-
Covid-19: a chance to build bridges between generations
(7 minute read) Lisa Fraser explains how volunteering to buy groceries for an isolated elderly neighbour has changed the way she relates to older people.
-
The Decameron and the power of stories
(5 minute read) Though telling stories might seem an escape from our Covid confinement reality, Jaqueline Silverio believes that doing so will help us face up better to its challenges.
-
Finding meaning in COVID 19
(4 minute read) We should not only seek the “end in time” of this epidemic but ask ourselves what is “the goal to reach”, argues Martin Duran Lopez.
-
Illuminating the “Dark” Ages
(8 minute read) Jasmine Jones reveals that the Middle Ages were not as dark as is often claimed and finds that women played a surprisingly powerful role in society.
-
Triumph and tragedy at the registrar
(5 minute read) Martin Ketterer uses lockdown time to travel back into the lives of his German and Irish forebears, and discovers a world of colourful characters, drama and heroism.
-
Once upon a time there was an election …
(5 minute read) Zoë Dukoff-Gordon on politics as story and why the recent UK general election felt so despairing.
-
Lost in golden times: how a 20th century literary masterpiece could help you cope with Covid woes
(5 minute read) Martin Ketterer suggests that Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited could be just what you need in this time of confinement.
-
The Leningrad Symphony – Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony and how the Russians survived a siege
(4 minute read) The Russian composer Shostakovich began writing his symphony while the city was besieged by German forces. Kenson Li believes we can draw lessons for our current crisis.
-
Promising more than achieving? The French Revolution and today
When it comes to protecting the rights of minorities and guaranteeing new freedoms, even well-intentioned efforts can have unforeseen consequences. As Bianca Costa Sales points out, history can be a great teacher in this endeavour.
-
Fighting totalitarianism: lessons from the White Rose resistance Part II
At a time when many academics were bowing to the Nazi system, Paul Shrimpton describes how a small group of students courageously opposed it.
