I started drafting this piece a while back, intending to publish it somewhere, but then various things happened and I never finished it up. With the release of the first episode of The Book of Boba Fett in the last week, I decided to go back to it. It turns out that I had a … Continue reading Canonizing Star Wars
Just yesterday, The Atlantic published an article by Shannon Chamberlain about fan fiction and sexuality. The article is a smart piece, linking fan fiction practices in the eighteenth century with current pop culture trends. A previous iteration of the article was titled "The Surprising 18th-Century Origins of Fan Fiction," which betrays some of the author's … Continue reading A Response to Shannon Chamberlain on Fan Fiction
Apparently old books in pop culture media are becoming increasingly cool, or I'm just noticing them more lately. I get fired up every time I see manuscripts and early printed books in movies and television shows. A few recent examples include Athelstan's Insular gospel-book in the Vikings television show, a book written in runes in Disney's Frozen, … Continue reading That Serbian Book in Santa Clarita Diet
Since seeing Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, I can't stop thinking about the books we see in the Jedi library on Ahch-To. To be honest, my mind was already going before seeing the movie, since the books stood out in the trailer. I wrote about them over on Forces of Geek based on what we see … Continue reading The Last Jedi Scriptures and Medieval Manuscripts
This post is meant as a follow-up to my previous thoughts about medievalists telling medieval stories. In that piece, I begin by considering a video game and end with reflections on the larger implications for storytelling about the Middle Ages. After writing it, I got to thinking about other medieval video games, so decided to … Continue reading Bonus Round: “Medieval” Games on Steam
Some of my readers might have seen when I took to Twitter yesterday for a rant about representations of the medieval period in pop culture. It began with a video game and ended with some arguments about needing more medievalists telling better stories for more audiences. I want to offer an extended version of my … Continue reading Telling Medieval Stories: Prolegomenon
Several months ago the Scholarly Communication Institute (SCI) put out a request for proposals for participation in the 2017 theme "Scholarly Storytelling: Compelling Research for an Engaged Public." I jumped at the chance to bring together medievalists and organized a team who helped me to write a proposal. Our team recently received word that our proposal was accepted, … Continue reading Storytelling for Medievalists: A Proposal
This morning I was pleasantly elated to discover a fact of the calendar and a trio of celebrations coming together. Today, on May 25, 2017 we get to commemorate three major events simultaneously: Bede's Day, the 40th anniversary of Star Wars, and Ascension Day! This is just a happy coincidence in the way that these celebrations fall in the calendar. … Continue reading Bede, Star Wars, and Ascension Day
Showing this month at the The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, is the play King Elizabeth. Written and directed by the Gamm's Artistic Director, Tony Estrella, King Elizabeth is a 21st-century adaptation of Friedrich Schiller's 18th-century Mary Stuart, about the imposing 16th-century Queen Elizabeth I of England and Mary, Queen of Scots. The play stars Jeanine Kane … Continue reading King Elizabeth and Identity Politics
This week we'll witness the release of yet another movie about perhaps the most famous ruler from the medieval period, King Arthur. The film, directed by Guy Ritchie, is titled King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. From what is shown in the trailer, the story depicts the rise of Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) from nobody orphan to leader of the people pitted against tyrannical … Continue reading Will the Real King Arthur Please Rise?
Brandon W. Hawk 