Browser Bites

Agnes Callard’s article "How to Politicise the Classroom" inspired this conversation between Nontsi and Lindelani on teacher behavior that threatens child safety in the classroom based on their experiences. Nontsi brings the perspective of a learner in a private school; Lindelani reveals what it’s like for one in the public school system.

In this episode, our new co-host Nontsi discusses the shift in beauty standards in South Africa with Lindelani. In the country being light-skinned was associated with attractiveness and privilege for a long time, but the perception is changing in favour of dark-skinned people. The conversation was Inspired by Ken Mondschein’s “Fatness and Thinness in the Middle Ages”.Nontsi Mapoma is the creative director of The Listener and The Browser.

Inspired by Ann Wroe’s “Can Words Do the Dead Justice?” on the difficulties of commemorating the dead. Uri and Lindelani talk about the unrelenting emotional weight of funerals, how burial societies help South Africans cover funeral costs, and their personal feelings on dealing with death and loss.

Inspired by Alex Danco’s “Debt: The First 5,000 Years”, Uri and Lindelani discuss how debt functions in South Africa. 

Uri and Lindelani discuss Lindelani's childhood obsession, Kung Fu movies, many which are cult classics. The conversation turns to cheap Chinese goods known to South Africans as “Fong Kong”. 

Inspired by "Total Beginner’s Guide to Guns"  by John Ramey, Uri and Lindelani talk about guns in South Africa: where they come from, how to get one and how they are being used.

 An Economist’s Guide to Potty Training by Joshua Gans has been described as the greatest thing ever written on the subject. It inspired this funny conversation between Uri and Lindelani, on potties… and soap, and enemas.

David Cooper’s article The Joy of Dogs inspired this conversation about our relationship with dogs. Uri tries to understand how Lindelani, and other South Africans in rural South Africa, relate to dogs and the shift in the nature of that relationship. They also explore the general relationship South Africans have with animals and its connection to ancestral beliefs.

Inspired by David Brooks’ The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake looking at the evolution of family structure and its history in Western societies. Uri and Lindelani talk about privacy, freedom, space and family in rural South Africa. The conversation inevitably takes a philosophical turn, examining how we define family, the nature of imposed vs chosen relationships and finally, how it all connects to the way we’ve evolved.

A discussion inspired by Zhang Feng’s Back To The Cash Age. Uri and Lindelani talk about the changing nature of financial transactions and money in South Africa and China. The discussion takes them to an interesting place: a look at South Africa’s innovative solutions to banking challenges (a popular one involves supermarkets) and local attitudes towards money and their interactions with formal institutions.