Full episode available on Patreon:

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This is the third and final installment of Silent Generation’s three part series on Bohemianism. In this week’s episode, Joseph and Nathan finally address the most popular definition of “bohemian”: the trope of the impoverished artist living on the fringes of society. They detail how the combined impacts of the French and Industrial Revolutions caused bohemians to first emerge in Paris during the 1830s, and how the cultural figure was defined and popularized by Henri Murger’s Scenes of Bohemian Life and Giacamo Puccini’s La Bohème. They conclude by discussing other 19th century cultural figures (flaneurs, dandies), the movie Moulin Rouge!, and boho-chic fashion. 

Links:

Scenes of Bohemian Life by Henri Murger

La bohème by Giacomo Puccini

Bohemians: A Very Short Introduction by David Weir

Bohemians: The Glamorous Outcasts by Elizabeth Wilson

Bohemianism - In Our Time (BBC)

Cross-section of a Parisian house in the 1850s

Mexico City Gentrification

Towertown: LOST COMMUNITIES OF CHICAGO

Nabe ni Dangan wo Ukenagara (manga that features Chicago)

“Water only” family Tik Tok

Labelle - Lady Marmalade

Bo-ho Chic/ Whimsicraft Designs from Bohemian Style (1999)

Decorating Cents worst designs Tik Tok

Artwork:

Photos of Bohemian Partiers in New York’s Greenwich Village, 1910-1920

Recorded on 7/28/2025