The Transgressive Subtext of Teen Surf Movies
Surf movies of the 1950s and 1960s only seemed squeaky-clean. Just beneath the surface was rebellion, rule-bending, and an embrace of the "other."
When Death Was Women’s Business
In the 19th century, women called "watchers" tended to the dying and the dead.
What Reformers Learned When They Visited 1830s Brothels
Middle class members of the New York Female Moral Reform Society visited brothels to save women from sin. What they actually encountered surprised them.
Was Modernism Meant to Keep the Working Classes Out?
In the 19th century, more working class readers started partaking in contemporary fiction. Modernist literature, however, was specifically not for them.
Give These Adorable Seals More Privacy!
When viewing boats come too close, seals and their pups stampede into the water. Scientists say it exhausts the animals.
Our Sinking Cities
From Venice to Tehran to Shanghai, many cities are steadily sinking into the earth. There might not be any way to stop it.
When Buddhism Came to America
Buddhism was embraced by the Beats of 1950s America. But some Buddhists felt these converts were engaging with the practice in a shallow way.
Samuel Beckett and the Theatre of Resistance
The dark, absurdist humor of Samuel Beckett's work was directly informed by his time in the French Resistance during World War II.
When Home Ec Classes Borrowed Babies
In the early-to-mid 20th century, foster children in Canada and elsewhere were placed in practice homes and cared for by home economics students.