The Book That Became The Iron Giant
Before it was a cult classic, the Warner Bros. film began as a 1968 children’s novel by Ted Hughes, though the book and movie tell notably different tales.
Za’atar: From Ancient Texts to Modern Conflict
More than an herb, za’atar shapes, narrates, and anchors identity and political dynamics of the Eastern Mediterranean and Sinai Peninsula.
The Pagan Heart of Florence + The Machine
Welch’s new album continues the band's long-running dialogue with magic, myth, and modern witchcraft.
When the Dust Settles in Colonial Manchurian Writing
Takagi Kyōzō makes heavy use of natural imagery to decry the miserable status of the settler colonist population in Japanese-occupied Manchuria.
The Hidden Aesthetics of Early Astrophotography
Behind the transformative star photographs of the 1880s lay a complex collaboration between astronomers and engravers.
Medieval Friendships: No Girls Allowed
Medieval European elites inherited the classical concept of friendship as something possible only for men. Christine de Pizan and Margery Kempe beg to differ.
The Committed Officers of Argentina’s Dirty War
The viciousness of Argentina’s Dirty War resulted not only from orders from above but from ideological buy-in at the ground level.
Founding Murderers vs. Founding Fathers in Australia
Eighteen stone cairns were set up in 1926 to mark the route purportedly taken by Angus McMillan into Gunaikurnai Country in 1840. Should they remain?
Unforgettable Fire: The U-2 Incident
Reports on the May 1960 downing of an American U-2 spy plane over the Soviet Union offer a case study in Cold War posturing and misdirection.
A War on Street Music in NYC
In the New Deal era, New York City banned street musicians, classifying them as beggars. Some New Yorkers fought back.