Lee University’s Professor of English Dr. Kevin Brown has had two articles published: “A ‘Horizon of Important Questions’: Choice, Action, and Identity in David Mitchell’s ‘Cloud Atlas’” and “Improvising Great Classroom Discussion.” His poetry was also published in three different online journals.
His article, “A ‘Horizon of Important Questions’: Choice, Action, and Identity in David Mitchell’s ‘Cloud Atlas’ was published in the Journal of European Popular Culture. It discusses the “portrayal of identity [and] authenticity as defined by individual choice and action” in Mr. Mitchell’s 2004 novel, “Cloud Atlas.”
While others have used Jean-Paul Sartre’s view of existentialism to analyze the novel, Dr. Brown also draws on other ideas from Charles Taylor, “a more contemporary philosopher.” Dr. Brown argues in his paper that, by combining Sartre’s and Taylor’s views on existentialism and identity, “we can see the major characters in ‘Cloud Atlas’ all finally make choices that define who they are, choices that provide an identity that carries on beyond their own lives and stories.”
Dr. Brown’s second article, “Improvising Great Classroom Discussion” was published in The Teaching Professor. In this essay, Dr. Brown uses the concept of “Yes, and…” traditionally used in improv acting in order to talk about how to improve classroom discussion. He argues that, by being open to where students might lead discussion, professors can create deeper and more meaningful conversation in the classroom.
Dr. Brown also had poems published by Pomona Valley Review, Vending Machine Press, and The Tau.
The Pomona Valley Review published “God Answers Knee Mail,” “Stop, Drop, and Roll Won’t Work in Hell,” “Choose the Bread of Life or You Are Toast,” and “Looking for a Sign From God? This Might Be It” These four poems come from a series where Dr. Brown uses church signs as the titles and inspirations of poems.
The Vending Machine Press published “This Church is Prayer-Conditioned,” “Church Shopping? We’re Open on Sundays,” “What Could This Sign Say to Get You Here on Sunday?,” “Cars Are Not the Only Thing Recalled by Their Maker,” “What Part of Thou Shalt Not Don’t You Understand?,” and “Ars Poetica.” The first five poems are also from the series using church signs as the titles and inspirations of poems. “Ars Poetica” is a meditation on writing poetry.
The Tau published “Things I Now Know,” a poem that comes from a series of poems Dr. Brown wrote about his father’s death.
To read Dr. Brown’s poetry, visit http://www.pomonavalleyreview.com/pdf/PVR%2011/PVR%2011.pdf or http://www.lourdes.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Tau-2017-Smaller.pdf.