kate wiseman, “afterglow”
libertas arts and literary magazine
october 2008
so there are these two young fish swimming along and they happen to meet an older
fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says "morning, boys. how's the
water?" and the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them
looks over at the other and goes "what the hell is water?"
that's not my story. that's a story david foster with writing, photography, business, and
wallace told when he was giving the graphic design." in the older issues, the
commencement speech at kenyon in 2005. his columns line up neatly and the typeset is far
point was, as he said, that the most obvious, more uniform than what you see in
important realities are often the ones that are today's libertas, which is not to say that one is
hardest to see and talk about. end better or worse, but we do regret that the first
quote. david foster wallace died recently. he objective seems to have been eroded by
hanged himself. he was an iconic figure in increased dedication to the second.
american literature. there's not a point to that
story. maybe his struggles to see and talk about in those first few years, a few authors stand out
those important realities went from the hardest as frequent and powerful contributors. zac lacy
thing to the thing that was too hard. few (class of '96) is one of them. his last piece is one
writers attack reality with their whole being the that was reprinted from the semester before,
way david foster wallace did. called "waving the white flag." the article
stands as the unifying piece in a two-page
the first libertas was published in the spring of spread in memory of zac lacy. an article printed
1996. the first band of student writers and at the same time described him, in the then-
editors came together in dr. denham's kafka editor of the davidsonian's words, as a writer
seminar. it was the first time that class was who blended casualness and seriousness, a
offered in translation, and as dr. denham great sense of humor and razor-sharp
says, it was a class to remember. because it analysis. end quote. the same editor said that
was already past the time to apply to the zac lacy set the bar for student publications: "to
activities tax council for money to support the write critically and constructively; to have as
first publication, dr. kuzmanovich offered to one's goal making things better, and not more
fund the first year out of his own pocket. dean antagonistic; to recognize the process as an
shandley graciously stepped in on behalf of integral part of the result." all of these things
davidson college to relieve dr. kuzmanovich of were published in memory of zac lacy because
that duty. zac lacy committed suicide the year after he
graduated — perhaps because of the consistent
the first years of libertas look more like an persecution he endured as an openly gay man
alternative newspaper, and that's what it was: a at davidson college, a subject he addresses in
publication aimed at voicing political and many of his articles. it's possible, too, that the
artistic concerns. their mission statement hard work of seeing and talking about reality
included two goals: one, that libertas would be was simply too much for him.
a forum "for extensive and intelligent student
and faculty discourse," and two, that it would it's been eleven years since zac lacy's death, and
be a place where students could "experiment few, if any, of today's students are aware of this
painful part of davidson's history. the role and writers alike. you don't have to be heavy to
of libertas on davidson's campus has changed make serious points, as the writing of both
since then, too, moving from being a source of david foster wallace and zac lacy amply
critical analysis of our community to an arts demonstrates, nor is there any particular
and literature magazine. the davidsonian does obligation to be serious on these pages. but no
an excellent job of covering college news, and matter what the content of these pages or the
therefore we are no longer needed to fill that tone, we pledge to you, dear world, to make it
void. one side effect, however, is that the good. we pledge to make libertas sincere when
magazine is taken less seriously than it should it ought to be, creative – always, fun – we hope,
be, and this open space is invaluable for readers but above all, we promise to keep on writing.
