Show Notes: Unwilling to Behave
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Sources, References & Further Reading
This episode draws from folklore, mythology, art history, Black Atlantic memory work, water-spirit traditions, psychology, blue-space research, and modern conversations around vulnerability and performance. I’ve gathered a few starting points below for anyone who wants to follow the tide a little deeper.
This is not meant to be an exhaustive bibliography or a definitive guide to any living tradition. Some of these sources are scholarly, some are museum or cultural resources, and some are folklore/history starting points. When it comes to traditions and histories that are not mine to hold at the center, I encourage you to follow the work of scholars, artists, practitioners, and communities speaking from within those waters.
Local Waters & Pocomoke Lore
Chesapeake Bay Program. “The Pocomoke River Adds a Bit of Bayou to the Chesapeake.” Chesapeake Bay Program, February 10, 2022.
https://www.chesapeakebay.net/news/blog/tributary-tuesday-pocomoke-river-delaware-and-maryland
Chesapeake Ghosts. “Haunted Minute – The Pocomoke River.” Chesapeake Ghosts, May 4, 2015.
https://chesapeakeghosts.com/haunted-minute-pocomoke-river/
Moon Mausoleum. “Hauntings and Legends from the Pocomoke State Forest.” Moon Mausoleum, February 16, 2024.
https://moonmausoleum.com/hauntings-and-legends-from-the-pocomoke-state-forest/
Sirens, Selkies & Sea Women
Audubon Society. “These Mythical Sea Maidens Used to Be Bird-Women.” Audubon, July 2, 2019.
https://www.audubon.org/news/these-mythical-sea-maidens-used-be-bird-women
“Selkies, Seal Folk of Scotland.” Scotland’s Stories.
https://www.scotlands-stories.com/selkies
Fairytales & Folklore. “Selkies, Consent, and the Stolen Skin Trope.” Fairytales & Folklore / Substack, August 23, 2025.
https://fairytalefridays.substack.com/p/selkies-consent-and-the-stolen-skin
Ophelia, Victorian Art & the Beautiful Dead
“The Drowned Woman: Suicide and the Female Body in Victorian Art.” The Haunted Palace, March 21, 2020.
https://hauntedpalaceblog.wordpress.com/2020/03/21/drowned-women-in-victorian-art
“Ophelia.” Tate.
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/millais-ophelia-n01506
For a deeper academic dive, look for doctoral work on drowned women and Victorian culture, often cited under titles such as The Drowned Maiden in Victorian Art and Literature.
The Atlantic, Memory & the Middle Passage
Equal Justice Initiative. The Transatlantic Slave Trade: A Forgotten History of Slavery and Racism. Montgomery, AL: Equal Justice Initiative, 2023.
https://eji.org/reports/transatlantic-slave-trade
Turner, Chelsea E., et al. “Memorializing the Middle Passage on the Atlantic Seabed in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction.” 2020.
https://www.oceandecadeheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Turner-et-al-2020.pdf
Hartman, Saidiya. Lose Your Mother: A Journey Along the Atlantic Slave Route. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007.
Sharpe, Christina. In the Wake: On Blackness and Being. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2016.
Mami Wata, Yemọja/Yemaya & La Sirène
Drewal, Henry John, ed. Mami Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and Its Diasporas. Los Angeles: Fowler Museum at UCLA, 2008. Exhibition resources:
https://fowler.ucla.edu/exhibitions/mami-wata-arts-for-water-spirits-in-africa-and-its-diasporas
National Museums Scotland. “Mami Wata: The African Water Spirit Honoured Across the World.” National Museums Scotland, 2020.
https://www.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/world-cultures/mami-wata
“Mythopedia.” “Yemoja.” Mythopedia.
https://mythopedia.com/topics/yemoja
“Yemaya.” Kamboozal: World Deities and Spirits. Last modified October 7, 2024.
https://www.kamboozal.com/deities/yemaya
“La Siréne: The Mermaid of Vodou.” Elevator Operator, July 3, 2020.
https://elevatoroperator.band/la-sirene-the-mermaid-of-vodou
Sacred Water, Kinship & Water Protectors
“Carving the Taniwha: Sacred Water Spirits in Te Ao Māori.” Garland Magazine, Issue 27, 2025.
https://garlandmag.com/article/taniwha
Open Rivers: Rethinking Water, Place & Community. “Why Is Water Sacred to Native Americans?” Open Rivers, Issue 8, 2017.
https://openrivers.lib.umn.edu/article/why-is-water-sacred-to-native-americans
Open Access Government. “Indigenous Youth Resilience: Water Protectors.” Open Access Government, October 27, 2021.
https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/indigenous-youth-resilience-water-protectors
Water, Psychology & Blue Space
White, Mathew P., et al. “Blue Care: A Systematic Review of Blue Space Interventions for Health and Wellbeing.” Health & Place 54 (2018): 110–117. Summary:
https://eepro.naaee.org/research/eeresearch/blue-care-systematic-review-blue-space-interventions-health-and-wellbeing
“The Science Behind How Just Being Near Water Can Help Mental Health.” Headlight Health, December 27, 2022.
https://headlight.health/the-science-behind-how-just-being-near-water-can-help-mental-health-even-virtually
“Water Symbolism Across Cultures: A Deep Dive Into Meaning.” Water Symbolism Across Cultures, May 19, 2025.
https://water-symbolism-across-cultures.pages.dev/posts/water-symbolism-across-cultures
For Jungian symbolism, see Carl Jung’s writings on water, the unconscious, and the Great Mother archetype in his collected works, especially discussions of dream symbolism and depth psychology.
Vulnerability, Performance & Repair
Brown, Brené. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead. New York: Gotham Books, 2012.
Brown, Brené. Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone. New York: Random House, 2017.
Brown, Brené. “The Power of Vulnerability.” TEDxHouston, 2010.
https://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_the_power_of_vulnerability
Thank you for listening, wandering, and going all the way down with me.