Originally coined by Alfred Korzybski, the term highlights the difference between the mind or brain or thought, and reality. This same dynamic, the question between what we perceive and what is real, has been taken up by postmodernist theorists to look at how we are interacting with reality and technology. The same query has been … Continue reading “The Map Is Not the Territory” →

We know what the rules are when you turn up for dinner. The host must provide enough to fill the bellies of their guest. The guest must express pleasure and eat enough to demonstrate enjoyment, but not eat their host out of house and home. A guest must know when to stop eating - enough … Continue reading Appetite is an Economic Matter →

The most recent Joker film isn't perfect in terms of representing mental illness, but it does a pretty good job. The quote in the picture above reminds me of Goffman's Asylum, where people were not allowed to leave even though they returned to the behaviours of wellness; expressing frustration when things went wrong, talking to … Continue reading Goffman, Illich and the Joker – “Everybody is awful these days. It’s enough to make anyone crazy.” →

"The Benefit of Capitalism is That it Provides the Consumer with Endless Choice" - a variety of proponents of capitalism Well, what I learned from a day trip is that I am not to trust the love of my partner unless 3 months wages are spent on a ring, and if girls do science, it … Continue reading A question of choice: Swindon’s Commodification of Love & Gendered Restrictions →

How do the Rumi quotes meet our the Western, contemporary self-understanding? Rumi was a 13c Sufi-cum-poet-cum-Jesus-figure, who wrote (or, was transcribed to speak) extensively on god, and the human relationship to god. I.e., quotes like 'run from what's comfortable', 'be melting snow, wash yourself of yourself', and my personal favourite 'there is a field beyond … Continue reading Rumi and the Ego →

The best critical overview is Jenkins (1992) it is literally titled Pierre Bourdieu/similar. This will give you a great, coherent overview and introduce you to many of the key debates, etc.Additionally, Michael Greenfell's Key Concepts is very useful, concise and also aware of key debates - it is very sensitively written regarding these. Particularly when … Continue reading New to Bourdieu? →

As a parent? As a patient? As a student? As a prisoner? These pleas for legitimacy assume that everyone else will politely forget that what 'as a ...' means is that you're so emotionally invested in the situation that you are unlikely to maintain a 'rational' perspective. Is that a problem?

My countrymen are blowing other countrymen upAnd I am up hereHigh in the cloudsTaking refugeTaking coverWatching people dieAnd so are youAnd what are we to do?

It is a tense time for the body. We have forgotten that wars are fought primarily on and in the body, and as such our relationship with the outside world is changing. Allow me to elucidate: the Western body is both at once as untouched as ever, and is a sight of a fierce fight … Continue reading To be fat is to be anti-social. →