Thinkers on language
Fifty Key Thinkers on Language and Linguistics, by BC Professor of Linguistics Margaret Thomas, explores how 50 of the most influential figures in the field have asked and responded to classic questions about the language. What was the first language, and where did it come from? Do all languages have properties in common? What is the relationship of language to thought? The book offers an introduction to thinkers—including include Aristotle, Samuel Johnson, Friedrich Max Müller, Ferdinand de Saussure, Joseph H. Greenberg and Noam Chomsky—who have had a significant impact on the subject of language. To see an interview with Thomas, visit the BC Libraries’ website.
Posted in Boston College Authors
Tagged linguistics, Slavic and Eastern Languages Dept
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Finding Christmas through a misfit sock
The Misfit Sock, a family tradition-turned-storybook by BC alumna Karen Kiefer, tells the tale of a sock which has lost its match during the laundry cycle. The sock is instantly labeled a “misfit” and thrown into a misfit laundry pile. The forgotten sock loses all hope until it meets the magnificent spirit of Christmas. It finds meaning and purpose when it is magically transformed into a gratitude sock for Santa, his elves and reindeer. Families can start their own Misfit Sock tradition with The Misfit Sock Gift Set, which includes an illustrated storybook, a misfit sock with a hanging ribbon, and prayer cards or wish cards. According to Kiefer: “In addition to the story, young children can enjoy their very own one-of-a-kind misfit sock to love, hang on the mantel and fill with daily misfit sock prayer cards, leading up until Christmas…Santa enjoys the gratitude offerings and reads all of the child’s prayers, knowing enough to leave the sock behind for the child so the tradition can continue. It is a great way for children to reflect on the Advent themes of love, hope, joy, inspiration and gratitude through the transformative plight of a lonely misfit sock.” For more information, visit www.themisfitsock.com.
The joy of the saints
In his new book, Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, television commentator and author Rev. James Martin, SJ, shows how the saints used humor in their spiritual journeys, how laughter is an element of healthy spirituality and how joy is the inevitable result of faith. He will be on campus Dec. 1 to speak at Robsham Theater about his book. NOTE: The event has already reached its seating capacity.
Posted in Guest Authors
Tagged Alumni event, Church in the 21st Century Center, saints
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The Empire Reformed
The first book by Boston College Assistant Professor of History Owen Stanwood, The Empire Reformed: English America in the Age of the Glorious Revolution, offers “a compelling explanation for the political turbulence in colonial North America in the late 17th century,” according to a reviewer. In a narrative that moves from Boston to London to Barbados and Bermuda, it tells the story of a forgotten revolution in English America—one that created not a new nation but a new kind of transatlantic empire.
The Pope and patronage in Baroque Rome
The election of Pope Innocent X Pamphilj in 1644 catapulted his family to the height of Roman society; their arts patronage became the visual expression of the family’s new identity. A volume edited by Boston College Associate Professor of Fine Arts Stephanie Leone—The Pamphilj and the Arts: Patronage and Consumption in Baroque Rome–examines the patronage of three generations of the Pamphilj family from the perspectives of art history, history, theology, musicology and literary studies. The book, which represents the proceedings of a 2010 BC conference, will be presented to the Doria Pamphilj family on Nov. 24 in Rome, Italy in the Galleria Doria Pamphilj Throne Room. Leone and BC McMullen Museum of Art Director and Professor Nancy Netzer will speak at the event.
Baroque artist Bernini
Sculptor, architect, painter, playwright and scenographer Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) is the subject of a new biography by Boston College Associate Professor of Italian Franco Mormando. According to the publisher, Bernini: His Life and His Rome — the first English-language biography of Bernini — takes a look at the life of “the last of the universal geniuses of early modern Italy, placed in the same exalted company as Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo. His artistic vision remains present today through the countless statues, fountains, buildings and other works of his design that transformed Rome into the Baroque theater that continues to enthrall tourists.” Mormando will give a talk about Bernini at the Dean’s Colloquium on Nov. 21 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in Gasson Hall, room 112. The event is sponsored by the Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office.
Jesuit Book Award
Congratulations to English Professor Alan Richardson who has received a National Jesuit Book Award from the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities and the national Jesuit honor society Alpha Sigma Nu for his book, The Neural Sublime: Cognitive Theories and Romantic Texts. This year’s awards honored books in the humanities and Richardson won in the literature/fine arts category. The Neural Sublime uses cognitive neuroscience as an analytical tool to examine issues in British Romantic studies. Read the Boston College Chronicle interview with Richardson where he discusses the award and the emerging field of cognitive literary studies.
Listen to the music man
The New Yorker music critic Alex Ross will talk about his latest book, Listen to This, on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in Gasson Hall, room 100. Ross’ first book, The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century, is an international bestseller and has been translated into 16 languages. It won a National Book Critics Circle Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Sponsor: Lowell Humanities Lecture Series
Posted in Guest Authors, Lowell Humanities Series
Tagged music, Pulitzer Prize finalist
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