The Newsletter Boom, 300 Years before Substack
Some journalists are turning to newsletters to get their work out. But they're not hand-copying them onto folded paper, like people did in the 1600s.
How to Dress for Dystopia
Some nineteenth-century novelists predicted horrible futures, with perfectly horrible clothing to match.
How Being Polite with Police Can Backfire
When it comes to interactions with the police, the law favors direct speech. But that's not always the way we're trained to speak to people in power.
Eighteenth-Century Spies in the European Silk Industry
Curious about the advancing wonders of the age, savants traveled abroad to gather trade secrets for their homeland.
How a Fake Supergroup Mocked the Real Thing
The Masked Marauders were the cockamamie creation of a bored rock critic. They still sold 100,000 albums.
Poetry from the Trenches of WWI
Tragically killed in action during the Battle of Arras in 1917, Edward Thomas was on the verge of a breakthrough.
The Haiku of Richard Wright
As he lay bedridden with dysentery, the author wrote an astonishing number of haiku. What inspired him?
When Paid Applauders Ruled the Paris Opera House
Professional applauders, collectively known as the “claque,” helped mold the tastes of an uncertain audience.
The Heretical Origins of the Sonnet
The lyrical poetic form’s origins can be traced back earlier than Petrarch.
Reginald Dwayne Betts
A 2012 essay from the American Poetry Review on poetry and the architecture of anger.