The Pen and the Sword: Writing and Expression in Wartime will be honored Thursday, April 20, 2006, at 7pm at First Parish UU in Harvard Square (3 Church Street). this event features a stellar panel (go see!), and describes itself:
War, in most obvious ways, is the enemy of free expression: truth gives way to propaganda; dissent is squelched; and as soldiers and civilians die, so too die their views and their voices. And yet, from Homer to Hemingway and beyond, war has inspired some of our greatest writers to do their greatest work. As the United States continues waging its current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and as the first books emerge out of these conflicts, PEN New England is convening a diverse group of writers to discuss the special questions posed for writers in wartime.
The 2006 Vasyl Stus Freedom to Write Award will be awarded that same night (in absentia, alas) to Shi Tao, who is serving ten years in a Chinese prison for disseminating information about the Tianamen Square anniversary rites. Information leading to his imprisonment was supplied by Yahoo.
PEN New England is a branch of International PEN ("the only worldwide association of writing professionals").
See you there!
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