Table of Contents
Introduction 1
The Fountain Pen 5
Cause and Effect 11
Reds, Pinks, and Goo-Goos 17
What's in a Name 23
Pippa Passes 29
King Kong 33
Some (Mainly) Musical Revelations 37
Two Hangings 41
Various Discoveries 45
Farther Along; or, The Accident Chain 51
On the Passivity of Jews 55
Bruno Bettelheim and the Broke-Down Cowboy: Two American Stories 61
Attention Must Be Paid 67
Experts and Oligarchs 71
Slave Lessons 75
Belinda Raguesto Returns from Switzerland 81
Hamlet and Oedipus Meet the Zombies 89
A Message from Schpershevski 95
Chelm; or, No Arrest for the Wicked 101
Some Linguistic Curiosities 105
The Nazis Got Your Mom 113
Demotic, a Confession 119
Grief and Wisdom 127
Time Travel 133
Moby Dick 139
Real Live 143
Rainy Day Fun for Shut-Ins: Xmas 2020 147
Give My Regrets to Broadway 155
Broadway 159
Gags 167
Humility 173
Max the Hamster 177
Disons le Mot 183
Art, Time, and the Madness of the Old 189
Tug-of-Peace 193
The Awl Through the Ear 197
Goodnight, Irene 203
Recessional 209
Acknowledgments 215
Index 217