That the world confronts a series of contemporary crises—whether focused in the political, social, cultural, or economic realms—is surely a given. Zižek (2010, 86–87) has suggested that we have moved into a situation of "permanent economic emergency" that is becoming "a constant, a way of life" with the ever-present threat of "far more savage austerity measures, cuts in benefits, diminishing health and education services and more precarious employment." Perhaps this has always been the case, or at least it has been the case for decades or centuries, depending on the criteria used to make such characterisations.