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eldritchhobbit

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Blog Entries posted by eldritchhobbit

  1. eldritchhobbit
    I’m delighted to share that I will be teaching a new three-part online module for SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) for Signum University in Spring 2026.
    Rebellions Are Built On Hope: A Star Wars Series
    Over nearly half a century of storytelling, Star Wars has challenged audiences to find their own agency and power in the face of injustice and tyranny. The Star Wars works Andor (2022, 2025), Rogue One (2016), and A New Hope (1977) fit together to provide a story of resistance, resilience, and rebellion built on a deep engagement with history, philosophy, and political thought. Join Dr. Amy H. Sturgis as we consider how Star Wars wrestles with big ideas, invites conversation and action, and inspires hope in unprecedented times.

    This SPACE series consists of three hybrid modules:
    Module 1 (Feb. 2026) covers the series Andor, Season 1 (more info here); Module 2 (March 2026) covers the series Andor, Season 2 (more info here); and Module 3 (April 2026) covers the films Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (more info here).
    View the full post.
  2. eldritchhobbit
    I’m delighted to share that I will be teaching a new three-part online module for SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) for Signum University in Spring 2026.
    Rebellions Are Built On Hope: A Star Wars Series
    Over nearly half a century of storytelling, Star Wars has challenged audiences to find their own agency and power in the face of injustice and tyranny. The Star Wars works Andor (2022, 2025), Rogue One (2016), and A New Hope (1977) fit together to provide a story of resistance, resilience, and rebellion built on a deep engagement with history, philosophy, and political thought. Join Dr. Amy H. Sturgis as we consider how Star Wars wrestles with big ideas, invites conversation and action, and inspires hope in unprecedented times.

    This SPACE series consists of three hybrid modules:
    Module 1 (Feb. 2026) covers the series Andor, Season 1 (more info here); Module 2 (March 2026) covers the series Andor, Season 2 (more info here); and Module 3 (April 2026) covers the films Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (more info here). Get your votes in now if you’d like your availability to be considered while we schedule these modules. I hope to see you in that galaxy far, far away!
    ALT
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  3. eldritchhobbit

    News!

    By eldritchhobbit,

    I’m tickled to share that my paper “Star Trek’s Son of the Royal Navy: Malcolm Reed’s Subversive Voyage in Space, Then and Now” has been accepted for NavyCon 2025, a conference sponsored by the Center for International Maritime Security, King’s College, and the Naval War College. The theme is “The Influence of Navies on Science Fiction, NASA, and the Future of Space,” and the event will be held online on December 6. 🖖
    In other news, Happy October! 🎃 On my latest “Looking Back on Genre History” segment on the StarShipSofa podcast (Episode 766), I praise the Dracula “group read” experience. Here is the episode.
    ALT
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  5. eldritchhobbit
    You’re invited to join me in SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University to talk about all five books in The Hunger Games series! The first module has been confirmed to run in September 2025.
    What lessons do the Capitol and Districts have to teach us? What warnings should we heed? What road leads from here to Panem? Over the course of five months, participants in these SPACE modules will read and discuss a modern classic of dystopian storytelling, The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.
    In this hybrid series, each week will include one lecture and one live discussion. The lectures will examine the inspirations behind, allusions in, and questions posed by that month’s novel. In live discussions, participants will share their insights on, interpretations of, and reactions to the story. Together we will consider why this series has spoken to so many readers and explore how its messages remain relevant today.
    Here is more information.

    View the full post.
  6. eldritchhobbit
    On my latest “Looking Back on Genre History” segment on the StarShipSofa podcast (Episode 762), I talk about Doctor Who, history, time travel, and the new Who novel Shirley Jackson and the Chaos Box by Kalynn Bayron.
    StarShipSofa 762 Gustavo Bondini

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  7. eldritchhobbit
    “Exploring Star Trek” in Fall 2025
    I’m excited to say that in Fall 2025 I will be offering the 12-week online class “Exploring Star Trek” for M.A. students and non-degree-seeking auditors alike at Signum University. I’m delighted to be teaching this course once again!
    Exploring Star Trek - Signum University

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  8. eldritchhobbit
    Signum University — Blackberry
    Join me in SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University!
    What lessons do the Capitol and Districts have to teach us? What warnings should we heed? What road leads from here to Panem? Over the course of five months, participants in these SPACE modules will read and discuss a modern classic of dystopian storytelling, The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.
    In this hybrid series, each week will include one lecture and one live discussion. The lectures will examine the inspirations behind, allusions in, and questions posed by that month’s novel. In live discussions, participants will share their insights on, interpretations of, and reactions to the story. Together we will consider why this series has spoken to so many readers and explore how its messages remain relevant today.

    View the full post.
  9. eldritchhobbit
    StarShipSofa 760 Libby Cudmore
    On my latest “Looking Back on Genre History” segment on the StarShipSofa (Episode 760), I discuss Ashley Lawson’s new book On Edge: Gender and Genre in the Work of Shirley Jackson, Patricia Highsmith, and Leigh Brackett.

    View the full post.
  10. eldritchhobbit
    My “Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson: Exploring a Gothic Campus Mystery” one-month module with SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University is currently “on the launchpad” for potential launch in the autumn of 2025.
    Here is the official description:
    “Shirley Jackson is rightly celebrated as a master of Gothic storytelling thanks to her most well-known novels such as The Haunting of Hill House (1959) and We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962). In recent years, however, her earlier novel Hangsaman (1951) has received new attention and critical appreciation from fans and scholars alike.

    "Far ahead of its time when it was published, Jackson’s deeply personal Hangsaman is many things: a psychological study of a young woman’s coming of age; a haunting Gothic mystery; a pointed critique of gender roles, family dynamics, and higher education; a meditation on trauma and mental illness; and an ancestor of today’s dark academia storytelling. Shirley Jackson drew inspiration from a variety of sources to craft this remarkable campus novel, from folk ballads and the Tarot, myth and ritual, to a real college campus and an unsolved New England cold case of a missing sophomore student.

    "In this module, we will unpack this gem of a Gothic story, following freshman Natalie Waite as she searches for her “essential self” and discussing why Hangsaman feels freshly relevant and important to many readers today.”
    Here is more information on the Hangsaman module.
    To help launch this module, please go here, log in, and put this module on your launchpad short-list. Thanks!

    View the full post.
  11. eldritchhobbit
    My “The Hunger Games” module with SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University is currently a candidate for September 2025. This is a proposed first module of five, one for each of the five Hunger Games novels by Suzanne Collins. Each week will include one recorded lecture and one live discussion section. Voting runs through August 1. I hope you will join us as we explore the lessons we may learn from Panem.
    May the odds be ever in our favor!
    More information is here.

    View the full post.
  13. eldritchhobbit
    June is almost here! Next month I will be offering my month-long “Meet The Last Man” module with SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University.
    Mary Shelley’s novel is one of the most relevant books we can read right now, and I can’t wait to discuss it with students!
    Watch the teaser here:
    More information is available here.
    ALT
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  18. eldritchhobbit
    Science fiction may help foster a sense of global solidarity by evoking awe, study finds
    “In particular, the researchers focused on a concept called ‘identification with all humanity.’ This refers to how much individuals feel connected to all people, regardless of nationality, race, or background. It reflects a broad, inclusive identity that supports concern for others around the globe. Previous studies have linked this identification to prosocial behaviors such as donating to international causes, supporting refugees, and caring about the environment. The authors theorized that science fiction, with its imaginative worlds and frequent focus on humanity’s shared future, might encourage people to adopt this global perspective.”

    View the full post.
  20. eldritchhobbit
    My graduate course on the Dystopian Tradition will be offered again this summer online at Signum University if there’s sufficient interest. I hope the class will make, because it seems more relevant than ever.
    ALT The Dystopian Tradition - Signum University

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  21. eldritchhobbit
    I’m delighted to say that it’s back! My month-long “Meet The Last Man” module with SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) online via Signum University is currently up for candidacy for June 2025. Voting is open through May 1. Those who sign up will have a voice in the scheduling of the live discussion sessions.
    Mary Shelley’s novel The Last Man is one of the most relevant books we can read right now, and I’m really looking forward to exploring it with students!
    Here is more information.

    View the full post.
  23. eldritchhobbit
    On my latest “Looking Back on Genre History” segment on the StarShipSofa podcast (Episode 750), I revisit the brilliant The Tomorrow Series and other works by John Marsden and discuss the lasting contributions of science fiction scholar H. Bruce Franklin.
    Here is the link!
    StarShipSofa 750 Eris Young

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  25. eldritchhobbit
    Some of the university and conference talks I gave this year are now online.


    Why You Should Read The Last Man by Mary Shelley


    Why You Should Read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley


    “A Fortnight in the Wilderness” with Alexis de Tocqueville


    “Missing Students & Their Fictional Afterlives: True Crime, Crime Fiction, and Dark Academia" (presented at the Popular Culture Research Network’s “Guilty Pleasures: Examining Crime in Popular Culture” conference).
    View this presentation here.

    View the full post.
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