OC’s Nathan Shank featured on Oklahoma Humanities’ podcast BrainBox

Assistant Professor of English spoke to the meaning behind monuments and memorials. 

March 20, 2020 - Oklahoma City houses many different and unique opportunities for Oklahoma Christian University students, faculty and staff, including intriguing podcasts that reach across the state and nation.

Recently, Assistant Professor of English Nathan Shank was invited to the Oklahoma Humanities’ BrainBox podcast, which focuses on issues affecting American society and culture. In his segment on the podcast, Shank explored the meaning behind monuments and memorials. 

“My current research has been around memorials and monuments and how they affect people, how there is a rhetorical dimension to them when people pass by them or ignore them or meaningfully engage with them,” Shank said. “What is happening? Why is that happening?”

On the episode, Shank discussed many memorials and monuments in Oklahoma. Although most people think of the famous Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum when considering memorials in Oklahoma, Shank brought attention to other monuments that many people haven’t heard of. His goal was to challenge people to critically think about the importance of monuments as well as why one particular monument may be recognized over another.     

Although many memorials and monuments are controversial and the politics are highly contested, Shank hopes that memorials can bring people together and decrease division. 

“Some monuments tend to divide, but I’m interested in people thinking critically as we create new monuments and memorials,” Shank said. “It’s especially important for the public to be thinking about making these in inclusive ways, not eliminating voices that may not even be able to come to the table and be part of that decision-making process. I think there’s a real public value to it.” 

BrainBox interviews “Oklahoma’s most interesting and knowledgeable humanities scholars” to inform the public. Shank was selected for this interview due to his extensive research about monuments and memorials. Last year, at the Oklahoma Humanities’ Curiosity Fest, Shank presented on the same top. That opportunity led to the BrainBox episode.