Raymond Williams ‘explainers’
Produced in a variety of formats the ‘explainers’ are a new, freely accessible, set of resources that introduce a variety of key concepts from Raymond Williams’ work to contemporary publics.
The explainers have been created by a range of people, from Wales, England, USA, Canada and Argentina, who share an interest in Raymond Williams and who responded to an open call for an RWF grant to take this work on. Working against the backdrop of Williams’ Centenary, the aim of the new explainers is to help renew interest in Williams’ work and promote and renew public discussion about its contemporary relevance.
The Long Revolution
​
It has been noted that some of Raymond Williams' writing is sometimes difficult and dense. We often talk of RW's "Long Revolution" which of course was mapped out in his book of the same name. For those who haven't the time to plough through his book but would like a better idea of the meaning of his Long Revolution our Trustee and expert on Raymond Williams, Dr Steve Woodhams, has generously produced this succinct summary attached.
Preface to "The Long Revolution"
By Anthony Barnett
​
Anthony published the foreword (reproduced below) in 2011 to Raymond Williams’ The Long Revolution first published(at that time) fifty years ago. He summarises why it still matters. The new edition was launched at the Raymond Williams Annual Lecture when he took the opportunity to look at the spirit of the events of our own time through the eye of Williams' argument. Looking back across fifty years we can see that 1961 was a year when the world turned
This document also summarises in plain English many of Raymand Williams ideas
Consider the Sheep
Question what seems Natural
When Raymond Williams looked at sheep, he saw whole complicated
histories, human and other-than-human, intertwined together, for
better and for worse. He found himself wondering about these histories: why were the sheep there? Where did they come from? Who brought them there, who kept them there, and who—or what?—was there before? In doing this, he was following a key principle of Marxist philosophy —something we can all do: question what seems natural.
Josie Sparrow
Raymond Williams in Latin America
A graphic essay
A video-podcast by TyPA Foundation, based in Argentina, that explores how Raymond Williams’ ideas circulated throughout Latin America, how they found meaning in contexts very different from the one in which they were originated, and how they continue to be central today when thinking about the potential of cultural spaces and cultural agents to transform the societies in which we live.
More information about TyPA Foundation: www.typa.org.ar/en
The Spanish version of the Explainer can be found here https://youtu.be/24MuXHPuPdA
Americo Castilla
Raymond Williams - The Hand and the Map
Animated video
A short animated video explainer introducing Raymond Williams' views on community, communications, technology, education & culture. Plus a complimentary accompanying PDF document with references and additional remarks.
There is a Welsh version here https://youtu.be/RmfcpbQFJF0
​
Ted Parry, Tad Davies, Garmon Thomas
One Immediate Huge Voice
Raymond Williams & Community
​
Sarah Lowndes reflects on the continued significance and relevance of Raymond Williams' idea of community.
​
Sarah Lowndes
Raymond Williams’ Intellectual History of ‘Culture’
A graphic essay
Introducing Raymond Williams on culture
Jared Spears & Julie Saumagne
Resources of Hope from the Archive
An Introduction to Raymond Williams
A podcast documentary by Phil O'Brien of the Raymond Williams Society, featuring archive material from the Williams family archive. Those interviewed include Stuart Hall, Richard Hoggart, Terry Eagleton, Raymond Williams, and Joy Williams.
Phil O'Brien
Raymond Williams and the Popular Press​
Paul Richards explains how Williams approached the modern media, why he opposed the centralisation and concentration of media ownership, control and production, why his work calls for a more democratic media and what his work says to us today.
​
Paul Richards
Raymond Williams and the Media
An interview with Professor Martin Conboy
Paul Richards talks to Professor Martin Conboy of Sheffield University about links between Williams' work on the media and the some of the more wide-ranging ideas Williams' had about the long-term development of society and culture.
​
Paul Richards
Politics of Modernism
Against the New Conformists
A discussion of Raymond Williams' posthumous work Politics of Modernism, investigating the relationship between the cultural traditions and cultural foundations of modernism, as well as the current possibilities for new, confrontational ways of life.
​
Radical Thoughts Podcast
Social Purpose in Adult Education
What is education, and in particular, adult education for?
In this explainer we are concerned mainly with the idea of social purpose in adult education, and especially with how Raymond Williams understood it. By this we mean the ways in which education contributes to society. This includes ways in which education helps us to relate to one another effectively, to understand how our society works, to understand our rights and responsibilities as citizens, to work with one another to build our communities and to confront challenges together such as climate change and inequality.
There is a document and two videos on this theme
​
Adult Learning Wales