Word of the Week: Thanatopsis 

Halloween is right around the corner, so for the next two weeks be ready to learn some spooky vocabulary. This week’s word, thanatopsis is derived from the Greek thánatos, meaning “death” and ópsis, “appearance, sight.” A thanatopsis is a written contemplation of death, often in the form of a poem. Poet William Cullen Bryant first popularized the style with a poem called “Thanatopsis.”

This Week at Falvey  

Monday, Oct. 18

Best Practices for Course Material Adoption Workshop / 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. / ZOOM / Register Here 

Mindfulness Mondays / 1 p.m.–1:30 p.m. / ZOOM / https://villanova.zoom.us/j/98337578849 

2021 Cultural Studies Food Matters Week: Down North Pizza / 4:30 p.m. / Rm 205 / Learn More Here 

Tuesday, Oct. 19

2021 Cultural Studies Food Matters Week: Amalgam Comics & Coffeehouse / 4:30 p.m. / Rm 205 / Learn More Here 

Wednesday, Oct. 20

2021 Cultural Studies Food Matters Week: Dre’s Homemade Water Ice & Ice Cream / 4:30 p.m. / Rm 205 / Learn More Here 

Friday, Oct. 22

Villanova Gaming Society Meeting / 2:30–4:30 p.m. / Speakers’ Corner / Free & Open to the Public 

This Week in History 

Oct. 22, 1962 – JFK’s address on Cuban Missile Crisis shocks the nation 

What is known as the Cuban Missile Crisis actually began on Oct. 14, 1962—the day that U.S. intelligence personnel analyzing U-2 spy plane data discovered that the Soviets were building medium-range missile sites in Cuba. The next day, President Kennedy secretly convened an emergency meeting of his senior military, political, and diplomatic advisers, called the Executive Committee or ExComm, to discuss the ominous development. 

After rejecting a surgical air strike against the missile sites, ExComm decided on a naval quarantine and a demand that the bases be dismantled and missiles removed. On the night of Oct. 22, Kennedy went on national television to announce his decision. During the next six days, the crisis escalated to a breaking point as the world tottered on the brink of nuclear war between the two superpowers. 

Jenna Renaud is a graduate student in the Communication Department and graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library.