This research grew out of a shared moment of frustration and curiosity. After sitting through a lecture on Shrek (yes, that Shrek) and psychoanalysis that didn’t quite hold up, a group of pals and I decided that, even as poor millennials living in Toronto, we could commit to doing the work ourselves. We each chose a question we cared about and set out to write year-long, self-directed dissertations.

The work collected here focuses on contemporary Canadian media and the ways belonging, vulnerability, and shared space are negotiated in everyday life. This page brings together research notes, drafts, and developing arguments from my dissertation, From Landscape to Locker Room, as the project continues to take shape.