Squaring the Strange

by Pascual Romero and Ben Radford
Not just another “skeptical” podcast, it’s a show about critical thinking and evidence-based analysis, using science and critical thinking to examine the world around us, from the mysterious and paranormal to the mundane.

Episode 209 - Agritainment and rural haunts with Betty Aquino

09/08/2023
It's agritainment season, y'all! So get ready to pick apples, walk a corn maze, pet some goats and maybe get spooked at a rural haunted house! Folklorist and haunted house aficionado Betty Aquino joins Ben and Celestia to discuss themes in rural haunts and why the rural spaces have become romanticized by urban dwellers. We explore some themes of gender, power and politics in the haunted houses she sampled in the midwest, and discuss how this type of commodified spookiness differs from other types of theater. For starters, it's all run by amateurs and there's no fourth wall...

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