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time go? For me, love is a gulf of How relativity changed the story contradictions Science 28 Features 13

No. 853 Friday 26th October 2018 Arts   varsity.co.uk

Cambridge’s Independent Student Newspaper since 1947

Cambridge 91.9% among Percentage of total UK’s ‘most Cambridge professors and readers who are liberal’ areas white, of those who disclosed ethnicity Amy Batley Senior News Correspondent

 e Castle area of Cambridge, which in- cludes more than a third of the Univer- sity’s colleges, is “the most liberal area” of England, according to an investiga- tion into national attitudes published last week.  e study, entitled ‘Fear, hope and loss: Understanding the drivers of hope and hate’, was conducted by anti-ex- tremist political action group Hope Not £11,947 Hate.  ese  ndings come ater a report by the Centre for Cities, released in Feb- ruary this year, described Cambridge as Di erence between the average the least equal city in the UK in terms of annual salary of black and white wealth and income.  e Hope Not Hate report argues that academic and research sta there has been an emergence of “two Englands”, split between areas charac- terised by Euroscepticism and hostility towards immigration and “liberal, out- ward-looking and cosmopolitan areas”. ▲ Cambridge has few BME professors, a position which requires University approval through its General Board ROSIE BRADBURY  e study, which polled 43,000 people at several intervals between 2011-2018 and incorporated analysis of Change.org petitions in support of Tommy Robinson, highlighted stark geographic divisions Stark pay gap for BME academics in attitudes towards immigration and multiculturalism. make almost £10,600 less, of Cambridge On average, academics from other those sta who have disclosed their  e report distinguishes between six Jess Ma, Catherine Lally, and Rosie sta who disclosed their ethnicity. ethnic backgrounds face lower average ethnicity. In the University’s 2016-2017 di erent cultural attitudes, or “tribes”, Bradbury Data obtained by Varsity concerning salaries than their white colleagues at ‘Equality and Diversity Drat Informa- ranging from ‘Con dent Multicultural’ the University’s basic pay for the year the University. Academic and research tion Report’, 84.1% of sta had a known to ‘Active Enmity’.  e ‘Con dent Mul- Black academic and research sta at 2017-2018 showed that the average salary sta from Black and Black British back- ethnicity. ticultural’ category, the report argues, is Cambridge make on average nearly for white academic and research sta grounds have an average salary of £37,495 Academics from Arab backgrounds characterised by a “celebratory” attitude £12,000 less a year than white sta , and was £49,442, while the total average per annum. academics from Chinese backgrounds across all ethnicities was £48,451.  e average pay  gures include only Continued on page 6 ▶ Continued on page 9 ▶

Inside ● Behind Cambridge’s latest access e ort Pg.10 ● Photographing the faiths of Cambridge Pg. 12 2 F  26 O 2018 News

FEATURES For me, Pippa Rogerson: love is a gulf of contradic- ‘I want to hand tions Page 13 ▶ the College on in

OPINION What are we not seeing? better shape than Understanding the need to decolonise history Page 18 ▶ I found it’ vulture Magazine Julia Davies speaks to Caius’ rst woman Master on her visions for one of Cambridge’s oldest colleges, and how “you can’t be what you can’t see” Clothing as a tool for or many, Gonville and Caius’ adopting them. appointment of a female mas- Caius students have voiced their opti- recovery ter for the  rst time in its 670- mism that her tenure will be one of posi- year history is a huge mile- tive change, pointing to how Rogerson Page 22 ▶ stone in the  ght for equality. recently promoted the ‘Caius4Consent’ FBut for Pippa Rogerson, “diversity goes campaign on social media. well beyond the women thing.  at’s not ❝ Rogerson leads from the front, some- where we stop.” thing she is not unaware of. “I do feel Rogerson graduated with a Law de- Cambridge that I’m slightly standard-bearing,” she gree from Newnham in 1983. She devel- is not im- concedes, although she instantly tem- oped a strong connection with Caius as mune [to pers this with her characteristic humility. an undergraduate through her supervi- “You do feel a responsibility that you’ve sions. Now, she has been a fellow of the issues of got to get it more right, work harder, be Correction college for thirty years, working as a Sen- more careful about how you present A correction was issued on October 22nd regarding the equality and Opinion piece ‘CUCA must be held to account’ pub- ior Lecturer in the Law Faculty and Direc- yourself and what you say [as a wom- lished in issue 852 to remove an erroneous claim made tor of the Law Tripos from 2014-2015. diversity], an]”. Later she re ects on how, in her about members of the Cambridge University Conserva- Although she feels “a very great debt even though own family, the expectation was that her tive Association. of gratitude and loyalty” to Newnham, we’d like to brothers would attend Oxbridge, but the she admits that she has been linked to notion that she might was “crazy”.  Noella Chye [email protected] Caius for ten times longer than Newn- think we’re The maxim Rogerson lives by is    Merlyn  omas & Catherine Lally [email protected] ham. Her cohort was less than thirty per- Michelle Obama’s: ‘when you can, be   Vivienne Hopley-Jones [email protected] better at it   Joe Cook [email protected] cent female, so being at an all-female kind.’ “Basically, be kind: kindness ex-     Mark Curtis [email protected] college was a huge bonus for Rogerson. ❞ tends to anybody, regardless of their    Rosie Bradbury & Stephanie Stacey (Senior); Isobel Gri ths & As she puts it, ater Caitlin Moran, “you position. We have to try and see the Millie Kiel (Deputy) [email protected]        Jess Ma, Alexandra Giannidi, Sarah can’t be what you can’t see.” On grad- world through the eyes of somebody Orsborne, Kiran Khanom, Elizabeth Haigh, Amy Batley, Maria Stragapede uating, her intake at the  rm Cli ord that doesn’t have the [same] advantag-    Jack Conway [email protected] Chance was over half female – twelve out es.” Rogerson is candidly aware of her   Maia Wyn Davies (Senior); Dan Wright, Nick Harris, Priya Bryant, Tom Nixon (Deputy) [email protected] of twenty. But now, all but four of them own, saying, “I know very well that I     Joseph Krol & Gesa Sophia Borgeest [email protected] have retired, and of those four, two are am very privileged.”    Isobel Bickersteth & Jess Tan [email protected]   Nick Collin [email protected] here at Cambridge: Rogerson herself, and Rogerson has faced hardship, includ-  &   James Dickinson [email protected] the Pro-Vice Chancellor Eilís Ferran. ing the death of her husband, father to   Miles Ricketts & Alice French [email protected]  ings today are a lot better, cer- her  ve daughters, eleven years ago.    Julia Davies [email protected]    Iris Pearson & Niamh Curran [email protected] tainly, but much remains to be done to “[My family] have faced considerable    Ella Jones [email protected] improve gender equality in career pros- adversity, and that puts an awful lot ❝   Marcus McCabe (Senior) & William Ross (Deputy) pects. “How can we say that we’ve done into perspective,” she says. “I let Cam- [email protected] You do feel    Devarshi Lodhia [email protected] enough when the evidence shows that bridge never, ever thinking that I was      Belle George & Oliver Rhodes [email protected] people are just not being promoted or going to face any sexual discrimination a responsi-     Jamie Hancock & Nick Chevis [email protected] developed on merit, or anything that you of any sort, and I haven’t in any very     Cordelia Lam [email protected] bility that -  Vivi Way (Chief); Aimee Wragg, Gabby Handberg, Helen Grant, would want your sta to be developing?” obvious way.” She continues, “I’ve just Helena Mackie, Emily Kilner, Imogen Childs, Jasmine Phull, Naomi Hayes, Rogerson asks, concerned by the “com- had a slower progression through the you’ve got to Poppy Kemp, Ruth Moss, Allison O’Malley-Graham, Phoebe Harris, Shannon placency” which envelops Cambridge. academic ladder from having children, Phillips [email protected] get it more     Abdullah Shah “Cambridge is not immune [to issues Gerry dying, and various other normal       Raphael Korber Ho man of equality and diversity], even though vicissitudes of life, really.” Here Roger- right, work      Edwin Bahrami Balani [email protected]     Caitlin Smith [email protected] we’d like to think we’re better at it.” 1979 son’s positive attitude is apparent. “But harder, be    Reuben Andrews, Felix Peckham, Anna Hollingsworth For Rogerson, the diversity issue spans those will happen to everybody. It’s how more careful [email protected] far beyond gender, and especially con- you deal with it in relation to other peo-   Dr Michael Franklin (Chairman), Prof Peter Robinson, Dr Tim Harris, Michael Derringer, Caitlin Smith, Noella Chye cerns race. Levels of representation for ple that’s important.” about how those who are “non-pale, non-male and As a master, it is clear that Rogerson you present non-stale” are “very low”, and she says will be focused on the pastoral aspects of the discussions the University is hav- Cambridge life as well as the academic. yourself and ing are “very uncomfortable”, yet deeply “I have always had an academic mini- what you © VARSITY PUBLICATIONS LTD, . All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be necessary, and ultimately positive. Rog- mum”, she says, stating that getting as reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, say [as a mechanical photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior permission of the publisher. erson is actively engaged in these talks, good a degree grade as possible is “why Varsity, 16 Mill Lane, Cambridge CB2 1RX. Telephone 01223 337575. and it is apparent to me that whatever you’re here.” But at the same time, she woman] Varsity is published by Varsity Publications Ltd. Varsity Publications also publishes e Mays. changes are to be made, Rogerson will cites the 440 university societies, not- Printed at Ili e Print Cambridge – Winship Road, Milton, Cambridge CB24 6PP on 42.5gsm newsprint. Registered as a newspaper at the Post O ce. ISSN 1758-4442. be looking to see that Caius is swit in ing that “not to take advantage of these ❞ F  26 O 2018 3 News

wonderful opportunities is a waste of in which everybody can thrive,” which ▲ Rogerson in your time at Cambridge. Participate. Get will be achieved through discussion, and Caius College involved.” She is reassuring about the consensus. It’s clear that Rogerson cares earlier this week work-life balance, too. “Work e ciently, about making the opinions and voices ROSIE BRADBURY work smartly”, that way you don’t have of others heard. When I ask her what to work constantly. Although she warns her biggest fear is for Cambridge, she is ▶ Rogerson is a “you must realise that you will get the sanguine about the economic threats, vocal supporter balance wrong”, she is keen to stress that namely to the funding of higher educa- of the ‘Caius we learn from mistakes more than we do tion and research. She notes the “grow- for Consent’ from getting things right. ing view that if we really do live in a campaign OEAC Fancy Another key maxim for Rogerson is post-truth world, the sorts of things we UC NEWS interviewing that “nothing is ever irrevocable”, no do are not really valuable.” But she is, interesting matter how set in stone it may seem. as ever, optimistic. “We have fabulous, people in Should a master have a vision for their fabulous people here [in Cambridge],” Cambridge? tenure? “It’s the sort of thing you always whether they be sta , academics or Email us at get asked”, she muses. “ ese ancient interviews@ students. institutions develop strategy in a more varsity.co.uk “We will  nd our way through what- iterative, organic way, so they can seem ever problems we face, whatever the slow to respond to change. I feel the his- problems are.  is is a very resilient insti- tory of the 670 years that the college has tution, and I believe that resilience will been in existence.” Nonetheless, “you see it through these di culties. If we’ve want to hand the college on in better survived the beheading of the king, the shape than you received it.” Reformation, and two world wars, let’s So what does this mean for Roger- hope a little thing like Brexit is not going son?  e aim is to make Caius “a place to stand in our way.” 4 F  26 O 2018 News

as “one of the most vocal members of CUSU council.” He told Varsity that he’s running for one of the delegate posi- Meet the NUS delegate candidates tions “because the NUS is the opportu- nity for students to come together and make real change on a national scale.” He aims to make sure, by representing Alistair Hyde that we’re passing meaningful policy Cambridge students, that “we are driving Stephanie Stacey Alistair is a 3rd year that pushes for shits in attitude towards that change. Senior News Editor HSPS student, Presi- sexual violence, the role of the university dent of the CUSU and adequate student welfare. She said Khaled Labidi 12 candidates have put themselves for- LGBT+ campaign, Vice she “will not be inimidated” by how the Khaled is a second year Phi- ward to represent Cambridge at the Na- President of Downing NUS works, having had experience in losophy student at Caius tional Union of Students (NUS) confer- College JCR, and Co- the NUS Women’s Conference and Zones and, in his own, words, “a ence next year, making this election the Chair of CULC. He told Conference. committed activist fight- most contested in recent years. Varsity that he wants to ing against this exploitative Cambridge will send six delegates to be an NUS delegate because, “I Shadab Ahmed capitalist system, and for a so- the upcoming NUS conference, set to see how disengaged people are with the Shadab is CUSU’s access and cialist future.” He has written for take place next April in Glasgow. CUSU student union system and I really want funding o cer, and is aim- labour4clause4.com, marxiststudent. president Evie Aspinall will be among to change that by actively seeking out ing “to bring a unique in- com and Socialist Appeal, and believes them, and the remaining 5 positions students across colleges and faculties”. sight to help shape policy that “our power as students will only are up for election. e group must be His  ve focus areas are engagement, in numerous areas; Higher ◀▶ Only 5 of be realised if we unite with workers gender-balanced, so at least two elected inequality, mental health, the environ- Education, Welfare and So- the twelve and sta ”. He will  ght for candidates must identify as female. ment, and anti-marketisation of edu- ciety and Citizenship”. candidates will the NUS to “orientate Last year, there were 11 candidates for cation, and he hopes to table a motion He said that his years of ex- become NUS towards the broader the delegate roles, and the year before, mandating the NUS to produce material perience with access work enable delegates working class move- only  ve. At next year’s annual NUS Con- aimed at helping students engage him to “understand a whole array of is- IMAGES CANDIDATES’ ment”. ference, delegates will elect the national in the national democratic sues that students face”. He told Varsity OWN committee and vote on national policy. process. “Access is HE Policy. Access is Welfare. Lara Parizotto Turnout in NUS delegate elections Access is Political.” and emphasised, Lara is a HSPS Student has previously been low: last year, 1,696 Claire Sosienski Smith “I aim to best represent Cambridge representative, Cam- students cast votes in the election, rep- Claire is CUSU’s current students as a whole, and be es- paigns O cer for CULC, resenting more than double the turnout women’s o cer, and she pecially vocal for those most and representative for Girton of the previous year, but just over 7% of is running to be an NUS marginalised.” in the Living Wage campaign. Her prior- the 23,803 eligible voters. delegate “to ensure that ity in running for NUS Delegate is “to en- Voting for these NUS delegate posi- liberation is at the heart of Joe Foye sure that we make strides towards bold tions, as well as the part-time executive our political organising”. She Joe is a second year Phi- policies that will make our universities roles, will open next Tuesday, 30th Oc- said, “I want to bring my facilitation losophy student at Selwyn, truly capable of supporting students.” tober, at 9am and will close at 5pm on skills as Women’s O cer to conference, where he is Vice-President of She aims to aid movements such as de- Friday 2nd November. working with other delegates to ensure his JCR, and describes himself colonisation, and to encourage universi-

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She wants to “make union representing, mobilising and ght- Keelan is a third sure that NUS o cers we elect will be ing for students and workers across the year History stu- Mammoth remains Homerton hosts sell- prepared to investigate current policies nation on a radical socialist basis”. dent at King’s discovered under out festival that are detrimental to students” and a former and to e ectively lobby for Henry Wright president of A14 change. Henry is a second year Computer Scien- the Cambridge Homerton is celebrating its 250th birth- tist who is running to be an NUS delegate Marxist Soci- Roadworks on the A14, which has be- day on Saturday, 27th October, and is Matt Kite to “bring some of the biggest is- ety. If elected come notorious for delays and disrup- marking the occasion with a festival of Matt is CUSU’s educa- sues facing Cambridge stu- as an NUS tion, took an unexpected turn when free activities for the public.  e college tion o cer and is dents to the NUS with the elected as a del- Highways England workers discovered is putting on a range of events through- running to be an NUS outlook of somebody egate, he aims to “work with the the remains of a woolly mammoth near out the day.  ese will include, among delegate because he be- previously uninvolved other Marxist delegates elected Fenstanton.  e mammoth remains are other things, talks about the NHS, a ‘Be- lieves he has “the experi- in student politics.” across the country”, with his estimated to be around 130,000 years come a Barista’ workshop and zorbing, ence and knowledge of NUS His manifesto focuses main aims being to seek the old, but have been sent to specialists in catering for every crowd. Unfortunately, to make it a campaigning national on ve areas: “equality abolition of tuition fees, a vast order to determine the exact age.  is however, it’s too late to get a place on union that’s t for purpose”. His policy and access; the environ- reduction in rent, an end to the is the latest nd from the team working that balloon modelling class you’ve al- priorities are ensuring NUS supports stu- ment; students in the EU; precarious nature of work in uni- on the road. Previous nds in the area ways dreamt of, because all of the tickets dent unions ghting marketisation, the mental health crisis versities. and the provision of a liv- include prehistoric henges, Anglo-Saxon for the event have sold out! ensuring that the learning and and common sense.” ing wage to all sta as a minimum. He villages and Roman pottery kilns. working conditions of post- believes that the NUS should “become grads are taken seriously, Shannon Bernard Healey actively political” by a liating to the and continuing “the great Shannon is a 3rd year Medi- Labour Party. ROAD RAGE IS THIS ‘FUR’ REAL work of NUS’ welfare zone cine student currently stud- on understanding welfare ying Neuroscience, who Tom Turtle Petition to improve Proposed ban on as a political is- has previously repres- Tom is a second-year Mill Lane crossroads selling fur at market sue.” neted students as part politics and anthro- of CUSU’s part-time ex- pology student at ais Warren ecutive team. He campaigns Magdalene and the Cambridge residents have started a pe-  is week councillors agreed to back a  ais is a second year with activist group Cambridge De- vice-chair of the tition to make the crossroads outside motion to ban the sale of fur items in the History of Art student fend Education, and has previously Cambridge Univer- Pembroke and Fitzbillies a safer place. Cambridge market and other premises and activist. She told served as Churchill’s LGBT+ o cer. If sity Liberal Associa- Currently there is no real system in place owned by the council. A Green Party Varsity, “Our future elected as an NUS delegate, he prom- tion. He is running to for cars and buses to give way to pedes- councillor proposed the motion, stating is hugely at stake”, ises to “represent all Cambridge students be a delegate this year “to trians, apart from a tra c light system that animals were oten kept in “deplor- speaking of graduates and continue to work hard for free and make the NUS more relevant and e ec- that many argue is insu cient to make able” conditions.  e UK government employment struggles and liberated higher education”, with his tive for students”. A strong opponent of the junction a safer place for the many banned the farming of animals for their the marketisation of higher edu- manifesto focusing on mental health, Brexit, he promises, if elected, to “speak students, workers and tourists who use fur in 2000, however the products can cation, and said “the NUS should not just racism on campus, the corporatisation unwaveringly and unashamedly for Eu- it every day.  e petition calls on the still be imported from countries where be a vehicle for careerism and a discount of education and material conditions and rope and ght for the right of every stu- council to investigate whether a new there is limited legislation to ensure ani- generator”. If elected as a delegate, she costs for sta and students. dent to achieve their dreams”. tra c light system is called for. mal welfare. HIGH TECH. NE T TECH. 17th Nov 2018 – 6th Jan 2019 YOUR TECH.

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www.oxam.com 6 F  26 O 2018 News Few BME academics in high ranks ● 92.6% of Cambridge professors with BME professors at Cambridge are scarce known ethnicity are white Out of 552 University professors who disclosed ● Arab and Chinese academic & research their ethnicity, 41, or 7.4%, were non-white. sta paid on average over £10,000 less = 1 professor Ethnic backgrounds the position of Professor requires the = White ▶ Continued from front page approval of the University on the recom- mendation of the General Board, a body face a similar pay gap, with an average which reports to the University Council = Indian/Indian-British salary of £39,104, while academics and on academic and educational policy. = Other ethnic backgrounds researchers from Chinese backgrounds A University spokesperson said Cam- are paid £38,857 on average. e aver- bridge “is committed to being a space = Mixed ethnicity age salary of those from Asian or Asian- free from racism, discrimination, preju- British backgrounds of Bangladeshi, dice and harassment”, and to “enhance = Other Asian backgrounds Indian and Pakistani origin is £45,127, a culture of racial inclusion and equal- more than £4,000 below the average sal- ity at Cambridge,” they are “developing = Arab, Black/Black-British, ary of white academics and researchers. diverse recruitment guidelines to help For academics and researchers of mixed attract more Black, Asian and Minority Chinese/Chinese-British, or ethnicity, the average salary is £43,156, Ethnic (BAME) sta , as well as launch- Pakistani/Pakistani-British* and is £40,098 for those from other Asian ing a new BAME sta network to sup- backgrounds. e average salary for ac- port and encourage those who join us.” = Unknown ademics and researchers from ‘other’ ey noted that “we have much work to ethnic backgrounds is £56,022, which is do to improve the experience of many the highest average salary of any group. of our BAME sta and students and to * Due to the terms of the 2010 FOI Act, e average pay for some ethnicities was achieve greater representation of BAME the University did not disclose the exact grouped together in the interests of hav- sta in senior leadership and in govern- number of professors from these ing a sample size large enough for mean- ance structures”, and will “continue to backgrounds, as each was between 1-4 ingful statistical comparison. identify opportunities and remove bar- academics. Of those who disclosed their e pay disparities between ethnici- riers related to career progression for ethnicities, there are no Bangladeshi, ties at the University are in uenced by BAME sta ”. Bangladeshi-British, or Gypsy/Traveller the underrepresentation of academics Dr Manali Desai, equality o cer at the professors. of certain ethnicities in senior positions. Cambridge University and College Union, ere are 16 professors from Indian as well as head of its new anti-racism backgrounds, out of 552 professors who ❝ network, referenced the University’s disclosed their ethnicity. It is the most- recent ‘Let’s Talk About Race’ event as represented BME group for professors, Students’ evidence that “the University is aware constituting 2.4% of the total  gure. that there’s a race problem”. She said that More than half of professors are white reference “it is very clear that the data-gathering British, while another quarter are white, points are itself is a start”, in allowing Cambridge from other regions. ere are fewer than to track its progress, although she wants  ve professors from Arab, Pakistani, generally to see it “work with this data to produce Black, and Chinese groups respectively of a fairly a set of goals”. who have disclosed their ethnicity. ere Desai noted that diversity in the Uni- are fewer than 40 BME readers of those white versity “rapidly thins as you go through who disclosed their ethnicity, and fewer the senior academic ranks”, and that than 28 from the cohort of senior lectur- normative “students’ reference points are gener- ers. ere are 25 Indian University lectur- ideal of ally of a fairly white normative ideal of ers, 13 from Chinese backgrounds, and who gets to be an academic”. She added 15 who are of mixed ethnicity. who gets that promotions can be “tricky, and de- e hierarchy of Cambridge’s aca- to be an pend on a range of things” – including demic roles progresses from University “networking and earning grants”, as well lecturer to University Senior Lecturer, academic as “how your work is perceived”, and Reader, then Professor – the highest po- “esteem indicators”. She said greater sition for academic sta . Promotion to ❞ promotions for BME sta is “very de-

▲ 666 academics at the University of Cambridge have the title of professor, the highest teaching and research position at the institution – and the best-paid GRAPHIC: ROSIE BRADBURY

pendent on a more level playing  eld Joanna Jasiewicz, a Cambridge equal- where people take the work that BME ity and diversity consultant, said that academics do seriously.” reasons for not disclosing one’s ethnicity Employment  gures for some eth- include “limited awareness as to why nicities are very low, with the Univer- the University asks for ethnicity data sity employing fewer than 10 Arab and [and] concerns about being identi ed Bangladeshi academics who disclosed as ‘BME’.” She added that some white their ethnicity. e University notes that sta “do not disclose because they do there are no gypsy – traveller employees, not think that the question on ethnic- or black Caribbean employees, of those ity and race refers to them”. Jasiewicz who disclosed their ethnicity. added that the University is planning ◀ Dr Manali Among academic-related and assist- “increased communications on these Desai is head ant sta , the distribution of pay is much topics to highlight how the University of Cambridge more even. White sta earn £33,396 a uses the ethnicity data”, and that eve- UCU’s anti- year, while the total average across eth- ryone, both people who self-identify as racism campaign nicities was £33,466. White and BME, should disclose to help ROSIE BRADBURY Speaking on the missing data, Dr us develop impactful initiatives.” F  26 O 2018 7 News CUSU disa liations in question as JCR fees scrapped

and £3.30 per graduate student.  ey passed by CUSU Council, and only re- Catherine Lally were able to use SUAS, as well as vote quired the approval of the Levy commit- Deputy Editor in CUSU elections.  e levy model es- tee, which falls under the larger Bursars’ sentially removes the  nancial bene ts Committee, to come into reality. A simi- CUSU and the GU have ended college of disa liation, as JCRs and MCRs will lar motion had been passed the previ- a liation fees, ater several years of no longer be cutting costs by not paying ous year, but was less clear about how e orts, and have replaced them with a liation fees. the funding would go directly towards a University-wide levy for all colleges. Aspinall told Varsity that “CUSU rep- welfare services.  is is intended to remove the  nancial resents and advocates on behalf of stu- Last year, ex-CUSU President Daisy burden of CUSU or GU a liation for JCRs dents at every College, and does so on Eyre said “a straightforward levy is not and MCRs, and stabilise the CUSU’s fund- many issues that college representative popular”, but that some JCR presidents ing. cannot resolve alone.” She added that became more amenable to the idea ater  e cost of CUSU or GU a liation will CUSU cannot predict the “impact the fee learning that the levy would fund CUSU’s be passed to college administration, who removal will have on disa liated Col- welfare activities. will pay an annual levy based on the size leges, but we are certain that the student  e levy model was originally con- of their undergraduate body, although voice at Cambridge is stronger and more sidered necessary to stabilise the stu- some colleges may reduce JCR or MCR e ective when collective and so we hope dents’ union’s funding during  nancial funding to make up the shortfall.  e that disa liated colleges will reconsider di culties; however, last year, CUSU’s levy will be used to cover the cost of run- a liation.” fortunes changed as the University of- ning the Students’ Unions’ Advice Serv- Corpus JCR has been disa liated fered an £80,000 boost in funding and ice (SUAS) as well as the CUSU sexual from CUSU since 2010, but runs both a the students’ union sought to both in- health scheme. debate and a referendum every year on crease revenue and cut funding to politi- Previously, college JCRs paid a certain the question of rea liation. Last Novem- cal campaigns. fee per student in order to retain CUSU or Gonville & Caius Student Union (GCSU) ▲ Gonville & ber, 82.9% of those who voted elected to Aspinall said the change “occurred GU a liation, which brought in £100,772 have disa liated from CUSU, and have Caius’ Junior remain disa liated. Whether the new as a result of both the University and last year. CUSU President Evie Aspinall therefore previously not paid into for its Combination funding model will change this is yet colleges endorsing CUSU’s arguments told Varsity that CUSU expects the O ce services.  e pattern of disa liation is Room is one of to be seen. Corpus JCR President Nina for how it should be funded”, which in- of Intercollegiate Services, the University even broader among MCRs, ten of which two disa liated Je s told Varsity “we’ve got a CUSU reaf- volved the University deciding it “should body responsible for providing support are disa liated from CUSU or the GU. JCRs  liation vote coming up later this term, fund the core activities of the Union’s to the 31 individual colleges, to provide Students studying at una liated col- ROSIE BRADBURY so ater that ... the views of the student representative e orts”, that “a liation CUSU with £131,938 for the year 2018-19, leges have still been able to access CUSU body will be made clear”. fees unfairly linked cross-Collegiate en- with this money strictly reserved for the services despite their JCRs not contribut- In October 2017, a motion to replace gagement with a fee”, and that “welfare provision of welfare services. ing fees – which for CUSU, were tradi- a liation fees for both CUSU and the services accessible to all students would However, both Corpus Christi JCR and tionally set at £6.67 for undergraduates Graduate Union (GU) with a levy was ordinarily be met by the colleges”. 8 Friday 26th October 2018 Interview Josh Littlejohn ❠ ‘If you’re in a situation where you’re homeless, you’re out with society and you know that – you feel invisble’

Oliver Rhodes talks to the founder of Social Bite, a sandwich shop chain dedicated to ending homelessness in Scotland

am reminded of just how chronic this city’s homelessness problem is every time I walk down Regent I Street. When I have some change, I’ll give what I can, but usually I just smile politely and apologise. Perhaps nothing illuminates the inequalities of Cambridge more than that familiar, bleak juxtaposition on a Saturday night of rev- elling students and rough-sleepers. Josh Littlejohn is more aware than most of the tragedy of homelessness. Moments before his speech to the chamber of the Cambridge Union this week, I sat down with him to discuss his sandwich-shop chain, SocialBite, which employs nearly 30 people across Edin- burgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen who lack permanent accommodation. Over the years he has met many homeless people, and got to know their stories. “We kept asking people their stories about how they became homeless and what was interesting, but also a bit spooky, is that they kept basically telling us the same story.” He goes on. “hey usually sufered a very traumatic childhood, grew up in the care system ... and then they became homeless in their late teenage years.” an issue which is poorly understood. Too What matters, argues Littlejohn, is ▲ Littlejohn the year. here are around 11,000 homeless peo- often, he argues, homelessness is con- that homeless people are put into “main- addressing the Hundreds of people slept rough in Ed- ple in Scotland, and 1,500 in Edinburgh ceived as a problem of “individual deci- stream” accommodation as quickly as Scotish Learning inburgh’s central gardens to raise money alone. Littlejohn co-founded SocialBite in ❝ sion-making” involving alcohol or drug possible, so that they can start leading Festival in for the SocialBite Village, a project which 2012 with the purpose of sending its proits addiction. However, the stories he has normal lives. After SocialBite’s success, 2017 (YOUTUBE has housed 20 people since its launch to a range of local charities. In its original We’re not heard from homeless people themselves Littlejohn was inspired to set up his own / EDUCATIOn in May last year. ‘Sleep in the Park’ has form it was a “one-dimensional business have highlighted the extent to which this is housing projects for homeless people. SCOTLAnD) been going ever since. model”, but the business soon found its really help- a systemic issue. “It starts from childhood. “In more recent years we’ve started look- “One of the greatest things about the purpose when opportunity, literally, came ing [people] Few realise how grim it is to be homeless ing into projects about accommodation: Village project is that the staf are pretty knocking at the door. or to be living in hostel accommodation or there’s one called Housing First, which much indistinguishable from the people A Big Issue seller standing outside the get on their homeless bed-and-breakfasts … and we’re has been tried out on diferent scales all who are homeless. You can’t tell who shop “plucked up the courage to ask us for feet and not really helping [people] get on their feet across the world, but mainly in Scan- are homeless, who are staf and who a job” and ever since, SocialBite’s mission and get out of it quickly.” dinavia.” are volunteers: it’s just human beings has been clear. Littlejohn started ofering get out of it Policy decisions, he argues, have not Under this system, “you put the house living in a nice place.” more jobs to local homeless people, in- helped. “he big thing is the structural at the irst point of intervention”, rather He gives some advice to those who are tegrating them into the team. SocialBite quickly response to [homelessness] in terms of than the last as is currently done. Ten- keen to make a diference on a personal also operates a system of “paying forward” ❞ how our national and local governments ants have to regularly prove they can basis. “If you’re in a situation where whereby customers can pay for sandwich- typically respond. he systems they cre- maintain their tenancy, but the respon- you’re homeless, you’re out with society es and cofee on behalf of homeless people, ate are a bit lawed, and they send a lot sibility of living independently and and you feel that. You feel invisible, you who pick them up later in the day. of money the wrong way.” paying rent provides residents not only know that you are sub-value to everyone SocialBite has now become the centre In the meantime, homeless people with permanent accommodation, but else. So I think a big thing you could do of a much more ambitious efort to eradi- are either left to sleep on the streets, or a sense that their life is in their control. is treat people like human beings. Say cate homelessness in Scotland. In 2015, channelled into hostel accommodation “Over 90% of residents hold their tenancy, ‘hi’, have a chat. I wouldn’t be averse to Edinburgh’s high-street was nearly shut which can seriously impact on mental and that’s how Finland has pretty much giving money either.” down when George Clooney visited the health, when people are packed in close- ended its homelessness problem.” Homelessness, more so than ever, original shop, prompting a succession of quarters with little privacy. Littlejohn’s understanding of home- seems to be an insurmountable problem. high-proile publicity events which have “he government has just created a lessness goes beyond policy however. Yet too often, it seems, attempts to solve included Leonardi DiCaprio, Prince Harry new funding package for homelessness, His projects have each emphasised a it are administrative when they should and Meghan Markle. “hat was pretty cool,” which on the face of it is a good thing, commitment to putting homeless peo- be interpersonal. Littlejohn remarks nonchalantly of the last but it’s going towards new hostel ac- ple within the boundaries of normality, During his speech, he emphasises two, to the laughter of the chamber. commodation, and we know that this providing a personal face to the issue. the need to “think creatively” and not By ofering stable employment for sort of accommodation, getting people In 2016, SocialBite organised ‘Sleep in rely on the government to sort it out by homeless people, Littlejohn’s project together in a hostel, just doesn’t work, the Park’, an outdoor overnight event themselves. “It’s not about resources but has proven to be a new way of tackling and it keeps people adrift from society.” that took place on the coldest night of about focus”, he says. F  26 O 2018 9 News Cambridge ‘among the most liberal places in the country’

10% of the country in terms of income, ◀ Continued from front page employment and adult skills”, arguing that “economic concerns are uncommon towards ethnic diversity, low economic in areas such as this”. deprivation and proximity to universities.  e report exempli es juxtaposes  e report used the Castle area of Cam- the Castle area of Cambridge with the bridge to exemplify its ‘Con dent Mul- East Marsh Estate in Grimsby.  e report ticultural’ category, arguing that “the claims that ‘East Marsh is  agged as the area surrounding St John’s College in most hostile area of the country, while Cambridge emerges as the most liberal” the area surrounding St John’s College in in England. Cambridge emerges as the most liberal’ Such areas, the report argues, are in- and ‘most con dently multicultural’. habited by “highly educated graduates  e Castle area includes 12 colleges: or postgraduates who see immigration Trinity, King’s, St Edmund’s, Lucy Cav- and diversity as hugely positive, both endish, St John’s, Magdalene, Murray economically and culturally”. Edwards, Churchill, Trinity Hall, Clare, The report’s authors propose Gonville and Caius, and Fitzwilliam. that these areas are defined Rosie Carter, the main investiga- by “an optimistic, outward- tor behind the Hope Not Hate re- looking perspective”. port, told Varsity that the report Central to the ‘Con dent sought to understand di erences Multicultural’ tribe, in attitudes rather than simply the report economic disparities. argues, is She said, “the the role report sees of univer- inequal- sities, as ity, not 90% of the just of ‘con dent mul- wealth but ticultural’ areas are of opportunity “small geographic units of around 1,000 ▲ e area nancial circumstances but emphasised located “within a few and wellbeing, houses rather than the whole city”. around St John’s that the report “uses indices of multiple hundred metres of uni- as a key driver of When asked about student frustra- was judged the deprivation data”, including employ- versities”. attitudes”. tions with living costs in Cambridge, most liberal in ment, education and skills and health,  e report claims that the Castle Carter also emphasised including the ‘Cut the Rent’ Campaign, England “rather than accounting for individual area “is within the least deprived that the report analysed Carter was sympathetic to students’  - LOUIS ASHWORTH economic concerns”.

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of a transition year would be normal- Sarah Orsborne and Shruti Sharma ised… such that the issue of imposter Senior News Correspondents syndrome would be combatted.” Rusbridger recognised obstacles that “he hurdles that people from low in- LMH faced in integrating their irst co- comes face compared to people who hort of foundation year students, com- are more comfortably of are known menting, “i think some of the other stu- and measurable. Either we can say dents didn’t initially know who these that, ‘we are not going to help you at students were, or what a foundation year all’, or you say, ‘we will try and adjust was, so there was a little bit of hesitancy for that’”, said alan Rusbridger, the about where they itted in the college”, principal of Lady Margaret Hall (LMH) but noted that the JCR has worked to oxford, in an interview with Varsity. in “make sure they just feel like ordinary 2016, Rusbridger’s college introduced a members of the common room.” foundational programme for education- in contrast to LMH’s college-based ally-disadvantaged students to ‘catch up’ foundation year, Cambridge intends with their peers — in 2021, Cambridge for its transitional year programme to is set to adopt a similar scheme across be rolled out throughout the collegiate the collegiate University, in one of its University, rather than being focused on most dramatic eforts in recent years to a single college. widen access. ahmed argued that the transition year “we know that there are some stu- “won’t solve the issue of encouraging dents who have sufered educational people to apply to the University in the disadvantage”, explained Graham Virgo, irst place, which is something the Uni- Cambridge’s senior pro-vice-chancellor versity will have to continue doing as for education, adding, “the aim of the outreach work to ensure people apply transition year is to say to those stu- for even a foundation year.” dents, ‘look, as things are, you’re prob- However, Rusbridger and sir ivor ably not going to make our ofer but we Crewe, master of oxford’s University can see potential, so come on our tran- College (Univ), were more optimistic sition year and we hope that year will about the schemes, reporting increased bridge the gap’.” diversity in their respective colleges fol- he University’s announcement of schemes elsewhere, Virgo said Cam- ▲ Professor social media campaign”. He is keen on lowing their introduction. the transitional programme, consisting bridge intends to ofer participants a Graham Virgo, “using people like stormzy. we will need Rusbridger noted that “the number of a three week bridging programme as “quality-assured award” upon complet- Cambridge’s to discuss it with him but i can imagine of applications from state schools has well as a full foundation year, comes ing the programme. senior pro-vice- this being the sort of thing him and oth- jumped by nearly 40% in two years”. at amid lasting criticism of its propor- in Prospect, Rusbridger discussed the chancellor for ers would be willing to assist us with.” in LMH, seven out of 10 students from the tionately low intakes of students from importance of expanding an oxbridge education august, award-winning grime musician irst cohort and nine out of 11 from the state comprehensive and low-income education: “Focus groups around the (LoUis asHwoRTH) stormzy launched a scholarship to fully second passed the foundation year and backgrounds. country believed...academic ability fund degree costs for four black students matriculated to oxford. Rusbridger told in its 2017 admissions cycle, 26.5% of wasn’t thought to be enough to get in: at Cambridge. Varsity the other students all received students admitted to Cambridge hailed people thought family connections or Beyond funding, another major con- ofers from Russell Group universities. from state comprehensive schools, while ❝ money were also needed.” cern for Cambridge will be to ensure the Crewe said that University College’s 4.5% of students were from regions with speaking to Varsity, Rusbridger argued full integration of transition students three-week summer bridging pro- the lowest participation rates in higher [It’s] one that the foundation year, “is one of the into university and college life. while gramme “demonstrates to students from education. along with the foundational of the best the best ways of actually getting people Virgo insisted that transition year stu- under-represented backgrounds that we programme, the University has plans to through the door as opposed to just do- dents “will join a college in exactly the take them seriously, that we want them reform its existing bursary system by ways of ing outreach and trying to make up the same way as everybody else”, he noted to apply to us, and that we’ve got the expanding funding to students in the gap that... we can all agree does exist.” that the University is “so conscious” of conidence in them to make them an ‘squeezed middle’ as well as ofering actually Virgo added that the University in- incoming students feeling less worthy ofer without lowering standards.” debt-free education to its poorest stu- getting tends to “[ind] innovative ways of than their peers. Virgo chairs a project board for the dents. engaging” with potential applicants, ▼ Lady Margaret “it is not a sign of inferiority at all; it transition year programme and the Funding its foundation year project people to “capture students who may not be Hall Oxford is just a sign that, [because of] where three-week bridging programme for could prove challenging, admitted Virgo: through the thinking about Cambridge, or even uni- introduced a you’ve come from, you haven’t had the students who “haven’t made their ofer “Frankly, we need philanthropy to en- versity”. foundational advantages of many Cambridge stu- and, through the contextual data, are able us to deliver this”. he programme, door advertising the transition year year programme dents.” students who are meeting the widening as well as changes to the Cambridge Bur- scheme will be a concerted efort, in- in 2016 CUsU access & Funding oicer shad- participation criteria.” sary scheme, are expected to be funded ❞ volving colleges and a “well developed (TJaTHaURC) ab ahmed echoed these concerns, telling wood added that, in addition to a by the University’s campaign to raise at Varsity that, while he is “positive and transition year, “there needs to be greater least £500m over the next six years for optimistic” about the programme, “the support for disadvantaged students who student support. University will have to stress that stu- either just miss their ofers or would, due in a recent article in Prospect Magazine, dents applying to the foundation course to circumstance, not get the grades of Rusbridger outlined the cost-beneits of are not at all inferior.” a typical ofer”. in its admissions proc- LMH’s foundational year, which “for 12 Ellie wood, the General secretary ess, Cambridge uses contextual data on students costs £230,000” in comparison of Class act, a Cambridge community socio-economic characteristics, school to the £17m currently spent on access for students from disadvantaged back- type, and individual circumstances to and other forms of support through grounds, said that she sees it as “imper- holistically assess applicants, but has outreach programs. LMH’s foundation ative that transition year students are resisted systematically lowering its year funds come exclusively from alumni fully integrated into college and univer- standard a-level ofers. donations, but if the scheme were to be sity life, like any other student studying speaking of his personal connection expanded to other colleges, Rusbridger another course.” to the efort, Virgo said that “as some- said that the College’s programme costs woods noted her concern that if body who was educated in a massive would be cut by nearly half. students are ofered a transitional pro- state school myself where hardly any- Foundation years at LMH and Trinity gramme spot instead of being accepted body went to oxford or Cambridge, i College Dublin (TCD) have been cited into regular entry, it “might give an im- know what it’s like. To have the courage as models the University of Cambridge pression (however wrong that might to apply when you are just not used to might use in the development of their be) that they are not good enough”. she what oxford or Cambridge means, you own transition year. However, unlike added, “we would hope that the idea have this image of it.”

Features12 Friday 26th October 2018 he changing faces of faith in Cambridge he co-founder of the Faiths of Cambridge project, Samuel Isaac, relects on what Cambridge has shown him about faith

here’s a debate amongst Jewish scholars as to how we should look at the lives of great reli- T gious igures. heir lives are laid out in the great biblical epics, from the tormented reign of King Saul to the tale of the exodus that leaves Moses barred from the Land where he has led his people. One school of thought tries to read such men as saintly igures, miti- gating any sin attributed to them in the scripture. he polished, untouchable role model is curated from here. he other approach argues that it’s precisely be- cause of their struggles with faith, their uncertainties and complexities that they stand as role models for us all. he fact that we can see them as people enables us to relate to them in a truly human ❝ my own Jewish Society, the weekly Fri- ▲ Will (Left) and questions of faith and belief whilst not a deliberate one as our diversity of be- sense. day night dinners give my co-religionists Mia (Right)share feeling obligated to ind every answer liefs spans far wider than any religious In my time here, I’ve been amazed by I found in and myself a space to continue traditions their experiences or subscribe to a particular faith. “It’s creed could encapsulate. Although faith the diversity of faith groups on campus. Cambridge our families have practised for time im- of faith with Tiwa nice to be inquisitive”, she argues, “and can bring people together, it is also dis- From the passionate campaigns of the a place memorial. But in the larger university Adebayo and Sam- at Cambridge we’re trained to think all tinctly personal, and we would be at a Christian Union to the intimate commu- landscape, religious dialogue is muted. uel Isaac the time and answer every single ques- loss if we were to shy away from these nity found at the Islamic Society, I have where For many, while religious doctrine is (FACEBOOK/FAIThS OF tion. Coming to university has been a more controversial issues out of fear of found Cambridge a place where religious religious often debated, conversations about the CAMBRIDgE AND AN- chance to explore other ideas that exist disagreeing or ofending. communities truly lourish. People of communties struggles, diiculties and experiences of gUS PARKER) and know it’s okay to not have the an- I spoke to Will last year, a third year faith share festivities and fasts, while at religion are often left at the side-lines. swers”. Conversely, for Emilia, studying student at Peterhouse who spoke of truly flouish Like the igures of scripture, religion at St Catharine’s, it’s the certainty she a religious life in lux and not always ❞ is too often conveyed theoretically: as inds in her faith that keeps her strong. having the answers. ‘I am sure’, he ad- polished, crystal clear and unrelatable, ❝ “So it’s cool for me to wake up some days mitted, ‘that there are those that see while the complex, real and sometimes and know that even if things are going my sexuality as a ‘problem’ as much as messy reality of a life of faith is lost. Faith can wrong and I’m not that happy, I can still there are those who think my pluralist I’ve tried, through the past year, to become be so joyful”, she explained, beaming attitude means that I can’t call myself explore that life and together with Tiwa controvesial and excited. “With joy, I know that I’ll be a Christian. I’m improvising as I go but Adebayo, we’ve met and interviewed okay”. Diversity of faith spans far wider I also have to see that other people are the broadest church of students and and divisive than books and religions and more has too and their understanding isn’t neces- faculty members through our Faiths of because it to be done to promote this discussion sarily perfect’. Cambridge project. I’ve found a diversity occupies on campus. Lived experience is primary to faith of opinion that could only exist in this I wouldn’t like to suggest, however, and through speaking honestly, we can city. From the engineering student who questions that only those who call themselves reli- ind role models in one another like those ofered me spiritual healing to a post- that all of us gious should have a monopoly on discus- rabbis found in the complex characters graduate former Dominican Friar, it’s have sion. Faith can become controversial and of scripture. As Will said so well, ‘it ◀ Emilia shares been as much a confrontation with my divisive because it occupies questions comes down to recognising that we’re her experiences own beliefs as it has been an opportunity considered that all of us have considered for a time all looking for something that no one of faith (FACEBOOK/ to speak to others about theirs. for a time and have all answered diferently. he can actually grasp. Naturally people are FAIThS OF CAM- For Mia, a third-year at Trinity College, ❞ decision to name the project ‘Faiths of going to come to diferent conclusions BRIDgE) university has been a time for her to ask Cambridge’ as opposed to ‘Religions’ was and that is ine I think.’ I think so too. F  26 O 2018 13

Features Loving under a veil of secrecy An anonymous student re ects on defying religious and parental expectations to be in their relationship

started my rst year of university with the conviction that romantic love wasn’t for me on a number of di erent levels.  ree weeks later, I was in a relationship. IMy whole life has been a series of hidden love a airs, late night encoun- ters with the local kebab shop down the road and a questionable group of friends and the knowledge that what I was doing felt wrong. I was never that adventurous. But secretly peeling o layers to reveal bare arms and the oc- casional patch of pale brown leg (I could never quite shake the guilt of baring a whole leg to the world), learning how to smoke a cigarette and taking a sip of a friend’s vodka in the middle of the school day felt simultaneously like taking con- trol and blindly letting go of everything that I knew to be me. In short, it felt like tumbling slowly towards a series of pits labelled “Identity Crisis”.  at’s kind of what love felt like, but if tumbling became falling and the pit became a gigantic canyon of confusion — more messy, more tumultous and far more shattering than the faux, non- existent rebellion of my teenage years. Love wasn’t the same as going on a night out, or smoking a joint once every two wasting his time with me and that, ‘by ▲ Illustration by and lies have weaved their way through family’s happiness, and your own, on years, or forgetting to pray ve times a the way, just so you know, we can never Lisha Zhong for my life blissfully, as I  uctuated between your shoulders is a strange thing and day.  ose things I felt guilty about, but have sex.’ In hindsight, that should’ve Varsity gratitude to God and praying for some- not one I have yet learnt to navigate was able to repent for and mostly avoid been enough for him to run for the hills, thing or someone else that made more e ectively.But if I could tell my younger in the future. God meant a lot to me, as I know I would’ve. But he didn’t. And sense, and brought less anxiety. self one thing about her coming future, did my parents, and I knew, or thought, neither did I. But if I’ve learnt anything it is that it would be that holding yourself to the neither would approve. Instead, he gently reminds me to pray love is a choice that I made, albeit not a binary distinctions you’re convinced Love, on the other hand, was con- ve times a day, listens intently when simple one. Love was not thrown at me de ne you brings nothing but pain. You stant, and something I actively worked I speak about experiences he’ll never or given to me as a git, it was cultivated are so much more than that.  e love hard to maintain. Love started as friends, have and supports me in ways I didn’t and worked on in a way that made sense. you have to give, and receive, is so much and then a crush, and then unexpect- even know I needed.  at’s not to say  ere were many times I could have more than that. edly and all at once — something more. it didn’t take a lot to get this point, be- turned my back on it, but I didn’t. I’m yet to make sense of how I feel Love did not take the form I imagined it ❝ cause it did. Fast forward three years and this gulf about so many Big  ings, but holding would if it were ever to come into my life, God meant The weight of emotional labour, ❝ of contradictions is my home, and the myself with love, and being held with but was rather the complete opposite a lot to me, no matter how ‘woke’ you think your The dark most signi cant part of my identity in so love, feels Big in itself. I think back to in every sense; it had di erent beliefs, partner is, never fails to exhaust me, underbelly many ways. I can’t pretend the dark un- the rst time we met, and I wonder di erent experiences and did little to re- as did my and my unreasonable demands and derbelly of my relationship is not one of whether I should’ve walked away whilst semble what I was expected, and wanted, parents, and unhealthy outlook on love laced with of my limited time for both of us, as we slowly I could, to avoid the emotional turmoil to have. But it was love all the same, in a I knew or abuse exhausts him, I’m sure. But to have relationship move towards a ‘point’ where I either of making a nonsensical choice between way I’d never experienced before. something that feels unconditional and is one of conduct the big reveal of someone I love two things that cannot be done away And so I let myself indulge in it, like thought reciprocal and so patient is something deeply to those I’ve spent my life with, with. And, honestly, that’s not some- most of us would, but the reality of do- neither that is both terrifying and comforting limited time or put an end to it all together. thing I think I can answer, nor some- ing so was far less romantic than I like would in so many ways. for both of Living in the moment has amusingly thing I want to answer. But I know that to think it was. I reminded him daily And so made up train schedules and us never felt as real as it does now, as I ten- it doesn’t really matter.  ere is no heal- that this couldn’t last, that we should approve quiet phone calls pretending to be else- tatively take time to breathe and hold ing or pain like that of love in whatever probably stop whatever was happening ❞ where became a regular part of my daily ❞ myself in between two homes. To feel way it presents itself, and right now, before things got ‘too deep,’ that he was routine.  e familiar dance between love the simultaneous responsibility of your that is enough for me. 14 Friday 26th October 2018

FeaturesFEATURES Rethinking the canon: the colonial mindset

chaotic as opposed to recognising how Columnist actual political conditions emerged from historical circumstance. In particular, it Jonathan Chan helped to subvert his reading of Heart of Darkness, providing the language and discusses critically critical apparatus he needed to conirm prior suspicions he had about the text rethinking our and defend these positions thereafter. “It is important that we do study and learning with critique these old, stale, white writers,” Fergus argues, “because they’re still pop- Fergus Lamb ular”. So long as such novels, poems, and plays depend on a colonial mindset to be “Do you think Willy Wonka ever allowed understood, uncritical readings of such the Oompa-Loompas to unionise?” asks texts threaten to propagate the notion Fergus Lamb (Second Year, Wolfson). Our of a literary whiteness – one in which giggling is followed by a moment of deep humanity is accorded to European char- contemplation. We mull over the ways acters at the behest of all others through in which Roald Dahl’s famous chocolate literary representation. It is through such factory also happens to be a fantastical encounters with postcolonial paradigms vehicle of capitalism and colonialism. that Fergus believes there remains the Before Dahl’s rewrites, the Oompa-Loom- task of understanding and dismantling pas were portrayed as African pygmies Eurocentric frameworks. “I never consid- who were paid in cocoa beans. Perhaps ered myself a racist growing up,” he com- this veered too dangerously near to the ments. “Reading these theorists helped history of slavery, indentured servitude, me make the leap from believing that and labour exploitation across the British racism is just an individual problem to Empire, as Dahl rewrote them as being recognising the way it is structural in white-skinned and having golden hair. Britain.” He was led to look back at texts his exercise, while humourous, serves he’d read before and see how nuance to underscore what Fergus believes is could be opened in such readings. necessary about approaching the English For example, Fergus points to the ing so, there remains the necessity of ▲ Fergus lamb is a when reading literature is essential to Tripos critically. ways in which the character Caliban, disassociation from a literary tradition second year recognising how white privilege contin- Growing up in Kent, Fergus was from William Shakespeare’s play he of white supremacy. Fergus believes that English student at ues to operate in British society. Read- unaware of colonial undertones in the Tempest, often brings to mind colonial it is vital for white British people to be Wolfson College ing literature critically allows for one to literature he read for a long time. “You anxieties about natives, sexual assault, ❝ exposed to postcolonial critics such as (ROSIE BRADBuRY) identify the intellectual foundations of adopt racist viewpoints when you’re and miscegenation. In the play, Caliban, Said, Gayatri Spivak, and Frantz Fanon such privilege and to critique it. A dis- raised in a racist society,” he remarks. a native of the island conquered by the He to better appreciate the physical and mantling of privilege does not seek to Being white, British, and male, Fergus’s sorcerer Prospero, is punished for an at- continues to psychological violence sufered by the undermine white individuals, but rather upbringing was comfortably Eurocen- tempted assault on Prospero’s daughter be conscious colonised and why it is vital to critique to restore parity amongst those of difer- tric, supplemented by an uncritical im- Miranda. “It speaks of a rather brutal colonial thinking in literature. ent ethnicities. bibing of portrayals of racial relations history,” Fergus claims, “of the perennial of the ways Fergus admits that he continues to “White people should be the infantry- and colonial dynamics when reading fear that ‘the other is out to steal our he can be make mistakes. Despite having read men in this campaign,” he notes, refer- ‘canonical’ texts. “When we’re young, pretty white girls’”. complicit these postcolonial theorists, he contin- ring to the ways in which white British we’re always being taught how to un- He also alludes to how Heathclif, ues to be conscious of the ways in which students should allow the perspectives derstand the world through ideology and from Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, with he can be complicit with structural in- of minority ethnic students to be cen- political thinking,” Fergus asserts. Fergus is described as a “dark-skinned gypsy structural equality. tred in the process of decolonising the notes the ease at which this became his in aspect”. Fergus points out that this inequality Within the broader intellectual prac- English Tripos. predominant way of viewing the world language of the ‘other’ provides a means tice of decolonisation, Fergus believes As pressure continues to be placed before his encounter with postcolonial of understanding the low social position ❞ that white people have a particular on the English Faculty to provide lec- critics. Heathclif occupies, and how it allows responsibility to play, especially in un- tures on postcolonial approaches and Reading Nigerian author Chinua readers to understand him as being both derstanding their white privilege within contemporary thinkers and critical theo- Achebe’s famous lecture “An Image of within and without the novel’s aristo- cultural systems, social hierarchies, and rists, Fergus also notes the importance Africa” inaugurated Fergus’s process of cratic household. An understanding of the existing literary canon. “We cannot of not allowing our critical faculties to critically rethinking the worldview he the tension deining Heathclif ’s status be led to believe that the intellectual la- rest there. grew up with. Achebe powerfully chal- in his household and his family members bour of decolonisation should be left to “For a lot of us, we’re often happy lenges Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, can only be achieved via the language people of colour,” he asserts. to critique colonialism in the past, but charging Conrad’s depiction of Africa as of racism. Fergus’s process of rethinking his there’s a sense that we can be unwilling “a foil to Europe, as a place of negations Such readings can only be unlocked critical habits has been accompanied to use the same critical force to critique at once remote and vaguely familiar, in by a decentering of perspectives – one by his reckoning with the atrocities com- present day injustice.” He mentions how comparison with which Europe’s own in which the hegemonic lens is recog- mitted by people from his own home. there is a need to make a leap from criti- state of spiritual grace will be manifest”. nised for its dangerous and patronis- His exposure to postcolonial writers has quing literature to critiquing present day Conrad, he says, portrays Africa as ‘the ing ability to strip individuals of their been key to reconstructing the narrative ❝ issues like immigration and our contem- other world’, the antithesis of Europe and humanity. his contributes to a more of empire he grew up with, yielding a porary conception of the ‘third world’. therefore of civilization, which Achebe robust intellectual practice of literary sense of indignation toward the violence How does his metaleptic leap from past to attributes to Conrad’s “residue of antipa- criticism, the ostensible objective of the inlicted by colonialists in the past and one speak present, text to lived experience, is the thy to black people”. English Tripos. he deconstruction of a the ways of thinking that serve to per- the truth? crucial corollary of rethinking the ways Reading Achebe helped Fergus to colonial mindset in literature therefore petuate such violence today. in which the English Tripos has been challenge the preconceptions he had seeks to challenge the ways in which More speciically, he believes that What truth? devised. We may ind ourselves con- passively accepted as part of his world- mindsets that have historically sought white British people should take their For whom fronted with the questions that Edward view. He often adopted stereotypes to demonise and dehumanise people of cues from those who have been histori- and where? Said once asked: how does one speak present in the media that exaggerated other cultures and races has contributed cally marginalised in literary studies. he the truth? What truth? For whom and political afairs in other countries as to the proliferation of violence. In do- dismantling of one’s critical apparatus ❞ where? Friday 26th October 2018 15

Features From Dartmoor to Darwin

lives which they believed to be entirely to publicise alternative narratives of secret, with signiicant consequences for African history, becoming involved in them and their families. Now a second- ❝ Cambridge-based eforts to decolonise year law student, Ulysses is comfortable Following the curriculum. with the legal status of investigating, but To listen to our interviews this week in views his days as a private eye as being redundancy full, our Maturing with Age episode can be behind him. he chose to found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Switchboard also spoke with joshua Podcasts and all other major podcast plat- Agbo, who recently graduated with a pursue his forms. Each week Switchboard seeks to PhD from Anglia Ruskin University, arriv- academic connect listeners with people in Cambridge ing in the UK with an already established interests with interesting stories to tell. If you have academic career in his home country heard any unusual stories from around of Nigeria. A published author prior to ❞ Cambridge please contact us at switch- his arrival in Cambridge, joshua seeks [email protected]. ADVERTISE WITH US. To advertise in any of our print publications or online, please contact our Business Manager:

tian, inspired by his mother, sought to ▲Switchboard pre- tel : 01223 33 75 75 educate himself as best as possible. senter, Raphael email: [email protected] Varsity’s podcast He read extensively including nov- Korber Hoffman web: varsitypublications.co.uk els by Hugo, Dumas, Solzhenitsyn and (left) interviews presenter Raphael Hardy whilst in jail. Pursuing his musical mature student, talents – Christian plays the saxophone, Christian Austin Korber Hofman guitar and sings – have also always been (right) (joe CooK) of great interest. Not wanting his own spoke to an children to follow the same path that he, and Christian’s father who was an alco- ex-heroin addict holic, had followed, Christian entered a rehabilitation centre and moved to a and prisoner new city to begin a new chapter of his life at the age of 35. Christian credits the about graduating help he received at the centre, as well as moving away from the town where he ❝ from Cambridge grew up and where the temptation of Despite drug use was often too hard to resist, as the hostile signiicant factors in him being able to 50 mature students study at the start out in adult life a second time. prison University of Cambridge, com- Christian hasn’t touched heroin since enviroment ing from all over the world and 1997, and in the years after his release he he sought bringing with them a wide varie- worked as a construction worker before, 3 to educate ty of life experiences which often greatly following redundancy in the aftermath impress the 18 year olds with whom they of the inancial crisis of 2008, he sought himself as share their lectures. Few, however, would to pursue his academic interests. He irst best as have as remarkable a story as Christian got in contact with a Cambridge profes- Austin, who Switchboard interviewed sor whilst researching his undergraduate possible this week for our episode on mature dissertation on music in prisons, and ❞ students – Maturing with Age. once he graduated, applied to study at A heroin addict for 17 years and spend- Cambridge University. Now, just over ing a total of 10 years in a prison cell 20 years since he turned his back on ad- over a 20-year period, Christian recently diction and resultant crime, Christian, completed an MPhil in Criminology at father of four and the irst person in his Darwin College following undergraduate family to attend university, looks forward study at Cardif University. to potentially continuing his academic Raised on a council estate in Hamp- career by pursuing a PhD. shire but spending time as a child in Another interviewee this week was various care homes, Christian had his Ulysses Chow who worked as a private irst run in with the law at age 6 and investigator in Hong Kong before his began truanting from school and tak- arrival in Cambridge in 2017. Most com- ing drugs from the age of 12. Christian monly employed to investigate suspected injected heroin for the irst time aged extramarital afairs and custody cases, just 18. Several decades of intermittent Ulysses spent up to eight hours a day imprisonment followed, including spells watching, recording and taking photos of at the foreboding Dartmoor prison. But his targets. he intimate nature of private despite the hostile prison environment investigating became clear to Ulysses and the heavy cloud of addiction, Chris- as he uncovered aspects of his targets’ PHD STUDENTSHIPS AT LSE

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LSE’s PhD Academy Friday 26th October 2018 17 Opinion

◀Students rallied on ‘D-Day’ to pressure University Councillors to support divestment (LouIS ASHWoRTH)

Action on the ethnicity pay gap is long overdue

A Varsity unning quietly and often 20% in some institutions. Some would has been ingrained in our institutions ▲ A Cambridge nally spoke out on the issue: the gov- investigation unacknowledged at the blame the gap on a disparity in educa- and our everyday interactions. graduation cer- ernment plans to launch a consultation today looks at side of the gender pay tional attainment between white and his is a problem which integrally emony last year into whether mandatory reporting of Cambridge’s gap, the disparity in pay BME students – yet in 2016, a study found concerns the university – as Varsity has (LouIS ASHWoRTH) wages will help to solve the problem. pay disparities between white and BME that the pay gap actually widens with reported, black academic and research his seems like the right move – the gen- for Ethnic Rpeople in this country has existed for qualiications. Black people with GCSEs staf at Cambridge make on average der gap furore proved that the only way Minority decades. So, too, has the disparity be- were paid 11% less than their white coun- nearly £12,000 a year less than white to address systematic discrimination is academics. tween the growing media attention and terparts, while for black graduates, the academic and research staf. Racism at to bring attention and public pressure to What happens institutional action surrounding the gen- gap was 23%. For Ethnic Minority people the university is often considered to be bear on the companies responsible. next? der pay gap and the silence surrounding as a whole, the pay gap at degree level an issue on the students’ side, a problem Public pressure can work in the case the BME pay gap. was 10%. of access and an alienating culture. ❝ of the university as well. he revelation Similarly to the gender pay gap, this is hese igures are shocking, and yet the While these are all struggles of fun- of these statistics about the status of a problem which relects the multitude problem has gone largely undiscussed damental importance, we need to start We need BME staf within the university must of limitations faced by BME people in the in the national media. Compared to the a conversation about the ways in which to expand provoke a similarly tireless campaign. workplace: the casual racism, the belief uproar about the gender pay gap in the racism institutionally permeates the en- of course, the disparities within the uni- that we don’t really belong in positions past year, there has been little report- tire structure of the university and how our discus- versity are part of a much wider national of power, and the lack of representation ing about the BME pay gap. For the BME signiicant its impact on staf can be. Not problem, and are certainly not about to at the highest levels of business and gov- women who are caught in the crossire of only are BME staf at the university dis- sions of be solved overnight. he university has ernment. In almost any walk of life, BME these discriminations, the silence on the advantaged in terms of the pay gap; they racism to been making eforts, with the develop- people are less likely to break into an BME pay gap neglects to acknowledge are hugely underrepresented, with fewer ment of “diverse recruitment guidelines industry and are then held back from their experiences. than 15 members of academic staf dis- encompass to help attract more Black, Asian and Mi- progressing within it. In part, yes, this might be down to the closing their identity as black, Pakistani all minor- nority Ethnic (BME) staf ”, but it would Racism in the workplace is relected fact that one issue afects around half or Bangladeshi respectively. do well to act more urgently on the fact in the overt harassment of non-white the inhabitants of this country, while A conversation about the experi- ity mem- that the BME pay gap at play when these igures in the public eye – think of the the other afects a minority. But to me, ence of BME staf at the university is individuals do become members of staf almost daily racist messages and threats this is also another demonstration of the long overdue. Just as the country as a bers of the is a matter deserving of attention - and received by David Lammy or Diane Ab- refusal of this country to face up to the whole needs to be talking about racism University, immediately - within its own right. If the bott. Yet at its most structural and its racist legacies of its colonial past. Most in the workplace, we need to expand our university is truly “committed to being most insidious, it manifests in the sys- people ind it too diicult to address the discussions of racism to encompass all not just a space free from racism [and] discrimi- tematic undervaluing and underrepre- ways in which BME people have been minority members of the university, not students nation,” it must commit itself publicly sentation of BME people, and the result systematically disadvantaged, because just students. and immediately to resolving this most

Priya Bryant of this is a pay gap that reaches above it requires facing up to the racism that Earlier this month, heresa May i- ❞ striking of injustices at its core. 18 Friday 26th October 2018 Opinion Understanding the undiscussed in our history

as somehow inherently poor, disorderly Sophie Zhang and backwards. his becomes not just an issue about historical truth, but also Decolonisation has to start well a problem that inluences contemporary before Cambridge, in primary and politics. Such perjorative portrayals of secondary school history curricula countries in the Global South encourage many people to support questionable ecently, Jeremy Corbyn has actions, such as harmful foreign policies, called for a greater emphasis discrimination against refugees and cut- on teaching about the “role and ting foreign aid spending. Rlegacy” of British colonialism In the speciic example of foreign and black Britons in history in compul- ❝ aid spending, people often see other sory education. As a nation, we need to countries as ‘undeserving’ of British uncover hidden histories about colonial- Without money, with the International Devel- ism and its impact, and develop a critical opment Secretary, Penny Mordaunt, this understanding of colonialism. Closer to under- year encouraging developing nations to home, Varsity reported on the Royal His- standing ‘put their hands in their pockets’ as she torical Society’s indings which showed warned of cuts to the foreign aid budget. that 96.1% of university historians are the role Yet this attitude is amnesic, and forgets white, whilst under 1% are black. How- of British that much of Britain’s wealth came about ever, this issue of representation is only through the exploitation of the labour part of the problems within historical colonial- and natural resources of its colonies. scholarship. As the report itself stated, he problem is that without a histori- there is a ‘need for more diverse content ism, it is cal understanding of both Britain’s eco- of curriculums in schools and universi- impossible nomic exploitation of its colonies and ties’ with current curricula ‘ grounded the political disruption British colonial uncritically in White histories and Eu- to under- rule caused in countless regions around rocentric approaches to the past’. stand both the world, it is easy to perpetuate stere- As a nation, we need to uncover hid- otypes that encourage negative, often den histories about colonialism and its modern racist, discourses in politics, further ena- impact, and develop a critical under- bling questionable daily behaviour in the standing of colonialism. Some of the ap- British and form of racist remarks and actions. peals for a decolonised curriculum have world his- Although Corbyn focused on the is- been loudest in Cambridge, but when sue of decolonising compulsory educa- it comes to understanding the undis- tory tion, it’s also vital to decolonise higher cussed past of our country, changes are ❞ education. his is especially true for needed root and branch in the educa- universities such as Cambridge, which tion system. have historic links to colonialism, be it To some extent, decolonising our through historically providing an edu- curriculum is simply about teaching cation for colonial administrators, or modern history in a truthful way. At through housing stolen artefacts, such present, we awkwardly avoid teaching as the Gweagal spears. Furthermore, as colonialism at school and treat it in a one of the world’s leading universities in whitewashed way (if it is talked about producing research and theories, Cam- at all, that is). I remember the one time bridge has an extensive inluence and we did learn anything about colonialism could encourage other universities to during school, when my teacher told us decolonise. his is something which Sujit that Britain colonised many countries Sivasundaram, co-chair of the working by “accident”. We then spent the rest group behind the RHS’ report and a fel- of the lesson looking at the “interesting low at Gonville and Caius, has himself and diferent” ways the British colonised identiied as he declared, ‘We’re at a countries around the world, instead of point where history in Cambridge will actually discussing the actions and im- once again change’. pact of the British administration. But at the same time, only a small mi- he Western colonial powers funda- nority of the British population study at mentally reshaped the modern world Cambridge. In order to begin a public order and stemmed new inequalities of discussion about British colonialism, it wealth and power. herefore, without is also necessary for the conversation to understanding the role of British colo- begin earlier on in schooling. We must nialism, it is impossible to understand equally push for a decolonised curricu- both modern British and world history. lum for compulsory education at the here shouldn’t be anything alarming same time as advocating a decolonised about expanding our curriculum in this university curriculum. In the end, both way; as Stuart Hall so succinctly put elements of the country’s schooling must it in a 1991 essay, “here is no English be decolonised and it is not a question history without that other history.” We of either or. It is only by achieving this can’t understand British history without goal that we can begin to hope for greater understanding Britain’s actions abroad social awareness of the importance of and how people of colour contributed decolonisation: what would a decolo- to national history. nised global economy look like? What Without a public understanding of the would a more egalitarian international history of colonialism, it is easy to per- order look like? Teaching about colonial- petuate Eurocentric and often racist dis- ◀ Illustration by ism in depth in compulsory education courses. For example, without suicient Lisha Zhong for is only the beginning of a much longer knowledge about Britain’s colonial past, Varsity conversation and series of changes, all it is easy for people to see ex-colonies very worthwhile. F  26 O 2018 19 Opinion Universal Credit is not a distant issue; its im- pact can already be felt in Cambridge

Universal Credit s Universal Credit is rolled out rollout is to be delayed once again, and need extra support will be shut out of up.  at much we know and experience will have severe in Cambridge, the impacts of yet the Government is still content to our educational institutions. everyday when the cost of our accom- implications for this policy must be of concern continue with this policy. If the future is bleak, the present is no modation increases alongside the cost social mobility Ato us all. Access is a key con- On a human level the cost is desper- better. Disabled students are a ected by of food, travel and course materials. and access to cern within our University; if we really ate.  e average claimant is in £1400 rent Universal Credit as they are being cut o Nevertheless, maintenance grants are top universities want to mean what we say, Universal arrears, with late payments all too com- from money essential to their extra liv- scrapped and loans are insu cient.  e in the future Credit must be part of that conversa- mon, some councils have been owed up ing costs. Universal Credit, as it stands, burden of applying for further bursa- tion. to £8 million.  ese rent arrears lead to does not automatically treat disabled ries and scholarships once again falls Universal Credit is a bene t combin- eviction letters being sent out to vulner- students as having a “limited capability on the student, whose mental health is ing six of our legacy bene ts, includ- able people, the same ones ending up for work” a criteria that prior to Univer- worsened because of the stress of having ing Child Tax Credit, Housing Bene t on our streets. Foodbanks are another sal Credit entitled students, especially to balance an intense academic career and Income Support, but it achieves indicator: the Trussell Trust states that part-time students, to access Employ- ❝ with the everyday nancial strains of no practical improvements. Much has in 2017, 1 million people relied on 3-day ment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Reports university life. been said about the improvement in ‘ef- emergency food supplies nationally, Housing Bene t during their studies.  e Just like people all across the country ciency’ that could stem from Universal marking a 13% increase on the previ- new rules will only consider extremely have have to ‘prove’ their physical and men- Credit. An important goal of the scheme ous year. severe circumstances such as receiving tal disabilities or their lack of stable in- is ending the complexities of the cur- Working as a caseworker in an area of treatment for cancer. shown come caused by zero hour contracts to rent bene t system, to which I am not full Universal Credit roll-out, I observed Mature students with children, es- that single receive Universal Credit, our students opposed. But Universal Credit is simply its personal and political impacts. I lis- pecially single parents, should also not are required to relive oten traumatic not addressing the issues it claims to tened to a teenage girl ask for help for be cut out from further education, but parents experiences of family estrangement or be tackling – it is in fact creating new her mum who was struggling to pay rent reports have shown that single parents lose out on spend hours on endless forms just so problems. because of Universal Credit. Sitting there lose out an average of £1,350 a year that they can access the most basic level Despite the claims of the Secretary of looking at copies of documents to try with Universal Credit. Education should an average of support that should be readily avail- State, Esther McVey, the National Audit and help, I realised that all I could re- never be made inaccessible because of a able for all. O ce has reported that it is not possi- alistically do was ask the DWP for one poorly-designed welfare system and yet, of £1,350 a As students, we must campaign for ble to measure whether Universal Credit more reassessment. that is what many students may now year with a stop to Universal Credit.  is policy is leads to higher employment rates. It is  is was the same girl who should experience. already causing hardship to members of already more expensive than the old sys- now be thinking of applying to universi- Worryingly, this system is indicative Universal our society. I do not want to see it being tem, costing £1.9 billion to get 800,000 ty, not worrying whether Universal Cred- of the state of the welfare system in the Credit rolled out further in Cambridge. I dread people onto Universal Credit – and we it will be paid in time. Future generations UK and the nancial support o ered to to think what more could happen in the

Lara Parizotto Lara are barely halfway there. Meanwhile, its growing up in poverty and students who students of all backgrounds. Costs are ❞ most unequal city in the UK.

• • • • • 20 Friday 26th October 2018 Opinion CUSU should not have had to assert its stance on Remembrance he motion wo weeks after a motion put to debate these issues. Whatever your passed at before CUSU Council to com- opinion of Remembrance Day, your stu- ❝ memorate British war dead dent union’s stance on it probably isn’t this week’s Twas amended to propose the a deciding factor in your personal be- Write back CUSU Council commemoration of all those whose lives liefs. here are topics where I care what highlighted have been afected by war, CUSU’s ex- my student union’s stance on them is: against the ecutive team proposed a new motion on tuition fees, on staf strikes, on rent hallowed the efect the last week providing “clarity” on their campaigns, but Remembrance Day is events of the Remembrance Day stance. not one of them. I understand that how halls, the past two weeks here are many debates to be had we remember those who die in wars glitz of have had on - and many have been had – as to the matter, and it should deinitely be dis- original motion presented to Council two cussed in public forums. However, I’d candlelit our University weeks ago. It is understandable how the question whether CUSU council is the wording of some parts of it, such as ‘ex- best place for this. hose working within formals, amples of inspiration from instances of CUSU and its campaigns, regardless of and the human fortitude and gallantry’ could their personal opinions, at irst did not be perceived as a ‘gloriication and val- issue a statement in their professional weight, orisation’ of war. However, it is equally capacity. undoubtable that ‘immense personal he recent decision of CUSU to clarify and easy sacriices’ were made by members of its stance did not occur in a vacuum; it beauty, of the British armed forces, regardless of happened after two weeks of intense how one views the causes that these national media scrutiny which resulted tradition sacriices served. Wearing poppies gen- in death threats being made against mul- ❞ erally shouldn’t be considered as being tiple individuals involved in the debate too controversial: their sale contributes surrounding the original motion. I dei- a major part of the British Legion’s in- nitely do not want to add to mounting ▲ During the nationally sensationalised the debate of course have political views, and so come, a charity which helps veterans criticism both within and outside the media storm, and exploited the tired stereotype of the CUSU will never be completely apolitical, and their families. University. However we must question the University ‘snowlake’ student left. So I completely but this is not the sort of topic that these Personally, seeing rows of names of to what extent this motion was written tweeted a photo understand why CUSU, amid the me- individuals expect to have to discuss in the fallen ills me with sadness and re- due to a strength of feeling from Council of commemora- dia storm, felt the need to clarify their a professional capacity. CUSU does not gret, not an admiration of war. To com- members and student groups, and how tions (SIR CAM) stance. he new motion still overwhelm- normally have to clarify its stance on memorate and respect those who paid much inluence people and factors ex- ingly focuses on the right of students to national issues, and nor should they feel the ultimate price does not necessarily ternal to Cambridge had. feel free to celebrate Remembrance Day like it has to through media pressure. equate to endorsing the causes of their For all the national media derision as they see it. hat CUSU felt the need No one is, or should be, forced to wear death. I equally understand the desire to of ‘safe spaces’, these last two weeks to reiterate this basic policy shows the a poppy, and no one should be threat- remember not just veterans, but civilian have demonstrated conclusively that extent to which national reporting has ened for their decision either way. CUSU casualties of war too. he commemora- for those who dare to hold the ‘wrong’ afected the University. is right to allow students to decide for tion of one does not have to come at the opinion, these do not exist. While one Remembrance Day will always incite themselves how to commemorate, even expense of the other. can disagree with the content of the strong feelings - it is after all, an incred- if the motion to clarify it came about in a But many may question whether amendment to the original motion, the ibly emotive topic. he individuals occu- painful way. But that was never what the

Lucy Fairweather Lucy CUSU Council is the right forum in which way the amendment was reported on pying executive positions within CUSU media really cared about anyway. More than the education ofered, grammar and state schools difer most in giving students conidence

Students’ ccess is conventionally linked manence iniltrates students’ own self- sible, this encouragement of ambition on them. From this emerges a pervasive internalised to inancial and social issues. ❝ evaluations of their abilities, and thus was far less common in my state com- tendency to visualise grades themselves view of What underpins much of the opportunities which they perceive prehensive. Although we had many fan- as barriers – something too diicult to their own A this topic, however, are the here are as open to them. tastic teachers who wanted us to do our get over if your attainment only reaches ability difers values which students internalise as a deinite Having attended a comprehensive best, predicted grades were treated as an a certain point – rather than stepping- drastrically consequence of their lived experiences. school up until the end of year 11 and end-goal rather than something which stones to reaching the best grade you can between Attitudes towards education propagated laws in then a grammar school during my last we could surpass, and our teaching was get. his sets up a generally defeatist at- comprehensive in school inluence students’ self-per- two years of school, I believe it is crucial ascribed with this in mind. titude to education which dulls ambition and grammar ception signiicantly and despite how the general to address how diferent the attitudes to his bleeds into the way our education and leads to self-selection when it comes schools this afects access to institutions like cultural education really are, often in subtle and is treated in the comprehensive system, to university applications. As students, Oxbridge, this is often ignored. nuanced ways, between both systems. with obvious and tangible implications having internalised such attitudes, they Recognising this could not only attitude here are funding disparities which for our future. With such a wide range of will automatically believe places like Ox- broaden students’ horizons in all areas towards hamper some non-selective schools from abilities grouped together in the student bridge are not for them. beyond school, but also help us to tackle providing the best possible level of edu- body, it appears sensible to stratify the Of course, the academically-perfec- the epidemic of self-selection which nar- education cation and the vital work they do in ca- year into sets according to individual tionist attitude permeating the gram- rows the socioeconomic backgrounds tering to such a range of students despite ability in certain subjects. his enables mar school system also establishes an from which Oxbridge applicants typi- in the non- this must be praised. While grammar specialised teaching. However, it also unhealthy conceptualisation of educa- cally come. selective schools focus on a speciic portion of disables further academic opportunity tion. Pinpointing one’s self-worth on In some parts of the country a di- the student population, non-selective for most of the year, as our academic academic attainment is a dangerous path vide is established from the age of 11, school schools have to cater to the full range of performance in Year 8 decide sets which to tread, with an often toxic impact on where students are separated into the system students while being increasingly under- remain, for the most part, permanent mental health. grammar or comprehensive schooling stafed and over-populated. until the end of our GCSEs at 16. As a We have to rethink our view of educa- systems (alongside private schooling). ❞ In my experience, however, there are result, all but the top set had their op- tion from its very beginnings to change Such a system suggests that where a deinite laws in the general cultural at- portunity to take triple science removed attitudes and improve access to higher child is placed at 11 indelibly signiies titude towards education in the non- from a ridiculously young age. education. Going to university is not the level of their ability and how it will selective system. While at my grammar Yes, there is the possibility of moving the be-all and end-all, and should not develop throughout their school years, school sixth form we were constantly sets if students really surpass their peers, be seen as essential for happiness and but experience tells us that so much can pushed to achieve more, mentally broad- but the permanence implied by this health. But above all else, the path to change from the ages of 11 to 16. In some en our horizons and push ourselves to stratiication hardly encourages many higher education has to feel, as well as

Charlotte Lillywhite Charlotte cases, though, this impression of per- take up as many opportunities as pos- to try and push the boundaries imposed be open to everyone. vulture

▶ FASHION FASHION AS A TOOL FOR RECOVERY∙  ▶ ARTS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM AT KETTLE’S YARD ∙  ▶ FILM  TV HALLOWEEN MOVIE NIGHT∙  22 vulture     Hiding my body in clothing

style is as complex as it sounds. It is entwined  ey looked in nitely better in them. have let my wardrobe. Of course, I would be Fashion can be damaging, with self-identity and gender, and ampli ed It was my style, my fashion, my precious surprised, but happy, if any of those friends Phoebe Cramer argues, by the photographic, media-orientated lives clothes, but the person wearing them actually felt perfectly comfortable with their bodies at we live. To engage with fashion and develop looked good. Deserving in a way I felt I was all times.  rough all of this though, I learnt but it can also be a tool a style is only fun when we have a good rela- not. Some items I was put o forever and since that fashion can be a genuine tool of recovery. for recovery tionship with our bodies. Style can also make us feel really, really good When a person has body im- about ourselves. When I started to resent my Content note is article contains discussion age issues, when the facts are ir- clothes and how I looked in them, I had to relating to mental illness and the process of relevant and the internal dislike restock my wardrobe. I googled ‘Best Cuts To recovering from eating disorders. overwhelming, fashion can feel Wear For Each Body-Type’ and followed that like a draining stress. advice. I quickly learned, however, that cer- used to have a pile of “My Favourite When my body-image issues tain types of fashion do not belong to certain IClothes” stashed beneath my bed. The reached their worst, I detached types of people. Never read an article like that. idea was for them to be out of sight, my body from my identity. It  e aim of fashion is not to look the slimmest but I thought of them when dressing sounds philosophical, but really you possibly can. each morning. These clothes were my old just means that I started to think So then I was forced to branch out into staples. A pair of mom jeans from a mild in terms of ‘me’ and, separately, styles I had never considered before. I tried 2016 hipster phase; a vintage top found ‘my body’.  is sent my relation- new trousers and skirts and dresses and tops in my grandmother’s memory box; some ship with clothes reeling. I have and everything in between. It was a gradual muted blue trousers with the right amount always felt best wearing clothes process, but I got bolder. Patterns and col- of fray. None were particular favourites or that represent myself, but gradu- ours felt eye-catching in a good way again, had any important impact of my style, but ally, I grew to want my body to as opposed to drawing attention to a body I somehow they became my most important be excluded from that de nition wanted to hide. clothes. and identity.  e pile of “My Favourite Clothes” no longer It was because they no longer tted. Or they I felt undeserving of the lives under my bed. I gave them away without did, but in a way that made me panic and pull clothes I loved and- in my mind- trying them again. Perhaps I would have liked them o again before my re ection sunk in. I used to look better in. It felt like the way I looked in them, perhaps they would loved those clothes, I loved the identity they they were mocking me, remind- have helped me to feel good about my body represented and the memories attached. I did ing me of what I used to look again. Perhaps they would have just dragged not love my body in them. like and could look like if I only me back to a time of insecurity and doubt.  ey became my target. Why get rid of them X or Y or Z. To every person holding onto something that when I’ll look how I want to in them soon? I developed an aversion to see- they hope to wear in the future ‘if they get Why waste such a useful tool of measure- ing other people in my clothes. brave enough’ or ‘when they lose that weight’, ment? Of comparison, when I had photos of By ‘other people’ I mainly mean get rid of it. Style should never be restricting. myself in those clothes that I loved? my friends: a borrowed dress, a It should evolve and develop along with our-  e relationship between body image and jumper to keep o the chill. ▲ Illustration by Lisha Zhong for Varsity selves – including our bodies.

I think the most important thing for us tempts to nd out how men feel in and about peal to that many people. We can’t compete “is the fact that we’re still here.” themselves, their partners and their well-be- with Google. How could we? We don’t have Being GQ Dylan Jones’ judgement on GQ’s 30th ing in general. that scale. We have to deliver a very particu- birthday may come as a shock to anyone look- For Jones, the author of 2006’s consciously lar audience for our advertisers. It’s all about ing at this deeply self-assured magazine.  e tongue-in-cheek Mr Jones’ Rules for the Modern demographics.” Jones emphasises the scale of editor in a thought of this publication succumbing to the Man, now is not a time for jocularity. Instead, the competition facing publications like GQ. fate which has befallen industry titans such it is more important than ever to be a ‘gentle- “Media has changed enormously: the culture, as e Face in the past few decades seems man’ - a word which to Jones simply means delivery systems… people are far more judge- post-truth laughable.  at Jones is proud at the mere “being a good man.” Now is an opportune time mental these days.  e media industry is more survival of GQ is a salutary reminder of the to retrospect, and it is clear that culture has fragmented and fragile than it used to be.” precarious times facing journalism. changed beyond recognition since 1988, when What can we predict of GQ’s 40th anniver- Jones has been editor of GQ for 19 years, dur- the magazine was launched. “It’s like di erent sary? “ e aspirations of the publication will world ing which the industry has changed beyond centuries. Everything is di erent. Twenty years remain the same, but in what form it’s deliv- recognition. “ e biggest change is in terms ago, if I’d put a man on the cover, I’d have lost ered, I have no idea. All people buy into us for Editor of GQ Dylan Jones of technological change,” he says, referring to my job in six months, because it wouldn’t sell”, our taste.” In Jones’ eyes, the role of GQ is to talks to Julia Davies distribution and consumption behaviours. But asserts Jones. To date, GQ has featured Sadiq provide “nuance” and “ ltering” in the face of there is a more worrying change in attitude Khan twice, and Jeremy Corbyn and David the internet, which is a “mass of stu ”. GQ’s that he also notes. “ ere is a presumption, Cameron, amongst other high pro le gures. commitment to quality has never wavered, particularly amongst [millenials], that news “Culture has changed almost 180 degrees since even when the society its readers inhabit, such and content is not something you have to pay the 90s, and for the better.” as during what Jones calls the “fag end of the for.”  e idea that everything should be free At one stage I refer to GQ and similar maga- 90s, the Brit-pop era”, was not so highbrow. and instantly available, but also of top journal- zines as ‘glossies’, and Jones slams his glass Jones has no desire to play to the gallery, istic quality, re ects for Jones a “belligerence” on the table. “ at was disparaging.”  e idea, though. When asked if he feels he has to tread amongst consumers operating in an “acceler- to Jones, that luxury goods or fashion are a a middle path to appeal to as many readers ated culture”, and is the greatest danger facing form of dilettantism is “puerile” and “demean- as possible, he is horri ed by the notion. “We journalism today.  is reluctance to pay for ing”. But surely he must have encountered don’t have to do anything!” he exclaims. articles is the biggest di erence between our this opinion before? “I love that world [of Jones reiterates his fears surrounding the generation and its forebears. GQ’s app is an magazines], it’s intoxicating. I don’t see any devaluation of journalism, and the assump- important part of its future growth plan. contradiction in having an advertisement for tion that people are “just content providers; But this cutting-edge focus on the future a pair of shoes next to a tremendous piece of that it doesn’t mean anything any more.” He seems at odds with the title of the magazine, journalism. One pays the other.”  e fashion sees this putting talented people o becoming Gentlemen’s Quarterly. I put this to Jones and industry “makes more money than the car journalists. “However, there is beginning to be he pauses for thought. “I think the relation- industry.” He is tired of people thinking it’s a return to an appreciation of expertise. I hope ship between the brand and the words is so cool to know nothing about fashion, a view I’m right.” When we are faced with so much abstract that they’re almost meaningless.” he sees as “incredibly sexist.” news, people are returning to the sources and  is is not mere bluster, however. In the light He is tired of tabloid-style scrutiny of what interpreters that they can trust. In the wake of #MeToo and other social movements, the people wear, such as  eresa May’s ‘trouser- of Trump, and Brexit, argues Jones, people are 30th anniversary of GQ has not been marked gate’, but he is sanguine about the realities seeking a greater degree of engagement. It’s with lavish shoots, spectacle and ‘banging facing publications today. “If Vogue sold six becoming a conversation. Perhaps it is this un- our chest’, but instead by an in-depth YouGov times more copies a month, would it still be derstanding of the interplay of fashion, politics Illustration by Ben Brown for Varsity ▲ study called ‘ e State of Men’.  e study at- Vogue? You’d have to alter the editorial to ap- and society that means that GQ is still here. Friday 26th OctOber 2018 vulture 23

raries, Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman and William Congdon, as well as art dealer Betty Parsons, serving as a reminder of how far he Richard Pousette- was embedded into the New York art scene. Art is conceived as a continual, ever chang- ing process: “I am passionately in love with… creative energy”, he explained in a letter to Jim Ede. His painting shares a similar inclina- tion for evolution. Geometric forms of Cubism Dart at Kettle's Yard lie alongside Native American inspired depic- tions of nature, which display graphic outlines of animal forms. Running throughout his work Isobel Bickersteth is an interest in symbols. his is realised in full in the second room, which focuses on his in- ntil now, Richard Pousette-Dart has terest in the symbolism of the circle - particu- never been the subject of a major larly in work from the 1950s. His proclamation Usolo exhibition in the UK. This that circles are “all or nothing/ they are living seems surprising: he was a key figure of signs of lowers or spirit/ they are signs of Abstract Expressionism, the art movement heaven/ rising and falling suns and moons/ the which radically transformed post-war centre of the earth and universe/ God’s eye” American art, as well as being at the is adorned across one wall: “they tremble in forefront of the New York School. With this my transcendental landscape”. his “tremble” in mind, Richard Pousette-Dart: Beginnings, is echoes most vividly in the large-scale paint- an exciting opportunity to view a selection ings which ill the space, huge canvases cen- of his early work in a carefully curated tred around etchings of circles. Monumental space. in size, and mesmerising to view, their surface he variety in medium and style of his work detail is equally fascinating. Pousette-Dart is impressive. Sculpture, photography and builds a textured and layered surface. Square painting can all be found in the exhibition, of Meditation #2 exempliies this, its paint ap- which focuses on the formative stages of the plied so heavily the surface appears almost artist’s career. he exhibition plots Pousette- sculpture like in quality. Dart’s progression from a sculptor to an art- his preoccupation with symbols is closely ist who became “taken with painting which intertwined with his interest in spirituality. drinks me up”; the diversity in his practice “I strive to express the spiritual nature of the rendered through the galleries juxtaposition universe”, says one of his writings displayed of his diferent artistic mediums. Interspersed as part of the exhibit, “painting...is mysterious throughout the exhibition are excerpts of his and transcending, yet solid and real”. writings, letters and postcards which enable Energy radiates throughout this exhibi- visitors to explore his inspiration. Upstairs lies tion. Regardless of the style, or medium, of another surprise: intense, strikingly evocative, his work, Pousette-Dart’s attempt to depict his photography line the walls of the Edlis Neeson “transcendental landscape” remains constant research space. Portraits of his contempo- ▲ Within the Room, 1942, Richard Pousette-Dart (KETTLE'S YARD) throughout the exhibit. Kurt Vile's Bottle It In: the soundtrack for days of self-doubt

the former forklift driver seems to sum up tively acknowledging his own music style, Kurt Vile’s latest record everything you feel. accepting his fondness for ‘repetition’ and Bottle It In is “an Bottle It In, his seventh record in eight years, ultimately shirking of any fears about be- has all the typical trappings of a Kurt Vile ing seen as a one trick pony. But it's also a emotional exploration of record. he opening track ‘Loading Zones’, a bright and positive song about friendship, male mental health and song about the banality of daily life and the the perfect counterweight to the gloom of need to get “shopping done, and laundry too”, ‘Bassackwards’. isolation” is hardly Sex, Drugs and Rock n’ Roll. But as he respite is brief, for the woe returns on a lyrical companion to songs such as ‘Pretty the title track. I guess that many listeners Tom Breakwell Pimpin’’ of 2015’s b’lieve i’m goin down, the might be put of by another 10-minute run theme is familiar. time and some fairly sparse instrumentation, ’ve always had a soft spot for Kurt Vile. But then there are those surprises: the track but on a personal level at least, the song acts I recall first hearing him when I was opens with electric fuzz that sounds like a as an emotional exploration of male mental Iworking as an usher at an independent malfunctioning R2-D2 swirling in a blender, health and isolation. cinema in Birmingham; it was my bar while the chorus of “I park for free” is sang with his is the song I have on repeat, while si- manager who introduced me to Kurt’s a surprising amount of gusto. Hey, I’m trying multaneously trying to igure out why I keep characteristic drawl and his washed to be moody here, don’t be so upbeat! returning to it. Ultimately, it is the static in- out, psychedelic guitar (plus a crisp hint For me, Kurt has never been much of a lyri- strumentation which transforms the song of bluegrass banjo snaking in and out cist, even if the occasional line may hint at into a hypnotic experience, a ripe emotional of the mix). On that shift it made good something more profound. On this new record canvas onto which I can project my own background music as I cleaned the empty he’s outdone himself, with some of the lyrics thoughts and feelings. screens. sounding like they have been made up on the Overall, Bottle It In may be a mixed bag. It At Cambridge I have been plagued, as I spot after about six pints. is very much a typical Kurt Vile album, not guess many of you reading have also been, A real highlight appears in ‘Hysteria’ with really adding anything particularly new to by periods of self-doubt. For me, Kurt Vile is the beautiful semi-couplet, "Like, mmm girl his oeuvre. often the soundtrack for those days. you gave me rabies/And I don’t mean maybe.” A new listener may not ind it his most he Kurt Vile experience has developed But saying that, some of the longer cuts such accessible work, especially compared to the from the workplace to those introspective as the almost 10-minute track ‘Bassackwards’ immediately arresting songs on b’lieve i’m goin melancholy moments at university. hose are pure stoner poetry as Kurt weaves a tale of down. But for me, as a long-time fan plough- moments when the pressure and stress is existential pain itting for an uncertain age. ▲ Kurt Vile performing at Roskilde ing through Bottle It In’s 80-minute run time, too much to handle and the odd lyric from ‘One Trick Ponies’, features Kurt introspec- (BILL EBBESEN) there are just enough riches to reap. 24 vulture     What to watch this Hallo

Lillian Crawford caution advised. a poignant statement on the insanity of I could have included on this list, authority. but few inspire such a harrow- Das Cabinet des Dr Caligari (1920) However, once the  lm was adapted by ing sense of life’s futility as reveals her top eight  e German expressionism of Erich Pommer and handed over to Rob- this American experi- picks this spooky the 1920s was forged in ert Wiene to direct, the plot was mental piece. It is an the hell re of World changed to make this twist the example of a ‘trance season War One, and few delusion of the protagonist,  lm’, and much like Dr  lms better repre- warping the message to sug- Caligari it is an hallu- sent the jarred gest that it was not author- cination with tediously any people on October the 31st will perception ity  gures who were mad, nightmarish qualities. settle down to a low budget movie of reality it but those who believed Maya Deren, who directed Mjust like without any intention of invoked than they were. It is worth the  lm with her husband being scared. However, should you prefer this. Its crea- watching for Hermann Alexander Hammid, plays to frighten away the spirits with some tors, Hans Warm’s set design alone, the lead being pur- visceral chills, this list might provide some Janowitz and which conveys the same sued by a cloaked better guidance. Carl Mayer, jagged abstraction as the  gure with a Rather than slasher icks and streams of wanted to best-known painters of mirror for a jump scares, I have selected a range of ac- use cinema the expressionist move- face, re ect- cessible pictures which seek to perturb and to encourage ment, especially Lyonel Fei- ing the question human nature. Spanning from the popular paci sm ninger and Wassily Kandin- darkest early days of German expressionism right up with a story about sky.  ere is something truly thoughts to contemporary melodrama, the bouts of in- the crazed Dr Caligari revolutionary at work here, of the trospection will be lightened by the occasional who would hypnotise brimming with a post-war dread subcon- romp and a dose of black humour. Whether the somnambulist, Cesare, to that remains alarming today. scious you only have a  teen-minute break between commit crimes. Upon being caught, into studies or plan to set a day aside for a macabre he would go to an asylum, wherein lay the reality. It movie marathon, there should be something original twist — Caligari was actually the Meshes of the A ternoon (1943) is smattered here to satisfy your dark curiosities. Viewer director of the asylum, making the  lm  ere are a number of excellent short  lms with symbolism, with     vulture 25

comes clear that the criminal whose prison latest  lm, Bad Times at the El Royale, has sentence he had guaranteed several years only just been released. It is a  ne pastiche before will stop at nothing to destroy his on pulpy American gangster drama, that family. It is a work worthy of Alfred Hitch- if nothing else features a shirtless Chris h this Halloween cock himself, who initially storyboarded the Hemsworth. So too does Goddard’s  rst, plot but le t the project over a dispute.  is and far superior, feature, which is itself a is no doubt aided by a cracking Bernard satirical play on the tropes of torture porn Hermann score, who I have long believed to and the slasher genre. It is essentially a be the true ‘Master of Suspense’. scaled down, rustic Battle Royale that pits a host of horror staples against a gang of horny, stoned youths. From zombies to e Company of Wolves (1984) unicorns, via the tooth fairy and Sigourney  e revival of British art cinema in the Weaver in cameo (the only form of role she mid-1980s gave rise to some incredible seems capable of playing anymore), it is a aesthetic accomplishments, particularly wild and o ten raucous ride through the in the  lms of Peter Greenaway and Derek history of the genre. If the other items in Jarman, including this Neil Jordan-directed the list prove a little taxing, this will make Gothic horror.  e colourful misty sets and for a lighter interlude. jaw-dropping visual e ects elevate Charles Perrault’s original tale of Little Red Riding Hood beyond elma (2017) even that of Angela Horror seems to be in the grips of a Carter’s short stories in renaissance, most of which has  e Bloody Chamber, been gratuitously overrated ( e upon which the  lm Babadook, It Follows, Get Out), was based. Indeed, but there has been a sprinkle Carter worked of devastating pictures.  is with Jordan on return for Joachim Trier to the screenplay to Norwegian soil a ter the do justice to the English-language Louder feminist critique so  an Bombs certainly central to her tales trumps those pictures published in 1979.  e by many a chilling result is a powerful and mile, and frightening exploration of will strike a patriarchal predatory be- chord with haviour which also gave any con ict- impetus to the Wolf’s ed student. song ‘Hello Little Girl’  ere are from Into the Woods by moments of Stephen Sondheim. physical fear that force one toward the edge of the seat. Twin Peaks: Fire  is includes a Walk With Me medically induced (1992) seizure reminis- Much of David cent of the only Lynch’s  lmography decent scene in could make the list,  e Exorcist when from Mulholland Dr. Regan undergoes to Inland Empire, but a lumbar punc- it is this prequel to the ture, but it is the television series Twin psychological ▲ Laura Palmer in the Twin peaks prequel that garnered boos at Cannes in 1992 YOUTUBENEW LINE CINEMA Peaks that perhaps comes turbulence that ▼ All illustrations by Ben Brown for Varsity closest to horror. While there resonates most are undoubtedly malevolent ferociously. recurring shots of keys and knives spiralling duced under Sir Michael Balcon have a spirits at work in the seem- As  elma, almost to the point of banality. Its avant- supernatural theme. British horror would ingly peaceful town, it is the played perfectly by Eili garde depiction of the troubled female soul come to be dominated by Hammer in the tangible, realistic abuse Laura Harboe, comes to terms with would inspire the birth of New American following decade, but in 1945 Ealing stal- Palmer faces in the days before epilepsy, she must also adjust to uni- Cinema in the 1940s, and is also discernible warts and newcomers Alberto Cavalcanti, her death that makes the skin versity life under the constant judgement in several  lms by David Lynch. Robert Hamer, Charles Crichton, and Basil crawl the most.  e charm and humour of of her overbearing evangelical parents. Dearden came together to direct one of Kyle MacLauchlan’s Dale Cooper is quickly  eir phone calls inspire a self-loathing the very  rst horror anthology  lms. With cast aside to revel in darkness, themati- that is o ten hard to watch, beating herself Dead of Night (1945) its stories focusing on a haunted mirror, a cally driven by the moody jazz of Angelo up over enjoying a drink with friends In the 1930s Ealing ghost at a Christmas party, and the iconic Badalamenti’s score. Sequences border or admitting her attraction towards Studios had been living ventriloquist dummy, it continues to on the psychedelic, including a scene a fellow female student.  e literal dominated by the inspire horror, notably this year’s Ghost Sto- in a night club which gives provo- depictions of angst through the comedies and musicals ries, in the 21st century. An essential piece cateur Gaspar Noé a run for his supernatural represent the of Gracie Fields and of British cinema history that re ects on money, and a climactic cacophony calamitous impact one believes George Formby, before the emasculating power of post-war social of phantasmagoria that rattles such dysphoria is having on the launching into a series anxiety. every sense. It is no wonder that world around them — a bird of realistic military it garnered boos at Cannes in crashing into a library window, dramas during the Sec- 1992, audiences unprepared a giant chandelier lurch- ond World War. While Cape Fear (1962) for such a radical shi t that ing forward at the bal- today the comedies Forget the 1991 Martin Scorsese remake – now, in light of the show’s let at the suggestion of the late ‘40s and this Hitchcockian J. Lee  ompson original third season which aired of sexual intimacy. early ‘50s, such as is proper hair-raising cinema. It has little re- last year, feels comparatively Feelings far Whisky Galore! and liance on visual horror; Cape Fear works in tame. more terrify-  e Ladykillers, shadows and slowness, obscuring the raw ing than men dominate popular evil of the Robert Mitchum-played antago- in masks waving memory of the nist, Max Cody. Even the great Gregory Peck e Cabin in the Woods phallic chainsaws studios, a number fails to inspire the usual comfort audiences (2012) at half-naked of the  lms pro- feel in his presence, as it gradually be- Director Drew Goddard’s teenage girls. 26 vulture Friday 26th OctOber 2018 A freshers’ guide to Cambridge pub crawls Joshua Walley valiantly sacriices his spare time to ind you the best pubs in town

ambridge is a place of learning, of the Mill tucks itself away behind the Anchor Cacademic excellence, of research. and is by far the superior watering hole. Ini- Or so my supervisor says. I spend tially appearing a tad pricey, it soon becomes my days trawling through libraries and evident that the Mill more than makes up for obscure websites in search of that essential the four pound plus pints in character and quote that gets my essay the honourable charm. 19th century wood panelling and myr- 2:1 we all crave. Good stuff. But why stop iad beer mats adorning the bar, it is an ideal there, I thought? Why waste these skills on pub for a cold winter’s day. With classic vinyl records playing most evenings you can easily pass a Friday evening there, well away from the sweat of the Life queue. Add to that a wide selection of in-house board games and you realise that the Mill is the gift that keeps on giving. And that’s before even mentioning the beer – winner of three CAMRA awards, roughly eight good ales are on tap at any one time. heir stout is so good that my ◀▲ he Mill and Granta are the perfect pubs for a warm summer’s evening (AuReLIA LI) learned Irish colleague even pre- fers it to Guinness! With bar snacks peanuts is good in my books) and you have a three diferent pubs within about ive doors extending from chilli peanuts and solid drinking establishment. of each other on the other side of Parker’s crisps all the way to pork pie and However, where the Granta really calls the Piece – is a great way to escape the bubble and scotch egg, the Mill is an absolute shots, as my approving college wife points out venture into the more down-to-earth “townie” must, particularly if somebody else to me, is its location. he riverside view and side of Cambridge. academia? is going to be paying! interior décor make it seem almost as if you’re An extremely homely pub, classic art deco So I, aided by the experience of two most on a Mississippi paddle steamer at times and adorns the walls and the landlords make a learned colleagues, embarked on a irst-year he Granta with a large, open terrace overlooking the great efort to make the decoration seasonal. journey to sample as many pubs as we could he next pub on this list continues the theme fen, it’s the perfect pub for a warm summer’s (it was getting decidedly spooky upon our last in search of a few gems to get us through the of riverside refreshment, inding itself just evening. A deinitive “date pub”, its appeal and visit!) he range of drinks is astounding – ten next two years here. he results were indeed round the corner from Darwin and border- aesthetics are what boosts it to a spot as one on-tap ales are just the tip of the iceberg, with startling. So read on – I present to you my ing Coe Fen. he Granta, although not having of the best pubs in Cambridge. over ifty Belgian beers - even mead (ASNACs dissertation. quite the same range of ales as the Mill, makes take note) makes its way onto the menu. Can- up for it in price – their wine is cheaper too. he Elm Tree dlelit during the evenings and with a great he Mill Add to that a by no means shameful selec- Perhaps the real wildcard choice on this list, selection of books and games, this is a pub to A pub I came across on my very irst day here, tion of bar snacks (anywhere that does chilli the elm Tree – part of a “Bermuda Triangle” of remember for when the nights draw in. LGBT+ narratives of ostracisation are still relevant today

Flic Kersting responds and inally breaking down view notes Sayers’ portrayal of Joe, the only when she inally admit- male character in the show, as one of the high to recent criticisms of ted her feelings to child- points. While Sayers’ performance was good, an older LGBT+ play as hood friend Karen (Saskia the scenes that moved me most were the ones West), felt all too familiar. where Martha and Karen or Martha and Mrs being outdated In this, I saw the same in- Mortar, Martha’s aunt (elearnor Lind Booton), ternal struggle, the denial, interacted – watching Martha try to navigate his article contains discussion relating to men- the fear of coming out to her feelings, while having to cope with so tal health, suicide, LGBT+ issues, harassment, my friends (especially fe- many comments about how ‘unnatural’ she and homophobia male friends I had feelings was, was a diicult thing to do. his should for) that I have myself serve to remind people that the language we now that 44% of young LGBT people experienced. Many LGB+ use matters, as it can damage people’s lives. Khave considered suicide – almost dou- women struggle with their he Children’s Hour was at times uncomfort- ble the number of heterosexual cisgen- feelings for other women able to watch. However, this was intentional: der young people in the uK. LGBT+ people are because we feel predatory it is uncomfortable to face the fact that the 2-4 times more likely to have faced harassment or worry that our friends uK is not as accepting a place as we often in the workplace. In 2012, a study discovered will no longer feel comfort- make it out to be. that 55% of LGB young people had been vic- ▲ he ADC production is a reminder of how far we have come able around us. his situa- If more progress is to be made, it is impor- tims of homophobic bullying at school. 41% since it was irst published in 1934 (HeLeNA FOx) tion is further exacerbated tant to face the issues directly rather than of those who had experienced this at some by media representations letting portrayals of the queer experience be point in their lives said it had led to suicidal ality is no longer a taboo subject, and employ- of queer women as either overly sexual or brushed of as ‘outdated’. his play also serves attempts or ideation. I could go on. ment rates for LGBT+ and heterosexual cis- constantly preying on their female friends. as a testament to the huge amount of (often While the uK has made a lot of progress gender people are not signiicantly diferent. Being ostracised from the community is no underappreciated) female talent in Cambridge regarding LGBT+ rights and treatment in re- However, it was also an important reminder longer common in cosmopolitan uK cities theatre, and proves that plays focusing on cent decades, statistics like these are a harsh of how far there is still to go – many of the such as London, but many queer women I the experiences of LGBT+ women are sorely reminder of the reality that LGBT+ people still themes and emotions in the play resonated know who live in smaller towns or outside needed. face exclusion and discrimination due to their with me, a bisexual woman, and I know many the uK are either unable to come out to fam- Calling this play “a cultural antique”, as one sexual orientation and/or gender identity on of my LGBT+ friends felt the same. ily members because of the homophobia they 1962 New York Times review did, shows the a daily basis. he Varsity review of he Children’s Hour will experience or have been told by immedi- continued, wilful ignorance of those not af- he production of he Children’s Hour at the suggested the play wasn’t “accessible to a ate family members that being LGBT+ is ine fected by LGBT+ issues, and this is still true ADC this week was an important reminder of contemporary audience” and that it was on ‘as long as the neighbours don’t ind out’. In of society today. Sweeping these problems how far we have come since it was irst pub- the wrong side of the line between invoking many cases, queerness is still seen an embar- aside instead of engaging with them will not lished in 1934 – people are no longer routinely pathos and being melodramatic. Watching rassment, dirty laundry that needs to be kept stop discrimination, and he Children’s Hour ostracised from their community if suspected Martha (Jessica Murdoch) struggle with ac- behind closed doors. was a clear reminder of the crucial work that of having a same-sex relationship, homosexu- cepting her sexuality throughout the play I found it interesting that the Varsity re- remains.

28 F  26 O 2018 Science

ticeably slows down the passing of time within their brains. It has been suggested that this relates to reduced blood ow through the cerebellum, a part of the brain closely associated with movement, as well as cognitive functions like at- Why tention.  e physicists, too, have tried to for- malise time.  e time one perceives is not obviously – in many cases not at all – the same as the ‘objective’ time of chro- nometers.  ey both seem to pass in the same direction, yes, but beyond this little does can be said: biological time, with all its progressions in  ts and starts, seems to be of a wholly distinct character to that of the carriage-clock. As physical theo- ries of time have become increasingly unintuitive over the years, philosophers have oten stood ready to deny the sen- time sible identi cation of the two. Newton, at least, was broadly unob- jectionable. His de nition accorded with the layman’s time: his formalisation of mechanics was built around a universal clock, a single standard by which sec- onds would pass, in any place and in any y ? situation. His universe was one of raw determinism, largely simple intuition: with events occurring simply one ater another, there was plenty of room to  t Joseph Krol discusses the a God behind the scenes. incommensurable nature Relativity changed the story. It is usu- al to give credit entirely to Einstein, but of time perceived and time many of the implications of the theory measured, via such subjects as had been circulating for years in the psychology and relativity scienti c community. Much was largely implicit within Maxwell’s revolutionary formulation of electrodynamics, but it ime passes differently in was only noted in retrospect; Lorentz Cambridge. Weeks might had the formula as early as 1896, but feel like aeons while essays he claimed it only as a mathematical are ground through, and yet convenience, as if not wanting to deal the deadline accelerates to- with the implications. Indeed, in large Twards us, ever faster; the good is all too part, it was Einstein who, in one of his eeting, the tedious drags inescapably. great papers of 1905, bestowed special Term blends into term, year into year, relativity onto an unready world. memories are confused, or else mislaid To speak of precedence in this context – and all this amidst the short stretch ❝ seems almost ironic; the destruction of between matriculation and graduation, temporal ordering is one of the strangest seeming hardly more than a month or In relativ- consequences of the theory. To give a two. It must be said that the human per- ity, brief summary, relativistic physics cen- ception of time is a litany of contradic- tres on reference frames, imaginary co- tions, quite totally illogical. Perhaps this events ordinate systems moving with constant is to be expected; it is, ater all, inextri- can have speed with respect to which all things cably internal, a sense more based on are measured. In Newton’s theory, loca- one’s own psychology than of anything shorter tion largely didn’t matter – for instance, manifestly real. or longer throw a ball in a steady train carriage  e factors that can a ect time per- durations and it will travel, from your perspective, ception are numerous. Perhaps the most just the same as it would have done had notorious is ageing: most people report depending you thrown it while standing on the plat- that time seems to go faster as they be- on your form. In relativity, things behave much come older. Why this is, is still not com- more di erently: depending on your pletely understood, though it is partially point of speed, objects can have completely dif- due to how the brain changes as we age. view ferent lengths, events can have shorter During childhood and adolescence, the or longer durations. brain constantly encounters new experi- ❞  e aspect of the theory that most ences, learning new skills.  en, as one provoked confusion, even anger, from gradually reaches a rut in adulthood, non-physicists was its implications for In 1922, the eminent French philosopher ▲ Illustration by part of it is merely the nostalgia of uni- rarely breaking from routines, the re- the nature of time. It turned out that, Henri Bergson took on Einstein in a pub- Lisha Zhong for versity days, but there seems, beneath sulting lack of mental structural altera- depending on which reference frame you lic debate, arguing that Einstein’s ideas Varsity the historic streets, to be buried a further tions is thought to lead to changes in pick, one can oten either perceive event could not sensibly be interpreted within subtlety. time experience. In the Cambridge con- A precede event B in one, and see event the philosophical paradigm of time; the Nabokov described it well in his text, it is rather like the phenomenon in B before event A in another. However, physicist curtly replied that in his eyes, memoir Speak, Memory, written some which one’s  rst term takes a long while if A and B were causally related, they “there is no time of the philosophers”. three decades ater his years at Trinity to pass: almost everything is new, each were always bound to occur in the usual Later that year, Einstein was awarded (studying, of all things, Natural Scienc- day a new skill learned, each evening order.  e intuitive strangeness of this the Nobel Prize for Physics, but not for es): “I cannot help realising that, aside new people met. was not lost on the thinkers of the time; his work on relativity, which the Com- from striking but more or less transient Drugs also appear to have an intrigu- many wilfully misinterpreted it, with mittee still took to be suspect; for now, customs, and deeper than ritual or rule, ing impact. Again, while little conclusive ‘relative’ devolving into an empty buz- the philosophers had won. there did exist the residual something research has been done in the  eld, most zword. When done seriously, however, Cambridge is prone to provoking a about Cambridge that many a solemn users of cannabis report that it very no- the debates could get quite acrimonious. fresh awareness of time; no doubt some alumnus has tried to de ne. I see this F  26 O 2018 29 Science

Varsity explains How does the Corpus Clock work?

Joseph Krol Science Editor

 e Corpus Clock is one of Cambridge’s most unusual sights – not least for the massing tourists who so oten block Bene’t Street. Unveiled in 2008, its appearance is at once gaudy, re ned, erratic, meticulous – some love the addition to Cambridge’s landmarks, while others think the artwork is unat- tractive, even terrifying. Built to the design of kettle entrepreneur (and Corpus alumnus) John Taylor, it has now confused passers-by for over a decade. ❝  e ghastly insect that adorns the top of the clock was intended as a tribute Cam- to John Harrison, a great clockmaker who revolutionised horology with his introduction of the grasshopper escapement. His work was all done towards bridge is the determination of longitude, the east-west coordinate which was e ectively prone to impossible to calculate without a precise reading of the time. Escapements form the central mechanism of all traditional clocks. Ater provoking being wound, the escapement serves to push the pendulum slightly, with a fresh each swing moving the clock forward by a  xed amount. Since the pendu- lum’s swings are necessarily of the same length, no matter how far out the aware- pendulum swings, this period will stay the same, ensuring that the clock ness keeps good time. Before Harrison, most escapements were fairly crude. His of time invention, the grasshopper escapement, cut down massively on friction by using two pivoted arms, which give the impression of something creeping ❞ round the edge of the clock, hence the name. It was never oten used, being relatively technically involved to produce. While designing his clock, Taylor decided that he wanted to bring back an awareness of clockmaking to the masses, and so incorporated the escapement on the outside of the clock. As such, the ‘Chronophage’ on the top of the clock forms an integral part of its functioning, moving a shade around the clock through which LEDs shine through, marking the passing of the seconds. However, the system is quite deliberately imperfect. Every so oten the clock runs deliberately slowly; at other times the pendulum will stop alto- gether, or even begin to run backwards. It’s only perfectly on time every  ve minutes; Taylor claimed that he wanted to re ect life’s inherent irregularity. Its other quirks include the eyelids of the Chronophage, which open and close at random intervals.  e science behind it may be clear, but in a lot of aspects the artist’s intentions are not. Taylor’s very certain, though, about the meaning of the Chronophage, a name which literally means ‘time-eater’: “I view time as not on your side. He’ll eat up every minute of your life, and as soon as one has gone he’s salivating for the next.”

basic property as the constant awareness ❝ philosophical interpretations. It is a rare one had of an untrammelled extension concept that entrances both the physi- of time… nothing one looked at was shut It’s a rare cist and the philosopher, that exists on o in terms of time, everything was a concept the fringe between us and nature, that natural opening into it, because, in terms that can never quite be understood by either of space, the narrow lane, the cloistered side except in terms of the other; time is lawn, the dark archway hampered one entrances one of the few to have truly taken hold. physically, the yielding diaphonous na- both the Research continues in all of these areas, ture of time was, by contrast, especially striving in earnest to prise free objective welcome to the mind.” physicist details about a concept almost impos- I do not know if we are lucky or un- and sibly ine able. ▶  e Corpus lucky to live in Cambridge, a city forced philosopher To recast it all in two words: time  ies. Clock to look to time for its dimension, a city To go much deeper might only prove a SIMON LOCK at the crossroads of the scienti c and ❞ distraction. 30 F  26 O 2018 Science Separating science from the scientists

Zak Lakota- academia, and speci cally the scienti c connect between the fame of a scientist able and ingrained in scienti c academia, conduct and xenophobia in academia are community? and their personal views and behaviours, that it is neither desirable nor feasible coming to light. Cambridge has received Baldwin asks why Separating science from its scientists however toxic and hateful. to disengage with it. When it comes to almost 200 anonymous reports against is an old phenomenon. Nikola Tesla, for Why is it that Einstein’s abusive be- scientists, a di erent form of action is sexual harassment this year, admitting universities are instance, hailed as the father of elec- haviour is rarely mentioned, yet the use required. that “the University has a signi cant tricity, also happened to be a vocal and abuse of women by celebrated 20th- One response involves adding a more problem involving sexual misconduct”. still protecting advocate for eugenics, believing that century creatives like Ted Hughes and critical historical perspective to the Churchill College Master Athene Donald by 2100 there would be a “universally Pablo Picasso is extensively documented teaching of science giving people the has spoken out publicly against harass- their scientists, established” system for weeding out and discussed? Some might point to the chance to weigh up the achievements ment and bullying. Aron Wall, a maths perceived undesirables such as crimi- stronger link between an artist’s per- and  aws of scientists. In a community lecturer recently hired by this Univer- and how we can nals and the mentally ill. Albert Einstein sonality and their output, as compared that still has a long way to go towards sity, was very publicly criticised for his was a cold and controlling husband who to that of a scientist. Women certainly redressing its problems with diversity homophobic comments made online in be responsible mistreated his  rst wife Mileva Marić featured prominently in the writings and representation, this would send out 2015. And a small handful of professors, scientists until their divorce. If you’ve ever bought and paintings of Hughes and Picasso, the message that science will not toler- mainly in the US, have been suspended a pint at  e Eagle and  inched at the while Einstein’s theory of relativity had ate discrimination. over substantiated sexual harassment exorbitant price, you’ve got the legacy of nothing to say about his marriage. Yet A second response is to allegations. is content contains mention of child Watson and Crick to thank for the entire debate around separating the stop shielding indi- A study published in Nature this June abuse , domestic abuse and eugenics. that, as their choice of the art from the artist centres on individu- vidual academics outlined just how big the problem of hat started with Har- pub to announce their als whose work supposedly has no and start protect- harassment from senior academics is, vey Weinstein in Hol- discovery of DNA. connection to their own transgres- ing academic com- concluding that Universities’ existing lywood, has spread What’s less well- sions. Unsurprisingly, Kevin Spacey munities - change is policies to address the issue are inef- into politics, industry known is James hasn’t made any  lms about the in the air. More and fective. In times of increasing public and journalism. Ac- Watson’s appall- abuse of minors, and yet Net ix more cases of mis- sensitivity to issues of diversity, toler- Wcording to the New York Times, #Me- ing track record announced it would discon- ance and consent, universities must un- Too has brought down 201 powerful of racist, sexist tinue any version of House ◀ ▶ derstand that no matter how impactful, men across the professional spectrum. and homophobic of Cards that included the Einstein prestigious or  nancially rewarding a Bullying, harassment, misconduct and comments. Yet, actor. and Tesla person’s science is, it cannot be pro- views like homophobia or xenophobia Watson contin- It is e ectively impossi- are central duced at the cost of the wellbeing and have become unacceptable, with people ues to command ble to boycott the work of to the safety of their colleagues and students. losing their jobs over the attitudes they significant influ- scientists; Watson’s part in question In order for #MeToo and #TimesUp to portray at work or in private. But when ence in the scienti c the discovery of DNA’s dou- EMMA reach our communities, we must stop will the #TimesUp movement reach world.  ere is a dis- ble helix structure is so valu- DREWETT separating science from the scientist. friday 26th october 2018 31 Sport Bridget Fryer: the woman who wants to transform the Cambridge athletics scene

◀ Fryer was ting standards and expectations about formerly yourself and how you should train,” she president of the smiled. “And she was very American. Oxford Women’s She was just very open about talking Boat Club (CUAC) about winning.” It’s clear that Fryer wants to emulate ▶ Fryer in action that transitional period for the OUWBC for the Light with a lagging CUAC. But for all its il- Blues (CUAC) lustrious sporting history, CUAC has also thrived in recent years as one of Cam- bridge’s most social sports clubs. A large body of its membership pay their subs to come down to the track once a week and just be a part of a relaxed, swap-going collective. he diverse nature of athlet- ics, its purity as a discipline founded mostly on general itness rather than niche skill, makes it a uniquely inclusive University sports club, as Fryer is quick to point out. “If you’re half-sporty there’s probably something for you,” she laughs. “Even if you can’t run you can probably throw something.” And sometimes this open- ness, and inclusivity is key to unearth- ing new talent, talent like Kaesi Opara. He was a basketballer who only took Sport is not something Fryer has been able up competitive sprinting a few months take for granted. It is no wonder that it before the 2017 Varsity meet. here he means so much to her and that she wants, became the best sprinter at Oxbridge, earnestly, for CUAC to bring the same valu- with a 100m time of 10.96. ation to every training session. To instil that discipline and redoubt- I notice Fryer is wearing a University able winning mentality while preserving of Pennsylvania athletics top. A combined this spirit of CUAC, Fryer concedes, will Oxford and Cambridge team competed be a diicult challenge. Yet for her, uni- against Cornell and UPenn in the summer versity represents a golden last chance in the Achilles Cup, she tells me, and it’s to get stuck into something resembling always a good opportunity to get some professional sport. “You can say, I’ve more stash. Penn and Cornell dominated got the time to try and get really good at the podiums, winning 28 of the 38 men’s something whereas when you’re working and women’s events. It’s a stark reminder in London you just don’t have the time,” of the disparity between US and UK uni- she says, perhaps with a lashback to those versity sport and the job Fryer has on her two intervening years on the stock market. hands to realise her bold vision. “It’s a good opportunity to dedicate your- “he Americans are always so shocked self to something you want.” by our setup,” she laughs. “hey have full Fryer was an avid connoisseur of all facilities they can use whenever they like, sports growing up. But a serious skiing they’ll have a coach for every session, a Finn Ranson are just investing a bit more in coach- ❝ accident in her inal year at school tore coach for all their gym work, they’ll have ing, becoming a bit more professional, virtually all her knee ligaments, and doc- a customised plan, a physio. hey look at talks discus and and then they’re probably just getting Athlet- tors advised her to stay away from any us and they can’t believe it.” determination talented people in.” ics is re- high-impact physical activity. When she Cambridge simply doesn’t have the It was, though, a chastening defeat in arrived at Oxford, rowing was one of the same war chest for sport as Cornell or with CUAC’s latest May. he Dark Blues won all four ixtures, ally tricky few sports she could take up. “I turned Upenn. Even when Fryer got involved president men’s and women’s, irsts and seconds, because out to be alright at it, so I was in my col- in the Oxford rowing setup in 2013, both with only Cambridge’s top women hit- lege irst boat straight away,” she said. universities had recently received hun- ting the typical 100-point mark across 17 you’ve got “hen in my second year I trialled for the dreds of thousands of pounds from a eet Bridget Fryer, new head events. he inevitable ebb and low that ten difer- University team, not really expecting to major sponsorship deal with Newton of the oldest athletics club comes with the ephemerality of univer- hang in there.” Investment Management. With limited in the world. In a former sity sport only counts for so much and ent sports She excelled in fact, and seemed set alumni donors, the former exotics trader Mlife as an engineering un- Fryer feels keenly a sense of responsi- and eve- for a starting berth in the Blues boat. But faces an altogether diferent challenge, dergraduate at Oxford, she rowed at bility to introduce systematic change. then disaster struck again. A month into to qualify that visionary ambition with stroke in the University’s second boat, First on the agenda is to bring a piece of ryone’s an the season, en route to training, Fryer pragmatism: “he main goal is to win the headed the Blues Committee and was OUWBC to the Wilberforce track. individual was involved in a major car accident that Varsity match,” she smiles. “And not go elected president of the women’s Boat “We want people in the club to be left her with a broken back. bankrupt in the process.” Fryer has al- athlete and Club in her inal year. After graduating ❝ on the same page quite early on,” she “I completely snapped my spine but ready had to make some tough decisions she worked for a short time in London as began. “With the boat club you have one you don’t just enough that I wasn’t paralysed,” including releasing her discus coach last an exotics trader before starting her PhD he main very tight-knit squad that see each other she said. “hey bolted it back together, year, 2012 Olympian Abdul Buhari. in structural engineering at Downing last twice a day, every day. Athletics is really really com- so then I was kind of safe but it was But make no mistake, she remains year. Now, she dons the Light Blue col- goal is to tricky because you’ve got ten diferent pete as a very uncomfortable. I spent four or ive optimistic. After all the injuries, the toil, ours in discus. However, this presidency win the sports and everyone’s an individual ath- months on a Wattbike: still training, still the hours on the Wattbike, she seems could be one of the Oxbridge veteran’s lete and you don’t really compete as a team until hoping that I could row again.” to have an enduring optimism in the sternest challenges yet. Varsity team until the day of Varsity.” the day of Against all odds, six weeks before the power of sport. She still donates to the Despite a promising start with victory match and he women’s rowing squad was also race, Fryer was selected as the last mem- Oxford boat club — in her eyes it’s the for the women in the Freshers’ Varsity blessed with Christine Wilson. An assist- Varsity ber of Oxford’s second boat. By race day, absolute least she can do. “You realise Match last November, CUAC sufered de- not go ant coach for the US Olympic team in the ❞ Fryer had worked her way up to stroke when you’re working whatever job that feat in both the winter and summer Var- bankrupt run-up to Athens back in 2004, Wilson seat and she led the crew to an extraor- all the teamwork and the determination sity ixtures for the second year running. was a revered but formidable taskmaster dinary victory. “So that was good,” she didn’t come from a lecture theatre or “We used to be really dominant,” Fryer in the proc- who was crucial to the drive to improve says with comic nonchalance. from writing an essay,” she said. “hey explained. “Oxford have just got their act ess and professionalise the women’s teams For her superhuman efort that year came from doing sport and working with together and Cambridge haven’t really ahead of their move to the hames in Fryer’s body paid the price, and shoulder people and striving for something other responded and matched it. Maybe they ❞ 2015. “She was very efective at set- trouble has kept her out of a boat ever since. than just exam results.” 32 F  26  2018

Swi t changes. Varsity speaks to Bridget Fryer, formidable athlete and new CUAC president 31 Sport

CUWLC 14

Exeter 9

Blues ght sleepy start to save winning streak

to dance through, and once again  nd ▲ Cambridge were not satis ed; a  urry of passes soon start, a much hungrier-looking Blues out- Marcus McCabe the bottom corner for 0-2. had to defend culminated in another goal for Tamblyn,  t commenced the second-period as Ex- Sports Editor Despite tireless transition play from deep in the first followed moments later by Crerend and eter had begun the  rst. With Lehovsky Erica Wallace and valiant defending at half NICHOLAS Miller to put Cambridge three goals to winning the ball from the  rst whistle, the back, Cambridge were struggling to FOONG the good. e Blues were now well and the Blues advanced at break-neck speed, ere was a feeling of expectancy in the get out of their own half, and another truly in business. with a  owing move  nished o by a air as the Cambridge Blues and Exeter period spent with Exeter camped inside A goal from Exeter kept up the fre- Could you be clinical  nish from Dillingham. Women’s lacrosse teams warmed up the Cambridge defensive area led to yet netic end-to-end pace but it was imme- a match for is didn’t signal the  ood-gates on a brisk aternoon at St John’s Sports another goal, this time from Garland. ▼ Tamblyn and diately cancelled out by a mazy run and Varsity? Email opening, however, and with both teams Ground. Both teams had won all of their Timeout called, the Cambridge play- Fraser battle to  nish from the uncatchable Wallace. 8-5 our sport team fully settled into the game, the rate of games so far this season, and both had ers looked stressed, but determined to pluck the ball to Cambridge as the half-time whistle at sport@varsity. goals slowed. Eventually Exeter pulled accrued a hety amount of goals in the wake-up and force themselves back into from the sky sounded. co.uk to get one back to make it 9-6, but a yellow process. Cambridge came into the season the game. NICHOLAS FOONG Having recovered from their sleepy involved card for an Exeter defender stunted their as last year’s BUCS Premier South divi- And the blues did look far more fo- ability to push on for a seventh; and it sion defending champions, but Exeter cussed ater the restart. Lehovsky won was Cambridge who hit double  gures were particularly buoyant ater thrash- the ball from the draw and found the minutes later with Lehovsky popping up ing Bath University 21-4 last week. A good upraised crosse of talismanic forward to score a masterful tenth and twelth old-fashioned, top of the table clash. and captain Sophie Tamblyn who  n- either side of another accomplished  n- And it was Exeter who were the more ished high into the top corner to pull ish from Crerend. switched on from the start. A clean win one back for Cambridge. Building on Exeter o ered two consolation goals from the draw had Exeter charging down this momentum, Lehovsky and Miller in the last 5 minutes, but it was too lit- on Cambridge’s back-line, with the  rst ducked and dived and drove from deep tle too late as Cambridge had hit their whistle still ringing across the  eld. until Miller was blocked in front of goal stride and both Tamblyn and Crerend Elmitt, the Exeter number 76, darted where she dispatched the subsequent completed hattricks to leave the scores through a desperate Cambridge backline free shot with aplomb. 14-9 at the  nal whistle. to dispatch the ball into the let-hand Cambridge was resurgent, but Exe- Cambridge were able to claw back bottom-corner. 0-1 with only 10 seconds ter were not rolling over just yet. Elnet control ater a shaky  rst quarter, with on the clock. proved a particularly tricky customer all the Blues showing both skill and hard Cambridge almost found a reply im- game and she completed her  rst half grat all over the pitch, and it will prove mediately with Wise, however, as the hattrick with another strong run stopped a tough aternoon for Bath University Blues number 21 found a yard of space only by a foul and the resulting penalty when they become the Blues’ next victim in the Exeter goalmouth and  red home tucked away into the bottom corner. on 31 October. However, Captain Sophie – only for the goal to be disallowed. In Two goals to four, but not for long, Tamblyn and her team will be well aware what was a frantic start, Exeter respond- as Wise went on to notch two goals of that to git the likes of Oxford and Dur- ed by getting hold of the ball and apply- her own in quick succession ater some ham such a head-start it will be far more ing concerted pressure to the Cambridge smart play around the Exeter goal. dangerous. For now, though, Cambridge defence, until Elnett found another gap Comeback complete, but Cambridge march on.