All humans and plant-monsters are invited for this reading group of Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, and John Totleben’s influential run of Swamp Thing (1984-1987). Moore’s writing explores sacred conceptions of nature, non-human life, magic, and psychedelic experiences, and a series of secondary readings have been selected to highlight these themes. Brought to life by Totleben and Bissette’s art, Saga of the Swamp Thing is perhaps the definitive tale of ecospirituality in the comics medium.

Please note: if you only have the time to read the primary readings or if you feel you lack specialization on questions related to religion, spirituality, and nature, you are more than welcome to attend. The Bodleian has copies of the relevant Swamp Thing volumes, I have included links to each. The easiest way to access Swamp Thing is via a subscription to DC’s comic book app.

Session 2 Readings (November 26)

Primary:
Moore, Alan, Stephen Bissette, and John Totleben. “Book Three (#35-42).” In Saga of the Swamp Thing: Vertigo, 2013. solo.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/permalink/44OXF_INST/35n82s/alma990158639300107026
Moore, Alan, Stephen Bissette, and John Totleben. “Book Four (#43-50).” In Saga of the Swamp Thing: Vertigo, 2013. solo.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/permalink/44OXF_INST/35n82s/alma990158639340107026

Secondary:
Bradshaw, Michael. “‘The Sleep of Reason’: Swamp Thing and the Intertextual Reader.” In Alan Moore and the Gothic Tradition, edited by Matthew Green, 121-39. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016.
Addis, Victoria. “Ecomasculinity, Ecomasculinism, and the Superhero Genre: Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing.” In Men, Masculinities, and Earth: Contending with the (M)Anthropocene, edited by Paul M. Pulé and Martin Hultman, 417-32. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2021.
Cornish, Helen. “Accusing Witches in the Twenty-First Century.” Approaching Religion 13, no. 3 (2023): 23-39.