The lost world of the London coffeehouse | Dr Matthew Green | TEDxEastEnd
## Speaker Context
- Role: Presenter/Speaker giving a talk about coffee houses.
- Setting: An indoor event where the speaker addresses an audience.
- Framing: The speaker starts by contrasting modern coffee shop behavior with historical coffee house culture to make a case for face-to-face interaction.
## People
- Dudley Ryder: Coffee junkie who lived in Hackney, recording his experiences in a secret diary.
- Pascal Ros: Eccentric Greek entrepreneur who opened London's first coffee shack.
- Isaac Newton: Mentioned as someone who would be sitting in a corner sipping coffee at Don Sto's coffee house.
- Joseph Addison: Great poet and playwright who opened Button's in Covent Garden.
- Addison, Steele, Pope, Gay, Swift: Great writers of the age who assembled at Button's.
- The speaker: Implied role of guide/advocate for old coffee house ways.
## Organizations
- The Guardian: Publication that would feature the best stories roared out from coffee houses in the past.
- Starbucks: Modern coffee shop setting contrasted with historical establishments.
## Places
- London: General location of historical coffee houses.
- Hackney: Area where Dudley Ryder lived, described as a bucolic Paradise/Arcadia.
- Bohemia place: Location where Dudley Ryder lived in Hackney.
- Junction of Cambridge Heath Road and May Streets: Junction used by Dudley Ryder to get into London.
- St Paul's: Dome visible in the background near Dudley Ryder's historical area.
- St Michael's alley in Corn Hill: Location where London's first coffee shack opened.
- Covent Garden: Area where Button's coffee house was located.
- Hackney Wick: Area with a coffee shop mentioned.
- Wilton way: Location of a highly praised coffee shop.
## Tools, Tech & Products
- Coffee: The central commodity, described in various ways (e.g., "GRL").
- Book of poetry: Item used in an exaggerated description of bad behavior.
- Vanilla Ice latte: Specific type of modern beverage mentioned.
- Secret diary: Object used by Dudley Ryder to record his observations.
- Newspaper: Item used in coffee houses for news and gossip.
- Pipe: Item used in coffee houses.
- Smartphone or laptop: Devices representing modern distractions in coffee shops.
## Concepts & Definitions
- Coffee House: A place where people used to gather to debate and socialize; historically described as an "emancipatory space."
- Arcadian: Describing the former nature of Hackney.
- Misogynist mindset: The societal viewpoint in the day that assumed women were incapable of rational debate.
- Conviviality: The atmosphere described in successful coffee houses.
- Quid Novi: The Latin phrase used for asking for news in the Latin coffee house.
- Epitome of wit: The nature of the exchange at Button's.
## Numbers & Data
- 300 years ago: Time frame when the streets of London were lined with coffee houses.
- 301 years ago: Approximate time frame Dudley Ryder dropped in to the Hackney coffee house.
- 361 years: Years stretching back to the alleyway ritual of sipping coffee.
- 1652: Year Pascal Ros opened London's first coffee shack.
- 18th century: Period when there were 3,000 coffee houses in the city.
- 23: Age of Dudley Ryder.
- 8-10 years: Time frame associated with the Renaissance of small independent coffee shops.
## Claims & Theses
- Coffee houses historically encouraged conversation and debate with strangers.
- Coffee houses were emancipatory spaces that freed people from societal strictures.
- The arrival of coffee triggered a "dawn of sobriety" leading to cultural, economic, and scientific growth.
- The main reason for coffee's success was that before coffee, people were often intoxicated due to polluted river water.
- Original coffee houses were unique, unlike modern bland chains.
- The real currency in coffee houses was news and gossip.
- The best form of interaction in a coffee house was melting into a conversation already in full flow.
- Personality can be molded and manipulated, as exemplified by Dudley Ryder.
- Starbucks interaction is more reminiscent of Urban Oni and anonymity than genuine conviviality.
- Face-to-face interaction remains fundamentally important as the world becomes more virtual.
## Mechanisms & Processes
- The process of engaging in conversation in an old coffee house involved approaching a stranger and asking for news.
- The structure of a coffee house debate: Approach stranger -> Ask news -> Debate for hours.
- The flow of conversation in old coffee houses: One did not start a conversation but melted into one already in full flow.
- The process of establishing social standing in old coffee houses: Going through the rituals of discussion and reputation building.
- The process of revival: The Renaissance of small independent coffee shops over the last 8-10 years.
## Timeline & Events
- 1652: Year Pascal Ros opened London's first coffee shack.
- 17th and 18th century: Period when there were 3,000 coffee houses.
- 17th-18th century: Time period when coffee houses were sometimes set up on ice.
- 300 years ago: Time when London streets had coffee houses with different social behaviors.
- Past to present: The cultural significance of the coffee house ritual, spanning centuries.
## Examples & Cases
- A visitor in a coffee house asking a stranger for the latest news and debating it for hours (Dudley Ryder's initial experience).
- The Hackney coffee house used by Dudley Ryder, where he heard reports of the Jacobite Rebellion.
- Pascal Ros opening the first coffee shack against black railings in St Michael's alley in 1652.
- Don Sto's coffee house, which was a museum of monsters and where Isaac Newton was present.
- The Grecian coffee house, which hosted scientific debates involving the dissection of a dolphin.
- The Latin coffee house, which enforced the rule that one had to speak only in Latin.
- A floating coffee house, which was a glorified dance floor for rakes and dandies.
- Hackney Square coffee house, where "inquisitions of insanity" were held.
- The best coffee houses being natural hubs for interaction, such as Button's in Covent Garden.
- The Starbuck's experience, characterized by sequestration and staring at screens.
- The picture of a man throwing a cup of coffee in someone else's face, used to illustrate the physical nature of old arguments.
## Trade-offs & Alternatives
- Coffee houses: Option to socialize freely vs. societal class concerns/taboos.
- Modern coffee shop: Option to sit sequestered with personal devices vs. the historical convivial exchange.
- Before coffee: Option of drinking polluted river water leading to drunkenness vs. the sobriety triggered by coffee.
- Modern interaction vs. face-to-face interaction: The potential decline from real interaction to virtual interaction.
## Counterarguments & Caveats
- The speaker admits that the critique of Starbucks is partly exaggerated for effect.
- The speaker notes that even historical coffee house anecdotes have a sensationalist element ("I just put that in for a joke really").
- The speaker clarifies that the picture of the man throwing coffee is "just to show I'm not fetishizing these coffee houses."
- The speaker acknowledges that the current flourishing coffee shops are a "Renaissance," not a perfect return.
## Methodology
- Asking the audience to raise hands to gauge the prevalence of coffee shop visits.
- Describing historical practices (e.g., the Latin coffee house rule, the process of "inquisitions of insanity").
## References Cited
- The Great Enlightenment (general period).
- Edward Hopper's work: Specifically "Nighthawks" as an image comparison to Starbucks.
- The original Guardian newspaper (as the source for published stories).
## Conclusions & Recommendations
- The audience should be reminded of the importance of face-to-face interaction.
- The recommended action is to "scan the room for someone you've never seen before," sit down, lean in, put a hand on their shoulder, and "scream those four Immortal words: what news have you?"
- If enough people do this, they will "spread the revolution."
## Implications & Consequences
- If people fail to remember the importance of face-to-face interaction, they risk losing touch with it.
- If the trend continues, the barriers between virtual and real life may dissolve entirely.
## Open Questions
- How will people interact in the future when the barriers between virtual and real worlds fully dissolve?
## Verbatim Moments
- "it was a miracle cure for just about every single ailment he could think of"
- "it would trigger a dawn of sobriety that would lay the foundations for spectacular cultural and economic and science scientific growth"
- "it was a glorious Emporium of wit"
- "your servant sir what news from Tripoli"
- "if it was unanimously declared that you were mad you were dragged away to a mad house for the rest of your life"
- "if you're in a coffee house where you've actually got a real physical person in front of you then you know it's not going to break out into an argument that was a spectacularly ill time slide"
- "I want you to scan the room for someone you've never seen before it can be someone you like the look of"
- "what news have you"