Humanities

The Rise and Fall of Urbanism: Douglas W. Rae’s City

Settled by Puritans in 1638, New Haven, Connecticut was the first planned city in America. A few weeks ago in New Haven, a group of citizens met in the basement of a middle school to discuss the well-being of their town. Issues like “food deserts,” street crime, and health problems came

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Eminent Biography: André Vauchez on Francis of Assisi

Last month, as it became clear that Cardinal Bergoglio would likely be elected Pope, his friend Brazilian Cardinal Claudio hugged him and gave him a message. “He said don’t forget about the poor,” Pope Francis explained at a Vatican press conference. “And that’s how in my heart came the name

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Francis Bremer on John Davenport and Puritanism at the Founding of New Haven

Francis J. Bremer, author of the recently published biography, Building a New Jerusalem: John Davenport, a Puritan in Three Worlds, discusses the fervent Puritan world of religious politics that led to the founding of the New Haven Colony, as today we celebrate John Davenport’s 416th birthday, and the 375th anniversary of

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April Theme: The Arts

Broadening our scope from a usual combined celebration of poetry and architecture, timed to national commemorations in the month of April, we’re broadening our focus to include a broader range of the arts, including many new books on the philosophy and history of art, several accompanying traveling exhibitions with the

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Christian Beginnings

How did the historical, concrete Jesus become known as the Christ, the Son of God? How did the idea of this man develop? Forty years after he first entered the “Jesus field,” lauded academic Geza Vermes gives a narrative of that expansion from the embodied Jesus to the belief in

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Announcing the Yale Book of Quotations App

Finding the right words has never been easier. Do you want to learn what political figures, literary scholars or singers have to say about their fields? Do you want to share with your friends and colleagues the inspiration you get from various public figures over the dinner table? Or do

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Eva Hesse: “Pre-Sculpture”

Kirsten Swenson, a contributor to the new book, Eva Hesse 1965, edited by Barry Rosen, writes here on the artist’s important transitions beginning in the last five years of her short life, as Hesse changed media from drawing and painting to sculpting the works for which she is so widely known.

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Fania Oz-Salzberger Asks: How Can Books Keep Families and Generations Together?

Fania Oz-Salzberger— Jews and Words tells a story, and grinds a few axes, on two of our favourite perennial themes: How did the Jews remain Jews? and, How can books keep families and generations together? We offer our readers a hard yet playful look at our own Jewish identity, as a father and

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Notes from the Field: Jay DeFeo: A Retrospective

Monumental is a word often applied to descriptions of Jay DeFeo’s The Rose. With an estimated weight of 2,000-3,000 pounds, “monumental” is hardly a misnomer. However what might strike visitors to the Whitney Museum’s recently opened DeFeo retrospective is not simply the heft of the piece but its surprising serenity.

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Brian Neher’s 2013 “You Be the Judge” Art Contest

Once more, artist Brian Neher is hosting an art contest, “You be the Judge”. Every two weeks for the next seven weeks, Neher will choose 15 works that artists have submitted online and provides viewers with an opportunity to vote for their favorite. Neher will then pool the seven winners

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