HBO’s Chernobyl and the Communal Nature of Sin
Chernobyl is an excellent show… with its emphasis on the net effect of human sin—the disproportionately catastrophic results of seemingly small errors.
Low’s Double Negative and the Beauty of Damage
Courageous artists remind us that earthly beauty is always damaged.
In the Dark: Some Thoughts on the Best Podcast out There
Though plenty of other podcasts display all the hallmarks of slick production, In the Dark is unique in eschewing the entire, folksy podcast ethos.
Raise Your Voice by Kathy Khang, Free for CAPC Members
Balancing compassion with firmness, Khang leads her readers through the current morass of social media, and offers a thoughtful and constructive way forward for those who want to do more than seethe on the sidelines.
Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette Proves That Laughter Is Not Always the Best Medicine
Part of Hannah Gadsby’s subversive power consists in the fact she still manages to be hilarious even as she refuses to let us rest in the abridgments necessary to her former punchlines.
When Your ‘Story’ Gets in the Way of Your Testimony: Lessons from Leslie Jamison’s The Recovering
Jamison’s book recommends the freedom that comes with simply admitting that we need help… like everybody else.
Hereditary Is a Masterful Meditation on the Horrors of Grief
In Hereditary, guilt is grief’s demonic cousin, and it often makes an unwelcome entrance in the midst of tragedy.
Kendrick Lamar’s Pulitzer and the Making of a New Tradition
With DAMN. and its accompanying Pulitzer, Kendrick Lamar has crossed a milestone, has set a precedent—has established a fresh tradition; hip-hop has entered a new phase.
What the Rise of Time Traveler “Confession” Videos Says About How We View Reality
The convenience of fake news (and current “time travel” stories) may have increased exponentially in recent years, but the tendency for wishful thinking to override our commitment to reality has always been with us.
At 30, The Pixies’ Surfer Rosa Still Hasn’t Grown Up
Surfer Rosa, the Pixies’ debut studio album, turned 30 this year, and it still doesn’t sound a day over 18.
It’s the End of the World as We Know It (and We Don’t Care)
We don’t just need this world to be improved; we need to see it broken and remade.
Grief Without Escape Clauses: How a Cartoon Is Helping Us Mourn the Parkland Shooting
If the heavenly reading of Guerra’s illustration is meant to supplant the intense pain it addresses, then it’s being misread.
Of Jordan Peterson and Cultural Action Heroes
We need to re-humanize our cultural villains and heroes.
No Laughing Matter: Funny Games and the Moral Implications of Our Entertainment
People can be, are, and indeed always have been entertaining, but people are never entertainment.
The Sinner Reminds Us That Trauma Is Always Communal
We are inherently relational creatures, and when we suffer, we suffer communally. Trauma is everyone’s problem.
The Horrendous Beauty of Daria Argento’s Suspiria
A fallen world displays a prodigal beauty, even a horrendous beauty at times.
