I hate to criticize Bob Dylan, but.....

     ...he really should go to Stockholm, make his speech, and personally receive the Nobel Priz

e for Literature. He can reschedule concerts and appearances. Being cool and aloof does nothing for him. On the contrary, his refusal to go gives strength to the arguments about why he should not have received the award. Even if he does deliver a speech within the required time frame, that will not be the same as doing it according to the customary method.

     I teach high school, and hear from a few students why they are not going to attend commencement. Very few, if any, actually make good on their intentions. Families pressure them, as well they should. It is not about the individual, be it a Nobel Laureate or an 18 year old. Rather it is about family, friends, and an institution. In South Carolina, where I live, many grandparents or other relatives did not graduate from high school because of poverty, remnants of Jim Crow legislation, and similar reasons. When a grandchild demurs abut attending commencement, I can easily imagine that the family talks about history.

    Can anyone talk to Dylan? I am sure than some voices were raised against him because he was not a novelist, pure port, etc. Now I can hear them saying, "I told you so!"