Rivers are so intriguing. When I homeschooled my children we spent a year doing a case study of the Susquehanna. We took our summer vacation to Cooperstown, NY. We read The Pioneers by James Fenimore Cooper. We imagined General Clinton’s troops’ wild ride down a Susquehanna that they had dammed to raise the water level in Lake Otsego, then destroyed the dam and rafted down on the surge during the American Revolution. Introduced the kids to the French Revolution by reading about the two story log cabin complete with ballroom at Azilum that was built in vain as a refuge for the French royal family. Joseph Priestly’s laboratory in Lewisburg, PA. The Chesapeake Bay. Lots to learn that covered history, science, some literature, art, geography, etc, even baseball! I had at least as much fun with it as my children did.
Rivers provide readymade structures for travel narratives. They are central to the rise of civilzation, and a metaphor for the course of one's life. Human beings are naturally bound to waterways. I think about Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Jean Renoir's film "The River," and Charles Laugton's "Night of the Hunter," in which rivers play central roles. Cooperstown is a lovely polace to visit, even if Baseball's beginnings were in fact someplace else.
Rivers are so intriguing. When I homeschooled my children we spent a year doing a case study of the Susquehanna. We took our summer vacation to Cooperstown, NY. We read The Pioneers by James Fenimore Cooper. We imagined General Clinton’s troops’ wild ride down a Susquehanna that they had dammed to raise the water level in Lake Otsego, then destroyed the dam and rafted down on the surge during the American Revolution. Introduced the kids to the French Revolution by reading about the two story log cabin complete with ballroom at Azilum that was built in vain as a refuge for the French royal family. Joseph Priestly’s laboratory in Lewisburg, PA. The Chesapeake Bay. Lots to learn that covered history, science, some literature, art, geography, etc, even baseball! I had at least as much fun with it as my children did.
Rivers provide readymade structures for travel narratives. They are central to the rise of civilzation, and a metaphor for the course of one's life. Human beings are naturally bound to waterways. I think about Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Jean Renoir's film "The River," and Charles Laugton's "Night of the Hunter," in which rivers play central roles. Cooperstown is a lovely polace to visit, even if Baseball's beginnings were in fact someplace else.
Much appreciated!
It's truly a pleasure to learn about your work. Let's keep in touch
All the best, James
A great piece of research and writing .
Thanks Michelle