ISSUE 107 by The Magdalen

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Editor In-Chief

Hello again!

Once more we return for an academic year filled with fun, fond memories, and the most important thing of all: another run of The Magdalen. We knew you were thinking it, we’re just putting it into words. First, let us thank our predecessors Roshni and Mariya for their work last year, you guys are our inspiration!

Creative Directors

Our wonderful team will be bringing you invigorating content throughout 2024/25, beginning with this first issue on the theme of ‘Repurpose’.

This theme seemed apt for this new year of The Magdalen. Everything we encounter in life, from music to buildings, is created through the reconfiguration of things that have come before. If not for the pieces of the past, how would we build the future?

Please do enjoy. With love,

Hola!

Congratulations on a new year at university! If you’re just starting, welcome to the party. If you’re going into your last year like us… you got this! We hope you’ve enjoyed your summer and are now refreshed and excited. Our summer has involved a lot of work on the redesign of the Mag - colours and typography, so many hours and choices to make. We hope you like the final product! So excited to see it printed! We want to give a really warm welcome to our new EditorIn-Chief Hannah and our Deputy EIC Arianna! We’re loving the work and direction they’re putting into the Mag.

Thank you to all our members who have put time aside during the summer to design, write, edit, illustrate and photograph for the Mag! You make the Mag what it is.

Lots of love, & &

What's

Healthcare Issues All Over the UK

Health is one of the main pillars of people’s lives and access to the healthcare system is an important part of it. For a very long time, many have faced difficulty in accessing this service as there is discrimination/selectivity in terms of who has priority to see a GP, as well as the ineffectiveness of these meetings, and the quality of services. While the situation is frustrating for locals, for immigrants it is even more difficult. For them, it can take up to three weeks to get an appointment. Discrimination is very prevalent in society, but when the question is one of healthcare, it is especially serious.

Pharmacies contribute to these issues; I could not believe most pharmacies only open until 6PM. Diseases don’t follow schedules and sometimes the situation does not allow us to wait. We

Healthcare All the

need alternatives for buying medicine and getting treatment since pharmacists are not allowed to examine us due to restrictions on physical contact. I went to a pharmacy myself when I was bitten by a tick, I needed to remove it and get iodine or hydrogen peroxide. Not only was there only one pharmacy open after 6PM, but there was nothing they could do to help me, as they didn’t have anything I needed, and I was told that the pharmacist has no right to touch patients. I still don’t understand why there is a special room for the examination of patients when it cannot be used as intended. Weeks later, I found out about an ‘out of hours rota’ of the NHS that a patient can inquire about by calling NHS Direct and getting prescribed medication in case of an emergency. I was disappointed that I was not informed about it before, and I can hardly imagine how many still don’t know about it. I believe that if a pharmacy cannot provide medicine or treatment, they need to at least direct a customer to other options, which unfortunately happens very rarely- either due to the protocol, or for other unknown reasons.

Everyone in the UK knows how difficult it is to get a GP appointment. Our lives are so busy and filled with different tasks, and the entire system is so inconvenient that it makes people take the risk of leaving a problem and hoping for the best, rather than trying to prevent disease before the major consequences occur. I was so shocked when I was told by my friend in Dundee that she couldn’t get a vaccine for rabies straight away when she was scratched by a street cat. Even though she would willingly pay for it herself, she

was told to first approach her GP, as it is a requirement to get treatment.

Even though it was quite a fair rule, in practice it doesn’t always work this way. Knowing how the system works, and how long and tiring the process is, many decide to put aside the problem and just wait, as she did. A tiny scratch may seem like nothing, but once symptoms begin, rabies causes death within a few days.

The state needs to pay closer attention to this issue as the decrease in the level of our healthcare service is obvious, and the situation can be changed only by the government as thie local council doesn’t have the power to do it.

People are either desperate to see a doctor as they have tried everything and it didn’t help, or they put their lives at stake as they don’t want to call the NHS and be on the phone for hours, sometimes waiting weeks before seeing their doctors. It seems that it’s a personal choice to take a risk, however talking about thousands and thousands of people across the UK, the steady decrease

in the people’s overall state of health will eventually cause many of them to go to work ill, to have low productivity and thus causing the economy of the whole country to go down because of the weakened workforce. Then the state would need to provide these people with financial support, which is also just an additional cost for the country.

Isn’t it easier to make the healthcare system more open, and encourage more independent healthcare services so the NHS is not overwhelmed with patients, and all people can get to be examined rather quickly? According to the University of Sheffield, “reduced productivity at work due to ‘presenteeism’ or working while being unwell is a widespread phenomenon in the UK”, supporting the argument about the decreasing health of the nation. The nurse crisis in England is another bell for change as it can reach Scotland in no time. The Guardian raised this issue quite a few times as there is a shortage of nurse staff in the hospitals, and there is a reduction in the will of students to continue doing medicine because of the massive debts after graduation, and a low level of income after the deduction of the loan.

Compared with Ukraine where state medicine is also not on the highest level, there is an option for everyone to approach a private doctor to get treatment

Everyone in the UK knows how difficult it is to get a GP appointment. Our lives are so busy and filled with different tasks, and the entire system is so inconvenient that it makes people take the risk of leaving a problem and hoping for the best

for affordable prices while in the UK the difference between state medicine and private care is enormous. There should either be more investments in the NHS, hiring more staff, and collaboration between the private sector and state hospitals, or changing conditions and issuing licenses for the private sector, under which it will be easier for them to open new hospitals. This does not mean that hospitals will operate according to lower standards, but on the contrary, they will have greater efficiency, since they will compete with free public medicine and will be interested in increasing the clientele by improving the quality of services.

A private health consultancy would make a huge difference as an alternative to a GP. Not only would it allow people to have a choice, but it would also create additional working places and a real opportunity to

easily get accepted- without the need to pay hundreds of pounds to the private clinic or go to the state clinic just to be told to take paracetamol. This way, people will be able to get diagnosed and will have an idea of their future actions. Then, many would want to continue getting treated in the state or private hospital of their choice depending on their financial situation.

For NHS trusts, building new hospitals or redeveloping existing ones should be a top priority. Healthy competition for private dentists, private clinics, and state hospitals will cause the prices to go down, and the level of service will be higher everywhere, benefitting everyone. Getting medicine is difficult, and there is no way to prevent diseases. If a person gives their consent to be treated, they should have a right to be treated immediately, if the condition can be improved quickly by medicine.

Awareness of people is another complicated issue. I know Scottish families who don’t even have thermometers at home. Just thinking about it makes me so sad and disappointed, as people just don’t know how to take care of themselves in a real way. It may seem alright now but after a certain age, the overall state of a person’s health could be much worse unless they take precautions beforehand. If the system is not letting people see a GP and ordering medicine can take up to a few days, I believe there should be some sort of advertisement of basic preventative measures that can either help to prevent

the disease from spreading or how to treat it in the first stages without the involvement of a doctor. There should be something more than just general recommendations of taking a walk out in the fresh air or using paracetamol as some kind of a magical pill for everything when it’s not actually a cure but just a way to relieve the pain for a brief period of time.

The state needs to pay closer attention to this issue as the decrease in the level of our healthcare service is obvious, and the situation can be changed only by the government as the local council doesn’t have the power to do it. Choice has always been the most desirable thing the people could be given. A person should have the right to make this choice between private or state medicine, and this choice should be made available as unfortunately, many people just don’t have an opportunity to use any of the available services. Citizens of Dundee, as well as all other cities, should have a real choice of how to get treated, without a huge gap in the quality of the service or unbelievably high prices because of the absence of competition.

The Struggle for Originality in Music

The power of music lies in how it can connect to everyone. There are thousands of genres out there to listen to, which means there is music for everyone to enjoy and cherish. With such a large scale of genres, many songs can grab our attention as we connect to their memorable melodies, chord progressions, and lyrics. Allowing us to relate to their music through the emotions that we feel but perhaps cannot express highlights their authenticity and originality. For me, this shows the beauty of music, as through our related experiences it can bring us together.

As the years go on and more songs get released, however, it can perhaps be a challenge for artists to create an original sound and have a connection with their listeners. There are only a certain number of musical scales and progressions out there, and with artists hoping to become the next ‘big thing’ it seems they perhaps will have to look back at the those that came before them for some inspiration. This does not come without controversy, as the lines between inspiration and plagiarism begin to cross when samples and interpolations of songs are used from other artists.

Sampling is when artists take a section of a pre-recorded song and use it within their own. For example, the melody within ABBA’s 1979 ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’ (a song that is sure to get you on the dancefloor) is sampled throughout Madonna’s 2005 ‘Hung Up’. It is said that Madonna actually begged ABBA to let her use their sample, and it is a good thing they said yes, or we would not have such a great party song! However, it is a wonder why an artist as big as Madonna would need to use another band’s record when she has been in the industry for decades and written some of the most

iconic music out there. She successfully combines the past and present, showing recognition to ABBA whilst creating her own modern and upbeat sound, but not without raising questions surrounding her intentions and musical creativity.

On the other hand, interpolation is when a melody is taken from an existing song and used in a new one. Much like sampling, this brings a discussion of how some musicians could be lacking originality and authenticity. Why do we want to recreate something if, due to past and present artists, music has so much stylistic range? An obvious example of interpolation is the use of Haddaway’s ‘What is Love’ within modern popstar Anne-Marie’s ‘Baby Don’t

Hurt Me’ (2023). The original is a well-known dance classic, and it is a song people have loved since its release in 1993. Although Marie has differing verses in her song, it is her chorus, the same as Haddaway’s, which is the most recognisable part. Perhaps this was some sort of strategy from the singer, as she knew she could draw in listeners by keeping the catchy chorus. In my opinion, this lacks creativity as we have all heard it before, this frequent recreation of songs suggesting that there might be a growing struggle for artists to make something original. It seems that using popular, preexisting songs guarantees sustainability within the music industry, which ultimately places relevancy over invention as they release recycled, ingenuine music.

There are also very serious consequences for artists when it comes to sampling and interpolation. They can be sued by the musicians

they take inspiration from and have to surrender the royalties to their song. This happened to the famous singer Ariana Grande, as her hit song ‘7 Rings’ from the album Thank U, Next, which entered the charts in 2019, gained some backlash over the similarity of the melody within the song to ‘My Favourite Things’ from The Sound of Music (1965). This led to Grande having to give 90% of her royalties to the original song writers, thus making her only 10% from one of her most popular songs to date.

Overall, it is clear originality in music is a complex topic. From sampling and using interpolation of songs we are constantly looking back to the past to create something for the present. This is not always negative as many artists pay tribute to the past, but the deeper issue lies in the question of whether we will ever be able to move forward. Will artists begin creating a new sound, or will the struggles of originality forever be an obstacle?

SOMETHING JUTE, SOMETHING POVERTY, SOMETHING NEW?

It’s dead—a wasteland. Local sentiments about Dundee may differ from what tourist brochures might say, and I think Mark Renton, Ewan McGregor’s character in Trainspotting (1996), puts it best: ‘It’s shite being Scottish...’

Much of this is because of the majority working-class population being affected by late-stage capitalism, the pandemic aftermath, and a continuing distrust in authorities who neglect existing drug, social, and structural issues and instead invest in new developments. The idea of expansion remains fundamental to the rebranding of contemporary Dundee, an attempt to ‘discover’ something after the old colonial ghost of success

in the Industrial Revolution has been wrung out. Something jute, something poverty, something new?

I beg to differ. There are people and places everywhere that have and will continue to form diverse methods of expression, even where creativity is neglected. I do not disillusion myself from the reality of Dundee’s afflictions—I know it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows—but our claim to be the sunniest city in Scotland can often be seen through glints between the gaps.

I like to look at the Keiller Centre (the old Forum Centre) as an example. It is a former shopping centre that declined in its foot traffic over the years and ultimately became an eerie

time capsule filled with shut units and only a few businesses that could stick out after waning interest in its development. Now, however, it hosts many bubbles of the contemporary art world, engaging with the local community and talents: City Flowers Garden Studio (a reimagining of the former flower shop) using the arts to create workshops about sustainability, Federation Gallery hosting a musical event during the 2023 Art Night festival, and Volk Gallery repurposing a nappy disposal machine to dispense art for three quid. All three place a precedent on the cultural reinvigoration of the centre, reusing spaces to nourish the creativity that Dundee has always had.

To quote the Keiller Centre’s new management, ‘This connection presents a remarkable opportunity

to exemplify a novel and more sustainable lifestyle—one that encompasses not only work and commerce but also a deep sense of care.’ [1] They go on further to highlight the values foundational to the reestablishment of the centre.

It may be easy to distrust efforts made to nourish Dundee’s creativity after a lot of deprivation and proximity to the ‘pretentiousness’ that art can have. Yet, the ideals differ from what might be assumed. The people of Dundee are not a means to an end, and we make space for each other to thrive.

[1] The Keiller Centre. (n.d.). The Keiller Centre | Community | Chapel Street, Dundee, UK. [online] Available at: https://www.thekeillercentre.com/.

Visions of Depravity:

Thoughts on Flannery O’Connor’s Reinvented Gothic

The American gothic is a genre bound tightly to the past. Tapping into a cultural consciousness stricken with fear, it is preoccupied with the dead, the gone, the unknown, and spectres of such that linger in modernity. Eric Savoy describes this as the meeting point of fear and sorrow, when the agreeable ‘now’ is shattered by the legacy of ‘then,’ and the intangible atrocities of times gone by are granted form. It is for this reason that the work of twentieth century gothic maven Flannery O’Connor is so intriguing, for in her southern tales of violence and grotesquery, degeneracy comes not from behind, but instead lies squarely ahead.

I present O’Connor’s 1960 novel The Violent Bear It Away, which centres Tarwater, the nephew and kidnapee of a self-proclaimed prophet. Reentering society, he swings between the poles of carrying out and rejecting his mad uncle’s legacy. He is met by a city’s worth of people blind to his message, and none more so than his closest living relative, a schoolteacher named Rayber. Rayber is an intellectual, disillusioned with faith and instead holding closely the ideals of understanding and productivity.

For this reason, he holds no love for his disabled son, Bishop, actively suppressing any and all affection on account of it being ‘illogical.’ He regards Bishop only in terms of his future intellectual exploits and employment prospects; Rayber assumes he will have none, and thus sees no point in loving him. He regards Tarwater similarly, seeing him not as the troubled boy he is but the respectable man he could one day be, with sufficient deprogramming of his fanatical beliefs.

Rayber’s cold logicality reads as O’Connor’s indictment of a society fixated on moving forward. With this fixation comes the decay of so-called pointless values—chiefly, the unconditional love for those close to us. It is not the legacy of a dark past that echoes to the present, but a fallen, future society that, through the fervent pursuit of productivity, has forgotten how to love. While critical, I do not believe O’Connor is assaulting all things forwardthinking. Rather, in her inversion of the American gothic archetype, she issues a warning to a society running from its own past. In the flight from all we have left behind, we must be wary, lest we become blind to what awaits us.

CONTENT WARNING: MENTIONS OF SEX

A Poor Things Review

Since its release, Poor Things (2024) has been the subject of discourse due to its controversial and taboo visuals—something which is not new territory for its director, Yorgos Lanthimos. Based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray, Poor Things involves a mesmerising account of the evolution of Bella Baxter, a woman brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist, Dr. Godwin Baxter. The audience is immediately drawn in by the fantastical aspects of the film, such as the costuming, set design, music, and cinematography, which offer a refreshing and vibrant world to indulge in.

The main topic of controversy surrounding the film is its explicit and frequent sex scenes. This sparked a discussion surrounding the double-edged sword of sexual liberation for women in media. Bella’s characterisation, specifically her naivety about social conventions, made this difficult to watch. When reduced to just its storyline—a woman, brought back to life through the brain of her own baby, being fucked continuously—the intrigue of the concept is lost to feelings of discomfort and guilt.

It could be argued that this was the desired reaction for the film, and that Poor Things itself is a critique of how young girlsare fetishised by men in the media and real life. This self-awareness, however, does not eliminate the film’s perpetuation of what it attempts to dissect.

Whilst I believe Lanthimos had no ill intention, the lack of women in the writing process for a film supposedly about female sexual liberation made it feel like nothing more than a male fantasy.

This was apparent in the lack of exploration of Bella’s being the daughter in her mother’s body. Rather than portraying an infantilised woman having sex for two hours, why did Lanthimos not delve into the evolution of daughters becoming their mother as they come of age? The intimacy and strife of mother-daughter relationships? This was the perfect opportunity due to its literalism.

There is a constant battle between the divided opinions responding to Poor Things: namely, those who say you have no media literacy if you think the film is feminist, and those who say you have no media literacy if you think the film is not feminist. Neither are wrong. There is still so much to be discussed about this film, and because these conversations have been provoked, I suppose that is one thing that was not done poorly.

Words: Jasmine Patel, Design: Ariane Legradi

The Shadow

It doesn’t matter which way the windows face, the Shadow casts unshifting darkness on every building in this place. I always underestimated the sun’s ability to open up a place, to smooth the creases. Turning alleys from fractures in rows of tenements, to veins in a breathing organism. Everything hibernates now. Things are starting to decompose. The Shadow has been sitting in this city for months now, with the impertinence of a rude, older brother hiding the TV remote under his thigh.

At first, it felt like there was potential for the mass to shift, that if you walked on the right side of the road, you might be able to feel the light of day. People tried hiking, walking to the highest points of the city in hopes of feeling the touch of real, unfiltered sunshine; they tried reducing air pollution, blamed it on ash from a northwestern volcano, but nothing. Now there’s a slump about this place. A city with bad posture. Parks run empty, buses run slower, time itself seems to drag its feet. The Shadow clogs this place like bad cholesterol. The cost of a sun lamp has quadrupled in the last 4 months, and seasonal depression diagnoses have skyrocketed. The university launched a new fringe department for Shadowing studies; a shiny, new urban planning subgroup interested in design that

embraces the new darkness, and a state-ofthe-art psychology group investigating the Shadow’s impacts on the human psyche. Neither group received as much interest as initially projected. Maybe it comes back to the simple hope that the Shadow will dissipate, and all this work will become redundant. Like a tenant who waits to move house rather than dealing with a shower that doesn’t drain.

You could argue that this strange new season has brought motion where there was stagnancy. Some of the more invasive species have crawled back to other parts of the country where the land is more hospitable, bringing an onslaught of investment from keen ecologists. Damp types of life (moulds, various mosses) have inched their way into the place as well. The city has become a place of fascination for the media, you find scatterings of reporters along the city edges, crowing like birds on a cliff-face. They never work their way into the heart of the city, unwilling to leave the brighter, sunnier edges of the place, even if it would grant them a better story. Strangely, in the face of all of this, the city population never diminished. They’re becoming wetter, light-sensitive and rotted, but they force their way round the city’s veins all the same.

I, Dew

I resist

Skittish mist, I sit

Separate from sensation,

Suspended in the atmosphere

Surrounding me

Stippled just outside my

Self-separate goose-prickled skin

Semi-sentient haze grazing the world

Straining at the borders of selfhood,

Sealing myself out

Speck by speck I slip away

Evaporate

A stowaway on my own skin

Simultaneously rejecting and rejected

Ejected from flesh formerly my own

For the spectating spectre,

A second of participation,

Of suffusing with the physical self, Is enough to make me split

Sublimation seems my fate

Who will hold me once I dissipate?

How?

Mist escapes the most skilful grips,

At best, condenses, drips

Even through the cracks

Of the tightest fists

Helpless haze, razed

Scared adrift

When the past precipitates in

Present sweat and tears and

Frightened steam screams

From every square inch of me,

Sweet caresses, soft lips,

Sympathetic gazes

Are useless, dispersed, suppressed

As headlights in fog

I’ve made myself scarce

Will it be you who sifts

Through a thousand anesthetized specks

Soothes me back into a self?

Talks me back into my skin?

In lieu of a kiss,

I settle as steam surrounding you

Into the thin skin of your wrist,

Osmosis

Siphon my soul into your veins

Listen

I listen, too

Sound saturates haze

Speak with a symphony of needles

Piercing each goosebump

Letting sense in,

Threading my essence back into me

Stitching me into a someone

In semi-permanence, your voice permeates

Recreates the solidity I once possessed.

Swear to me that when the smog clears, When feeling finds its way

Through the infinite fog of fears,

You’ll still be here.

I’ll still be here.

Swear that you don’t want to leave me

As much as I do

Someday I’ll start towards solidity,

But for now, I’ll make due

Descending to me and to you

A lucid moment of fleeting presence,

Headlight eyes pierce the fog

And as dawn light on morning dew,

Usher in, solidly and softly,

The realization, I am missed.

We both approach my self,

With sensation slow in tow

For the first time: I

Condensing mist, I exist.

I insist.

A Lore of the River

Her heart palpitates, its rhythm synchronized with the raging waves of the River, making Mai reminisce of a time when the water carried her people and their elation lovingly. The river has been their guardian and provider for centuries; it is revered for possessing the benevolence of a parent, the solidarity of a friend and the resourcefulness of a teacher. The waters of the Indus are brimming with the knowledge of life. From the start of its journey atop lush, northern mountains to its culmination in the southern delta and the shoreline where it unites with the salty seawater, every droplet has preserved the way of life of her ancestors. She inherited this wealth through her mother and like so many other daughters of the tribe received a myriad of gifts in the form of knowledge, skills and culture. Mai’s pursuit however is a little lonely. She is the only fisherwoman in her community.

The river has been their source of livelihood since as early as the collective memory of the community can serve. There used to be as many as forty varieties of freshwater fish available. The river bestowed nourishment. Her people ate on the water, slept on the water, and even wed on the water. ‘The best food is grown in one’s own backyard,’ her mother used to teach. The islands and banks grounded them into settlements, acting as shelters. The water was their backyard. ‘People find their perfect match on the water and the river, the fish and the boats bear witness to their true love,’ her friends used to gossip coyly. The water was not only the venue for the celebration of happy unions and birth of new life, but also for lamentation of death and loss. They lived on the water and died on the water.

The river was their God, merciful to its people. A guardian angel. It supported life on its shoreline, its banks, its islands and delta, until it was attacked. The state signed treaties and clauses wounding the river, the lakes and estuaries. They imprisoned the river with dams and barrages. The river and its bounty for the people were buried deep under these megastructures. They didn’t speak the language of the river, but they exiled and displaced those who did. Military checkpoints and barricades appeared for the safety of their extractive operation. The water was caged mercilessly and slowly the river began to die. It didn’t have the fortitude to defend itself against the invading seawater anymore. The delta was poisoned with salt. They suffocated the river with industrial and urban waste. They injected it till it stank; it stank of rot and invasion. Their industry flourished; their bounty multiplied. The livelihood of Mai’s people shrank as the fish stock declined exponentially in these toxic waters. The river transformed into a venomous beast. It has become infected and drying, choking on its diseases. It is drawing its last dying breath alongside all life that depends on it including Mai’s. Her people are uprooted and displaced. Those left behind are impoverished, starved and deprived. She wonders if it is their fate, a cruel punishment for their devotion to the waters.

The sun sets every day but never on her hopes. The dawn replenishes her strength to advocate for a better tomorrow. She will fight with her culture of care. Her people will recuperate the health of their beloved river. They sing songs laden with love and wisdom passed down through generations. Their adoration for their provider is immortal. The poetry they recite speaks of the ingenious ways to revive the river. They will celebrate their rituals, build statues to worship the river from the mud of its banks and then give back what they built to the river. A practice of disintegrating responsibly, a direct contrast to the industrial, rural and urban development operations murdering them and their river. Those who control only extract, whereas the people of the water give back. They dedicate their veneration to the river. They collaborate as a community to care for the river and do not believe there is a need to exploit, compete and capitalise. They advocate for repurposing the treaties dictating the course of their river. To not use it as an instrument of extraction and a license to ruthlessly exploit at the expense of those marginalized and unprotected, but as systems promoting mutual benefits, prosperity and harmony for all. They campaign for involvement in the management of their resources. If repurposed and utilized with consideration for Indigenous populations, all the infrastructure can serve for the greater good of everyone. They fight for their rights, inclusion and representation. They fight for sustainability. They fight to free their revered water held hostage and shackled. Mai stands with them through tumultuous currents.

Student Body

Four bookshelves from different locations had been arranged into a temporary cubicle to create the false sense of a room. It was a typical arrangement for university interviews, especially when the candidates were as great in number and with so much to offer as they had been this year. Throughout the other bookshelf cubicles, across the campus, you could find an archive of graduating class photographs, beginning last year and stretching back into 188-whenever (the beginnings of either the university or the camera) from which you could get a pretty good idea of the kind of thing they would be interviewing for. The university would design a superior kind of person, based on whatever your best features were.

Zayd Zabinski (the final candidate to be interviewed) quaked, silently in his swivel chair. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he lacked the raw material. His interviewer sat across from him, an understuffed ragdoll.

“Zayd.” He said, eventually, though you couldn’t tell from his tone if he was about to address Zayd or was just figuring out how to say his name. Zayd decided not to say anything.

“Why combined sociologies?”

He asked, not looking up from a half-filled sheet of A4 paper which represented every achievement of Zayd’s life.

“I enjoy incorporating elements from all different areas of academia into my studies”, was the rehearsed reply and Zayd swallowed dryly as he was less prepared for whatever came next.

“And why Dundee?”

asked the interviewer, still yet to make eye contact.

Zayd faltered, coughed, half-heartedly mumbled something about architecture and accepted internally that this would not be his university. The interviewer was merciful.

“How about we start again?” he prompted, with an avuncular grin and a wink. And so, the usual interview process was abandoned, and the interviewer helped Zayd to make lists of his positive and negative traits. Essentially, reasons why a university would or would not want him.

And after 1 hour and forty-five minutes, there were exactly 33 things on both lists.

“Come on now Zayd.”

Prompted the interviewer “Anything?”

Zayd was drawing a blank, painfully aware that the university generally didn’t accept 50/50 people. Zayd

strained against his urge to be humble, but managed:

“I’m honest.”

This made the list.

“Anything else?” asked the interviewer, hopeful.

“I’m brave”, said Zayd, to the wry smirk of his senior. 35 items now decorated the list of traits Zayd could offer the university.

“Ok”, said the interviewer “I think we have everything we need.”

Zayd grinned in a laxative kind of relief, before being neatly sedated via syringe to the back of his neck - administrated by the university nurse - who had been silently standing in the corner for the past 10 minutes. Like all successful candidates, Zayd’s body was carried to one of the beigetiled interior rooms of the university and stripped of its skin, tissues and fat. His liver, kidneys, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for honesty and amygdala for bravery

(amongst other useful traits) were added to the collection of other parts from successful interviewees who would have a future as part of the Dundee University student body.

“It was very competitive this year,” said the interviewer, as the nurse began to clean the floors. “I’m sure we’ll have a stellar bunch!”

The nurse bowed her head as a response.

“Oh, Sir.” She alerted him, mop in hand. “What do we do with the rest of him?”

Zayd’s left eye, ribcage, intestines and three neat piles of marrow were arranged in delicate piles amongst his other leftovers in relation to where the person used to have been. The parts were technically usable, though not the cream of the crop. The interviewer wrinkled his nose.

“See if Abertay wants ‘em.” He huffed, leaving to begin the annual lesson plan.

my dream home is dusty the layers can be studied by geologists they talk about my history eras named after the sediments

the stairs are excavated by so many soles red-carpet bleeding the wood tones the paint on blinds on walls on doors is (crackled weathered) wrinkled the corners are shaved flat after years of bumping into them brushing fingers leave black marks on the plaster while looking for the light

I make so many holes in the walls I hang up so many pictures on the walls and years after I take them down (their shadows remain) and then I paint the walls so many colours

I rearrange the library now by size now by genre now by authors and I clutter the shelves with trinkets plants grow everywhere and reach the ceiling and I move my bed every month to see in which direction I sleep better looking for that ideal corner where the light doesn’t bother me

I’ll wait fifty years and then I’ll move to the seaside

Words: Darius Brech, Design: Afia Zaman

The undulations of the unknown claw and tear through liminal space

Wriggling, Writhing, Wretched.

Their voiceless screams spread like spores, An unsung songsilence.

Anointed in uncertainty, Uncanniness, And ubiquitous confusion -we cry out for the page to answer, to create a new path -To bring forth a new combination of flavours and shapes,

Something dense, yet derivative and Beautifully destructive.

Hark! The echoes of esoteric ancients and experimental contemporaries' sprout And interlock into our works and worlds, -We are left wordless without them, And so, we metabolise and reconstruct, Re-work, re-cycle -to transcribe a new tapestry of thought.

Words: Dani McFawns

Meet Your DUSA Student Executive!

Hi! We’re your DUSA Student Executive (usually called ‘the Exec’) for this coming year and we’re really excited to meet you! We’re here to support your experience at Dundee to be the very best it can be, whether you want to get involved in societies, student representation, excel in your uni work or just keep yourself well!

The Exec is made up of seven elected students, four who have either just graduated or have taken a year out of their studies to do this full time, and three who take on their

role alongside their studies. This year, we have a huge variety of courses and backgrounds – from Law, to Business, to Science, to Humanities!

Along with representing the student body, we also act as Trustees of DUSA as a charity – which simply put means we’re involved in all of the important decision making in DUSA at an organisational level. That means your feedback is going to the very highest parts of DUSA to help shape it going forward!

Who are we?

Manaswi Budhathoki is this year’s DUSA President, meaning she leads the rest of the Exec and acts as the main spokesperson for all things student experience! A big focus for her this year is making our campus dynamic and vibrant, a place where everyone wants to be! (president@dusa.co.uk / @manaswi.dusa_president)

Dani McFawns is your VP Academia, and Manaswi’s righthand man as Deputy President. She’s here to support all things to do with your learning experience, inside and outside of the classroom! (She’s also Magdalen alumni, having been a writer, editor, and a previous Editor-in-Chief!) (vpa@dusa. co.uk / @dani.vpa)

Nicole Okoro is your VP Representation, so she’s in charge of all things student representation – Class Reps, School Presidents, the Student Representative Council (SRC), and encouraging students like YOU to get involved! Her key focus is to create a campus community where everyone feels heard and empowered. (vpr@dusa.co.uk / @_nicole.vpr)

Nihin Akanni is your VP Student Wellbeing, so she’s your go-to gal for all things mental health, sexual health, and generally keeping well. She also works closely with DUSA’s Advice and Support Team to make sure everyone feels supported at university! (vpsw@dusa.co.uk / @nihin_vpsw)

Alishba Ahmad is your VP Community, and alongside finishing up her degree in Law, she’s responsible for highlighting and celebrating all the uniqueness and diversity in our campus through social and cultural events and projects! (vpc@dusa.co.uk / dusa.vpc.alishba)

Ravi Baral is your VP Student Activities, which means he’s the student lead for all things student societies while he completes his Biomedical Sciences degree. He also works closely with DUSA’s Societies Officer to make sure everything is the best it can be for our societies on campus!

(vpsa@dusa.co.uk / ravi.vpsa)

Esther Ajayi-Akinsulire is your VP Fundraising, which means she’s the leader of raising money for the DUSA charity of the year, Barnardos, while she completes her second year of Biomedical Sciences. Keep an eye out for fundraising campaigns and opportunities throughout the year –especially the upcoming Freshers RAG Quiz! (vpf@dusa.co.uk / esther.vpf)

What are our plans for the year?

The best way to hear about all of our plans for the year in one place is to have a read of our Manifesto (our goals as a team for the year), which you can find on the DUSA website and also in our LinkTree (see QR code!). That said, some highlights include... The return of Academic Skills Week, a new Employability Week in collaboration with Careers, the return of Nightline, increased awareness for Speakeasy.

Where can you find us?

We’re based on the top floor of 1 Cross Row, which is across from the main entrance to the Library. You can always pop in to see us, but we do recommend emailing first to set up a time that we’ll definitely be in our offices!

How can I get involved?

If you have an idea for student life that you want to put into action, please get in touch with us! We’re always keen to work with as many people as possible and make great things happen on campus.

If you want to get involved on a longerterm basis, make sure to keep an eye out for the SRC elections which will be starting very soon! These elections give you an opportunity to sit on the Student Representative Council and have input all year! (See more about the SRC on the DUSA website, or email Nicole!)

We can’t wait to meet you and work with you this coming year - see you soon!

Crushing in a Relationship Save

me, Student!

Dear Reader,

There can be a big difference in what the word ‘crush’ means to different people. It is not generally controversial to say that if you have a deep infatuation with someone whilst you are in a committed, monogamous relationship then you should probably break up with your partner. The issue, however, pertains to the ‘grey’ area between generally being attracted to others and how far this can be stretched without it becoming problematic.

I truly believe that these boundaries need to be established within every relationship, to a certain degree. Some may argue it is normal to be attracted to other people when in a relationship. Studies have shown that over half of people in a relationship have had a crush outside of it. Thus, some couples may find it perfectly reasonable to comment to each other on passers-by being ‘hot’ but within other relationships that could be deeply uncomfortable for one or both parties.

If you start seriously developing a crush on someone else, you may have feelings of guilt and shame that are hard to deal with. This can be especially difficult if you are in a long- term relationship and it has come as a surprise. Some people may say that means that you are not interested in your partner anymore and should break up with them. If you thought there was a possibility of you

“Have you also become less interested in your partner, felt yourself pulling away from them, or perhaps unfairly started to compare them to your crush? ”

acting on those feelings, then I would agree. As hard as a breakup is, being cheated on is far worse- and completely avoidable.

You may be wondering how to tell if a seemingly ‘harmless’ attraction has turned problematic. Some things to look out for are if you can’t stop thinking about your crush, if it distracts you during your day or if you have started fantasizing about them in the bedroom. Have you also become less interested in your partner, felt yourself pulling away from them, or perhaps unfairly started to compare them to your crush? It may be helpful to ask yourself if you would be hurt or uncomfortable if they had the same level of attraction to someone else? If some of these things have rung true then it may be time to consider whether it is healthy to continue in the relationship for both of your sakes.

Clear conversations with your partner on boundaries regarding attraction are essential to a heathy relationship. Talk to your partner!

Starting University: Shaved Heads and Stress

At secondary school, I looked the part. School uniform, platform docs and signature sweep of well-practised electric blue eyeliner. But it was mostly my hair that dressed me; long, thick, naturally blonde after years of summer holidays visiting Canadian family or being forced by my mum to ‘be outside’. This curtain of hair took hours of care and was my beacon of femininity. It was part of the mask I wore, the visor of my helmet. Beneath it, I avoided crowds at all costs, the chatter of friends. I swept it back when I stormed home every day, to decompress in my bedroom, crying and trying to understand why secondary school was so f*cking hard.

list, but once it became reality, I realised it was more than that. I shaved my head. I tied my hair into braids and cut them off (they still live in an envelope in my room): I looked like a blondish tennis ball. Not only was my head really cold, it felt like I was moving from the depressed teenager I was used to, to something new - a confident adult. I kept organised and did my best not to meltdown over this quite large life change- university. Change is hard but it is even harder when you are autistic and cannot, for the life of you, decipher social situations.

The start of university is supposed to be the ‘perfect time’ to reinvent yourself, yet it is so daunting. Everyone is lost and confused, whether they show it or not. University life is formidable, and it is normal to get stressed, homesick and a little intimidated. Take advantage of academic services, the campus pantry and counselling services, it made my first year of university significantly easier. They exist to make university life more adaptable, especially to new students and students from overseas countries. Utilise them.

Once I got my ASD diagnosis, and I could name what makes life throw up more hurdles, I used my move to Dundee to start fresh, to remodel who I was going to be as an adult. Initially it was a line on my bucket

Whether you are a nervous fresher, continuing student or an international student feeling homesick, remember that the tough moments, the difficulty understanding the MyDundee homepage, friends you make in societies, the nasty hangovers and the fascinating yet at points mind numbing lectures are the experiences which shape you. Try your best to live your university life to the fullest and feel these moments, good or bad.

Words: Tom Gachagan

SAVE UR SCENE

Between March 2020 and December 2023, 31% of the UK’s nightlife venues have since shut down. According to the UK’s Nighttime Economy Report 2024, we have lost 67 nightlife venues in the first 5 months of the year, which roughly works out to 5 clubs per week.

Grassroots music venues have faced issues as the Music Venues Trust claimed that the UK would lose 10% of grassroots venues by the end of 2023. Many of these venues that close end up getting replaced by an expensive bar or restaurant, or even luxury flats, which opposes the ethics of sustainability and as more local venues close or face cuts, there becomes less opportunity for culture in Dundee to grow.

When the iconic nightclub ‘Reading Rooms’ in Dundee closed back in 2019, after a lot of pressure from the police due to what was claimed to be ‘excessive drug taking.’ (Mixmag, 2019, in reference to Police documents). According to MixMag, locals claimed that recent redevelopments, particularly around the waterfront with the V&A opening influenced this to change the appeal of Dundee.

The venue was initially replaced with a bar and restaurant in 2021 but did not last for long as it too would later close. The building is still sitting empty, but plans were given in 2022 for it to be redeveloped into flats, which could end up being expensive and inaccessible to the majority.

With the recent closure of Kings in June 2024, there are less and less spaces for late night underground dance music in Dundee. Kings was an important venue for myself as it introduced the art of underground dance music into my world. Underground dance music gave me and many others a chance to escape and express ourselves, away from the stresses of everyday life.

Kings simply announced their closure on Instagram back in June, however there was little explanation, leaving locals in the dark about this unexpected decision. With the closure of Kings, it is the perfect time for a new grassroots underground venue to take its place to showcase local talent.

In other local venue closures, the sale of ‘Hunter S Thompson’ was another big loss to the Dundee music scene, when it was replaced by new restaurant ‘The Maker.’ The basement at Hunter S Thompson was a prime location for young and independent artists to display their talents. Artists from DEMS and TWOCANNDANN hosted huge DJ nights in ‘Hunter S Thompson’ to packed crowds.

Currently, the only space is Roots (formerly Conroy’s Basement) where young DJs and promoters can host their own nights. The issue is that unlike Kings and the Reading Rooms, Roots has not built a name for itself as a main venue, but to keep our scene alive we should support the small venue and encourage it’s growth before we are left with nothing.

The closure of venues has a knock-on effect on the local culture. Local Art defines the culture of Dundee, yet the opportunity for local talent to be displayed is dwindling.

Glasgow and Edinburgh have so many unique music venues and I fear that local artists will move to these bigger cities, due to more opportunities.

So how can we save our scene?

I say we look at Glasgow. The 13th Note was a key grassroots venue, however in mid-2023, it closed after the workers announced they were taking strike action in response to pay and safety issues. It was a painful blow as many popular bands, including Franz Ferdinand, played at that very venue when they were starting out.

The 13th Note workers have since been campaigning to reopen the space, this time ran as a co-operative to serve the community and not for shareholder or owner profits. This was rejected however and as of the 2nd of July they are taking a break before regrouping to plan their next steps, and by the looks of it, they don’t plan to give up. This is the kind of fighting spirit we need here.

Furthermore, Jam Radio (DUSA student radio) has been giving many students and non-students alike the ability to perform DJ sets and get their talent out there. The new radio management team has been incredibly active this year, even putting on events; keeping music somewhat alive.

This is what we can do, it is sustainable in every sense of the word and venues ran by their workers or communities will keep the scenes alive. Put the venues in the hands of the workers and artists, they can cater to what interests’ people, get more people there (which helps business) and charge fair prices. It is what Dundee needs.

Wardrobe Shopping

Are you in the market for new clothes? Are your current clothing options rather lackluster? Are you looking for a fun way to pass the time AND give your style some added spice? Look no further than your wardrobe. The clothes that gather dust at the end of your wardrobe can be brought back to life with new creative endeavors which are sustainable and cheap!

Sometimes all that’s needed is a change of colour. In this case, dye may be the best way to go. Rit fabric dye is a versatile dye that works with natural and synthetic fibers. However, make sure to always research the fabric that you’re dying just to be on the safe side.

If you don’t want to recolor the entirety of the item, painting or bleaching clothing are other cool options. Acrylic paint works well on denim, and bleach can also be used to paint on clothes as it lifts the colour. If you want to go a step further, try bleaching designs before using dye to paint over the lighter area. Experiment and have some fun with it.

One of my personal favorites is embroidery. Embroidery takes a bit of practice but is so diverse, you can stitch patches onto denim jackets, jean pockets or if you are feeling confident you could even design your own patches!

ScrapAntics is a local second-hand craft store with tons of cheap crafting materials, it is Dundee’s only scrap store and just a short walk from the Dalhousie. Pinterest is a great spot for inspiration, then I usually head to ScrapAntics to see what I can find.

Shopping second-hand instead is a brilliant cheap alternative to buying brand new, often expensive clothes. The charity shops in Dundee are great, especially Broughty Ferry, and you are guaranteed to find cool vintage pieces. Closer to the University, DUSA hosts vintage clothing sales with local businesses, DJCAD and other vendors all the time. Keep an eye out for these vintage clothing sales on the DUSA Instagram - it is also a great time killer between lectures.

If you prefer some online shopping, I highly encourage you to use Vinted as you can buy secondhand clothes and sell your old clothes - it is basically a massive charity shop on your phone, plus you don’t need to scavenge through rails for half an hour before you find something you like. It’s better for your wallet and the environment.

Repurposing old clothes is a great way to save yourself money and to reduce waste. With fast-fashion websites like CIDER, Shien and Temu always on the rise, slow fashion and repurposing your old clothes is much more ethical, better for our planet and benefits everybody.

Office Repurposing

Living in a city, we are all familiar with the scale of unused office buildings Which litter our urban environments. Ranging from small tenement workplaces to large, high-rise buildings, these once used and often decaying properties mostly boast no hope of serious redevelopment or future corporate occupancy. So, what do we do with them? Perhaps, we can harness them to meet the growing needs of our society.

Following the combined impact of tough recent economic conditions and the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, work culture across the UK has changed dramatically. With margins tight, office-space expensive, and employees encouraged to work at least partly from home, the occupancy of corporate office-space is stuck well below pre-pandemic levels.

Driven by similar factors as well as prolonged underfunding, the pressure on local services, charities, and civic spaces has grown substantially and has been felt by ordinary people, especially in densely populated cities. The repurposing of unused office space shows promise as a creative solution to combat this, whilst encouraging economic growth.

Examples of similar transitions can already be seen around our city. Take the Keiller Centre. Although not an office, its revitalisation through its use as a community space demonstrates an easily applied and flexible concept. However, the potential uses of office-space are broader still, including shelters for the homeless and vulnerable, galleries, rental studio space, residential conversions and more. Furthermore, some larger spaces are well placed to provide co-working environments and business incubators, fostering private investment.

These solutions would help to reinvigorate our cities by encouraging cultural and business growth, whilst addressing issues such as housing shortages on a budget. This would also avoid the costly and disruptive process of demolition and new development. However, some forms of redevelopment can be complex and costly, such as that for housing. Which raises the question of who would be paying for all this?

Funding would need to be mostly from the government or charities, whose budgets are already precarious, but hopefully, the opportunity to achieve progress on the cheap is seized. Clear economic incentives will be required to attract private investment or support from property owners, but surely a low-paying used space is better than the costs of decay and demolition.

Despite the challenges, the potential of repurposing unused office-space is immense, and embracing these transformations could be pivotal to creating more vibrant, resilient, and sustainable urban environments.

Behold: The Ugly and Essential

The decimation of city spirit in Dundee is nigh and it is due, at least in part, to the abandonment of individuality within the urban landscape. Think of your Belmont and Gilson Gray flats - these are essentially cereal boxes that have been assigned as spaces of residence. Every new stack of student accommodation or obnoxiously shiny office space is a harbinger of the bland upon an otherwise vibrant city. The price range is exclusionary and limiting, as well as the type of activity they encourage - residing or working. In combatting this scourge, our first line of defence is the aged, the untidy, and the otherwise ‘ugly’ aspects of a cityscape. I am talking about the graffiti, the crumbling back alleys, the quirky stone buildings with awkwardly shaped staircases and gaudy visages hanging over their doorframes. They do not maximise occupancy or productivity, but instead generate atmosphere, visible culture and, most importantly, they are affordable.

Jane Jacobs - a journalist whose work has shaped urban studies and economics as we know them - tells us that the quirks of one

era’s buildings can be ‘useful aberrations’ to modern cities. A grotty relic of the 70’s such as Dundee’s own Keiller Centre might at first seem to be only an eyesore, but in truth it holds great value. The Keiller is a prime example of how old buildings incubate small businesses. A clear success story is Cake or Dice on Commercial Street, whose ideas expanded from its incubation period within the Keiller. The quirks of the Keiller, it’s labyrinthine halls and eerie shuttered shop faces, become boons to those who set up there. It allows for a wide variety of enterprises to exist in proximity to one another.

In one Keiller unit, there is a charity shop selling various curios, in another an art gallery that changes installation monthly, in the next a recreational room containing a ping pong table, in another a counter for teas and coffees to rest in. All of these provide social value aside from mainstream, financially taxing enterprises. The Keiller is a true third place - a space in which community is at the forefront of the purpose, providing people with an accessible place to be that

is neither home nor work. Businesses, on the flip side, are allowed affordable space in which to grow their enterprise and ideas.

In the case of Cake or Dice, their incubation period was cut short by technical trouble after flooding. Maintenance is a concern with old buildings; upkeep must be consistent to make them safe and stable elements of the city. This issue is not one inherent to the age of a building, but rather to the neglect of the owners and the city in updating it. With the proper care and given appropriate cultural relevance, old buildings are rehabilitated and ‘filter up,’ as Jane Jacobs tells us. In doing so, we retain a diversity in the cityscape that makes it not only a more pleasant place to live, but one with the opportunity to facilitate enterprise from citizens of varying means. A healthy city needs the cross-pollination of high-yield and low-yield enterprise. If we stop trying to build anew our world and start imagining how we might repurpose it, we will find ourselves living in cities that thrive on the mingling of many lifestyles, social classes, eras, ethos, and personalities. There is a reason business parks built outside cities end up as eerie ghost towns; no imagination is spurred by

an existence within a banal, monotonous environment built from one era’s intimation of what supreme efficiency looked like.

The grittiness, the filthiness, the otherwise uncoordinated aspects of a city - that is truly what denotes a place with heart and purpose. We inherit diversity, and this generates more diversity. We ought to preserve and encourage the admiration of those aspects of our history that are left before us like colourful crumbs, all proof of those who came before us, proof that the ideas being realised today, the buildings we live in, and every other aspect of modern convenience, comfort and sustenance we enjoy and live with is because of those who came before us. If an enterprise itself does not begin in an old building, you can be sure that those who conceived of it needed the ideas, opportunities, and inspiration that came from bricks laid down before their time. Interesting cities are not purpose-built but built and repurposed repeatedly. As Jacobs tells us, ‘Old buildings will still be a necessity when today’s new buildings are the old ones.’ The city, then, is not a slate wiped clean every generation or so, but a palimpsest of culture. Let us keep it that way.

Meet the team!

Senior Team

Editor-in-Chief

Hannah Hamilton

Dep. Editor-in-Chief Arianna De Prosperis

Creative Directors

Luna Jezzard Afia Zaman

Publishing

The Magdalen is published by Dundee University Student Association (DUSA).

Creative Team

Photographers

Hien Anh

Katherine Donaghy

Alexander Stewart

Mary Musa

Yousif Saleem

Illustrators

Mia Duffy

Ariane Legradi

Ron Jargielo

Dionysus Georgantas

Emma Vind

Fleur Pirie Cover Artist

The gorgeous Cover Art for Issue 107 was done by one of our incredible Illustrators; Mia Duffy!

Section Editors & Publishing

Culture

Tom Christison Kaitlyn Mann

Creative

Mona Lin Eckle

Emma Thomson

Lifestyle

Eva Milne

Olivia Runciman

Opinions

Angus Coleman

Ayanna Cullen

Social Media

Elinor Whyte

Join our team!

We are entirely student-led, from writing and editing the articles to deisgning them ecvryone is a student! If you’re interestedd in a career in publishing/ journnalism, this is a great cv builder and a great way to get your thoughts and visions out to the campus create new friends. DM The Magdalen Magazine on facebook for more details

everyone is a student! If you’re interested in a career in publishing/journalism, this is a CV builder and a great way to get your thoughts and Facebook for more details.