Signum MA student Alexis Heit will present her thesis “Lovecraft in Beagle: Cosmic Fear in The Last Unicorn And ‘Two Hearts’” and respond to questions from the audience in an interactive Thesis Theater. The discussion will be facilitated by Alexis Heit’s thesis supervisor, Kris Swank.
Thesis Abstract
Using comparative analysis, this project analyzes if Peter Beagle’s fantasy, The Last Unicorn and the short story continuation “Two Hearts” can be read with a Lovecraftian lens of Cosmicism.
Peter Beagle’s monsters – the Red Bull, the harpy Celaeno and the griffin – represent the unknown and relate to true horror found in fantasy.
N.B. If you are interested in studying Peter Beagle’s The Last Unicorn, check out Dr. Corey Olsen’s Modern Fantasy class.
About the Presenter
Alexis Heit has loved the idea of crossing boundaries in literature since her first class at Mythgard. She continues to read daily searching out new and exciting influences. Mythgard provided new interests by introducing her to an in-depth analysis of H.P. Lovecraft as well as the opportunity to study one of her favorite authors, Peter S. Beagle. Her thesis topic allowed her to combine the two genres of literature and examine how similarities can be found in each.
About Signum Thesis Theaters
Our graduate students write a thesis at the end of their degree program, exploring a topic of their choice. The Thesis Theater is where they can present their thesis to the Signum community and wider public, enabling them to explain their research in detail, and respond to questions from the audience.
