Sparks Commentary

Which things are best learned in a classroom? Which are best learned somewhere else? It’s an all-too-common refrain today: “college is good ...

“Learning to write by trial and error not only calls for patience on the writer’s part, it also taxes the patience of wives, landlords, and ...

Is it better to be a generalist or a specialist? I did  another post  tackling this question somewhat, in the context of both professional d...

“Our knowledge of Biblical Hebrew is directly dependent upon Jewish oral tradition and thus on the state of that tradition during and follow...

“Never let your schooling interfere with your education.” – Possibly a paraphrase of author Grant Allen , although it is often misattributed...

“I cannot live without books; but fewer will suffice where amusement, and not use, is the only future object.” – Thomas Jefferson , in a let...

Note: This post quotes from Frederick Douglass’s memoir, where he recounts racist treatment that he received from various white men. Althoug...

“The election of 1834 came, and [Abraham Lincoln] was then elected to the Legislature [of Illinois] by the highest vote cast for any candida...

"The study of Ancient Greek has long been a bookish pursuit , and rightly so. For this language we have only the books (and other wri...