Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

David Cole on what to make of the Supreme Court’s liberal decisions, J. Hoberman on two new films that mix documentary truth and fiction, Jean Stafford (born 100 years ago today) on New York City landmarks, Andrew Delbanco on our increasingly stratified higher education system, and James Salter on Ernest Hemingway, William Styron, and how to crash an airplane. SPONSORED BY KNOPF DOUBLEDAY PUBLISHING GROUP

Has the Court Turned Left? David Cole For the first time since John Roberts became chief justice in 2005, the liberals on the Supreme Court have won more closely divided cases than they have lost.   ADVERTISEMENT   The Boys in the Cage J. Hoberman Though they are set at opposite ends of the earth and represent opposed forms of cinema, The Wolfpack and The Tribe share a concern with male-dominated groups vying for power inside “the prison-house of language.”   A Sense of the Past Jean Stafford was born on July 1, 1915. In her first piece for the Review she wrote about New York City landmarks.“Pennsylvania Station did not have a ghost of a chance for survival; sentimentality is not a personality trait of the pluckers of plums like that.”   ADVERTISEMENT   Outrageous Universities Andrew Delbanco Getting through college can be a challenge even for confident students with financial support from their families. For students without such a buffer, college can be a very hard road indeed.   James Salter (1925–2015) Salter, a frequent contributor to the Review, died on June 19. Bill Styron: The Ups and Downs: He loathed writing, he said, every word that he put down seemed to be sheer pain, yet it was the only thing that made him happy. ‘The Finest Life You Ever Saw’: From his father, who loved the natural world, Hemingway learned in childhood to fish and shoot, and a love of these things shaped his life along with a third thing, writing. The Art of the Ditch: Sullenberger’s first announcement to the cabin, when the die had been cast and they were going to end up in the river, was “This is the captain. Brace for impact.”