From mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org Mon Oct 6 04:28:55 2014 From: mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org (mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org) Date: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 11:28:55 +0000 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library Message-ID: This isaddressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributedto the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since itsfoundation in 2001-2. Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appearin the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the Anglo-Hellenic Review. I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing myown gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time,or in finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who havegiven your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it hasmeant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the samespirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, profoundly. However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it thefine and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity.Above all, it has been an enablingactivity: it has brought together people who would probably never otherwisehave encountered one another; it has facilitated the discussion of topicsespoused by Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic;it has attracted a faculty, both resident and visiting, of unparalleleddistinction; it has in some instances advanced academic careers; it has drawnattention to the island of Corfu which was so important in the personal andprofessional development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; it has created a forum, a community. Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even ifthe spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of thepremises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without amassive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always aloss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the pasttwo years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an injection ofyounger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different future for theenterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluablesupporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable prideand satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and theinternational ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any institution,large or small, not least in one dependent on private sponsorship and largelyunpaid personnel. The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding andpremises, and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge interms of what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, andthe development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter Irecently contributed to David Wills? Greece and Britain Since 1945, whichappeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave theimpression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it in factwas. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I saw thepossibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, limited, subduedlevel of activity, but the reality caught up with the four remaining directorsand the decision was taken (nem con.)in April of this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in theannouncement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes ofthe Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now re-shelvedin my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely that more thana handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but the Library,preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material (unavailable in anyother single location) exists and is operational. Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the Durrell Library of Corfu (DLC): www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org andvery soon there will be a website with the following features: -the DLC catalogue; -the DSC archive; -a bibliography of Lawrence andGerald Durrell; -free access to my Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape andBrewster Chamberlin?s Chronology of theLife and Times of Lawrence Durrell (revised edition) -an archive of theses, essays,and other scholarly work on both Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; -a ?notes & queries?facility for exchange of views and information; -a ?noticeboard? for allactivities Durrellian. I am confidentthat this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that is, who wish topursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC ?forum? by othermeans, so that we can contribute to the growing international traffic in theexpression of ideas, research, notes & queries, and all other aspects ofthe work we have already facilitated inthe cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and GeraldDurrell. So this isn?t a ?vale? but an ?ave?, or an au revoir: wewill meet again. My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May thiscommunity continue to thrive. Sincerely Richard Pine I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: dscclosure.doc Type: application/octet-stream Size: 27648 bytes Desc: not available URL: From bredwine1968 at gmail.com Mon Oct 6 08:51:59 2014 From: bredwine1968 at gmail.com (Bruce Redwine) Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 08:51:59 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Andreas Georgiadis exhibition In-Reply-To: <5431DFC7.5080108@marcpiel.fr> References: <54317FA5.6050801@gmail.com> <5431DFC7.5080108@marcpiel.fr> Message-ID: <0953A6D6-4641-4484-AA08-5EB9E6B0DDAD@gmail.com> I enjoy Andreas Georgiadis?s paintings of Alexandria based upon Durrell?s Quartet and do not think he is ?cashing in on someone else?s creativity.? Were that the case, it could be argued that we are all ?cashing in? on an author?s creativity by our discussions, essays, books, etc. Bruce On Oct 5, 2014, at 5:18 PM, Marc Piel wrote: > At least now he had corrected the spelling of his mentor "Laurence Darrell" > > Also the light in his works, wether it be in Greece, Egypt, the UK or elsewhere is exactly the same; he is just another guy cashing in on someone else's creativity. We should not fall for it!!!! > > I should have said this earlier. > Marc > > Le 05/10/14 19:28, James Gifford a ?crit : >> Hello all, >> >> For the upcoming exhibition in Egypt of artwork related to the Alexandria Quartet, Andreas Georgiadis has sent me his website information as well: >> >> http://www.ageorgiadis.gr >> >> This is evidently the best place to find information about his work. >> >> All best, >> James >> _______________________________________________ >> ILDS mailing list >> ILDS at lists.uvic.ca >> https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds >> > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Mon Oct 6 12:14:44 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 12:14:44 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Your message to ILDS awaits moderator approval In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5432EA24.9010707@gmail.com> Dear all, A brief reminder about the listserv since technical matters arise from time to time: 1) if you change your email address, the listserv subscription follows your old email, not you as a person. You'll need to resubscribe with your new email address. 2) if you wish to change between the "digest" or message-by-message format, only you can do so (I can't modify your preferences). You'll find login information on the ILDS website: www.lawrencedurrell.org (if you've forgotten your password, you can have it emailed to your subscribed email address). 3) receiving (or not receiving) a copy of your own postings is part of your subscription options, so see #2 to set your preferences. 4) your own email account determines how messages are displayed (colour coding of replies, etc...). That's entirely your email provider or your own settings on your computer, and I can't influence it. 5) just to keep things tidy, if you're responding, consider deleting the lengthy series of messages beneath yours. This is especially helpful if you're in digest mode. 6) you can always search the listserv archive through the ILDS website: http://www.lawrencedurrell.org Be well! James On 2014-10-06 4:54 AM, mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org wrote: > I have been a member of the list since its foundation!!! RP > > -----Original Message----- > *From:* ilds-owner at lists.uvic.ca [mailto:ilds-owner at lists.uvic.ca] > *Sent:* Monday, October 6, 2014 07:37 AM > *To:* mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org > *Subject:* Your message to ILDS awaits moderator approval > > Your mail to 'ILDS' with the subject Closure of Durrell School and > opening of Durrell Library Is being held until the list moderator > can review it for approval. The reason it is being held: Post by > non-member to a members-only list Either the message will get posted > to the list, or you will receive notification of the moderator's > decision. If you would like to cancel this posting, please visit the > following URL: > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/confirm/ilds/015fa068b8e7c731a7111fd22645c6e42348a974 > > From kvammen at hotmail.com Mon Oct 6 14:09:33 2014 From: kvammen at hotmail.com (kvammen) Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 14:09:33 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library Message-ID: As one who attended the very first session of the DSC, I am sorry to see it go. ?Thank you again for the great experience that was the Durrell School of Corfu. John Kvammen -------- Original message -------- From: mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org Date: 10/06/2014 12:09 PM (GMT-08:00) To: info at richard-pine.com Cc: v_pine at hotmail.com,emiliepine at yahoo.co.uk Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appear in the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the Anglo-Hellenic Review. I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing my own gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time, or in finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who have given your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it has meant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the same spirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, profoundly. However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it the fine and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity. Above all, it has been an enabling activity: it has brought together people who would probably never otherwise have encountered one another; it has facilitated the discussion of topics espoused by Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic; it has attracted a faculty, both resident and visiting, of unparalleled distinction; it has in some instances advanced academic careers; it has drawn attention to the island of Corfu which was so important in the personal and professional development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; it has created a forum, a community. Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even if the spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of the premises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without a massive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always a loss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the past two years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an injection of younger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different future for the enterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluable supporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable pride and satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and the international ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any institution, large or small, not least in one dependent on private sponsorship and largely unpaid personnel. The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding and premises, and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge in terms of what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, and the development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter I recently contributed to David Wills? Greece and Britain Since 1945, which appeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave the impression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it in fact was. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I saw the possibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, limited, subdued level of activity, but the reality caught up with the four remaining directors and the decision was taken (nem con.) in April of this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in the announcement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes of the Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now re-shelved in my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely that more than a handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but the Library, preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material (unavailable in any other single location) exists and is operational. Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the Durrell Library of Corfu (DLC): www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org and very soon there will be a website with the following features: -??????? the DLC catalogue; -??????? the DSC archive; -??????? a bibliography of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; -??????? free access to my Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape and Brewster Chamberlin?s Chronology of the Life and Times of Lawrence Durrell (revised edition) -??????? an archive of theses, essays, and other scholarly work on both Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; -??????? a ?notes & queries? facility for exchange of views and information; -??????? a ?noticeboard? for all activities Durrellian. ? I am confident that this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that is, who wish to pursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC ?forum? by other means, so that we can contribute to the growing international traffic in the expression of ideas, research, notes & queries, and all other aspects of the work we have already ?facilitated in the cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell. ??????????? So this isn?t a ?vale? but an ?ave?, or an au revoir: we will meet again. My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. Sincerely Richard Pine ?I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From wilded at hotmail.com Mon Oct 6 13:15:12 2014 From: wilded at hotmail.com (david wilde) Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 14:15:12 -0600 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Dear Richard Pine. If the library has closed I would appreciate having my book Black Innocence returned to me so as to contribute elsewhere. many thanks. David Wilde (UNM) From: mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org To: info at richard-pine.com Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 11:28:55 +0000 CC: v_pine at hotmail.com; emiliepine at yahoo.co.uk Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appear in the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the Anglo-Hellenic Review. I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing my own gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time, or in finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who have given your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it has meant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the same spirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, profoundly. However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it the fine and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity. Above all, it has been an enabling activity: it has brought together people who would probably never otherwise have encountered one another; it has facilitated the discussion of topics espoused by Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic; it has attracted a faculty, both resident and visiting, of unparalleled distinction; it has in some instances advanced academic careers; it has drawn attention to the island of Corfu which was so important in the personal and professional development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; it has created a forum, a community. Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even if the spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of the premises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without a massive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always a loss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the past two years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an injection of younger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different future for the enterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluable supporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable pride and satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and the international ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any institution, large or small, not least in one dependent on private sponsorship and largely unpaid personnel. The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding and premises, and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge in terms of what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, and the development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter I recently contributed to David Wills? Greece and Britain Since 1945, which appeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave the impression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it in fact was. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I saw the possibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, limited, subdued level of activity, but the reality caught up with the four remaining directors and the decision was taken (nem con.) in April of this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in the announcement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes of the Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now re-shelved in my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely that more than a handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but the Library, preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material (unavailable in any other single location) exists and is operational. Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the Durrell Library of Corfu (DLC): www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org and very soon there will be a website with the following features: - the DLC catalogue; - the DSC archive; - a bibliography of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; - free access to my Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape and Brewster Chamberlin?s Chronology of the Life and Times of Lawrence Durrell (revised edition) - an archive of theses, essays, and other scholarly work on both Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; - a ?notes & queries? facility for exchange of views and information; - a ?noticeboard? for all activities Durrellian. I am confident that this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that is, who wish to pursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC ?forum? by other means, so that we can contribute to the growing international traffic in the expression of ideas, research, notes & queries, and all other aspects of the work we have already facilitated in the cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell. So this isn?t a ?vale? but an ?ave?, or an au revoir: we will meet again. My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. Sincerely Richard Pine I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. _______________________________________________ ILDS mailing list ILDS at lists.uvic.ca https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dtart at bigpond.net.au Mon Oct 6 14:16:52 2014 From: dtart at bigpond.net.au (Denise Tart & David Green) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 08:16:52 +1100 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Richard, This must be a very sad moment for you, the end of an era and of an endeavour close to your heart. The Library is a great idea. I hope I may visit it some day in the next couple of years. I have not been to Corfu since 1985. Although it maybe much changed, I'll bet much of the old charm remains on Prospero's Island. Regards David Green 16 William Street Marrickville NSW 2204 AUSTRALIA +61 2 9564 6165 0412 707 625 www.denisetart.com.au From: mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org Sent: Monday, October 06, 2014 10:28 PM To: info at richard-pine.com Cc: v_pine at hotmail.com ; emiliepine at yahoo.co.uk Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. Sincerely Richard Pine I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _______________________________________________ ILDS mailing list ILDS at lists.uvic.ca https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Mon Oct 6 14:28:37 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 14:28:37 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Durrell School of Corfu Message-ID: <54330985.9000609@gmail.com> Dear all, A brief note -- I'm not sure if Richard Pine's original email address is still active, and the Durrell Library email address has not subscribed itself to the listserv. Please feel free to discuss on the list, but you may wish to CC to ensure he sees it. All best, James From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Mon Oct 6 15:21:15 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 15:21:15 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3A9C9825-9609-45CF-918D-7371D61B0A62@earthlink.net> Richard, Yes, I agree. I too am sorry to see the Durrell School of Corfu close its doors. It certainly was a shining moment in Durrellian studies. The idea of a library of Durrell?s materials is excellent. Please continue to work on your annotated bibliography, an important work. I look forward to its publication. Best wishes, Bruce On Oct 6, 2014, at 2:16 PM, Denise Tart & David Green wrote: > Richard, This must be a very sad moment for you, the end of an era and of an endeavour close to your heart. > The Library is a great idea. I hope I may visit it some day in the next couple of years. I have not been to Corfu > since 1985. Although it maybe much changed, I'll bet much of the old charm remains on Prospero's Island. > > Regards > > David Green > > > 16 William Street > Marrickville NSW 2204 > AUSTRALIA > +61 2 9564 6165 > 0412 707 625 > www.denisetart.com.au > > From: mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org > Sent: Monday, October 06, 2014 10:28 PM > To: info at richard-pine.com > Cc: v_pine at hotmail.com ; emiliepine at yahoo.co.uk > Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library > > This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. > > My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. > > Sincerely > > Richard Pine > > I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. > > > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lasternthal at gmail.com Mon Oct 6 17:57:56 2014 From: lasternthal at gmail.com (Lee Sternthal) Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2014 17:57:56 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <41C9A1E2-5762-4A52-A64E-B78030E5439D@gmail.com> i am very sad to hear of the closing of the school, but excited for the new library. when i am next on corfu i plan to stop in for some reading, some meditation, some tea, and, most importantly, to say "thank you." all best, lee sternthal > On Oct 6, 2014, at 4:28 AM, mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org wrote: > > > This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. > > Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appear in the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the Anglo-Hellenic Review. > > I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing my own gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. > > Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time, or in finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who have given your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it has meant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the same spirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. > > I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, profoundly. > > However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it the fine and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity. Above all, it has been an enabling activity: it has brought together people who would probably never otherwise have encountered one another; it has facilitated the discussion of topics espoused by Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic; it has attracted a faculty, both resident and visiting, of unparalleled distinction; it has in some instances advanced academic careers; it has drawn attention to the island of Corfu which was so important in the personal and professional development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; it has created a forum, a community. > > Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even if the spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of the premises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without a massive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always a loss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the past two years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an injection of younger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different future for the enterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. > > We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluable supporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable pride and satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and the international ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any institution, large or small, not least in one dependent on private sponsorship and largely unpaid personnel. > > The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding and premises, and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge in terms of what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, and the development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. > > Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter I recently contributed to David Wills? Greece and Britain Since 1945, which appeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave the impression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it in fact was. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I saw the possibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, limited, subdued level of activity, but the reality caught up with the four remaining directors and the decision was taken (nem con.) in April of this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. > > However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in the announcement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes of the Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now re-shelved in my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely that more than a handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but the Library, preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material (unavailable in any other single location) exists and is operational. > > Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the Durrell Library of Corfu (DLC): www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org and very soon there will be a website with the following features: > > - the DLC catalogue; > > - the DSC archive; > > - a bibliography of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; > > - free access to my Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape and Brewster Chamberlin?s Chronology of the Life and Times of Lawrence Durrell (revised edition) > > - an archive of theses, essays, and other scholarly work on both Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; > > - a ?notes & queries? facility for exchange of views and information; > > - a ?noticeboard? for all activities Durrellian. > > > > I am confident that this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that is, who wish to pursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC ?forum? by other means, so that we can contribute to the growing international traffic in the expression of ideas, research, notes & queries, and all other aspects of the work we have already facilitated in the cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell. > > So this isn?t a ?vale? but an ?ave?, or an au revoir: we will meet again. > > My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. > > Sincerely > > Richard Pine > > I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. > > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From marc at marcpiel.fr Tue Oct 7 02:49:03 2014 From: marc at marcpiel.fr (Marc Piel) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 11:49:03 +0200 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: <41C9A1E2-5762-4A52-A64E-B78030E5439D@gmail.com> References: <41C9A1E2-5762-4A52-A64E-B78030E5439D@gmail.com> Message-ID: Well received and wishing you success with the new site. Best regards Marc piel Envoy? de mon iPad > Le 7 oct. 2014 ? 02:57, Lee Sternthal a ?crit : > > i am very sad to hear of the closing of the school, but excited for the new library. when i am next on corfu i plan to stop in for some reading, some meditation, some tea, and, most importantly, to say "thank you." > > all best, > lee sternthal > >> On Oct 6, 2014, at 4:28 AM, mail at durrelllibrarycorfu.org wrote: >> >> >> This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. >> >> Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appear in the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the Anglo-Hellenic Review. >> >> I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing my own gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. >> >> Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time, or in finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who have given your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it has meant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the same spirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. >> >> I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, profoundly. >> >> However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it the fine and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity. Above all, it has been an enabling activity: it has brought together people who would probably never otherwise have encountered one another; it has facilitated the discussion of topics espoused by Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic; it has attracted a faculty, both resident and visiting, of unparalleled distinction; it has in some instances advanced academic careers; it has drawn attention to the island of Corfu which was so important in the personal and professional development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; it has created a forum, a community. >> >> Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even if the spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of the premises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without a massive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always a loss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the past two years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an injection of younger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different future for the enterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. >> >> We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluable supporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable pride and satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and the international ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any institution, large or small, not least in one dependent on private sponsorship and largely unpaid personnel. >> >> The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding and premises, and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge in terms of what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, and the development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. >> >> Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter I recently contributed to David Wills? Greece and Britain Since 1945, which appeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave the impression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it in fact was. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I saw the possibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, limited, subdued level of activity, but the reality caught up with the four remaining directors and the decision was taken (nem con.) in April of this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. >> >> However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in the announcement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes of the Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now re-shelved in my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely that more than a handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but the Library, preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material (unavailable in any other single location) exists and is operational. >> >> Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the Durrell Library of Corfu (DLC): www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org and very soon there will be a website with the following features: >> >> - the DLC catalogue; >> >> - the DSC archive; >> >> - a bibliography of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; >> >> - free access to my Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape and Brewster Chamberlin?s Chronology of the Life and Times of Lawrence Durrell (revised edition) >> >> - an archive of theses, essays, and other scholarly work on both Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; >> >> - a ?notes & queries? facility for exchange of views and information; >> >> - a ?noticeboard? for all activities Durrellian. >> >> >> >> I am confident that this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that is, who wish to pursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC ?forum? by other means, so that we can contribute to the growing international traffic in the expression of ideas, research, notes & queries, and all other aspects of the work we have already facilitated in the cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell. >> >> So this isn?t a ?vale? but an ?ave?, or an au revoir: we will meet again. >> >> My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this community continue to thrive. >> >> Sincerely >> >> Richard Pine >> >> I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be interested in the work of the Durrell Library. >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> ILDS mailing list >> ILDS at lists.uvic.ca >> https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From billyapt at gmail.com Tue Oct 7 06:44:24 2014 From: billyapt at gmail.com (William Apt) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 08:44:24 -0500 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New Message-ID: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. >From today's NY Times. WILLIAM APT Attorney at Law 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 Austin TX 78701 512/708-8300 512/708-8011 FAX From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Tue Oct 7 09:44:05 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 09:44:05 -0700 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New In-Reply-To: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> References: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> Message-ID: Thanks, Billy, I shall definitely see the exhibit in New York. I wonder, however, how multi-cultural and open-minded the Ptolemaic Greeks were. Brent D. Shaw, a Canadian historian now at Princeton, wrote an article on incest in Graeco-Roman Egypt: ?Explaining Incest: Brother-Sister Marriage in Graeco-Roman Egypt? (Man 27 [1992]). He argues that Greeks in Egypt, particularly those in the provinces, often married their siblings. (He supports his argument with abundant census data/records from that period.) Why the incest? To preserve the family fortune and to avoid contact with the ?natives,? i.e., the local Egyptians. Plutarch says Cleopatra VII was the first of her clan to speak Egyptian ? prior to that all the Ptolemies spoke Greek. Alexandria certainly had a very diverse culture, but the Greeks themselves may not have been so diversity-minded, particularly when it came to private matters. Bruce On Oct 7, 2014, at 6:44 AM, William Apt wrote: > http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone > > An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. > > From today's NY Times. > > > WILLIAM APT > Attorney at Law > 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 > Austin TX 78701 > 512/708-8300 > 512/708-8011 FAX > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From billyapt at gmail.com Tue Oct 7 11:06:53 2014 From: billyapt at gmail.com (William Apt) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 13:06:53 -0500 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New In-Reply-To: References: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> Message-ID: Bruce: Its one thing for a ruling class to foster cultural diversity but another if results in a loss of control by that class. After all, the Ptolemies did not oversee a democracy. Exclusion by racial purity and/or language is a perfect means by which to stretch tolerance as far as possible within the boundaries of absolute dictatorship. What about today? The only progressive dictator I can think of is Fidel Castro. He has rigidly maintained control of but fostered a progressive, sophisticated society not by restriction on racial purity or language, but by restriction on speech and assembly. Like the Ptolemies, Castro has stretched - even forced - tolerance as far as is acceptably possible within boundaries that do not allow his loss of control. BILLY On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 11:44 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > Thanks, Billy, I shall definitely see the exhibit in New York. I wonder, > however, how multi-cultural and open-minded the Ptolemaic Greeks were. > Brent D. Shaw, a Canadian historian now at Princeton, wrote an article on > incest in Graeco-Roman Egypt: ?Explaining Incest: Brother-Sister Marriage > in Graeco-Roman Egypt? *(Man* 27 [1992]). He argues that Greeks in > Egypt, particularly those in the provinces, often married their siblings. > (He supports his argument with abundant census data/records from that > period.) Why the incest? To preserve the family fortune and to avoid > contact with the ?natives,? i.e., the local Egyptians. Plutarch says > Cleopatra VII was the first of her clan to speak Egyptian ? prior to that > all the Ptolemies spoke Greek. Alexandria certainly had a very diverse > culture, but the Greeks themselves may not have been so diversity-minded, > particularly when it came to private matters. > > Bruce > > > > On Oct 7, 2014, at 6:44 AM, William Apt wrote: > > > http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone > > An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. > > From today's NY Times. > > > WILLIAM APT > Attorney at Law > 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 > Austin TX 78701 > 512/708-8300 > 512/708-8011 FAX > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > > > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > > -- WILLIAM APT Attorney at Law 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 Austin TX 78701 512/708-8300 512/708-8011 FAX -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Tue Oct 7 11:38:38 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 11:38:38 -0700 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New In-Reply-To: References: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> Message-ID: <0A670013-19E2-4413-BA8A-4BB714E17148@earthlink.net> Billy, I think we agree. Very interesting comparison with Fidel Castro and his policies. Wilford?s article in the NYT concludes with a quote from Roger Bagnall, a classical historian: ?But I very much feel that the cosmopolitan Hellenistic culture was comfortable with diversity in its surroundings . . . That?s a world we?ve lost.? That?s the traditional view of Ptolemaic culture: diverse, open-minded, tolerant. Shaw?s article presents a different picture, one you acknowledge by referring to ?a ruling class.? one which, in Ptolemaic Egypt, was bent of preserving its identity and hegemony. The Greeks in Egypt were probably similar to the Brits in India and shared similar attitudes about the ?natives.? The Hellenistic Greeks were not free of prejudice, and to rave about Hellenistic cosmopolitanism is probably a distortion. At the Durrell Celebration in Alexandria (2007), Durrell came in for this criticism from the Egyptians of Alexandria. Bruce On Oct 7, 2014, at 11:06 AM, William Apt wrote: > Bruce: > > Its one thing for a ruling class to foster cultural diversity but another if results in a loss of control by that class. After all, the Ptolemies did not oversee a democracy. Exclusion by racial purity and/or language is a perfect means by which to stretch tolerance as far as possible within the boundaries of absolute dictatorship. > > What about today? The only progressive dictator I can think of is Fidel Castro. He has rigidly maintained control of but fostered a progressive, sophisticated society not by restriction on racial purity or language, but by restriction on speech and assembly. > > Like the Ptolemies, Castro has stretched - even forced - tolerance as far as is acceptably possible within boundaries that do not allow his loss of control. > > BILLY > > > On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 11:44 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > Thanks, Billy, I shall definitely see the exhibit in New York. I wonder, however, how multi-cultural and open-minded the Ptolemaic Greeks were. Brent D. Shaw, a Canadian historian now at Princeton, wrote an article on incest in Graeco-Roman Egypt: ?Explaining Incest: Brother-Sister Marriage in Graeco-Roman Egypt? (Man 27 [1992]). He argues that Greeks in Egypt, particularly those in the provinces, often married their siblings. (He supports his argument with abundant census data/records from that period.) Why the incest? To preserve the family fortune and to avoid contact with the ?natives,? i.e., the local Egyptians. Plutarch says Cleopatra VII was the first of her clan to speak Egyptian ? prior to that all the Ptolemies spoke Greek. Alexandria certainly had a very diverse culture, but the Greeks themselves may not have been so diversity-minded, particularly when it came to private matters. > > Bruce > > > > On Oct 7, 2014, at 6:44 AM, William Apt wrote: > >> http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone >> >> An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. >> >> From today's NY Times. >> >> >> WILLIAM APT >> Attorney at Law >> 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 >> Austin TX 78701 >> 512/708-8300 >> 512/708-8011 FAX > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From billyapt at gmail.com Tue Oct 7 13:22:01 2014 From: billyapt at gmail.com (William Apt) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 15:22:01 -0500 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New In-Reply-To: <0A670013-19E2-4413-BA8A-4BB714E17148@earthlink.net> References: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> <0A670013-19E2-4413-BA8A-4BB714E17148@earthlink.net> Message-ID: Absolutely, Bruce: the Brits in India is a perfect example. For example, I have no doubt that Montolive's father (who I believe is modeled on Patrick Leigh Fermor's own father), despite his being lost to the East, would likely never, as a white Englishman, dream of sharing his position of power and authority with the "natives". But I also completely forgot about Moorish Spain. Again exceptional tolerance fostered by, and cultural blossoming the result of, a dictatorial foreign ruling class? In the end the fact remains: ancient Greek absolutism created a foundation of tolerance, sophistication and enlightenment that endured until the 1950s. Egypt may now be free of foreign overlords, but such freedom came at a steep cultural price. It exchanged one form of despotism for another: foreign - or foreign collaborationist - and culturally tolerant for indigenous and rigidly intolerant. Has that pattern not repeated itself throughout the Middle East? Were not for the Greek dictators of antiquity, the world that LD, Forster and Haag write about might never have existed. Were not for Napoleon III, we would not have the modern city of Paris. Were it not for Fidel, the goals of gender and race equality that Americans still strive for would not have been reached in Cuba 50 years ago. No question dictatorship is always an unknown quantity and most always a lethal form of governance. But it certainly appears that democracy can be too - and just as lethally ignorant, intolerant and provincial. Cheers, BILLY On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 1:38 PM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > Billy, > > I think we agree. Very interesting comparison with Fidel Castro and his > policies. Wilford?s article in the *NYT* concludes with a quote from > Roger Bagnall, a classical historian: ?But I very much feel that the > cosmopolitan Hellenistic culture was comfortable with diversity in its > surroundings . . . That?s a world we?ve lost.? That?s the traditional view > of Ptolemaic culture: diverse, open-minded, tolerant. Shaw?s article > presents a different picture, one you acknowledge by referring to ?a ruling > class.? one which, in Ptolemaic Egypt, was bent of preserving its identity > and hegemony. The Greeks in Egypt were probably similar to the Brits in > India and shared similar attitudes about the ?natives.? The Hellenistic > Greeks were not free of prejudice, and to rave about Hellenistic > cosmopolitanism is probably a distortion. At the Durrell Celebration in > Alexandria (2007), Durrell came in for this criticism from the Egyptians of > Alexandria. > > Bruce > > > > On Oct 7, 2014, at 11:06 AM, William Apt wrote: > > Bruce: > > Its one thing for a ruling class to foster cultural diversity but another > if results in a loss of control by that class. After all, the Ptolemies did > not oversee a democracy. Exclusion by racial purity and/or language is a > perfect means by which to stretch tolerance as far as possible within the > boundaries of absolute dictatorship. > > What about today? The only progressive dictator I can think of is Fidel > Castro. He has rigidly maintained control of but fostered a > progressive, sophisticated society not by restriction on racial purity or > language, but by restriction on speech and assembly. > > Like the Ptolemies, Castro has stretched - even forced - tolerance as far > as is acceptably possible within boundaries that do not allow his loss > of control. > > BILLY > > > On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 11:44 AM, Bruce Redwine > wrote: > >> Thanks, Billy, I shall definitely see the exhibit in New York. I wonder, >> however, how multi-cultural and open-minded the Ptolemaic Greeks were. >> Brent D. Shaw, a Canadian historian now at Princeton, wrote an article on >> incest in Graeco-Roman Egypt: ?Explaining Incest: Brother-Sister Marriage >> in Graeco-Roman Egypt? *(Man* 27 [1992]). He argues that Greeks in >> Egypt, particularly those in the provinces, often married their siblings. >> (He supports his argument with abundant census data/records from that >> period.) Why the incest? To preserve the family fortune and to avoid >> contact with the ?natives,? i.e., the local Egyptians. Plutarch says >> Cleopatra VII was the first of her clan to speak Egyptian ? prior to that >> all the Ptolemies spoke Greek. Alexandria certainly had a very diverse >> culture, but the Greeks themselves may not have been so diversity-minded, >> particularly when it came to private matters. >> >> Bruce >> >> >> >> On Oct 7, 2014, at 6:44 AM, William Apt wrote: >> >> >> http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone >> >> An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. >> >> From today's NY Times. >> >> >> WILLIAM APT >> Attorney at Law >> 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 >> Austin TX 78701 >> 512/708-8300 >> 512/708-8011 FAX >> >> > > > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > > -- WILLIAM APT Attorney at Law 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 Austin TX 78701 512/708-8300 512/708-8011 FAX -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Tue Oct 7 15:18:28 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 15:18:28 -0700 Subject: [ilds] NYTimes: Multiculturalism: Nothing New In-Reply-To: References: <65F081DD-E8D0-45DA-B3C9-F38CCCD07BCF@gmail.com> <0A670013-19E2-4413-BA8A-4BB714E17148@earthlink.net> Message-ID: <178791BA-04E4-4262-B525-1AF541BD3984@earthlink.net> Billy, You make a compelling argument for enlightened despotism. I share your views, well stated. Bruce On Oct 7, 2014, at 1:22 PM, William Apt wrote: > Absolutely, Bruce: the Brits in India is a perfect example. For example, I have no doubt that Montolive's father (who I believe is modeled on Patrick Leigh Fermor's own father), despite his being lost to the East, would likely never, as a white Englishman, dream of sharing his position of power and authority with the "natives". But I also completely forgot about Moorish Spain. Again exceptional tolerance fostered by, and cultural blossoming the result of, a dictatorial foreign ruling class? > > In the end the fact remains: ancient Greek absolutism created a foundation of tolerance, sophistication and enlightenment that endured until the 1950s. Egypt may now be free of foreign overlords, but such freedom came at a steep cultural price. It exchanged one form of despotism for another: foreign - or foreign collaborationist - and culturally tolerant for indigenous and rigidly intolerant. Has that pattern not repeated itself throughout the Middle East? > > Were not for the Greek dictators of antiquity, the world that LD, Forster and Haag write about might never have existed. Were not for Napoleon III, we would not have the modern city of Paris. Were it not for Fidel, the goals of gender and race equality that Americans still strive for would not have been reached in Cuba 50 years ago. > > No question dictatorship is always an unknown quantity and most always a lethal form of governance. But it certainly appears that democracy can be too - and just as lethally ignorant, intolerant and provincial. > > Cheers, BILLY > > > > > > > On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 1:38 PM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > Billy, > > I think we agree. Very interesting comparison with Fidel Castro and his policies. Wilford?s article in the NYT concludes with a quote from Roger Bagnall, a classical historian: ?But I very much feel that the cosmopolitan Hellenistic culture was comfortable with diversity in its surroundings . . . That?s a world we?ve lost.? That?s the traditional view of Ptolemaic culture: diverse, open-minded, tolerant. Shaw?s article presents a different picture, one you acknowledge by referring to ?a ruling class.? one which, in Ptolemaic Egypt, was bent of preserving its identity and hegemony. The Greeks in Egypt were probably similar to the Brits in India and shared similar attitudes about the ?natives.? The Hellenistic Greeks were not free of prejudice, and to rave about Hellenistic cosmopolitanism is probably a distortion. At the Durrell Celebration in Alexandria (2007), Durrell came in for this criticism from the Egyptians of Alexandria. > > Bruce > > > > On Oct 7, 2014, at 11:06 AM, William Apt wrote: > >> Bruce: >> >> Its one thing for a ruling class to foster cultural diversity but another if results in a loss of control by that class. After all, the Ptolemies did not oversee a democracy. Exclusion by racial purity and/or language is a perfect means by which to stretch tolerance as far as possible within the boundaries of absolute dictatorship. >> >> What about today? The only progressive dictator I can think of is Fidel Castro. He has rigidly maintained control of but fostered a progressive, sophisticated society not by restriction on racial purity or language, but by restriction on speech and assembly. >> >> Like the Ptolemies, Castro has stretched - even forced - tolerance as far as is acceptably possible within boundaries that do not allow his loss of control. >> >> BILLY >> >> >> On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 11:44 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: >> Thanks, Billy, I shall definitely see the exhibit in New York. I wonder, however, how multi-cultural and open-minded the Ptolemaic Greeks were. Brent D. Shaw, a Canadian historian now at Princeton, wrote an article on incest in Graeco-Roman Egypt: ?Explaining Incest: Brother-Sister Marriage in Graeco-Roman Egypt? (Man 27 [1992]). He argues that Greeks in Egypt, particularly those in the provinces, often married their siblings. (He supports his argument with abundant census data/records from that period.) Why the incest? To preserve the family fortune and to avoid contact with the ?natives,? i.e., the local Egyptians. Plutarch says Cleopatra VII was the first of her clan to speak Egyptian ? prior to that all the Ptolemies spoke Greek. Alexandria certainly had a very diverse culture, but the Greeks themselves may not have been so diversity-minded, particularly when it came to private matters. >> >> Bruce >> >> >> >> On Oct 7, 2014, at 6:44 AM, William Apt wrote: >> >>> http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/07/science/when-the-greeks-ruled-egypt-highlights-the-diversity-of-cultures-in-ptolemaic-egypt.html?smid=nytcore-iphone-share&smprod=nytcore-iphone >>> >>> An exhibit in New York explores Ptolemaic Egypt?s embrace of diversity. >>> >>> From today's NY Times. >>> >>> >>> WILLIAM APT >>> Attorney at Law >>> 812 San Antonio St, Ste 401 >>> Austin TX 78701 >>> 512/708-8300 >>> 512/708-8011 FAX >> >> > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From czkrzakowski at gmail.com Tue Oct 7 18:23:22 2014 From: czkrzakowski at gmail.com (Caroline Zoe Krzakowski) Date: Tue, 7 Oct 2014 21:23:22 -0400 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Dear Richard, Thank-you for this notice; it is very sad news indeed. Now that I have found tenure-track employment, I was looking forward to coming to the Durrell School and contributing more actively to your program. I never had a chance to meet you in person and to let you know what a great influence you have had on my own writing about Durrell. Most recently my article on Durrell and the language of diplomacy was published in *The Global Review,* and edited by James Gifford, and there is a chapter on Durrell in my first book, which is forthcoming with Northwestern UP. http://www.theglobalreview.net/?page_id=11 Thank-you for all your work, and for preserving Durrell's library. I hope to be able to visit in the near future. All the best, Caroline Krzakowski -- Caroline Z. Krzakowski, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, 20/21 C British Literature Department of English Northern Michigan University 1401 Presque Isle Ave., Marquette, MI 49855 (906) 227-1633 ckrzakow at nmu.edu On Mon, Oct 6, 2014 at 7:28 AM, wrote: > This is addressed to all (for whom I have a current email address) who > have contributed to the growth, welfare and objectives of the Durrell > School of Corfu since its foundation in 2001-2. > > Attached to this message is the text of an announcement which will appear > in the next (and, I?m sorry to say, final) edition of the *Anglo-Hellenic > Review*. > > I wish on a personal basis to add to that statement by expressing my own > gratitude to, and admiration of, you all for your commitment to the DSC. > > Many of you made a very substantial contribution ? either in time, or in > finance, or intellectual energy, or all of these. Those of you who have > given your advice and support in larger measure will appreciate how much it > has meant to me, personally, that so many have made that commitment in the > same spirit that possessed me when I founded the DSC. > > I cannot thank everyone personally/individually, but I thank you all, > profoundly. > > However much you may have given, freely, to the DSC has made it the fine > and enviable institution that it became in the 12 years of its activity. > Above all, it has been an *enabling* activity: it has brought together > people who would probably never otherwise have encountered one another; it > has facilitated the discussion of topics espoused by Lawrence Durrell and > Gerald Durrell, often within the same optic; it has attracted a faculty, > both resident and visiting, of unparalleled distinction; it has in some > instances advanced academic careers; it has drawn attention to the island > of Corfu which was so important in the personal and professional > development of both Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; *it has created a forum*, > *a community*. > > Financial conditions would eventually necessitate closure, even if the > spirit were still willing and the flesh not so weak. The cost of the > premises reached the point where it was no longer sustainable. Without a > massive injection of charitable funding, the DSC, which was always a > loss-making activity, could not continue, and it has been clear for the > past two years that closure was inevitable. And, indeed, it needed an > injection of younger energy and ideas. Therefore, the need for a different > future for the enterprise: a new name and a new type of activity. > > We (and by ?we? I mean myself, as founder, and you as invaluable > supporters and participants) can look at our achievement with justifiable > pride and satisfaction. The record of our seminars, our publications, and > the international ?clat which we have achieved, are enviable in any > institution, large or small, not least in one dependent on private > sponsorship and largely unpaid personnel. > > The DSC may have been small in terms of personnel, funding and premises, > and modest in the number of its seminars, but it has been huge in terms of > what it has become for the academic world, the ecological community, and > the development of modern Greece, especially Corfu. > > Ironically, those achievements were summed up in a chapter I recently > contributed to David Wills? *Greece** and Britain Since 1945*, which > appeared earlier this year. Ironically, of course, because the chapter gave > the impression that the DSC?s state of health was not as imperilled as it > in fact was. I wrote it in a spirit of hope and resistance to reality; I > saw the possibility that the DSC could in fact continue on a reduced, > limited, subdued level of activity, but the reality caught up with the four > remaining directors and the decision was taken (*nem con.*) in April of > this year to dissolve the Greek-registered company. > > However, no door closes but another one opens. As stated in the > announcement attached to this message, the vast bulk of the 3,500 volumes > of the Library, previously housed in our city-centre premises, is now > re-shelved in my own house in Perithia (in north-east Corfu). It?s unlikely > that more than a handful of visitors will find their way to my door, but > the Library, preserving a large amount of Lawrence-related material > (unavailable in any other single location) exists and is operational. > > Furthermore, a new domain name has been created for the *Durrell Library > of Corfu (DLC)*: www.durrelllibrarycorfu.org and very soon there will be > a website with the following features: > > - the DLC catalogue; > > - the DSC archive; > > - a bibliography of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell; > > - free access to my *Lawrence Durrell: the Mindscape *and Brewster > Chamberlin?s *Chronology of the Life and Times of Lawrence Durrell > (revised edition)* > > - an archive of theses, essays, and other scholarly work on both > Lawrence Durrell and Gerald Durrell; > > - a ?notes & queries? facility for exchange of views and > information; > > - a ?noticeboard? for all activities Durrellian. > > > > I am confident that this new facility will enable us ? those of us, that > is, who wish to pursue Durrellian studies and issues ? to continue the DSC > ?forum? by other means, so that we can contribute to the growing > international traffic in the expression of ideas, research, notes & > queries, and all other aspects of the work we have already facilitated in > the cause of the topics essential to the lives and works of Lawrence and > Gerald Durrell. > > So this isn?t a ?*vale*? but an ?*ave*?, or an *au revoir*: > we will meet again. > > My heartfelt gratitude and warmest greetings to you all. May this > community continue to thrive. > > Sincerely > > Richard Pine > > I would be very grateful, in view of recent email robberies etc, if you > would kindly acknowledge receipt of this message, and also forward it to > anyone you may know who would was associated with the DSC and would be > interested in the work of the Durrell Library. > > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Tue Oct 7 19:41:18 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 19:41:18 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Closure of Durrell School and opening of Durrell Library In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5434A44E.6010306@gmail.com> Dear Caroline, I wish it were better times that brought out your own good news, but I'm glad to hear it in any case Congratulations on the posting, and I'm sure we're all looking forward to your book! All best, James On 2014-10-07 6:23 PM, Caroline Zoe Krzakowski wrote: > Dear Richard, > > Thank-you for this notice; it is very sad news indeed. Now that I have > found tenure-track employment, I was looking forward to coming to the > Durrell School and contributing more actively to your program. > > I never had a chance to meet you in person and to let you know what a > great influence you have had on my own writing about Durrell. Most > recently my article on Durrell and the language of diplomacy was > published in /The Global Review,/ and edited by James Gifford, and there > is a chapter on Durrell in my first book, which is forthcoming with > Northwestern UP. > > http://www.theglobalreview.net/?page_id=11 > > Thank-you for all your work, and for preserving Durrell's library. I > hope to be able to visit in the near future. > > All the best, > Caroline Krzakowski > -- > Caroline Z. Krzakowski, Ph.D. > Assistant Professor, 20/21 C British Literature > Department of English > Northern Michigan University > 1401 Presque Isle Ave., Marquette, MI 49855 > (906) 227-1633 > ckrzakow at nmu.edu From anthony.hirst at btinternet.com Thu Oct 9 01:30:57 2014 From: anthony.hirst at btinternet.com (Anthony Hirst) Date: Thu, 9 Oct 2014 09:30:57 +0100 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) Message-ID: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> A small quibble about James Gifford's "small quibble" about the Durrell School of Corfu edition of Judith. He says that "the text is predominantly from the novella draft Durrell did". It is not predominantly but entirely based on the latest of LD's typescripts of the novella (though why not call it a novel?), transcribed with meticulous care by Richard Pine. Nor is it true to say that this text can "also be pieced together from Woman's Own". The Woman's Own version of Judith tells a story different in many respects from the one published in 2012. It is also a novel(la) but it is not the same novel(la), though there are many points of contact between the two texts. In form and style neither publication resembles a "version of a screenplay" as Bruce Redwine calls the DSC edition. The first instalment in Woman's Own (26 Feb 1966) is headed "Judith by Lawrence Durrell from the film starring Sophia Loren and Peter Finch", and it is not clear how far this text is the work of LD himself, and certain that it is not entirely his work, since he withdraw from the development of the film script long before the film reached the production stage, and the writing style in places strongly suggests editorial intervention by the staff of Woman's Own. I have photocopies of both LD's typescript and the Woman's Own serialization in front of me as I write, and I was closely involved in the editing and production of the DSC edition of Judith. Anthony Hirst -------------------- (I sent this yesterday, to two different ilds email addresses, neither of which, I now see, was the correct one for submissions) From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Thu Oct 9 01:43:12 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 01:43:12 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> Message-ID: <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> A good quibble, Anthony! I was commenting based on our conversation about the materials we'd both received from Carbondale (during one of the few idle moments in Charlie's marvelous Durrell 2012 conference), and clearly I misunderstood you at the time. It must have been due to what I remember as a very jovial evening at St. Pancras... I'd still suggest Claude's /A Chair for the Prophet/ as the natural companion piece. Now I just need to find a free day to set those four choice cuts beside each other on the kitchen table... In time for Durrell 2016 if I'm lucky! Good to see you on the listserv. Best, James On 2014-10-09 1:30 AM, Anthony Hirst wrote: > A small quibble about James Gifford's "small quibble" about the Durrell School of Corfu edition of Judith. He says that "the text is predominantly from the novella draft Durrell did". It is not predominantly but entirely based on the latest of LD's typescripts of the novella (though why not call it a novel?), transcribed with meticulous care by Richard Pine. Nor is it true to say that this text can "also be pieced together from Woman's Own". The Woman's Own version of Judith tells a story different in many respects from the one published in 2012. It is also a novel(la) but it is not the same novel(la), though there are many points of contact between the two texts. In form and style neither publication resembles a "version of a screenplay" as Bruce Redwine calls the DSC edition. > > The first instalment in Woman's Own (26 Feb 1966) is headed "Judith by Lawrence Durrell from the film starring Sophia Loren and Peter Finch", and it is not clear how far this text is the work of LD himself, and certain that it is not entirely his work, since he withdraw from the development of the film script long before the film reached the production stage, and the writing style in places strongly suggests editorial intervention by the staff of Woman's Own. > > I have photocopies of both LD's typescript and the Woman's Own serialization in front of me as I write, and I was closely involved in the editing and production of the DSC edition of Judith. > > Anthony Hirst > -------------------- > > (I sent this yesterday, to two different ilds email addresses, neither of which, I now see, was the correct one for submissions) > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds > From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Thu Oct 9 09:39:04 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Thu, 9 Oct 2014 09:39:04 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> Message-ID: Anthony and James, Then what is the genesis and the relationship between the novel/novella and Judith the film (1966)? Those seems to me the important questions. The film credits Durrell with the ?story? and J. M. Hayes with the screenplay. How did Durrell come to write and serialize the story? A potboiler he considered too poor to be published as a book? Was he initially approached by Paramount and/or Daniel Mann, the director, to undertake the project? This seems likely given the importance of Palestine in the Quartet. I would guess the preliminary work on the film was done around 1963, when the Quartet was still in its heyday and Durrell at his peak of fame. Does the film accurately reflect the book? Finally, just what were Durrell?s views towards the state of Israel? Didn?t they change? Bruce On Oct 9, 2014, at 1:43 AM, James Gifford wrote: > A good quibble, Anthony! I was commenting based on our conversation about the materials we'd both received from Carbondale (during one of the few idle moments in Charlie's marvelous Durrell 2012 conference), and clearly I misunderstood you at the time. It must have been due to what I remember as a very jovial evening at St. Pancras... > > I'd still suggest Claude's /A Chair for the Prophet/ as the natural companion piece. Now I just need to find a free day to set those four choice cuts beside each other on the kitchen table... In time for Durrell 2016 if I'm lucky! > > Good to see you on the listserv. > > Best, > James > > On 2014-10-09 1:30 AM, Anthony Hirst wrote: >> A small quibble about James Gifford's "small quibble" about the Durrell School of Corfu edition of Judith. He says that "the text is predominantly from the novella draft Durrell did". It is not predominantly but entirely based on the latest of LD's typescripts of the novella (though why not call it a novel?), transcribed with meticulous care by Richard Pine. Nor is it true to say that this text can "also be pieced together from Woman's Own". The Woman's Own version of Judith tells a story different in many respects from the one published in 2012. It is also a novel(la) but it is not the same novel(la), though there are many points of contact between the two texts. In form and style neither publication resembles a "version of a screenplay" as Bruce Redwine calls the DSC edition. >> >> The first instalment in Woman's Own (26 Feb 1966) is headed "Judith by Lawrence Durrell from the film starring Sophia Loren and Peter Finch", and it is not clear how far this text is the work of LD himself, and certain that it is not entirely his work, since he withdraw from the development of the film script long before the film reached the production stage, and the writing style in places strongly suggests editorial intervention by the staff of Woman's Own. >> >> I have photocopies of both LD's typescript and the Woman's Own serialization in front of me as I write, and I was closely involved in the editing and production of the DSC edition of Judith. >> >> Anthony Hirst >> -------------------- >> >> (I sent this yesterday, to two different ilds email addresses, neither of which, I now see, was the correct one for submissions) >> _______________________________________________ >> ILDS mailing list >> ILDS at lists.uvic.ca >> https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds >> > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Thu Oct 9 23:59:44 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 23:59:44 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Patrick Leigh Fermor in the BBC Magazine Message-ID: <543783E0.5060805@gmail.com> Hello all, Just FYI: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29518321 A link near the top has Artemis Cooper discussing Fermor. Best, James From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Fri Oct 10 14:40:34 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 14:40:34 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> Message-ID: <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> On 2014-10-09 9:39 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > Finally, just what were Durrell?s views towards the > state of Israel? Didn?t they change? I think this is the most interesting question, and it's why I would set the text beside Claude's /A Chair for the Prophet/ (1959), which is openly Zionist. Michael Haag has demonstrated the importance of the Menasce family as source material for the Hosnanis in the Quartet, and the "inter-writing" of the two books (Quartet and Chair) seems fairly clear at the stylistic level and obvious for the timeline. (is "inter-writing" the right word? co-authored seems inapt) Durrell seemed to support Israel strongly until 1967, at which point either Claude's death or the Six-Day War may have changed his stance or his interest in the Judith project. The similarities between /Judith/ and /A Chair for the Prophet/ might also indicate Claude's possible contributions to (drive behind?) the novel, but that would need more scrutiny. I haven't actually read /Judith/ or /A Chair for the Prophet/ for 5 or 6 years, maybe more, so I should sit down with them before saying anything more meaningful. All best, James From dtart at bigpond.net.au Fri Oct 10 14:50:18 2014 From: dtart at bigpond.net.au (Denise Tart & David Green) Date: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 08:50:18 +1100 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> Message-ID: <29BE3B68-4944-412D-9631-3DB1D0475688@bigpond.net.au> Michael Haag knows a good deal about Durrell's views on Israel too. If he is out there somewhere he may care to shine some light. The 6 Day War changed many people's views about Israel although it was more or less set up by the UN 1947 partition plan which gave neither side anything remotely workable in the long term. David Sent from my iPad > On 11 Oct 2014, at 8:40 am, James Gifford wrote: > >> On 2014-10-09 9:39 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: >> Finally, just what were Durrell?s views towards the >> state of Israel? Didn?t they change? > > I think this is the most interesting question, and it's why I would set the text beside Claude's /A Chair for the Prophet/ (1959), which is openly Zionist. Michael Haag has demonstrated the importance of the Menasce family as source material for the Hosnanis in the Quartet, and the "inter-writing" of the two books (Quartet and Chair) seems fairly clear at the stylistic level and obvious for the timeline. (is "inter-writing" the right word? co-authored seems inapt) > > Durrell seemed to support Israel strongly until 1967, at which point either Claude's death or the Six-Day War may have changed his stance or his interest in the Judith project. The similarities between /Judith/ and /A Chair for the Prophet/ might also indicate Claude's possible contributions to (drive behind?) the novel, but that would need more scrutiny. > > I haven't actually read /Judith/ or /A Chair for the Prophet/ for 5 or 6 years, maybe more, so I should sit down with them before saying anything more meaningful. > > All best, > James > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Fri Oct 10 16:53:39 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 16:53:39 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <29BE3B68-4944-412D-9631-3DB1D0475688@bigpond.net.au> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> <29BE3B68-4944-412D-9631-3DB1D0475688@bigpond.net.au> Message-ID: <100FECD4-1BBB-48D1-9A32-F78B65A05F60@earthlink.net> As most of us do, Durrell had his falling out with people, individual and collective. My understanding is that he was pro-Israel until the Six-Day War in 1967. That war, however, didn?t generate much anti-Israeli sentiment until many years later (with the exception of the USS Liberty incident in which 34 U.S. sailors were killed by Israeli planes). So it would be interesting to know exactly what caused Durrell?s disenchantment. At the time, many American conservatives praised the stunning Israeli victory. William F. Buckley cited it on one occasion as an example of war solving a political problem. How wrong he was. Was Durrell prescient? Bruce On Oct 10, 2014, at 2:50 PM, Denise Tart & David Green wrote: > Michael Haag knows a good deal about Durrell's views on Israel too. If he is out there somewhere he may care to shine some light. The 6 Day War changed many people's views about Israel although it was more or less set up by the UN 1947 partition plan which gave neither side anything remotely workable in the long term. > > David > > Sent from my iPad > >> On 11 Oct 2014, at 8:40 am, James Gifford wrote: >> >>> On 2014-10-09 9:39 AM, Bruce Redwine wrote: >>> Finally, just what were Durrell?s views towards the >>> state of Israel? Didn?t they change? >> >> I think this is the most interesting question, and it's why I would set the text beside Claude's /A Chair for the Prophet/ (1959), which is openly Zionist. Michael Haag has demonstrated the importance of the Menasce family as source material for the Hosnanis in the Quartet, and the "inter-writing" of the two books (Quartet and Chair) seems fairly clear at the stylistic level and obvious for the timeline. (is "inter-writing" the right word? co-authored seems inapt) >> >> Durrell seemed to support Israel strongly until 1967, at which point either Claude's death or the Six-Day War may have changed his stance or his interest in the Judith project. The similarities between /Judith/ and /A Chair for the Prophet/ might also indicate Claude's possible contributions to (drive behind?) the novel, but that would need more scrutiny. >> >> I haven't actually read /Judith/ or /A Chair for the Prophet/ for 5 or 6 years, maybe more, so I should sit down with them before saying anything more meaningful. >> >> All best, >> James From james.d.gifford at gmail.com Fri Oct 10 17:40:25 2014 From: james.d.gifford at gmail.com (James Gifford) Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 17:40:25 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <100FECD4-1BBB-48D1-9A32-F78B65A05F60@earthlink.net> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> <29BE3B68-4944-412D-9631-3DB1D0475688@bigpond.net.au> <100FECD4-1BBB-48D1-9A32-F78B65A05F60@earthlink.net> Message-ID: <54387C79.4000301@gmail.com> Hi Bruce, On 2014-10-10 4:53 PM, Bruce Redwine wrote: > My understanding is that he was pro-Israel until the > Six-Day War in 1967. I wouldn't have a clear basis for asserting that, but it's my own sense too. It also helps for context to know he was helping Albert Cossery with funds and getting his work to America for publication (and quite likely Georges Henein as well), which is to say I don't accept the simplification of his position as anti-Egyptian for being pro-Israel. > So it would be interesting to know exactly what > caused Durrell?s disenchantment. It's fascinating that he could write so very little about the war (WWII) in his poetry *during* the war. /Personal Landscape/ is fascinating to me for the paucity of overtly war-related content, and I don't think it's accidental. By 1967, he'd been on Cyprus, in Yugoslavia in the aftermath of Tito's break from the Cominform, and could express (I think typically not in his major texts) an explicit and clear sense of the political conflicts. I don't think he'd celebrate the military element. But I also think it's entirely plausible that Claude was the driving voice in /Judith/, though I'd have to sit down with it and her own novel to really feel comfortable saying that. It's also possible (in contrast) that Durrell was largely ghost writing her novel, /A Chair for the Prophet/. > At the time, many American > conservatives praised the stunning Israeli victory. William F. > Buckley cited it on one occasion as an example of war solving a > political problem. How wrong he was. Was Durrell prescient? After Cyprus, I doubt he would have seen 1967 as a resolution of the conflict. In a sense, /A Chair for the Prophet/ can work because it doesn't think about the Palestinians and other interests in the region. But that's a narrative not a political position, and what works in a novel can be quite different from what an author recognizes as reality in the world. Or it could just be that it's how Claude understood Israel, and it's her book, not his. I'd suspect Durrell would have sensed the instability. In any case after 1967, whether due to Claude's death or the Six-Day War, or perhaps most likely due to both, we don't find Durrell taking up those kinds of projects again. The commentary in /The Avignon Quintet/ is much different. But I have other books before me, and I have to work my way through those before I can set /Judith/ and /A Chair/ down for a weekend chat! All best, James From bredwine1968 at earthlink.net Sat Oct 11 10:58:14 2014 From: bredwine1968 at earthlink.net (Bruce Redwine) Date: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 10:58:14 -0700 Subject: [ilds] Response to James Gifford's comments on Judith (Vol. 90, issue 6) In-Reply-To: <54387C79.4000301@gmail.com> References: <1639E61E-3648-4BA6-B2D2-BD51346D3D7C@btinternet.com> <54364AA0.8010103@gmail.com> <54385252.5040701@gmail.com> <29BE3B68-4944-412D-9631-3DB1D0475688@bigpond.net.au> <100FECD4-1BBB-48D1-9A32-F78B65A05F60@earthlink.net> <54387C79.4000301@gmail.com> Message-ID: James, I seem to recall, but may be off base, that Pine once commented on Durrell?s disillusionment (if such) with Israel. It may be someone else, however. In any event, that was certainly not my conclusion. Durrell was in and out of Palestine during the war, as he was chasing Nancy, wife no. 1, so he had some familiarity with the area, enough familiarity to enable the brief storyline of Justine seeking refuge in a kibbutz near the end of her novel. Haag shows that Claude Vincendon provided the political plot of Copts financing Zionists so brilliantly exploited in Mountolive. You?re right ? Durrell doesn?t write much about war as such. His scenes are on the periphery, as he himself was. The sounds of battle are in the distance. His interests lie elsewhere, although what rages inside the man seems equally destructive. Bruce On Oct 10, 2014, at 5:40 PM, James Gifford wrote: > Hi Bruce, > > On 2014-10-10 4:53 PM, Bruce Redwine wrote: >> My understanding is that he was pro-Israel until the >> Six-Day War in 1967. > > I wouldn't have a clear basis for asserting that, but it's my own sense too. It also helps for context to know he was helping Albert Cossery with funds and getting his work to America for publication (and quite likely Georges Henein as well), which is to say I don't accept the simplification of his position as anti-Egyptian for being pro-Israel. > >> So it would be interesting to know exactly what >> caused Durrell?s disenchantment. > > It's fascinating that he could write so very little about the war (WWII) in his poetry *during* the war. /Personal Landscape/ is fascinating to me for the paucity of overtly war-related content, and I don't think it's accidental. By 1967, he'd been on Cyprus, in Yugoslavia in the aftermath of Tito's break from the Cominform, and could express (I think typically not in his major texts) an explicit and clear sense of the political conflicts. I don't think he'd celebrate the military element. > > But I also think it's entirely plausible that Claude was the driving voice in /Judith/, though I'd have to sit down with it and her own novel to really feel comfortable saying that. It's also possible (in contrast) that Durrell was largely ghost writing her novel, /A Chair for the Prophet/. > >> At the time, many American >> conservatives praised the stunning Israeli victory. William F. >> Buckley cited it on one occasion as an example of war solving a >> political problem. How wrong he was. Was Durrell prescient? > > After Cyprus, I doubt he would have seen 1967 as a resolution of the conflict. In a sense, /A Chair for the Prophet/ can work because it doesn't think about the Palestinians and other interests in the region. But that's a narrative not a political position, and what works in a novel can be quite different from what an author recognizes as reality in the world. Or it could just be that it's how Claude understood Israel, and it's her book, not his. I'd suspect Durrell would have sensed the instability. > > In any case after 1967, whether due to Claude's death or the Six-Day War, or perhaps most likely due to both, we don't find Durrell taking up those kinds of projects again. The commentary in /The Avignon Quintet/ is much different. > > But I have other books before me, and I have to work my way through those before I can set /Judith/ and /A Chair/ down for a weekend chat! > > All best, > James > _______________________________________________ > ILDS mailing list > ILDS at lists.uvic.ca > https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/ilds -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: