Cultural Criticism and Analysis

My Johannesburg

My Johannesburg My Johannesburg

The city and its landscape would not exist were it not for many violations against nature.

Apr 2, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Mark Gevisser

This Week in ‘Nation’ History: Resisting The Beatles’ Invasion, ‘The PR Man’s Finest Hour’

This Week in ‘Nation’ History: Resisting The Beatles’ Invasion, ‘The PR Man’s Finest Hour’ This Week in ‘Nation’ History: Resisting The Beatles’ Invasion, ‘The PR Man’s Finest Hour’

The quivering throngs of teen-aged girls, The Nation’s reviewer wrote, said much more about the susceptibility of Americans to fashionable trends than it did about the talent...

Mar 8, 2014 / Blog / Katrina vanden Heuvel

The Gray Zone

The Gray Zone The Gray Zone

Does John Gray counsel anything more than avoidance of the ideological excesses he scorns?

Dec 4, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Isaac Chotiner

An Organized Jumble

An Organized Jumble An Organized Jumble

For all its postmodern flair, the revamped Benjamin Franklin Museum is surprisingly traditional and constrained.

Oct 16, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Julia M. Klein

Urgent, Unheard Stories

Urgent, Unheard Stories Urgent, Unheard Stories

New novels, poetry and short-story collections from up-and-coming and established writers of color.

Sep 24, 2013 / Blog / Roxane Gay

A Literature of Her Own: ‘It’s Not Love, It’s Just Paris’, by Patricia Engel

A Literature of Her Own: ‘It’s Not Love, It’s Just Paris’, by Patricia Engel A Literature of Her Own: ‘It’s Not Love, It’s Just Paris’, by Patricia Engel

The author's absorbing debut novel chronicles a young woman’s year in Paris, where she will have to choose the home wants most. 

Sep 13, 2013 / Blog / Roxane Gay

Rising Above the Failure of Imagination

Rising Above the Failure of Imagination Rising Above the Failure of Imagination

The conversation about diversity in Science Fiction & Fantasy reveals how racism constrains even imagination. 

Sep 10, 2013 / Blog / Roxane Gay

Broader, Better Literary Conversations

Broader, Better Literary Conversations Broader, Better Literary Conversations

Literary conversations are not representative of the diversity of modern letters. We can and I will do better. 

Sep 9, 2013 / Blog / Roxane Gay

‘Atlantic Rim’: Chomsky v. Zizek

‘Atlantic Rim’: Chomsky v. Zizek ‘Atlantic Rim’: Chomsky v. Zizek

An online dustup between two pop star penseurs shows them staggering through afterlives.

Aug 13, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Joshua Clover

White Wigs, Black Masks: On Surveillance Pop

White Wigs, Black Masks: On Surveillance Pop White Wigs, Black Masks: On Surveillance Pop

The cameras no longer look at us because we’re famous; we’re famous because they look at us to death.

Jun 5, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Joshua Clover

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