Essays On Air

Essays On Air episodes:

• 05.03.2019

  Nimbin before and after: local voices on how the 1973 Aquarius Festival changed a town forever

  The stories I share with you today are drawn from consultations and interviews with more than 60 Nimbin residents, Aquarius Festival participants and Indigenous elders.

  
• 10.02.2018

  Essays On Air: the politics of curry

  Whether being called 'curry munchers' or pigeonholed as authorities on a dish largely invented by the British, diasporic South Asians are emulsified in a deep pool of curry.

  
• 08.06.2018

  Essays On Air: The female dwarf, disability, and beauty

  For centuries, women with dwarfism were depicted in art as comic or grotesque fairytale beings. But artists are challenging these portrayals and notions of beauty and physical difference.

  
• 05.10.2018

  Essays On Air: Australia’s property boom and bust cycle stretches back to colonial days

  Australia's property market is slowing and many are contemplating a possible bust. But today's episode of Essays On Air reminds us that since colonial days, Australia's property market has had its ups and downs.

  
• 05.03.2018

  Essays On Air: how archaeology helped save the Franklin River

  The battle to save the Franklin River - an exhilarating story of politics, cultural heritage and passionate environmentalism - captivated the nation in 1983.

  
• 04.19.2018

  Essays On Air: can art really make a difference?

  Art has always depicted the crimes of our times throughout centuries of wars and humanitarian crises. Can we really expect it to truly make a difference in the real world?

  
• 03.29.2018

  Essays On Air: Monsters in my closet – how a geographer began mining myths

  So you think the Loch Ness Monster never existed? Think again. Traditional myths from our ancestors might actually reveal important clues about the geological history of the world.

  
• 03.08.2018

  Essays On Air: Joan of Arc, our one true superhero

  Joan of Arc has been depicted as a national heroine, nationalist symbol, a rebellious heretic and a goodly saint. Forget Wonder Woman and Batman – Jeanne d’Arc may be our one and only true superhero.

  
• 03.01.2018

  Essays On Air: The personal is now commercial – beauty, fashion and feminism

  Sometimes I want to cheer online publications that combine politics, fashion and beauty for the way they are mainstreaming feminism. On closer inspection, though, it has produced some odd results.

  
• 02.22.2018

  Essays On Air: On the Sydney Mardi Gras march of 1978

  On a cold Saturday night in Sydney on June 24, 1978, a number of gay men, lesbians and transgender people marched into the pages of Australian social history. I was one of them.

  
• 02.15.2018

  Essays On Air: When did Australia’s human history begin?

  Today's episode of Essays On Air, the audio version of our Friday essay series, seeks to move beyond the view of ancient Australia as a timeless and traditional foundation story.

  
• 02.08.2018

  Essays On Air: Why grown-ups still need fairy tales

  We consciously and unconsciously tell fairy tales today, despite advances in logic and science. It’s as if there is something ingrained in us that compels us to see the world through this lens.

  
• 02.01.2018

  Essays On Air: Reading Germaine Greer’s mail

  The Germaine Greer Archive offers a powerful, often amusing, sometimes perplexing glimpse into the lives of people affected by her work, as well as the many faces of Greer herself.

  
• 01.25.2018

  Essays On Air: Why libraries can and must change

  The much heralded 'death of the book' has nothing to do with the death of reading or writing. It's about a radical transformation in reading practices, as explained in this episode of Essays On Air.

  
• 01.18.2018

  Essays On Air: The cultural meanings of wild horses

  Today's episode of Essays On Air explores how humans have related to horses over time and across the world, and asks: is it time to rethink how we 'manage' brumbies in the wild?

  
• 01.12.2018

  Essays On Air: Journeys to the underworld – Greek myth, film and American anxiety

  Our new podcast, Essays On Air, features the most beautiful writing from Australian researchers. Today, classics expert Paul Salmond explores how modern cinema directors borrow from Greek legends.

  
• 01.10.2018

  Essays On Air: a new podcast from The Conversation bringing the best writing to you

  The Conversation is launching a new podcast, Essays On Air. It's the audio version of our Friday essays, where we bring you the best and most beautiful writing from Australian researchers.