Category Archives: Critical thoughts

Literature Research Seminar Wed 13th 1.30

Posted on 8th November 2024 by Sam George

I am chairing the Literature Research Seminar at the University of Hertfordshire this year and our next session is continuing our theme of animal studies, following my presentation rat narratives and Pied Piper re-tellings in October. We meet once a … Continue reading →

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Goblin mode: the trend’s mythical origins, and why we should all go ‘vampire mode’ instead

Posted on 1st April 2022 by Sam George

Goblin mode Sam George, University of Hertfordshire “Goblin mode” is taking the current pandemic-ridden world by storm. This state of being is defined by behaviours that feel reminiscent of deep lockdown days – never getting out of bed, never changing … Continue reading →

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Sam George, ‘Black Roses: The representation of Sophie Lancaster’

Posted on 25th November 2020 by Sam George

It is over ten years since Sophie Lancaster and Robert Maltby were attacked in Stubbylee Park, in Lancashire, reputedly for being ‘goths’. Rob, who was punched unconscious and put in a coma by his assailants, eventually recovered (though he suffered … Continue reading →

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Fairy News: Jeanette Ng, Holly Black, Carnival Row, Queen Mab, and Irish sidhe

Posted on 17th May 2020 by William the Bloody

the fae are the mythical creatures of the hour. Sometimes they’re portrayed as monstrous, sometimes as tricksters, sometimes as sensuous love interests So says Samantha Shannon, who is herself a superb fantasy novelist. So the next OGOM event, our conference … Continue reading →

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Hans Andersen’ s Dark Musings From A Discarded Christmas Tree

Posted on 27th December 2019 by Sam George

I have been reading Hans Andersen’s unsettling account of a Christmas fir tree that feels pain. I was reminded of this story last year when I came across Lars Ostenfeld’s beautifully sad and poignant adaptation of  The Fir Tree (Danish: Grantræet) on the … Continue reading →

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How Scooby Doo Influenced A Whole Generation of Gothic Scholars

Posted on 29th November 2019 by Sam George

If you were one of those kids who rushed home from school in the 70s to watch Scooby Doo it might just have influenced you in your Gothic thinking and in your understanding of the way Gothic stories are told. … Continue reading →

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What Happens to a Werewolf in the Harvest Moon?

Posted on 13th September 2019 by Sam George

The condition of  shapeshifting into a wolf in the full moon is, of course, known as lycanthropy. September brings us the full moon closest to the Autumn equinox.  The Harvest Moon will appear bigger and brighter tonight and will inspire … Continue reading →

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Every Time A Bell Rings an Angel Gets His Wings

Posted on 20th December 2018 by Sam George

I am writing on Hans Andersen in my forthcoming book on shadow play and despite the discourse of suffering and redemption, the stories are full of imagination and sensibility, and are always heart-wrenchingly empathic. Many of the tales have a … Continue reading →

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Twilight: feminism and fandom

Posted on 21st November 2018 by William the Bloody

It’s the ten-year anniversary of the first film of Stephenie Meyers’s Twilight series (Twilight, dir. by Catherine Hardwicke), the YA vampire paranormal romance which became a sensation. Both book and film, and the adulation both received, attracted much criticism, often … Continue reading →

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Vampires: Dracula, James Joyce, Jane Austen, bats, and Marx

Posted on 4th November 2018 by William the Bloody

Again, a bit too late for Hallowe’en, but a handful of essays on vampires here: 1. Recent research at the London Library on Bram Stoker’s annotations to source material for Dracula: ‘The Books That Made Dracula‘. 2. Austen Gilkeson, ‘The … Continue reading →

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