The
OXFORD STUDENT Friday 3rd November 2017
oxfordstudent.com
Vol. 81, No. 5
Uni worker suspended for terrorism link Anisha Faruk Deputy News Editor
An Oxford University non-academic worker has been suspended after material emerged online showing he had links to Islamic terrorism. No arrest has taken place. The University alerted Thames Valley Police when it was informed earlier this month about the workers arrest and detention in Italy in 2012 and an internal investigation began into the worker’s background. It was alleged the worker, who is in his mid-30s and cannot be named for legal reasons, was involved in disseminating extremist material. He denied the charges, but spent two and a half years in prisons in Italy. He had reportedly sent emails with links to download operational manuals on how to carry out terror ‘attacks and guerrilla techniques’. He denied committing any offence. The arrest was part of a wider investigation into jihadi extremism by Italian authorities and the Cagliari State Police. One report said the worker was arrested when he was about to leave the country to go to Rabat, Morocco – he was in a relationship with a Moroccan woman at the time. He purportedly converted to Islam after studying Arabic. He is also alleged to have changed his name, and claimed that he wanted to “join the war-fighting formations of the ‘Holy War’” in Afghanistan. It was alleged that, along with
others, he was considered to be a significant connection between international jihadists and the Italian extremist network. It was also suggested the worker had served a prison sentence in ‘institutes’ across Italy before his release in 2014. He moved to England and was later employed by Oxford University. Helen King, principal of St Anne’s College and a chairwoman of the university’s security committee, will lead a ‘review’ of the circumstances around the case and will then make ‘recommendations’. The revelation of the suspension follows the news that 21-year-old Jack Letts, from Oxford, has been accused of being a member of socalled Islamic State, according to officials in the Kurdish region of Syria. Dubbed ‘Jihadi Jack’, Letts converted to Islam while he was attending Cherwell comprehensive school in Oxford as a teenager, travelling to Jordan in 2014. He was in IS controlled land in Syria by the autumn of the same year. Letts previously said he opposed IS and his parents deny that he went to Syria to fight for IS. Upon leaving IS territory, he was captured by the Kurdish-led YPG – a militia fighting IS – as a prisoner of war. In a statement, the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria – a self-declared autonomous region – said Letts had been imprisoned in Qamishli in northern Syria. Lett’s case is reportedly still under investigation by local police.
Steve Daniels
Comment
Is there really a “social apartheid” in Oxford admissions? p.8
Brexit MP’s letter to vicechancellors criticised by academics Anisha Faruk Deputy News Editor
A priest is unimpressed with some proposed rule changes at the History Faculty’s reenactment of Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to a church door, which beg the Protestant Reformation 500 years ago this week. Photo: Frances Livesy
“Women can and will kick balls”: spotlighting Oxford’s female football team p.32
Sport
Art & Lit
Oxford academics have come together in criticism of Conservative MP Christopher HeatonHarris after he sent a letter to all UK university vice-chancellors requesting the names of all lecturers “involved in the teaching of European affairs, with particular reference to Brexit.” The government whip and MP for Daventry is a member of the pro-Brexit European Research Group of Conservative MPs. The MP was heavily criticised by academics and politicians with accusations that he was conducting a “McCarthyite” witch hunt. Helena Kennedy QC, principal of Mansfield College, said she believes “Mr Heaton-Harris has a rather narrow understanding of what happens in a university.” “The nature of academic discourse and inquiry is to examine issues from all sides. If Oxford did not do that, how come it produces politicians across the spectrum?” Former Labour Cabinet minister and Oxford academic, Lord Andrew Adonis commented: “Universities and academics should simply ignore this implied threat to their freedom.” Downing Street distanced itself from the letter, saying that Mr Heaton-Harris had been acting in his capacity as an MP and not as a representative of government. The Eurosceptic MP tweeted in response to criticism: “To be absolutely clear, believe in free speech in our universities and in having an open and vigorous debate on Brexit.”
Explore six exhibitions in the 2017 Venice Biennale p.17
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
STAFF LIST
Editors-in-chief Alex Oscroft Rosie Shakerchi
Deputy Editors Daniel Mahoney James Evans Katrina Gaffney Madeleine Taylor Tara Snelling Verity Winn
News
Charlie Willis Liam Lucas Anisha Faruk (deputy)
Comment
Lizzie Deane Siddharth Jayaprakash Danielle Dean (deputy) Will Evans (deputy)
Alex Oscroft Mansfield
The recent anger over access figures at Oxford is long overdue, but not exactly a new phenomenon. That Oxford and Cambridge remain bastions of their traditional constituencies - people who are white, well-off and had a privileged education - is in no way a secret or a surprise. Both universities, and many others across the country, have urgent and desperate work to do around their admissions process. Oxford tends to come under greater scrutiny than most in these contests, largely because of it remains at the heart of our country’s elite - in the current parliament, 23% of MPs were educated at either Oxford or Cambridge. Graduates from these ancient institutions are disproportionately represented in the highest echelons of government, business, the arts and everything in between. That representation
Aaron Robertson
Profile
Nicholas Linfoot Tobi Thomas Caitlin Law Penny Young Marina Hackett (deputy)
Art & Lit
Abigail Eardley Sree Ayyar Isabella Cullen (deputy) Queeni Li (deputy)
Stage
Anya Gill Bethan Spencer
Screen
Music
Madeleine Taylor Seb Braddock Joe Small (deputy)
Fashion
Leonie Hutch Lucinda Kirk
Sport
Danny Cowan Vincent Richardson
Sub-editors
Sarah Conkerton (chief) Emma Woodcock Grant Dalton Hannah Johnson Lily-Anna Trimble Mayu Noda Taro Konishi-Dukes
Broadcasting
Henry Grub Tom Gould (deputy)
means that they are under even more intense scrutiny than others - how tutors act towards applicants can have ramifications for national and international politics. Which makes reform of the admissions system at Oxford even more urgent. The university has been moving in the right direction, and individual colleges and the university’s central body do amazing work - but it evidently isn’t enough. My own college, Mansfield, has regularly hit 90% state school intake over the past 5 years. Change won’t come quickly, but to say it’s impossible is a total fallacy there is hard evidence that colleges can make access work, without spending huge amounts of money (Mansfield is also the poorest undergraduate college in the university). Oxford needs to step up its game and start taking access seriously.
9
Features
Eve Lytollis Richard Tudor Irina Boeru (deputy)
Editorial
COMMENT Jared O’Mara, sexism and the Labour Party
Investigations
Want to get involved in Oxford’s largest student newspaper? We’re looking for an online editor to help us managing our social media output. If you’re interested, please send us your CV and a 300 word application to editor@oxfordstudent.com www.oxfordstudent.com The Oxford Student @TheOxStu @TheOxStu
Editorial 2
editor@ oxfordstudent.com We are always looking for new writers to join the OxStu. If you’re an Oxford student and you want to be involved in the OxStu or hear more, get in contact!
Rosie Shakerchi St Catherine’s
Do you ever get in that situation where you’re so busy, with work, job applications, social life, whatever it is, that you decide to take on a totally optional extra task for the hell of it? Like, why be just busy when you could be manically so? Usually, I’m the one rolling my eyes at those people. Surrounded by friends who have been winning awards since they were in their mother’s womb and now are rowing, winning varsity matches and producing plays simultaneously, I have always been an advocate of the calmer approach to Oxford life. There is a community of us out there, I’m certain, secretly priding ourselves on our ability to find beanbags and treat napping like a blues sport; united by our capacity to do very little despite being surrounded by a whole university of overachievers. But this term it seems I’ve succumbed
spot light FEATURES Weekend getaways in Paris
12
to the pressure of doing way too many things, though still without the impressive will power of those who succeed at it (ooops). Or at least, that’s how I’m explaining my decision to attempt Nanowrimo (that’s ‘national novel writing month’), where a bunch of people round the world each write 50,000 words of a novel in November. So, the equivalent word count of 6 essays a week. For a month. And no, I haven’t forgotten that I’m doing finals. Nor that fun coursework deadline looming at the end of this month. You might wonder, wasn’t this girl stressing about finding a job in her previous editorials? Isn’t she already editor of this paper thing? Um yeah. Smart decisions, people. Even I recognise it’s dumb. But if uni is about trying out new experiences, I suppose it’s my turn to try being one of those people who have no time to nap.
SCREEN Does Thor’s latest adventure live up to expectations?
20
STAGE
Reviewing the RSC’s Dido, Queen of Carthage
21
LETTER TO THE EDITORS Dear Alex and Rosie, Disappointment by name, disappointment by nature. D. Mahoney has yet again demonstrated his capacity for self-humiliation – and all in just 97 words! In his bizarre response to our letter last week, Disappointment accused us of hiding behind anonymity to defame him. Not only it is untrue that we are anonymous – he well knows where to find us at 8 a.m. on Tuesday mornings – but ‘defaming’ D. Mahoney is like calling the Cherwell shit. ‘Disappointing’ doesn’t quite cut it, and neither does Disappointment Mahoney. Angery regards,
The Rolling Spoons
Dear ‘The Rolling Spoons’ It is with the greatest of interest that we have been watching the conflict between an aggressive organisation and the defenceless D.Mahoney. We, the ancient protectors of the Mahoney clan, can tolerate these unjust aggressions no longer. Be warned, Spoons Breakfast Club; to mess with D.Mahoney is to mess with powers beyond your puny collective imagination.
News 3
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Louise Richardson claimed £70,000 in university expenses Matthew Peters Staff Writer
Amid the current national scrutiny of vice-chancellor pay, it has emerged this week that Louise Richardson, vice-chancellor of Oxford University, has claimed £70,000 in expenses since her appointment to the role in January 2016. The majority of the expenses, details of which were obtained under the Freedom of Information Act submitted by the Cherwell, are in relation to air travel, with £56,552 having been spent on 26 return flights during the course of the first 19 months of Richardson’s appointment. The rest of the total figure includes nearly £10,000 spent on accommodation, and £1,911 split across all non-air travel. Defending the costs, a University spokesperson argued that, “the vice chancellor’s expenses reflect her role at the head of a £1.4bn organisation with global responsibilities,” insisting that “all expenses are kept to a minimum – for example the vice-chancellor flies economy class on all trips within Europe and within the US.” With the average cost of each
flight paid standing at over £2000 and having failed to identify the class of any transatlantic or other long-haul flights in its statement, the University has been met with scepticism by some in the student body as to the justifiability of the expenses. Kate Cole, Oxford SU president commented: “Without seeing all of the details this seems like a high level of spend. “In a time of increasing pressures on budgets of student services we would want to see as much money as possible being spent on developing the student experience and improving the quality of education.” The vice-chancellor is no stranger to controversy, coming under fire in September this year for attempting to justify the gap between her salary and those of less senior staff in the university, commenting that “compared to a footballer or a banker, it looks very different”. At £350,000, Richardson’s salary – branded as “grossly excessive” by the bursar of New College earlier this year – is significantly higher than the £281,000 earned on average by UK vice-chancellors, and is over twelve times the average salary of £28,296 across the whole population.
More than 100 MPs demand end to Oxbridge “social apartheid” Charlie Willis News Editor
108 MPs have signed a letter demanding that Oxford and Cambridge Universities “take the initiative” in tackling the significant inequalities in admissions, recently uncovered by David Lammy MP in admissions data from both universities. The letter said: “Much more work is required to find the most talented students who may be from disadvantaged backgrounds, lack the confidence or support networks to apply to Oxbridge or live in parts of the country and attend schools that do not traditionally send many students to Oxbridge. “We call on you to take the initiative in directly contacting talented and straight A students, whether following GCSE, AS Level or A Level results, and in reaching out to parts of our society and our country that are under-represented.” Lammy, who organised the letter, criticised the universities for taking “£800 million each year from taxpayers”, but “letting down whole swathes of the country.” He said: “An Oxbridge degree is still the golden ticket in our
society and a gateway to the top jobs so the Government has a responsibility to hold Oxbridge to account. For far too long Oxbridge have been long on rhetoric when it comes to improving access and widening participation but very short indeed on action and this needs to change urgently.” Oxford African and Caribbean Society responded to Lammy’s comments on the admissions data, saying: “The data reveals significant issues of institutionalised cultural and economic bias at Oxford; however, [...] Oxford is a microcosm of the deep structural issues embedded in the British educational system. The Society pointed out other causes of inequality beyond the fault of the University, including black students being discouraged from applying by teachers and being disproportionately more likely to attend “schools in low-income areas, many of which are underfunded, understaffed and lack the [necessary] resources”, as well as “a system that tells many intelligent black students that their creativity and intellectualism isn’t credible because they don’t [...] fit in with the mainstream notions of academia.”
Alan Richardson
Bodleian Keeper of the Books may have died from asbestos poisoning Liam Frahm News Editor
Professor Dennis Shaw, who died earlier this year due to mesothelioma cancer, may have been killed by asbestos, according to an inquest. He worked at the Bodleian Library in the early 1970s, when extensive building work was taking place, and may have breathed in deadly asbestos fibres leading to his eventual death. Shaw, who worked at Keble College for more than three decades, was diagnosed with lung cancer in early December last year and was told the illness had been
Continued on the next page Diliff
caused by workplace hazards. Shaw served as Keeper of Scientific Books from 1976 until retiring in 1991 and was commended by the Queen in the late 1960s for his role as organising secretary for the Oxford science admissions for men’s colleges. In the final days of his life, he wrote his family a list of projects that could have contributed to his cancer, including an acrelong underground extension to the Bodleian library and the construction of synchrotron facilities in Geneva. In 1976, he was a guest at the Bodleian’s reopening, where, together with the Queen and Prince Philip, he unveiled
the underground extension that he had spent nearly every day supervising in the early 1970s. Assistant Coroner for Oxford, Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp said: “Mr Shaw sadly died on July 20th this year. The deceased died of mesothelioma, which possibly had work-related causes. Mesothelioma is a disease that comes about due to someone’s exposure to asbestos. He was not aware of any exposure but it is difficult to know when you’re clearing large amounts of dust during any building project. In his statement, he talks about all the work that he did at this time and there were obviously lots of building works all around him. The Radcliffe Science Library was also undergoing lots of work at the time. His job included supervision of the building works. I would suggest that the correct conclusion here is one of industrial disease.” An Oxford University spokesman said: “We would like to express our sympathies to the family of Dennis Shaw. The University takes the health and safety of our staff, students and visitors very seriously and this includes our duty to manage asbestos within our buildings. We have robust procedures in place to manage the risk of asbestos and ensure our buildings are safe for occupation by staff and students.”
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Bitesize Next generation sequencing IVF Your weekly roundup of university, research and city news OUP launches Insect Systematics and Diversity journal Oxford University Press (OUP) and the Entomological Society of America (ESA) have launched a new journal titled Insect Systematics and Diversity. The journal will bring together studies from “taxonomy, comparative morphology, paleobiology, development, behavior, phylogenetics, genomics, biogeography, and phylogeography”, and is entirely online and subscription-based. Fiona Williams, publisher at OUP, said: “Analysis of the field and feedback from the community showed that this journal is a much-needed resource that has been missing, so we’re very pleased to partner with ESA to fill that space and provide a dedicated publishing venue for everyone working on the systematics, evolution, and biodiversity of insects and related arthropods.”
Charlie Willis Silk could mend spinal damage, research finds Researchers from Oxford University and the University of Aberdeen have used modified silk, derived from the Asian silkworm Antheraea pernyi (AP) to aid spinal cord injury repair. Currently, there is no cure for serious spinal cord injury, which affects 250,000-500,000 people globally every year and displays effects like loss of motor and sensory function below the level of injury, and bladder, bowel and sexual dysfunction. Since AP silk has a “RGD” chemical sequence on its surface that binds to the nerve cell receptors and allows them to attach and grow, it is used to construct a scaffold that is implanted in the damaged site. This particular silk exhibits desirable properties for a suitable scaffold: it has the correct rigidity, allowing spinal nerves to grow across the damaged region while not damaging the surrounding spinal cord tissue; does not trigger an immune response therefore minimising inflammation; and, dissolves gradually, leaving the “pioneer nerves” to act as a new scaffold thus supporting further nerve growth.
Carla Fuenteslopez
News 4
technique found useless by OU research Charlie Willis News Editor
Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), a pioneering technique in IVF, was expected to drastically raise fertility rates in couples using the treatment. Recent research from Oxford University has shown, however, that NGS offers no advantage over the traditional treatment, to the surprise of reproductive scientists. In traditional IVF, sperm is introduced to eggs retrieved from either the intended mother or a donor, and viable embryos are implanted after microscope examination. NGS is a form of preimplantation screening in which embryos for implantation have their DNA
screened, ensuring that only those with the correct number of chromosomes are implanted. The additional technique can cost £2,000 in private clinics, on top of £5,000 for a single round of traditional IVF. One in 20 women in the UK undergoing IVF currently opt for NGS, which has promised “huge potential” for increasing viability of pregnancies. Tim Child, Associate Professor at Oxford University and Medical Director of the Oxford Fertility Unit, said: “I thought it was going to be a slam-dunk: of course it was going to show a benefit. In fact, it didn’t. “Even in a younger woman of 34, around half her embryos will have the wrong number of chromosomes in them. It should work. “The hard part is saying why it doesn’t work.”
MPs demand end to “social apartheid” Continued from page 3 They said: “It is important that we continue to hold institutions like Oxford to account, but just as the problem does not start at Oxford, our efforts to address it cannot stop at Oxford [...] We need to take collective responsibility as a society to identify and address the implicit barriers that manifest at every stage of the black student experience.” Cambridge University vicechancellor Stephen Toope said: “I believe that all universities, including Cambridge, have a
Policy Exchange
duty to be open to people from all backgrounds, irrespective of race, class and origin. “Our excellence is built on diversity. We recognise that more hard work is required, but a great deal has already changed in our outreach work, in the financial support we give students, and in our admissions processes – particularly over the last 10 years.” A spokesperson for Oxford University said that the university had “a great deal of work to do”, and said that the vicechancellor would respond soon.
Antonio Olmos
Oxfordshire Growth Board agrees new initiatives Anisha Faruk
Deputy News Editor
A number of new initiatives, aimed at further consolidating collaborative working across the county’s six local authorities and the local enterprise partnership, have been agreed by the Oxfordshire Growth Board. Programmes have been approved to create a joint spatial plan for Oxfordshire; to build a ‘Living Lab’ within the county to test and quantify the effect of a range of new approaches to improve health, mobility and energy production; and to apply to the Government to set up a countywide pilot for retention and merging of business rates in 2018 and 2019. The Joint Spatial Plan is intended to build on existing Local Plans, while an application to Government will be made to allow councils to pilot a scheme where they keep 100 percent of uplift in business rates levied, rather
Tony Hisgett
than the current 50 percent. Councillor Bob Price, Leader of Oxford City Council and current Chair of the Oxfordshire Growth Board, said: “I’m pleased the Oxfordshire Growth Board is continuing to work collaboratively in the collective interest of Oxfordshire, its residents and businesses to help deliver the best possible growth outcomes for the county - recognising individual communities will require different solutions. “We want to ensure growth is sustainable and enhances people’s quality of life, provides opportunities for the next generation and more of the right types of housing.” The Oxfordshire Growth Board is made up of six councils: Cherwell District Council, Oxford City Council, Oxfordshire County Council, South Oxfordshire District Council, Vale of White Horse District Council and West Oxfordshire District Council, together with the county’s Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP).
News 5
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Oxford University and Open University hold “My Body, My Life” abortion art exhibition Charlie Willis News Editor
Fifty years after the Abortion Act in 1967 made legal and safe abortions accessible, academics from Oxford University’s Faculty of Law and the Open University are holding the “My Body, My Life” show at the Old Fire Station to enable and encourage discussion of attitudes to termination of pregnancy. The exhibition will be a “multimedia installation that enables participants to watch/ listen to women’s stories”, featuring researchers in shirts printed with quotes relating to the experiences of women who have had abortions. It debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August, and, after Oxford, will travel to London and Belfast. Academics have looked at women’s experiences and arranged activities including a panel discussion. Dr Imogen Goold, Associate Professor of Law, said: “This exhibition is a fantastic example of why it’s so important for academics to engage with the public about their work. “It brings this important research into the community, and
will broaden public understanding of abortion, a subject that affects so many of us but about which we are often silent. “Over the past 50 years, the Abortion Act has enabled thousands of women to access safe abortion services, ending the period of backdoor abortions that left so many women injured, and sometimes even dead. “It is timely for us to reflect on the positive impact the act had, and to think about whether it needs amendment to further ensure women retain control of their bodies and their lives.” Lesley Hoggart, Associate Head of School at the Open University, said: “The reality is that one in 60 women will experience an unplanned pregnancy every year, and abortion is a necessary part of the reproductive control that every woman needs in order to participate equally and fully in society, not being bound to unwilling motherhood. ““There is nothing to be ashamed of in that. Secrecy feeds abortion stigma, and therefore needs challenging. “This is what we are doing through bringing our research to life in this multimedia travelling exhibition.” The exhibition will run in the Old Fire Station from 7th November to 11th November.
Oxford and Open Universities
Former professor trampled to death Former Oxford professor, Brian Bellhouse, died after being trampled by cattle, an inquest revealed. The tragic event happened on June 12th, near Hastings in East Sussex. Friend John Clarke was walking with Bellhouse at the time and told the inquest how the latter rushed forward to save his dog from a stampeding herd of cows. In doing so, however, he was pushed to the ground and fatally trampled by the herd. The 80-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Sussex Police. Professor Bellhouse, who invented a device that delivered needle-free injections, was a lifelong affiliate of Magdalen College. He read mathematics as an undergraduate and completed a DPhil in Engineering Science at the college. He was an Official Fellow in Engineering Science from 1966 until his retirement in 2004, when he was elected an Emeritus Fellow. Bellhouse was the co-founder of PowderJect and benefactor of the Oxford-Bellhouse scholarship at Magdalen in biomedical engineering. Senior Coroner for East Sussex Alan Craze said to conclude the inquest: “Cows are dangerous, especially when dogs are being walked near them, which is why the signs are there on the gates. What has happened is very sad indeed.”
Zoe Tidman
Study shows cucumber virus Teacher banned for sexual has potential for vaccines conversation with child Carla Fuenteslopez Staff Writer
Oxford University’s Professor Martin Bachmann and Dr John Foerster, from the University of Dundee, have shown a modified vaccine, created by combining elements from the tetanus vaccine with a viral particle which normally affects cucumbers, can be used to treat allergies and psoriasis, as well as potentially protecting against Alzheimer’s disease. In this vaccine, the protein coat of cucumber mosaic virus is incorporated to a tetanus vaccinederived protein structure known to stimulate the immune system. By blocking a particular protein - interleukin 17 (IL-17) in the case of psoriasis - positive results in mice models were shown. Moreover, the level of antibodies thought to be beneficial in fighting Alzheimer’s disease were raised. Nowadays, psoriasis treatment requires a monthly injection, which costs each patient about £10,000 every year. A vaccine, on the other hand, would offer a
much more affordable treatment. In psoriasis, IL-17 needs to be activated in order for the disease to progress and is weakened by blocking the protein. The vaccine, rendered therapeutic in this case, stimulates the body to make antibodies against IL-17. In Alzheimer’s, the vaccine could be preventive and would act by blocking the protein that provokes brain damage: beta amyloid. Directly injecting patients with antibodies against that same target has been attempted at several clinical trials but remains unsuccessful. However, new research suggests that starting prophylactic vaccines could be a route of treatment even before Alzheimer’s is clinically-apparent. Further research is necessary, particularly to test the efficacy in a clinical setting of the therapeutic. Researchers are now focusing on starting clinical testing of the vaccines, which has already received regulatory approval to initiate human-testing. The preclinical studies, also, are being broadened to include vaccines against Parkinson’s disease and chronic pain.
25 year old Jack Fursdon, previously a teaching assistant at a Woodstock school, has been banned from teaching after he contacted a pupil there on Facebook and engaged in inappropriately sexual conversations with her. A hearing before a National College for Teaching and Leadership misconduct panel found that Fursdon had discussed the child’s weight, who was under 18, sexual topics and pregnancy, and asked about her sexual experience.
Heiwa Elementary School
Fursdon denied any sexual motivation, with which the panel disagreed. According to a statement from the child, the conversations made her feel “uncomfortable” and “scared”. The panel said that Fursdon had been “extremely naive and foolish” to contact the child. The prohibition against him teaching in any capacity will be in place until at least October 2019, when Fursdon can apply for it to be overturned.
Oxford celebrates Christmas Light Festival 2017 Held annually since 2009, the Oxford Christmas Light Festival is set to kickstart the city’s festive season between 17th and 19th November. As is traditional, the festival begins with a lantern parade with over 400 of Oxford’s youth from schools and community groups. The theme celebrates the diversity and history of the city and The World in Oxford presents a selection of illuminated and interactive installations in and around town. Councillor Dee Sinclair, Board Member for Culture and Communities said: “With such a diverse range of activities and art installations to look forward to, and with so many local people getting involved, the Oxford Christmas Light Festival certainly promises to be an event to remember this year. Along with the Westgate Oxford Alliance and Arts Council England, we hope that it will be enjoyed by the city’s residents and visitors alike.”
Liam Frahm
News 6
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
WORLD NEWS
Former Trump campaign aide indicted in inquiry into Russian ties Anisha Faruk Deputy News Editor
Former campaign aide to President Trump, George Papadopoulos, has been indicted in the Russia inquiry, investigating possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia. Trump’s one-time foreign policy adviser was revealed to have earlier this month pleaded guilty earlier to lying to FBI investigators about his Kremlin-related contacts. On Monday, Papadopoulos agreed to cooperate with the Mueller inquiry under the terms of a plea agreement, becoming the first person to do so. Up until this point, Papadopoulos had played only a minor role in the scandal. Court documents released on Monday show new evidence of a
plan by Papadopoulos to arrange a meeting with Vladimir Putin on behalf of then-presidential candidate Trump. In April 2016, Papadopoulos met with a Russia-linked professor who promised that the Kremlin was ready to provide “dirt” on Hillary Clinton in the form of “thousands of emails”. Trump has downplayed the importance of Papadopoulos, calling him a “low level volunteer” and “liar” - he previously called Papadopoulos an “excellent guy”. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House Press Secretary, downplayed the connection between Papadopoulos and the Trump campaign, insisting his lies to the FBI about his Russian contacts on behalf of the Trump campaign “had nothing to do with the activities of the campaign”. She repeatedly stated that Papadopoulos was “a volunteer mem-
ber on an advisory council”. The unsealing of Papadopoulos’s plea came on the same day as Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, and a business associate, Rick Gates, were charged with money laundering, tax evasion, fraud, conspiracy to defraud the US government, and failing to register as agents of foreign interests. In a federal courthouse in Washington, the two pleaded not guilty to the charges. Manafort and Gates have been confined to their homes on the orders of a federal judge with bail set at $10m for Manafort and $5m for Gates. In response to the indictment of Manafort and Gates, Trump tweeted: “Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren’t Crooked Hillary & the Dems for focus?????”
DonkeyHotey
Kremlin.ru
Ousted Catalan leader in Belgium Inventor admits to following declaration of independence mutilating journalist Anisha Faruk
Liam Frahm
Deputy News Editor
Sacked Catalan President Carles Puigdemont travelled to Belgium on Monday after declaring independence from Spain last Friday. He said he had not travelled to Belgium to seek asylum but to “put the heart of the Catalan problem on show at the heart of the European institutions and to denounce the politicisation of Spanish justice.” Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, Puigdemont criticised what he called the ‘democratic deficit’ in Spain. The Spanish central government has suspended Catalonia’s autonomy, taking direct control over the region and sacking Catalan officials. Spain’s constitutional court suspended Catalonian unilateral declaration of independence shortly before Puigdemont’s press conference. The supreme court announced that it has begun proceedings against Catalan parliamentary officials over their part in the controversial referendum. Potentially, Puigdemont could face charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds over his administration’s attempts to secure independence. His departure to Brussels came just hours before Spain’s attorney general announced the possible charges. Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish prime minister, has called snap regional elections for 21 Decem-
News Editor
Sébastien Bertrand
ber. The date was set as Madrid dissolved the Catalan parliament on Friday after secessionist MPs voted to create Catalonia as an “independent and sovereign state.” Puigdemont told the packed press conference in Brussels he would respect the results of the elections. It was feared that secessionists might move to delegitimise the ballot by boycotting the vote but Puigdemont said he accepted the election challenge refusing “to abandon [the] political project.” He also said he would leave Belgium and return to Spain if he was guaranteed a fair judicial process. The ousted leader accused Spanish police of failing to protect his rights as well as those of other leaders of the separatist movement. Charles Michel, spokesman for the Belgian prime minister, said
Puigdemont had not been invited by the Belgian government but “has the same rights and duties as all European citizens.” Kris Peeters, Belgian deputy prime minister, commented: “If you are going to declare independence, you usually stay with your people.”
Generalitat de Catalunya
Peter Madsen, the Danish inventor who built the UC3 Nautilus, the world’s first privately owned submarine, told police this week that he had mutilated Wall’s corpse while aboard the vessel before dumping her body parts, but denies killing her. Instead, he claims that she died of carbon monoxide poisoning while he was above deck. On 10th August, Wall disappeared after boarding the inventor’s submarine in Copenhagen while researching an article she was writing about Madsen. However, on 21st August, her torso was found on the Danish coast while her head, legs and clothing were found later, on 6th October. Following his arrest, Madsen initially said that he had dropped Wall in Copenhagen, at around 10.30pm on 10th August. However, his account of events has changed repeatedly. He later said that the journalist died after being being hit on the head by the submarine’s hatch accidentally - he said he lost his footing while holding the hatch open for her, thus dropping it on her. He claimed that he then buried her body at sea. However, a post-mortem examination found stab wounds around Wall’s ribs and genitals, which investigators believe were inflicted “around
or shortly after her death,” but no fractures on her skull. Madsen was arrested following his rescue after the Nautilus sank - investigators say the vessel was deliberately sunk. Footage of women being tortured, strangled and beheaded was found on a computer belonging to Madsen, according to police. He denied the videos belonged to him, stating that the device was also used by several other members of his staff.
Joi
Take the
e g d e l P e i g #Veg 2017
Come into Oxford SU and take your picture with our selfie banner, collect your badge, fill in the form and we’ll register your college & pledge
9.00 – 5:30 / 4 Worcester St #VeggiePledge2017 VeggiePledge
COMMENT
Comment 8
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Is there really “social apartheid” in Oxford admissions? The implications of the data on regional and racial disparities uncovered by David Lammy Lizzie Deane & Joe Inwood
Comment Editor & Staff Writer
Ever feel like everyone at Oxford is from London? Or at least say they’re from London so as not to confuse clueless northerners with alien territories such as ‘High Wycombe’, ‘Crawley’, or the most fabled of them all, ‘Guildford’. Well, the truth is, that’s because they kind of are. Taking the almost unanimously stretched definition of ‘London’ as meaning all of Greater London and the Southeast, on average approximately half of all offers made to applicants from England over the past five years have been given to students from ‘London’. For the more visual among us, Wikipedia and a calculator has allowed the presentation of this staggering statistic another way. People living within a 7,980 square mile area were given the same number of Oxford offers as those living in the remaining 42,350 square miles of the country. That’s half the Oxford offer-holders from England living in about one seventh of our land mass. Although we do History, we’re aware of
crazy concepts such as population density, so yes, obviously more people are concentrated in‘London’ than anywhere else. But this does not nearly account for the massive disparity. Coming from Manchester, where 64 offers (a fairly high figure for a northern local authority) were made between 2010-2015, it is little wonder Oxford can feel disconcerting, suddenly questioning whether everyone from London must be extraordinarily clever, when 333 offers were made in the same period to students from Richmond upon Thames, which has a population almost one third of the size of that of the City of Manchester. David Lammy’s recent uncovering of this data, along with other shocking figures relating to racial and socioeconomic inequalities in Oxbridge admissions, confirms to the minority of regional, BME, and first-generation students atthis university what they already felt: that they are grossly underrepresented and don’t fit in. When there are more offer-holders from five of the Home Counties than the whole of the North of England, is it really that surprising that northerners get excited when they meet someone else who says
‘bath’ rather than ‘barth’? Having spent the last two years in Oxford, a place where the entire world beyond the Watford Gap seems to melt into nothingness, it’s a sad reality that someone from Newcastle feels the comfort of home on hearing the dulcet tones of a passing Scouser on Broad Street.
Unless this data acts as a wake-up call, more bright 18 year-olds will consider Oxford is not a place for ‘people like them’ Of course, much of this data reflects existing inequality across Britain. Nine of the top ten areas for life expectancy in Britain are in or around London, while the bottom ten are all in the North or Scotland. These are clearly structural problems, but Oxford should be a place that can help to change them. Instead, the opposite is true. Beating off stiff competition for the most depressing statistic of them all is the fact that Oxford
is actually going backwards in its socioeconomic representation, with 79 percent of 2010 offer holders from the top two social classes, and 82 percent in 2015. What can be done about this scandalous state of affairs? Lammy makes some sensible suggestions which are worth pursuing, but as ever, the biggest problem is a cultural one. Complacency needs knocking away at every level, including among current students. More of us need to get involved with access work, not just those who benefited from such programmes in the past. Colleges need a culture of outreach from top to bottom – and yes, this means if you’re from the one of those five Home Counties (Surrey, Hertfordshire, Oxfordshire, Kent and Buckinghamshire), think about making the trip up to Rochdale as well as to Richmond upon Thames. Take part in access programmes and make school visits to under-represented regions, rather than going back to your old school to help out those already benefiting from a rigged system. Too often, broader socioeconomic inequality is blamed for Oxford’s admissions shame. We don’t deny this exists – it very
much does – but it is no excuse for a university that claims to make offers on the basis of merit alone. Just two colleges, Mansfield and Wadham, offer over half of their total places to applicants from state comprehensives and sixth form colleges. As prospective applicants we thought twice about Oxford on the basis of its social elitism; unless this latest data acts as a wake-up call, it seems clear that more bright 18 year-olds will consider Oxford then decide it’s not a place for ‘people like them’.
Chris McAndrew
A BME student’s perspective: placing responsibility on ‘social apartheid’ is simplistic Mayu Noda Sub-editor
“Social apartheid” and “centuries of entrenched privilege” – such are the damning, yet also all too familiar, condemnatory remarks recently aimed at Oxford and Cambridge by MP David Lammy. However, Lammy’s almost sole placement of responsibility upon Oxbridge for their ‘social apartheid’ is simplistic. For instance, he disregards then Oxford’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor Dr Sally Mapstone’s response to his accusation of discrimination against black applicants in 2010: “Black students apply disproportionately for the most oversubscribed subjects, contributing to a lower than average success rate for the group as a whole: 44 percent of all black applicants apply for Oxford’s three most oversubscribed subjects, compared with just 17 percent of all white applicants”. His analysis lacks a consideration of various factors which complicate the matter, and he conveniently downplays the influences of the educational systems that precede university entry. Equally, however, Oxbridge need
to recognise that much of the onus is on themselves to make their environments more inclusive. They must combat the unconscious (and possibly even conscious) biases of tutors and admissions officers that potentially sway success rates amongst BME applicants. A reconsideration of how to render their spaces less white-dominated and more diverse – take Oxford’s History faculty, which only this year decided to introduce a compulsory non-European (or nonwhite) paper into the curriculum – is necessary. Lammy’s argument is often lacking in nuance, but his points cannot be dismissed. What his comments do effectively bring to light is a view of Oxbridge potentially shared by much of society at large and most worryingly, by generations of future BME students who could thrive at Oxbridge yet will be deterred from applying from a belief in the universities’ “social apartheid”. Ironically though, Lammy himself contributes to reinforcing this “social apartheid” that he lambastes Oxbridge for creating. In labelling them as “the golden ticket to a job in our top professions” and focusing only on these two universities, he dangerously and excessively elevates
the idea of ‘Oxbridge’ into something almost sacred (which it most certainly is not). Downplaying the brilliance of many other universities nationwide, he contributes to constructing an image of the two universitiesas something almost dizzyingly unattainable (again, which they are not), especially for BME students. In an attempt to counter such notions, Oxford’s ACS (African Caribbean Society), for example, is involved in much access work, some in collaboration with the Oxford University Admissions and Outreach Department. ACS’s access officer states that “applications from black students to Oxford have actually increased by 24.1 percent since the ACS developed its access framework at the university”, citing the Visions Programme, Shadowing Day, and Annual Access Conference as examples of such, with the latter two aimed at “demystifying Oxford and reassuring students that Oxford is a space for them”. ACS’s work is admirable and clearly effective. But is this enough? My college, St Catherine’s, is involved with reaching out to students at schools in various regions, especially Northern Ireland. Whilst valuable, combatting socioeco-
nomic or regional disadvantage does not necessarily involve tackling the equally problematic (and too often intertwined) issue of an image of Oxford hostile to the applications of BME students. In a university in which the admissions process and students’ lives centre so much around the individual colleges, surely it is naïve to assume that the university-wide initiatives alone will allow prospective BME applicants to progress from hesitation to imagining life in an Oxford college.
Lammy himself contributes to reinforcing the “social apartheid” he lambasts Oxbridge for creating In light of this, Lammy does propose valid initiatives, such as urging Oxbridge to “writ[e] to every single student who gets 3 As in August each year, encouraging them [... to] apply to Oxbridge”. Although equating academic success with Oxbridge at-
tendance is still somewhat problematic, the scheme could be effective in influencing those who would avoid applying out of a lack of confidence. I admit I have often struggled with issues surrounding race and culture here, but at the same time, I have genuinely loved my time at Oxford. Too much of the dialogue surrounding diversity and Oxbridge disregards the individual stories of BME students who have actually attended these universities and flourished on the academia and friendships they found there. According to the ACS’s Access Officer: “What makes ACS effective is the fact that while we work in collaboration with the university on our programmes, they are still entirely student-run because we recognise the importance of and feel extremely passionate about putting the black Oxford student at the forefront of the narrative.” If this is the attitude contributing to the increase in black applicants, it becomes clear that continuing to shift the dialogue towards one that treats BME students as individuals, rather than mere statistics and constant victims of “social apartheid” narratives, is necessary to reassure future BME applicants that they belong as much as anyone else.
Comment 9
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Jared O’Mara: sexism, the Labour Party, and the gauging of true repentance Katrina Gaffney Deputy-Editor
When I saw that Jared O’Mara had been suspended from the Labour party I felt a rush of relief. My only wish was that it had happened even sooner. If we have learnt anything in the last few weeks, it is that women do not feel always safe: we do not feel safe in the workplace, we do not feel safe on public transport, we especially do not feel safe walking home alone in the dark. The Labour party needs to be a space in which women, as well as members of the LGBTQ community, can be 100 percent confident that they are safe and respected. The comments that were made by Jared O’Mara were counter to this goal; they damaged the idea that Labour is a party committed to equality and I think that O’Mara should never have even been allowed to stand for parliament. When it emerged that O’Mara had made comments a decade ago which were degrading to women, homosexuals and indeed ‘fatties’, what shocked me the most was the immediate reaction from certain left-wing activists (*cough, cough* Owen Jones) and some MPs. There seemed to be little
condemnation of O’Mara, pointing to his age when he made the comments and the fact that he had changed. Considering that O’Mara was older than I am now when he made those comments, I have little sympathy with them. He was not a child, or indeed even a teenager, but a fully grown adult who must take responsibility for his past actions. My main problem was with the argument that O’Mara had changed; there
Chris McAndrew
seemed to be little conclusive evidence for this. Instead there were allegations from March this year from a constituent who claimed O’Mara had been physically abusive, calling her an ‘ugly bitch’.
Allegations from March this year from a constituent claimed O’Mara had been physically abusive, calling her a ‘ugly bitch’ O’Mara of course denies these claims. I do not deny the possibility for people to learn as they grow-up and I imagine we have all made comments that we now regret, however, the evidence for change in this instance is hard to find. Moreover, O’Mara occupied an immensely important public position and the comments he made – no matter how far in the past – were unacceptable and irreconcilable with the responsibilities of an MP and the Labour party’s stance on gender equality. Many have now retracted or altered their original positon on O’Mara but nevertheless the initial response concerned me. It
saddens me that my first thought on seeing these comments was: “You wouldn’t be saying that if he were a Tory MP; you would be calling for the Tory Party to take action.” Left wing activists and politicians need to be able to apply a critical feminist perspective across the political spectrum and remember that membership of the Labour party does not preclude an individual from being misogynistic. I firmly agree with the argument that, had a Tory MP made such remarks, there would not have been such a media frenzy; all you need to do is look at Boris Johnson to know that this is true.
O’Mara’s comments have damaged the idea that Labour is a party committed to equality However, to say that at least O’Mara isn’t Phillip Davis (who has in the past filibustered bills seeking to tackle domestic violence against women) or Jacob Rees-Mogg (who recently claimed it was ridiculous for a man to call himself a feminist) provides me with little comfort. If the Labour Party are setting their bar for
equality as ‘slightly better than the Conservatives’, then they are setting the bar remarkably low. The Labour Party has shown a commitment to parliamentary equality: they are the party of all women shortlists and 50 percent of the shadow cabinet are women. If they are to continue on this positive trajectory they must take a zero tolerance stand on voices and attitudes which are contrary to the promotion of gender equality; this includes examining the past views of those who want to represent the party in parliament and excluding those who have failed to give women the fundamental respect which they deserve. Some might argue that this is a little harsh, I think it is just what is necessary to prove to women that they are welcome and respected in the British political sphere. We live in a country of 65 million people; we have a parliament of 650 elected MPs. Surely we can do better than a man who has previously shown such flagrant disrespect for women and members of the LGBTQ community. The Labour Party can do better in sourcing representatives; it has to do better if it is to prove to women that it is serious about tackling the deep rooted sex-
First Putin, now Xi Jinping: how unlimited power became the ‘in’ thing William Evans Deputy Comment Editor
If you were to cast your mind back to the finest music of 2002, it’s unlikely that the first thing to come to mind would be a Russian chart topper. That year, a song titled ‘A Man Like Putin’, in which a Russian girl-band sang about how they wanted a man like Vladimir Putin, dominated the Russian charts. Unsurprisingly, it propelled the band to worldwide fame. However, it was also part of a more menacing process the consolidation of Putin’s control, from which an insidious cult began to develop. Fifteen years on, and Putin is still in power, his cult fully fledged, and it seems likely that he will remain in office for the foreseeable future. While many in the West are dismayed by this, the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, is inspired by Putin’s leadership model. Xi had already been granted a rank equal to that of Chairman Mao and Deng Xiaoping, bestowing a level of authority upon him that makes him head of the Party, the military, and the state. But last week, at the 19th National Congress, his power reached new heights. The “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics
for a New Era” was unanimously voted into the constitution. This catchy title is of crucial significance, as not since Mao Zedong has a living leader had their “thoughts” incorporated into the Chinese Constitution. A clear demarcation that one-man rule of China had come to an end was the lack of ideological contributions under the names of Chinese leaders. Xi’s intentions, then, are clear from this break with convention, and they are strikingly ominous.
Not since Mao Zedong has a living leader had their “thoughts” incorporated into the Constitution Technically, the phenomenon of a one-man cult is banned. However, in a country that masquerades a one-party state as a democracy, this is hardly an insurmountable barrier to overcome. That no obvious successor to Xi has been announced, either through appointments to the Politburo, or by Xi himself, confirms that he could remain in power for as long as his physical health and mental faculties permit him to. Much like Vladimir
Putin, he sees his tenure in office as a position of indefinite length. If the West is appalled at Xi’s actions, it is certainly doing a good job of concealing its feelings. This National Congress, however, was more of a subtly symbolic coronation for Xi. The most strenuous part of his process of consolidating power has already been completed under the guise of an anti-corruption programme. Although corruption, which was one of the most pressing problems that faced Xi when he took on the leadership of the country, has been reduced in some ways, more importantly, it has
acted as a purge of the Communist Party, removing those people or factions who might block Xi from remaining in office longer than his recent predecessors. A well-known example of this came four years ago, when Bo Xilai, a rising star of the party, was publicly destroyed. His wife, a successful businesswoman, was embroiled in a murder investigation; his son was accused of extreme Western decadence during his studies at Oxford; and he, ultimately, was arrested on corruption charges, given a mere show trial and then sentenced to life imprisonment. Such an act brings
The Russian Presidential Press and Information Office
to mind Stalin’s rise to power, in which both factions of the left and right of the Party were gradually neutered as political threats through sham trials. If this precedent does not set alarm bells ringing, then Western leaders need to start paying more attention to internal Chinese politics.
Although corruption has been reduced under Xi’s anti-corruption programme, it has acted as a purge of the Communist Party The current vacuum in world leadership left by Trump’s America has been gratefully filled by Xi’s China, which now seeks to lead the way in tackling issues of globalisation and climate change. Xi sees this moment as “a new historic juncture in China’s development”. A country that has never been further from embodying a genuine democracy should not be setting the tone and direction of world politics as a global leader. Whether this or apparent Western ambivalence towards this new reality is more concerning, is difficult to say.
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Profile 10
PROFILE
Philip Pullman
On his new book, the meaning of life and the idea of intelligence Irina Boeru Deputy Screen Editor
The most important literary phenomenon of the year, the sequel to Philip Pullman’s trilogy His Dark Materials, referred to as a modern classic, The Book of Dust Volume One: La Belle Sauvage has been published 22 years after the Northern Lights, on the 19th of October on Philip Pullman’s birthday by David Flicking Books in association with Penguin Random House in the UK, and Random House Children’s in the US. The audiobook of La Belle Sauvage is narrated by the talented Award-winning actor Michael Sheen (whom you might know from Passengers, Frost/Nixon, and The Twilight Saga). The cover and chapter heads are the masterpiece of talented artist Chris Wormell who specialises in linocuts and wood engraving, as well as illustration. The details of the cover reveal to the reader the canoe of La Belle Sauvage, belonging to the book’s protagonist, Malcolm Polstead, which
is named after a famous inn. As Malcolm explains, the inn sign ‘was a picture of a beautiful lady, and she’d done something brave, but I don’t know what it was.’ Caught in a fierce storm, the artwork is illustrated in a wood-cut style. As with any Philp Pullman work , the book is an enchanted treasure chest containing a universe to be discovered from brilliant writing to the spellbound illustrations that throw a hint to the significance of each chapter and the hidden secrets that lie within it because as Philip Pullman tells us “everything has a meaning , if only we could read it“.
It challenges your ideas and develops your intellectual curiosity The Book of Dust is “a book of our time, timeless” that lifts your heart as you
glimpse what is to come, as outlined by David Flicking. Pullman’s books are read by children and adults alike due to its complex nature that yet contains something to suit every heart. However, his books are not intended to a specific reader. It is not the fact that Philip Pullman is an award-winning writer that makes him a genius, it is his multi-layered structure, the influence of Milton and William Blake, history of religions material but also the terrific style of writing, the vivid imagery that project you into media res makes the book suitable for any reader in the quest for knowledge. It is knowledge indeed that is encapsulated in his books as you are dragged in. It challenges your ideas and develops your intellectual curiosity answering questions that are part of the human being such as life and death. It is like a spell has been cast on you. As you feel your heart light and your little grey cells stimulated by the voice of the book itself , you are given access into a world where to be human does not mean to be good or bad but to give a part of yourself to the world. Pullman’s books allow children to identify with all characters, not only the heroes; there are no heroes only humans capable of doing good things and bad things, sometimes even both at the same time. It allows children to grow up without having to part from their teddy bears, their fairy books and from the magic that has been irremediably murdered by a rational single–vision society; (William Blake claims that the single vision is deadly).
His books give grown-ups a chance to regain the promised land There is no nostalgia for childhood for Pullman, not letting children to grow up is “sickly and unhealthy”, a feeling promoted in their writings by authors like A. A. Milne or Kenneth Grahame. His books give grown-ups a chance to regain the promised land, a chance to speak with the trees, the animals , the hu-
mans and nature, as everything holds in its composition spirit and matter. In the end it allows them to act and believe in the only God existent in this world, the God that considers all beings equal and does not subordinate one creature to another, without being governed by different organised religious authorities that impose orders and yield power over other people. There is no concept of “good people rewarded, bad people punished”. The Book of Dust further explores Lyra’s story from the moment she was born to twenty years later as a grown-up. The book centres on the “struggle between a despotic and totalitarian organisation, which wants to stifle speculation and enquiry, and those who believe thought and speech should be free’, as mentioned by Philip Pullman. It is a “darker book than His Dark Materials”, including elements from which Pullman drew his inspiration from the likes of Soviet Russia, the communist system
the Pitt Rivers Museum and the Botanic Garden (the bench where Lyra and Will sit every year for an hour at noon on Midsummer’s day), Christ Church Meadows (the place from which Lee Scoresby’s hot air balloon took off). The visitors will be given an insight into the stories and places that inspired Lyra’s world. A map will be provided (Map in Lyra’s Oxford book, a parallel universe, yet almost the same Oxford as we know it, with a touch of enchantment and magic) which will help them navigate Lyra’s parallel Oxford as they wander across historic streets and alleys. The tour will be led by a professionally trained green badge guide. The magic of Philip Pullman will still go on for quite a while, as Daemon Voices Essays On Storytelling, a collection of essays, written over twenty years and brought together for the first time will be out on the 2nd of November. Additionally, the BBC adaptation of His Dark Materials will be brought to screen in 2018,
Philip Pullman is the most authentic proof that in real life intelligence and talent cannot be measured by a degree and the chilling reality of informants, KGB, secret service to be found in The Book of Dust in the form of the League of SaintAlexander. A league that recruits children to spy on their parents, the allegory of good and bad boy comes into view, as a good boy should be guarding his parents closely, denouncing them to the league if they go astray . Through The Book of Dust, Pullman pays homage to the lady who granted him books when he was a child in the character of Dr Hannah Relf, an alethiometer specialist (a “truth-teller”, a rare device in Lyra’s world which resembles a four-handed pocket watch, it can truthfully answer any possible question asked by a skilled user. From Aletheia, Ancient Greek, meaning “truth”). The setting of The Book of Dust as well as The Dark Materials was inspired by Pullman’s home in Oxford and Exeter College where he read English (Jordan College in the books). Whether you live in Oxford, or you want to visit it and you have read any of Philip Pullman‘s books, ‘The Experience Oxfordshire’ Philip Pullman’s Oxford tour is an unique experience that opens the door into a magical real-life world , that also happens to be the world of Lyra Belacqua. The two-hour walking tour takes you to key locations from Lyra’s Oxford, including the Bodleian Library, the Covered Market, Exeter College,
the project being developed by Jack Thorne (who collaborated with J.K.Rowling for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) with Pullman as executive producer, Tranter and Gardner for Bad Wolf; Toby Emmerich and Carolyn Blackwood for New Line; Bethan Jones for BBC One and Deborah Forte for Scholastic. The image that vividly remained imprinted in Pullman’s mind of the rivers in Australia during a flood, proved to be the discovery of the “life of the river “, as experienced by Malcolm Polstead. A militant for education, Pullman assess the importance of fairy tales, their inclusion in the school syllabus as well as the role of books in general that should not be by any circumstance gender labelled. The readers will be hooked by Pullman’s study into the concept of ‘Dust’, developed in his books as a key feature and all we must hope for as the writer himself jokes is that scientists will not discover what Dark Matter is until the end of the Book of Dust. Philip Pullman is the most authentic proof that in real life intelligence and talent cannot be measured by a degree. His books send you into a world that should never be “a safe space “ but a world where ideas challenge minds and souls, without suffocating the life within it. Philip Pullman’s craftworks appeal to your curiosity and throw you out to explore the world with a desire to live.
Get involved in free sporting activities taking place through the week, check out the online calendar. – Week 7 – oxfordsu.org/thisgirlcan #oxbridgegirlscan
OXBRIDGE GIRLS CAN
Features
Features 12
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
A weekend getaway in Paris is always a good idea Caitlin Law Features Editor
Now that term is halfway through (already?!), your thoughts might be turning towards possible getaways in the Christmas vac. Why not spend a weekend in Paris, and see the city which has inspired everyone from Ernest Hemingway to Charles Dickens? Travel tips If you haven’t got exact travel times in mind, Eurostar snap is an excellent way of taking the train more cheaply. The website shows you the lowest available fare across a given period, and you simply pick whether you want to travel in the morning or the afternoon. Whilst it is designed for last-minute travel plans, you’ll still need to book at least seven days in advance. Bear in mind too that you’ll have your exact time of travel confirmed to you 48 hours after booking, which means you may have the nasty surprise of a 5.40am train. Tickets are also non-refundable and non-exchangeable. Museums and art galleries So you’ve arrived in Paris. What now? Museums, art galleries, and most major attractions are free
to EU citizens under 25, which makes sampling Paris’ worldclass culture surprisingly cheap. Here are some of the best museums and art galleries to pick from: The Musée D’Orsay hosts French art dating from 1848-1914, and its collection of impressionist and post-impressionist work is the largest in the world. You’ll be dazzled by the sheer quantity of masterpieces on show by the likes of Van Gogh, Monet, and Cézanne. The museum itself, a former turn of the century railway station, is also breath-taking.
Museums, art galleries and most major attractions are free to EU citizens under 25, which makes sampling Paris’s world-class culture surprisingly The Musée de l’Orangerie is situated in the gorgeous Tuileries Gardens, and is also home to impressionist paintings. The reason tourists flock is to see Monet’s
Water Lilies murals, which occupy two oval rooms all to themselves. A visit is well worth it, but bear in mind the museum is fairly small and queues are likely to be considerable. For something a little different, try the Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac. The Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac (admittedly not the catchiest of names) has an anthropological focus, and displays the indigenous art and culture of Oceania, Asia, the Americas, and Asia. The museum was only completed in 2006, and has a strikingly modern design which contrasts with the grand 19th century aesthetic of most of the other major Parisian museums. The location is also conveniently near the Eiffel Tower. Food and drink One of the great gastronomic capitals of the world, Paris is a foodie’s heaven. The array is mind-boggling, and this can be a curse as well as a blessing. How to choose? Here are a few of the tastiest options: Le Ruisseau Burger Joint, which admittedly doesn’t sound like the most authentic option, but hear me out. France’s capital has gone burger crazy in recent years, and the country’s history of producing
Caitlin Law
premium quality beef means it’s a match made in heaven. In a notoriously expensive city, €13 for a burger, chips, and soft drink is hard to ignore. The chocolate fondant desert for the tempting price of €4 is also absolutely heavenly. Now for something a little more traditional, try Bouillon Chartier. Founded in 1896 and now classed as a historic monument, Bouillon Chartier is the quintessential French brasserie. Waiters in white shirts and black waistcoats serve classic dishes such as roast chicken and steak and chips in a dining room straight from a 19th century period drama. Don’t let its fame let you think you can’t
afford to eat there, either. A main course varies from €8.50 to €13.50, which is exceptionally good value considering the quality and setting. Found in bohemian Montmartre, Solyles is home to another French classic: rotisserie chicken. In fact, this whole restaurant is dedicated solely to the mouth-watering dish. You can go the whole way and get a half a roast chicken to yourself, or there are smaller options such as chicken skewers. The sides on offer are also delicious, and include chips (of course) and ratatouille. Rest assured the portions are enormous, and you’re unlikely to get better value anywhere.
Why my PhD feels like preparing to make pesto Caitlin Pilbeam Staff Writer
Why pesto? Because it contains pine nuts, because I like pesto, and because it has a childhood comfort in that I used to make pesto with my father. His two main food groups are olive oil and garlic, but more importantly it is him from whom I learned the smugness of making your own pesto. These were the good old days back in a childhood where I thought I knew that I wanted to do a PhD, and thought I knew what a PhD was: really clever people who’d learnt a lot and knew a lot doing clever things with that knowledge. No. I now know what a PhD, in social sciences, might be: it’s a lot of really confused people who have learnt a little, only to realise they don’t know anything, doing fairly arbitrary things with that un-knowledge. There is also a caveat that my ten-year-old self had not considered: they are doing these things
with a profoundly hopeful yet also somewhat pessimistic attitude that produces, at reliable intervals, complete existential crises. Which is why, instead of writing my thesis right now, I have returned to the more comforting notion of pesto.
I imagine my thesis to be these overpackaged few pine nuts So, to understand my analogy, we must understand pesto. Traditional pesto is a perfectly blended and balanced emulsion of olive oil, parmesan cheese, basil, garlic, and pine nuts. The pine nuts are important – and expensive. They come in tiny packets, containing about ten pine nuts for £10, copiously wrapped in plastic. I imagine my thesis to be these over-packaged few pine nuts. And so the analogy continues. Why are pine nuts so expensive?
Because they are one of the most ludicrously labour-intensive and time-consuming food items to harvest. We giggle at the squirrel-like creatures that David Attenborough narrates in their foolhardy scramble to harvest enough miniature meals before winter, but I believe I am probably that squirrel in this scenario. During the first year of my PhD, I have written a lot – probably the size of my thesis, thrice over, at least. It would seem that I have populated myself a pine forest. Most of my writing is complete nonsense that I have written in order to clarify my thinking, ten pages of circular waffle for one line of: ‘Aha! That’s what I was talking about’. So my writing is much like the distractingly prickly foliage of the pine trees and hard frills of the pine cones which obtusely and forcibly hide the precious pine-nut-nuggets of clarity. However, the time will soon come for me to harvest my pine nuts. I will soon have to trawl through my pine forest of expertly camouflaged and defended pine nuts –
and, let’s face it, pine trees are not the most inviting of trees to trawl through. With pricked fingers and broken nails, I will painstakingly climb tree upon tree (occasionally quite possibly falling out) to grab pine cones from which I will attempt to pry my nutty prizes (also occasionally quite possibly to be frustrated by a lack thereof).
I will have to extract ‘the point’, ‘the thing I eventually realised’ From all my thinking and umming and ahing that I once thought might be useful to write down, I will have to extract ‘the point’, ‘the thing I eventually realised’ from each, in order to assemble and structure a coherent argument that can be forwarded in a 10-chapter thesis which will be pleasingly bound and sent off. I will have gone over each chapter, picking the best pine nut I possibly can find for each one and scrutinising it over and over until
I am satisfied that it is, indeed, a pine nut. Once I have my little packet of pine nuts, however, I will have told the world about them. My PhD would be over, my findings out in the open, and although there will have been a chapter talking about why I chose these particular nuts and how these particular nuts indeed make a fantastically original contribution to all sorts of exciting potential future pestos – I may never make that pesto. I may never make anything related to these pine nuts ever again – and I will have only contributed such a miniscule number of highly specific pine nuts anyway, and I quite possibly might not have only climbed my pine trees, but maybe on occasion someone else’s pine tree… Which leads me to the conclusion that: somebody else will make pesto with my pine nuts. But, pine nuts are delicious, and pesto is delicious…so I’m hoping this at least bodes well for a delicious and (ful)filling thesis. Eventually.
Features 13
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Explore cultural cuisines at Gloucester Green market
Your guide to the array of options found in the heart of Oxford Marina Hackett, Alex Serpell and Matthaeus Chao Deputy Features Editor and Staff Writers
Hidden behind the bustle of Magdalen Street, in the midst of the bus station and the OUSU offices, Gloucester Green market is a reliable source of lunches and snacks available for half the week: Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. It offers a wide selection of hot food alongside the antique market and farmer’s fruit and vegetable stalls. The various foods aren’t just gastronomically satisfying, but they also provides an interesting insight into the cultures they represent. Here’s a look at some of our favourites: Ethiopian/Eritrean Lulas was the first stall we went to, and I’d never had Ethiopian food before. There was injera, which is a spongy pancake that you can use to eat the various dishes, which tasted slightly sour and went well with the other food. I tried four of the dishes: red lentils, yellow split peas, shiro, and fosolia (green beans and carrots). The shiro had the most flavour – it was made of tomatoes and chickpeas and
was spicier than the others. The stall has vegetarian and vegan options on weekdays, and meat options on weekends – the company also runs events fairly regularly where you can try the food. Polish The main items at this stall, called Taste of Poland, are smoked sausages and pork goulash – all of it is proper homemade comfort food, made in the traditional way. They also have pierogi, which I’d never heard of before – these are boiled dumplings stuffed with either vegetables or meat, and you can get a pickle to eat with them which I really liked. I found the meat dumplings nicer than the vegetarian ones, but both were delicious, if a bit stodgy. Still, the best thing at this stall is definitely the pork goulash.
You’ll be easily tempted by the wafting saffron aroma coming from the open pans German This stall mainly sells German
sausages, including a sizeable Currywurst, which is a sausage sliced into chunks and served with a German curry sauce, as well as Bratwurst – either acts as a great lunch and will fill you up for the whole day. It’s fairly uncommon to find the curry sauce in the UK, so it’s worth giving it a try! Japanese This stall is probably one of the most popular in the market, with its fried dumplings – gyoza – and steamed buns. There are meat and vegetarian options, and both are fantastic. You can also add your own sauces, including garlic soy sauce and Japanese vinegar, which make the gyoza even more delicious. The gyoza are also very affordable, at £2 for 5, and taste amazing. The stall also has yakitori chicken skewers – the fat is melty and they have very balanced seasoning without being overwhelmingly sweet or salty. Still, the gyoza are definitely the main attraction here. All in all this is one of the best stalls, but there’s always a long queue at lunchtime so it’s worth going a bit earlier to get ahead of the crowd. Greek Here you can find souvlakia, which is a Greek fast food – these
Roger T Wong
are skewers of grilled meat, in this case chicken, with some grilled vegetables too. The food comes in a pita wrap, and there are vegetarian options too – these just contain grilled vegetables, but are just as good as the meat version. Spanish This is another of the really popular stalls at the market, serving paella from huge pans. There are various types, with one dish of meat and another with seafood – I found the meat option the best, although the paella itself is great in both the meat and the seafood dishes, so either is worth it. If you wander through the market, you’ll be easily tempted by the wafting saffron aroma coming from the open pans.
Tibetan This stall, called Taste Tibet, serves curry cooked in an authentic style on Wednesdays at Gloucester Green. The dishes are vegetarian, and include some lentil-based curries, as well as some made with okra, among others, and the curries feel healthier than you expect. There are various different dishes to choose from, some spicier than others, so you’ll definitely find something to fulfil your curry needs no matter what your tolerance of heat. Some of the curries have a creamier flavour too, but I’d recommend all of them. The market is open every Wednesday and Thursday, and Saturday.
Hidden homophobia - and how to avoid it Amy Smith Staff Writer
There are a small proportion of students at Oxford who don’t like gay people, and an even smaller proportion who will admit it. Their views are straight-forward wrong, and they often end up being social outcasts because of them.
Their views are straight-forward wrong, and they often end up being social outcasts because of them But the vast majority of cis straight people also contribute to homophobia, only they do so unintentionally and without malice. This is hidden homophobia: things that hurt LGBTQ people but are not deliberately meant to hurt them. Have you done any of
these six things? If so, maybe it’s time for a change. ‘Ironic’ Homophobia We’re all privileged because we’re all at Oxford. But some of us have also experienced discrimination whether it be because of our race, socio-economic background, sexuality, or gender identity. But some people think we live in a post-discrimination era, just because they’ve never experienced prejudice themselves. As a result, some feel entitled to make comments such as “that’s so gay” because they don’t really mean it. Nowadays there’s no actual homophobia, so gay people should just take it in their stride, right? Largely we have to - otherwise we’d spend our whole lives arguing, but you can’t assume that someone’s never experienced real homophobia unless you ask, and you don’t want to end up ‘ironically’ repeating what has been said by others who really meant it. Fetishizing queer peoplePorn showing ‘she-males’ objectifies trans people, and lesbian porn teaches boys that women who love women are doing so for
the male gaze. Believe me, we really aren’t, and we really don’t appreciate being inappropriately touched or even just flirted with when we’re dancing with our partner in a club. Don’t watch lesbian and ‘she-male’ porn, and don’t objectify someone because they’re queer. Just treat them like a person.
‘Nowadays there’s no actual homophobia, gay people should just take it in their stride, right?’ The “gay best friend” Some people proudly refer to their ‘lezza’ or ‘gay’ friend because they think it shows how modern and exotic their friendship group is. I’ve personally experienced being introduced as “a lesbian” and I hated it. Think about whether you’re mentioning a friend’s sexuality because it fits in with the conversation, or because you want to show off how progressive
and cool you are, and it goes without saying that no one wants to be called your “gay best friend”. Standing by Taking a live and let live policy can make your life more peaceful, and when you’re around older relatives who make the odd homophobic comment, that kind of policy is more understandable. However, it becomes toxic when you’re willing to watch a friend be discriminated against and do absolutely nothing because you don’t want to seem like a ‘social justice warrior’. Everyone has the right to their own opinion, but they don’t have the right to use that opinion to bully and discriminate against others, so stand up for your queer friends whenever you can - that’s the only way to be a so-called LGBTQ ally. Too Much Information For most people, talk about “how far you’ve gone” ended in secondary school but for queer people the questioning goes on and on. Everyone seems to want to know, ‘who’s the top?’, ‘what do lesbians do?’, and ‘have you ever used a strap on?’. You should never ask
people, queer or not, unsolicited intrusive questions. It’s got to stop - other people’s sex life is none of your business.
Everyone has the right to their own opinion, but they don’t have the right to use that opinion to bully and discriminate against others The elephant in the room Sometimes, people are uncomfortable about homosexuality but really want to show they’re not, so they bring up how much they like Ellen and how RuPaul’s drag race is their favourite show, just to make sure you know they are absolutely fine with you being queer. It’s great to try and make queer people feel accepted, but the best way to do that is to treat them like anyone else.
Features 14
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Alice in Westgateland: the new Oxford
James Ashworth takes in the novelty and promise of Westgate Centre James Ashworth Staff Writer
“It doesn’t feel like I’m in Oxford anymore,” said a lady I overheard on the escalator. And with the new Alice in Wonderland themed opening, perhaps that’s what is intended. I am, of course, talking about the opening of the new Westgate centre on Tuesday 24th November, finally opening its doors after two years of construction. Camera crews and shoppers alike descended on the new complex, eager to explore the building we have spent so long waiting for. Has the wait been worth it, or is it yet another impossible thing to believe before breakfast? The first thing you notice about the Westgate Centre is the size. It certainly must have indulged in some ‘EAT ME’ cake, because although I never saw its predecessor, the building itself is enormous. It reminds me of Cabot Circus in my native Bristol, with large open spaces and floors galore; all with a sleek modern finish of glass and steel. Its size also means you can also use it as a handy shortcut to go to all manner of places, from the castle to Modern Art Oxford, and unlike in Alice’s Wonderland, the signs are quite clear in where you need go.
There is also a new rooftop terrace, though The Varsity Club won’t be packing it in just yet, as it’s not close enough to the centre to get the big name sights. You can just glimpse the top of Tom Tower and a couple of distant spires, but that’s about it. In terms of the shops, there’s a little bit of something for everyone. Juice bars sit next to milkshake shops, a giant Superdry sits next to Sainsbury’s while the centre even boasts a crazy golf course!
“It doesn’t feel like I’m in Oxford anymore” For the conscientious student, a new branch of Blackwells and a French bakery are present, while the more modern student may wish to explore the new Primark, Pret, and perhaps have a cheeky Nandos next to the cinema. Unfortunately, some of the shops are late for a very important date, with 65 of the 125 shops in total not yet open, including some of the large, big name shops like Next. Some of the signs of the desire to open early are also still present, with builders’ cabins, the odd broken pane of glass and
some unfinished sections, like the library, still visible, but as it gets up to steam and more shops open, these should disappear.
Has the wait been worth it, or is it yet another impossible thing to believe before breakfast? In terms of the spectacle of opening itself, they do know how to put on a show.
Perhaps the most impressive was the aerial dancer hanging down from a balloon in the Leiden Square section of the shop, soaring above the customers to the strains of various classical pieces, and even coming down to shake hands from above as well. In addition, there was an audiovisual experience. After being shepherded into what looked like a small gazebo, it began to spin around you, with lights of many colours reflecting off the small pyramids in the walls, until you lost track of whether you were spinning or the walls were.
This was accompanied by pipe music and a Mad Hatter-esque fellow jiving, or perhaps it was the Futterwack, giving an unusual but nonetheless interesting experience. Overall, the Westgate centre looks like it promises to be the new hub for all your shopping needs. Providing everything from donuts to furniture, it remains to be seen if there are any knock on effects on other shops in Oxford, and what they will be. While the opening may have been a bit mad, it doesn’t really matter, because all the best openings are.
Are birdfeeders changing the shape of birds’ beaks? Tales from the Bakery: birthday
New findings suggest surprising developments in the bird population Andrew Wood Victoria Pike
supplementary food that so many of us provide was what had driven these differences between the two populations.
Staff Writer
The UK is a country of bird lovers. We spend around twice the amount of money on bird seed than anywhere else in Europe. But could this love of our feathered friends, and our apparent need to feed them, be altering their morphology? Recent research published in science suggests this could be the case. The work was carried out by a collaboration of universities including Oxford, as well as Wageningen, Exeter, East Anglia and Sheffield.
Could this love of our feathered friends, and our apparent need to feed them, be altering their morphology?
This study is an exciting find - it exemplifies natural selection The paper focussed on great tits, the UK’s largest tit, a common bird in the UK with a population of around 5–7 million. This yellow and green bird has a distinctive black head and is found in woodlands as well as parks and gardens. The researchers compared populations of great tits in the Wytham Woods, Oxford with other populations in Oosterhout and Veluwe in the Netherlands. They found genetic differences between these populations associated with beak length. There is no difference in the natural diets of great tits in the UK or the Netherlands which made the researchers wonder whether the
Further experiments on the great tits in Wytham Woods, near Oxford, found that those birds with longer beaks were more likely to feed at birdfeeders. The study also found that great tits in the UK with longer bills are more successful at reproducing. However, this was not found to be the case in the Dutch population. This study is an exciting find – it exemplifies natural selection occurring over the short time scale since we started feeding wild birds. Who would have thought that something as innocent as feeding the birds could have such clear evolutionary impacts?
Staff Writer
Today is my birthday. Traditionally on days such as this there is much rejoicing and cake to be had. But today is a Tuesday and subsequently large-scale cake operations are not feasible. Instead, birthday BakeSoc was held on Sunday with the excellently combined choices of Rocky Road and Millionaire Shortbread. Caramel, shortbread crunch and chocolate topping vs chewy marshmallow in a chocolate tarmac. What more could a man wish for on his birthday? This week’s session greeted us with strong turnout of all ages, from postgrads to freshers. With some classic mathematical banter about weighing scales and butter quantities (no idea, don’t ask!) the shortbread was the first to be made. Shortbread is, at its best, a simple recipe of butter, sugar and flour. Add caramel made from the perfection of two cans of condensed milk and cover in milk chocolate and the results are simply divine!
Whilst the millionaire shortbread is fantastic, the pie(ce) de résistance is surely rocky road. Made correctly this feast is rich, chocolate-y goodness with gooey marshmallow and the crunch of a good rich tea biscuit (other biscuits are available). Whilst our results were not the aesthetics of something I’d want to drive my (non-existent) car on, the taste was out-of-this-world amazing! Simple to make, no oven needed and truly scrumptious! In short, BakeSoc was at its best this week, and with me running it on my own next week a disaster is shortly to follow... watch this space!
Your student voice. Be heard. Join us for biweekly Student Council in term time. Submit a motion, view your officers, read minutes, and see upcoming events online.
Get experience. We’re always looking for students to work with on the Student Council team - from chairing to scrutiny!
Michaelmas Term 2017 Week 5
8 November / 17.30 - 19.00 St Antony’s College, Nissan Lecture Theatre
Week 7
22 November / 17.30 - 19.00 Wadham College, Moser Theatre >
oxfordsu.org/your-union/student-council
ART & LIT
Art & Lit 16
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
20 years of Harry Potter: the series for everyone Rosie Good Staff Writer
In late June this year, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter turned 20 years old. Just as some of the books’ earliest fans begin to reach adulthood, the series itself has entered a new phase of its existence. Over the years since The Philosopher’s Stone was first published, Harry Potter has undergone an epic transformation, growing from an immediately popular children’s book into an internationally renowned franchise. The seven books in the series have sold well over 450 million copies, and have been adapted into eight feature-length films. There are even entire theme parks dedicated to the world of Harry Potter. Quite simply, Harry Potter has had a profound effect on most of the world’s population, something that cannot be said for any other recent series like it. However, there are some who may argue that it is essentially a glorified children’s book, not deserving its place on the literary pedestal. Yet the ‘magic’ (quite literally) of Harry Potter lies in its universal nature. It doesn’t just appeal to the generation of children for whom it was written, who are now
adults themselves. It is loved by the parents who read alongside them, and the new generations of children who will be introduced to the series through a literary rite of passage. While it may have been primarily aimed at children, and the style of writing can hardly be compared to Shakespeare, today’s society would probably consider it just as much of a classic. Some of the underlying themes addressed in the series are relevant both historically and in the current political climate, with issues such as racism, totalitarianism and the evils of war all lurking in the subtext.
Harry Potter has had a profound effect on most of the world’s population, something unlike any other recent series This is not to say, however, that the importance or value of Harry Potter lies only in its consideration of serious matters such as these. Though analysis of the series does provide some outlet for discussion of these important themes, there
is still plenty of innocence to be found within its pages. That is the beautiful thing about Harry Potter: how it is still able to appeal to adults and children alike all over the world. Growing up with the series, I used re-reading certain chapters as an outlet for specific anxieties or fears depending on where I was at in my life. The older I became, the more Harry Potter became significant to me. I found friends who loved it just as much as I did. I began to notice the underlying themes, which had previously gone right over my head. J.K. Rowling often says to fans, ‘Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.’ A suitably cheesy tagline for an infamous fantasy series; it is also strikingly true. Something about the entirely fictional halls of Hogwarts is oddly relatable, and the books have proven, in my experience, comforting in a wide range of situations. Harry Potter dominated my childhood and probably had an impressively drastic effect on my personality and the individual I turned out to be. No matter how old I become, that will always be the case, and for this reason it seems futile to debate whether Harry Potter is important, and if it is aimed at children or adults. It is for everyone.
Greg Montani
Book review: Stay With Me by Ayòbámi Adébáyò Abigail Eardley Art & Lit Editor
Without even knowing the plot of Stay With Me, the Baileys-longlisted novel, the first scene acts as a precursor for what is to come. Our as yet unnamed narrator waits, anticipating something unknown, in an empty room. Its hollowness is painful, infertile, barren, a physical reminder of Yejide’s loneliness: her inability to conceive, the death of her mother in childbirth, her family’s repeated and pointed rejection of her existence. These examples of Yejide’s isolation are revealed far later in the novel, yet the reader is subconsciously aware of this unhappiness within the first pages. Yejide, despite trying for years, is unable to have a child. For her husband’s family – and for herself – this is unbearable, both socially and personally. She has tried every possible medication, listened to every word of doctor’s advice, followed solemn ceremonies, the charms of locals, and dubious beliefs. It is threatening the relationship with her husband, estranging them from their family, and most significantly, it is breaking Yejide’s spirit. Yet despite this sadness, Stay With Me is far from a book solely of bland
and depressing images. Quickly plunging the reader into the setting of 1980s Nigeria, we are introduced to Yejide’s husband’s new, second wife, a sneering and intimidating woman. Yejide’s desperation for a child takes her to ‘the Mountain of Jaw Dropping Miracles’, where she ritually dances with men in green robes, breast-feeding a goat she has dragged to its pinnacle in a frenzy. We hear childhood stories, passed down generations, of ancient talking trees and pregnant male tortoises. We watch bloody university protests, frozen in fear as they turn violent. Underlying this novel constantly is Yejide’s sadness, her husband Akin’s frustration, but just as they are forced to ignore their true hurt and emotion, the reader is directed to alternative images than their pain. Fundamentally, however, no matter how much Yejide attempts to avoid her own sadness, there is no escaping her true feelings. Consistently throughout the novel, beneath the surface, is a threatening tension. It is as though, at any moment, the carefully woven threads of Yejide and Akin’s successful life may unravel. At every turn we are presented with images of brokenness: mugs shatter, rooves fall in, cars stall. There is constant tension between the elders’ ancient traditions, who coerce Akin to take up a second wife, and
a modern setting of university educated women and frank discussions of sexuality. The threatening buzz of the radio announces military coups, letters arrive from members of organised crime gangs. The fear and worry never gives in, unrelenting.
Stay With Me is a story that hopes constantly for a miracle, despite hardship and loss To find security against this fear, it is women, not men, who are placed in the key positions of strength. Men fail, are weak, and lose courage. It is women that uplift the story and dictate its narrative. Far from perfect, idealised entities, however, we are also able to see a whole spectrum of female characters that interact with and empower one another in a way that is still often absent in modern novels. From Funmi, Akin’s cruelly manipulative second wife, to Moomi, Akin’s well-meaning but desperate mother, from Iya Bolu, the unshakeable pillar of Yejide’s hairdressing salon, to Yejide’s formidable stepmothers, women are the basis of a story of endurance and pain.
Stay With Me is a story that hopes constantly for a miracle, despite the insistence of hardship and loss. Yet in spite of this negativity, it sings with a vibrancy and energy that is carried on the shoulders of
the women of the story. By the end of the novel, the reader hopes for something that seems impossible – yet with the terrible life Yejide has endured, we cannot help but think she may have earned it.
POETRY CORNER Awake by Iftikhar Malik Sleep has melted away like English sun Dreaming, easy listening: but of no use Breeze and rain aren’t leaving alone Soul is at ease, body has no excuse! Must be that perky morning When words oozed out in monsoon streams Unbridled, unhindered it all seemed Mundane wisdom held aloft by mellow dreams. Couldn’t stop the rain, couldn’t hold the time Smiles, vibes, desire and mischief This is what this journey’s all about Only if it weren’t a cauldron of grief! Solitary existence in its autumn years Awakes itself to naughty desires Unattainable but nevertheless precious Reason comes alive soon as it senses fires.
Art & Lit 17
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
8 fast facts about the 2017 Venice Biennale Queenie Li
Deputy Art & Lit Editor
1. Ace the numbers This is already the 57th Venice Biennale. This year, the exhibition has 120 invited artists (85 percent firsttime participants) spanning across a variety of themes such as “Artists and Books”, “Joy and Fear”, “Traditions” and “Colors”. With 86 national pavilions, Antigua and Barbuda, Kiribati and Nigeria are the “freshers” of the event. It is an extravagant feast of contemporary art that can easily consume a couple of days of your time, if not more.
Venice in the mist
2. “Viva Arts Viva” An English translation of this year’s tagline is “Long Live Art”. Yet the director of the Biennale, Christine Marcel, expresses the difficulty of this slogan. She describes her enthusiasm to embrace artists who construct an alternative, essential space for enrichment in the present day, who “build us up, and edify us, to embrace life, even if doubt ensures inevitably”. 3. Heated issues: #Identity, #Refugee, #Post-truth After Documenta 14, a German art exhibition, began to base its works on political issues, the Venice Biennale picked up the baton on the discourse of social instability and political turbulence, now a shared conundrum. Such political topics remain commonplace, despite the themes of the Central Pavilion being loosely defined and the national pavilions enjoying an even greater extent of freedom. The giant workshopcum-studio at the Central Pavilion – an exhibition no-one could miss – is called Green Light - An Artistic Workshop by Olafur Eliasson. The artist invited 80 asylum seekers and refugees who had recently arrived in Italy to build lamp models designed by another artist, Einar Thorsteinn. The luminous green unit produced could flexibly be rearranged or assembled to constantly transform the site. My favourite piece is Swan Song Now by Jane Zelibsaka in the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic Pavilion. A surreal installation with shimmering swans placed on projected sea, combined with a digital panel of a girl holding meditative gestures, this piece is richly infused with cultural references and symbols concerning eternity, politics, ecology and humanity across different worlds and time periods. 4. One to remember: Anne Imhof Even if you cannot make it to the marvellous Venice, there is a name that you must still know about – the German artist Anne Imhof. Her expansive multimedia performance work, Faust, won her the Golden Lion for Best National Participation. There are plenty of videos of her performance online so don’t miss it. The
Point 8: Damieen Hirst’s Collection
Point 7: The Boat is Leaking, the Captain Lied
Point 5: Phyllida Barlow’s Folly
unremitted effort and ardent affection for the arts is as striking as her monumental sculptures.
traditional vantage point, and engage with the cultural and aesthetic diversity of an extensive pool of participating nations, especially at such a nationalistically-charged time.
6. Keep an eye on “smaller” nations Whilst fascination for the traditional ‘big-names’ of the art world is a natural instinct, it may be wise to turn towards the smaller nations. Gesturing beyond contemporary discussion of art, they attempt to steal the spotlight from the global audience onto their own, internal struggle. To name but a few, Mongolian artist Munkkh-Munkhbolor Ganbold made art from animal skulls in order to express his concerns over the continuous destruction of their ecosystem due to industrial activities. The Filipino artist, Manuel Ocampo, responded to the curator’s accusation that you were “no longer being able to see the Philippines without seeing Europe” by his painting Cook in the Kitchen, written with “The Development of Abstract Art Immigrant Version” at the very top. It may be worth moving from the
7. Hidden gems out the centre A visit to the Venice Biennale can be much intensive than you ever imagined: it is not just a single exhibition, but becomes a magnet, attracting many collateral events and special projects. The Boat is Leaking, the Captain Lied, widely-alleged as the best peripheral show to the Biennale, juxtaposed the mind-blowing set design of Anna Viebrock, the moving images of Alexander Kludge, and the realistically artificial (or vice versa) photographs of Thomas Demand. The show filled the historical building of the Ca’Corner della Regina, once a Venetian palazzo in the 1700s, with a powerful battle of different art mediums and an atmospheric contemplation of political rhetoric. This is not to mention Rachel Maclean’s latest film Spite your Face and Pierre Huyghe’s show at the Louis Vuitton Foundation. Events such as these are hard to be
Point 3: Swan Song Now by Jane Zalibsaka
space of her work is clean and minimalistic, staged on elevated glass panels with scattered, monochromatic props. On the first glimpse, the vacant setting already exudes an intense sense of seclusion and powerlessness. But it is the ephemeral performance, with discursive figures, that expose the vulnerability of the complex, contemporary relationship between body and power. This work is highly poetic, yet also brutal and threatening to look at. 5. Phyllida Barlow represents playful British art Described by The Guardian as “the artistic outsider who has finally come inside”, the teacher of Rachel Whiteread, Martin Creed and Douglas Gordon transformed the British Pavilion into a scrap yard, but a joyful one as the name Folly indicates. It is worthwhile to look beyond the initially confusing exterior and read the unsung story of Barlow, who remained virtually unknown in the art world for over forty years until her recent international exposure. Her
wiped from your itinerary in Venice. 8. Last but not least: Damien Hirst Hirst’s latest show, Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable accumulated surprise as a result of its tremendous size, which took up two museums with hundreds of exhibits. Most people were baffled by the bronze sculpture of Mickey Mouse shielded by colourful corals, but really, the objects did not matter. One could easily dismiss his kitschy aesthetic and the artist’s ego attempting to represent a clichéd model of the artist’s almost-religious power today. But one could also choose to embrace his unflinching dedication to self-mockery with an almost selfimmolating approach. Love it or hate it, we should listen and consider. Echoing Paolo Baratta, the President of the Venice Biennale 2017, “La Biennale must present itself as a place whose method is dedicated to an open dialogue between artists, and between artists and the public”. Photos by Queenie Li
STAGE
Stage 18
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
The RSC’s Dido: love, drugs and ‘mighty lines’ Christine Jacob Staff Writer
After being neglected for hundreds of years, Christopher Marlowe’s Tragedie of Dido, Queen of Carthage has experienced something of a revival in recent years. Kimberley Sykes’s 2017 production at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon updates parts of the play for a twenty-first century audience: the attire of the gods evoked Hollywood more than Olympus, the goddesses in glimmering evening gowns and Jupiter in a white suit; the arrows of Cupid (Ben Goffe) were similarly upgraded to a hypodermic needle, filled with the love-inducing blood of Venus. Venus’s grimace as she “gave blood,” as it were, for Cupid’s needle also reinforced one obvious thematic point: love hurts. Though Virgil’s Aeneid, the source for this play, recounts the tragic love of Dido and Aeneas, Marlowe’s work is notably named after Dido alone. Though the play denies to its eponymous character the reflective interiority of later tragic figures (think Macbeth or Hamlet), Chipo Chung’s portrayal of her nevertheless teased out the problem of agency. Before she was unceremoniously jabbed by Cupid’s needle, Chung’s Dido com-
manded the stage, unmoved by her many suitors and gracious but magnanimously aloof towards the shipwrecked Trojans. This impassive Dido, however, became almost instantaneously “mad” with desire upon receiving Cupid’s drug. Chung spoke in bursts, admitting and retracting hints of her affection; she seemed helpless and yet aware of having lost control of herself, thus raising the question of agency. In a promotional interview for the production, Sykes described Dido’s suicide as an act of protest. Chung’s performance however evoked the complexity of the action: can Dido act, if she’s under the influence of what Sykes’ production has effectively portrayed as a mind-altering drug? From one sort of acting to another, it might be said that the character of Aeneas falls comparatively flat. This is not down to Sandy Grierson’s acting though; Aeneas is passive for much of the play, overruled by the opinions of others and outshone by Dido and the other female characters in the play, Juno (Bridgitta Roy) and Venus (Ellie Beavan) in particular. That said, Grierson did hold his own when delivering Aeneas’s long speech on the destruction of Troy, a rich passage exemplary of Marlowe’s ‘mighty
line.’ The listeners in Dido’s court and in the theatre were held spellbound as Grierson, like a bard reciting an epic poem, described burning Troy in gory detail. In terms of Ti Green’s design, the elements—water, fire, and earth— were integral as set and symbol. Tempests were the result of divine intervention, Juno usually lurking in the wings. The back part of the stage had been set up to form a curtain of water through which the actors moved as they passed through the storm. Fire, on the other hand, appeared to symbolize human agency, especially an attempt to intervene in the divine realm. Most memorably, Iarbus (Daniel York), one of Dido’s spurned suitors, made a burnt offering to Jupiter, petitioning him to remind Aeneas of his mission. The smoke lingered in the air as the play paused for intermission, and the first scene upon return began with Hermes (Will Bliss) imploring Aeneas, through a film projected onto the curtain of rushing water, to get on his way. Having hear Iarbus, Jupiter was speaking through the storm. Fire is also Dido’s method of suicide. The flames are imaginary, but the audience may recall a moment of foreshadowing involving Iarbus’s offering. Suffering an unre-
quited love for Iarbus and habitually pulling out her own hair when overcome with emotion, Dido’s sister Anna (Amber Jones) had dropped some of her locks into the offering fire. The nauseating smell of burning hair, fresh in the audience’s memory, helped later convey a very material sense of death by fire—without making things too gruesome. Chung writhed and convulsed as her body became ‘engulfed in flames’; as she fell to the floor, the sand—representing
the landscape of Carthage and the shore on which Aeneas lands— stuck to her wet body, appearing dark like ash. The cleverly rendered result was iconic: a charred Dido, paralyzed in death’s grip. Reviving intriguing questions about a very famous love story, Sykes’s symbolically rich production then proves Marlowe’s early play to be a quintessential tragedy of love. If Dido’s suicide is a protest, it is of this drug and its ill effects.
RSC
Brutal, yet unquestionaly brilliant: Lieutenant of Inishmore Cameron Marnoch Staff Writer
Playing in 5th Week from Wednesday, November 8th, to Saturday, November 11th, at the Keble O’Reilly Theatre, The Lieutenant of Inishmore is Tightrope Productions’s full text performance of Martin McDonagh’s intensely fast-paced, brutally violent, and often staggeringly funny 2001 play about a series of increasingly escalating violence in the small Irish island of Inishmore after one cat shows up with a section of its head open. Whilst that might seem absurd, the time is the early 1990s, and the cat in question is Wee Thomas, the only friend of Christopher Page’s “Mad” Padraic, a terrorist, torturer, bomber and killer for the Irish National Liberation Army, a man barely out of his teenage years, and so mad the IRA have refused him. Played with both intense and childlike rage, and an equally intense, childlike sense of fair-play by Page, Padraic, is exactly the sort of figure who almost singlehandedly turns
a cat’s death into a drama with more corpses than survivors by the final scene’s close. However, Padraic and his quest for a questionably justified revenge are not alone in the unfolding violent humour and humorous violence of the play. Joining him is his father, Hugh Tappin’s comically defeated Donny; Davey’s partner-in-crime Aaron Skates’s unfortunate, scared and floundering Davey, desperately trying to avoid Padraic’s wrath whilst
paramilitaries, played by Chris Dodsworth, Cameron Spain, and Patrick Orme, whose complicated, contradictory morals often cause some of the funniest jokes in the entire play. Joining these characters for one scene is Peter Madden’s James, a drug dealer who suffers both some of the play’s most brutal violence and the play’s most pointed juxtaposition of that with the mundane. If that brief description of the plot and characters, alongside
Tightrope Productions is shaping up a fun and enjoyable evening for 5th Week forming an unusual bond with Donny; Davey’s 16-year-old sister Mairead, played well by Kate Weir, whose violence towards her brother is matched only by her romantic appreciation of Irish freedom movements and her intense but irrational love of animals; and Padraic’s fellow INLA
some of my own descriptions of a cat’s fate reveal anything, it’s that The Lieutenant of Inishmore is a singularly brutal affair, not for audiences uncomfortable with some blood and dismembered limbs. However, McDonagh’s play mixes this violence with contradictory impulses, a cultivated
sense of the absurd and childlike a fun and enjoyable evening as the various characters, none for 5th Week, for all those who particularly deep philosophers, don’t mind a mostly apolitical deal brutal but apolitical violence play about Irish paramilitarto each other without fully engag- ies, with a penchant for violence ing with the nature of the violence that is both disturbing, funny and mundane ordinariness, as and disturbingly hilarious. The conservations switch from brutal production captures the anardetailing of torture to pet care, chic spirit of McDonagh’s play, with both being treated with the and will be enjoyed by those same amount of detail and focus. whose tastes align with it. This creates a world that is both clockwork in plot construction, with very few lines of dialogue not being eventually brought back in to play a larger part, as it is anarchic in tone and feeling. The cast, under director Philippa Lawford and producer Kiya Eveans, are able to match this heightened world, with physical performance, blocked across the entire stage to show the extreme highs of all emotion, and the physical nature of the violence. All deliver strong performances, tapping into the comedy of the play whilst still allowing for some of the violence’s horror to be felt by an audience. It appears then that Tightrope Productions is shaping up Keble O’Reilly
Stage 19
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
‘Death used to be for the old’: racism, bereavement and hard-hitting truth in Random Erin O’Neill Staff Writer
A young woman sits, with her head resting gently in her hand as if she were sleeping, in a single chair in the middle of the small stage of the Burton-Taylor Studio. Her feet are bare, and she sits just beyond the main spotlight, illuminated, but in a softer glow. Behind her is a white cloth, covered in family pictures, with one boy’s picture standing out from the rest, seemingly watching the events before him. Such is the scene one walks in to with director Livesey’s portrayal of ‘Random’, a play that deals with the extremely difficult, and relevant, topic of violence against the black youth. From the offset, I knew that the minimalistic style was going to be the genius of the play. After all it stars only one actress,
Francesca Amewudah-Rivers, and what an actress she is. Never once is there a want for something, or someone, more; Amewudah-Rivers dominates the space with a truly memorable skill and style. The standing ovation on the opening night surely explains this clearly enough. She tackles the difficult task of portraying an entire family with confidence and distinction; vocally, and through her body language, she creates a set of compelling and distinguishable figures. Admittedly, at the beginning there was some confusion on my part as to whether there were two sisters, or just one, as the play begins at a roaring pace. However, as it progresses, the delivery and physicality slows, allowing for the immersion into the emotions of the remaining characters, in a fashion that is gritty and hard-hitting. Particularly
to be commended is AmewudahRivers’ fluid characterisation while developing these distinct characters, especially concerning her smooth and uninterrupted physicality when switching between them. All these things create a seemingly effortless production that grows before your eyes. Of course, one cannot consider it ‘effortless’. Even looking at the programme, one can see the passion that has been poured into the project. Statistics, victim support lines and educational websites are all listed, as well as collection buckets for a charity relating to the case the play was based on. It truly approaches the topics of racism and bereavement with a sophisticated and sympathetic attitude. Indeed, the minimalism that I have praised helps to create this; an overload of design features,
costumes or actors would takes away from the raw emotion that is projected. By having this simplicity, Klaxon Productions is able to get to the very heart of a realism that is beyond artificial staging. Refined yet raw, and often funny, the play is successful in hosting such contradictions. I would recommend
(Jess Brown), a sensible student torn between pursuing her passion of writing and the security offered by a job at an advertising firm run by James Hook (Alec McQuarrie) and Smee (Arthur Wotton). Peter, as the boy who never wants to grow old, dislikes that Wendy is considering abandoning her hopes of writing for a humdrum corporate job. It is this tension which fuels the two scenes which were previewed; in the first, Peter, the lost boys, Tinker Bell, and Wendy are all in Peter’s room, having taken ‘fairy dust’, when Wendy receives a call from Hook offering her a job. Her friends laugh and jeer, and hallucinations of Hook and Smee appear. Peter proceeds to fight Hook, battling him for Wendy’s youth. In the second scene, Peter lies on his bed, playing on his laptop, when Wendy enters the room and declares her intention to take the job, prompting him to break up with her. It seems that Peter and Wendy are extremes: Peter is animated and exuberant, swinging wildly
between emotions, whilst Wendy is curiously wooden – it is not hard to understand the reasons behind their breakup. The play is inspired by both J. M. Barrie’s works and life, and attempts to weave his difficulties into the tale of Peter Pan. In particular, the production continues the current vogue of reading darkness into children’s stories, or the story around children’s stories (as in the recent film, Goodbye Christopher Robin), but instead of a straightforward retelling, it uses these characters to reflect the experiences of university students, to some effect. The production places stress on Peter’s struggle with mental illness, showing the difficulties of an arguably hidden condition: Peter’s friends cannot fully understand the gravity of his problems because he masks them with a fun-loving exterior. For the directors, the play presents one part of university life often left unexplored. The emphasis, though, is that it is an Oxford university life
which this play depicts: Wendy is a ‘college mum’ to the lost boys, and a ‘Save the Cellar’ poster is proudly displayed in Peter’s room. Although this serves to directly link it to our own experience of university life, the specificity is vaguely jarring in a more universal tale of the difficulties of becoming an adult. Moreover, it seems that, by using J. M. Barrie’s characters, the students become
this play to anyone, but particularly to members of our own university. Only very recently have colleges been accused of a ‘social apartheid’ over the lack of black students being admitted. More than ever, productions like ‘Random’ are necessary in its sophisticated dealings with black identity.
Random
A Familiar Friend in both setting and in story Katie Stanton Staff Writer
‘Familiar’ is the right description for this production: set in Oxford, depicting the struggle with mental health faced by many, and using the narrative tool of characters known by most – those from Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie – the play hopes to reflect some of the difficulties and tensions in the student experience. The protagonist in this piece of new writing by Josh Bourne is a man, or rather boy, who calls himself Peter Pan, played enigmatically by Chloé Delanney. A student at Oxford, Peter struggles with his difficult past, which has caused mental health problems, including depression. As a coping mechanism, Peter engages in substance abuse – in this case, called ‘fairy dust’ – to indulge in escapist stories and fantasies. At the same time, Peter strikes up a relationship with Wendy Darling
The Lieutenant of Inishmore
What: Lieutenant of Inishmore When: Wednesday - Saturday (8th - 11th) Where: Keble O’Reilly Tickets: £9/£7 conc.
Oxford Playhouse
What: Intruder and Seven Princesses When: Tuesday - Saturday (7th-11th) Where: Oxford Playhouse, BT Studio Tickets £6
extremes: Wendy is the ultimate sensible girl, whilst Peter is selfdestructive and arguably blind to reality. Nevertheless, the production’s depiction of mental health, through the medium of familiar characters, is an important one; the dislocation of the narrative tool will hopefully help to throw the difficulties of the student experience into relief.
A Familiar Friend
Oxford Playhouse
What: Candide When: Wednesday - Saturday (8th-11th) Where: Oxford Playhouse, Main Stage Tickets: £6
Michael Pilch Studio
What: A Lady in the Sheets When: Wednesday - Saturday (8th-11th) Where: Michael Pilch Studio Tickets: Student tickets: £9/£8 concessions
Screen 20
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
SCREEN
Thor: Ragnarok is a whirlwind comedy journey
Abigail Merchant Staff Writer
If two hours of cheesy humour, impressive CGI and action-packed battles sounds like your kind of movie, then the latest from the Marvel universe will not disappoint. Thor: Ragnarok is a whirlwind of a journey in which Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and his eclectic sidekicks power through numerous opponents, an alien world and Loki’s (Tom Hiddleston) mischief in order to finally face the primary antagonist, the catsuited Hela (Cate Blanchett). The film is an actioncomedy, but even as a comedy in its own right Thor is quite successful. There are countless well-timed comedic moments, both editorially and theatrically, which make for many a laugh. Beyond the comedy, there are other aspects of the film that are also particularly good. Let us commend Tom Hiddleston for his classic slimy performance, always brilliantly delivered. There is not much room for Loki to shine as a complex character in this particular movie, but Hiddleston does a delightfully good job with the screen time he is given. The CGI is impressive, to say the least: the countless large explosions and shockwaves are ef-
fective on the big screen. The cinematography is well-executed, and even has a few shots that are quite striking: one particularly nice shot follows Thor’s hammer as it speeds round him, taking out his opponents, and there are a couple of nicely executed match cuts.
The countless large explosions and shockwaves are effective on the big screen Of course, the movie has the same shortcomings as almost every other Marvel movie. The plot is laughably predictable: if you strip it down to its basic bones, the structure of the plot is identical to that of almost every other Marvel movie ever, down to the minute. The need to cram in the maximum amount of pulse-raising action leaves little room for any character development, and causes some transitional scenes to feel oddly truncated. The antagonist is painfully generic, with a classic evil backstory and eye makeup that makes her look like a raccoon. Even the soundtrack is an eclectic and slightly jarring mix of
themes from previous movies, new themes, and aggressive rock songs to accompany the fighting. All this is, naturally, to be expected. It’s simply the style of the Marvel movies—they are designed to be entertaining, not artistically crafted. Considered in that light, then, is Thor a ‘good’ movie? No, but it is still highly amusing, which makes it worth the watch. That said, Thor: Ragnarok is somewhat disappointing for its failure to explore the more interesting aspects of its plots and characters. Hela’s henchman Skurge (Karl Urban) has a story arc which is unexplained, making it a rather forced and generic sub-plot. The Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) would have potential for an interesting exploration of his hedonistic personality, but he is overly caricatured, which makes him unbelievable. However, the greatest missed opportunity by far is the lack of exploration of Odin’s revealed history. The story of the Odin of days past is brushed over and merely used as development for the antagonist, which leaves the audience feeling rather unsatisfied. Such a plot, which changes our perception of a well-known character quite dramatically, ought to be properly explored. To those hardcore Marvel fans:
Ladinog
you may find this movie surprising — it deviates from the spirit of most Marvel movies, and it contains some rather drastic changes to characters. This film owes a lot of its tone to director Taika Waititi: this is his debut in Hollywood, and he’s been given unusually free reign to make this his movie, not just a Marvel movie. The tone of the movie is fresh; it’s as much a comedy as a superhero movie, and at times has the feel of a slapstick. Whereas most Marvel movies allow a few serious moments to enhance the plot, there are no such moments in Thor: Ragnarok—any serious moments are merely blips in the continuous fun. Yet, this jars oddly with the deaths of some named characters whom Thor knows and loves. Their demises
are trivialised and no time at all is given to grieve them, which feels uncomfortable for a viewer who has seen the previous Thor movies. Nonetheless, this new comedic tone fits the rebranding of the title character. Not only has Thor’s iconic hair been shorn (and inexplicably dyed brown), but other key aspects of his identity are lost. Who is the new Thor? This remains to be seen in the upcoming Avengers: Infinity War. Overall, the latest Marvel movie has proved not to be a disappointment. What it lacks in artistry and depth of plot, it more than makes up for through the action and comedy galore. I would recommend it as a good evening to spend with friends on a night when you should be writing that essay.
Bringing back the B-movie: an ode to RedLetterMedia Alexandra Wall Staff Writer
In December 2009, a 70-minute review of Star Wars: Episode One– The Phantom Menace took YouTube by storm. Cutting together clips of the movie in question with a twisted subplot starring the psychotic “Mr.Plinkett”, it was able to completely deconstruct the movie and finally put into words the frustrations that Star Wars fans had felt towards the Prequels. It was sarcastic and cutting and yet truly hilarious and honest and throughout there was a genuine sense that the reviewer cared for the franchise that he was so cleverly tearing apart. The reviewer in question was Mike Stoklasa of RedLetterMedia and he voiced the character of Mr.Plinkett in a way that was so engaging that his YouTube channel has since garnered 630 thousand followers. Within the review, Stoklasa takes aim at George Lucas for the creation of Jar-Jar Binks and claims that instead of ruining his childhood, Lucas “disappointed his adulthood”. A sentiment shared
across the globe. From his infamous Plinkett Reviews, Stoklasa went on to create a film review series known as Half in the Bag where he stars as a VCR repairman, whose life goal is to con the elderly Plinkett into thinking that VCR’s are still relevant, thus earning a constant cash flow from the old man. Every episode features Mike and his co-worker Jay in Plinkett’s house pretending to fix a VCR and talking about Movies as they do so. It is zany and darkly comedic and the perfect tonic to the millions of oh-so chirpy and bright vloggers who flood the YouTube homepage. They are sardonic and occasionally crude and never take themselves too seriously. It is apparent that they love films and the filmmaking process and when they tear apart a movie you can feel the genuine frustration they have towards the cynical Hollywood Execs who are churning out film after film with little originality. RedLetterMedia is a channel that does not care about being divisive, that does not care about views and followers – they make videos because they enjoy doing so and love
their craft and their authenticity really draws you in.
They are vocal about their dislikes [...] in a way that is reminiscent of oldschool film critics Some of their best work comes not from their reviews of modern films but from their Best of the Worst series, a show where they review a set of B-Movies with their friends to hilarious effect. Over the years their fans have sent them in hundreds of old videotapes and each episode is wildly different. From a video claiming to teach people how to have telepathic communications with their pets to a terrible Robo-cop rip-off, the crew have seen it all and their commentary is so hilarious that it can bring you to tears. At the end of each episode they decide which terrible film deserves to be destroyed – methods of destruction include shredding, setting a tape on fire and hitting the video with a
bowling ball. They once even had a tape sent to Macaulay Culkin who performed a demonic ritual with the tape – it has to be seen to be believed! By highlighting these old B-Movies on their channel, RedLetterMedia is inviting people to look back at just how far filmmaking has come in the past 30 years and they influence their fans to look back at some films that have been overlooked but that deserve a watch, if only for their comedy factor. The RedLetterMedia team are ultimately just a group of friends who love movies and who love watching movies and their videos are so charming that you cannot help but enjoy them. They make you want to sit around with your friends and watch bad movies together, not so much for the sake of watching the film but for the joyous memories you will get from sharing that experience with your friends. They bring to the YouTube community a channel that is unafraid to be different. Instead of sucking up to the big studios as some YouTube channels have, RedLetterMedia are vocal about their dislikes and their distaste for aspects of the movie industry in a
way that is reminiscent of the old school film critics such as Roger Ebert and Mark Kermode. You feel you can trust their review and that their recommendations won’t let you down. They are well worth a watch!
Chanh Tang
Screen 21
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Chillin’ In the Name Of: the use of ambient music in film Nancy Epton Staff Writer
One way or another, our cinematic heroes (or anti-heroes) have been through a great number of trials by the time we reach the end credits. Whether it’s a blade to the abdomen, a shot to the heart, or simply a passing vision of a potential son they could have with Aragon, ambient music is here to help them get through the pain. But be careful where you tread, traveller, for there be spoilers ahead. Without further ado, here are the seven finest (and fourteen fine runner-up) examples of ambient music in film: 1. An Ending (Ascent), Brian Eno (28 Days Later) Runners Up: ‘Deep Blue Sky’ (Trainspotting) ‘Prophecy Theme’ (Dune) If we want to begin an analysis of ambient music in film, then it only makes sense to begin with its Godfather. Brian Eno’s compositions have made their appearances in a wide variety of films, and ‘An Ending’ didn’t even make its first appearance in 28 Days Later, having already appeared at the end of Steven Soderbergh’s Traffic as Benicio Del Toro’s police officer observes a basketball game. Yet its inclusion in 28 Days’ alternative ending - Boyle’s preferred, circular conclusion to Jim’s experience that was dropped by preview audiences who felt it was too bleak – feels far more appropriate with its quiet atmosphere of pathos and uncertainty as the two women Selena and Hannah look upon the dead body of Jim (Cillian Murphy) and consider what to do next. After the slaughter and insanity of both zombies and men, it provides a welcome respite as the ethereal chords fade in and out over the sombre denouement. 2. Marriage of Figaro, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (The Shawshank Redemption) Runners Up: ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ (Alien) ‘Requiem’ (The Big Lebowski) Although not conforming to a tradition definition of ambient music, Mozart’s opera nevertheless fulfills a similar role when used in the classic prison drama The Shawshank Redemption. Mozart probably didn’t expect the music of his opera to be gracing the silver screen more than two hundred years after its composition, but we’re more than grateful for his majestic contribution. Dusting off the record and regarding it with silent awe, Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) blocks a prison officer in the toilet, then ramps up the volume over the prison PA. Not one prisoner speaks as they hear the music, and as Red’s (Morgan Freeman) narration aptly points out: “I have no idea to this day what those two Italian ladies were singing about.
Truth is, I don’t wanna know”. No words are required to explain the beauty of the music, and no knowledge of the language is needed. The subject matter apparently refers to a woman planning to reveal her husband’s infidelity, but again, the sound of the music created by the women’s voices – not the content – is most important in creating a sense of freedom. After spending two weeks in solitary confinement as punishment, Andy explains to his friends that “hope can sustain them” through the music. With a composition as elegant as Mozart’s, who could disagree?
Ambient music is here to help you get through the pain 3. The Grace of Undómiel, Howard Shore, performed by René Fleming (Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King) Runners Up: The Council of Elrond (Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring) A Far Green Company (Lord of the Rings: Return of the King) This sense of hope and determination also transfers into many of Howard Shore’s works. In a trilogy that’s about as flawless as you could want (okay, ignore the eagle logic), it’s difficult to pick out one precise moment of musical brilliance, but one of the most powerful scenes that takes place in Peter Jackson’s final entry can be seen as Arwen (Liv Tyler) is travelling to the land of the undying, and stops as she witnesses a vision of her son wearing her evenstar necklace, and being lifted into the air by a joyful, older Aragon (Viggo Mortensen). Rene Fleming’s soprano tones perfectly encapsulate the elegance and despair of the scene, and the cut back to Arwen’s tearful expression is unbearably tragic. Her following return to Rivendale and reconciliation with Elrond as she explains her desire for a mortal life are similarly poignant; Shore’s ability to transfer such a great range of emotion and atmosphere across the space of a single song is a testament to his composition. 4. Starman Leaves, Jack Nitzsche (Starman) Runners Up: Opening Theme (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest) ‘Remembering The Summer of 1959’ (Stand By Me) The use of Nitzsche’s song at Starman’s conclusion takes the ambient atmosphere even further. It might be one of the lesser known entries on this list, but is nonetheless just as important with its
largely synth-based and suitably alien soundtrack. After finally making their way back to the ship of the eponymous Starman’s (Jeff Bridges), Jenny (Karen Allen) asks to join him, but he explains this impossibility and assures her she will be fine on earth. The ending shot of her entranced expression as the ship leaves is surely one of the most iconic in science fiction. Sitting alongside other underrated sci-fi classics such as Silent Running, John Carpenter’s film provides a welcome change from relentless action and grand set-pieces that pervaded many Otto Erich films of its era, and Nitzsche’s otherwordly tunes have no doubt contributed to its deserved cult following.
Mozart probably didn’t expect the music of his opera to be gracing the silver screen 5. Tears in Rain, Vangelis (Blade Runner) Runners Up: ‘Memories of Green’ (Blade Runner) ‘Titles’ (Chariots of Fire) When it comes to the quintessential Eighties sci-fi soundtrack, however, you’d be hard pushed to find a more iconic example than Ridley Scott’s dystopian masterpiece. Sure, words like ‘iconic’ and ‘masterpiece’ can be thrown around all too haphazardly, but Vangelis’ soundtrack and visuals set the tone for the anxieties of the future, and went on to influence countless other works including Ghost in the Shell, Gattaca and HBO’s remake of Westworld. Yet the highlight of its musical score surely has to be the song that plays through the final monologue of the dying Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer), created entirely by the actor himself. Vangelis used the CS-80 Yamaha synthesizer, one of the first polyphonic synthesisers, and thus added a unique pathos to his chords as we witness one of the greatest speeches in film. 6. God Moving Over the Face of the Waters, Moby (Heat) Runners Up: ‘Extreme Ways’ (The Bourne Identity) ‘Mistake’ (The Next Three Days) Moby, although not as famous in this field as many of the previously mentioned composers, has none-
Top Five: Binge-Worthy Netflix Originals
Eve Lytollis Screen Editor
Master of None To those who have never watched it, Master of None might appear to be like any other U.S. comedy series - full of scripted jokes, unrealistic characters and one cliché after another. They would be wrong. This show manages to simultaneously generate genuine laughter with clever humour, and use its platform to stimulate thought on real modern issues. Episodes such as ‘Indians on TV’ and ‘Ladies and Gentlemen’ raise questions of racism and gender, without ever failing to amuse and entertain at the same time.
theless built up a commendable portfolio of cinematic scores. In the last great film to star both Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino, it initially seems strange that their concluding confrontation should end with such an ambient soundtrack. Yet, when Vincent Hanna takes Neil McCauley’s hand as the latter dies in blood and dirt, Moby’s score accompanies a powerful denouement as police officer and gangster acknowledge their stoic determination to be at the top of their chosen occupations in life. It is altogether more pathetic and heart-wrenching that these two juggernauts of film have never lived up to such a performance since.
Stranger Things Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you will have seen something of the hype around the second season of Stranger Things – a hype that is entirely justified. To summarise this series in a few words is to do it an injustice, but to give you an idea of what it’s like, think ‘80s aesthetics, sinister creatures and a stressedout Winona Ryder – what more could you want?
The Good Place While it may not go down in history as a televisual classic, The Good Place has a watchability that few other shows can match. It tells the tale of Eleanor Shellstrop, an inherently bad person who dies in a freak accident and 7. Wrong Floor, Cliff Martinez somehow finds herself in a Heaven-like utopia. The show follows (Drive) the chaos that comes with her Runners Up: ‘He `had a Good arrival, and features an unusual Time’ (Drive) cast of Kristen Bell, Ted Danson ‘You’re my Dream’ (Only God and Jameela Jamil (yes, off T4). Forgives) After all of the uses of ambient music to portray a sense of calm or acceptance, it’s time to turn that table around and finish with an example of an ambient tune played within a far darker context. The musical example I’m pointing out is not Wrong Floor’s occurrence in the infamous head-crushing scene, but in the film’s conclusion during the meeting between the Driver (Ryan Gosling) and Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks) at a restaurant. The tune begins as the latter assures the former that Irene (Carey Mulligan) is safe, but that he will always be in danger. Thanks also in part to genius editing, we witness Rose’s subtle smirk as we transition to the car park scene where he stabs the Driver in the abdomen. Then we immediately return to the restaurant and witness the Driver’s smile and return to the car park, where he repays the injury with a slash to Bernie’s neck. It’s all fairly violent and dark, but when you’ve got music as calming as Martinez’s, it’s difficult to care.
Riverdale It cannot be denied that Riverdale is a cheesy teen drama. Set in a small town, the show kicks off with the death of a high school student, and the shockwaves that it sends through the community. That being said, it is self-aware enought to make jokes about this, while at the same time providing plots and twists that make it hard to stop watching. Based on Archie Comics, the show is visually very impressive, and its stories of murder and family drama are perfect for a lazy afternoon. Orange Is The New Black Netflix’s prison drama now has five seasons under its belt, and it’s still as strong as ever. It may take you a few episodes to get into Orange is the New Black, but once you enter Litchfield Penitentiary, you’ll never want to leave. With a stellar cast and some of the best character development ever seen, this show is a true gem – and based on a true story.
MUSIC
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Music 22
‘An album of paradoxes’: The OOZ, King Krule
Louis Beer Staff Writer
The OOZ is daunting. Imagine if they were to make an hour-long version of the ‘scary tunnel’ scene from the 1971 Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory – this could be the soundtrack. A tunnel, in fact, is the best word I can think of to describe this album; Archy Marshall, as King Krule, is walking with us through it instead of talking to us directly. You can get lost in it and not remember the last time you were able to distinguish the voice of King Krule from the stream of horns and poetry – until he lets out a yell and you’re reminded that he’s still trying to get through to you.
be too out of place on a Tom Waits record – ‘Cadet Limbo’, for example, is taken up nearly entirely by instrumentation, with Marshall’s anomic lyrics just bookending this, whilst any tracks that appear at first to be more formulaic grow in complexity over the course of the song, as in ‘Emergency Blimp’, where effects are layered in and Marshall’s voice raises up to a wail. ‘Slush Puppy’, meanwhile, sees him singing with Okay Kaya, whose voice has been pitched down in order to make it almost devoid of character as she sings the song’s depressed lyrics. Atmosphere is created beyond his voice and instrumentation, though – recordings of foxes and footsteps are sampled, and
The OOZ rarely puts a foot wrong, and proves to be a difficult and dark, yet interesting listen This is Marshall’s second full-length output under his King Krule moniker, and the transformation from his 2013 breakout album 6 Feet Beneath the Moon is noticeable. He remains the bohemian jazz-punk from Peckham who recruits horn players from Argentina and calls people ‘cats’, but his sound has become much richer and, in a sense, less accessible. In this sophomore album, Marshall’s voice is no longer front and centre, and there aren’t many songs with broad, standalone appeal like ‘Baby Blue’ or ‘Easy Easy’ which he could perform on a late night US talk show. There is now more distortion, and his vocals are dried out and toyed with to contribute to the atmosphere as a whole, and atmosphere is what The OOZ has in spades. The whole album has a haze around it, a boozy jazz aesthetic that wouldn’t
a poem is brilliantly threaded through the album (think To Pimp a Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar). Whereas Lamar keeps the listener invested through his emotional reading and slow reveal of the whole poem, King Krule does it differently – we hear it only once in English, when it is read by his father on ‘Bermondsey Bosom (Right)’, but first in Spanish, with a Filipino rendition coming later. To the non-Spanishand-Filipino-speaking listeners, then, the poem is heard differently three times – we pick up hints as to the mood Marshall is trying to convey from the sound of the voice, not the content of the poem. When we first hear it, it is declaimed in a lyrical Spanish with a hopeful air, yet placed at at the tail end of the album, the Filipino reading is distorted and monotonous before the climactic title track, as we near the end
of the dark tunnel. The creation of atmosphere on this album is King Krule at his best, as the album draws you into a soundscape that is consistently nightmarish if sometimes surprising – the frequent use of gloomy, echoed notes and rain effects among and in betweenthe seemingly formless songs creates a Blade Runner-style atmosphere that is a joy to get lost in. The use of the It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia theme at the end of ‘Midnight 01 (Deep Sea Diver)’ is more puzzling, an inclusion that Marshall has said has some personal significance to him, yet it is mixed somewhat too prominently in the track so that it serves to mainly derail the atmosphere built up so brilliantly over the seventeen previous tracks. Sonically, then, The OOZ rarely puts a foot wrong, and proves to be a difficult and dark, yet interesting listen. Lyrically, too, it retains this gloomy quality, with similar success. There are occasionally some lyrics that are so abstract as to be nonsensical, but, because so much of the vocals are unintelligible due to the production, analysis is almost pointless – Marshall doesn’t seem to want us to be able to understand him. At times, he is starkly honest, such as in ‘Slush Puppy’, where Marshall admits that “nothing’s working with me,” and ‘Emergency Blimp’, where he sings of his insomnia medication: “these pills just make me drool”. Meanwhile, some of Marshall’s more irreverent lyrics are still present from 6 Feet Below the Moon, as he has moved on from the Tesco sandwiches of ‘Easy Easy’ to new interests: in opener ‘Biscuit Town’, about his current residence of Bermondsey, he sings about soft drinks (“he sipped on KA Soda/Fuck that’s Coca-Cola”) and “dreams of being Gi-
Henry Laurisch
anfranco Zola”, whilst ‘Dum Surfer’ is a frenzied account of vomit on pavements and needing a piss on a night out. Yet the more complex material is side-by-side with the irreverence – we aren’t sure if he’s saying ‘Dum Surfer’ or ‘don’t suffer’ over a booming saxophone, so the darkness of the album is omnipresent in the lyrics. ‘The OOZ’ is different entirely, meanwhile – it is almost entirely conceptual, and allows us an insight into Marshall’s fascination with said substance. “We ooz two souls, pastel blues/heightened touch from losing sight,” he sings reminiscing about a lost connection and the changes he has made himself. The ‘ooz’ it becomes apparent, is Marshall’s view of our basic life force: it is visceral and spiritual- our skin flakes and our soulsand it is with this title track that the album peaks lyrically and sonically. Discussing individual songs, though, is somewhat futile – the songs released before the album came out are puzzling and not particularly listenable on their own, with the exception of ‘Blue Train
Lines’, his track with Mount Kimbie off the London duo’s September album Love What Survives. The videos were dark and hard to make sense of, the music rather intimidating and the lyrics incomprehensible, yet outside of the context of the album this was always bound to be the case. The OOZ is an album of paradoxes: it could be viewed as masterfully cohesive or as a disjointed mess; as full of uncomfortable honesty or as full of frustrating riddles; as a record that draws the listener in with jazzy beats or repels them with its often harsh sound. You could even be puzzled by the low-key role King Krule himself seems to play in it. It rewards repeated listens – and it is hard not to put it on again as soon as you’ve finished it. It is still growing on this reviewer, I still find it tiring and depressing after several listens, yet I recognise that it is something special nonetheless. Moreover, it deserves to be at least listened to – you’re unlikely to hear a more interesting album all year, and you may even be unable to turn it off.
What’s on this week?
Kekslover
What: Brix and the Extricated When: 4th November 7.30pm Where: The Cellar It is a rare soul who can put up with Mark E. Smith; it is an even rarer soul who can put up with Mark E. Smith on two separate occasions. The soul who can do this and even bear to marry the infamously cantankerous frontman of the Fall must therefore stand as the Hapax Legomenon of souls, predicted via the Smith curve as to only occur once in this twisted reality. Expect typically obstreperous post-punk in the old fart’s vein, perhaps minus the omnipresent Prestwich depression, a sugar-coated sunniness as ray of light through the typical Mancunian cloud cover. £16.50
Max Pixel
What: Girl Ray When: 6th November 7.30pm Where: The Cellar Girl Ray are an all-girl trio from North London who combine the effervescent jangle of the 1980’s C86 scene with the scorching lo-fidelity guitar pop in the mould of Pavement, or perhaps even in ‘Strawberry Wine’ era My Bloody Valentine’s fusion of the two. Girl Ray make more than a decent bash at it though: heartbreak and lost love, youth and twee harmonising adorn their debut album Earl Gray, released earlier this summer to no small critical acclaim. Catch them at The Cellar before they move on to even more verdant pastures new. £7.50
Robman94
What: Wire When: 9th November 7.30pm Where: The Cellar Legendary 70s punk rock icons who come to Oxford, in most any circumstances, would ring the alarm bell marked “sell-out”. Where Wire have elevated themselves head and shoulders above their post-punk and hardcore peers in Black Flag, Public Image Ltd. or even Gang of Four, however, is in their refusal to become pigeon-holed as a legacy act, releasing albums to consistent acclaim over the entire course of their career since their inception. Miss this at your peril. £15.95
Masao Nakagami
What: Billy Bragg + Shane MacGowan When: 10th November 7pm Where: O2 Academy Fresh from the former’s joint stage appearance with Jeremy Corbyn and the latter’s infamous dental surgery documentary, inevitably titled Fairytale of New Teeth, the two icons share a billing at The O2 with enough iconic songwriting between them to make the mouth water. The one a famed interpreter of Woody Guthrie, admired by everyone from Wilco to Springsteen, the other the quintessential poet of inebriation, the only downside to their coming to Oxford is that all the tickets have sold out already. Be as off your face as MacGowan’s teeth were off his. SOLD OUT
Music 23
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
More than punch lines and rhymes: Oxxxymiron vs Dizaster Yana Tsyptsyna Staff Writer
In Los Angeles, on the night of 15th October, two rappers, an American and a Russian, collided in a battle that is already considered historical by the followers of this cultural phenomenon. By now it has reached more than 7 million views on YouTube, making it the most-viewed rap-battle in a 24-hour period in U.S. rap battle history. What makes this battle historical is not the viewership numbers, but its context, the opponents’ backgrounds, and what they had to say. It is worth watching for both those who enjoy rap as well as a much broader audience, because this time the battle is not about insults and, as one of the opponents said, “battle rap could be more than just punch lines and rhymes”. Both rappers raised serious and often controversial questions about culture, politics, self-identity, and the need to sometimes choose between nationality and ethnicity. Dizaster (Bachir Yagami), America’s veteran battler, stood against Oxxxymiron (Miron Fyodorov), one of the most popular Russian rappers and battlers. For the latter, it was his English language debut, but according to both Russian and American viewers and Dizaster himself, Oxxxymiron won the battle (as is tradition for the KOTD league, which held the event, there are no official judges.) What is
surprising about the winner is not only that he beat a native English speaker while for him English is only his third language (Fyodorov and his family moved to Germany when he was nine and lived there for six years), but also how little experience he has in comparison to his opponent. For ‘Oxxxy’, the battle with Dizaster was his sixth one; while, for Dizaster, who has been in battle rap for 17 years, it was his 98th battle. In Russia battle rap is still new, but already extremely popular – the most viewed battle is Oxxxymiron vs Johnyboy which reached more than 40 million views in two years, ten times more than the highest-viewed battles in the US. The opponents talked a lot about their backgrounds in the battle. Oxxxymiron was an Oxford student in Balliol College. He graduated with a degree in Middle English literature. This fact is often brought up by his opponents in battles, who try to show Fyodorov as someone pretentious and privileged, and this battle was not an exception. However, other factors played a much more important role. Oxxxymiron, for example, is a Russian Jew, and Dizaster is an American Arab, which caused a lot of heated lines about “slowly dying Jewish-Arab, Russian-US relations”. Dizaster mentioned the Soviet Union and communism, the situation in Ukraine and Crimea, made jokes
‘Ten Years Gone’ (1984) Led Zeppelin
Leo Reynolds
Nick Lee
about Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, Putin and his politics, and, of course, stereotypes about Russia: “At first I was surprised you were so synchronized when you came out/ Then I realised the obvious: you’re all communists/ so you’re probably all living in the same house”. Oxxxymiron went deeper and asked Yagami how he could be patriotic when “the G.I.’s are blowing your cousins away” and accused him of supporting Trump and then changing opinion only because Eminem criticised the US president. He also mentioned enmity between Jews and Arabs in Palestine, and in the end of his last round showed how although battle rap may seem harsh, it is still a way for people to come together:
“But in times of war, look at today, the sport evolves / ‘cause if you hate someone, you don’t trade dirty jokes / I’d rather every Arab told every Jew “your mother”/ and vice versa everyday than let them shoot each other.” Despite all the jokes and harsh lines, the battle had an atmosphere of peace and mutual respect. Both rappers posted a lot of friendly tweets after the battle saying how happy they were about it and how unified they felt. This battle has already made it into hip-hop history by bringing together such strong opponents with interesting backgrounds who were able to raise and almost debate about serious socio-political topics, make a difference, and bring the attention of millions of people to this discussion.
Franz Ferdinand, Noel Gallagher, Teleman: a round-up of this week’s singles Connor Thirlwell takes a tour of this week’s latest and greatest in alt rock Connor Thirlwell Staff Writer
‘Always Ascending’ by Franz Ferdinand The new single and title track from Franz Ferdinand’s forthcoming album set for release in February 2018 on Domino Records has dropped. ‘Always Ascending’ is the product of a new line up: long serving guitarist Nick McCarthy has parted from the group, and new boys Dino Bardot and Julian Corrie have taken up his reins.
In a rare moment for the group ever devoted to the quick-fire pop song, ‘Always Ascending’ is over five minutes long. To start with, we have restrained pianos where we might have expected guitars; a scooshing synth ‘ascends’ and “all [is] slowly rising”. Then a dirty keyboard-grind winds up, guitars start flapping, drum sticks get working on hi-hats, (especially on those off-beats) and- uh, oh- I’m dancing. Here, we have something closer to the electro-seediness of ‘Ulysses’ than ‘Take Me Out’. Images of cumuli clouds kissing and “wing drops of crystal” ensure that Kapranos has not lost his touch for the sensous yet absurd lyric. What is more, the lightness of Franz Ferdinand’s style continues to be entertainingly executed with all the surly determination of a cat-walker pouting blue steel. So, the soul of Franz Ferdinand persists. ‘Repeater’ by Teleman
livepict.com
‘Repeater’, after ‘Bone China Face’ was made public in September, is
OLDIE OF THE WEEK
the second track to be released from their forthcoming E.P Fünf, which is itself launched on 17th November on Moshi Moshi records. The quirk is that each of the five songs from Fünf have been produced by a different producer with a background in electronic dance music. ‘Repeater’ sees Oli Bayston of Boxed In chipping in, making his influence keenly felt. According to its YouTube description, on ‘Repeater’, “things kind of sound unhinged and mental”. That might be an over egged pudding there, but in the spindly Teleman context, these terms might not be wholly unuseful to describe a track that packs more of a buckshot punch than fans of the group might be used to. Their first two records (2016’s Brilliant Sanity being their most recent) were plodding, gentler affairs. Here, with New Romantic-era retrograde synth hooks and furnace-patient Neu!-esque builds, ‘Repeater’ aims to add muscle to the Teleman armoury. OK, maybe it’s not so sense-assaulting as all that, but Teleman have always been more like roses than repeaters .
‘Fort Knox’ by Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds Where Liam on As You Were has chosen to tread the path of a backto-roots familiarity, er, again, Noel has, er, again chosen to re-mould his sound and create something HMV fresh with his imminent Who Built the Moon?, set for release on 24th November on Sour Mash records. In a recent BBC6 Music interview, Noel told Matt Everitt how producer David Holmes challenged him to play guitars to dance to and not sound like Oasis. Also, David Holmes has produced film soundtracks and ‘Fort Knox’ is definitely worthy of I-Max and of Auric Goldfinger’s attempts to rob it of all its gold. ‘Fort Knox’ has almost no lyrics except from some helpful chorused advice – “you’ve gotta get yourself together” - and “oohs” and “aahs” from Noel who is doubtlessly offering us more encouragement. We’ve already heard ‘Holy Mountain’, the first release from Who Built the
During Jimmy Page’s talk at The Oxford Union last week, a certain unnamed section editor for The OxStu asserted that Led Zeppelin’s mythical, elusive epic ‘Stairway To Heaven’ is their best song (in fact, the greatest song of all time). In response, I’d like to submit my choice: ‘Ten Years Gone’, the gem buried at the heart of their 1975 double album , Physical Grafitti. Many know Led Zeppelin for their powerful cocktail of mystical folk tales to the tune of Tolkein, with raunchy riffing on Chicago Blues (‘Whole Lotta Love’, ‘Black Dog’). However, ‘Ten Years Gone’ is Led Zeppelin at their most reflective and intricate, showcasing the depth of talent that each member brought to the studio. Jimmy Page piles fourteen guitar tracks over one another, and weaves rising and collapsing riffs together with painstaking care. His rambling guitar solos, when they come, are not the mad, testosterone-fuelled splurges we’ve come to expect; Instead, they are the very essence of nostalgia. Plant’s lyricism is tortured and heartfelt, recalling a past girlfriend who made him choose between her and his music. Needless to say which won out, but ‘Ten Years Gone’ catalogues Plant’s internal struggles and it seems, genuine regrets. ‘Then as it was, then again it will be And though the course may change sometimes Rivers always reach the sea Blind stars of fortune, each have several rays On the wings of maybe, down in birds of prey Kind of makes me feel sometimes, didn’t have to grow’ But as the eagle leaves the nest, it’s got so far to go’.
Moon?, which sees Noel sounding closer to ‘Ring Ring’ by Abba than arguably at any other time in his career. ‘Holy Mountain’ wanted us to have fun, which is cool. ‘Fort Knox’ however wants something else. The siren-sweeping guitars and scrubby, colossal rhythms are constructing a new mindscape for us to behold; it wants us to look out of the window for a while, pause, and check out what’s really going on out there, which is really cool. It doesn’t sound like Oasis.
Surfdome Black
Exclusive Interview
Money off student stuff 24/7 200+ UK discounts
3-year cards available | 1-year free ISIC
Get your card now Details correct at time of printing (May 2017). See online for T&Cs.
nus.org.uk/extra
Over 200
student discounts
Including 10% off Ts & Cs apply
982613 6050 3141 4505 Hailey .M Tshuma National Union of Students
dob: 04/06/98 exp: 09/09/18
www.nus.org.uk
edit
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
the
Fashion 26
Deja vu? Why do we see the same things again and again?
Are coloured tights a Neo-Memphis Postmodern critique of capitalism?* Leonie Hutch Fashion Editor
So, it’s been a long time coming, but I have seen evidence on the street that is undeniable. Coloured tights have returned. I have seen yellows, I have seen reds, pinks, blues. (Unfortunately, however, I have no photographs of this phenomena- you rainbow-legged individuals are too sprightly for me.) A mainstay of the 1980s aesthetic, alongside mullets, shoulder pads, leg warmers and outrageous perms (my mother’s was GLORIOUS), they formed part of the decade’s visual identity. So, asking the questions that no one wants or needs answering: what is this all about and why re people still wearing them today? Let’s wind back to 1981, Milan. There a group of designers and architects, led by Ettore Sottsass, began to meet and work. They became known as the Memphis group (sometimes referred to as the Sottsass Associati). (Sottsass had actually been part of another earlier group in the late 70s- an experimental Milanese design collective known as Studio Alchimia. They were part of the ‘Nuovo Design’ Postmodern movement and created kitsch, highly decorated furniture and houseware. This influence can clearly be seen in the Memphis aesthetic which he later helped to develop).
Their designs were geometric, asymmetric, brightly coloured, highly patterned and a bit impractical The Memphis group’s work was in part a reaction against Modernist design. Whereas modernists, such as Le Corbusier, and the Bauhaus Schools believed that form should follow function, Sottsass thought that design should be as much about human sensory experience as basic functionality. Thus, whilst modern furniture tends to be fairly simple, Memphis designs
were much more elaborate. It was also a pretty radical move away from the minimalist, luxe designs in the 70s. Influenced by Art Deco, Pop Art and 1950s Kitsch their designs were geometric, asymmetric, brightly coloured, highly patterned, a bit impractical and, in my view, very excellent. They designed Postmodern furniture, fabrics, ceramics and glass pieces from 1981 to 1987. Instead they focussed on distortion and irony- both in terms of how the designs looked, but also in how the movement presented them. They used plastics and
phis’ is strangely juxtaposed, being both where Elvis was born and also the capital of Egypt’s Old Kingdom. As Barbara Radice wrote: “everyone thought it was a great name: Blues, Tennessee, rock’n’roll, American suburbs, and then Egypt, the Pharaohs’ capital, the holy city of the god, Ptah.” Annnnyway….. Although the members of the movement itself did not think that design had to last in order for it to be proclaimed good (Sottsass even said that as a group they don’t pursue “an absolute of any kind, much less eterni-
Zanone
You are wearing those socks becasuse of a chair from 1981. No, seriously. laminates- cheap materials at a time when Dynasty-esque luxury was coveted and the financial sector was glamourized as never before. The designs were also somewhat intended to critique and question social inequality and capitalist power structures and did this through the materials, colours and shapes that they used. Moreover, in their first exhibition which was held in 1981, the pieces of furniture were named after fancy hotels, such as Peter Shire’s ‘Bel Air’ chair and Sottsass’ Beverly cabinet. It was attempt of commenting on the space in-between what is considered classy and what is classist. Originally the movement was going to be called ‘The New Design’, but was instead called Memphis after the Bob Dylan lyric “Stuck Inside of Mobile (With the Memphis Blues Again)”. However, even the name ‘Mem-
ty” ~esoteric~), Memphis has sort of remained. Or at least an interpretation of it. By the power of MTV in the 1980s the aesthetic was streamed into people’s homes and entered into both their consciousness and wardrobe (even if this coloured lurex-y athleisure and pattern-on-pattern aesthetic was never actually attributed to the Memphis Group). In 1982, Crafts magazine even published the line: “You don’t have to own, or even to have seen a Memphis design for it to affect you sooner or later”. And it is, even 35 years after the group’s conception. The geometric forms and hyperkinetic coloured patterns have made a full resurgence in the last few years. In fact, in 2015, the Wall Street Journal actually wrote about this resurgence of the “neo-Memphis aesthetic” and that “for many postmillennial designers around the globe,
Memphis is a major source of inspiration”. This influence can be seen in both the design and fashion world. But as this is meant to be the fashion section I will stick with that: In 2005 Adidas produced limited-edition Sottsass-inspired sneakers. For instance, in 2012 the illustrator Tim Colmant created a number of patterns using MS Paint in commemoration of Nathalie Du Pasquier’s, a co- Ian Burt founder of the Memphis Group, went for a more-is-more colour designs. These were then sold on theme. Although in both cases shirts by an online shop called the construction of the clothes Print All Over Me (they are nice has been kept fairly modern to you should have a look). counteract this (although you Memphis designs were even the can see little 80s attributes in inspiration for the autumn/ win- the slightly oversized shoulders ter 2011 Dior haute couture col- and double breasted jackets). lection. In 2014, American Apparel hired Nathalie du Pasquier Designers have not to design a clothing line. And her designs were also used by La gone fully retrograde, Chance in Milan 2013. but the 1980s Proenza Schouler’s took note and Memphis featured in their Memphis influence is a/w 2013 ready-to-wear and also still clearly there in the a/w 2015 Missoni one. (All with coloured tights!) For Spring/ Summer 2018 Versace showcased a series of But, most importantly, and bodysuits, jumpsuits and tights the only thing that I really care inspired by their famous 1980s about: the coloured tights. ColWarhol printed dress (ooh, look oured tights that cover both the at those Pop Art, Memphis 80s full spectrum of visible light and resurgence links). There were also your legs for the chilly winblock colours, hyperkinetic pat- ter months. High denier, in as terns and a singularly 1980s feel offensively loud colour as you to the whole show. can find is the only way. You are And whilst other designers this channelling Post-modern chic season have not gone fully ret- and not a Jane Fonda aerobatic rograde a la Versace, the 1980s workout video, and you now Memphis influence is still clearly know this even if no one else can there. This season MSGM, Aal- tell the difference. to, Agnona, and 3.1 Philip Lim all produced outfits using block *If you want it to be. bright colours and contrasting shapes. Aalto have cut asymmetrical necklines- they are half as circles, half as straight lines. They have also used strange plastic laminated material. At 3.1 Philip Lim, the clothes have been cut into panels of contrasting colour- the form and shapes of the jackets and coats are pretty standard, but they are layered over volumes gathered skirts, creating a contrast between the shapes, and distorting the lines. MSGM have a multi-assortment of Skittle-coloured clothes down the runway, and Agnona also Shiny Fan
FASHION
Fashion 27
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Did the noughties mark the end of original fashion?
Lucinda Kirk Fashion Editor
1920s: drop-waist dresses and sequins. 1960s: knee-high boots, mini-skirts, baker-boy hats. 1970s: flared trousers, halternecks, tie-dye. 1980s: shoulder-pads, power suits, dungarees, statement earrings. 1990s: mum jeans, GAP, plaid skirts, scrunchies, 2000s: tinted glasses, chokers, camo pants. 2010s? As we are drawing to a close of the millennial ‘teen’ years, it becomes more difficult to pinpoint exactly the standout trends. Of course the standard, ‘building block’ clothes seem original and not comparable to another era. For example, it’s impossible to deny that skinny jeans are strong contenders and have managed to cling onto the rails for virtually a whole decade. Or even a typical hoodie. What I’m referring to are the fleeting fads, that disappear from shop windows from one season to the next, or if they are particularly stubborn, make it through the year. But what I truly believe defines this decade of fashion is the recycling of trends from the past and their revival into our magazines today. Since I was 16, the constant affectionate comments from my mother of “Oh I used to have a polo neck just like that when I was your age” or “That gingham pleated skirt takes me right back!” greeted me whenever I walked downstairs. At first I thought
it insulting. Was my fashion taste so backwards that it wasn’t even last season, it was three decades late? But I wasn’t trying to dress like I’d just won the heart of Ryan O’Neal in Love Story. Nor that I was trying to catch the eye of Patrick Swayze at a summer camp. I went through the 1970s summer camp stage when I was 14 according to my mother. Then I branched out into the “Desperately Seeking Susan” realm from 15. My preferences fluctuated from Avril Lavigne (definitely not but trying so hard to be emo) to Bend it Like Beckham sporty-glam-luxe with over-glossed lips, frosted eyeshadow and kitten heels.
Has the fashion industry has run out of ideas? But I wasn’t attempting to emulate the style of these individuals. I had never seen the film Love Story and the words Desperately Seeking Susan went straight over my head. I was dressing myself in what I perceived to be fashionable at the time. I was wearing what I saw in magazines and what were ubiquitously displayed from every show window in the country. The art of borrowing styles from previous decades has burst in popularity. Vintage markets and charity
shops are no longer the destination for your rusting DVDs but the source of all the cool cats’ garms which they’ll wear at their next gathering and post all over social media about. The term “Y2K” aesthetic has been floating around recently; seen often on depop accounts and hashtagged on social media. This term, meaning “year 2000” has manifested itself into architecture, music and art yet the optimism and technoutopianism for this “millenial bug” can be seen by our generation most evidently in terms of fashion. It’s often impossible for me click on my newsfeed of any form of social media without seeing a girl wearing the aesthetic; synthetic and metalliclooking materials, space-bun hair, glitter, sparkly shoes, halter and tube tops. But why is this particular aesthetic having its moment in the limelight now? Fashion in the 2000s was profoundly influenced by technology and this presented itself in a futuristic way to fashion. The apparel was dark, technological, reflective and sexy. Perhaps it is the current bubble of ever-evolving technology that has caused the attraction to this similar era. Or perhaps girls just rediscovered the fun in wearing sequined midi skirts and hot-pink lycra trousers. Even glancing at my wardrobe as I write, there’s no doubt that I own at least five pairs of flared trousers, a collection of statement hoop earrings, tinted glasses, suede jackets and dungarees. In terms of the glass-
Eastgate Basildon
es, perhaps they were worn ironically at first, someone merely paying a comical homage to a questionable trend, yet it caught on and they can now be spotted at any festival and most nightclubs (guilty). We hear more frequently, “.... is back in fashion” or “.... is making a comeback” as opposed to new looks being formed, or rather, being successful enough to last a season. The Autumn/Winter Collection of all the powerhouse fashion brands, Prada, Chanel, Dior and Loewe shocked the public when kitten heels tottered down the catwalk. Paris fashion Week this year showed Gingham everywhere. Some question whether the fashion industry has run out of ideas and the uninspiring recycling of trends is the only possible option.
Being fashion-forward requires the reinventing of styles. It is now considered fashionable to be wearing garms that wouldn’t look out of place in a 90s sitcom. I wouldn’t bat an eyelid to see a bumbag strapped to teen at a festival or a micro-designer bag perched on the shoulder of nightclub socialite. And why is this? It’s modern to be in touch with the past. One may wear a 70s inspired outfit complete with a suede hat and crochet scarf, whilst the next may adorn something fit for The Breakfast Club. This forms an accumulation of different styles which is infact new and revolutionary and defines the dress of this era. Modern fashion is non prescriptive. There is no dress code. It is this which defines the aesthetic of this decade.
Free the Nipple: a controversial campaign explained Lucinda Kirk
Fashion Editor
The Free the Nipple campaign has been at the centre of controversy since its conception. At its core, it enshrines the idea of gender equality. And yet this concept of ‘free’ alludes to a sense that something has been previously locked away, imprisoned, concealed. Why is the nipple, a body part possessed by almost every human on the planet regardless of sex, race, colour or age, the epicentre of such fiery and heated discussions regarding parity between genders? The metaphorical stage for such protests is often the social media platform Instagram, which censors images of topless women but not topless men. Many, including myself, find it strange that this is done with the intention of protecting children and the vulnerable, and evading the possibility of exploitation, yet incredibly insensitive and graphic posts are often kept on Instagram since it does not violate any supposed ‘community guidelines’. Since when did the female body become ‘offensive’?
Feminist actor of ‘Orange is the New Black’ fame Matt McGorry crystallised the hypocrisy of such a policy by posting a topless picture of himself, with his nipples covered by images of the nipples of women whose posts had been removed.
The Free the Nipple campaign has been at the centre of controversy since its conception Many piercers and tattoo artists on Instagram have expressed anguish that their piercings and works are not able to be displayed if the subject in question is a female. Even images of breast cancer survivors’ “nipple-less” breasts have been known to have been struck down by Instagram. It is evident that women’s bodies are sexualised in almost every arena in modern society, and the fashion and beauty industries are notable culprits. But this surely should not translate in a total whitewashing of the female nipple from social
media platforms, when men are allowed to display theirs? How is the page the “slutwhisperer” allowed to persist on Instagram while female women are not permitted to display their breasts? I believe that instead of acting as a protective device, Instagram’s policy is actually perpetuating that a female’s body is hyper-sexual and something that should be concealed. This fuels a patriarchal structure of power that dictates to women when it is appropriate for them to be nude. It is undeniably a frightening time to be a woman. With the recent multiple sexual assault allegations of Harvey Weinstein coming to light, now it is more important than ever to challenge this framework of power. That demonises victims and tells women that their breasts have the only function of being pleasing to men. I want to draw particular attention to here to Amber Rose’s Los Angeles “slutwalk”, which encourages both females and males to embrace the perjorative words used to describe “promiscuous” women. Fashion from the protest mirrors a style that is bold in the face of criticism and adversity: topless women, branded with the words ‘whore’, ‘slag’, ‘rape survivor’, and
so on. Amber recently wore a superwoman outfit featuring the words “captain save a hoe”. Protest fashion is often sensationalist, but it needs to be in order to attract attention. It is time for ‘free the nipple’ to stop being derided as a movement, and instead catalyse a change that starts with a simple Instagram shift in policy. These superficially minimal changes little by little corrode the societal power balance that still means that women are paid less for the same jobs as men. Fashion needs to be shock-
ing and daring to reflect the immense proportions of the change that needs to come about. Whether that starts with uniform policies in schools that states that girls should not wear short skirts because it is ‘inappropriate’ or for fear of ‘distracting the boys’, or broader political, social and cultural movements, 2017 is surely the time to start pushing for equal treatment between sexes. The idea of ‘nipple equality’ has come to represent something far greater than the sum of its parts.
Maria Eklind
OXSTUFF
OxStuff 28
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
This week in broadcasting: Balliol Bar Crawl and more Tom Gould
Deputy Broadcasting Editor
This week we have a treat for you. The Oxford Student’s very own Bar Inspector/Broadcasting Editor Henry Grub begins his crawl of college drinking establishments by reviewing Balliol’s bar. In a feat of
cinematography rivalling that of Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, Grub takes us through a whistle stop two minute and twenty six second tour of the bar’s main attractions all in one take. There are no visible cuts. All remarks and witticisms are entirely spontaneous, ad-libbed and off-the-cuff.
This dazzling feature sees our intrepid adventurer exploring the bar, reviewing the Balliol Blue the college drink - and even sniffing a bench. It has to be seen to be believed. In 5th week you can look forward to episode two of Oxford Student Come Dine With Me. Two couples from Christ Church and
St. Peter’s go head-to-head as world’s collide. Can you guess which one prepared the luxury mushroom risotto and which one spent £5 on ingredients for spaghetti bolognese? You can check out all of our videos on The Oxford Student Facebook page and Youtube channel.
OVERHEARD IN OXFORD “They do call me the nippletweaker” “What happens in the nunnery stays in the nunnery” “Can we keep your mum jokes out of the OxStu please” “My entertainment reading is Thomas Picketty”
OxQuiz
Which Oxford term are you? You coming out tonight? a) Of course #lads #fresherrrs b) I’ll come to pres for a bit but then I’ve really got to get up early tomorrow c) I haven’t been outside in three weeks What’s your favourite holiday? a) Christmas! b) Easter! c) The sweet release of death
Why on earth are you even reading OxStuff? a) What else is there to do? b) Someone left it open in the JCR c) As a fleeting distraction from the horror that my life has become Where are you hanging out with your squad? a) Park End all night every night b) Pub trip once a week if we can fit it in c) What’s hanging out?
What’s your fave outfit? a) Cosy jumper, warm Do you like Oxford? coat, woolly hat a) Yes! b) Nice raincoat and a b) It’s alright, I guess? t-shirt, ready for any c) *incoherent wailing* weather c) Heavily tear-stained sub fusc
Mostly As You’re Michaelmas Term! Oh bless you, you sweet summer (well. winter) child. So young and innocent, you believe that the good times will last forever, that Oxford is a place of wonder and that Monday night Park End is always a viable option. Enjoy your innocence while it lasts you pure soul. Mostly Bs You’re Hilary Term! You’re a tad older and wiser than those Michaelmas types. You’ve been around the block a bit and the shine’s worn off of Oxford somewhat. Work’s picking up for you a bit but there’s still some fun times to be had, and you can probably knock out that thesis in a week if you really believe.
Mostly Cs You’re Trinity Term! We’re sorry. We’re so so sorry. We don’t mean to be harsh, but you’re a bit of a wreck now aren’t you? The overbearing pressure of work has gotten to you and now your hair’s falling out, you’re stress eating entire packs of digestives in 5 minutes and you haven’t spoken to anyone who’s not a Deliveroo rider in a week. Maybe ake a break and look after yourself a bit, yeah?
“I’ve managed a whole one gobbet tonight but I can’t take any more so I’m coming back to spoons” “All law is just using complicated words in increasingly ludicrous contexts”
OxFURd
Long-time readers may recognise Zuko from last term: he’s now the test subject for our editor’s new camera
OxStuff 29
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Timetable trouble: Our agony aunts share their advice Socrates & Ion Ancient Greek agony aunts
I: The issue here is immediately obvious to me: organisation. Don’t bother with it. If you cut out all the time you spent organising things, and spent the time being a mess yet
getting your work done, you’d be in a much better place - probably. As far as I’m concerned, organisation is just another form of procrastination. S: Ah, the joy of youthful naivete. Any who enter the hallowed halls of this university learn very quickly that nothing is more prized here, more noble and beloved, than pointless administration work. For every task or trial, there’s paperwork to fill out; the curse of spontaneity has been heroically crushed by 24-hour minimum notice times in every college. Let’s face it: if you’re at Oxford and you spend less than half of your time doing fruitless admin, are you even living the Oxford experience? Giving up organisation for good is but a childish daydream. I: While I myself cannot deny the indescribable joy of purchasing a new set of highlighters that I will most likely only use once, the burst of productivity gained from bowing down to the capitalist powers of Paperchase burns out quickly, and leaves one feeling increasingly inept. Banging out an essay in four hours is an art form, and one that inspires the purest expression
of spontenaity imaginable – that of the caffine and self-hatred fuelled 1700 word excretion of the fresher.
sit down at the start of the week and sort out a plan. It doesn’t have to be all-encompassing - it just has to work.
S: And yet, when you slop that pile of excrement into your tutor’s pidge and await their judgement, you immediately feel a sense of regret over the time you could have saved if you’d just planned it a little better. Now, you’re doomed to sulk into your tutor’s office with a superficialat-best understanding of the topic on the table, spend an hour gazing thoughtfully into the middle distance and nodding every few minutes with your lips clamped shut, and head home feeling drained and grilled and dead inside. All those hours procrastinating could be spent doing productive, fulfilling work if you just
I: Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time, in my humble opinion. If I feel the need to spend five days a week being hungover and curing my hangover with wine in a vicious cycle of self-destruction, ending my week with 48 hours of intense SOLO consumption, that’s exactly how my week will run. Packing the worst part of the week into the smallest amount of time possible is a fool-proof solution to the age-old problem of the permanently deadlinedriven Oxford student. Don’t bother trying to convince yourself that “planning” and “organisation” mean anything – you’ll end up blasting
your assignment out in the last few hours before the deadline anyway. S: And yet, can you imagine what it must be like to hand in an essay more than an hour before the deadline hell, to hand it in before the deadline at all? Sure, it’s an optimist’s solution to say we should stop procrastinating altogether, but I do sometimes wonder what a world we’d live in if we did. No more curt emails from tutors about late reports. No more all-nighters, fuelled by sugar and selfloathing. A genuine shot at getting a First. Imagine that: the world where no one put off that essay and just got it done sensibly. I’ll leave it to you to test my theory and see if it’s as glorious as it sounds... I’ve got a new series of Stranger Things to watch.
Sport 30
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
James Harden proving to be the real MVP
Examining whether Russell Westbrook holds up against Harden’s efforts Continued from page 32
Going back through the years it is hard to find examples of players who have scored as much as Westbrook did last year and yet who did so at such an inefficient rate. Westbrook’s points come on just 42.6% shooting, while shooting just 34.3% from threepoint range. These numbers might not mean much but, apart from Westbrook, the last time a player led the league in scoring while shooting this poorly was Allen Iverson back in 2004-05. That team that Iverson played on bears a s t r i k i n g resemblance to that of Westbrook’s Oklahoma City Thunder last season. The teams were low play-off seeds, spearheaded by one dynamic player, despite the surrounding cast not actually being that poor. Oklahoma City were meant to be one of the top picks in the West, with a number of summer additions expected to counter the loss of Kevin Durant. Yet, whilst they did make the play-offs, they fell a long way short of competing for a title, being eliminated 4-1 in the first round of the play-offs. It is still extremely early on in this season, but the Thunder are currently lying in 8th place in the West, having won as many as they have lost. This is despite adding two legitimate NBA stars to play alongside Westbrook in Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. This was meant to be a team to contend for titles in the near future, and yet they have so far failed to beat any teams that stand a chance of making the play-offs. The excuses are beginning to run out for why Westbrook can’t carry a team to wins, even if he puts up impressive stats along the way. By contrast, Harden’s Houston Rockets were in fact the team that dispatched with the Thunder in the play-offs last year and, although they failed to progress much further, they currently have a 4-1 record in the west after having defeated the champion Warriors already this season. This is despite two of their starters and one of their key substitutes getting injured. This doesn’t of itself mean a huge amount, as the sample sizes are very low, but Harden’s ability to improve the play of others continues to push his team forwards. While ESPN’s scoring efficiency stat is imperfect, it at least gives an indication of a player’s performance level. Those of Westbrook’s latest teammates Paul George and Carmelo Anthony are very telling.
George’s number is the worst since his rookie season (excluding the 2014-15 season in which he played just ninety-one minutes as part of his rehabilitation from injury). Meanwhile, although Anthony’s is slightly better than last season, it is still the fifth worst of his sixteen-year career, most of which has been spent carrying some of the worst teams in basketball. Possibly more telling is that Westbrook’s former teammate, Kevin Durant, had his most
There was almost certainly more to the personality clash than what happened on the court, but the numbers are hard to ignore. Equally emphatic is how many of James Harden’s newer teammates have seen a boost in their offensive efficiency since joining the Rockets. Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon both became more efficient upon joining the Rockets last season, but PJ Tucker, Nene Hilario and Luc Mbah a Moute’s numbers are frankly astonishing. All three
The right decision doesn’t always lead to something that shows on the score-board next to your name. efficient shooting season last year with Golden State, the year after he left the Thunder claiming that Westbrook was hard to play with.
Alexandra Walt
are currently on course for this season to be the most efficient of their careers, a remarkable feat given their combined 33 years of
NBA experience.
Harden’s value to the team goes beyond easily measuarable statistics. This doesn’t mean that James Harden is some sort of wizard who is magically able to make the players around him better, but that his value to the team goes beyond easily measurable statistics. Often in basketball, as in most sports, the right decision doesn’t always lead to something that shows on the score-board next to your name. Those unselfish plays are what makes Harden’s game so valuable. The Rockets’ offence is built around moving the ball to get the best shot and the same is true for both the all-conquering Warriors
and the consistently excellent Spurs and Cavaliers. These are not teams where one player dominates the scoring but rather rely on an unselfish attempt to win. This stands in stark contrast to Westbrook’s game, one of ball dominance where passing is a last resort when he can’t get a shot. Russell Westbrook’s tripledouble feat is hugely impressive; it needs to be remembered and likely will be. However, it is hard to argue that a player who scores inefficiently and fails to make the players around him substantially better is the most valuable player in the NBA. Harden is a more efficient scorer and passer, and can feel rightly aggrieved that Westbrook was named MVP over him. Then again, LeBron James is still head-and-shoulders above every other NBA player of this generation so it really doesn’t matter who wins the award while he rests for the play-offs!
Sport 31
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Lancers win charity match against old boys Max Rumbol
Staff Writer
Last Saturday, the Oxford Lancers had their annual Old Boys Game: a chance for the crop of new rookies to get their feet wet against some of the best Lancers to have played the game. In a new twist this year, players were raising money for the MS Society, with great success. This is a cause close to legendary Lancer Jonny Brooks’ (or Priest as he is affectionately known) heart. Unfortunately, Beth, Priest’s girlfriend (also a former Oxford University student), was diagnosed with RelapsingRemitting Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS) in June this year. Beth has since raised almost £2000 for the MS society through a charity walk with friends and family. With an aim to raise awareness of this “invisible” illness as well as money to help fund research into finding a cure, the current Lancers’ President, Josh Allen, made the decision to host the annual Old Boys game in aid of the MS Society. Despite the Old Boys heading into the weekend having won the last 2 meetings, the match up was set to be a close one after a strong influx of rookies. The Old Boys started shakily on offence, with their first two drives ending in a turnover on downs. Unfortunately, the current Lancers were unable to capitalise on this initially, as both teams appeared to be little rusty out of the gate.
After a horrendous throw from the Old Boys was picked off, the Lancers eventually put points on the board in the form of a rushing touchdown from Connor Thompson. The Lancer great Priest himself then responded with a long touchdown run of his own, breaking multiple tackles along the way. The two teams traded long touchdown passes, seeing the Old Boys’ head into the
half with a 22-20 lead. The current Lancers’ defence then stepped-up in a big way in the second half, stifling the Old Boys offence. The Lancers’ new look offence scored on another two touchdown passes courtesy of veteran Will Szymanski, giving them a lead of 36-22 heading into the two-minute warning. The Old Boys offence then had a chance to respond; the pressure was on.
Four plays later the Old Boys were facing a 4th-and-long, and replacement free safety Jimmy Blackwell picked off the visitors pass. The new Lancers’ team then let the clock expire to win the game 36-22. Lancers’ president, Josh Allen, set a goal prior to the event to raise £300. The current and former Lancers were up to the task and they managed to raise a
total of £330 for the MS Society. The MS Society is currently funding thirteen new research projects in the hope to find a cure to this debilitating disease. If you are interested in learning more, or would like to lend your support, we encourage you to visit their website at https://www. mssociety.org.uk/. Together we can make a difference and find a cure.
Oxford Lancers
Women’s football continues to grow in Oxford Continued from page 32 While last year marked a significant step for women’s football in Oxford, this looks to be just the beginning. Last year’s achievements shouldn’t be ignored, but cannot be accepted as being enough either. Wulfie spoke on this as well, saying: “Last year was a great step forward in Oxford football’s history. It was a privilege to be part of the committee who had the power to right a historic injustice, and to be in a position to ensure this continues. This year, we have already guaranteed another double header. This is a great step forward, but there can be no doubt that there is a lot of work still to be done.” On the field, the Blues have also had a strong start in the league, remaining unbeaten this season with a 7-0 victory over the University of East Anglia in their most recent fixture. OUWAFC president Louise Nolan credits some of this success to the increased quality of players
entering the club. This year “around 56 players turned up to trials, a similar number to previous years, but at a much higher standard, with girls from club backgrounds such as Watford and Leeds, along with a WSL professional who has played for Sunderland, and a Jamaican International who represented her country in the World Cup qualifiers.” The club employs professional coach Rob Gier, who trains Reading Ladies U16, to ensure that the players’ abilities are rewarded with results on the pitch.
involved in the game. OUWAFC run a Development Squad for players of any ability to improve their skills, with hopes of their pushing into the university team. The Devlopment Squad is run by Blues player Katie Plummer who is assisted by two coaches. Former Jesus College captain Jessica Keating believes that the Development Squad provides a vital link between university and college level football. “Having members of the college football team with connections to OUWAFC is extremely beneficial for college teams since they can
There are still plenty of opportunities for women of all abilities at Oxford to get involved in the game. Whilst the quality of university– level women’s football has risen in line with national interest in the sport, there are still plenty of opportunities for women of all abilities at Oxford to get
introduce new skills, tactics or even just a new warm up routine, things that can help to build the confidence and ability of all players, regardless of the level at which they started. Sometimes
women’s football just seems to depend upon momentum so putting in some commitment to improving players’ confidence and ability is vital. They then tell their friends how fun it is and the numbers grow. Introducing training sessions for Jesus Women last year was such a big deal, and it’s exciting to see that this year we’re hitting over 20 people turning up to training. I think that’s a testament to the growth of women’s football in Oxford at the moment and shows it has a lot of potential at every level.” College football caters for all ability levels, ranging from university–level players to those who have never played before. The college football league gives novice players a chance to get to grips with the game in a friendly, albeit competitive, atmosphere and consists of twenty-six teams competing in four OUAFC divisions. This is in addition to Cuppers and the Hassan’s Cup, a new introduction this year, which guarantees all teams at least two knockout matches per season.
OUAFC Sabbatical officer Omar Mohsen has pledged to make this year’s Cuppers final a double– header, with “both games to be played on the same day, at the same venue, with equal status”. Brasenose captain Tabitha Everett welcomes the change. “Having had the first Varsity double header last year, I’m really pleased to see the natural next step, which is to join the two Cuppers finals. Women’s college football is becoming increasingly popular and it’s nice to know that more spectators will have an opportunity to enjoy it too!” Omar has also managed to ensure that more women’s matches are professionally refereed than ever before, a great step in cementing the legitimacy of the sport. With so many steps being taken to improve the game, both inside and outside Oxford, there should be real hope for the continued growth in engagement in, enjoyment of and respect for women’s football. With all that going on, it promises to be another exciting year for women’s football.
SPORT Sport 32
The Oxford Student | Friday 3rd November 2017
Harden Leads Rockets To Hot Start
Lancers Victory In Charity Match
OUWAFC success on and off the pitch James
Harden making his MVP case
Vincent Richardson Sport Editor
OUWAFC
Dani Ball Staff Writer
Women can and will kick balls. Unsurprisingly then, women’s football at Oxford University has seen a massive boost in recent years, in line with the rising levels of women’s participation in the sport all over the country. Much of this is down to the fantastic work of members of OUWAFC and OUAFC who have pushed for the women’s game to be treated with as much respect as the men’s. Football is now the largest female team sport in England, with around three million players. A major driving force behind this surge in uptake has been the recent success of the England team, who made it to the semi-finals of UEFA Women’s Euro 2017, the biggest female tournament ever organised by UEFA.
Not only that, women’s football is now the fastest growing sport in Britain fullstop; with the aforementioned UEFA tournament attracting over two million viewers. When former England captain Casey Stoney started out, she was the only girl playing not just in her team, but in the entire league. There are now leagues up and down the country dedicated to women’s football. However, whilst there has been an increase in the number of opportunities for women to play football, there has been little change in the disparaging attitudes of many towards the role of women in the game. The 2016 Women in Football Survey found that 61.9% of women in football have been on the end of sexist ‘banter’ or jokes, and that 38.2% have heard derogatory statements about their ability based on their gender. FIFA are taking steps to
improve the situation: they have increased the number of female representatives, both in their standing committees and on the administration’s management board, and recently held their third annual “Conference for Equality and Inclusion”. In line with this, they claim to “actively promote women’s football worldwide through major competitions and events, campaigns and development programmes”. Inside Oxford, there has also been a lot of progress in women’s football in recent years. Most notably, this year marked the first Varsity double header after calls from members of OUWAFC and OUAFC. OUAFC president Wulfie Bain, who pushed for the change, stated that “with players that have represented professional and national teams, there is no question that OUWAFC’s ability merits an equal stage to any Oxford sports
club, regardless of gender.” The double header was a success for both women’s football and Oxford, with both teams winning their matches 3–1 and 3–2 respectively. OUWAFC Blues captain Maddie Hooper commented that “the Varsity double header was a huge milestone in terms of progress towards equality between men and women in university football. It was a very special day, and the biggest crowd that many members of the team had ever played in front of. It meant a lot to be able to show a larger audience the result of a hard year of training, and to represent Oxford football alongside the men’s team - an opportunity that was long overdue. We will endeavour to build on the success of the event with this season’s varsity matches.”
Continued on page 31
Last season, Russell Westbrook did something that had only been done once before in the history of the NBA: he averaged a triple-double over the course of a season. For those unfamiliar with the NBA, a tripledouble is when a player records ten or more of three separate statistical categories, most commonly points, assists and rebounds. To average this over the course of a season is undeniably impressive, and Westbrook was named the league MVP accordingly, beating former teammate James Harden in one of the closest races in years. But, as this season gets underway, it is starting to become clear that maybe that decision should have gone the other way. On the surface at least, Westbrook’s 2016-17 season was hugely impressive; he lead the league with 31.6 points per game, was second in assists with 10.4 per game and was tenth in rebounds at 10.7 a game. The fact that a 6’3” guard was able to grab 10.7 rebounds a game is an impressive feat in itself. However, some of the less flashy stats have Westbrook in somewhat less illustrious company. While his rebounding was hugely impressive, it was almost all at the defensive end where he ranked fifth in the NBA. However, his offensive rebounding was far more in-keeping with his stature, ranking 38th. When this is paired with some of the advanced statistics showing him to be a very poor off-ball defender, allegations that Westbrook abandoned some of his defensive responsibilities to stat-hunt are hard to ignore. What is more, while he finished third in the league in assists, his assist-to-turnover ratio ranked fifty-sixth meaning that his efficiency as a pass left a lot to be desired. However, worst of all was his shooting.
Continued on page 30