A reader emails me with a question about a painful failure he just experienced. He wants to know if I’ve experienced similar setbacks, and how I’ve handled them. I give my thoughts on the subject, and arrive at some general rules.
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So many people today are totally possessed by their fears. Our society encourages this way of thinking. They take counsel of their fears, they stoke their fears, and they let their fears control their minds. The result is permanent stagnation. Stop being ruled by worry and fear. Break free of this mentality, and learn to have the confidence that you will handle anything that comes your way.
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It isn’t easy, of course, to reduce an entire decade to convenient encapsulations. But it is possible to put our finger on its corporeal pulse. The 1980s did not have the grim, disillusioned, bitter flavor of the 1970s; nor did the decade have the self-satisfied triumphalism of the 1990s. In some ways the 1980s was a period of recovery, hopeful interlude, and buoyant optimism. I think the movies of the decade reflect these generally positive sentiments. There was a collective feeling that the future would be bright, and that if a man rolled up his sleeves and took a deep breath, he could accomplish almost anything. Yet when speaking about an entire decade, things are never quite so simple. We find that, behind the optimistic façade of the 80s, there lurked more than a little foreboding and dread. The tension between these competing cultural emotions was responsible for some of the decade’s greatest cinematic art.
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A reader asks a question about his personal situation. He feels like he’s working harder and harder, but not getting ahead. He also feels underappreciated by his in-laws, for whom he has done a lot. But instead of worrying about the opinions of others, maybe he should be focusing on his own opinion of himself. And then, he’ll know what he needs to do.
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More than any other decade, the 1970s laid the foundations of modern cinema. The 1960s were no better a decade for film than the 1950s; its experimental excesses could not compensate for a shockingly meager output of quality work. But something magical happened in the 1970s. Perhaps it was the arrival on the scene of visionary directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, William Friedkin, George Lucas, and many others. Perhaps it was a unique moment in the industry when—as in the early 1990s—studios were not so risk-averse, and financing for daring new projects by unknown directors and writers was not so difficult to come by.
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The following were the most viewed essays of those published here in 2023. They are listed in declining order, based on the number of views. There are some surprises here. If you haven’t had a chance to read some of them, now would be a good time to take a look:
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We recently discussed some words spoken by the Greek mercenary general Charidamus to the Persian king Darius III on the eve of the Battle of Issus in 333 B.C. But we discussed only a small part of his speech. His complete comments are worthy of our meticulous consideration.
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There is an anecdote told about the prelude to the Battle of Issus in 333 B.C. This momentous contest, which involved the armies of Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia, was to decide the fate of Asia.
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Sometimes the game is fixed against you. In fact, sometimes what appears to be a level playing field turns out to be a rigged game. What can be done in such situations? How does a man maintain his honor and dignity? We discuss.
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In the 1340s the Italian scholar Petrarch composed a long letter to the poet Homer. He enjoyed these imaginary exercises in which he could “communicate” with some of the great literary figures of the past; there exist letters to Cicero, Livy, and some other ancient writers.
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Quintus Curtius 
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