Fairy Tales Portal

Dr. Peter Baker, then of the University of Virginia, translated Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland into Old English. This module will work with and translate back into Modern English this fun and delightful text, Æðelgyðe Ellendæda on Wundorlande: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in Old English.

Just as Christopher Tolkien did for the rest of his father’s Middle-earth works, John Rateliff has compiled the manuscripts and early versions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and presented them with notes and commentary. In this three-part series, we will work our way through Rateliff’s book, The History of the Hobbit. From the first drafts where Gandalf was called Bladorthin (and Thorin was called Gandalf) to the later versions made to better fit with The Lord of the Rings, this SPACE series will give you a much better understanding of how The Hobbit was crafted and a new appreciation for the story that, in some respects, started it all. As well as Rateliff’s material, these modules will also feature some never-before-seen visualizations of The Hobbit draft texts from the Digital Tolkien Project.

Module 1: Chapters I through VII
Module 2: Chapter VIII to the end of The Second Phase
Module 3: The Third Phase onwards

In Module 1 of our journey through The History of the Hobbit we will explore Chapters I through VII.

Just as Christopher Tolkien did for the rest of his father’s Middle-earth works, John Rateliff has compiled the manuscripts and early versions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and presented them with notes and commentary. In this three-part series, we will work our way through Rateliff’s book, The History of the Hobbit. From the first drafts where Gandalf was called Bladorthin (and Thorin was called Gandalf) to the later versions made to better fit with The Lord of the Rings, this SPACE series will give you a much better understanding of how The Hobbit was crafted and a new appreciation for the story that, in some respects, started it all. As well as Rateliff’s material, these modules will also feature some never-before-seen visualizations of The Hobbit draft texts from the Digital Tolkien Project.

Module 1: Chapters I through VII
Module 2: Chapter VIII to the end of The Second Phase
Module 3: The Third Phase onwards

In Module 2 of our journey through The History of the Hobbit we will explore Chapter VIII to the end of The Second Phase.

Just as Christopher Tolkien did for the rest of his father’s Middle-earth works, John Rateliff has compiled the manuscripts and early versions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and presented them with notes and commentary. In this three-part series, we will work our way through Rateliff’s book, The History of the Hobbit. From the first drafts where Gandalf was called Bladorthin (and Thorin was called Gandalf) to the later versions made to better fit with The Lord of the Rings, this SPACE series will give you a much better understanding of how The Hobbit was crafted and a new appreciation for the story that, in some respects, started it all. As well as Rateliff’s material, these modules will also feature some never-before-seen visualizations of The Hobbit draft texts from the Digital Tolkien Project.

Module 1: Chapters I through VII
Module 2: Chapter VIII to the end of The Second Phase
Module 3: The Third Phase onwards

In Module 3 of our journey through The History of the Hobbit we will explore The Third Phase onwards.

Just as Christopher Tolkien did for the rest of his father’s Middle-earth works, John Rateliff has compiled the manuscripts and early versions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and presented them with notes and commentary. In this three-part series, we will work our way through Rateliff’s book, The History of the Hobbit. From the first drafts where Gandalf was called Bladorthin (and Thorin was called Gandalf) to the later versions made to better fit with The Lord of the Rings, this SPACE series will give you a much better understanding of how The Hobbit was crafted and a new appreciation for the story that, in some respects, started it all. As well as Rateliff’s material, these modules will also feature some never-before-seen visualizations of The Hobbit draft texts from the Digital Tolkien Project.

Module 1: Chapters I through VII
Module 2: Chapter VIII to the end of The Second Phase
Module 3: The Third Phase onwards

Gulping gargoyles, let's read the next Harry Potter book!

By popular demand, here is the long-awaited Harry Potter book club! We will get together twice a week to explore the series, reading through the books at a relaxed pace. Connect with fellow readers and share your insights as we discover (or rediscover) the magic.

Over one month, we will follow twelve-year-old Harry's adventures as he uncovers the dark secrets lurking beneath Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Whispers and plots abound within the castle, as Harry must confront the evil legacy of Voldemort.

This book club is all about sharing the moments of unexpected, joyful discovery through close reading. Focusing on the text, we will share our personal readings and experiences. We will learn from our classmates in a kindness-first, supportive environment.

Together, we can tackle some big questions about the series. What was it about the Harry Potter books that resonated with so many people? To what extent is it possible or indeed desirable to separate art from artist?

Most of all, however, we will have an inclusive dialogue that embraces a multiplicity of views and enriches our experience of the text.

This is the parent page for our Children's Literature modules which introduce students to the breadth and depth of texts available for study. Each month, our preceptors survey the group to see which text students are most interested in exploring next.

Children's books are full of unforgettabel characters, settings, and adventures. They take us to magic, often dangerous lands, and they also evoke beautiful imagery and deep feelings. In these modules we will explore from the gentleness of Japanese children's books to the wild Pippi Longstocking. We'll talk about their themes, setting, worldbuilding, and imagery.

Each module stands on it own, and no previous knowledge is required. Some of the texts we could explore in a given month include:
• Nordic Madness: Exploring Children's Literature in Three Nordic Authors
• Japanese Fairy Tales and Children's Literature

Note: Please refer to the Required Texts section on a month's iteration page to see which texts the group has decided upon for a given month.

This Writer's Workshop will be for practicing the art of writing flash fiction, works that are of 500 or fewer words in length. This is a marvelous place for a new writer to begin as the size is not overwhelming. It is also a marvelous place for a seasoned writer to practice the craft of scene creation and characterization under severe creative restriction.

We will read examples of flash fiction, and provide feedback for one another on original pieces that we shall write over the length of the course. For this we will use the Collaborative Feedback Method that we use in all Space creative writing courses, a method which emphasizes kindness and curiosity while still providing rigorous and useful feedback to the writer.

Storytelling might just be our oldest art, crossing time, cultures, and continents. Crafting a story suitable for telling demands a heightened awareness of audience, medium, and meaning. Telling a story requires fluidity in a register both intimate and stylized. We'll create, practice, and tell our short tales in a month of cooperative fun and work. We will use a collaborative and encouraging mode of feedback to focus both on the construction of your story and on its performance. You will end the month having written an original tale, fiction or memoir or drawn from myth and legend, which has been written specifically to be shared aloud. You will also carry forward a toolkit for exploring this art.
Note: For more information about the Collaborative Feedback Method in SPACE, please check out our video here.

Natsume’s Book of Friends is a contemplative and heartfelt anime/manga series about a boy who inherited a book from his grandmother, allowing him to control youkai. Instead, he chooses to free them. This series sits at the intersection of fantasy and slice of life, and it touches on many aspects of Japanese folklore and culture, at the same time telling a story about connection and compassion.

This series is primarily discussion based, with some contextual information provided by the preceptor. There will be a Google Doc for class discussion and your preceptor will use slides, but sparingly.

Natsume’s Book of Friends is a contemplative and heartfelt anime/manga series about a boy who inherited a book from his grandmother, allowing him to control youkai. Instead, he chooses to free them. This series sits at the intersection of fantasy and slice of life, and it touches on many aspects of Japanese folklore and culture, at the same time telling a story about connection and compassion. In this module, we will watch and discuss the first two seasons of the anime, paying particular attention to themes including: the iyashikei (healing) genre of anime, the portrayal of youkai in popular culture, and the use of concepts and imagery from Japanese literature and folklore in the series.

This module is primarily discussion based, with some contextual information provided by the preceptor. There will be a Google Doc for class discussion and your preceptor will use slides, but sparingly.

Come explore Fairy Tales from the inside! In the first meeting each week Pilar Barrera will lift up a Fairy Tale technique, character archetype, or trope. We'll discuss the story at hand and how that story technique makes meaning. Then, students try their own hands at that technique! What do we learn when we push these ideas to their logical extremes? In the second meeting, Sparrow Alden will facilitate a workshop-style discussion of our original tale-telling work; we'll encourage one another as writers and appreciate one another as readers! Our goal is to complete the month with a deeper appreciation for the tales we all love and a folder with one to four good drafts of original tales.

Note: For more information about the Collaborative Feedback Method in SPACE, please check out our video here.

In this module, we will answer questions such as: what is a fairy tale? Why do we tell stories? What is the function of fairy tales? What are some recurring themes? Stories to be discussed include Snow White (with and without dwarfs), Little Red Riding-hood, the Little Match Girl, Thumbelina, and East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

In this module, we will continue to explore fairy tales and discuss questions such as: what is the role of nature in fairy tales? What is the role of animals? What are some recurring themes in these tales? Stories to be discussed include “Cinderella”, “The Turnip”, “The Mouse, the Bird and the Sausage”, “The Forest Bride”, “The Daisy”, and “Five out of a Pod”.

Sudying fairy tales takes us back to a time when stories where passed from culture to culture. These stories, replicated around the world, deal with fears and axieties, but they also give us hope as it is the smallest and most vulnerable the one who usually triumphs.

In these modules, we will explore different authors and fairy tales from around the world. Students will have the opportunity to read and re-read the Grimm brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, Andrew Lang, Oscar Wilde and fairy tales from differnet cultures such as Russia, and Japan. Each month, our preceptors will survey the group using to see which text students are most interested in exploring next.

We offer the following Fairy Tales Studies modules:
• Fairy Tales: An Adventure from the Writer's Perspective
• Fairy Tales: From Apples to Bears
• Fairy Tales: Rats, Mice, and Birds
• Fairy Tales: Tricksters, Fools, and Villains
• Introduction to Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales
• Introduction to Oscar Wilde's Fairy Tales: A House of Pomegranates
• Introduction to Oscar Wilde's Fairy Tales: The Happy Prince and Other Tales
• Japanese Fairy Tales and Children's Literature
• Russian Fairy Tales: Journeys, Quests, and Chicken Legs
• Yōkai and Legends: Exploring the Weird in Japanese and Latin American Cultures
• Encountering the Japanese Weird through Lafcadio Hearn's Kwaidan
• Exploring Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham
• Fairy Tales: Beauty and the Beast

Note: Each module stands on its own and no previous knowledge is required. The idea is to read and discuss these stories, their themes, imagery, and see how we respond to them.

In this module, we will examine fairy tales about tricksters and villains. We will discuss questions such as: why are tricksters important? What is the role of villains? What are some recurring themes in these tales? Stories to be discussed include “Hansel and Gretel”, “Bluebeard”, “Hans in Luck”, “Momotaro, the Peach Boy”, “The Bremen Musicians”, “The Old Woman and the Tramp”, and “The Tinder Box”.

Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is widely regarded as a modern classic, has been described by The New Statesman as “the most ambitious work since The Lord of the Rings,” and has been adapted onto stage, radio, and screen. The series is also deep and complex, drawing from a rich array of literary, philosophical, and theological ideas.

In this three-module series we will read, successively, the three novels in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, juxtaposing each with selected materials that will allow us to read Pullman’s work both on its own and in conversation with other works.

Note: Students can join one, two, or all three modules. There are no prerequisites.

Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is widely regarded as a modern classic, has been described by The New Statesman as “the most ambitious work since The Lord of the Rings,” and has been adapted onto stage, radio, and screen. The series is also deep and complex, drawing from a rich array of literary, philosophical, and theological ideas.

In this three-module series we will read, successively, the three novels in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, juxtaposing each with selected materials that will allow us to read Pullman’s work both on its own and in conversation with other works. Students can join one, two, or all three modules. There are no prerequisites.

• Module 1: His Dark Materials in Context: The Golden Compass (a.k.a. Northern Lights) (October 2023)

• Module 2: His Dark Materials in Context: The Subtle Knife (December 2023)

• Module 3: His Dark Materials in Context: The Amber Spyglass (January 2023)

Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is widely regarded as a modern classic, has been described by The New Statesman as “the most ambitious work since The Lord of the Rings,” and has been adapted onto stage, radio, and screen. The series is also deep and complex, drawing from a rich array of literary, philosophical, and theological ideas.

In this three-module series we will read, successively, the three novels in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, juxtaposing each with selected materials that will allow us to read Pullman’s work both on its own and in conversation with other works. Students can join one, two, or all three modules. There are no prerequisites.

Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is widely regarded as a modern classic, has been described by The New Statesman as “the most ambitious work since The Lord of the Rings,” and has been adapted onto stage, radio, and screen. The series is also deep and complex, drawing from a rich array of literary, philosophical, and theological ideas.

In this three-module series we will read, successively, the three novels in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, juxtaposing each with selected materials that will allow us to read Pullman’s work both on its own and in conversation with other works. Students can join one, two, or all three modules. There are no prerequisites.

• Module 1: His Dark Materials in Context: The Golden Compass (a.k.a. Northern Lights) (October 2023)

• Module 2: His Dark Materials in Context: The Subtle Knife (December 2023)

• Module 3: His Dark Materials in Context: The Amber Spyglass (January 2023)

The Dark Crystal, a film directed and created by Jim Henson and Frank Oz, was released at Christmastime in 1982. An attempt at a more mature and decidedly darker direction for Henson, it performed modestly in the box office to mixed reviews. Despite its poor initial beginnings, over the next 42 years, The Dark Crystal became a cult classic. Why the appeal all these years later? In this class we will explore this multifaceted dark fantasy as a stand of world building from the better appreciated “Muppet” canon. Over the course of eight sessions we will discuss the world of Thra through the film itself, seen afresh with the new lenses of various forms of modern criticism. Please join us for a combination of short lectures and lively discussion of this visual and technical masterpiece whether you’re a long-time fan or neophyte.

In this module, we will read and discuss some of Andersen’s fairy tales. We will talk about their plot, characters, and specific imagery. We will also discuss Andersen’s influence on subsequent authors and expressions in different media.

Poignant, hilarious, ironic, sad, beautiful, Oscar Wilde’s literary fairy tales evoke vivid and intense imagery and discuss topics such as social status, wealth, and Christianity. In these modules, we will read and discuss Oscar Wilde’s fairy tales. We will talk about the plot, characters, specific nuances of the language, use of irony, and symbolism. We will also discuss stories that influenced some of the tales, especially Andersen’s tales such as “The Little Mermaid,” “The Shadow,” “The Darning Needle,” and others.

This module is part of a two-module series, but each one stands alone and is independent from the other. In the first module, we will talk about the fairy tales from The Happy Prince and Other Tales, and in the second module we will discuss A House of Pomegranates.

Poignant, hilarious, ironic, sad, beautiful, Oscar Wilde’s literary fairy tales evoke vivid and intense imagery and discuss topics such as social status, wealth, and Christianity. In these modules, we will read and discuss Oscar Wilde’s fairy tales. We will talk about the plot, characters, specific nuances of the language, use of irony, and symbolism. We will also discuss stories that influenced some of the tales, especially Andersen’s tales such as “The Little Mermaid,” “The Shadow,” “The Darning Needle,” and others.

This module is part of a two-module series, but each one stands alone and is independent from the other. In the first module, we will talk about the fairy tales from The Happy Prince and Other Tales, and in the second module we will discuss A House of Pomegranates.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Lecture 1: Introduction to Oscar Wilde's fairy tales and "The Happy Prince"
	Discussion 1: Discussion about Wilde's life and "The Happy Prince"
Week 2	Lecture 2: "The Nightingale and the Rose"
	Discussion 2: Discussion about "The Nightingale and the Rose"
Week 3	Lecture 3: "The Devoted Friend"
	Discussion 3: Discussion about "The Devoted Friend"
Week 4	Lecture 4: "The Sefish Giant" and "The Remarkable Rocket"
	Discussion 4: Discussion about "The Selfish Giant" and "The Remarkable Rocket"

This course tracks Lancelot's development from hero of a medieval romance (part tale of adventure, part comedy of manners) to center of a political and moral tragedy. We look in detail at three texts: Chrétien de Troyes's Lancelot: The Knight of the Cart (c. 1180), Thomas Malory's Le Morte Darthur (1470) and Tennyson's Idylls of the King (1859).

Sir Lancelot, as everyone knows, is Arthur’s best and bravest knight—and also, the lover of Arthur’s wife, Guinevere. Examining this pivotal irony of the Arthurian tradition, this course tracks the development of Lancelot as a both character and a literary concept across three major works:

In Lancelot: The Knight of the Cart, master of French Arthurian romance, Chrétien de Troyes, invents a hero who loves Queen Guinevere beyond all bounds of reason—so much that he will face deadly perils and (worse yet) social humiliation to prove his devotion.

Sir Thomas Malory’s late medieval “Tale of Lancelot and Elayne” (part of his sprawling epic, Le Morte Darthur) introduces a would-be rival for Lancelot’s affections in the form of Elayne, the Fair Maid of Astolat. While retaining a few comic touches from earlier versions, this retelling cannot escape the doomed nature of Lancelot’s affair with the Queen.

Finally, Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem “Lancelot and Elayne” (part of his Idylls of the King) depicts Lancelot and Guinevere’s betrayal of their king as the moral rot at the foundation of a perfect but unsustainable society—and in so doing, reveals a Victorian sense of worlds away from Chrétien’s light-hearted original.

This module contains a mixture of lecture and discussion, with one lecture for each of the three works, and the rest of the meetings focusing on discussion.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Lecture 1: Chretien de Troyes and the Creation of Lancelot
	Discussion 1: Lancelot, The Knight of the Cart (first half)
Week 2	Lecture 2: Courtly Romance and Comedy of Manners
	Discussion 2: Lancelot, The Knight of the Cart (second half)
Week 3	Lecture 3: Sir Thomas Malory: Knight Prisoner
	Discussion 3: Le Morte Darthur, “The Tale of Lancelot and Elayne”
Week 4	Lecture 4:Tennyson’s Tragic Arthurian Vision
	Discussion 4: Idylls of the King: “Lancelot and Elayne”

Can Sir Gawain keep his honor without losing his head? This short classic of Middle English chivalric romance follows Gawain on a quest testing his heroism, social etiquette, sexual virtue, and existential sense of self. This course explores: first, the extraordinary history of the single, unique manuscript which preserves this poem (as it “slept” on a library shelf for 400 years, escaped destruction by fire, and was eventually rediscovered in the 19th century); second, the translations which brought this poem to a twentieth century readership – focusing in particular on J.R.R. Tolkien’s; and finally, the 2021 film by David Lowery.

In this module we will talk about Japanese children’s literature and fairy tales and their connection to specific Japanese cultural aspects and values such as the acceptance of death and the imperfection of the world.

In this module we will join the madness, adventure and melancholy of three famous Nordic authors: Hans Christian Andersen, Astrid Lindgren, and Tove Jansson. From the tragic unrequited love of a snowman to the crazy adventures of Pippi Longstocking and the Moomins, this module is a rollercoaster of emotions and beautiful imagery. You will need two books: Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren and Moominland Midwinter by Tove Jansson.

This course will be offered for the first time this October 2023 (Anne’s favourite month)

Within weeks of its 1908 publication, L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables became a bestseller. Over the years, this charming orphan story put Montgomery and her imaginative Prince Edward Island on a global map.

Despite the fact that Anne of Green Gables is Canada’s bestselling novel throughout the world—or because of it—Montgomery was ignored by the literati and scholarship. Montgomery was a public intellectual, the first female Canadian fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and invested Officer of the Order of the British Empire. Still she was dismissed as “just” a children’s writer, a regionalist, or a woman. It was 25 years after Montgomery’s death before children’s literature and feminist scholars began to recover her work as worthy of study.

While there is a robust field of Montgomery scholarship, there are areas where our focus is sometimes too narrow. One of these is the category of “realistic” fiction. While there is a kind of verisimilitude about everyday life in the late Victorian era in her work, the realism is pressed to the margins of definition as Montgomery romanticizes the worlds she creates. And can we disagree that there is something magical about Anne herself? By changing our way of approach and by looking at Anne of Green Gables as a fantasy novel, what can we unveil in this classic novel?

Native Prince Edward Islander and Montgomery scholar Brenton Dickieson will lead students through a rereading of Anne of Green Gables using the lenses we use to study fantasy and speculative fiction with the goal of allowing one of the greatest living children’s books to live in new ways.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Lecture 1: What Makes Anne Magical?
	Discussion 1: The Worlds of Anne: Within and Without?
Week 2	Lecture 2: Notes on Montgomery’s Iconography of the Spiritual Imagination
	Discussion 2: Farah Mendelson's 4 Types of Fantasy
Week 3	Lecture 3: Initial Notes on Fantasy Mapping: Avonlea, Time, and Space
	Discussion 3: Passports to the Geography of Fairyland
Week 4	Lecture 4: Word Portals: Paths, Doors, Rivers and Creeks, Forests and Gardens
	Discussion 4: What is the shape of Faërie?

In this module we will explore some of the most important Russian fairy tales, their archetypal characters, and beautiful imagery. We will travel magical lands and meet incredible characters, even a talking pancake, and a flying wooden eagle! We will relate these tales with stories from the Grimm brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, and the unforgettable Arabian Nights.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Session 1: Intro to Russian Folklore and Fairy Tales
	Session 2: Tales of Magic
Week 2	Session 3: Animals Helpers
	Session 4: Fables and Everyday Stories
Week 3	Session 5: Stories of Brave Heroes – Part 1
	Session 6: Stories of Brave Heroes – Part 2
Week 4	Session 7: Journeys and Marvels
	Session 8: On Pushkin’s Fairy Tales

This module looks at two late plays frequently overlooked in Shakespeare studies: Pericles, Prince of Tyre and Cymbeline. In Pericles, Shakespeare and collaborator George Wilkins present a medievalist fairy-tale of adventure on the high seas, set in the ancient Mediterranean and narrated by Middle English poet, John Gower. In Cymbeline, a princess’s attempt to rid herself of the suitor she loathes and reunite with the man she loves leads to a tangle of escapes, pursuits, and mistaken identities. Decried by some critics for their eccentric and eclectic plots, both plays feature grand voyages across land and sea, benevolent magic, and the loss and recovery of true love.

This module continues the examination of Shakespeare’s late work with two baffling and beautiful plays. The Winter’s Tale begs the question: where does art end and magic begin? Containing the bard’s most famous stage direction—“Exit, pursued by a bear”—this tale of jealousy and forgiveness transforms from domestic tragedy into pastoral comedy, before finally arriving at one of Shakespeare's strangest endings. The Two Noble Kinsmen, Shakespeare’s final work, gives Chaucer’s Middle English "The Knight’s Tale" a Renaissance rewrite. Co-authored with rising star of the Jacobean stage, John Fletcher, this tragicomedy expands the scope of Chaucer’s female characters while hinting at a range of suppressed, taboo romantic desires. Blending the poignant and the absurd, the playwrights worried that their presumptuous "modern" rewrite would raise Chaucer's angry ghost!

This module seeks to introduce students to some of the core stories at the heart of Korean society. The module will include an exploration of the foundation myth of Dan Gun, the Tale of Shim Cheong, two other P'ansori tales, an exploration of Hong Gil Dong (Korea's "Robin Hood"), and a few shorter folk tales.

Hosoda Mamoru is an anime director whose films are known for their exploration of family, virtual worlds, and the relationships between wildness and domesticity. In this module, we will watch several of Hosoda's films as per the proposed outline below and we will discuss their themes, history, and literary background.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Session 1: Biography, influences, contexts, and early works
	Session 2: The Girl Who Leapt through Time
Week 2	Session 3: Wolf Children
	Session 4: Wolf Children, continued
Week 3	Session 5: The Boy and the Beast
	Session 6: Mirai
Week 4	Session 7: Belle
	Session 8: Belle continued

If you’ve read some of Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales , you probably encountered the chivalric grandeur of “The Knight’s Tale,” the irrepressible vitality of “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” or the sinister irony of “The Pardoner’s Tale.” But what of the other pilgrims and their tales? This course looks at some of The Canterbury Tales that are less well-known but equally deserving of study: the beauty of the Squire’s unfinished orientalist fairy tale; the rancorous one-upsmanship of the Friar and Summoner’s exchange of tales on clerical abuses, Satanic bargains, and flatulence; or the pilgrims’ run in with an aspiring alchemist, the Canon, and the satirical tale of alchemy gone wrong offered by his servant, the Yeoman. This course will look at these tales and more in their original Middle English spelling.

Yes, there are indeed women in Beowulf. Vital and potent women in fact. From the valkyrie-esque figures to the weeping peace-weavers, a broad spectrum of women characters exists as both historical representation and imaginative mythology. Grendel's Mother is ferocious and masculine. Hildeburh laments the death of her brother and son before being carried off. Modthryth behaves like a sadistic queen. Wealhtheow is mindful of so much in her husband's hall. Freawaru seems destined for tragedy. And could the dragon be a female too? Maria Headley seems to think so. This module will explore this topic using dual-language editions of texts so we can see the original language alongside translations by J.R.R. Tolkien, Roy Liuzza, and Maria Headley.

Video games are an exciting new medium for storytelling because they give players agency within the story world. In this class, we’ll look at recent examples of games that use interactivity to tell stories not possible in any other medium. We’ll see how games encourage players to identify with characters’ emotions through gameplay; incorporate world-building into the setting; and handle the branching pathways of player choice. The games we’ll play are relatively short and are accessible to students who have never played video games before.

Boarding schools have become a staple in fantasy, but Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children specializes in children that have stumbled into and then out of portals and haven't quite managed to adjust to being back from their adventures. There are three rules at Eleanor West's: No Solicitations, No Visitors, and No Quests.

Boarding schools have become a staple in fantasy, but Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children specializes in children that have stumbled into and then out of portals and haven't quite managed to adjust to being back from their adventures. There are three rules at Eleanor West's: No Solicitations, No Visitors, and No Quests.

Explore the first three novellas (Every Heart a Doorway, Down Among the Sticks and Bones, and Beneath the Sugar Sky) of the Hugo and Nebula-winning Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire. Join in for a discussion on portal fantasies, children's adventures, and what it can mean to believe in a world you may never see again.

Boarding schools have become a staple in fantasy, but Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children specializes in children that have stumbled into and then out of portals and haven't quite managed to adjust to being back from their adventures. There are three rules at Eleanor West's: No Solicitations, No Visitors, and No Quests.

Millions of people emotionally connect with Middle Earth in ways that are unique to Tolkien’s works. All sorts of people… young and old, all walks of life, all over the globe, have reported using Tolkien’s writing as comfort in times of stress, a classroom in times of confusion, and a sanctuary in times of danger.

How many people feel this way about Middle Earth? Well, Tolkien’s stories are valued at roughly the same amount as the GDP of Iceland. That’s a lot of fans.

But Why?

Why do we love Faerie, and specifically Tolkien, with such passion. What is it about Middle Earth that elicits such a powerful emotional response?

This class will cover what those typical responses look like and then discuss the psychological mechanisms behind them. We will discuss what it is about Faerie, and Tolkien’s writing specifically, that is so successful at prompting these psychological functions.

This class is not so much about Tolkien’s work, but rather it is a study of the people, like all of us, who are impacted by his work and why we react the way we do. We will read The Professor's own theories about Faerie and then connect these ideas with various psychological studies.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:

Outline	8-Session Structure
Week 1	Session 1: Intro to this Class + Psychology of Faerie Stories: This is a psychology class! We will talk about the literature, but mostly will focus on what happens to us when we engage with the literature. While we will read some Tolkien, most of what we will be reading are scientific studies. To begin, we will define and discuss the true definition of a faerie story? And HOW does it captivate? Introduce “positive psychology” vs. “traditional psychology” and the concept of Flow State.
	Session 2: Psychology of Faerie Stories continued
Week 2	Session 3: Developmental Psychology and Faerie How does Faerie impact the adolescent and child versus the adult. Why are teenagers & adults impacted? Talk about different stages of development specifically moral development
	Session 4: First of two parts on “Fantasy, Recovery and Escape” The first part will focus on “Fantasy” and the difference between Controlled Fantastical Thoughts and being delusional or hallucinating and Tolkien's vies on Lies Vs. Enchantment. We will also talk about Frankl’s theories of logotherapy.
Week 3	Session 5: Recovery & Escape What does Tolkien mean by “cleaning our window”? How does the concept of the “Eucatastrophe” allow people to recover from trauma and build resilience mechanisms?
	Session 6: Tolkien and Carl Jung – Symbolism, Imagination and Magic. This class will be based on the lectures given by Dr. Lance S. Owens on the similarities between Carl Jung’s imaginative experiences writing his “Red Book” and Tolkien’s writing
Week 4	Session 7: Thinking Strategically (non-linear) vs. linear thinking (cognitive psychology and adult learning) How does Fantasy open up non-linear thinking and learning? Plus, how do Tolkien’s stories allow for safe places to think without bias and repressive tolerance. We will introduce various cognitive psychology theories such as Frederickson's Broaden and Build Theory and Mezirow's theories on adult learning.
	Session 8: Spirituality & Evangelium. The religion of LoTR. SBIMI – SHALL PROVE BUT MINE INSTRUMENT! Faith and Finding grace in LoTR and how that type of spirituality contributes to happiness and well-being.

Ghost stories are an important element from all cultures, but in weird and, of course, mysterious ways, there seem to be similar legends and stories of Yōkai in Japanese and Latin American Cultures. From the similarities of Obon with Día de los Muertos to different legends such as Kuchisake onna and La Llorona, we will discuss these legends within their cultural context and have fun with these weird and fantastic beings.