The latest media mentions, quotes, profiles, and writings from Division of the Humanities faculty, students, staff, and alumni. Visit us on X, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Facebook for more updates.

What is 'recession pop' — and why is it making a comeback? New music from Kesha, Lady Gaga signals return to 'escapist pop bangers.'

Yahoo Entertainment
Paula Harper (music) was interviewed for this article on the resurgence of "recession pop"—the dance-floor anthems that offered escapist joy during the Great Recession and are now making a comeback. Harper explains how these songs served as “overcompensating counterpoints” to economic despair, offering “sonic bodily pleasure” in moments of uncertainty. 

How much influence did white supremacist groups have on Chicago housing?

WBEZ
Adrienne Brown (English Language and Literature) was interviewed for this article on how white supremacist groups influenced Chicago housing segregation. She explains that while extremist groups like the White Circle League played a role, segregation was also upheld by real estate boards, neighborhood associations, and banks that adapted discriminatory practices even after legal barriers fell. Brown emphasizes that these systemic issues not only shaped Chicago’s housing market but also the lives and works of Black thinkers like Richard Wright, Lorraine Hansberry, and Gwendolyn Brooks.

More than 100 staff members work in the Division of the Humanities. We’ll introduce you to our staff in this continuing series.

Trevor McCulloch
Student Affairs Administrator
Department of English Language and Literature

What do you like most about your job?

Talking to undergraduate students about their interests and what they’re enjoying in their classes. Their enthusiasm is infectious, and I love hearing firsthand how they’re exploring their passions. I also work alongside some wonderful administrative staff and faculty—everyone has been so kind and welcoming!

What was the last good book you read?

Patricia Highsmith’s Edith’s Diary. Highsmith is a favorite of mine, and I’ve been working my way through all her novels. I would never call her vision of the world warm or optimistic (she was known in life to be quite misanthropic!), but I find her books perversely comforting. Though not quite a thriller, the title character succumbs to her pathologies through her banal life, much like many of Highsmith’s characters, who discover their capacity for violence and madness in the everyday. Anyone can be a psychopath! This probably says more about me than it does about Miss Highsmith . . .

You might work with me if . . .

You need any information regarding undergraduate studies, course scheduling, or general information about the English department.

Have you come across someone or something recently—like an activity, object, or idea—that’s been inspiring or uplifting?

I’ve recently been engaging (or reengaging) with the films of Chantal Akerman and catching up on some blind spots in her filmography. Her personal history isn’t the sunniest, and her films are often steeped in alienation and loneliness. But in their formal beauty and generous humanity, they search for connection and meaning while grappling with the difficulty of a world that often seems to limit connection. Seeing the films actively work through these problems has been poignant, and even at their bleakest, they represent a powerful search for truth and meaning.