civil-war

Visual Arts Review: The Art of Kara Walker — A Mix of Cozy Charm and Historic Horror

March 30, 2020
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How, as an African-American visual artist, do you represent something that no one wants to think about, much less look at? Kara Walker’s solution is ultimately an aesthetic one.

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Book Review: “The Good Lord Bird” — History As a Morality Tale, With Wings

February 5, 2014
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There is more than one way to tell the truth, “The Good Lord Bird” reminds us again and again, and many reasons to cloak it in humor.

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Book Interview: S.T. Joshi on Ambrose Bierce — The Underappreciated Genius of Being Grim

January 24, 2012
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Bierce proffers a satiric temperament gone wild and woolly, partly propelled by a revulsion at the criminal vulgarity of the Gilded Age. Given the current triumph of the 1%, his fury at power mad corporations is worth an admiring look.

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Movie Review: Civil War Crime and Punishment

April 23, 2011
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There is so much that could have gone right for The Conspirator that it seems such a waste that it doesn’t amount to more than it does. It’s a complicated and rich story of Civil War vengeance versus justice with very high stakes on the line. The Conspirator. Directed by Robert Redford. The cast includes…

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