Research Seminar - Queering Dark Academia within a New Adult Fiction Context
Queering Dark Academia within a New Adult Fiction Context
Presented by: Shaun Stephen
Date: Friday 12 August 2022
Time: 12–1pm
Location: Hybrid (Online via Zoom and in-person at the SCA Writer's Studio (Level 6, Michie Building))
Abstract
This presentation will investigate the popular sub-genre of dark academia (DA) and argue its clear overlap with queer themes and the emerging new-adult (NA) literary category. As Saika notes, “Dark Academia is a genre of literature that literally revolves around academia and learning. Therefore, you will see that it is mostly set in educational institutions and follows the lives of students. [And like the term suggests, it] … is dark at a deeper psychological level. The characters often are corrupt aesthetes … what you would call … sociopathic or psychopathic but most often narcissistic” (1). The DA genre showcases when college is not such a ‘safe haven’ through its use of the Gothic.
The presentation will explore themes/content such as identity, alienation, obsession, pursuit of (forbidden) knowledge, found family, monstrosity and trauma through an analysis of three queer DA exemplars: The Secret History (1992) by Donna Tartt, If We Were Villains (2017) by M.L. Rio and These Violent Delights (2020) by Micah Nemerever. This exploration will address some of the weaknesses inherent within DA—weak depictions of diverse protagonists i.e., LGBTQ+ characters.
Presenter
Shaun Stephen has a Masters in Writing, Editing & Publishing (2020) at University of Queensland (UQ) and is currently undertaking a MPhil in Creative Writing at UQ. The creative piece is called Lost Boys, a queer DA novella set at Juilliard NYC during the 1980s Aids epidemic.
About Research Seminar and Workshop Series
School of Communication and Arts Research Seminar Series
The research seminar and workshop series occur each semester, each with a different topic and guest speaker from UQ or otherwise.
Friday, 4 August Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | After the Future: Heat, Collapse, and Exhausting the “Future of Work” | Dr Luke Munn |
Friday, 25 August Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | Promoting children’s environmental responsibility in the EFL classroom | Dr Valentina Adami |
Friday, 1 September Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | Portraying Asian-diasporic identity beyond the limits of the literary label Asian-Australian | Catriona Arthy and Olivia De Zilva |
Friday, 8 September Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | Exploring Digital Humanities through the Lens of Journalism: A Case Study of Reader Comment Analysis | Dr Lujain Shafeeq |
Friday, 15 September Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | Carly-Jay Metcalfe and Bianca Millroy | |
Friday, 22 September Hybrid: Online via Zoom and in person at the | Coping with eco-anxiety: A guided journal trial | Dr Ans Vercammen and Dr Skye Doherty |