Material Girls
195 episodes - English - Latest episode: 11 days ago - ★★★★★ - 458 ratingsA scholarly podcast about pop culture hosted by Hannah McGregor and Marcelle Kosman, produced by Witch, Please Productions.
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Episodes
Material Concerns: Disney Bonus Pt. I
April 09, 2024 14:17 - 27 minutes - 63.8 MBLike the serious academics they are, Hannah and Marcelle not only researched Disney in academic journals, they also went to the happiest place on earth! They made custom Theodor Adorno t-shirts, scooped Marcelle's eight-year-old and Gender Playground co-host, Raimi Marx, and wen on their way! In this bonus episode, they answer your questions about the experience. Sharing one mic, Raimi, Marcelle and Hannah talk about managing expectations, capitalism's hold on joy, the relationship between s...
Disney x Pinkwashing
April 02, 2024 04:36 - 1 hour - 143 MBWhat drove Hannah and Marcelle to go to Disneyland? And what is with all the rainbow Mickey ears? And where does pinkwashing end and real change begin? Tune into this episode about the happiest place on earth to find out! In this episode, Marcelle leads Hannah through a history of the term pinkwashing. She then draws on an article by Karine Duplan called “Pinkwashing Policies or Insider Activism? Allyship in the LGBTIQ+ Governance–Activism Nexus,” to better understand what leads to making pu...
Athleisure x Optimization with Anne Helen Petersen
March 19, 2024 14:15 - 1 hour - 141 MBWe're thrilled to be joined by Anne Helen Petersen for this episode about the popularity of athleisure! If you don't already know, Anne Helen Petersen (she/her) is the incredible writer, journalist and recovering academic behind the beloved newsletter Culture Study. She is the host of a brand new podcast of the same name and the author of four books, most recently Out of the Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working From Home (co-written with Charlie Warzel) and Can’t Even: How M...
Gilmore Girls x Normporn with Karen Tongson
March 05, 2024 05:00 - 1 hour - 155 MBFor this episode, we're joined by the incredible Karen Tongson, Professor of Gender & Sexuality Studies, English, and American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California. She is the author of Why Karen Carpenter Matters and Relocations: Queer Suburban Imaginaries. Her newest book, normporn: Queer Viewers and the TV That Soothes Us provides theory for this episode about the beloved TV show, Gilmore Girls. We begin with a discussion of the early 2000s postfeminist Bush era ...
Sweet Potato Fries x Food Imperialism
February 20, 2024 05:03 - 1 hour - 146 MBRemember about fifteen years ago when we all went a little nuts for sweet potato fries? What was going on there? Well it turns out, that beloved appetizer was more than a tasty treat circa 2007. In this episode, Marcelle leads Hannah through research about the “orange-flesh sweetpotato” and its relationship to GMOs, cash crops, fat phobia and food imperialism. She pulls on the work of Joe Kobuthi for an analysis of food systems that informs her understanding of the sweet potato's zeitgeist-y...
Dungeons and Dragons x Ludology
February 06, 2024 05:50 - 1 hour - 164 MBDo you play D&D? Do you have a friend who does, but you don't totally *get* what it is? Did you see the recent film Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and think "wow, that role playing game went MAINSTREAM!?" Then this episode is sure to satisfy your curiosity about this zeitgeisty game! Hannah, who herself plays D&D, leads Marcelle through a history of the tabletop role-playing game created by Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax, tracing its origins all the way to Dungeons & Dragons 5E (the ...
Material Concerns: Wonka and Twilight Bonus Pt. I
January 30, 2024 17:00 - 36 minutes - 84.6 MBThere was so much more to say about Wonka and Twilight. In Part I of this bonus episode (aka a 'Material Concern' episode), we talk about fatphobia in children's literature, the "representation" of indigeneity in Stephanie Meyer's the Twilight Saga, and so much more. If you enjoy this episode, head over to Patreon.com/ohwitchplease for Part II! The rest of the conversation is available at all our tiers. For just $5 USD/month you'll have access to the rest of this conversation, all the bonus ...
Twilight x Girl Culture with Jackson Bird
January 23, 2024 05:00 - 1 hour - 146 MBAre you Team Edward or Team Jacob or some secret third option?** Marcelle asks this question only at the very end of the episode, and you know why? Because there is so much more to discuss when it comes to Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. And who better to dig into this novel's plot and place in pop culture than Jackson Bird (he/him) who, over fifteen years ago, was a Twi-hard. If you frequent fan spaces, you might know Jackson through his previous work with Harry Potter Alliance or his very pop...
Introducing Making Worlds with Hannah McGregor
January 16, 2024 05:00 - 4 minutes - 9.18 MBWe're so excited to announce that our new show, Making Worlds, begins January 25th! This video podcast, hosted by Hannah McGregor (maybe you know them?!?), will be released monthly via our Patreon. In each 30ish-minute episode, a guest will bring Hannah a text that has helped them imagine the liberatory possibilities of another world. We’re talking sci-fi, fantasy and speculative fiction! Hot!!!! Our first episode? Why it simply had to be about Our Flag Means Death! What says liberatory pos...
Wonka x Antisemitism and Censorship with Leena Norms
January 09, 2024 05:00 - 1 hour - 154 MBIn this week's episode, we're joined by the incredible Leena Norms (she/her) to talk about Timothée Chalamet's latest venture: Wonka. This holiday blockbuster from director Paul King (Paddington, Paddington 2) made many people on the internet cringe even before it's release in mid December. It was notably in the *discourse* through memes and tweets that suggested Kylie Jenner perhaps got 'the ick' from Timmy's performance. The good news is that Marcelle, Hannah and Leena went to go see the ...
Merry-terial Girls: An Incomprehensible Holiday Bonus
December 26, 2023 06:00 - 1 minute - 4.3 MBWitch, Please Productions is on break for the holidays! Of course we still wanted to put some fun content out while we’re away from our computers, so we recorded a holiday bonus that features Gaby, Zoe, Hannah, Marcelle and Coach mostly speaking over one another while they attempt to play Material Pursuit — a game of trivia that Marcelle created by pulling on content from Material Girls and our previous show, Witch, Please. If you want to listen to the whole thing, you can! For free! Jus...
The Night Circus x Reading Ecosystems
December 12, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 157 MBOne of Marcelle's favorite books is The Night Circus, so she decided to be brave and do an entire episode about the best-selling fantasy novel by Erin Morgenstern. Why brave? Well because sometimes it's hard to think critically about something you love! We all know that. ;) This episode, Marcelle leads us through a quick chat about how the book was set up for success in 2011, followed by some theory about reading ecosystems from Book Was There: Reading in Electronic Times by Andrew Piper. An...
Bonus Episode: Sitcom and Reframing Israel-Palestine Beyond Security Discourse
December 05, 2023 13:44 - 33 minutes - 76.4 MBWe hit our fundraising goal for Palestine Children’s Relief Fund in October and this is the bonus episode we promised as a thank you for your support. As of today, you, our listening community, have raised $8900 — and our goal was $5000! That’s incredible and we’re so grateful for your resource sharing and messages of solidarity. This bonus episode is a conversation between Marcelle and Hannah about a paper Marcelle published in 2015 called Comic relief: the ethical intervention of 'Avodah...
Blackout Tuesday x Platformization
November 28, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 174 MBAt Material Girls, we’ve been thinking a lot about the idea of using social media for social change and what those calls imply about the role of social media in our collective imaginations. And so, in the spirit of always historicizing, we recorded this episode to look back on the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 and, specifically, to an online event known as Blackout Tuesday. If you were one of the people who posted a black square on your Instagram account — or someone who thought about...
Patreon Preview: Taylor Swift Pt. I
November 21, 2023 18:49 - 27 minutes - 64 MBWe had to talk about Taylor Swift more — especially as so many of you had great comments, feedback and specific inquiries! We structured this bonus like our usual Patreon-only Q&A episodes, except this time we only answered questions you submitted about Ms. Taylor Allison Swift. We talk Gay-lore, billionaires, private jets, the Jets and holding many feelings at once. Part II of this bonus will be available on Patreon this week to all of our tiers! Join today for just $5 USD/month to get the...
Les Misérables x Encoding/Decoding with Erin Keif
November 14, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 154 MBWe're so lucky to be joined this episode by Erin Keif (she/her) of the beloved Headgum podcasts Hey Riddle Riddle and Sitcom DnD. If you're a fan of Les Mis, or any musical, you'll appreciate this really special episode that covers Stuart Hall's theory of encoding/decoding, while also getting into the lyrics and musicality of the megamusical: Les Misérables. Hannah guides Marcelle and Erin through a history lesson that covers Thatcherite England and defunding of the arts in the 70s and 80s...
Taylor Swift x Intimate Publics with Margaret H. Willison
October 31, 2023 04:00 - 1 hour - 159 MBGiven last week's release of 1989 (Taylor's Version), we just had to have Swiftie and Tay-lore expert Margaret H. Willison (she/her) on the show to talk about one of the (if not THE) most influential pop stars of the last decade. We start with a conversation about Taylor as an artist and Margaret provides context to help us understand how and why Taylor's Eras Tour and the 10 studio albums that led to it have created such a buzz. Then Marcelle leads Hannah and Margaret through Lauren Berlant...
Star Wars x Mass Culture
October 17, 2023 11:13 - 1 hour - 151 MBWhy is Star Wars so popular? What were the material conditions that set the first film, A New Hope, up for success in 1977? What can a Marxist critique help us understand about the film? In this episode, Marcelle leads Hannah through a conversation about one of her favorite franchises by first taking a close look at George Lucas's politics and the state of Hollywood in the 1970s. Marcelle and Hannah then think through the movie's seemingly progressive narrative — and the way it's been co-op...
Bridgerton x Reading the Romance with Vanessa Zoltan
October 03, 2023 04:03 - 1 hour - 153 MBIn this episode we talk about Bridgerton with a very special guest — Vanessa Zoltan. We discuss Bridgerton the book series and its move into the mainstream through the Shondaland adaptation on Netflix. Vanessa gives us some insight on romance fiction as a genre and Hannah leads us through theory from Janice Radway's book Reading the Romance. If you like Romance novels and/or juicy television, this episode is for you! We think through the radical possibilities of romance reading, how we can...
Patreon Preview: Avatar Pt. 1
September 26, 2023 05:00 - 14 minutes - 32.9 MBWe had to talk about Avatar more — especially James "horny for the ocean" Cameron. We structured this bonus like our usual Patreon-only Q&A episodes, except this time we only answered questions you submitted about Cameron's blockbuster hit. We talk colonialism, pony tails and doing whatever Coach tells us to! Thanks for submitting such thoughtful questions. Part II of this bonus will be available on Patreon this week to all of our tiers! Join today for just $5 USD/month to get the rest of t...
Avatar x Hypermediacy
September 19, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 145 MBDid you love James Cameron's Avatar upon its release in 2009? Have you since watched it and thought, huh, now what were we thinking 14 years ago? Were you critical of it from the start? Baffled by the public's interest in colonialism and hot blue aliens? Then this episode is for you. Tune in for a conversation about this beloved sci-fi blockbuster. Hannah leads Marcelle talk colonialism, sexism, marketing budgets and how the interests of white dude billionaires drives our reality. Together,...
Goblin Mode x the Abject with McKayla Coyle
September 05, 2023 05:00 - 59 minutes - 136 MBIn this episode we’re asking why ‘goblin mode’ is so danged zeitgeist-y such that in 2022 it became the Oxford English Dictionary's Word of the Year. Joined by McKayla Coyle (they/them), author of Goblin Mode: How to Get Cozy, Embrace Imperfection, and Thrive in the Muck, we dig into the term that took twitter by storm last year. Hannah leads Marcelle and McKayla through a discussion on 'the abject,' a concept from Bulgarian-French feminist philosopher Julia Kristeva. We talk about the racia...
Queer Eye x Cruel Optimism
August 22, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 142 MBWhat makes the Fab Five so fab? In this episode, Hannah leads Marcelle through a discussion of contemporary masculinities and their commodification via pop culture! They talk neo-liberalism, self-care discourse and the interplay of Trump's rise to power and "reaching across the aisle" through entertainment. Hannah pulls on theory from the late Lauren Berlant for a lesson on intimate publics and 'cruel optimism.' This episode is for you if you: watched the original Queer Eye for the Straigh...
Patreon Preview: The Barbie Movie Pt. 1
August 15, 2023 05:00 - 31 minutes - 72.7 MBWe had to talk about the Barbie movie! We structured this bonus like our usual Patreon-only Q&A episodes, only this time we only answered questions you submitted about Greta Gerwig's blockbuster hit. We talk mainstream feminism, satire, the limits and possibilities of camp, aesthetics and so much more! If you needed a hearty discussion about the movie after viewing it as a thinking person in 2023, then we have you covered! Thanks for submitting such thoughtful questions. Part II of this bon...
Barbie x Petro-Capitalism
August 08, 2023 04:00 - 1 hour - 149 MBWe had to talk about Barbie! This episode is all about Barbie dolls and way they took over the toy industry in the 90s. We've since recorded an episode about the movie which will be available on our Patreon in the coming weeks. For now, please enjoy this episode that touches on liberal feminism, petro-capitalism, the history of Big Plastic, Barbie (the metonym!) and so much more. Over the course of an hour, Marcelle leads Hannah through a theory-informed breakdown of why Barbie, created in ...
Spare x Tender Masculinity
July 25, 2023 05:00 - 1 hour - 140 MBIt's here! Welcome to the first episode of Material Girls, a scholarly podcast about pop culture co-hosted by Hannah McGregor and Marcelle Kosman. This show aims to make sense of the zeitgeist through materialist critique* and critical theory! Each episode looks at a unique object of study (something popular now or from back in the day) and over the course of three distinct segments, Hannah and Marcelle apply their academic expertise to the topic at hand. In this pilot episode, Marcelle l...
Material Girls: An Introduction
July 13, 2023 18:56 - 2 minutes - 5.61 MBWelcome to Material Girls! A new show from the team behind the beloved podcast, Witch, Please. Every episode you'll get your pop culture fix with some academic theory added to the mix. Join feminist scholars Hannah McGregor and Marcelle Kosman for episodic dives into the zeitgeist. Together they ask the materialist question "why this, why now?" about books that are on everyone's nightstands, songs that are on rotation, movies that have captured Twitter discourse — and so much more. Subscri...
Appendix: The Witch, Please Wrap Up
July 11, 2023 04:00 - 47 minutes - 109 MBWell Witches... we're here, at the end of Witch, Please the podcast. If you've been following us on Instagram, then you know that we are so grateful for the last eight seasons AND we're so excited for our new flagship show: Material Girls, a scholarly podcast about popular culture. You'll notice that, much like our usual Wrap Up episodes, this final episode is pure chaos. We were lucky enough to record this final Witch, Please episode in person which means what we lack in sound quality and ...
Appendix: Fan Studies Revisited
June 27, 2023 04:00 - 1 hour - 174 MBFor our final regular episode, we decided to revisit Fan Studies! We begin with a review of our episodes on Foucault and authorship, Michel de Certeau and the tactics of the disempowered, Jane Tompkins and circulation and Michael Warner's idea of discourse publics. Even though it's our last regular Witch, Please episode, don't be fooled, our Transfiguration segment is a HEADY one and Hannah leads us through mind-bending theory about affective economies and affective economics (two different ...
Introducing Gender Playground with Marcelle Kosman and Raimi Marx
June 23, 2023 04:54 - 37 minutes - 85.8 MBWe're thrilled to share the pilot episode of Gender Playground! Gender Playground is a new show from Witch, Please Productions and is co-hosted by longtime friends Marcelle Kosman and Raimi Marx. This podcast is all about gender-affirming care for the kids in your life, and YOU are the intended audience! Whether you're a caregiver, parent, family-member, chosen-family-member, teacher, doctor, childcare professional, or just someone who wants to create a more loving world for kids, this show...
Introducing: Gender Playground
June 23, 2023 04:54 - 37 minutes - 85.8 MBWe're thrilled to share the pilot episode of Gender Playground! Gender Playground is a new show from Witch, Please Productions and is co-hosted by longtime friends Marcelle Kosman and Raimi Marx. This podcast is all about gender-affirming care for the kids in your life, and YOU are the intended audience! Whether you're a caregiver, parent, family-member, chosen-family-member, teacher, doctor, childcare professional, or just someone who wants to create a more loving world for kids, this show...
Bonus Ep: Shame Spiraling with Ely Kreimendahl
June 13, 2023 12:30 - 23 minutes - 54.3 MBIn this bonus episode, Hannah and Marcelle are joined by comedian and podcaster Ely Kreimendahl (she/her) for a discussion about shame, relationships, being adults and podcasting! If you haven't already fallen in love with Ely's show, Shame Spiral, check it out! Now is the time! We'll be back in two weeks with a regular Witch, Please episode that adds to the Appendix! Note: This conversation was recorded in February 2023! Enjoyed the episode? Get more bonus content just like it on Patreon! ...
Appendix: Critical Adoption Studies with Nia
May 30, 2023 04:47 - 1 hour - 142 MBThis week we're joined by Nia (they/them) for a conversation about critical adoption studies — a field of scholarship that explores adoption as a legal, political, and economic institution that severs and creates familial bonds. We begin with a review of our episodes on motherhood, class, feminist literary theory, queer theory, critical race theory and the nation-state before heading into a chat about narratives of adoption. Through a closer look at the way Harry and Voldemort are both posit...
Appendix: Anti-Fatness with Aubrey Gordon
May 16, 2023 04:26 - 1 hour - 156 MBWe're so excited to be joined by Aubrey Gordon (she/her) for an episode about anti-fatness in the Harry Potter series. We begin with a quick review of disability studies, monstrosity, and sentimentality before jumping into a conversation about anti-fatness, body positivity and fat liberation. Aubrey is the co-host of (beloved podcast) Maintenance Phase and the author of What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat and "You Just Need to Lose Weight" and 19 Other Myths About Fat People. Wit...
Appendix: Giggle-ology with Dix McDevitt
May 02, 2023 06:39 - 59 minutes - 136 MBAs you know, we love to laugh! That's why we were thrilled when a brilliant listener, Dix McDevitt (she/her), pitched us an episode about giggling in the Harry Potter series. In Revisions, we talk through Disability Studies, Queer Theory and Trans Studies to prepare for a framework devised by Dix herself about diegetic, semi-diegetic and non-diegetic laughter. Intrigued? You should be! This episode made Coach gasp in awe many times over and had Hannah and Marcelle laughing even more than usu...
Appendix: The Author
April 18, 2023 05:52 - 1 hour - 160 MBWe said we would and so we did! Here is our episode on l'auteur! In this episode, Marcelle leads us through a brief Revisions segment because there is just too much to get into! We talk ideology, discourse, structuralism, celebrity and capitalism before heading into a chat about two dead French guys (Barthes and Foucault) and 'the death of the author." Then in Owls we put our theory to work as we think through J.K. Rowling's presence in the circulation of the Harry Potter series and the way ...
Bonus Ep: Hogwarts Legacy with Michelle Thompson
April 04, 2023 04:32 - 40 minutes - 92 MBIn this bonus episode, Marcelle is joined by Michelle Thompson to discuss Hogwarts Legacy! If you've been curious about this game and the shitstorm surrounding it, think of this convo as your primer! We'll be back in two weeks to add to our Appendices. If you want more of Michelle, check out her podcast Never Was a Gamer! If you want to watch Stephanie Sterling's full video about Hogwarts Legacy, check it out here! Enjoyed the episode? Get more bonus content just like it on Patreon! You c...
Appendix: Witch Hunts with Niki Fitzgerald
March 21, 2023 04:00 - 1 hour - 147 MBIn this episode we bring in a guest, Niki Fitzgerald (she/her), to talk about Witch Hunts. Niki is an NHS doctor specialising in Care of the Elderly and General Internal Medicine. She has recently completed her Masters in Applied Medical Humanities and her dissertation was titled Is Medicine Obsolete? An Abolitionist Feminist Reimagining with Flourishing and Care. Niki joins us for a rich conversation about the shift from feudalism to capitalism which corresponded with the Witch Hunts of the...
Appendix: Holocaust Studies
March 07, 2023 05:29 - 1 hour - 139 MBWelcome back to our Appendix Season — a chance to look at the Harry Potter series as a whole. In this episode we bring in a guest, Andrea Dara Cooper (she/her), to talk about Holocaust Studies. Andrea is Associate Professor and Leonard and Tobee Kaplan Scholar in Modern Jewish Thought and Culture at UNC-Chapel Hill — and she is the author of Gendering Modern Jewish Thought (Indiana University Press, 2021). Tune in for a conversation about the function of allegory in Harry Potter. When does ...
Appendix: Holocaust Studies with Andrea Dara Cooper
March 07, 2023 05:29 - 1 hour - 139 MBWelcome back to our Appendix Season — a chance to look at the Harry Potter series as a whole. In this episode we bring in a guest, Andrea Dara Cooper (she/her), to talk about Holocaust Studies. Andrea is Associate Professor and Leonard and Tobee Kaplan Scholar in Modern Jewish Thought and Culture at UNC-Chapel Hill — and she is the author of Gendering Modern Jewish Thought (Indiana University Press, 2021). Tune in for a conversation about the function of allegory in Harry Potter. When does ...
Appendix: Sentimentality, Revisited
February 21, 2023 07:23 - 1 hour - 149 MBWelcome to our Appendix Season — a chance to look at the Harry Potter series as a whole. To kick it off, we're revisiting Sentimentality with a deep dive into Beth Driscoll’s book The New Literary Middlebrow! "But middlebrow is not synonymous with sentimentality?!??!" That's right, but by halfway through this episode you'll understand why Hannah had to bring in Driscoll's writing for a broader conversation about the appeal and mainstream success of the Harry Potter series. If you liked our...
Bonus Ep: #WitchPleaseTellMe Team Edition
February 07, 2023 08:00 - 29 minutes - 68.7 MBWe're on a break! Please enjoy this episode of #WitchPleaseTellMe, a monthly Patreon perk we're sharing with you in between seasons! We'll be back in two weeks with our first episode of Season 8, "The Appendix Season." Until then, please enjoy a rambling, fun and chaotic episode featuring the entire Witch, Please Team (Hannah, Marcelle, Coach, Zoe and Gaby). You'l hear all about our plan for Season 8, along with way too many intimate details about everyone's relationship to parasociality (ot...
Book 7, Ep. 9 | The Deathly Hallows Wrap Up
January 24, 2023 08:00 - 54 minutes - 126 MBIn this episode, we wrap up Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and thus Season Seven of Witch, Please. We talk about Hermione and Ron's sex life in Granger Danger and the history of white wedding dresses in Lewk Book. And, of course, we round out the episode with Marcelle's Devastating Fun Facts TM. This may be the end of Season Seven. but don't fret. We're going to be back in a few weeks for our eighth season (still about Harry Potter) that we've affectionately and aptly titled "The Appen...
Bonus Ep: Women for Iran
January 10, 2023 08:00 - 33 minutes - 76 MBWe'll be back in two weeks for our final Season 7 Wrap-Up Episode, but this week we're sharing a bonus interview from Patreon. We were so honored to have been joined by Kiana and Vicky in December for a conversation about Women for Iran (formerly Women for Liberty of Iran) an organization comprised of Iranian women supporting the people of Iran from the UK. In this conversation, Kiana and Vicky answer Hannah and Marcelle's questions (ones you may have, too) about the state of the protests ...
Book 7, Ep. 8 | House Elves with Jessica Marie Johnson
December 27, 2022 06:00 - 1 hour - 157 MBWe're finally here, Witches — at our long-awaited House Elves episode. We've been talking about Dobby, Kreacher, Winky and the general house elf population for so many seasons and we finally have a perfect guest joining us for discussion. Jessica Marie Johnson (she/her) is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at Johns Hopkins University and a Fellow at the Hutchins Center for African and African American Studies at Harvard University. She is also the Director of LifexCode: Dig...
Book 7, Ep. 7 | Sentimentality
December 13, 2022 06:00 - 1 hour - 154 MBIn the wise words of Lizzo, it's about damn time! Our latest episode is all about Sentimentality, an 18th century philosophical intervention that emerged in opposition to rationality. Hannah (whose recent book, A Sentimental Education, is all about this topic) guides the episode. We revisit our discussions on Orientalism, Animal Studies and Print Culture, before jumping into an overview of what Sentimentalism is all about— and how we might read Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows as a novel wri...
Bonus Ep: Comfort Creatures
November 29, 2022 14:25 - 56 minutes - 128 MBWe’re taking a little break to gear up for the holiday season. So instead of enjoying a regular episode, please enjoy this episode of Comfort Creatures, a podcast hosted by Ella McLeod and Alexis B. Preston. Comfort Creatures is a show from Maximum Fun — the folks who brought you classic podcasts like My Brother, My Brother and Me, Still Buffering, The Adventure Zone and many others. In this show, Ella and Alexis bring on guests to chat about pet ownership and the power of furry friends! We ...
Book 7, Ep. 6 | Eugenics
November 15, 2022 06:00 - 56 minutes - 130 MBIn this episode, we do a deep dive into eugenics, a nineteenth-century pseudosciences that justified a lot of racist, ableist, and generally violent oppressive behaviours. We review our conversations about class, critical race theory, disability, neurodivergence, and trauma from our episodes with K. Alex, Jess Battis, Tea Garbeza, Lucia Lorenzi, and Addie Merians, before taking a close look at Cecily Devereux's Growing a Race: Nellie McClung and the Fiction of Eugenic Feminism. Tune in OR sk...
Book 7, Ep. 5 | Resurrection with Matt Potts
November 01, 2022 14:19 - 1 hour - 150 MBMatt Potts is back to talk about resurrection! We first revisit theory Matt introduced to us last season on our episode about "the soul" and then consider the nature of Harry's death in the Deathly Hallows. What can we make of Harry's sacrifice? The scene in King's Cross? The conviction of the series and... (Matt said it first...!) the conviction of the New Testament! Tune in for an episode about zombies, Jesus, and Harry Potter. To support the show, you can become a Patreon Supporter at an...
Book 7, Ep. 4 | New Media
October 18, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour - 144 MBWe're back with a new episode on New Media! To begin, we revisit Print Culture, Critical Archival Studies and the work of Canadian theorist Marshall McLuhan before jumping into a conversation about the phonograph! Well, kind of... We take a look at Lisa Gitelman’s book Always Already New: Media, History, and the Data of Culture, to better understand how new technologies are normalized and made familiar such that we forget information is being mediated at all. We talk about Potterwatch radio,...