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226The Basilisk and Rattlesnake, or a Euro-pean Monster Comes to America. BoriaSociety and Animals 2 (1): 3-15. 1994.This article looks at legends of the basilisk, a fabulous creature of ancient and medieval lore that was believed to kill with a glance, and shows how many characteristics of the basilisk were transferred to the rattlesnake in the New World. The deadly power of "fascination, " also known as "the evil eye, " which legend attributes to both basilisk and rattlesnake, was understood as an expression of resentment over the perceived lack of status of reptiles in the natural world and directed at so-c…Read more
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142Animals in ReligionSociety and Animals 2 (2): 167-174. 1994.This work argues that the collective memory of prehistoric megafauna continued after their extinction and contributed to the origin of religion.
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136What is a "Jewish Dog"? Konrad Lorenz and the Cult of WildnessSociety and Animals 5 (1): 3-21. 1997.This paper explores the Nazi view of nature as violent but orderly, contrasted with what the Nazis took to be the chaos and confusion of human society. In imposing strict authoritarian controls, the Nazis strove to emulate what they viewed as the natural discipline of instinct. They saw this as embodied in wild animals, especially large predators such as wolves, while the opposite were domesticated mongrels whose instincts, like those of overly civilized peoples, had been ruined through careless…Read more
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57How Ravens Came to the Tower of LondonSociety and Animals 15 (3): 269-283. 2007.According to popular belief, Charles II of England once heard a prophecy that if ravens left the Tower of London it would "fall," so he ordered that the wings of seven ravens in the Tower be trimmed. Until recently, this claim was not challenged even in scholarly literature. There are, however, no allusions to the Tower Ravens before the end of the nineteenth century. The ravens, today meticulously cared for by Yeoman Warders, are largely an invented tradition, designed to give an impression of …Read more
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33Knowledge and Wisdom in AcademiaDialogue and Universalism 19 (1-2): 75-85. 2009.This paper traces the shifts in relative emphasis on knowledge and wisdom as educational ideals from the time of Plato to the present. In the Industrial Era, the increasing pressure towards specialization made professors serve primarily as content experts. This role, however, often threatened to trivialize the academic calling, and there were many attempts to restore a lost unity to knowledge. Today, with the advent of the Internet, the easy accessibility of information diminishes the importance…Read more
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The Cambridge Companion to Nietzsche. Edited by Bernd Magnus and Kathleen M. HigginsThe European Legacy 4 118-119. 1999.
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University of Illinois at SpringfieldEnglish Graduate ProgramAdjunct Professor Of English (Part-time)
Springfield, Illinois, United States of America
Areas of Interest
Philosophical Traditions |
Other Academic Areas |