Category: Features
-
A Recommendation of Mary Renault’s ‘Alexander’ trilogy
Written by Daniel Sharp Everyone knows of Alexander the Great and whilst some idolize him as a great leader, others regard him as a brutal conqueror. This debate is common to all such figures in history, from Alexander through Napoleon and Stalin. Such debates are not likely to be settled anytime soon, but…
-
Pondering family, community and history in Sri Lanka
Written by Mia Partridge In December 2016, my family and I finally went on a trip that we had been planning for years. We visited Sri Lanka, the beautiful country where my father was born and spent the first years of his life. His father had moved from England to Sri Lanka to manage…
-
In Bruges
Written by Fay Marsden Stepping off the bus that had taken us from Brussels to Bruges, the difference between the two cities was immediately discernible. Brussels seems to be somewhat sterile – too cosmopolitan for a medievalist. Bruges, in contrast, felt older and more historical. It is much smaller, with rows of…
-
Crime and Punishment: The Saga of Sports in Russia Today
Written by Eleanor Hardy Tarnished by endless doping scandals, riddled with corruption and in the deep midwinter, can Russians find a reason to keep their passion for sports alive and are they still being punished by the West for the Cold War? The current outside air temperature here in St Petersburg is a balmy…
-
The Role of Colonial Legacies in the 2017 Zimbabwe Crisis
By Carissa Chew This article, which is informed by two public lectures about the Zimbabwean political crisis that were held at the University of Edinburgh in the week beginning 20 November, discusses the role of colonial legacies in recent Zimbabwean political affairs. Firstly, this article provides a summary of the Zimbabwean crisis for the reader…
-
Argentine Voices
By Anna Nicol It is 3.30pm on Thursday in La Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires, and from the crowd of busy tourists and locals, emerges a sea of white headscarves. These are the Madres (Mothers), women who first came to this square in 1977 with questions, many still unanswered. They have come to represent the…
-
Cease to Exist: Charles Manson, Dennis Wilson and the Death of Flower Power
Written by Fay Marsden California. Surfing. Summer. Flower power hippies on the beach. These are images one would perhaps conjure when thinking about The Beach Boys. The band is most known for their 1966 release Pet Sounds, including songs such as ‘God Only Knows’ and ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’. With their matching outfits, harmonies and…
-
It’s All About Borders
Written by Luis Monroy “Look at the moon. Tell me. What do you think?” I was too incomprehensible to grasp the meaning of those words. My answer was a slight gesture. ‘For me, it is everything. For me, seeing the moon is a sign from God that somewhere in El Salvador my husband is watching…
Retrospect Journal 