Morgan

Sitting in JP Morgan Junior’s music room, I thought about how angry they would be. Those Village-ites of bygone days, the ones who climbed to the top of the Arch (our arch?) and claimed a “free and independent republic of Washington Square.” Here I was, marveling over clips of “The Raven” and works by Henry James, and hearing about how unfortunately I was not going to be able to see Bob Dylan’s notebooks, in a decadent room with double doors in a stunning mansion. A banking fortune bought Bohemia! They would be angry. But, I was glad. Though the setting was slightly ironic, the Morgan Library is an institution devoted to claiming and protecting things that are culturally important. I was struck by how Dr. Kiely explained that the Morgan had no guidelines to what they purchase. Recent writings and ancient letters are given the same weight. The Morgan seems to really believe in the power of creating history.

I keep thinking about whether location leads to fame or fame leads to location. Did the Village just happen to draw all sorts of incredible writers, thinkers, and artists by chance? Or did writing in the Village make it easier to get published or become well-known? The Village as a place, and the Village as a people (no, not the "YMCA" kind...) are inseparable in history. It allowed for a crossing of so many great minds, as we saw by the letters we were shown, simple correspondence now deemed worthy of long-term preservation and exhibition. I am such a fan of letters. I write them, though I receive few back. It's so much easier to send a quick email or text message, but writing letters seems so much more sincere. Can you imagine how much people in a letter-writing era would have complained about our messy penmanship? I was disappointed when I found the letter Willa Cather wrote hard to read. I wanted to know what she said! If only it were size 12 Times New Roman... But her hand makes it hers.