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Diseases of Modern Life

Diseases of Modern Life

By Diseases of Modern Life

This is the podcast for the ERC-funded interdisciplinary project Diseases of Modern Life: Nineteenth Century Perspectives, at the University of Oxford.

The project explores the medical, literary and cultural responses in the Victorian age to the perceived problems of stress and overwork, anticipating many of the preoccupations of our own era.
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Solitude and Modernity: Enforced Solitude with Gwen Adshead (West London Trust and Central North West London Trust) and researcher Shokoufeh Sakhi (Toronto)

Diseases of Modern LifeJul 06, 2019

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50:35
Solitude and Modernity: Enforced Solitude with Gwen Adshead (West London Trust and Central North West London Trust) and researcher Shokoufeh Sakhi (Toronto)

Solitude and Modernity: Enforced Solitude with Gwen Adshead (West London Trust and Central North West London Trust) and researcher Shokoufeh Sakhi (Toronto)

The ‘Solitude and Modernity’ colloquium was co-sponsored by ‘Diseases of Modern Life’ (Oxford) and ‘Pathologies of Solitude’  (Queen Mary University of London). This collaboration resulted in a one-day programme which brought  together researchers working on solitude and loneliness, in literature  and society, from the nineteenth century to the present. Following  literary and historical sessions on the Victorian City and Modern  Britain, the event concluded with a discussion on enforced solitude,  from the perspectives of first-hand experience of incarceration and  forensic psychotherapy.

This discussion Gwen Adshead (West London Trust and Central North West London Trust) and researcher Shokoufeh Sakhi (Toronto) made up the final portion of the day. This talk contains information and language that may trouble some listeners.

Jul 06, 201950:35
Solitude and Modernity: Sarah Green, JM Barrie and the Solitary Young Man

Solitude and Modernity: Sarah Green, JM Barrie and the Solitary Young Man

The ‘Solitude and Modernity’ colloquium was co-sponsored by ‘Diseases of Modern Life’ (Oxford) and ‘Pathologies of Solitude’  (Queen Mary University of London). This collaboration resulted in a one-day programme which brought  together researchers working on solitude and loneliness, in literature  and society, from the nineteenth century to the present. Following  literary and historical sessions on the Victorian City and Modern  Britain, the event concluded with a discussion on enforced solitude,  from the perspectives of first-hand experience of incarceration and  forensic psychotherapy.

This talk by Dr Sarah Green, entitled 'JM Barrie and the Solitary Young Man' is from the first panel, Alone in the Victorian City.

Jul 06, 201923:07
Diseases in Dialogue: The Gut-Brain Connection

Diseases in Dialogue: The Gut-Brain Connection

In this episode, Dr Emilie Taylor-Brown and Dr Katerina Johnson explore the central role which has long been attributed to digestion in the promotion of physical and mental wellbeing, from the nineteenth century to the present day. How did Victorians perceive the connection between the brain and the stomach? What does science tell us now? Why is digestive health so central to our understanding of who we are?

Jun 13, 201926:05
Diseases in Dialogue: A Networked Age

Diseases in Dialogue: A Networked Age

In this episode, Dr Grant Blank and Dr Jean-Michel Johnston explore what it means to live in a networked age, an age that began with the emergence of the electric telegraph during the nineteenth century, and which has entered a new phase since the advent of the internet. Have the benefits of new means of communication been universal? To what extent is the internet built on the foundations of older technologies? Is the long-awaited ‘global village’ still on the horizon?

Jun 07, 201936:10
Diseases in Dialogue: Surgical Consent

Diseases in Dialogue: Surgical Consent

Surgical Consent: From the 'reasonable doctor' to the 'reasonable patient'?

In this episode, Prof. Ashok Handa and Dr Sally Frampton consider how the relationship between doctor and patient has changed since the nineteenth century, in light of new medical knowledge and practices. Did Victorian surgeons take their patients’ wishes and expectations seriously? How have the regulations surrounding medical consent changed? How can we ensure that individuals are adequately informed when they choose whether to undergo potentially life-changing surgery? 

Jun 03, 201928:54
After the Show (Remastered for Speakers)

After the Show (Remastered for Speakers)

This is the same podcast, 'After the Show: Victorian Speed'. It has been edited for listening using computer speakers, rather than headphones. The recommended (headphones) version is here: https://anchor.fm/diseasesmodlife/episodes/After-the-Show-Victorian-Speed-e3jv0d

May 10, 201916:51
After the Show: Victorian Speed

After the Show: Victorian Speed

Last year, Diseases of Modern Life collaborated with The Projection Studio on the light and sound spectacular, 'Victorian Speed of Life'. Recently, Principal Investigator from Diseases of Modern Life, Sally Shuttleworth, sat down with Ross Ashton and Karen Monid from The Projection Studio to ask how the project impacted their work. This podcast features sounds from the show itself. 

Apr 01, 201916:28
#Ruskin200 - Ruskin, Science and the Environment

#Ruskin200 - Ruskin, Science and the Environment

This podcast was presented and edited by Dr Catherine Charlwood for the Diseases of Modern Life project.


Book for the 8th February Ruskin conference and public lecture at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History here.


The guests were

Professor John Holmes (University of Birmingham)

Dr Fraser Riddell (Trinity College, University of Oxford)

Professor Fiona Stafford (Somerville College, University of Oxford)


The quotation from Ruskin’s letter to his father was written on 31st January 1849 and can be found on page 93 of Volume 36 of The Complete Works of John Ruskin. I am indebted to William J Gatens’s 1986 article ‘John Ruskin and Music’ for highlighting this letter.


Music for this episode was extracts from ‘Qui la voce sua soave’ from Bellini’s opera I Puritani (1835). It was performed by Maria Callas at the Teatro alla Scala and directed by Tullio Serafin. This recording can be found at Liber Liber and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution - Noncommercial - Share Alike 4.0 International Licence.

Jan 28, 201918:21
Victorian Light Night: Collaborating with Cheney School

Victorian Light Night: Collaborating with Cheney School

In this episode, we explore how the project collaborated with Year 8 pupils at Cheney School to make Victorian Light Night (16/11/18) a success. For further information - and to view the winning designs - see our blog at www.diseasesmodernlife.org

Produced by: Dr Catherine Charlwood

With thanks to: Dr Lorna Robinson and Cheney School

Music for this episode came from the Free Music Archive, with two songs (Little Nemo Selection and L’Encore) performed by the Victor Hugo Orchestra and recorded on Edison Cylinders between 1909-1910. This music is licensed under the Public Domain Mark 1.0 License.

The sound effects came from the BBC Sound Effects Archive, which are made available for educational use under the RemArc Licence:
- Electric school bell rings. (Recorded in London, 1980.)
- One unshod horse passes at trot on rough track, with some birdsong.
Dec 16, 201813:02
'The Wonderful Pills', a ballad performance by Oskar Cox Jensen

'The Wonderful Pills', a ballad performance by Oskar Cox Jensen

Latest episode of Diseases of Modern Life
Nov 02, 201801:43
'In a Fog', ballad performance by Oskar Cox Jensen

'In a Fog', ballad performance by Oskar Cox Jensen

Latest episode of Diseases of Modern Life
Nov 02, 201801:02