At this turbulent time, as people all over the world are experiencing an unprecedented pandemic, every aspect of life is affected. How can we make sense of what is happening? How should we see the world in which this is happening? The study of Aesthetic Realism, which is described throughout this website, can be a means of answering those questions. To begin with, there is this question, asked by Eli Siegel, the founder of Aesthetic Realism:
“Is this true: No matter how much of a case one has against the world—its unkindness, its disorder, its ugliness, its meaninglessness—one has to do all one can to like it, or one will weaken oneself?”
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I’m glad to welcome you to my website. On its pages, you’ll read about what I’ve learned from Aesthetic Realism, the philosophy founded by the American poet, critic, and educator Eli Siegel. This exciting study has given me a joyous and useful life, which includes a rich career as an English educator in New York City and a very happy marriage.
On this site, you’ll find:
articles on the tremendous effectiveness of the Aesthetic Realism Teaching Method,
which has been used with great success by many K-12 teachers in the NYC area, including myself.
papers presented at public seminars at the Aesthetic Realism Foundation
on subjects that concern everyone: including love, kindness, justice, and how to see people. From these papers, by me and by my colleagues, you’ll see how the study of Aesthetic Realism makes for real pride and self-respect!
reports of lectures by Eli Siegel and classes taught by Ellen Reiss,
the Aesthetic Realism Chairman of Education, with whom I’m proud to study. Some of these reports are on poetry, the relation of art and science, and the wonderful meaning of idioms.
links to many resources I find valuable.
I’ve included links to websites useful for English teachers. There’s also a page pointing to various resources about the study of Aesthetic Realism.
To start reading, click on any of the links on the right or the tabs in the menu above. You can also check out my other blogs: “Aesthetic Realism and the Works of Edith Wharton,” and “The Aesthetics of…”. Enjoy!