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For anyone interested in hearing Toby talk about how the LitSalon came into being, what it’s all about today and a little bit about swimming in icy waters, listen to her interview with Pendarvis Harshaw, a former student of hers at The Athenian School in California, here on Rightnowish.
Congratulations to Salonista Farah Ahamed, who has been shortlisted for the prestigious Commonwealth Short Story Prize. The overall winner will be announced on 21 June.
You can hear Farah speaking about her story Hot Chutney Mango Sauce here.
The story is included in an anthology of writing about menstruation in South Asia, Period Matters, which Farah has also edited and which is due for publication on 28 June.
Our latest newsletter is out now, with new studies, last chances to book, and news of a TV documentary on mental health featuring contributions from Salonista Dympna Cunnane, CEO of the charity Our Time.
The May LitSalon Challenge is now live. This month’s prose read is Zora Neale Hurston’s wonderful novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, while our poetry choice for May is Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18.
The free LitSalon Challenge is now in its fourth month, with Marilynne Robinson’s Housekeeping and Birches by Robert Frost as the chosen works for April. Full details here.
“Can you tell me, Socrates—is being good something you can be taught? Or does it come with practice rather than being teachable? Or is it something that doesn’t come with practice or learning; does it just come to people naturally? “
– from Plato’s Meno
The good news is that Plato’s dialogues are both accessible and enjoyable to a modern audience, particularly when read as part of a group! They are intricately crafted, dramatic philosophical works and the Meno is an excellent place to begin.
In its opening line, the dialogue gets right to the heart of a matter that could hardly be more relevant today. The title speaker, Meno, asks Socrates whether being ‘good’ (a term sometimes translated as ‘virtue’ or ‘excellence’) is a thing that can be taught. Far from being able to answer, Socrates tells Meno that he has no idea of what virtue even is, and nor does anyone else he’s ever met. As they try to find a solid definition of virtue, Socrates and Meno find themselves confronted by some of philosophy’s most basic and profound questions: what can we know, how can we know it, how can we teach, how can we learn? All of which remain as relevant to contemporary life as to the ancient world.
The Meno offers a multifaceted view of Socrates, Plato’s teacher and philosophical protagonist—at times thoughtful, playful, humble, flirtatious, ironic, and slightly abrasive. To this is added an intriguing demonstration of the Pythagorean Theorem by an untutored slave boy, and a brief encounter with an Athenian politician who will later bring Socrates to trial on charges that will lead to his death.
The Meno offers a classic demonstration of Plato’s chosen philosophical format, the dramatic dialogue, in which the drama is sometimes just as important as the participant’ words and ideas. Our Beginner’s Guide to Plato study starts on 28 February.
Many Salon participants enjoy writing as well as reading. In response, we have been developing a programme of creative writing studies, most recently with Alison Cable’s Writing for Wellbeing series. The primary aim is not necessarily to prepare for publication, but to develop and enjoy a writing practice as part of self-development.
Now we are offering an opportunity to experiment with dramatic writing which, with its emphasis on structure, character and dialogue, is a way of telling stories that can feed into all kinds of literary creativity and appreciation.
Award-winning writer Jeremy Kamps, Professor of Dramatic Writing at New York University and a Guest Professor for the Pratt Institute writing department, explains the design of his eight-week study:
Our workshop will focus on the craft, process and art of dramatic story. You will write either a film short or a ten minute play (your choice), and our time together will include craft study, story de-construction, rumination on process and voice. Or, in other words, how your story meets and moves the world.
We will engage in peer review using the writer-centred Liz Lerman feedback protocol and there will be an emphasis on the idea that “writing is rewriting” (with its attendant joy and pain). The workshop is not about good or bad, but about how you tell the story you want to tell and why it needs to be told, while also providing some tools and ideas to consider along the way. Professional actors will join us for the culminating reading of our work.
Click here for more information and booking details.
Founder and Director of the London Literary Salon, Toby Brothers, is in Paris today to celebrate the centenary of publication of Ulysses. Scandalous in 1922, the book – widely acclaimed as a work of genius – remains controversial a century later!
Expect more news of Joyceans en fête in Paris on Toby’s return.
Toby appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Start the Week yesterday (Monday 10 January), discussing ‘finding consolation and community in literature’ with Michael Ignatieff, Christopher Prendergast (editor of the Penguin Modern Classics In Search of Lost Time) and Tom Sutcliffe. This is available from our Press & Media page, together with recordings of Toby talking about the LitSalon Challenge on both BBC Radio London and Times Radio.
On the subject of our online presence, Start the Week generated so much internet traffic that our website crashed. We were thrilled to encounter so much enthusiasm, but we apologise to anyone who had difficulty accessing the website yesterday and thank you for your patience. We’re pleased to say that normal service has now resumed.
There is a rare opportunity to join Mark Cwik’s ongoing Iliad Unhurried study on Wednesday afternoons. The current subscription covers twelve weeks starting with book 5 (of 24). There are two places available and you are welcome to join at any point in the cycle, but the first meeting is today, Wednesday 5 January, at 2.00pm GMT!
More studies will be listed soon, including new travel opportunities and Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night with Jane Wymark. We’ll be sending out another newsletter later this month to keep you up-to-date.
Meanwhile, there is media news: Toby will be a guest on BBC Radio 4’s Start the Week next Monday, 10 January, discussing Finding consolation and community in reading with Michael Ignatieff, Christopher Prendergast and Tom Sutcliffe
The LitSalon Challenge is gathering momentum, do share details with anyone you think might be interested. You can hear Toby talking about it live with Robert Elms on BBC Radio London this Sunday morning, 9 January, and in her interview with Hugo Rifkind on Times Radio last month.
© The London Literary Salon 2024