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Ashok Karra

Ashok Karra

356 posts published

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Introduction to Philosophy, Lecture 1: Porochista Khakpour's "Just (Don't) Do It" and Ursula K. Le Guin on Writing
philosophy

Introduction to Philosophy, Lecture 1: Porochista Khakpour's "Just (Don't) Do It" and Ursula K. Le Guin on Writing

You’ll notice that self-reflection, done right, probably isn’t going to lead to “everything is great and I have no complaints.”

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Aug 19, 2024 • 6 min read
Plan for Introduction to Philosophy, Fall 2024
philosophy

Plan for Introduction to Philosophy, Fall 2024

I'm putting together a philosophy class and I thought you might like to see the plan.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Aug 15, 2024 • 2 min read
Daughter, "Shallows" & "Be On Your Way"
music

Daughter, "Shallows" & "Be On Your Way"

I'm getting back into Daughter, a shoegaze trio from London.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Aug 11, 2024 • 4 min read
Osip Mandelstam, "The Poem"
poetry

Osip Mandelstam, "The Poem"

Knowing the most essential part of your experience can find words is freedom.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Aug 5, 2024 • 4 min read
Kay Ryan, "Poetry is a Kind of Money"
poetry

Kay Ryan, "Poetry is a Kind of Money"

"Poetry is a kind of money." I can't imagine writing that and not saying to yourself man I wish.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 30, 2024 • 5 min read
Mara Pastor, "Left"
poetry

Mara Pastor, "Left"

I would advise you to read this poem by the prominent Puerto Rican poet Mara Pastor a few times, inhaling its ferocity.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 27, 2024 • 3 min read
Rae Armantrout, "Decor"
poetry

Rae Armantrout, "Decor"

This text serves as the intersection of a few complicated themes: the cheapness of capitalism, relationships, and identity.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 23, 2024 • 5 min read
Emily Dickinson, "I had no time to Hate"
poetry

Emily Dickinson, "I had no time to Hate"

...this little poem starts with trying to look into a quiet, lush landscape painting and wish yourself there.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 18, 2024 • 4 min read
Kay Ryan, "The Elephant in the Room"
poetry

Kay Ryan, "The Elephant in the Room"

I don't want to admit I'm being squeezed. I don't want to admit I lack room. I want to pretend like everything's normal.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 14, 2024 • 4 min read
I wish I could tell you that I had a shortcut for getting people to care about solutions
american politics

I wish I could tell you that I had a shortcut for getting people to care about solutions

I had just finished writing about Robert Frost's "The Gift Outright" when I started doubting its utility.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 11, 2024 • 5 min read
Robert Frost, "The Gift Outright"
poetry

Robert Frost, "The Gift Outright"

"The Gift Outright" could seduce through its music alone.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 7, 2024 • 6 min read
This Political Moment, 7/3/24
american politics

This Political Moment, 7/3/24

...this has been a long coup.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jul 3, 2024 • 4 min read
Bonus content: On Playing Dungeons and Dragons at 44 Years of Age
dungeons and dragons

Bonus content: On Playing Dungeons and Dragons at 44 Years of Age

It's dramatically distinct from my teenage years, when DnD was nothing but bad combat scenarios.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 30, 2024 • 3 min read
Jane Kenyon, "Evening Sun"
poetry

Jane Kenyon, "Evening Sun"

Jane Kenyon's startling starting question, immediate and personal for us all: "Why does this light force me back / to my childhood?"

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 30, 2024 • 2 min read
Emily Dickinson, "Experience is the Angled Road" (910)
poetry

Emily Dickinson, "Experience is the Angled Road" (910)

Many have used poetry to generate lingering, meditative essays, but Dickinson is in rare form with "Experience is the Angled Road."

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 27, 2024 • 5 min read
Jane Kenyon, "Not Writing"
poetry

Jane Kenyon, "Not Writing"

Kyla Houbolt's "On Not Writing" brought back memories of this poem, "Not Writing," by the inimitable Jane Kenyon.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 23, 2024 • 5 min read
Kyla Houbolt, "On Not Writing"
poetry

Kyla Houbolt, "On Not Writing"

Kyla Houbolt calls forth moments when words overwhelm.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 20, 2024 • 4 min read
Where do you like to write? (Or, where did you write where every word counted?)
writing

Where do you like to write? (Or, where did you write where every word counted?)

The Substack #AmWriting had a great prompt: Where is your favorite writing spot? And why?

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 13, 2024 • 4 min read
Lift Every Voice
american politics

Lift Every Voice

I've got a few new subscribers, so I want to make sure I welcome everyone properly.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 11, 2024 • 4 min read
Joan Didion, "On Self-Respect"
philosophy

Joan Didion, "On Self-Respect"

I want self-respect to claim its rightful place as an eminently useful concept.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Jun 10, 2024 • 6 min read
Rita Dove, "Little Town"
poetry

Rita Dove, "Little Town"

This little, haiku-like poem by Rita Dove got me thinking about a lot of places I've been.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra May 30, 2024 • 4 min read
Emerson on Surfaces; Hamilton Nolan on Joe Biden
philosophy

Emerson on Surfaces; Hamilton Nolan on Joe Biden

Emerson: "We live amid surfaces, and the true art of life is to skate well on them."

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra May 27, 2024 • 4 min read
Suzanne Buffam, "On Antigone"
poetry

Suzanne Buffam, "On Antigone"

Suzanne Buffam's little lyric "On Antigone" strikes me as if the perfect words have been spoken.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra May 25, 2024 • 3 min read
Boring and Frightening, Both At Once
american politics

Boring and Frightening, Both At Once

There's so much news and all of it is relevant.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra May 22, 2024 • 3 min read
Yosa Buson, "Early summer rain"
poetry

Yosa Buson, "Early summer rain"

Lots of light rain in South Jersey makes everything a bit too overgrown.

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra May 19, 2024 • 3 min read
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