Cabinet 39: Learning

What is learning? An excruciating struggle with techniques and facts? A sensation of joyful encounter with the hitherto unknown? The very notion of the pedagogical conjures a whole range of emotions, and its implications are evident throughout society—for what is culture, after all, but the transmission of knowledge? The thematic section of Cabinet 39 features an interview with John Haynes, pioneer of the modern instruction manual; Jeff Dolven outlining the theater of pedagogy; Elaine Traub tracing the history of distance learning; Sina Najafi tracking the development of the A-F grading system; and an interview with Zoë Readhead, principal of Summerhill, the world's first "free school." Elsewhere in the issue: Michael Shipley on voice experts used by the police and security services; Emily Walters on boots and colonialism; Suzanne Scott on the history of suntanning; Kris Lee on Kierkegaard and the promotional blurb; and Katrin Arnardottir on the sex lives of Icelandic elves.