If we didn’t stir up any reflections on the topic of time in our last episode (in conversation with our future selves), we’re fairly certain we will with this week’s episode. This week, we’re taking a closer look at the phenomenon of nostalgia, of what really underlies this complex human experience of longing and sentimentality for the past.

Without getting too deep into the psychological complexity of nostalgia (for which there are many experts that you can check out), we explore what makes nostalgia feel so good to begin with. Why does longing, even for a time we ourselves never experienced, nourish some unspoken need? Amongst other reasons, we find that nostalgia may feel good when looking back on specific experiences that were new and raw only once: our first love, first moments of independence, first friends. But it also goes without saying - although we do say it lol - that nostalgia carries immensely heavy downsides. Nostalgia has the power to obscure the accuracy of our (collective) memory and to romanticize periods of the past while abstracting away relevant ‘negative’ details that are crucial for the full picture. Finally, we engage in a playful case study exercise that explores contemporary phenomena in pop culture that, from our perspective, are driven by nostalgia for specific trends and values from the past.

Episode Breakdown

00:00 - 4:03: Lightbulb Moments

4:04 - 13:04: Creative Lab

13:05 - 16:23: Motivation

16:24 - 28:00: What makes nostalgia feel so good?

28:01 - 35:50: What are the downsides of nostalgia?

35:51 - 1:10:30: Share a contemporary pop culture case study where nostalgia could be at play, as well as an example of something we are nostalgic for personally.

Don’t Be a Stranger! 

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As always, we’d love to know: what periods of time/experiences do you feel nostalgia for? Or taking a more collective view: in what ways do you see nostalgia having an influence on pop culture, politics, or society more broadly today? Let us know what your thoughts are, on these questions or today’s episode, by sending us an email at [email protected]!

Sound Credits: see here

References:

Check out Cristina’s newsletter on Substack: Renaissance Soul!!

Nick Nocturnal’s review of Post-Human: Nex Gen by Bring Me The Horizon

Check out Sitara’s somewhat inactive but existing Substack (content to come, she promises, swears, pinky promises, whatever form of commitment you believe in)!

Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov