Zachary Lesser
@zacharylesser.bsky.social
Book history, Shakespeare etc. Views my own, not my "neutral" employer's. Header is: https://shorturl.at/FtfZQ / Gen Ed., Arden Shakespeare / https://pennmaterialtexts.org / http://shakespearecensus.org / http://deepplaybooks.org
Pinned
Zachary Lesser
@zacharylesser.bsky.social
· May 31
My new favorite Renaissance proverb: "Everything helps, quoth the wren when she pissed in the sea" (Tilley, W935).
I don't know, can you just put "Critical" before any word and "Studies" after it and you've got a field of study?
November 11, 2025 at 12:24 AM
I don't know, can you just put "Critical" before any word and "Studies" after it and you've got a field of study?
"The poorest persons on Twitter" is the new "The lowest and most dejected thing of Fortune" (King Lear 4.1.3)
November 9, 2025 at 5:10 PM
"The poorest persons on Twitter" is the new "The lowest and most dejected thing of Fortune" (King Lear 4.1.3)
Reposted by Zachary Lesser
Great news! This is out: Opening the black box of EEBO academic.oup.com/dsh/advance-...
Opening the black box of EEBO
Abstract. Digital archives that cover extended historical periods can create a misleading impression of comprehensiveness while in truth providing access t
academic.oup.com
November 9, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Great news! This is out: Opening the black box of EEBO academic.oup.com/dsh/advance-...
What's wild is that Trump has somehow turned David Brooks into a decent columnist. Stunning plot twist
November 9, 2025 at 12:12 AM
What's wild is that Trump has somehow turned David Brooks into a decent columnist. Stunning plot twist
People who tear gas little kids, and those who give orders to do so, should face consequences. Democrats in Congress should make clear now that when they are back in power they will seek those consequences. No turning the page.
“All of a sudden, my eyes were just burning and I couldn’t breathe,” a Chicago mom told @nbcnews.com
Then she heard her 2-year-old scream: “Mommy! Mommy! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!”
She realized immigration agents were in the neighborhood and deployed chemical agents.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Then she heard her 2-year-old scream: “Mommy! Mommy! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!”
She realized immigration agents were in the neighborhood and deployed chemical agents.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Chicago residents say kids tear-gassed due to nearby immigration enforcement
A Chicago mother tells NBC News she and her 2-year-old were hit with a chemical agent. Many residents say the city wasn’t a “war zone”— until immigration agents swept through.
www.nbcnews.com
November 8, 2025 at 6:47 PM
People who tear gas little kids, and those who give orders to do so, should face consequences. Democrats in Congress should make clear now that when they are back in power they will seek those consequences. No turning the page.
Reposted by Zachary Lesser
The #1 lesson from yesterday’s blowout:
Humanities majors killed on the job market
1) Mamdani- Africana Studies
2) Spanberger -French
3) Sherill - Global History
Humanities majors killed on the job market
1) Mamdani- Africana Studies
2) Spanberger -French
3) Sherill - Global History
November 5, 2025 at 3:59 PM
The #1 lesson from yesterday’s blowout:
Humanities majors killed on the job market
1) Mamdani- Africana Studies
2) Spanberger -French
3) Sherill - Global History
Humanities majors killed on the job market
1) Mamdani- Africana Studies
2) Spanberger -French
3) Sherill - Global History
You can't eat a golden ballroom
November 3, 2025 at 4:09 PM
You can't eat a golden ballroom
Surely the detective from Matsumoto's Tokyo Express
"Person trying to disprove the suspect's alibi"
(he's looking at a train schedule)
x.com/dailyportalz...
(he's looking at a train schedule)
x.com/dailyportalz...
November 2, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Surely the detective from Matsumoto's Tokyo Express
Looking forward to this talk by @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social !
For our next talk, we are thrilled to welcome Sonja Drimmer (UMass Amherst) for a talk titled: “Optics: Heraldry and the Preprint History of Print.”
Monday, November 3 at 5:15 PM Eastern — 6th floor of Penn's Van Pelt Library (and on Zoom). As always, full details at: pennmaterialtexts.org
Monday, November 3 at 5:15 PM Eastern — 6th floor of Penn's Van Pelt Library (and on Zoom). As always, full details at: pennmaterialtexts.org
November 2, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Looking forward to this talk by @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social !
Those following these orders to murder people ought to read up.
October 31, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Those following these orders to murder people ought to read up.
Reposted by Zachary Lesser
Will put pen to paper at some point about why Vandal Live is going to become a bigger part of podcast mix, but for now I just want to thank Penn English for jumpstarting this season with an event that clarified for me how these recordings can serve the whole humanities.
Also, the sound was perfect.
Also, the sound was perfect.
October 30, 2025 at 11:29 PM
Will put pen to paper at some point about why Vandal Live is going to become a bigger part of podcast mix, but for now I just want to thank Penn English for jumpstarting this season with an event that clarified for me how these recordings can serve the whole humanities.
Also, the sound was perfect.
Also, the sound was perfect.
This is delightful
October 26, 2025 at 8:34 PM
This is delightful
When people outside academia complain about "grade inflation," do you think they mean:
1) inflation: what was a C is now a B; what was a B is now an A.
2) compression: the range of grades commonly given used to be A - C, but is now A - B
It's not usually spelled out. Curious what you think.
1) inflation: what was a C is now a B; what was a B is now an A.
2) compression: the range of grades commonly given used to be A - C, but is now A - B
It's not usually spelled out. Curious what you think.
October 24, 2025 at 6:59 PM
When people outside academia complain about "grade inflation," do you think they mean:
1) inflation: what was a C is now a B; what was a B is now an A.
2) compression: the range of grades commonly given used to be A - C, but is now A - B
It's not usually spelled out. Curious what you think.
1) inflation: what was a C is now a B; what was a B is now an A.
2) compression: the range of grades commonly given used to be A - C, but is now A - B
It's not usually spelled out. Curious what you think.
After declaring Augustus imperator, tribune and consul for life, some in Roman Senate want a say
October 24, 2025 at 6:05 PM
After declaring Augustus imperator, tribune and consul for life, some in Roman Senate want a say
If you're interested in publishing conspiracy theories like this brazen example, let me introduce you to a little book about Shakespeare and friends.
October 24, 2025 at 4:39 PM
If you're interested in publishing conspiracy theories like this brazen example, let me introduce you to a little book about Shakespeare and friends.
I know there are much, much bigger fish to fry but the fact that the NYT does a long article each week summarizing each sketch on Saturday Night Live sometimes just crushes me with sadness.
October 20, 2025 at 4:41 PM
I know there are much, much bigger fish to fry but the fact that the NYT does a long article each week summarizing each sketch on Saturday Night Live sometimes just crushes me with sadness.
Should I inform the French police? I know who did it
October 20, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Should I inform the French police? I know who did it
This article is at its funniest when explaining exactly how you write a to-do list on an index card and then how you indicate that you have completed a task. And all for a mere $100!
This minimalist, paper-based to-do manager can help you focus on completing your important tasks while staying offline. nyti.ms/4h8ijiC
October 16, 2025 at 10:09 PM
This article is at its funniest when explaining exactly how you write a to-do list on an index card and then how you indicate that you have completed a task. And all for a mere $100!
Penn prefers not to...
Penn Becomes Latest University to Reject White House Deal
www.nytimes.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Penn prefers not to...
Reposted by Zachary Lesser
Other universities such as, e.g., @upenn.edu !
MIT's response to the Trump admin's proposed "compact" is excellent and should be a model for other universities. orgchart.mit.edu/letters/rega...
October 10, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Other universities such as, e.g., @upenn.edu !
Reposted by Zachary Lesser
I generally endorse poetry bumper stickers, but no. Exactly the opposite.
October 7, 2025 at 2:03 AM
I generally endorse poetry bumper stickers, but no. Exactly the opposite.
So the secret to Bluesky is... kebabs?
October 4, 2025 at 1:58 PM
So the secret to Bluesky is... kebabs?
Kofta kebab recipe in England c. 1660. Amazing find!
Would anyone like to take a guess at the word before “kebob”? Which predates OED - ms is 1660
October 3, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Kofta kebab recipe in England c. 1660. Amazing find!