Issue 232

Thursday October 10, 2019 Issue 232

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Features

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Page 17

Gin Society under new leadership SIOBHAN ALI

Photo: Tom Parnell, Flickr

Deputy News Editor

Andrew Melville Hall under investigation for temporary flag ban Students claim they “no longer feel comfortable” with staff, citing privacy concerns ANNIE SMITH

Editor-in-Chief

University of St Andrews’ Andrew Melville Hall (AMH) staff are under fire after removing flags from individual student bedrooms, citing an unsourced university-wide no-flag policy and allegedly telling affected students that their flags could be viewed as offensive, according to AMH residents.

The removed flags include a trans pride, multiple gay pride, Welsh, and a Maryland state flag.

The incident occurred on Wednesday 18 September 2019, when residents had their first official room cleanings and inspections as scheduled.

Upon returning to their bedrooms, a number of residents found

that the flags they displayed in their private bedrooms were taken down, and marked with a sticky note from the head of housekeeping stating that flags were not permitted in private bedrooms.

One of the notes, attached to a gay pride flag, which was removed from the student’s pinboard and folded on their bed, read “[sic] I am sorry But you are not allowed to put flag’s up thank you ... Housekeeping Supervisor.”

Flags were removed in blocks A, B, D, and E of AMH, each of which is cleaned by a different housekeeping staff.

The next day, Thursday 19 September, the Deputy Residential Services Manager (DRSM) emailed hall residents saying, “We have had several questions about flags and posters.

“Flags and posters are permitted

as long as they are not on or near the windows.

“If they are hung on the walls and any damage caused will be charged to each individual.

“If you wish to discuss this further please pop into the office.”

Though the email reversed the noflag policy, some students expressed upset that there were not given an apology or further explanation for the initial taking down of flags in private bedrooms.

Students also expressed dismay in their resident group chat after members of the housekeeping staff told them that flags were removed because of “past controversy.”

This is in addition to other reasons for removing the flags including an University-wide no-flag policy and fire hazards, though the University does not hold an absolute no-flag policy in bedrooms as they are allowed

on pinboards and many of the flags taken down were made of fire retardant material.

While the University does hold a policy that flags are not allowed outside or on windows in halls of residence, flags are allowed on the room pinboards, contrary to what AMH residents were told by housekeeping staff.

After these complaints and the incident itself, members of the AMH hall committee attended the hall’s general staff meeting on 19 September and brought up the issue.

Staff in attendance included the Head Warden, Deputy Residential Services Manager, and Residential Services Manager of Andrew Melville Hall.

Continues on page 3...

At the beginning of this year, The Saint’s Features Editor Angus Neale sat down with St Andrews’ newest recruits, Toby and Jonah Lowenstein, to discuss their entrepreneurial venture: The St Andrews Gin Society.

After a year packed with ginthemed events such as their iconic Maiden Event and memorable Prohibition Dinner, the Lowenstein brothers have decided to pass the mantle to second-year student Flora Williams-Ellis.

Continues on Page 4

The complex history of gender in horror films

Arts & Culture

Page 24

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10 October 2019· thesaint-online.com

NEWS

What’s Inside?

3 8 14 18 20 22 29

News

THE SAINT EDITORIAL

VieWPOINT

More needs to be done to protect LGBT+ students

Features

Photos

EVENTS

Arts and culture Page 23

SPORT

This week’s front-page story details an incident in Andrew Melville Hall in which multiple types of flag were removed from private bedrooms.

A University-wide ‘no-flag policy’ claimed by housekeeping staff was reversed the next day.

In our Viewpoint section, our Deputy Editor explains why flags of all kinds should be allowed in private bedrooms; after all, it’s a private bedroom, and you should not be censored as to how you decorate your living space, whether you’re in University halls of residence or not.

However, a main topic of concern in the aftermath of the flag removal incident in AMH is the taking down of gay and trans pride flags in private bedrooms, which left some LGBT+ students in the hall feeling marginalised, censored in the act of expressing their identity, and ultimately feeling unsafe in their home.

When asked for comment, Parker Hansen, the LGBT+ Officer for the Students’ Association, said he could understandably not comment on an ongoing investigation within the University, and then noted that Saints

LGBT+ offers support for students and are happy to point them towards properly-trained supporters through the Saints LGBT+ Facebook or their email.

In a similar vein, Director of Wellbeing Flora Smith said, “The Students’ Association will continue to advocate for the interests of minority students, as well as promoting inclusivity within the Association through the good work of our elected representatives on the Equal Opportunities Subcommittee and the ‘Zero Tolerance’ Policy.”

While Saints LGBT+ and the Students’ Association are without doubt working behind the scenes to address the incident itself, the rest of us seem to be left in the dark as to what is actually being done to protect LGBT+ students at the University from marginalisation, bullying, and other acts that may leave them feeling unsafe in expressing their identity.

It’s one thing to say that support is available and the organisation has a ‘Zero Tolerance’ policy, but to an LGBT+ student frustrated with the system, these can feel like blanket

statements and band-aids to cover a larger systemic issue.

If an LGBT+ student feels unsafe in halls, Saints LGBT+ should introduce new initiatives to protect these students and those in similar situations.

They should work with Residential and Business Services to find them alternative accommodation if the student desires. And, most importantly, they should be publicly transparent about specific ways students can find support and guidance through vulnerable situations, rather than only doing so when being asked for comment by us.

This is not to say that Saints LGBT+ is lacking support for the students they represent; on the contrary, the organisation works year-round to ensure it is doing what they can for LGBT+ students of the University of St Andrews.

But when the system fails LGBT+ students and leaves them feeling unsafe in their own home, that home being a University hall of residence, more must be done to look to the future and ensure that such situations do not happen again.

THE SAINT TEAM Archie Batra Deputy Editor Sam Stanford Web Editor Tamara McWilliam News editor Joe Waters Viewpoint editor Sanjana Ramaswamy Money editor Angus Neale Features editor Stella Gage Events editor Olivia Hendren A&C editor Annabel Steele A&C editor Editor editor@thesaint-online.com Deputy editor print@thesaint-online.com Web editor web@thesaint-online.com

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According to students in attendance at the meeting, who were Senior Student Conor Straub, Treasurer Chloe Gutteridge, and Deputy Senior Student Rachel Cripps, members of the AMH housekeeping staff said “we live in a world nowadays where anybody can be offended by anything, so the flags were considered offensive.”

One student felt that this was a direct admission that members of staff were offended by LGBT+ flags.

When asked why flags were removed from noticeboards when they were not visible through the windows or hanging outside the room, staff allegedly told students present at the meeting that someone could be walking by or opening the door and be offended, and that they were not previously allowing flags on pin boards because people could still see them.

However, the only people able to enter a private room without a student’s permission are members of staff, and many pin boards are not visible from the corridor or door.

Staff seemingly rectified the situation the day after When students at the AMH general staff meeting asked for more clarification as to why the flags were removed, they were told that the University of St Andrews has held a university-wide no-flag policy for years, and that it had just recently been changed. However, the only mention of flags in the residential contract and accommodation agreement is in section 10.8.1, which states that students must not “hang banners, flags, or similar materials in windows or on the outside of the residence.”

While this is still the case, the removed flags from AMH rooms were safely pinned to the room noticeboards, which are the designated spot for students to hang pictures, posters, or flags as other wall hangings are prohibited.

Staff seemingly rectified the situation the day after room inspections (19 September) via email, saying that flags were allowed on noticeboards, and Conor Straub, Senior Student of the AMH committee, also noted that the situation was resolved.

He said to The Saint, “The situation in Melville regarding flags being taken down arose as the result of a misunderstanding - there was never any intention of targeting or discrimination against any particular group of

people.

“The issue was immediately resolved when brought to the attention of the staff and students continue to celebrate their identities within Andrew Melville Hall.”

However, some residents still feel that there are still explanations and apologies to be made from hall staff to those affected.

One student cited section 28.1 of the accommodation contract, which specifies that residence management must notify students to changes in the contract via a formal email or letter, meaning the initial taking down of flags under a non-existent policy was a breach of the contract.

Additionally, some residents of AMH felt they were owed an apology for their flags, particularly those being of LGBT+ or country pride, having been taken down even though they were found to be allowed on the room noticeboards the following day.

One AMH resident, who wished to remain anonymous due to discussion of his LGBT+ identity, told The Saint, “I think an apology should be given to students, and what the students have been communicated so far is inadequate. In my opinion, we should receive a sincere apology that includes info on where the decision came from and why it was made.”

The AMH resident continued, “As an LGBT student myself, I feel very upset with the situation as I was forced to explain to the staff member who confronted me the type of pride flag that was hung up in my room, potentially outing me to both that staff member and higher up staff members in Melville.

“I do not know how other LGBT+ students feel about this, but I imagine that there is a possibility that other students feel the same way as I do. In my opinion, while the policy has been

St Andrews told The Saint, “We are a university that flies many flags, and is proud to celebrate diversity in all its forms. Our policy is clear: all expressions of identity should be supported, but materials in windows or on the outside of the residence are not allowed.”

My initial reaction was disbelief, followed by rage “The Residential Services Manager and Deputy Residential Services Manager mistakenly thought that flags were not permitted to be displayed in bedrooms and instructed staff to remove flags. This was not targeted at any particular flag or group and all flags were taken down.”

After attending the 19 September meeting with staff about the incident, Deputy Senior Student Rachel Cripps told The Saint, “I felt that my voice was not heard, and that the voices of the LGBT+ and international students of this hall are being silenced through this act.

“I no longer feel comfortable having members of staff enter my private bedroom, which contains clues to my identity (such as flags, pins, etc.). I no longer feel comfortable in interactions with the RSM and DRSM.” She continued, “In order to pro-

Photo: Elena Maria

Continued from Page 1

changed back to follow University policy, until we get an explanation as to why the policy was implemented in the first place the situation cannot be fully resolved.”

Regarding LGBT+ students that may feel marginalised after this incident in Andrew Melville Hall, a spokesperson for the University of

tect and foster the community of inclusivity and diversity in Andrew Melville Hall, as well as uphold the University’s legal obligation to uphold Freedom of Expression and the Equality Act, I believe that some form of action must be taken.”

Ms Cripps reached out to President

of the Students’ Association Jamie Rodney and Director of Wellbeing Flora Smith, encouraging them to take executive action.

Ms Smith told The Saint, “The Students’ Association has been in touch with the relevant university staff in order to address this incident.

“The Students’ Association will continue to advocate for the interests of minority students, as well as promoting inclusivity within the Association through the good work of our elected representatives on the Equal Opportunities Subcommittee and the ‘Zero Tolerance’ Policy.”

Parker Hansen, LGBT+ officer for the Students’ Association, told The Saint he could not currently comment on the flag incident in AMH because the investigation was ongoing, but he emphasised the support offered

by Saints LGBT+ and said they are happy to point them towards properly-trained supporters through the Saints LGBT+ Facebook or email.

LGBT+ pride flags were not the only ones taken down, as others including the Maryland state flag and Welsh flag were also removed.

Students in general praised the AMH committee AMH resident Katie Roberts was told she could not hang her Welsh flag on her room pinboard and initially assumed her cleaner was joking as the cleaner was Scottish and the flag was Welsh.

She was also informed by reception that the flag was not allowed due to “past controversy” and fire hazards, even though her flag was made of 100 per cent polyester, a fire-retardant material.

Ms Roberts said to The Saint, “My initial reaction was disbelief, followed by rage. How could I be censored in my own room? As protest I wore my Welsh rugby jersey until the issue was resolved.

“If you couldn’t have a flag in your own room, why could I wear a jersey around halls without comment. To me, my flag and the three feathers on my chest are one and the same.”

As some students were informed of the apparent policy change via a sticky note on their removed flag, Ms Roberts added, “In the future, if anything is removed in your room, I feel you should have a formal email rather than a post-it note and a reference to the piece of literature stating why it is that you are not allowed that item.”

A spokesperson for the University said, “When [the staff] were chal-

lenged as to why they had taken down the flags they checked the terms of occupancy and realised their mistake.

According to the terms of occupancy it is not permitted to hang banners, flags or similar materials in windows or on the outside of the residence.

“Residential & Business Services are aware that the hall warden has been speaking with the students involved and it is hoped that a meeting with all interested parties can be arranged soon.”

Students in general praised the AMH committee, compiled of University students, for their quick action to rectify the situation, yet had mixed feelings as to how the hall staff handled the situation.

Ms Roberts said, “I think the hall committee acted quickly and professionally, much more so then the staff.

I believe that an apology should be issued as LGBT+ students had their flags taken down with no explanation.

Of course you would assume the issue was with what the flag represents rather than the flag itself, [and] this could have lead some students to feel unsafe and unwelcome to be themselves in their own space.”

Resident Dan Vinton also believes that an apology should be issued.

He told The Saint, “This was a truly bizarre attempt by staff to enforce a non-existent rule for reasons that no one can quite fathom, then cover it up with a vague reference to offence, fire hazard, or it being an established university-wide rule.

“Nothing can be done on the part of students to prevent episodes like this, because it was conducted on the part of staff alone. To prevent this, staff should be required to do what they’re already required to do, which is to communicate clearly and transparently about rules and follow the legally-binding residence agreement.”

AMH resident Elena Maria noted that her flag getting down felt like an invasion of privacy and censorship of how she decorates her room.

She told The Saint, “I think it’s out of order that they acted in a way that was not in the contract. I think there needs to be a ‘discussion’ with students and staff members about privacy where the students and staff can together create official boundaries.”

Speaking on the incident, President of the Students’ Association Jamie Rodney told The Saint, “The Students Association has been in contact with Residential and Business Services, and with other relevant University staff in order to rectify the issue. I can’t comment on what is an ongoing investigation, but we fully support the right of LGBT+ students to express themselves, and feel included in their halls of residence.”

“I know we have a way to go before we totally eradicate prejudice on campus, but I’m incredibly proud of everything the Students’ Association, [led] by Saints LGBT+, has done in this regard.”

Rachel Cripps, who was quoted for comment, is Illustration Chief for The Saint, though this does not affect the reporting of the article.

4

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

NEWS

University scientists make breakthrough volcanic study HANNAH DOUGLAS-KINNIBURGH

Deputy News Editor

ics, mantle dynamics and heat flow.

In their investigation, the team was able to identify crustal material in mantle-derived rocks, supporting the theory of crustal recycling.

Subducting portions of crust at sites of tectonic convergence carry volatile samples of water and other materials into the mantle.

Therefore, as this crust has differ-

Photo: University of St Andrews

Adrian Finch, Nicola Horsburgh, Anouk Borst, and William Hutchinson from the University of St Andrews have worked together to

to previous research in the quest to determine what happens to the crust when it enters the mantle.

In a statement made by the University of St Andrews, their research “reveals the fate of the Earth’s ancient crust” which “could help solve the mystery of how the Earth’s surface and mantle are connected.”

When a tectonic plate is subduct-

complete a detailed study which investigated a sulphur fractionation in a Mesoproterozoic alkaline province in Greenland.

Published in Nature Communications last month, the study offers an alternative method Continued from Page 1 The Saint sat down with Ms Williams-Ellis to discuss the plans she has for this forthcoming year and everything the Gin Society will have to offer for St Andrews’ gin enthusiasts and sceptics alike.

The Gin Society spent the last year building a strong foundation in the Fife coastal town and gathering a legion of gin-enthusiasts.

Their events were extremely well-received, with their first party, The Maiden Event, selling out in only 34 seconds.

Their distinct “First Kiss: St Andrews Edition” video made waves throughout town, receiving over 100,000 views and being the topic of conversation on everyone’s lips.

It was also featured in publications like The Tab and The Saint, as well as making it onto various Facebook pages in St Andrews.

Their next event the following semester, The Prohibition Dinner, established itself in a league of its own, bringing something unprecedented to the St Andrews social scene.

With a three-course meal, a plethora of gin varieties courtesy of their sponsor Edinburgh Gin, a magician, Instagram-worth photo booths, cabaret dancers and a unique Gatsby theme complete with fairy lights and flapper dresses as well as music from local artist Ben Hawken, the dinner ended the year on a high note and left the town excited for what would come next.

Working in event design last year, Ms Williams-Ellis’ creativity and attention to detail made her a stellar candidate to take on the challenge of offering immersive experiences to students in St Andrews.

Under Mrs Williams-Ellis’ management, the Gin Society has a brandnew committee featuring students

ed due to convergence, one plate is pushed down deep into the mantle.

This research aims to discover the ultimate fate of this crust, as this is the key to understanding geochemical recycling as well as myriad effects on magma composition, plate tecton-

ent isotopic signatures to the primitive mantle, it is possible to determine whether it resurfaces, i.e. whether it is “recycled”.

In the past, the most significant insights into the connection between the surface and mantle sulphur reser-

voirs have been gained through studying oceanic hotspots, particularly ocean island basalts (OIBs).

However, their restricted age rate (<200 Ma) means OIBs cannot reveal temporal variations in crustal recycling over the Earth’s history.

Sulphur is associated with recycled sources and are found throughout the geological record in alkaline rocks.

This alternative method of study provides a more accurate way of identifying occurrences of crust recycling.

The scientists from the University of St Andrews have provided work which demonstrates that alkaline rocks are a powerful dataset for understanding the relationship between the surface and mantle sulphur reservoirs.

Lead author Dr William Hutchinson, from the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, said, “The beauty of our global dataset is that it extends back over two billion years and so these unique alkaline rocks represent an extremely powerful record of understanding crustal recycling over Earth history.”

This statement emphasises the ad-

throughout the University working in partnership on design, marketing, music and more.

Ms Williams-Ellis is eager to build on the high standard for events established last year, noting that the Gin Society “has its foot firmly on the St Andrews events ladder” as a society that offers experiences “from the first Gin and Tonic to the last sweet.”

It is important for Ms WilliamsEllis and her committee to maintain the core ethos of the society to craft “beautifully curated” and aesthetically pleasing events while offering something fresh and unprecedented in a town with a brimming social calendar.

The study offers an alternative method to previous research Their paper, titled “Sulphur isotopes of alkaline magmas unlock long-term records of crustal recycling on Earth”, provides a new perspective in understanding the fate of the Earth’s crust once it enters the mantle.

Their works brings Earth Sciences that much closer to answering the long-unanswered question: “How are the Earth’s surface and mantle connected?”

The charity supports a range of vulnerable groups of utmost priority, from disabled children and marginalised individuals such as refugees and homeless people to schoolchildren in disadvantaged areas and carers of disabled people.

The Gin Society spent the last year building a strong foundation

One of the changes to the society is its affiliation with a charity

Hosting a variety of events this coming year, both big raves and more intimate gatherings, the new and improved Gin Society will continue pushing the boundaries of creativity and collaborate with big names in the gin industry to redefine the idea of a night out in St Andrews.

At the same time, the aims of the Gin Society have “reformed” over the last year.

While they will continue the traditions of gin-fuelled dancing and entertainment in celebration of a com-

vantages of studying alkaline rocks.

The alkaline rock’s low viscosities, densities and temperatures promote their rapid rise to the surface, reducing any evidence of crustal contamination.

Photo: St Andrews Gin Society mon love for gin, there are new things in store.

One of the most significant changes introduced by the Gin Society is their decision to affiliate with a charity and donate proceeds from their events to charitable causes.

Each event will support a different charity as a significant proportion of profits from events will be dedicated to promoting the charity’s goals and offering funding (with the rest of profits recycling back into funding

future Gin Society events).

This semester’s upcoming event will sponsor “Create”, a Londonbased creative arts charity that aims to empower people through the creative arts.

To achieve this, the charity works across several different platforms; from running creative workshops in community settings (such as schools, prisons and hospitals) to donating art supplies to schools which receive minimal funding.

Since its conception over fifteen years ago in 2003, Create has touched the lives of over 31,000 children and adults alike from disadvantaged and difficult circumstances.

The charity has run over 6,500 workshops throughout the United Kingdom, from Glasgow to Suffolk.

Ranging in a plethora of creative arts, from filmmaking, visual arts and drama to creative writing and photography, Create attempts to foster a love for the creative industry and support budding artists in any field to remove barriers that may restrict their creative abilities.

This is a fitting charity for the Gin Society, which embodies ideas of creativity and self-expression through its events and design.

It is a significant step forward for the Gin Society as the society will provide a valuable platform to raise money for meaningful charity work.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

NEWS

5

InFocus: Professor Rebecca Sweetman The Saint sits down with the leading figure behind the University-wide effort to achieve Sanctuary Status for forced migrants NATALIE PEREIRA

Deputy News Editor

ing students who are at risk.

“The University already does quite a lot in terms of academics. But part of the issue is that it’s not widely known about. Some people will know about CARA but they might not know about the STEPS scholarship.

So, there was a need to pull the various opportunities together.”

She continued with the newest developments which extend on this previous work, “The Vice-Principal International Brad MacKay, brought a group of staff members together in November 2018 who had been in touch with him to see what could be done in terms of responding to some of the issues faced by displaced people, academics at risk across the world, and whether there was a way of helping to support people in these situations.

“He asked us to talk about what we felt would be good ways forward.

And so we put a committee together — a network of people who were interested in trying to do something more substantial for a wider range of people who were displaced or at risk in their home countries. It’s called the University of St Andrews Refugee and Forced Mobility Network.”

After producing a comprehensive and accessible website for the network (created by Mary WoodcockKrible), Professor Sweetman and her colleagues decided to engage their attention in a more extensive project.

Speaking of this, she said, “It was a huge team effort which involved colleagues across the University, in particular, from the Global Office, Registry and IR. Natasha Saunders and her colleagues collated the information on what people are doing in terms of research and teaching to do with forced migration. Out of that, I then started to look at what we could d o

Migration has been at the heart of discourse for many students. When it was first announced that The University of St Andrews had attained sanctuary status, it seemed like the entire student population were commending a watershed moment for migrants in Scotland. In St Andrews there is plenty of room and willingness in this small town to talk about forced migrants and asylum seekers.

What many people may not know is the collaborative efforts of university staff and the forming of the St Andrews Refugees and Forced Migrants Network, who produced the framework and implemented strategies for this.

Professor Rebecca Sweetman, an Archaeology and Ancient History professor at the University, led the efforts which culminated in the University being awarded sanctuary status by Universities of Sanctuaries.

Professor Sweetman discussed with The Saint the path to achieving such a title and the many people involved in the process. She first addressed what the public acknowledgement meant in practical terms.

She explained, “The recognition means that the University has signed up for a commitment to maintain scholarships, to provide access to the University for displaced people, to generally embed education and provide support for people who wind up at the University, but also to provide broader information on what it means in terms of displaced people, and the importance of widening access for displaced people.”

The University of St Andrews has become the second university in Scotland to receive this award, following The University of Edinburgh.

The launching of two new anmore nual Sanctuary Scholarships will provide people with refugee status, asylum seekers and those with discresubtionary leave, stantuition waivers tially. It and living cost was all grants. fine to Professor be part of Sweetman reCARA but flected on the there were various initimore specific atives such as things that we Council for At-Risk could do at a Academics (CARA) and ground level. the St Andrews Education “ O n e for Palestinian Students of those (STEPS) scholarship for was to get Palestinian students which a comthe University already has mitment in place to support incom- Photo: Professor Rebecca Sweetman from the

University to support becoming a University of Sanctuary. And so we put a paper together which outlined the requirements to become a University of Sanctuary.”

Under this commitment, various university staff members were contacted and began to collaborate with the work being done.

“We had to get a commitment from the Heads of Academic Schools that they would support our endeavours and at Academic Council they agreed to support displaced scholars and those at risk through various means including CARA and the Scholars at Risk programme.

“On that basis, with the knowledge that the principal and every single head of school was in support of the general idea, it was possible to progress and begin to look at what could be done in terms of practical aims.”

Professor Sweetman looked back fondly at the resulting group cohesion to achieve such a feat.

“There was huge support across the University for it. It would never have worked if, for example, the Registrar didn’t think it was a good idea or if the fees team didn’t think it was a good idea, or if the Principal didn’t think it was a good idea. But fundamentally, you approach people and you say ‘Look, how about this?’ and they say, ‘Yes, we can make it work.’ And that’s one of the beauties of St Andrews, that everywhere you go in the University people say ‘Yes, we can make it work.’”

It took nine months for the movement to fully evolve, but at the beginning Professor Sweetman noted that there was no mechanism in Scotland.

“Actually, it turned out well as very early in 2019, Gün Orgun was appointed as head of City of Sanctuary for Scotland. She has been incredibly supportive in our endeavours. She’s working tirelessly to try and pull Scottish universities together and to make them more accessible for displaced people. Once Gün was appointed, we were able to collaborate in all of the processes and all of the requirements that we needed to become a University of Sanctuary.”

The application process contains a detailed criterion expected of each university which is assessed during a visit to the establishment by an appraisal group. The review meeting was held in St Andrews on Friday 30 August 2019.

Amongst these requirements was the necessity to have a three-year plan for the future of maintaining and developing existing plans. Professor Sweetman noted a five-year plan put in place for the application.

The plan comprised of key strategic aims of the network regarding tuition fees and scholarships.

Professor Sweetman said, “We needed to provide scholarships for students and through the work of a team led by Sam Lister (Director of the Global Office), we now have two new scholarships for students who

are either asylum seekers or have already got refugee status. Altogether there are now four scholarships.”

She continued, “The other key thing which we realised very early on, were the problems of the classification of asylum seekers or refugees as International. This is something that RASA have been working hard on highlighting. And actually, we originally thought that was going to be a major stumbling block but some amazing staff were able to make it work.”

Professor Sweetman praised the work of her colleagues Professor Sweetman praised the collaborative work of her colleagues, mentioning with affection Sam Lister, head of the Global Office, Marie-Noel Earley, the Registrar, and Angela Johnston and Michelle Goodwin from scholarships and fees.

“The four of them worked so hard to look at all sorts of different ways to be able to classify our students in need as Home Students, and therefore, they qualify for a fee waiver, so they pay as if they were Scottish students.”

Professor Sweetman’s own dedication to the cause came to her last year, when she was living in Greece with her two sons.

“I was working in a squat in a disused school known as the fifth school, which became a home in 2016 for displaced people, essentially people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, and it was for refugee families — who had come to Athens, some with papers, some without papers but for the most part, without anything very much.”

“It was to entertain the kids, to give the parents a break, and to give them some sense of security and an awareness that people were looking out for them.”

Professor Sweetman noted however that the Greek Government had recently decided to evict all of the organised squats in Athens, citing John Psaropoulos’ article “Refugee Eviction Causes Fury in Greece”.

“They bussed families down to a camp outside of Corinth, where the kids have been taken out of schools that they were well-integrated in. The schools that these kids were in have written open letters to the government saying, ‘We want our children back, we want our classmates back.’”

“By moving them out of the squat and then putting them inside this

camp in Corinth they have nothing.

They don’t have access to any kind of education, very little support, and I think that it’s a very short-sighted move on the part of the government.

They are bringing in new legislation for the forced migrants and asylum seekers. It’s not a very good situation there at the moment.”

Having had this exposure, Professor Sweetman has seen firsthand the influence it can have on her approach to life. She drew attention to future plans of integrating this issue into her academic work.

She said, “I am planning on offering a new Honours module on forced migration from antiquity through to contemporary times, that will include exile. I’ve written a little bit about exile in the Roman period and I have looked at situations where exile can be seen as a positive thing. That is to say, when exiles become diaspora and the positive impacts exiles can make on local communities.

“And relating to this, this was one of the things that was most upsetting about the recent evictions of the Athenian squats. The idea of community is intrinsically Greek, and the eviction of the communities of refugees in the squat is at odds with this ethos.” Likewise, many other staff members from the Classics department have similar motivations.

“I have colleagues here in Classics, who are developing their teaching and research to highlight key social issues by making Classics more relevant. And, Classics, because it’s so naturally interdisciplinary, is an ideal vehicle for doing that.”

Professor Sweetman also commented that she was looking forward to working with RASA more in the future as part of the Network.

“I think RASA are a very powerful group and they do fantastic work in terms of coordinating students to be very practically useful, for example, with the conversation work that they are doing in Kirkcaldy.”

She also stressed the importance of everyone’s involvement and duty to one another, and the relevance of why now is the time to act.

“It’s everyone’s responsibility. It’s very easy to stick your head in the sand and pretend that these things aren’t happening, but I think that the world is in a critical position at the moment and we need to be looking after people as much as we can, be they elderly or forced migrants.”

Professor Sweetman spearheaded an exceptional step for the University, and the joint efforts of staff have unlocked doors to opportunities that a year ago, no one dared to commit themselves to. It does show that with a selfless attitude and a mindset for change, discourse on the very things we study here in this small town, can materialise.

The Principal’s Office is organising the official award ceremony, which will be held on Tuesday 26 November during the World Access to Higher Education Day.

6

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

NEWS

Student pressure on University continues as Fife Council announces climate emergency AIDEN HAWKER

Deputy News Editor

The University continues to hold off on following suit The amendment was passed by a comprehensive vote of fifty-eight to six and follows suit from other local councils across Scotland, including Dundee, Dumfries and Galloway, who have also announced a climate emergency.

Not only have Fife Council declared a climate emergency, but ac-

Photo: Reid CHamplin

Following increasing pressures across Fife, including Climate Action’s recent “line in the sand” protest in St Andrews, Fife Council has taken the decision to announce a climate emergency.

companied it with a set of ambitious targets.

The council has stated its intention to cut carbon emissions by seventy-five per cent by 2035 whilst individual councillors have even begun to set dates for complete carbon neutrality.

SNP councillor Ross Vettraino set one such target saying that, “The council has to move towards carbon neutrality by 2045.”

Nevertheless, whilst the move has been welcomed by environmental groups across Fife, some have ex-

pressed concern about the impact that the declaration would have on other areas.

Labour councillor Judy Hamilton said that the policy would have implications for services and resources, including housing and transportation.

In addition, some have questioned the lack of substance attached to the policy announcement and whether the target is realistic given external variables, such as the nationwide increase in train prices in January 2020.

However, in general the policy

announcement has received widespread support and has provided added impetus to the student-led effort to encourage the University of St Andrews to also announce a climate emergency.

Whilst, at the time of writing, the University continues to hold off on following suit on Fife Council’s decision to announce a climate emergency, St Andrews has been engaged in a series of environmentally driven efforts.

There have been significant investments in the green energy centre at the Eden campus along with the recent opening of the Scottish Oceans Institute at East Sands by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

The University has also brought forward its plans for a wind farm and has reiterated its commitment to cutting the use of single plastics.

There is little doubt that the recent move by Fife Council represents a significant additional pressure on the University to announce a climate emergency and to accelerate further the above policies.

Regarding the pressure placed on the University, a spokesman commented, “Actions speak louder than words. Universities are about solving problems, not just describing them, and simply declaring a climate emergency is just a gesture unless it’s backed up by actions.

“At St Andrews, we prefer to fo-

cus on solutions, which is why we invested in our Green Energy Centre at Eden Campus, brought forward plans for a wind farm, are developing options for more solar power, cutting our use of single use plastics, working with partners in Fife on sustainable transport solutions, cutting food waste and supporting world-leading climate change research.

Only time will tell if Fife Council can successfully implement policies “We applaud all those bringing attention to the climate crisis, but where we can make a real difference is in developing and leading on practical evidence-driven change.”

Only time will tell if Fife Council can successfully implement the necessary policies to achieve its ambitious targets.

First Minister opens Scottish Oceans Institute in St Andrews

St Andrews Charities Campaign smashes annual fundraising target

marine ecology, the effects of climate change on oceanic environments and more.

The Institute focuses on interdisciplinary research, incorporating leading research cutting across multiple scientific disciplines.

The University spokesperson said, “Research interests range from the deep oceans to the coasts and from the people who use and interact with the sea to the biological and physical processes that make the oceans function.”

The building stands on the site of the Gatty Marine Laboratory, the University’s previous award-winning research center founded in 1896.

Since its inception, the marine science program grew to a world leader in fields like sea mammal research, evolutionary genomics, and more.

One of the program’s most wellknown departments, the Sea Mammal Research Unit, moved to the university in 1996 from Cambridge, and the Scottish Oceans Institute was founded in 2009.

Professor Sally Mapstone, the University’s principal, said of the new center, “The facilities at the new centre of excellence will further enhance St Andrews’ world standing in the field of marine sciences research and advanced teaching, and will provide wonderful opportunities too, for our local community and our visitors.”

Over £105,000 was raised between forty different charities

A decade after first embarking on groundbreaking marine research, the Scottish Oceans Institute (SOI) has a new place to call home.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon officially opened the new SOI building on Monday, a facility overlooking East Sands Beach, founded on the site of the older Gatty Marine Laboratory.

In a speech commemorating the occasion, Sturgeon said, “St Andrews has an excellent reputation for world class research and developing international collaborations.

“The Scottish Oceans Institute very much helps reinforce that reputation and its work on marine science will help ensure that our marine environment continues to be well managed while sharing learning and best practice.”

The new £16.5 million building, which features a cutting-edge aquarium, facilities for research and teaching, and a visitor centre, will host university staff and visiting professors studying a variety of fields related to marine science, serving as a hub for a global network of academic inquiry.

The new building will host the University’s world-class marine science program, including dozens of researchers pursuing research related to

PAOLA CÓRDOVA

Deputy News Editor The St Andrews Charities Campaign represents the success of charity projects around the University. These range from fashion shows, trips around Europe, balls and any of the creative ideas belonging to the multitude of students actively involved in funding a myriad of important causes.

Race2 raised its highest total so far On 4 October at Beacon Bar in the Union, the annual Charities Campaign Cheque Presentation

was an evident symbol of this great success, with over £105,000 worth of funds stretching across forty different charities, both with national and international reach and impact.

Out of all of these worthy causes, the three nominated by students for this year (Médecins Sans Frontières, Wave Project and Fife Women’s Aid) received over £20,000 each, something that the Vice President of the o r g a n i z a - tion Robin Finley-Legg calls “a total that [they] are immensel y proud of.”

Photo: Edward Spencer

REID CHAMPLIN

Perhaps most notable is Race2, one of the largest events run by the Charities Campaign in support of its three nominated charities.

Functioning as an entirely student run annual European hitchhike, participants raced all the way to Munich this year, and the initiative’s success was evident in the fact that the event managed to raise its highest total so far, amounting to over £40,000.

With ever increasing standards and clearly innovative skills in place to continue to raise money for the Campaign, future success is not only a hope, but something which they look forward in the years that follow.

The Vice President enthusiastically says himself that “After such a great year, the bar has been raised again for the campaign to raise even more this year!”

VIEWPOINT

Viewpoint Editor: Joe Waters Deputy Editors: Piers Eaton, Matt Leighton, Jack Campbell, Laura Beveridge, Sabrina Keating, Alexandre Denizé

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viewpoint@thesaint-online.com

@thesaintonline

Climate action should not be partisan Republicans and Conservatives must take up the cause of saving our planet

“The seas

are full of plastic; species are vanishing

Republicans need to adapt their party platform to support both the liberal free market and decisive environmental protections lest they lose relevance in American politics. Such an approach would acknowledge that while human development post-Industrial Revolution has destroyed wildlife and wreaked havoc on ecosystems worldwide, the capitalist economic system has lifted people out of poverty and created access to food and medicine previously unimaginable.

It is vital that Republicans and moderate Democrats distinguish themselves from the radical options presented by the Green New Deal or the Climate Strike Manifesto.

The solutions presented by these documents respectively — a controlled economy that pays for trillions of federal social projects not related to environmental protection with “modern

monetary theory” which disregards the deficit crisis, or a demand of reparations to be paid by Britain for being the first to industrialize have very little to do with ecological protections, and reflect a radical and unproven doctrine of socioeconomic authoritarianism.

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is seizing upon the climate crisis to advocate for economic policies in a manner that is fundamentally intellectually dishonest.

His dismissal of nuclear power, biofuels, and carbon taxes are part of a bizarrely exclusive attempt to whimsically plan the US economy without the input of the hundreds of millions in the workforce today. His “wealth tax” has been tried and discarded by many European nations, and his love affair with socialism and apparent support of Venezuelan economic policies recently led the Danish Prime Minister to point out the fact that his and Sanders’ policies have very little in common.

The “Nordic system” is neoliberal capitalism with a thorough taxpayer funded welfare system. Corporate taxes are kept low to promote private enterprise, while sales taxes and income taxes remain high — a stark contrast to Sanders’ proposed progressive policies, which are largely rhetorically centered around seeking vengeance upon companies rather than reform and improving standards of conduct.

Conservatives need to tackle the issue of climate change head on and recognise that aiding the economy and the planet are goals that are not in opposition to each other.

North America does not have a deforestation problem. The owners of its forests realise that they must replenish their trees in order to stay financially viable as lumber providers. Jair Bolsonaro, pres-

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

For far too long, American conservatives have resisted acknowledging that climate change is real, let alone create substantive policy to counter it.

It is tempting to immediately portray the entire Republican Party as the corrupt stooges of Big Oil — and while this is certainly the case for many politicians, I believe it is worth considering the factors that are steering voters to the party that is neglecting the crisis.

One factor is a lack of awareness of the scope and consequences of climate change, yet the voices of the environmental cause should consider how they have presented themselves to the electorate. We must acknowledge various hypocrisies that have cemented the niche of eco-skepticism endemic in the American liberal movement.

Leonardo DiCaprio, as well as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, have all made emotional pleas to us lesser mortals to stop killing the planet — only to promptly ignore their own advice as they travel the world in gas-guzzling private jets. The Paris Accord was a mere photo-op with no binding power — as evidenced by the reckless Amazon deforestation campaign undergone by Jair Bolsonaro despite the fact that Brazil was a signatory of that treaty.

However, conservatives need to stop thinking they are realists fighting hypocrites. The seas are full of plastic; species are vanishing. The ice caps and glaciers are melting. The earth is warming — literally burning in some places.

And while the conservative philosophy advocates for limited government, in the long run, the ever-worsening natural disasters linked to global warming will prompt increasingly drastic federal spending to repair the damage.

Temporary inaction will only increase a future glut of government overreach.

Yet this apathy in the face of a very real problem firmly rooted in the public consciousness

“

MICHAEL TOZZI

will have political costs that conservatives are not grappling with.

As proclaimed by rising political stars like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a popular narrative is emerging that capitalism has created climate change and that socialism is the only solution to avert mass extinction.

Illustration: Beatrice Herman ident of Brazil, when contracting workers to cut down the rainforest to sell lumber as a short term means of revenue, has no such incentive.

The former is capitalism. The latter is fascism.

Private ownership is not an automatic guarantor of waste and greed. Most municipalities do not have plastic bag recycling initiatives.

Supermarkets such as Whole Foods in the US and Morrisons in the UK have picked up the slack.

Colgate is making all of its toothpaste tubes biodegradable over the next few years. IKEA is making packaging out of biodegradable fungi products, Biofase has created biodegradable “plastic” sourced from plants. Elon Musk turned electric cars from a mad science experiment into a luxury product, and scores of other manufacturers are following in Tesla’s tracks.

The common denominator is private ownership and innovation that would be hurt by high corporate taxes, not government think tanks in D.C. Companies are run by people, people who have stakes in Planet Earth remaining livable, and just because many still require a legislative nudge in a sustainable direction doesn’t mean that America needs to get out the hammer and sickle quite yet.

To the progressive “moral majoity” of macchiato Marxists who will

no doubt criticize this stance, I challenge them to vote with their dollars and reject unsustainable purchases in their lives now instead of taking to Instagram to post wishful paeans to fictional government policies that will magically attain bipartisan support and solve climate change overnight.

No one can demand of the public Greta Thunburg’s level of climate conscientiousness if they themselves are not walking the walk. New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio’s daily SUV ride to and from his Brooklyn gym, juxtaposed with his pious pontification on the importance of the Climate Strike comes to mind.

If the agenda of saving the planet is to be set by someone, I would much rather it be set by someone like former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld, who believes that strengthening the economy and saving the environment can both be achieved at the same time, rather than by Senator Bernie Sanders, who believes that the two goals are opposed to each other.

The former has a track record of environmental protection and job creation, the latter owns three homes and harangues voters about carbon footprints and housing inequality.

Conservatives have an urgent choice: to engage with the climate crisis or risk becoming irrelevant. I say to them: reclaim the ecological stance of Teddy Roosevelt or forever hold your peace.

views expressed in Viewpoint The views expressed in Viewpoint do not represent the views of TheThe Saint but are individual opinions.do not represent

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

11% Yes

89% No

Photo: Henry Memmott

Number of votes cast: 147

tyrannical, selfish or dangerous hierarchies. But our tendency towards hierarchy does make fundamental sense: there are a lot of us, and it would be pretty delusional to claim that we could function in a society where power and responsibility was divided equally.

Obviously, hierarchies depend on the trustworthiness and competence of the people at the top of the triangle, and when those people don’t fulfil these characteristics – well, look around at our current situation and you’ll see what happens. But the concept is sound, and the same applies in terms of the hierarchies created by celebrity culture.

Generally speaking, more talented creatives have more success, rising to the top of the celebrity hierarchy and enjoying the benefits which come with it. The figures at the top are those whose creations satisfy the largest proportion of consumers, and while this isn’t necessarily the most accurate measurement of creative ‘talent’, it’s the most sensible and human way of organising the creative industries and the stardom which surrounds them. In other words, if we’re going to continue to live as a creative race, we have to come to terms with the inevitability of celebrity culture: it’s basically unavoidable, in terms of the necessity of inspiration which I spoke about before but also in terms of the politics of business.

Everything human revolves around business, whether you like it or not, and hierarchy is both a perpetuator and a product of business.

Therefore, celebrity culture isn’t just something which should be praised as a hub of inspiration; it’s something which we have essentially programmed into the way we live.

I don’t think it would be unreasonable of me to assume that, if something is both praiseworthy and entirely essential, it’s pretty easy to defend.

Celebrity culture, as far as I can tell, is both of these things. Social media has turned it into a way of manipulating people into a terrifying sense of duty to replicate their favourite celebrities, but the foundations of celebrity culture remain the same, and remain totally uncondemnable.

So next time the Dunhill comes around, don’t let your annoying flatmate or that arrogant guy in your philosophy tutorial tell you that it’s stupid to go celebrity-spotting; it’s simply natural.

“More

talented creatives have more success

“

I think the attitude we have to our culture is damaging

“

I’ve heard mixed comments regarding the hundreds of students who recently flocked to the Old Course in the hope of seeing huge figures such as Justin Timberlake or Bill Murray squeeze their global reputations into little St Andrews.

Now, you can always have too much of a good thing. I’m not going to argue that infatuation with celebrities is healthy or justifiable – I hate the Kardashian hype, and I’m not a massive fan of influencer culture either. But these obsessions have come about in response to the politics of social media, which has birthed a wave of desire to replicate celebrities.

Kylie Jenner’s make-up range sums this entire attitude up: she has designed a product marketed exclusively by telling consumers that if they buy it, they can look like her.

But this isn’t what true celebrity culture is all about. Our obsession with celebrities stretches way back to the origins of humanity, which should serve as proof in itself that deep down, underneath all these Instagram ads and gossip columns, there is something instinctual about our deification of celebrities.

Creativity is not a solitary endeavour. I’m a music maker, but first and foremost I’m a music lover. I am entirely self-taught and therefore self-motivated, and I can say with absolute certainty that I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing if I wasn’t so obsessed with being a consumer of music.

If you see me walking down the street, I’m wearing headphones. If I’m in the house, my amp is on full volume blasting Soundcloud tracks.

I live near Manchester, a city which boasts the most incredible live music scene in the UK and I spent my high school years (and every single penny I earned) attending gig after gig.

Then, when I got to university, I started making my own stuff – and I owe everything I’ve created to the musicians pouring out of my speakers 24/7. I deify them in my own head: Maggie Rogers, Mick Jagger, Elderbrook, Two Feet… they make up my own personal pantheon of creative inspiration. And I’ve never met another music maker who doesn’t do the same thing. The origin of celebrity culture is inspiration, and I think the most amazing thing about being human is having the ability to inspire and to be inspired.

We live in a society defined by hierarchy. There are healthy, well-motivated hierarchies, and there are

Should we obsess over celebrities?

“

Annabel Steele Yes!

Devil’s Advocate

Did you know there was a Golf tournament in St Andrews recently?

Statistically speaking, if you’ve as much as considered breathing in this town and you’ve answered no, you must be from the deepest crevice of Jupiter. You might also have heard that some moderately famous people also happened to have turned up in St Andrews as well. Again, statistics show that, if you didn’t know that, you’re a human satellite currently orbiting Pluto.

Call me boring and cantankerous as grow into my old age, but I simply cannot understand those who flock to the 18th to see Justin Timberlake and Bill Murray tee off. Not because they’re uninteresting, or undeserving of their fame, but primarily because it cannot possibly be of such great benefit to you to wait several hours, perhaps days, anticipating their arrival, to only see them for a matter of minutes before they move on.

Not only this, there is the fact that a great many people who flocked to the Old Course to see said celebrities were flocking for the sake of flocking, not because the individuals in question had any particular appeal, or importance to them, but simply because they were a somewhat famous person of whom it would be a rarity that they would be seen up-close again.

Now, if Justin Timberlake has donated his kidneys to you, or if Bill Murray tended to your wounds following a car accident he was involved in recently, then perhaps you’re excused from my ire.

When Barack Obama came to St Andrews a few years ago, I could understand the flocking there, for Obama acted as a beacon of hope to many, as well as having a genuinely tangible impact on many (particularly American) folks’ lives here.

Obama may have had a direct involvement with you having access to healthcare for the first time, may have helped you get a job, or some such other service, and as such you may have understandably wanted to crane your head to get a view of your political saviour.

However, unless young Justin saved your leg from gangrene, you are not absolved.

I believe this obsession with the famous runs wider in our society and goes to demonstrate a problem I find with it. We have become obsessed with the inane and the materialistic so much so that our entire day can re-

VIEWPOINT

9

Joe Waters No!

volve around catching but a glimpse of someone we covet. Not having a conversation with them, or sharing a brew or moaning about the weather.

No, just seeing them swing their arms a bit is enough entertainment for most of us today.

No thank you, strong tea and some custard creams with decent company? Now that’s something I’ll happily flock to.

I think the attitude we have to our interactions with culture are extremely damaging, instead of spending time fully appreciating Murray’s acting or Timberlake’s music, we decide to consume their image and interrupt their time on the course with incessant cheering and hand-waving, desperately trying to get their attention.

This degrades them to nothing more than a socially desirable mannequin for people to gawp at. Instead of being a beacon of happiness or a conduit for good memories, our celebrities have instead become magnets for the uninteresting, the uninspired and the materialistic.

All of this is failing to mention the absolute mundane activities that celebrities happen to be doing whilst we hound them relentlessly.

When I was twelve, and playing football in a tournament, a certain Paul Scholes of Manchester United came along to watch his son annihilate my team.

Interested not in the games of their own, the players (and parents) did little but beg and plead with poor Paul to sign various bits of kit: boots, shirts and the like.

Even twelve-year old me felt immense pity for the guy. He just wanted to watch his son play football, not have to deal with your obsession with him. Equally, Justin and Bill probably would bite your hand off if you offered them a quiet, peaceful game of golf on the historic Old Course but instead they have been stabbed in the back by the legions of hungry, drooling celeb-spotters. Et tu, St Andrews?

If I’m coming across as blustering, or making much-ado-about-nothing, then it’s because I am. I fully acknowledge that really it’s none of my business what people want to spend their time doing, how they want to absorb their culture or even what culture said people enjoy absorbing.

However, don’t feel like I’m not entitled to pass judgement unto you for turning out for someone who just wants to go about their day, playing their silly game.

The views expressed The views expressed in Viewpoint do not represent the viewsinof The Saint but are individual opinions.

10

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

VIEWPOINT

Fight to raise your flag My beliefs are none of your flagging business

I was very disappointed to hear that students in Andrew Melville Hall had flags in their own, private rooms taken down because they were considered too ‘offensive’. Now, a situation like this nearly always emerges as the result of a misunderstanding (and, lo and behold, this one did) but I was still nevertheless disheartened by the news: this story demonstrates that there is still a crippling uncertainty about what to do when ‘offence’ is created on university campuses, with our right as students to express ourselves freely inevitably suffering as a result.

The root of this uncertainty is, of course, completely understandable.

No-one enjoys the act of being offended and, when you can, it is polite and thoughtful to try and avoid causing someone offence. One can then appreciate why the University (or any other authority, for that matter) would want to step in and prevent offence being caused wherever possible; it could lead to a more harmonious community, give protection to those that feel as if they ought to be defended, and stop people being rude and cruel. Ah, what a utopia.

However, it is incumbent upon both staff and students to realise that causing offence isn’t a heinous, unthinkable crime that needs to be eradicated from university life.

On the contrary, even if it offends someone, having (and using) the ability to express oneself unmolested is a fundamental part of higher education that should not be hindered in any way, shape, or form – no ifs, no buts.

I don’t think that anyone would seriously contend the idea that LGBT+ pride flags should not be interferred with; many would undoubtedly argue that the trauma these communities have suffered is incredibly recent, if not ongoing, and so forcibly removing the symbols of their movement for being too ‘offensive’ is obviously inappropriate and wrong. However, it is important to realise that this extends to flags and symbols of any kind: to think otherwise is to interfere with the ability of the individual student to exercise their freedom, express themselves clearly, and gain the most from their time at university.

Consider the consequences of actually have a policy of taking all

Illustration: Reuben Morris-Dyer

to censorship. This should be fought at every turn, even if you personally find some things repulsive. When faced with something with which you disagree, your first response should not be to prevent that view from being expressed; you should be trying to think of ways to explain why they’re wrong and you’re right.

And is this not essential to the student experience? I shudder to think how much my own education

“

In modern times the word ‘offence’ has become so pliable

“

ARCHIE BATRA Deputy Editor

‘offensive’ symbols down. The most obvious problem (one that has been quite neatly demonstrated in what has happened in Andrew Melville) is that nobody really knows where to draw the line. In modern times the word ‘offence’ has become so pliable that the word has essentially lost all meaning, and it is now possible for almost anything to become ‘offensive’ in some manner. It is incredibly easy to imagine, for example, someone of Palestinian heritage taking extreme offence to the flying of the Israeli flag – should all Stars of David then be taken down from private student rooms? Is that not, in and of itself, another incredibly offensive act? Well, the short answer is that of course it is, and so we end up with the rather bizarre situation where, in order to avoid causing anyone undue offence in Andrew Melville, the staff thought that restricting freedom of expression was a viable and acceptable solution.

This is a situation that we cannot accept in a university environment.

Now, I know that the staff in Andrew Melville were not engaged in some great attempt at Orwellian statecraft, but trying to completely remove offence from a university environment (and, thus, the right to speak and act freely) ultimately amounts

would have suffered had I not been allowed to explore new ideas, passionately devote myself to them, and promptly dump them when others made me realise how wrong I was. Quite frankly, much of my higher education would have been a colossal waste had I not been able to decorate my first-year room with the Hammer and Sickle, the Cross of St George, assorted pieces of World War One propaganda, and pro-Brexit paraphernalia; the discussions that ensued from other students horrified to see them above my bed was probably the equivalent of a few dozen credits.

But, ultimately, we should remember that some of the most interesting and groundbreaking ideas in human history were simultaneously those that were considered the most offensive.

Those that fought against slavery, campaigned for the vote, and demanded that extra series of Family Guy often did not represent mainstream opinion. Nevertheless, they fought for the ideas they were expressing, and now the world is a much better place. (Thank you, Seth MacFarlane.)

Universities should strive to be the laboratories in which ideas that will challenge the mind and change the world are cultivated, not the place in which they are stamped out and repressed.

Therefore there should be no uncertainty on behalf of university staff or students as to what to do when confronted with things that they find ‘offensive’. No-one at a university (especially one that ranks so highly) should shy away from something because they are worried that it might cause ‘offence’. So fight to raise your flag – it’s your right as a student.

Photo: President of Russia

Anger does have a place in our politics PIERS EATON Deputy Viewpoint Editor In recent years, a shallow kind of Stoicism has come into vogue. It quotes Marcus Aurelius: “Choose not to be harmed and you won’t feel harmed.” Then they’ll tell you that “if you have the right state of mind, you’ll be able to brush away slights that otherwise would have made you angry!”

The problem with this mentality (other than the fact that it’s a massive oversimplification of Stoicism) is that sometimes anger is the appropriate response to a situation.

The two most shocking recent political victories, Brexit and Trump’s election, have both been products of anger. Here in the UK, we should be angry. Approximately 22 per cent of people in this country live in poverty, including one in three children.

If every third child living in poverty in the sixth richest country in the world doesn’t make you angry, that isn’t a virtue; that’s a vice. In the Brexit campaign, David Cameron spoke of things like not wanting to take unnecessary risks, not wanting to shake things up, whereas Nigel Farage spoke of taking the fight to the enemy. Unsurprisingly, the side that harnessed anger carried the day.

Which brings us to the unexpected ascension of Donald Trump to the White House. Has there ever been a political figure who has expressed more self-righteous indignation than the current President of the United States? From the moment that Donald Trump announced his run for presidency to the current day, he has endlessly expressed anger. Anger at immigrants, anger at America’s allies, anger at the media, anger at the current world order, anger at the “witch hunt”, anger at the “deep state”, whatever that is.

Hillary Clinton, Trump’s opponent in the 2016 election, told voters to “Love Trumps Hate”, and while she did carry the popular vote, she was unable to win key rust belt states, like Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, where quality of life has declined, and people are angry. It’s not sur-

prising then, that in the Democratic primary, the candidate who’s polling has surged is Elizabeth Warren, who’s central message is “fight”, and not Cory Booker, who’s central message is “love”. Warren, even before her election to the Senate, has always been someone who fought against the big banks, and, like Trump, has expressed anger at the corruption in politics, whereas Booker has wanted us to practice ‘radical love’, which sounds more like an orgy invitation than a political platform. In Quinnipiac’s latest poll Warren was at 27 per cent and Booker was at 0.

This recognition of the importance of anger leads us to understand why Greta Thunberg’s speech at the UN had such a profound effect: because it was pure, authentic anger. She does not revel in her role, instead saying it is wrong. She tells the leaders of the world that they can no longer go on “business as usual”, tells them they are failing us and that we, young people, will never forgive them if they fail to act. Instead of espousing a doctrine of hope for the future, she tells the leaders of the world that they have stolen her dreams.

The speech’s refrain asks the world leaders “how dare you?”.

When I heard her, it reminded me of David Hogg, the gun-control activist and survivor of the 2018 Parkland Shooting where 17 people were killed.

When Trump tweeted about the shooting, he did so complaining about the Russia investigation and mocking the Democrats, to which Hogg also asked, with anger, “how dare you?”.

This refrain of how dare you is an unadulterated expression of anger at those who are failing us when they are meant to be leading.

The most striking thing about the whole speech to me was that every time the crowd cheered or applauded it felt wrong. The speech was meant to boil your blood, and was an expression of anger at the inaction of world leaders, not of hope for what the future holds. It demands action, not praise. The speech is exceptional because it captures how we should feel about the state of the climate and directs that action, rather than trying to transform anger into hope or love, because sometimes anger is appropriate.

The views expressed in Viewpoint doin not representdo thenot views of Thethe Saint but are individual opinions.

The views expressed Viewpoint represent views of The Saint but are individual opinions.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

VIEWPOINT

11

We should put our problems into perspective JOE WATERS Viewpoint Editor Picture the scene: it’s Friday night, 80s night, you’ve gelled your hair for the first time since you were seven years old, you’ve put turn ups on your jeans and wearing the most brash Bermuda shirt you have in your wardrobe. By any and all accounts, you look an absolute prat, but by your account, you’re ready to jam to some Blondie and kick back with everyone else in 601 who are soon to be convinced, truly, that they were “born in the wrong generation”.

All of a sudden, disaster strikes: a friend you’re going with goes to ground at pres, and while folk around give calls of “waheyyyyy” and “woahhh man down, man down!” you know something’s wrong.

They’ve had nothing to drink yet, and they can’t pull themselves up.

While you hope it is just a pulled muscle and they can make it out, reality kicks in and you know it’s probably not as insignificant as you might

hope.

It’s time to go to A&E. The night is over.

All that hair gel, making you look like you’ve been overly-curious with plug sockets, has been for nothing.

If this all sounds like hyperbole, then it’s because it is. Granted, it’s a bit of a faff (and an expensive one, too) to get to Ninewells after the busses have finished for the day, but it wasn’t the end of the world for me and my friend to have missed out on a boogie in the Union.

However, it was only after we managed to get to Accident and Emergency that I realised this. This is because we are conditioned, as humans, to make mountains out of mole hills and generally take any mini-disaster to be the end of the world.

Missed a tutorial? Gonna fail.

Deadlines looming? Looks like I’ve had it. Struggling to get that revision in? Time for a small cry I think.

We’ve all said and done one or more of those three things during our time here. But the thing is, a trip to the Emergency Department, if nothing else, damn sure puts things into

perspective.

While me and my friend was there and waiting for her X-Ray, a multi-vehicle collision came in with more than a few people on stretchers, seriously in pain and who no doubt would be in hospital for a little longer than our five-hour trip.

Illustration: Maya Marie Not only this, while I was busy trying to nap on the waiting room chairs, someone who I could only imagine to be some kind of mortician (he dressed in all black and appeared to

be comforting someone) was floating around the hospital.

It was a strange environment and it soon became clear that my problems, and the problems of my friends’, were ultimately minor in the grand scheme of things. Put simply, there were bigger problems than ours in that A&E department.

Even though we were sent there

by NHS 111, even though my friend was in pain and I looked a berk, even though it was a ninety-quid round trip there and back again, I couldn’t help but feel like our problems were invalid.

Now, I know this is a dangerous tack to take. Our problems, no matter what, worry us for a reason and are often not, if ever, invalid.

With this said, however, my experience that Friday night was very profound and has led me to believe we really must reflect within ourselves that our minor niggles and struggles within St Andrews are just that, minor.

This isn’t me chastising those of us who like a good moan about the smallest of irritants for, on that charge, I find myself very guilty.

Instead, I would urge the students of St Andrews to bear in mind that things that we frequently complain about as we bumble about in this town we live in are often not all that damning. There is always worse that could be happening to us but isn’t.

As naff as spending all night in an uncomfortable waiting room was, it taught me a lesson in positive thinking. We often find ourselves absorbed in our own issues, our own problems and our own disasters; this closes our minds to what could be worse.

Although it sounds morbid to find solace in the knowledge that chances are someone’s having it worse than you, but it’s solace nonetheless. If you’re feeling down, don’t focus on what could be going better, but isn’t, focus on what could be going a lot worse, but isn’t.

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and require support, you can contact Student Services on 01334 462 720, St Andrews Nightline on 01334 462 226 between the hours of 8pm and 7am.

The views expressed in expressed in Viewpoint do not represent the views of The Saint but are individual opinions.

The views

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10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

VIEWPOINT

The definitive guide to St Andrews pubs “Pub?” “Sure, Which one?”

During your time in St Andrews this conversation will be had hundreds, maybe even thousands of times before you leave and it’s a debate that can last your whole foour years in the bubble.

For a small town the options for getting subtly drunk throughout the day are plentiful. Here is a handy guide for the inexperienced drinker in St Andrews, with true student testimonials underpinning each review.

Criterion The Criterion is without a doubt in my mind the best pub in St Andrews…if you can get a seat.

Right at the end of South Street, the Criterion seats about 20 people on a good day. However, what is lost in its small size is more than made up for by its charm, cask beers and the world-famous cri-pie, which is served until late. I have never heard a bad song be played in the Criterion and I’ve never been disappointed with my pint. When there’s an important match it’s on their TV. As long as you find a place to sit you will never be disappointed going to the Criterion.

“Whenever I hear Cri-pie I picture Big Al crying into a pie.”

The Rule The people’s champion, jack of all trades master of none.

The Rule may not have the best atmosphere or the best beer garden but it’s size, prices, mango cider and

its sparser clientele the saint is a great place for a quiet meeting or a date.

“Booze, boys, bunker.”

“You can play with the candles.”

Whey Pat While we all miss the old Whey Pat, the new pat is not too bad. Good nachos and all your usual beers means that while it may not be anyone’s first choice, it’s a nice place to fall back on if your usual spot is too full “I miss the old pat.” — a student on his third trip to the Whey Pat in as many days.

Molly Malone’s It’s not the Blue Stane anymore, but it’s not offensive, so chuck it on a pub crawl; but I wouldn’t hang out there.

“I’m not going to stop calling it the Stane.”

The Keys If you’re not afraid of the locals or Americans it’s perfectly fine. Nice atmosphere, decently priced pints, nothing wrong with this one.

“I’m still scared of going in there.”

“It’s where my father and I got hit on by girls from Fife Council; I still have their number.”

Guest Review(s): The Jigger inn “It’s nice enough, but you have to walk a million miles to get there.

Unless you’re in ABH you’ll literally pass every other pub on your way.”

“Far enough away that you don’t feel like you’re in St Andrews but close enough for a seshwari naan.”

The Central Really nice place to sit in front of if you’re having a pint during the day.

Inoffensive at night.

“They’ve got an 8 per cent beer on tap. What more can you ask for?”

Brew Co North Street It’s Brew Co but if there’s a big sporting event on there’s a lot of screens so that makes it a little better than Brew Co South.

“Sports!”

The Hotel ones (Playfairs, Greyfriars etc.)

Yeah, they’re alright, always a good shout if you need to extend a pub crawl. Distinctly average.

“It was a nice place to wait while I waited for dinner at the Haar.”

“I think I might have gone there at the end of a pub crawl; it was too late for me.”

1 Golf Place It has beer towers, a nice porch which is really nice for a sunny day and has a functional pool table.

“Quality service without the need to be quality at golf.”

The Dunvegan The golf boys seem to love this one and for good reason.

Great atmosphere and nice bar staff as well. The dunny is unfortunately underrated by most St Andreans but maybe that’s part of its charm “If you know, you know.” Chris Kulukundis ’21 “Best atmosphere by far compared to any other pub.”

“There’s a bartender Illustration: Wendy Brooking

ALEXANDRE DENIZÉ Deputy Viewpoint Editor

decent food means that there’s something for everyone to like.

“I love it because I never remember being there.”

Adamson Is it a pub? No. Can you get a good cocktail? Sure, if you’re into that. Is it cost-effective? Not really. Why should I go? It’s only money.

“It’s only money.” – Matt Leighton ‘20 Aikmans/Cellar Bar Aikmans/Cellar Bar is one of the last great pubs in St Andrews atmosphere-wise. The pints are good, the curly fries are good (and served until very late) and it’s bigger than the Criterion. A great second choice when it comes to atmosphere, but it doesn’t have any windows and that bothers me every time I’m in there.

“It’s the perfect balance of comfy and grimy and they serve food the latest, making it the best place to casually forget walking home from.”

“I’m literally contractually obligated to say it’s my favourite pub.”

Brew Co South Street If you’re American, have too much money and/or don’t have enough chat to carry a conversation then Brew Co is the pub for you. You can get a pint for £10 if you really wanted to but I have a fundamental distaste for a pub that has cards against humanity because it means that the clientele can’t carry a conversation without help from outside sources.

“Nice gin selection and I won’t get hit on by the older locals.”

“I’ve actually only ever been to Brew Co.” The Saint A little pricey but the best beer garden in St Andrews, paired with

named Mark and I love him.”

The Union The Union isn’t really a pub, but it’s not really a club either. What it definitely is, however, is the social hub of St Andrews.

From the quiet pub Sundays to the blackout mosh pits of a sinners, the Union is unlike anything else in town and there’s a certain magic to it.

I love the Union and I have so many good memories from my time there.

It’s absolutely amazing and I wouldn’t change anything about it if I could.

“The specials there are the sweetest in all of Fife, and it’s where we first met.”

“UUUUUUUUUUUUUUNION!” – Prince William (Probably) ’05 Guest Rating: The Vic “Only go there if you want to overpay for alcohol and watch adult men hit on Madras College girls, AKA don’t go.”

Brew Dog Brew Dog joins its brew brothers as a casualty of the American invasion.

While I must give it praise for its Wednesday bottomless wings; the price of its beer and the fact that I don’t have a particular affinity for some of their more unique beer options means that this was never going to be a high scorer.

“It’s not even that bad but I still hate it.”

Let us all ditch the garbage verbiage JACK CAMPBELL Deputy Viewpoint Editor Want to hear something scary? How about something disconcerting? Or something so nightmarishly unholy it will unleash upon you a torrent of antipathetic trepidation?

Well, you just read it. The above is not harnessing the English language — it is harassing it.

In the hundred thousand or so years since we first began wagging our chins — and the 5000 or so since we first put glyph to granite — nothing has emerged as a more efficient means of communication or coordination of our species. Words are just that good. Online and in print, however, I see a worrying upward trend toward excess. Wordiness needn’t necessarily, but has, subsumed brevity. And we are suffering for it. Tautological crimes are on the rise, fellow human — and it’s about time we deal with

the root cause…

The revelation of the online reference tool has brought with it a generation of 60-second lexicographers who, with a quick Google search, have access to many lifetimes worth of literary canon. The result of this has not, as one might expect, resulted in great efficiency gains to our language, but rather the linguistic equivalent of a Pollock — with all the pretence of one, too.

That is not to say that reference tools are unhelpful. On the contrary, they have democratised language, removing it from the hands solely of the cultural hegemony which owned the language for so long.

The issue lies in how we use reference tools. Namely, not as a means of reference, but as an end in and of themselves. Here’s the problem: it’s just so tempting to convince your reader that, yes, you do use proselytise in parlance is no less than an intellectual coup! Like most coups, however, it will be short-lived if you can’t pro-

duce the goods. And when these tools are used to paper over the cracks in a poor piece of writing, then I’m sorry to say that your putsch is very likely kaput.

Because let’s be real, that’s a situation in which we’ve all found ourselves: You’re just that little bit off the word count, or want to sprinkle some spice into your essay.

What you do next is akin to lexicographical gentrification: you find the most gabardine word, head to Google, and search for synonyms.

Oftentimes, this is betraying the task. An essay isn’t about how wordily you can articulate an argument, but rather how efficiently you can do so. If the foundation isn’t solid, then it’s not wise to build a castle — perhaps you may want something linguistically more condo.

Admittedly, it is often the case that “fancier” words are a better fit for our writing, with their rich polysemy and nuance — and oftentimes it is expected that we can articulate our point

with pizazz. But the clothes do not make the man, and when these words do not improve efficiency then isn’t it just artifice?

Efficiency improvements are made to language all the time. We created the elision as a way to improve flow; punctuation to categorise. The not-sohumble emoji, even, represents a concision of communication.

Whether you see it as a progression or regression of our language is entirely your call, but you cannot argue the brevity and effectiveness with which it conveys a message: a picture may speak a thousand words, but so too does a capricious ;).

What is not efficient, however, is the propping up of poor prose with pernicious profligacy. Puh. I can see it now: McIntosh Hall’s “C” pigeonhole overflowing with strongly worded letters from the capital L literati. Save the paper, treehuggers.

You see, I am not advocating we make like the Luddites; we needn’t

DDOS dictionary.com or torch the library’s reference section. What I am suggesting is that we take the nominative hint and use reference tools for, well, reference. Before reaching for the thesaurus, ask yourself: does my point need to be made clearer? If yes, fantastic! If not, take a leaf from the original boyband’s book and Let it Be. The English language, we really mustn’t forget, is merely a means to an end. It is a vehicle that is just as likely to rust when we overfill the tank as it is to stop still when we neglect to fill it.

It’s perhaps significant that we don’t yet have a direct antonym for gentrify. We are so obsessed with dressing up when sometimes the written equivalent of jeans and t-shirt is just more comfortable — for reader and writer. As someone who is always khaki, never denim, I get the allure of fancy words.

But sometimes denim is a nice fit for your “fit”. And there’s nothing wrong with that!

The Saintbut butare areindividual individualopinions. opinions.

Theviews viewsexpressed expressedininViewpoint Viewpoint do not represent represent the the views views of of The Saint

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

VIEWPOINT

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Private schools should be abolished

My own experience with private education has shown me things must change

Finally, something other than Brexit has been deemed newsworthy.

Labour has made the headlines. And no, this time it’s not for an anti-Semitism scandal; this time it’s for voting, at their recent party conference, to integrate private schools into the state sector.

The integration process would see the assets of private schools “redistributed” into the ownership of the public - Karl Marx would be proud!

It appears that Labour have finally remembered that they are a left-wing party. Furthermore, the plan would see a quota imposed onto universities to cap admittance of students from private schools at 7 per cent to reflect the overall proportion of students in the UK who attend private schools.

This, for St Andrews, would mean a significant change to the University’s demographics: with around 40 per cent of students attending the university arriving here from private schools, St Andrews has the second-highest density of privately educated students in the UK - beaten only by Oxford.

In researching this subject, I came across a tweet that summed up its surrounding discourse. It read something along the lines of: in agreeing with Labour’s stance you are either accused of hypocrisy if you attended private schools, or bitter if you didn’t.

The

“The levers

of power are wielded by their alumni

“

LAURA BEVERIDGE Deputy Viewpoint Editor

And since I myself attended a private school during my high school years, I guess I shall be hypocritical in my belief that we should abolish private schools.

It is impossible to ignore the direct link between private school attendees and those who rule society.

While only 7 per cent of the UK’s population attended independent institutions, the levers of power are wielded by their alumni: 65 per cent of senior judges, 57 per cent of the House of Lords, 84 per cent of Prime Ministers, and 49 per cent of officer cadets admitted into Sandhurst this year were privately educated.

And this over-representation in powerful positions isn’t because people in private education are more intelligent or harder working than the rest of the population – case and

point, Boris Johnson. It’s because of what George Orwell referred to as a “mere accident of birth” - an accident that still, over 80 years later, determines whether you will or won’t attend an institution that has produced 20 of the UK’s prime ministers. Indeed, Historian Colin Shrosbree notes that the leavers of private schools formed a “political elite whose membership isn’t based on knowledge, or ability, or democratic approval, but was buttressed and kept in place by a restrictive educational system” by private schools acting as “a device to regulate and limit entry into a governing elite.”

How can we say we live in a democracy when the wealth of the family you are born into directly determines how likely you are to hold a position in government?

How can we say we live in a democracy when it is not hard work, dedication, and passion that lands you a job in parliament, but old school ties and having a foot in the door because your classmate’s dad just happens to work there?

And in this questionable democracy, the impacts of an unreflective distribution of power can be devastating. The drinking clubs, formed at university, comprised exclusively of private school boys continue seamlessly into the houses of parliament. Here, MPs who as children (according to Robert Verkaik) were “hermetically sealed from the plebeian masses” in private insti-

tutions and “expressively told that tion, the least the UK they are the chosen ones,” rejoin “the can do is to follow world community bristling with unScotland’s lead, conscious prejudice.” He goes on to and plan to state that “they are not part of the strip private big society; they are the few who schools of the have been programmed to ignore current tax the interests of the many”. This rebreaks they sults in policies of promised tax enjoy. cuts to the richest in society while underfunding crucial services like the NHS – it appears policy is being made to benefit the people who sit in parliament rather than those who they represent.

Surely, no matter what our financial status is, we can agree that it is simply not acceptable in the 21st century to have a judiciary, a parliament and a professional elite dominated by inherited wealth and those with life experiences that are so far removed from those they are in charge of; or a private school system that operates as a means to keep the UK socially immobile and entrenched in an archaic class system.

In short, if private schools didn’t confer unfair privilege no one would pay for them. So, let’s level the playing field and create a society where your likelihood to secure a top job depends not on parental wealth but on hard work. In today’s Britain, where there always seems to be billions of pounds to funnel into supply and demand relationships with the DUP or Brexit but nothing to invest into comprehensive educaIllustration: Lucy Robb

views expressed The views expressed in Viewpoint do not represent the views of The Saint but are individual opinions.

in View-

FEATURES thesaint-online.com/features

Features Editor: Angus Neale Deputy Editors: Reid Champlin, Mariah Dennis, Linden Grigg @thesaintonline

Expat Society: How much?

Expat Society refuses to disclose its membership fees and events, so what did you apply for?

LA-based marketing team refused to give a press release

“

‘Expatriate,’ or ‘expat’ as it is commonly shortened to, is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as ‘a person who lives outside their native country.’

The society vehemently rejects this definition and association, instead adopting a fluid, looser, and ultimately false classification as ‘anyone with a curiosity for the world.’ While their criteria appear to be ambiguous and multi-faceted, this is perhaps fitting for a society that caters to a new generation of third-culture students who, despite coming from a diversity of backgrounds and a fluid and mobile upbringing, can bond over their common lack of singular roots. Indeed, the prospect of the society seems fascinating, as it aims to bring together globally nomadic people, offering them a sense of belonging through a community that values their diversity. ‘A home away from home,’ as it is described, is important in today’s highly globalised world where people live in many homes and countries throughout their life, and constantly move around and transition. With international students comprising 45 per cent of the total student population, St Andrews is renowned for its

milled about the room, introducing the society, and critically its “ethos”, to keen students. A lovely touch to the evening was the customised menu of cocktails, each named after a city with a branch of the Expat Society (the St Andrews cocktail with its tangy lime flavour was, in my unbiased opinion, the best). The event itself was an example of what the society has to offer in terms of networking opportunities, and there is massive scope for exciting events, from traditional dinners to adventure expeditions in and around St Andrews.

There are plans for a range of events from large-scale to more intimate experiences; daytime versus night-time jaunts; gallery visits, hikes, beach adventures and more.

To further a sense of belonging to an exclusive club, members will also have the opportunity to buy exclusive merchandise in the year.

Through discussions with different team personnel, from administration to events, the society’s commitment to international exposure was highlighted. One of the most exciting aspects to the membership is exclusive access to the iOS App, Expat Connect, which allows you to find other Expat Society members (from any of the branches) in any city in the world to meet up, whether it’s for coffee or to explore something new together.

Another relatively new feature is the member-only Google Chrome plug-in that features photographs, news and weather from the members themselves, offering a more personalised update on the world around us. The club therefore stands in a similar domain to a social club of the future, its value being to illustration: Expat Society

“Their

far removed from any business environment and more about the party.

But what does that matter when they have six Spotify playlists? It is clear they have their priorities in the right place; LinkedIn can get their act together. It remains entirely ambiguous

whether any of these parties or connections will amount to much; however maybe you will be lucky. It remains the case that it is not what you know, but who you know.

Their first event in St Andrews, the ‘Expat Society x St Andrews Meet + Greet,’ was a highly informative event for prospective members.

Held in the newest eatery in town and sister company to the beloved The Adamson, Next Door, the event involved members of the committee

Photo: Siobhan Ali

Originally founded at one of the universities embroiled in the college admissions bribery scandal earlier this summer, the newly introduced Expat Society is the latest American export to St Andrews. With a focus on connecting the diverse international community in town, the society has been appealing to students across campus.

While The Saint reached out for an interview with the committee members, their Los Angeles-based marketing team refused to give a press release, leading us to therefore attempt to uncover some of the secrecy shrouding the society and offer readers an understanding of exactly what the Expat Society is and what it entails for St Andreans.

international cohort constituting of people from Japan to New Zealand.

Therefore, the Expat Society seems to be tailor-made for the University, allowing students to create and maintain relationships independent of geographical barriers and connect through a common passion for multiculturalism.

While the society was pioneered by four students at the University of Southern California in 2014, over the last five years it has expanded to four other locations: Los Angeles, Washington DC, Boston and St Andrews (the first international branch of the society and a signifier of its growing global outreach). The St Andrews team is comprised of ten members working to put together and host a variety of events to allow opportunities for networking and socialising with similar people from all four corners of the globe. In a world that is dominated by an increasing connectivity between people, the Expat Society facilitates this, allowing you to meet friends and friends of friends. In a small town like St Andrews, this creates a deeper sense of community and expands students’ social networks.

Their website, like that of any niche and SoulCycleesque start-up, is clean and riddled with hackneyed adjectives such as “unparalleled”, “unique”, “creative”, “worldly”, “unbreakable”, and “cosmopolitan”.

Anyone with an acerbic sense of humour could have a field day. However, thesaurus aside, the society claims to be centred on creating “amazing” events like a “killer party” or “group outing”. The aim being to ultimately foster connections, their branding seems

connect people within its community, a task it must achieve to justify its membership. The cosy membership number of 150 makes joining appear more of a shot in the dark. For those that join hoping to inculcate their professional ambitions, let us hope that this “platform” is more robust than the paper aeroplane of its logo.

“It remains

the case that it is not what you know, but who you know

“

SIOBHAN ALI Deputy News Editor

The application process to join the Expat Society is a lengthy one; prospective members are required to offer links to their various social media platforms, information about the passports they hold and the countries they have lived in, extracurricular interests as well as more vague questions such as an accomplished dream and a story to tell at parties. For those pushing this movement out to St Andrews, a robust understanding of the GDPR seems fundamentally necessary when unpacking the lives of those who apply. Reminiscent of the dreaded UCAS process to apply to university, the society is looking to see how aspiring members portray themselves, what experiences they have and how well they’ll fit with the ethos of the brand. Membership does not come without strings attached; while exact rates have not yet been released, membership is expected to cost ‘the price of a fashion show ticket plus a little bit on top’ per semester. While the prices of fashion show tickets vary in St Andrews, we can imagine that membership in this elite club will carry a hefty price tag and can easily exceed £70. Nonetheless, for some keen supporters of the expat movement, this may be a small price to pay for the exclusive invitations and networking opportunities available around the world.

As it is just starting out, with only one event under its belt so far and an official launch planned for this month, there remains much to be seen about the Expat Society. It will be interesting to see what the society has in store for its members and how it will contribute to the wider, or narrower, ecosystem in St Andrews.

In September, St Andrews Oxfam Society kicked off the academic year by hosting ‘Museum Without a Home’, a pop-up exhibition showcasing real objects donated by British and Greek people to refugees and asylum seekers who have been forced to flee their homes. The ‘Museum Without a Home’ began as an initiative by the Greek section of Oxfam and Amnesty International and found its first temporary home in museums across Athens. Since then, the exhibition has gained items given by people in the United Kingdom to recently arrived refugees and toured the world with

to feel more manageable in the face of the ‘Museum Without A Home’.

When examining a children’s book that was given to a newly arrived refugee up close, you can imagine the comfort the book brought to a child being read a story by their parent despite the strange place they now call home.

“You can

imagine the comfort the book brought to a child

The ‘Museum Without A Home’ is a way to remind us all of the comfort and security provided by simple items like a toy, bracelet, book or blanket when given to a newly arrived refugee. After a harrowing journey, a donation of a basic item given by a welcoming person in a new country far away from all that is familiar can mean the world. As Meghan O’Neill, Public Engagement Officer for Oxfam

Museum Without A Home: An Exhibition of Hospitality

about in my Maiden Speech in Parliament. I am delighted that the University of St Andrews, in my constituency, is the first Scottish university to host the exhibition, and thanks to students in the Oxfam Society for taking this on and helping to raise awareness of the need for refugees to be supported.” The local MP went on to express his gratitude for local efforts promoting the situation refugees are facing. Gethins, who is also a member of the Foreign Affairs committee and SNP spokesperson for Foreign Affairs in Europe, touched upon his personal experience of visiting refugee camps in Turkey, Greece, and on the Syria-Lebanon border, saying, “I know that we must continue to offer a place of safety to those who through no fault of their own, can no longer live in their own homes.”

The St Andrews Oxfam Society puts on a striking exhibition on the refugee crisis and humanitarian response Scotland, said, “This exhibition is made up of everyday objects which all have a powerful story to tell of despair, terror and exhaustion, but also of warmth, hospitality and humanity.” The exhibition explores hospitality in a time of broadly negative rhetoric surrounding migration and hostile policies towards refugees and asylum seekers around Europe, and gives hope for how small acts of warmth and generosity can make a difference in the face of an overwhelming global crisis. By displaying seemingly mundane items in an exhibition, each person who views the objects in this formal context is given a moment to reflect on the hardships those who arrive in a new country as a refugee face as well as how much strength and resilience they have already shown on their journey to their new home.

One highlight of the exhibition was a visit by Stephen Gethins, MP for North East Fife, who visited the ‘Museum Without A Home’ and met with members of Oxfam Society. He said, “It is so important that the situation facing refugees across the globe continues to be high on the agenda; it is an issue close to my heart and one I spoke Photo: Oxfam Society

issue affecting such an overwhelming number of people. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there are currently 70.8 million people forcibly displaced worldwide, including around 25.9 million refugees and 3.5 million asylum seekers. These numbers start

“Everyday

objects which all have a powerful story to tell

“

events in the United States, Canada, and Ireland. The ‘Museum Without A Home’ first visited Scotland in 2018 when it was displayed in Glasgow, but Oxfam Society is proud to have organized St Andrews as the first Scottish university to host the exhibition.

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Photo: Oxfam Society

MARIAH DENNIS Deputy Features Editor

The ‘Museum Without A Home’, which was held in a Society Room at the Union, displayed everyday objects like bracelets, a hairbrush, and children’s books. It included information about the refugee crisis and gave visitors a close examination of items that most of us would barely register throughout the course of a day. The vast majority of people who are fortunate enough to live in a warm, stable home do not think twice as they rush through their morning and absent mindedly pop on the kettle and hurriedly stow items in a backpack. But for refugees and asylum-seekers escaping violence and persecution, an object like a kettle, backpack or hairbrush is a small step towards making daily life manageable in a new environment and eventually making a new place feel like home.

Given the current climate surrounding refugees and asylum seekers in Europe, Oxfam Society President Alexandria Celli says she was excited to bring an exhibition to St Andrews that provides tangible evidence of the everyday experience of those who have been forced to flee their homes. In our small town it can be all too easy to lose a global perspective in the face of humanitarian crises around the world. Inherent in the exhibition is recognition that it can be hard to feel connected to an

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Illustration: Oxfam

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

He also reiterated his support for the Refugee (Family Reunion) Bill put forward by Western Isles MP Angus MacNeil. The bill, which passed its second reading in the House of Commons but has stalled since, calls for the UK Government to make sure refugee families are not separated by allowing refugee children to sponsor their close relatives to come to the UK. However, despite the bill’s lack of success, Scotland has an overall strong

reputation for welcoming newcomers with open arms. The Scottish government partnered with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, the national association of Scottish councils, and the Scottish Refugee Council to implement the New Scots Refugee Integration Strategy 2018-2022, which builds on previous programs and “sets out a roadmap for how Scotland can best support people seeking refugee protection to build meaningful and sustainable lives here.” In addition, according to the BBC, as part of a special UK government program created in 2015 that committed the UK to taking in 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020, almost a fifth of the Syrian refugees resettled in the United Kingdom so far have been settled in Scotland.

Meghan O’Neill noted, “It seems appropriate that the ‘Museum Without A Home’ has once again found a home in Scotland, where we can be proud of our efforts to welcome refugees. This exhibition represents a real challenge to governments around the world to meet refugees with the same compassion and generosity; and to build bridges instead of barbed wire fences.”

As of October, the ‘Museum Without A Home’ has packed up and left St Andrews to head to its next temporary exhibit space. After a successful and thought-provoking start to the year with the ‘Museum Without A Home’, Oxfam Society is looking to the months ahead. President Alexandria Celli reiterated Oxfam Society’s mission of fundraising for issues concerning global poverty and bringing heightened awareness of well deserving causes around the world to St Andrews.

Just this month, the society is hosting two events to do just that: an ‘Into the Jungle’ themed night with DJ Mrs Magoo at the Vic on 16 October and Oxjam Battle of the Bands at 601 on 19 October to fundraise for famine relief efforts in Yemen.

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10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

FEATURES

Understanding the University Court Elections are coming up for a new Senior Lay Member. Now is the time to understand the importance of this decision.

Illustration: Rachel Cripps

“It is

important to stress the significance of this body

The reality is that the Court is keen to make its workings as public to students as possible. They publish their minutes on the University website (on the ‘Minutes of University Court’ page, for those of you whose interest has been piqued).

They make for interesting reading.

The most recent set, from 14 June 2019, covers topics ranging from a Draft Financial

Plan for the coming year, to student concerns over housing.

Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, the Court is not devoid of student voice. A vital link connects the seemingly distant world of the University Court and the one we, the students, inhabit, and it comes in the form of our President of the Students’ Association, Jamie Rodney. The Saint asked him to explain what his role was within the Court and how it impacts the student body.

He told me that as Association President his main focus was “to make sure the student perspective is heard at the highest bodies of the University.” Mr Rodney sits on numerous committees, namely the Planning and Resources Committee (PARC) and Governance and Nominations Committee (G and N), and he attends full court meetings.

During my own research into the University Court, it occurred to me that in a gathering of such impressive, important and celebrated people it must feel difficult for a mere student to register their own opinions among the group. Mr Rodney felt a similar way and told me that it was “strange” being expected to make equal contributions to those on the Court who are at the top of their fields. He was anxious, however, to point out that it was important student representatives such as himself made sure that “student voices get heard.”

Interested in the extent to

which those voices got heard, I questioned Mr Rodney on both what he had achieved so far with the University Court and what he hoped to achieve over the next year. He said that, at the last meeting, he “was pushing quite hard to ensure widening access to the University for people of all backgrounds was tied into the University strategy.” As for the coming year, he once again impressed his desire to make sure the student voice “is and remains heard at the highest levels of the University.” Specifics followed, with an aspiration to “keep student rents from increasing above the line of inflation.” Mr Rodney also noted that he was working on a paper aiming to “massively increase the size of the accommodation bursary,” though followed that statement with an acknowledgment that the Court had still to sign off on it.

Mr Rodney’s discussion demonstrated his eagerness to show how the Court’s dealings permeated every corner of University life shone through. He listed multiple aspects of the University affected by the Court (decisions about the new Albany Park, tuition and accommodation fees, the building of student residences, preparations for “political events such as Brexit”) and summed it up simply by saying that “if there’s anything you like or dislike about St Andrews, it’s probably been funded, implemented, mitigated or impacted on by a decision made by the University Court.”

Whilst this does not mean that the Court is responsible for loud seagulls and slow Market Street walkers, it is clear that

University Court is a body to be utilised for the better.

The fact that elections for Senior Lay Member of University Court are taking place this November will hopefully now take on a greater significance to you than they did 1000 words ago. If not, it is probably because putting the words ‘senior’, ‘lay’ and ‘member’ together is meaningless to you. However, if you were to read the job advertisement for the position in The Sunday Times, you would have discovered that the Senior Lay Member (SLM) serves on the Court for four years and plays “a leading role in the governance of the University.”

Mr Rodney noted that the SLM chairs the Court, and that taking part in the elections gives students the chance to “have an influence on the things the University does that are not directly student-facing.” These things include, according to the President of the Students’ Association, “political lobbying, philanthropic efforts, and investment and divestment in various industries.” It is not too controversial to say that the more influence students have over University Court proceedings, the better our University will be.

“The court is

keen to make its workings as public to students as possible

“

Elections for Senior Lay Member of the University Court are taking place this November. Whilst a small minority know this and have eagerly penned the date in thick, red Sharpie on their wall planners, for the majority of readers this may be a revelation.

It certainly was for me. Yet, after a frantic hour spent delving into the University website, and a few long emails, I was and am convinced that these elections are highly important.

Knowing what the University Court is demonstrates why we should turn out to vote in the election.

In isolation, one may be forgiven for thinking that University Court is a place in St Andrews. We have a Dean’s Court; it would be reasonable to expect to discover a University Court tucked away in some shadowy corner of town. Were you to spend time searching for it, however, you’d be roaming the three streets of St Andrews for as long as it took before your legs gave out.

Instead, University Court holds the distinction of being the Supreme Governing Body of the University, sitting four times a year and consisting of just 23 members. Compared to other bodies involved in the running of the University, this is quite small.

The University Senate - the next body down the hierarchical pyramid - has in comparison a membership of over 100, and the body to which the Senate in turn delegates business sits at 44 members.

It would not be a stretch to compare the Council in both size and duty to the Cabinet in its most basic function. Presided over by our Rector, Srdja Popovic (past leader of the Serbian student movement Otpor! and author of Blueprint for Revolution), and chaired by the Senior Governor Dame Annie Pringle (former British ambassador to both the Russian Federation and the Czech Republic), the Court has the final say on any decisions to do with University strategy and resource management, much as the United Kingdom’s Cabinet decides government policy. In other words, the Court shapes the University Strategy, and it is the Court’s role to direct the University in whatever direc-

tion it sees fit.

It is important to stress the significance of this body in the essential functioning of the University. Certain questions may arise in your mind.

It’s clear to you that the Court is extremely important to student life at this University. Something changes though. Why is your first exposure to such an important body as the Court coming an entire month into the academic year, and through a student paper? You take a deep breath, lower said paper in your hands and glance around the library café, your empty bedroom, or the street corner where you have temporarily halted as your brain considers this truth.

“

LINDEN GRIGG Deputy Features Editor

It follows that Mr Rodney, and now I for that matter (armed with new knowledge about the inner workings of the University I attend), are urging for a large turnout at the November elections. We aren’t asking for slogans on placards, lines in the sand, or ten-minute silences; we in the know simply ask for a well-considered vote come November.

I’d also ask that you pass on this article to a fellow student to raise awareness of such an important event as this, but fear being accused of self-promotion. Instead, on a blustery St Andrews November day, with the sun squinting through the arches of the cathedral and the waves hacking at the pier wall, do yourself a favour - delay that beach walk, gym, run, or Pret session and go and vote in an election of the utmost relevance to you, a St Andrews student.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

feATURES

17

Green Week 2019 Preview

Off the heels of the largest climate protest in decades, students will again get a chance to immerse themselves in the world of sustainability and environmental activism this upcoming week as the Environment Subcommittee, Transition St Andrews, and other environmental groups host Green Week 2019.

Running from 7 to 13 October, Green Week will feature over a dozen high-profile speakers, film showings, discussions, fayres, and other events highlighting ways in which students can live sustainably, counteract the effects of climate change and take part in the University’s vibrant environmental movement.

The Environment Subcommittee will play a leading role throughout the week, aiding societies and speakers in putting on events, as well as hosting their own initiatives.

The subcommittee said in an official statement, “We have tailored this week in a way in which we can appeal to a wide variety of students and locals, but still get our message across about the climate crisis and what individuals themselves can do to mitigate their impact.”

The week is organised thematically, with each day centered around a particular environmental task and featuring speakers, events, and discussions with extensive experience in these areas. Forming the appropriate acronym CLIMATE, the week’s seven topics cover a wide range of sustainability issues, from inspiring international reform to encouraging conservation and personal responsibility.

Commencing on Monday 7

October with the theme “Conserve Our Future”, the week’s first event will be a kick-off informational session in the Union’s Large Rehearsal Room at noon. Several members of the Environmental Subcommittee will be present to give information about the week’s events and lead a discussion about how climate change will affect the global community. The day continues at 4 p.m. with “Ecotourism, Earth, & Ecosystems”, a lecture by the School of Biology’s Professor Will Cresswell and Dr Maria Dornelas focusing on how ecotourism and conservation could be critical to preserving biodiversity around the planet.

“The annual

event comes amidst increasing demand for climate action

“

REID CHAMPLIN Deputy Features Editor

Tuesday’s “Lead with Lifestyle” theme will feature a 4:15 p.m. showing of “Before the Flood,” a critically-acclaimed documentary showcasing Leonardo DiCaprio’s journey across the planet to witness how climate change is affecting the planet now. Later, Transition University of St Andrews will team

up with St Andrews Photography Festival for the first of three Climate Conversations scattered throughout the month of October. This forum will use photographs from the @ EveryDayClimateChange online exhibit as the basis for a conversation about what students can do to help mitigate the climate crisis.

Two speakers will headline Wednesday’s events: Robin Höher of the World Energy Council will speak on his career in the energy sector and his views on the future of environmentalism and energy, while driver Andreas Rieger will discuss his 2016 journey across 18 nations in a fully electric vehicle and how the cars of a sustainable tomorrow could be run on electricity.

Thursday will be dedicated to marine conservation, with the School of Geography & Sustainable Development’s Professor William Austin leading a walking discussion of sea level rise and potential solutions. The Chaplaincy will host an evening discussion on conservation broadly and whether baptism is an ecological imperative.

Friday’s “Address Public Health” theme will feature an interactive workshop discussing the harms of single-use plastics and strategies to minimise individual and University reliance. Later, the Environment Subcommittee and Students for Public Health will host a “Cookies and Climate” event, considering the links between a changing climate and public health threats over cookies at St Andrews Brewing Company.

The week will conclude with two days of fayres highlighting student groups working to counteract climate change and leave a positive ecological legacy for the campus and beyond.

Saturday’s Eco Fayre will feature nearly a dozen student and community organisations working to promote sustainable lifestyles. The Fayre will also include giveaways, retro clothing sales, traditional music from the Folk & Trad Society, and more.

Later, Sustainable Style St Andrews will host a thrift sale in the Union’s Committee Room, selling secondhand and vintage clothing as part of the day’s mission, “Transform the World of Textiles.” The week will wrap up on Sunday with the Societies Inspire Fayre, where 20 environmentally conscious student groups will converge in Beacon Bar to share plans on how to move forward with sustainability initiatives on campus.

While the subject of climate change will be treated with appropriate weight, fun events will be scattered throughout the week to show how sustainability need not be a joyless burden. A bicycle-powered drink stand will distribute free smoothies outside the Union Tuesday morning. The Bike to Work campaign will host a free breakfast in Sandy’s Bar Thursday morning, hosting a wide-ranging discussion on low-carbon lifestyles and preserving marine ecosystems over early-morning treats.

The annual event comes amidst increasing student demands for climate action from the University, with over a thousand students and activists recently marching in the St Andrews Climate Strike to urge reform against rising sea levels and more.

The group organising the event, Climate Action St Andrews, has called on the University to declare a climate emergency, launching an online petition and pointing to similar actions undertaken by the national government and similar universities across

Elegy for a Lost, Yet Not Forgotten, Chimney

Illustration: Maya Marie

THOMAS WARE One of the last wood-burning stoves in student accommodation has been extinguished. With the end of this final flame a part of St Andrews past has been lost. The chimney is one of Britain’s universal and quintessential features. For millennia it has been the constant for poor, rich, bourgeois and worker, whether you struggled under the constant belch of Victorian fumes or lived under the picturesque eves of those aristocratic crenellations. What was once essential is now obsolete, the necessary a quaint annoyance now a hazard in an ever-changing world.

It seems a tragedy of sentiment that in this small golden town I shall never again see the smoke of civilisation caught in a zephyr curl and form mirages of imagination. This miasmatic fog, both the burden of oppression and a badge of industry, will become the forgotten memories of a lost past. The chimneys from which it billowed will be but austere forlorn

sentinels cursing the very warmth for which they hunger. Their black damask death mask will be the only ugly reminders of a primal past, merely gaunt tombstones haunting the streets below with recollection of another age. Doubtless even these tumuli will in time succumb to modernity and practicality.

With this demise the sound of St Andrews is forever transformed as the crackling calumny from the rooftops shall fall silent, a deathly silence now to be replaced by the monotonous noise of the 21st century. Rather the interest of a deceitful murmur than the monolithic din of today.

These ancient figures were not however simply icons for romantic fervour but were the beating heart of the hearth and home. A place of industry and warmth in a cold world, a focal point around which the family gathered. It should not come as a surprise then that a student town has no need for such familial features, not surprising maybe but still deeply saddening.

Illustration: Ella Matza

Students prepare for seven days showcasing sustainability on campus

the UK. The petition reads, “If we don’t take radical action and make immediate changes to our behaviour, the world as we know it could be lost forever.” But the University has thus far declined to heed activists’ call, saying the University is already taking action to mitigate its contributions to climate change.

A spokeswoman for the University recently told The Courier, “Universities are about solving problems, not just describing them, and simply declaring a climate emergency is just a gesture unless it’s backed up by actions.”

Organisers urge students to attend the week’s events and for them to get involved in the wide variety of environmental advocacies they are hosting. In an official statement, the Environment Subcommittee told The Saint, “It’s very important students’ get involved with this week so they can stay informed about environmental and sustainability matters in St Andrews, as well as meet other groups and speakers who work on committees like the World Energy Council or for the Scottish government.”

More information about the week’s events can be found on the “St Andrews Green Week” Facebook page.

Do you know of a story that The Saint needs to cover?

The Saint are keen to cover stories relevant to the St Andrews community. We strive to serve you through our coverage of events relevant you all. If you find an issue or injustice that you think needs to be reported upon, The Saint are here to investigate. Just email the editor at: editor@ thesaint-online.com If you have articles you want in Features, from travel pieces to more creative works, email the editor at: features@thesaint-online.com.

The independent voice of St Andrews Students since 1997

Photos

Photography Editor: Samantha Chinomona Deputy Editors: Emily Silk and Noa Lee @saint_photos

thesaint-online.com/photos

Freeze Frame: Photographer Spolight Noa Lee discusses how photography came to be her passion.

To see the rest of this issueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s showcased photographers, visit www.thesaint-online.com Noa Lee If I can recall correctly, the moment I picked up a camera was when I was five. My dad was an avid photographer and his broad collection of lenses intrigued my little fingers and curiosity. As I grew older, I realised the immense emotions, history, and life a single second of a click on a camera could capture. It was then when I volunteered in Malawi that my Canon 70D and I became one.

Soon, I started photographing people sleeping on benches, moments of happiness, and protests that could turn aggressive at any moment.

I do admit I have a strange attraction towards conflict zones and capturing floods of humanity. While I was in Morocco to study Arabic, I stood in the middle ground between English and Arabic, between the opposing political views of the West and Middle Eastern world. Where one day I hope to stand neutral, with a camera in my hand. With this camera, I hope to freeze potent moments of humanity, write visual stories of love, and cross barbed borders to connect similar yet different worlds.

Though challenging, I would like my photographs to be a middle ground.

A possible space of compromise and connection. I would like to tell genuine stories about human beings, their struggles, their yearning for life, and their hope for the future.

Girl holding a sugarcane in Namalo village, Malawi

Anthropological fieldwork studying petroglyphs and pictographs at the Hopi Reservation, Arizona

Rain flooding the historic Grand Palace of Bangkok,Thailand

10 Ooctober 2019· thesaint-online.com

Old man in a white djellaba looking at the sunset in the blue city of Chefchaouen, Morocco

Man holding placard that says “Impeach ParkGeunHae” during Korean protests to impeach the ex-president Park

Photos

19

Events thesaint-online.com/events

Events Editor: Stella Gage Deputy Editors: Meg Dyson, Hollie Herman, Joshua Park events@thesaint-online.com

@thesaintonline

Dunhill’s 35th: celebrities, selfies, and (golf) shots

Photo: Henry Memmott

“

[It was a] wild goose chase in search of autographs and selfies with their favourite stars

The Saint: What were your job roles within the event?

Liberty: I worked as a VIP waitress for table 37 in the VIP tent.

Jess: And I was on the Carnoustie course in the Quarter Way House serving refreshments (hot dogs, soup, teas and coffees) to the golfers.

The Saint: Why did you decide to become involved with the event?

Jess: Because it was an opportunity to not only immerse myself in St Andrew’s golfing nature, but obviously also to earn money and meet unforgettable people. I was able to appreciate the

experience of working at the Home of Golf.

The Saint: What did the event bring to St Andrews?

Jess: The event brought a genuine buzz of excitement to students and locals alike, but definitely more for golfers however. But there was a massive excitement and “fan-girling” over famous actors, such as Justin Timberlake and Bill Murray.

The Saint: Do you think most students are aware of the event taking place and the opportunities it can offer them?

Liberty: Dunhill is the most publicised event held in St Andrews and it occupies the whole town, therefore it is unavoidable and impossible not to hear about. It makes a good effort to involve students as well — the company I worked for directly recruited students from the Women’s Golf Society.

Jess: As long as you have some sort of connection to the event, either a contact of someone who has worked there previously or a connection through a society, working at the event becomes easily accessible. I got involved thanks to my academic mother who handed me the contact of a company recruiting students.

The Saint: Do you think that the event is as exciting for students as university events are to them?

Jess: For me Dunhill is better than most events ... You get to wake up in the morning with no hangover but having had a wonderful time and being on the course watching the celebrities and professional golf players tee off and putt was amazing.

The Saint: What was your personal highlight whilst working for Dunhill?

Liberty: My personal highlight was the atmosphere in the VIP tent and the chance to hear celebrities perform at the dinner, in particular Brad from The Vamps. The VIP tent was decorated with flowers and fire pits; it was very rustic. When Ronan Keating sang “When You Say Nothing At All”, everyone was in tears. It was a fun job; serving South African Champagne to 400 guests wrapped in space blankets outside the VIP tent whilst watching the fireworks over West Sands was incredible.

Jess: When we started working in the Quarter Way we got given a sheet of all the players and the professionals names, so obviously I scrolled d o w n and saw Peter Jones w a s playing. I was s o happy. I’ve watched Dragons Den since being young, so I was really looking forward to meeting him.

I was expecting him to have a daunting presence, and therefore for people to be too scared to talk to him. But as soon as he came up to me there seemed to be no barriers and we got

on really well and were soon laughing. He is truly a lovely man and even asked if I wanted a photo with him and Bill Murray. It was an absolute pleasure to meet him.

The Saint: What is your overall opinion of the event?

Jess: The overall experience was definitely unforgettable.

The people who hired us provided us with so much food, amazing pay and they catered to our needs.

There were people waitressing in the pavilion in the evenings and lunch times, but I was lucky enough to work where I did because I asked to be on the course in Kirkcaldy. I also met a new friend who I worked with for the four days.

I cannot wait to work again next year.

The Saint: Did you find serving the celebrities intimidating?

Liberty: We obviously had to work with a professional attitude and contain our excitement around the stars. The celebrities were all very polite to us as staff and took particular interest in the female members of our team. Bill Murray even stacked and passed the plates from his table to me as I cleared!

“ [This event]

serves as an important contrast to the usual student-run functions

“

The town of St Andrews was brought alive during the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Event held two weekends ago.

Our tiny bubble buzzed with excitement as locals, students and tourists flooded the town’s golf courses and local pubs in celebration of the 35th year of Dunhill sponsorship.

Despite the slight nip in the air, the dramatic scenery and autumnal feel of the town felt truly cherished, and a sense of pride stirred throughout the streets as we shared our perfectly mowed fairways with some of the most celebrated professional and amateur golfers.

Since the very first Dunhill Cup Event played on the Old Course in 1985, St Andrews has welcomed enthusiastic golfers, as well as non-players of the sport, to become involved within the event.

For University students Dunhill poses many opportunities in which to fully immerse oneself in the thriving atmosphere of the event; from acting as a mere spectator wrapped up in hat and scarf on the course paths (with perhaps a hip-flask of whisky in hand), to working the long weekend for the events management team.

Dunhill provides the chance to take part in a unique and spectacular event that stands apart from our usual university balls and dinners.

With big celebrity names arriving

and exploring all St Andrews has to offer, students were pulled away from studying and set off on wild goose chases in search of autographs and selfies with their favourite stars.

In order to find out what Dunhill meant to those lucky enough to help prepare for and work the event, I sat down with two students, second year Jess Jones and third year Liberty Strachan Brooks, to hear about their individual involvement and why they think such a renowned event serves as an important contrast to the usual student functions we hear so frequently discussed.

“

HOLLIE HERMAN Deputy Events Editor

Jess: I was really worried at first that the golfers and celebrities would look down on us or be rude, demanding, “Can I have a hot dog or a tea?”

But it was the complete opposite.

When they came over (more likely to be the amateurs than the professional golfers) everyone was lovely, so sweet, so kind. They have genuinely

Photo: Henry Memmott

Hollie Herman explores students’ experiences working the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

left an amazing impression on me.

The Saint: Is it important for large events, such as Dunhill, to be held here in St Andrews?

Jess: I think it is vital that in St Andrews, being the Home of Golf, we do have these large scale events brought to us and its brilliant that they get the students involved during the term time, so even non golfers can immerse themselves in the golfing culture. It would be brilliant to see more events like this come to St Andrews. It would even be great for students to hold their own Dunhill event- student golfers paired with non-student golfers would be quite entertaining!

Dunhill has definitely left a lasting effect upon St Andrews and its students this autumn, with its celebrity presence seeming to increase year to year.

In providing both thrilling and legendary entertainment in between lectures and life-changing work experiences amongst public figures over the weekend, students were exposed to life outside their cosy University bubble, while still remaining inside the bubble.

But most importantly, they were reminded of the treasure that is St Andrews and its capacity to host events of a world scale.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Events

21

Ball Culture: Glitz, Glam, Gatsby?

Stella Gage explores the importance, or lack thereof, of ball culture in St Andrews

There have been quite a few new balls popping up on the St Andrews event scene in the last few years, as well as more recently, and it got me thinking about ball culture at the University.

The first example that made me want to take a closer look at this event sub-culture was the Sia Project x Gatsby Party. While this event was not advertised as a ball, it turned out to be quite similar to one.

With a guest list and bouncer at the front of house maintaining a strict one-in-one-out policy (unless you knew the host personally), you could immediately sense that this wasn’t a traditional birthday or house party.

There was a champagne tower, open bar, and jacuzzi, with attendees decked out in their finest clothes. Upon walking into the marquis, one truly had the sense that they were walking into Lower College Lawn for one of the many established balls put on by students.

This birthday ball got me thinking about the vast amount of balls that are held at this University, a phenomenon seemingly unique to St Andrews. I started running through all the different balls in my mind, and another one stuck out as particularly unique — The Other Ball.

This ball, though similarly separate from the rest, is unlike the birthday party because it knows what it is and is proud of it. The Other Ball is meant to celebrate The Other Guys a cappella group.

To the group, “it’s essentially a night to thank everyone who has been involved with TOG and helped it to be the best it can be.” Though The Other Guys’ main motivation for

STELLA GAGE Events Editor

5

INTO the Jungle

sire to throw your own ball, because of the prestige and status of such an event, I do think it takes a certain feeling of self-importance to throw a big event like that

St Andrews meant to celebrate bigger causes or momentous occasions.

So, it was merely interesting for me to see this new wave of balls, centred around less wide-scale themes, pop up.

All of this got me asking myself two questions: what is the appeal of throwing your own ball? And what makes balls special to the people

a t tending?

Seeing new balls pop up made me think that they would become more redundant or somehow go out of style. But, after talking with different people and mulling over these questions myself, I have come to a few realizations.

The first is that many people thoroughly enjoy balls and consider them to be one of the biggest staples a n d some of the most special parts of event culture in St Andrews. In many, if not most university towns, there is a wide variety of places to go out.

However, with most nights out Illustration: Angelina Todaro

STELLA GAGE Events Editor

throwing their ball is clear and simple to me, this event stuck out to me as similarly dissimilar from other more established balls in St Andrews.

The Other Ball is relatively new, founded within the last few years,

and was started by and for the group themselves.

The Gatsby event as well as this one stuck out to me because they were both thrown by the very person or people that they were meant to celebrate. Though I understand the de-

to celebrate yourself or your group.

This is not to say that I think Sia or the Other Guys are entirely or uniquely self-interested, but I have always seen balls as the type of event at

Top 5 Events This Week

4

Battle of the Bands

3

DW20 Halo

2

Opening Ball

in St Andrews consisting of going to either the Union or The Vic, I can understand why people tire of the repetitiveness and crave something more.

Another thing I realised is that people want to feel a part of something and the variety of balls offered in St Andrews fulfils that desire.

All of the hall, sport, and various themed balls provide people with the opportunity to spend time with the people and community of their choosing. So, perhaps my initial assessment of the two balls I’ve discussed wasn’t entirely correct.

Business Manager of TOG Thomas Halvorsen told us that “balls are one of those unique St Andrews traditions that seem almost timeless and being able to share in that amazing tradition with our friends, families, alumna, and closest fans is something we really treasure.” And this sentiment makes a lot of sense.

Why wouldn’t someone want to celebrate with their friends in a quintessentially St Andrews fashion?

When I first considered the amount of new ball-style events that seem to pop up each year, I thought that the plethora of balls would make each one less special than the last.

But, perhaps each ball that emerges taps into a new community or theme that people have been or didn’t even know they were longing for.

After all, who doesn’t love the idea of dressing up in Gatsby-themed attire and being transported back to the glitz and glamour of the roaring 20s just for one night?

Though I still feel like the vast amount of balls in St Andrews can seem a bit overplayed at times, I’ll admit that I might have been too harsh on this new wave of ball-style events culture emerging in St Andrews at first.

I think that I now have a better understanding of how close this style of event is to many people’s hearts and just how unique it is to our University town.

1

Fleabag

Wednesday, Oct. 16

Saturday, Oct. 19

Thursday, Oct. 10

Saturday, Oct. 12

Monday, Oct. 14

Escape the bubble on 16 October and enter the depths of the wild, as Oxfam Society St Andrews presents to you their Vic event, INTO the Jungle. Prepare for a night where animal instincts take over as Mrs Magoo drops her fierce beats on the DJ deck. The DJ also played at Glastonbury, so having them will be an extra special treat.

Want to attend an epic event supporting a great cause? This is the night for you. “Coming soon to our very own Club 601, the St Andrews Oxjam music festival is returning with the three incredible nights.” The first night will be a Battle of the Bands, a night of great music and an even better purpose, fundraising for famine relief efforts in Yemen.

DONT WALK presents to you Halo, a night of musical bricolage at the Vic by Dont Walk’s in house DJs. Expect to hear throwbacks, club-beats, electro-house and DnB from TruBlu and Staël in the Main Room, whilst the Social Room blasts out techno. The event will be in aid of their sponsor, Rainforest Alliance; they aim to raise awareness of consumerism in the hope for a tangible change in reality. Let Halo show you ‘Another World is Possible’.

This is the quintessential event to quick off an entire season of balls. This year the committee was forced to move locations, but they turned what could have been a severe hit and turned into a positive. To read more about the changes being made to the event this year in the extended preview on our website.

Written and performed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, this witty and incredible show is being brought to our little seaside town for one special night.

“Fleabag may seem oversexed, emotionally unfiltered and self-obsessed, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg ... Fleabag suddenly finds herself with nothing to lose.” Head to the Byre Theatre to witness this work of true theatrical genius.

Arts & Culture

Illustration: Rachel Cripps

Editors: Olivia Hendren Deputy Editors: Milo Farragher-Hanks, Euan Notley, Marianna Panteli, Tom Hodson, Alice Hobbs, Sophia Rink. & Annabel Steele thesaint-online.com/reviews arts@thesaint-online.com @thesaintonline

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

23

The Culture of Drinking EUAN NOTLEY Deputy A&C Editor In university life there is one tough decision we all face time and time again: trying to work out which drink we are going to order from the bar. In many ways, it would be easier not to drink at all. Most decent people respect a person’s decision not to have an alcoholic drink, and you may even garner some admiration for being a sensible, health-conscious type who isn’t going to embarrass himself later that evening. But for myself and the many other less sensible students out there, deciding on your tipple for the evening can be a surprisingly fraught process. Alcohol inhabits a unique position within the world of food and drink: more so than any other menu choice, the alcoholic drink we choose is loaded with all sorts of fascinating social and cultural baggage. So how on earth do you choose?

“Some drinks

still carry a residue of masculinity or femininity

“

Having waited on bar tables for years, I have seen hundreds of ver-

sions of the internal calculations which customers make before ordering a drink. One of the key factors, even in this day and age, is gender. While there are always exceptions and the gendering of drinks is in decline, some drinks still carry a residue of masculinity or femininity that linger in the back of our minds.

Last year only 9 per cent of women named beer as their favourite beverage, versus 40 per cent of men.

Of course, how drinks companies choose to market their products does not help. While we have come a long way since the 1970s when cans of Tennent’s were sold with pictures of ‘Lager Lovelies’ on the front for men to ogle at (seriously, look it up), drinks are still deliberately targeted at a specific gender. They may not explicitly admit it in advertising, but there is no doubt Eden Mill had the female market in mind when developing their popular, pink-tinged Love Gin. Geography also plays a part in what we drink. Spend enough time in a St Andrews hotel and you can figure out which side of the Atlantic a guest is from by their order.

Americans typically prefer Chardonnay while Brits will order a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. Americans have a hundred different ways of enjoying vodka while Brits are currently in the middle of a gin renais-

sance. Alcohol can even be a source of national pride.

Anyone who has heard an Irishman sing the praises of Guinness or a Scot well

Photo: Olivia Hendren

up with emotion over the virtues of Tennent’s will know this.

Most important of all is our social environment. Who we are with, how well we know these people and how we want them to perceive us will ultimately determine our drink choice for a particular occasion. A 2013 study from the University of Birmingham applied the idea that we ‘compartmentalise’ all our different identities, matching social contexts to drinking habits. To put it simply, you probably wouldn’t order tequila shots when meeting your partner’s parents for the first time.

Meanwhile, our culture seamlessly reflects and reinforces all these stereotypes. Alcohol has so much cultural meaning attached to it that it has become part of the shorthand for establishing a scene or a character. The male noir detective is never without a glass of bourbon swinging in his hand. A bottle of wine immediately signposts a middle-class dinner party. And wasn’t there a small part in all of us that came to university expecting to find house parties filled with beer kegs and red plastic cups, just like those films promised? Particularly on the screen, where every frame counts, a character’s choice of drink is never arbitrary.

Of course, when it comes to what one should choose to drink it’s all nonsense. Who cares? We should all drink exactly what we want to – in moderation, of course. There is nothing sadder than watching someone struggle through a drink they didn’t really want in the first place.

However, there is a positive side to all these assumptions. It means

that drinking is performative: what you choose to drink makes an inherent statement about who you are. In this respect, drinking can be treated like fashion. Others might use it to make assumptions about their fellow drinkers, but we can also use it to tell people who we want to be. My advice would be to have fun and embrace the theatricality of it. If you want to order a martini so you can feel like James Bond, then do it. And if a pretentious bartender tries to lecture you on why a martini shouldn’t be shaken then ignore them. It’s your drink and your identity. Also, surprise people! Never feel as though you should order something fancy just because everyone else is, or vice versa. Although if you get champagne when everyone else is on rum and coke, I would advise at least offering to pay for that round.

Never underestimate how drinks and their presentation can elevate a party or a night out. Why not go to one of St Andrews’ many charity shops and buy some garish cocktail glasses on the cheap? They will immediately add an air of novelty to your pre-drinks. Above all, you should never feel pressured to stay in your comfort zone. What better excuse than the start of the Roaring Twenties next year to perhaps try making some basic cocktails? There are so many drinks out there, each with their own history and reputation. The world is your martini glass.

I should probably end with the disclaimer that all this drink should be enjoyed responsibly. Telling the bouncer that you were making a statement about your identity by playing with the socio-cultural connotations of a Pablo probably won’t stop them from throwing you out.

Spritz the way to your perfect man

ABBIE LI

Coco Chanel once said, “No elegance is possible without perfume. It is the unseen, unforgettable, ultimate accessory.” The creator of the world’s bestselling perfume, Chanel No. 5, was not entirely wrong. Perfume can speak volumes about a person. (Or rather smell volumes.) On that note, I present the ultimate guide to finding the right perfume to attract your ideal man.

Floral scents

Floral scents, especially softer ones like rose, jasmine, or lilies, are perfect for those looking for an overbearing alpha male. This one is great if you are looking to improve your sandwich-making skills or have run out of rent money and are looking for someone to foot your next dinner tab.

Woodsy or musky scents

This scent profile is perfect for

those looking for a man with a strange attachment to his mom. Nothing says “I could be your mother” like overpowering sandalwood and patchouli.

One useful tip is to match the age of the man you are trying to attract to the degree that the perfume smells like potpourri: the closer, the older. Bonus points for wearing a perfume that was actually created in the 1950s. (For those on a budget, I recommend wearing a Yankee Candle flameless scent to remind him of his mother’s Subaru.)

Earthy scents

Similar to woodsy, but not quite, earthy scents are perfect for those looking for someone to compost with.

Go for a piney scent if you want to find an ex-boy scout whose party trick is tying different knots or a beachy scent if you are looking for someone who only wears Billabong but has never gone surfing.

Fresh scents

Fresh perfumes such as those com-

prised of notes like citrus, freshly cut grass, or ocean are perfect for those looking to find a grown man who does not know how to do his own laundry. If you’re looking for a man who is an overgrown child this is for you. Go for one with linen notes if you want to change his sheets for the first time.

Anything from Bath and Body Works

If you are looking for a man who has a daddy complex, this is the perfume category for you. The obnoxiously synthetic fragrance screams “I frequent the local Forever 21 and am under 21”. This especially pairs well with Victoria’s Secret PINK sweatpants bought with a gift card at a post-Christmas day sale and a pumpkin spice latte.

Anything

from

Abercrombie franchise

the

The difference between a Bath

and Body Works-scent wearer and Abercrombie-scent wearer can be quite subtle and the two are not mutually exclusive. However, the strength of the fumes emitted from the wearer is the real litmus test–the stronger the scent, the more they peaked in high school.

This scent is perfect for those girls trying to emit a present-day-cheerl e a d er-but-fut u r e - H o o ters-waitress vibe.

Note: Take these suggestions with a grain of exfoliating sea salt body scrub, and if in doubt, stalk his ex-girlfriend and steal her perfume instead. Better yet, sneak into his bathroom and wear his cologne to capitalize on his never-ending love for himself.

Photo: Angelina Todaro

What sort of guy are you attracting with your perfume choice?

24

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

Difference, power, violence: the complex history of gender in horror films

Cr s

ipp

“

It is of course unavoidable that certain horror films and cycles have indulged in shamelessly retrograde tendencies, and that circles in horror fandom have been too happy to reward them for doing so. Slasher films like the Friday the 13th sequels and the delightfully titled likes of New Year’s Evil and Don’t Answer The Phone! en-

l he ac

of teenage male nerds frightened by women

:R

“The milieu

Grindhouse staples like The Evil Dead and The Last House On The Left centre spectacularised sequences of sexual violence that are unnecessarily cruel at best and outright exploitative at worst, and seem to be there for little reason beyond the thrill of violating taboo. At its laziest, the genre throws around loaded imagery of gendered violence with a carelessness that feels distinctly adolescent. The prevalence of such aspects has arguably helped create a tiresomely macho culture in certain circles of horror spectatorship, where the genre is essentially treated as an endurance test: it’s all about proving your manhood by establishing who can watch the most sequences of degrading, misogynistic cruelty without feeling uneasy or sickened. To treat such imagery as ‘cool’ or ‘funny’ is the expected standard, and to react with empathy is seen as the ultimate proof of weakness – or worse, effeminacy.

All this means that the genre’s reputation as the milieu of mouth-breathing teenaged male nerds frightened by and contemptuous of women, as a receptacle for outdated archetypes, is not exactly unearned.

And yet, if there’s anything scholars of horror know it’s that nothing is ever black and white, and that surface impressions never tell the full story; beneath every visage lurks something darker and more contradictory. And indeed, if you look throughout horror’s history (not just its recent history, as some would tell you), you’ll find plenty of proof that horror isn’t always a misogynist fanboy’s game: in fact, its very nature gives it a uniquely subversive potential.

Horror, as it exists today, has its roots in Gothic fiction, a method of storytelling often keyed into female fears and desires and concerned with the sub-altern and the oppressed – in stories like Dracula and Rebecca, the dreads of the female lead are what drive the plot, while the theme of darkness lurking beneath the establishment’s pleasant surfaces predominates. Many of the best and richest horror films remember their roots in this tradition. Think of Jennifer Kent’s chilling The Babadook, which stood as a shadowy, anxious articula-

oto Ph

Picture a film. It takes place in a ballet school, with a cast predominantly made of teenaged girls and their teachers. It opens with a sequence wherein one of these girls is brutally murdered, which is rendered in a series of striking, painterly images that seem to invite the viewer to gawk at their beauty – to treat the girl’s body as an object. It’s also a story of witchcraft, one keyed into ideas of female power and agency, and that ends with its young heroine quite gleefully embracing those qualities. Quick answer: is this film feminist for its themes and narrative focus, or misogynist for its imagery?

The film fans among us will recognise that description as Dario Argento’s Suspiria, a stylish, dreamlike 1977 Italian horror film that has remained iconic for many reasons – not least by the way it seems to crystalise the contradictory gender politics of the genre. Give any two people the prompt, ‘gender in horror films – discuss’, and expect to get two radically different responses. Depending on who you ask, horror is either nakedly regressive, relying on lurid images of female suffering for entertainment, or a vehicle for empowerment, presenting resonant stories of women conquering internal and external demons, sometimes actually turning the lens back on its male spectators. The range of takes on horror’s relationship with gender is as wide-ranging and seemingly contradictory as the genre itself. So, ahead of Halloween, let’s follow in the genre’s spirit and venture into the dark woods of horror’s gender politics – which, naturally, is just as murky, multivalent and fascinating as everything else associated with the genre.

tion of taboo anxieties about motherhood long before its title monster became an unlikely gay icon, or how Robert Eggers’ T h e Witch dives deep into t h e psycho-

logical suffocation of a teenaged girl growing up under religious patriarchy. Think of the mythic, primal imagery of female power woven throughout Luca Guadagnino’s baroquely brutal remake of the aforementioned Suspiria, the (quite literal) evisceration of double standards surrounding sexual behaviour in Julia Decornau’s brilliant, uncompromising debut Raw, or the haunting expression of satisfaction worn by Florence Pugh’s Dani in the climax of Midsommar.

If you were so inclined, you could also count Lynne Ramsay’s elliptical maternity nightmare We Need To Talk About Kevin – which may or may not be a horror film but is certainly more than viscerally distressing enough.

Not only do the female characters in these films defy stereotypes, but they

also explore themes related to gender norms in a challenging fashion. But such subversion isn’t a recent development – it’s woven into the very fabric of the genre.

Horror is built on disruption of the status quo, the unearthing of that which we try to bury. Accepted truisms are shattered, monsters lurk in places where we’re supposed to feel comfortable, and nothing is ever as it seems. Not for nothing is horror’s most iconic location, the haunted house, a twisted spoof of domestic normality – horror is all about taking that which we accept as commonplace and making it unsettling, revealing a darkness that was perhaps there all along. Done correctly, it takes expectations of all kinds, including ones surrounding gender, and shatters them right before our eyes. Mighty heroes and damsels in distress are for stories of certainty and comfort, but horror is (or ought to be) about discomfort, about subverting the familiar, about the unhomely, to borrow a term from Freud. It takes place in worlds that run on the logic of a fairy tale or nightmare rather than real life or more conventional drama. Empirical reason and brute force, the conventional weapons of the male pulp hero, are useless against intangible forces of darkness, while intuition, superstition and other traits mocked as the stuff of ‘old wives’ tales’ are the key to understanding the things lurking in the shadows. In horror, it’s ‘old wives’ tales’ that are true and ‘objectivity’ – the favourite term of both the Victorian phrenologist and the Reddit would-be debater – is a delusion.

The gen-

re’s history is rife with tales wherein men dismiss women’s warnings of danger only to realise too late that t h e y

should have listened, or where female characters possess a unique knowledge of, or connection to,

the threat which evades the male characters (Us recently put a particularly interesting spin on this).

“The dark woods of horror’s gender politics

“

MILO FARRAGHERHANKS A&C Deputy Editor

gaged in a particularly pernicious hypocrisy, mining their female characters’ sexuality for potential prurience, then ‘punishing’ them for it with equally prurient death scenes.

Furthermore, there is something about the genre’s heightened nature and fondness for the grotesque that can make it a uniquely appropriate venue for social satire and the expression of female anxieties. While the dynamic of female survivor vs. male monster can be trite, at its best it can tap into existing power dynamics and fears in much the same cathartic manner as dreams or psychodrama. There’s a reason that four decades later, the image of Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley fighting off H.R Giger’s distinctly phallic, forced-reproduction-minded monster in Alien remains so hauntingly effective. In both academic and fan circles, one can find many insightful, articulate pieces from female writers on the emotional release they found in the survival narratives of films like Halloween and A Nightmare On Elm Street. Sometimes it’s comforting to be told that not only are your fears valid, but you might be capable of kicking their asses – and no genre offers that quite like horror.

And even before Jordan Peele popularised the term ‘social thriller’, the genre has never been a stranger to potent and cutting social commentary - has there ever been a more on-themoney takedown of toxic masculinity than the narcissistic, insecure, Trumpworshipping Patrick Bateman of Mary Harron’s film of American Psycho?

The question of horror’s gender politics is not a simple or straightforward one. Even beyond the futility of trying to prove a whole genre to be feminist or misogynist, horror presents a particularly challenging case: the very traits that may make, say, The Exorcist read as feminist to one viewer but cement it as chauvinist for another. It’s a genre with a history of centring women and their anxieties, and also one of nasty stereotypes. But if subversive feminist works like Raw or Jennifer’s Body don’t erase the frequent quasi-pornographic murders of the slasher cycle, then we shouldn’t let the toxic fanboy crowd overlook the genre’s capacity for nuance and the challenging of expectations. Like any student of the genre knows, you need to look beneath the masks, into the darkness below, to find the full, fascinating truth.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

25

Binge watch your Modern Languages degree Deputy A&C Editor

Many languages are studied at St Andrews. Whilst I am shamefully singularly lingual, I am here to offer some foreign language TV and Film highlights. I have only selected TV and Film in the languages on offer at the University, but of course there so many other great finds out there.

For example, check out The Guardian’s “How Turkish TV is taking over the world” for an interesting read and further inspiration. Or click on over to the Walter Presents page on Channel 4, and gaze upon the bountiful amounts of world drama that has been carefully curated for your televisual enjoyment.

Whether you are learning a language, or just looking for something that will make you sound cultured at dinner parties, I hope you enjoy my favourite foreign language pickings.

Arabic

For Arabic, I’ve picked a few different films to cover just a few of the many dialects.

First up is West Beirut in Lebanese Arabic. Set in 1975 at the outbreak of civil war, the film follows high schooler Tarek and his friend Omar.

Together they make Super 8 movies in the now partitioned Beirut. As the film progresses and Tarek grows up, the war-torn landscape he saw as an adventure land reveals itself as a tragedy.

Blessed Benefit is in Jordanian Arabic and is a comedy set in a prison.

The film follows Ahmed who finds himself incarcerated after an unfortunate business deal. There he meets Ibrahim who may just be his only chance to prove his innocence. Yet as this unfolds Ahmed begins to think that his life on the inside is better than that on the outside.

Finally, The Mummy, also released as The Night of Counting the Years, is a 1969 Egyptian film in Standard Modern Arabic. Set a year before the start of colonial rule in 1881, The Mummy follows an Upper-Egyptian clan that robs a cache of mummies and sells on the artefacts. As the film continues conflicts amongst the group simmer and drive the plot forward.

French

Think The Thick of It but lessshouty and more-scary, and you’ve got the French political thriller, Spin.

It begins with the French president being killed in a suicide-attack. The presidential campaign that follows in the wake of this forms the intrigue of the first season. Spin doctors of each respective candidate do what it takes to propel their horse in the raise to victory. All three seasons are available on All 4 through Walter Presents.

German

An 80s aesthetic? Yes. An 80s soundtrack? Yes. What more could you want? Nothing. This is where Deutschland 83 comes in to serve your needs. It was a big hit in 2015 when it was first released but it has since

been followed with a second series, Deutschland 86, and there is also a Deutschland 89 in the works. The Deutschland series sees a 24-year old resident of East-Germany, Martin Rauch, sent west across the wall as a spy for the Stasi’s foreign intelligence agency the HVA. The show comes from the husband and wife team of American novelist Anna Winger and German TV producer Joerg Winger.

This is a thrilling piece of TV that immerses you into that tense and fractious setting of a divided Germany.

This German masterpiece is another boxset you can find on Walter Presents.

Italian

Baby is an Italian teen drama. It debuted last year on Netflix and is still available on the platform. The series follows students at an elite private school in Rome. Two friends, Chiara and Ludovica, become involved in a prostitution ring. It is loosely based on a real case named Baby Squillo where an underage prostitution ring was uncovered in Rome’s wealthy Parioli district in 2014. The show has come under criticism for glamourizing underage prostitution by placing it in the context of luxury and excess.

However, as the show goes on it begins to reverse and undermine this image. Season 2 airs later this month so there will be plenty of Italian language drama to get your teeth stuck into.

Persian

Talking of getting your teeth stuck

into things… A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is a 2014 Persian vampire movie by Iranian-American writer-director Ana Lily Amirpour. Set in a fictional Iranian ghost-town called Bad City, the townspeople are unaware that they are being followed by a vampire. Amirpour has described the film as the “Iranian love-child of Sergio Leone and David Lynch, with Nosferatu as a babysitter” and I think that may just give you a better feel for the atmospheric piece than anything I could write. The film stars Arash, a young man who has to look after his heroin-addled father, Hossein. All this whilst being harassed by a drug-dealer and pimp named Saeed. The film also stars actress and performance artist Vand. This eerie and lithe piece plays with ideas of East and West in a way that adds new depth to the film.

Russian

Dovlatov is a biographical film about the writer Sergei of the same surname. Sergei Dovlatov was one of the most popular Russian writers of the late 20th century and also worked as a journalist and this film serves as a thorough character study of the figure. The film centers on a few days in the life of the writer in 1971 Leningrad as his friend, the writer Joseph Brodsky, is about to flee the country. As of yet unrecognized, the Dovlatov of the film is still trying to get published. But as a dissident writer in the rigid Soviet Union, he is having little success. A fan of irony and not a fan of writing about the glories of Socialist Man, Dovlatov is heavily

censored and finds himself unable to join the Writers’ Guild. The film also looks at the troubles unfolding in his personal life. It is an interesting portrait of a man whose success only came towards the end of his short life and the film boasts beautiful tracking shots of the land that was keeping his voice unheard.

“The tense

and fractious setting of a divided Germany Spanish

“

MARIANNA PANTELI

Despite the warm climes this thriller is just as chilling as any Scandi-noir.

Night and Day is set in Barcelona and follows a forensic pathologist, Sara, who is having a number of secret love affairs and resisting his urge to start a family. This darker side is masked by a surface of career success and superficial marital bliss. At work, she is examining bodies who had died in a car crash, when she realizes that one of the men is someone she had slept with. This revelation leads her down a dangerous path into the criminal world surrounding an elusive killer.

26

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

Fighting climate change through art

What role does fine art have to play in tackling the climate crisis?

But – contrary to popular belief – art is still being created today.

When studying art, we tend to forget contemporary art; and, arguably, it’s more important than the entire catalogue of human creative output

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achel C

can trigger emotions quite like the arts

ed b y the natural world, painting observations of insects and other living creatures in his early career, but as he travelled more extensively and gained deeper insight into the effects of global warming and plastic pollution, his trajectory shifted. He channelled his concerns through art, resulting in an archive of activist paintings which force the consumer to come face-to-face with the future of the planet.

Facts and figures are massively important in jolting people into making a difference, but there is nothing in the scientific world which can trigger emotions quite like the arts can.

However, there is

Photo: R

“Nothing

“

What do you get when you combine the age-old question of ‘the purpose of art’, and the contemporary issue of the planet falling to pieces? I’ll give you a hint: it’s a pretty dreamy coupling. It’s often been said that the most successful art makes us think: in theatre, we’ve been taught by countless practitioners to avoid performance purely for entertainment; music critics like to make a habit of ripping ‘shallow’ modern chart music to shreds, mourning the fact (which is, for the record, absolutely untrue) that “nobody writes lyrics like Johnny Cash these days”; in film, the Oscar never goes to the relatable chick flick, but rather to the poignant, beautifully crafted masterpiece of the year. Whether or not you agree with the responsibility this places on the arts, it must be acknowledged that art absolutely influences the consumer. So, what are fine artists doing to contribute to the fight against climate change?

The IPCC report is invaluable to proving the necessity of acting, and acting fast. But, at the end of the day, your average Joe isn’t going to sit down after a long day at work and read it from cover to cover. The reason that the arts are so invaluable in combatting social and political crises is that they make things accessible.

The environment has, as you might expect, been a focal point of fine art from the moment the first paintbrush touched the first canvas: painters love

pre-2000 because it’s responding to today’s issues. Alexis Rockman is an American artist who creates dystopian paintings which predict the future of our landscapes if we continue behaving so destructively.

He has always been fascinat-

also an intriguing point at which science and art intersect. The result is a creative medium called data art.

Scientist Ed Hawkins created, in 2016, a piece of data art called Climate spiral which presents data in an accessible a n d u n derstandable way.

The piece is a moving image which tracks the average global temperature from 1850 to 2016.

The viewer watches as the spiral inches nearer and nearer to two red lines around the edge of the circle, one representing a 1.5-degree increase and the other representing the dreaded 2-degree increase. The Washington Post claimed it was the “most compelling global warming visualization ever made”, shattering the illusion that endeavours in science and art are mutually exclusive methods of tackling climate change.

2018 saw the introduction of Imperial College London’s

Grantham Art Prize, commissioning six artists who collaborated with climate scientists to produce pieces of art specifically intended to explore the dangerous state of the planet, and the way we can kickstart discussions about it through art. Famous street artist Banksy supposedly responded to Extinction Rebellion protests in London with a new piece on a wall in Marble Arch, depicting a young girl holding a sign which reads “From this moment despair ends and tactics begin”, sparking discussion about the ethics behind Extinction Rebellion as well as making it clear that climate activism is being definitively dominated by young people.

“Art intended

to explore the dangerous state of the planet

“

ANNABEL STEELE Co-Arts & Culture Editor

nature. Artists like Turner, Rousseau, Cezanne and Van Gogh are famous for their interpretations of the world, but it would actually be pretty challenging to find an artist who hasn’t produced at least one piece of work inspired by nature. The fact that these works aren’t contemporary shouldn’t matter: in fact, it’s incredibly powerful to look at paintings of the earth which were created long before we realised exactly what we were doing to it. If art galleries want to share their portion of the burden, they should be focusing on environmental paintings across the ages. When we begin to notice just how central the planet is to everything we create, we cannot help but feel motivated to protect it.

The climate crisis is arguably the first crisis in the history of our species which genuinely poses an existential threat to every single one of us.

Because of this, encouraging people to talk about climate change is the most important thing we can do – and this has been the role of the arts throughout history.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

27

Unbelievable: A Netflix Review In the era of the #MeToo movement, where rape accusations nowadays seem to be more of a case of “he said, she said” as opposed to a criminal investigation of the accused party, Unbelievable seems to illuminate modern-day concerns regarding sexual assault and the mistreatment of rape victims, showcasing why reporting figures for sexual assault are in fact so low.

Launched on Netflix last month, Unbelievable tells the true story of a young woman (portrayed in the show as Marie Alder, though her real identity is unknown) who was sexually assaulted after the masked assailant broke into her house in the middle of the night. Marie had suffered a long history of abuse and negligence starting from a young age, after her birth parents fed her dog food and abused her psychologically and physically.

Jumping from foster home to foster home, she was residing in a transition home between foster care and the real world, and with a full-time job and friends, she appeared to be adjusting to her new life well.

After the sexual assault, Marie is bombarded with questions from doctors and police officers who demand she tells her story over and over.

While the male detectives investigating her case seem to focus less on finding the man who raped her and more on whether Marie is telling the truth, they buckle down on the holes in Marie’s story in the days following the attack, and at a loss for how to continue answering the detectives’ questions when they don’t believe her, she falsely claims that she made up the attack to get out of questioning and avoid dealing with the investigation further.

Meanwhile, the second episode of the eight-part series follows another victim in a different state, but the stark contrast between her experience and Marie’s communicates the severity of the male detectives’ negligence in handing her sexual assault case. For one, the female detective investigating the second victim’s case approaches the situation gently, asking her if she’s comfortable with sharing what happened, walking her through what will happen at the hospital with the rape kit, and staying with her until a friend arrives so she isn’t alone.

Eventually, two female detectives in Colorado investigating nearly identical rape cases team up to catch the serial rapist, who sexually assaulted multiple women across America and was sentenced to 327.5 years in prison for rape, robbery and stalking. While the success of these women in catching the assailant seems to give the series a positive ending, an interview with the rapist by the Colorado Police Department reveals that Marie Alder was his first victim, and he admits that he left behind countless fingerprints and DNA at the scene. He told police that he expected to be caught the next day, but when he wasn’t, he decided to continue on with his crimes across the country, getting smarter and more

never experienced while watching a TV show.

As an avid fan of Law & Order: SVU, which tackles criminal cases of a sexual nature, particularly those dealing with sexual assault, by the NYPD’s Special Victims Unit, I have learned a decent amount about how an official police investigation of sexual assault functions, from rape kits to

questioned just hours after the rape, this should be a no-brainer, but the detectives and doctors seem to have no sympathy for Marie wanting to take a break from questioning, and they fail to give her any information about what they will do to find the man that assaulted her or how the rest of the investigation will play out. In contrast, the detective investigating

other women endured as a result of the guilty man still being on the loose.

Even though I had seen the show trailer before diving in, I found Unbelievable difficult to watch at first, particularly the first two episodes with multiple, if brief, flashbacks to the sexual assaults. The whole show is of a generally upsetting nature, heightened by the outstanding acting from the actresses portraying the victims. However, I felt a moral obligation to keep watching the show because it is based on a true story and these situations play out often in our society, which was a feeling I had

questioning the victim and assailant.

With a knowledge of how diligent detectives on rape cases should function (albeit knowledge gained from watching a fictional TV programme), I immediately noticed flaws in how the male detectives handled Marie Adler’s case, and since this is based on a true story, it made me fear that other detectives around America and the rest of the world may treat crimes of a sexual nature with the same approach.

For one, the Washington detectives fail to handle Marie’s situation delicately. Considering that she is being

the Colorado woman of the second episode walks her through exactly what the doctors will do during the rape kit procedure, and she also assures her that she’ll do everything in her power to catch the man who attacked her.

Later in the show, Marie is essentially pressured to lie and say that she fabricated the rape allegation after the male detectives pressure her about why her story doesn’t add up and interrogate her on the details that change every time she repeats her story. As detective Olivia Benson of Law & Order: SVU repeatedly tells other

Photo: Imp Awards

ANNIE SMITH Editor-in-Chief

careful with DNA as he preyed on more women.

Therefore, had the male detectives investigating Marie Alder’s case taken her more seriously and focused their energy on catching the rapist as opposed to labelling her a liar, they could have prevented the multiple criminal cases to come and thus the psychological and physical abuse that

officers, a victim’s story may change upon retellings because memory from trauma comes back in pieces. The detectives investigating Marie Adler’s case should have been aware of this fact and approached the victim more gently; instead, they spent precious investigation time questioning the veracity of her allegation as opposed to actually working to catch the assailant, which ultimately resulted in missed evidence and DNA and thus the perpetuation of a serial rapist’s attacks.

Because it is based on true events, and due to its realistic portrayal of what sexual assault victims have to endure, the show opened my eyes to how we can better support victims of sexual harassment and assault. As the show reveals through the female detective’s conversations with one of the victims, it’s important to be gentle when approaching victims of such crimes, as they may not be keen to share their story and experience and may still be traumatised long after the incident.

The show does acknowledge that false rape accusations do occur, but the events also show that these are few and far between and that victims should not be accused of fabricating their story without valid reason, especially as the show reveals the detrimental and criminal effects of doubting victims when they are telling the truth.

After watching Unbelievable, I feel grateful for the work of detectives, particularly women, who dedicate their lives to putting these criminals behind bars and helping victims feel safe again. However, there is a substantial amount of anger that comes with watching a show like this, particularly when you realise that these victories for victims of sexual assault are rare. According to Rape Crisis England & Wales, only 15 per cent of those who experience sexual violence report to the police (for reasons evidenced in Unbelievable), and conviction rates for rape cases are far lower than other crimes, with only 5.7 per cent of those 15 per cent reported rape cases ending in a conviction for the perpetrator.

Overall, I would recommend Unbelievable to everyone as it holds powerful truths about the reality of sexual assault crimes today and will leave you wanting to get out and make a difference in this criminal epidemic however you can.

In St Andrews, it’s important to be mindful of those around you and look out for anyone who could be vulnerable, including young women walking home alone or appearing too drunk to consent. Additionally, you can get involved with societies like Got Consent or Sexpression to educate students and the youth of Fife on sex education and consent.

If you are a victim of sexual harassment or assault, or you would like to talk to a mental health professional about the contents of this article, email support.advice@st-andrews.ac.uk or phone 01334 462020 to get in contact with Student Services. Additionally, you can also speak to the Fife Rape & Sexual Assault Centre at 01592 642336.

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10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

Arts and culture

One Man, Two Guvnors: A Review

The first Mermaids production of the academic year was a roaring success GEORGIA LUCKHURST We have reached peak James Corden saturation point. I am very tired of watching that man gleefully coordinate carpool karaoke with all the artistic conviction of Christopher Nolan choreographing the rotating corridor scene in Inception. And so it was that when I heard that Mermaids was presenting Richard Bean’s One Man, Two Guvnors for its first Byre slot this year, I was apprehensive. With Corden’s Tony award-winning production being screened across the country by the National Theatre Live scheme, I wasn’t sure if this was a show competing for the limelight with a major cultural moment. I was pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong.

“Ed Polsue’s

depiction of Francis was generally flawless

“

Directed by Isobel Sinclair and produced by Ellie Hope, One Man, Two Guvnors boasted a strong female production team; something for which I was greatly excited. Hope

had proven her credentials as a redoubtable producer with last year’s production of a similar comedy, The 39 Steps, and I was intrigued to watch Sinclair’s directorial debut. In a professional space like the Byre, a student production can find it hard to fill such a wide stage - but the team pulled it off with marked confidence, making use of frequent set changes, including an astonishing transition into Brighton pier that had audience members including myself emit an audible gasp. Credit must go to set designer Natasha Maurer and stage manager Cate Hanlon, and although these transitions could have felt at times too lengthy, intersecting period songs from cast members kept the crowd gently entertained.

I had never read the script of One Man, Two Guvnors and was happy to discover how quicksilver the wit was.

Rarely was a line delivered that didn’t turn on an innuendo. What impressed me even more than an already humourous piece of writing was the skill with which the cast, and particularly the ensemble, incorporated physical comedy. Charlie Flynn deserves especial mention for his portrayal of the poor, beleaguered Alfie - a testament to how even a slim role can be fleshed out by careful attention to detail. Alfie fast became an audience favourite as Flynn shuddered and jerked his way across the stage in the guise of a geriatric waiter.

In fact, a mastery of physical comedy abounded, and seemed to me to become the standout strength of the show. Ed Polsue’s depiction of

Francis - or, if you prefer, Corden’s role - was generally flawless. His command of the text material was sound but his most inspired moments came in the form of his interactions with the audience.

Nobody can claim a stage and win over spectators with quite so much gleeful ease as Polsue, and his knowing asides and glances out were delightfully mercurial.

As a theatregoer with a vested interest in the depiction of female characters on stage, I was deeply impressed by Lucy Bidie’s portrayal of Dolly - a foil to Francis who may lack his number of lines but packed an equivalent punch.

Her musings on life as a modern woman were delivered with brash warmth, and in a show in which accents were enthusiastically attempted but often lacked conviction, Bidie’s remained laudibly consistent. Meanwhile, Lydia Milne and Louis Wilson, fresh from performing together in the Fringe production of Forbidden Fruit, exhibited wonderful chemistry as a comedic duo (and Wilson did much to humanize a character whose frequently off-colour remarks could otherwise have alienated a socially-conscious student audience.) Perhaps one of my favourite things to observe in any

Photo: Ellie Hope production is the palpable sense that a cast is truly enjoying themselves on stage. Rarely have I seen a show where such a feeling was so pervasive.

Where the production fell down were in matters of pacing. It must be noted that after such a short rehearsal period, this fault is thoroughly forgivable; it can be difficult to tighten such an unwieldy thing as a comedy, that relies so fundamentally on a strict certainty of timing, with such a limited time to perfect. Nonetheless, there were moments when the show seemed to slump, which were noticeable mainly for how they contrasted

with those other moments in which friction and pace shot through a scene like the snap of a rubber band.

At times, I felt the show dragged; it would not be right to say the script merited trimming, because generally all was done in the service of advancing the plot. However, an audience intervention involving a sandwich seemed to slow the show down to its detriment.

Overall, the cast and crew of One Man, Two Guvnors ought to be distinctly proud of themselves. I’m excited to keep an eye out for whatever this comedic cohort achieve next.

The Good Place: Why so good?

JULIET BOOBBYER Staff Writer On 26 September, much to the sadness of many viewers, NBC and Netflix’s The Good Place began its fourth and final season. Calling itself a ‘fantasy comedy’, The Good Place was released three years ago in September 2016 to an enthusiastic audience and received, overall, relatively positive reviews. Along the way, it has picked up nominations from Primetime Emmy Awards and The Golden Globe Awards, commending its original concept, sharp wit and nonsensical theories of the cosmos. I remember watching the show every Friday morning in my first year, after it had come out late the night before, and discussion around it seemed to creep into conversations, introductions and anecdotes with pretty much everyone around me. But why does it captivate people so much and why is it so effortlessly good?

To start with, I must emphasise that if you have not watched The Good Place then it may be best not to read this article in order to avoid spoilers.

The Good Place is set in the afterlife, when Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) wakes up after her death, in what seems to be Heaven: the Good

Place. Other residents in this utopian neighbourhood, all of whom weirdly seem to be the same age, include Tahani Al-Jamil (Jameela Jamil) who name-drops like there is no tomorrow, the frustratingly ethical philosophy professor, Chidi Anagonye (William Jackson Harper) and the ditsy DJ Jason Mendoza (Manny Jacinto) disguised as silent Buddhist monk Jianyu Li. They are also joined by neighbourhood architect Michael (Ted Danson) and his ‘assistant’ Janet (D’Arcy Carden), a woman who can provide an infinite cornucopia of objects to the residents and in her free time returns to her void. The show is full of satisfying, contemporary references, interesting philosophy lessons and perfectly combines realism in its portrayal of modern-day people and total absurdism in its circumstance and plot. It is, however, the notorious and insanely intelligent plot twist at the end of Season One which I feel may have hooked people to this series most effectively: namely, that

but The Good Place manages to abstain from religious attachment with Michael citing at the beginning of the series – in response to being asked which religion was “right” about the afterlife – that “every religion guessed about 5 per cent”. The writers and creators of the show can dictate and invent their own rules and theories surrounding the universe and the afterlife, so that the limits to the plot within the series are essentially non-existent. Furthermore, whilst many of the rules are rapidly broken, the show is able to answer its own, and other people’s, questions with complete nonsense: for example, the concept of time is explained by the way “Jeremy Bearemy” looks when written out, and the person solving all the universe’s ethical and moral dilemmas is a sassy entity named Gen. This basically ensures that the show can never be criticised for being implausible.

It could be argued that the only limit in place is humanity, but the series pushes a convincing argument that humanity should not be Photo: Imp Awards constrained into limited

the Good Place was in fact the Bad Place all along, and that these four deceased humans had been sent there to torture each other.

A reason why this show is so successful is the way it dares to depict a setting which so few TV shows and films before have done. The afterlife is perhaps a difficult subject to approach without seeming to adhere to a particul a r belief system,

definitions like good, bad and medium, because in reality it is a simultaneously toxic and healthy mixture of all three.

The creator of the show, Michael Schur, admitted that he was struggling with how to pitch “dead people who read moral philosophy” to popular TV networks, so when he went to advertise the show he narrated the entire first season and they were sold.

He said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine that he realises he fails “to be a moral person” every day, even though he tries his hardest to be.

The Good Place emphasises the complexities surrounding what it means to be a good person in this crazy and materialistic world where our actions can have unforeseeable negative consequences. And, at the same time, it underlines the simplicity of being a kind person.

Nevertheless, this absurdist sitcom has managed to produce four seasons of humorous and refreshing content, with each season set in a different place under different circumstances, full of new hilariously topical references and touching relationships, and packed with the moral and ethical dilemmas and philosophical teachings surrounding what it means to be good. I am definitely looking forward to the season ahead.

SPORT thesaint-online.com/sport

Editor: Charlotte Cohen.

Deputy Editors: Harry Dean, Lewis Frain, Daniel Ross, Jason Segall sport@thesaint-online.com

@thesaintonline

Saints sunk by opportunistic Aberdeen

Charlotte’s Column Charlotte Cohen Sport Editor

Sport in the 21st century is becoming increasingly money-oriented.

Whether in the sales of merchandise to the sponsorships athletes receive, it’s all about the sales.

You see it everywhere. In my gym at home, for example, there’s a huge cutout of Anthony Joshua advertising Lucozade bottles printed with his picture on it.

It’s a bizarre phenomenon that’s come about over the past decade or so, that celebrities and athletes can encourage us to buy things, it doesn’t seem to make sense — but it works.

Two weeks ago, the boss of women’s Manchester United argued that female athletes were only getting commercial deals based on their looks and not their talent, which, she argued, doesn’t happen in male sports.

And whilst I can understand her frustration, I have to disagree.

If we look at commercial deals given to footballers for example, the correlation between looks and number (and content) offers is clear. Look at players like Ronaldo and David Beckham and tell me that they got their Calvin Klein campaigns based on sheer talent alone.

Of course, it helps that they are two of the most talented footballers we have seen, but that talent would have no value were it not accompanied by their looks.

Whereas look at a player like Kevin de Bruyne, arguably one of the most talented players in the Premier League at the moment, where are all of his commercial deals based on talent? I’m not trying to insinuate that he is unattractive, I am simply stating that he is incredibly talented and therefore, by Casey Stoney’s logic, he should be innundated with commercial deals.

Obviously we don’t know what goes on behind the scenes but, from our point of view, the claim that male sportsmen get deals based on talent is untrue.

Serena Williams, the most talented

female tennis player at the moment, made $11 million in advertisements in 2012, something I struggle to believe she would have been able to do were she not an immensely talented tennis player. So it seems as though Casey Stoney, whilst justifiably angry, is incorrect. It’s understandable that there will be female athletes getting commercial deals based on their appearance and that is something which has happened and will continue to happen many years into the future.

Where she is incorrect, however, is where the bulk of her anger stems from, that it “doesn’t happen in the men’s game,” something which I think every football fan or even just those who watch TV, knows to be the case.

The idea that these women are only getting deals based on looks rather than talent, whereas the men are not, simply doesn’t add up.

Athletes would not get commercial deals for brands did they not have the talent to back it up — a company like Adidas is not going to choose an athlete based on looks alone; it wouldn’t look good for their brand.

Having a player advertising football boots who has no footballing ability whatsoever just doesn’t make sense; otherwise they could just use models instead of real players (although it’s better, commercially, to have a real celebrity).

I do not agree with what Casey has to say and I think it’s important for the whole idea of equality between men and women in sport that we can acknowledge when things are incorrect. We cannot just let it slide because it backs up a deeply held belief. The commercial side of sport is clearly one area where, surprisingly, men and women seem to be on a level playing field — this is something that should be taken as progress (at least in some sense).

Respect for female sport is definitely on the rise, so let’s not hinder its progress with something so trivial.

“ This result

may act as a wake-up call for future challenges

Indeed they were extremely close to a third with the clock ticking down with their forward diverting a cross agonisingly wide, much to the torment of the visitors’ bench, and also had other opportunities to increase their advantage. When the halftime whistle eventually sounded, St Andrews were probably relieved to be only one goal down.

Their new pressing system introduced this year clearly yet to be fully embraced by the players, understand-

ably so with it only being a few weeks into the new season. The boys could take comfort however from the fact that they were still firmly in the contest, and that they had enjoyed some encouraging periods of play.

The second half began in a much more sedate fashion, with the first period of the half containing precious few chances as the Saints looked to consolidate themselves and Aberdeen seemed content with holding their slender lead.

However, that all changed as back-to-back short corners for the visitors nearly resulted in a third. The Saints’ best chance of the half would stem from a counter-attack soon after that saw them 3-on-1 with the keeper, but unfortunately this was to be wasted with a shot right at the goal.

With ten minutes to go, the hosts were really starting to turn up the pressure with extended periods of possession in the final third. Their fitness was evident, yet they just lacked the required composure at crucial intervals. This defecit would ultimately cost them.

With 5 minutes to go Aberdeen converted a shot from the middle just outside the D to settle the debate and prompt delighted celebrations in the away ranks.

Somewhat understandably, a completely deflated St Andrews limped through the final passages of play, nearly conceding again, before the whistle eventually sounded.

While the Saints showed glimmers of their promise and could not be faulted for their commitment, ultimately this result may act as a wakeup call ahead of the future challenges they are to face in the coming weeks.

Photo: Noa Lee

Photo: Flickr

A Birdseye View

Conditions may have been perfect, the sky may have been completely cloudless, yet the St Andrews men's hockey 1st XI were unable to live up to the occasion, with the visitors from Aberdeen ultimately taking the spoils from this lunchtime showdown in the sports centre by 3 goals to 1.

The Saints were looking to build upon their 4-2 victory over Abertay the previous week, yet it didn’t take long for both players and spectators to realise the hosts would be in for a far tougher challenge this time round as a threatening shot across the D five minutes in from Aberdeen was narrowly turned away.

The hosts were struggling to string together moves and play out from the back and it was only a matter of time before Aberdeen got their opener on the second of back-to-back short corners courtesy of a deflected shot past the keeper.

This, however, seemingly shot St Andrews into action. Shortly after a short corner of their own was blocked, an alert finish from Duncan Rudd from inside the D saw the Saints draw level as the match was getting well underway.

However, if the hosts were hoping this would prove a turning point they were to be mistaken.

Just a matter of minutes later a period of intricate play for the visitors ultimately resulted in their forward tapping into an empty net to restore their advantage and leave the Saints behind once again.

Soon after this though, the Saints

“

HARRY DEAN Deputy Sport Editor

began to get things going. They were comfortably enjoying their best period of the game as they chased a second equaliser.

They were beginning to test the Aberdeen keeper with regularity and also had a goal disallowed proving that they had the ability for a victory.

While the pressure piled up however, the visitors ultimately weathered the storm and actually finished the half the strongest of the two sides.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

SPORT

Photo: Flickr

30

Has the Scottish Premiership finally got a title race again?

“A lot is

made of the Old Firm rivalry

“

It’s easy to get carried away in football. The image of a league table, along with any team’s respective fortunes could change by the end of next week, on the back of a 1-0 victory, a shocking 4-0 loss or, as is the norm these days, an overturned decision courtesy of VAR. Yet, if the early days of the Scottish Premiership are anything to go by, it’s that a title-race may very well be on the cards again.

Unsurprisingly, the two teams involved are the age-old Glasgow rivals, Rangers and Celtic. Timing and perspective are key to how any club is viewed at a given moment.

So, at the beginning of the season when Neil Lennon’s side lost Kieran Tierney and were then defeated in a crucial Champions League qualifier in a short space of time, it was always going to lead to a hyperbolic reaction.

According to Twitter, the club was in crisis within a few minutes of the fulltime whistle at Parkhead after their 4-3 defeat to FC Cluj.

However, the beginning of the season sees them undefeated, with a draw away to Hibs last weekend ending their perfect start.

Moreover, a 2-0 win at Ibrox over their arch-rivals was particularly impressive. Tactically, Lennon’s side were perfect, pressing Rangers high and preventing any kind of rhythm.

The game seen Rangers create minimal scoring opportunities and ultimately come away having given their all, but deservedly beaten.

The worry of setting such high-standards, as Celtic have done in the last few seasons with their completion of the treble-treble, is that you can become a victim of your own success. At big clubs, the desire for trophies is ever-lasting.

To end the green side of Glasgow’s dominance would simply mean denying them a fourth straight treble; it would not mean seeing them in a state beyond the repair.

A lot is made of the Old Firm rivalry in Scotland. Often, it can see the

other teams in the league ignored in favour of two giants chasing the big prize. Ultimately though, Rangers were always bound to at least close the gap and with the resources and attraction of a big club, a subsequent gap between them and the rest of the league has emerged once again.

That being said, both Rangers and Celtic have not necessarily found it easy against the sides below them. It is just that, in difficult matches, both have found a way to win in the way that title contenders must. Look at Liverpool and Manchester City last season. Vincent Kompany’s longrange strike against Leicester to ensure a 1-0 victory and a last-minute Divock Origi strike to ensure a win away to Newcastle for Jurgen Klopp’s men were indicative of the fine margins that defines football.

Rangers first game of the season actually saw a victory which could define their status at the end of the season. A poor second half performance against Kilmarnock meant a last-minute winner from centre-back Connor Goldson was needed for the three points.

As Gerrard himself has said about last season, “If the games finished after 86 minutes, we’d have won the league.” Similarly, Celtic have also had to grind out victories, with a 1-0 away win to Hamilton being an indicator of that. As mentioned, it’s not that these clubs will roll over easy, but the mark of any top club is the ability to win even when they are not at their best. It’s a trait that both Rangers and Celtic have already been forced to demonstrate.

The biggest change for Rangers so far this season is that their ability to break down stubborn teams has changed massively. It was these games last year that essentially cost them a chance at a title-race.

However, the final six games of last season resulted in a formation change as Gerrard’s side moved from a rigid 4-3-3 to a more fluid 4-3-2-1, allowing for more runners in behind whilst still allowing for width from either the full-backs or wingers. Their victory over Aberdeen last weekend was a clear indication of their improvement. Last season saw seven fixtures between the two-sides, with Derek McInnes’ side wining three, Rangers winning two and the other matches being drawn. Aberdeen’s game-plan was always the same though – sit deep, tight man-marking and prevent clear goal scoring opportunities.

It was the side who arguably inflicted the most damage on Gerrard’s side last year as they were responsible for their exit in both cup competitions.

However, a 5-0 victory over Aberdeen at the weekend showed that Rangers have finally learned patience is the key to a manager’s success. A tactical maturity seems to have developed in them, as well as a maturity in their star man Alfredo Morelos, whose disciplinary record made him a controversial figure last season despite his thirty-goal contribution. Should the Colombian keep up his sensational form, a big-money bid will more than likely be expected.

Rangers shape meant Aberdeen were dragged all over the place, creating space for runners. Two penalties on top of this meant the Dons suffered their heaviest defeat at Ibrox since December 2010.

The next key step for Rangers is to win their league-cup semi-final against Hearts in order to set up a final with either Hibs or Celtic. It’s vital for Gerrard to deliver some silverware, not just to end Celtic’s dominance but to get a trophy under his team’s belt. Winning one should spur them on for more.

A nation’s status is often judged by the performance of their clubs in

European competition. It was no coincidence last year that the European Cup winners, Liverpool, could not allow for any margin of error in their own league. It creates a drive and a mentality that lets the player’s know they cannot slip up. We only need to turn our attention to Ligue 1, where PSG have strolled their league in six of the last seven seasons. Yet, even with the signings of Neymar and Mbappe, the club has failed to progress past the quarter-finals of Europe’s elite club competition. Whilst Scotland’s poor co-efficient rating means only one team can enter the Champions League, a competitive league could help either club take the next step, either by reaching the group stage or by trying to progress through the latter stages of the Europa league.

The constant efforts to outdo each other could easily be a factor in Europe with both sitting in the Europa league group stages. Both sides got off to a good start, with Rangers beating Dutch outfit Feyenoord 1-0 at home and Celtic picking up a point away from home against French side Rennes.

As a result of Ranger’s improvement in what were previously difficult league games, there is a sense that the old-firms have not been this big for a long-time. Last year seen four meetings overall as the sides never met in cup competitions. In the end, the spoils were shared with each side winning both their respective home ties.

Mentally, it was huge for Gerrard’s side who recorded their first league win over Celtic since 2012. Whilst they lost both games at Parkhead, they did match their rivals, particularly in the 2-1 defeat which saw them concede solely to individual errors.

Given the way they have both started the season, neither of them is looking likely to stumble before they are forced to play one another. Should each of them progress through their league-cup semi-finals against Hibs and Hearts respectively, it will be the biggest old-firm since Rangers’ return to the top flight. One will be competing for a tenth straight domestic tro-

phy; the other competing to put an end to it and start an era of dominance themselves.

“The league’s

other sides are unlikely to lie down

“

ADAM ROBERTSON Deputy Sport Editor

For all the hysteria surrounding Celtic at the start of the season, the nature of their rivalry with Rangers means each side will always be measured against the other. It perhaps shows that Celtic have not got worse in any way, Rangers have just got markedly better.

This is not to belittle Lennon’s side as, in hindsight, the criticism has not defined their start to the season.

After all, the beginning of last year was marked by an early Champions league exit. Yet, by the time Brendan Rodgers took his leave, they had retained the Scottish league-cup and were in a position which would see them comfortably win an eight straight league title. It was easy to be critical of Lennon’s appointment when it was first made. After all, with the work Brendan Rodgers is doing at Leicester, it’s clear his aim is to manage at the highest level, perhaps using the Foxes as a stepping stone to a topsix job.

It’s still early days and, although a cliché, there is still a lot of football to be played. The league’s other sides are unlikely to lie down in pursuit of their own goals, be it survival or a top six finish. What is certain though is that, for the first time in a while, Scotland has two title contenders who seem evenly matched in terms of individual quality, if not recent domestic success.

The Scottish league was always accustomed to being built on the prospect of a title-race every season. Now, at long last, it looks like we might finally have that back.

10 October 2019 · thesaint-online.com

SPORT

Let us drink in support!

“The

The £160 Fitness+ Membership is certainly a significant factor in deterring participation in sports here, as well as the aforementioned Odyssey required to actually reach the sports centre from the centre of town.

One can hope that this cost is the bare minimum required to fund our sports facilities here, and maybe it would be foolish to hope for much change in that regard; however it certainly does seem like a significant barrier to entry to students who want

to do some sport here without wanting to fully sign up to a competitive sports club.

If the University cannot do any more to encourage students to participate in sports, despite all the known mental and physical benefits of exercise and playing as a team, it should at least do its best to encourage students to take a break from their essays and go out to enjoy the fine weather and the (sometimes) high-quality, sporting performances on show, down St Leonard’s Road.

This isn’t to say that the University never sees any sports events well-supported, the Rugby Sevens last summer was a fantastic event as was the

Varsity Match and it was notable how little the spectators seemed to mind the score.

There is, however, a notable difference between these events and the regular BUCS fixtures that take place at the sports centre, and it is a difference which this writer believes is the most significant reason for the lack of enthusiasm for watching sport on Wednesday afternoons.

That reason is the AU’s alcohol ban. We know there is a blanket ban of alcohol on university property, however this still seems like an obvious place to allow an exception.

Telling a student to come and watch an hour or two of rugby after a

Photo: Emily Silk

University must do more to incentivise students to actually come

20 minute walk to reach there may be difficult, telling them, however, that they can watch the match with their friends and a couple of Tennent’s finest might just swing them over the edge and change their mind about coming to watch.

Rather than the sometimes cringeworthy attempts from sports coaches to make their teams stay behind to watch the remaining fixtures, a genuine effort from the University to encourage a more social aspect to spectating may work wonders in terms of pushing up the numbers on the side lines.

“

The ideal situation would be to change the entire ethos of students

“

We are not a sporting university; our performance at Varsity showed that emphatically.

Nonetheless, our Wednesday afternoons see the sports pitches packed with players but relatively barren in terms of supporters, despite the fact that the majority of students find themselves without class.

Maybe I am spoilt in terms of time to kill as an Ancient History student; however, there certainly seems to be a distinct lack of interest from students, myself included, in the actual performance of our university on the sports field, even though the University has over 100 teams copmeting annually in the BUCS, SSS and cup competitions.

Perhaps we are all simply too busy appreciating the beauty of the medieval town and our Starbucks coffees and, thus, feel like the Herculean trek to the sports centre from town simply is not worth it.

Until Professor Mapstone masters the art of teleportation, it seems like this issue will continue and thus, surely, the University must do more to incentivise students to actually come and support their friends and classmates on Wednesday afternoons.

Many of us come from schools where the first XV Rugby team would have seen almost the entire school out on their side lines on match days cheering them on, whereas here at St Andrews it seems like we are lucky to have 20 supporters, and of them at least half are simply injured players from the team actually on the pitch!

There is clearly an issue with the entire ethos of this University when it

comes to sport.

At risk of having my AU membership torn up before my eyes, I would tentatively suggest that our university simply doesn’t do enough to encourage the students to get out and support or even play in competitive sports during their time here.

“

ARTHUR DINGEMANS Deputy Sport Editor

31

You cannot force people to watch, but you can make changes so that people actually want to watch.

We know the University doesn’t want drunken scenes on the side of our pitches, however, it seems like the events where alcohol is allowed for the spectators are the best supported events of the year, whereas regular Wednesday afternoons have very poor attendance.

The ideal situation for the University would be to change the entire ethos of the students and encourage them to support their university out of a communal sense of pride and camaraderie.

For now, however, the best bet would be to simply allow spectators to enjoy themselves a bit more and see if the mentality can change on its own.

SPORT

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Saints narrowly beaten by stronger Strathclyde SAINTS SPORTS SCOREBOARD Tennis Mens 1s Womens 2s

02/10/19

3-3 Edinburgh 12-0 Dundee

Water Polo

Football

Mens 2s 2-0 Mens 3s Womens 1s 5-1 Glasgow Womens 2s 1-0 Heriot Watt

Womens 1s 32-0 Manchester

Pexels Photo:

The St Andrews Men’s First Team started their BUCS 2A league campaign two weeks ago with a hardfought draw against a very strong Heriot Watt 1s.

The Men’s first team will surely be targeting promotion from 2A, having had a strong intake of freshers this year and in the previous two years having finished at the top end of the Scottish 2A table.

This week’s opposition was Strathclyde 1s. Like St Andrews, Strathclyde have consistently finished near the top of 2A (last year they came second), so this match was going to be another tough test for St Andrews.

The setting for the match was ideal; it is hard to think there could be better conditions for a BUCS football match, a lovely October afternoon on an immaculate St Andrews pitch.

Both teams in the first ten minutes tried to use the surface and play football.

But neither side could really assert dominance or dictate play. Most of the football was being played on the middle of the park.

By the fifteenth minute Justin Verissimo looked to be causing problems up front for St Andrews.

He forced a corner through a darting run down the wing.

Just as the St Andrews side appeared to be on top, a difficult ball over the top which bounced awkwardly for Andrew Meaney set Strathclyde’s McKenzie free again. McKenzie didn’t need a second chance this time, as he convincingly slotted the ball past Montanaro in a 1 v 1.

The goal unfortunately undid all the good work the Saints had produced over the previous 10 minutes.

In response, two minutes later, Tom Grant tenaciously struck a ball from just outside the box but the Strathclyde defender put his body in front of the ball and blocked.

A nice passing combination by Gilmore, Gray and Verissimo resulted in a chance for the Saints but it was denied for being offside. Gray and Verissimo continued to persevere but to no avail.

With five minutes remaining in the half the last thing the St Andrews XI needed happened: a Strathclyde corner was cleared from the six-yard box.

But the Saints did not clear their lines quickly enough.

Strathclyde’s Stephen Thompson lurked at the edge of the box. The cleared ball flew toward Thompson and he emphatically half volleyed the ball through the crowd of onrushing defenders and into the top left corner of the goal.

Unless you are Ronaldo, nine out of ten times that strike lands over the fence in University Hall.

Unfortunately for the Saints, this one

Photo: Noa Lee

DANIEL ROSS Deputy Sport Editor

Unfortunately, the resulting corner was cleared by the Strathclyde defence, a clearance and a scuffed back pass allowed Matthew McKenzie to have a chance 1v1 vs Saint’s keeper Robbie Montanaro. Montanaro did well to save the first shot but McKenzie slotted home the rebound.

1-0 to Strathclyde with 18 minutes played.

For the next five minutes, the Saints looked nervy; the early goal seemed to have unsettled the side a little. But eventually the Saints regained their confidence.

A fantastic teasing cross from Findlay Tough from the right hand side floated in the area of the penalty spot. Tyler Gilmore was in the box to cause problems.

Through this the ball fell into the path of Verissimo who was just on the edge of the box. Verissimo instinctively and clinically got a shot away which flew past the fingertips of Strathclyde’s keeper and into the bottom left corner.

The scores were level with 22 minutes played. I felt it was a fair score line for the opening 20 minutes.

Neither team had done enough to justify being in the lead.

The goal put a real spring in the steps of the home eleven.

Both Flynn Gray and Justin Verissimo were using their athleticism and pace to make darting runs down the wings and were really stretching the Strathclyde back four.

did not.

In the final kick of the first half, Verissimo collided with Strathclyde’s right back. Both players clashed heads and were on the ground for a considerable amount of time.

The incident required bandages and a trip to the St Andrews Medical Centre. Hopefully, both players will make a speedy and full recovery.

It was far from the ideal end to the first half, a late goal and the loss of a key player created hard obstacles for the home side to overcome.

The First Team manager, Phil McGuire, made personnel changes before the second half. Euan Smith and Sacha Weiss replaced Meaney and Verissimo.

The second half saw threatening chances for the team in blue. Flynn Gray carried on where he left off and beat an offside trap to find himself free in the box. But Strathclydes keeper was alert and able to grab the ball before the St Andrew’s forward could.

The 60th minute saw Strathclyde’s only real chance of the second half. A looping cross from the left hand side found a free Strathclyde attacker at the back post.

Yet in the time it took the attacker to bring the ball down and prepare for the shot, Robbie Montanaro was able to close down the angles and make a confident save.

For most of the opening 20 minutes of the half the Saints would build well from the back, but nothing came of it when it reached the final third.

The breakthrough that the Saints were looking for came through fresher Kai Panniwitz in the 77th minute.

The right wing back unleashed a curling shot from just outside the middle of the box. He connected well and it found the left side netting. Kai certainly chose a great moment for his maiden BUCS goal.

After this goal there seemed to be a little more urgency in the host side to find another goal. In the final 10 minutes crosses and long throws featured heavily in an attempt to find the much needed equaliser. Unfortunately Strathclyde were first to it every time.

A dogged and resolute defensive performance by the side from Glasgow got them over the line in the end.

Man for man there was not much difference in quality between the two sides, if anything St Andrews had better players. But at the end of the day Strathclyde were able to punish the home sides mistakes, and when needed, knuckled down and suppressed the Saints attack in the second half.

It was a frustrating game for St Andrews; moments of sloppiness and the lack of end product cost the team.

The Saint’s next game is against Dundee 1s.