Introducing Storyweb, a new series of chats with authors and creators from the Signum Plaza. Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

In this inaugural episode of the Storyweb series, Christopher Bartlett interviews Sparrow Alden about her history and process as a writer. They discuss A Flash of Wings, Sparrow’s anthology of flash fiction that appears in the Signum University Collaboratory. https://collaboratory.signumuniversity.org/library/37 Support The Signum Scene…

Join President Corey Olsen for a look at the year that has been and a discussion of Signum's direction in 2025 and beyond! Please consider supporting Signum University. https://signumuniversity.org/news/find-joy-learn-the-things-that-you-love/ https://signumuniversity.org/support/donate/ More about Signum University https://signumuniversity.org/new…

This recording from November 1, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Jay Moses on Saturday, November 1, 2024 at 5pm ET. M.R. James was recognized and acclaimed for his short stories of the macabre written at the turn of the twentieth century. In the 1970’s the new genre of Folk Horror arose, basing many of its stories within the Eng…

This recording from September 28, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Peter DeVault on Saturday, September 28, 2024 at 10am ET. Modern metrical analysis of Germanic alliterative poetry (GAP) has invariably proceeded from edited texts in which the poem is represented visually as verses on a printed page or screen. Of course, that is…

This recording from September 9, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Julia Stowe on Saturday, September 14, 2024 at 10am ET. The concepts of time and eternity, and the words that are used to express them, have significant influence over a culture. This thesis examines how the understanding of these concepts changed in early Germani…

This recording from August 10, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Robert Black on Saturday, August 10, 2024 at 4pm ET. This paper proposes to compare once again the heroes Beowulf and Böðvarr Bjarki, using linguistics and critiques of the heroes to build on the traditional approaches of comparison through folktale, etymological, a…

This recording from July 13, 2024. Signum University presents Thesis Theater with Celesta Clegg on Saturday, July 13, 2024 at 5pm ET. Germanic reworkings of Genesis material present a glimpse into the Christian doctrine and societal understandings of the medieval culture in which the texts were composed. This thesis serves as an analysis and synthe…

This recording from May 10, 2024. Signum University Graduate School presents Thesis Theater with Shannon Choudhari on Tuesday, May 10, 2024 at 5pm ET. “I wonder what you’ve been up to?”: The Notion Club Papers and Tolkien’s Vision of Creative Mysticism Since it’s publication in 1992, Tolkien’s unfinished time-travel story The Notion Club Papers has…

This recording from May 7, 2024. Signum University Graduate School presents Thesis Theater with Trevor Brierly on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at 2pm ET, on the subject of Tolkien's "Vision of Faërie" in "Smith of Wootton Major." Tolkien's story "Smith of Wootton Major", written in 1965, and an accompanying essay written at the same time, provide a rich un…

This recording from April 11, 2024. Signum MA student Timothy Francis will present his thesis “Administrative Art as Genre in Kafka, Tooker, and Ravn” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Timothy’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Gabriel Schenk. Abstract This thesis explores burea…

This recording from April 5, 2024. Abstract J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth has long been praised for its sense of depth, but Tolkien’s creation has often been criticized, especially by Marxist critics, for its lack in depicting economic realities and for providing a reactionary fantasy to soothe bourgeois anxieties about a changing world. However,…

This recording from March 22, 2024. Abstract Dark Academia (DA), as a genre, is an offshoot of academic fiction that has become prominent over the last decade. After defining DA and exploring its roots, I dive into Intertextuality to ask why modern authors have chosen DA as their genre of choice as they reimagine elements of classic works. The work…

This recording is from Signum University Annual Fundraising Webathon, December 9, 2023. If you want to watch the recordings of the full event, check the 2023 Fundraising campaign playlist here. • Signum University Annual Fundraising ... This year's campaign announcement • Signum University's Fall Fundraising ... Support Signum University https://si…

This recording from October 6, 2023. Signum MA student Kira Tregoning will present her thesis “More Complicated Than They Seem: The Semantic and Contextual Meaning of Homeric Epithets” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Kira’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Gabriel Schenk. The …

This recording from August 1st, 2023. Signum MA student Gina Petrone will present her thesis “‘Let Me In!’ Vampirism in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Gina’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Sara Brown. Abstract In Emily Brontë’s novel Wuther…

This recording from July 29, 2023. Signum MA student Christoph Schabert will present his thesis “Mágus saga jarls: A Digital Edition” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Christoph’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Paul Peterson. Abstract An Old Norse-Icelandic genre that has long…

This recording from July 30, 2023. Signum MA student Patrick Lyon will present his thesis “Merry Old Englyn: The Familiar and the Strange in The Old English Rhyming Poem” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Patrick’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Paul Peterson. Abstract The Old…

Find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Summer Term (May 1 – July 30) and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses will be on hand to explain how the classes work, what people can expect if they sign up, and answer questions from the live audience. The Summer 2023 Courses: Pleas…

Thesis Theater: Jennifer Ewing, “The Promises to the Overcomer” This recording from April 3rd, 2023. Signum MA student Jennifer Ewing will present her thesis “The Promises to the Overcomer: The Gifts and Rewards Given to the Fellowship in The Lord of the Rings” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discuss…

This recording from December 1, 2022. Find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Spring Term (January 9 – April 2) and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses will be on hand to explain how the classes work, what people can expect if they sign up, and answer questions from the liv…

This is Part 1 of the separate recordings from The 2022 Fall Fundraising Campaign Finale, recorded on November 19, 2022. Our teaching programs Signum Graduate School https://signumuniversity.org/degree-p... Signum Academy Clubs https://signumuniversity.org/non-degr... Mythgard Institute https://mythgard.org/ SPACE Signum Portals for Adult Continuin…

This recording from September 5, 2022. Signum MA student Nadia Schafer will present her thesis “One Strange (s) Elf: Deep Ecology, Decolonization and the Radical Hope of Legolas Greenleaf ” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Nadia’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Sara Brown. Ab…

This recording from August 25, 2022. Find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Fall Term (August 29 – November 20) and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses will be on hand to explain how the classes work, what people can expect if they sign up, and answer questions from the li…

Thesis Theater: Jacob R. Schreiner, "Sub-creation Through Speech-Acts in Tolkien’s Legendarium" This recording from June 1, 2022. Signum MA student Jacob R. Schreiner will present his thesis “The Logos of Faith: Sub-creation Through Speech-Acts in Tolkien’s Legendarium” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. Th…

Thesis Theater: Miriam Davidson, "Nonviolent Countercurrents in Tolkien's Epic of War" This recording from May 26, 2022. Signum MA student Miriam Davidson will present her thesis “The Sword Not for its Sharpness: Nonviolent Countercurrents in Tolkien’s Epic of War” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The dis…

Thesis Theater: Emily Austin, "The Road Gives Ever On: the Road Motif in Lord of the Rings" This recording from May 21, 2022. Signum MA student Emily Austin will present her thesis “The Road Gives Ever On: Following the Road Motif in The Lord of the Rings ” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion …

Thesis Theater: Taylor Johnson Guinan, "Ventures into the Land of the Dead in Children's Literature” This recording from May 7, 2022. Signum MA student Taylor Johnson Guinan will present her thesis “Only in Dying Life: Ventures into the Land of the Dead in Children’s Fantasy Literature” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive T…

This recording from April 22, 2022. Find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Summer Term (May 2 – July 31) and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses will be on hand to explain how the classes work, what people can expect if they sign up, and answer questions from the live audi…

This recording from April 15th, 2022. Signum MA student Phil Knight will present his thesis “Drauma-Jóns Saga: A Digital Edition and Translation” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theatre. The discussion will be facilitated by Phil’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Paul Peterson. Abstract: Though once long neglected and eve…

recorded on January 4, 2022. Signum University Spring 2022 semester starts January 10! In this Course Preview event, you can find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Spring Term (January 10 – April 3) and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses explain how the classes work, what…

This recording from January 5th, 2022. Signum master’s student Elise Trudel Cedeño will present her thesis “Series Theory: Examining the Structure of the Modern Fantasy Epic” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Elise’s supervisor, Professor Kris Swank. Abstract: Series T…

This recording from December 18th, 2021 If the answer is always reading good Science Fiction and fantasy, then the question must always be “How can I best spend my time and escape the normal confines of our day?” Join us at 6pm Eastern on December 18th for our non-affiliated Hugo Awards evening, when a panel of Science-fiction and Fantasy readers w…

This recording from December 11, 2021. Signum master’s student Ryan Moniz will present his thesis “Brewing Óðinn’s Mead: A Reconstructive Approach to Germanic Verse Formula” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Ryan’s thesis supervisor, Dr. Nelson Goering. Abstract: ‘In t…

This recording from November 18 2021. Signum master’s student Eugene Sullivan will present his thesis “Red Indians in Middle Earth: The Woses of Drúadan Forest and the Racial Landscape of Tolkien’s Legendarium” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Eugene’s thesis supervis…

This recording from October 31st, 2021. Add to your Halloween experience this October 31st at 5pm with a remembrance of the ancient Gaelic celebration of Samhain. Samhain, the forerunner of Halloween, was a time of reckoning and observing of the turning of the Fall season into the darkness of the Winter. Although many different communal activities …

Signum University State of the University Address by Corey Olsen, featuring the university updates and the SPACE (Signum Portals for Adult Continuing Education) program launch. Recorded on Oct. 16, 2021, as part of the Annual Fundraising Campaign 2021 webathon. (You can watch the whole webathon recording here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLUPn.…

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

This recording from August 16th, 2021, of Thesis Theater: Maximilian Hart ~ Draconic Speech: Truth and Lies in Le Guin's Old Speech Signum master’s student Maximilian Hart will present his thesis “Draconic Diction: Truth and Lies in Le Guin’s Old Speech” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion wil…

Recorded on April 16th, 2021. Summer 2021 semester starts on May 3rd, 2021. Find out about the new courses offered at Signum University this coming Summer Term (May 3 – July 23), and meet the professors who will be teaching them! Representatives from the courses will be on hand to explain how the classes work, what people can expect if they sign up…

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

The recording from December 3, 2020, of a presentation and Q&A with the editors of a new volume of previously unpublished work by Owen Barfield, the first and last Inkling. The event includes a short talk introducing Barfield’s work by the author’s grandson. The discussion is moderated by Gabriel Schenk. The panelists: Owen A. Barfield, the grandso…

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University

Support The Signum SceneDe către Signum University