Elizabeth Samet

Dr. Elizabeth Samet

 Third Annual Grant Lecture Held Oct. 29, 2011

Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site held the third annual Ulysses S. Grant Lecture and John Y. Simon Day on Saturday, October 29, 2011. Dr. Elizabeth Samet, Professor of English Literature at the United States Military Academy at West Point, was the guest lecturer. The title of Dr. Samet's lecture was "'So clear there can be no mistaking it': Grant's Memoirs and the Language of War." She spoke of her personal connection to Grant's Memoirs and how literature can inform cadets and the public about war and character. Dr. Samet included in her talk an analysis of Grant's strength of character throughout his life, especially during the civil War and then later, as he worked to complete his Memoirs before cancer took his life. After the lecture, Dr. Samet autographed copies of her book, Soldier's Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point.