January 3 – January 30, 2024

Living Religion in the Georgian and Regency Eras

WITH Dr Sam Hirst
Registration Closed

Registration ends January 13, 2025!

Class Description

This class will look at the religious landscape of the Georgian and Regency periods (an over of the 18th and early 19th centuries) and the multitude of ways in which religion formed a part of every day life. This course will focus on Christianity as the state religion and will give an overview of Church History in the period. It will present not only an overview of the Church of England but of the various Dissenting groups and theologies which came to prominence in the period, including Methodism, Unitarianism and Millenarian Apocalyptic theology. 

The course will also look at the ways in which religion inflected on every day life with sessions on religion and education, the role of women in religious organizations and the way that sex and theology were intertwined with a focus on queer theology for those writing or interested in writing queer romance and understanding the ideological conditions of the time. 

The course will offer a rich picture of the diverse religious tapestry of the period, uncovering some of the strange, wonderful and influential factors that are often lost to history: from women giving birth to rabbits to abolitionary movements. The course will also use examples from contemporary fiction and writings to show how these realities were reflected in books written at the time.

About the Instructor

Dr Sam Hirst is a Teaching Associate in Romanticism at the University of Sheffield. Their book Theology in the Early British and Irish Gothic, 1764-1834 was published in 2023 and shortlisted for the Alan Lloyd Smith Memorial Prize. They are a life-long romance reader and run ‘Romancing the Gothic’ – an online project which provides classes, workshops, book groups and author showcases dedicated to exploring Romance, the Gothic and history, and how they all intertwine!

Class Delivery

The course is delivered through recorded lectures with accompanying pdfs of supporting materials.

Class Format

4-WEEK COURSE

The course is delivered through recorded lectures with accompanying pdfs of supporting materials. The course is not image heavy and text description will be included. We will be dealing with contemporary sources with non-orthodox print but typed copies of key sources will be available.

Class Fees

$40 for RFW members
$55 for non-members

Registration Closed

Registration ends January 13, 2025!

Scholarships are available for members

Learn more