Speakers: Young-ok An, Simon Bainbridge, Daniel Cook, Fuson Wang, Omar F Miranda, and Sharon Ruston
16 September 2026, 6.30pm – 8.30pm (UK time)
Register here: https://uni-mainz-de.zoom.us/meeting/register/sUS7ykTmRLyX0v1H2ZjMiQ
The year 2026 marks the bicentenary of The Last Man (1826), Mary
Shelley’s visionary novel of pandemic, extinction, and survival. To
celebrate this landmark, and to launch the forthcoming Oxford Complete
Works of Mary Shelley (15 vols., 2029–35), co-edited by Sharon Ruston and
Daniel Cook, BARS will host a special digital event dedicated to new
research, teaching practices, and cultural engagements with this
extraordinary text. Long overshadowed by Frankenstein (1818), The Last
Man has become newly resonant in an age defined by environmental
crisis, global pandemic, and anxieties about the future of humanity. This
event showcases the novel’s enduring relevance while revealing fresh
insights from the forthcoming scholarly edition.
Sharon Ruston and Daniel Cook will chair ‘The Last Man Today’ with
papers from Fuson Wang and Omar F. Miranda, both of whom draw on
their editorial experience working with The Last Man. Following a short
break, we will continue discussions with papers from Young-ok An and
Simon Bainbridge addressing themes such as classroom strategies,
challenges, and contemporary resonances.