Well, hello reader, and welcome to ISSUE #1 of BACKSPACE_, where we dive right into all of the trends and tribulations stemming from social media in the modern day. To celebrate the debut of our glorious little magazine, we have put on a special issue - an all-out foray into one of the most hotly-debated topics of the past several years. Can you guess what it is yet? Cancel culture! Yes, I know it says so on the cover, but thanks for humouring me. So WHAT is cancel culture, then? According to the dictionary (which I am a huge fan of, by the way), to cancel is to annul, revoke, abolish or make void. Sounds rather ominous, does it not? But in the sense of the CULTURE, it is parallel with ideas of accountability, attempting to remove influence, or even going as far as to ostracise or outright attempt to destroy. Cancel culture is a reactionary process, a response to perceived wrongdoings, causes of offense, or spewing hurtful rhetoric. We typically consider cancel culture to be some kind of path to self-righteousness, endemic to the internet, aiming to expel those with points of view that might not typically line up to what we consider ‘progressive’, ‘liberal’ or ‘socially acceptable’. Weeding out the baddies from the bunch then? Doesn’t sound too bad - unless you’re a misogynist, homophobe, racist, transphobe - or any other WEALTH of things ending in ‘phobe’ or ‘ist’. So surely cancel culture is a force for good? Apparently not the case. As the rhetoric surrounding cancel culture has snowballed in the past few years, the general perception is that it acts as some kind of digital-age threat, stifling the power of open debate and freedom of speech for everyone. MANY have decried the movement as an embodiment of ‘competitive wokeness’, describing it as an inherently harmful behaviour that is causing society to lose its sense of humour entirely! Who could fathom such a thing?! Either way, love it or loathe it, the casualties of cancel culture seem to mount up by the day - whether its a chart-topping popstar saying the wrong thing, or Gary from down the road being a bit homophobic on Facebook, it really is everywhere. But where did it come from?
The criticism of cancel culture is varied, and often rather harsh. Most debates suggest that cancel culture is the fault of social media, the fault of the younger generations, taking away the God-given right to make inflammatory statements without due consequence - how dare they? The links to cancel culture and the modern day are amplified by its nature as a ‘progressive’ kind of force. All things considered, most of the factors that warrant a cancellation in this day and age were almost universally acceptable a mere century ago, so I can see where the point comes from. HOWEVER, the true basis of cancel culture, is not tied to progressive ideology at all, it is simply tied to CURRENT ideology - meaning that it is entirely adaptable to any time frame. At the very core, is cancel culture much more than us humans trying to rid the world of what we disagree with, or even dislike? I’m pretty sure that is no new concept, at all. But correct me if I’m wrong (I’m not). ALL CULTURES CANCEL. THEY ALWAYS HAVE. The only variations are WHO is being cancelled, HOW they’re being cancelled and WHY they’re being cancelled. With this considered, is it truly fair to view this concept as a digital-age invention, or just the modern manifestation of a constant human fight for control, fuelled by ever-shifting moral boundaries and the eternal struggle to claim and reclaim power? Phew, that was a big sentence. That is what ISSUE #1 will illustrate to you, dear reader. By altering our own perceptions of cancel culture, refraining from looking at it through the 21st Century lens, we may learn a lot about human beings, and why we have behaved the way we have across millennia - and all of this may go on to inform our own approach to cancellations and controversies yet to happen. To look forward, we must indeed look back! So here we begin our Anthology of Cancellations, a handpicked selection of historical tales, retold in the voice of a stunning, woke, 21st Century social justice warrior - yours truly! Get ready for stories of war, religion and POWER - and I do hope you come out the other side feeling slightly more educated, ready to take on the modern world and all of its rules, regulations and complexities! A quick disclaimer first - this should go without saying, but I cannot, by any means promise that all of the details in this delightful publication are 100% accurate there are some embellishments, some missing bits, some creative liberties - solely for the purpose of YOUR reading pleasure! If by chance you have a history exam tomorrow morning, please return to this magazine at a later date. If not, and I’m assuming not, then… enjoy!
Eve is the O.G, to the point in which we are unclear whether she is fact, fiction, or a mixture of the two. The first woman and the first sinner, her story is legendary, and manifested within various human cultures and religions spanning time immemorial. A cancellation of Biblical proportions, and a tale of repercussions - one that we are all too familiar with.
Her story begins in Paradise, luckily for her. Born from the rib of Adam, her male counterpart, the two were charged by the Lord Almighty to hang out in the Garden of Eden for eternity, naked and unafraid. Sounds great, right? WRONG. Now, as it goes, Adam - who you may know from Michaelangelo’s work (definitely a ‘Torso of the Week’ contender) - was the first one there. Born from the dust of the barren earth, he was instructed by God to watch over things while he was away, and NOT to eat the fruit from the ‘Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil’ (which sounds absolutely delightful if you ask me). So essentially, Adam had one job - DO NOT EAT THE FRUIT - and having heard such an instruction directly from the divine lips of the Lord himself, you would have thought he’d follow the command. And he did. For a while. Then comes Eve, the ORIGINAL cancelée (yes, that’s a word now), made from Adam’s rib somehow, as I mentioned. Anyway. God creates her to be Adam’s companion to live on forever in marital bliss, yet neglects to inform her of the one golden rule of NOT TO EAT THE FRUIT before he departs; he’s really setting her up for failure by doing this. Because God failed to mention this rule, Adam takes it upon himself to inform her, and this seems to work. For a while. Not to side with anyone here, but it seems as though there is a pretty stark contrast between hearing instruction from the divine lips of God himself, and then hearing your boyfriend Adam tell you the same thing - I imagine the latter is FAR less impactful on the ears, and probably on the psyche as well. If my boyfriend instructed me not to do something as mundane as eating a piece of fruit I would DEFINITELY eat the fruit. 100%. But alas, we move on. Avoid the Forbidden Fruit. Even if it sounds oh, so appealing.
So God has gone away for a bit, and neither of them knows when he’s coming back. Kind of like being left home alone as a teenager - there’s so much freedom and excitement and you REALLY don’t know quite what to do with yourself. So they’re just frolicking about, having a grand old time - and like teenagers do when left home alone, start thinking of ways to make mischief. Eventually, Eve’s wandering eye casts over the almighty Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and Adam is just adamant (see what I did there) that she goes nowhere near it. I mean, fair enough, God literally said stay well clear, but with a name like THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL, who could really resist taking a peek? Or a nibble? I know I would. But I’m not biased.
Now, this tale is all about temptation, and as you can probably tell by now, Eve is getting very tempted to approach this tree. She’s not hungry or anything - there are ample OTHER trees from which to pick fresh produce, but you always want what you can’t have, and going back to the analog y of being home alone as a teenager, it’s kind of like eyeing up the top shelf of the kitchen cupboard where Mum keeps all the spirits and stuff. Except… there’s a snake involved, or rather a serpent - who is really doing a fair job of convincing Eve to have a bite of the Forbidden Fruit. Hiss. I mean at this point, I already have a million questions. Why put a big, bountiful tree there if eating the fruit is forbidden? Why let some horrible talking snake loose in the garden to try and persuade poor Eve to eat the fruit? There’s only so much happy eternity a girl can take before she gets a little bored, you know! Seems like a setup to me, but again, I’m not biased.
So Eve takes a bite, and she somehow, props to her, convinces Adam to do the same. BAM! Nudity! Awareness! Abashedness and SHAME! Now they say only God can judge… and girl, judge he DID. To put it lightly, he is rather vexed about the pairs’ disobedience, yet, rather than simply chastise the two for a little rulebreaking, he EXPELS them from Eden and curses all of humanity with... mortality. This was apparently so bad, they call it the FALL OF MAN (even though a woman was behind it, really - the Bible HATES a strong female lead). Yes! So rather than simply cancel Adam and Eve for chomping a bit of fruit, he decides to cancel all of humanity for all eternity. So if you’re ever pressed that you’re going to die one day, you have Eve to thank for that one. Not to big her up, but she did literally invent sinning, and we all know that bad girls do it well. NOBODY is doing it like her. And if she never took a bite from that piece of forbidden fruit…? Who is to say what the world would look like now? We may all still be roaming around in the nude - and that would be my high-flying fashion career jeopardised! I just hope the fruit tasted great.
Moral of the story: snakes don’t hiss. They’ll get you eternally damned. And it’s somehow always a woman’s fault…
Born into a peasant family, Joan of Arc is little more than your runof-the-mill farm girl, plowing the land, helping out Mum and Dad for much of her youth (we all love a humble beginning, don’t we?). In this God-fearing era, the wrath of the Lord is just about the biggest concern besides everyday survival - and who can blame, after what happened in the last story? Your average peasant lives their life humbly, sensibly, and piously, and Joan is no exception here.
Now, France is a pretty rough place in the 1420s. The nation is embroiled in an ongoing war, the ‘Hundred Years War’, in fact - with the English laying claim to much of the land. (The English causing havoc and occupying places they shouldn’t be? Quelle surprise!) While the French have a lovely monarch named Charles, the poor bloke cannot for the life of him get coronated, as the English occupy the place where such a ceremony is to NORMALLY take place. Far from ideal for a budding Dauphin! So as our little Joan is getting all grown up, she begins to hear these voices. Immaterial, spiritual, ETHEREAL voices! Now, despite this being off the record, Joan CLAIMS that she is spoken to on several accounts by Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Saint Margaret of Scotland, and Saint Michael. So… an Eg yptian, a Scot, and an Archangel walk into a bar, and they order… Joan of Arc to BEAT THE ENGLISH OUT OF FRANCE! Sounds a tad on the farfetched side, does it not? I would just order a pint of Carling and be done with it. But all jokes aside, if three VERY high-profile A-List Saints visited me with such a specific command, I would probably listen to ‘em. Not to be an unpatriotic Englishman but… you know, do your thing!
So Joan seems to take these late-night saintly rendezvous rather seriously, and requests an audience with the Dauphin. Surprisingly, she receives his blessing to join the good fight, which I guess is fair enough because the guy is probably getting quite frustrated at his distinct lack of a crown. To cut quite a long story short here, Joan manages to beat out the English at the behest of the saintly voices - fort after fort after fort! Impressive for a teenager, I might add! In fact, she becomes quite the local celebrity - a household name across all of L’hexagone!
Charles is bestowed with his crown at last, and in return, she is gifted with a noble title - talk about social climbing! But as we all know fine well by now, all good things come to an end… Joan’s luck runs out in 1430 when those pesky Englishmen get their hands on her at long last. As Joan lies shackled awaiting her fate, the English are rather unsure how to progress with the situation at hand. What is the right way to go about dealing with a teenage national treasure? A young girl who has repeatedly made an absolute fool out of you? Make use of the Church, dodg y legal systems, and the 15th-century rumour mill to get her CANCELLED, that’s what! It’s payback time for the English, so hold onto your hats girls! The smear campaign begins, designed to cause as much embarrassment to the French as humanly possible. Poor Joan is branded a heretic, a crossdresser, and even a witch - not that there’s anything wrong with any of those things, but it’s 1431 we’re talking about here, times are different, and way less liberal! For a while, however, the heresy charges don’t really go anywhere… Apparently, proving that someone is going against the grain of orthodox beliefs is something quite difficult, even for a corrupt court proceeding. So on to the next one - crossdressing! As mentioned, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this, but given the time and the place, you can kind of see how things went down.
Despite the illiberalism of Medieval Catholic doctrine, crossdressing is permissible if applied to the right context. You’d surely expect that wearing more traditionally masculine attire on the battlefield falls under ‘the right context’, wouldn’t you? I can safely say you wouldn’t find me horseback jousting in a floor-length gown, but each to their own. Sadly, however controversially, the false accusations go forth, and Joan is sentenced to die at only nineteen years of age. Now, remember, this is all in the days before fact-checking and community guidelines. You don’t
need the receipts to drag a girl’s name through the dirt. The Maid of Orleans is burned at the stake, which is pretty savage, but that is just how cancellations roll in this day and age (and things don’t improve by a wide margin for a fair few centuries yet). But not all hope is lost. Because of the rather unjust nature of her ‘trial’ and subsequent fate, Pope Callixtus III declares her an innocent martyr in 1456. Fast-forward another 456 years and she is canonized, darling! She’s a saint, but for real this time! What a way to kick off the Roaring Twenties. Now let THAT be a lesson to you. Not all cancellations are permanent affairs, especially if they’re unjust; steeped in fallacies, lies, and deception. You are always going to get a little bit of flack for going against the grain. Damage control always comes in sooner or later, and you can get your reputation back, if not better! ( Just don’t count on the Pope’s pardon when a dodg y old Tweet resurfaces, please. It won’t happen.)
Thank you for your service, Joan! Say hi to archangel Michael for me - and put a good word in, if you’d be so kind. He looks dead buff in all the paintings!
Welcome, reader, to Tudor England! The population is booming, the country is accelerating into a period of rapid progression. All the while, the rich are getting richer, and the poor are continually worse off. Doesn’t sound like a far cry from the state of things in the modern-day! But I digress.
Anne Boleyn is the classic English Rose, born and raised in the upper echelon of British nobility, never a far cry from the royal seat. Anne spent much of her upbringing doing… well, I’m not actually entirely sure what. Nobody even knows her exact date of birth beyond a rough six-year window of somewhere between 1501 to 1507, so if you ever feel a burning desire to write her a birthday card, accept apologies on my behalf. What we do know, however, is that the Boleyn family enjoyed considerable affluence during the Tudor period - so good for them. As of 1530, a new King had sat atop the throne for two decades. This is, of course, Henry VIII (or Henry the Eighth if you struggle with Roman numerals like I do). His seemingly unproblematic marriage to Catherine of Aragon has lasted the length of his reign thus far, marred only by one glaring issue. This particular era in which we find ourselves defines a woman’s success by her ability to sit pretty, be quiet, and give birth to as many boys as she possibly can. Poor Cath had struggled repeatedly to fulfil the latter expectation set upon her, and NOBODY wanted a male heir quite like Henry. So not quite the blissful marriage then. With the way these unions were arranged so strategically, though, I doubt many of the parties involved were really enjoying themselves. So how’s about we throw holy matrimony out the bloody window, shall we? Who needs it anyway? Now, we all know that Henry isn’t the most faithful bloke to have around as your husband. He has a pretty bad rep as a serial cheater, with mistresses spanning from Lands End to John O’Groats (probably not the latter, in fact - things are a bit rocky with the Scots at this particular moment in time), but this is pretty normal. He’s the king at the end of the day, what’s anyone gonna do about it? It ain’t as easy as taking a sly screenshot for proof of illicit affairs! The king is the highest power in the land - or close enough anyway. Now we introduce our third historical canceleé, properly. The spectacular Anne Boleyn becomes quite the familiar face at Henry’s royal court, and she naturally catches his everwandering eye rather quickly. Almost all accounts of Anne do little more than sing her praises to the fullest extent; she is beautiful, graceful, adept in languages, lutes, and a wealth of other equally appealing Medieval instruments. Most strikingly, though, is her profound intelligence and remarkable wit - making her a natural standout in a line of budding female courtiers! Sounds like a triple threat! I might take up a bit of lute-playing myself, I’m rather sick of the single life!
So the debut of our gorgeous, charming, and hilarious protagonist on the Tudor dating scene coincides quite nicely with the steady decline of Henry’s marriage, and so the pursuit of courtly love begins. Much to the King’s dismay, however, each attempt made is rebuffed by the headstrong Boleyn girl, who evades every attempt at seduction and outright refuses to become his mistress. Is she disinterested? Playing the game of love with hidden expertise? Or is she simply a woman who respects herself enough not to give in to a man’s desires, even if he’s the King of England. Perhaps she simply did not want to fall into the same trap as her elder sister Mary, who is said to have borne TWO illegitimate children by the King! Mum, can you come and pick me up? The Tudor era is weird. Anne’s consistent, yet admirable rejections of the King’s petty advances soon yield quite the shocking result; a proposal from the King, which she accepts. If you’re going to play the game, play to win, am I right? #GirlBossing! It is of course, not quite so simple. Henry is still very much married and well, divorce ain’t even a word yet. You can’t just go about marrying two women at the same time, this is Tudor England, not Utah! So what are we all to do? Twiddle our thumbs and hope Cath pops her clogs? Divorce, or rather, ANNULMENT is quite the taboo topic, even amongst Kings. The Pope is still in charge around these parts, and if he says no, then that’s final - no ifs, no buts. So screw the rules! It’s high time for a little change around here. When I say change, I mean REFORMATION. For the sake of ease, and sparing you, my dear reader, all of the painfully DULL details, Henry enacts a simple, sure-fire three-step process:
One: Sever ALL ties with the Roman Catholic Church. Addio! Two: Create the “Church of England” (has a nice ring to it, right?) and place yourself as the figurehead. Three: Take charge of your own destiny, and relish in your newfound freedom! Now lets sign those divorce papers! Nicely done, Henry. I hope Marriage #2 fares better for you!
Of course it doesn’t. After several years of wedded ‘bliss’, the new Queen, like her predecessor, struggles to provide an heir to the throne - a male one, that is. This does not go down well at all with the King, his social circle, or even the public. Adding insult to injury, all of the charm, wit and intellect that made Anne such a desirable side-piece are very unbecoming of a royal wife, and combining this with habitual tastes for all things lavish and ostentatious and well… a 16th century PR nightmare is brewing! In essence, we’re back to square one. Marriage number two and still no male heir to show for it? A wife that is slowly becoming universally distrusted and adding more enemies to an already endless list? Can we talk about EMBARRASSMENT? I would simply pass away if I was in Henry’s shoes. You may have thought that a way to tackle this issue would be to put that newfound power of divorce to good use once again, but this would not be a good look for the King. Likewise, Anne is far too powerful a woman to let a little annulment send her packing. So what do we do with a strong female character that we fear? Cancel them, of course! History repeats itself. Henry plays the game of courtly love once more, and with Anne now being little more than a headache, he declares their marriage void. Going one step further, he decides to take her head. The crimes? High treason, adultery and... incest? Like, what is this - Game of Thrones? Well, I suppose it is, actually. The absolute hypocrisy of the adultery charges has my blood boiling, but a King does as a King sees fit. In her final farewell to the mortal world, she states “by the law I am judged to die, and therefore I speak nothing against it”. Fearless, graceful, and stunning as ever. Hats, or rather, heads off to you, Anne. The axe swings down. So that concludes story number three. Ample time was spent setting the scene, I know, but context is ever-so important in understanding why we humans behave the way we do. Plus, I didn’t want to sound like a broken record, this story was very similar to the last, you know, with the false allegations and executions and all. Same as last time, and the time before: men being afraid of women who show autonomy and go against the grain - then finding creative ways to be rid of them. Just goes to show: TRUST NO ONE. A man could convert an entire country’s religious system to be with you, all to drag your name through the dirt, ghost you, and chop your head off a few years down the line. Nobody is REALLY safe from the wrath of cancellation - not even the Queen of England! Til’ death, do they part. Quite literally.
That’s all from Anne. A face so beautiful, it kicked off an entire English Reformation? A face for whom divorce was legalised? ABSOLUTELY ICONIC. Don’t even try to tell me otherwise. I know a lot of you out there owe her one!
anne spread 4
As we disembark into colonial Massachusetts, we enter an atmosphere rife with superstition and religious extremism. Yes, the Church and the God-fearing bunch are back at it again with a new cautionary tale. Welcome to New England! I sure do hope you enjoy your stay. But with what we’ve witnessed so far from the O.G English - and the nature of this magazine in general you’re probably aware that things are about to go south.
The 17th century saw boatloads of English pilgrims voyage across the Atlantic in search of a brave, new adventure. That’s about as much as I’ll sugar coat it - it was colonialism, it sucked. These new populations adorning the East Coast of the not-quite-yet USA spent their days doing what the English do best; committing atrocities and taking everything for themselves. God save the Queen! As time passes, contact with the motherland begins to wane, ushering in a new era of isolationism and autonomy. As the pilgrims reach to build a new, civilised society, a TOTALLY RADICAL religious movement is on the rise: Puritanism. This newfangled sect arose from Protestantism, popularised by Henry VIII during the Reformation. What do you mean you don’t know what I’m talking about? It literally happened in the last chapter! Oh, I don’t know why I bother. Where Protestantism may have been all fun and games, Puritanism was a whole different kettle of fish. The general consensus with this crazy bunch is that humans are inherently SINFUL creatures, and especially women. The not-in-the-slightest-bit sexist justification for this theory is that, while both sexes are equals in the eyes of God, women are WAY more susceptible to the Devil’s corruption. Remind you of someone from Chapter One? While this may be some thinly veiled attempt to control women - and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was - the average New Englander lived a life full of rules and regulations, in crippling fear of eternal damnation. I bet they’re fun at parties. If you don’t know who I’m referring to, they’re the ones with the hats. You know, the one with the big buckle on? Either way, call the fashion police. NOW. The god-fearing plight and lonely isolationism of the East Coast colonies allowed some… interesting developments to be made. Now, I’m darn sure that building an entirely new, functioning society from scratch had its difficulties, but these folks were going crazy. They were seriously losing the plot, and superstitious tendencies soon became cultural norms. I suppose, when things keep going wrong in such an insular little society, you’ll look no further than your own backyard to find who is at fault. Where there’s a blame, there’s a claim!
Welcome to Salem, 1692. The community lies terrified and panic-stricken, as several young girls have experienced unprompted, enraged fits and bouts of excruciating phantom pain. Strange, right? I’m from the oh-so advanced 21st Century and I have no diagnosis, so you can only imagine how the locals will respond. Turns out, not well. The most likely, albeit hellishly unfortunate approach to explaining the unexplainable in Salem is to find your local outcast and put the blame on them. How, you ask? Witchcraft of course! You might think that witchcraft has been brushed over once or twice before in our little antholog y, and you’d be right in doing so. Witchcraft accusations go back CENTURIES, and were a very popular fingerpointing, cancellation exercise with the Europeans during the Middle Ages, but not any more. In the leftbehind colonies, however, finding and being rid of as many witches as humanly possible is the sure-fire way of flaunting your Satan-fighting prowess, and devotion to the Lord Almighty. In this ingrained culture, women of knowledge are now deemed to be dancing with the Devil himself. Even if they REALLY have sold their souls, who can blame them? Times are tough! If anyone is interested in buying MY soul, let me know. I could definitely do with some extra cash. It’s no mistake that those most at risk of having such abhorrent accusations flung at them are those on the fringes of society; the misfits, the outcasts, those who know too much, those who do not conform. I imagine a violation of Salem Community Guidelines wasn’t all too difficult either. Attend Church irregularly? Dunk her! Bad reputation? Hang her! God forbid they possess amounts of knowledge that are unbecoming of a lady. The hottest part of hell is reserved for those types. The news of the inexplicable afflictions of the local girls spreads like wildfire through Salem. Trending, literally. What follows is one of the deadliest cases of mass hysteria (and mass cancellation) in human history. You may have noticed that this chapter has no main character in text, and that’s because it represents a pivotal moment where cancellation becomes cancel CULTURE. Just on a local level for now, though.
Three Salem women are arrested at first, the usual suspects. Then more accusations begin to fly, accusations surrounding good, upstanding members of the community. More arrests are made. Family members of the arrested are arrested. Everyone gets arrested. Men, women, doctors, reverends, role models, everyone! EVERYONE. GETS. ARRESTED. NOBODY IS SAFE! The end result? Well, a great loss of life, and for what? Thirty people are found guilty of witchcraft - nineteen of which are sentenced to hang. Some are even left to rot in prison for their unsubstantiated crimes. Were they really witches? Most likely not. Scapegoats? Most definitely, yes. I’m sure the ‘afflictions’ of the young girls were conveniently forgotten when folks realised they could dob their neighbours in for fun. (I sure forgot about them until just now!) I still like to think there were real witches about Salem, at least THEN there would be some justifiable grounds for what we’ve just witnessed. But real witches would be far too smart to get caught - just look at her, over there, giggling away to herself! Cheeky cow. People have DIED, you know - read the room maybe? You can easily see how the moniker of witch-hunting is applied to modern-day cancel culture. The process of searching for, and trying to be rid of some phantom evil that isn’t really there, placing the blame in each and every direction that even gives a HINT of discomfort or misalignment. A superstitious social cleansing exercise that makes us see the worst in everyone around us. Neighbour turning on neighbour until there is nothing left but the dust of the earth. I’m talking about witch-hunts here... cancel culture does have SOME benefits… I think?
Right, anyway. Someone call an Uber, this place is SUCH spooky vibes and is SERIOUSLY disrupting my energy. I hope you all learned something though! I really feel as though this story sits at the cusp of where cancellations feel almost similar to what we see in the 21st Century - albeit much more dramatic, and well, y’know, LETHAL. Where will we end up next?
Our next story lands us in the heart of the French regal scope, where a storm is brewing. Monarchies all over Europe are under threat, and considering that one of England’s Kings had been deposed and beheaded in the century prior, you’d be right to tread carefully, and at least TRY to make your public image as good as humanly possible… right? Some things, however, are beyond our control.
King Louis XV (that’s the fifteenth King Louis, a tad excessive if you ask me) was a wildly unpopular monarch, so it was no surprise that few French tears were shed on his passing in 1774, where he was replaced by his grandson (also Louis, the SIXTEENTH?!). Where it was initially plain sailing, antiestablishment ideas are now running rife amongst the French lower classes. Whether fake news or otherwise, the general perception of the royal family is that they are dusty, out-of-touch, and most importantly, EXPENSIVE. Not looking great, is it? In the 18th Century thus far, the French monarchy had acquired an extra 18 MILLION royal subjects, making the territory the most populous in all of Europe. That’s a heavy burden of responsibility, and a lot of mouths to feed. This population boom, combined with several rather costly bouts of warfare leaves the country crippled with debt, but the public lives of the royal family give off QUITE a different image. Conveniently, all their costs are covered by the state, leaving little for everyone else outside of the aristocratic classes. Marie Antoinette is Queen, living an out-of-the-spotlight lifestyle and reaping the benefits of her royal title, often shying away from the action at the Palace of Versailles. No stranger to sitting idle and letting the important people do all the hard work, she definitely had concerns for current affairs, but did little to use her influence to combat them directly. A bit like when an Instagram model posts an infographic on a social movement - YES, people commend that you’re acting woke, but what are you really doing? If you’re the richest, most ostentatious woman in all of France, and your subjects are dropping like flies, it’d be wise to open your purse before you open your mouth. Now, don’t get it twisted. This isn’t to say Marie Antoinette is an inherently bad person, by any means, but when you live your life with your head very much in the clouds, or shrouded by those RIDICULOUS grey wigs, you’re not going to come to much of an understanding with those you are ruling over. The rapidly rising population in France, paired with very unstable agricultural methods and transport meant that bread, the staple food choice among the average peasant family, is in VERY high demand. A demand that, unfortunately, could not be met. In 1789, a poor harvest and an extremely harsh winter only makes matters worse, and France is on the brink of collapse.
The rumour mill ran RIOT about Marie Antoinette - the elusive wife of a weak king. Her Austrian ancestry preceded almost anything else about her, and with the context of the time, this was quite the conundrum. Austria and France were bitter enemies, recently free of a war, and superstitions had, for years, flown around that Marie harboured sympathies for her motherland, even potentially being a spy - infiltrating the highest echelon of French society. If that was the case, then can we have a round of applause? THAT is a heist if I ever saw one.
However, the arguably most harmful piece of false rhetoric surrounding the Queen’s reputation came several years prior to our story today, involving a scandal with a very large, very ornate diamond necklace - which she allegedly refused to pay for. In reality, she never wanted the jewels in the first place, having her signature forged by a notorious thief. While all of this was TECHNICALLY debunked, the lack of free information in the 18th Century meant that this infamous fable was forever synonymous with Marie, leading to widespread disillusionment with her character, and the state of France in general. So times are TOUGH for the average French citizen. I know how I can get when I’m hangry, so imagine that rage, but millions strong. Not so great. Marie soon becomes the poster girl for all of the flaws with the regime in France - even earning her the nickname Madame Déficit, as her lavish spending was the apparent sole reason for the financial crisis. Even though the name is very catchy, it has pretty terrible connotations. Like in the previous chapter, the evolution from cancellation to cancel culture continues - reliant on a period of national turmoil, and a powdered face to attribute to it. Where cancellations gone by may have been autonomous decisions, made by a few, absolutist, enemy-squashing individuals, this particular tale is a landmark in our antholog y, where the court of public opinion matters more than ever, and cancel culture really becomes comparable to what we see in the 21st Century. Get ready, because the power to cancel is about to shift hands, forever. Shift to whom, you ask? From the few - straight to the many. REVOLUTION, baby! Power to the people! Considering the state of things, it’s quite a surprise that this hasn’t occurred any sooner. Revolutions had been springing up across Europe and the wider world for some time now - the English monarchy had a brief period of liquidation, and likewise, across the pond, the early United States of America was born following an epic showdown and some newly acquired independence. All of this gave merit to the idea of overthrowing the problematic ruling classes, and whispers on the streets soon turned into organised plans, which soon turned into action. #TheMonarchyIsOverParty!
But before we go ANY further, it’s time for a little fact-checking. I am by NO MEANS claiming that all of the information in this magazine is 100% accurate, but you have to take certain creative liberties to entertain your audience, no? One, potentially glaring misconception about Marie Antoinette is the now-infamous phrase ‘LET THEM EAT CAKE!’, which she is said to have uttered upon catching wind of the widespread national famine and lack of bread. This is, however, the 18th Century equivalent to FAKE NEWS, widely adopted as factual in order to justify what is about to happen. Cake or no cake, it sure is a recipe for disaster! By 1792, the revolution is in full swing. The monarchy is now functionally cancelled in the way of the First French Republic; the royal family is held captive, awaiting their trials for treason. Regardless of the many escape plans and garnered sympathies, every attempt to evade their already-sealed fates proves futile. Ex-King Louis XVI is up first, and he loses his head in early 1793. In the months that follow, Marie Antoinette is passed from prison to prison, always isolated. By October, her fate is decided - guilty on charges of depleting the national treasury, which I guess is fair, and high treason something to do with the Austrian heritage, I presume. Due to her poor reputation, a simple strike of the guillotine is not NEAR enough of an execution. Instead, she is bound with rope and paraded for an hour through the streets of Paris, while the crowd jeer at her, desperate for a piece of the action. Talk about public shaming! Despite this, she maintains her composure all the way to the chopping block, which is the admirable, queenly way of getting the last laugh, I suppose. The last words she utters before the final blow? A simple apolog y for stepping on the executioner’s shoe. You’d have thought she might apologise for some other things too, but no. Another one bites the dust.
So that concludes Chapter Five! Are things feeling a bit more recognisable by now? This really does form the grounds for modern cancellations - a rejection of outdated ideals and removing all of those who stand for them, unrooting them at the core. Certainly not the first fall from grace we’ve seen thus far in our anthology, but one that is widely recognisable today, symbolic of our fascination with watching those powerful individuals finally get their comeuppance. Sadly, though, the high drama is phasing out. The world is becoming marginally more civilised, as are our cancellation attempts. Heads won’t roll for much longer! At least there won’t be ANY more French Kings named Louis - SOMEONE had to put an end to that!
As long as there has been civilised human society, we have had FAME. Typically though, such notions were reserved for monarchs or leaders, depicted euphemistically in flattering portraiture - littered with symbols of wealth, prosperity and power. Even then, such works were rarely seen by many, and so fame was reliant on the imagination. Word of mouth, whispered tales of Kings and Queens, their ups and downs, rises and falls. Always out of reach, always intangible. But not for long. As the 20th Century dawns, so too does a new era of rapid progression in technolog y, industry, and well, everything. Perhaps most importantly though, is the increased capacity to share ideas through new channels, and connect with people we would never have the power to previously. It all hit us at once, really. In a very short space of time, humans developed the camera, the telephone, film, radio and television - allowing us all to see the world in ways we had never seen it before. The ability to capture a scene as it really appears, speak to a million people at once, or tell stories through recorded visuals, all universally accessible. While we have been able to illustrate our innermost thoughts and feelings on paper, parchment and papyrus for millennia, it is just not comparable to this new wave of entertainment. Welcome to the MEDIA, the game that changes everything. The sheer unparalleled availability of the media is unlike anything humans had experienced prior to its debut, and it comes as no surprise that this multi-channel, content-churning factory redefines what fame is, what fame means, and how fame is acquired. Whether reading the radio news bulletin, starring in a golden-age romance, or smashing guitars on MTV, there are now more ways than ever to get your name out there and make your voice heard. Sounds like a dream, does it not? Well, as much as the media can be fun, lighthearted entertainment, it can be three times as cruel. The platform that makes you will do its darn best to cancel you, all in the same day - if you’re lucky.
The IT GIRL. A western symbol of fame, fortune, beauty and excess. A perfect balance of sex-appeal and an oh-so endearing personality to match. From the silver screen starlets of the 1950s, to the pop princesses of the 1990s and beyond, the famous, feminine figures of the modern era capture hearts, command attention and have more scrutiny thrown at them than ever before. The early-modern cancellation is little more than just controversy, fuelled by the capitalist need to churn out farcical tales for human consumption regardless of quite how embellished they truly are. We still eat them up every single time, without a doubt. The tabloid-era cancellation is arguably no cancellation at all, simply a reputation-damaging spun narrative, designed to make a mountain out of a molehill, taking a minutiae of salacious gossip and running a mile with it. SOME it-girls from the big screen MAY have had illicit affairs with married U.S Presidents, SOME who strut the runway MAY not get up for less than $10,000 a day, and SOME chart-topping sirens definitely DID have a full-throttle, head-shaving meltdown in full show of a paparazzi swarm. They might say the wrong thing, party a little bit too hard, or, God forbid, get caught flashing a centimetre of undergarment as they drunkenly disembark an Escalade outside a Hollywood nightclub. If the it-girl so much as BREATHES, she will be front and centre of a tabloid cover, accompanied by a screaming headline, some ‘inside source’ information, and an extremely unflattering low-angle shot - all for the sole purpose of flogging as many 99p magazines as possible. Oh NO! She’s had too many tequila shots and thrown up all over herself? I mean, I don’t blame her, I do the same every Friday night and I’m not even going through what she’s going through.
Everybody wants to be famous, until they know the real cost. Everything about the itgirl is a commodity - whether that be her style, her relationships, her mishaps and misfortunes - all bottled up, shaken up, recontextualised and sent back out into the world like slanderous rose-tinted propaganda. Everywhere she goes, she is hounded by men with cameras, desperate for just one shot of something even slightly compromising. Everything about her exists in the public domain - her messy nights out, her cellulite, even her sex tape. Sadly, most of what the it-girl does is no different from you and I, but unlike you and I, the it-girl is a product to be sold, and she has nowhere to hide from the all-seeing eye. Where the media will happily take your money, one thing they’ll avoid taking at all costs is RESPONSIBILITY for the toxic rhetoric they spew into the world. To be in the public eye is to expect this unwavering, unashamed vilification. Every. Single Day. She truly can’t do anything right, no matter how hard she tries. Well, hey. She’s rich and famous - she probably deserves it, right? It can’t hurt her anyway, surely. Because of her nature as a money-making machine, the it-girl is uncancellable, but that does NOT make her indestructible. She exists in an ever-worsening paradox, where she must BE the story in order to be relevant. There seems to be little escape, and where the media controls her destiny, it would be wise not to bite the hand that feeds her. Over the years, we have seen it-girls meet their demise in a variety of ways. Whether falling by the wayside, fading into ambiguity, or something more sudden and catastrophic, the it-girl’s shelf-life is often short, but with the way she is so often treated, consider it a small mercy. For all the glitz and glamour she exudes on the outside, we have come to know that the it-girl is as normal as anyone deep down, and should be treated as such no matter how much she captures our imagination, awe, or even jealousy. Just because she can’t be cancelled, it doesn’t mean her spirit won’t be broken. I don’t care how much you want to feel the Heat, lay off, ok? Even the it-girl needs to Take a Break sometimes.
This constant character-assassinating print media dominated for decades, fighting amongst each other with bold, neon fabrications of the truth. The it-girl marks the final frontier of historical cancellations, yet it is sad to say that most of her controversies are fleeting and insignificant in the grand scheme of things - existing only as a reflective lesson on how vicious the media can be. The higher you climb, the farther you fall.
So there you have it - our brief anthology of cancellations gone by draws to a close. What have we learned overall? Cancel culture is a volatile thing, changing with the times, evolving in tune with humanity and our ever-shifting ideals, expectations, rules and regulations. Ultimately, cancel culture is all about power; who has it, who uses it, and who seeks to claim it. The law of the land, and who controls it, is paramount in understanding how this intriguing human behaviour works - whether that be on the basis of religious doctrine, the wishes of a King, the power of the people, the force of the global media, or by today’s standards, the opinions of strangers on the internet. While the overall outcome of a cancellation in centuries prior may be seemingly far more severe when compared to that of the modern digital age, the rise of social media discourse has sparked a shift in the paradigm, ushering in a new era of cancellations unlike those seen before. It is quite safe to say that your chances of getting eternally damned, burned, beheaded or hung are still, relatively slim, so to speak, but that is not to say that cancel culture’s prevalence in the modern age is no issue at all.
One glaring difference between cancellations past and present that I simply cannot ignore, dear reader, is the possibility of it impacting any of us. The vast majority of us live our entire lives online, sharing our opinions, photos, memories, innermost thoughts and feelings with the world. The days of cancellations being reserved for the famous, the notorious, and the powerful have, unfortunately passed, and while the threat isn’t necessarily iminent, it still is very much there, lurking in the shadows. The reason why cancel culture exists at the epicentre of such a media frenzy is because of how undeniably tangible it feels… we are a mere few keyboard taps and a button press away from oblivion at any given time. I feel it, and I know you feel it too. Ever write a Tweet and delete it straight away just in case somebody sees something in it that is SOMEHOW deemed offensive or socially unacceptable? I do. Ever engaged with content that shames another stranger for an accidentally hurtful social media faux-pas? I have. Ever see a celebrity controversy trending online and immediately rush to absorb the drama and put your two cents in? Even if it’s the most trivial little mishap you have ever read about in your life? Yes and YES. We all do it, we’re human - and that’s ok. Whether as a society we are getting more sensitive, or it’s all down to the availability and immediacy of information, opinions, and each other in the digital age - cancel culture is real, and the fear is very genuine. It can only ever be a topic that is equal parts entertaining and all-out terrifying that captures the attention of the media, academics, U.S Presidents and fashion students the world over. It may be all fun and games when the focus is on somebody else, but when those tables turn… a frightening concept to say the least.
Well, I said all the talk of historical cancellations was over and done with, so what’s next?
Social media has made it far too easy, and potentially even fashionable, to directly berate and challenge those who step slightly out of line of expected ideals. Now, reader, I understand that some things people say on the internet are hurtful, and are designed to be malicious attacks on certain people, or certain communities but the vast majority of humans, or at least I’d like to imagine, do not set out to upset others. If you see something you perceive to be wrong or misjudged don’t be a CLOWN about it! Unfortunately, I can’t give you any concrete methods to avoid getting yourself in a spot of social media bother, without stating the obvious. To state the obvious, though: If you have an opinion that is considered ‘offensive’, or is probably going to hurt a lot of peoples’ feelings… DON’T POST IT ONLINE FOR EVERYONE TO SEE. I ain’t about to tell you all what a good or bad opinion is, that’s your choice - but if you start attacking entire identities and social groups on a public platform, you’re probably going to get just a little bit of backlash for it. Duh. That’s about all of the SOLID advice I have for you, I’m afraid - advice you’ll probably already have known. Nothing groundbreaking, and certainly nothing you shouldn’t already know by now. But how about we switch things up?
Social media discourse is nuanced. Without tones of voice, hand gestures, eye contact, we lose all of the subtleties of face to face interaction. You can’t always tell, when reading a social media post or comment, if someone is questioning, being sarcastic, telling a joke, or just being an outright nasty piece of work. Things always get lost in translation a little bit - and that is of paramount importance to remember. Not all is as it seems at first glance. So if you come across some clownery on the timeline, try to stop for half a second before you jump on the hate train. Is there any way you could educate that person? Could you try and understand their perspective - reach a mutual point of understanding? Or, better still if you don’t find common ground, choose to ignore them or block them? We all are, really, only as kind as our last Tweet, and fighting fire with fire makes us no better than the trolls who have done us wrong in the first place. If your first response to seeing something offensive is to then in turn attack that person - are you really any better than they are, deep down? Don’t stoop to their level, fool! Most importantly, though, is to remember that any day could be YOUR day. People can spin whatever narrative they so desire out of the things you say online, and yes that is SCARY. But if you see another person going through it, having their fifteen minutes of SHAME, just remember - it could be you next. Your entertainment is somebody else’s reality - a real, breathing, feeling person on the receiving end of your hate! Even if you think they deserve it, even if you think they’re a bit of a dick. Just wonder, when you have your inevitable mess-up, how would you like to be treated? So, dear reader, that brings our journey to an end, for now. Who’s to say what cancellations will look like in the future? It has been quite the wild ride. Before I log out of ISSUE #1, I will leave you now with the best piece of advice I can probably give you, advice that you are most definitely sick of hearing by now. Please, I implore, BE KIND. You do not know people on the internet as well as you’d like to think you do. One Tweet does not define a person, neither does it define you. Catch you on the flipside!