-
Fortress Persona
Distance, limits, boundaries: I seem especially concerned, even tense and anxious, these days around the connections between myself and other people. This, of course, after ages of lamenting that I am too alone – but perhaps partly as a result of that, I’m struggling not to experience other people as painful chores, as demanding and…
-
Panic
I am startled – and discomfited, and somewhat embarrassed, but I suppose also intrigued – by discovering, while doing this cognitive behavior therapy for depression, that underneath the depression is a wide pool of anxiety, nerves, fear. Anger and hostility, insecurity and defensiveness. Hysteria. Panic. It’s a bit weird, really. One of the things about…
-
Helpful books
There is a television show on, with Joan Didion (whose work I love so much) talking about her book The Year of Magical Thinking, about the year after her husband and daughter died. I was a bit surprised, however, when she said that part of why she wrote the book was because she couldn’t find…
-
Uncharted landscape
My blogging has sort of slowed to a halt since mid-August – apologies (especially to those of you using neither RSS nor Bloglines, who have to actually bring up this page to see if there’s anything new engraved on it – that must be a bit like switching channels and seeing only reruns). Have felt…
-
P’tit soleil noir
An elaborately Barthesian pleasure at reading the first pages of Julia Kristeva’s Black Sun, her book on the psychoanalysis of depression. I giggle, recognize myself, nod understandingly, make comments… “For those who are wracked by melancholia, writing about it would have meaning only if writing sprang out of that very melancholia.” You’re right, I won’t…
-
Insults for the new century
Patrick has invented a new insult for our age: “He has to pay people to read his blog.” He thinks we need a word for that kind of person, too – blogstitution? no, that’s not it. Perhaps this is in line with Anne’s complaint earlier this evening that her students were unpleasantly startled that she…
Subscribe
Enter your email below to receive updates.
Paul Attinello 