The Invisible Self
December 2, 2011
When encountering the headline ‘Gary Speed found dead’, I knew instinctively what the cause would be. … More The Invisible Self
Tag: Psychology
All-Important Questions
November 20, 2011
Every so often, we hit those defining moments where we ask ourselves the all-important questions. … More All-Important Questions
New Horizons
November 12, 2011
Ideally, we want our lives to lead upwards trajectories. When somebody hits particular heights for themselves, they struggle to contemplate living within or below that potential. That’s the intricate psychology of accomplishment. … More New Horizons
Facing a Challenge
September 17, 2011
Since we cannot turn back time, we have no choice but to deal with our life-defining moments. They cannot be undone. … More Facing a Challenge
Marvell, Glass, and ‘Upon Appleton House’
August 26, 2011
Ekphrasis becomes a common feature of Marvell’s Interregnum writing, but before it served his Cromwellian verse, these perspective features – of viewing and reflection, of the viewer and beyond – combine in a remarkable way in Marvell’s Upon Appleton House. … More Marvell, Glass, and ‘Upon Appleton House’
Behind Closed Doors
August 19, 2011
A brief comparison of ‘Sestina’ by Elizabeth Bishop and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ by Robert Browning: two tragedies behind closed doors. … More Behind Closed Doors
‘To His Coy Mistress’? To Her Coy Master
July 18, 2011
A poem of inexperience gone wrong, or experience writ large? Thoughts on Andrew Marvell’s ‘seduction’ poem, ‘To His Coy Mistress’. … More ‘To His Coy Mistress’? To Her Coy Master
“Finders Keepers, holder Seekers hidden Secrets”: Writing in Cryptics
May 29, 2011
Most of us are guilty at some point of writing in cryptics. Why do we do it? Why express ourselves in terms that are not meant to be understood? Is it, perhaps, a deep subconscious desire to be public with our privacy? Is it more about reaching out, or being reached out to? A few thoughts on why we so often seek to tangle rather than untangle. … More “Finders Keepers, holder Seekers hidden Secrets”: Writing in Cryptics
Brands of Solitude: Poets and their Nature
May 19, 2011
A short comparison of Andrew Marvell’s ‘The Garden’ and Christina Rossetti’s ‘In the Willow Shade’. … More Brands of Solitude: Poets and their Nature
A Vote of No: Social Media and Sacrifices
May 7, 2011
Regular users of social media networks will no doubt have noticed – if their friends lists are anything like mine – that politics is again becoming a very public sport. Yesterday, a referendum was held on whether to adopt the ‘Alternative Vote’ system, turning social networking sites into moral and ideological crusades. … More A Vote of No: Social Media and Sacrifices
Writing Privacy 