Good morning. It's Saturday, May 2. Welcome to this week's Society & Culture newsletter. First time reading? Sign up here or click here to share with friends. |
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The Kentucky Derby is tonight, so we've got an explainer for the Triple Crown, the prestigious cornerstone of professional horse racing. After that, we honor American transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, who died 164 years ago this week. Finally, we unpack the continued relevance of George Orwell's "Animal Farm" in light of its latest adaptation, which was released yesterday.
Got something on your mind? I want to hear it! Feel free to reach out with ideas for future deep dives, comments on something we covered, or anything else running through your brain. I respond to every email, and getting in touch is as simple as hitting "reply."
—Kevin Kearney, 1440 Society & Culture Section Editor |
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A beginner's guide to the Triple Crown
The Triple Crown is the pinnacle of American horse racing. It consists of three races in five weeks for 3-year-old thoroughbreds: Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes. Only 13 horses have won all three.
The Belmont Stakes started in 1867, followed by the Preakness in 1873, and the Kentucky Derby in 1875. Sir Barton was the first to win all three in 1919 but the term "Triple Crown” wasn’t popularized until the 1930s. CBS pioneered Triple Crown broadcasting, airing the Belmont Stakes in 1948 and the Preakness in 1949, before adding the Derby in 1952. By the 1960s, the Triple Crown was a national spectacle, fueled by expanded TV access and improved production.
The Kentucky Derby, in particular, is now a vibrant cultural event, known for its traditions—including elaborate hats, mint juleps, and singing of "My Old Kentucky Home"—and significant betting. The 2025 Kentucky Derby saw a record $349M in bets and was watched by an average of 17.7 million people, the most since 1989. (Watch an explainer on horse betting.)
... Explore everything else we learned about the Triple Crown.
Also, check out ...
> Why Kentucky Derby attendees love splashy hats. (Read)
> The precarious economics of horse racing. (Listen)
> What it takes to become a professional jockey. (Watch)
> How Seabiscuit's DNA contributed to his late-career success. (Read) |
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Henry David Thoreau, 101
Henry David Thoreau was a 19th-century writer, philosopher, and activist, best known for his book "Walden," which documented the two years, two months, and two days he spent living in a modest cabin near Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. (Read his books for free.)
Thoreau constructed the cabin on land owned by his friend Ralph Waldo Emerson, the figurehead of the New England transcendentalist movement. Thoreau entered the woods in spring 1845 and built his cabin for about $28.13, roughly equivalent to about $1,222 today. (Take a virtual tour of Walden Pond.)
After leaving the cabin, Thoreau delivered a lecture that would eventually become his essay "Civil Disobedience," a work that defined a form of nonviolent protest that would inspire Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. "Walden" was published in 1854, after years of revisions, and is now considered a classic of American literature, despite the many myths that persist about Thoreau and his life at the pond.
... Explore everything else we learned about Henry David Thoreau.
Also, check out ...
> How Thoreau nearly burned down his hometown. (Read)
> Why Thoreau considered himself spiritual but not religious. (Listen)
> The professor using "Walden" to study climate change. (Watch)
> Thoreau's diet once included a woodchuck. (Read) |
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An introduction to 'Animal Farm'
"Animal Farm" is a 1945 novella written by George Orwell, the pseudonym of Eric Blair. The story—about livestock who overthrow their human master and assemble their own government—is an allegory for the Russian Revolution.
Despite initially facing resistance from publishers due to its explicitly anti-Soviet themes, the book was a success after publication. During the Cold War, the CIA covertly funded an animated film adaptation that emphasized its criticisms of communism while limiting its criticisms of capitalism. (Watch the 1954 movie here.)
"Animal Farm" is still a popular, widely taught book. It also remains a political reference point, with both the American left and the right sometimes claiming Orwell as a spokesman for their causes. The 2026 film adaptation, directed by Andy Serkis, has so far received poor reviews, with many critics arguing that the movie misunderstands Orwell's satire. (Read a review.)
... Explore everything else we learned about "Animal Farm" and George Orwell.
Also, check out ...
> Read Orwell's criticism of the publishers who rejected the book. (Read)
> Hear the Pink Floyd album inspired by "Animal Farm." (Listen)
> Browse an Orwell superfan's collection of the author's books. (Read)
> Two literature professors unpack the book's continued relevance. (Listen) |
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Beyond our weekly deep dives, we love finding great takes on the culture currently shaping our lives. Here are some of the best reactions, profiles, and think pieces we encountered this week.
> John Keats' Stolen Letters
NY Times | Tom Mashberg. The romantic poet wrote nearly 40 letters to his muse, Fanny Brawne, but many of the originals were stolen in the 1980s. A year ago, they resurfaced when a man tried to sell them to a rare books store. (Read)
> The Young Wikipedians Writing Music History
Pitchfork | Kieran Press-Reynolds. As the mainstream music press shrinks, burgeoning scenes and genres risk going undocumented. Press-Reynolds interviews the teens and 20-somethings trying to change that by feverishly writing and editing about their favorite sounds on the internet's free encyclopedia. (Read)
> Childhoods of Exceptional People
Escaping Flatland | Henrik Karlsson. The programmer-turned-essayist read about 40 biographies of assorted geniuses to see if there were noticeable patterns in their early years. By definition, exceptional people are, well, exceptional, but Karlsson still manages to glean a few fascinating throughlines. (Read)
> Teaching in the Age of AI
The Guardian | Peter C. Baker. The rise of large language models has upended the norms of education, most especially for English teachers. Baker, a writer-turned-classroom-teacher, tries to find the line between being appropriately of the moment and responsibly skeptical of its promises. (Read | More on Generative AI)
> The Sushirrito Calls It Quits
SF Gate | Madeline Wells. Peter Yen trademarked the Sushirrito—yes, that's sushi in burrito form—in 2008, kicking off a bicoastal trend around the hybrid food chain. This brief obituary for the novel fusion dish explains how it became such a sensation. (Read | More on Sushi) |
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