This Week at The Republic of Letters
Dark Times Week
Dear Republic,
This past week — ‘Dark Times Week’ — has been a good reminder that, as bad as things might be, they can always get worse. Let’s see if next week is any cheerier!
As a reminder, the deadline for our next contest is in one week, April 19. The theme is “what is your hill to die on.” Please send submissions to republic.of.letters.substack@gmail.com with “hill” in the subject line. Selected pieces receive $50.
THIS WEEK AT ROL
Benjamin Clabault, "How Big a Deal Is This?"
So much has been said about the Trump era, but in a weird way it’s under-discussed Trump has affected daily life. Benjamin Clabault helps rectify with this thoughtful piece on the permeating fear that Trump generates. - SK
Ben Murigu, "A Nation on the Brink"
Nairobi-based writer Ben Murigu warns that despite the veneer of normalcy in Kenya, its democratic institutions have been slowly crumbling. Citing uneven educational reform, the dissolution of checks and balances, and growing poverty, Murigu urges his fellow Kenyans to take action to protect “the future of our beloved Kenya.” - GD
Nate Worthen, "All Alone in North Korea"
When Nate Worthen discovered that he was the only person on his “group tour” of North Korea, he had a decision to make. If he'd made the sane choice, he wouldn't have experienced Masikryong Ski Resort, the “closest [he's] ever been to the traditional Christian heaven,” and we wouldn't have this totally wild piece. - TW
Eric Cyr, "A Scout Is Reverent"
Eric Cyr’s story about a boys’ summer camp was a finalist in our short story competition. In it, he revisits the awkward scenes of adolescence with painful accuracy. - GD
Sam Kahn, “An Interview with Helen Schulman”
We continue our focus on deserving writers with this interview with Helen Schulman, author of Lucky Dogs, This Beautiful Life, the recent Fools for Love, etc — and with an emphasis on her totally exhausting approach to craft. - SK
POST OF THE WEEK
Freddie deBoer hardly needs more upvoting from us, but this piece is dope.
WEEKEND LINKS
We are very fond of the pieces that cut through the noise, as with this piece, by Bentham's Bulldog, that goes after the rot at the core of continental philosophy. -SK
There’s about as much junk written about polyamory as any subject this side of continental philosophy. Marcus Seldon has a nicely down-to-earth piece on why poly is, usually, a bad idea. - SK
A good accompaniment to Dark Times Week is this essay by Mette Maria van Dijk, a sort of indescribable piece about Dutch students with an unsuppressable longing to put themselves in harm’s way in Ukraine. - SK
Along with Henry Oliver and Erik Hoel’s respective pieces about Studio Ghibli-superiority, BDM’s recent post about Porco Rosso has made me want to get into Hayao Miyazaki’s films. The eponymous Porco, a (literally) pig-headed pilot who has survived the horror of WWI, “thinks it’s impossible for him to live a human life.” The movie, BDM suggests, explores what, or who, “could convince [him]… he might be wrong.” - GD