Writing Back: Guerilla Texts, BTS, and Gaye
From Waywords Studio Full Slate by Steve Chisnell
May 16, 2026 · 36 min
About this episode
The episode explores the intersection of activism and modern irony through the lens of various cultural texts and figures.
Is that blank page paralyzing your activism? Is your irony a mask for your complicity? We’re using William James and David Foster Wallace to interrogate the “sneer trap” of modern irony. From Marvin Gaye’s soulful protests to BTS’s radical solidarity after the Sewol Ferry tragedy, we consider how “New Sincerity” and “Guerilla Texts” can unsettle the status quo and physically alter the world. Episode 6.35 – Writing Back: Guerilla Texts, BTS, and Gaye Readings & Resources: Gaye, Marvin. “What’s Going On.” What’s Going On , 1971. BTS. “Spring Day.” You Never Walk Alone , 2017. YouTube , https://youtu.be/xEeFrLSkMm8. James, William. “Is Life Worth Living?” The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy , 1897. Wallace, David Foster. “E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction.” Review of Contemporary Fiction , 1993. Hesse, Hermann. Demian , 1919. Some Key Terms from this episode: Precursive Faith: The pragmatic belief that the very act of speaking out helps create the reality of that change New Sincerity: A subversive posture of absolute, vulnerable earnestness that…
People in this episode
Host: Steve Chisnell
Topics covered
- activism
- modern irony
- New Sincerity
- Guerilla Texts
- social change
- cultural critique
Keywords
- activism
- irony
- New Sincerity
- Guerilla Texts
- Marvin Gaye
- BTS
- social change
- William James
- David Foster Wallace
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: BTS
Books & works: What’s Going On, You Never Walk Alone, The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy, E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction, Demian
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