Farah Jane Mendlesohn (born 27 July 1968) is a British academic historian, writer on

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is a term that has been used with a variety of (sometimes contradictory) meanings. The broadest interpretation is as a category of fiction encompassing genres with elements that do not exist in reality, recorded history, nat ...

, and active member of

science fiction fandom Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or fandom of people interested in science fiction in contact with one another based upon that interest. SF fandom has a life of its own, but not much in the way of formal organization (although ...

. Mendlesohn is best-known for their 2008 book '' Rhetorics of Fantasy'', which classifies

fantasy literature Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fa ...

into four modes based on how the fantastic enters the story. Their work as editor includes the ''Cambridge Companions'' to science fiction and fantasy, collaborations with Edward James. The science fiction volume won a

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier ...

. Mendlesohn is also known for books on the history of fantasy, including '' Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction'', co-written with Michael Levy. It was the first work to trace the genre's 500-year history and won the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

. Mendlesohn's academic positions have included a professorship at

Anglia Ruskin University Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is a public university in East Anglia, United Kingdom. Its origins are in the Cambridge School of Art, founded by William John Beamont in 1858. It became a university in 1992, and was renamed after John Ruskin in ...

. They have served as editor and chair of the science fiction journal ''

Foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

'', and as the president of the

International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts (IAFA), founded in 1982 is a nonprofit association of scholars, writers, and publishers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror in literature, film, and the other arts. Its principal acti ...

. In 2015, Mendlesohn received the SFRA Clareson award for distinguished service to the science fiction field.

Scholarly career

Farah Jane Mendlesohn was born on 27 July 1968 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, England. Mendlesohn received a D. Phil. in history from the

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for post-nominals) is a collegiate research university, located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, co ...

in 1997. Mendlesohn's academic positions include a stint as reader in science fiction and fantasy literature in the media department at

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

, and as professor and head of department in the department of English, communication, film and media at

from 2012 to 2017. Mendlesohn joined Staffordshire University in November 2016 as professor and assistant dean in law, policing, forensics & sociology, and is now an associate fellow of the Anglia Ruskin Centre for Science Fiction and Fantasy."About"
''farahmendlesohn.com''. Retrieved 6 Dec. 2021. Mendlesohn writes on the history of American religions and British and American science fiction and fantasy. Mendlesohn was the editor of '' Foundation - The International Review of Science Fiction'' from 2002 to 2007, and served as its chair from 2004. They then served as president of the

from 2008 to 2010. Mendlesohn used to be reviews editor of ''Quaker Studies''. Mendlesohn's best known work is the 2008 non-fiction book '' Rhetorics of Fantasy''. It proposes a classification of the fantasy genre using the manner in which the fantastic interacts with the real world. The four modes, or "rhetorics", Mendlesohn proposes are: , where the protagonists travel from our world to a fantastical one; , where only the fantastical world exists; , where the barriers between the fantasy and real worlds break down; and , set in a world where certain elements are seen as irrational by the reader but are unquestioned by the characters. In 2016 Mendlesohn wrote '' Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction'' with collaborator Michael Levy. The book traces the development of children's fantasy from the 16th to the 21st centuries, covering events such as the collection of folk tales, the impact of world wars, and the emergence of

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

fiction. It was the first work to blend the history of the fantasy and

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

fields.

Awards and nominations

In 2005 Mendlesohn won the

for Best Related Work for ''The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction'', which edited with historian Edward James. James and Mendlesohn also edited ''The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature'', released in 2012, and wrote ''A Short History of Fantasy'' in 2009. Mendlesohn's book ''Rhetorics of Fantasy'' won the

BSFA award The BSFA Awards are literary awards presented annually since 1970 by the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) to honour works in the genre of science fiction. Nominees and winners are chosen based on a vote of BSFA members. More recently, m ...

for best non-fiction book in 2009; the book was also nominated for Hugo and World Fantasy Awards. In 2010 Mendlesohn was nominated twice for the Best Related Work Hugo, for ''The Inter-Galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction'', and for ''On Joanna Russ''. They received the

Science Fiction Research Association The Science Fiction Research Association (SFRA), founded in 1970, is the oldest, non-profit professional organization committed to encouraging, facilitating, and rewarding the study of science fiction and fantasy literature, film, and other media. ...

's Clareson award for distinguished service in 2015. In 2017, they won the

World Fantasy Special Award—Professional The World Fantasy Awards are given each year by the World Fantasy Convention for the best fantasy fiction and art published in English during the preceding calendar year. The awards have been described by sources such as ''The Guardian'' as a ...

for ''Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction''. Their critical biography of

Robert Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

(see below) was nominated for the Best Related Work Hugo in 2020. It won the

BSFA Award The BSFA Awards are literary awards presented annually since 1970 by the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) to honour works in the genre of science fiction. Nominees and winners are chosen based on a vote of BSFA members. More recently, m ...

for non-fiction, making them the only writer besides

Paul Kincaid Paul Kincaid (born 22 September 1952 in Oldham, Lancashire) is a British science fiction critic. Career Kincaid's writing has appeared in a wide range of publications including New Scientist, Times Literary Supplement, Literary Review, New York ...

to win this award twice.

Science fiction conventions

Mendlesohn is an active volunteer member of the administration for

science fiction conventions Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expre ...

. Among other events, they co-chaired ConCussion, the 2006

Eastercon Eastercon is the common name for the annual British national science fiction convention. The convention is organised by voluntary self-organising committees, rather than a permanent entity. Organisation Groups of fans (typically 5–8 in n ...

, with Simon Bradshaw; and was director of program for

Anticipation Anticipation is an emotion involving pleasure or anxiety in considering or awaiting an expected event. Anticipatory emotions include fear, anxiety, hope and trust. When the anticipated event fails to occur, it results in disappointment (if posit ...

, the Montreal

World Science Fiction Convention Worldcon, or more formally the World Science Fiction Convention, the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS), is a science fiction convention. It has been held each year since 1939 (except for the years 1942 to 1945, durin ...

, in 2009; Mendlesohn was on the convention committee of Loncon 3, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention, but resigned as a protest over the announcement that

Jonathan Ross Jonathan Stephen Ross (born 17 November 1960) is an English broadcaster, film critic, comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He presented the BBC One chat show ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' during the 2000s, hosted his own radio show on ...

was to be master of ceremonies for the presentation of the

Hugo Awards The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier ...

; Mendlesohn remained division head for the convention's exhibits hall.

Heinlein study

In 2017, Mendlesohn announced that a critical study of

was to be published by the

crowdfunding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by cro ...

publisher Unbound. the pledges had exceeded the target by 18%. The book was published in 2019, under the title ''The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein''.

Selected works

;As author *''The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein.'' (Unbound, 2019) *'' Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction'' (London: Cambridge University Press, 2016) with Michael Levy *''A Short History of Fantasy'' (London: Middlesex University Press, 2009) with Edward James *''The Inter-galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction'' (Critical Explorations in Science Fiction and Fantasy 14) (Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2009). . *''Rhetorics of Fantasy'' (Middletown, CT:

Wesleyan University Press Wesleyan University Press is a university press that is part of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. The press is currently directed by Suzanna Tamminen, a published poet and essayist. History and overview Founded (in its present form ...

, 2008) *''Diana Wynne Jones: Children's Literature and the Fantastic Tradition'' (Oxford: Routledge, 2005) *''Quaker Relief Work in the Spanish Civil War'' (Lewiston, N.Y.:

Edwin Mellen Press The Edwin Mellen Press or Mellen Press is an international independent company and academic publishing house with editorial offices in Lewiston, New York, and Lampeter, Wales. It was founded, in 1972, by the religious studies scholar Profess ...

, 2002) ;As editor *''The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012) with Edward James *''On

Joanna Russ Joanna Russ (February 22, 1937 – April 29, 2011) was an American writer, academic and feminist. She is the author of a number of works of science fiction, fantasy and feminist literary criticism such as ''How to Suppress Women's Writing'', as w ...

'' (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 2009) *''

Glorifying Terrorism ''Glorifying Terrorism'' is a 2007 science fiction anthology edited by Farah Mendlesohn, which was compiled in direct response to the Terrorism Act 2006. Every story in the anthology has been specifically designed to be illegal under the Act's pr ...

, Manufacturing Contempt: An Anthology of Original Science Fiction'' (London: Rackstraw Press, 2006) *''Polder: A Festschrift For

John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...

and Judith Clute'' (Baltimore: Old Earth Books, 2006) *''The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003) with Edward James *''The True Knowledge of Ken MacLeod'' (Reading: Science Fiction Foundation, 2003) with Andrew Butler *''The Parliament of Dreams: Conferring on ''

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tele ...

(Reading: Science Fiction Foundation, 1998) with Edward James

References

Source

* * *

External links

Farah Mendlesohn blog
*
about
*
archive of earlier home page
archived 2014-04-05) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mendlesohn, Farah 1968 births Living people British speculative fiction critics Academics of Middlesex University Alumni of the University of York Cultural historians Historians of the United States Hugo Award-winning editors Religion academics Science fiction academics Science fiction critics Science fiction fans British women historians