Since March most of us have become more fully present in our homes, editing out the non-places of modernity, work, commuting, retail therapy, holidays. Many of us have rationed our connection into tight bubbles, calculating who is essential to us. Walter Benjamin suggested we only experience history, when it stands still; in our homes, in our bubbles, we have all been experiencing history, and inevitably, thinking.

As we come back blinking into the light, we return to the multiple contested ends - of history, progress, society, capitalism, austerity, nature and the end of the world. The long slow collapse of future horizons - the 'cancellation the future' - our times shared sense of malaise, exhaustion and narrowed possibility and optimism also faces the looming shadow of Nietzschean eternal recurrences.

"After-thoughts", is a reprise of the E+S PhD summer school for our socially distant times. We return to the spirit of the castle, where time and space expand in front of us, and we ask leading academics to revisit their best ideas.

Our format is a ruminative academy, using the pandemic restrictions as a spur to reflection, thinking differently, in hope of better days. Each speaker will present key ideas and paradigms, give their 'after-thoughts' on previously published work, and contemplate what's coming 'after' the pandemic, in markets, work organisations, welfare politics, critique, media, migration and much more.

E+S is oriented to the needs of doctoral students and advanced masters students interested in further research. It can be taken as a 5 or 10 credit module; see SC6001 or SC6002. E+S21 will consist of 12 two-hour seminars with core staff and guests, with assigned readings, presentations, interviews with guests and Q+A sessions, and subsequent group discussions.

The school is entirely free for successful applicants this year, as it is funded under the EU H2020 HECAT Project, 870702. Booking is free but essential. Registrants will receive further information and a zoom link for attendance in advance of the session. Queries should be directed to info.easss@gmail.com

Seminar Schedule is as follows:

Feb 16th: 10:00. Introductory meeting with core staff.

Feb 23rd: 16:00. Ideas Lying Around: Discussion Nidesh Lawtoo & Lynne Layton

Mar 4th: 16:00. Work Ethics: Elizabeth Anderson

Mar 9th : 10:00. Economic Theology: Markets: Stefan Schwarzkopf

Mar 11th: 10:00. Economic Theology and Governance: Mitchell Dean

Mar 16th: 16:00. Jobseeking & Labour Market: Ilana Gershon

Mar 23rd: 10:00. Welfare and Reformation: Ray Griffin & Tom Boland

Mar 25th: 10:00. Justifying Welfare: Magnus P. Hansen, Fiona Dukelow, Michael Mcgann

April 13th: 10:00 Precarity: Theresa O’ Keefe & Aline Courtois

April 15th: 16:00. Rescheduled. Datafication of Welfare: Lina Dencik & Ray Griffin & Hecat

April 20th: 16:00 Street level welfare: Evelyn Brodkin, Mary Murphy, Joe Whelan

April 22nd: 10:00 Fairground Capitalism: Arpad Szakolczai

April 27th: 10:00. Work & Gig Economy: Alex Wood & Ray Griffin

April: 29th: 10:00. Addiction Society: Agnus Bancroft & John O’Brien.

May 6th: 10:00. Good Models and Positive Mimesis. Kieran Keohane

May 10th, 20.00/May 11th 10:00. The Leviathan of Rationality: Damian O’Doherty