of stupidity and denial and couldn’t even contemperfect candidate.” Instead, many were blaming Karl Rove plate losing enough to write a concession speech in advance. for failing to turn $400 million of donations into meaningful And what of his electoral campaign, a machine so inept it acelectoral results. Others, like talk-show host Laura Ingraham, tually believed the risible predictions of George Will and Dick turned their rage on New Jersey governor Chris Christie for Morris? It shows that a Romney administration would have praising Obama’s response to Hurricane Sandy. Meanwhile, been no less incompetent than the current one in foreseeSean Hannity announced that his views on immigration had ing and reacting to crises. Finally, now that we’ve seen that “evolved,” and that a pathway to citizenship was necessary. independent conservative groups outspent liberal groups by Charles Krauthammer wrote that the GOP problem of appeal- hundreds of millions, perhaps we will finally stop hearing the ing to Hispanic voters required “but a single policy change: paranoiac cries from the left regarding Citizens United. If the Border fence plus amnesty.” Mark Krikorian, executive direc- people need the state to keep them safe from their own obligator of the Center for Immigration Studies, however, fired back tions to be informed citizens, the people no longer deserve the against claims that such moves would charm Hispanics over republic. ! “ �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle W 11 A’14 ell, it was fun while it lasted. America the superpower. [A democracy] can only exist until the voters discover that Land of the free, home of the brave. Shining City on a they can vote themselves money from the Public TreaHill. Last, best hope of earth. 100 years as leader of the free sury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for world. Not bad, guys. It was a good run. the candidate promising the most benefits from the Public Now say goodbye to all that. Treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses “How long can a government with a $16 trillion foreign debt over loose fiscal policy always followed by dictatorship. remain a world power?” That’s not Mitt Romney. It’s Iranian president and genocidal-wannabe Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. That’s Obama’s America—“fundamentally transformed,” The man’s got a point. America ain’t just broke. We’re as as he promised in 2008. What remedy is there when voters broke as it gets. We’re the brokest country in the history of discover that the Public Treasury can be a public trough? “If money. Combine every dollar of every currency on the plan- Obama wins, liberals and conservatives will go on to contest et, and you still cannot cover our debts. Most people with a new issues,” wrote The Weekly Standard’s James Ceasar just checkbook recognize that once you run out money you can’t, before the election, “but they will do so on a new terrain that you know, do any more stuff. But rather than confront fiscal accepts the core of Obama’s changes.” reality, the federal government has chosen What is that new “core”? In the words of to max out not just our credit cards, but the opening video at September’s Demothose of our children, our grandchildren, cratic National Convention, “Government America’s business is our great-grandchildren—so that Sesame is the only thing we all belong to.” Family? no longer business, as Street is available via public broadcasting, Church? Dance troupe? Rotary Club? ForCalvin Coolidge once women do not have to pay for NuvaRing, get ‘em. With a full third of the country ussaid. It’s government. and we can each cruise to the local job fair ing one of the federal government’s 80-plus in a minimal-emission Chevy Volt. Last And Tuesday confirmed welfare programs, and the entire population Tuesday, the majority of Americans dethat we like it that way. about to get sucked into Obamacare, like cided that, on the whole, they were pretty it or not, America’s business is no longer We accepted Obama’s comfortable with this arrangement. business, as Calvin Coolidge once said. It’s vision. We looked at Of course, people were not voting just government. And Tuesday confirmed that the last four years and we like it that way. We accepted Obama’s about the economy. Foreign policy, immigration policy, “social issues,” personality— vision. We looked at the last four years and said, “More, please.” a whole host of factors were no doubt at said, “More, please.” play. But the fight for abortion rights is not “The People” are sovereign in America. going to be the downfall of the republic. American bankrupt- That doesn’t mean we are smart. “I think the people—the cy? That will be. And sooner rather than later. holy, sacred people—are wrong about movies, music, moraliI wrote last week about historical inflection points. Tues- ty. A whole range of things,” writes National Review’s Jay Norday was a big one. “Consider this,” writes my friend Charles dlinger. “But they’re supposed to be brimming with wisdom Cooke, at National Review: when they enter the voting booths on Election Day? That would be strange.” A president of the United States just ran a reelection camBut in the past when we’ve gotten it wrong, we’ve changed paign based on the promise of government largess, exploi- course. This time we doubled down. tation of class division, the demonization of success, the I quoted Joseph de Maistre last week, but he’s worth quotglorification of identity politics, and the presumption that ing again: “Every nation gets the government it deserves.” If women are a helpless interest group; and he did so while in 2016 things look bleaker than they do now, we can’t say we steadfastly refusing to acknowledge the looming—poten- didn’t know. tially fatal—crisis that the country faces. And it worked. “In the end,” wrote Edward Gibbon, chronicler of collapse, “more than they wanted freedom, they wanted security. When That’s a turning point for America. It’s hard to think that the Athenians finally wanted not to give to society but for sowe won’t look back and mark November 6, 2012, as the day ciety to give to them, when the freedom they wished for was America opted for a path of least resistance, the day we de- freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free.” cided government aid was preferable to the burden of personChisel that on the epitaph of the republic. al initiative. Ask not what you can do for your country—ask A 1984 ad for Ronald Reagan declared “morning again in what your country can do for you! America.” It’s looking more like dusk now. But hey. We all get The Scottish historian Alexander Fraser Tytler is supposed phones. to have written, So there’s that. ! “ �The Gadfly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xamining Writing in the Program Michael Fogleman T A’13 his past Thursday, November 8, the SCI convened to discuss writing at St. John’s. How can students and tutors work to develop students’ writing? What works and what doesn’t? The discussion began by clarifying why writing is a part of liberal education. One formulation was that writing well is necessary for tutorial and annual essays, for reading, for speaking and thinking well, and perhaps most practically, as a skill required by many jobs and careers. Another was that writing is thinking, and independent thinking at that; if practiced, writing should benefit all of these areas. The concern was raised that students are not given enough opportunities to write at St. John’s. Certainly tutorial and annual essays are an opportunity for students to think out an issue or question in a book at a slower pace than the seminar does—but several times a semester will not necessarily be enough to develop writing skills like explication or organization. Still, it was agreed that both students’ and tutors’ time is precious, and that whatever opportunities students have should be used wisely. Tutors stressed that improvement in writing requires that the student be interested in doing so. Some thought that students might become more interested if they were reminded that attending St. John’s does not automatically improve a student’s writing; individual effort is necessary for achieving this end. In turn, the tutors said that, when they advised essays, they had observed that this kind of interest in improvement was both possible and effective at that time. If students start early on their annual essays, and work with an adviser, they will generally improve their writing. Other suggestions that students of any skill level could take up included writing regularly on their own, visiting Writing Assistance, and attending workshops, as well as reading lectures and prize essays in the library. This last suggestion could help overcome the difficulty that students are not usually required to read the kind of Students of all skill levwriting that they are expected to produce; els should take initiative reading lectures and prize essays with an towards improving their eye towards fruitful imitation might help writing, and tutors...should overcome basic questions of structure. continue to make expediMeanwhile, students shared possible exent but effective efforts to ercises or assignments that tutors could use to maximize the effectiveness of those writprovide opportunities for ing assignments. To alleviate the workload students to do so. on both students and tutors, some praised frequent but shorter papers, which would develop a comfort level in producing coherent material quickly. An emphasis on revision has also proved helpful in the past, especially with a focus on specific stylistic issues like questions, sentences, paragraphs, and transitions. It was felt that grammatical concerns need attention but cannot be of primary importance. Using class time for peer editing or sharing excerpts of essays at the blackboard could also be a solution to pervasive problems. The tutors at the meeting expressed concern that freshman language has a dual role as both a writing and Greek tutorial. If students were required to bring a paper to writing assistance by the end of the term, such an assignment could be fruitful without hindering the class’s advancement in learning Ancient Greek. Both students and tutors at the meeting agreed that learning to write was of primary importance in the liberal arts education St. John’s is supposed to provide. Continued effort from both may help to alleviate the difficulty of achieving this end while immersed in the Program. Students of all skill levels should take initiative towards improving their writing, and tutors, especially language tutors and paper advisers, should continue to make expedient but effective efforts to provide opportunities for students to do so. Meanwhile, my motto at Writing Assistance continues to be “Come early and often!”! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 11 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-11-13 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 11 of The Gadfly. Published on November 13, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.11 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/4f15c4e64ab19c1475461d0b21d02fa6.pdf fee1127bfdfcec079c1c6c160fe8bc44 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -+.*/%0&(1'()2")3%456789:49%;%:9 %<#=>)*%?@"A*#(,%B*2+%0*>(")(%;%:C %'(##&)*++,-,%DE<%;%:7 %F(+%F@+=>+%;%:G !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$7,*#$:3$8098$.$2&+#$;;;52$.$5!!<,$98 !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Reza Djalal �The Gadfly 02 A Thank You for I The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets in Schleiermacher’s sensible self-consiousness every Sunday at 7 PM. God-conciousness required in editorial staff. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@ gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Jacob Glass • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Leonard Franks Alexandria Hinds Leslie Howard Painter Bob !"#$% !"#$%&' want to thank everyone who participated in the Oxfam Fast for a World Harvest this past month. This is the twenty-third consecutive year the fast has been held at the Annapolis campus, and it was my first year coordinating its logistics. This year 118 students and 11 faculty and staff members participated, skipping 232 meals and donating $675 in cash, in addition to the meal plan money. While the number of students donating meals is down from last year, our direct contributions have risen significantly. We can also be proud that so large a proportion of our student population participated, compared to the many other colleges and universities at which Oxfam fasts are held. Exact figures are not yet available, but the total sum raised for Oxfam America will certainly be in excess of $1000. Special thanks should go to Bronté Jones and the staff at the Treasurer’s Office; to Ted Canto and the staff at Bon Appétit; to the Print Shop; and to Shayna Jenkins and Esther Apraku Bondzie, who volunteered their time. Special and heartfelt thanks go to tutor Jon Tuck, who has single-handedly organized this program for the last 22 years. Without his determination and dedication to Oxfam, we would not have had the opportunity to come together as a community in the spirit of service for so many Thanksgiving seasons. Thank you, Jon, for your continued involvement and guidance. Sincerely, Alexandria Hinds !"#$%&'()*+),-.,/&01(.2 345678938 With the rest of the St. John’s community, we mourn the passing of Mr. David Stephenson. A tutor of 49 years, a musician extraordinaire, a man of great humor, kindness, and scholarship, his presence will be greatly missed. The Gadfly will be remembering Mr. Stephenson in its upcoming issue. We would ask interested students, tutors, members of the administration, and alumni to send remembrances to share in our pages. We welcome you to commemorate Mr. Stephenson as you see fit. Eulogies, anecdotes, stories, poems—we are open to an array of expression. Photographs are also welcome. Because of space limitations, we ask that you keep remembrances to 900 words. All submissions can be sent to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. This final issue of the semester will be published during the week of December 10-14. Like all Gadfly issues, it will be available in full online. Please contact us if you would like to arrange to receive printed copies. �The Gadfly 03 !"#$%&'()*+,#-./-0#!"#$%&'()*+),' !"#$%&'()$%(*+, -)./0/)&$'1"%'2%$30/$.& ! Leonard Franks, A’13 Robert Malka F A’15 ellow Johnnies, friends, classmates: painful. Archons should never have to My name is Robert Mal- rely on paying for things out-of-pocket. ka (’15), and I am  declaring  my  in- The money we give out is yours, and you tent  to  serve  the  polity as president of are meant to have it as soon as we can the Delegate Council. I understand that make it available. Under my administrathis is a distinguished and important po- tion, “having it” will mean getting your sition that impacts the entire Polity, and money before the first forty days of the humbly propose that I have the ability, semester are up, and policies will be deexperience, and vision to do justice to veloped and enforced to make sure that the position. this kind of delay never happens again. In case you want a refresher, the 2. Maintaining the DC as a respectCouncil is tasked by our constitution able and legitimate body. On this point with managing student funds; commu- we have come a long way, but there is nicating concerns from still much to be done. the Polity to the adminMany students still do My name is Robistration and vice versa; not know or care about and creating and manwhat the Council does, ert Malka, and I aging Polity Law (if you while those who do am declaring my inremember last year’s tent to serve the pol- know of it often speak proposed Hate Speech of it with disdain. If ity as president of the I am elected, issues Law, that’s a great exDelegate Council. ample). The president from the administrasets the agenda accordtion will reach you ing to his vision and the needs of the Pol- quickly and transparently, questions will ity, facilitates budgeting, runs meetings, be responded to promptly, and your conand communicates directly on behalf of cerns will be dealt with efficiently. the Council to the administration. 3. Passing a new constitution. If you This ties in well with the investment I haven’t read the undergraduate constihave already put into the campus. I have tution, I urge you to. It’s a terribly writbeen on the Council since my freshman ten, typo-riddled, unclear document. year, and since then have worked hard And worse, it is in the student handbook to voice the concerns of, and advocate given to freshmen! That is why I have for, my peers and classmates, both in DC led the charge on rebuilding our constimeetings and out. I am also on the Gad- tution, both because it is not nearly at fly staff; co-founder and vice-archon of the level of quality we should expect as Polity Radio; founder and archon of the a document representing our Polity and new Alexander Hamilton Society chap- because it needs to reflect the changes ter, which dedicates itself to foreign pol- that the DC has experienced in the past icy discussion; and I attend intramurals two years. and dance lessons as a thumotic (and These are my three big points, but mediocre) athlete. Being involved in there are many other things I want to these different activities gives me a well- do for you through the Council, such as rounded view of what is happening on working with the Committee on Student campus and what concerns need to be Life (CSL) on hosting after-seminar paraddressed. ties and tutor/student discussions. I also So what will I do to improve the Coun- want to talk with you to brainstorm new cil as president? I can distill my platform ideas for the DC. This is our Polity, and into three promises: the Council represents us. I will do ev1. No more budget crises. If you’re erything in my power to make sure that part of any club on this campus, you’ve it evolves with us, instead of becoming a probably heard about it: the Council transient fad, with its leaders elected by only days ago disbursed funds to clubs, popularity contest. two weeks before the end of the semesI thank you and my opponents for the ter. Watching this as a delegate was gen- opportunity and privilege to run, and I uinely heartbreaking, and having to ex- hope to work with you all as president of plain this to constituents was even more the Delegate Council. ! “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�04 !"#$%&'()*+",- The Gadfly !"#$%&"'()*(+%,-./ For several years she was the voice of classical music on NPR. Lisa Simeone, A’79, sounds off on how St. John’s helped her climb to the top of radio. What is your current job? I’m a freelancer in writing and radio. I’ve done everything from classical music to pop to news. I now host two nationally syndicated shows—World of Opera and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Series (I was recently fired from a hosting gig at a third show, a documentary series called Soundprint, because of my political activities). I also write for Style Magazine— both regular articles on all sorts of subjects and a fashion blog called Glamour Girl—and have written for the Baltimore-area Urbanite and the Baltimore Sun. I now do all of my work from home. Did you attend other schools after St. John’s? Yes, eventually. I attended the non-fiction program of the Writing Seminars at The Johns Hopkins University almost 20 years after I’d graduated from St. John’s, and got a Master’s Degree. Did you know what you wanted to do while attending St. John’s? Not at first. In grade school and high school I always thought I would be a writer—a poet or novelist. But I discovered a love of classical music—which I learned about at St. John’s by being exposed to so many kids from all over the country (also where I discovered Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen)—and started listening to classical music on the radio, and decided that talking about great music all day sounded like a pretty fun job. Did St. John’s help prepare you for work in the field? I think St. John’s helps prepare you for work in any field. I didn’t decide to go into radio because of the music tutorial. But I decided to go into radio because of the classical music I discovered by being at St. John’s, because of the other kids I was exposed to, their musical tastes, their backgrounds, their lives. And being on the radio means more than just mastering one particular field of music. You’re talking to people. You’re communicating with them. To be good at it, you have to be able to talk about a wide variety of things. You have to be a generalist, not a specialist. A deejay (wow, what an old-fashioned concept!) isn’t a musicologist. At least, I don’t want to listen to one like that. I’ve said it a thousand times and I’ll say it again: there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t read something, hear something, or see something that I better understand or appreciate because of what I learned at St. John’s. It’s not a matter of raw knowledge (well, sometimes it is); it’s a matter of making connections. I believe in the beauty and utility of a common background, a common well of knowledge, just as I believe in the beauty and utility of learning completely new things. When a painting depicts Leda and the Swan, I understand it, I know what the creator is talking about. When an author makes a reference to Odysseus, I immediately think “polytropos” and everything that goes along with that. My understanding of Renaissance art has been immeasurably enriched by my reading of the Bible, which I never would’ve done without St. John’s. In fact, I like to quip that even though I’m an atheist, I know more about the Bible than thousands of believers. I also have a political phrase that I realize I use because of St. John’s: “A police state doesn’t have to spring fully formed like Athena from the head of Zeus. It can grow gradually, incrementally, step by step.” All these things that now come “naturally” to me are a result of my education at St. John’s. What didn’t St. John’s prepare you for? I suppose you could say it didn’t prepare me for highly specialized fields, like medicine or law, but then I didn’t want to be a doctor or a lawyer. And, anyway, I have SJC friends who became doctors and lawyers, and they’d probably say St. John’s prepared them for that! I don’t feel I missed anything or missed preparing for anything by going to St. John’s. On the contrary. How did you feel you compared, in graduate school or early jobs, to people from different educational backgrounds, particularly those with field-related degrees? I don’t think I’ve worked with anyone who came from a socalled communications background. I did work with one person who came from a musicology background. And I think you can hear that in her presentation: more didactic, more formal. I never felt deficient—well, that’s not entirely true. I felt the deficiency of youth. I felt that I had to prove myself. But I think all young people (if they’re not either phenomenally accomplished or highly arrogant) feel that. I was immediately successful in radio, and that surprised and delighted me. As for grad school, well, I was 40 years old then, thrown in with a bunch of 20-somethings. But it wasn’t the age difference that caused problems; it was the god-awful post-modern lit crit stuff. It was obvious I hadn’t grown up with that crap and all I could do to keep a straight face when a fellow student started talking that way. Frankly, you wouldn’t believe some of the stories I have; you’d say I was embellishing. Suffice to say I was never so thankful I had gone to St. John’s as at those moments. Continued On Pg. 05 �The Gadfly Continued From 05 Pg. 04 Can you describe a general track someone from St. John’s might take to get into a career in this field? Grunt work. Volunteering or internships. Everyone I know in this field cut their teeth this way. I started by volunteering at a tiny, 10-watt community college station. Then went on to volunteering at a professional station. Then eventually got a paying job there. How did you market yourself with a St. John’s degree? I’ve always been proud of my St. John’s degree. I didn’t feel the need to defend it, and often—not always—found that people were already familiar with St. John’s. At the same time, I didn’t trumpet it, didn’t hold it up as something special (even though I think it is!). It was just a bullet point on my resume, along with everything else. I do think that, as I’ve already said, a liberal arts degree prepares you for anything, and it’s worth reminding people of that. How would you characterize your field as a whole? Is it accessible to newcomers or difficult to enter? Stable or fluid? Etc. Wow. The entire field of media has changed so much. And is changing constantly. So “fluid” is definitely the answer. But there’s always room for newcomers. That’s never going to be a problem. If anything, this field—like so many (all?) others—is more receptive to newcomers than to old-timers like me. A fresh voice, a new personality, is always going to find opportunity. What was your senior essay topic? Le Misanthrope by Molière. Which is both fitting and amusing, since today, as my husband will tell you, though I can (and do) talk to anyone, I’m a misanthrope at heart! What is your favorite book on the Program? Probably any of the Ancient Greek plays, both tragedies and comedies. I’m just as bowled over by Euripides as I am by Aristophanes. I had started writing about Euripides and the concept of memory for my senior essay topic, but found that my thoughts were simply too inchoate. Now that so much new neurological research is available, a lot of those unformed thoughts make more sense. Do you find that you lead a philosophical life? Yes, but then I always did. From childhood, I always questioned things. It’s just that now I have a bigger vocabulary for it. ! OurInferno: The Newest Johnnie YouTube Series Sarah Meggison I A’15 believe it is fair to say that St. John's and the program have an interesting way of nudging themselves into our lives. We interpret this school in different ways based on who we already are and who this school is turning us into, and we all do different things with that interpretation. Junior Graham Gallagher does a YouTube series. There are a few posters littered about campus, hand drawn and photocopied, featuring phrases like "There is no Noble Lie" and the number 1909 with an X through the 0. The series is called OurInferno; Gallagher writes, shoots, and stars. The series also features junior Jess Kjellberg and sophomore Brian Fitzpatrick. There are currently eight episodes, but there are several more to be released quite soon. Gallagher plays what appears to be an alternate version of himself; the character attends St. John's after going on medical leave from the Maryland National Guard. He has found a video camera and decides to record parts of his daily life at school. But as the episodes progress, the videos become increasingly more glitchy, and the character finds him haunted by a faceless monster as well as bizarre messages and symbols (such as "Barr and Buchanan set this in motion”). Gallagher had this to say about OurInferno: What led you to making these videos? I was inspired a lot by Marble Hornets and Tribe Twelve, two excellent Youtube series that first put a face, or lack thereof, to the antagonist of the series. And growing up, I was always a fan of mystery series. The two just kind of came together and the series was born. You took a year off to join the military. How did that influence your series? The fictional version of me who is the protagonist is dealing with an unspecified event from his past, which is a catalyst for these events, possibly. And for me, the Monster is representative of the moral qualms of being in the military that still haunt me constantly. I have to remind myself that I joined to protect people and not to kill them. Why a found-footage type of format? Found footage to me is scarier than third-person horror, particularly in an episodic context, because it offers months or even years with the protagonist, instead of just two hours to get to know them and see them either die or overcoming an obstacle. Why feature Annapolis and St. John's so heavily? It will become more apparent as the series fleshes itself out more. But I wanted to include St. John's in the storyline, if only because this is a very personal work. General statement regarding OurInferno: Above all, at its core, this is a work about helplessness and anxiety, rather than fear. Fear is a very different animal. Fear is a reaction rather than a motivator. Anxiety is more of an undercurrent. You can check out the series and subscribe at www.youtube.com/ourinferno .! �06 The Gadfly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eza Djalal What can you say about the plot behind Fuddy Meers? In short, it’s about a woman who has a rare form of amnesia where every morning she wakes up and can’t remember anything about her life. The play takes place in one day and revolves around the woman trying to get answers out of her ridiculously dysfunctional family. In addition to being a comedy, would you say that Fuddy Meers also has elements of suspense, mystery, or drama? There is definitely some suspense. Or rather, the urge to find out what the hell is going on. The audience is meant to discover the truth along side the leading lady, so mystery and suspense are major elements. How did you discover Fuddy Meers, and what about it made you want to direct it yourself? I originally intended to do a different comedy, when a student told me he had read this and was on the floor laughing. I read it and pretty much did the same. As I read it, I saw it play so smoothly through my mind, I couldn’t resist. I’ve usually acted in the past, and as a first-time director I wanted to work with a piece that relied on the relationship between the action on stage and the audience, rather than the actor and his character. We’ve done a lot of work on what kind of performance would be funniest to the audience and why. I’ve heard that Fuddy Meers will have a more extensive set than other KWP productions. What went into this part of the play, and were there any complications? The play is absurd, so I decided the set should be, too. I didn’t know the set was so elaborate until I tried to build it. A large part of the set is on platforms, which were incredibly difficult to build properly. Seven people have to run all over it, so stability was crucial. Honestly, I’m very happy with the results. With so many theater-related activities going on this semester, did you have trouble putting together a full roster of actors? Our small student population tends to be a problem for KWP for things such as this. Luckily, we had a decent turn out, and I still believe the best decision I’ve made yet in this play was my cast. They’re phenomenal. However, it would be wonderful if A’15 more people came out to audition in the future. Humor, it seems, relies heavily on the unexpected. Having watched the play many times, did it get harder to determine what was funny and what wasn’t? I had the opportunity to meet a director at a movie premiere over the summer, and I asked her what the most important thing was to remember when you’re directing. She said “ You have a vision, you’re excited, and then you start. Suddenly you’re so preoccupied with ‘the way he says this line’ or ‘that shade of blue’ or ‘this one prop,’ it’s difficult to see the big picture. Don’t ever lose sight of what you first had in mind.” I shrugged it off, thinking it wouldn’t be a problem. It was the biggest problem. I can’t tell what’s funny any more, and neither can my actors. Good thing is, that means they’re so into it, it’s just smooth now. Good thing for me is, I get to relive it when I sit down with the audience and watch it on Friday. Rediscovering your vision through your audience is the best part of this. It’s like watching a kid open presents at Christmas. What does Fuddy Meers mean, anyway? Like I said, the play is absurd. We frequently use absurdity to cover things that should probably stay unveiled, even if it’s hard. If you want to unveil the meaning of the title, you’ll have to unveil the rest of the story and come see the play. Fuddy Meers will premiere this Friday, December 7, during the usual lecture spot (8:15 pm). A following performance will be held Saturday, December 8, at 1 pm. �The Gadfly 07 !"#$%&#&'()*+#$,-.(/(-& As the winter sports season kicks off, resident sports guru Jonathan Barone discusses that most difficult of all jobs–being a referee. His message in short: Call them umpires, zebras, or stripes; just do not call them bad names. Jonathan Barone A A’13 s we approach the wintry months and the intramurals pecially, we know them as athletes. Because of this, we justify shift their focus from the field to the court, I’d like to take (unconsciously or not) our indignation and our scorn. We can some time to converse about an issue at the source of contro- begin to blame the outcome of the game on the refs and focus versy. It’s a topic relevant in all sports, but one particularly so our energy and concentration on them instead of the game. in our program. I’m talking, of course, about refereeing. We can allow these personal feelings to interfere with our reI realize that, in one sense, I’m observing from the outside lationships with them. looking in. I have had brief experiNow, I’m not saying that we ences reffing games, but never in a should revere the referees as gods, Now, I’m not saying that we should hotly disputed game. I have never revere the referees as gods or that we or that we shouldn’t talk to them. had harsh accusations leveled at But I think, more often than not, we shouldn’t talk to them. But I think, me, nor have I been able to distribcross the line from witty heckling to more often than not, we cross the ute technical fouls or red cards. But destructive banter. To put it bluntline from witty heckling to destrucat the same time, this is one of the ly, we don’t treat the referees with tive banter. To put it bluntly, we don’t enough respect, the respect that many topics that is rarely, if ever, treat the referees with enough retalked about: namely, how we treat they deserve. They’re the ones who referees here at St. John’s. spect, the respect that they deserve. are coming out and trying their best Granted, my experience with preto enable the intramural program. St. John’s sports is limited to two and a half years playing rug- Granted, I think refs owe it to the program to learn their sports by, but one thing I’ll never forget from that experience was as best as they can, but they aren’t perfect. They are going to the authority of the referees and the respect with which you mess up, because they’re human. But when they take on their treated them. Only the team captains could address the refs, duties as referees, we owe it to them, to the game, and to the and even then, speech had to be punctuated by many ‘sirs.’ intramural program give them authority and treat them with Even after games, if you were displeased with a ref’s decision, respect. ! it was a sign of respect to thank him after the game anyway. The referee was the authority on the field, and by playing the game, they were submitting to that authority. If they didn’t, they were penalized. Simple as that. ! Painter Bob Here, we take the refereeing position much more lightly. !"#$%&'#%()#$*$+,#-'./0'-#!1*$#'%)#."#0.) It’s the students (for the most part) that take up the mantle of refereeing, students who for the most part have had no 2$+$#3/-#-.#3+4(-#%()#5./()#/3#4(#%#5..6 experience reffing before. Students who may not know the 4-#7%,#8./()#64()%#.))9#5/-#!#2./:)#5$intricacies of the rules (I mean, who calls loose-ball fouls?). Not only that, but the referees are forced to make split-second -$(#-%::#-+$$8#2./:)#"%::#-.#7%-&'#-'$#3/:3 judgment calls, calls which may or may not be right. But from %()#,$-9#-'$#-4-:$#3%0$9#&.(-$(-8#%84)$ what I’ve noticed, the position of being a referee is an unenvi4(8&+45$)#5,#7$#-.#,./9#2./:)#)$)4&%-$ able one. Sure, you may get paid for every game you ref, but that money comes with a price. %#3.+-4.(#."#7,#3+%-4(0#"./()#24-'4(# Now, I am generalizing, but on the whole, the referees are %::#-'$#)$$3#)48&/884.(8#2$#'%*$#'%) completely deprived of grace. As players, we expect them to make the right call every time. In our minds, we will not allow %5./-#-'$#-'./0'-#!#-'4(6#."#7.8-#."#%:: the refs any kind of learning period; they must be proficiently 2'4&'#-'./0'#!1*$#&.7$#-.#8$$9# knowledgeable about their sport. If not, we berate them, we blame them, we disparage them. We will even overlook our # !#).(1-#6(.2#8;/%own mistakes in order to indignantly balk at a referee’s deci!#%:8.#6(.2#(.#'40'$+#&%::#-.#8$$6 sion. I’ve even seen these derogatory comments seep into ev2'%-18#8$$(#%()#'$%+)#4(#$*$+,.($#!#7$$eryday, non-intramural conversations. And I still don’t really know what causes it. Perhaps it’s the 2'4&'#04*$8#7,#:4"$#-'$#7$%(4(0#."<<<-.#=.*$ intimacy of the intramural setting. Most likely it’s because we know the referees; we know their names, their faces, and, es- “ !"#$%&'#('$)*#"+,,, �The Gadfly 08 !"#$!%#&'# !"#$%&'() *+*',- On the heels of the recent CSL meeting on Food Services, Leslie Howard takes a stance against the high cost of a cup of tea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eslie Howard A’15 ince when does water cost money? much a single cup of tea costs based on I don’t mean paying for the running the pricings of each size pack of tea. In a water in your apartment or your force fifteen-pack, a single teabag costs fiftyhot water heater. I mean going to a res- three cents. The Coffee Shop appeared taurant and asking for a cup (not a bot- to be pretty well stocked, so I looked tle) of water. I have always been careful at the ninety-pack: forty-seven cents a with my money, saving where it needs cup; and the hundred-pack: thirty-eight. to be saved (e.g., for next semester’s bal- That’s an average of forty-six cents a cup ance) and spending where it needs to (yes, I figured that out by myself ). That be spent (e.g., on my daily coffee). But means that I essentially spent $1.55 on I have recently experienced some mad- hot water, a cup, and someone to overness in the Coffee Shop, namely, one tea charge me, and the Coffee Shop made bag costing two green ones. something like three hundred percent Sometimes the morning one, two, or profit on my stupid cup of tea. three cups of coffee is just not enough Of course, I know every business has to get one through the to make profit somepeak hours of the day. how, but three hun...I essentially spent Sometimes one needs dred percent seems $1.55 on hot water, a a nice cup of aftera bit extreme. Also, cup, and someone to noon tea. Sometimes charging for extra one runs out of tea water is just ridicuovercharge me, and bags and has to stop lous. Hoping to somethe Coffee Shop made at the Coffee Shop how find an excuse something like three quickly before work. for the Coffee Shop, hundred percent profit I decided to give City I went down there on my stupid cup of tea. Dock a call. A cup of innocently enough, thinking, “Well, one tea there—any size, tea bag will probably only cost about fif- mind you—costs $1.40. Let’s say that’s ty cents, maybe as much as a dollar, plus not including tax, so add six percent, profit, so no way it could be more than and you get yourself a nice cup of tea a buck fifty.” I chose my tea bag from a for $1.48. And that’s their very own “severy nice selection of tea by Two Leaves cret blend,” too! According to an article and a Bud. I was surprised when the by Ralph Heibutzki from smallbusiness. lady at the cash register asked what size chron.com (“The Average Profits for a I wanted before she rang me up, since, Small Cafe”), “a successful cafe’s base having worked in food services myself, I profits should equal roughly 10 to 18 knew that you simply do not charge the percent of its sales.” And, even if one bag customer for the amount of water they of tea costs City Dock forty-six cents, want in their cup, but only for the tea they’re still making way less than three itself. With a confused aspect, I ordered hundred percent profit, and I’m allowed a medium and immediately regretted it, to have as much hot water as can fit in for what should appear on the cash reg- their largest cup, free of charge. ister screen but $2.01. “Two dollars?!” At first, I was too ashamed to find out my frugal mind screamed. “You’ve got to how much the Coffee Shop charges for a be kidding me!” They weren’t. small and a large, but I mustered up the Now, supposing that perhaps this was courage to ask. As it turns out, a small a very special kind of tea, I went online costs $1.70, and a large costs $2.39. If I to the Two Leaves website to check were any less saddened by this, I would their prices. I even looked at the very have rage instead and would consider tea variety I had chosen (Organic Assam leading the Annapolis Tea Party down Breakfast). To my math-abhorring de- at College Creek. I apologize for the hislight, they had already written out how torical reference, but it had to be said. ! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 12 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-12-04 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 12 of The Gadfly. Published on December 04, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.12 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/593c7c25bdb74a063cfe1d226e227c98.pdf a3267ce40452d62ae7dcfd390d7e5efd PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&% ")#*)(%+&, !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$7,*#$993$8098$.$2&+#$;;;52$.$5!!<,$9= In Memoriam David H. Stephenson 1936-2012 Greenfield Library Archives, 1979 �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in Room 109 on the first lower level of the Barr-Buchanan Center. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Justin Andrews Kimber Richter Steve Edwards Jim Scott Adam Eggers M.W. Sinnett Pamela Kraus Max Socol Chris Nelson Michael Sullivan Chris Olson David Townsend Elizabeth Hennessey Howard Zeiderman !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- T hank you to everyone who contributed to our commemoraton of the life of Mr. David Stephenson. In order to devote the full issue to Mr. Stephenson, we have chosen to print our other time-sensitive submissions online. You can read them at issuu.com/ sjcgadfly. We hope you have a restful holiday vacation. See you in 2013! ! !"#$%&'(%)"(*+,(-& *Editor’s Note: An impromptu commemoration of Mr. Stephenson was held in McDowell Hall on Friday, November 30, 2012. The president delivered the following remarks. President Christopher B. Nelson T SF’70 hank you for joining us this afternoon. We celebrate the life and mourn the death of tutor David Hanford Stephenson, a good, strong, and joyful member of our community, who will be greatly missed by all of us—faculty, staff, and students alike. Mr. Stephenson died yesterday afternoon at the Anne Arundel Medical Center after a struggle with an aggressive form of cancer. This was Mr. Stephenson’s 50th year with the College. In recent years, his seniority earned him the honor of carrying the College’s mace and leading the faculty and students in Convocation and Commencement processionals. I think he took pride in doing this. David Stephenson came to St. John’s bearing great musical gifts, which were first formally developed during his undergraduate studies at Columbia. Since he joined the faculty in 1963, Mr. Stephenson was active as conductor of the student orchestra and leader of the Freshman Chorus; he displayed a great fondness for the music of Beethoven. He was also fluent in songwriting; most notable, perhaps, are his settings of Heine poems. Most enjoyable, though, might have been his undertaking in the 1990s to write, orchestrate, and star in a musical skit performed by the faculty to Gilbert and Sullivan tunes, as a lesson to students in how to put on a proper and still comical senior skit. Recently, Mr. Stephenson was preparing an April orchestra concert featuring the music of Bach, Mozart, and Mendelssohn. And of course, it was only two weeks ago that we heard a lovely Friday-night lecture from him. But of course he was well read throughout the work of the Program. Mr. Dylan Knight Rogers, a senior at the College, said of him earlier today: “Mr. Stephenson led our junior laboratory class with the confidence and élan that only come from a great intimacy with the elements of the most difficult sciences. He displayed equal understanding and devotion for the harmonic complexities at work in Beethoven’s symphonic writing. This is easy to understand, for Mr. Stephenson was a great student of nature.” Mr. Stephenson was a gentle man. He was also a correct man. We saw evidence of his care for the College and for his students in his Committee work, his speech in faculty meetings, and his don rag reports. In the coming days, we will provide notice of further details of a more formal memorial service for Mr. Stephenson, but we thought it appropriate to gather informally today when we are all together on campus. We extend our deepest condolences to David’s widow, Helen, and to his family. Mr. May will share a few words and then will lead us in the singing of “Sicut Cervus.” Thank you. ! !"#$%&'(%.(/Pamela Kraus Dean David Stephenson’s years at St. John’s College were spent persevering in the activity of teaching and learning, which is the life of a tutor. As we know from experience and from other testimonies, he cultivated his many gifts here and made us beneficiaries of them, not only those of music and mathematics, but also of language and art. He did so daily and naturally, without fanfare or sentimentality or drama. In his death he gave us—and especially his students—another gift, that of his example: the simple, deep strength with which he loved and lived teaching and learning right to the end. ! �The Gadfly 03 !"##"$%&'()$&)"#*&+,-&!#./*.$0($ *Editor’s Note: This interview was first published in Issue 7 of last year’s Gadfly. Because many students did not have the opportunity to get to know Mr. Stephenson, we reprint it here and hope that it serves as the smallest of introductions to a great Johnnie. How did you come to be a tutor at St. John’s? My advent at St. John’s was extremely conventional: I sent a few hundred job search letters from graduate school and received half a dozen replies, among them one from the dean of St. John’s (John Kieffer at that time). I had little idea of what the school meant until I visited some classes, but, as soon as I did I was caught. Hard to say exactly why, but certainly a major attraction was my glimpse of a place in which I could spend a lifetime learning in the company of others, sharing and debating ideas and insights, helping and being helped to indulge in all the historical and literary and scientific and philosophical curiosity I had thought I would have to abandon after graduation once the need to earn a living demanded my full attention. What was the biggest adventure you’ve ever had? That’s really a hard one. Living a few years in Austria, with excursions into Italy and France, was certainly an adventure linguistically and culturally. To conduct an orchestra or compose music often seems to me equivalent to exploring a foreign land; likewise reading a good book. Sailing, swimming, rock climbing, skiing: all adventures on a small scale. But if you forced me to single out a single occasion involving travel, I suppose I would point to a trip to the Pacific coast or a drive up the St. Lawrence seaway or a cruise in the North Sea and the Baltic...or a search through Beethoven’s original sketchbooks in the Viennese library now situated above the concert hall where many of his works were first performed or... What is the single most important piece of advice you would like to give to freshmen (or upperclassmen)? This is heretical, I suppose, but I would say, “Don’t believe any of the authors we read.” They’re just there to make you stronger if you wrestle with them and argue with them, and even if you end up in agreement, it will be your agreement and your understanding that persuades you, not their authority. What is your favorite seminar book and why? Montaigne, of course! (At least this year.) And something al- ways draws me back to the Iliad every other year. What is your least favorite seminar book and why? It’s hard not to become impatient with Descartes when he begins to preach and preach philosophy in particular, even though one can’t help admiring his mathematical ingenuity and insight. In his defense, however, I would have to admit that without Descartes I don’t see how Kant would ever have been born. What is your favorite non-Program book and why? A few of the moderns keep beckoning me, especially when they shed new light on music or on the fine arts. I’m thinking of philosophers like Merleau-Ponty and Suzanne Langer. But I have to insist that Schopenhauer, for all his pessimism, explained the crucial importance of the arts—and especially music—long before the moderns. He has been too much neglected in this respect. What is your biggest pet peeve (that students do) in class? Apologizing. If a student misses a class or an assignment it does maybe do some harm to the class as a whole, but that student suffers more than the rest of us. An absence is rarely blameworthy, or so I hope and believe; failure to prepare for a class, on the other hand, can hardly ever be excused. What is your favorite St. John’s tradition and why? There are probably few tutors left who remember the “sophistry contest” that used to launch Reality Weekend. It was an occasion when tutors could join in the fun without entirely ruining their reputation. But that was in the Golden Age, when one tutor could tell a joke [that] would take ten [tutors] to mount nowadays. What is your favorite class to be a tutor for and why? The Dean and Instruction Committee try to make it possible for tutors to teach what they want to teach each year, so my favorite class is usually the one I’m teaching right now. But a lot depends on the students. An active and enthusiastic class on a difficult book or topic is much more rewarding than a dutiful but pedestrian class on a nominally more exciting subject. ! �04 photo by Anyi Guo D avid Stephenson was a delightful person with a visionary understanding of the possibilities of St. John’s’ mission. I will miss him deeply and the many warm and enlightening conversations we shared. The wonder and power of music, the epiphanies and brilliant sensuality of Proust, the striking immediacy of poetry, profound insights into philosophical investigations, the joy of mathematics, all came richly to David in a seamless garment of unending learning. How fortunate we are to have had David among us for so many years. — David Townsend, Tutor M I IN MEMORIAM The Gadfly am, to begin with, an unreconstructed modernist. Always have been and (probably) always will be. Wrote a dissertation on Eric Voegelin (“fundamental experience of the cosmos”); read and reread all the Aristotle (the order of the world is consummated in its intelligibility to man); Euclid Book XIII (Glory! Hallelujah!); Apollonius (Yay!)— Descartes (Boo!); even read the word of the Prophet Jacob Klein, Praised Be His Name! Water off a duck’s back, every bit of it. The world may fit comfortably in your mind (since the “world” is, by definition, whatever fits comfortably in your mind?), but it does not fit in mine. I have no experience of the world as cosmos, but rather as a somewhat motley collection of sequential intimations of an order which will always—and rather spectacularly—elude me. The process for me “is essentially infinite”; my world “is a world still to be composed and never finished.” The phrases I have quoted are taken from David Stephenson’s lecture “Ptolemy’s Truth,” delivered on 4 April 1997, five years before I joined the faculty of the College, and published in the St. John’s Review in the following year. The central focus of David’s lecture was his comparison of the epicycles of Ptolemy with individual terms in a Fourier series; its main achievement, a luminous connection between two seemingly disparate approaches to the order of the world; its importance for me, a beautiful illustration of the sort of deep, calm reflection that is the means of all genuine interpretation and the basis of all fruitful conversation. I once suggested to David that he could just as easily have entitled it “Fourier’s Truth”—the circular functions, after all, are a vast mathematical generalization of Ptolemy’s circles. He smiled his crinkly little smile and said, “We don’t read Fourier, do we?” Gentle, non-combative, and, as I later realized, ironic. Keep thinking, he was saying, and keep your eye on the needs of the College. Keep your eye, in particular, on “Ptolemy’s Truth.” It was for me a turning point. It has made all the difference. — M. W. Sinnett, Tutor y most vivid memory and impression stems from my sophomore year when I and my classmate and dorm neighbor Jim Carey were both in David’s nine o’clock music tutorial. Every evening at around midnight Jim and I would wander over to West Street for a sub sandwich, and then return to our rooms in West Pinkney to settle in at Jim’s ancient and deteriorating phonograph to listen to Brahms and Schubert till 3, or 4, or even sometimes 5 in the morning. Though each had vowed to be the alarm for both of us, we were invariably late. Years later, in a don rag, David was berating a student who, though serious, was always late to his early music tutorial. As he described the negative effect on others, he looked across the table and saw Jim and me waiting our turn to report. His jaw literally dropped, and then a few moments later, after he seemed to puff on his by then imaginary pipe, he said perhaps he was being too harsh on this young man. For who knew, he continued, but perhaps this student would someday become a tutor. He knew that had certainly happened before and therefore could happen again. He offered this to the committee chair to record as he looked across to the two of us and shook his head with an amused or perhaps even more pointed smile. Of course, Jim and I turned every shade in the longer wavelengths of shame and embarrassment as David gave the two of us together the don rag report he probably wished he had been able to deliver years before. — Howard Zeiderman, Tutor �The Gadfly IN MEMORIAM 05 I Greenfield Library Archives, ca. 1983 I had Mr. Stephenson in junior seminar (co-leader Leo Raditsa), in 1982-83. Also, he was my preceptorial tutor that year on Leibniz’s New Essays on Human Understanding. I had much respect for Mr. Stephenson’s intelligence and relaxed manner. He was confident without needing to impress others about how smart he was, and curious, without trying to show that the things he was interested in were obviously the most important aspect of the work being discussed. I thought we dealt with the Leibniz book in great depth. Liebniz wrote it as a response to Locke’s An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. In many respects it was a Platonist’s response to an Aristotelian. Mr. Stephenson had a great grasp of the subject. The seminar that year was an occasion of great growth for me intellectually. I wrote my best essay of the four years in there, on Paradise Lost. I always felt I owed a lot to Mr. Raditsa and Mr. Stephenson. — Jim Scott A’84 M was in Mr. Stephenson’s freshman Greek class, 197980. I believe it was the first time he taught Greek, and we had lively, productive classes, even though he would frequently point out his lack of expertise in the language. He created a supportive place to learn together. I find myself wondering why he made such a big impression on me. As the first person in my family to attend college, coming from the South, St. John’s was a real stretch for me—just as teaching Greek was for him. And I think he showed me that humility, humor, work, curiosity, and kindness are fine tools for learning and leadership. When I think of him, I remember his silvery baritone singing voice, the amused look in his eyes and the way a corner of his mouth would twitch a bit when he thought of something funny, and a very bright green velvet sportcoat he sometimes wore. Thank you so much, Mr. Stephenson, for helping me through my first year at St. John’s. — Kimber Paschall Richter, A’84 r. Stephenson was my tutor for sophomore music, 2004-05. He’s the first tutor who was there when I was who has passed, and I do not look forward to hearing of more. The following are a few things that I fondly remember of him. Mr. Stephenson was a fine gentleman who, like me, wore a straw summer hat (though mine did not have the clear, green plastic visor that his did). He once spoke to me about where Plato mentions how some people have the ability to make money—and then, with a smirk and a smile in his eye, quickly added that he was not one of those people. Once, while a few of us were drinking in the Quad late one night, Mr. Stephenson came walking through. I stopped him to ask a question, then thought better of it. In response to my saying that it’s foolish for a student to speak to a tutor while drunk, he responded, “Well, it’s too late for that, so why don’t you just ask your question.” One of my favorite memories of Mr. Stephenson was when he assigned an essay for sophomore music, requiring that the paper must focus on music, that is, as he said, “it must use musical terms.” Well, I, like Socrates, know that I know nothing (especially about music, at any rate). So I set out to write a fine essay. The paper discussed music in terms of sounds, including vocals—especially foreign words. Since I didn’t know the language, I merely associated the vocals with all the other instruments. I used musical terms, just like he asked. But I was far from satisfied with the paper, so I took it to my trusty writing assistant to get his thoughts. Though his words were kind and constructive, the assistant basically told me the essay was bunk. I agreed. But I also didn’t know how to fix it, so, of course, I handed it in. Mr. Stephenson had nothing but good things to say about the paper! The full extent of the “musical terms” that I used (a mere one time each, just as they are listed here) were: “soprano,” “mezzo,” “tenor,” and “bass.” Mr. David Hanford Stephenson met the student where the student was to pull the student further upward and forward. — Michael Sullivan, A‘07 �IN MEMORIAM 06 photo by Anyi Guo I was lucky enough to study music and seminar with Mr. Stephenson, and blessed along the way by his mentorship and friendship. He was such a kind, thoughtful, and funny man. I remember how easy he was to talk to and how I much I enjoyed the chats we had when I caught up with him walking his dog along Prince George Street. He had a quiet eloquence and great generosity. He inspired in me a love for opera and choral music; you couldn’t help but be drawn in by his passion for great music and his desire that you share that passion. And wow was he smart. Working with him on my senior essay was a master class in how to support the search for meaning and illuminate the way toward understanding—all with great patience and humor. Mr. Stephenson made a tremendous difference in my life, and I am truly grateful for his many gifts so generously bestowed on me and many many others. I send sincere condolences to Helen and Jennie Stephenson. — Elizabeth M. Hennessey, A’77 M r. Stephenson was my tutor for junior lab 1978-79. The class was small, maybe a little too small, because some of the members were the least loquacious members of the class of 1980. For the last day of the spring semester class, Sandy Dornich proposed to me that we bring wine and cheese to celebrate. When she told Mr. Stephenson of her plan, he said, “But can we still have class, too?” And indeed we did. — Steve Edwards, A’80 M r. Stephenson was a kind and gentle man with a wry smile. I used to talk with him of a summer evening, 37 years ago, when he would appear on front campus in the cool of the darkness, taking his little dog for a walk. He invited the summer freshmen, then called Febbies, to his home for a cocktail, and I was lucky to go along with them, being the “Febbie Father” in their dormitory that summer. Mr. Stephenson was a cordial host to us. Thanks to him for the memory of his virtue. — Chris Olson, A’78 M The Gadfly r. Stephenson was the friendly, enthusiastic, slightly mad leader of our sophomore music program. I struggled with the material, and for a while made the mistake of blaming the tutor. I doubt I ever really got a handle on music, either as theory or expression, but by year’s end Mr. Stephenson had won me over. I remember watching in stupefaction as he played one of his own atonal compositions at a small concert in McDowell; or the unconfirmed rumors that flew around our class that he was the pseudonymous author of multiple pulp sci-fi novels. His preceptorial on Marcel Proust’s Swann’s Way—a book that really ought to be part of the Program—was a revelation for me. As much as I enjoyed seminar, and as much as I savored it in the final months of my senior year, I don’t think I ever felt so much anticipation for conversation as I did during that precept. But the experience would have been so much less without Mr. Stephenson’s patience, good humor, taste, and depth of knowledge, particularly of art. I believe he felt the interplay of art and memory on a deep level, and through him we had a glimpse of it. To me, Mr. Stephenson embodied certain peculiar qualities of the ideal tutor: openness, breadth of learning, interest in students, and patience for the painstaking process of educating those who are only just arriving to the world of books. I’ll never forget our final Proust seminar in his home, where the walls were covered in beautiful art, any more than I will forget a Saturday afternoon weeding his garden and being paid in beer. I admire and even envy his life and the joy he took in it. — Max Socol, A’08 M r. Stephenson was a serious scholar, and his intensity set the tone for not only freshman seminar, but also acted as a model for how we were to approach our studies for the next four years. — Adam Eggers, A’91 �The Gadfly 07 !"#$%&'(%)*+,#-,./0,1(2342*+)* Librarian Cara Sabolcik has graciously compiled the following list of publications by Mr. Stephenson available in our very own Greenfield Library. The list is a testament to the breadth of Mr. Stephenson’s academic interests—it includes studies in philosophy, music, mathematics, and more. We hope this list will serve to help the Polity continue to engage with Mr. Stephenson’s life and work. Articles • “Introduction to ‘The Tuning Fork.’” St. John’s Review 48.2 (2005). 27-28. Print. • “Is Nature a Republic?” St. John’s Review 35.2 (Spring 1984): 34-39. Print. • “Muthos and Logos.” St. John’s Review 48.3 (2005) 41-55. Print. • “Ptolemy’s Truth.” St. John’s Review 44.3 (1998): 73-96. Print. Faculty File • “Humanistic Education and Scientific Literacy.” Hood College. 31 Mar. 1979. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: FaFi-StephensonD001) Lectures (Audio) • “Beauty alone has looked on Euclid bare.” St. John’s College. 24 Jan. 1974. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 261) • “Ion’s Art.” St. John’s College. 30 Mar. 1990. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 344) • “Is Nature a Republic?” St. John’s College. 6 May 1983. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 630) • “The ‘oceanic feeling’: whole and part: a lecture.” St. John’s College. 18 Jan. 1979. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 438) • “The Sin of Learning, ‘in Faust we Trust.’” St. John’s College. 26 Mar. 1993. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 297) • “Talk on L. Carnot.” St. John’s College. 13 Jan. 1982. Audiocassette. (Call Number: Tape 635) Lectures (Print) • “The Novel’s Moral Playground.” St. John’s College. 15 Jan 2010. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: Lec-STE 2010 Jan 15) • “The ‘oceanic feeling.’” St. John’s College. 18 Jan. 1979. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: Lec-STE 1979 Jan 18) • “Ptolemy’s Truth.” St. John’s College. n.d. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: Lec-STE n.d.) • “Refraction under Least Action.” St. John’s College. 1987. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: Lec-STE 1987) • “The Sin of Learning.” St John’s College. 26 Mar. 1993. Lecture. Print. (Call Number: Lec-STE 1993 Mar 26) Manuals • “Freshman Music.” Annapolis, MD: St. John’s College, 1996. • “Readings on Differential and Integral Calculus and Related Subjects.” Annapolis, MD: St. John’s College, 1971. (Call Number: Oversize QA303.R43 1971) Video • Twelfth Night. Dir. Elise Berg. Music: David Stephenson. St. John’s College 30 Apr. 2000. Videocassette. (Call Number: Archives VHS 682a) �The Gadfly 08 !"#$"%%&'()*)+%#*,')"-)./0,1 Justin Andrews A’01 for Mr. Stephenson, in memoriam Standing on a chair barely remembered the lock of hair falling and brushed back and falling it was all so hard to pay attention to the anachronistic spectacles always sliding his conducting our being conducted on the Fridays of fifteen years ago seer-sucker a squint eye as exasperated measure all of us there waiting to drink. And death cuffs my stomach the way once when, alone, with a voice which, as one then said, was not the best, he stood on his chair with his spectacles sliding and sang for us Hinei Mah Tov cracked and joyous and full of life and everyone for once shut up. I had forgotten that, on days of unexpected warmth in early spring when I sing the same song to myself and catch myself happy, I am remembering him. !"#$%&'"()*+%&,-./0.(1*(2&34-*+ ,./-.56.+&72&89:;&&&=*#.56.+&>92&>?8> < @(&A*#$(B&C.5*+D � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 13 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-12-11 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 13 of The Gadfly. Published on December 11, 2012. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.13 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/ba29b713bfec2ed8214ad01687a27b4c.pdf 5cca5e9fa40ea85180db5abd153ca236 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() -.)&(/%0"123%0'/*3&4+3%5*3&%6%78 %9.&"/%:)&(/;*($,%</=%>(&/*?'%6%7@ A'+4(%+)B%&'(%C1+4*)(B%5*D(%6%7E A0:,%5*F(/+#%CB.?+&*")%*)%G*)&(/%6%7H !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$%1(#$9;3$8098$.$2&+#$<<<52$.$5!!=,$9: !"##"$%&'(%!"#$%&%")#*)(%+&, photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 << !"#$%!"#$%& The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in the first lower level of the Barr-Buchanan Center. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@ gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Will Brown • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Kevin Morris • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Hunter Cox Ernest Heinmuller Jerry Januszewski Danny Kraft Painter Bob Samuel Weinberg Steve Weinstein D '%%!(!)#*+,-!./0!120$3+4#3555 ear Polity, Christmas was a little bit of a letdown in the Casa de Cox this year, so in order to make up for it, I have decided to publish a list of things that I want(ed). I know you all love me very much, so don’t feel bad if I get two of the same thing. I love multiples. And if you don’t have the time to get me anything, just send cash. Tens and twenties are fine. Please use my campus mail to give me my gifts. Post-Christmas list: • Spartan Jersey • Rajon Rondo Jersey (XXXL) • Thermos • A lion coffee-table book • Signed picture of Terence E. Washington, preferably with him looking hipster and smoking a cigarette. • Package of assorted nips • The opportunity to give the “Bodies in Motion” preMarch Madness lecture • Druid captain arm band • 12 Thai donuts • 4 Croquet balls • 3 Pretzel logs • 2 Cold beers And a coozie in my hand. Sincerely, Hunter Cox, A’13, Druid captain for life. !"#$%&'()*+%,) ! Painter Bob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�The Gadfly 03 !" !"#$%&!$' !"#$%&%#'#()* Mr. Louis Petrich How did you come to be a tutor at St. John’s? I learned about the College when I was a graduate student in Chicago in the 1980’s, and I wanted to become a tutor so that I could continue learning without boundaries. So I applied to both campuses, but neither of them appointed me. That was for the best, for shortly thereafter I found a new career in a world elsewhere that lasted with pleasure for over a decade. At that time the communist regimes in Eastern Europe were falling, one after another, and teachers from the West in the social sciences and humanities were urgently requested by the new democratic governments. I remember attending a conference of the Modern Language Association in late December of 1989 in Washington, D.C. Most of the nation’s graduate students of literature and modern language attend this conference to be interviewed for scarce faculty positions, and our nation’s literary scholars descend upon it to present papers to one another and to conduct the interviews. At that time their papers were devoted mostly to theories unintelligible to me and to tedious discourses of oppression. In the evenings I followed televised reports of the Romanian revolution, which had turned violent and led to the execution of the Ceausescus by firing squad on Christmas day. That was thrilling and intelligible. I concluded then and there that I would rather be teaching literature in Romania than participating at an MLA Conference anywhere in America. So I went abroad, first to Romania, then to Czechoslovakia (which split into two countries while I was there—I taught in both), and finally to Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia. I taught American studies and western civilization to students who were free of Marxist-Leninist ideology for the first time. I would have been pleased to continue that career, but the world changed again on September 11, 2001. I remember drinking beer that evening in a German pub in Bishkek, capitol of Kyrgyzstan, with an Iranian exile (party of the Shah) to discuss a trip I was planning to Iran. On the taxi ride home I was able to make out from the Russian news on the radio and the gesticulations of the excited cab driver that something terrible had just happened in New York and Washington, where it was morning. When I got home my wife was sitting in the hall crying. I watched those images on TV of the twin towers collapsing, over and over again—unbelievable—and I knew that I would not be going to Iran and that the world which had been to me free and open was going to close. So I applied again for a position at St. John’s, where I still knew I belonged, and from half-way around the world I came for an interview in January of 2002. In April I received an appointment, and here I am. The books and our conversations about them keep me here. What classes are you teaching this year? I am teaching freshman seminar (for only the second time), sophomore math, and junior language. What was the biggest adventure you’ve ever had? Oh boy, that’s hard to say. My guardian angel has been kept pretty busy. I recently spent a year teaching mathematics and biology in northern Iraq (in the Kurdish city of Sulaimani), and just trying to find my way through the labyrinthine bazaar felt adventurous. I loved the sights, smells, and sounds of the bazaar—getting lost in them—not knowing what I might find. How boring Safeway and Giant seem by comparison. My son found spent cartridges from AK-47’s and helmets with bullet holes in the hills around the city. War felt close there. The Kurds, you should know, are more like the Spartans than the Athenians, keener to fight from the mountain caves than to philosophize in the classroom. I won my combative students over when I resorted to banging my head against the blackboard. Teaching in Eastern Europe and Central Asia was also an ongoing adventure, especially that first year in Romania, after the revolution. I used to walk the two miles to the university dragging a stick behind me to keep off the wild dogs. The Chairman of my department, whose support of the old Stalinist regime had gained him his position and privileges—now that that regime was gone, tried to engage me to his daughter. The Romanian people were desperate to get fully out from under the rock of tyranny, which had crippled the country, and some thought I had the right passport to deliver them. It was a good thing I had been briefed upon my arrival by the Cultural Affairs Officer of our Embassy, who had time to impart to this single American male only one piece of emphatic advice: “Stay away from the Romanian women. They are all _____.” So I played the part of the Gentleman Caller to the Romanian Lauras to whom I taught American drama, raising their hopes for the future and then leaving as free as ever, until a few years Continued On Pg. 04 �The Gadfly 04 Continued From Pg. 03 later I married a fellow American while serving in the Peace Corps, and “when two go together”—well, you know, you tend to keep your head on straight. (Perhaps when we’re quite off the record, I’ll tell you what happened on my first trip to Istanbul, when all I had to guide me was a map as I went looking around for a good belly dancing show.) My steady adventures these days are supplied by the program of this College and the waters of the Caribbean, both of which I like to dive into all I can. Learning to breathe calmly when you are in over your head is a very good thing to know. What is the single most important piece of advice you would like to give to freshmen (or upper classmen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rnest Heinmuller, A’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�The Gadfly 05 !"#$%&#'(&)"%&*+#$,'%(&-,.% Jerry Januszewski I Counselor t’s easy to think of the call to “the examined life” as a mascu- of living the examined life. line endeavor. I’ve seen the quote tattooed on a man’s arm, There is an unavoidable ambivalence connected to the path heard it in locker room speeches, and felt its tug on my own of self-discovery. We’re drawn to the unexplored within and soul. A famous line from Hamlet is similarly evocative: “This also frightened by it. Accepting the call to an examined life is above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the heroic, because it is a call to go beyond fear to freedom. Refusnight the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.” These ing the call means remaining, in some sense, a slave. Eva Brann heroic sentiments can make even a hardened man shed a tear, goes further, noting in her Gadfly article (Vol. 34, Issue 6) that as he recognizes a worthy First Principle. But feeling sympa- the unexamined life is not merely not worth living, but it is althy toward the examined life is one thing; actually living it is ready dead: “the unsearched-out life is unlivable...you’re a grey another. shade, in Hades before your time.” Years ago I worked for a rehab program at the county jail. Considering our attraction to the examined life, and the Inmates frequently tested me for my street cred (of which I dreadful consequences of refusing the call, why do we feel any had none). Some of the cops working there hassled me as well. resistance to seeking and embracing our true and free selves? Word got out I had studied philosophy, and this added to the One explanation concerns the experience of human shame, perception I was bookish, with no street smarts. This work sit- common to all. Feelings of shame are a torment to the soul. If uation exposed to me some of my hidden shame: doubts I had self-examination threatens to reveal agonizing shame, then reabout whether I was man enough to deal with real life tough sistance to this process begins to make sense. Felt shame is an guys. So I searched for ways to prove my manly mettle to the enemy to personal freedom, because it squashes the impulse others, even as I doubted I had any. When I was invited to for the examined life. train alongside the cops in some of their special maneuvers, I Dr. Ernest Kurtz, in his concise and brilliant book, Shame was eager to do it. & Guilt, states that both guilt and shame involve feeling “bad” Now here was something in my wheelabout something. They differ in that we house, I thought: running and jumping and We’re drawn to the unex- feel a pang of guilt over something we generally being athletic. I’m going to show do, while we feel the ache of shame over plored within and also frightthose cops a thing or two! We were taken something we are. Shame is the perened by it. Accepting the call ception of an ugly flaw within our own to a huge structure with no windows that to an examined life is heroic, being, an inherent defect that makes us simulated the dark interior of a building on because it is a call to go be- uniquely worse than other people. We fire. Inside was a crazy labyrinth through which each of us was expected to crawl, yond fear to freedom. Refus- may feel embarrassed because somefeeling our way through the pitch-dark ing the call means remaining, one sees our misdeeds (guilt), but we with our hands. I was keenly aware of all feel humiliated when someone sees our in some sense, a slave. the cops watching when I took my turn. shame. It didn’t go well. With a big oxygen tank So we go to great lengths to hide our on my back, I could barely move through the claustrophobic shame from others and from ourselves. Often we develop an crawl-space. The twists and turns were designed to disorient, ideal self, a comforting version of ourselves we imagine withand within 60 seconds I wasn’t exactly sure which way was out the shame, which we also present to the world. This is an up. There were dead-ends, which meant I had to inch my way understandable strategy for suppressing feelings of shame, but out backwards. This I did, but sometimes into another dead- a deeply flawed one for pursuing the examined life. end. My hands searched for an acceptable opening in any diDespite feeling enormous resistance, I attempted the dark rection. My throat felt choked. They had warned me: control maze again, and this time I controlled my breathing better. your breathing, or else fear will get the best of you. After 15 minutes of steady progress, I reached the end and Fear did get the best of me, and I banged on the wall: the emerged into the sunshine. Again I ripped my mask off, this signal for rescue needed. Hidden doors opened, and in a few time in triumph, but there wasn’t a single cop there to witness seconds I felt a hand on my collar pulling me out. Outside the my victory, except for the trainer supervising my effort. They’d building, I ripped off the oxygen mask and gulped fresh air. I all gone in for lunch. was drenched in sweat, my hands shaking. The cops thought I’m grateful now that none of the cops were there to see me this was hilarious. I felt humiliated; my shame in full view to complete the maze successfully, because that forced me wresthose I sought to impress. I wanted to disappear. But, after tle with my internal shame, not my superficial embarrassment. gathering my emotions, I forced myself to try again. The examined life demanded I honestly face how I felt about Going back again into that dark, stifling hot building was one myself, apart from any observer. Facing this shame was much of the hardest things I ever did. harder, and much more fruitful, than merely proving someBut my resistance to do it was not because of the ordeal of thing to others. completing the maze, difficult though that was. I was more This was a pivotal turning point for me for examining my terrified to place myself in a position where my personal shame true self and finding some freedom in the examined life—a call was exposed, and this has everything to do with the difficulty that is neither masculine nor feminine, but human. ! “ �The Gadfly 06 !"#$%&'()*+$,'+"' I Am Sam !"#$%"#$&#%'($%)*&%+",,-.-/-)-&,%0"#%*-$1 $&(%2&'(-(3%-(%+"&)#4 Danny Kraft I A’13 n the January issue of Poetry Ilya Kaminsky discusses the “wreckage” of language. When a poet twists the syntax of his mother tongue, Kaminsky says, he can create a “strange lyricism” wherein solitude, tension, and the poet’s natural privacy all express themselves in a way that alarms us into awareness. “What is the purpose of poetry?” the Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert was once asked. He answered: “to wake up.” To illustrate this point Kaminsky includes his translation of the first lines of Genesis. But this translation is really a strange transformation; he reverses the word order in each line, and finds a strange foreign poem hiding in “a text we know by heart.” “And there was light let there be God,” reads the beginning of the third verse in its new inverted form. When I read this I decided to experiment with similar transformations of other Biblical texts. Here is my rough rendering of Psalm 42, our beloved “Sicut Cervus.” It seems to me both completely foreign and perfectly at home in the world of the psalms. But does it wake you up at all, or any more than the psalm in conventional translation would? I’m curious to hear what you think. Please email me at daniel.kraft@sjca. edu with any reflections. God for you longs my soul as toward water brooks like the deer god of face and I will see I will come when living god to god my soul thirsts your god where all day in saying night and day bread my tears were to me celebrate so many and thanks in a voice of joy god to the house I slowly moved in the multitude I went for my soul on me I spill I remember these his face salvations I will praise yet for god have hope in me and lowered down my soul why are you downcast from Mount Mizar and Hermon Jordan from the land I remember you therefore downcast my soul in me my god passed over me and your waves all your billows your spouts to the voice called deep to deep my life to god a prayer with me his song and in the night his lovingkindness the lord will command by day enemy in oppression I walk mourning you have forgotten me why my rock to god I say your god where every day to me in saying my foes in my bones in murder and my god my face salvations I will praise yet for god have hope in me and lowered down my soul why are you downcast ! Don B. McBride, A’15 H ave you ever seen the movie I Am Sam starring Sean Penn? If not, hell to you. Only kidding. But seriously, go watch the movie! For those that have—kudos. In any case, though, that movie, besides being a tear-jerker, raises some serious ethical considerations. The movie’s plot goes something like this: the main character is named Sam Dawson; he works at Starbucks and is obsessed with the Beatles; he falls in love with a homeless woman and has a daughter. In the hospital, they vow to work together and to give it their all. But, when she recovers from the pregnancy, just as they’re about to start a life together, she steps on a Greyhound and leaves him forever. He is heartbroken and speechless as she departs; and, after glancing down at his newborn, Lucy Diamond Dawson, still wrapped in hospital linens, he is overtaken with fear at the rocky and uncertain path ahead. With no money and no home, with his hopes dim and his lover gone, and with the mental capacity and emotional maturity of a seven-year-old boy, Sam is face to face with a seemingly unsurmountable struggle. For the first seven years, he has relatively— relative considering the circumstances—few problems. But when Lucy turns seven, at which point she would surpass his intelligence, his circumstances are discovered. A social worker deems Sam unfit for custody, and Lucy is pulled from his care and adopted by a new family. The movie follows his struggle to get her back. I found myself jumping back and forth. At one point I was for Sam raising her—I mean, he did do it for seven years; isn’t that proof enough that he’s capable? But then, when I thought about Lucy’s teenage years, that uncomfortable time when things get REAL awkward, I was doubting whether Sam could provide the emotional support for a developing girl. Anyhow, luckily, because it proved great for acquiring information, I am not the first person to be baffled with this ethical question. And thus we begin: Do you think a mentally-disabled person should be allowed to raise, or even to have children? I’d like to hear your thoughts, send ‘em to my e-mail: don.b.mcbride@gmail.com. Next week I’m hoping to form an analysis of both arguments stemming from your ideas. If you don’t want to be quoted, say so in your message. See ya next week! �The Gadfly 07 Think about this for a Second !"#$%&'"($)&*+$,-$.&/-&( !"#$%&'()*+&%,-*.'/*0,$1)%,$1()*%'$23%,*%&*.'/*4%,56,1)&1*#$#* 1&%*7''$8,*$1*%$9,*:&'*$1;<3)$&1*$1*&3'*9,9&'$7<*$))3,=*23%*>,* 6755$<?*5'$1%*6,',*71&%6,'*&#,*%&*7*@',7%*A&611$,/ Steve Weinstein T A’75 he death of my favorite tutor fills me with nostalgia— not only for a soft-spoken, gentle man but for the passing of an era. For me, David Stephenson was emblematic of a time when St. John’s had the feel of a finishing school for the Empire of Prep, the natural sequel to Groton, Philips Exeter, and Andover. Not that the school was ever a snobby, haute-WASP redoubt; but the bow ties, the croquet, the boat house gave off an überAbercrombie & Fitch feel. Some tutors liked to make a show of grasping the Big Idea. They’d cup their hands and reach into the air, as if searching...searching for the hidden meaning embedded in the text. David never had to make a show of his insights, whether it was Kant’s nearly impenetrable Critique of Pure Judgement (one hell of a preceptorial for a junior);  Faraday’s studies of electromagnetism; or  the subject closest to his heart, opera. He often had a vague, quizzical, dreamy look about him, as though he were looking with admiration at something only he could see. All I know is that his intelligence on every book and subject in the Program provided some of my most rewarding classes, and I was fortunate enough to have studied with him in several. After my freshman year, I rented his gloriously ramshackle house in the center of town with some other students, back when all the doctors and lawyers lived on the outskirts of town, and tutors could still afford to buy a townhouse in Historic Annapolis.  Anyone who remembers David will remember those nightly walks around Jonathan Barone A s we return from break and settle back into our daily routines, I’d like you to ask yourself: Where am I? It shouldn’t be a difficult question to answer; you’re at St. John’s. You participate in seminars, you spark discussions inside and outside of class on topics that interest you, and many of you participate in activities outside of the curriculum. In short, you’re a member of the St. John’s community. As members of a community, we stake a certain pride in St. John’s, or else we wouldn’t be here. When we first arrive, it’s the Program in which we take the most pride. As time goes on, that pride starts to expand to include friends and the close relationships this community fosters. We take pride in Freshman Chorus and our intramural teams. We take pride in the fact that anybody can talk to just about anybody else about the Program. And right near the top of the list, we take pride in beating Navy every year in croquet. And yet, despite this pride that I know we have, we’re going to lose croquet for the next three years unless you step the hell up. The croquet team currently has six seniors, and will likely have more come April. Currently, one junior and one sophomore practice regularly. That leaves us with not much for the next few years. Listen up, because this is a major problem. Right now, we have a bunch of seniors who are more than happy to teach how to play the game. But next year that resource will have disappeared. And not only are they taking their skills and knowledge of the game, but they’re taking their knowledge of the little things as well: budget management, contact info, connections with the staff. Unless these things are passed on, reviving the team is going to be extremely difficult. And that’s not even mentioning that many of you will have to learn the game on your own, which is going to be much, much harder than learning it from someone with experience. I don’t know if you don’t come out because you think others will, if you’re intimidated, or if you just aren’t interested. But now’s the time to change that. For the past two years, the croquet team has been doing everything short of knocking on doors to get people to come out and learn. The door is wide open, and now’s the time to take advantage of it. Get a group of your friends and come and learn a great, entertaining, and fun game before that opportunity is lost and the task before this community becomes much, much more difficult. Listen: take advantage of it now, before it’s too late. Because I know for damn sure that I don’t want to find out croquet is cancelled next year because the community didn’t give enough of a collected shit to do anything about it when it had the chance. ! photo by Anyi Guo town with a particular dog, Billy. My housemates, all “stars” (at least in their own minds), neglected Billy or were downright mean. I’ll never forget when one of them even kicked him. Maybe I bonded with that rescued dog because I felt sorry for him; but maybe it’s because I felt a little bit like a mutt myself—a yokel who still spoke with a thick hillbilly accent and had graduated  from an impoverished school district where the principal’s own education was limited to a Christian Bible college. In my last two years at St. John’s, we used to take long, ambling walks, David, Billy and myself. The conversation ambled, too, peripatetic in the best sense of the word. After graduation, when I moved to New York, I saw David frequently during his sabbatical, when he generously supported his wife’s longdelayed ambition of pursuing an opera career. The couple had rented an apartment in the West 70s, not far from me. We’d meet at the old O’Neal’s Balloon and spend afternoons talking about Verdi and baseball and life—all the big stuff. After his wife’s sad, untimely death, his pilgrimages to the Met became less frequent, and, as inevitably happens, we lost touch.  But I’ll never forget the lesson that David—and St. John’s—gave me: Even a mutt, with proper training, can stand proudly next to the best-bred show dog. I once interviewed a prospective student.  Afterward, my mom asked me, “Well, does she fit in?” I asked her what she meant. She told me, “There’s a kind of misfit who seems to fit in only at St. John’s.” I think that goes for the faculty, too. ! A’13 �The Gadfly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iberal Education in Winter Samuel Weinberg A A’14 s some of you may recall, one of the be taken aback at the inclusion of the pofirst SCI. forums of this year was a larizing Leo Strauss. It would be virtually discussion of Stringfellow Barr’s “Notes impossible for one to go through any time on Dialogue.” At the time, we viewed this at St. John’s without hearing Strauss’ essay both as an apt introduction to some name, often said pejoratively. What of St. John’s’ pedagogical principles to would not be impossible would be to hear the green freshmen, and as something to his name, immediately register the conallow for some much-needed reflection descension, and move on, without invesfor the upperclassmen. In that discussion tigating what this man actually thought. I was excited by both the turnout and Consequently, it seems necessary to read enthusiasm that people brought about this document, as it provides a slightly their experiences at the College; both different conception of liberal education, those acquired over years and the bloom- one which has influenced both faculty ing experiences of the freshmen. I came and students, past and present. (N.B. Leo away with the impression that there was Strauss was the first, and only, “Scott Bua pervasive enthusiasm for discussing chanan Scholar in Residence” at the Colour peculiar activity by way of a docu- lege in the 1970s.) ment written by one The final two of the founders of readings will more By investigating these docuthe College. It was immediately quesments and questioning the then that I realized tion our curricuway we do things, we can that something like lum. Santa Fe tutor hopefully achieve a better this, but more perGrant Franks asks, sense of our purpose as a manent, should be why is our program Polity and foster a better established. divorced from hisAs luck would tory? Former dean appreciation for how the have it, it was highGeorge Doskow Program came to be in its time for a change asks, why does our current state. in one of the SCI program lack so seasonal seminars. many women au“Women in Winter” got the axe: this thors? What are we missing as a consewas not a misogynistic decision (both quence? co-chairs are women), but we thought There will be hopefully be a thread to that a change was for the best. Thus, my these conversations as they build upon nascent idea was brought to life, and the another. It is worth noting that none of newest SCI series was born, which, for these documents are intrinsically “great” lack of a more clever title, will be called like most of the things we are asked to “Liberal Education in Winter.” The series read, and they have no pretense of being will feature Scott Buchanan’s “The Last so. But the aim of this series is to have a Don-Rag,” the 1937 Statement of the Pro- clearer understanding of our program gram along with a 1953 self-study, Jacob and its history, and to expose the Polity to Klein’s “The Idea of Liberal Education,” the rich history of the College by way of Leo Strauss’ “What is Liberal Educa- these documents. tion?,” George Doskow’s “Women and St. John’s is great, but it is far from perthe Great Books,” and Grant Franks’ “Ev- fect. By investigating these documents erything Aristotle Has Said Was Wrong.” and questioning the way we do things, we The first three readings of this series can hopefully achieve a better sense of are foundational; all are by authors who our purpose as a Polity and foster a better had a central hand in the principles of appreciation for how the Program came the College at the inception of the New to be in its current state. Program or shortly thereafter. The latter I hope to see many in attendance, as three readings are more controversial in this promises to be an extremely exciting nature. Immediately, I’m sure many will experiment. ! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 14 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-01-15 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 14 of The Gadfly. Published on January 15, 2013. (Mislabeled as January 15, 2012). Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.14 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/80a1f08b7adcf37a46e927103a60d38c.pdf cec86787b2b1ca9283cf10b61bc203ea PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%#&'"$()$*&+(,$-.&+'/$0$12 $3&44$-5(+'6$7(8,9:;5$0$1< =>?#+&4$*+'6@$A&'"$'($3+##9(B$0$1C !"#$-D845'8+#$()$%&E>9$F&G#6$0$1H !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$%1(#$8;3$8098$.$2&+#$<<<52$.$5!!=,$9> -8?B>66>(,$9#&94>,#@$II@<J5BK$L#9MK$3#?M$N photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in the first lower level of the Barr-Buchanan Center. Articles for the next issue should be submitted by Wednesday, February 6, at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Reza Djalal • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Alix Boraks Daniela Lobo Dias Michael Fogleman Esteban Freeman John Ropoulos !"##$%&'"()*"&'%$+ I n our previous issue, Mr. Steve Weinstein’s (A’75) tribute to tutor David Stephenson recalled the passing of Mr. Stephenson’s wife, Helen. Alas, that mention escaped the notice of our fact-checkers: Mrs. Stephenson is, in fact, well and very much alive. We apologize to Mrs. Stephenson, to her family, and to our readers for this mortifying mistake. !"##"$%&$'(%#)"%*+,#'$Y ou may have noticed that no Gadfly appeared in the Coffee Shop last Tuesday for your usual lunchtime reading pleasure. After much soul-searching, agonized reflection, and more than a few pilgrimages to various oracles, the Gadfly staff has decided to move to a biweekly printing schedule for the second semester. Because of a fluctuating volume of submissions, an increasingly heavy junior year workload, and several still-unwatched episodes of Downton Abbey queued on Netflix, our small editing and layout staff felt a change was necessary. However, we hope that a biweekly schedule will allow us to accumulate enough material to ensure that every issue is substantive, and we hope the increase in content will compensate for the longer period between issues. To facilitate our new schedule, we ask that all submissions be sent to us (sjca.gadfly@gmail.com) by the Wednesday between issues. We will make sure to feature prominently in each printed issue the next deadline, for your assistance. Articles for our next issue should be submitted to the above address by 11:59 PM on Wednesday, February 6. At the end of the semester, we will evaluate whether this change has been beneficial, and we hope to have your input as we make that determination. Please do not hesitate to contact us with comments, concerns, or questions. We hope that this shift does not precipitate too much garment-rending. We ask for your patience as we make this transition, but we are confident that the Gadfly will continue to interest, illumine, and amuse—and maybe even, on occasion, manage a bit of fruitful stinging. Best, Nathan Goldman & Ian Tuttle Gadfly Editors, 2012-2013 !"#$%#&'"$()$*&+(,$-.&+'/ Robert Malka O A’15 n January 11, 2013, Aaron Swartz, developer of RSS 1.0 (“Really Simple Syndication”), effective co-founder of Reddit, crusader against SOPA and PIPA, hanged himself. He was twenty-six. Within us all resides a great tension—to be comfortable, or to be in pain? To believe and seek pleasure, or to inquire and find truth? To do tremendous things and experience at times tremendous failure, or to reside in that gray twilight which knows neither victory nor defeat? This tension is never resolved. Most of the time the temptation to live a predictable and satisfying life is overwhelming. To pursue the cause about which one is most passionate is paradoxically much harder. For what if one fails? Does one even have the constitution to live a life focused on one thing at the cost of everything else? Most of us do not have such resilience, instead opting for the safe, long life in which we become unknowns. Aaron Swartz chose the path less traveled. He was committed to the freedom of the internet and of information. He pursued Continued On Pg. 04 �The Gadfly !"#$%&'()*+",- 03 !"#$%&'()%*$%+,(-.// Despite graduating only two years ago, Rich Maxham has already found a footing in an exclusive craft. He recounts his journey from the halls of St. John’s to the shop where he now builds and restores violins. What is your current job? I work at the Potter Violin Company in Bethesda, Maryland, where I repair and restore violins and cellos there for the rental and repair departments. We have a collection of about 2800 rental instruments in circulation. Typically, someone interested in making violins would apply to one of the violin making schools. Prior woodworking experience is helpful but not required. The schools often receive offers from shops searching for workmen. The other option is to find a maker willing to take the time to teach the craft. Did you attend other schools after St. John’s? No. I had planned to go to the Chicago School of Violin Making, but during the summer before the first year would have begun, I got in touch with a violin maker, Daniel O. Smith, who lived in my home town. What started off as a couple of lessons with carving tools soon grew into an offer to make a violin under his tutelage. I ended up working a whole year with my teacher. We both felt that after spending enough time together to learn some repair and setup technique, I was ready to venture into the job market. I supplemented my apprenticeship by attending workshops with the Violin Society of America. As it turned out, I was able to find a good job without going to a violinmaking school. Any general advice, especially for an upperclassman who is interested in this field but is not quite sure what to do? Violin making is a small field and requires a great amount of dedication. In order to get a sense of what it’s like to work on violins, one might try the various summer workshops available. Did you know what you wanted to do while at St. John’s? I always knew that I wanted to devote my life to the violin—it’s in my blood (I’m the fourth violin maker in my family). The decision I had to make was whether to be a player or a maker. It was at St. John’s that I had the chance to make that decision. What didn’t St. John’s prepare you for in your field? St. John’s didn’t prepare me for the specialized field I chose, but no undergraduate programs offer that kind of instruction. One of the main reasons I chose to apply to St. John’s was the idea that I could simply focus on education for its own sake, rather than as a means to some other end. How did you feel you compared, in graduate school or early jobs, to people from different educational backgrounds, particularly those with field-related degrees? Because I was able to find a job after one year, I didn’t have to bear the expense of a three to four year violin making program. I was also able to begin work at a younger age than my colleagues. They all studied at top violin making schools, so I don’t think I could say I was better prepared for the job. I was just able to start working earlier. Can you describe a general track someone from St. John’s might take to get into a career in this field? How did you market yourself with a St. John’s degree? I have always tried to make the point that the St. John’s education encourages creative thinking and helps its students to approach difficult situations systematically and confidently. How would you characterize your field as a whole? Is it accessible to newcomers or difficult to enter? Stable or fluid? My field is somewhat difficult to enter. There is a firmly established tradition in the schools. On the other hand, because it has been around for hundreds of years, the violin business is fairly stable. What was your senior essay topic? I wrote on the world of chivalry in Chaucer’s Knight’s Tale. I was particularly interested in the author’s choice of Theseus as the perfect knight and ruler, the relationship between the opposing knights, and the difficulty in combining the life of the warrior with the struggle to woo a lady. What is your favorite book on the Program? Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason. It’s difficult to choose a favorite among such great authors. Do you find that you lead a philosophical life? Yes. Although working on violins is a craft, I’ve found that it is often quite easy to find philosophical meaning in its theory, artistry, and application. Because there’s a kind of mystery surrounding the design and tone of the bowed string family that even the most sophisticated scientific machinery and research can’t fully explain, makers are constantly compelled to seek their own personal understanding of what the violin is and what it means to other people as both a heavily-used tool and a work of art. ! �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%!&'#(!$)*++,!!##$*($,(%!-&)!,*(. Examining Freshman Lab Michael Fogleman O A’13 n Thursday, January 25th, the SCI held a public forum to discuss freshman lab, specifically the first semester: biology. Why do we begin with biology? How does the class relate to the junior and senior Labs? Are the readings unified? Most noted that students are in a state of wonder for the first weeks of freshman lab. As they turn to more varied readings, they are forced to reconsider opinions or facts they had learned before about a subject which is extremely familiar to us. Moreover, they are given an opportunity to become better students, and are initiated into the work we do at St. John’s College. Many students claimed that the more difficult and technical readings enabled their classes to learn to work together in conversation. However, some wondered if a combination of small tweaks, changes to readings, and expanded practica might unify the class. It was suggested that certain technical problems might be avoided by adding a glossary of terms for more difficult readings like Driesch. When some students objected that making a glossary for oneself provided an excellent opportunity to learn to read dense, technical material, one tutor suggested that the Driesch readings were quite long, especially considering the schedule’s allotted time, and implied that a glossary would not be overly obtrusive. Some students noted that they received a glossary from their tutors, even though one wasn’t intentionally included in the manual. On a broader level, several unofficial changes were being considered: officially expanding the time spent with biology at the end of the semester, returning to a practicum with the hand after Driesch, and supplementing Virchow with Portmann. Students praised several readings which are often unofficially included in the biology sequence. Almost all were in favor of Jonas, despite its modernity, and suggested adding certain readings to the official sequence. The Goethe readings on plants were also quite popular, and one tutor noted that Goethe works well in combination with the Theophrastus reading at the beginning of the year. Furthermore, it might be helpful to return periodically, both inside and outside of the classroom, to observing magnolia trees or other living beings. One student reported that their class had done a reading on the cheetah’s motion, and paired this reading with a practicum examining the students’ bodies when running. Of course, each additional reading or practicum requires the subtraction of another. More generally, students raised the question of whether it was best to do a reading or a practicum first. Some reported that if they did a reading first, it felt as if they were merely verifying the reading’s conclusions when they turned to the practicum. Similar problems had been reported at a previous meeting on the junior year lab sequence. It was not clear, however, if something would be lost by doing the practicum first, or if there were certain readings where an inverted order would be detrimental to the students. A tentative answer was offered to the question of unity, with respect to both freshman lab and the lab program more generally. The segment of freshman lab devoted to biology was divided into two segments: observing full living beings, and observing developing creatures. The question of quantification taken up in second semester should remind students of living beings—could living beings really be quantified? And of course, the biology segment in senior lab should serve to reawaken questions about life, parts and wholes, and complexity. Whether or not specific alterations could bring out this thematic unity so early in the Program was unclear. ! Continued From Pg. 02 this work relentlessly at the cost of his health, his friendships, and eventually his own life. One imagines that such ambition would come at odds with suicide. Perhaps it did, but he crossed his first major enemy too early: an overzealous prosecution. Determined to keep information free, Swartz released millions of documents from an academic archive called JSTOR, book cataloguing data from the Library of Congress, and electronic federal court records from the system, PACER. How many millions of documents? About twentyfive million. Almost all of these documents were paid by taxes; in his mind, that was enough to make them free. He downloaded them with alarming speed from a closet at MIT with a program he wrote. It was uploaded before anyone could stop him. Naturally, the Department of Justice didn’t like his tampering with PACER. (MIT and JSTOR settled.) For his crime, Swartz was threatened with thirty-five years in prison and a one million dollar fine. Precedent is a $100 fine and thirty days in jail. (Much of the problem stems from a lack of a legal distinction between malicious and non-malicious hacking, a problem in ongoing resolution.) This weighed on Swartz for two years, moreso recently. His depression compounded the case’s impact. He couldn’t imagine a world in which he spent his entire life not living out his ideals, not disrupting the system in which we live. Thirty-five years is a long time. And so, on one especially heavy day, he saw the light no more. And that is a great shame. Swartz fought for his ideals and passions with conviction and selflessness. He was righteous, skirting the life of comfort for the life he believed in, and he lived it more than many of us will ever live our long lives, short as his was. Is he a role model for us to follow? Perhaps, and perhaps not. But we need more heroes in the world, people who value an idea more than their own lives. He will be sorely missed. ! �The Gadfly 05 An Account of Autumnal Athletics Jonathan Barone A A’13 s the blistering wind sweeps over the barren quad, and conquered the round robin handily, winning all their matches we burrow in our beds beneath an abundance of blankets, with the dual strong arms of Sebastian Abella and newcomer our minds drift to the halcyon days of fall, when the athletic Nikos Frank. The Guardians, riding largely on team play and field was lit with the dying rays of an October sun. What bet- crazy overtime victories, managed to squeak by the Druids for ter way to relive the glory of those warmer days than with a second place, while the Spartans finished fourth with a great fall sports round-up? individual play from freshman Chris Zeller. The Druids, not The margin between teams coming to be outdone, cultivated some razzleinto the winter season is fairly slim. dazzle, rip-roaring, sometimes-pureThe margin between teams We’ve grasped glimpses of each team’s ly-outlandish trick plays which, comcoming into the winter season bined with some great individual runs basketball prowess through the Holiday Tournament, but the team to win the from Dylan Tyler, produced a tournais fairly slim. We’ve grasped overall championship is by no means glimpses of each team’s basket- ment victory and a sentence with many decided. The Waves have solidified ball prowess through the Holi- commas. The Reasonbowl and title their place atop the mountain after a match was a hard fought battle in inday Tournament, but the team clement weather, all coming down to strong showing in the HIT, beating the to win the overall championSpartans in a winner-take-all match, hypertime. Of course, it wouldn’t be a ship is by no means decided. 45-38. That victory gave them a sevenReasonball season without some sort point lead over the second-place Guardof controversy, and the Druids ended ians. The Druids, coming off a strong Reasonball season, hold up on the positive end of the referee’s whistle, ending a hardonto third place by a slim margin. Meanwhile, the Hustlers, fought game with the title. A shout out goes to Drew “Wild with their formidable basketball and handball teams, are eye- Card” Menzer for being probably the best individual runner ing to take third place from the Druids, while the Spartans sit and also most likely player to be on the ground at the end of in last place. a play. But enough about the present! Let’s talk about the past. Soccer: This year’s soccer season was marked by two of Here’s a breakdown of the fall sports seasons: the best soccer teams St. John’s has seen in quite some time Ultimate: The season was, once again, dominated by the in the Hustlers and Greenwaves. The Greenwaves, helped by Guardians. Not to be denied another championship, the alumni strikers and sweepers, rode the breakers churned up Guardians crushed the runner-up Greenwaves in all three of by freshman Noe “Papi” Jimenez, dominating the first half of their meetings, climaxing in a 15-9 shellacking that brought the season. The Tsunami eventually finished with an undetheir winning streak to 19 straight games. Led by captain Dan- feated season, but their performance slipped toward the end iel “Hellfish” Popov and Daniel “The Other Daniel” Gilles, the of the season, drawing in their last three games. The Hustlers, Guardians once again capitalized on quick turnovers, stellar captained by Captain Dhidhat, overcame their first defeat to handling, and superior receiver mismatches to claim gold once storm back and dominate their opponents, outscoring them by again. The Druids, on the other hand, adopted a different style, a ratio of at least 6:1. The championship game was a physical preferring not to rely on any handlers in particular, but rather battle, but ultimately the Men in Red emerged victorious, wintrying to open the field through strings of connected passes. ning 1-0 off a header from senior Manish Thapa. The GuardThough they started slow, they ians made their mark on the turf, emerged as a solid powerhouse with no small thanks to Santa toward the end of the season Fe transfer Charlie Martin, but with a strong final victory over barely fell short to the Hustlers the Hustlers. The Hustlers and and had to settle for third. The Spartans, though they played Spartans, though they fought valiantly, often suffered from valiantly, were no match for the lack of turnout, which ultimateBrothers Cox, who pulled the ly led to their downfall. ShoutDruids to a solid fourth. Indiouts go to Graham “Flash” Gorvidual accolades certainly go to don for his ridiculous defense, Henry Hirsch, who was finally sophomore Charles Pisaruk for able to overcome his curse and his four foot vertical and killer score some pretty spectacular pulls, and Eric Shlifer, for pullgoals, and Joe Hamd, for closing most of the weight in getting ing in on just about every long his team to second place. ball booted into his defensive third. And of course, I would be Reasonball: After the Hustlers skipped out on two of their most remiss to not mention Joe Roberts for his penalty save in games, the double round robin season was switched to a single the championship to preserve the title for his team. round robin and a single elimination tourney. The Greenwaves Well, that about wraps it all up. See you on the court! ! “ !"#$"%&'#%$ !"##$%&'#( !)&"*+&$( ,")+*( -)(./#"( 01&".&$( !! "# $$ $% &' �The Gadfly 06 In Concert: Beating the Odds with The Evens Sarah Meggison !"##$"%&'()*+,((, S Alix Boraks L A’14 adies and gentlemen, I’m no Miss Manners. If you asked me which of several forks was the appropriate one to use for salad, my response would be to start hyperventilating and stab you in the neck—I simply don’t know anything about etiquette, and I’d consider a study of etiquette to be a massive waste of time that could potentially be spent picking at scabs or chewing on fingernails. However, there is one issue of etiquette that’s simple common courtesy, and since I’ve seen it a thousand times at St. John’s, I’m afraid I have no choice but to address it. The issue I’m referring to is: When you’re in a hallway, and there’s one other person in the hallway, and you are about to pass each other, for God’s sake, nod. Is this a stupid ritual? Hey, maybe. But that doesn’t change the fact that when you nod at somebody and they don’t nod back, you feel pain. There is no other action on that small a scale that can cause so much heartbreak and mortification. If somebody socks me in the jaw out of nowhere, I have to assume that there’s some reason for it, however obscure it may be in the moment. If somebody bumps me while passing me on the stairs or lets a door shut on me, any number of motives might be behind the rudeness. However, if someone catches my eye and still fails to respond to my personable nod with one of their own, it means only one thing: they are loathsome, possibly sociopathic, and certainly unworthy of others’ companionship. What does the passing nod really mean? I’ve considered and analyzed it, and what I’ve decided on is that it implies a mutual recognition of souls. You know that quote that gets reblogged on the really spiritual section of Tumblr, “I honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells”? That’s what you can do for another person in a hallway, with just a simple nod! You can tell that person that while you may not know them or care about them in any way, you understand that the two of you are in this hallway together, and you don’t intend to let the moment pass without acknowledging its significance. If dogs never pass other dogs on the street without a quick tail-wag and some courtesy sniffing, why should we? Generally, my opinion of manners is pretty low. They’re nothing but aesthetics, wrapped up in a cloak of moral selfimportance. Sure, I chew with my mouth closed and try to observe the rules of cutlery to the best of my ability (I don’t know why the only legitimate rules of etiquette I can ever remember are related to food), but I do it because it’s pretty, not because it’s civilized. Still, this is one rule that appeals to civility as much as aesthetics. It’s easy, it’s instant, and it doesn’t take up any more time than simply passing someone unacknowledged. Go ahead. Nod at strangers in the hallway. Be a neighbor. ! A’15 ince coming to college, my poor indie soul has been starved for live music. I grew up in North Carolina, two hours away from the college towns around the prominent music scene of Chapel Hill, where during high school I got to see bands like Sebadoh, The National, She & Him, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, and Jenny Lewis. Then I thought going to college in Annapolis would be pretty sweet, as I could keep going to shows, given the proximity to D.C. and Baltimore. But alas, lack of a vehicle and incompetency in regards to public transportation has largely prevented that. So when a friend, whose music taste I trust and enjoy, told me that a band called The Evens was going to be playing at KaChunk Records last December, I was quite excited. I hadn’t heard of the band before, and the only thing I’d learned beforehand was that the was a husband-wife team (which is cool), and that the guy, Ian MacKaye, is a veteran of the DC hardcore scene as a member of Minor Threat and Fugazi (I have minimal experience with both). So it got to be early that Saturday night, I didn’t have anything else to do, and I always enjoy finding new music, so I made the (very short) pilgrimage down Maryland Ave. to the reSo when a friend, cord store with a small group of fellow musically-inclined whose music taste Johnnies to see the show. I trust and enjoy, The show cost me the paltold me that a try sum of $5, and the crowd band called The was small. (I mean, it’s not a Evens was going huge store or anything. But I to be playing at love love love small venues— they’re just a better experiKa-Chunk Records, ence for concerts). When 7 PM I was quite excited. hit, The Evens assembled in the back of the room, and we sat on the floor to watch. I can’t really give you a play-by-play of the show itself or the songs they performed, since I had never listened to them before and didn’t know what to expect. The songs I do remember, though, that you should really check out, are “King of Kings,” “Wanted Criminals,” and “All These Governors.” There was also this hilarious point during the first song where the band’s son, in the front row, was playing with his toy airplanes or whatever and said something about them and made his dad crack up in the middle of the song. For a two-piece band, The Evens have a rather full sound. MacKaye plays guitar, chord-heavy with that “wall of sound” feel I love. His wife, Amy Farina, is the drummer; I’m kind of a sucker for female drummers (probably because I have been a maniacally devoted fan of the White Stripes since age 14), and that in itself was pretty cool, but she’s also just a fantastic drummer. Their sound was incredibly solid and heavy, especially for a band only composed of guitar and drums. MacKaye sang most of the songs, but he and Farina traded singing roles every now and then. “ Continued On Pg. 10 �The Gadfly 07 !"#$%&'()%*+(,-./&*"01( &1-(*2$(3&*2(*0(4%$$-05 How can learning the liberal arts be liberating? Esteban Freeman, from the Graduate Institute, tries to answer that question by looking at some of the College’s favorite teachers —Plato, Aristotle, and St. Thomas Aquinas—as well as other notable non-Program authors. S Esteban Freeman GI t. Thomas Aquinas, in his commentary on Aristotle’s Meta- built his cities in speech, so that, in a way, we may free ourphysics, writes that “only those arts are called liberal or free selves from them. which are concerned with knowledge; those which are conAristotle constantly affirmed that we do not make ourselves cerned with utilitarian ends that are attained through activity, as human beings, but that we make ourselves good or bad huhowever, are called servile.” From the outset, an important man beings. As there is a proper pleasure attached to every distinction is made between the liberal arts, those that serve human activity, and “education is concerned with the whole the free man to discover knowledge per se, and the servile arts, man,” as John Henry Newman repeatedly said, it is clear that, those that serve man to make a living and which because we are free to become bad or evil, we have a purely practical end. Thus, a liberal arts There is a special must picture the path towards freedom as one education, as it is concerned with truth for its consisting of acquiring virtues and avoiding kind of self-masown sake, must acknowledge two important navices. This is why focusing on fulfilling one’s tery which cannot passions without a proper ordering of the soul tures of man: 1) that man, being a rational creabe imposed from sadly produces an illiberally educated human ture, seeks out knowledge, and 2) that man is a without, but must being who has divorced the liberal arts from personal being, which must be respected if he is to be brought into contact with truth, i.e., only grow from within. being concerned with knowledge, and negated a free man whose human dignity is recognized reason’s higher power and authority over man. will be capable, through a liberal arts education, of discovery. If the study of the liberal arts, as Josef Pieper understood it, In the pursuit of knowledge, a liberal arts education is meant is truly “necessary not only for the good of the individual who to impart the intellectual skills and habits of mind which will so devotes himself, but for the good of human society,” then aid the student in realizing that profound form of freedom what are the implications for a society whose citizens do not which occurs while on the road to grasping the totality of real- have order of principle in their souls? It is not far-fetched to ity, and not merely one’s subjective notions of reality. As free- see the ill effects an illiberal education may have in organizdom and human dignity are natural to every human being, a ing a society and the types of morals they choose to embody liberal arts education, if it is to be truly liberating, must also in their laws if their guidepost is simply fulfillment of desires. recognize in every student a realm of privacy. Modern sen- In Plato’s eighth book of the Republic, the description of the sibilities often times hawk at the notion of privacy as an old- democratic man who lacks the very order of soul and mind fashioned ideal, but it may help us to understand its need and to be called “free” is an example of what a liberally educated meaning by reflecting on the words of Richard M. Weaver: “It man is not. is a truth of the greatest importance that our original ideas and My fellow Johnnies, the liberal arts are studied for the adour intuitions of value form in certain recesses of the being vancement of truth, so that through our wrestling with the which must be preserved if these processes are to take place.” great thinkers of old, we may strengthen our intellectual skills There is a special kind of self-mastery which cannot be im- and habits of mind, and through the practice of acquiring virposed from without, but must grow from within. It is in our tue, we may truly become free to choose the lives we are meant private world, where we can reflect deeply on the liberal arts to lead. Let us draw from the well of classical liberal arts, so and develop our individual faculties, abilities, and skills. that we may be reminded of the liberating power of entering However, just as in every good home you find that central into conversation with Plato and his interlocutors. It is from meeting place, the dining room, so in the house of education our study of the liberal arts that we may find ourselves recwe must come to share a meal with our fellow man and engage ognizing reason’s higher power and authority over man and in conversation. Why did Socrates reject Crito’s offer to go illuminating our path towards self-mastery of our passions. into exile to Thessaly? For the same reason he rejected go- It is a path that takes us to our natural state, where, through ing to the civilized city of Thebes: he would have no one to our reason, we order our passions and walk upon that higher engage in dialectic. Callicles did not wish to examine his life, plane which reveals what man was intended to be. So let us for he was unvirtuous, and the barbarian king was not “free” not squander the years we have at St. John’s; let us do justice to to know what he did not know, for he lacked culture. And so, the wisest that have come before, and those that will follow, as even while living in the not-so-perfect city of Athens, Socrates we journey towards freedom through self-mastery. ! “ �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&$'(&')*+,$*-,.#$*/0*-#.($*.'1*2.+3%$4* !"#$%&'()$*&+#,$-."(/(0$&0$0"#$1(02"#33$4&33#5+ Daniela Lobo Dias T A’13 he sculptures around campus. You will be able to see the relationships in color and shape that Don't worry, they are not permanent. Hayes explores, both in the positive an negative spaces. Actually, they are a part of the newest exhibit at the Mitchell So I welcome you to take the opportunity while David Art Gallery, “David Hayes: A Sculptor of Space and Nature,” Hayes' artwork is on campus (1/11-2/17) and allow yourself which opened January 1 and runs through February 17, al- into a unusual experience from our daily Johnnie routine. ! though the outdoor sculptures will remain on campus through the end of May. Future Events at the Mitchell Gallery: At first I found it difficult to be accustomed to these ab- January 29 stract, steel strangers on my everyday paths. But taking an- Lecture. David M. Hayes, the sculptor's son, will lecture on his other look, I realized the artwork accomplished quite a feat. father's work in the “David Hayes” exhibition at 5:30 p.m. The Connecticut artist David Hayes absorbs our overwhelmingly sensuous world—full of complex sights, smells, tastes, January 30 sounds, touch—and distills and simplifies them to shapes and Art Express. Art Educator Lucinda Edinberg will give a lunchsolid colors. time gallery talk on the “David Hayes” exhibition from 12:15 It's okay to not know what these sculptures are “supposed to 12:45 p.m. to be.” In a way, that's the point: to not know. Rather, we should simply expeFebruary 5 It’s okay to not know what rience these shapes. We should let our Seminar. St. John’s tutor David these sculptures are “supminds be unchained from our daily task Townsend and artist Ebby Malmgren posed to be.” In a way, that’s of figuring out, analyzing, understandwill lead a seminar related to the exthe point: to not know. Rather, hibition at 7 p.m. Space is limited. Call ing. Instead, we should take some time to we should simply experience 410-626-2556 to register. leisurely meditate on how our senses are not overwhelmed, due to the clear cut these shapes. We should let steel and unambiguous colors. Let our our minds be unchained from February 7 minds simply experience the pleasure, our daily task of figuring out, Book Club. Join members of the Mitchor displeasure, in the shapes, the colell Gallery Book Club for a docent tour analyzing, understanding. ors, the textures. We can enjoy our train of the “David Hayes” exhibition folof thought as we seamlessly discover a lowed by a discussion of The Architecwing at that jagged corner or a face at that smooth curve. Look ture of Happiness by Alain de Botton from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. away, and look back again to discover new figures, or maybe Registration is required. Contact Kathy Dulisse at 410-626none at all. Walking around it, the each different perspectives 2530. creates a new visual experience. Notice how the sculptures change in the context of day or night, in sunlight or rain. We February 10 don't need to wrestle the art to the ground until it gives up and Sunday Afternoon Tour. Art Educator Lucinda Edinberg will tells us its “point.” lead a tour of the “David Hayes” exhibition at 3 p.m. But if you prefer less abstract work, come by the Mitchell Gallery for my favorite piece by Hayes: Woman with Sheep. This five and a half feet tall statue represents a woman walking under the weight of a sheep draped on her neck and shoul! Erik G. Neave ders. Despite being made from forged steel with straight and simple lines, the woman looks like flesh and blood. The subtle Days in liquid waves curves and shadows, the forwarding-leaning posture, and a washed up on shore gentle crease on her dress showing a leg forward, make this spread like the snowflakes unadorned statue feel alive with a full and heavy momentum forward. The delicate face and petite body has the appealing and the cracking seashells quality of an intense yet fragile endurance and power. Put simand the grains of sand; ply, it is understated and stunning. my home is here In the Mitchell Gallery you will also find Hayes' thought among the foaming surf process for his steel structures: beginning by painting in bubbling up and settling gouache the shapes and combinations that inspire him, Hayes back to the center of the earth. then translate these drafts into small steel maquettes. These are the rough drafts to larger pieces, such as the four outside. “ !"#$%&'%(&)*&+%,"-.$ �The Gadfly 09 !"#$%&'()"*+,+-./+011$%,(2+#%+3$%*$,44,#)(+5'6)( Charles Zug T A’15 he most facile and vulgar manner of approaching music is to treat it as something that can be “solved” or “explained away.” Most people hear music as a display of sublimated nonsense, as an entertaining spectacle which possesses the mysterious ability of being able to evoke an “emotional response” from its listeners (“emotional” as something purportedly incomprehensible, unpredictable, and illogical). When heard like this, music is nothing more than a magic show or a riddle in tones: it has value solely because it entertains, and it ceases to entertain (and thereby loses value) when it is “solved” or “explained” through interpretation. For this reason, most people cringe at the idea of hermeneutically examining the structures of a musical composition. To those sorts of people, music most exoterically manifests itself; the listener who approaches music as something that can be “solved” is just as hopeless as the reader who approaches poetry as something that contains a “basic message” that is hidden in stylized speech. It goes without saying that this approach is simply not in step with the composer’s or poet’s original intentions. And yet it is on account of this approach that so called “programmatic” music lends itself quite readily to vulgar taste; because it can be viewed as an accompaniment to a program, one can (supposedly) follow the music’s development as one might follow a story. Approached in this way, programmatic music yields its “basic message” to listeners without having to be interpreted as music. It can be “understood” without losing its ability to entertain. The real idiocy of such an approach to programmatic music is this: the music is treated as a conduit between two contrived spheres—the sphere of “comprehendible things” (the program) and the sphere of “emotional entertainment” (the music itself ). The listener imagines himself as the beholder of an allegory, inasmuch as the music exists in a symbolic relationship with a comprehendible story. He justifies his approach in this fashion: “I could never begin to interpret the music itself, and why would I want to? I am fully capable of comprehending the basic meaning of the story, and now that story exists here before me, with music in its service. I grasp its meaning, and am stirred and entertained nonetheless!” However, when programmatic music is approached in the correct manner, these two contrived spheres disappear, because the music is no longer in the service of a listener who desires to be entertained through mystification. The music itself is no longer a mysterious means toward “emotional entertainment”; rather, it is a form of utterance which, through its form and development, raises imminently grave and unanswerable questions. And it happens that these questions, raised by music, are of the same nature as those raised by poetry and philosophy: the questions that pertain to man’s Being as a Being, to his Dasein. A superb illustration of everything hitherto discussed is the adequately named “tone-poem” or Tondichtung of Strauss. This truly singular part of Strauss’s oeuvre is often regarded as “programmatic” (and for that matter, I have often heard of Strauss referred to as a “programmatic” composer), to the chagrin of Strauss’s true adherents. The fact is that the accompanying stories or “programs” of these compositions do abso- lutely nothing to aid in their interpretation. Death and Transfiguration for large orchestra is an example of what I am referring to. Supposedly, the program of this work describes the dying minutes of a hero’s life. The composition begins with a low rumble on the timpani, and gradually becomes an entire musical development, with multiple episodes and a recapitulation. The programmatic account of this composition begins with the timpani rumble; supposedly, this is the heartbeat of the dying man, and each successive development is one of his memories. Needless to say, this account is worthless. A correct interpretation of the work is an examination of the development of motifs. For example, this descending motif (which is first presented by the flute in the exposition) can be viewed as an essential germ for the development of the entire work: Here, much later, it is developed on the first and second violins, And here, in the coda, it is inverted and played tutti: Ultimately, these developments give rise to hermeneutical questions, such as: “How are these motifs being manifested toward me, as I hear them in their separate instances? What developments have they undergone and brought about? What is the nature of the impetus that is driving this development, such that a motif can actually motivate an entire development? Why am I perceiving this as a motivation?” As I have stated before, this approach of motivic interpretation is akin to the approach we take with poetry: for example, Achilles’ anger, Aeneas as a man-at-arms, Socrates’s downward movement at the beginning of the Republic. Ultimately, a listener’s ability to consider the implications of a motif within the context of the development of an entire composition speaks to that listener’s ability to behold what a composer is really up to, i.e., to contemplate one’s own contemplation by asking questions like: “How and why is it that I can hear this work and behold these developments as I do?” More importantly, it means banishing the idea that music can ever be “solved,” “explained,” or reduced to a “basic message.” ! �The Gadfly 10 Continued From Pg. 06 Most of the reason I love going to shows is that connection you feel with the band. It’s one thing to listen to music and love it; it’s another to convene with a bunch of people you don’t know who love it just as much as you do as the band stands on stage and gives the music you love to you more directly. Then again, it’s slightly different when you don’t know the band at all, as was the case with me at this Evens show, but not really; I might not have been able to sing along with songs I already loved, but I’ve found new territory to explore. In this sort of case, I didn’t go to the show because I loved a specific band, but because I love music itself. And in that love, there’s always something new to discover. It’s exciting, to dive into the unknown and find something new that adds to that love. ! !"#$#%&' ! Anonymous “Love one another as I have loved you.” It does not matter from where or to who simply that you do you love, and be loved. That’s all there is. Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death John Ropoulos T A’13 he recent shooting sprees at a Century movie theater in Aurora and at Sandy Hook Elementary have frightened many Americans. The issue, as it should, has become politicized, and we have all been witness to the various rhetoric on gun control for some time now, from “we do not need assault rifles for hunting,” to “high capacity magazines are for killing a large number of people,” etc. Leaving over-zealous bear hunters and zombie apocalypse fanatics out of this, let us ask the question: What would our founding fathers say about the right to bear arms? Some of us may remember our lessons from the American History class we took in high school, or more likely, will remember the Simpsons episode on the subject: include their own government. Now, we can all agree America has a problem. With a population of about 315,000,000, the U.S.A had about 8,7751 gun murders in 2010, a shocking figure. On the other hand, gun deaths do not come close to other causes of death, such as heart disease (597,6892), cancer (574,743), and diabetes (69,071). Still, shooting sprees at elementary schools and movie theaters really hit home, and the frightened American public cries out for safety. Some Americans head to their gun stores; others demand legislation to limit the availability of weapons, because they believe access to guns is the problem. Regarding the latter, the Lisa: The second amendment is just a words of Benjamin Franklin come to remnant from revolutionary periods; mind: “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary it has no real meaning today. Homer: You couldn’t be more wrong, safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Gun activists and anti-gun activists Lisa. If I didn’t have this gun, the King can all agree that a person with a crimiof England could just come in here and start pushing you around. Do you nal history or mental problems should not be able to own a gun. They can also want that, well, do ya? agree that guns should be registered Our American forefathers decided with the various levels of government to go to war because hefty taxes (min- in order to prevent crimes. The propoiscule by today’s standards) were im- sition that teachers be armed frightens posed without proper representation some parents; the by that pushy King of idea that the person England. After the Taking away Americans’ sitting next to you in colonists defeated the a movie theater has guns means taking British and ratified a a concealed weapon away Americans’ libernew Constitution, a ty. George Mason said, frightens many. But Bill of Rights was deis a little fear better “To disarm the people is than the loss of libmanded. The second the most effectual way erty? from the top of the list of those rights was the to enslave them.” I will Taking away Amerright to be armed, not icans’ guns means take a stand and echo only to hunt, but also taking away Amerithe words of Thomas to protect the inalienJefferson: “I prefer dan- cans’ liberty. George able right to defend Mason said, “To disgerous freedom over oneself against all arm the people is the peaceful slavery.” forms of oppression. most effectual way Please do not take my to enslave them.” I word for it. George Washington said: will take a stand and echo the words of Thomas Jefferson: “I prefer dangerous A free people ought not only to be freedom over peaceful slavery.” Either armed and disciplined, but they we admit to our proud forefathers that should have sufficient arms and am- their progeny would rather live with munition to maintain a status of in- an ill sense of security, or we “gird our dependence from any who might at- loins” and actualize the tenacity that is tempt to abuse them, which would required to be a true American. ! “ �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle U 11 A’14 ntil the improbable rise of Elizabeth Warren, he was pline, professors are expected to write their own politically America’s most famous fake Native American—and, like correct hokum—but he could not manage even that standard. Massachusetts’ newest senator, a “diversity hire” at the UniYet it should have come as little surprise. Besides the neverversity of Colorado at Boulder. proved claims of Creek and Cherokee ancestry, in the résumé There he taught “ethnic studies” for nearly two decades, submitted to the University of Colorado in 1980 Churchill from 1990 to 2007, turning his podium into a bully pulpit for claimed that, while in Vietnam, he “wrote and edited the batan assortment of vogue leftwing causes. talion newsletter and wrote news releases.” Seven years later, But it was when he referred to the “technocratic corps at he told the Denver Post that he had attended paratrooper the very heart of America’s global financial empire”—that is, school, been part of an elite Long-Range Reconnaissance Pathe several thousand workers in the World Trade Center—as trol in Vietnam, and run “point” in a combat unit. U.S. Army “little Eichmanns” who deserved death on September 11 (for records support none of these claims. Churchill was trained their participation in “power lunches and stock transactions, as a film projectionist and light truck driver. each of which translated…into the starved and rotting of flesh But his radicalism is no yarn. In the same 1987 interview, of infants” abroad) that he called down upon himself the op- Churchill claimed he hung around the offices of Chicago’s probrium of an entire nation and demonstrated—if any doubt Students for a Democratic Society, befriended Black Panremained—that some of the stupidest people around have ad- thers, and taught members of the Weather Underground how vanced degrees. to make bombs. True or not, he was a star guest at the 2009 In a more just world, Ward Churchill would have been trial of Herman Bell and Anthony Bottom, two members of tossed from the academy for sheer silliness. In 21st-century the Black Liberation Army accused of killing San Francisco America, it took a faculty committee, the university’s Board Police Sergeant John Young in 1971 and suspected of involveof Regents, and eventually the Colorado ment in several other terror attacks on Supreme Court. In September 2012, the police in the 1970s. Churchill is only one exstate’s highest court finally decided that And yet, despite hugs from Lynne ample of the faux-intellec- Stewart (convicted of aiding terrorism) the Regents were within their rights to fire the professor unanimously found guilty by and face-time in the documentary When tualism that has come to a committee of colleagues of “multiple acts define the university domi- They Came for Ward Churchill—as if CU of plagiarism, fabrication, and falsificaBoulder’s then-president Hank Brown nated by niche “studies”... tion.” And to think: the faculty committee came in brown shirt and jackboots— You name it, there’s an ag- Churchill’s legal road is likely at an end, only wanted him suspended. In December, Churchill appealed his and he is quickly fading from memory. grieved Ph.D. teaching it. case to the Supreme Court. The essay in which his inflammatory Call him Lie-a-watha. With more than a dozen books and 9/11 remarks appeared, “‘Some People Push Back’: On the several articles to his name, not to mention a cushy tenured Justice of Roosting Chickens,” is now available at sites like job secured after just one year as an associate professor (he Kersplebedeb.com, which advertises itself as “a one-person somehow skipped the usual six-year probationary period), project devoted to producing and distributing radical books Ward Churchill managed to spend years on the dole of a ma- and pamphlets and agit prop [sic] materials”; it hosts links to jor public university, where, drawing on a background in radi- “anti-police” and “queer revolt” material. Churchill is rapidly cal politics and a knack for tall tales (mainly about himself ), becoming a footnote in monographs of September 11 analysis. he became a leading “Native American” voice in academia. But, unfortunately, Churchill is only one example of the When, the day after his termination, Churchill filed suit in faux-intellectualism that has come to define the university state court against his former employer, he began what must dominated by niche “studies”: ethnic studies, black studbe, to-date, the century’s most specious claim of academic ies, LGBTQ studies. You name it, there’s an aggrieved Ph.D. “repression.” But with titles like Marxist and Native Ameri- teaching it—or at least pointing out the systematic persecucan to his name, he rallied a colorful—if predictable—group tion perpetrated by white/male/heterosexual/colonial/capiof supporters: Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn, two other talistic norms. professors whose fame outstrips their accomplishments, Still, if it is no longer possible to boot a professor who declared their support for Churchill, as did the ACLU, unre- spends class time justifying the Oklahoma City bombing and pentant Weather Underground terrorist-cum-academic Bill whose published work likens the American treatment of Ayers, and convicted cop-killer and former Black Panther Native Americans to the crimes of the Khmer Rouge, Ward Mumia Abu-Jamal (who issued not one but two statements of Churchill’s moment in the national limelight was a muchsupport). Their testimonials are available at the website of the needed reminder that, in too many places, the professors are “Ward Churchill Solidarity Network.” off the reservation. ! But if Churchill managed to turn his case into a cri de coeur for professors’ First Amendment rights, hoisting “academic freedom” like an oriflamme, it was only a matter of time until This article originally appeared at The College Fix. It is he was forced into retreat. Even in Churchill’s pseudo-disci- available at http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/12367. “ �The Gadfly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ook at Senior Essay Writing Michael Fogleman O A’13 n Thursday, January 17th, the SCI convened to discuss the senior essay. The various features of the senior essay—picking an advisor, a month-long writing period, and the public nature of both the essay and the oral—make it distinct from any other annual essay. But what about the essay itself? Does the length requirement of twenty to forty pages make its structure distinct? If so, are seniors prepared to write and think through such a large and deep paper? The participants quickly agreed that the scope and tenor of topics was generally distinct from the other annual essays. Students aim for a deep consideration of a question or topic that they are particularly interested in, one that often draws from multiple texts. This essay is often the culmination of their work at St. John’s, or a stepping stone to post-graduation interests. Thus, seniors felt that they could not merely add length to the paper to make an acceptable senior essay. On the other hand, the assignment is similar to previous annual essays, and if students treat the process too differently, they might harm their projects. Some felt that the cultural distinction given to the senior essay has made junior essays better than senior essays. Still, no one was in favor of fundamentally altering the time-honored tradition of senior essays. Students appreciated the chance to consider a single text, topic, or question of their choosing for an extended period of time, and felt that this was the most ambitious intellectual project at the college. Students felt that this opportunity presented a unique challenge in the Program. Students are expected to spend their time wisely—although according to one tutor, it was not clear Still, no one was in favor of fundathat this is the case, and the time mentally altering the time-honored might be better spent by instituttradition of senior essays. Students ing seminars at the beginning of appreciated the chance to consider the month. All agreed that students must a single text, topic, or question of also maturely pick a book to write their choosing for an extended peabout. Certain off-Program choicriod of time, and felt that this was es in recent years have generthe most ambitious intellectual ated much discussion about what project at the college. Students felt books are appropriate to write that this opportunity presented a about. Given that the senior essay unique challenge in the Program. is not merely for the individual, but also for the community, the participants in the conversation agreed that large, obscure books, or books that are potentially less “Great” than the official Program books are not ideal for senior essay topics. According to a tutor at the meeting, the Instruction Committee’s conventional policy is that if students truly want to write about a book, and that they can find an advisor, then their choice should generally be permitted. In Santa Fe, the Dean reviews all essays and presents potentially objectionable topic choices to the Instruction Committee. One topic of conversation was a potential change, or even decline, over time in the senior essay’s quality and focus. Students cited how distinct early prize essays seem; there, topics seem much broader, more creative, and even more ambitious. While no one wanted to go back to a time where one could hand in a dialogue, some were concerned that there might be presently be a detrimental conformity with respect to the structure of papers and questions. It was unclear whether this phenomenon exists, what its cause is, and how the polity can re-invigorate a sense of craftsmanship. Overall, all endorsed the Polity’s high standards for the senior essay. ! “ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 15 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-01-29 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 15 of The Gadfly. Published on January 29, 2013. (Mislabeled as January 29, 2012). Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.15 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/f747fce202017243d7999ae5965913a3.pdf 7043ccc994e08a2d1ef4520ecc6778bf PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%&'(#)%*+),-&.%/&01(+)2&31%%)22&4&56 &!$&7*$+8&1&91":&;1<&4&5= 72">(+&.)%+#&7,1%8&?+(()%&;%$@+2)&4&5A !B)&."<+C&$@&D%+E&F)1*)&4&GH !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$;,<#$983$809=$.$2&+#$>>>52$.$5!!?,$9/ I"J>+<<+$(&8)182+()-&GG-=KL>M&?)8/M&9)J/&H5 photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Articles for the next issue should be submitted by Wednesday, February 20, at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Jacob Kilgore Raymond Lau Catherine Moon Cara Sabolcik Painter Bob !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- W e'd like to extend our congratulations to this year's senior class on the completion of their essays. In celebration of your achievement and in honor of your upcoming oral examinations, the Gadfly will be profiling seniors throughout the rest of the semester, asking a few brief questions about their essays. Check out page 5 in this issue for our first spotlight, as well as some wise words from staffer Jonathan Barone on a particularly key bit of senior oral etiquette. Please also note that tutor Daniel Harrell, who is profiled in this issue, will be delivering the weekly lecture, entitled “Does Music Move?”, this coming Friday. ! I !"#$%&"$'"()*+,-".$,-/'0 n the rather unlikely event that you neither closely read Ms. Waters’ emails about next year’s campus neither housing. nor attended last Tuesday’s CSL meeting, here is an overview of the campus housing situation. For the 2013-2014 school year, everyone (with few exceptions) who currently resides on campus will be required to stay on campus. What has changed from last year is this: now any senior who desires to live off campus will not be automatically allowed to do so. As it stands now, only a handful of students with compelling reasons will be given permission to live off campus. Examples of compelling reasons are extreme financial burden and/or health problems. The more specific one is about his or her circumstances, the more likely it is that he or she will be given permission to live off campus. The reason why so few students will be granted permission to live off campus next year is that the current freshmen class is fairly small (107 students on campus), and the incoming freshmen class looks as if it too is going to be quite small. However, if the number of incoming freshmen increases, then so too will the number of students allowed to live off campus. Therefore, if you do not have a compelling reason to move off campus, or your request was denied, there will be an off-campus housing lottery held on Wednesday, February 27th, from 2:15 to 3:45. I was not given an exact percentage of how full the dorms need to be in order to satisfy the school’s budget, but I was given the impression that the answer was just about every room. So, since most of the people reading this article will be living on campus next year, know that there are still pods as well as the Loft available. For those who do not know, the Loft is on Paca 4th and is meant for five people. I find the layout slightly difficult to describe, but essentially (with the proper situating of curtains) there is enough room for two singles, a triple, and a common room with furniture included. Applications for pods and the Loft are due Wednesday, February 13 by 4:30 pm. If you are not applying for a special kind of housing, then you will choose your lottery number for room selection on Wednesday, February 20th from 2:15 to 3:30. Actual room selection will not occur until April 8th, 9th, and 10th. On a final note, we all pay so much money to eat, live, and got to school here for what is the majority of the year, so if you have questions, concerns, or suggestions, please say something to me, your R.A., or Ms. Waters. For example, if something is broken or living in your dorm room that ought not to be, let someone know in addition to a work order, because things can fall through the cracks, and we want everyone to have the best living experience on campus as is possible. Catherine Moon, Polity Attorney << The student newspaper of St. John’s College !"#$%$&'()*+,-+'."**,$- W e would like to congratulate the winners of the Greenfield Library book collecting contest: Jezebel St. John, A’15 (first prize), Alexandria Hinds, Assistant Director of Admissions-On Campus, A’10 (second prize), and Day Harper, A’15 (honorable mention). Contestants were judged on the creativity and thoughtfulness in developing their collection, cohesion of the collection, and the significance of the collection to the owner. The Library is exhibiting books from each of the collections in the Lillian Vanous Nutt room through March 31st. The winners’ essays are also available to read. While checking out the book collections, students should “Kiss and Tell.” Starting Tuesday, February 12th, students can pick up a paper heart at the Library’s circulation desk and “tell” others why you love the Library. All participants will receive a Hershey’s Kiss and the paper hearts will be posted on the Library’s basement wall. Come out and tell us what you love about the Library! Cara Sabolcik, Public Services Librarian �The Gadfly 03 !" !"#$%&!$' !"#$%&%#'#()* Mr. Daniel Harrell How did you come to be a tutor at St. John’s? I was appointed in 1998. For a couple of years prior, I was teaching part-time at a college in Atlanta, Oglethorpe, while finishing my dissertation in philosophy at Emory. But I was growing disillusioned with the possibility of philosophy in an academic setting, as well as with my own prospects at making any kind of serious life out of trying to succeed in such a setting. I wasn’t interested in publishing, found lecturing to be mostly a pain and somewhat dishonest, and anyway felt as if I was gaining a doctorate without having become particularly well educated. I had known about St. John’s both from a professor of mine in graduate school who had since become a tutor at the College (Mr. Page), and from a fellow graduate student and friend who had graduated from the college (and has since become a tutor, and now the dean, in Santa Fe). And what I understood of the place from them made it seem almost too good to be true—the sort of place I wish I had attended. Still, I hadn’t given any real thought to becoming a tutor here, mostly in thinking I wasn’t old enough or distinguished enough to put myself forward like that, and partly in supposing I would have a hard time suffering the disappointment if I tried to become a tutor and failed. But then the professor who hired me at Oglethorpe mentioned hearing that St. John’s was looking for prospective tutors for the coming school year (1998–1999), and strongly encouraged me to send a letter of interest to the dean at the time (Mr. Flaumenhaft). Which I promptly did, and this led to my being interviewed, which led to my being appointed (to my surprise, since, besides my own qualms about my age and experience, I thought I had been too nervous during the interview as well as too quick to make sweeping claims about such things as the nature of philosophy and the possibility of moral knowledge, coming off more opinionated than thoughtful). What classes are you teaching this year? I happen to be on a sabbatical this year, so I’m not teaching. What was the biggest adventure you’ve ever had? Sigh. I’m not really one for having adventures. I never travel, for example, except out of necessity; and I tend to think— though maybe this rationalizes something in me that should be criticized and corrected for—that talk of adventures and adventure-seeking usually confuses the having of experiences with the gaining of experience. From that point of view, one’s life isn’t made of adventures, big or small, which makes the question ill-formulated (hence my sigh). Still, I think “adventure” could mean something else, that I’d consider a necessary part of any life worth living: the willingness to put oneself at risk of failure in the attempt to succeed or (maybe a better word) to achieve. In this sense, a sense that underlines the “venture” part of “adventure,” adventures could include things like going up to the blackboard to do a proof in a mathematics tutorial when you’re unsure of how it will go, or thinking out loud in front of others at the risk of being unclear or uncertain—just to pick on two examples that show how the College asks its students to learn, in this sense, by adventure. And by that measure, I suppose my “biggest” adventure would be the writing and delivering of my first Friday Night lecture (even though I failed on that occasion, I think, writing something that really needed to be read rather than heard to be understood, and not addressing the questions in the question period as thoughtfully as I was hoping to). What is the single most important piece of advice you would like to give to freshmen (or upperclassmen)? Just based on my experience with what can dissatisfy students at the College, to the point of getting in the way of their learning pretty quickly and early, I would give this advice (not very pithily): go into a classroom as if what happens in it were the most important part of your education at the College, but leave the classroom as if it were the least important part. Or to put this another way: treat the classroom as if its centrality to your education justifies your engagement with it, but not your dissatisfaction with it. I say this because it seems to me that students can get stuck when a class isn’t meeting their expectations, and do just the opposite of my advice, taking the importance of the class to their education, as they see it, to justify dissatisfaction and criticism rather than redoubled engagement and work. (I should add that I myself can be guilty of this, and could therefore use the advice I just gave.) Behind my advice too, I think, is my sense that classes at St. John’s are genuine adventures in the way I described in my answer to the question about adventures above. And they are likely to fail in one way or another most days, precisely because of the kind of success or achievement being aimed for, which is rare rather than common. What is your favorite seminar book and why? I’m taking “favorite” not to mean “best,” but something closer to the right mix of profit and pleasure. For about ten years, my favorite book of seminar in this sense was probably Middlemarch. I know that there are people (including some tutors) who find the book unconvincing, even to the point of wanting to get it off the Program list (and they don’t read it in Santa Fe), and that they would say there is far more intellect than perception at work in Eliot’s narrative, by comparison with what you would find in any novel, say, of Austen’s. But for me the book has always seemed perfectly balanced between intellect Continued On Pg. 04 �The Gadfly 04 Continued From Pg. 03 and perception, and wholly compelling. That said, I’ve also had a suspicion that novels in general are defective expressions of the selfhood, or at least the interiority of being human, that is more fully and even properly realized in musical works. And after teaching the music tutorial in Santa Fe for a year— this was back in 2009—my favorite “book” of seminar became Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde. I used to hate the opera, and disliked operas more generally; but having to study that opera in Santa Fe caused me to listen to it repeatedly over the course of two months; and at a certain point, the opera suddenly started to make sense, all of it, right up to the cadence at the end that the entire work was pointing to and preparing for. It was the most convincing experience I’ve ever had of conclusiveness, and along with this the most convincing sense I’ve ever had of dramatic form, and it immediately justified for me everything Wagner claimed for his notion of a complete work of art. a reader of that vision inwardly rather than outwardly; which is to say, I doubt its ability to carry a reader into that vision, and make it something that can be truly inhabited and shared rather than simply studied and admired. What is your favorite non-Program book and why? For about the last four years my favorite non-Program “book” has been The Mastersingers of Nuremburg, another opera of Wagner’s, that he wrote right after Tristan. I think it’s even better than Tristan (and for certain famous admirers of it, like Jan Paderewski and H. L. Mencken, the greatest work of art ever made). And in many ways I think it a better choice for senior seminar (and a good alternative to The Magic Flute for the music tutorial). For one thing, the subject of the opera is, explicitly, music, and its relation to nature on the one hand and art on the other, as well as its role in strengthening yet also subverting the bonds holding together social and poWhat is your least favorite seminar book and why? litical communities. For another thing, the opera is self-conThis question is hard for me to answer, because last year, after sciously diatonic and organized around set pieces like arias an especially difficult time in sophomore seminar with both and chorales, which makes it, I think, more digestible than the Calvin readings and the Summa readings after the first Tristan. But since this favorite non-Program book comes from night on that work, I decided that my least favorite books of a comparatively recent change of heart about Wagner, I’ll also seminar are really the result of displeasure with having to read mention a favorite non-Program book of longer-standing for them excerpted rather than whole. And it goes beyond a mat- me: The Realms of Being by George Santayana, which I suster of preference for me: I’ve come to the pect (not having read every such book conclusion that excerpts are a betrayal of to know rather than merely suspect) is I’ve come to the conclusion the College’s commitment to liberal eduthe wisest book of philosophy written in that excerpts are a betrayal cation, because they effectively decide the 20th century, and almost certainly for the student in advance what is imof the College’s commitment the most beautifully written such book portant about a book, rather than letting to liberal education, because in English, even though it is nowadays them make this decision for themselves. rarely read or discussed. they effectively decide for Indeed, the excerpts cast a doubtful light the student in advance what on the choice of the book itself, since it What is your biggest pet peeve (that usually reflects some in-advance notion students do) in class? is important about a book, of why the book is so important that we My biggest pet peeve, I think, isn’t somerather than letting them make thing that I see students do in class, but are better off reading it excerpted rather this decision for themselves. than reading something shorter whole. rather something they say, or more exSo we read Calvin excerpted, say, since actly, a kind of thing they say, where they we need some “representative” of Protestant thought in the are careless with the names for things at the College. To give Program, and Calvin is better than Luther for reasons x, y, z, the two examples of this I encounter most: students will reguetc. But to me this is a wrong-headed way of thinking about larly refer to their language tutorials as a “Greek” or “French” the role of books in the Program, what justifies their place on tutorial, or even just “Greek class” or “French class,” or even the seminar list, and treats that list as if it were like a profes- even just “Greek” or “French”; and they will (even even) even sor’s syllabus in a survey course. In any case, if I then had to talk of the language tutorials that way in their don rags, where choose a least favorite seminar book that we read the whole one might think the proper names would prevail, and often of, I’m afraid I would have to pick the Divine Comedy. When without correction from the language tutor. The second exI reread it last year for sophomore seminar, I was hoping to ample involves various alternatives for “sophomore enabling” be more compelled by the work than I’ve been in the past, such as “enablement” or—even worse—“disenablement.” My since some things had happened to me in the interim to make irritation at this has reasons behind it—there’s a point to the the fate of Dante the Pilgrim more real to me. And I fooled true names that makes the alternatives false—but it is also just myself for a time into thinking that yes, I was finally getting irritation, and a stronger reaction to the misuse than I’ve seen what what made this work so great. But by the time I finished in most other tutors. Hence my sense that it’s a pet peeve. Paradiso I had to admit otherwise to myself, and that I still had the same issues with the work I’ve always had. I find the book What is your favorite St. John’s tradition and why? thoroughly and frustratingly undramatic, more like sculpture Hands down, the dinner for seniors that happens the Friday than like music. And it seems to me the work doesn’t really before their Commencement on Sunday. It’s true that I find speak for itself in the end, as all the greatest books should, re- the gathering in the Great Hall beforehand awkward and the quiring rather than merely inviting all the commentary it has finding of a table to sit at afterwards even more awkward; but left in its wake on what it means down to the last detail. So once every one is seated I think the occasion is just lovely (a while I don’t doubt its greatness in expressing a kind of thor- word I rarely use for anything), and organized in such a way oughgoing vision of the whole of things, and in terms of their Continued On Pg. 09 ultimate value no less, I do doubt its greatness in convincing “ �The Gadfly 05 To Avoid a Faux Pas: Senior Oral Etiquette Jonathan Barone A A’13 s you may or may not know, we’re entering a new phase of the year. Seniors have handed in their papers, the culmination of a month (give or take) of hard work. I’m sure I speak for all of them when I say ringing the bell and walking out of McDowell was an incredible experience. Thanks to all of you who made that night special. But I digress. Starting next week and running through about the end of the year, the seniors will be having public oral examinations on their essays in the King William Room. They run exactly an hour long, and all are welcome to attend. There are more aspects to it and more stipulations regarding what you should and should not do, but you’ll most likely be getting an email about that. And I’m sure you’ll be able to follow all the rules and regulations—but I’m not here to talk about that. I’m here to talk about a faux pas you won’t expect, a faux pas that no one ever tells you about. I’m here to warn you against falling asleep in a senior’s oral. “That’s it? Not falling asleep? I think I can handle that,” you’re probably thinking. Let me tell you, I’ve attended my fair share of senior orals over the years, and I can say with confidence: You’re wrong. You’ll likely be going into these orals on a typical college student’s night’s sleep, and you won’t be prepared for the thermostat cranked to ungodly sleep-inducing temperatures. (I’m super serious. They really crank it. And it makes the room mad warm.) You won’t be prepared for the incredibly comfortable chairs. You’ll suddenly find yourself nodding off as you listen to a conversation in which you cannot participate, and when it happens, there’s not much you can do about it. You can’t get up and start doing calisthenics, that’s for sure. So here’s some advice to reduce your chance of public shame. First of all: Plan your week ahead of time. The list of orals for the upcoming week comes out weekly, so you have ample to time to prepare and plan your schedule if there’s an oral you really want to attend. Second, and most importantly: After you plan your week, make sure you get a good (or at least a decent) night’s sleep before the day of the oral. It really makes a difference. Third: This is a personal preference, but I prefer to sit in the wooden chairs, as opposed to the cushioned ones. If you can stay awake better in the cushioned ones, the more power to you, but I know I can’t. Besides, the wooden ones are not Johnnie chairs (i.e., they’re fairly comfortable). I can just stay more engaged that way. Fourth: Sit beside someone and tell them to nudge (or smack) you if you start falling asleep. It’s a tried and true method, and being held accountable always increases your desire to succeed. Fifth: Posture. Make sure you’re sitting up straight. Don’t rest your head against the back of the seat. And for God’s sake, don’t let your head drift downward. That is the path straight to Hell, my friends. Sixth: Make sure all the lights are on in the room before the oral. Often tutors will turn on the lights if they’re off before they enter, but they don’t always do this. Better be safe than sorry: turn on the lights before the tutors even get there. Trust me, it makes a world of difference. Last: This is totally optional, but if you can, read the essay in the library before you go to the oral. It’s a big investment: it takes a lot more time, but you’ll understand and follow the conversation much better. The précis before the oral helps a bit, but you’ll follow the conversation much better if you read the actual arguments made in the paper. If you want to get the most out of the senior oral, this is the way to go. That about sums it up. I highly encourage you to check out some senior orals. By and large, they’re hit and miss, but it’s very rewarding to see a good conversation between people who know what they’re talking about. Have fun, and stay awake (especially you, seniors)! ! !"#$%&'())*+'!,%-.$/0-1 Michael Fogleman Title/topic? “Knowing Phaedrus, Remembering Ourselves” Why this work/topic? I chose to write on Plato because he is Plato. In the Phaedrus, Socrates describes a philosophical rhetoric that can adjust its speech to the soul of the audience; if Plato’s writing does this, then it is the Phaedrus that speaks most directly to my soul. I wrote about Phaedrus and self-knowledge because it would allow me to talk about Phaedrus as a character and self-knowledge as an aspect of philosophy. Advisor? Mr. Dink Writing Period strategy? I kept a regular schedule: waking up early, meditating, eating, going to bed. During the day, I would read, think, and write. And I went to writing assistance! Advice? Start thinking about picking an author, book, and/or question sooner than later. Re-read the book frequently. Go to writing assistance early and often, not just for your Senior Essay but for other papers. Think of thought as inner speech, and have good conversations not just with others but with yourself. ��!"#$%&'"!!()' *(&+)',-./0' “And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&'()*&+'!,-*.'/&%%)*0 !"#$"#%&'()*&%#+',-.// Staff writer Robert Malka profiles alumna Margaret Winter, the Associate Director of the National Prison Project of the American Civil Liberties Union, an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center, and winner of a 2012 Alumni Award of Merit. Robert Malka W A’15 hat Margaret Winter (SF’66) lacked in career ideas care. “You can’t see what I’ve seen and talk with hundreds of after graduation, she made up for in grand ambitions: prisoners about their lives without concluding that we’re all “St. John’s taught me to think big and to want to do things on part of the same human family,” she said. “You meet with the a heroic scale,” she said. Just out of the Johnnie bubble, she full range of humanity in prison. Just like in the free world, landed in a tumultuous world where the powerless many were you encounter nobility and generosity as well as cruelty and demanding from the powerful few. One day, a stay-at-home selfishness.” mother of an infant, she met a young black woman with two She has had too many major victories to list them here. To young children who attended Howard Law School, who told name a few: A couple of months ago, she won a class action her, “If I can go to law school, so can you.” Winter entered law against the state of Alabama for segregating all prisoners with school a year later. Fast forward: In 1996 she argued before the HIV just because they had the disease. In 2011, she won a conSupreme Court and won. Unanimously. sent decree banning solitary confinement for all Mississippi See? Things might not be so bad after graduation. Like her, youth convicted as adults. In 2008, she won a case against the you might even be the future winner of the Alumni Award of self-styled “toughest Sheriff in America,” over conditions in Merit. one of the biggest jail systems in the nation. In 2006, she won To be sure, the first few years in the real world were chaotic a decree that reduced the population of Mississippi’s superones: “I didn’t come out of St. John’s prepared for law school max prison by eighty percent. In 2004, she won an appellate in any obvious way,” she said: she admits her law school career decision on behalf of a gay Texas prisoner who sued prison was mediocre (she didn’t write for the Law Journal, among officials for not protecting him from gang-run sexual slavery. many other missed opportunities). But she realized later the In 2002, she won a class action challenging grossly inhumane power of the St. John’s experience. “How can you not think conditions on Mississippi’s Death Row. big,” she said, “when you’ve spent four years discussing HomBut the Supreme Court case is especially memorable for her. er, the Bible, Shakespeare, Cervantes, and Dostoevski with Some backstory: Prison is a business everywhere. Oklahoma your classmates?” came up with the idea that, in order to keep She developed the legal skills she needbeds full, they would let a model prisoner ‘How can you not think out when the prison was overcrowded, and ed in the heat of battle. “I took on very big big,’ [Winter] said, ‘when then haul him back in once a bed opened up cases early on. I don’t think I ever took a case that didn’t have a big theme,” she said. you’ve spent four years again. If Oklahoma succeeded, other states It was the action that guided her: wherever would follow. discussing Homer, the that was for her, she was in the fray. Oklahoma started with one particularly Bible, Shakespeare, CerAnd big action she got. Not many years well-behaved prisoner, who was 20 years vantes, and Dostoevski into a life sentence for murder. They freed after law school, she was suing the FBI— with your classmates?’ him into the community under supervision; successfully—for its counter-intelligence programs against Vietnam-era antiwar ache got a job and an apartment and soaked tivists. For the past eighteen years, she has focused on pris- in his freedom. Five months later, they suddenly announced oners’ rights, and rarely has there been a better time to do so. that he must report back to prison the next morning—not for For at least the last fifteen years, the U.S. has been on an incar- breaking any rule, but because there was an empty bed. He ceration binge, fueled by prison industry lobbyists. Today the went back to prison, but took the state to court. When the United States is the greatest incarcerator on the planet, with tenth circuit sided with the prisoner, the state appealed to the 2.3 million Americans behind bars. “One in every one hundred Supreme Court. Ms. Winter was appointed as his attorney. Americans is behind bars,” Winter explained. “The majority “It was terrifying to appear before that Court,” she said. “The of prisoners are there on drug-related crimes, and very many justices argue among themselves through you, shooting queshave untreated mental illness. Overwhelmingly, they’re poor. tions at you at machine-gun speed. But it’s an incomparable The prison industry consumes vast resources that should go experience, one that few lawyers ever have.” to education and treatment for drug addiction and mental illIf I may say so myself: what a ride. I had one final question: ness. The nation’s addiction to incarceration is warping our for all she went through in her starting years, would she go to society, and everyone should care about that.” St. John’s again, if she had the chance? “Oh, for sure,” she said, It is hard, once you hear the horror stories she relays, not to “I’d just be a more serious student.” ! “ �The Gadfly 09 !"#$%&%'()"*+"#*,,(+%&-"#*,./%,)+&0 Anonymous D o you ever wonder what people really think of you? Well, you’re in luck: a new Facebook page has commenced for the use of anonymous Johnnies who wish to express publicly (i.e., to the SJC population on Facebook) what they really think of you. Cruel, rude, and generally inappropriate comments are, of course, not part of the objective. Or are they? A wise tutor of mine recently mentioned in class how what isn’t written is as important, if not more so, than what is. After all, Socrates is “wise” because he at least admits to not knowing anything. When it comes to knowing what is, it’s just as important to know what isn’t. Or, in this case, who isn’t. Sure, it’s nice to see somebody write something kind about you, but it’s not that simple for most of us. What does it mean if your name hasn’t come up? What is it that people might have to say regarding what they really think of you that isn’t appropriate for public eyes? “Hateful or rude remarks will be completely disregarded,” the page description reads; is that why your name is not on that page? Or worse still, what if people don’t have anything to think about you at all? What if, at this tiny little liberal arts college where identity is crucial, no one can recall anything about you? If you’re silently thinking to yourself, “Well, Johnnie, you’re in the clear; someone’s already posted something ‘nice’ about you,” think again. This group has the potential to affect everyone negatively, even the populars. Let’s propose a scenario. A friend of mine is very handsome indeed but hasn’t really got much of a brain. Since this person is my friend, I would like to “share the love,” but also not lie. I write something along the lines of, “Johnnie is the most gorgeous person on campus!” Meanwhile, this comment is posted among one hundred others describing how “intelligent” or “strong” some other people are. Is Johnnie silently worrying to himself that he’s somehow inadequate with respect to these other fine attributes? Is he also silently scolding himself for being so cynical and sensitive over something so seemingly good-natured and loving? Well, sure he is! And why in the world, if you apparently feel so strongly about Johnnie in this way, would you want your proposed compliment to backfire entirely? Or maybe it didn’t backfire, and that’s exactly what you wanted to say to him. I have myself been tempted to throw a few spiteful remarks into the mix: “Despite everything, Johnnie, I care about you!” or “Johnnie, I always feel smarter, classier, and more beautiful in your presence!” “Hateful or rude remarks will be completely disregarded”? Think again, Johnnie. You’re smarter than that. If you know someone, and I mean really know them, why would you cowardly write something about them anonymously? This is the online equivalent of that needy kid in high school who goes around trying to hug everybody, complimenting peoples’ shirts, because he hopes to God somebody will one day return the favor. If what you have to say is something genuinely true and good, why not say it to their face? Communicating face to face is what fosters real relationships and genuine friendships. Don’t you feel somewhat cheated when someone tries to be heartfelt via social media? Not to mention, if you feel strange saying your compliment to the person’s face, chances are, you don’t know them well enough to say what you’re saying anyway. If what we aspire to be for each other amounts to nothing but cowardly, distant friends, this group will flourish. But our souls will not. A final note to those of you still left skeptical. Maybe you’re thinking, “Whoever wrote this article is nothing but a sad and insecure hypocrite.” It’s all true. Nobody wrote anything about me on this Facebook page. There are fewer compliments about me on that page than the number of times qua is used correctly in an Aristotle seminar. I am insecure. And I’m not attaching my name to this article. But like I said before, everyone is affected by this page, those mentioned and those not. And for the record, everyone’s a little insecure. We all strive every day for virtue and for truth. Or maybe we just try to get through the day, hoping that there are people out there who care about us enough to be vulnerable and tell us what they really think, face to face, human to human.And why should I not attach my name to this article? It’s not addressed to anyone in particular, and it’s not written by anyone in particular. In the words of Ms. Brann, listen not to me, but to the logos. ! Continued From Pg. 04 as to make it so. I like the combination of formality and informality, the conviviality, even the nostalgia induced by it. For a gathering of that size there is still a sense of intimacy, and the giving of toasts poses a unique sort of challenge for students (and tutors), which compels them to say things about themselves and about the College they might otherwise not say. And while I have come to dislike the phrase “a community of learning” as a characterization of the College’s nature and integrity (mostly because I think that learning happens in the soul rather than in any community), the aptness of this characterization is reflected most, I think, in the senior dinner. What is your favorite class to be a tutor for and why? Senior mathematics, I think. For one thing, there is more than enough time to do everything that needs to be done without rushing, or feeling the burden of the schedule. And within each semester there is a genuine line of inquiry being pursued, without the division into distinct if related topics or readings that is more often the case in classes at the College. In particular, there is a sense of patient exploration animating the first semester’s study of non-Euclidean geometry that I haven’t found so strongly or clearly in any other class I’ve been a tutor for. Finally, there is something genuinely elementary yet also recollective about the way that both semesters of the tutorial begin, in the first with a kind of renewed beginning in geometry, and in the second with a similar kind of renewed beginning in physics. ! �The Gadfly 10 !"#$%$&'()*"%&$+,&$-.)&/0)1$2&"0)34)50+$&' Raymond Lau M A’16 y mother had always tried to cultivate humility in me. ments, and skills amount to anything more than what society There is always a mountain higher than the one you con- allows? Just as we grant Euclid the grounds for his achievequered, she would say, warning me not to revel in my achieve- ments, our achievements only have significance insomuch as ments. At once trying to nip arrogance—that obnoxious excess we grant it to them. To the extent which we acknowledge the of self-importance which separates one from peers—in the mountains we have surmounted, we never become more than bud and to press me to excel, she unfortunately did not build human for climbing them. In that sense, we never become the intellectual foundation for humility which would have more than anyone else. won me entirely over. From her I learned that society scorned I now take what I say, as well as what anyone else says, the arrogant; the stories she told and the movies we watched tentatively. I hesitate to accept claims promulgated by peotaught me arrogance marked the foolish sidekicks and the ar- ple who do not show similar humility, because I have come chetypical villains. Yet, my greatest lesson in humility was not to believe arrogance obscures the truth. This applies to selftaught through her admonitions or generrighteous campaigns (often conducted by al social pressure, but through my studies I now take what I say, as well religious, political, scientific, or cultural at St. John’s College. leaders), which often make no effort to as what anyone else says, Studying the “Great Books” which dispel the illusion of absolute confidence tentatively. I hesitate to western civilization is founded on humthey intend to exert. This confidence accept claims promulgated risks becoming foolish, and the foolishly bled me, but not in the same way looking by people who do not show confident are prone to making mistakes at tall mountains did. Euclid, Plato, and Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch are indisputwe sometimes willingly ignore, because similar humility, because I able giants on whose shoulders our modwe thirst for the confidence they exude. have come to believe arroern fields of mathematics, philosophy, and Never having been quick to ally myself gance obscures the truth. biology build upon, yes—but at St. John’s with any established dogma, learning huCollege we explicate the texts by bringing these otherwise mility made me even more cynical to ideas which time has untouchable figures into the realm of conversation. We try pushed up to incontestable heights. When capitalism, socialto scrutinize the validity of their ideas; we test their logic for ism, and all other –isms implore I be persuaded by the sheer hollow cavities, and question relentlessly what justifies each genius of their achievements or theory, I demand a confrontaclaim. Such proximity to their literature naturally allows us tion with them on even ground, and I demand an explication to better admire their genius, but we do not let their author- of their premises. I withhold my support until I understand ity carry more weight than the punch of their arguments. We what premises they must beg me to grant them, and then only beckon them down from their high mountain to talk on even if I grant them. Humility, in showing how lightly I should take ground. And it was here, where no past achievement counted, myself, shows me how to take others lightly as well. ! where I was only worth my grain of salt if Euclid did not pace circles around me, that I realized no amount of success puts one person above another. Nearly every classroom discussion ends with more ques! Painter Bob tions than answers. When there are answers, they only bring If I could write a poem, clarity over what the author says, and rarely if at all shower half as beautiful as you clarity over some universal truth. I learn that even the most rigorous attempts made by Plato and Aristotle to find the truth I’d take a bow, that all the world, rest on no solid logical foundation. There is no logic behind would come to worship me a priori principles. At a certain point, one is forced to accept but then, I’d strike a bargain, premises on no basis other than that they appear self-evidentwith the devil if need be ly true. What is self-evident relies on human experience—and to sell the rights for all its worth, our experiences are pathetically limited by our cognitive and for one second spent with you perceptive abilities. We build our mountainous achievements on a cloud we hope will hold true. for the bliss within that instant, This realization blew to dust my last iota of superiority. I would transcend infinity cannot claim I am a better or worse human than my peers and the dream within the dreamer when the judgement of “better” or “worse” is not staked in could remake reality any solid truth. To say I am better or worse at any particular till all the wishes ever wished, action, and then to proceed to take that difference in skill as should mean no more than this a measure of my worth as a human, would only show I exagthe consummation of one life gerate the importance of that action. When even Euclid must beg us to accept his postulates, for otherwise there can be no all wrapped up in a kiss... Euclidean geometry, how can I say my intelligence, achieve- “ !"#$%&'()'& �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle 11 A’14 Some Thoughts on the Passing Scene: •Hillary Clinton has stepped off the national stage (for the moment…) and passed the reins of the U.S. State Department to John Forbes Kerry, formerly Massachusetts’ senior senator and George W. Bush’s Democratic opponent in the 2004 presidential election. Just after his tenure at State began, it was announced that all State Department “tweets” written by Kerry himself would be signed “JK.” How fitting. •When Jared Loughner opened fire on a crowd in Tuscon, AZ, in 2011, killing six and injuring 13 (including then-congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords), pundits laid the blame at the feet of former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her website’s “bullseye” campaign map, which “targeted” districts for the 2010 midterm elections. It’s a media reflex, in the aftermath of acts of potentially political violence, to blame the “heated rhetoric” of the American Right. Of course, of the dozen attacks that have garnered calls for the heads of Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, et al., in just the past three years, none have actually turned out to have any connection to the “heated, apocalyptic rhetoric of the anti-Obama forces.” Enter Floyd Corkins. Corkins recently pleaded guilty to last August’s shooting at the Family Research Council, a conservative organization that promotes traditional marriage, that left a security guard wounded. Carrying three pistol magazines and 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches, Corkins intended to “make a statement against the people who work in that building,” and, as CNN.com reported, he hoped to “smear [the sandwiches] in the dying faces of the staffers he expected to kill.” Strangely, Chris Matthews has avoided all blame. •John Adams famously advocated “a government of laws, not of men.” That seems to have fallen out of vogue. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on immigration this week that will feature Jose Antonio Vargas, a Filipino-born journalist who appeared on the cover of TIME last summer. Vargas is also an illegal immigrant, who entered the country when he was 12 and never obtained permission to remain (he is now 32). He has been on the payroll of the Washington Post (in violation of federal law) and was arrested in Minnesota for driving without a valid driver’s license (he had previously obtained a Washington state license under false pretenses). Seated beside Vargas at the hearing? Chris Crane, head of the Im“The trouble is not that migrations and Customs Enforcement emtechnology can be used ployees’ union, which is suing the Obama administration for the rules that make it for both good and evil, but all but impossible for ICE agents to arrest that people in the age of illegal immigrants—like the one sitting technology may have real next to him. “ •For fans of the recent CBS hit Person of Interest, behavior-predicting software may soon be in a supercomputer near you. Defense contractor Raytheon has developed an “extreme-scale analytics” system that compiles social network data—Facebook posts, Twitter messages, GPS data trouble telling the differ- from Foursquare, etc.—which can be ana•“It is almost a false argument to say that lyzed to determine behavioral patterns. ence between the two.” we have a spending problem,” said Nancy The software (Rapid Information Overlay - Yuval Levin Pelosi on Sunday’s Meet the Press. “We Technology, or RIOT), has not yet been have a budget deficit problem.” That’s the sold, but Raytheon hopes that the profiscal equivalent of, “It is almost a false argument to say that gram will “help meet our nation’s rapidly changing security we have a cocaine problem. We have a withdrawal problem.” needs.” While data mining for law enforcement purposes is generally legal, privacy advocates are worried about the lack •One of the lesser-discussed facts of Obamacare, which is set of oversight for this type of covert data collection. to take full effect at the beginning of next year, is that the alAdd RIOT to the swelling list of technologies that may batross of a law will be a bear to implement. Latest example: well be central to the ethical questions of our day. Drone use California, where there are not enough doctors to manage (for combat, surveillance, etc.), cyberwarfare (a key tool of the expected crush of newly insured patients. Searching for the Chinese and non-state actors, such as the hacking group solutions, state lawmakers are considering allowing pharma- Anonymous), and the like have already begun to provoke cists, optometrists, and the like to act as primary care provid- questions about the increasingly indistinct lines between citiers, able to diagnose diabetes, high blood pressure, and other zen and state. But neither a revived Luddism nor a new Fuchronic illnesses. Think diagnoses are perfunctory now? Wait turism is the answer. As scholar Yuval Levin observes, “The until your regular physician retires and his patients have to trouble is not that technology can be used for both good and resort to the local eye doctor. evil, but that people in the age of technology may have real trouble telling the difference between the two.” •North Carolina State University’s website declares that “happiness is being a student at a campus that makes you feel • If you needed any assistance deciding whether ex-Nebraska anything but small.” But if that doesn’t turn your crank, the senator Chuck Hagel ought to be confirmed as America’s next school’s Union Activities Board recently purchased butt plugs, secretary of defense, the following statement should help to vibrators, dildos, edible underwear, and artificial female geni- make up your mind. Asked about the Obama administration’s talia for the institution’s “Dirty Bingo” event, during which policy on Iran, Hagel announced, “I support the president’s “certified educators” could use the items to demonstrate an strong position on containment.” A few minutes later: “I was array of “healthy sex practices.” In its defense, the school does just handed a note that I misspoke, that I said I supported the advertise that “Discovery begins at NC State.” Still, I’d bet this president’s position on containment. If I said that, I meant to wasn’t the “education” most parents had in mind. say that we don’t have a position on containment.” We’re doomed. ! �The Gadfly 12 !"#$%&'() *+*',!"#$%&'()*+) !"#$%&'$#()$** +&,,#%-#$%&'()*+. '$#()$** .&/&01&+&,023&456#78&965:"81&;:<$2&'$** =&,>$8?<2)$** '&/&;1&=@AB&,C%)<:$*&D("E$2%5#&%#&F%#2<: ;<#<:$*&'$:2*<&G55H =@AB&,/01%&'()*+2 !"#$%&'$#()$** +&,C<E2":<@&I.5<8&-"8%E&-5/<JK )L&-:3&.$#%<*&'$::<**1& M0!&N"(%25:%"H O&,3&4"0%&'()*+5 >$8?<2)$** ;&/&F1&P@AB&,0&/&'1&A&,- QR&L5"&S5"*(&*%?<&25&8<<&L5":& </<#2&5#&26<&S<<?*L&8E6<("*<1& T*<$8<&<H$%*&8UE$3V$(WLX VH$%*3E5H3 !"#$%$"&'()'!*+(,- The Music of Erik Neave (A’16) Jacob Kilgore O A’16 n a short visit just before his son’s January 30th performance at the Metropolitan, Erik Neave’s father said, “I’ve played for a long time and sound okay today, I guess. But Erik picked it up late and sounded better in three months than I ever have.” That Wednesday, about 35 students trekked through snow and rain down West Street in support of what was, for some, the band of a friend of a friend. Two hours later, they left together with more in common than wet weather and a long walk. They left with an understanding of what Neave’s father had meant. It would be difficult to classify Neave’s music: “folk” is inadequate, “indie” too cliché. Sometimes labels throw words at an album in the hopes of capturing the sound an artist: folk-acoustic-blues-indie-pop-rock. They never quite capture what they or the artist intend. In a word, though, Neave’s music is honest. Through melodies at once rowdy and calm, angsty and somber, Neave confessed before an audience and shared the frustrating questions he entertains through his art. Although the words of each song were the same as on his band Cedarwell’s albums, the intimacy between the artist, the work, and the witnesses enhanced the personal quality Through melodies at and communal aspect of the event. once rowdy and calm, He transported participants to a kind of otherangsty and somber, world, free of inhibition or pretense. It exhibited Neave confessed bethe quality of a vivid memory or dream, yet, espefore an audience and cially while singing along, the audience seemed shared the frustrating moved to a very real and tangible front porch on questions he enterthe prairie, singing blue grass tunes with ma and tains through his art. pa. He left the audience with questions like, “My love, where have you been?” and “Where is my God?”, as well as a resounding assertion: “Alone is not the only thing worth crying a tear.” Erik G. Neave is both the magician and the rabbit under the hat, shocked to be in front of an audience at all. Because of his performance and performances like his, we deal boldly and together with the struggles each of us face. Somehow, the music provides a forum wherein no fear taints our interaction, and nobody could be ashamed to identify. Perhaps because there is a courageous person on a stage, proclaiming and even re-creating his own struggle. ! “ !"##$%&'$()*+,--,&.-/$!"#$%#&' W e’re pleased to remind the Polity that the deadline for Energeia, St. John’s’ annual literary magazine, has been extended! We have received only a few submissions, so dig through your files or sift through your notebooks and send in your work! We welcome a wide variety of submissions, including short stories, poetry, paintings, drawings, photography, translations, essays (academic, expository, or lyric), and even musical scores and mathematical proofs. If you’re not sure whether your piece qualifies, send it in—our goal is a professional, creative, and eclectic publication. We welcome submissions from all members of the community, including undergraduates, graduate students, alumni, tutors, administration, and staff. All submissions should be sent to our new Gmail address, sjca.energeia@ gmail.com, by the new deadline: 11:59 pm, Sunday, February 17, 2013. Please don’t hesitate to contact the editors at the above address with any questions. We look forward to reading your work! ! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 16 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-02-12 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 16 of The Gadfly. Published on February 12, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.16 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/3bf9ad7957fe435a14e3cb7f96b3d827.pdf 213489912d2832113ad1f9dcf0f98b53 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%&'(#)%*+),-&./0&12+3()4&5&67 89'-&:);#"%)&<&9=2//&>%)?&5&6@ A9-&B32+(/#&#C)&BD)(ED)(#&5&6F G)2;C+(3&B;%$//&8#0&H$C(I/&8#%))#&5&6J !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$;,<#$8/3$809=$.$2&+#$>>>52$.$5!!?,$9@ 8"KD+//+$(&E)2E=+()-&LL-FM?DN&O)E0N&.2%0&P6 photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Articles for the next issue should be submitted by Wednesday, March 20, at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff << Contributors Virginia Early Michael Fogleman Jacob Kilgore Painter Bob Evgenia Olimpieva Davis Poore Joe Roberts L !"#$%&'()*+'#,.)/#00& og on to the dining hall food blog for a new article on invitro meat. The concept of growing meat in a laboratory has been tossed around by so many sci-fi writers…but lab-grown meats could be on your plate before you know it. Visit www.gastrokitty. blogspot.com for a look at the hows and whys behind in-vitro meat. — Formaggio Elettrico !"#$%&'())*+'!,%-.$/0-1 Grace Tyson Title/topic? My title is “Hurrah for Kolya! The Soul’s Education in The Brothers Karamazov.” My essay primarily explores the soul’s journey: how people change, and what effect one person can have on another. I examine these larger ideas by focusing on Kolya Krasotkin, a seemingly minor or ignorable character that turns out to be a microcosm of the main characters’ spiritual journeys. Why this work/topic? I studied The Brothers Karamazov in preceptorial during my junior year, and fell in love with it. My book and topic chose me. I was compelled to reflect on my time at St. John’s and the type of education we pursue. I also wanted to write something personally relevant to me, something that would inform my life after St. John’s. Advisor? Mr. Burke. Writing Period strategy? I spent the first week of Writing Period at home in Florida. During that time and in the year leading up to Writing Period, I put a great deal of thought into The Brothers Karamazov. When Writing Period rolled around, I was ready to start writing, because most of my thinking had already been done. When I returned to campus, I woke up at 8 a.m. and wrote for six or more hours each day. I spent the evenings relaxing, socializing, and giving myself space from my essay. I also worked out regularly to blow off steam, and of course participated in KUNAI and SPARTA. I found that, for me, the best strategy was to wake up early and get to work, but I think I was in the minority. Many people found it more effective to work at night, but I find it impossible to focus at night. Advice? Pick a book you love and will enjoy spending a LOT of time with. I chose my book far before finding my topic. The topic came to me through my love of the novel, and it came very naturally. Spend a lot of time reading your book and thinking about it. And don’t be afraid to write. Write early and often. Write anything and everything. �The Gadfly 03 !" !"#$%&!$' !"#$%&%#'#()* Ms. Catherine Haigney How did you come to be a tutor at St. John’s? As a high school senior, I wanted to do the Great Books Program, but with four other children to educate, my parents made a persuasive case for the University of Virginia. Twelve years later, I wrote a letter to Dean Thomas Slakey, asking if I could be a tutor. Greek and Euclid were new to me, so in a way I got a sense of what it’s like to be a freshman...with, shall we say, extra responsibilities. move me as a prime one. What classes are you teaching this year? I’m on sabbatical. I paint in my studio in the morning and read the rest of the day. I’m making my way through all the Platonic dialogues that aren’t assigned freshman year and finding new books, like Kapuscinski’s Travels with Herodotus and Les Souvenirs by the eighteenth-century artist Vigee-Lebrun. Sabbaticals offer what Aristotle called “skolia”: there’s time to do all kinds of things—read Homer aloud in Greek, start a new language, think about what One Really Wants To Do. What is your favorite St. John’s tradition and why? I like the way we stand up for lecturers and for seniors taking orals. It shows visible respect and invites better listening. What was the biggest adventure you’ve ever had? Sailing all night from the Bahamas to Florida, trying to outrun a storm that overtook us. We had to leave in the evening to cross the Gulf Stream before the wind shifted from south to north. The waves and moonlight were magnificent. Towards morning, we saw alternating red and green lights approaching, which we took to be the port and starboard bow lights of another boat on a collision course: in a surreal shift of perception, they turned out to be traffic lights on a shore not yet visible. The wind was so strong that we’d made landfall sooner than expected, and having no GPS (not yet invented), we didn’t know where we were. What is the single most important piece of advice you would like to give to freshmen (or upperclassmen)? “Talkers” can learn to listen well and “listeners” to voice their thoughts—the sooner you make a serious effort to do the more difficult thing for you, the better classes will be, and not just for you. What is your favorite seminar book and why? May I choose three? The Iliad, Luke’s Gospel, and The Brothers Karamazov. Each re-reading is like a first. Next year I’m likely to have another three. What is your least favorite seminar book and why? William James’ Psychology: The Briefer Course. I think I’ve grasped something of its influence, but I have yet to see its greatness. I would rather read Joyce or Woolf with seniors. If there is a “psychology” slot to fill, a questionable aim for SJC, perhaps we should take on Jung or read more Freud. The consideration of meeting a quota of American writers does not What is your favorite non-Program book and why? I have successive infatuations and multiple enduring loves, no single work above all others. What is your biggest pet peeve (that students do) in class? Leaving seminar. What is your favorite class to be a tutor for and why? Freshman laboratory: it’s evolved since my first class in 1990 and is still changing. Class conversations combine seminar’s breadth with a tutorial’s focus. The Harvey, Pascal, and Goethe readings opened up science for me more than anything else I’ve read. Freshman lab also makes a good forum to begin Aristotle, an exciting way to encounter “void” and “place” in the Physics. (His ideas about “place” changed the way I paint “backgrounds”—they’re no longer empty space.) Our practica in the patient watching and drawing of plants and animals bring observing and thinking closer together. In lab, we try to give an account of what we think we know, but we also keep going back to the openness of taking things in. ! !"#$%&#%#'"() ! Painter Bob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�The Gadfly 04 !"#$%&"'()**+""%%')&'+&!",#("+)&- On Lecture O n Thursday, February 14, the SCI convened at 11:45 in the Private Dining Hall to discuss the topic of lectures at the College. We began by reading aloud the section of the Accreditation Report discussing “The Friday Night Lecture and Question Period.” That report compares the role of the lecture at the foundation of the New Program to its current state, and suggests that the lecture has changed radically and perhaps even declined in stature. Rather than being secondary only to the seminar, the lecture— which is scheduled on Friday evening rather than during the week—”has moved to a kind of circumference of the Program.” We began our own discussion by asking the question that the report urges the College community to take up: do we really believe the lectures are an integral part of the Program? The attendees at the meeting admitted that, no, our present situation does not suggest that the lecture is an integral part of the Program. While the report alluded to several reasons why the lecture might have declined in importance since the Program’s founding, the A good lecture, most pressing reason was it was thought, attendance. The attendees is open about its agreed with the suggestion premises and ques- that the lecture allows stutions, is open-end- dents to practice listening, ed, and moves the to consider a topic they may not be familiar with, and, listener towards in the discussion period, to and beyond the exercise a different kind of question period. discussion than that of the classroom. But, given the varying rate of attendance at these lectures, it seems that students do not always take this opportunity, or make the most of it when they do. While some considered the removal of a policy of required attendance to be a loss, most agreed that it was best to assume that students at the College are adults who can make up their own minds about what was and was not a good use of their time. If students did want to attend lecture on a regular basis, how could they develop “the habit of listening”? In contrast to the music tutorial, no specific instruction was given; rather, it seemed more like the habit of listening in seminar, insofar as one learns by practicing. Of course, paying attention during a two hour seminar may be different in kind than paying attention to a one hour lecture. Both require concentration, but in a lecture, one must learn to discover its shape, and to keep the whole in mind. What makes for a good lecture? While some suggested that lectures delivered by tutors were generally better than outside lecturers, it was felt that students could learn something regardless of the quality of a lecture. Furthermore, some students endorsed a principle of generosity similar to that which we extend to our classmates and the authors we read. If we felt that a lecture was bad, perhaps we had not put in enough effort to listening attentively and thoughtfully to that lecture, or to understanding why the lecturer might have presented the material that they did. Still, it seemed that lectures were not necessarily “Great,” as the books that we read are. “ A tutor present at the meeting asserted that there was indeed a “Johnnie lecture,” and made a tentative characterization of those lectures which are delivered by tutors. Rather than making a didactic argument which is complete in itself, a “Johnnie” lecture has a dialectical motion. A good lecture, it was thought, is open about its premises and questions, is open-ended, and moves the listener towards and beyond the question period. But first: students must move themselves to lectures. On Class Preparation O n Thursday, February 7, the SCI held a public forum on class preparation. What constitutes being prepared for class? How does that preparation affect the dynamics and quality of class discussions? How can students prepare in an effective and meaningful way? Do the different classes require different kinds of preparation? All agreed that preparation was in service of having a good class, and that both the individual students and the tutor shared some responsibility in ensuring this outcome. Tutors might decide to help by explicitly outlining expectations at the beginning of the year, or by cultivating a classroom dynamic that corresponded to those expectations, but students were also quick to admit their own responsibility in doing that same kind of cultivation. Students agreed that this responsibility could be exercised by thoughtfully reflecting on and reacting to one’s own preparation, and by frequently discussing the material and the class with the other students and the tutor. On the individual level, all agreed that it was unacceptable and almost unimaginable that a student might be apathetic about their work at the College. Even if most students are ready to do the work, merely reading every word is not sufficient preparation, but rather, students must also engage actively with the text. At the meeting, students proposed that one might ensure this meaningful engagement by asking oneself questions, trying to answer them, taking notes while reading, and re-reading the text. Several students recommended Mortimer Adler’s How to Read A Book as a book that could help students to begin thinking about reading different kinds of texts. While all agreed that different approaches work for different individuals, there seemed to be much common ground. Students enthusiastically suggested that they learned best when they worked together, both in and out of the classroom. Students suggested that working together on translating, presenting mathematics propositions, and thinking about a seminar text could be meaningful and helpful to everyone—and perhaps even more fun that way. Above all, it seemed important to continue to think and talk about these concerns with classmates, tutors, and the other students at the college. Moreover, almost everyone agreed that part of the beauty of attending this college is the continued struggle of learning how to learn. — Michael Fogleman, A’13 �The Gadfly 05 Against the Amendment: A Polity Constitution? Virginia Early W A’13 hen I first read the Polity Constitution, I was not im- “Delegate Council Constitution.” But this would not work: the pressed. It is full of typographical and grammatical Delegate Council derives ultimate authority from the Polity, errors, and, more importantly, fails to set the student govern- despite the muddled language in our current constitution. ment at St. John’s on firm ideological grounding. In some placWhy is it that delegates are unwilling to require the memes it invokes self-government as its intellectual groundwork; bers of the Polity to approve the new constitution? Why is it in others, it states that forming a government is a “privilege” that members of the Polity are not more concerned by this ingiven by the administration. fringement on basic freedoms? If we allow this amendment For better or worse, this imperfect document has served as to pass, giving the Delegate Council authority to unilaterally our Polity constitution for years. Somehow, adopt a new Polity Constitution, we are no the Delegate Council has managed to hand better than the ancient Greek philosopher out money every semester, and the Student who looked so closely at the stars that he The plan is to pass an Committee on Instruction holds extracurricfell down into a well. How can we expect to amendment to the ular seminars and forums that we all enjoy. succeed after St. John’s if we do not make current constitution Yet, in allowing this, we have neglected the a conscious effort to govern ourselves well that will allow for the foundational questions of government. Inwhile we are here? Delegate Council to stead of understanding the basis of the Polity Let us not miss this opportunity to put singlehandedly—with- into practice what we think about in semiConstitution’s authority, we have acted on its murky provisions. nar. If we are not faithful over this small out Polity approval— This has had mixed results. As a two-term pass a completely new thing, how can we expect to be faithful over former secretary of the Delegate Council, I the big things throughout our lives? Let us constitution. I think saw that when there was guiding passion in think seriously about what our constituthis is a terrible idea. the officers and a constant push applied to tion should be and engage with its essential the system, some momentum and cohesive questions. activity resulted. But it is difficult to deliver to constituents In other words, I call bullshit on the idea that St. John’s stuwhen one’s relation to those constituents is not fully under- dents are apathetic. If we want to read the Great Books and stood—and here the constitution gave us no pointers, only not be hypocrites, let us at least be willing to ask an opening confusion. question about our Polity Constitution. ! Fortunately for the Polity, the Delegate Council is currently in the process of rewriting the constitution. The plan is to pass !"#$%&'#$&($'"#$)*'+,-*'+&($./#(0/#('$+1$&($'"#$2#3#4*'#$ an amendment to the current constitution that will allow for 5&6(-+3$/##'+(4$*4#(0*$'"+1$7#0(#10*89$:#;<6*<8$=>9$*'$ the Delegate Council to singlehandedly—without Polity ap- ??@AB$.C$+($'"#$D<+%*'#$2+(+(4$)&&/E$F&6$-*($,(0$*$G&<HI proval—pass a completely new constitution. +(4$%#<1+&($&J$'"#$(#G$-&(1'+'6'+&($&($'"#$2#3#4*'#$5&6(-+3$ I think this is a terrible idea. :*-#;&&H$K*4#E$LK0*'#1$&--6<$<#463*<38E I expressed my opinions on this subject first at a Polity meeting on this amendment. At my recommendation, language was adopted that would require any new constitution written by the Delegate Council to be passed by the Polity in a simple majority vote after approval by the Delegate Council. At the folJoe Roberts & Davis Poore A’16 lowing meeting, this language was dropped, and it was decidhe Delegate Council is in a state of disarray and aped that it was unnecessary and inexpedient to bring the Polity proaches an impasse. Through no fault of the offiConstitution before the Polity. After all, the delegates already cers, the impending ratification of the constitution and represent their constituents. the allocation of club funds (which are funded by the Yes, that is true. But the Delegate Council is a body ordained Polity) have been consistently stalled by inconsistent atunder the current constitution. How can a body that derives tendance. Delegate Council members are called upon to its authority from our current constitution vote to overturn represent the Polity and themselves by their involvement this very constitution and instate a new one in its place? In this in DC affairs—this is, in fact, the explicit duty of council act, they strip themselves of their authority and are ineligible members. It is the responsibility of a good Polity member to pass a new constitution. Instead, with the revoking of an old to stay informed about the action—or inaction—of their constitution, power must return to the people—in this case the Delegates and to act appropriately if they are not being Polity—if the new constitution is to be a constitution in fact as represented adequately. It is, therefore, the duty of the well as in appearance. Polity to take action to preserve sufficient representation This may not seem like that big of a deal. But for me, the of their class. The impending impeachment proceeding is problem comes down to one of basic principles. Either the the only action which remains to ensure that this reprePolity Constitution really is a Polity Constitution, or it is not. sentation remains intact. ! You might think that it would solve the problem to make a “ !"#!$%&'()*+,( T �The Gadfly 06 Representing Faith and Religion on Campus A Religious Student I have never felt attacked for being religious on campus, not like I felt attacked by my community. I feel oppressed under the rules and structure of a religious environment like my home. So I fully embraced the freedom a secular and openminded campus afforded me. I have never been called out here for doing the “wrong” thing or told I am misrepresenting myself, as some back home who knew me minimally liked to do. The liberal nature of religion on campus means I can, for the first time, explore the questions about religion I have harbored most of my life. It lets me interact with all sorts of people, not just people of my faith, and discuss what it means to be religious. This helps me grow into myself and my religion. But there is a flip side. My community has an idea that wherever I go, I represent my religion. This was something I always accepted but now seems unfair. My religion has a beautiful history and tradition that I, in my search of my own identity, do not do justice. In fact in some ways I have abandoned it to discover who I am. Yet I still represent it here on campus. To an extent I am the only one who represents my branch of faith on campus, and this frightens me. My religion is so much more than me, the person, that when I am looked upon as a representative of my faith, I feel afraid. It is a responsibility I don’t feel I can carry, but it is also more than my own feelings. When I, myself, was attacked on a religious basis, that person who attacked me, whether they knew it or not, was attacking my entire religion and everything I do and do not stand for. The attack was aimed in a religious fashion against me, but since I bear the brunt of representing my religion, it was also a misrepresentation of my faith. If the attack was just about me, I would have been upset, but I could brush it off. Instead, I became infuriated. Though the attack was petty, I realized my strong emotions stemmed from a culmination of dealing with such petty things over time and also struggling with faith in general on campus. Everyone who comes here comes with a question. Mine happened to be about my faith and religion. I am not the only one with these questions, but when someone comes to me, a person who apparently has the answers, I am as lost as they are. If they walk away thinking everybody of my faith is like this, they are wrong. I am an anomaly. I am the closest person here with answers to my religion, but I am in no way a proper representative. I am negative and bitter toward it because of my personal experience. But there is so much more to my faith than what I have experienced, and those who are truly faithful are some of the most moral, upright individuals I have ever met. I in some way envy them for the beauty they represent for themselves. When they represent themselves, they represent religion and are happy to do so. I would be a fraud if I were to claim their role. Therefore I won’t. I am a mockery of my religion, but I am also a person trying to find my place in the world. As an ambassador to my faith, I have failed every task, and I don’t feel comfortable that I am still looked upon as someone of my religious faith. It means I represent something I don’t want to represent on campus any more. I, a former religious, still faithful, soul searching, student, want to represent myself and nothing else. ! !"#$%&'())*+'!,%-.$/0-1 Tommy Bonn Title/topic? “Wisdom in the Whirlwind.” I wondered why Job is comforted by the appearance of a God who does not talk about justice, and what Job learns from his revelation. Why this work/topic? I chose this topic in part because I’ve always been interested in the problem of evil, and the question of divine justice seemed like a way in. Mostly, though, I’m just fascinated by how strange and paradoxical the book of Job is, and I wanted to spend some time puzzling over it. Advisor? Ms. Kronsberg. She was extraordinarily dedicated and helpful. Writing Period strategy? I adopted Pascal’s advice for my writing strategy: “And if an artisan were sure to dream every night for twelve hours’ duration that he was a king, I believe he would be almost as happy as a king, who should dream every night for twelve hours on end that he was an artisan” (pensee 386). So I made sure to sleep a good 12 hours per night, and I tried to dream about writing the greatest essay ever. All my concentration on dreaming at night was exhausting, so I took a couple threehour naps every day, to boot. Factor in the four hours eating meals in the dining hall, and I only had two hours per day left to play video games and use the bathroom (these can be profitably combined). The day it was due, I forfeited one of my precious naps to bang out 20 pages. I’m still trying to recover from the sleep deficit. Advice? Write about what you love. Find ways to enjoy the stress. Bond in the BBC. It’s a wonderful month. �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle 07 A’14 The Roman Catholic Church is headed by a mediocre Bavarian bureaucrat once tasked with the concealment of the foulest iniquity, whose ineptitude in that job now shows him to us as a man personally and professionally responsible for enabling a filthy wave of crime. Ratzinger himself may be banal, but his whole career has the stench of evil—a clinging and systematic evil that is beyond the power of exorcism to dispel. — Christopher Hitchens, “The Great Catholic Cover-Up,” Slate.com, March 15, 2010 T gensburg, innocuously entitled, “Faith, Reason, and the University: Memories and Reflections.” However, in the course of 30 minutes, he laid out a forceful critique of the modern concept of reason, arguing that the Protestant Reformers, by rejecting Greek and Medieval philosophy as alien encrustations on the original Biblical word, unwittingly cleaved reason from faith—a process that reached its fullest expression in Kant’s critiques, which declared the necessity of separating thought from faith and denied reason access to reality. That “modern self-limitation of reason,” Benedict maintained, has only bolstered the radical scientific positivism that seeks to narrow all claims of certainty to that which is experimentally verifiable. But it is not reason alone that is reduced, said the pope: he article from which the above quote is taken has long since been dismantled, but the “stench” of these and similar charges has stuck. Pope Benedict XVI, whose papacy will come to a voluntary close in two days, is, to many, either the luxuriantly robed chieftain of a backwards pseudo-empire (at best), or (at worst) the Oberkapo of the greatest institutional If science as a whole is this and this alone, then it is man evil in human history: 2,000 years of myth-spinning, warhimself who ends up being reduced, for the specifically humongering, and sexual predation. Since the pope’s announceman questions about our origin and destiny, the questions ment, suspicions and rumors of Vatican intrigue have flourraised by religion and ethics, then have no place within the ished on the Internet—The first pope to step down in 600 years: purview of collective reason as defined by ‘science,’ so unWhat is he hiding?—aided by the prospect of the conclave that derstood, and must thus be relegated to the realm of the will soon convene to elect Benedict’s successor—an event that subjective. many know only for its role in Dan Brown novels. But between the silliness of the cloak-and-dagger crowd, An atrophied reason, Benedict observed two years later and the spite of Hitchens and Co., the significance of the mis- in an address at the Collège des Bernardins in Paris, has led sion of Pope Benedict XVI—and the Church he has led for the to precisely the tension now devouring Europe: “on the one past eight years—has been lost. hand, subjective arbitrariness, and on the other, fundamen“We were looking for a ‘good sheptalist fanaticism.” “We are building a dicherd,’” Benedict reportedly quipped after tatorship of relativism,” he famously de“We were not created for his election, “and instead we got a Gerclared in a homily to his fellow cardinals comfort, but for greatman shepherd.” That was evolution for the at the start of the 2005 conclave, “that ness.” man long called “God’s Rottweiler” for his does not recognize anything as definisteadfast defense of Catholic orthodoxy, tive and whose ultimate standard consists - Pope Benedict XVI particularly as Prefect of the Sacred Consolely of one’s own ego and desires.” gregation for the Doctrine of Faith. But “German shepherd” But Benedict’s response was neither isolation nor condemmight have been an apt description: Long before he was elect- nation; it was engagement. His papacy, like that of his predeed pope, Joseph Ratzinger had been leading the rescue opera- cessor, exhibited a fierce desire to challenge not merely the tion to retrieve Europe—and Western civilization in general— blasé dismissal of Christianity in the West, but the philosophfrom the brink of intellectual and moral decay. ical arguments underpinning that rejection. And the pope— Writing at National Review on the day of the pope’s an- whose three encyclicals were affirmingly entitled In Hope We nouncement, Samuel Gregg, Director of Research at the Ac- Were Saved, In Charity and Truth, and God is Love—was never ton Institute and author of The Modern Papacy, noted, “Bene- a Jeremiah in doing so. dict XVI is arguably the most intellectual pope to sit in Peter’s That last fact is the linchpin in counterarguments to the Chair for centuries” (italics original). And given that his pre- commentariat long seeking to slime Rome and the pope, decessor authored 14 encyclicals while pope, delivered 129 and to those who noisily accuse the Catholic Church of only lectures that constitute a groundbreaking work of theology abridging, curtailing, and enslaving: With kindness and hu(Theology of the Body), and was fluent in 11 languages, that is mility, Pope Benedict XVI rejected the narrow view of man no mean feat. The modern papacy admits of no intellectual stridently advanced by an exhausted secular culture and, paslouches. tiently and cogently exposing its flaws, offered in its place a But Benedict was not a “mere” professor elevated to the top vision of the human being as rich with potential, capable of of the Vatican hierarchy. From the throne of Peter, the “me- profound flourishing, and invited to enter into loving commudiocre Bavarian bureaucrat” articulated the intellectual foun- nion with the Logos at the root of all reason. dations for a new restoration: of reason. “We were not created for comfort, but for greatness,” said About a year and a half after his election to the Holy See, Pope Benedict XVI. People of all creeds should pray for a new Pope Benedict XVI delivered a lecture at the University of Re- pope who will proclaim that truth as boldly as this one has. ! “ �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&'() *+*',!"#$%&'()*)+ !"#$%&'$#()$** +&,./0&123#45&678395/7$&:2#897/ ;79$/&'$**<&=&,>2?$&@%/3&-$%$ A&,,#%-#$%&'()*). '$#()$** B&C&;<&+&,>2?$&@%/3&:7D5/$* +E+F&,./0&123#45&:327"5<&;79$/&'$** =&,!/"0$%&'1()*)2 >2?$&@%/3&:7D5/$* GH&,I$5J9/)$**&:3$KL%2#53%L B&C&;<&GFEMF&,304%&'1(5*6 .,NOP;&INQR! OS&D2"&@2"*(&*%J9&/2&599&D2"7& 9C9#/&2#&/39&@99J*D&5839("*9<& L*9$59&9K$%*&5T8$0?$(UDV ?K$%*082K0 !"#$%&'(!#)*'+% Reaching Across St. John’s Street Jacob Kilgore S A’16 ituated directly opposite the back campus of the college, across St. John’s Street, there sits a small collection of houses called Bloomsbury Square. The Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis (HACA), whose mission statement is “to ensure safe, decent, and affordable housing; create opportunities for residents selfsufficiency and economic independence; and assure fiscal integrity by all program participants,” established the 51-unit community in 2003. In addition to the houses, HACA also built a modest community center that includes an upstairs classroom and a playground for local children to do homework and play together. Mr. Leron Michael Fisher, HACA’s Youth Services Manager, contacted Gordon Seltz and me earlier this semester, requesting that we represent Project Politae at a meeting with himself, his supervisor, and some representatives from the civic engagement group at the United States Naval Academy. Out of the hour-and-a-half discussion sprung the idea for an after-school tutoring program at the community center in Bloomsbury Square. While elementary school students already do their homework there, this partnership would afford them the opportunity to develop mentor-like relationships with model students in college. The hope is that, in addition to aiding with homework and study skills, the college students will become role models and friends. So we planned the kick-off date for Tuesday, February 12th, and began recruiting. While we did not show up in uniform, we did show up in number. 17 Johnnies represented our institution for two hours, serving alongside Naval Academy students (they brought approximately 20 students). The initial event mostly consisted of students from the separate institutions encountering and conversing with one another about what a great program this will be. In the background, there was smaller talk of how nice it was for the two different groups to genuinely interact and work together towards a common goal. Ultimately, that is what a program like this one represents from the outset. Institutions of higher learning already facilitate diversity and interaction between people from different backgrounds. Therefore, they have enormous potential to leverage their own inherent social capital to bridge gaps in their respective communities. In this way, a major responsibility of higher education in America is to build across social divides. So, while this program appears to be (and functions well as) tutoring in the foreground, the conversations happening in the background may be more important. Three formerly separate groups of people—the Naval Academy, Bloomsbury Square and St. John’s—now have context with which to relate to one another. So help us cross St. John’s Street. Tutor on Tuesday afternoons from 4:00-5:30PM. Contact me if interested: jcbkilgore1@gmail.com. ! !"#$"%#&'"(#)*+,#-#!./+01 ! Evgenia Olimpieva, A’14 !"#$"%#&'"(#()*+#,#-./*01 ,#-./*0#2"3".4#*'-#4&5/4 ,#-./*0#."4/4#*'-#4/*4 6)5'$#4%'47#8%++/.95/4: ,#4//#-*.&#4%00/.#'5?)+4 ,#(*+2)#-*$#+"#8/?5' @/'+3/#4"'?#"<#+)/#+5-/4 A*+/.#2%--35'?#0$#4&5'### ;$#/4%.5/'+#05'!./*04#"<#5'='5+/#+50/47 !./*04#"<#(*.0#6"%+)/.'#(5'-4 >'-#,+*35*'#(5'/4 B'#+)54#C/8.%*.$#'5?)+ ,#-"#)"D/#$"%#43//D#+5?)+ � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 17 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-02-26 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 17 of The Gadfly. Published on February 26, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.17 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/6c99d24c164b72969710d595638b0240.pdf 79368fa3e57adde2e3ff7845682231f7 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%&'(($)#*'+#,-#!"!#$ !.'/#01($2'3'04!"!#% &'(')'*+!,-'./0!1233/+/!"!#4 5-/!60)!27!89*()0:*+/./*);!"!#< !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$14;#$083$809<$.$2&+#$===52$.$5!!>,$9? photo by Chengyaqing Shi �The Gadfly 02 The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. The submission date for the next Gadfly is forthcoming. As always, articles should be emailed to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Bridget Bergin Reza Djalal Melissa Gerace Alexandria Hinds Erik G. Neave Samuel Weinberg !"#$%&'()*+',-./&&'0)/1$23 C heck out the new posting on the dining hall blog to find out more about the science behind the processed foods industry, which tries to captivate consumers by discovering exactly how our brains respond to junk food. Do you know why you can’t stop at “just one” Cheeto or potato chip? Because it’s been carefully engineered to make you want more. From the bliss point to “vanishing caloric density” to advertising, the production and marketing of junk foods is a carefully and scientifically researched process. *http://gastrokitty.blogspot.com/ — Formaggio Elettrico !"#$#%&'&()'*$!"#$%&'(($)#*'+#,-# D on’t miss the first KWP production of the semester! Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie will play on Tuesday, April 2, and Wednesday, April 3, at 7 p.m. in FSK. The show is directed by Audra Zook (’13), with the assistance of Amy Stewart (’13). The Glass Menagerie, along with A Streetcar Named Desire, is one of Tennessee Williams’ best-known and best-loved works. The “memory play” revolves around a small family in St. Louis in 1937: narrator Tom Wingfield (Danny Kraft, ’13), an aspiring poet who spends his dreary days working in a shoe factory; his cripplingly shy sister, Laura (Rebekah Bentum, ’13); and their domineering mother, Amanda (Dani Nelson, ’14), a Southern belle whose husband ran off years before. The play’s tragedy centers on Amanda’s obsessive desire to save her daughter from spinsterhood through the person of gentleman caller Jim O’Connor (Raymond Lau, ’16). Almost 70 years after its premiere, The Glass Menagerie remains one of the foremost works of American theatre. Don’t miss KWP’s limited-time production! H 45567$68'9$*861$&%':#;<' 41'=1>/$#$/)1'?+)@'48@/&&/)1& ello, Polity! The Admissions Office will be hosting the annual Accepted Students Day on Saturday, April 13th. This is a large event which takes place in all major spaces on campus. It is a wonderful event for the Class of 2017: for some, it is their first experience on campus; others are seasoned visitors and are taking this opportunity to get to know their potential classmates. At this point, these students have been bombarded with plenty of pieces of our stunning Admissions Propaganda, they’ve watched the Virtual Tour videos, and they’ve read the book list 1,000 times. They understand the curriculum and our approach to liberal education. They’re on board with education for education’s sake, and they’re OK answering the question, “But what do you DO with that?” from well-meaning relatives, neighbors, teachers and friends for the next four years. They’re well-read and well-informed about the academic program. What they are lacking is exposure to the community that lives and breathes this program. It is the Polity which makes this Program a reality, and their lack of exposure to the Polity is precisely what we are trying to address at this event. This exposure is mutual—while we want the Accepted Students to get a sense of the current Polity, we want you to get a sense of this class too. We’d like you to meet these students face to face, show them around, tell them about your annual essay (which should be done by then!) and break bread with them. We’d also like to have any interested club archons available for an Information Fair (similar to the All-College Fair in August). And so, I urge you, comrades and citizens in the Republic, do not let this day’s distractions become disruptions. Instead, rise up and meet the class of 2017; welcome them to the College. Next fall, these students will join you on the quad after seminar, sing to you at Freshman Chorus concerts, and marvel at the mysteries of the axolotls. They will inherit the Gadfly and KWP. They will live next door to you, sit next to you in the All-College Seminar, and come to you for Greek Assistance. Don’t wait until Convocation to feast your eyes upon the inheritors of your legacy. Come to the Accepted Students Day and help welcome these students and their families on April 13th. For details, or to volunteer time that day, please contact Alexandria Hinds at 410-626-2525 or alexandria.hinds@sjca.edu, or just stop by the Hodson House. �The Gadfly 03 !"#$%&'()*+&",- !"#$%&'(#)$*+#'#",-(.$/012 “Find an interesting problem that people need solved and solve it.” Sir Robert Burbridge, A’05, has done just that as CEO of Altometrics, Inc., and proves that the technology world could use a few more Johnnies. What is your current job? I’m the CEO of Altometrics, Inc. (altometrics.com). We are a tech company focusing on “big data” analytics. pronounced for the College in particular. The week that I learned that my senior essay was accepted, I remember thinking, “I think I’m finally ready to get a real education.” Did you attend other schools after St. John’s? I have not yet, but I’m open and interested. How did you feel you compared, in graduate school or early jobs, to people from different educational backgrounds, particularly those with field-related degrees? I was generally better off than my peers with field-related degrees. That is, they had a short-term advantage, but I have had a long-term advantage. I had to work harder to compensate for the lack of technical training early on, but the education I received during my time at St. John’s facilitated considerably faster growth in a diverse set of domains. In the end, technical expertise is among the easiest assets to acquire or train; an expansive, cohesive mental framework is among the hardest. Did you know what you wanted to do while attending St. John’s? Sometimes. I was a “non-traditional” student with some nonacademic experience (I graduated from St. John’s in 2005 at age 28). I knew I wanted to be engaged in entrepreneurship, but had (and have) other interests as well. So far I’ve kept entrepreneurship as a central professional aspiration and focus, while pursuing those other interests non-professionally. Did St. John’s help prepare you for work in the field? Absolutely—and in a variety of ways. Some time after graduation, I tried to characterize the nature of the education I acquired through St. John’s—a helpful process, itself. I finally decided that I had a degree in conversation, with an emphasis on principled analysis. Some of the particular ideas I encountered in the course of the Program have been of some utility (especially from the Bible, Socrates, Descartes, Pascal, Kant, Hegel, Flannery O’Connor, and others). Of vastly greater importance was the exposure to the high caliber thought processes of the writers, philosophers, artists, and so on. I realized that the true value of the Program (to me) was a dedicated time to examine the underlying mental, emotional, and spiritual mechanics of these Great Influencers of the world. The changes in myself during my time at St. John’s and afterwards have been a holistic preparation for everything I’ve done since. What didn’t St. John’s prepare you for? St. John’s didn’t really prepare me for the particular practice of any job. That’s OK, because I didn’t expect it to. I worked as a programmer at Cisco Systems for a few years after graduation, during which I learned about business machination and technological engineering. Any specific disadvantages to a St. John’s background? The biggest disadvantage to a St. John’s background is the lack of technical training—in anything. Even the philosophical training we get isn’t technical. That’s not a huge obstacle if you realize it, but thinking that someone comes out of St. John’s technically prepared to be a philosopher, writer, teacher, or even student (or anything else) could be disappointing. In fairness, that’s not unique to St. John’s, but it’s especially Can you describe a general track someone from St. John’s might take to get into a career in this field? Generally, getting a couple of years of relevant work experience will go a long way to helping you in an entrepreneurial endeavor. Find an interesting problem that people need solved and solve it. Johnnies are among the best equipped people in the world to solve interesting problems interestingly. Any general advice, especially for an upperclassman who is interested in this field but is not quite sure what to do? A Johnnie interested in programming should either work on some interesting projects on their own or get involved in someone else’s (an open source project, for example). Taking a few summer classes may help too. A Johnnie interested in entrepreneurship (especially in an executive capacity) should get good at team building. Learn to identify your weaknesses and strengths and find others who are complementarily skilled or talented. How did you market yourself with a St. John’s degree? My first real job out of college was as a software engineer for Cisco Systems. The interview was a little bit strange, but I answered the questions candidly and without concern for the outcome. In particular, when they asked me why they should hire me, since I didn’t have any formal training in software development or programming (I’m self-taught), I told them that if they want a mechanic to execute instructions well, they should not hire me; there’s probably someone else applying who can execute better, sooner. If, however, they are looking to hire real talent who will bring a creative, rigorous, and Continued On Pg. 04 �The Gadfly 04 Continued From Pg. 03 broad view to any challenge that arises, then it would be a grave mistake to pass up on the opportunity to hire me—due in large part to the nature of my education at St. John’s. They hired me. How would you characterize your field as a whole? Is it accessible to newcomers or difficult to enter? Stable or fluid? Etc. Tech and entrepreneurship are both pretty accessible to newcomers. It’s pretty easy to enter, but can be tough to excel. The main reason is that entrepreneurship is highly volatile. What was your senior essay topic? My senior essay was about the relationship between the continuous and discrete; in particular, about the asymmetry between analysis and synthesis (e.g., a line fully describes all the points on it—analysis—but any number of points cannot describe a line fully—synthesis). I looked at it with a mind towards the involvement of human perception and cognition in our construction of ways to address the odd disparity between the way the functions of analysis and synthesis operate on what we perceive as continuous and discrete. What is your favorite book on the Program? That’s a really tough question. Some small elements of various books have proven to be immensely valuable to me: for example, several of Pascal’s pensées have become long-term themes of personal growth for me. Several parts of the New Testament have been utterly transformational for me. Parts of Kant’s Critique of Judgment (precept), such as the encounter with the sublime, affected me a lot. Do you find that you lead a philosophical life? Yes, to the best of my ability. I would definitely sacrifice “success” or “progress” for wisdom. I believe the proverb: “Wisdom is foremost; though it cost you all you have, get understanding” (Proverbs 4:7). I have four excellent kids and my wife (also a Johnnie) and I focus on that as a principal endeavor with them. Whenever I encounter an idea, I think the most important thing I can do is follow it with the question, “How, then, shall I live?” ! Habemus Papam! Pope Francis I Takes the World Stage Melissa Gerace A A’15 fter Pope Benedict XVI’s brave sion has been reached, and white to announcement that he would step signal the election of the next pope. down, leaving the seat of St. Peter empThis year, conclave began on Tuesty, the world wondered who would be day, February 12, and ended the folselected to take his place. At times, lowing afternoon. The world watched the media seemed to be in an uproar the chimney atop the Sistine Chaat the very rare instance of abdication, pel, anxiously awaiting the sight of seeming to forget that the Catholic white smoke. It came just after 7 p.m., Church has been selecting new popes CET. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergofor thousands of years. Misinforma- glio of Argentina had been chosen. tion and misconceptions were every- Bergoglio is the first non-European where. Catholics might have been pope, the first Jesuit, the first Latin asked bewildering questions such as: American, and the first to choose the “Will the new pope allow contracep- name “Francis”—the media has altion?” or “Will the new pope allow ready taken to calling him “the ponwomen to become priests?” I know I tiff of firsts.” Bergoglio, at seventy-six was, and found myself at rather a loss. years old, is a humble, intellectual man My first instinct was simply to answer, known for his simple style of living, “Um…no.” However, doctrinal conservain the list of questism, and dedication Bergoglio is the first tions asked beginto Catholic social non-European pope, justice. His choice of ning with, “You’re the first Jesuit, the Catholic, right?”, the name Francis, for my favorite has St. Francis of Assisi, first Latin-American, been, “Who will you and the first to choose further illustrates vote for, for pope?” these qualities. the name “Francis”— Though votes do Pope Francis I the media has already greeted his Church figure in to the selectaken to calling him tion of a new pope, on that Wednesday “the pontiff of firsts.” evening in simple they do not come from the laity. Cardiwhite, choosing not nals cast their vote in conclave. The to step up on a platform which would law of conclave was begun after the elevate him above the Cardinals. He election that placed Pope Gregory led all in three well-known, important X in the seat of St. Peter, an election prayers: the Our Father, Hail Mary, which lasted over two years and nine and Gloria. In another first, he asked months. It finally ended when the lo- the crowd of thousands to pray for cal authorities became fed up with him. In a world full of noise and chathe delay and locked the cardinals in. os, he asked for and received silence In order to prevent such a scandal in from the gathered crowd, bowing bethe future, Gregory X, in the fifth ses- fore them as they asked for blessing sion of the Second Council of Lyons, upon him. He followed this by urging promulgated the law of the conclave. prayer and brotherhood among the Cardinals are closed in to a room Church, and offering his first blessing. without partition where no commu- The prayers of the Catholic Church nication may be had in secret, and no are with Pope Francis I as he begins message may be sent to the outside. his ministry, and the world is watching The only communication between with interest to see what the papacy of the conclave and the world is the fa- this humble, intelligent man will bring. mous colored smoke from the Sistine It is my opinion that we can expect great Chapel chimney: black if no deci- things from the “pontiff of firsts.” ! “ �The Gadfly 05 Visiting Samuel Weinberg A A’14 long with Maca Pallares and Grace Tyson (‘13), I spent a weekend at Chicago’s Shimer College the second weekend of spring break. We were there presenting papers for the ACTC (Association of Core Texts and Courses) student conference on “Core Texts and Liberal Education,” along with thirtyseven students from almost as many institutions. Shimer College is a curious place. Since 2006, it has been housed on two rented floors of the Illinois Institute of Technology on Chicago’s South Side. Before that time, the school was not without its problems—in the late 70s, after a vote from the board of trustees to close the school, the faculty and students protested, and instead moved the operation to Waukegan, Illinois, where they remained until 2006. With the assistance of Lynne Cheney and the N.E.H., Shimer was able to stay afloat and remain relatively fiscally stable. In 2009, Shimer became embroiled in a stark ideological battle when another N.E.H. bigwig, Thomas Lindsay, staged what many thought was a neo-conservative takeover of the school. Through a no confidence vote, the faculty and students of Shimer ousted Lindsay, and in so doing, rid themselves of all the financial security that he would have brought to the College. When I asked senior Michael What’s more, though, is how inspiring Doherty about the decision, he told me the Shimer community’s ardent devothat it was far more important to preserve tion to their work is. Throughout their the ethos of the place than it would have history and all of the aforementioned been to, in his words, be “rolling in it.” financial instability, there is a real sense In any case, Shimer remains certain- that many of the members of the faculty ly uncertain about its financial future. really believe in what they are doing and The College currently has around 110 are willing to keep the spirit of Shimer students and fourteen faculty mem- alive, even if that means renting a floor bers. While it is a “great books college,” from a technical college. Often, at St. its program varies from St. John’s’ in John’s, we speak of the inevitable doom many important ways. While it has a that will come upon us before we know core curriculum of classes, many classes it, but my visit to Shimer makes me retaken by “Shimerians” are electives, all alize how good we have it. Sure, I will of which are broken concede that the future up into subject headof liberal education We’re not alone in ings such as “Humaniseems questionable at ties,” “Social Sciences,” valuing liberal educa- best, with the sad fact “Natural Sciences,” and that American’s expection and the virtues “Integrated Studies.” In tations are tending far of the Great Books. their upper level classmore towards demones, Shimer tends much strable, vocationally more towards modernism than we do. oriented education than liberal educaDuring our first meal, one of their pro- tion. That said, it was truly a privilege fessors (there called “facilitators”) was to speak with so many students from a truly shocked that Durkheim and Buber school far from ours and recognize our are nowhere to be found in our studies. overwhelming similarities and prioriBut despite the differences—of which ties. In the national conversation on the there are many more—we are more simi- future of liberal education, it would be lar than different. I felt a strange sense of easy to overlook Shimer College, but camaraderie with the Shimer students my visit there showed me that that is a whom I spent time with on my Saturday sad thing. Just as the Program has irnight there, and not only because their revocably changed all of us, the educabookshelves were lined with Joe Sachs’ tion the Shimer students have received translations of Aristotle and the unmis- has been just as valuable for them. Even takably hued Newton’s Principia: The though I visited Shimer with a healthy Central Argument. At a student’s apart- dose of incredulity, which I perhaps still ment, we collectively bemoaned the fact have to a small degree, I left with adthat both institutions are attracting far miration for their commitment to their fewer students than they should be. This work, and a sense of comfort that we are was followed by a laugh that was both not alone in valuing liberal education comforting and slightly disheartening. and the virtues of the Great Books. ! !"#$%&'())*+'!,%-.$/0-1 Chazaq Llinas Title/topic? “Reflecting on the Generation of Knowledge,” focusing on Plato’s Theaetetus Why this work/topic? I wanted to understand what knowledge is as it is coming-into-being, or, what is knowledge when one is coming to know? “ Advisor? Mr. Salem Writing Period strategy? The first task was to structure the day: I woke up early, exercised, meditated, and went to the library. Then, I was able to focus on the task of reading, thinking, and writing. The hardest task was to not allow my thought to be routine. I tried to cultivate a habit of thought that was both strong and flexible. Advice? Let everyone read your paper. Enjoy this rare moment when all the parts of one’s life share a common telos. �The Gadfly 06 !"#$%&'$()$*+,-'&.,/#0#,'1 !"#$%&'$(()"*%+,-." Nathan Goldman I A’14 n literary critic Viktor Shklovsky’s 1925 masterwork, Theory of Prose, he seeks to explain how literature works in a series of deftly argued and lyrical essays examining works as disparate as Don Quixote and the Sherlock Holmes novels. He delivers: in the book’s very first chapter, “Art as Device,” he presents his theory of art’s function. Shklovsky writes: but found ways to see and discover strangeness, complexity, and wonder. The works alert our attention to this strangeness: where we might hear the obvious meaning of the word “knowledge,” Plato heard profound uncertainty; where we see shapes ambling through the sky, Ptolemy saw the epicycles, elaborate and divine. Often, the authors even thwart our normal means of communication and Automatization eats away at expression to enstrange. Euclid dethings, at clothes, at furniture, at fines a point as “that which has no our wives, and at our fear of war... part,” and Aristotle interprets the And so, in order to return sensaworld through the alien concept of tion to our limbs, in order to make entelecheia. The notion of enstrangus feel objects, to make a stone feel ment provides a way of unlocking a stony, man has been given the tool text: How and by what means, I might of art. The purpose of art, then, is ask, does this work help me re-see evto lead us to a knowledge of a thing erything around and within me? through the organ of sight instead In these cases, the works do the enof recognition. stranging; our tasks are to look anew Shklovsky’s term for this process and to investigate the enstrangeis ostraniene; a Russian neologism, ment’s source. Other times, the onus which translator Benjamin Sher is on us. Studying foundational works renders as “enstrangement.” Art, is not without its dangers: we may Shklovsky claims, re-awakens us; it too readily accept familiar ideas or makes us see objects in their complex- fail to see strangeness and complexity rather than recognize symbols in ity even as the works alert us to it. their mundanity. Art exists to make When Locke discusses property, it’s the world strange to us—“to make a difficult for me to encounter the idea stone feel stony.” directly. Because I’ve Shklovsky’s theory lived with property all How and by is a fascinating attempt my life, I’m tempted to what means, I to answer fundamenmerely nod along rathmight ask, does er than wrestle with it. tal aesthetic questions: this work help What is art, what is it In Genesis, some being me re-see evfor, and how does it creates the world and work? But enstrangeerything around sees that it is good. In ment is useful, too, and within me? our pervasively monoapart from its intended theistic world, it’s hard use: it’s a fruitful way to think about to realize that “What is a god?” is not how works we study at St. John’s an insipid question. might affect us. Much of what we In these cases, the works alone study is art in the sense that Shk- may fail to fully enstrange our world. lovsky means it. One way to under- Our task, then, is to assist them: to stand the beauty of a chorale from the read actively, attentively, and someSt. Matthew Passion is as a process of times outside ourselves. We must musical enstrangement. But how can shake ourselves from our own comwe bring the theory to bear on works placence: stop nodding along and of philosophy, mathematics, or natu- instead search for nuances and oddiral science? ties. We must meet the authors on the Great works in these genres en- page and, as they were before us, be strange our world, too; the thinkers willing not only to see, but to re-see— we read lived amidst daily mundanity and thus to see far more fully. ! “ /$.$("+." 0$1&-%"2+%.'.3 ! Erik G. Neave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�THE BADFLY !"#$%&'()*&+, !-.(/$.0/(&1&2-3(&4/.*&+5 3$.-"3$%6-3.(/3$.-"3$%&+7 8"9(&1&:$/;(3&+< !"#$"%&'"(%)*"(+#,&-./(0(1)"&#.)"2&#3445 St. John’s College • 60 College Ave, Annapolis, MD 21401 • Apr. 02, 2013 • Vol. XXXIV • Issue 18 �THE BAD FLY - PAGE Local News 02 !"#$%&$'#()*+,#$)-("./&$)0+12 (&345)67&&/#/)8."#)-("./##)*+2 ,#$/)9&)0:.1 A !"#$%&'("&%)%*+,'-,. ,/01'23$#4'%5'604",' 78*+/990'*:"';#"'3$#4' *%'3+9"'<:"='799> O ne senior essay is causing quite a stir in fantasy/ancient Greek literature circles. Senior Thomas Underhill’s 126page essay on Herodotus’s Histories argues that the ring of Gyges, which appears early in Herodotus’ account of the attempted conquest of Greece by Persia, is the same ring that descends to Mr. Frodo Baggins in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. Writes Underhill, “A close textual analysis clearly shows that Herodotus and J.R.R. Tolkien are discussing the same piece of magical jewelry.” While some tutors have expressed skepticism at Underhill’s conclusions, Underhill insists that it’s common sense: “Come on, man, think about it: this ring turns you invisible; that ring turns you invisible. You don’t have to be Gandalf the White to figure this one out. Or, hell, even Gandalf the Gray. Look, it’s not like I’m saying Xerxes is Sauron or something crazy like that.” Mr. Underhill’s oral examination is set for late April. # NNAPOLIS, MD—She says that it started because of too much stress but that “after a while, I really started to enjoy it.” A tutor who stupidly agreed to advise multiple senior essays says that she “just started screwing with them” when she realized she did not have time to put in the effort required. “At first I just nodded my head when they talked, and if they asked questions, I said something that sounded vaguely Socratic. But after a while, I realized they might catch on, so I started making concrete suggestions. Before I knew it, my Newton student was incorporating derivatives, and another student actually took my advice to write the whole thing in Latin verse!” She says the power is intoxicating. “It’s not just their interpretation of a great text I’m destroying; it’s their entire future! It’s so much fun!” The tutor says she has already queried several juniors about advising them next year. ! !"#$%&'(&$#)*'+,'-./"' 012"3'$#'4&"5",.%&$16 “W e were dumbfounded,” says a female senior. “We just looked at him like, ‘Are you serious? Someone slap me. Like, are you SERIOUS?’” That is the reaction coming out of the Maxwell Electromagnetism preceptorial, where a senior reportedly referenced Plato’s Cave approximately an hour into the conversation. Says a classmate, “We were just going along, having a great class, and he brings this shit up—from what, like freshman year? The whole class just stopped.” After three minutes of stunned silence, the tutor ended the class early: “In my 27 years at the College, I have never stopped class before 10:10pm. But sometimes you just can’t recover.” Says the senior, who requested anonymity: “I mean, I thought it was relevant.” $ !"#$%&'(#)*+,-' ,(.+,*(#%&' /-('0(,&'%+1!' 2("#%)1(-3 +$*(1')1'%",!(' 4+%#'.,)1*'"1#' "55+6."1)(#'4&' )1*(,7(5*)+1-' "1#'/11(5(--",&' 5%"/-(-3*+'$)%%' (6.*&'-."5( Student Graduates, Stays in Annapolis A lumnus Tyler Smalls, who graduated with the class of 2012, says he “just couldn’t bear to leave” Annapolis after completing his St. John’s degree. “It’s a great town. I love the tourists. There’s water.” The former Johnnie, who hails from Bowie, MD, says he loves being far from home and experiencing “independence.” He is subletting a bedroom on East Street, where he says he spends “heavenly” evenings drinking Natty Boh and rereading Plotinus. He is employed as a “go-fer” at City Dock Coffee, but he says upper management is considering training him to be a barista. He credits his St. John’s education: “During my time as an undergraduate, I spent enormous amounts of time in coffee shops. St. John’s also prepared me to think critically, and I think my bosses have noticed that. This upward mobility Alumnus Tyler Smalls, A’12, living the dream. is exciting.” " �THE BAD FLY - PAGE Literature & Fine Arts 03 !"#$%&'!(%$)*'+,*"-&' .$/'!01*&'2341*,$,*1"5 67*'809*,*4:*&; !"#$%&'()*+ %',-*./(0)&*.$11$'23$4* !"/4,-205*6$4'27,-(*8$9(*.3(0( L auren and Michael, who had been dating on and off for nearly three months, broke things off last week, citing “interpretative differences.” Said Lauren, “If you ask me, Cato was a self-righteous fool who spilled his guts for nothing. Caesar would have been merciful, and perhaps Cato could have reasoned with him and rectified the situation. But instead he martyrs himself on the floor. It was childish. ‘I’m taking my ball and going home,’ that sort of thing.” Lauren says Michael refused to stand with her in this important judgment. “I was not comfortable moving forward with someone who saw things so differently. It was a tipping point. I mean, what would we have taught our future son Julius?” Said Michael, “JULIUS? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?” " !"#$%&'()%%* +',-./01-23'4'5.-673'41/' 548967':4-072';04/'-<0' !"#$% G adfly readership is at an all-time high, a new Gadfly/ABC poll reports. Six students, one tutor, and Taylor Waters read the Gadfly, which appears every two weeks (or something like that) in the Coffee Shop. Of the six students, five are freshmen, all of whom say that they do not plan to continue next year. One reports, “I always think this issue will be better, but by the end I’m thinking, ‘Good God. What am I doing with my life?’” Taylor Waters admits she wouldn’t be caught near the thing unless it were part of her job, while the tutor only reads it when fatigued by annual essays. Says the sixth student, a junior, “I read it for the typos.” ! Primum Mobile Seeks Makeover; Plans to Perform One Direction at Spring Collegium T hey are known for their exclusive audition process and renditions of folksy crowd favorites like Palestrina, but the College’s premiere choral group, Primum Mobile, says it is heading in a new direction—that is, over the pond to the British Isles, from whence hails boy band sensation One Direction. “It’s so fresh,” says one member of Primum Mobile. “Catchy beats, smooth melodies, sweet harmonies.” Says another, “It’s the lyrics, man. ‘You don’t know you’re beautiful. And that’s what makes you beautiful.’ God, it’s so clever!” The members hope that a new style will make them more “culturally relevant.” “Palestrina, Purcell, Byrd—sure, we know people love oldies. But you have to keep up with the times, sing what the kids are into. I mean, isn’t riding the trends what this College is all about?” The group says they are considering new haircuts and skinny jeans. ! !"#$"%"&'()*+',-".&'*/))01*2%#&"3',* 41*/504"&06'*7"3'&*809' .'%)(0':&*;< $9,-2'(*=%,'(&>*,0* < $3(1,,?*@%&'*<244()*A2'#* .0$//B*C-,5$7*D0(EF20(-& !"#$%&'()"* +,%#(-%+."''"'( /&#,+0(1#234( 56,+"7(18297(:( );2#8!%<"=(<>"( ?%%8'@A$"#9( B2'<(1+"CD �THE BAD FLY - PAGE 04 National/International !"#$%&'()*$+(,-./*,"01$2&3$4.)/.$2&"$ "'.$5/&67."$!8'&&9$,($:((;<&9,*= P ublic relations personnel at St. John’s University in Queens, New York, are reportedly becoming increasingly frustrated about having to clarify incorrect notions about the school’s identity. The school’s PR head says that the university receives at least a dozen calls a day inquiring about croquet scholarships and a “Great Books program.” She says that the confusion, which has overwhelmed the university’s phone lines, has caused several employees to quit. One has even checked into a mental health rehabilitation program. St. John’s University’s president is currently in talks with President Nelson to determine ways to combat the misconception. The university’s PR head admits that she breaks into tears multiple times a day. She“We have basketball! Doesn’t anyone watch basketball anymore?!” " !"#"$%"&"'()*%+$,-.$$"%$"!'/%,!% &,$$(0(%&1((23%0.$$.")%4!'(1%/.(0( Love for Plaid Compels GI to Enter Undergraduate Program I t was love for fashion and philosophy, says Joseph Freeman, that convinced the first-year Graduate Institute student to enroll in the undergraduate program. “I decided I could not live on the edge. I would always be sitting in the Master’s classes thinking, ‘What am I missing, just across the Quad? I couldn’t take the sweater vests and old people.” He says he knew that he needed a second undergraduate degree. It will take some adjustment, he admits, but he says he is ready to “embrace their ways.” He plans to grow out his hair, add scruff, go days between baths—and, of course, give up the Polo for the popular plaid. “It’s really amazing how many people here look like lumberjacks,” he says. “I always wanted to be a lumberjack.” Joseph says that the Graduate Institute was like “Johnnie-Lite.” “And if I’m already disappointing my parents by getting a M.A. in the ‘Liberal Arts’—well, I figured I should just commit.” He says his parents no longer pick up his phone calls and have unfriended him on Facebook. “But that’s okay. Who needs financial support when you have dialectic, right?” # !"#"$%&'"()*+%,"-.'/)0% 1-23240)%542)67280%9403$"+% :7%;)$)<2":)%=.(%7>%173/? 7*72)@A-.472%=00"+%B)247( A nnapolis shook with a surprise light show just after 10 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26, when the Naval Academy launched a 20-minute fireworks display to celebrate the end of the sophomore and junior essay writing periods at St. John’s College across the street. “You kids worked hard,” says the mid who came up with the idea, “and since we couldn’t come and drink ourselves into comas like you, we thought this was the next best thing.” Said the commandant, “We sail the seven seas and protect our nation from harm. But 15 to 20 pages, double-spaced? Damn. Now that’s hard work.” President Nelson was honored by the display. “It was such an unexpected delight to share this celebration with our neighbors, and in such a wonderful way. I mean, who doesn’t like to blow shit up, am I right?” ! !"#$!%&'#()*+,-' ./0'1/-2)*3'/*' "4)5'+6(+'71)8'9(2,' :/;,-'<//2'<)2,' =>-?,-@'!6@;,?A !"#$%&'()*+,-./012*$.3.*&4*52-*612*%278*$29: ;/<2=>*?@-2A<2=*5B-,*CDDD*E-1,.*74*F/<G7.7@/9 A NNAPOLIS, MD—Students and tutors alike began to weep openly Thursday night when a freshman demanded to know “whether anyone can know anything, really,” during a seminar on Aristotle’s Physics. “I mean come on, how can you know anything when life is just…like that, you know? Definitely been on my mind lately. It’s like you can’t even be sure of anything.” Shocked by this new approach to the reading, several students requested to leave, while a tutor across the hall vomited upon hearing of it from panicked members of the administration. “I’ve never heard anything like it,” said a tenured tutor who claimed to be “utterly blindsided” by the statement. “I thought the Physics was about defining essential concepts like space and time. It turns out I—I don’t know anything. This student is undoubtedly the major thinker of our time.” Others were less sure. “By all means, I think this is a remarkably brilliant student we have on our hands,” said an anonymous member of the faculty. “But I guess my fear is that we’re latching on to what may be just a small part of his emerging doctrine. I’m going to wait until he analyzes the Phaedrus and see what happens.” In a prepared address to the Polity, the student recommended “not doing the seminar reading and just going balls to the wall.” # !"#$%& '()*$#+,%-.+/"'0% 12 (),3%4#)5%!#$(% 16+7.'/#5/+83 �THE BAD FLY - PAGE Home & Garden 05 !"#$%&'()$*+,#-./0&.#-1$234$5"36$."#$7#88$!4388- !"#$%&'()""*"+,(&-( W hat has been for years a staple “So, what does this have to do with in the daily routine of Johnnies the bell tower?” you might ask. Well, campus-wide is now a solemn piece of believe it or not, the world of the 1970s St. John’s history: the bell tower tolls no just wasn’t ready for a hyper-intelligent, longer. Many students have inquired as half-man/half-salamander, so upon to why the beloved bell has ceased its graduation the Strauxolotl took up resipleasant proclamation at the end of ev- dence in the bell tower, feeding on the ery class, but the truth of the matter may snacks left over from waltz parties, and surprise you. On February 12 the Polity ringing our beloved bell at appropriate received an email from Ms. Kraus con- times during the day. It is for this service cerning the bell tower, which stated that to our community that we immortalized it was “unsafe” but him in the construction that “no other deof the Hodson House, The “Strauxolotl” was named and dedicated in tails” were available. a huge success. Too However, the email his honor. revealed one piece of But this story has an much of a success, information that, to unhappy ending to which some might say. an astute and careour silent bell speaks volful reader (of which umes. Several weeks ago, there are few, admittedly) revealed the our dear Strauxolotl, naïve in the affairs true reason for the tower troubles. of man, stumbled upon Reality’s alcoThe email in question said specifically hol stores in the top of McDowell and, that the bell had been “turned off” until having drunk his fill, he stumbled off further notice. But every Johnnie knows, his humble home and bashed his lovely, and I need not remind you, that the bell lizard brain on the bricks below. (I will is not automatic; our cheerful, chiming take this time to thank the Building & friend never has and never will have an Grounds team for their quick and effi“OFF switch.” Don’t believe me? Ask any cient response.) senior who was sober for the bell ringAnyway, the Strauxolotl, our friend ing ceremony (of which there are few, and ally for all these years, is no longer admittedly). with us. But his memory will live on: evNo, no. The real reason the bell has ery time we get drunk, every time a Don abandoned its chime is much more Rag goes poorly, every time we get sexshocking, and much more solemn. It is iled, every time we fail to finish a reading a little known but well remembered fact and bullshit our way through seminar, that, upon Leo Strauss’s unfortunate the Strauxolotl will be with us, watching and untimely death in 1973, a council of us. Our quiet bells will be an ever presrespected and venerable tutors held a ent reminder of his faithfulness to this meeting (a “seminar,” if you will) about Program. what was to be done. Leo Strauss had, Inspired by: Robert George (A’15) ! in accord with his sociopolitical ideals, left an unintelligible will concerning his endowment to the College that had to be deciphered by the council. After one hour and fifty-eight minutes of competing opinions, and two minutes of actual textual references, the following decision was reached: samples of Strauss’s DNA were to be reengineered for and spliced with the body of an axolotl. The “Strauxolotl” was a huge success. Too much of a success, some might say. Its rate of growth was highly irregular and, due to its almost immediate sentience, the Strauxolotl was able to enroll in the undergraduate program, becoming one of the first non-human students at St. John’s (of which there are few, admittedly). “ .%/"(01(&-(2&3(4#5" A fter recent reports of students failing to clear the lint screens of the Campbell dryers, the Reality archons have decided to change the theme of Reality Weekend to something more appropriate for the seniors’ coming graduation. “Initially, we were planning on a Manny Sy-Quia-themed Reality, but once we realized the majority of the student body never cooks their own meals, we got a little worried,” notes one Reality archousa. “I mean, if even one student doesn’t know how to make pasta, there’s a problem. We just want to make it so real life doesn’t seem quite so daunting.” After hearing that several seniors have never been without a dishwasher, Reality decided to bring in some local adults to give some advice to the class that will be graduating this May. “Rather than performing some amusing but ultimately uselesss skits, we’ve decided to bring in a local accountant to talk about making a balanced budget,” a Reality archon said. “We’ve also got events planned all through Saturday about how to buy groceries, clean bathrooms, and parallel park. We’re excited to be able to offer the seniors something they need, instead of just a weekend lounging around drinking beer all day.” A recent poll reveals that 54 percent of graduating seniors plan on moving back in with their parents after Commencement. " 6%+%+7(8#9( :&#;(:"<="&$'( >='%+7(&-(?=@3A( :B,"+&3C(:1%=D %&3(E'(F=#,@#9'( !"5-/%+7(G9( H#=3A5#9-I3( ! "#$%&'()*$"'+(,%+-.'( J=-5(.@<*'( /-#+01234#()+521-%(6+7-*' ?A#=53 �THE BAD FLY - PAGE 06 !"#$%&"'()*%+(,&-.)/01%)/-0$)2-+%)34) 0&$#.5%&")!%60&-+)7%6-+8() Personals !"#"$%"&'$()( *''+(",(-&#./(0 Aries (March 21 – April 19) Your swing partner says you have two left feet, which sets you wondering whether the prosthesis was installed correctly. Taurus (April 20 – May 20) Your particularly impressive performance at the board in math class will set in motion a variety of forces unsympathetic to your excellent memory for Euclid. !"#$%&'#()*+,'%-./&01+2344*+34*5+ 6.&7+&/+8+94:0;+<:7.+=>+?:@%A A fter initially declaring he had “finally discovered where I’m meant to be,” following his first seminar, this year’s Older Freshman has reportedly had a change of heart. “Good God!” he exclaimed. “I’m 28 years old working on my undergraduate degree? What am I doing with my life?!” The sudden insecurity came after an angry phone call with his parents, who said that he was an “adult” and should be “supporting himself by now, goddamnit.” The freshman says that the prospect of graduating at 32 is frightening, regardless of the marketable degree he will receive. “32. Oh, God. 32! Will I even be fertile then?!” " !"#$%&'(#)'*+,($-./($0,##+1)/23$ 4#5#$67(8,./&9$:(;&/;'&/<$=*7</(*$ >?/($@'))/<$,($*,$%&'(#)'*/ S ources confirm that freshman Tim Keeley, having barely made it to his 9 a.m. language tutorial after a night of heavy drinking, narrowly evaded embarrassment by asking what he later described as “one of those bullshit ‘philosophical questions.’” Several students reported dismay as their tutor pursued the question with an eager glimmer in her eye, forgetting all about the difficult section of Plato’s Meno that Keeley had been assigned. “I can’t believe it worked,” said one agitated student. “It was actually one of the best classes we’ve had all year,” reported another. “We ultimately decided that it’s basically futile to try to preserve more than a minute fraction of an author’s intended meaning. Then we ran out of time and the tutor assigned twenty more lines of Greek to translate.” Keeley proceeded to his math tutorial, for which he had failed to prepare an involved proposition specifically assigned to him. A classmate reports that Jenkins opened the class by asking ponderously, “What is mathematics?” # Senior Filibusters Oral with 58-minute Precis Gemini (May 21 – June 21) Your tutors will say that you have extraordinary lung capacity—which at first sounds like a compliment. Cancer (June 22 – July 22) It’s not Plato’s fault that you cannot tell the difference between Phaedo and Phaedrus. Leo (July 23 – August 22) Your next lab class will be particularly shocking, as the ER doctors will inform you when you regain consciousness. Virgo (August 21 – September 22) Drag Ball will create all sorts of new questions for you. Libra (September 23 – October 23) No one had thought of making a C Team for basketball before you came along. Scorpio (October 24 – November 21) Unlike an axolotl, your digits do not grow back. Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21) When you started the “Johnson Study Group,” you were thinking of Samuel. Capricorn (December 22 – January 19) How many ways can you incorrectly pronounce the protagonist’s name? Thursday night you’ll find out. Aquarius (January 20 – February 18) Practice makes perfect: “Tall, Grande, or Venti?” Pisces (February 19 – March 20) After months of your Kant-related puns, the quiet kid in the hoodie who sits next to you will finally snap. ! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 18 [The Badfly] Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-04-02 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 18 of The Gadfly. Special issue entitled The Badfly. Published on April 02, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.18 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Badfly Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/df85e8337cf960ace2d57d1fcbdff49e.pdf e76eafeb8c394a71454bdb7031faa47b PDF Text Text !"#$%&'()*+, !"#$ %&'()* St. John’s College • 60 College Ave, Annapolis, MD 21401 • Apr. 20, 2013 • Vol. XXXIV • Issue 19 A Special Kind of Rivalry Growth and the Abyss of Self Meet the Teams Over the Wall Senior Drew Menzer, Imperial Wicket, muses on the singular nature of the SJC/USNA rivalry—one that unites, not divides. Senior Jonathan Barone reflects on four years in St. John’s’ intramural program and the unique form of growth that athletics fosters. The Gadfly introduces the St. John’s College, Annapolis, 2013 Croquet Team and their challengers from the U.S. Naval Academy. Senior Danny Kraft dons the blue and gold and goes undercover on the Yard to find out what the Midshipmen think of their rivals. Page 04 Page 05 Pages 06-09 Page 12 Follow the Gadfly online at: �the gadfly !" The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newspaper distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Articles submitted will be edited for grammar, punctuation, spelling, and length in most cases. The Gadfly is not obligated to publish all submissions except under special circumstances. The Gadfly meets every Sunday at 7 PM in the lower level of the Barr-Buchanan Center. Articles should be submitted by Friday at 11:59 PM to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Editorial Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Henley Moore • Photographer Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Staff Jonathan Barone Will Brown Robert Malka Sarah Meggison Charles Zug Contributors Annemarie Catania Connor Callahan Drew Menzer Painter Bob Pres. Chris Nelson Keenan Trotter !"##"$%&$'(%#)"%*+,#'$- ./01*012 D 34%.5/67*1% Pg. 2 • Letter from the Editors Pg. 3 • A Spectator’s Guide to the Rules of Croquet by Annemarie Catania Pg. 3 • Letter from President Nelson Pg. 4 • A Special Kind of Rivalry by Drew Menzer Pg. 4 • What’s In A Game? by Connor Callahan Pg. 5 • Growth and the Abyss of Self by Jonathan Barone 38%19*%1*:;2 Pg. 6 • The 2013 U.S. Naval Academy Croquet Team Pg. 8 • The 2013 St. John’s College Croquet Team 43%19*%./!!*<* Pg. 10 • How to Live A Good Life by Robert Malka Pg. 10 • Don’t Define ‘Justice’ in a Paper by Will Brown Pg. 11 • Weird, Pretentious, Druggie, Racist by Keenan Trotter Pg. 12 • Over the Wall by Danny Kraft ear Johnnies, Mids, Family, and Other Guests, Welcome to the 31st annual SJC vs. USNA Croquet Match! Whether your trip to our front lawn began in Randall Hall or across the nation, we hope that your weekend is full of laughter, song, sport, and good conversation (and maybe a drink or three). The Croquet Issue of the Gadfly is part of the time-honored tradition that is Croquet Weekend. We are honored to be a part of that tradition, and we hope you find these pages an engaging companion to the weekend’s festivities. In this issue, you’ll find different perspectives on the value of rivalry and sport. Imperial Wicket Drew Menzer (A’13) considers what distinguishes the SJC/USNA rivalry from others, while Connor Callahan (A’14) argues that competition encourages community. Staff sports writer Jonathan Barone (A’13) goes beyond the croquet field and asks how his active role in St. John’s’ intramural program has allowed him to grow. But this issue isn’t all about games. Elsewhere in these pages, our writers examine St. John’s College from within and without. Will Brown (A’16) and Robert Malka (A’15) each reflect on how this past year has shaped them; together, their accounts offer a glimpse into what it’s like to live the first two years of the St. John’s Program. Keenan Trotter (A’12) and Danny Kraft (A’13) take us off-campus: in a piece from the Gadfly archives, Trotter examines a spectrum of outside takes on the College, while Kraft ventures a trip across the street to the Naval Academy to see just what the Midshipmen have to say about their neighbors. Of course, we also have our annual Q&A with the croquet teams of both colleges and, for those of you who forgot your rulebooks at home, a helpful guide to the rules of croquet from alumna Annemarie Catania (A’97). President Nelson’s letter to the Polity considers the importance of the educations offered by both St. John’s and the Naval Academy to main- taining a free nation—and, of course, calls for Johnnie victory today. In a Croquet Issue first, Gadfly poet Painter Bob has composed for us two pieces inspired by the match. And, as she has for the past two years, cartoonist Sasha Welm (A’14) has penned elegant, fun-filled sketches featuring the Johnnie platypus and Bill the Goat. We want to extend our thanks to our contributors, to our tireless staff, and to Hayden Pendergrass (A’14), layout editor extraordinaire. It has been our privilege to work with you all over the past year, and we look forward to doing so again in the fall! Now, without any further ado—let the games begin! Sincerely, Nathan Goldman and Ian Tuttle Co-Editors, 2012-2013 �the gadfly !" !"#$%&'(')*+,"-./0% ')"'1%"2.3%,")4"5*)6.%' 13 15 14 11 10 9 12 8 Start & Finish 1 4 2 3 6 7 5 Illustration by Hayden Pendergrass tinuation gained by completion of the wicket shot. Scoring a wicket erases whatever effects the player may have incurred by hitting balls prior to by Annemarie Catania, A’97 going through it. Although hitting a ball has the s you sit in the sun, eating, drinking, and advantage of two continuation shots from that possibly burning, you may discuss the ball, it also means going dead on that ball. This game of croquet. In the midst of this com- means the ball struck cannot be hit again before munity picnic, your attention may turn to the the striking ball goes through another wicket. Lest the rules become too complicated for your game. Just in case this happens, you may be interrelaxing brain, take a sip of your drink of choice, ested in the rules of croquet. Today’s game is traditional American nine- sit back, and observe the deadness board. This wicket croquet, essentially following the rules of scoreboard of sorts keeps track of which balls have the United States Croquet Association. Each of the already been hit. Each ball has its own row with five matches consists of two Johnnies versus two three spaces that indicate which ball it is dead on. Middies. One team plays with the red and yellow At the beginning of the game, every ball is dead balls, and the other uses black and blue. The order on every other ball for the first shot. Any contact between balls on this turn is incidental. After this of play follows the colors painted on the stakes. The point of the game is to hit both balls of one shot, every ball becomes live on every other ball. team through all the wickets, hitting one stake Through the course of a game, going through a in the middle of the game, and the other stake at wicket restores liveness. The deadness board asthe end. The pattern zig-zags through the center sists the memories of those enjoying too much of wickets and the wickets to the right of the direc- their drinks of choice. This much knowledge will suffice for following tion of play. As you watch, you may notice that some players most of the game. The basic strategy is to advance have very short turns. We hope that these turns one’s own ball and one’s partner’s ball through as happen more often for the Midshipmen, since we many wickets as possible while deterring the othhope to allow them no other option than to set up er team’s balls as much as possible. You may hear for their wickets. A long turn is more advanta- the players politely referring to messing with the geous. You may hear someone asking, “How long other team by taking them off their sets, using stop has this Johnnie been playing this turn?” This shots to shoot them away from their wickets, and question indicates that the St. John’s player has taking advantage of them with split shots. The most cruelty you will see in this most civibeen using every opportunity for continuation quite successfully, and probably also means that lized of croquet matches will be in blocking, or in staking out the rover. The first of these is a simple the Johnnie player has run many wickets. Two types of shots result in continuation. One is defensive move. If a player’s opponent is dead on running a wicket (or scoring a wicket, as the USCA her ball, and the opponent is set up for his wicket, she may shoot her ball into a calls pushing one’s ball through place directly between his ball the metal structure). This re- Lest the rules become will obsults in one more shot. Although too complicated for your and the wicket. Thishe is able struct his shot unless going through the wicket is always the goal in mind, hitting relaxing brain, take a sip to execute a jump shot over her ball. a ball with one’s own ball may of your drink of choice, Staking out the rover is the be more immediately beneficial, since this type of shot results in sit back, and observe the most detrimental type of play, and occurs in the end game. two continuation shots. deadness board. When a ball has completed all Our friends from town may ask you about these two shots. As an articulate lib- the wickets and has not yet hit the final stake, it is eral arts student, you will provide them with the called a rover. An opponent has the opportunity to terminology for these turns, which even the play- hit that ball into the stake on a croquet shot. The ers do not bother to remember. The proper name staked-out ball must sit out for two turns, and hit for hitting another ball is “roquet.” (You may say, the stake at the other end of the field before coming “She has roqueted the ball.”) Upon hitting anoth- back into play. A rover still in play may go through er ball, the striking ball becomes cloaked, which wickets in any direction to gain continuation as means whatever happens to it before it stops roll- long as it is dead on two balls (or two-ball dead). ing is incidental and does not count. Impress your After going through a wicket, the rover remains friends by telling them that it does not exist. The temporarily dead on the ball it last hit before going official USCA term for this is a ball in hand. The through the wicket until it hits another ball. Have a fine time sunning yourself, eating, and player places the ball in hand next to the roqueted ball and shoots. This is called the croquet shot. drinking. Wander off to chat with friends and strangers. If you find yourself with further quesThe second shot is called continuation. Continuation is not cumulative. This means that tions on more complicated strategy or minor rules, a ball that runs a wicket on a croquet shot does not ask someone who often plays croquet to expound receive that continuation in addition to the con- on the game’s intricacies. [Editor’s Note: This article is reprinted with minor edits from a ’90s-era Croquet Issue of the Gadfly.] A 7%(*"8)3/'9" :%;<%*,= T he battle for honor and glory we are about to witness between two great institutions, testing their friendship on the playing fields of our front campus, is a test of the strength and endurance of a liberal education—for whichever side should claim victory today. Both of our institutions are dedicated to the principles of freedom—to the arts of liberty. This commitment to liberty, to freedom of speech and action, is what undergirds our nation. And it is our national duty to assure that each generation of citizens is well educated in the arts of freedom to protect them from attack and from atrophy. It ought to be the first concern of our schools, from pre-kindergarten through college, that our young acquire the freedom to make intelligent choices concerning the ends and means of both their public and private lives. This requires the cultivation and practice of the art of reason and understanding and discipline in analysis, argument, and interpretation, so that they may be free from the tyrannies of unexamined opinions, current fashions, and inherited prejudices. Our nation was founded on the idea that good government is grounded in its citizens’ intellectual freedom; our strength depends upon this idea. Our economy is grounded in the notion of free enterprise; the freedom we have to test our ideas against the needs and demands of the community has helped build the prosperity we have enjoyed as a society. This too depends upon the intellectual freedom of our citizens. And so it is with our social order and moral character. For the sake of our country, then, we need our citizens to have two kinds of education that are in a very healthy tension with one another: (1) an education in the political and intellectual foundations, including the economic, scientific and social traditions and principles that have shaped our nation, and (2) an education in the arts needed to question and examine those very foundations and traditions in the light of reason, so that we may keep them vibrant and alive, and so that we may redefine and improve on them when we discover we have good cause. These are called the arts of freedom because they are grounded in the kind of free inquiry that helps us understand our world better and inspires in us a sense of wonder and longing to learn more. We have given serious attention to questioning and understanding these concerns at St. John’s. And the Naval Academy has given its attention to educating our fleet of midshipmen to defend them. Both of our schools are needed to make for a free nation! Whoever wins this match between our schools will win in the name of an education devoted to freedom. So, then, as the outcome will weigh equally with respect to the state of our nation, the victory should go to the team that demonstrates its superiority in strategic engagement. Let the victory then belong to our Johnnies! Five Games to None!! All Honor and Glory Are Due! Chris Nelson (SF’70) President �the gadfly !"#$%&'()"*'+," -."/'0()12 !" L adies and Gentlemen, We are gathered here today for...for what? We’re not just here for a party, but we’re certainly not here for the sole purpose of watching an athletic competition either. This event means a lot to St. John’s, to the Naval Academy, and to the city of Annapolis, but what we have here is more than a simple rivalry between different teams. This isn’t like the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry I grew up with in Ohio. That kind of rivalry is more vicious; the relationship between the two teams is all about each asserting dominance over one another. It allows the members The difference between of the respective sides to form bonds amongst themselves, but there is no the rivalry I have with bond formed between Michigan and Michigan and the one Ohio, except maybe one of mutual we have with the Naval animosity. I get a little cranky just seeing Mr. Higuera wearing a Michigan Academy is that instead sweatshirt. of eroding the relationThe difference between the rivalry I have with Michigan and the one we ship between the two Academy is that teams, the Annapolis Cup have with the Naval the relationship instead of eroding strengthens it. between the two teams, the Annapolis Cup strengthens it. The competitive aspect of the match takes a backseat to the singing, drinking, dancing, and bonding that occurs on the front lawn. We all want to win, just not at the expense of the camaraderie of the Annapolis community. What we have is a spe- cial kind of rivalry that improves the relations among and between SJC and the USNA. It’s an honor to be a part of it, and I hope that everyone makes the most of this day. Take advantage of this wonderful event to remind yourself why we’re here and why this event is so special. Johnnies, go meet a Midshipman; Midshipmen, go meet a Johnnie. You’ll be glad you did. Drew Menzer Imperial Wicket ’13 <%'+="(5"54%"9(:% by Painter Bob, Poet-in-Residence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by Connor Callahan, Contributor, A’14 or over 30 years Annapolis has been the “real meaning of x,” and how we should all united across the broadest of spec- be thinking not about the material aspect, but trums—from the liberal arts to the art of about the story that lies beneath the matter. war—by a single civil lawn game. What do we This is a classic problem of form and matter. play for? Honor? Virtue? The oldest question Croquet Weekend, as an Annapolis holiday, is still stands: Why? The teams don’t play for something that we do because we like to drink pure supremacy; to do so would be an affront and dance. We like to get dressed up and have to community unity. a ball. But moreover, the form of the event, the When we challenge others, we merely seek very nature of the game that we are playing, to establish a binding friendship, because it’s is important. We need to ask ourselves what easier to create a guise of animosity than to as- the true meaning of our holiday is, and how we sert that we want to find out more about peo- can always be looking to emphasize those valple whom we are interested ues in our daily lives. in. Aristotle says that man is Croquet comes but once a a political animal, and while When we challenge year, but the games we play I don’t agree with much others, we merely seek happen every day. We are of what he says, I can still constantly bouncing ideas to establish a binding agree that we humans seek off of one another, helping out the other. And while the friendship, because it’s out one another and fightother may be a frightening easier to create a guise ing with the ideas we enconcept, man cannot help counter. The croquet field but extend his experience of animosity than to asis traversed twice, and in to others. Man congregates sert that we want to find its circular play we see that around his dead fruits of game doesn’t have to out more about people the there—in fact, we could labor (i.e., fermented fruits end and grains) to create the that we are interested in. envision an endless croquet most beautiful constructs of game that stretches back time and space (i.e., the croquet field). While to the beginning of our tradition and beyond. once we received much rhetoric of “us and And while one team at the end of the day will them,” the basic establishment of the games get to say that they’ve won, the truth is that we that we play presupposes a unity between all are all winning by coming out to celebrate a men. community that embraces two so apparently Around holidays there’s often much talk of different collegiate atmospheres. �the gadfly !" A Concise History of Croquet An Anachronistic Account of Croquet through the Program The Ancients by Hayden Pendergrass, Layout Editor, A’14 !!"#$%& Greek ships land on the shores of Troy. A ten-year croquet match ensues. '""$%& Socrates explores croquet’s virtues. He calls it a sophist’s game. !"#$%&'()*'%&+' ,-.//'#0'1+20 '")$*+ Augustine of Hippo disparages the Manicheans for playing too much croquet. !(,#$*+ Thomas Aquinas’ rotundity makes it impossible for him to play croquet. He writes the Summa instead. The Rennaissance & Reformation !.'/$*+ Jean Calvin outlines in the Institutes that all those predestined for salvation have to learn croquet. The Enlightenment !')-$*+ Geoffrey Chaucer travels to Canterbury to the shrine of Thomas à Becket with a 29-person croquet team. !,'"$*+ When philosophical speculation becomes too depressing, David Hume comforts himself by playing croquet with friends. !.)-$*+ Suffering from a kidney stone, Michel de Montaigne painfully swears that it must be the size of a croquet ball. !,),$*+ Immanuel Kant, in his Critique of Pure Croquet, states that the croquet ball travels “independently of all experience.” No one understands what that means. The Moderns R ecently, as I was walking back to my dorm perspective, if you never try to understand your after a basketball game, I received a text classmate, you will never grow. You will stagnate, from a friend asking whether I wanted to and, eventually, you will die an intellectual death. go out for a beer. The game had been particularly In this way, St. John’s forces you to grow. It forces contentious at times, and I had been swept up by you to talk to other people, and ultimately, it makes my passions and done something I later regretted. you stare into yourself. When you gaze into the I wanted someone to talk to, so I replied with an af- abyss of self, you must make the choice whether firmative, and the ensuing conversation we had at you will stay the same, or humble your indomitable the bar struck me. I realized that even though I had will. written about sports and our intramural program What makes the intramural program here so many times, I had failed to recognize a crucial as- strong is the fact that it provides an arena to strugpect of why I value the role sports have played in gle with these same issues in a more visceral way. my life. Through this conversation with my friend, Hard work and individual talent can only get you so I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and saw far. Just as seminar cannot succeed as a book club how sports had forced me to grow. for the educated with everyone trying to exert his I wish I could come up with a better word than own opinions, neither can a basketball team suc“grow,” because “grow” doesn’t quite capture the ceed as five individuals trying to make their voices essence of what I want to say. Anyone grows physi- heard above the rest. Sports require teamwork, cally when they play sports. Someone will become honest competition, and above all, the humility to stronger and more skilled with the ball when he decrease so that the team may increase. puts in the practice. His endurance will increase, I don’t think that I had really appreciated the he will be able to withstand more tackles, he will extent of this growth until that basketball game. perform better. He will grow Even though I had hit the mentally, too: by watching the I realized that even though clutch free-throw to win the game, he will be able to undergame, I came away from the stand the movements of his I had written about sports game staring into the abyss of body and his opponents. He and our intramural program my soul. I had confronted an will know when to conserve and acted in anger, many times, I had failed to opponentrecognition of what I energy and when to let loose. with full His mental toughness will in- recognize a crucial aspect of was doing. Walking back to my crease, and he will be able to why I value the role sports dorm, I realized that the motipersevere even when his body vation for my action was purehave played in my life. grows tired. ly selfish, and in a moment of These types of growth are choice, I decided to exert my natural results of human activity. They are also not individual will over an opponent. what I’m talking about. Any individual can achieve Looking back on that incident and the converall these kinds of growth through pure force of sation after the game, the opportunity for growth will. Through working hard and striving for this that the experience provided is not revelatory or growth, any person can become physically and redemptive on a cosmic scale. It isn’t a life-changmentally strong. But this sort of growth is strictly ing moment, and it’s only poignant to me because personal. Sport itself does not cause this develop- I went through it. But I believe it speaks to what ment, since it is an individual’s striving that ulti- sports have to offer us as human beings. Through mately produces this growth. sports, through this hand-to-hand competition However, we do not live in an isolated world. We with others, we are communicating with our teamlive, especially here at St. John’s, in a community. mates and opponents on a fundamental, essential On a fundamental level, we are able to function as level. As a result of this physical dialogue, we may a college because of everyone’s work. While each see tendencies or attitudes in ourselves that we individual has to put in the effort on his own to appreciate or dislike. When we see these things, understand the material, this school could never we are forced to make a choice as to whether we operate if each person were only looking out for will continue to act the way we always have, or himself and only trying to answer his own ques- will grow and develop. Ultimately, if we are to surtions. We are able to function as a community of vive and thrive in community, we must grow. This learning precisely because we realize that we have growth, while painful, is the choice of life. I think to work together. If we were to ignore our peers, we can agree that when we meditate on our time at this school could not function. St. John’s, it is the dialogues we had, the friends we And so this school forces you to work together, made, the community in which we partook, that to see your fellow man. If you never change your truly makes this place special. The Middle Ages by Jonathan Barone, Staff Writer, A’13 ()$*+ Jesus plays croquet for 40 days and 40 nights against Satan. He wins. !)""$*+ After years of psychological study, Sigmund Freud determines, “sometimes a croquet mallet is just a croquet mallet.” �GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY Steven Spada Dan Jacquier Brian Holloway David Murtha Erick Capulong Dillon Pierce Ash Davis Eric Bermudez • I play croquet because...I love contact sports. • In ten years, I will be...just as poor as I am now. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Robert E. Lee, Pat Tillman, and George Washington. • In the shower I sing...Sinatra and only Sinatra. • When I was little I dreamed of being ...out of New Jersey. • One book every person should read is...if I was better at reading books, I would have gone to St. John’s. • My epitaph will read: “Not a bad run for a fat kid.” • St. John’s College is...where I should have gone. I heard there was no math over there. • I play croquet because...it pays well. • In ten years, I will be...driving a flying car. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be…Oscar, Grover, and Big Bird. • In the shower I sing…I don’t shower. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... well-ventilated. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a garbage man. • One book every person should read is...my journal—really insightful stuff. • My epitaph will read...in a different language. • My teammates say I am...not at practice. • St. John’s College is...ranked number four in the nation for “Best Overall Quality of Life.” Looks like I picked the wrong school. • I play croquet because...I like being classy once in a while. • In ten years, I will be...flying stuff. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...one of the Wright brothers, Aubrey Plaza, and King Leonidas. • In the shower I sing...“Everytime We Touch” by Cascada. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... North Korea. • When I was little I dreamed of being... in space and winning the St. John’s 2013 croquet match. • One book every person should read is...Unbroken by Lauren Hillenbrand. • My epitaph will read: “Mos Eisley Spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.” • My teammates say I am...an Asian sensation. • I play croquet because...it’s classy. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Jason Statham, my dad, and Abraham Lincoln. • In the shower I sing...dubsteb. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... back in New Zealand. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a chef for some fancy restaurant in the UK. • One book every person should read is The Hobbit. • My epitaph will read: “I told you I was sick.” • My teammates say I am...well, I am not exactly sure what they say about me. • St. John’s College is...in trouble and needs to call Kenny Loggins, because come gameday they’ll be in the DANGER ZONE (cue music). • I play croquet because...I naively thought it would be fun. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...living. • In the shower I sing...“September” by Earth, Wind & Fire. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... inside a Ben & Jerry’s factory. • When I was little I dreamed of being... Lieutenant Dan. • One book every person should read is Principles of Electronic Communication Systems, Third Edition. • My epitaph will read: “Here rots Dan.” • My teammates say I am...mediocre at best. • St. John’s College is...probably a fine institution, though it could benefit greatly from a few lessons in hygiene and grooming. • I play croquet because...it’s fun. • In ten years, I will be...a civilian. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Reagan, Abraham Lincoln, and Jesus. • In the shower I sing...“I Wanna Dance with Somebody” by Whitney Houston. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Stafford, VA. • When I was little I dreamed of being... Spiderman. • One book every person should read is Principles of Electronic Communication Systems. • My epitaph will read: “Goofy.” • My teammates say I am...goofy. • St. John’s College is...a bunch of hippies. • I play croquet because...I was drafted, because the team wanted to win this year. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Dylan...Dylan...Dylan (three of the five greatest rappers of all time). • If I could live anywhere, it would be... an underwater cave. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a croquet champion. • One book every person should read is The Gentry Man, a Guide for the Civilized Man. • My epitaph will read: “Gone to look for more chaos.” • My teammates say I am...the team enforcer. • St. John’s College is...a college? Wait, seriously, I thought they didn’t even get a degree. • I play croquet because...I’m on the team. • In ten years, I will be...30. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...living, living, and dead. • In the shower I sing...songs. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... over there. • When I was little I dreamed of being... big. • One book every person should read is...Don Quixote. • My epitaph will read...trick question. Epitaphs can’t read. • My teammates say I am...Eric. • St. John’s College is...across the street. GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY �GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY Zachary Westlake Ross Hermann Ryan Lluy • I play croquet because...I don’t, croquet plays me. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Ernest Hemingway, Jack London, and the pig from the GEICO commercials. Ernie and Jack and I love bacon. • In the shower I sing...exclusively Nickelback and Creed. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... on a sailboat in the Caribbean. • One book every person should read is...East of Eden. Seriously. Read it. • My epitaph will read: “He was pretty all right.” • St. John’s College is...A nirvana of inspiring literature, deceased languages, and 2500-year-old math, hidden in a haze of cigarette smoke and coffee steam. • I play croquet because...it’s the most action-packed sport at the Academy. • In ten years, I will be...celebrating the ten-year anniversary of being asked this question. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Westlake, Foran, and Stephenson. They never hang out with me. • In the shower I sing...“Singing in the Rain.” • If I could live anywhere, it would be... on the St. John’s front lawn. • One book every person should read is How to Beat St. John’s at Croquet. • My epitaph will read: “He beat St. John’s.” • My teammates say I am...going to beat St. John’s. • St. John’s College is...going to lose. William Christoph • I play croquet because...I didn’t make the cut for the lawn darts team. • In ten years, I will be...ten years older, but hopefully a whole lot wiser. • If I could have dinner with any three people, they would be...Abraham Lincoln, Pat Tillman, and Denzel Washington. • In the shower I sing “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Jackson, WY. • One book every person should read is The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. • My epitaph will read: “He went out with his boots on.” • My teammates say I am...the rock that makes the team roll. • St. John’s College is...not St. John’s University in Queens, NY. • I play croquet because...it is a fun tradition I had an opportunity to be a part of. • In ten years, I will be...31. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Yvonne Strahovski, Al Pacino, Bill Clinton. • In the shower I sing...N.W.A. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Haines, Alaska. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a Jedi. • One book every person should read is The Outsiders. • My epitaph will read: “Connection reset by peer.” • My teammates say I am...a ninja. • St. John’s College is...that place we walk through after football games. • I play croquet because...it is an enjoyable and competitive strategy game. • In ten years, I will be...a Navy pilot. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Lou Gehrig, Ben Franklin, Gene Simmons. • In the shower I sing...Jack Johnson. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Ireland. • When I was little I dreamed of being... an architect. • One book every person should read is Ender’s Game. • My epitaph will read: “He wasn’t here for a long time; he was here for a good time.” • My teammates say I am...El Shaddai. • St. John’s College is...going to lose this year! Blake Hamilton • I play croquet because...of the adrenaline rush. • In ten years, I will be...lost somewhere in the Alaskan wilderness. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be... Fridtjof Nansen, Ernest Shackleton, and John Cleese. • In the shower I sing...“You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling.” • If I could live anywhere, it would be...Finland. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a soccer player. • One book every person should read is The Alchemist. • My epitaph will read: “That’s all she wrote!” • My teammates say I am...uncivilized. • St. John’s College is...a pleasant little college down the road. Matthew Foran Colten Southworth • I play croquet because...the uniform worn by our athletes is the rarest uniform at the Academy. Plus, you can have refreshments while you play. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Frank Lampard, Will Ferrell, and Zedd. • In the shower I sing...country music to annoy my roommates. • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Hogwarts. • When I was little I dreamed of being ...a pro baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals. • My teammates say I am...the guy who knows that quote to that movie you can’t remember. • St. John’s College is...home to the spring semester’s version of the ArmyNavy game, Croquet 2013. • I play croquet because...it’s fun. • In ten years, I will be...healthy and happy. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Jesus Christ, Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla. • In the shower I sing...“Lux Aeterna.” • If I could live anywhere, it would be... Hawaii. • When I was little I dreamed of being... an astronaut. • One book every person should read is ...Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. • My epitaph will read: “Every man is the artisan of his own fortune.” • My teammates say I am...reckless. • St. John’s College is...the neighbor of the best college. GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY • GO NAVY Luke Stephenson �Drew Menzer (Imperial Wicket) Phil Schiffrin Jonathan Barone • I play croquet because...of the ladies. On this campus, being on the croquet team is like being a rockstar-turned-war hero. • In ten years...my financial empire will either be expanding into real-estate or arms dealing. It will depend on what the market is doing. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Mr. Rogers, Zeus (both for fairly obvious reasons), and Bobby Flay, because someone’s got to cook the meal, right? I thinkthat’s an overlooked, but crucial, part of the question. • In the shower I sing...Beyoncé’s “Love on Top.” Are there other songs that people sing in the shower? You can’t beat those key changes. • If I could live anywhere, I would live...in Ireland in a giant castle overlooking the ocean. I have given some serious thought to this question. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a monkeyologist. I love monkeys. There is no joke here, I just love monkeys...a lot. • One book every person should read is...Calvin and Hobbes. They made me the man I am today. • My teammates say I am...the Imperial Wicket. Pretty straightforward. They also probably say I’m mean to them when we play croquet. I might be guilty of that... • The Naval Academy is...quite good at croquet. They’re like the second-best croquet team in Annapolis. • I play croquet because...chicks can’t get enough of the jumpsuit. How else can Hector and I pick up girls? • I play croquet because...few things attract the ladies as much as a monogrammed white jumpsuit. • In ten years, I will be...Batman. First order of business: Make Hector my butler. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Well, I definitely don’t want to have dinner with three corpses (even one would be kind of a bummer). I guess I’d have to choose Nathan and Ian, our faithful Gadfly editors, with Hector, my butler, serving us. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in a fantastic little blue box that’s somehow bigger on the inside. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a liberal arts major with no marketable skills besides a mastery of croquet. I would wake up every night in a cold sweat, having envisioned myself under a tarp on the side of the road with only my customized mallet and memories of distant glory to keep me warm. They were not happy dreams. • One book every person should read is...a sweet little ditty entitled “Apollonius’ Second Letter to Eudemus.” • My epitaph will read: something like A.E. Housman’s, “This is for all ill-treated fellows / unborn and unbegot, / for them to read when they’re in trouble / and I am not.” • The Naval Academy is…comprised of people who really like mint chocolate chip ice cream. One more reason why they are our mortal enemies. Hunter Cox Mandee Glasgo Dylan Tyler • I play croquet...for the chicks. • I play croquet...for the chick(s). • In ten years, I will be...the oldest undergrad still playing croquet. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...JFK, Marilyn Monroe, and Jackie O. • In the shower I sing...“Dumb Ways to Die.” But that’s only incidental, since I sing it all the time. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in Paul Rudd’s guest house. • When I was little I dreamed of being...an owl. • I play croquet because...of the chicks. • In ten years, I will be...prosecuting Brian Warczinsky and Jinyao Zou for securities fraud. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Emma Watson, Emma Watson, and Emma Watson. • In the shower I sing...anything Tommy Bonn wants me to sing. The show is for him. • If I could live anywhere, I would live...in ChaseStone probably, though I always wanted to sleep in the cupola room. You meant on campus, right? • When I was little I dreamed of being...a wizard. I’m still waiting for my letter though... • One book every person should read is...Portnoy’s Complaint. Some things every 13-year-old boy should know. • My epitaph will read: “He walked through life as he did around the croquet court. Slowly.” • My teammates say I am...the suavest dude on the team! Except for Hector...or Hunter. Crap. • The Naval Academy is...just not up to winning the Annapolis Cup. Maybe they should work on their athletics program. !"#$%&'#(()*+$%,+%-'.%/0,1%23'4.*5$ • In ten years, I will be...kicking ass and taking names. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Linus Feder times three. • In the shower I sing*...“Love on Top” by Beyoncé, and “Take My Breath Away” by Berlin, and “Jungleland” by Bruce Springsteen.  (*I take long showers.) • When I was little I dreamed of being...The Boss. • One book every person should read is...The Brothers Karamazov. • My epitaph will read: “He Lives.” • My teammates say I am...The Best. • The Naval Academy is...way too expensive. • One book every person should read is...Frindle By Andrew Clements. • My epitaph will read: “Here Lies Mandiey.” • My teammates say I am...carrying the team. • The Naval Academy is...heroic, but not fearsome. • In ten years, I will be...in the shower. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Rubber Ducky, He’stheone, and Thatmakesbathtimesomuchfun. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in the shower. • When I was little I dreamed of being...in the shower singing in ten years. • One book every person should read is...in the shower. • My epitaph will read: “In the shower.” • My teammates say I am...in the shower. • The Naval Academy is...wet. �Hector Mendoza Rachel Hahn Eric Shlifer • I play croquet because...it gets me all the chicks. • I play croquet because...of the chick(s). • In ten years,  I will be...not living with my parents. • In ten years, I will be...ten years older and 50 years wiser. • I play croquet...to get chicks. • In ten years, I will be...living on Brian Warczinsky’s couch. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Mark Twain. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in a castle on top of a hill with a moat. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a professional football player. • One book every person should read is...The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. • My epitaph will read: “Caring Friend, Loving Husband, Annoying Father.” • My teammates say I am...very good at being myself. • The Naval Academy is...stronger, faster, betterequipped, and better prepares their students to be productive citizens of the United States. Yet we still beat them in croquet...so at least we have that, right? • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Puff Daddy (P. Diddy, Diddy, whatever he goes by now). • In the shower I sing...Drake songs. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead),they would be...Ewan McGregor as Christian (Moulin Rouge), Ewan McGregor as Catcher Block(Down with Love), and Ewan McGregor as himself. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...anywhere that’s 78 degrees and sunny yearlong. • In the shower I sing...way better than I normally sing. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a cowboy. • One book every person should read is The One: The Life and Music of James Brown by R.J. Smith. • My epitaph will read: “So if the devil wear Prada, Adam/Eve wear nada, I’m in between but way more fresher.” • My teammates say I am...good-looking. • The Naval Academy is...across the street. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in a car. It would be a big car, but not an RV; that’s too big. • When I was little I dreamed of...defeating any monsters under my bed, especially when said monster was my little sister. • One book every person should read is...Frindle, but why would you only read one? • My epitaph will read...Well, I couldn’t say, since I won’t be there to write it. • My teammates say that I am...on the croquet team. • The Naval Academy is...what everyone immediately thinks of when I tell them that I go to college in Annapolis, MD. !"#"$%&'()&*+$+)&+$&,-./&!012223 Cory Cotten-Potter Sam Collins Daniel Popov • I play croquet...for the chicks. • I play croquet because...of Hector’s wicket shot. • In ten years, I will be...alive and well, God willing. • In ten years, I will be...working at a pizzeria trying to get enabled. • I play croquet...for the ladies. • In ten years, I will be...emperor of space. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead)...I would go to the pub with Shakespeare, Socrates, and Lincoln. • In the shower I sing...“I Just Can’t Wait to be King!” • If I could live anywhere, it would be...in the White House. • When I was little I dreamed of being...legen—[...wait for it...]—dary! • One book every person should read is...Everybody Poops. • My epitaph will read: “He died with his mallet in his hand.” • My teammates say I...make a great Little Spoon. • The Naval Academy is...going down down down Navy’s going down! • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Ernest Hemingway, Immanuel Kant, Francesca Woodman. • In the shower I sing...Toto’s “Africa.” • If I could live anywhere, it would be...Chilean Patagonia. • When I was little I dreamed of being...a fireman. • One book every person should read is...Matthew Crawford’s Shop Class as Soulcraft. • My teammates say I am...only on the team to attract more female spectators. • The Naval Academy is...haunted by the tepid, gruesome shadows of its former defeats. • If I could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), they would be...Hunter S. Thompson, LBJ, and Ke$ha. • In the shower I sing...“Just A Friend” by Biz Markie. • If I could live anywhere, it would be...off campus, but that’s not going to happen. #housinglotteryproblems • One book every person should read is...the one that leads them to the next one. • My epitaph will read: “The most important thing in life is BUCKETS.” • My teammates say I am...the best vice-archon ever. • The Naval Academy is...party central. �the gadfly !" !"#$%"$&'()$*$+"",$&'-).$ "/0$12$3()/$45$!)*, by Robert Malka, Staff Writer, A’15 M ontaigne tells us that the “great and glorious masterpiece of man is to live appropriately.” Plutarch tells us about the “empty name and invidious glory” of Caesar. The author of the Book of Job tells us that the titular character, after suffering apparent injustices, remarks after seeing God: “ I heard You with my ears and now see You with my eyes, and…I recant, being but dust and ashes.” Sophomore year, it seems to me, is a time when we examine not just what it means to be great-souled, but how to be great-souled. We are bombarded throughout the whole year with stories of great men and their tragic ends, examples for us to contemplate, emulate, or reject as models of the Proper Life. And what timing, too: sophomore year is considered the calm before the storm of junior year, a rare and brilliant luxury given to us to evaluate our lives and examine whether we should take a break from the Program, or push our way through it. Perhaps I am alone in this, but as a sophomore I have struggled immensely with the Program and the evaluation it seems to ask of me. Questions that seemed distant to me as a freshman are coming into focus at an alarming speed: How are we being prepared for the outside world? Are we really serious about Sophomore year, these texts and the tough questions that they it seems to me, is a ask? Are we equipped to handle these questions on both an intellectual and an emotional time when we examine not just what level, or have we ended up in over our heads? I have succeeded in answering none of these it means to be great- questions, so I have settled with hoping for the best. souled, but how to But it gets more complicated: Where I was be great-souled. self-absorbed as a freshman, I have now begun to look outside myself to find those who are on the same page, able and willing to traverse together the journey that these questions pose. In this, I have found both some success and some failure. While these texts do not change, the people reading them do, and at times the campus and the Program can feel like it is stifled by those who are not serious. (By “serious” I mean those who try to receive both intellectual and moral virtues from these texts, and not just intellectual virtues—debate on whether this is an adequate definition merits another whole article, so bear with me here.) This is compounded by the fact that many students who are serious are often withdrawn by nature, keeping their enthusiasm behind closed doors, revealed only to their close friends, to the text, and to themselves. On the other hand, I have seen that Johnnie alumni have much to teach us on how to answer these questions. I consider that discovery a success, because for current students, the Johnnie Bubble ends where the campus ends and the Real World begins. This paradigm is wrong. When we graduate, we take a little bit of it with us. This article, then, is a call-to-arms to current students and alumni. Current students: Take advantage of today to ask those who have graduated how they answered these questions—if they have. Make new friends from different eras. We do not have to see alumni simply as people who can give us a job, mere exit ramps out of the Bubble. We can and should use this special event as an opportunity to find out how other Johnnies examined (and continue to examine) their lives. And to alumni: I hope you will help us out. Because, let me tell you, as a sophomore, I’m in way over my head here. 6"27%$6)-'2)$89:;%'<)7$ '2$*$=*>)/0$*2,$&'?'%),$ 3%@)/$A,('<) by Will Brown, Staff Writer, A’16 S o by the time that this is read, I’ll have nearly finished up with my classes for freshman year. I’m sure I speak for most of my class in saying that this is a bizarre feeling. It’s been a difficult, informative year, one in which I did a lot of great things and made a lot of mistakes (about a 20:80 ratio, I think). Here are some of the things I wish I had known last August, when a younger Will sauntered up the steps of Campbell Hall thinking he was attending a year-long book club. For one, I wish I had known how difficult seminar was. Seminar is the class I had the most difficulty with for much of the year, and I subsequently worked less on it. It seemed like a new issue confronted me every week: whether I was spending enough time on the readings; whether I was inquiring often without depending on the opinions of my classmates; whether I was making constructive comments that had any relevance to the discussion; whether I even knew what the reading was about (the legend goes that if you say Timaeus three times in front of a mirror, I will still not know anything about it). I’d like to say that I have informative advice on the social front of St. John’s, but I really don’t. Every experience is different. If I could have told my August-self anything constructive, it would likely be this: just because the AdI am quite lucky that missions Office called this “the school for me” doesn’t mean that it’s filled with stu- I have such differing dents I’ll make friends with. It’s a jarring perspectives in each of experience that never goes away: I walk my classes. I’ve heard across the Quad, see a person who couldn’t be more different from me, and realize this that this has to do with is just as much The School For Them. Such “maturity,” but I don’t a feeling initially gave me discomfort, but I have come to realize that a diverse cam- know what that is. pus isn’t just a slogan for prospective students—I am quite lucky that I have such differing perspectives in each of my classes. I’ve heard that this has to do with “maturity,” but I don’t know what that is. Finally, there’s the issue of exercising regularly. My RA told me at an intramural game in October that I “can’t just drink and do homework all the time; that’s not a good way to live.” Now, I have yet to take this advice, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not valuable. Other than that, though, I’m simply bereft of any useful considerations for an incoming freshman. Actually, don’t neglect your Greek homework. Take your tutors out to lunch. Don’t throw up at parties. Don’t drink before the Symposium seminar. Be polite in class. Don’t talk in class if you haven’t done the reading. Don’t define “justice” in a paper. And don’t fall asleep in public places; it’s obnoxious. �the gadfly !! !"#$%&'($")"*)#+,-&'.$,//#"&'012#-) [Ed. Note: This article from the Gadfly archives is reprinted with minor edits.] by Keenan Trotter, A’12 L ast Sunday, The [Annapolis] Capital reported that Joshua Cohen (SF’94) was nominated as the new Democratic candidate for mayor of Annapolis. He replaced Zina Pierre, who was forced to drop out of the election due to concerns about her residential eligibility (the Capital found evidence suggesting she did not actually live in Annapolis) as well as problems with her finances, campaign, and otherwise. The Capital mentioned that Cohen was “kicked out [of St. John’s College, Santa Fe] for not applying himself.” (Cohen later went on to graduate from the University of Maryland. He is still considered an alumnus, however, since he was enrolled for at least one semester.) This comment set off a good deal of invective on the Capital’s website, a chunk of it directed at St. John’s itself. Here is a sampling, which may have been edited for grammar and clarity: I hear St. John’s is an easy school to graduate from, not like MIT or Caltech (or the Academy). Just a lot of talking. - Neill H., Annapolis, MD Anybody who doesn’t think St. John’s College is a Hard school should go there, seek out a Tudor [sic], and ask him or her for the “Great Books List.” I was in the coffee shop located in McDowell Hall one day and happened to come upon someone’s copy and couldn’t even read the titles. I can’t imagine reading the books. For anyone who isn’t familiar with this list, it basically contains the student’s year ( freshman, sophomore, etc.) and explains the required books they are to read for that year. - Steve G., Annapolis, MD You get what you put in at SJC, so for some people, it is a life-changing experience. But there are plenty of trust-fund hippies there, and it is elitist, no matter how hard it tries to convince itself (and others) otherwise. One of its mottos is “we make men free by means of books and a balance” but I guarantee you 90% of the school and tutors (not “Tudors”) voted liberal and for Barack Obama; not really the sign of an ideologically “free” environment. - Neill H., Annapolis, MD “...I guarantee you 90% of the school and tutors (not ‘Tudors’) voted liberal and for Barack Obama; not really the sign of an ideologically ‘free’ environment.” I think that statement would be fairly accurate when discussing the political leanings of the majority of institutions of higher learning in the United States these days. Maybe places like the Naval Academy and West Point could be some of the few that could truly be considered “an ideologically ‘free’ environment.” …Although I would suspect most at SJC lean a little further left than most others. - Fred Flintstone, Unknown Location Here’s the thing: (1) Johnnies consider themselves superior to the rest of the liberal academies, because they consider themselves SUPER-RATIONAL, and they sneer at the US News & World Report rankings, and with many other signs indicate their contempt of other colleges; (2) they have this Great Conversation that is forever going on (even at night, what boors!) in which all sorts of delightful ideas are advanced and (via the dialectical escruminata [sic]) tested against the tender foreheads of these young interlocutors! Haha!! But it is all a deceptive ILLUSION (that’s a big concept at SJC) because at least as far as politics and social theory goes there really is only one answer Ha HA!! - Neill H., Annapolis, MD St. John’s is a tough school and you have to be both bright and willing to read a heck of a lot of books so that you can actively participate in the daily discussions. It is far more demanding than a typical university class. St. John’s students are all above average in intelligence and must possess a keen interest in thought producted primarily in Western civilization. You do have to actively apply yourself because each student must actively participate in the daily discussions, and if you are not prepared, it is obvious to everyone at the table. That said, I have personally known many people (mainly young men) who have flunked out of their first semester or first year at college and have come back home to finish up their degree and they have done just fine. It’s very typical. - Jennifer C., Annapolis, MD Weird, pretentious, druggie, racist, rapist, elitist. This is what I hear about the College, I am glad Mr. Cohen has found something better to do. - Christopher L., Annapolis, MD After reading that last comment, I sent a nice letter to the Capital for some much-needed clarification: In response to an article about Joshua Cohen’s nomination, an anonymous commenter on the Capital’s website going by the name of “Christopher L.” described St. John’s College as “weird, pretentious, druggie, racist, [and] elitist.” I would like to add that we are also cannibals. Sincerely, Keenan Trotter Sophomore, St. John’s College �the gadfly !" !"#$%&'#%()**+%!,#%-.',,/#01% 23"#,&4$#%5#'/,3%6.$&7.879,#:;%</,#1 Ace reporter Danny Kraft crossed King George St. to find out what our Academy rivals think of the hippies on the hill. Here is the story of his encounter on the Yard. by Danny Kraft, Contributor, A’13 S t. John’s College loves to brag, in press re- the Midshipmen, I would have to become one. And tion of Johnnies had changed in the few years he’d leases and alumni newsletters, that Sports so I went to Main Street and bought a tank top for been in Annapolis. “When I came here,” he said, “I Illustrated once described the St. John’s-Na- sale at one of those t-shirt shops for tourists. The thought they were all spoiled or hippies. But now I val Academy croquet match as an event “without tank top was emblazoned, proudly, with one word: think they’re just a bunch of nerdy private college parallel in intercollegiate sports.” Lobachevskian NAVY. kids.” He said this with nothing but affection. concerns aside, what could this I spent several hours on the I also asked several Midshipmen whether they mean? Yard, dressed in my new “uni- could think of any sports other than croquet at I set out to discover how The original Sports Illusto dozens St. the Academy. our rivals from accross the form,” and spokeSurprisingly which and John’s could beatwere Naval suggested, trated article, published in 1987, of Midshipmen. Chess computer games both offers no clear explanation. But street, the Midshipmen, enough, most of them did mis- but for some reason the sport with which most it does provide tiny, tantalizing think of us... [But] to untake me for a Midshipman, at Mids responded was racquetball. Is there somedetails that give some clue as to least until I showed that I knew thing I don’t know about racquetball? what an outsider might think derstand the Midshipmen, nothing of their lingo. I found The truth is that I had a great time during my distinguishes this event, and I would have to become out that about half of the stu- afternoon on the Yard. Every Midshipman I spoke this community. The Imperial dents at the Naval Academy to was pleasant and polite, and I had long and inone. Wicket of St. John’s, for examdon’t think or care about St. teresting conversations with many of them. The ple, wears “possibly the only John’s enough to ascribe any whole experience, to be honest, made me feel a litdashiki left in this part of Maryland, and his hair is kind of reputation to us, good or bad. tle bit wistful: I’d never really spoken to any Midheld in a ponytail by a sparkling blue clip.” The rest Samuel Johnson once said that he “would rather shipmen before, and none of the ones I talked to of the St. John’s team dresses “with studied eccen- be attacked than unnoticed,” and I caught myself had ever spoken with a Johnnie. tricity,” and the Johnnie fans are described leading hoping that these Midshipmen, Why is it that, for most of us, bizarre, bookish chants: “You can keep your deep whom all of Annapolis knows we only meet on Croquet Day? Why is it that, for most of In a haze of alcohol we compete blue sea, we have our philosophy!” In the eyes of by sight and reputation, would Sports Illustrated, we are unparalleled most of all consider St. John’s worthy even us, we only meet on Croagainst each other, without rein our strange nerdiness. of a moment’s scorn. I couldn’t quet Day? In a haze of alally interacting, and then we With this in mind, I set out to discover how our help but be delighted when a return to our campuses. There rivals from across the street, the Midshipmen, plebe, after I asked him what he cohol we compete against is a Johnnie-Middie seminar think of us. Do they, too, consider us to be little knew about St. John’s, respond- each other, without really once a year, but even then just a more than a “colorful, heterogeneous mix” of weir- ed immediately with what can students interacting, and then we few dozen it takes a participate, does? Or do they perhaps, as every Johnnie secret- only be described as patriotic and again formal and ly fantasizes, fear and respect our uncompromising pride: “I know that they’re our return to our campuses. irregular event to bring us tocommitments to truth and virtue? rivals, and this year we’re going gether. Forgive me if I’m getting The only way to answer these questions was to beat them at croquet!” too preachy, but I think we—Johnnies and Midto talk to the Midshipmen. But I had to blend in; When Midshipmen were familiar with St. shipmen alike—should take it upon ourselves to I didn’t want to be just another Johnnie reporter John’s, their responses varied wildly. The adjective get to know our fellow students in Annapolis. snooping around the Naval Academy, looking for “hippieish” came up more than once, as did the I really enjoyed many of the conversations I had, the next big scoop. The only way I could be sure I participle “pot-smoking.” One midshipman told which fortunately ranged beyond the gimmicky inwas getting the truth was if I went deep undercov- me that he liked Johnnies, even though they’re terviews I planned. So Midshipmen, the next time er, so deep that the Midshipmen themselves would “kinda theological and out there, and it’s hard to you walk through our campus, feel free to strike up mistake me for one of their own. talk to them about tangible things.” a conversation with those of us you see. And JohnTo that end, I got a buzz cut. I was sure this Many Midshipmen unabashedly admired the nies, the next time you see a Midshipman on Main would suffice, but somehow I was still clearly a bookishness and apparent intelligence of us John- Street or by City Dock, why not say hi? After all, Johnnie; my bookishness shone through. I knew nies. “They’re really smart,” I heard several times, we’re all relatively new to Annapolis. Maybe we then that I needed to commit to my undercover re- from Mids who did not yet know my identity. could learn something from each other. I know porting. I couldn’t just shave my head and expect “They have to learn Greek, and they read all the that I learned a lot from the Midshipmen I met. to be mistaken for a Mid. In order to understand time!” One young man admitted that his percep- Maybe we could even become friends. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 19 [Croquet] Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-04-20 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 19 of The Gadfly. Published on April 20, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.19 (Croquet) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Croquet Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/26ff1002e5d3478d5af79e96e5f859d9.pdf 8c79fc0545cad3d6a292319c27db6896 PDF Text Text !"# $%&'() !"#$%&'"($)&*+$,-$./&+#$0$12 !"#$%&'(%)*+,+-./01$%#)$'%$0$13 45,/(6$%,7*+758$2192:219;$0$1< !"#$=76&>$,-$!?$)7*@$AB$0$1C !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$14;#$8<3$809<$.$2&+#$===52$.$5!!>,$80 photo by Chengyaqing Shi photo by Anyi Guo �The Gadfly 02 !"#$%&'"($)&*+$,-$./&+# The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Articles for the next issue should be submitted by Wednesday, May 1, at 11:59 PM to sjca. gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff Contributors Reza Djalal Michael Fogleman Sarah Hartzell Painter Bob !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- J ohnnies—The last issue of the year we are once again devoting to our soon-to-be-graduates, the Class of 2013! Seniors: We are looking for any contributions you might have to offer—reflections, advice, musings, whatever you would like to send in! We also want, like last year, to highlight as many individuals as we can. Please send in your hometown, senior essay title, post-grad plans (however tentative...), and a headshot by Wednesday, May 1. For all those not graduating, we are looking for profiles, interviews, odes to your favorite seniors—anything about this year's graduates. We look forward to featuring this year’s graduating class! ! Sarah Hartzell A’13 I love this school and all it represents very much. I have been proud to be a Johnnie since Convocation 2009, and I will be the first to step up in defense of small schools and liberal arts educations in any situation. But I’ve noticed over the years that sometimes Johnnie pride isn’t just positive; it isn’t just being proud of who we are, it’s being proud of not being who we are not. And I think that this is a very dangerous mindset. This issue crops up all the time in various ways. It was a big issue with senior prank two years ago; it hinders relations with Mids. But there was an incident recently that I find absolutely repulsive and makes me ashamed of my entire school. On Accepted Students’ Day, I had a lovely conversation with a high school student excited to come to St. John’s. He was fascinated by the idea of studying ancient Greek, he loved the library already, and he was very excited about our school’s unique culture. I was so happy to tell someone about all the things I love about this school, and I was so proud that it had made such an impression. After I left, I went and sat on the Quad steps to enjoy a beautiful spring day in typical Johnnie fashion. While we were sitting there, a group of teenage skaters were practicing tricks jumping off the steps. They were probably fifteen years old. They looked totally silly. Of course they did. They were images from I’ve noticed over the years that a phase of our lives that we’ve all sometimes Johnnie pride isn’t outgrown. Frankly, I find nothing just positive; it isn’t just being funnier than pictures from five or six years ago of my friends proud of who we are, it’s being with long hair and baggy jeans proud of not being who we are on their skateboards. But even not. And I think that this is a though I got a good chuckle out of watching them, I felt a little very dangerous mindset. uncomfortable that the people around me were openly mocking them. A number of people sitting well within earshot of these boys were heckling them. For what? For having bad haircuts? One of them asked a girl to bum a cigarette. She replied “No, and even if I had one, I wouldn’t give it to you. Get the fuck off our campus.” We all laughed because of course we wouldn’t give a cigarette to someone who doesn’t look old enough to have a driver’s license. But why should he leave our campus? He wasn’t hurting anyone. I laughed at that, too, despite my discomfort at the sentiment. For that I am ashamed. What happened next was beyond uncomfortable, though. Shortly after, one of the boys didn’t land a trick correctly and fell. He was lying on the ground for some time, presumably in too much pain to get up. At this point I couldn’t stand it anymore and went to get him an ice pack. As I left, I noticed that a large group of people were hanging out of a dorm window laughing at the scene. Apparently, that group of people starting throwing water balloons out the window at him. I want to reiterate this: a group of Johnnies, who we know and trust, thought that some fifteen-year-old boy sprawled on the ground in pain was so funny that it warranted being pelted with water balloons from a window where he couldn’t see them. Presumably because his mannerisms and haircut were silly to us well-coiffed college students who have all outgrown that phase. I am completely ashamed and embarrassed that my classmates, who I had just been bragging about to a different kid the same age as this poor boy, could be such cowardly, self-righteous bullies. There is no excuse for this. None. “It was a harmless bit of fun,” you can say. But no amount of fun you are having is harmless if it is at the expense of someone weaker. You would say that in seminar, so there’s no excuse not to act on it. “He couldn’t have been badly hurt,” you can say. Let me repeat: he was sprawled on the ground in pain. You had no idea how hurt he was. Even if it was his own fault, he wasn’t being any more foolish than someone who takes a risky shot in intramural basketball and snaps his ankle. “Those kids yelled at us and shoved a student who confronted them,” you can say. Of course they did. Of course it escalated. But it is your fault that it did, and that’s Pg. 03 unacceptable. I want to point out that older kids Continued On “ �The Gadfly Continued From 03 were heckling them well Pg. 02 within their earshot for half an hour and they didn’t respond. When the kid who tried to bum a cigarette was insulted, he walked away. They talked amongst themselves without so much as telling the hecklers to “shut up” until someone threw a water balloon at their injured friend. And when someone confronted them face to face, the message was not “Sorry, calm down, let’s fix this,” but rather, “I think you should leave.” The situation escaIf reading all of these books lated, but you can’t teach you how to be cannot for a proud but not prideful, strong second say that the escalation but not tyrannical, thoughtful can be blamed but not pedantic, and humble on anyone who but not weak, then you’ll spend doesn’t go to four years just reading a lot this school. This is our of yellowed pages written by fault. dead guys. This is the first article I’ve ever written for the Gadfly, and I am disappointed that it had to be such an angry one. I hope some people who were there get angry about this. I hope you all read this. Because if you’re angry and defensive, it’s because you know that you were unnecessarily cruel and you don’t like to think of yourself as a cruel person. I felt sick for the rest of the day that I laughed at my friends heckling a teenage boy who looks different from us. I’m complicit, and I am ashamed. So should the rest of us be. I’m not just writing this article to chastise those involved. I’m writing this because I think this is indicative of a very real problem with the culture at St. John’s. We are proud of the education we get, and we are disappointed that much of the outside world is unimpressed. That disappointment makes us self-conscious, and that self-consciousness allows us to turn our pride into elitism. Anyone who has ever turned a pitying glance on their high school friends because they “just don’t understand” the world because they haven’t read the Republic in seminar is guilty of this. Anyone who thinks a philosophy degree from another college (God forbid another Great Books college) is a pathetic image of our degree is guilty of this. And frankly, anyone who thinks that “The unexamined life is not worth living” is a motto for looking down on others is guilty of this. As soon as we let this elitism creep into our actions, we are forgetting two very, very important things about a St. John’s education: we are incredibly lucky to be here, and the whole point of this non-technical education is to make us better people. You are not here because you’re more special than most people; you’re just luckier than they are. And if reading all of these books can’t teach you how to be proud but not prideful, strong but not tyrannical, thoughtful but not pedantic, and humble but not weak, then you’ll spend four years just reading a lot of yellowed pages written by dead guys. Booker T. Washington believed that education of all members of society was the only way to cure the hatred left over by the Civil War. When he described the way the first black cadet was treated at the Naval Academy in 1875, he remarked that “education, whether of black man or white man, that gives one physical courage to stand in front of the cannon and fails to give him moral courage to stand up in defense of right and justice is a failure.” We would do well to keep in mind that this is not just about the Naval Academy in 1875. This is about all education always. ! “ !"#$%&"'()**+""%%')&'+&!",#("+)&Examining Sophomore Mathematics Michael Fogleman O A’13 n Thursday, April 4th, the SCI held a forum on sophomore math. The sophomore year makes two significant mathematical transitions: from Ptolemy to Copernicus and Kepler, and from Apollonius to Viete and Descartes. How well is the math section handling and thinking through those transitions?Several students mentioned a perennial frustration with the astronomy segment: the freshman-sophomore summer gap that divides our study of Ptolemy. Beyond that initial frustration, new math classes in the sophomore year mean that students in each class have varying levels of competency with Ptolemy—comparable to, but perhaps more problematic than, differing levels of Greek proficiency. Some suggested these difficulties might be mitigated if sophomores took advantage of resources such as the observatory and planetarium. Students reported that studying Copernicus, which is more discussion- than demonstration-based, felt more like a seminar than a tutorial. One junior noted that since Copernicus and Kepler were originally This was one instance of a read in seminar, broader problem in sophomore this might be a math: sophomores reported natural development. Sevlarge variations with respect to eral students what was and was not studied reported that in each segment, and for how their class had long. skipped Kepler. This was one instance of a broader problem in sophomore math: sophomores reported large variations with respect to what was and was not studied in each segment, and for how long. The second segment of the year—Apollonius, Viete, Descartes—had even more variation than the astronomy segment. Some students reported a diminished emphasis on Apollonius’ analytical proofs and the locus problem. At least one class did not read Diophantus; at least two classes did not read Viete; and juniors reported differing amounts of time spent on Descartes’ Rules and his Geometry. Several sophomores mentioned that readings in Aristotle’s Physics and Metaphysics were helpful in thinking through the shift from Apollonius to Viete and Descartes. Also suggested was a kind of glossary exemplifying how a problem could be approached through the mathematics of Apollonius, Viete, and Descartes. The conversation also discussed how the Program attempts to get at the mathematical and metaphysical character of these shifts, especially the shift from geometry to algebra. Some students asserted that such a shift was implicit in and central to the sophomore year as structured by former dean Jacob Klein; others wondered how explicit such a transition might be. All opposed the seemingly drastic approach of making readings from Jacob Klein mandatory, but some suggested that the SCI might hold an extracurricular discussion of his works in the future. Making students aware of his books and lectures might be a small, agreeable step, but should be done with caution. It seemed clear, however, that whatever approach is taken, such discussions about the transitions in both the astronomy and the geometry/algebra segments will be hindered by differences of emphasis throughout the sophomore year. ! “ �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%&'(%)*+,+-./01$%#)$'%+('$+2$(1 Reza Djalal “Fan fiction” is a frightening phrase that causes most people to turntail and run at its very utterance, let alone indulge it for any significant amount of time. But, a strange and interesting line is crossed when fan fiction becomes a palpable part of the universe it was intended to pay homage to, instead of a perverse reconstruction of the original material. Brilliance can manifest itself in many ways, so if an idea just happens to be a story that parallels its predecessor, then is there really anything to stop it from being just as great? Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is a testament to these possibilities. Director Alicia Stanley took some time to discuss her production, which plays this Friday and Saturday (April 26-27) at 8pm in FSK, and on Sunday (April 28) at 2pm. A’15 photo by Henley Moore First, what made you decide you wanted to direct Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead? It’s kind of the ultimate Johnnie play: to me, Rosencrantz is the prospie who is beginning to discover that what he thought was certain is ultimately indefensible, and Guildenstern is the St. John’s graduate who is trying to apply all of his philosophy and logic to life, and is forced to the unfortunate realization that it is completely useless in extreme situations. The play asks us specifically as St. John’s students to take a hard look at ourselves and determine whether what we do here is worthwhile or just absurd. Did you face any kind of difficulties putting this production together? Yes. Putting on a play is hard. Sophomores read Hamlet not too long ago. Do you think Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead will be a good supplement for that reading? Absolutely. Hamlet has been intensely considered for about four hundred years now, and I don’t think anyone would tell you that he has figured it out. That may be because essays and commentaries are not commensurable with plays; you can never get at the truth of Hamlet through a fundamentally different medium. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern addresses many of the same questions as Hamlet, and provides an interesting view of the questions asked and dynamics at work in what is likely the most discussed play in the English language. Perhaps the only way to understand or explain art is to make new art that stands on its own. Ultimately, Shakespeare commentators seek to re-express plays in terms that may be easier for us to grasp; Tom Stoppard has made more headway in this respect than anyone else. What did you do to marry the comedic and tragic aspects of this play neatly? Was it difficult? Frankly, Tom Stoppard did most of my work for me. His understanding of theatrical beats and cadence is unparalleled, at least in my experience. He knows that something can be funny and heartbreaking at the same time, and he knows how to balance these elements just in his scriptwriting. The script itself is such a fine piece of theater that we really just had to listen to him and trust him. How has your cast affected this production? They are amazing. It’s really their production. I just run around trying to make sure everyone is at the right place at the right time. Would you say Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is a play that Shakespeare would appreciate, or is it meant to be a parody of his work? The play is certainly a parody, but it is also a tribute. I think the most satiric parts of the play, such as when Rosencrantz and Guildenstern give terse summaries of Hamlet’s character, poke more fun at how seriously we take the play rather than at the play itself. We could all stand to be taken down a notch or two with how serious we get about Hamlet and Shakespeare in general. Shakespeare should be fun, not academic. I guess Shakespeare would like it, but I don’t really know the guy. Did Rosencrantz and Guildenstern deserve to die? There are many moments in the play where one of the two points out that they have done nothing wrong. The Player indirectly refers to them as spies, which might change matters. As a whole, the play is more concerned with fate than with justice or morality. Largely this illustrates that once a play has started, there is only one way that it can possibly turn out, because it has been written beforehand. It is senseless to pray for a character in a play or hope things go a certain way, because their course is set. Obviously this presentation ends up pointing to ideas about fate and life and a lot of other things I can’t claim to understand. But I like the characters, and it’s pretty upsetting every time they die in rehearsal. ! photo by Henley Moore �The Gadfly 05 Sports Roundup: 2012-2013 Jonathan Barone L A’13 adies, gentlemen, it’s that time of the year again, much as Whitney were able to shut her down long enough to eke out I try not to think about it. The longer days and warmer a victory in the finals by a single free throw. Grey and black temperatures herald the parting of ways, so with sadness in played exceedingly well, with one of their games going into an my heart, I present my final sports roundup. overtime thriller. Black went on a 10-0 run in 2:30, squeezing First and foremost: the quest for the overall intramural title out a tight win. It was a well played tournament by all. Postis still up for grabs. The Waves are leading the Guardians by 18 season shout-outs go to John Neal, for facilitating a breathpoints, but the outdoor handball season taking passing game; Henry Hirsch, for has thrown the standings into disarray, finally making a layup (and in spectacand the marathon could truly decide evThe quest for the overall intra- ular fashion!); and Scott Collison, beerything. We’re heading into an excitcause I didn’t mention him last roundmural title is still up for grabs. ing few weeks, but let me recapitulate up for his Ultimate skills. Of course, I The Waves are leading the the past semester to get you up to date. would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Basketball: In the beginning, it Guardians by 18 points, but the stalwart Jerry Januszewski, the prinseemed as though the Spartans and cipal unmoved mover of the basketball outdoor handball season has the Greenwaves would be the teams court. thrown the standings into disto beat. With the acquisition of stelVolleyball: The volleyball season lar sophomore guard Sebastian Abella array, and the marathon could was, once again, dominated by Spartan and newcomer Nikos Frank, the Waves enthusiasm for the aloha spirit. This truly decide everything. were looking to snap their seven-year time, they followed it up with some drought from a basketball title. At the spectacular play behind Matt “Panbeginning, the only team standing in their way was a power- cakes” Denci. Nevertheless, the Hustlers won both the tourhouse Sparta, with MVP candidate Graham “Flash” Gordon nament and the short season, capping a two-year run of some and freshman newcomer Christopher Zeller. Both teams had very surprising results. very strong inside presences, but the Greenwaves ultimately Handball: It’s been a crazy season, and it’s any team’s emerged victorious in the Holiday Tournament, winning their to win or lose at this point. The Green Mountain Brothers, final game 45-38. Hunter and Hudson Cox, have been destroying it, creating the However, in the regular season, the Spartans weren’t able to league’s most powerful shooter/goalie duo. Eric Shlifer, Dhidmuster the same mojo. Despite strong B-Team play from the hat, Tommy Bonn, and Drew Menzer have all been laying their Spartan women and LeBrian “James” Warczinsky, the buckets bodies on the line for a chance at glory, and it’s an utter myswould not fall. They eventually finished fourth, behind the tery to me who will emerge victorious. Time is running out, Hustlers, who rode the board-crashing, trey-shooting, intense and the next few games are sure to be entertaining. Be sure to all-around play of Joe Hamd and Dhidhat to bronze. The Dru- catch all the action and cheer on your friends as they meet on ids, though they suffered a last-place finish, all fought valiant- the fields of battle. Good luck to all! ! ly, though perhaps none more so than Chazaq “Druid Fluid” Llinas, who stepped up in a mighty way to become a very solid A-Teamer. The Druids look like the team to beat in coming areer Services would like to congratulate the six stuyears, however: sophomore Terence Washington and Dylan dents who have been awarded Pathways Fellowship Tyler form a particularly fearsome duo. Nevertheless, it was the old rivals, the Greenwaves and awards in the fellowship’s first year. The Pathways FellowGuardians, clashing in the finals for the second time in three ship has been created to enable St. John’s students to tranyears. The Guardians emerged in force and numbers, with sition into graduate study or careers that call for special captain Tommy “Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus” Bonn or prerequisite courses. Through this program, students determined to play vanguard at the hoop. However, despite are able to enroll, for example, in teacher education courshis and Danny Kraft’s defensive efforts, they were unable to es for the pursuit of public school teaching, art classes in stop the Waves’ crashing down upon them. In the championpreparation of a portfolio, or pre-medical courses for medship game, The Waves’ B-Team outscored the Guardians B’s ical school. 32-12, effectively deciding the game through stout defense, This years awardees are listed below, along with the proaggressive rebounding, crisp passing, and scorching shooting. gram or coursework they will be using the award for: The Waves carried home the victory and the title, 63-35. • Virginia Early (‘13): Economics courses March Madness: The spring tournament was another lively one, but double points featured less prominently than in re• Dan Gilles (‘13): Princeton in Beijing Summer language cent years. Rachel Hahn played some of the best basketball in program her career, going 4-4 and 3-3 from behind the arc for 22 points, • Nathan Goldman (‘14): Yale Writers’ Conference fiction but eventually her team bowed out of the tourney to Sam Colworkshop lins’ gold team. In essence, it was defense that dominated the • Adam Maraschky (‘13): Organic Chemistry courses basketball seasons this year. Whenever a lady wasn’t guard•Margaret Matthews (‘14): Goethe Institute, Introduction ed well enough, she would take the rock to the hoop—Abby to Reading Scholarly German (certificate program) DeVries put the grey team on her back to take them to the fi• Evgenia Olimpieva (‘14): Multivariate Calculus and Linnals, scoring 24 points in the semifinal game. However, the ear Geometry courses black team’s trio of Brian Warczinsky, Jon Barone, and Casey “ !"#$%"&'()*++,%'$-.(/%"01**' C �The Gadfly 06 !"#$%&'(&$)*+#,-'!./*0'+#'!+$&/1+-'*1&'2*,/1+-'31'+"/'!*4/'5*678' !"#$%&#'(&"")*#+,&-."/0#12&3."/0#4(.5."/0#6.*52"."/7 Charles Zug I A’15 f you want to better understand the pressures a St. John’s about an extremely pertinent passage from the Republic—one education places on students and parents, you should read which deals directly with the conflict between parents and Eva Brann’s lecture, “Talking, Reading, Writing, Listening,” in educators. the Spring 2012 issue of the St. John’s Review. In my opinion, In Book One, Cephalus, the elderly father of Polemarchus, it was a wise choice to make this lecture available for reading. leaves the dialogue before Socrates begins his conversation One must read it very carefully, so as not to miss its most inter- with the young men. Cephalus’ pretense for leaving: he must esting—and potentially troubling—thoughts. return to the religious sacrifices (331d). Yet his departure At some point, all parents must face the prospect that their seems, at least in part, to be prompted by his having failed to children are learning controversial things while away at col- adequately define justice before Socrates and the young men. lege. One such controversy might involve questioning the Plato therein seems to imply that Cephalus’ parental presence value of the family—and Miss Brann, I argue, handles this is not welcome in the liberating discourse which becomes the question with subtle diplomacy. How does she manage this? Republic. By refuting Cephalus and exposing the old, hopeless One realizes that, on the surface, there is prejudices of his soul, Socrates compels nothing offensive about Miss Brann’s lecthe old and ignorant to leave, thus making At some point, all par- sufficient room for himself. ture, that at times it is even flattering. For ents must face the prosexample, on page 134, Miss Brann appears Miss Brann’s failure to mention this pect that their children passage is a loud silence —in my opinion, to be discussing how tutors and parents are similar: “Juniors and the college elders, the are learning controversial louder than the lecture itself. seniors, have reapproached their parents Why might Miss Brann, whose model things while away at coland become almost perfect in ignorance… lege. One such controversy is the Platonic writings, have chosen to The members of this community of learnmight involve questioning avoid this powerful example of the coning are not ashamed to own up to their own flict between familial custom and educathe value of the family.... ignorance…It’s why the teachers here are tion, between parent and educator? Let’s called ‘tutors.’” The true captatio benevotry to imagine what would have happened lentiae of Miss Brann’s lecture seems to be directed at the par- had she openly discussed this passage and tried to ferret out ents in her audience—and not, as she claims, the students. But its deepest implications before students and their parents. Preis this merely an appeal to benevolence, or is there something sumably, many parents would have stayed to listen—though else going on, as it were, behind the scenes? one can imagine others leaving the auditorium at the very start Miss Brann herself suggests the latter when, in the second of the lecture. Some parents might have been as gracious as paragraph, she says: “this one weekly hour of just sitting and Cephalus and allowed their children to stay. Others, less gralistening is mandatory, and about as enforceable as a manda- ciously, might have used it as an excuse to stop making tuition tory evacuation before a storm. (This simile appears here be- payments. Yet anyone who was actually present for the lecture cause this lecture was written in the dark during Hurricane will remember how well received it was. Indeed, I think it deIrene.).” This witty remark, while seemingly innocent, leads serves to be unqualifiedly well received by most people at the one to wonder: What might it truly mean that Mis Brann’s lec- College. ! ture has dark origins? Her simile is helpful: most people at the college foolishly refuse to evacuate in the face of a hurricane; likewise, most refuse to attend lectures that might prove liber! Painter Bob ating. In both cases, most people would rather remain in the dark, in the cave. In order to reach those who would choose !"#$%"&'(#)*(+&,*#-./$0#1&#2$/-3&04# to remain in the cave, the enlightened must descend into the 560#2/+#%6+.#5#2.&)4 cave (as Socrates does at the beginning of the Republic). Hence, 78&,&#7&#25((#%+#5$$#5,./60 Miss Brann’s lecture was written in the dark—with the cave %6#&9&,*#(&6(&::#+.#1,&53#%+#0.76 dwellers in mind. Consider what Miss Brann herself says about her own teach&9&6+/5$$*4#./,#1,5%6(4 ing method: she boldly states “we have a model for this un."#&5-8#(*$$51$&(#(7&&+#(./60 teacherly mode of teaching, presented to us in the writings of 7./$0#(.#(+,5%6#./,#1&5+%6;#8&5,+( Plato” (Review 135). Whether or not we all agree it is true, we +8&*'0#+.#./,#(./$(#-.6"&((4# all know that Plato’s writings have a notorious reputation for +%$$#7%+8#$5/;8+&,#+8&*#7./$0#1/,(+ being able to say different things to different people (consider %6#5#)&((#+85+'(#(.#0%9%6& Phaedrus 276a). One wonders whether Miss Brann’s darkly written lecture is an attempt at this type of writing. +85+#".,#.6&#).)&6+4#"./60#%6#+%)&:: For example, though much of the lecture is spent discuss#.6$*#$.9&4#560#+85+#%(#5$$ ing Plato’s dialogues, one will notice that Miss Brann is silent “ !"#$%&'#())*#!+,- �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle I 07 A’14 t is hard to get past the first pages of the grand jury report in the trial of Kermit Gosnell. The 72-year-old “physician” ran the Women’s Medical Center of West Philadelphia for more than two decades, before it was raided in 2010. Here is a sample of what investigators found: nell had dozens of employees over the years, several of whom worked for him for years. All knew what was going on, and none had even a stirring that something about decapitating babies and stuffing their remains in the lunchroom refrigerator was not right. During courtroom testimony, one employee testified that a baby lying in a clear glass pan was “screeching, The clinic reeked of animal urine, courtesy of the cats that making this noise” that “sounded like a little alien.” were allowed to roam (and defecate) freely. Furniture and That’s called crying. It’s what babies do. blankets were stained with blood. Instruments were not It might be possible to write off Gosnell as abortionist-runproperly sterilized. Disposable medical supplies were not amok, some fringe character who had seen too many Saw disposed of; they were reused, over and over again. Medi- movies. But that cannot explain the dozens of employees uncal equipment—such as the defibrillator, the EKG, the pulse able to distinguish what was happening at the clinic as “muroximeter, the blood pressure cuff—was generally broken; der.” even when it worked, it wasn’t used. The emergency exit But the scandal goes beyond West Philadelphia. Among the was padlocked shut. And scattered throughout, in cabinets, organizations that knew Gosnell was practicing illegal aborin the basement, in a freezer, in jars and bags and plastic tions and/or endangering women and/or, at the very least, jugs, were fetal remains. It was a baby charnel house. operating in subpar health conditions: the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, the Pennsylvania Department of Tough reading? It gets worse. Health, the Pennsylvania Department of State, University of Most doctors refuse to perform late second trimester Pennsylvania Hospital, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, abortions, from approximately the 20th week of pregnancy, and the National Abortion Federation. Each of those organibecause of the health risks. After 24 weeks abortions are il- zations had evidence of Gosnell’s malpractice and either dislegal. Gosnell “specialized” in such cases. In fact, the bigger missed it or, in the case of the National Abortion Federation, the baby, the more he could charge. During the day, his staff intentionally sat on it. (none of whom were medically trained or licensed; one was There is a reason the Gosnell story was purposely ignored a 15-year-old high school sophomore) by most major media outlets: it exposprepped his “patients” by giving them es the blithe, “see no evil” attitude that [Kermit] Gosnell is not an outli- many people have adopted toward painkillers and labor-inducing drugs; er. He is the product of the great abortion. Gosnell was not one of those he arrived in the evening to deliver the baby—then “ensure fetal demise,” notorious “back-alley” abortionists abortion lie: that the distincwhich he did by sticking scissors into from whom Roe v. Wade allegedly protions abortion advocates make tected women; he was a well-known the baby’s neck and cutting the spinal between what is and is not life cord. He called this “snipping.” “niche” doctor willing to perform Of course, sometimes the mothers dangerous or illegal abortions, and he are meaningful. could not wait. His staff testified that received patients recommended from one or two babies “fell out” of patients nightly. “They dropped doctors not only in Pennsylvania but up and down the Eastern out on lounge chairs, on the floor, and often in the toilet.” No Seaboard. one tended to the mother or the baby until Gosnell arrived, Gosnell is not an outlier. He is the product of the great often “two, three, four hours” later. The team that raided Gos- abortion lie: that the distinctions abortion advocates make nell’s facility “discovered fetal remains haphazardly stored between what is and is not life are meaningful. If such lines throughout the clinic—in bags, milk jugs, orange juice cartons, did exist, abortion would be a considerably less heated issue. and even in cat-food containers. Some fetal remains were in But physiologically, from conception to natural birth, no easa refrigerator, others were frozen.” “Investigators found a ily discernible stages exist; “trimesters,” for instance, are conrow of jars containing just the severed feet of fetuses.” The ventions, not marked gestational developments. Why, then, 2010 raid turned up 45 fetuses, but one employee confessed should a fetus be destructible at 23 weeks but protected at to snipping hundreds of babies during his years at the clinic. 24? Or, more bluntly, why should a bundle of tissue that can The mothers were lucky if they fared better than the chil- be killed in the womb be protected when, seconds later, it is dren. Gosnell frequently perforated wombs and bowels, tore gasping on the floor? cervixes and colons, and left parts of unsuccessfully extracted Gosnell, his morally anesthetized staff, and the neglectful babies in the mother’s body. His malpractice led to at least bureaucrats who refused to investigate and prosecute are untwo women’s deaths, but there is only evidence enough for impeachable evidence that abortion is a practice that thwarts him to be tried for one of them, a 41-year-old Nepalese refu- moral reasoning. But their inability is increasingly ours; even gee who died of a drug overdose. He is also charged with the the lines we have drawn in the law are arbitrary compromises first-degree murder of seven babies, but there are likely hun- that do not grapple with the fundamental question. And it is dreds more murders that will never be known. Gosnell regu- a simple one: Is it a baby, or isn’t it? When it comes to the larly destroyed incriminating files. moral reasoning that should make the answer obvious, we’re It is hard to know where to begin with a case like this. Gos- the ones who have been snipped. ! “ �The Gadfly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uts the Program in Music Sarah Meggison T A’15 here was this time I went to Open Mic last year where I heard this guy play a song that he introduced as a “Euclid love song.” It immediately grabbed my attention, since I was one of those over-enthusiastic freshmen who loved Euclid so much that I often jokingly (or not) claimed that he was my husband. The song was performed by Ty Kun (AGI’12), whose album Entelechy was released this past December. The song performed at Open Mic is entitled “Eucliding Me,” and contains lines such as, “The point at which my heart is breaking has no part apparently,” and, “You’re just a breadthless length, I cannot find the strength to follow you.” Several other songs from Kun’s record make similar Johnnie-type references, all of which are quite entertaining and thus make for good study music. About the recording process Kun says, The album was never foreseen. As an end, I never imagined I’d be prolific enough for something of such weight. I simply started writing songs during my first term in Santa Fe. I had been playing guitar for 12 years or so before that fateful 2011 spring term when I unfettered my voice. I beheld the latent compatibility between instruments. All of the odd little numbers and arrangements I had stockpiled throughout the years instantly became the vehicle for a greater means of expression: ...I find it inspiring one that only natural language can accomplish. to see a member of The music suddenly became an auxiliary for the St. John’s commy ideas that demanded words. These ideas munity translate prowere certainly influenced by the Great Books. gram things into art. In truth, many of the books were my fuel. E.g., See? Our education ‘Punny Greek Love’ was spurred by notions of here is not merely a love (eros) in the Phaedrus. I thought that maydegree in professionbe Alcibiades was seeking eros while Socrates seems content on keeping it philia, as to not al homelessness! hurt the transformation Alcibiades’ philiaings into eros. During the late fall of 2012 I became increasingly keen on recording an album as a Christmas gift to my friends and family...and maybe myself. This ‘gift idea’ probably influenced my decision to record more than any other. I wanted people to know that I wasn’t shutting myself off entirely.... I thought maybe my music would be a way to communicate to those I hold dear that I was immersed in a burgeoning project of self-expression and meaningful development. “ Entelechy has a simple, folksy feel, with just Kun and his guitar. But what’s fun about this record is Kun’s sense of humor; it’s always refreshing and entertaining when artists don’t take themselves too seriously. The tracks involve titles such as “Punny Greek Love,” “Should’ve Stuck to Geometry,” and “Queen Bitch of All Living Things.” This record speaks to the importance of making fun of otherwise serious things. The Program presents us with very heavy ideas to consider that are often difficult to deal with, and approaching these ideas with a sense of humor is one of the more productive ways to combat this seriousness and solemnity. Additionally, as a current student, I find it inspiring to see a member of the St. John’s community translate Program things into art. See? Our education here is not merely a degree in professional homelessness! Kun says his time at St. John’s was, indeed, life-changing: I miss St. John’s dearly (both campuses).... I learned more about all things that matter at St. John’s. My education there has compelled me to think differently when I should, and therefore, properly. It has impelled me to live in ways and appreciate manners of life that I had previously ruled out. And maybe most importantly, it has expelled me from prior noxious manners of life that once impeded my potential. You can check out Ty Kun’s Entelechy at http://atykun.bandcamp.com/album/aty-kuns-entelechy. ! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 8 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 20 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-04-23 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 20 of The Gadfly. Published on April 23, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.20 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/5b93f267f7dab095c21ee2a5360c519c.pdf 99537b01112fa4d38f3e9e126615d3c3 PDF Text Text !"# $%&%'(%)%* !"#$%&'()!$*&++,-,$.$/0$*&++,-,$12,3$1((14&+5!3$67$89:09$.$14;#$<03$809<$.$2&+#$===52$.$5!!>,$89 photo by Chengyaqing Shi �The Gadfly The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com << 02 !"#$%&'&()&*&+$,-./.&0 G reetings, Johnnies— I have asked tutors and friends to send me their opinions on various topics that have sparked my interest throughout my years here at St. John’s College. In this special edition of the Gadfly you will find a wide array of thoughts and experiences that reflect some of my deepest passions and questions. I hope you all enjoy the journey with the same amount of pleasure I have. www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Contributors Eva Brann Katy Edwards Boethius Fontaine Jerry Januszewski Daniela Lobo Dias Joseph Macfarland Painter Bob Alex Schmid John Verdi John Ropoulos !"#$%&'( [Editor’s Note: Scattered throughout the issue, enjoy these words of wit and wisdom from tutor John Verdi on subjects such as love, memory, education, thinking, and more.] —You sense that a great liberation will be yours if only you act. The bonds of morality which bind your spirit will be loosened, if only slightly. Yet you hesitate. The unknown consequences of acting immorally paralyze you. What measure of bitterness must be drunk with the sweet? Of course you do not know. To a large extent the efficacy of their freeing action arises from your ignorance. In these matters it is difficult to be wise before becoming free. Viva uncertainty, the mind’s savior! —“I have never had a memorable conversation with him.” Thus you indict yourself. You suffer from either a bad memory or a mean spirit. —For one hour I felt that profound force push against the thin fabric which protects me. Then it withdrew, and I felt that every good thing was once again possible. I must never forget that hour when it seemed that all my happiness might spill onto the ground at any moment, and I would be left hollow, pale, and bitter. O fortuna, velut luna! —We expect to awaken one day to find our adolescent fears and anxieties gone, but they are not. They have just “matured.” —Habits of good thinking are like those of cleanliness: unless you have grown up with them, you never really understand what all the fuss is about. !"#$%&'(&)$*)$+"#$,"*'# ! John Ropoulos, A’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ohnnies—Just a gentle reminder that we’re accepting submissions for our final issue of the year, dedicated to the Class of 2013. Seniors: Please send in your hometown, senior essay title, post-grad plans (however tentative...), and a headshot. We also welcome reflections, advice, etc. Others: We are looking for profiles, interviews, odes to your favorite seniors—anything about this year’s graduates. All submissions are due by Wednesday, May 1. We look forward to featuring this year’s graduating class! ! �The Gadfly 03 !"#$%&'()*+()#)$%,"+-&."/#(+,0 1+2+(3$+($4"#$5'647(&8(#66 !"#$%&'()*"+&,&-(.$'"$'"#$/&0'.(1 Miss Eva Brann M r. Ropoulos and I were talking in the Coffee Shop, and the subject of modernity came up. So he asked me to write a few pages for his issue of the Gadfly. “Modernity” comes from Latin modo, “just-now.” Thus modernity is any generation’s own time; it is the mode of the recent, the contemporary—with a hint of time-pride: the latest is the newest, and the newest is the best. The moderni of any era, its progressives, think along those lines—and the conservatives see decline. But modernity also has a history-bound meaning: It is that epoch which is tied to Antiquity by a Medieval or Middle Age. It is a time, first of renewal and rebirth (Renaissance), then of the simply new, Modernity, and finally, of novelty, namely when its very signature is prolific innovation. Eventually “modernism” is appropriated for a style, or rather a plethora of styles, in art and architecture—rejectionist with respect to tradition, deliberatively expressive of modern functionality, and relentlessly “creative.” Now it has come to this: Innovation has been institutionalized, change and growth has become a way of life, and knowledgeable rejection has turned into forgetful oblivion. Moreover, modernity, just-nowness, epochalized, has become just another age to be superseded. Therefore we live in post-modern times; and that was really what Mr. Ropoulos and I were talking about.* What are its now-discernible features? An intensification of modernism, I thought as we talked: More and faster. But also explosive variety—everything going off in opposite directions: globalism and nationalism (an ever-smaller world with evermore national entities), personal freedom and impersonal tyrannies (options galore and regulative officiousness), rampant individualism and conformist outcomes (anything goes, and so we all wear jeans and logo-imprinted T-shirts).—Any Johnnie can expand this post-modern Table of Opposites, which lists the contrary trends that pull at us; I’m full of additional items. How to live in this roiling stasis? I thought: Go soundmindedly schizophrenic (Greek for “split-minded”). Be cannily knowledgeable about all this sheer potentiality. Then fall to worldmaking: Found small habitable communities that have definable purpose, definite character, and flexible stability. It might be a gathering of 3 or 3x10n people, a band of friends, a school, a company, a civic group. You might be the catalyst or the organizer or a devoted participant— whatever. Just make a place for souls to be—adapting Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics I.7 and X.6—thoughtfully and fulfillingly at work in behalf of some good. Mr. Ropoulos said “400 words,” and I’m already beyond that—though I’ve barely begun. ! *I haven’t yet come across a proper name for the next epoch, post-post-modernity. In retrospect, what will post-modernity be the “pre-” of? Johnnies are well positioned for conjecturing about that temporal Non-being, the Future. !"##"$% Mr. Nima Eshragh Last seen: Croquet Weekend, surrounded by purple pillows, gold goblets, and red silk tapestries. Last wearing: Copious amounts of gold jewelry, cheap cologne, and stolen Greek artifacts. !"#$%&'( —The best teacher of all but the very young helps a student organize his experience, but can do little for a student with little experience. Socrates knew this and insisted that our most important experiences were those held in common. On these he practiced his pedagogical art. Plato interpreted (or refashioned) Socrates’s belief to require common experience prior to birth, perhaps because people seemed to him more different from one another than they did to Socrates, and so less able to share experiences. (One might say that Socrates loved people more than did Plato, but that Plato respected them more.) —Why are the great loves that inspire creativity invariably illicit? —How much of “I want” is “I have wanted”? How much of “I want” is “they expect”? —A great source of unhappiness is the opposition of good people. (St. Teresa) �The Gadfly 04 !"#$%&'(#)*$+,-. Jerry Januszewski O Counselor ne warm September day in 1998, five of us from St. John’s remained on the beach. College went for a swim in the Chesapeake Bay at a beach When you plunge into water that cold, two things happen about ten miles from campus. It was so much fun we returned in an instant. One, your body heat gathers to your core, which a month later. We were pleased with ourselves, swimming in leaves your outer body, from head to toe, throbbing in pain. what we thought was pretty cold water in October. It may have Even your face hurts. Two, panic takes over. The rational mind ended there, but then someone asked, “Why don’t we swim shuts down, except for one thought: MUST GET OUT NOW. outdoors every month of the school year?” Feeling flush with After submersion, getting out with all speed is exactly what we hope or hubris, we formalized our agreement. The St. John’s did. College Polar Bear Club was born. Then a wonderful thing happened. Within 15 seconds of The air temperatures that November were balmy. It was 65 leaving the water, my body heat rushed back out to my skin degrees the day we took our third plunge as a group. The water and limbs. This produced an ecstatic sense of well-being. The was cold, but not cold enough to keep us from laughing as we same happened to the others swimmers. We stood on the swam around. Still, the swim felt like a great achievement. At beach without our coats, laughing, warm and happy and feeldinner that evening we exchanged knowing glances, as if we ing, most amazing of all, a sweet absence of anxiety. That mowere soldiers who had survived combat ment remains one of my fondest memotogether. ries: a transformation of one of my most What disturbing irony it For some reason we were in no rush to anxiety-ridden moments ever into one of would be if activities we get our December swim accomplished. the most magical. pursue in the name of freeAs the temperatures began to drop, Later, when I pondered this peak exsomeone would say in passing, “Hey, we perience, I became very upset at how my dom, may in truth accomshould get our swim in before it gets real anxiety had incapacitated me, and how plish a flight from freedom. cold.” But we kept putting it off. passive I had felt. Soren Kierkegaard said, Examining the origins of Christmas came and went, and still no “Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom.” If anxiety may reveal our pres- he is correct, then the human inclination swim. Everyone was still in town, so a ent needs that are unfamilmeeting of the Polar Bear Club was called to escape anxiety could very well be an iar to us, but still deeply felt. attempt to escape from freedom. Is that to order. The air temperature was now consistently around freezing, 32 degrees. what I did? Mary, our archousa, pointed out that we One could argue that polar bear swimwere in serious danger of failing our mission as an organization ming is a frivolous activity. But my anxiety was real and dizand also of invalidating any previous claim to toughness. Dave, zying because real freedom was involved. I had two choices, our second-in-command, objected, asserting that swimming in swim or not swim, and both were painful. Saying “I wanted this weather could lead to death. Mary and Dave were dating, Mary and Dave to be my mommy and daddy” was a wisecrack and I thought I noticed a contentious glare exchanged between perhaps, but on that beach I dearly wanted them to choose for them. me. It is truly frightening that all it took for me to be willing My anxiety about whether to take the icy swim made me un- to forfeit my freedom was a certain sufficient level of anxiety. usually passive about the decision. We all deferred to Mary, This contradicted what I thought I stood for in the pursuit of and she determined we would swim the next day, New Year’s a free life. Eve, December 31, at 6pm at the same beach. This was not Our society regards anxiety as an enemy to happiness, not quite the 11th hour, but it was awfully close. an ally. It feels so good to make anxiety disappear that there The next evening we piled into my car and headed out to is widespread sympathy for removing it through almost any the beach. The mood was subdued. Outside it was 24 degrees, means, such as prescribed medications, alcohol, and, increaswith wind gusts up to 20 mph. The normally tranquil beach ingly, marijuana. I understand that sometimes incapacitating had waves as big as ocean surf. It was dark and as uninviting anxiety requires direct intervention. But I wonder how often a setting for swimming as you can imagine. We stood on the we slavishly blunt anxiety to flee the “dizziness of freedom.” beach, miserable, shivering in our bathing suits and winter What disturbing irony it would be if activities we pursue in coats, huddled tightly to protect against the wind. the name of freedom in truth accomplish a flight from freeWe argued again about whether we should risk this. Mary dom. Examining the origins of anxiety may reveal our present was for it. Dave was against it. I was wavering. I wanted Mary needs that are unfamiliar to us but still deeply felt. What a rich and Dave to be my mommy and daddy and tell me what to do. source of self-knowledge is that state, if we can learn to tolerIt was so cold. ate it. Finally Mary took charge, ripping off her furry coat and For the cause of personal freedom are we willing to attend shouting, “I don’t care! I’m going in!” She sprinted to the wa- to our anxiety and learn its lessons instead of blotting it out? ter and dove in. I mechanically followed her into the water. Facing our anxiety with courage and curiosity is one of many One of the others followed me in. Dave and the last member fascinating and fruitful entrances to the well-examined life. ! “ �The Gadfly 05 !"#$%#&'()*+$$,-$.(+'/(!"0&*/()*+$$,-$. Wolfe Nelson SF’14 Current Santa Fe junior Wolfe Nelson sat down with Santa Fe tutor Michael Wolfe, a St. John’s alum with an M.A. in the History of Religions, to discuss possibilities for studying Islamic texts at St. John’s. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Mr. Wolfe. I guess a good place to start would be, has the recommendation for a Middle Eastern Classics program already been submitted, or is that still in process? cussed the possibility of including preceptorials on the Greeks. You spoke of another recommendation. I’ve moved past the original recommendation for a Middle Well, that depends on which recommendation you’re talking Eastern graduate program to think about other possibilities, about. I’m not sure how much of this has circulated among in part because I feel very strongly that Islam is part of the the undergraduates, but let’s start with the idea for a graduate Western tradition, and I don’t think that Islamic texts should program. In the fall of 2011 a recommendation was submitted be studied in isolation from the rest of the Western tradition. to the Instruction Committee for a graduate program in Mid- A recommendation was recently put forth for a new B.A. prodle Eastern Classics. That was designed to include both Jew- gram in World Classics at St. John’s, to run concurrently with ish and Islamic texts, modeled after the one-year structure of our current undergraduate program. That recommendation the Eastern Classics graduate program. That recommendation was spearheaded by Mr. Houser. A group of faculty members was spearheaded by Mr. Venkatesh, and the curriculum was gathered last year to design a curriculum in World Classics. I designed mostly by Ken Wolfe, with some collaboration from was a member of this group. However, when the recommenme. I’m not sure about its current stadation was finally submitted, I wasn’t tus, but some people seem to have been one of the tutors who signed on. My interested in it. That was the original main reason for not signing on was that I feel very strongly that Islam recommendation for a Middle Eastern is part of the Western tradition, I didn’t like the idea of splitting the Classics program. undergraduate student body into two and I don’t think that Islamic A few months ago, Mr. Carl (Director programs. I think it’s very important texts should be studied in isola- that undergraduates participate in a of the Graduate Institute) approached tion from the rest of the Westme and asked me to design a curricusingle, common program. ern tradition. lum of Islamic readings modeled after But the experience of working on the segments in the Liberal Arts graduthis project prompted me to submit my ate program. That would be an eight-week summer course. It own recommendation for a five-year World Classics program would not count towards academic credit at the college. Like based on the programs that we currently have in place. In my any segment in the Liberal Arts program, it would consist of recommendation, most of the current undergraduate program three classes: a tutorial, a seminar, and a preceptorial. We don’t would actually remain intact. The revisions that I suggested yet know if this program is going to happen at all, but there’s could be implemented incrementally, in three steps. The first some hope that it could launch as soon as summer 2014. step would be to market the Eastern Classics program as a fifth year of study for those who go through the undergraduate proFor the full-year program, what would the curriculum gram. Going through all five years would result in a master’s consist of? degree. This step was not actually my own idea. The idea was already in circulation. The languages offered would be Hebrew and Arabic. Students The second step would be to introduce additional precepwould choose to study one of the two. Because they are, in torials in the senior year. This was also not my idea. It had aleffect, cousin languages, and are quite similar to each other, ready been proposed by other tutors. Part of the problem with there would be more opportunities for interaction among stu- senior seminar is that there are just too many things worth dents than, say, with the Chinese and Sanskrit tutorials in the reading from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and we Eastern Classics program. The hope would be that at some can’t read them all in any depth. New preceptorials would ofpoint in the year Hebrew and Arabic students could come to- fer students the opportunity to choose just a few of these imgether and teach one another, and interact in the context of portant texts and study them in a more in-depth way. Seniors studying two closely-related Semitic languages. have reached the point where they can begin choosing what The fall semester would be devoted to classic Jewish texts, they want to focus on. They’ll have to do that after graduating the spring semester would be devoted to Arabic Islamic texts, from St. John’s anyway. The recommendation for additional and the summer semester would be devoted to Persian Islamic preceptorials in the senior year was originally unrelated to texts. The time span covered by the curriculum would be quite any recommendation for a World Classics program. It was large, moving from the earliest books of the Hebrew Bible up conceived of as a way to improve senior year. I’m just piggythrough the fourteenth century. Given the importance of Plato backing on that original recommendation. and Aristotle to Islamic philosophy, which can be almost uninContinued On Pg. 06 telligible without knowledge of the Greek thinkers, we’ve dis- “ �The Gadfly 06 Continued From Pg. 05 The third step is my own idea: having added preceptorials to sympathetic to that view. A really wonderful Islamic text that the senior year, I would recommend that we remove the junior I’d love to see us read here is Hayy ibn Yaqzan by Ibn Tufayl. year preceptorial. I see disadvantages to doing this, but I hope Ibn Tufayl’s introduction raises the question of the relationthey would be outweighed by the advantages. This would open ship between rational discourse and mystical discourse—a up space to do new things in seminar. The final eight weeks of question that I don’t think comes up elsewhere in the prosophomore seminar, chronologically, don’t gram. The Sufis didn’t influence Europe really belong in sophomore year. They as much as the Islamic philosophers, so I Islamic texts are not only belong in junior year. Descartes, Shakedon’t include as many texts by them in my a crucial component of a speare, Bacon…even thematically they fit recommendation for sophomore seminar. well-rounded program in in with junior year. My recommendation But we will spend a lot more time on the involves taking everything in sophomore Sufis in the summer program that we’re World Classics...they are seminar after Chaucer and moving it to modeling after the Liberal Arts graduate also a necessary compojunior seminar. I think there’s something nent of a well-rounded pro- program. to be said, for example, in favor of locatAs for myself, personally, the road that gram in Western Classics. ing both Descartes seminar readings (The led to studying Sufism began with PlotiDiscourse on Method and The Meditations) nus. I loved him when I first read him as in the same semester. I also think there’s something to be said a sophomore at St. John’s. I think this prepared the way for for juxtaposing Cervantes’ Don Quixote with Shakespeare’s As me to fall in love with Sufism. When I took my first class on You Like It, for placing Shakespeare’s Richard II and Henry IV Sufism in graduate school, it turned my world upside down— Parts I and II in the same semester as Hobbes’ Leviathan, and especially the writings of Ibn al-‘Arabi. He addressed all the for placing Montaigne’s “On Cannibals” in the same semester things I loved in Plotinus as well as offering alternative views as Rousseau’s Discourse on the Origin of Inequality. These are on the things I didn’t love. Ibn al-‘Arabi’s work is both intellecjust a few examples of the new juxtapositions that would re- tually rich and experientially rich. My encounter with him insult from this rearrangement. spired me to change the focus of my graduate studies to Islam, So then we would have about eight weeks freed up in sopho- and I brought that interest back to St. John’s with me when I more seminar, and we could use that to introduce Islamic texts became a tutor. ! to the undergraduate program, filling in the lacuna that currently exists in the reading list between Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. Islamic texts are not only a crucial component of a well-rounded program in World Classics; I would suggest —All my life I have too much enjoyed my comforts that they are also a necessary component of a well-rounded to become a good thinker. I have lived always amid program in Western Classics. The Qur’an is no more a Midprops and supports, finding opportunity all around dle Eastern text than the Bible. You can’t really understand to avoid the suffering that alone opens doors. Now where Thomas Aquinas came from if you haven’t read Avicenthat so many of my habitual sources of comfort na. Dante places Avicenna and Averroes in Limbo, alongside have betrayed me, I find I nevertheless continue to Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Even Cervantes’ conceit of atlive in a manner which others can’t distinguish from tributing Don Quixote to a Moorish author testifies to Islam’s presence as a visible element of the European tradition. So my former ways. I try to fall but cannot. This is my I’ve drawn up a revised reading list for sophomore and junior peculiar form of blessedness, my personal irony. seminar that includes Islamic texts—mostly texts by Islamic —We might profit greatly in our daily lives if we philosophers, but of course it also includes selections from the Qur’an, Ibn Ishaq’s biography of Muhammad, and a few readcould keep a record of what we forget. These lost ings by Sufis (Islamic mystics). facts, reflections, emotions influence us much more In addition to these revisions to sophomore seminar, I would than what we remember, because we forget the suggest that we find a place in sophomore math for reading a most important things, sometimes quite aware of text or two in Islamic mathematics, in between Apollonius and their importance. But would a way to salvage these Descartes. These revisions would give us a more complete unotherwise lost experiences not overwhelm us, perdergraduate program in Western Classics, and it would put us haps to desperation? Is this the “profit” we ought to in a better position to claim that, along with the Eastern Clasexpect from our efforts? For some, yes. sics program, we offer a course of study in World Classics. “ !"#$%&'( We tend to ignore the mystic tradition here. Do you have any thoughts on why that may be? That’s actually a big topic. Currently we have only a single seminar on a mystical text, the seminar on Plotinus. Mr. Duvoisin argues that we should read more mystics. I’m definitely —We tolerate least the faults of others that we share with them. —The search for virtue forces the seeker to distrust those who claim to know. Socrates was put to death for his distrust. Oh, yes: he called it “wonder.” �The Gadfly 07 Alive, Son of Awake: Should it be on the Program? Mr. Joseph Macfarland I A’87 f a human being were raised and educated on an island, without the company of other humans, free from inherited opinions and prejudices, how would he encounter the world around him, and what might he discover about nature and its first principles? This is the improbable premise of Hayy ibn Yaqzan (“Alive, son of Awake”), written by Ibn Tufayl, a 12th century Muslim philosopher from Granada, and teacher of the better known Averroes (the “Commentator”). Not unlike Rousseau’s natural savage, Hayy begins his life imitating various animals around him. When he discovers, however, that the doe who nursed him lives no longer, his education in philosophy begins: what has caused this change in her? His wish to discover this secret and cure his “mother” leads him to open her chest and unintentionally embark on the study of anatomy. Many dissections follow, and, in seven stages of seven years each, his education progresses through the sciences, from physics, psychology, and astronomy, to metaphysics, culminating in his attempt to understand the activity of the divinity and its action upon the world. Each stage of this journey raises questions about how the sciences are dependent on one another, how the world can be known, and what bearing this knowledge has on how one should live. At the age of 50 Hayy achieves perfection in the sustained contemplation of the divinity. In the meantime, however, we are told of two pious friends, Asal and Salaman, who live on a nearby island. Salaman keeps to the apparent meaning and the external practices of the divine law, The Program is far too crowded for us to include sev- while Asal seeks to discover the spiritual meanings hidden within the dieral books from the Islamic vine law. While Salaman successfully philosophic tradition, and pursues a public life, Asal, preferring to include only one work as seclusion, repairs serendipitously to Hayy’s island. What do Hayy and Asal a sort of token would betray that tradition, since no single make of one another, as Hayy sought book can do justice to its rich- the divine without reference to any human traditions, and Asal sought divine ness and variety. through the study of the divine law? In what ways are Hayy’s insights and practices preferable to Asal’s, or defective in respect of Asal’s? As the two discover that they seek the same divinity, and thus become friends, they wonder: should they dedicate themselves to the solitary, ascetic contemplation perfected by Hayy, or return to Asal’s native land and attempt to educate the faithful about the nature of the divinity and the path to human perfection? Is Hayy’s strange, asocial origin a perverse aberration, or even a lie (ibn Tufayl gives alternative versions), or does it signal the truth about human perfection? The Program is far too crowded for us to include several books from the Islamic philosophic tradition, and to include only one work as a sort of token would betray that tradition, since no single book can do justice to its richness and variety, and it would betray the Program, since we choose books for their inherent wisdom rather than “to cover” historical or cultural epochs. Still, if we were to choose just one book from the Islamic philosophical tradition, Hayy would serve us best, for through the ambiguities of Hayy’s amusing story we are invited to view the religious tradition as critically and analytically as did Alfarabi, the most strident philosopher in the Islamic tradition, and to consider the satisfactions and the risks of mystical contemplation as deeply as did Alghazali, the most acute critic of Muslim philosophers such as Alfarabi. Moreover, Hayy does not belong to a foreign tradition at all inasmuch as one easily recognizes the footprints of Plato, Aristotle, and the neo-platonic philosophers on Hayy’s allegedly uninhabited island. In any case, if this delightful and deep book should never make the Program, you might consider it a worthy diversion should you find yourself this summer alone on a beach. ! “ !"#$%& Mr. Timothy Schum For: Not attending best friend’s senior oral. Last seen: Entering BBC to write Gadfly article. Article was never written. Last wearing: Loincloth. Reward: Milkshake at Ruth & Chicks. !"#$%&'( —Sometimes coming to understand has the feel of waking up and joining a conversation that has been in progress for a long time. —Every generation must ask its own “eternal questions.” �The Gadfly 08 !"#$%&!#''#(!)*'$(+''#,# O Practically Stupid? John Ropoulos E A’13 Practically Brilliant ur school is marketed as an “intellectual” college; we read very Johnnie has been asked, “So what is it you’re studythe brilliant minds of the Western world, take a hands-on ing?” at least a dozen times. Our answers are varied, but approach to mathematics, science, language, and music, and often we resort to a simple one like, “The great books,” “Oh, we participate in conversations that few people outside of our just philosophy,” “A bunch of dead white guys,” or my favorite, little cult have the time or knowledge for. Still, there is some- “the history of Western civilization.” All of these answers— thing missing. and the question, for that matter—are irreverent. Most of our endeavors at this college are “lofty”; we soar Studying, or “a detailed investigation and analysis of a subabove first impressions and build giant monoliths of thought ject,” is not what Johnnies are supposed to participate in. We so that the daily movements of our minds are focused on gran- are supposed to “experience” the thought of the author. diose objectives. Yet despite the fact that we dissect fish, we These two are different by virtue of their internalization. are afraid to get our hands dirty. We lack an inclination to Studying is cold and analytical. It is a process that implants practicality. “facts” and “ideas” into our minds for later use. First, let’s think about how we eat. I’m not Experiencing is a combination of Plato’s recolIf you are not necessarily talking about all the hamburgers, lection and an unscientific experimentation. hotdogs, quesadillas, and fried food served in experiencing the Instead of storing “facts,” its job is to develop the dining hall (though food quality is a huge texts and authors’ the framework of the mind anew by introducproblem). We should be concerned with where we get our food. We label ourselves as “indemodes of thought, ing modes of thought or avenues for intuition. It is similar to lifting weights. When you study, pendent” thinkers, but we are very dependent making them your you take the same 10 lb. dumbbell and increase on outside food sources. The solution: food proown, then you are your amount of reps and do the same exercise duction. The College has enough land to build over and over again. But when you experience, greenhouses and enough students who would not actualizing you go to crossfit. be willing to participate in a work-study proyour full potential Freshmen, have you raged like Achilles? (I’m gram, where they learn how to grow their own not talking about partying here). Have you food. The food grown would offset dining hall to be a Johnnie. “played Socrates” with your family, friends, or expenses, making the meal plan cheaper and would have the added benefits of locally grown, fresh and townies? And by this I mean using the playful, investigative, nutritious stamped upon it. The world population is increas- and sometimes abusive method of that sage and getting to the ing rapidly, but food supplies are diminishing; wouldn’t these origin of someone’s thought. Go to a person and make him or little greenhouses be invaluable learning centers for students her your Meno, Polus, or Phaedrus. and attractive for prospective students? We don’t have to look Sophomores, have you gone out into the woods and tried too far for supporters either. Stringfellow Barr, in his book The talking to God, or have you poured tears asking for repenKitchen Garden Book (yes, it’s in the library), says this about tance? Have you examined your heart and loved your neighbor the garden: “It is at least a spot in space where man encounters as yourself? Meditated in search of the One? Have you written the Earth, where man may love and nourish her, and she may a song or practiced an instrument? Have you viewed life as a love and nourish him,” so why are we depriving ourselves of play? this rich educational opportunity? Juniors, have you been the Knight Errant? Have you tackSecond, let’s talk about money. I’ll try to make this one led windmills, attacked bandits and ridden heavy steeds? Have simple. Let’s say that you receive a monthly salary of $10,000, you intuited your existence as a monad? Have you been as conwhat would you do with it? You could spend it all, or you could invest it. Take $2,000 of your salary and buy something that fident as Don Giovanni? Tell me about your a priori faculties generates $200 monthly. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but and whether they are bound by time and space. I would even now your salary has increased to $10,200, your investment ask you to count from 1 to 5, and if you can do that without heswill be paid off in 10 months, and you now have more capital itating, then perhaps you need to read your Dedekind again. Seniors, how noble have you been? Have you worked in an for more investment. So what about the College? Most of the money from tuition assembly line? Have you felt Reason to be a passion? Have you and donations from alumni is spent as soon as it arrives in our fallen in love? Are you Alyosha, Dimitri, Ivan, or all three? hands; it comes in one door and out the other. What do we Have you fought against the tyranny of the majority? Have you own? If we owned a business (a coffee shop, perhaps, that peo- “gone huntin”? I ask these questions because if you are not experiencing ple actually enjoy eating at), we would have useable revenue. I may be making a complicated issue sound simple, but maybe the texts and authors’ modes of thought, making them your it’s a simple problem: Need money? Purchase something that own, then you are not actualizing your full potential to be a generates money. Need money for investment? Get a loan. Johnnie. Nietzsche calls the new philosophers great attemptDon’t we read Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations here? ers; what have you attempted? The next time someone asks St. John’s College has a few problems that are easy to fix. you, “What are you studying?”, tell him or her, if you can, that All it takes is a little clever thinking to get around them. Could you don’t study, you experience. ! the real problem be fear? Perhaps we’re too conservative and think bad quality food from outside sources (that’s usually fried upon arrival) and a continual reliance on donations and tuition with the same financial problems over and over again is who we are. Buying a business or land for development: —To be denied elevated feelings is to be cut off from radical and liberal, not cohesive with the identity of St. John’s. Wait, aren’t we a liberal arts college? deep thoughts. P.S. One more thing on practicality: Why is there no Wi-Fi in most of the dorms and the Coffee Shop? ! “ !"#$%&'( �The Gadfly 09 Experiential Exegesis Katy Edwards M SF’13 y January freshman lab tutor once led us into a class- over, and I lost sense of my imagination working  to go beyond room of dead cats. At the time, I was feeling pretty my own nature. The philosophic life eventually allowed me overwhelmed, and all I wanted was the comfort of my cat. to become my own Prospero, but that was a long journey. To Needless to say, the sight of the lab room did not help me feel use a metaphor, imagine walking through an art museum. At better. I fled the classroom in humiliated tears. When I re- some point you should come upon some well-known painting turned, my tutor began  counseling  our unskilled hands say- and primarily take in its totality. Just like succumbing to the ing, “I want you to dissect this cat like you were analyzing a artistic rhythm of a story, I would trust my eyes to compreShakespearean play.” In my mind, this was a perfect platform hend the whole picture while the tiny brushstrokes of poetic for a new philosopher to begin working with scientific rigor.  wit were overlooked. I wasn’t necessarily starting my journey A strange realization was thrust upon my mind, and my hands at the wrong place. First, I had to acknowledge the frame the happily began their translation of fact artist chose to dance within, and then I into my naive ideas of beauty. This mocould hear the inevitable, historical conThe creative philosopher ment has stuck to me for many years, yet versation the author was having with requires a sense of beauty a large amount of curiosity still remains. humanity. As I sat in front of the picture, Why is literature such a necessary part my eyes would naturally find their own beyond logical deduction. of philosophic inquiry? What does litsmall strokes of truth. These unfiltered, One must feel the push of erature contribute to the philosopher’s understanding without com- almost meditative, discoveries of subjecapproach to a liberal arts education? tive beauty led to an unaware creation; plete certainty. While finding As a philosopher searches for truth by my work of art was something like a map the framework is the work of of relativity, an analytic path between defining all boundaries of logical reality, the philosopher, the coma work of literature artistically attempts the work’s logical totality and my own to highlight these  boundaries  and simunication of human experi- artistic understanding. A form of beauty multaneously push the reader into the was found in my private dialogue, and I ence belongs to the artist. chaos lying beyond acceptable bounds. acquired the most important tool in my I have often found my own academic trajectory focused on Johnnie career. I was able to analyze all the beautiful details idealized progress, but when I try to fit my own experience by applying my scalpel wherever I desired. I would proceed into the equation, a sort of societal claustrophobia takes hold to create my own collage within the historical enframing I first of my confined thoughts. To use a literary cliché, literature encountered. A disheveled visage usually appeared after my has always felt like a breath of fresh air here at St. John’s. Not passionate hands had worked to the point of exhaustion. I necessarily a warm, reassuring, summer breeze, but more like soon realized I needed a guidebook: my own experience. This a winter gust thrust upon the unsuspecting nerves of my ex- third step sounds simple, and perhaps a reader often applies posed skin. This sudden experience often melts my quixotic experience to a text before anything else, but for now let us pride and illuminates the flimsy frame of subjectivity. stick to the art museum metaphor.  Just as one is drawn to the These  incandescent  moments in literature are not easily details of beauty in a great work of art, one must also take time found. Literature wears a mask as wily as our Odyssean hero, to  separate  the natural idea of beauty that resonates within holding vulnerability and truth where we least expect. When their being. This allows one to see what societal facts one acI was younger I believed a good story was defined by the hyp- cepts, eg., that deep blue pigment is probably made of azurite, notic hold the author fixed upon my eager thoughts. By fall- but also what subjective experience lingers in that monad of ing under the writer’s sorcery, my bold eyes became glazed personal beauty, such as the first moment I saw the deep blue of the Atlantic Ocean. The creative philosopher requires a sense of beauty beyond logical deduction. One must feel the push of understanding without complete certainty. While finding the framework is —The real loss in the disappearance of God is the work of the philosopher, the communication of human that we no longer enjoy the luxury of believing experience belongs to the artist. As philosophers, the human that all things can be understood and that each condition should be sweet honey for our wormwood of logic. has a purpose. God took with him some of the Nietzche says that as artists we must float betwixt the cliffs secrets as well as the telos. We are left with a of rocky history and the unknown abyss. This is only achievworld badly understood and without purpose, able in the philosophical portrait of an artist. So remember, Johnnies:  artistic  talent lies in the balance of academic fact but ours. and personal truth. This gives us so much more than an ana—When young we envy the good fortune of othtomical diagram of a cat. A beautiful tempest can be born even within the realm of scientific fact. All it requires is the ardor of ers; when old we envy their virtue. a philosopher with an eye for beauty. ! “ !"#$%&'( �The Gadfly 10 !"#$%&'()*#$)+$,'-$ ./$%'#*#/-$!.0#*1$ !"#$%&'()*'+#$,-$./$0#/1#/ Daniela Lobo Dias S A’13 !"#$%& Sultan Çınar Doruk For: Stealing feta cheese from Greek peasants. Last seen: Pumping ome weeks ago at the Hirshhorn Museum in D.C., I saw Ai iron, glistening in sweat. Weiwei’s exhibit “According to What?” and its impact on my mind has not yet fizzled out. Since walking out of the exLast wearing: Nothing. hibit, the question, “What kind of art is this?” has only gained intensity and gravity—alas, without much progress. Reward: $50 gift card to Ai Weiwei’s exhibit at first glance could easily lead to the Hot Topic. usual modern art reaction, “It’s interesting, but I don’t get it.” But like any great thing, with time and effort you are brought to new ideas never formed in your mind before. The exhibit was organized linearly on a broad hallway, and scattered over soon as the vases’ historical context was imposed on its identithe floor space were large three-dimensional pieces. I’ll focus ty, they gained power over my actions and thoughts. Had there on one that led me to a particularly enjoyable thought process: been a fire, I just might have tried to save one of them for the The Colored Vases. sake of preserving history. I happened upon this piece unceremoniously, but I soon And thus we come to the impasse: What is the purpose of realized its terrible importance. Since the short and wide in- history in our present lives? Should we disregard history and stallation took up most of the hallway’s walking space, it was use it for the benefit of the present, regardless of destructive unavoidable that I had to choose a way to walk around it, right consequences, or should we worship and preserve it even if it or left. The disruption of the straight walking path was won- has nothing to teach the present—simply for the sake of perderfully appropriate, as the impasse and questions that were petuity? brought to light by this piece were just as unavoidable as its Just as I had to choose right or left to continue past this inplacement. stallation, I had to choose my stance on this issue. By invoking There were 16 simple vases, varying around a height of immediate anger or indifference in his audience, Ai Weiwei about two feet. It seemed they had been dipped like Easter also made the question of the importance of history immeeggs into some average house paints diately present, and the answer was in and that they were half-haphazardly left Contemporary art, unlike that your reaction. So Ai Weiwei begs his to drip and dry. The colors were pleasaudience to make an active decision, to of the past, is not an ideal of ant and various, and it was enjoyable be angry or to be indifferent, and to then maybe beauty or tradition, enough to glance at. But as soon as I read act on that path, since there is no middle but a commentary and a con- path, literally. He wants to rouse people its nameplate and description, a spark versation on the present. of indignation furrowed my brows and from ambivalence and ambiguity. my mouth opened to protest. These vasBy representing a question in the es were from the Han Dynasty and were over two thousand form of artwork, the above dialogue happened within my own years old. ANCIENT CHINESE ARTIFACTS COVERED IN mind. Through the necessity of having to internalize the imCHEAP PAINT. How dare he? How dare some artist destroy age, the piece made me personally experience what was at and ruin these testaments of human existence and ancient art- stake, making the question relatable and understandable in my istry? He has desecrated and disrespected their value by join- own words. By reaching inside my heart to my personal emoing them with the cheapness of the present. tions, I had no time to think and be lost in ambivalence. However, the minute before, these vases had no use or imWe now return to my first question, “What kind of art is portance to me. They were objects with no emotional value, this?” The rest of his pieces were also comments on socialand I might have passed them just I would have passed a pret- political issues, and they also begged the audience to actively ty stone that caught my attention on the ground. The vases choose a side. Ai Weiwei has stated, “The so-called contemthemselves were not striking in shape, similar to vases I would porary art is not a form but a philosophy of society.” Contemsee any day of the week, and they were not beautifully made. porary art, unlike that of the past, is not an ideal of, maybe, They were unadorned and showed no particular genius. As an beauty or tradition, but a commentary and a conversation on artist, I can’t imagine there to be any special new method or the present. Perhaps this type of art has sprung from the need inspiration to be learned from their form. The paint actually of originality, that the beautiful things have already been cremade the grey and beige surfaces fun and pleasant to look at. I ated, and we have already dissected every aspect of shape and noticed that other observers seemed not to have been angered color through the moderns. All that’s left for the artist to exat all by the background knowledge. plore is the present. Is commentary-driven art cheap, and less The only thing that made them special was their age. As epic than art that was created for beauty’s sake? ! “ �The Gadfly 11 !"#$%&'()*(%!"#$%&'()*(#&%+,Alex Schmid T GI’12 humos, Plato’s noble beast—at one time the lion made to say, if one agrees with Aquinas that the will, or one’s spirited fight the infinite heads of the hydra of passion (Republic nature, may be directed towards a more noble goal than one’s Bk. IV 443D), another time described as a noble, chaste horse intellect, nous, though by nature it is not nobler, the proper made to run alongside the ignoble and opprobrious horse of role of thumos is to aid in the completion of any conscious or base desire (Phaedrus 246a - 254e). Its seat, often the phren, rational human endeavor. Great. is according to some authors around the heart, according to What, then, does it mean for the thumos to have motive other more ancient authors, the lungs—but its being near the force? This simply means that the thumos is necessary for diaphragm will likely do this aspect of the every possible conscious or unconscious soul, this spirited part of Man, justice. human action, because it is the motor by Thumos is universal, and it is recogThe thumos is necessary for which the vehicle moves. Which master, nized the world over—whether one finds then, this lion-horse-motor serves beevery possible conscious or comes very important if one is to successit in Plato’s tripartite soul or in Francis Fuunconscious human action, fully accomplish any task. For though kuyama’s analysis of “megalothymos” affecting world events, or whether one very thumos is properly subjected to nous, because it is the motor by briefly studies the chakras of kundalini how many of us know just how often a which the vehicle moves. yoga and finds it lurking somewhere betool is misappropriated and misused? tween the anahata and hridaya chakras (I How often do the base appetites win personally prefer to locate it within anahata, which Wikipe- over our Geryon-like lion-faced horse-motor (monster truck dia will be quick to tell you means “unbeaten” in Sanskrit.). made from monster trucks?)? Often. Very often. One need All this brief historico-physico exposition (gobbledy-gook) not even use overly serious and hyperbolic examples. I could, I have spewed for the first hundred and fifty words goes to say, mention something so simple as choosing to implement show that thumos, or spiritedness, is a motive force of the hu- a general tool, of monstrous size, in order to accommodate man soul necessary for the completion of willful human ac- an imagined majority of blurry-faced supporters in service tion—and is recognized as such from East to West. That is to of a youthful desire for acceptance and recognition. Clearly, such an action lacks reason and reflection, good-natured as it seems, but such chimeras are birthed every day when thumos is not properly trained. How, then, do we train the thumos? I suppose I could agree ! John Ropoulos, A’13 with Plato (and I do) that very difficult actions must be done: !"#$%&'($)*$+,$-./0"1'(%2$30)45$%)00"/6 gymnastics and wrestling and music playing: hell, add anything difficult and potentially embarrassing when first begun 78)*$8'1-9$3-(-)*8$*8)*$9+'&5:$;$8'1-$*""$<)*2 that requires difficult manipulation of the body in subjection =),$)(1$4)&->&--2$0'5-$)$48'01?9$%)00"/6 to some form of motion. These difficult endeavors are pre@#3'0-2$&-12$4")&9-$8)'&9$94&-)+2$AB0-)9-CD$0'5-$)$ cisely effective in that they alter the motion and form of the body—and thus the soul (if some pre-post-pre-modern mind 4"&9)'&?92$1-45$&)*6 even believes in such archaic notions). They mold one and move one towards the telos of beautiful moving; and as movE?00$3#'01$,"#$)$+"(#+-(*$">$/)45-1$9("F2 ing is an action, they often enough mold one’s form or being B0)4-$)$G-9*)0$E/8'%-(')$"( into something beautiful. And these actions are hard to learn, to practice, and to endure. Really fucking hard. Aristotle sugH8'9$%&""+-12$F8'*-$)0*)&I$)$>&-98$30""1J3&""1$1"-6 gests, though, if this gives us some solace, that precisely be7'*8$+,$&#9*,2$K)%%-1$-1%-2$F)&+$4&'+9"(2$1&"/9$)*$ cause something is hard is it excellent in that way. This feels 1)F(6 right. And this will allow one to perform difficult actions on a daily basis outside of the gym or practice room, like asking out a girl or guy one likes, telling off “that guy,” asking for a raise— H8)*$9*-)+L*8)*$4"(1-(9-9$"($+,$8"*$8)(192 making any move, really. I mean, game over if you have a lionH8)*$9*&-)+L">$,"#&$94)01'(%$9*&-(%*82$94&-)+9$ motored, horse-footed monster truck on your side, right? ! “ !"#$%&%#' )(1$948-+-92 H8"9-$1&-)+9C$9-4&-*-1$>&"+$+,$-(*'4-1$%0)(192 ;00$9'(%$F'*8$*8-$*F'0'%8*$">$/&-/#3-94-(*2$90)'($ M#--(92 AN&'(%$#9$*8-$30""1J9")5-1$*-+/*&-99-9$)(1 %&)4'"#92$8)&0"*9?$8-)&*9C 7-$4&)G-$*8-'&$1-+'9-$F'*8$1)%%-&$)(1$4'&40'(%$ N)448'4$)&*CD !"#$%&'( —To be serious about self-knowledge means being bold and willful enough to embrace dark times as rare opportunities. Some parts of the soul are like cockroaches: they come out only at night. —How often do we read in order to save ourselves the trouble of thinking? �The Gadfly 12 !"##$%&'()&*+(,$-.+//0&12$&!34$%5"%&!4"%-6 Boethius Fontaine W hich is the superior sport, soccer or basketball? It is basketball. Does this question matter? Yes, it does. Is it even possible to differentiate the moral qualities of the two sports? Yes, it is. More importantly, do we have the courage to do so? Yes, we do, and we will. A casual analysis would note several similarities. Each sport has a predetermined number of participants per side, the length of each contest is governed by a clock, and each gives the player te opportunity to perfect his thespian skills as he writhes in pain attempting to deceive the official into calling a foul (though soccer players are especially duplicitous in this regard). The more fascinating differences involve which sport is the nobler—which is to say, the more spiritual. In this respect, basketball is clearly the superior endeavor for the human soul. Soccer, ironically called “The Beautiful Game” by some, is of the earth. Players are obliged to cast their gazes downward at the staccato, lurching movements of each other’s inelegant feet. Basketball aspires for the Eternal as participants reach for heaven, fluidly propelling their bodies and souls ever upward. The basketball players’ arms are open and outstretched, ready to offer gifts to the Creator in the form of shots released, while receiving heaven’s bounty in the form of rebounds. Soccer players’ arms hang impotently at their sides, reacting to the action, but not affecting it. One wonders if the writer of Ecclesiastes had soccer players’ arms in mind when he declared, “...all is meaningless, a grasping at the wind.” Is it any wonder that soccer appeals to communist countries while basketball originated in the Land of the Free and the Home of Larry Bird? Furthermore, soccer is a stingy sport, yielding two or three goals in a typical game. Basketball is generous and inclusive— everyone shoots, everyone can score and, ipso facto, attain prosperity unto holiness. Or is it holiness unto prosperity? I’m not sure. Aristocratic soccer bestows one player special privileges: !"#$%&&'"(%))*+ ! Painter Bob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a “keeper” who uses his hands to prevent otherwise worthy shots from entering the goal. This is inglorious. In egalitarian basketball, “goaltending” is properly recognized as a crime that is legislated against and swiftly penalized. The physical action of basketball is closer, geographically and theologically, to the heart and mind of its practitioners. The only time the action in soccer approaches the Last seen: circumnavigating heart and mind the Fishbowl. is when the ball strikes the player with great vioLast wearing: Red and green lence in the head dashiki with a Santa Clause or chest. Photos hat of soccer players “heading” the ball clearly show facial expressions rife with existential angst. Oh wretched peril! Conversely, when a basketball comes in contact with a player’s foot, play is immediately stopped and Grace restored. When this world passes away and paradise reigns again on the earth, I doubt you’ll see a single soccer ball in the New Jerusalem. Until that day, we must proceed from one evolutionary step to the next. As you learn to walk erect, you switch to basketball. ! !"##"$% Mr. Palmer McMath !"#$%&'( —The Worse Sin. Take a moment to imagine the worst sin you can, yours or another’s, actual or not. ... Have you done so? Let me whisper in your ear one that is worse: doing it the second time. —We ought to forget small transgressions, not forgive them. Job cannot understand Yahweh until he is convinced that Yahweh has forgotten his sins— and forgotten him as well. —Anticipation makes everything worse. Pleasures are greater and pains less when they take us by surprise. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 21 [The Ropoulogos] Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-04-30 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 21 of The Gadfly. Special Ropoulogos edition. Published on April 30, 2013. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.21 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/9043a602813b2f4431111bde89221edb.pdf 757ffc6ff0505877f5f2b26679a332a9 PDF Text Text !"# !"#$%& A Curtain Call 03 To the Kunai Seniors 05 The Case for Broken Bones 09 On Sports: Some Final Remarks 10 St. John’s College • 60 College Ave, Annapolis, MD 21401 • May 8, 2012 • Vol. XXXIV • Issue 22 !"#$$%&'%()*+, -&./01%'0112 �The Gadfly The student newspaper of St. John’s College 60 College Avenue Annapolis, Maryland 21401 sjca.gadfly@gmail.com www.issuu.com/sjcgadfly www.facebook.com/sjcagadfly Founded in 1980, the Gadfly is the student newsmagazine distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus. Opinions expressed within are the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Gadfly reserves the right to accept, reject, and edit submissions in any way necessary to publish a professional, informative, and thought-provoking newsmagazine. Articles for the next issue should be submitted to sjca.gadfly@gmail.com. Staff Nathan Goldman • Editor-in-Chief Ian Tuttle • Editor-in-Chief Hayden Pendergrass • Layout Editor Sasha Welm • Cartoonist Jonathan Barone • Staff Andrew Kriehn • Staff Robert Malka • Staff Sarah Meggison • Staff Charles Zug • Staff << 02 !"#$%&#'()**#"+#,-./ Seniors, Four years ago (can it be?) you crossed the stage in FSK to be welcomed by President Nelson and to sign the register that would make you official students at St. John’s College. Now you have completed the years of language and music, mathematics and laboratory, seminar and preceptorials. You have studied and discussed, you have written your essays and finished your orals. Throughout, you have discovered profound ideas, awakened new possibilities, and made lasting new friends; and you have sustained and delighted the spirits of your tutors: you have a permanent place in our hearts. The past four years will soon seem both strange and familiar, if they do not already, for you are about to leave St. John’s and yet you carry the College with you as alumni. May your lives be happy and may you keep the desire to know and to learn anew, the courage to reflect, civility towards others, and love for what is beautiful and good as you meet the great adventures that await. Pamela Kraus, Dean Contributors Shayna Jenkins William Lipinski Slaya Nemoy John Ropoulos !"#$%&'(%)*+&#",- W hen we took the reins of the Gadfly last spring, we inherited a newspaper that, at the hands of the previous editors, had become exactly what they had hoped: an expression of the Polity’s voice, and an integral part of the St. John’s community. We hope, a year later, that it remains exactly that. If it does, that is entirely thanks to our diligent staff and all those in the community who took the time to help fill our pages. To you all we offer our heartfelt gratitude. And so, we began the year with our freshmen, and we end with our seniors. To the Class of 2013, congratulations and good luck! To the rest of you, see you at Convocation! ! Rebekah Bentum Hometown: Caribou, ME Senior Essay Title: Seeing God Face to Face: An Inquiry into Jacob’s Striving with God and Man in the Book of Genesis Post-Graduate Plans: Doing a service year through AmeriCorps at a nonprofit in the Mississippi Delta. Louis Pisha Hometown: Nanuet, NY Senior Essay Title: The Final Antithesis: Experience and Knowing in Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit Post-Graduate Plans: Two years of additional undergraduate work at Stony Brook University in computer engineering. �The Gadfly 03 A Curtain Call Slaya Nemoy L A’15 ast summer, amidst a bunch of emails back and forth between Leonard Franks and myself, he asked wehther I wanted to collaborate on a theatrical production with him. We had been sharing bits of writing all summer, and my response was an ecstatic, “Yes!” Mr. Franks is a man who knows his way around a pen, and I jumped at the chance to write and direct alongside him. I had a play in the cupboard, he had many fantastic ideas, and we made a pact with one another that we would try to get the Polity to produce our work. I don’t think either of us actually believed it would really happen, but on April 20, Leonard Franks, Esa Sclafani (another playwright roped into our crazy scheme), and I sat in the front row of FSK and watched the dream come to life. This has been a year of theater for me, and most of that I owe to three amazing, talented, crazy seniors: Esa Sclafani, Leonard Franks, and Jack Farrell. I was the only sophomore on our playwriting team, and I am honored that they consider me an equal to their skill. Together we created something magical on stage, and I want to thank each and every one of them for having me in the wonderful theatrical family that we This has been a year all became. And because of theater for me, and I can make each and every one of them blush, a most of that I owe to shout out to you all. three amazing, talJack: You are an amazented, crazy seniors: ing writer and director and actor, and you not Esa Sclafani, Leonard Franks, and Jack Farrell. only created a masterpiece, but you also made all the other plays come alive. Keep sharing your fantastic insights. Esa: You’re beautiful. You have a beautiful soul and are a fantastic manager, and without you, it would have fallen apart. Your work touched me, and I was glad to see it performed. Leonard: Never stop having crazy ideas. You make me groan, but in a good way. One day I want free tickets to your Broadway debut. Never stop writing. And before I go, a few parting words to the seniors who acted in our plays. Sarah Hartzell and Christina Kataoka, you two are beautiful actresses with great talent and the determination needed to go far. Thank you both for sticking to it, even with all the last-minute rehearsals and long hours. The show would not have been the same without you two, our leading ladies. As for the rest of the cast and crew: you’ll get an article when you’re seniors. I am glad that I got this one chance to write and to direct with you all, and my only regret is that we will never be able to do so again. This was worth it all. Thank you. ! “ Adam Maraschky Hometown: Shaker Heights, OH Senior Essay Title: Chaos and Quanta: Two New Hypotheses in Max Planck’s Theory of Heat Radiation Post-Graduate Plans: I’m currently preparing for grad school in the physical sciences and engineering, particularly where chemistry meets physics: materials science. Catherine Hoisington !"#$%&&'( Hometown: Kenai, AK ! William Lipinski, A’13 Senior Essay Title: Society and Insanity in Dostoevsky’s The Idiot !"#$%$&'#&(#$)*#+%,.,/*#0*#,#1'2*(-3"#(&4#),/*(5$#6$,'$*-#$)*#*66," Post-Graduate Plans: I plan on taking a year off before going to graduate school for my Master’s degree in Social Work. �The Gadfly 04 !"##$%&'#()'*!+,$#-.'$%'*!+,$#$/0,. Staff writer Robert Malka profiles graduating senior Virginia Early, who is going on to study at the Maxwell School of Citzenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. After earning her MPA—a Master’s of Public Administration—she hopes to “engage citizens in a way that’s meaningful” and to contribute to fixing what she calls the “systemc issues that threaten our democracy.” Robert Malka A’15 H ow does one transition from an education such as the one teacher in Kenya to interning for Maryland governor Martin St. John’s College gives—“an education for itself,” as Vir- O’Malley. During the school year, she spent a lot of time usginia Early calls it—into public service? ing the Program to gain invaluable insights For Ms. Early, the answer is to take some about herself and her desires. time going to graduate school at the top“St. John’s helped to bolster my communi“St. John’s helped to ranked Maxwell School of Citizenship cation skills, teamwork, and critical thinking bolster my communicaand Public Affairs at Syracuse Universkills,” she said, “but most importantly, it altion skills, teamwork, and lowed me to think hard about what I wanted sity, where she will receive a Master’s of critical thinking skills,” she to spend my time doing.” This became espePublic Administration. said, “but most important- cially relevant for her when she personally “The MPA is like an MBA for government: There’s a lot of economics, encountered the dysfunction on Capitol Hill. ly, it allowed me to think statistics—stuff you need to know to hard about what I wanted “I was waiting for a vote on the debt ceiling understand, write, and evaluate poliin the summer of 2010,” she said. “After seeto spend my time doing.” ing everyone stall for ten hours, I was horcy for implementation,” she said. She spent a lot of time building up to gradurified…At first I thought the solution lay in ate school; when she was not at St. John’s, she was working making legislators speak to one another like we do in semiduring the summers doing everything from being a volunteer nar, but when I realized that the problem was more systemic, I used what I learned at St. John’s to read off-the-Program about these issues with the intent to fix this.” Eventually, wanting a more thorough internship to help her transition to graduate work, she took advantage of a surprise opportunity, meeting Governor O’Malley’s policy director in the grocery store. “Our conversation basically went like this: I said, ‘I think you’re cool, and I’d love to work with you,’ and he was totally receptive,” she said. “I’ve been working 10 hours a week since February proposing policy, writing memos, and helping strategize. “These experiences have been eye-opening and gave me an invaluable perspective. I think they will help me get a lot more out of the MPA program at Syracuse,” she said. “They also have helped me put what I am thinking about in the classroom into practice.” Ms. Early has always had a guiding star to keep her ontrack, through St. John’s and otherwise: her love for service and for Christian Science. “I really just want to find the position where I can make the most positive impact on the systemic issues that threaten our democracy,” she said. “I want to engage citizens in a way that’s meaningful. I do think I’d like to Hometown: run for office at some point, but I’m more interested in having Bethel, CT an impact than having a fancy title.” Her St. John’s experience has ultimately dared her to think Senior Essay Title: big: as a two-term officer on the Delegate Council, she has atThe Self-Focused Yet Free Citizen: A Search for tempted to make real, systemic change within a dysfunctional Active Citizenship in Tocqueville’s Democracy system, which in her words is one which “does not represent the people.” As for graduate school and her future career? “I in America feel ready for it,” she affirmed. “Just because it’s hard doesn’t Post-Graduate Plans: mean someone shouldn’t do it. I think it’ll be a challenge, but Master’s of Public Administration at the Maxit’s a challenge I can rise to.” Through it all, she’ll remember her time at St. John’s: “I well School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at loved the discourse that happens in the classroom,” she said. Syracuse University. “I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything.” ! Virginia Early “ �The Gadfly 05 The Kunai Community: A Word of Thanks Shayna Jenkins S A’15 adly, I did not decide to attend St John’s as an angsty se- ment, and good vibes that the current senior captains bring to nior purely because of the promise of a search for truth, the games. Whether it is a rainy Friday afternoon of soccer, or but also because of the enormously disproportionate ratio be- a chilly Tuesday of netball, Grace Tyson, Rachel Hahn, Emily tween boys and girls. I would be able to get my flirt on with Ezell, and Henley Moore make the stinky gym or the sunny any number of guys, or so I thought, which seemed especially field the place to be. enticing since I was coming from a tiny town where I was used Each senior captain seems to bring her own energy, experito the same 12 guys whose sibling’s diapers I had changed and ence, and advice to the games, so it is not that the captains are who had hooked up with my best friends. Thus, in that first some untouchable group of seniors. Rather, they are helpful, month at St. John’s, when people tend to get involved on cam- honest, and personable individuals. And the community that pus with extracurricular groups and organizations, Kunai, St. grows from these fearsome leaders does not just apply to what John’s’ very own all-girls intramural team, did not exactly top happens on the court, but also to any sort of problem one enmy list. After all, there would be no boys with counters regarding school or life. While Kuwhom to awkwardly discuss my love of rabbits nai gives everyone a context under which to and donuts. It is the senior Kunai converse and interact, it is the senior captains However, the longer my freshman year went captains who really themselves who engender a true community on, I moved past my embarrassingly flirtatious and positive conversation within the particishowed me how stage and began to take St. John’s more seripants. St. John’s can allow ously. I realized that it was not merely a vacaComing to college is a scary experience; it tion from my life at home; it was my life now. can be so isolating to be in a new place where you to become a It was a community and an environment in happy, interesting, you know literally no one and so little about which I had to learn to be a functional, happy who you are. However, particularly at a school active member of being. As a result, I began—perhaps a bit later like St. John’s, the aid of upperclassmen can the community. than everyone else—to search for a community be critical to learning how to grow into the on campus in which I felt like I fit in. I knew I community; how to let the Program help you did not want to join an academic club, for I was already swim- grow, but not let it become who you are. And it is the senior ming in enough Greek paradigms, and I had spent enough Kunai captains who really showed me how St. John’s can altime walking in between the kiln room and the dark room in low you to become a happy, interesting, active member of the high school to know it was time to try something different. community, without the pretentious and perhaps invasive naSo, at the behest of my peers, I decided to go to a Kunai bas- ture of this education consuming you alive. Every one of the ketball game in the middle of the season. Luckily, the fabu- senior captains, despite everything else going on, shows up to lous Henley Moore was my RA, so I at least knew someone Kunai with a smile and with something funny and construcgoing into it, since I felt like I knew almost as few of the people tive to say; they show up with knowledge and advice and a at Kunai as the little I knew about basketball. However, de- sense of perspective, that, especially as the year went on, conspite my irrational shyness, which seems to come out at bad tributed a positive energy to this campus. times, everyone at Kunai was beyond welcoming. And it was So, personally, I would like to thank all of the wonderful senot just the freshmen who I had spoken to before who were nior captains for creating such an incredible escape from life kind enough to point out that you cannot just run with the ball within the Kunai community, as well as for bringing me out of (you have to dribble); rather, it was primarily the captains who my self-imposed shell into such a great environment. And furwere so friendly and welcoming that I did not feel out of place ther, on behalf of the entire Kunai team, thank you to Rachel, for a second. And while this probably just sounds like a ter- Emily, Henley, and Grace for helping to make Kunai into the rible advertisement for the benefits of Kunai (of which there incredible organization that it is, and for creating an inspiring are many), it seems crucial to point out that Kunai, at least in environment for any female member of the St. John’s commumy experience, is not what it is purely because of the energy of nity to explore something new or to continue participating in the sports themselves. A large part of it is the positivity, excite- a lifelong love. ! “ Grace Tyson Hometown: Pensacola, FL Senior Essay Title: Hurrah for Kolya! The Soul’s Education in The Brothers Karamazov Post-Graduate Plans: As a Teach For America corps member, I am going to be a middle school math teacher at North Star Academy Charter School in Newark, New Jersey. �The Gadfly 06 Audra Zook Hometown: Pahrump, NV Senior Essay Title: Choosing Faith: An Examination of Augustine’s Journey to Conversion Post-Graduate Plans: Teaching science at the Great Hearts Academies Lily Datchev Chazaq Llinas Hometown: Annapolis, MD Senior Essay Title: Reawakening the Pendulum of History Post-Graduate Plans: Fixing America’s education policy Hometown: Ocean City, MD — “White Marlin Capital of the World” Senior Essay Title: Reflecting on the Generation of Knowledge Post-Graduate Plans: Currently waiting for Peace Corps nomination Maura McCluskey Hometown: Jefferson, MA Senior Essay Title: From Poetry to Philosophy and Back Again: Book X of Plato’s Republic Post-Graduate Plans: Teacher at Chandler Prep (a Great Hearts Academy) Daniel Popov Hometown: Moscow, Russia Senior Essay Title: Through the Wind and the Rain Post-Graduate Plans: Venture Capital/Private Equity Rachel Cox Hometown: Spartansburg, PA Senior Essay Title: Knightley Must Marry Her: Discovering the Heart in Jane Austen’s Emma Post-Graduate Plans: A year of additional coursework before applying for Botany graduate programs �The Gadfly 07 Esa Sclafani Matthew Dudik Hometown: North Middlesex, VT Senior Essay Title: To Flee A Sinking Ship: Fear of Death in Epictetus’ Discourses Post-Graduate Plans: I received a Pathways Fellowship from St. John’s in order to study Chemistry (at the undergrad level) at the University of Vermont over the summer. I will be following that up with Organic Chemistry and Biology courses in the fall, so that I can get pre-requisites to eventually apply for a Master’s program in either Ecology or Plant Biology. Hometown: Vancouver, WA Marco Damiano Hometown: Bronxville, NY Senior Essay Title: Make ‘Em Laugh: As You Like It and the Value of Comedy Post-Graduate Plans: My plans are to stay in Annapolis for another year and take classes in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland. Gordon Bruce Greer, III Hometown: Town & Country, MO Senior Essay Title: Can Capitalism Survive? An Examination of Socialist and Capitalist Systems in Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy Post-Graduate Plans: Studying Applied Mathematics at Washington University in St. Louis (1 year), Doctorate in Macroeconomics Senior Essay Title: Turning the World InsideOut: Why the Newtonian Theory of Planetary Motion Supersedes the Ptolemaic Post-Graduate Plans: 1. Obtain a position in a Leadership Development Program in business. 2. Develop leadership until I decide that life was actually better in school. 3. Go to grad school 4. Miss SJC Reece McDevitt Hometown: West Hartford, CT Senior Essay Title: The Search for Virtue, Beauty, and Unity within the Self: An Exploration of Friendship in Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics Post-Graduate Plans: I might plan to attend graduate school in philosophy. I’m also really beginning to consider studying mathematics. Many more profiles on Pg. 12! �08 The Gadfly 2012-2013 Croquet Team Shout-Outs This year sees the graduation of eight members of the croquet team—Rachel Hahn, Eric Shlifer, Drew Menzer, Jonathan Barone, Hunter Cox, Daniel Popov, Phil Schiffrin, and Cory Cotten-Potter. Below, the croquet team underclassmen offer some words of thanks and farewell to their beloved teammates. R achel: I’m so glad that I got to spend all this time with you!  It has made our friendship that much stronger, and I never would have been able to make it through croquet without you—especially Media Day. Thanks for teaching me and getting me to come out! —Mandee Glasgo (A’14) Eric: Since you refused to let me ever be set in front of the wicket, I really hated playing croquet with you at the beginning.  But as I got better, I learned a lot from you, and you really helped my game.  I always enjoy talking to you on and off the court!  I’m really glad that we got to spend so much time together. —Mandee Glasgo (A’14) Drew: Every time you cheered me on with a “boosh” or something of that sort certainly made up for the countless times you insulted my woeful shots.  You’ve motivated me to improve not only as a croquet player, but also as a sportsman, understanding that competition is only worth it if you’re having fun.  If it Drew Menzer Hometown: Granville, OH Senior Essay Title: On the Use and Abuse of Philosophy: An Inquiry into Truth and Morality in Beyond Good and Evil Post-Graduate Plans: Next year I’ll be going to law school, most likely at the University of Illinois. wasn’t for the fact that I already knew how great of a Spartan captain you were, I doubt I would have ever come out to croquet.  I’m glad I did, because the past two years with all of the seniors have been great. —Sam Collins (A’15) Jon: Getting to play with you at Nationals was a tremendous experience.  I had low expectations for myself going into the weekend, doubting my ability as a croquet player and competitor.  But you pushed me to demand more out of my play.  Instead of being eliminated on the first day, we persevered and finished with a very respectable fourth place.  The faith you put in me to succeed was incredible, and I will carry it with me going forward. —Sam Collins (A’15) Hunter: Thanks, dog, for always motivating me to come out/ relentlessly texting me to come out. You have helped to lead me and other players by setting a good example of what it means to be teammate and sportsman. It’s been tons of fun to learn the game with you and to grow as a player. In fact I think we have the most fun, and that’s probably in large part because of you. It’s been awesome, and I’m super glad you are not leaving Annapolis yet, because I need someone to yell at me for not keeping my head down. —Dylan Tyler (A’15) Popov: It’s been awesome to play with you, and to learn what it is to have confidence in your own abilities. No matter how stupid the shot, you would show total confidence in my ability, and when I messed up it was no big deal. You helped me learn from my mistakes, and you also led by example by always maintaining confidence in your own decisions. Beyond this, you always made me feel welcome to come out play. I appreciate all the effort you put into helping me learn the game. It’s been a lot fun taking ridiculous wicket shots with you. —Dylan Tyler (A’15) Phil: As the other half of the croquet team’s beloved “Team Lady Killers 2013,” I just want to say that it was a pleasure playing with you this year. I will always remember how you told me that I have to “put my body into” the split shot. Thank you for the wisdom and the cigarettes you let me have. —Hector Mendoza (A’14) Cory: It was a pleasure having you on the team. Our sunglasses brought a much needed menacing image to SJC Croquet. When I’m 21 we’re totally going to Armadillos or Armarillos (whatever it’s called), and we’re going to be each other’s wingman. Get ready. —Hector Mendoza (A’14) ! �The Gadfly 09 !"#$%&'#$()*$+*),#-$+)-#'$&-.$+/)). Graduating senior John Ropoulos reflects on four years of shattered bones, shattered prejudices, and regrowth—on the intramural field as well as in the classroom. As he prepares to leave St. John’s, he argues for the value of exertion, danger, and difficulty for St. John’s students. John Ropoulos A A’13 s a freshman at the Santa Fe campus, I witnessed one of mittedly, if I were to lose an arm or a leg, I would not be a the most spectacular Johnnie moments in the history of happy camper. However, I do think we need to allow things the College. It was Reality Weekend, and Spartan Madball was like Spartan Madball, or the mock naval battles of yesteryear, being played on the field. There was a pile-up, and the ball in order to encourage !"#$%, &'()*, and )+#*. (Students used popped out from underneath the arms, legs, and bodies of fel- to build ships during Reality Weekend and have naval battles low warriors. I grabbed it and ran down the field towards the on College Creek. It was stopped because someone shattered goal. Then I noticed everyone looking up towards the sky; I a collarbone.). turned around and looked up. A senior had jumped off of MonI’d like to ask a question: Does the administration have the te Sol with a hang-glider and was gliding above the field ask- right or authority to prevent us from partaking in dangerous ing for the ball. You see, there is a Madball rule that nothing activity? No, they do not. We are supposedly learning how is allowed “on” the field except humans and a ball; this senior to be free men and women, but the administration assumes technically wasn’t “on” the field. I began to pull my arm back a parental role? This just doesn’t jive. I had thought that by to throw the ball, when suddenly I felt the wind being knocked emulating the Greeks—who were no strangers to dangerous out of me. As soon as I realized what had happened, I was at games (e.g., prankration) and war—we, like Achilles, Odysthe bottom of twelve people, clutching a seus, Socrates (famous for his valor in combat), ball. and Plato (named Platon by his wrestling coach) Shouldn’t we seek out would be developing &'()*. There are only three things that end Spartan Madball: three points, three hosWhen I enter a Spartan Madball game, I know the dangerous and pitalizations, or one death. The game that I’ll most likely be hurt; that’s what drives me sternuous? Shouldn’t usually ends with three hospitalizations to join in. Higher stakes means higher rewards, we aim to break and because scoring is so difficult (we scored and there is nothing like participating in a bloody, rebuild ourselves? three goals my freshman year). There has bone-breaking sport, especially when you score Isn’t danger a part of a goal under such difficult conditions. Don’t take never been a death. Spartan Madball has St. John’s? since been banned on the Santa Fe camme as a masochist; I just enjoy hard tasks with pus. The administration deemed it too difficult conditions. Shouldn’t all Johnnies? Isn’t dangerous. I find this to be absolutely revolting. Shouldn’t we seminar similar? Aren’t we bleeding our thoughts and shatterseek out the dangerous and strenuous? Shouldn’t we aim to ing our prejudices? If you aren’t taking seminar this seriously, break and rebuild ourselves? Isn’t danger a part of St. John’s? if it isn’t a dangerous sport for you, then maybe you need to get I’m sure that everyone has noticed that my clothing is usu- serious. ally accompanied by a cast or wrap of some kind. I’ve shattered I will forever remember the championship game of reatwo bones in my wrist, broken six fingers, suffered a concus- sonball my junior year. It was freezing, and the snow and rain sion, and have been gashed, cut, scraped, bruised, and torn in soaked us all to the bone; our hands were numb from the cold. my years here at SJC. All of these injuries happened during I caught the game-winning touchdown with what seemed various intramurals and outdoor activities. I know that every liked two toes in the end zone before I fell over into the mud. time I step onto the field, there is a chance I’ll break something, It was only after my hands defrosted that I learned my hand or suffer some pain. But why on earth should I be scared? Ad- was broken. Painful memories are sweet. Go Greenwaves! ! “ John Ropoulos Hometown: Hayward, CA Senior Essay Title: Experiencing the Dionysian Folk Artist in Nietzsche’s The Birth of Tragedy and Robert Johnson’s Crossroad Blues Post-Graduate Plans: Studying Modern Greek in Greece. �The Gadfly 10 On Sports: Some Final Remarks Jonathan Barone I A’13 ’d like to conclude my time as the Gadfly sportswriter with a community here. In order for this community to function, just a few observations. If you read my article in the Cro- we have to be mindful that even if we don’t like our opponents quet Weekend Gadfly, then you know my stance on sports in or our referees (or classmates, or core group members), we general and how they’ve helped me look within myself. But still have to respect them in order for this community to functhe truth is, I think the arena is just as dangerous a place as tion. And yeah, we’re all going to screw up. We’re going to any if one doesn’t enter it with the right attitude. With that say offensive things. We’re going to get caught up in the heat in mind, I’d like to make a few notes, list a couple observa- of the moment. And yes, we’re probably going to make some tions, share a couple personal anecdotes that you all can take bad decisions. When that happens, we have to be willing to for what they’re worth. Keep in mind that these comments do show each other some grace. It’s easy to want to feel justified not apply only to sports or only to competition. when someone has done you a wrong and hold a grudge, but If you aren’t willing to be gracious in the face of victory it’s much harder to show them grace and to forgive them. The or defeat, you have no business playing at all. I had a huge former may feel good for a time, but it’s the latter that’s going problem with this after the croquet to keep the community healthy. match. People were sympathizing left If there is no respect between you and and right and saying that we had to let your opponents, then ultimately your oppoThe quest for the overall inNavy win at some point. I realize most nent becomes your enemy. A lack of respect tramural title is still up for of this was said in jest, but it still carcreates division, especially when disrespect ries a glint of truth. Listen, if we are too goes unaddressed. With this in mind, if you grabs. The outdoor handproud to honor our opponents without ball season has thrown the feel disrespected, address the one by whom somehow thinking them beneath us, we you feel disrespected. A relationship cannot standings into disarray, should do some serious self-examinabe sustained if there isn’t communication, and the marathon could tion. Or just stop playing. and more often than not, communication With that in mind, respect both fosters a better understanding of another’s truly decide everything. your opponents and the referees. I position. This happened between me and had a conversation after a game this year with a referee with the referee (though I admit I am by no means a model comwhom I had taken umbrage during the match. Through talk- municator) and helped our relationship greatly. ing with him, I realized that I was being completely unfair to A couple other things: Remember that you have the power him. I didn’t respect him as a ref because I didn’t believe that to affect the attitudes of those around you. This note espehe could do a good enough job. When I voiced this out loud, I cially applies to future captains: Your intramural team is yours realized that I was both harming myself and my team. to guide. Someone has to lead the team, and those who do can Because when we get down to basics, we’re all members of take it in any direction they want. Your philosophy, your outlook on life, your sportsmanship, your attitude towards others, even your mood, affect those around you. In that same vein, never lead a team out of anger. I think this is self-explanatory, but I’ll say a few words anyways. I’ve tried to do this a couple times, and it always ends poorly. A defeat is filled with more disappointment, and a victory is hollow. To lead a team in anger is the most selfish of decisions: it boils down to an egotistical desire to validate your own selfrighteousness. To conclude, I would like to relate one of my most treasured experiences at St. John’s. Last year, after the croquet match, my knee was badly inflamed and I could barely walk. Still, I volunteered to run a lap in the marathon for the Greenwaves because we were low on people. As fate would have it, I happened to be starting my lap at the same time as two close friends, Tommy Bonn and Sarah Hartzell. I got a slight head start, but they soon caught up to my gimping pace. But they didn’t pass me by. They ran at my speed, joked around, and Hometown: talked with me for the entirety of my lap. In my mind, the Bethel Park, PA St. John’s community was never more beautiful to me than in that moment. I was carried to finish that lap, not by my Senior Essay Title: strength but by the love of my friends. They blessed me more A Life About Nothing: On The Myth of than they know, because in that moment, they valued me over Sisyphus by Albert Camus any kind of objective. I’ll let that anecdote speak for itself, but say just one more thing: If this is what St. John’s has done, if Post-Graduate Plans: St. John’s has taught me to value others more than anything Relax and get a job. else, then this truly has been the greatest education I could have received. ! “ Sarah Stalter �The Gadfly Ian Tuttle T 11 A’14 his will not be a political column. St. John’s seems to me one of these places. We share 32 That is not to say there are not worthwhile political acres between College Creek and College Avenue. We have things to talk about. Seniors: You are entering (in case you had a common vocabulary, common traditions and customs, even not heard) a brutal job market. If the labor force participation (on occasion) a bit of shared idol worship. We have Annapolis, rate is factored into the youth unemployment calculation, with its own history and architecture and seasons that, the the actual 18-29 unemployment rate is at 16.3 percent. Good longer we live here, become increasingly our own. Our polis luck with that. You are entering a world in which an America has developed and matured around those common things. tired of the vigor required for global leadership is ceding its They shape us. place—to no one in particular. And that means that you are But if we stick around a place long enough, we will find that, also entering a more dangerous world. A just as we, in the beginning, made a claim on decade of relative peace had persuaded us it, so it begins to make a claim on us. It makes that the fears that surfaced after September But if we stick around requests. Perhaps it even makes demands. 11 had passed, that we had, indeed, set our One can move out of states, townships, a place long enough, enemies on their heels, and that we could electoral districts; I have a sneaking feeling we will find that, just focus our thoughts and resources on our that one cannot leave the polis of St. John’s. domestic troubles. Until Boston. Now we One is a Johnnie the same way one is a Red as we, in the beginare forced, once again, to recognize that we ning, made a claim on Sox fan: for better, for worse, and for life. It are vulnerable and that our enemies do not is a part of one’s identity. And that identity it, so it begins to make wear uniforms. yokes us with certain responsibilities. a claim on us. It makes These are realities that are transforming The seniors will soon confront the fact requests. Perhaps it our country and our world, and we have the that the world is, on the whole, inhospitable responsibility to see and understand. But as even makes demands. to what we do here. Reflection, deliberation, for the headlines and the policy specifics, conversation—our society moves too quickly there will be other times and spaces to discuss and debate for such indulgences; it has its dogmas and its heresies, into them. I said this would not be a political column—and it is which the gadflies do not fit. But I think that is the claim this not; except, perhaps, in a nobler sense of that dirty word: in place makes on us. It demands from us that slow, careful conits connection to the polis. sideration that recognizes that new is not always better—nor I do not believe in the “international community.” That is is old. It demands from us to say, I do not believe that such a thing does, or ever could, the cultivated reason that exist, just as I do not believe one could ever be a “citizen of can determine which arthe world,” however swell a stamp that would be on one’s gument is the better and passport. If you are incarnate, you are stuck with putting your which the worse—and feet on some distinct patch of earth. And that patch of earth, which argument is pure and the one next to it, and the one next to that, has a certain sophistry. It demands a culture and history attached to it, which, if you stay there for soul ordered according to any length of time, will begin to reveal themselves. What is the highest things—and more, if you plant any roots there, so to speak, you will find that will stand for those those things becoming part of you; they are, one might say, in things to the very end, for the water. no better reason than that Of course, the water is different from place to place. What they are good and true is in the water in Hyannisport, Massachusetts, is very differ- and beautiful. ent from what is in the water in Germany, so however much Those things are chargJohn F. Kennedy thought of himself as ein Berliner, he had es upon us. We spend our Irish blood, a sharp Boston accent, and the privileged abil- time here, and we are ity to sail across the Atlantic to France with his convertible shaped by it, and when onboard. Places—specific places, with their specific dirt and it comes time to leave their specific air composition and their specific vegetation we find—or we ought to and idioms and holiday parades and all the rest—shape us. find—that this place reI tend to think the polis forms around those things, rather quires a return: It calls us than vice versa. Whether it’s Paris, Texas, or Paris, France, the to be free men and wompolis coalesces around a group of people who share some key en. And that is the calling things in common. of a lifetime. ! “ �The Gadfly 12 Dan Gilles Hometown: West Hartford, CT Senior Essay Title: The Dragons of Philosophy and the Rebirth of Metaphysics Post-Graduate Plans: Studying Chinese in Beijing Jessica Steer Emilia Pickard Hometown: Fort Collins, CO Hometown: Fort Collins, CO Senior Essay Title: All’s Well that Weds Well: Love and Order in Shakespeare’s As You Like It Senior Essay Title: Emilia, or On My Education Post-Graduate Plans: The Real World Post-Graduate Plans: I’ll be working at a hospital and hospice. Perhaps medical school in the future; overall pretty healthy ambitions. William Loder Hometown: Milwaukee, WI Senior Essay Title: Optima dies . . .prima fugit: Memory, Time, and the Land in Willa Cather’s My Antonia Post-Graduate Plans: Internship with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra this summer (Marketing and Education), Master of Arts Program in the Humanities at the University of Chicago this fall (focus on either cultural policy or literature) Kurt T. Strom Manish Jung Thapa Senior Essay Title: Hony Soyt Qui Mal Pence: Sir Gawain in the Castle and the Forest Senior Essay Title: The General Will, the Consensus Problem, and the Legislator in Rousseau’s Du Contrat Social Post-Graduate Plans: Work with the Holden Historical Society Post-Graduate Plans: Internship at Arete Wealth Management Hometown: Jefferson, MA Hometown: Dadeldhura, Nepal � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Gadfly</em> Description An account of the resource Founded in 1980, <em>The </em><em>Gadfly</em> is a weekly student publication distributed to over 600 students, faculty, and staff of the Annapolis campus.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="The Gadfly" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=16&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&amp;sort_dir=d">Items in the <em>The Gadfly</em> Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Greenfield Library Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context thegadfly Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Page numeration Number of pages in the original item. 12 pages Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Goldman, Nathan (Editor in Chief) Tuttle, Ian (Editor in Chief) Title A name given to the resource The Gadfly, Vol. XXXIV, Issue 22 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-05-08 Description An account of the resource Volume XXXIV, Issue 22 of The Gadfly. Published on May 08, 2013. (Mislabeled as May 2, 2012). Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gadfly 34.22 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Annapolis, MD Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Gadfly Student publication https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/271dc55e713a8ddf4dbdf0597c6f45d8.mp3 1255fffbd1163db3cdeff5328d8725c0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource St. John's College Lecture Recordings—Santa Fe Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Meem Library Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Santa Fe, NM Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data CD Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 01:05:29 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Why should I read James Joyce's Ulysses if it's only going to make my head hurt? Description An account of the resource Audio recording of a lecture given on June 15, 2016 by Grant Franks as part of the Graduate Institute Summer Lecture Series. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Franks, Grant Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Santa Fe, NM Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2016-06-15 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Meem Library has been given permission to make this item available online. Type The nature or genre of the resource sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp3 Subject The topic of the resource Joyce, James, 1882-1941. Ulysses. Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 20014283 Graduate Institute https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/f98639a88bec0ca2d143f40327a758fa.mp3 96c5297d1b68cbb7592f65fda7b3c0ca Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource St. John's College Lecture Recordings—Santa Fe Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource St. John's College Meem Library Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Santa Fe, NM Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data CD Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 00:42:51 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Exploring the history of the Qur’ān : from canonisation to textual criticism Description An account of the resource Audio recording of a lecture given on June 17, 2016 by Michael McCoy as part of the Graduate Institute Summer Lecture Series. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource McCoy, Michael Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available St. John's College Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Santa Fe, NM Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2016-06-17 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Meem Library has been given permission to make this item available online. Type The nature or genre of the resource sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource mp3 Subject The topic of the resource Qur'an. Language A language of the resource English Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 20014282 Graduate Institute