From the Editor’s Desk

After Theseus slayed the Minotaur in the labyrinth under the palace at Knossos, he returned to Athens with the youth who were to be sacrificed for the creature’s repast. Theseus became a beloved king of Athens, so much so that the ship that carried him and the young men and women back from Crete was preserved for posterity. As the planks of the ship rotted, they were replaced, and over time, all the original planks had been discarded. According to the ancient Greek historian Plutarch, “this became a standing example among philosophers, of the logical question of things that grow; one side holding that the ship remained the same, and the other contending that it was not the same.” The “Ship of Theseus” has been a thought experiment of philosophers for 2,000 years.

Yet the question is far more significant than any facile solution because interplay between continuity and change defines people, communities, and institutions. As the young patriot Tancredi tells his uncle Don Fabrizio in Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa’s novel of Italian unification TheLeopard, “If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change.” Both continuity and change are contingent on the other.

In this issue of TheBoothbyReview, we explore the nature of continuities and changes in film, music, and human nature. We also have book reviews, art, photography, a bit of whimsy, and of course, a crossword. We hope you enjoy.

G. Howard Hunter, Editor-in-Chief

Revision as Resurrection: Director's Cuts and the Search for the Perfect Form

Mike Miley