Ideas at Stratford:  The Shock of the New

Why does change happen? Human society seems to lean towards things not changing at all. And why do there seem to be moments in history where a tsunami of significant things happen at more-or-less the same time? And what about events perhaps years beforehand, the tremors that might have set the stage for the earthquake?

Moderated by Ideas host Nahlah Ayed, The Shock of the New is a series of panel discussions about five years that profoundly shaped the modern world, ‘hinge’ years that have had a profound effect on our lives today. Each year signifies a ‘new beginning’ in politics, the sciences, human rights - and illuminates some of the obvious and not-so-obvious forces that have shaped the modern world.

In photo: Nahlah Ayed

The Year 1789: More Than One Revolution

A revolution in France heralds a change in political order everywhere, but the new idea of human rights is also taking root, slavery is being questioned, and the natural world is being explored like never before.

William Nelson is a professor in the department of Historical and Cultural Studies at the University of Toronto. He specializes in the history of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution. His research focuses on ideas about time, race, and biopolitics that emerged in eighteenth-century France and the Atlantic world, and the development of early modern globalization.

Darryl Dee is a professor of History at Wilfrid Laurier University. He specializes in 17th- and 18th-century French history, particularly the reign of Louis XIV, and in military history. He also produces a podcast, Great Battles in History.

Karen Valihora is professor of English at York University. She specializes in the history of ideas, and she teaches courses on the English Romantics, Milton, 18th century literature, and literary theory.