Mary Pipher pre-talk introduction

Joy Castro Author

08/25/2020 Added

130 Plays

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Introduction to writer Mary Pipher in advance of her E.N. Thompson Forum talk "Trauma and Recovery: A New Story of Interconnection and Action..."

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[00:00:00.510]This is Joy Castro.
[00:00:01.810]I'm the Willa Cather professor of English and ethnic studies
[00:00:04.710]at the University of Nebraska.
[00:00:07.010]It was a wonderful surprise and it's an honor,
[00:00:09.110]and a pleasure to be asked to speak with you
[00:00:11.290]briefly about Mary Pipher,
[00:00:12.850]because she's been an important figure
[00:00:14.490]in my own life for over 20 years.
[00:00:17.120]I was a graduate student in Texas
[00:00:19.440]working on my dissertation about women writers,
[00:00:22.330]when I became very curious about why so many women,
[00:00:25.630]myself included, fall silent, during adolescence
[00:00:30.580]at just that moment, Mary Pipher's book,
[00:00:33.547]"Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves
[00:00:36.070]of Adolescent Girls", came out
[00:00:38.950]and it addressed that very issue.
[00:00:41.360]How girls and women silence themselves in response
[00:00:44.620]to a misogynist culture and have to often struggle
[00:00:47.710]to find or to regain their voices later.
[00:00:51.510]That book has recently come out
[00:00:53.670]in a 25th anniversary edition,
[00:00:55.790]revised and updated by Mary and her daughter,
[00:00:59.170]and it's terrific.
[00:01:00.850]It changed the face of the culture,
[00:01:04.010]especially in terms of therapeutic interventions
[00:01:06.830]that can help young women and girls.
[00:01:09.240]Another book I really loved, that Mary Pipher wrote,
[00:01:12.420]was "Writing to Change the World",
[00:01:14.140]an indispensable handbook for anyone
[00:01:16.220]who wants to do just that.
[00:01:18.540]I was also helped by her book, "The Green Boat",
[00:01:22.030]which is about, despair,
[00:01:24.100]overwhelm, and hopelessness
[00:01:26.140]that can hit those of us
[00:01:27.740]who care about climate change and the environment,
[00:01:31.380]and can see the political inaction
[00:01:34.070]that's absolutely insufficient
[00:01:35.710]to deal with our current situation.
[00:01:38.230]I remember when I moved to Nebraska,
[00:01:40.520]going to protests of the Keystone XL pipeline,
[00:01:44.360]at the Capitol, and seeing Mary Pipher there
[00:01:48.120]watching her give speeches
[00:01:49.470]and being so impressed with her engaged activism,
[00:01:52.890]in addition to her long practice
[00:01:56.000]in clinical psychotherapy and her wonderful books.
[00:02:00.020]When I turned 50, I stumbled across her book,
[00:02:03.177]"Women Rowing North", at the bookstore,
[00:02:06.500]which is all about navigating the transition
[00:02:09.750]to what is, at least ostensibly,
[00:02:11.690]supposed to be an older, wiser,
[00:02:13.410]calmer, period of our lives.
[00:02:16.670]That was a terrific book too.
[00:02:18.370]She has written others, nine books altogether,
[00:02:21.180]including books on spirituality,
[00:02:23.740]on connecting with elders, on strengthening our families
[00:02:28.220]and on welcoming refugees into our communities,
[00:02:31.180]in addition to a wonderful book,
[00:02:33.937]"Letters to a Young Therapist",
[00:02:36.610]which is about the insights and wisdom that she has gained
[00:02:40.220]from decades of helping people.
[00:02:44.315]She's a national treasure, and definitely
[00:02:46.960]a Nebraska treasure
[00:02:48.320]and I can't wait to see what she says to us
[00:02:50.750]in the E.N. Thompson forum.
[00:02:52.740]Thanks.

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Mary Pipher pre-talk introduction

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