In this Rising Tide Foundation lecture, Nicholas Jones explores the universal method of analysis and transformative artistic composition of the great poet of freedom Friedrich Schiller. Nicholas begins by setting the stage of the period in time in which Schiller himself lived and worked. This was a late 18th century Europe clamoring for liberty from…
Category: drama
Edgar Allan Poe and the Mask of the 21st Century
By David Gosselin BUT for the cruel aspersions upon the character and life of America’s poetic genius, EDGAR ALLAN POE, this volume would have remained unwritten. EDGAR ALLAN POE has been more misunderstood than any other poet of the recent past. While his life was beautiful and inspired, yet aspersed, his last moments had more…
»Vice broods in vain to accuse you of crimes.«
By Uwe Alschner On the parallels between Julian Assange’s incarceration and that of General Lafayette. How and why artists make (political) statements on behalf of humanity. Beethoven wrote a whole opera. Julian Assange is probably the most prominent political prisoner in the world. He has been in solitary confinement for almost 15 years, first in…
On Lessing’s ‘Nathan the Wise’: Is a Harmony of Cultures Possible?
In this lecture RTF President Cynthia Chung will conduct a discussion on the classical work ‘Nathan the Wise’ by the renaissance humanist Gotthold Lessing. Exploring this work will not merely be an academic exercise of an art piece, but will be a gateway to the essentials of cultural warfare and the wisest methods of conducting…
Dante’s Commedia, or How to Escape a Modern Inferno
By David Gosselin This is the accompanying article to a lecture given by the same author, as part of the RTF Lecture Series “The Renaissance Principle Across the Ages“. Many today would consider Dante Alighieri a “Dead White European Male” of dubious relevancy. However, Dante is in fact alive and well, as are so many…
To What Purpose are We Drawn to Tragedy: A Study of Shakespeare’s Hamlet
In this lecture, Cynthia Chung discusses whether there is a purpose to tragedy beyond merely being tragic and whether this was the intention of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Along with a study of the play, two performances are compared and juxtaposed to determine what Shakespeare intended for his audience. Featured Cover Image: “Hamlet’s Vision” by Pedro Americo
The Red Sky: A Parable
By Adam Sedia After crossing the Great Mountains, I saw before me, to the west, a vast and sprawling plain. Many great rivers crossed its fertile fields, teeming at that time of year with wheat and cotton. Yet it has no cities to speak of–only small villages scattered about. The simple folk of the foothills…
Schiller vs. the Congress For Cultural Freedom
By Irene Eckert No, there is a limit to the tyrant’s power! When the oppressed man finds no justice,When the burden grows unbearable, he appealsWith fearless heart to Heaven,And thence brings down his everlasting rights,Which there abide, inalienably his,And indestructible as stars themselves. -Friedrich Schiller, Rutli Oath, Wilhelm Tell With the global call for FREEDOM as…
James Fenimore Cooper’s ‘The Bravo’: A Lesson in Political Intelligence
By Cynthia Chung [This is a transcript of an RTF lecture that was delivered as part of the “Storytelling, Myth-making and the Shaping of Universal History” Symposium.] So the subject of this class, as the title would suggest, is on James Fenimore Cooper’s ‘The Bravo,’ and I am sure many people here are probably aware of…
Schiller’s Ghost Seer, Intelligence Methods and a Global Citizenry
A Study of Schiller’s The Ghost Seer By Cynthia Chung [The audio version of this article can be listened to here.] The Ghost Seer first appeared in several instalments in Schiller’s publication journal Thalia from 1787 to 1789, and was later published as a three-volume book. It was one of the most popular works of…