The American Vandal

The second episode contextualizing Fredric Jameson's lectures at the 1977 Institute On Culture & Society begins with a discussion of Jameson's controversial efforts to resuscitate György Lukács. From this begins a conversation about moment of high theory into which the Institute was inaugurated and the connection of that moment to the more recent method wars [24:00] , the specter of Foucault in Jameson's work [54:00], and how Jameson's models of ideological analysis intersect with his narrative theory and its centrality to Marxist practice [64:00]. Cast (in order of appearance): Caleb Smith, Anna Kornbluh, Matt Seybold, Fredric Jameson, Isabel Bartholomew, Robert Tally Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com

Remastered audio of Fredric Jamesons opening lecture at the 1977 Institute On Culture & Society sponsored by the Marxist Literary Group and hosted by St. Cloud State University. For further context, consider listening to "The Jameson Tapes, Side A" which precedes this episode in The American Vandal Podcast feed. For a bibliography, please visit or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.Substack.com

The first of two installments contextualizing Fredric Jameson's lectures at the 1977 Institute On Culture & Society begins with a discussion of "Marxism & Historicism," followed by conversations about historicizing the lectures [8:00], the process of recovering them [33:30], a key passage about commodity as its own ideology [55:00}, and the long arc of Jameson's thought and influence [71:30]. Cast (in order of appearance): Robert Tally, Matt Seybold, Anna Kornbluh, Caleb Smith, Fredric Jameson, Isabel Bartholomew Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com

Analysis of the Gilded Age tropology of alienation precedes discussions of Hubert Humphrey & Tim Walz [9:00], the reception of "Hillbilly Elegy" and its aftermath [38:00], and "The Mismeasurement of Orcs" [78:00]. Cast (in order of appearance): Matt Seybold, Andie Tucher, Samuel Freedman, Douglas Dowland, Dan Sinykin, J.D. Connor, Robert Tally Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit MarkTwainStudies.com/TheAmericanVandal/Spitesgiving, or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com

Dan Sinykin, a distinguished English professor at Emory, joins novelist Brandon Taylor, McGill's Alexander Manshel, and USC's J.D. Connor to delve into literary sociology. They discuss whether the institutional turn in criticism carries a feminine ethos and its ties to the Post45 Collective. The conversation highlights the limitations of data-driven diversity initiatives in literature and critiques historical biases against women's literary contributions. They also explore the balance between collective engagement and intrinsic literary qualities, alongside the evolving dynamics of literary criticism.

Our ideology critique of contemporary tech fascist SciFi begins with the first selections from Fredric Jameson's 1977 seminar at the Institute On Culture & Society, followed by a journalists narration of the tech fascist turn in Silicon Valley [10:00], ideological analysis of Alt-Right speculative fiction [37:00], and technofeudal yearning to convert probability to prophecy [70:00]. Cast (in order of appearance): Fredric Jameson, Matt Seybold, Jacob Silverman, Jordan S. Carroll Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective Narration: Nathan Osgood & SNR Audio For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit MarkTwainStudies.com/Mutants, or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com

Our inaugural installment of "live" podcasting was recorded with a small audience in the library at Quarry Farm. It features Caroline Levine and Jed Esty discussing their recent books, "The Activist Humanist" and "The Future of Decline," as well as responding to the themes of "A Tale of Today" and "Criticism LTD," and discussing the roles of humanities educators in addressing climate crisis, declinism, superpower nostalgia, and shock doctrine. Cast (in order of appearance): Matt Seybold, Caroline Levine, Jed Esty Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit MarkTwainStudies.com/Affordances, or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com CowbRfXHSk9FO9SFUoho

Yanis Varoufakis, a Greek economist and politician, joins Leigh Claire La Berge, an author and CUNY professor, to explore crucial themes of technofeudalism and speculation. They discuss how political economy intersects with aesthetics and the importance of solidarity in addressing societal insecurities. The conversation dives into the Panic of 1873 as a historical model, critiques Silicon Valley's speculative nature, and reflects on the role of vulnerability in collective action. Expect sharp insights on the complexities of capitalism!

Yanis Varoufakis, a heterodox economist and author, dives into the rise of technofeudalism, exploring its controlling nature in today's digital society. James Livingston, a Marxist economic historian, expresses skepticism about this concept, linking it back to capitalism and questioning its genuine implications. Astra Taylor draws parallels between current economic inequalities and the Gilded Age, emphasizing how historical patterns of insecurity continue to manifest. Together, they unravel the intricate web of power dynamics shaping our digital economy.

Episode opens with journalism's "race to the bottom," described by a journalist who lived it, followed by what "The Facebook Files" revealed about social media's relationship to news [8:00], the tactics of parallel journalism [27:00}, the difference between fake news and fake journalism [38:00], the fate worse than death for periodicals, but not books [48:00], what the acquisition of Twitter taught us about technofeudalism [65:00], and a call to return to institutional media [82:00]. Cast (in order of appearance): Samuel Freedman, Matt Seybold, Jeff Horwitz, Gil Duran, Andie Tucher, Jeff Jarvis, Yanis Varoufakis, Tressie McMillan Cottom Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit MarkTwainStudies.com/Newspapers, or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com