Summoning Seneca
Philosophy, literature, and theater in the pandemic.
August 6, 2020
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Season's readings, and a 2020 roundup, for a year that could never end too soon.
College Interrupted, Part Two
Washington University students contemplate activism, the forces of the pandemic, and their futures as they return to school and working life.
“Black in the Time of Quarantine”
"The Common Reader," Washington University in St. Louis's Journal of the Essay, explores life and learning during the onset of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
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Remembering the Remarkable Ray Hartmann
Because I worked for Ray at “The Riverfront Times” for 18 years, my thoughts immediately turned to the many other “RFT” alums who loved and admired him. Over the next several weeks, I contacted more than 50 of my old colleagues and asked them to contribute remembrances of their often life-changing time at the “RFT” and to reflect on Ray’s impact on both them and St. Louis. Almost everyone said yes, and this tribute is the result. —Cliff Froehlich
Grassroot Chilean Heritage Workers Emerge From Underground
The women of Lota, Chile, or Lotinas, represent a long feminist movement to preserve cultural memory and reinvigorate the economy of their city. At the end of March 2026, they flew more than 20 hours to be in residency for a week at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), where they led workshops on art “as a tool of historical storytelling and civic activism.”
Tales of the Bottle
Not since Prohibition has there been such a strong and widespread public warning. It feels a little odd.