Emily Cockayne
British historian
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Emily Cockayne (born 1973) is a British historian, known for her work on sensory nuisance and material culture.[1]
University of East Anglia
Emily Cockayne | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1973 (age 52–53) |
| Alma mater | Jesus College, University of Cambridge |
| Occupation | Historian |
| Employer(s) | Open University University of East Anglia |
| Notable work | Hubbub. Filth, Noise & Stench in England 1600–1770 (2007) |
| Children | 2 |
Education
Cockayne was educated at the University of Cambridge, where she took a first class degree in history in 1994.[2] She received the Members' History Prize in 1997.[3] She wrote a doctoral thesis at Jesus College, Cambridge, under the supervision of Robert W. Scribner and Keith Wrightson, and was awarded her PhD in 2000. She was a Prize Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford, and afterwards lectured at the Open University.[4] She is currently Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of East Anglia.[5]
Career
In 2007, Cockayne published Hubbub. Filth, Noise & Stench in England 1600–1770.[6] A reviewer in The Independent commented: 'Cockayne draws us into a world where snickleways (narrow, often noisome passages) might be contaminated by fallen axunge (pig fat used to grease axles) or the overflow from a "house of easement"'.[7] The book has been described as 'a treasure-house of material for scholars'.[8] Toni Morrison said Hubbub was 'a really extraordinary book', and that it had influenced her 2008 novel A Mercy.[9] Hubbub is often included in academic bibliographies of seminal works in modern urban history and the history of everyday life.[10][11][12][13][14] A second edition of Hubbub was issued in 2021 with a new afterword.[15]
Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours followed in 2012. A reviewer in Literary Review described Cheek by Jowl as 'authoritative if heavy-going';[16] while The Daily Telegraph noted that 'Cockayne does not marshal her subject particularly linearly ... [but] crisply accounts for our disappearing notion of neighbourliness'.[17]
In 2020, Cockayne published a history of recycling and material reuse entitled Rummage.[18] The Guardian hailed Rummage as 'brilliantly original and deeply-researched',[19] while The Sunday Times called it 'rich and meticulous'.[20]
In addition to her academic work, which has included contributions to the history of Magdalen College, Oxford,[21] and essays on noise and deafness in Urban History[22] and The Historical Journal[23] respectively, Cockayne has written for The Architectural Review;[24] The Daily Telegraph;[25] The Times;[26] Times Literary Supplement;[27] and The Wall Street Journal.[28] She has appeared on BBC Radio 4 programmes Thinking Allowed[29] and Woman's Hour;[30] BBC Radio 3's The Listening Service;[31] and in international broadcasts.[32][33]
Cockayne's study of anonymous letter-writing, Penning Poison: A History of Anonymous Letters, was published by Oxford University Press in 2023.[34][35]
Personal life
Cockayne lives in East Anglia. She has two children, Ned and Maud.
Books
- Hubbub. Filth, Noise & Stench in England 1600-1770 (Yale University Press, 2007). ISBN 9780300112146
- Cheek by Jowl. A History of Neighbours (Bodley Head, 2012). ISBN 9781409027737
- Rummage. A History of the Things We Have Reused, Recycled and Refused to Let Go (Profile, 2020). ISBN 9781781258514
- Penning Poison: A History of Anonymous Letters (OUP Oxford, 2023). ISBN 9780198795056