Summary
Dirt is dust, soil, refuse, excrement, bacteria, filth, sleaze, slime, smut. How easily the word changes its meaning from the physical to the moral. It is this fascinating relationship and threat which dirt seems to pose that is explored in the Wellcome Collection's exhibition 'Dirt: The Filthy Reality of Everyday Life'.
In a special edition recorded with an audience of the public at Wellcome, Laurie Taylor and a panel of experts explore the meaning of dirt, its relationship to order and how hygiene and the mass generation of dirt have become such potent symbols of civilisation.
He is joined by the anthropologist Adam Kuper, the writer and cartoonist Martin Rowson and the historian Amanda Vickery to discuss dirt and why it provokes such fear, loathing and occasionally desire.
Producer: Charlie Taylor.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Take some time for yourself with soothing classical music from the mindful mix, |
| 0:06.0 | the Science of Happiness Podcast. |
| 0:08.0 | For the last 20 years I've dedicated my career to exploring the science of living a happier more meaningful life and I want |
| 0:14.4 | to share that science with you. |
| 0:16.1 | And just one thing, deep calm with Michael Mosley. |
| 0:19.4 | I want to help you tap in to your hidden relaxation response system and open the door to that |
| 0:25.4 | calmer place within. Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:30.3 | Hello, Jert, the filthy reality of everyday life. |
| 0:36.0 | Unless you're a late night comedian on channel 5, |
| 0:40.0 | it's not usual to get a chance to talk dirty in front of an audience. |
| 0:45.0 | But thanks to the exhibition currently being staged here at the Welcome Collection, |
| 0:49.0 | I now have a license to talk publicly, not only about about dirt but about excrement rubbish |
| 0:55.2 | sewage and just plain good old-fashioned muck you know the stuff that's |
| 1:01.4 | presently under your fingernails or on the soles of your shoes or perhaps on the back of the seats where you're actually sitting at this very moment. |
| 1:11.0 | Now this isn't though just about compiling an inventory of different terms for |
| 1:16.8 | dirt. It's about the universality of those terms, about the manner in which physical dirt can quickly take on all sorts of |
| 1:25.4 | moral connotations. With me to discuss such matters I have historian Amanda Vickery |
| 1:31.0 | he's from Queen Mary London University. |
| 1:33.8 | Anthropologist Adam Cooper from the London School of Economics and |
| 1:37.4 | author and cartoonist from the Guardian, |
| 1:39.7 | Martin Rosen. But when I just sort of mentioned that business about dirt under fingernails and particularly |
| 1:53.4 | got the little tiny bit about the possibility of dirt being on these admirably clean looking |
... |
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