In the novel ‘Black Bag,’ a classroom experiment invites questions about masculinity
NPR's Book of the Day · NPR
March 25, 20267m 45s
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (prfx.byspotify.com) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
The narrator in Black Bag is an unnamed and mostly unemployed actor until a professor offers him the starring role in an experiment. The narrator is asked to zip himself in a black bag and sit in the back of a lecture theater. Luke Kennard’s new novel is based on an experiment from 1967, in which a professor set out to explore “the mere-exposure effect.” In today’s episode, Kennard talks with NPR’s Scott Simon about why the protagonist takes up this non-role – and what the experiment reveals about masculinity.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
NPR Privacy Policy
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
NPR Privacy Policy