Every fortnight the Tharunka editorial team compiles the best media we’ve been avoiding and/or complementing our studies with. Have fun!
Books
Axel: The Mysteries of Udolpho (Ann Radcliffe 1794): One of the OG Gothic horror writers, and originator of the genre terms ‘horror’ and ‘terror’. It’s very 18th Century (archetypal, really), but immensely beautiful and an interesting history lesson in the origins of all things Gothic and horror.
Henry: The Lost Man (Jane Harper, 2018). A thrilling story of family secrets set in the Australian outback, two things that mean so much more now that we’re confined to our homes.
Jack: Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism: a (rare) political science book written with actual style
Movies/TV shows
Jo: Normal People (Netflix, 2020)
Jack: Normal People: would recommend watching with subtitles
Saafiyah: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (pls don’t judge me lol)
Axel: Futurama (1999-2013; seasons 1-7, films 1-4). Put them all on shuffle, have fun. Get overly invested in all of them. Cry about how Bender’s actually a bisexual Mexican boy enslaved by the system and actually has a lot of depth as a character. Snap yourself out of it. Ground yourself in reality. Accept that sometimes logic simply does not work.
Podcasts/Music
Henry: The Minefield (Waleed Aly and Scott Stephens). Consistently thoughtful reflections on ethics and philosophy in relation to current events. Local academics are frequently invited on for lively debate. This podcast has all the depth of a uni course, only without the $1000 price tag.
Axel: The Magnus Archives (written by Jonny Sims and distributed by Rusty Quill). An immensely weird and beautiful horror podcast, dubbed by my best friend, ‘if Plato were an emo kid with a podcast and an adequate outlet for his sexuality’. Its premise is that it’s the audio recordings of an archive of supernatural events.