An occasional Newsletter from Preserved Stories.

Moose stops to observe visitors on country road then continues on its way

During the summer of 2012, a moose stopped to have a look while crossing a country road. After spending some time observing visitors on the road, it continued on its way. To enlarge each image, click on it. Click again to enlarge it further. Use your ‘Back’ button to return to the page you are […]

Pankaj Mishra describes the arrival of modernity in South Asia

The arrival of modernity has occurred at different times in different places. Prior to postmodernity, as Burke (2005) has noted, modernity held the stage. Charles Taylor, in Malaise of modernity (1992), highlights the cultural origins of modernity. Theodore Rabb, in The last days of the Renaissance and the path to modernity (2006) also outlines the steps to modernity. With regard to […]

Communication power (2009) by Manuel Castells

Update: It may be added that the concept of a networked society is appealing but has limitations. [End of update]   I’ve borrowed a Toronto Public Library copy of Communication power (2009) by Manuel Castells. I borrowed it after reading Burke (2005). As noted in the latter link, Castells argues that networks constitute the new ‘social […]

Jane Jacobs “helped us see that roads and buildings and streetscapes encapsulated information”

I like Alice Munro’s comparison between her way of reading a short story, and the experience a person has when visiting somebody’s house. We all know how a house works, she remarks in the anthology entitled The art of the short story (2206), and “how it encloses space and makes connections between one enclosed space and another and […]

Linda Colley (2002) speaks of the life of the common British soldier in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries

In Captives (2002; listed as 2003 at the Toronto Public Library website), Linda Colley discusses the use of the whip as a means to maintain discipline in British soldiery at the height of Britain’s colonial expansion. Sometimes flogging resulted in the deaths of soldiers in the British army. Colley, whose book is subtitled ‘The story […]

Macfie’s overview (2002) of orientalism highlights the forces of individualism

In Orientalism (2002), Alexander Lyon Macfie analyzes the ongoing debate regarding orientalism. This blog post will highlight Macfie’s definition of and his concluding comments regarding orientalism. His comments in the book’s concluding chapter highlight the role of individualism, a topic that appears to be of relevance in relation to the emergence of postmodernity and postmodernism. Definitions […]

Methodological individualism, network analysis, and the emergence of postmodernity

Peter Burke’s History and social theory, second edition (2005) deals with links between history and social theory. The book has been discussed in other blog posts, which can be found in the Historiography category at this website. Imagination in historical practice Reading this book has vastly enhanced and clarified my understanding of the role — and […]

Mimico 20/20 Spring 2012 feedback report distributed by Matthew Premru

As I’ve mentioned earlier, I attended a June 5, 2012 Mimico 20/20 workshop and was impressed with how it was organized. A report based on community input at these workshops has been published. You can access the file by clicking on the link below: Feedback Report Community Workshops Spring 2012 On August 17, 2012 Matthew Premru […]