University of Miami - Ibis Yearbook (Coral Gables, FL)

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Henry Selilrl 'unity . . . concrete. Inti not lull Mr. Canby evidently knows his would be an asset to any literary series. The last week of the Institute was devoted to poetry. Mr. Joseph Auslander started off the first day by hilariously amusing the audience with an anecdote about Amy Lowell. With each succeeding lecture he became less and less amusing and more and more serious until by Thursday we were ready JnM'ph Auilnmlcr nml Audrey Wiirdetnniin . . . they emote with mournful utiilerlonev Waller Scot I Mnwxi ... hr dlrrrlrU Ihr Initltutr untl Ihrtt IrU town. to weep for the lost cause of poetry. Mr. Auslander seemed to be desperately trying to convince his audience that they couldn't live fully without poetry. Almost it is the one thing that remains that can save the world from utter ruin. At times it seemed as though Mr. Auslander had to wrestle with his audience to hold their attention. His invariably, hesitant groping for a fit word to end a beautifully artificial sentence became a bit tiring. He did. indeed, emote eloquently in dramatic poetic prose. Miss Audrey Wurdemann read some of her own works. After getting accustomed to her mournful monotone we settled down to enjoy her truly lovely poetry. Mr. Auslander as reading was better than his wife’s but his jx etry didn't approach hers. After reviewing the whole series of lectures in our mind we've come to the conclusion, and we hope it is just, that this year's Winter Institute was unimpressive and not up to par. It is difficult to put a finger on the exact trouble: we are disturbed by a subtle dissatisfaction with the whole business. Although still a favorite Mr. Erskine and his constant twinkling began to get tiresome. Mr. Smith has already been dispensed with. Mr. Auslander and Miss Wurdemann were real meat for poets, but it is almost embarrassing for a layman to see and hear a fellow-being express himself so passionately in public. Mr. Canby stands out as the redeeming figure and he went far in raising the Winter Institute of Literature to a higher level. 33

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John Krskinc . . . Iw lr«w» the danln Lit. Gymnasts ■ Once more .Mr. John Erskine seems to have walked off with the popularity prize of the Winter Institute of Literature. He completely delighted his audience. The lectures were well sprinkled with his bantering, rather satirical humor. Since Mr. Er-skine’s specialty is retelling old stories in modern settings, he was on home ground speaking about The Acncid, Odyssey, Iliad, Tristram and Iscult, and Don Quixote. With his tongue in his cheek Mr. Erskine gave us his interpretations of the stories. He reached the heights in talking about The Acncid; it was by far the best lecture of the entire scries. If everyone could find in those classics what Mr. Erskine has obviously found they would not be musty classics but present best sellers. Mr. Carleton Smith found his way onto the platform again this year. How. we don't know. Last year, since he was substituting on the spur of the moment for a tardy lecturer, he was easily forgiven for the amusing drivle he spoke. He was, in fact, a pleasant surprise. However, when deliberately planning a lecture scries for an institute of literature it seems that Mr. Smith is a good man to leave out. He managed to say nothing of consequence in either of his lectures, and even his humor (?) bogged down on him. The records he played that represent samples of music’s forgotten byways are (to put it mildly) best just left to be forgotten. Mr. Smith would do well to stick to his business of writing music criticisms for Esquire. First impressions of I)r. Henry Seidel Canby were definitely not good. He was quite a sudden change and letdown from Dr. Erskine. He lacked the warmth and twinkling platform personality of his fellow lecturers. But after acoustical difficulties were cleared up we realized that here was a man who had something to say and knew exactly how he was going to say it. Mr. Canby certainly must have been a boon to students of American literature. He spoke about thinking, feeling, imagination, and values. He did not speak of vague nothings, but gave tangible information and concrete examples. He never strayed from his subject but stuck strictly to business. All this makes Mr. Canby sound terribly dull. The amazing thing is that he wasn't at all dull. With hands dug deep in his pockets he said, in a quietly explosive manner, what he hail to say in record time. Perhaps it was this regard for time that endeared Mr. Canby to the audience (students). However, a man who knows his subject as well as CjirlftiMi Smith . . . Hw|uirrS Rift to iiuimo rrlltrlMii 32

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English ■ English and American literature arc Niagaras of knowledge pouring the cultural accumulation of generations past to countries thirsty for an understanding of their heritage. Through tracing the course of intellectual development the very life of these countries is revealed. In the University of Miami's English Department forty-four courses are offered all serving to give an understanding of ages past. Over 50'A of all students in the University are enrolled in the Department of English. 800 students are taking courses offered by the English faculty, headed by Dr. Clarke Olney. Freshmen arc listed on the rolls of English courses in over 400 cases. A faculty of eight professors teach courses ranging from Old English Language and Literature to Scientific and Research Writing. Literature serves the peculiar function of backbone to history. History by itself is a coldly factual and objective account of men and events. But we must realize that the story of our civilization is more than a series of political and military episodes. There is something deeper and far more potent which has shaped—and is shaping now the destiny of our country. It is the great mass of cultural accumulation which has molded thought to its own will. When we study history, men and events become hazy shadows in a distant past. We jump from one period to another with such rapidity, absorbing facts Mr . Natali - lirlnirs I .a vv rr ixt .uni Mlv Mary B. Mrrrltl. Iu l mrnibrrjt f thr Kiudlvli fnrtilty. »l« In front of Ihelr rollcoRur ; Frederick II. Kuril, Jr., Ilr. Churlr IV rrn Tliarpc. Simon HoehbrrKcr, Malcolm llrnlc, l)r. Clarke Olney, Lewis l-rary, nml Fmltr Alter. that the significance of | criods and the understanding of them is lost. We learn the facts but lose the warmth and vitality of the period. To understand an age we must understand the thought of that age. Literature bridges the gap between past and present. Consider the American Revolution. The history liook calmly tells of the numerous battles, military and fHilitical leaders, and fails in the process to give a full appreciation and understanding of the period. We turn to literature to secure the human interest of history. Through biography we study the character of such men as Washington. Franklin. George Ml. and Edmund Burke. From the prose works we read such documents as the Declaration of Independence or Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and they define the emotional turbulence of the time. From oratory we get the heat of the struggle: Patrick Henry’s “I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! shows the fierce determination of the colonists. Satire slashes at the colonial ties in the poetry of such a man as Philip Freneau. In England Edmund Burke pleads vainly tor a settlement in his Speech of Conciliation before an adament cabinet and an insane king. The whole age becomes an epic, boiling cauldron of hate, bitterness, bigotry, and oppression. It becomes a living drama and we can gain an understanding and appreciation of it. 34