Once, in a small-town bar, Percy observed this: “You sit here and listen, and it doesn’t take long to realize that a lot of the ‘existentialism’ of the intellectual is close to the heart of the person next to you, having a beer after a day in a shrimp boat, or working on a farm,…
“Good. Now listen to me. I must come to lecture to you people so that you will be set upon the correct path. I have a rather extensive knowledge of political organization.” “Marvelous. And you must wear that fantastic costume. I can assure you that you’ll get everyone’s undivided attention,” the young man shrieked, covering…
Pleased to hear that there will definitely be another WP weekend. This was the most convivial “conference” I have ever been to. philosophical literatureWalker PercyWalker Percy Weekend
“Of course,” Ignatius said in a thoughtful, serious voice, “this could be a worldwide deception.” “The next war could turn out to be one massive orgy. Good grief. How many of the military leaders of the world may simply be deranged old sodomites acting out some fake fantasy role? Actually, this might be quite beneficial…
Julian Sanchez interviews the great man. And in the spring, I’m giving a course jointly with a professor in the Slavic Languages department on Dostoyevsky and his philosophical ideas, and the difference that is made when philosophical ideas are presented in works of fiction rather than in discursive prose. It’s the difference between people who…
Here’s a little gem of a book perhaps best conceived of as dotting the “i”s and crossing the “t”s (so to speak) of an already very well documented life. I don’t recommend that you go to this until you’ve read the two very different biographies — Tolson and Samway — since Walker Percy Remembered is of…
“Look, there’s a sailor drifting along Chartres Street. He looks rather lonely.” The young man glanced down to the Chartres end of the Alley. “Oh him,” he said. “That’s only Timmy.” “Timmy?” Ignatius asked angrily. “Do you know him?” “Of course,” the young man said in a voice heavy with boredom. “He’s one of my…
Burton Pike, editor and translator of Robert Musil’s titanic though unfinished novel, The Man Without Qualities, discusses the philosophical and aesthetic ideas circulating in pre-war Viennese society as depicted in the novel. Podcast here. The discussion bears a striking resemblance to Percy’s concerns — no surprise there. Also check out David Auerbach’s commentary on Pike’s…
“Just look at my sweater, you disgusting monster.” “Only the most flamboyant offal would be seen in a miscarriage like that. You must have some shame or at least some taste in dress.” “You awful creature. You huge thing.” “I will probably spend several years at the Eye, ear, Nose, and Throat Hospital having this…
“I suspect that the parties you attend must be true visions of the apocalypse. I knew that our society was coming to this. In a few years, you and your friends will probably take over the country.” “Oh, we’re planning to,” the young man said with a bright smile. “We have connections in the highest…
manwithoutqualities 