Notes and Correspondence

Abstract

Notes and Correspondence Richard Bleiler, Curtis White, Dr. Antonio Sanna, Caryn Murphy, Pinaki Roy, Tanima Dutta, Angelique Nairn, and Justin Matthews "Fred Folio" Unmasked The year 1855 saw the publication of a satiric work known variously as A Book for the Times: Lucy Boston, or, Woman's Rights and Spiritualism: Illustrating the Follies and Delusions of the Nineteenth Century and, more simply, as Lucy Boston, or, Woman's Rights and Spiritualism: Illustrating the Follies and Delusions of the Nineteenth Century. It is an anti-feminist/anti-spiritualist diatribe whose narrative relies upon what we today would describe as elements of science fiction and fantasy to "prove" its points. These include poltergeistic phenomena and seances (modeled after those of the young Fox sisters circa 1848) as well as extrapolation that reimagines the contemporary political system for satiric purposes. In the novel, women successfully change the New York State constitution to allow them to vote and hold office, and Lucy Boston succeeds in becoming Governor of New York. The reactionary messages of Lucy Boston resonated with its contemporary audience, and the book went through at least two editions of several thousand volumes each; but it is today a work known primarily by scholars of women's history and those interested in nineteenth-century fantastic satire. Elizabeth Lowry, for example, recognizes it as "targeting the Fox sisters in particular," even though the Fox sisters had by 1855 "more of less ceased public practice" ("Spiritual(R)Evolution and the Turning of Tables" Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.2 [Fall 2015]: 1-16). Although "Fred Folio" is generally known to have been pseudonymous, the identity behind the pseudonym has escaped bibliographers. It has not hitherto been noted that upon his death, "Folio" was identified in an obituary notice in The Hamilton Literary Monthly of 1886, a publication of Hamilton College in Clinton, New York: "Rev. Frederick J. Jackson, '43, who died at Nyack, December 26th, 1885, was the author of 'Lucy Boston; or, Women's Rights and Spiritualism,' illustrating the foibles and delusions of the nineteenth century." Other resources show that Jackson was born on 8 March 1815 and served for a while as the Principal of the Tarrytown Military Institute. His grave lies in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, inadvertently linking him to a much greater American fantasist, Washington Irving, who is also buried in Tarrytown.—Richard Bleiler, Collections and Humanities Librarian, University of Connecticut Library, U of Connecticut, Storrs Second Annual C.S. Lewis Symposium at Ulster University, 13-14 November 2023, Ulster University, Coleraine (Northern Ireland) This two-day, public-facing academic symposium aims to examine C.S. Lewis in the light of his influence on twentieth and twenty-first century writers working in genres as varied as children's fiction, sf, literary and cultural criticism, popular apologetics, and even poetry. The central organizing metaphor is genealogy, the passing down to successive generations of essences, qualities, and characteristics that one inherits. Drawing on this central metaphor, we will examine how Lewis was shaped by his own set of literary influences and also how he transmitted (and transmuted) these influences through his own work [End Page 310] to writers throughout the world. Our hope is that a Janus-like approach—looking simultaneously back to Lewis's "forbears" and forward to his "sons and daughters"—will offer scholars working in diverse areas of Lewis research ample opportunity to carve out topics suited to their own interests. We invite proposals of up to 250 words for twenty-minute papers on some aspect of our theme. Submissions are welcome from scholars at every career stage. Please include a brief bio with submission. Email proposals to by 5pm, 4 September 2023. Please note that this is an in-person event; at present we do not have the tools to enable virtual participation.—Curtis White, Ulster University Book Series: Transmedia Monsters and Villains This new series aims to cover the fascinating subject of monsters and villains through an interdisciplinary perspective. Each volume will focus on a single figure (or group of figures) and examine it in its multiple incarnations, from origins to adaptations in different media. Also welcome are approaches to the...