Old Email Archive

digest 1997-03-07 #001


11:27 PM 3/6/97 -0800
From: "Society for Literature & Science" 

Daily SLS Email Digest
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Date: 6 Mar 1997 00:15:55 -0800
From: Editor Michael Gregory 
Subject: Re: science, theory, aesthetics (Duemer)
Date: Thu, 06 Mar 1997 00:31:46 -0500
From: Joseph Duemer 
I'm impressed by Alex Brown's last post, though I'm assuming it comes
mostly out of the recent SLS discussions of the relations between
science and theory. One idea that seems to be forming out of this
dialectic is that the aesthetic realm synthesizes science & lit
theory.
I've long thought that poetry in the large sense was a discourse that
resolved and elided *religion* and science. Perhaps theory is only more
religion. Which puts one in mind of the Murdoch quote someone posted
earlier to the effect that science is a particular use of language. The
poet speaks: *everything* having to do with meaning is a special use of
language, and I don't think this contradicts the thought of either of
my
two favorite philosophers, Wm James and Wittgenstein.
- --
- --
Joseph Duemer
School of Liberal Arts
Clarkson University
Potsdam NY 13699
315-262-2466
"Poets are the only people to whom love is not only a crucial,
but an indispensable experience, which entitles them to
mistake it for a universal one."
-- Hannah Arendt
"People do not deserve to have good writing, they are so
pleased with bad."
--Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Date: 6 Mar 1997 08:03:44 -0800
From: Stuart Peterfreund 
Subject: Re: Literature and Science?
speterfr@lynx.neu.edu
6 March 1997
Mike--
Archie Ammons has a B.S. in chemistry.  The closest he got to
being a scientists was being a salesman for a laboratory glass and
instrument firm.  I say this not out of disrespect for Ammons--he was,
long ago, one of my teachers at Cornell--but to set the record
straight.
Further on this matter:  we did have one of Ammons's Cornell
colleagues, Roald Hoffman, as the other plenarist in Atlanta.  He was
wonderful.
Stuart Peterfreund
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Date: 6 Mar 1997 08:36:21 -0800
From: Michael Vanden Heuvel 
Subject: Re: Literature and Science?
Thanks, Stuart. Not only did you help set the record straight, but the
info.
that Ammons once sold lab glass and instruments has helped me to
understand
a couple references in his work!
MVH
At 10:58 AM 3/6/97 -0500, you wrote:
>speterfr@lynx.neu.edu
>6 March 1997
>
>Mike--
>
>       Archie Ammons has a B.S. in chemistry.  The closest he got
to
>being a scientists was being a salesman for a laboratory glass and
>instrument firm.  I say this not out of disrespect for Ammons--he
was,
>long ago, one of my teachers at Cornell--but to set the record
straight.
> Further on this matter:  we did have one of Ammons's Cornell
>colleagues, Roald Hoffman, as the other plenarist in Atlanta.  He
was
>wonderful.
>
>Stuart Peterfreund
>
>
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Date: 6 Mar 1997 14:05:14 -0800
From: Stephen J Weininger 
Subject: Re: Literature and Science?
I kind of liked Richard Nash's idea of a communal reading of David
Lodge.
At the same time I think Linda Bergmann is right to be wary of the
possibility that the technical portion of the participants may be
laughing
at you rather than with you. Part of the problem is that virtually no
one,
scientist or nonscientist, seems to write about the antics of
scientists
in other than serious tones, whether approvingly or otherwise. Maybe
we're
just not very antic guys. (God knows THAT charge has been leveled
before,
although a half hour with Sid Perkowitz always makes me doubt its
universality.)
Steve
************************************************************
Stephen J. Weininger               Internet: stevejw@wpi.edu
Professor of Chemistry             Phone: (508) 831-5396
WPI                                Fax:   (508) 831-5933
Worcester, MA 01609-2280
************************************************************