Courses in London & Online

When it hit UK TV screens in October 1990, David Lynch’s Twin Peaks was more than just another US television series, it was as one critic describes it, ‘a seismic event in popular culture’ (Tobias 2020). In an era when TV aired live it was a must-see series with fevered pre-episode speculation and critical post-broadcast discussion characterising viewers’ engagement with this cult phenomenon. The mystery over who killed Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) preoccupied TV viewers across the autumn and winter of 1990. For me it was the first live series that I watched from start to finish.

Are we living in an age of vibes? Have recent political events such as the re-election of Donald Trump or Brexit occurred because of a “vibeshift” in popular discourse? This course analyses the use of this popular term across a range of media and texts in a quest to grasp what it denotes, why it is being mobilised right now and where we can find its roots in the history of ideas.







Catherine Berger holds a PhD in the History of Art from University College London, where she also taught for many years. She has worked as a tutor at the University of Basel and as a researcher at the University of Zurich and taught in various other institutions, including adult education and a secondary school. She has worked as an editor, written for publications and regularly translates essays and book chapters in her areas of expertise. The analysis of the relationship of cultural production to its social conditions is at the core of her work. Her interests and methods reach across disciplinary boundaries, interweaving visual culture with philosophy, sociology, political and economic theory, linguistics, literature, musicology and psychology, often with a focus on feminism, gender and theories of the maternal. A passionate teacher, Catherine works hard to create inclusive, supportive, student-centred learning environments.