Robert Davis
@rdavis19.bsky.social
MA RHUL, PhD CUNY | Currently on about 1840s NYC brothels
And this is how you end a book (1846)!
July 24, 2025 at 7:42 PM
And this is how you end a book (1846)!
from Frederick Douglass, What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? (1852)
"For it is not light that is needed, but fire."
"For it is not light that is needed, but fire."
July 4, 2025 at 1:40 PM
from Frederick Douglass, What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? (1852)
"For it is not light that is needed, but fire."
"For it is not light that is needed, but fire."
Reading some of Anthony Comstock's TRAPS FOR THE YOUNG (1883) this morning. This is how he opens his chapter on love. He compares progressives to inanimate sewers and claims they are trying to destroy America. Most surprisingly is how familiar the rhetoric is today.
June 20, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Reading some of Anthony Comstock's TRAPS FOR THE YOUNG (1883) this morning. This is how he opens his chapter on love. He compares progressives to inanimate sewers and claims they are trying to destroy America. Most surprisingly is how familiar the rhetoric is today.
First stop in Montréal.
May 30, 2025 at 1:08 PM
First stop in Montréal.
#3: The op-ed has no inflammatory rhetoric. It is almost wholly taken up with college governance and policy. While it champions free speech, it is largely a procedural piece of writing.
May 9, 2025 at 2:55 PM
#3: The op-ed has no inflammatory rhetoric. It is almost wholly taken up with college governance and policy. While it champions free speech, it is largely a procedural piece of writing.
#2: The op-ed is not a denouncement of Israel's actions. It is actually a missive directed at the President on a point of policy. The title:
May 9, 2025 at 2:55 PM
#2: The op-ed is not a denouncement of Israel's actions. It is actually a missive directed at the President on a point of policy. The title:
A few things that I think a lot of journalists and commentators overlook about the Rümeysa Öztürk case.
#1: Despite how it is widely reported, Öztürk did not actually write an op-ed. It was co-written with three others, none of whom, as far as I know, have faced legal consequences.
#1: Despite how it is widely reported, Öztürk did not actually write an op-ed. It was co-written with three others, none of whom, as far as I know, have faced legal consequences.
May 9, 2025 at 2:55 PM
A few things that I think a lot of journalists and commentators overlook about the Rümeysa Öztürk case.
#1: Despite how it is widely reported, Öztürk did not actually write an op-ed. It was co-written with three others, none of whom, as far as I know, have faced legal consequences.
#1: Despite how it is widely reported, Öztürk did not actually write an op-ed. It was co-written with three others, none of whom, as far as I know, have faced legal consequences.
And, what is really thrilling, this book does not skimp on rigor. There is almost 80 pages of notes, bibliography, index, etc.
March 26, 2025 at 2:40 PM
And, what is really thrilling, this book does not skimp on rigor. There is almost 80 pages of notes, bibliography, index, etc.
What's cooler than that?
A Cast of Characters!
Giving some drama, but also 19th century Russian novel vibes.
A Cast of Characters!
Giving some drama, but also 19th century Russian novel vibes.
March 26, 2025 at 2:40 PM
What's cooler than that?
A Cast of Characters!
Giving some drama, but also 19th century Russian novel vibes.
A Cast of Characters!
Giving some drama, but also 19th century Russian novel vibes.
First up, I LOVE a theatrical structure to a book. Five acts? Yes, please!
March 26, 2025 at 2:40 PM
First up, I LOVE a theatrical structure to a book. Five acts? Yes, please!
So excited to have gotten into @hallierubenhold.bsky.social's STORY OF A MURDER, which came out yesterday in the US. Here are my initial impressions, aka how it exceeded the expectations held in the nerdiest corners of my readerly heart.
March 26, 2025 at 2:40 PM
So excited to have gotten into @hallierubenhold.bsky.social's STORY OF A MURDER, which came out yesterday in the US. Here are my initial impressions, aka how it exceeded the expectations held in the nerdiest corners of my readerly heart.
And, because she's great, and because @dirtysexyhistory.bsky.social has an amazing pair of podcasts about her, the one and only Lola Montez, who is always a joy to visit.
March 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
And, because she's great, and because @dirtysexyhistory.bsky.social has an amazing pair of podcasts about her, the one and only Lola Montez, who is always a joy to visit.
For any Gangs of New York fans, we randomly came across the (very opinionated) grave of William Poole, aka "Bill the Butcher."
March 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
For any Gangs of New York fans, we randomly came across the (very opinionated) grave of William Poole, aka "Bill the Butcher."
Laura Keene (1826-1873), most famous for acting in Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre where Lincoln was assassinated, but was a groundbreaking theatre manager at a time when the industry was heavily male-dominated.
March 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Laura Keene (1826-1873), most famous for acting in Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre where Lincoln was assassinated, but was a groundbreaking theatre manager at a time when the industry was heavily male-dominated.
A red-tailed hawk perched on a mausoleum.
March 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
A red-tailed hawk perched on a mausoleum.
From a class field trip to Green-Wood Cemetery. First stop, a memorial to the victims of the 1876 Brooklyn Theatre Fire. Info here: brooklyntheaterfire1876.com
March 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
From a class field trip to Green-Wood Cemetery. First stop, a memorial to the victims of the 1876 Brooklyn Theatre Fire. Info here: brooklyntheaterfire1876.com
(same year and source)
March 8, 2025 at 1:16 PM
(same year and source)
Dr. Seuss, 1941 (Special Collections and Archives, UC San Diego Library)
March 8, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Dr. Seuss, 1941 (Special Collections and Archives, UC San Diego Library)
February 26, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Because plutocracy works so well for everyone (1883).
January 28, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Because plutocracy works so well for everyone (1883).
Thanks to @dirtysexyhistory.bsky.social, whenever I go to a thrift store, I am now the guy who inspects the flatware. TOTALLY NORMAL.
January 25, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Thanks to @dirtysexyhistory.bsky.social, whenever I go to a thrift store, I am now the guy who inspects the flatware. TOTALLY NORMAL.