MBU News

MBU Artists Express Themselves in Cantos

October 4, 2007

By Lee Engelhardt

"Near the city of Ur I do travel
To the mysterious place, the Tower of Babel.
It was built long ago, before pyramids were born.
It was man's dream and God's scorn

It was built to unify. Of God they did deny.
His wrath came across the darkening sky.
No longer to speak their ancient tongue,
The builders were divided, no longer as one..."

The Tower of Babel by Travis Jackson, Cantos 2007

This is just a sampling of the many works that one may find in the MBU Literary and Arts Magazine Cantos, a publication that allows people to share and take in the creative spirit present at MBU.

Cantos has been providing a creative outlet for the students and faculty of MBU since 1994, and some of them really appreciate the opportunity. "Cantos is a way to share my mind, thoughts and feelings with others," said Karen Kratzer. "Things that I can't necessary say well with my mouth, I say better through my writing...Cantos means a lot to me. It is a way to express my true self and share myself with others."

Cantos allows for a variety of submissions, ranging from poems and short stories to nonfiction articles and visual art (such as paintings and photographs), and everyone is invited to do so. Dr. John Han, chair of the humanities division, adds his own touch to the content by writing book reviews and stated that he translated a few Korean poems for Cantos as well.

Cantos was originally started by Patricia Brawner, an English teacher at the time, and Paul Huse, who had a talent for design and layout. As of March 2007, however, the reigns have been passed on to Han.

With the help of a group of English faculty and student workers, Han edits, proofreads and organizes submissions for Cantos with the intent of providing poets, short story writers, dramatists, nonfiction writers and visual artists a venue for their artistic expressions, as well as promoting literary awareness and appreciation for the arts.

Cantos is published each spring by the Department of English, and submissions are accepted throughout each semester until the March 1 deadline. Those who wish to share their talent can submit their work to Han via email at hanjn@mobap.edu.

As Kratzer put it, "When you are an author or aspiring author, it is good to get your name in print in any way you can. You want people to see your writings or works. This is a great opportunity to do that."

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