Miscellaneous

  This isn’t really a story, but the memory of one, preserved like dried flowers between paper pages. Boy meets girl has been told and retold. Boy dumps girl has variations too. But not boy abandons girl, or boy loses faith in girl, or boy reimagines girl as a monster and runs far, far away. To clarify, boy and girl isn't boyfriend and girlfriend. He wasn’t an ex, but an ex-something, an ex-maybe. An ex-almost. We were both the type that was easily detached from others, which meant people were surprised when they found out we were close. And they'd

A shadowy figure is perched on top of a tall building overlooking the busy streets of Gotham. Their cape billows in the wind, casting a sinister silhouette against the night sky. Sirens suddenly blare in the distance, swelling in a crescendo. A crazed cackling and gunshots echo across the city. The figure turns their head towards the chaos.   FIGURE The city needs me.   Their armour gleams in the moonlight, a dark knight to defend the citizens of Gotham from the threats of those who wish to bring chaos and harm to its streets. The figure straightens up to

Sport the Difference By Celaena June Sardothian CW: sexism, cissexism It is impossible to escape stereotypes about women. I think everyone has seen, heard, or been subject to some sort of stereotype, especially when it comes to women in sport. Across the whole industry, those stereotypes affect how women are treated from the court to the playing field. Girls never get picked first for teams. People hesitate before passing you the ball, or avoid throwing it to you altogether. Boys and girls play on different courts, and in different leagues, because otherwise it wouldn’t be fair. I never really cared

Despite turning 89 this year, Stanley Kubrick just concluded principal photography on his new film Napoleon. It is Kubrick’s first work since the hypnotic Eyes Wide Shut, and he is quietly confident about it. Upon pulling up at Childwickbury Manor, it is impossible to resist the allure of the place. Its character announces itself from far away, like one of the mansions in Kubrick’s beautifully-shot Barry Lyndon. The abode absolutely reflects the man: mythic, but still concrete; isolated, but still occupied; aging, but still imposing. Kubrick is standing on the front lawn waiting for me when I arrive. I feel

  Dissent, first published 1993, is brought to you by the Women's Department. These pages are dedicated to giving voice to the women of Monash. Dissent aims to raise women up by giving them a stage to voice their reality, experiences, opinions, frustrations, wants and needs. We Dissent by speaking out when the world expects us to remain quiet. We Dissent by standing up for ourselves despite getting knocked down. We Dissent by talking back, asking questions, giving answers, telling stories, drawing pictures, writing poems, broadening horizons, singing songs, making art, climbing mountains, signing petitions, filming videos, laughing loudly, changing

  ‘Just as Darwin discovered the law of development or organic nature, so Marx discovered the law of development of human history: the simple fact, hitherto concealed by an overgrowth of ideology, that mankind must first of all eat, drink, have shelter and clothing, before it can pursue politics, science, art, religion, etc. …’ – Frederich Engels, 1883 So begins Dmitri Gallo’s spirited and sometimes controversial history. Adopting the dusty Marxist thesis that ideas and social forces in history are ultimately at the mercy of economic and technological developments, Gallo suggests that the centre of world history is actually your

The current trend of dismissing mature age people as part of the restructuring of industry and favouring younger persons holds dire consequences for the nation. For in that disposing of ‘surplus workers’ the accumulated experience, understanding and wisdom born out of generational practice is forever lost. This dispensing with human values for the sake of economic gains, paves the way for superficiality, lack of vision and the disintegration of the social fabric. Worse, it accelerates that trend foreseen  - early last century - by the ethnologist Oswald Spengler in his Decline of the West where: “a new sort of nomad,

  The white roses are her favourite. Delicate snow petals, spilling out from the centres, like a ballerina’s tulle frozen forever mid pirouette. A violent assault of deep reds, canary yellows, rich blues; each more colourful than the last surround her in the greenhouse. The roses are like her children, all scrambling for her attention, for her eyes to linger for just a second more upon their technicolour cries. Amid the harlequin chaos the white roses sit patiently, quiet, solemn. Their subdued silence sings loudest of all. She still loves every rose in the garden of her greenhouse though. She

  Some students know how it feels to re-locate to study and go back “home” over the holiday period, away from their new friends, partner(s) and Melbourne summer events and atmosphere. Whilst some travel for an hour or two by car others travel by plane for three or more hours. And still both struggle with existential questions, displacement, and cyclical nature of living away from home to study. Although, whilst it all sounds serious, seeing family once (or more) a year is a pretty cathartic experience where you get to live like old times, where your housemates are your own

No matter how happy or sad we are, we all have that idea of the person we wish we were, but are not. Maybe a thinner version of yourself? One who would start working on their assignments more than two hours before the deadline? Maybe your ideal twin would travel the world? Stop overthinking everything about their relationships, or just clean their room more often? Most of the time, you’ll have to admit it, you already know what to do to become that person. Just - fucking - do it. Stop eating cake all day, stop procrastinating, go to the

I had always lived in Paris. 8, rue des Wallons. For as long as I can remember. I had never seen anything else: I had never travelled before last year. That’s why when I had the opportunity to study abroad, I chose to apply far away. Really far. The other side of the world...Australia. When I was a child someone told me people there were upside down, and that they would celebrate Christmas in shorts. It might seem stupid, but I thought the distance would help me find myself. Wherever I was. Maybe it was there. I wanted to try everything.

This article was originally published in Lot's Wife Edition 6: Parody To clarify, I am defending a single Arts degree. Science/Arts, Arts/Law, and so on are not included; you have allies in another faculty, don’t be greedy. Arts has a rather unpleasant reputation. We are the people who studied history, literature and English at school, and maybe another language or something like psychology to mix it up. We like to read and write about interesting matters regarding the human condition rather than dull paperwork (looking at you Law students), learn about historical matters that affect our current social position, and