T. rex is Fierce, T. rex is Charismatic, T. rex is Litigious: Disruptive Objects in Affective Desirescapes

  • Donna Yates*
  • , Emily Peacock
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

In this paper we present T. rex fossils as disruptive objects that can drastically influence the actions and reactions of humans that encounter them. We present a vision of the T. rex as being a key node within a web of human and object associations that ultimately produces, first, extreme desire in humans, and then a breakdown in human relationships resulting in disagreements, disputes, lawsuits, and the committing of crime. From there we bring these T. rex fossils into the concept of desirescape which sees a network of object/object and object/human reactions provoking irresistible desire in humans. We argue that this desire can push humans to violate law or social norms or, in several T. rex cases, sue each other. How then should we humans approach T. rex and other disruptive objects? Cautiously, and with the knowledge that these objects may be more powerful than we are.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)396-418
Number of pages23
JournalInternational Journal of Cultural Property
Volume30
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2024

Keywords

  • desire
  • lure
  • objects and crime
  • objects and law
  • fossils
  • dinosaurs

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