ThoughtGallery.org > Imaginal Worlds: Religion in Speculative and Fan Fiction

Imaginal Worlds: Religion in Speculative and Fan Fiction

Keynote speakers:
N.K. Jemisin, 2016 Hugo Award Winner
Dr. Annette Yoshiko Reed, University of Pennsylvania

“In the beginning the Universe was created.
This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.”
Douglas Adams, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

This conference will examine the impact of religious themes upon the construction of imaginal worlds and the ways in which speculative fictions can serve as a heuristic tool in religious studies. Papers span a range of time periods, traditions, and geographic areas. Registration is encouraged!

8:30am-9:00am  Breakfast and Registration

9:00am-9:45am  Keynote Address: Dr. Annette Yoshiko Reed

9:45am-11:15am Panel 1, Chaired by Andrew Jungclaus

“To Touch upon Human Futures: Octavia Butler’s Science-fictional Soteriology of the Flesh”
Harrison King, Northwestern University

“Heroes, Villains, and Damsels in Distress: Gender and Genre in Evangelical Antitrafficking Discourse”
Elizabeth Dolfi, Columbia University

“Future-Imperfect: Star Trek as a Corruptible Utopia and the Eschatological-Political Imagination, c. 1630 CE—Stardate 47988”
John Gleim, Fordham University

11:15am-11:30am Coffee Break

11:30am-1:00PM Panel 2, Chaired by Quinn Clark

“Chinese Zombies in the Early Modern World”
Johee Suh, Washington University

“Written on the Walls: Early Jewish Fan Fiction at Dura Europos”
Sarah Fein, Brandeis University

“Race, Islam, and Empire in French Speculative Fiction, 1870-1914”
Emily Fransee, University of Chicago

1:00PM-1:45PM Lunch

1:45PM- 3:30PM  Panel 3, Chaired by Andrew McLaren

“Autonomous Automatons: Robots and Religion in the Work of Isaac Asimov”
Joseph Fisher, Columbia University

“Beggars in Spain: The Meaning of Life without Work”
Emily FitzGerald, Columbia University

“Rethinking Religion in the Imaginal World of Civilization 6”
Matthew Chalmers, University of Pennsylvania

“The Mahdi of the Fremen: Islamic Eschatology and Frank Herbert’s Dune”
Ali Karjoo-Ravary, University of Pennsylvania

3:30-3:45PM Coffee Break

3:45PM-5:15PM Panel 4, Chaired by Jay Ramesh

“Imagined Insurrections: Madness and Mysticism in Mahfouz’s ‘Arabian Nights and Days’”
Tanvir Ahmed, Stanford University

“Digital Demons in Modern Web Comics”
Jillian Stinchcomb, University of Pennsylvania

“The Vanished World Returned: The Godless and the Catholic in Cormac McCarthy’s The Road”
David Grunner, Fordham University

5:30pm-6:30pm Keynote Address: N.K Jemisin
*Special Note: Word Up Bookstore will have Jemisin’s work available for purchase following the keynote address. Find out more about Word Up’s community efforts at wordupbooks.wordpress.com.

6:30pm-7:00pm  Wine Reception











When: Fri., Apr. 7, 2017 at 8:30 am - 7:00 pm
Where: Columbia University
116th St. & Broadway
212-854-1754
Price: Free
Buy tickets/get more info now
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Keynote speakers:
N.K. Jemisin, 2016 Hugo Award Winner
Dr. Annette Yoshiko Reed, University of Pennsylvania

“In the beginning the Universe was created.
This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.”
Douglas Adams, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

This conference will examine the impact of religious themes upon the construction of imaginal worlds and the ways in which speculative fictions can serve as a heuristic tool in religious studies. Papers span a range of time periods, traditions, and geographic areas. Registration is encouraged!

8:30am-9:00am  Breakfast and Registration

9:00am-9:45am  Keynote Address: Dr. Annette Yoshiko Reed

9:45am-11:15am Panel 1, Chaired by Andrew Jungclaus

“To Touch upon Human Futures: Octavia Butler’s Science-fictional Soteriology of the Flesh”
Harrison King, Northwestern University

“Heroes, Villains, and Damsels in Distress: Gender and Genre in Evangelical Antitrafficking Discourse”
Elizabeth Dolfi, Columbia University

“Future-Imperfect: Star Trek as a Corruptible Utopia and the Eschatological-Political Imagination, c. 1630 CE—Stardate 47988”
John Gleim, Fordham University

11:15am-11:30am Coffee Break

11:30am-1:00PM Panel 2, Chaired by Quinn Clark

“Chinese Zombies in the Early Modern World”
Johee Suh, Washington University

“Written on the Walls: Early Jewish Fan Fiction at Dura Europos”
Sarah Fein, Brandeis University

“Race, Islam, and Empire in French Speculative Fiction, 1870-1914”
Emily Fransee, University of Chicago

1:00PM-1:45PM Lunch

1:45PM- 3:30PM  Panel 3, Chaired by Andrew McLaren

“Autonomous Automatons: Robots and Religion in the Work of Isaac Asimov”
Joseph Fisher, Columbia University

“Beggars in Spain: The Meaning of Life without Work”
Emily FitzGerald, Columbia University

“Rethinking Religion in the Imaginal World of Civilization 6”
Matthew Chalmers, University of Pennsylvania

“The Mahdi of the Fremen: Islamic Eschatology and Frank Herbert’s Dune”
Ali Karjoo-Ravary, University of Pennsylvania

3:30-3:45PM Coffee Break

3:45PM-5:15PM Panel 4, Chaired by Jay Ramesh

“Imagined Insurrections: Madness and Mysticism in Mahfouz’s ‘Arabian Nights and Days’”
Tanvir Ahmed, Stanford University

“Digital Demons in Modern Web Comics”
Jillian Stinchcomb, University of Pennsylvania

“The Vanished World Returned: The Godless and the Catholic in Cormac McCarthy’s The Road”
David Grunner, Fordham University

5:30pm-6:30pm Keynote Address: N.K Jemisin
*Special Note: Word Up Bookstore will have Jemisin’s work available for purchase following the keynote address. Find out more about Word Up’s community efforts at wordupbooks.wordpress.com.

6:30pm-7:00pm  Wine Reception

Buy tickets/get more info now