I vividly remember when Martin Luther King was killed, April 4, 1968, because my mother was so upset. I had turned seven years old the month before.
The night of the assassination, presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was due to speak to a large crowd of largely black people in Indianapolis.
"Do they know about Martin Luther King?" RFK asked.
They did not.
In his impromptu address, Kennedy said, "My favorite poem, my — my favorite poet was Aeschylus, and he once wrote:
"In this difficult time for the United States, it's perhaps well to ask what kind of nation we are."
I don't remember the specific day a couple months later when Kennedy himself died from gunshot wounds, 50 years ago today (June 6, 1968).
I do remember my parents overall distress that year, and Walter Cronkite announcing so many terrible things on the CBS Evening News...
Listing this 45rpm record of Andy Williams singing at RFK's funeral, on the thrift store's ebay this morning, I got all choked up.
It isn't really Kennedy I'm so sad about––though I am sad for all the violence, I'm personally sadder still that all the grown-ups who watched out for me when I was seven are gone.
The memorial to RFK mentioned on the back of the record sleeve is inscribed with the Aeschylus quote.
Have I grown wiser, through the awful grace of God?
I'm a little surprised to realize that yes––yes, I have.
The night of the assassination, presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was due to speak to a large crowd of largely black people in Indianapolis.
"Do they know about Martin Luther King?" RFK asked.
They did not.
In his impromptu address, Kennedy said, "My favorite poem, my — my favorite poet was Aeschylus, and he once wrote:
"Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forgetYou can watch RFK say this on film, below at 2:40.
falls drop by drop upon the heart,
until, in our own despair,
against our will,
comes wisdom
through the awful grace of God."
"In this difficult time for the United States, it's perhaps well to ask what kind of nation we are."
I don't remember the specific day a couple months later when Kennedy himself died from gunshot wounds, 50 years ago today (June 6, 1968).
I do remember my parents overall distress that year, and Walter Cronkite announcing so many terrible things on the CBS Evening News...
Listing this 45rpm record of Andy Williams singing at RFK's funeral, on the thrift store's ebay this morning, I got all choked up.
It isn't really Kennedy I'm so sad about––though I am sad for all the violence, I'm personally sadder still that all the grown-ups who watched out for me when I was seven are gone.
The memorial to RFK mentioned on the back of the record sleeve is inscribed with the Aeschylus quote.
Have I grown wiser, through the awful grace of God?
I'm a little surprised to realize that yes––yes, I have.
I used to play that speech when teaching the Oresteia. Imagine: a politician quoting Aeschylus from memory (even if imperfectly). No concern about whether his audience will get it, or think of him as elitist, or anything else.
ReplyDeleteI thought the same thing---I can't imagine even President "Arugula" Obama getting away with that,
ReplyDeleteand this one we have now would not be capable of it.
I like RFK's slight misquote.
If you really want to hear one of the speeches by Robert Kennedy a few months before his death, have a listen to his speech at Kansas State University on March 18, 1968. I listened a few days ago and I had forgotten how powerful a good speaker can be.
ReplyDeleteHe announced on March 16th and spoke at my undergraduate school a few days later.
https://www.k-state.edu/landon/speakers/robert-kennedy/
Perhaps the memorization of poetry or the classics should be introduced back into schools.
Kirsten
KIRSTEN: Thanks for that link---fascinating! I am over-full of emotion now though, will check it out later.
ReplyDelete--Fresca