Department of English

R. Allen Shoaf, local Gainesville author and Alumni Professor Emeritus of English at UF, presents his latest book of poetry, Language to Live In. Language to Live In offers readers an opportunity to reflect on the current crisis of the relationship between the humanities and the sciences. Drawing from work in quantum physics, biochemistry, psychoanalysis, eroticism (ancient and modern), neuroscience, environmental studies, and the traditions of European and American poetry, the book engages questions of evolution, sexuality, and technology as it considers the consequences of the 20th-century’s breathtaking achievements and unparalleled disasters. It, thus, aspires to speak to those seeking self-understanding in an increasingly polarized world, where political tribalism repeatedly angles to dictate the meaning of ‘self’ to people on vast scales, amounting in many cases to open propaganda and indoctrination. The book espouses a conviction that thoughtful and considerate men and women long for and seek a language or languages to live in, empowering, educating, and liberating them to share the meaning of their lives with their fellow human beings.

Event is at Third House Books and is free and open to the public. Copies will be available for purchase and signing by Dr. Shoaf.