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| TIME | SPEAKER | TEXT |
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| 00:00:15 |
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THEY'RE COLLECTION OF OVER 200 ESSAYS GENS BUT THEN FRANKLIN'S LETTERS, GEORGE WASHINGTON'S FAREWELL... |
| 00:00:36 |
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I'M HOMEY, DIRECTOR OF THE HUMANITY CENTER AND IT'S A GREAT PLEASURE TO WELCOME YOU THIS AFTERNOON.... |
| 00:08:44 |
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THANK YOU, HOMI FOR THAT REALLY STIRRING AND DAUNTING INTRODUCTION. I'M JUST GOING TO TALK VERY BRIEFLY... |
| 00:15:09 |
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BUT HOW COULD I RESIST? I CAN'T. WE ALSO SAID, BY THE WAY, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE THE LAST WORD IN ... |
| 00:16:39 |
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THANK YOU VERY MUCH, HOMI, FOR INTRODUCING THIS PROJECT SO WELL. AND THANKS, GREIL, WHO ALREADY GAVE... |
| 00:21:47 |
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SORT OF WHAT FINALLY UNITES THE BOOK IS THE FORMAT AND THE FORMAT WAS ADOPTED FROM THE FRENCH AND... |
| 00:23:11 |
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THANK YOU. IT'S GREAT TO BE HERE. AND IT'S GREAT TO SEE -- THIS IS LIKE A DREAM. EVERYBODY COME JUST... |
| 00:28:14 |
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LARRY, IT'S YOUR MOMENT. |
| 00:28:19 |
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MY MOMENT. |
| 00:28:20 |
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LAWRENCE IS PROFESSOR OF AMERICAN LITERATURE. HIS MOST RECENT BOOK IS SHADES OF THE PLANET, AMERICAN'S... |
| 00:28:39 |
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ALPHABETICAL PRIORITY DICTATES THAT THE LITERARY HISTORIAN BEGINS AND I FEEL A CERTAIN STEWARDSHIP... |
| 00:28:58 |
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THIS IS A KIND OF COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS FRAMING. WHAT WERE SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SACRIFICES THAT... |
| 00:30:13 |
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MY DEAR FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE LARRY WOULD ASK TWO QUESTIONS TO MAKE THE FIRST ONE SIMPLER TO ANSWER.... |
| 00:30:20 |
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IT'S A DOUBLE FACETED -- |
| 00:30:24 |
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BARRY, I LOVE IT. |
| 00:30:27 |
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WELL, ONE THING I WANT TO MAKE ABSOLUTELY CLEAR IS THAT WHILE THERE MAY HAVE BEEN SOME SENSE OF AFFIRMATIVE... |
| 00:33:28 |
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I WOULD AGREE WITH GREIL THERE WAS NEVER A MOMENT WHERE WE SAID, YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T AFFORD TO HAVE... |
| 00:34:25 |
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UH-HUH. |
| 00:34:26 |
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AND WE FELT THIS WAS SO ESSENTIAL THAT SOMEBODY OF US HAD TO STEP UP TO THE PLATE AND DO IT BECAUSE... |
| 00:35:56 |
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HOWL WAS THROWN OVERBOARD. |
| 00:35:57 |
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HE WAS IN MANY ENTRIES AND DIDN'T HAVE AN ENTRY OF HIS OWN. CLAIMING THE IDEA THIS IS A CENTRAL FIGURE... |
| 00:36:27 |
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WELL, WE CAN COME BACK TO SCREAMING AT HOWLS LATER ON BUT LET'S GO ON TO GLENDA WHO IS A PROFESSOR... |
| 00:36:46 |
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OKAY. SO MICS HAS TO DO WITH A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LITERATURE AND HISTORY AND VICE VERSA THAT THE... |
| 00:37:54 |
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WELL, I MEAN, THE HOOK AUTOMATICALLY HAS IT FROM A HISTORY HOOK, AND IT TAKES THE HISTORICAL HOOK... |
| 00:40:05 |
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GREIL? |
| 00:40:07 |
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I WOULD JUST ADD THAT I THINK BECAUSE OF THE EMPHASIS OR THE SHAPING OF THE BOOK AROUND MOMENTS, MOMENTS... |
| 00:41:47 |
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LIZ, YOUR QUESTION, ELIZABETH COHEN IS HOWARD MUMFORD JONES PROFESSOR OF AMERICAN STUDIES AND THE... |
| 00:42:03 |
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THANK YOU. GREIL AND WERNER, FOR ME THE BRILLIANCE OF YOUR BOOK IS THAT IT INCLUDES ALL KINDS OF ... |
| 00:44:27 |
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I WAS WAITING. I WAS WAITING. |
| 00:44:29 |
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ALL RIGHT. I'VE GOT A QUESTION. BUT I FELT LIKE I NEEDED TO KIND OF LAY OUT. IT'S REALLY INTERROGATE... |
| 00:45:26 |
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WELL, I CAN JUST SAY ONE THING. THAT IF THIS BOOK LEADS READERS TO BE CURIOUS ABOUT WHO WROTE ANY... |
| 00:46:59 |
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I WOULD AGREE. I THINK WE HAD A WHOLE SERIES OF SUBJECTS THAT WERE ALREADY PROPOSED WITH IDEAL AUTHORS.... |
| 00:47:29 |
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AND SO THE IDEA WAS TO HEAR BOTH WAYS TO GET SOME KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE ORIGINAL TEXT AND ALSO TO GET... |
| 00:49:26 |
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THANK YOU. ALEX WILL NOW POSE HIS QUESTION. IS MATTHEW W. STERLING, JR., PROFESSOR OF HISTORY AND... |
| 00:49:50 |
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ONLY FOR A FEW WEEKS. |
| 00:49:51 |
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DON'T SPOIL THE EFFECTIVENESS. |
| 00:49:54 |
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BUT MY PH.D. AMERICAN CIVILIZATION. |
| 00:49:56 |
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GOOD. |
| 00:49:57 |
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SO THAT'S MY CREDENTIAL. IT'S 34 YEARS OLD OR SOMETHING. YES, I DID HISTORY IN LITERATURE. IN FACT,... |
| 00:50:14 |
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BUT THAT SAID, HOMI, IT'S A GOOD LEAD INTO MY PREFATORY COMMENT. |
| 00:50:20 |
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WE WANT YOUR QUESTION. [LAUGHTER] |
| 00:50:22 |
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EXACTLY. MY QUESTION IS SEVERAL PAGES LONG. BUT I DON'T DENY -- I FEEL LIKE AN OUTSIDER TO THIS EVENT... |
| 00:52:26 |
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AGAIN, AT LEAST IN THE DELIBERATIONS AND OUR SENSE OF THE BOOK, BOTH AS IT WAS ORIGINALLY CONCEIVED... |
| 00:57:51 |
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I THINK GREIL GAVE YOU A FULL ANSWER. I THINK IN AMERICAN STUDIES IN THE LAST 30 YEARS, THE NOTION... |
| 01:01:00 |
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LET ME JUST SAY BEFORE -- THAT'S EXACTLY ISSUES SUCH AS THIS A MORE HISTORIC SIZE NOTION OF HISTORY.... |
| 01:02:11 |
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IT TURNED OUT TO BE A PRIMARY SOURCE. AND HE DISCUSSES THE POETICS OF HANK WILLIAMS AND A LYRIC WRITING... |
| 01:02:34 |
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AS AN BEETHOVEN, YES. AND I WOULDN'T EVEN BRING THIS UP BUT YOU WROTE ROLLOVER BEETHOVEN IS IN YOUR... |
| 01:03:30 |
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I THINK YOU PINPOINTED SOMETHING THAT IS LACKING IN THE BOOK. THERE ARE THINGS THAT AREN'T IN THE... |
| 01:06:20 |
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THANK YOU. |
| 01:06:22 |
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ONE OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SAID I THINK DESCRIBES WHAT EXCITED ME ABOUT THE PROJECT WHY DID IT, THAT... |
| 01:07:47 |
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THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. I WANT TO POSE A QUESTION TO THE PANEL, AND THEN OPEN UP. THEY SEEM TO ME... |
| 01:08:32 |
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I DON'T KNOW. |
| 01:08:35 |
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JUNO, THE IDEA OF SIGNS, CONTINGENCY, THE ISSUE YOU BROUGHT UP GOES TO MY HEART TO. THE NOTION CONTINGENCY... |
| 01:09:55 |
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YOU WANT ME TO REPEAT MYSELF? |
| 01:09:57 |
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NO. I WANT A SECOND OPINION. |
| 01:09:59 |
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I AM USING THIS AS AN EXCUSE TO THANK. I GUESS -- LET ME -- LET ME TAKE ANOTHER SHOT AT FROM A SLIGHTLY... |
| 01:12:23 |
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THIS? |
| 01:12:24 |
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HOMI, NO OFFENSE BUT I WOULD ACTUALLY REJECT YOUR DICHOTOMY. I THINK YOU MAY BE CONFUSING DETERMINISM... |
| 01:12:57 |
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I DON'T SEE A DISTINCTION. WHAT I WOULD SAY IN RESPONSE TO SORT OF WHAT ALEX SORT OF LAID OUT AS AN... |
| 01:13:55 |
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LARRY? |
| 01:13:56 |
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I AGREE WITH LIZ. AT THE SAME TIME I THINK IT'S POSSIBLE THAT FOR SOME READERS AT LEAST, THE VERY... |
| 01:16:37 |
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DELICIOUS APPETIZERS, AND CAUSALITY, THE MAJOR FRAME. |
| 01:16:44 |
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MY TAKE IS I THINK THIS IS A VERY AMERICAN BOOK IN THE SENSE OF ITS APPROACH TO THE MATERIAL, AND... |
| 01:16:57 |
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YES. IT ALSO, IF THERE'S A SECTION ON DUTY THAT TALKS ABOUT ONE OF MY FAVORITE BOOK IS EXPERIENCED... |
| 01:18:00 |
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WHAT WOULD AN ALTERNATIVE TF1 |
| 01:18:04 |
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IT WOULD BE A FOCUS ON AUTHORS AND THEIR TAX EXCLUSIVELY, WITHOUT WORRYING ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS AND... |
| 01:18:20 |
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THANK YOU. |
| 01:18:24 |
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I THINK ADDING ON TO THE LAST COMMENT IS THAT THE POWER THE READER AND THE RESPONSE BUT THAT THE READER... |
| 01:19:23 |
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SO ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU BECOME VERY AMERICAN. [LAUGHTER] |
| 01:19:25 |
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YOU SHOULD HAVE GIVEN US A SUMMARY OF HISTORY. BUT THIS KIND OF FASCINATING, OVERLAPPING FRAMES, ... |
| 01:19:55 |
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WELL, IN PART I THINK YOU'RE GIVING US TOO MUCH CREDIT AS INNOVATORS. AND PART OF IT WAS THE MODEL... |
| 01:21:36 |
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SO I THINK WE'RE PROBABLY IN THAT SAME VEIN. I THINK WHAT INTERESTED ME MOST ABOUT DOING THIS WAS... |
| 01:23:16 |
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GREIL, YOUR REFLECTIONS BEFORE YOU OPEN IT UP TO THE AUDIENCE. |
| 01:23:21 |
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JUST VERY, VERY BRIEFLY. IF THERE IS SUCH A THING AS THE LITERARY IMAGINATION, IT DEALS WITH AND DRAWS... |
| 01:25:56 |
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THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THE ISSUE HERE REALLY ABOUT THE UNCONSCIOUS OF THAT WHICH IS NOT PRESENT AS A... |
| 01:26:22 |
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EXTREMELY BRIEF. I HAVE NOT READ THE BOOK. I AM VERY INTRIGUED BY THE BOOK, AND I HAVE A QUESTION... |
| 01:27:08 |
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THANK YOU. |
| 01:27:10 |
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YOU COULD SAY PROBABLY NOT AS MUCH AS I WOULD HAVE HOPED, BUT THERE ARE A WHOLE NUMBER OF ENTRIES,... |
| 01:28:32 |
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YES, PLEASE. |
| 01:28:33 |
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THERE'S BEEN A GREAT DEAL OF REALLY FASCINATING DISCUSSION OF MEANING AND INTERPRETATION AND SYMBOLIC... |
| 01:29:06 |
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TWO HUNDRED. |
| 01:29:07 |
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TWO HUNDRED. THANK YOU. I WAS GOING TO SAY 200. FAIR ENOUGH. AND I WOULD JUST LIKE TO KNOW WHETHER... |
| 01:30:02 |
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A NUMBER OF PEOPLE I KNOW WHO HAVE READ THE BOOK HAVE SAID THAT THE BOOK SEEMS TO WORK FOR THEM LIKE... |
| 01:32:56 |
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THIS GOES TO THE ISSUE THAT YOU'RE RECENTLY ADDRESSING FROM THE QUESTIONS THAT PERHAPS IT JUST ASKING... |
| 01:33:33 |
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WELL, IF IT'S A QUESTION OF A MOMENT, THE SITUATION WHERE SOMETHING HAPPENS THAT WE DIDN'T LOOK BACK... |
| 01:36:38 |
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WHAT IS REFLECTED HERE IN THIS BOOK, WHAT IMAGE OF AMERICA IS REFLECTED HERE IN THIS BOOK? |
| 01:36:49 |
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NO SINGLE IMAGE I THINK IS THE SIMPLEST ANSWER. I WOULDN'T SAY THAT 219 ESSAYS AND ITS 219 WAYS OF... |
| 01:37:33 |
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IF THERE IS A SINGLE IMAGE, IT IS THAT OF PEOPLE ARGUING FROM THE BEGINNING OVER WHAT AMERICA IS AND... |
| 01:37:50 |
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CAN I TURN TO THE PANEL, AND I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE QUESTIONS ARE CLEARLY, MANY... |
| 01:38:08 |
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JUST IN RESPONSE TO THAT LAST QUESTION, I WOULD ANSWER IT BY REFLECTING ON THE ATTEMPTS SINCE BARRETT... |
| 01:40:12 |
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I JUST WANT TO SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE PROCESS OF BEING A CONTRIBUTOR AND THE PROCESS OF EDITING THAT... |
| 01:41:14 |
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THANK YOU. |
| 01:41:19 |
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A FOLLOW-UP QUESTION TO YOUR NEIGHBOR, I HAVEN'T SEEN THE BOOK BUT I'VE SEEN THE LIST OF AUTHORS,... |
| 01:41:58 |
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WE THOUGHT ABOUT IT. IT ALWAYS COMES UP. BUT AMERICANS CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CALL... |
| 01:44:08 |
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I WAS INTRIGUED BY SOMETHING YOU SAY, PROFESSOR, ABOUT THE GREAT AMERICAN ANXIETY. AND I GUESS THE... |
| 01:45:18 |
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YEAH, I THINK SO. [LAUGHTER] |
| 01:45:21 |
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I KNOW THAT I CERTAINLY WAS. [LAUGHTER] |
| 01:45:26 |
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ALTAR, YOU KNOW, AS THE ENTRIES BEGAN TO COME IN AND WE BEGAN TO LOOK AT THEM, YOU KNOW, LONG AFTER... |
| 01:46:40 |
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OR YOU CAN TAKE OUT TOWN ON A RAIL, AS DH LAWRENCE WOULD PUT IT. SO YEAH, I THINK THAT ANYBODY WILL... |
| 01:46:59 |
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CAN I JUST SAY SOMETHING, THE FACT OF THE ISSUE I RAISED BY THIS SORT OF DUAL LEVELS, THE LITERARY... |
| 01:47:57 |
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I WANT TO THANK THE AUDIENCE, OUR PANELISTS, AND OUR AUTHORS FOR CREATING THE CONDITIONS IN WHICH... |
NOTE: The transcript for this program was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.
