Maine Humanities Council
Notes from an Open Book: September, 2008
1. Interpreting History with Joshua Chamberlain
From August 4 through August 7, the MHC presented its 4th annual summer history camp, during which a group of talented Maine high school students from China, Bath, Gardiner, Jefferson, and Vassalboro explored the theme of Joshua Chamberlain and his historic role as hero.
Students were introduced to different ways of telling history through a visit to the Maine State Museum, led by the new ‘Homelife’ exhibit curator and exhibit archivist. Students also visited the Joshua Chamberlain House in Brunswick, learning about the challenges in the great hero’s private life, battlefield life, and political life. Near the end of the week, they saw two Civil War films featuring Chamberlain: Gettysburg and Gods and Generals and discussed how history had been depicted.
A highlight was a presentation by state historian Thomas Desjardin. He spoke of historiography (the study of what is known of history and how it is interpreted) and the way things ‘really were’ as an approach to history. He explored how all ‘primary sources’ might not serve the role that primary sources are expected to serve, distorting rather than clarifying the truth. Desjardin described how Joshua Chamberlain was asked by the U.S. War Department many years after the Battle of Little Round Top to send in a description of that battle. Chamberlain could not have possibly seen the big picture from his place on the ground in the thick of fighting, but in his recollection, this future knowledge influenced his story of the past and led to some inaccuracies.
History Camp works. One student was so inspired by the tour at the Maine State Museum that before he walked out of the building, he picked up a volunteer form.
Back to the Top2. MHC News
On October 17 through 18 and November 13 through 14, 2008, the MHC is presenting a free two-part program in both Portland and Bangor: Fear, Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law. The October meetings will explore the context and define the major issues. Joel Rosenthal, President of the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, and member of the Maine Humanities Council board, will set the broad historical context, taking into account major events in U.S. history such the Civil War, the post-WWI Palmer Raids, and McCarthyism, as well as times when European democracies have been under pressure. Jeff McCausland, US Army, Ret., and Carnegie Council Senior Fellow, will focus on the current debate, and provide an update on the current issues, ranging from detainee policies to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and the military tribunals in Guantanamo Bay. A panel discussion will follow, exploring what the current situation means for Americans. Panelists include Shenna Bellows (Executive Director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union), Paula Silsby (U.S. Attorney for Maine) and Steve Podgajny (Executive Director, Portland Public Library) for the Portland meeting or Barbara McDade (Executive Director, Bangor Public Library) for the Bangor meeting.
On the November dates, an informal, MHC scholar-facilitated discussion of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible as it relates to topics raised in Part One of the program, will take place at the Portland and Bangor libraries.
While advance registration is advised for Part One to ensure a seat (and adequate refreshments), it is required for Part Two in order to receive a copy of The Crucible, the text that will be under discussion. Call (207) 773-5051 to register (online registration is also available).
This project has received support from the We the People initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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The September theme for Born to Read’s book list is ‘Pancakes.’ Books include Pancakes for Breakfast, telling through pictures the story of an old lady who goes through many challenges to reach her cooking goal; and Mama Panya’s Pancakes: A Village Tale from Kenya, exploring the generosity of neighbors and concepts of sharing.
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Podcast Update
New podcasts are available for your downloading pleasure (and it’s easy: just make sure your computer’s volume is on and push the ‘play’ button). The newest additions include a poetry reading by Annaliese Jakimides; writers JerriAnne Boggis, Kate Clifford Larson, Michael C. White, and Patricia Smith reading from their works and discussing together how African literature has influenced storytelling, this as part of the first anniversary of the Portland Freedom Trail; and an interview on Maine Things Considered by Tom Porter of the MHC’s own Elizabeth Sinclair about Literature & Medicine: Humanities at the Heart of Health CareŽ. Also worth listening to are readings from the Stonecoast M.F.A. program’s summer residency by Alison Hawthorne Deming and Nalo Hopkinson.
3. Facilitator Profile: Born to Read
Janet Lyons first became involved with Born to Read in 2002. As she tells it, ‘In the summer of 2002, as a newly minted graduate of the Portland Maine Wheelock Cohort, I was looking for an opportunity to combine my interest in children’s literature and literacy with my education in ECE (Early Childhood Education), so I called Born to Read and was put in touch with Kay Mishkin. Kay kindly invited me to attend a Children’s Literature Seminar Planning Committee meeting on August 1, 2002 and the rest is history.’
Janet has been a highly valued advisor and consultant for Born to Read. Her presence at advisory meetings during the development of the first of the program’s literature-based curricula brought a perspective of great value to the program: that of someone with professional experience in the education of young children who is, at the same time, an avid reader and lifelong student of the humanities.
Since then, Janet has facilitated numerous Born to Read programs in which she has shown her ability to synthesize and translate the many benefits of sharing books with young children-gleaned over years of academic study and professional experience—into manageable steps that can be implemented immediately. Janet can reel off the fundamentals of early literacy without missing a beat, but she never loses sight of the important role of children’s literature in promoting critical thinking and conveying the power and pleasure of ideas.
Janet tells us, ‘I love to help people discover that a picture book is so much more than a ‘kid’s book.’ The discussions about illustrations, word choice, and spacing add immeasurably to our discussions of the book’s message. Having an opportunity to talk about how a book can be used with children of different ages and to meet the Maine Early Learning Standards is a marvelous chance for providers to share ideas and develop their practice.’
Books hold one important role in Janet’s life; chocolate hold another. She tells the story of how she and her son, then age eight, “spent an entire year coming up with his perfect brownie recipe, which we are still tinkering with 12 years later!” She credits the time her three children spent in the kitchen with their early ability in math: they “learned basic fractions while doubling, tripling and splitting recipes.” Janet’s holiday repertoire includes needhams, truffles, peppermint bark, and chocolate-dipped animal crackers. She clearly brings delight to children and adults through more ways than one.
Back to the Top4. Grants and Events
Events funded by MHC include a reading and discussion series on the history and controversy around evolutionary science in Lewiston; oral history events in South Portland; and a lecture about historic Maine elections in Bethel.
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This month’s grant list includes:
Major Grants
$4,000 to Partners in Island Education, Vinalhaven, for Bringing It Home
This series is designed to promote reading and discussion across generations on the island of Vinalhaven through a series of author residencies between September 2008 and June 2009. The visiting authors will spend time with all Vinalhaven students, pre-K through high school, and also reach adults through workshops, evening presentations, and book discussion groups. Authors include Kathy Mallat, Linda Greenlaw, and Rodman Philbrick; each writes stories that are particularly relevant to life on Vinalhaven. Residencies are designed to give enough time to push the authors and audiences beyond the typical topics of the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of writing into deeper discussion of characters, themes, motivations, and relevance. To learn more about this series, please contact Partners in Island Education, (207) 863-4573.
$4,000 to the Victoria Mansion, Portland, for Edith Wharton and The Age of Innocence
The Victoria Mansion was selected by the National Endowment for the Arts to participate in the ‘Big Read’ program, which brings communities together around a single book; in this case, Edith Wharton’s novel The Age of Innocence was chosen for its capacity to illuminate the Gilded Age of the Victorian period while also helping readers to reflect on contemporary lifestyles and social mores. Programming is planned for March and April 2009. Historian David Richards will lead discussion groups at the Victoria Mansion. A panel of faculty from the University of Southern Maine will present interdisciplinary approaches to teaching The Age of Innocence to teachers and education students. A more general keynote presentation by scholar Carol Singley will be held at the Portland Public Library, the Mansion’s Big Read partner, in April. Finally, a festive presentation of late Victorian dress, dance, and music—featuring ‘Victorian Lady’ Kandie Carle—will be held in the Grand Ballroom at the Portland Club. For dates and details, please call (207) 772-4841 or visit www.victoriamansion.org.
Other Recent Grants
$990 to the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental & Watershed Research, Orono, for Senator George J. Mitchell Lecture on the Environment
The Senator George J. Mitchell Lecture on the Environment will take place on September 18, 2008, at 1 p.m. Mary Evelyn Tucker, a scholar focused on the role of religious movements in confronting the growing environmental crisis, will be the 2008 Mitchell Lecturer. She will speak on ‘The Environmental Crisis as a Moral & Spiritual Challenge.’
$725 to the Living Water Spiritual Center, Winslow, for The Thinking Heart: Variations of Etty Hillesum’s Writing
Poet Martin Steingesser, narrator Judy Tierney, and cellist Robin Jellis present an original oral interpretation of Etty Hillesum’s life story based on her letters and diaries. Colby History professor Raffael Scheck will offer a synopsis of modern European history in the context of religious and political strife during WWII.
$500 to the Victoria Mansion, Portland, for The Architecture of Henry Austin and his Time
This grant will fund a symposium to place Henry Austin’s Morse-Libby house (1858-60) in the context of the architecture of his time. Four speakers will profile the national and local architectural scene in the 1850s, the mid-century architecture of New Orleans hotels where Morse made his fortune, and the development of the Italian villa style, of which the house is an outstanding example.
$500 to the Lewiston Public Library, Lewiston, for Darwin at 200: Evolution and Intelligent Design in the 21st Century
Through a five-part reading and discussion series on the book Your Inner Fish by Neil Shubin, a public lecture by Neil Shubin, and a public showing of the film ‘Flock of Dodos,’ participants will explore the history of evolutionary science and the controversy that has developed between the proponents of evolution and intelligent design.
$500 to the Maine-Aomori Sister State Council, Yarmouth, for Intercultural Exchange and Bilingual Book Project
First Lady Karen Baldacci initiated this exchange of author/illustrators between Maine and Aomori, Japan, which has already yielded the manuscript for a picture book introducing the culture of Maine and Aomori to the children of each country. In this second phase of the project, the partners are seeking a publisher for the manuscript.
$300 to Loving Learning, Madison, for Reading Is Fundamental in MSAD #74
This RIF project will provide three new books to each of the 340 pre-kindergarten to fifth grade students in the district’s five elementary schools. Book distribution events will take place in October and December 2008, then again in March 2009.
5. What We’re Reading
This booklist includes personal favorites of MHC staff members, as well as books used by MHC programs. This month, featured titles are The Quiltmaker’s Gift, Brighty of the Grand Canyon, The Minders of Make-Believe, Here if You Need Me, and The Debt to Pleasure.
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6. Quote of the Month
“To be honest, I never really thought that a book could do so much. I use books for myself, but with a child? I never really put two and two together.”
—A staff member from a domestic violence agency
who took one of Born to Read’s Peaceable Stories trainings.
Thank you to our current members. Your support helps to make Maine Humanities Council programs like the ones detailed in this newsletter possible. If you are not a member but would like to make a gift you may do so online or contact me, Diane Magras, for more information.
Notes from an Open Book welcomes feedback from its readers. Please contact Diane Magras by email at diane@mainehumanities.org or by phone at (207)773-5051 ext. 208 (toll-free 1-866-637-3233, ext. 208) to respond.