Lisel Mueller

In attendance at our Lisel Mueller event were Wilma and her husband David, both retired English teachers, and Maureen. Among the things we talked about was Harold Bloom and his book Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human. I said the thesis of his book is that, prior to Shakespeare, no literature featured characters with such insightful psychological portrayals. Here is a sentence from that book: "Personality, in our sense, is a Shakespearean invention, and is not only Shakespeare's greatest originality but also the authentic cause of his perpetual pervasiveness." Wilma pointed out that, prior to Shakespeare, societies were structured so that people more often than not behaved according to the roles expected of them. What she said made sense. I then made a remark about our times today as we are able to choose among lifestyles. This is only one of the reasons I love to keep going back for these events: I never know when I'm going to hear a perspective I haven't heard before. It's such a gift, and I like to think it keeps on giving. What makes this particular conversation even more memorable for me is that this was Wilma's first time joining our group. Hopefully we see her and her husband Dave again and often.


Lisel Mueller

-- "It is our goal to appreciate and improve our talents, to share our own work and to communicate the joys of poetry with others. Everyone's poetry is valued."
River Junction Poets Mission Statement