Where and When?

Wednesday 27th October at 3pm on Zoom – Link

Discussion

Open to interpretation, and deliberately elusive, we want this week’s theme to prompt discussions on American ‘time’ and temporalities across its past, present, and future. What exactly is the ‘New York Minute’; how did the railroads standardize notions of time in the U.S’; and how might the nation’s many various demographics perceive time in different ways?

All ideas and discussions are welcome – as ever we encourage freewheeling discussion and tangents that promote discussion of North America in our usual, pop-culture-heavy way. Everyone welcome!

Reading

Paul Lawrie’s excellent TEDx talk ‘Race, Space and Time in the Making of Urban America – Click for link

This short extract (courtesy of Rob) on ‘Time’ in Los Angeles, from Alison Laurie’s The Nowhere City

Where and When?

Thursday 1st April- 3pm ~ Via Zoom Link

Discussion

For this session, we’ll be thinking about one the more ubiquitous commercial spaces in America – the hotel. From the palatial history of New York’s Waldorf-Astoria to the autovernacular charm of roadside motels, the history of America’s urban and rural spaces can often be mapped most tellingly by those simply ‘passing through’.

In what ways has the hotel bled into popular culture? How can it remain a symbol of wealth and privilege and yet provide such narrative fodder for horror films? Come along with your favourite real or fictional iterations of this public / private liminal space as we check out why so many people check-in…

Readings

Some optional reading to help focus our discussions include the following:

You might also like this recent song to accompany your hotel deep-dive: The Antlers – Hotel

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.

— Oscar Wilde.

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