SpokenWordParis

Mandoline Whittlesey

By Mandoline Whittlesey

Embodiment: a process in which we bring our experience of the world into our bodies, in which we allow our bodies’ experience to be the learning….
So what is embodied learning? Who does it? Is it even possible to learn in a disembodied way?
Somatic practices (from the Greek Soma, “of the living body”) are those specialized in conscious embodiment, that is, choosing to include the body in a person’s learning process.
What are the advantages of conscious embodiment?
Cellular model for learning: How does a single cell, and the way cellular communities develop, provide insight into the function of our nervous system?
These questions find their roots in phenomenology, post-Jungian psychology, advances in neuroscience and centuries of intuition and experience … but my desire is to share this topic in a simple, interactive way, offering an accessible perspective on our life and learning.
I was asked to offer a reading list, but really this is not an academic lecture: I would rather suggest that you notice the sensations in your feet while you brush your teeth, observe how your breath adjusts to the next conversation you have, and really feel the next thing or person that turns you on!
Bring your minds, bodies, questions and experiences to share!

Come listen Sunday, May 20th at Au Chat Noir.

Kate Noakes

By Kate Noakes
Cutting poetry out of your reading life is just fucking yourself up. Join us for a close-reading and discussion of 3 of Larkin’s most famous poems: “This be the verse,” “High Windows” and “Annus Mirabilis.”

We have chosen the so-called ‘foul-mouthed’ or explicit ones to explore why in terms of cultural and historical context they were shocking and to ask whether they are still something of a surprise. For those of you who do not enjoy poetry on a regular basis, or even at all, or are violently opposed to the merest mention of the word poetry, this is a chance to see how such practice is not only rewarding, but essential to anyone who would call themselves a writer.

Kate Noakes is a poet from Reading. Her first collection, Ocean to Interior, was published in December 2007. Her second collection, The Wall Menders, was published by Two Rivers Press in 2009. She is mindfully foul-mouthed.

Listen to Kate’s lecture and discussion here:
– Download (1:09:44)

Griffin Payne

By Griffin Payne
Groups define themselves by creating stories for themselves – a mythology. It is this mythology that gives them a shared identity that transforms them from a group to a tribe. When mythologies reject totally the standards of a society or a community, they become radical. Radical mythologies are behind radical change. For it is only tribes that are effective harbingers of change and activity. Members of a group lack the necessary shared conviction. Please join us to hear Griffin discussion his experiences as a queer shaman and how radical mythologies have shaped his life.

Listen to Griffin’s lecture here:
– Download (20:13)

Listen to the discussion here:
– Download (34:27)