Photo credit: The Open University
Living with the Pandemic: Everyday Narratives of Resistance and Reconfigurations of Political Protest
At the atmospheric and intimate Chelsea Theatre, a group of academics (including The OU’s Dr Anthony English, Sue Nieland and Professor Kesi Mahendran) and creatives gathered on the 18th April to explore some pressing questions for our post-pandemic world. What are the prospects now for our post-COVID-19 societies? What has evolved and changed within the world of community activism, resistance, protest, and mobilization throughout the pandemic and beyond? The event featured short presentations of academic work, a dramatic reading, a viewing of the short film, ‘Songs of Isolation’ to celebrate the launch of the new book Narratives of Resistance in Everyday Lives and the Covid Crisis. To a small but engaged audience of the general public, Honorary Professor Molly Andrews (UCL, Co-director at the Association of Narrative Research and Practice) offered a thought-provoking introduction to the event. The first half of the event then involved three academic presentations aligned with the idea of ‘Narrating Disruption & Powerlessness’.
The opening presentation by Professor Tereza Capelos (University of Southampton) explored narratives of success and failure in ressentiment within the context of the pandemic. Sue Nieland (Open University senior lecturer and PhD candidate) provided insights from her own research on the silent generation and how her findings challenge the narrative of deficit and decline. The first half of the event was closed by Dr Mark Honigsbaum (University of London) in which he offered insights from his book The Pandemic Century: One Hundred Years of Panic, Hysteria and Hubris and its salience to understanding a post-pandemic world.
The event’s interlude involved a screening of “Songs of Isolation”, a short film by One Tree Hill Sinfonia. This was introduced and contextualised by creator Adrian Varela, a professional violinist with the Philharmonia Orchestra. The film combined high-art in the domestic domain by portraying opera singers enacting everyday activities during lockdown whilst singing. The second part of the event refocused on academic presentations connected to the idea of ‘Narrating Past & Possible Futures’. Professor Kesi Mahendran and Dr Anthony English (both of the Open University) explored how the public’s relationship with nation-state borders offers insights into their future understanding of multilateralism and immigration. Professor Catarina Kinnvall (Lund University) explored the impact that Hindutva (Hinda nationalism) had on India’s response to the global pandemic.
The final academic presentation was by Professor Corinne Squire (Bristol University) who discussed the experiences of those living with HIV and the impact of the global pandemic on their access to health resources. The event closed with an impactful reading of extracts from Albert Camus’ The Plague by Professor Paul Nesbitt-Larking (Huron University). Kesi Mahendran then invited comments and questions from the audience to further explore the ideas discussed and the themes of the book (a discussion which continued at the drinks reception in the adjacent theatre bar).
To discover more about the book, Narratives of Resistance in Everyday Lives and the Covid Crisis, please follow the link.
OU Psychology & Counselling 