Some of those songs are buried deep in my soul! Talking Heads peaked in the US as I was in high school and just getting into post-punk alt-pop. Byrne was one of the first that I remember who really experimented with video too, right at the front edge of MTV. It's fun to go back and watch/listen...
I think it became fashionable to say that one didn’t go to C’s anymore—conference was too big, problematic, inaccessible, expensive, etc. But then when NCTE did away with it, suddenly it was the most important thing ever, formational for new scholars, etc.
I'm a little guilty of that, if I'm honest. But I think some of us old-timers went through a cycle: CCCC was really important for me in the 90s-00s, but when I hit mid-career, I saw a lot more benefit in smaller confs, more focused audiences, etc. And it felt like CCCC itself was more focused on pulling new members than programming for lifers. I did/do still think that it had real value for newer folks--there's value in connecting with folks in person, and realizing that the books and articles we read have real live people behind them, etc. I'm glad I went this year, but even if they were to reinstate it tomorrow, I'm not sure my life would be substantially different one way or the other :)
But yeah, I do think there's been a bit of "not knowing what we had til it's gone" in the fiery reactions...
C’s was also basically our only conference with name recognition. It’s probably the only conference that the lit people or the comm studies people will have heard of, and that makes a difference for things like tenure promotion
NOW I finally get David Byrne. Thanks, just even for that.
Some of those songs are buried deep in my soul! Talking Heads peaked in the US as I was in high school and just getting into post-punk alt-pop. Byrne was one of the first that I remember who really experimented with video too, right at the front edge of MTV. It's fun to go back and watch/listen...
I think it became fashionable to say that one didn’t go to C’s anymore—conference was too big, problematic, inaccessible, expensive, etc. But then when NCTE did away with it, suddenly it was the most important thing ever, formational for new scholars, etc.
I'm a little guilty of that, if I'm honest. But I think some of us old-timers went through a cycle: CCCC was really important for me in the 90s-00s, but when I hit mid-career, I saw a lot more benefit in smaller confs, more focused audiences, etc. And it felt like CCCC itself was more focused on pulling new members than programming for lifers. I did/do still think that it had real value for newer folks--there's value in connecting with folks in person, and realizing that the books and articles we read have real live people behind them, etc. I'm glad I went this year, but even if they were to reinstate it tomorrow, I'm not sure my life would be substantially different one way or the other :)
But yeah, I do think there's been a bit of "not knowing what we had til it's gone" in the fiery reactions...
C’s was also basically our only conference with name recognition. It’s probably the only conference that the lit people or the comm studies people will have heard of, and that makes a difference for things like tenure promotion