What is ‘community’? It is a noun, and has a verbal form, ‘communication’. This gives us the essence of a ‘community’, for it is nothing more or less than a group of people who are in full communication with each other. This full communication is frightening, and many people, and […]
In Focus
In Focus
The human and the nonhuman
Rebecca Tamás begins her book “Strangers” by recalling the 17th century Levellers and their proto-communist calls for radical democracy and common ownership of land. Sean Sheehan She is drawn to their prescient awareness of the need to connect political awareness with ecological concerns, the human and the nonhuman. […]
An illusion of social mobility
I never felt that I fitted in, that I belonged. Instead there was always the feeling that I am an interloper, an outsider. Steve Latham I occupy my present position in society, merely by accident. If they (whoever ‘they’ are) ever found out, they would throw me out. […]
The resilience of cities
We are being sold the idea that our cities are sustainable and resilient. But to achieve environmental sustainability and mitigate climate change, we need cities to prioritise their natural surroundings and protect their biological and ecological diversity. John Elvis Vera S.* It is important that cities minimise the […]
From oddity to commodity
The depth of James Joyce’s writing provides source material for academics and culture vultures everywhere but while the number of books about Joyce are of oceanic proportions those worth staying on a bookshelf are disproportionately small by comparison. Sean Sheehan Andrew Gibson’s “Joyce’s revenge” and “The strong spirit” […]
















