How Did Milose's Theory of Intellectuals Explain American Intellectuals?

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I think there's a great deal of conformity in our culture as well. Why did Milose translate parts of the Bible? I think because he wanted to make it more part of himself. He was going through an enormous amount of suffering at that point in his life too, with his wife dying, with his son going mad. Nobody wanted to stick their heads out. And people wanted to hold them at a distance.

As a little girl, Cynthia Haven loved reading classic works of literature. At sixteen, she began her career as a reporter. And years later, those two interests converged as they led her to interview and write books about three writers and thinkers whom she also came to call mentors: René Girard, Czeslaw Milosz, and Joseph Brodsky.

Cynthia joined Tyler to discuss what she’s gleaned from each of the three, including what traits they have in common, why her biography of Girard had to come from outside academia, Milosz’s reaction to the Berkley Free Speech Movement, Girard’s greatest talent—and flaw—as a thinker, whether Brodsky will fall down the memory hole, why he was so terrible on Ukraine, why Cynthia’s early career was much like The Devil Wears Prada, the failings of Twitter, and more.

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Recorded May 18th, 2022 Other ways to connect

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