Wednesday Talk: October 8, 10am-12pm – hybrid

Bob Davidson, Spanish, U of T

Title: “Smelling the Humanities”

Introducer: Anne Urbancic

Abstract: We don’t truly appreciate our sense of smell until it’s temporarily gone. Yet, even still, it doesn’t get much respect. In the hierarchy of the senses, sight’s reign has been indisputable – with hearing following close behind. Meanwhile, smell and its erstwhile companion, taste, have long been treated as afterthoughts amongst the humanities. In this talk, I will argue that in the face of declining enrolments, attacks on our so-called “utility,” and the rise of AI and the virtual, it is more important than ever that we destabilize this hierarchy and incorporate smell and taste into our research and especially into our teaching. I propose that by learning to smell the archive and taste the text, we can activate ourselves and our students in new ways and together experience a novel approach to transformative learning in the humanities.

Note: this talk will involve smelling and tasting!

Bio: Bob Davidson, Mary Rowell Jackman Professor of Humanities at the University of Toronto’s Victoria College and faculty in the Dept. of Spanish & Portuguese, specializes in the study of food, drink, and hospitality. Author of Jazz Age Barcelona (shortlisted for the Canada Prize) and The Hotel: Occupied Space, his latest project, The Scent of Spain: Fragrance, Odour and Culture, looks at key fragrances and smells that were part of Spain’s modern experience. Prof. Davidson currently serves as Director of the Northrop Frye Centre and in addition to chairing the Manuscript Review Committee at University of Toronto Press, is founder and co-editor of its Toronto Iberic book series. He takes his martini with a little extra vermouth and an olive.

The link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/YFp5iE4vwy

The deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only.