“I am intrigued by the idea of analysing a setting, down to its most material elements…” – 10 Questions for Laura Schiavone

In our investigative series VIGILEAKS, we introduce the staff of the SFB “Vigilance Cultures” in 10 questions. This time, Laura Schiavone, a member of the sub-project C02 “The Hidden, Suspicious, Changeable Gender: Shame and Vigilance in the Early Modern Period”, answers our questions.

1. How did you come to join the CRC?

As I finished my master’s degree, my supervisor forwarded me the call for applications. It sounded like a big challenge: new country, new university, new subject. But the topic really resonated with my interests, so I decided to give it a try. Almost three years later, I can say it was an excellent choice, and I am grateful for the opportunity and trust placed in me.

2. Where do you hope this journey will take you

Hopefully to explore new research questions and topics, perhaps by looking at more dusty pages and messy handwriting.

3. How would you summarize your time at the CRC so far?

Instructive. When I began, I knew little about the concept of vigilance and what shame had to do with it. I also knew little about life in Germany and in Munich especially. I can now say that I know a bit more about each of these things. But also about the late Roman state, Shakespeare, monasteries, devils and angels, whistleblowers, drones and jaguars, and much more.

4. What do you particularly enjoy about academic work? What do you dislike?

It is a cliché: I love entering an archive, especially for the first time, figuring out what my sources are, opening them and seeing what they tell me – even when they prove to be useless for my research topic. I also quite like writing, especially when I have an idea or a good source in mind. What I enjoy less is fixing footnotes and navigating bureaucracy – but then, who does?

5. What is your favourite quote and why?

There are many, and it is hard to choose. One I hold particularly dear comes from Italian songwriter Fabrizio De André (the song is called “Il suonatore Jones”). Roughly translated, it says: “In a whirlwind of dust, others saw drought – to me, it resembled Jenny’s skirt at a dance many years ago.”¹ It reminds me to look at things from my own perspective.

6.     What interests you most about the academic concept of “vigilance”?

One aspect of vigilance that really interests me is that it is situated and context-dependent – it takes different shapes and forms depending on the setting. I am intrigued by the idea of analysing a setting, down to its most material elements, and discovering unexpected features that played a part in raising, maintaining, and orienting collective attention. The structure of a building, the thickness or thinness of walls, a locked door could turn out to be essential elements allowing or preventing people from observing and listening. Objects and items of clothing could easily assume deeper meanings and capture attention. We also have repeatedly seen, in multiple presentations held at the SFB, the crucial cooperation of non-human actors (animals or machines) in maintaining vigilance. I find this really convincing and fascinating.

7.     Are you a vigilant person yourself? If so, why? If not, why not?

I try to be vigilant, but only toward goals I care about, that someone I love cares about, or that align with my personal values, ideas, and interests. Unfortunately, I don’t always succeed: I get easily distracted or lost in my own thoughts.

8.     When do people or things catch your attention?

Anything and anyone that requires some effort to be understood catches my attention. I am easily driven to riddles and puzzles, people with interesting backgrounds, subjects I know nothing about, things that are inexplicably there. For example, I tend to notice stickers and writings on walls, especially when I cannot immediately understand their meaning. Although in most cases I will never be able to find out, they catch my attention and encourage me to reflect and research. The same happens when I find random objects out of place, for instance on a train or a mountain trail. I could spend hours trying to reconstruct how they got there.

9.     What’s the best way for you to wake up in the morning?

With the kisses of my family dog. Then, a big cup of black coffee (strictly moka-style, no sugar).

10.  Does your research in the CRC change your perspective on everyday life?

At first, I joked about seeing vigilance everywhere! It is a very interesting lens to look at social life. I find myself noticing when people pay attention to something and silently asking myself: what goal is driving this? My specific project (C02) also provided me with a much more critical view of knowledge (medical knowledge especially), acknowledging that it encompasses a lot of things, not just what happens within universities and research-oriented institutions.

As a funny side-note: Whenever I am back in Bologna, the city that I am studying for my project but also where I went to university, I walk around and think “there was the house of a midwife, there was the court of law, in this street lived a person I came across in my sources!”

1. In un vortice di polvere gli altri vedevan siccità – a me ricordava la gonna di Jenny in un ballo di tanti anni fa ↩︎

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