Ella Kotsen

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗔𝗗 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗘𝗜𝗥: 𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗜𝗗𝗘 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟮𝟬𝗧𝗛 𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗬 𝗖𝗢𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗔 𝗞𝗢𝗧𝗦𝗘𝗡

𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗬, 𝗝𝗨𝗟𝗬 𝟮𝟭, 𝟱:𝟯𝟬 𝗣𝗠

What can a whiskery old sea serpent with a big barnacle on his nose, a little green mermaid, an old hoary man whiter than snow, and frosted-over owl-dungs show us about a changing 20th-century coastal Maine environment? Ruth Moore’s 1958 ballad, “The Night Charley Tended the Weir,” is a satirical and incisive story that focuses on a mid-20th-century small-scale fisherman named Charley, who lives on the coast of Maine, along with the tumultuous shifts around him from traditional to industrial and globalized fishing methods. Ella’s presentation will dive deep into the history of these 20th-century changes and encourage conversations among attendees about what these challenges looked like in real life.

Ella Kotsen is a PhD Student at Boston University in the American Studies Program. She is also a Board Member at the Tremont Historical Society. Ella studies 19th and 20th-century American literary Regionalism. She is particularly interested in the region of New England, specifically women and queer writers. Her studies incorporate other 19th and 20th-century writers whom the traditional literary canon has historically considered outside the genre. Ella is interested in using geography and urban studies to understand how structures of power work in rural landscapes.

Presented in-person at the Bass Harbor Memorial Library, 89 Bernard Road, Bernard • FMI 207.244.3798 or bassharborlibrary.com

 

Discounted for patrons and participants, copies of Ruth Moore’s book ‘Cold As A Dog And Other Stories’ will be available for purchase at the library beforehand and the night of Ella Kotsen’s presentation.