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The Sociologist's Dojo Podcast

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  2. Episode 35: The Invitation with Dr. Courtenay Stallings

Episode 35: The Invitation with Dr. Courtenay Stallings

Oct 26, 2023

On this month's episode of The Sociologist's Dojo Podcast ,in honor of Spooky Season, return guest Dr. Courtenay Stallings of Pepperdine University and I talk about the 2015 Hitchcockian Horror/Thriller The Invitation, directed by Karyn Kusama. Join us as we talk about Religion, Cults and their relationship to politics, Grief, Trauma, and a lot of Erving Goffman. This Podcast episode will have you pondering when DO you decide to break the social contract, and will that just save your life?  Happy Halloween from The Sociologist's Dojo!

 

Basics 

Dr. Stallings Previous Episodes 

Update on Dr. Stallings Academic Work 

Basics of The Film: The Invitation (2015)

  • Plot 
  • Trivia 

Historical Context

  • Micro Level:  Experiences with Kusama's work
  • Kusama, and a gendered director jail
  • The importance of 2015, Prophetic for the tension of 2016 Family Dinners (Cults and Politics) 
  • The Feel and look of the film, seems timeless 

Social Analysis

  • Religion and Cults  
  • Erving Gofmman's Presentation of Self and The Social Contract of Parties 
  • Terror in the mundane
  • Subverting who "typically" survives a Horror Film.

Outtro