The Shelbiad, Three Years On.

 

Three years ago today, I launched The Shelbiad! 

I also did a birthday blogpost for The Shelbiad's first birthday, where I reflected on the process of starting the blog: 

It's so hard to get started and put yourself out there, to say 'hey, I have spent weeks and weeks thinking about this, quite a few hours setting it up, and more hours still obsessing about what to write. I'm trying to write something that is sort of your run-of-the-mill, "welcome to my blog" post, while also suggesting that I have something new and exciting to add to the bloggerverse. Right now I have the best intentions to post LOADS, but I know what I'm like, and I reserve the right to delete this blog and pretend it never happened in a fortnight if my inspiration dries up.'

But you know what, I'm so glad I did it. 

For what it's worth, I am still so glad I stuck with it. Even when my life is hectic, or my workload is massive, or I'm battling with imposter syndrome, this blog is kind of like my port in the storm. If I'm feeling unproductive, I know that I will at least publish a blog post this month; if I'm feeling overwhelmed, I can share those feelings on here; if I'm feeling really super excited about a really random facet of my research – you guessed it, it goes on the blog. 

So, I thought I would try my hand at another Omphaloskepsistic* blog post. Carry on reading for a whistle-stop tour through my favourite posts to write, and then a small reflection on where I'm currently at in my PhD journey. 

*navel-gazing, with an ancient Greek twist – see here for an (admittedly unsatisfactory) explanation 

***

My favourite blogposts are probably the "seasonal specials," as I like to think of them. 

Last October, for example, instead of doing a second year-in-review post, I published 'Spooky Special: Afterlives' in which I shared a paper about interrogating ghosts in my research. Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad (2005) is narrated by the shade of Penelope in the Underworld, who says 'now that I'm dead, I know everything' & Ursula Le Guin's Lavinia (2009) features what I have come to think of as a "future ghost" – Lavinia, future wife of the hero Aeneas, frequents a temple, where she is visited by Virgil, who is on a ship, dying, hundreds of years in the future. She calls him 'my poet' and he grows to regret that he 'scanted' her in the poem, in favour of '[telling] what the men where doing'. 

Although many of us didn't get the Christmas we were expecting in 2020, I did try to offer some levity with my blog post 'Dionysian December', where I shared some of my favourite myths about the non-binary god of wine, revelry, and dildos: Dionysus! (Yes, you read that right.) I think I really peaked with festive advice in that post, where I concluded: 

So, people, consider this your call to become the latest disciple of Dionysus and go out into the woods, drink wine, and dance naked. 

Alternatively, bring a massive wooden phallus to the Christmas dinner table and declare it a Dionysia feast. 

Alternatively, just embrace the chaos a bit, because I genuinely think we're all struggling to find any order in the world right now. 

For all you lovers and cynics out there, I wrote 'Valentine's Day Special: 4 Do's and Don'ts of Mythic Romance'. In this post, I very boldly claimed that "there is a myth for any romantic moment, and what romantic moment isn't made better by a myth?"... I have yet to be called out for this (although it is surely justified). I did, however, warn against some pitfalls of mythic romance, for example perpetuating rape culture or romanticising grooming. Good things to avoid, in my opinion. 

I also did a blog post to celebrate my birthday and one for April Fool's Day although, at this point, I may be stretching the definition of seasonal holidays... 

***

It's interesting to me to go back to that 'One Year On' blog post, where I reflected on the process of starting the PhD and the blog. My blog started with your run of the mill opening blog post, and then I quickly wrote another one on the process of writing introductions. Now, as I write this 'Three Years On' blog post, I am in the process of writing my conclusion. 

Funnily enough, after I finish my conclusion, I need to go back and write a brand new introduction, because the one I wrote right at the beginning of my PhD journey, unsurprisingly, no longer introduces my thesis as it looks now. 

Trying to conclude 3+ years of work is no easy task, but I have found these broad strokes very useful, so perhaps you will too: 

Writing a PhD thesis conclusion: 

1. Clearly state the answer to the main research question(s)
2. Summarise and reflect on the research you have undertaken (and tie all of the chapters together) 
3. Make recommendations for future work on the topic 
4. Show what knowledge you have contributed to the field 

*Also, ask yourself... 

• Where does your research fit in the existing body of knowledge? 
• What gaps in research have you addressed? 
• What is new about your research? 
• How is the literature in dialogue with each other, and with your study?

I think trying to write a conclusion is particularly challenging when you're working with the contemporary era. How am I meant to conclude my thesis, and theoretically end my research, when books keep being published in my wheelhouse? When books like Pat Barker's The Women of Troy and Charlotte Higgins' Greek Myths have come out in the past couple of months! When I know that, for example, Susan Stokes-Chapman's novel Pandora is coming out at the beginning of next year! 

When I know, more broadly, that this ever-increasing phenomenon of women rewriting myths is still rapidly expanding, so how can I ever put a full stop at the end of my project?! 

When I know that critical attention is only just beginning to be paid to this literary phenomenon! When I know that interesting analyses will surely be formed with the benefit of hindsight, once this genre / era / corpus of literature comes to a close, and we can consider it as a whole!  

I suppose this comes under the purview of 'Make recommendations for future work on the topic'... 

I guess what I'm trying to say is: continue watching this space. 

Can't that just be my conclusion? 

Remember to check out my Ko-fi if you would like to further support me, and why not order a personalised mythogram?! https://ko-fi.com/shelbyjudge 

*with special thanks to Jamie Khoo, the Messy PhD coach, whose support during my conclusion planning helped to inform these questions.