They are fascinating and addictive. The best so far is of Abraham Jones, who was born in 1825 and was therefore 112 when interviewed in 1937. He seemed half his age, it was said. He remembered the 1833 meteor shower, when “stars fell on Alabama.” There is also an interesting story of one Louis, who … More WPA slave narratives
This title uses, in English, my modified translation of a phrase from a 19th century text. That phrase is “un ojo conocedor” and my title is “That Discerning Eye: …”. I discovered by chance (well, by reading U.S. slave narratives) that slaves and, I assume others, referred to the “discerning eye” as one that could … More There might be a problem with my title
I did not know, and do not want to know, and my father was always kind to his workers, who did not need to unionize. This kind of statement, especially from an adult in this day and age, is not a sweet excuse but actually a refusal to look at reality and to change it. … More On defenses of the Confederacy and Jim Crow
A speech by the Mayor of New Orleans yesterday on the removal of the statue of Robert E. Lee, at what was formerly known as Tivoli Circle. Thank you for coming. The soul of our beloved City is deeply rooted in a history that has evolved over thousands of years; rooted in a diverse people … More Mitch Landrieu
The practical reason I did not go out with professors when I was in graduate school was concern about possible future damage to my career. However, that appears to be the reason people say yes, not no. What am I missing here? Axé.
On Heart of Darkness and Moby-Dick as examples of salvage capitalism: Moby-Dick tells of a ship of whalers whose rowdy cosmopolitanism contrasts sharply with our stereotypes of factory discipline; yet the oil they obtain from killing whales around the world enters a U.S.-based capitalist supply chain. Strangely, all the harpooners on the Pequod are unassimilated … More Anna Tsing
One of my students has been working in queer theory and there is far more of it than I had realized. This piece on “gay shame” seems important for a number of reasons, having to do in part with some people I once knew. Axé.
For my course on representations of the other, I need this article I have never read and also the important Mulvey text on the gaze from 1975. I want handmade medieval boots. They are less expensive and better than many modern shoes, and not unfashionable, and I could wear them with academic robes. I am … More Des lectures
I can write in more detail later, but I do note that when Frederick Douglass visited the house where he had spent time as a child–my family’s house–they did in fact offer him, and he did in fact accept a glass of wine. They were at the same time involved in reenslavement at their Mississippi … More On that Heineken advertisement
Robert Reich on Trumpy’s bankers. Silvia Federici, again. This conversation explains more about your problems than any analyst could. We are asked to see everything but the movement of capital. Federici is a genius and will give your life meaning. Olivia Goldhill on the psychological importance of wasting time. Lamar White, one of the only … More Lire, écouter
coldhearted scientist وداد 