The Kids Might Be Alright: Progress as Virtue in Contemporary Children’s Literature
Dave Eggers and Colin Meloy take on the antagonistic and nativist rhetoric in American politics and culture with children's books intent on generating empathy.
Jared Bier
Jared Bier is a high school English and language arts teacher. He has also published with Tiny Mix Tapes and Soiled and Seeded.
Overlooking the Overstatement: On Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” and Bojack Horseman’s “Thoughts and Prayers” Episode
If Shirley Jackson's simple parable, "The Lottery", couldn't inspire self-reflection in an arguably simpler time, one has to wonder what messages today -- such as that of Bojack Horseman's "The Lottery" episode -- are falling on deaf ears in these times of increasing gun violence in America.
For the People: Bush-Era Protest Songs and the Promise of Web 2.0
Remember when Bright Eyes' "When the President Talks to God" and TV on the Radio's "Dry Drunk Emperor" protested George W. Bush? And when the Internet was full of promise for the best of humankind?