Critics Corner column
‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ and the justice of man
FELICITY MORAN CRITICS CORNER COLUMNIST One hundred and seventeen chapters is a formidable length for a book, so I doubt many people have delved into the literary commitment that is Alexandre Dumas’ “The Count of Monte Cristo.” Even so, perhaps this summer you could take some time for this remarkable study on justice and redemption. I’m sure […]
Critic’s Corner: Gone and probably forgotten
SARAH KADERBEK CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST Reader, I graduated. OK, not yet, but this is the final print of the semester and my final column. My tenure on this hallowed page has been brief, but hopefully, you few (you happy few, you band of Troubadour readers) have enjoyed it as much as I have. If not, […]
Critic’s Corner: ‘Les Miserables’: The gaze of love
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST Have you ever been hyper-aware of the gaze of another person? Maybe you’ve realized someone is staring at you from across the room and it makes you squirm. Or have you ever made prolonged eye contact with a friend and felt like that person could stare into your soul? It’s […]
Critic’s Corner: Shakespearean tips for tragic relationships
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST (To be read in your best English accent) ‘Twas but a fortnight past, I was honored to have witnessed a certain video from Servants of the Savior — perhaps you, too, had the pleasure of seeing it? ‘Twas entitled “Romeo and Juliet go to Sadies,” and if you have a […]
Critic’s Corner: The ‘Iliad’: The world’s greatest love poem?
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST St. Valentine’s Day is upon us, folks, so what better time to talk about love in literature? The fact that love is possibly the most widespread and most-pondered theme in all of literature points to a universal longing in every human heart – we were made to be in relationship […]
Critic’s Corner: Of Monsters and Men
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST It’s a dark and stormy night. Thunder booms and lightning flashes across the sky, when suddenly – “It’s alive!” the scientist cries. The monstrous creature rises from the table, lumbers around the room and wanders off to send a few villages up in flames. That’s all there is to the […]
Critic’s Corner: Hamilton: the modern epic
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST Sing to me, muse, of the man of twists and turns – how does an orphan, scholar, $10 Founding Father become so much of a phenomenon that a hit Broadway musical about his life is changing the way we look at all of history? What’s his name, you ask? Not […]
Critic’s Corner: Superheroes and saints: our call to heroic virtue
MAGGIE PAWSEY CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST I don’t know about you, but superhero movies are my lifeblood. Every time Marvel comes out with a new film, I run to the theater to get my fix of action, adventure and that obnoxious confidence I feel after the credits roll, as if I can tackle my problems just […]
Critic’s Corner: The age-old book and movie debate
ALLEGRA THATCHER CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST Books or movies is a question commonly asked in “would you rather” type games. You can probably guess which side I go to on principle. But does it have to be a choice? Too often, we get caught up in comparisons. In the book, that didn’t happen. In the movie, […]
Critic’s Corner Column: The madness of ‘Don Quixote’ reveals wisdom
ALLEGRA THATCHER CRITIC’S CORNER COLUMNIST Current culture would like us to believe that what we can see is all that exists. Reality is merely what is before you; it’s what you can understand and nothing else. The Spanish author Cervantes challenges this belief, which has been held by people for centuries, in his lengthy work, […]