A knot in the throat, or that time a gangster died of appendicitis
Based on “Fools Banished from the Kingdom: Remapping Geographies of Gang Violence between the Americas (Los Angeles and San Salvador)” by Zilberg Elana. I had spent the last…
Tag: Academic Fictions
Bend like a Willow Tree
‘Watch out, we’ll catch every one of you!’ Hamza’s shrill voice echoed in the stairwell, and through the opening, he saw a swarm of children scattering to hide…
Dear Yaye
November 2017 Dear Yaye, I am writing to you because a week ago, Babacar returned. Babacar Diop, I think I might have written to you about him,…
2084
PART I Two Years Ago It was a hot day in July, and clocks were striking eight. It had been fifteen years since the Pacifying Police Units (UPPs)…
‘Call to Arms: Silver and Lead’ Campaign Review
‘Call to Arms: Silver and Lead’ campaign review Posted December 10, 2034 by Julie Annie (staff writer at Génial Gaming) Answering the Call to Arms (yet again)…
Morumbi and Paraisópolis: A Four-Act Play
Dramatis Personae Heitor: a 13-year-old boy Mr. Gomes, his father: a waste handler, working at a garbage dump Ms. Gomes, his mother: a dry cleaner, working from home…
Academic Fictions: A ballad of Kochi
Come oh villagers, come to the port Carry your sickles and scythes, sticks and rocks Come to the port, our city has fallen!! Our little city by the…
Academic Fictions: 2022
Last year, the Allegra Lab began a thematic thread showcasing a selection of the wonderful “academic fictions” written by students as an assignment for the course on “Cities,…
#Academic Fictions: All in a day – The story of an intersection
It is early, the sun has only just begun to rise. A bird swoops from her nest to rest on an electric wire. She overlooks an intersection, a…
Lettre à Madame la Maire
Le 4 janvier 2021 English Version Madame la Maire, Si je vous écris aujourd’hui, c’est pour vous faire part de ma tristesse, et de mon indignation.…
Academic Fictions: Lettre à France
English Version Paris, le 22 Décembre 2020 Chère France, Comme tu[i] le sais, j’ai assisté, sur tes recommandations, au Congrès International des Capitales du monde. Je dois admettre…
#Academic Fictions: Cape Town through Time and Space: An Experimental Poem
Part 1: 1921 “Poison Tea, Colonial Imports”, by an Observer “Them nasty Malays can make it work months after you take it”, quotes Lady Duff G.: This,…
Academic Fictions: A Tale of Two Value-Based Cities
I am very fatigued. Since the first day of 2020, something strange has happened to me. Every day I wake up to a different place – well, technically…
Academic Fictions: You are John
ff 1. There are two twins sat on the beach but one is farther up the shore, closer to West Point, or right inside it, depending on which…
#Academicfictions: Nina was here
“Miss Nina, time to wake up! First bus leaves in half an hour!” Nina opened her eyes halfway, and nodded assent. “OK honey, I’ll check on you in…
#Academic Fictions: Citizen Insurgency
Sing, O Muse, the anger of urban citizens upon whom countless ills have been brought by the City. Many a brave soul did the City send hurrying back…
Academic Fictions: Introduction
An often underestimated but critical element of academic endeavour is communication. There is no doubt that many academic books and articles are dense and impenetrable, written in jargon-laden,…