Cultural Studies

Concerned with the relationship between Friday mosque and city in the Islamic context. Focusing particularly on the Friday mosque, the book aims at exploring the concept of liminal(ity) in spatial terms and discuss it in terms of the relationship between the Friday mosque and its surrounding urban context. Transition spaces/zones between the mosque and the urban context are discussed through the case studies from various contexts. In doing so, the manuscript reveals different forms of liminality in spatial sense.

Considers widely-studied topics such as the ‘Friday mosque’ or the ‘Islamic city’ through a fresh new lens, critically examining each case study in its own spatial urban and socio-cultural context. While these two well-known themes – concepts that once defined the field – have been widely studied by historians of Islamic architecture and urbanism, this collection specifically addresses the functional and spatial ambiguity or liminality between these spaces. Thus, instead of addressing the Friday mosque as the central signifier of the ‘Islamic city’, the articles in this volume provide evidence that there was (and continues to be) a tremendous variety in the way architectural borders became fluid in and around Friday mosques across the Islamic geography, from Cordoba to Jerusalem and from London to Lahore.

By historicizing different cases and contributing to our knowledge of the way human agency through ritual and politics shaped the physical and social fabric of the city, the papers collectively challenge the generalizing and reductionist tendencies in earlier scholarship.  The disciplinary approaches are varied, and include archaeology, art history, history, epigraphy and architecture.  

The original approach in the book, addressing of the topic of liminality from different points of view and in different periods, creates a fresh approach that invites students and scholars to think deeply about the imbrication of congregational mosques in the daily life of the cities that host them. Moreover, in considering mosque and city together, the mosque appears as a living space subject to change and history and made with political and social purpose, rather than as a holy space disconnected from the rest of the world.

Traditional studies of mosques focus on architecture and aesthetic language and try to establish a lineal development of the building typology connected to the history of Islam across different territories. The present study offers an alternative (though not competing) perspective where locality and politics play a major role in the materialization of the congregational mosque as a religious and communal space. The wide historical frame enables comparison of congregational mosques in different historical periods: it is particularly a strong contrast to see how the liminality of the mosque changes between the early and classical periods of Islam on one side and the more contemporary times on the other. The consideration of diverging cultural, political and sectarian settings is another interesting element of comparison. 

Primary market will include scholars, academics and students working on or studying Islamic studies, particularly Islamic history, Islamic architecture and Islamic archaeology. 

Also of relevance to architectural historians, architects, art historians, city planners, city historians, urban designers, architectural critics, historians, sociologists, archeologists, and those interested in religious studies, and in archaeology of religion.

Nineteen years later . . .



Even as a new generation embraces the Harry Potter novels for the first time,  J.K. Rowling’s world is expanding with Fantastic Beasts, Cursed Child and Pottermore. There are new mobile games, new toys and, of course, the theme parks. Meanwhile, Quidditch and the Harry Potter Alliance stretch from college to college, inspiring each generation. Fans have adapted the series into roleplaying games, parodies, musicals, films, dances, art and published fiction like Tommy Taylor or Carry On. They are also scrambling Potter with new franchises: Game of Thrones, Hunger Games, Percy Jackson, Hamilton. What else is this new generation discovering about loving Potter? Which are the best conventions, the best fanfiction and wizard rock? And, how has Potter aged and what does it still have to teach us? Fan Phenomena: Harry Potter offers Potter fans a taste of the best the fandom has to offer.

The Future of Humanity seeks to answer the question: “What kind of global civilization should human beings pursue and what do we have to do collectively?,” one a question that has preoccupied scholars, philosophers and politicians for centuries. In doing so, the book tackles concepts as monumental as the keys to happiness, alien nonconventional intelligence, immortality, morality and China’s possible role in bringing about a better worldjoining this global discussion.



To navigate these many and complex topics, Jin combines the spiritual insights of ancient Chinese thinkers with a deep respect for the accomplishments and discoveries of modern Western science, exploring and explaining her distinct vision for a what a better, global future civilization could be.

Winter is coming. Every Sunday night, millions of fans gather around their televisions to take in the spectacle that is a new episode of Game of Thrones. Much is made of who will be gruesomely murdered each week on the hit show, though sometimes the question really is who won’t die a fiery death. The show, based on the Song of Fire and Ice series written by George R. R. Martin, is a truly global phenomenon.



With the seventh season of the HBO series in production, Game of Thrones has been nominated for multiple awards, its cast has been catapulted to celebrity and references to it proliferate throughout popular culture. Often positioned as the grittier antithesis to J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Martin’s narrative focuses on the darker side of chivalry and heroism, stripping away these higher ideals to reveal the greed, amorality and lust for power underpinning them.



Fan Phenomena: Game of Thrones is an exciting new addition to the Intellect series, bringing together academics and fans of Martin’s universe to consider not just the content of the books and HBO series, but fan responses to both. From trivia nights dedicated to minutiae to forums speculating on plot twists to academics trying to make sense of the bizarre climate of Westeros, everyone is talking about Game of Thrones. Edited by Kavita Mudan Finn, the book focuses on the communities created by the books and television series and how these communities envision themselves as consumers, critics and even creators of fanworks in a wide variety of media, including fiction, art, fancasting and cosplay.

Few, if any, books come close to being as beloved – or as ubiquitous – as The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The book delves into the philosophy of the series and its fans, the distinctions between the films’ fans and the books’ fans, the process of adaptation, and the role of New Zealand in the translation of words to images. Lavishly illustrated, it is guaranteed to appeal to anyone who has ever closed the last page of The Return of the King and wished it to never end.

The mere hint recently that British actor Idris Elba might take up the mantle of James Bond in future instalments of the film franchise was a major international news story – a testament to the enduring interest and appeal of Bond, a figure who has become a true global icon.

Fan Phenomena: James Bond explores the devoted fanbase that has helped make Bond what he is, offering a serious but wholly accessible take on the many different ways that fans have approached, appreciated, and appropriated Bond over the sixty years of his existence from the pages of Ian Fleming's novels to the screen. Including analyses of Bond as a lifestyle icon, the Bond brand, Bond-inspired fan works, and the many versions of 007, the book reveals a fan culture that is vibrant, powerfully engaged and richly aware of the history and complexity of the character of Bond and what he represents.

Whether your favourite Bond is Daniel Craig or Sean Connery (or even George Lazenby!), Fan Phenomena: James Bond is sure to go down as smooth as a shaken – not stirred – martini.

Nearly two hundred years after her death, Jane Austen is one of the most widely read and beloved English novelists of any era. Writing and publishing anonymously during her lifetime, the woman responsible for some of the most enduring characters (and couples) of modern romantic literature, including Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy, Emma Woodhouse and George Knightley, was credited only as ‘A Lady’ on the title pages of her novels. It was not until her nephew, more than five decades after her death at the age of 41, published a memoir of his ‘dear Aunt Jane’ that she became widely known. From then on, her fame only grew, and fans and devotees, so-called ‘Janeites,’ soon idolized and obsessed over her. Like any great art that endures and excites long after it is made, Austen’s novels are inextricable from the culture they have created. Essential reading for Austen’s legions of admirers, Fan Phenomena: Jane Austen collects essays from writers and critics that consider the culture surrounding Austen’s novels.

Nearly two hundred years after her death, Jane Austen is one of the most widely read and beloved English novelists of any era. Writing and publishing anonymously during her lifetime, the woman responsible for some of the most enduring characters (and couples) of modern romantic literature – including Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy, Emma Woodhouse and George Knightley – was credited only as 'A Lady' on the title pages of her novels.



It was not until her nephew published a memoir of his 'dear Aunt Jane' more than five decades after her death that she became widely known. From then on, her fame only grew, and fans and devotees, so-called Janeites, soon obsessed over and idolized her. Austen soon found an appreciative audience not only of readers but also of academics, whose scholarship legitimated and secured her place in the canon of Western literature. Today, Austen’s work is still assigned in courses, obsessed over by readers young and old, parodied and parroted and adapted for films.

Were she alive today, Austen might not recognize some of the work her novels have inspired, such as a retelling of Sense and Sensibility featuring sea monsters, Internet fan fiction, or a twelve-foot statue of a wet-shirted Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy depicting a scene that doesn’t even appear in her novel. But like any great art that endures and excites long after it is made, Austen’s novels are inextricable from the culture they have created. Essential reading for Austen’s legions of admirers, Fan Phenomena: Jane Austen collects essays from writers and critics that consider the culture surrounding Austen’s novels.

An exciting dystopian fantasy thriller series, The Hunger Games began its life as a trilogy of books by Suzanne Collins, the first released in 2008. An immediate success, the first instalment had a first printing of 50,000 hardcover copies, which quickly ballooned to 200,000. Spending one hundred consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, the book was put into development for release on the big screen. The first film, starring Academy Award-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence, broke box office records, and all of its sequels are expected to follow suit. Fan Phenomena: The Hunger Games charts the series’ success through the increasingly vocal online communities that drive the young adult book market. Essays here consider the fashion that the series has created and how the costumes, memorabilia, merchandising and branding have become an ever bigger part of the fandom experience. Issues explored include debates over the movie stars’ race and size, which tap into greater issues within the fan community and popular culture in general and the current argument that has divided fans and critics: whether or not the third book, Mockingjay, should be split into two films.

An exciting dystopian fantasy thriller series, The Hunger Games began its life as a trilogy of books by Suzanne Collins, the first released in 2008. An immediate success, the first instalment had a first printing of 50,000 hardcover copies, which quickly ballooned to 200,000. Spending one hundred consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, the book was put into development for release on the big screen. The first two films, starring Academy Award-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence, broke box office records, and the final instalment is expected to follow suit.



Fan Phenomena: The Hunger Games charts the series’s success through the increasingly vocal online communities that drive the young adult book market. Essays here consider the fashion that the series has created and how the costumes, memorabilia, merchandising and branding have become an ever bigger part of the fandom experience. Issues explored include debates over the movie stars’ race and size, which tap into greater issues within the fan community and popular culture in general and the current argument that has divided fans and critics: whether or not the third book, Mockingjay, should be split into two films.



With this scholarly compendium, navigating the post-apocalyptic landscape of Panem will be as effortless as Katniss Everdeen’s archery and ensure that the odds will be forever in your favour.