Professor Emeritus of English
Speaking Guide
Overview:
I am a seasoned professional public speaker with forty years of college and high school teaching experience and a passion for spreading knowledge and appreciation for British and American literature, history, and culture. I also have expertise in instructing how to write poetry, short story, and playwriting. My lectures are meticulously researched, clear and concise, and infused with fun stories and humor.
Fees:
One Hour………………………………………….$195
One Day (block of 4 hours) …………..….. $550
Workshop (3 X 90-minute sessions)…… $650
Travel Surcharge ……………………………………$.67c per mile over*
Original creation………………………………..$300
Lectures:
The Shakespeare Mysteries
Haunted by Poe
Dickens’ Ghost Stories
The Ballad Tour
10 Poems that Rocked the World
Myths and Mysteries of Alice in Wonderland
The Last Lecture: Don’t Just Live, Experience Life
Five Fabulous Female Poets
Secrets of A Christmas Carol
*more than 49 miles from my home
Catalogue
The Shakespeare Mysteries- William Shakespeare, despite untold volumes of scholarship and research, remains as mysterious today as ever. His entire life is filled with unknowns. This lecture looks at and examines those mysteries, from his early days to the so-called “lost years”, to the “Dark Lady” and the greatest mystery: who really wrote the plays? We look at the contenders, ranging from Robert DeVere, Sir Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, and even Queen Elizabeth herself. Of course, perhaps he really did write them despite how unlikely that may be.
Haunted by Poe- This scary lecture looks at the life of Edgar Allan Poe and his work, from the famous “Raven” and “Anabelle Lee” to “The Black Cat”, “The Tell-tale Heart”, and “The Cask of Amontillado”. We will also look at the real vs the legendary Poe and, of course, at the bizarre circumstances of his death.
Dickens’ Ghost Stories- Despite his numerous famous works, few realize Charles Dickens adored ghost stories and wrote many of them. We will look at how he acquired this love of the creepy and read from and discuss some of his best stories, ranging from “The Signal Man” to “Captain Murder”, “The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton”, scenes from Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, and A Christmas Carol and more.
The Ballad Tour- This lecture traces the history of the ballad as literary form from the highlands of Scotland, with ballads such as “Barbara Allen” and “Edward, Edward”, and “Scarborough Fair” and the ballads of Robert Burns to America and the development of Country Music. We will look at classics such as “Harper Valley P.T.A.” and “The Ballad of Billie Jo” and look at literary ballads from Langston Hughes, including one written by the speaker. We will also look at the form itself and discuss how to write a ballad.
10 Poems That Rocked the World- Poetry can change the world, investigate important issues, and illuminate global problems. This lecture identifies 10 poems that have done that, from a Shakspearian sonnet to Walt Whitman’s “O Captain, My Captain,” to Emma Lazarus’ “The New Colossus” to “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night” and Sandburg’s “Fire and Ice”, we will examine how these poems came to be written and what they mean to our civilization.
Myths and Mysteries of Alice in Wonderland- Lewis Carroll’smonumental story is a work filled with misunderstandings and electric misconceptions. Legend has long insisted he wrote this while drug-addled, that his feelings for the real Alice were inappropriate, or that his work was filled with subliminal, even seditious messages. We will discuss Carroll, his life and work, and look closely at these rumors and attempt to find the truth.
The Last Lecture: Don’t Just Live, Experience Life- This is based on my own Last Lecture when I taught college and is intended to be a motivational talk about the importance of living life to the fullest, carpe diem, and, as Thoreau wrote, “sucking all the marrow out of life.” I share my brushes with death and some of my often hilarious and wacky experiences, especially as I have traveled to 22 countries, as I have spent the second half of my life making up for lost time.
Five Fabulous Female Poets- This session looks at five female poets who made huge impacts on our world: Phillis Wheatley, Emily Dickenson, Sylvia Plath, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Maya Angelou. We look at their lives, their work, and their impact on society fighting against a male-dominated poetry scene. Features poems such as “I Still Rise”, “Because I Would Not Stop for Death”, “The Bean Eaters”, “Daddy”, and “On Being Brought from Africa to America”.
Options:
I can also create original lectures for specific audiences and purposes if the topic is within my scope of knowledge, generally British or American literature or instructive workshops on writing poetry, short story, or playwriting.
Biography:
R. H. Nicholson is a professor emeritus of English, a writer, poet, playwright, and public speaker who spent forty years teaching in high school and college classrooms. His work has appeared in The Back Porch, New Poetry, Echo Ink, The Blue Lake Review, Wordmongers, Adelaide Literary Journal, Ignatian Magazine, The Big Windows Review, and elsewhere. As well, he contributed to the professional journal The English Toolkit and was a contributing author to the book From Vision to Action. He won the 2015 Cincinnati Poetry Prize. His work generally celebrates the small, often imperceptible, everyday moments in life which are often overlooked but affect us deeply, perhaps profoundly. He and his wife live in Greendale, Indiana with their geriatric cat Fezziwig.
