Prisoners of Time: Why Reading Ghost Stories Matters (Webinar)
Price range: $18.00 through $50.00
Join Addison Hornstra on October 29th for a discussion of the ghost story tradition and why it matters.
Perhaps the ghost story gives us a vital insight into what it means to be human living in the prison of Time.
Discover why it is that ghost stories are not told to scare us, but to give us courage.
The Literary field in the West saw a remarkable number of ghost stories published from the late 19th century well into the 20th. Authors like Charles Dickens, Walter de la Mare, W.B. Yeats, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Walter Scott (to name only a few) all tried their hand at tales of the weird and the supernatural. Any of the ghost stories with which we are most familiar, undoubtedly come from this period of time.
But, this literary movement was not a new presence in the world of story. The ghost story as a genre has existed for hundreds of years, not just in the West, but all over the world. It can be seen in the East going back to the Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio and beyond. With such a tenacious presence throughout time, we are forced to confront the impossibility that there is nothing more to these tales than an attempt to scare ourselves. If that was true, why would so many authors think them important enough to tell them? What is the ghost story trying to tell us?
The ghost story is not a random anomaly amid the conversation of literature, but a voice contributing an essential part to the chorus of all Story. What happens when the unseen dimension of our lives suddenly becomes visible and the otherworld that normally remains on the periphery of our existence confronts us head on? We find ourselves in a ghost story. The essence of the Ghost story is not to bring a fresh horror into our perspective, but to make visible a supernatural reality that has always existed alongside us.
Learn why it is that the ghost story is the second half of the detective story, bridging the gap that lies between worlds seen and unseen because, in the words of Northrop Frye, death is all that makes sense of life in time.
Instructor: Addison Hornstra
Meet Time: This webinar will stream live on October 29th, 2026 at 7:00 PM ET with a runtime of approximately 90-120 minutes. The recording will be made available with lifetime access the next day in your HHL customer account.
Individual Price: $18 (Non-Refundable)
Family Price for 3 or more students: $50 (Non-Refundable)
Recommended Age: This webinar can be enjoyed by ages 12 and older. HHL middle school students regularly enjoy the webinars and mini-classes, but it depends on the individual 12-year-old.
How to access the class: After purchase, the link to the live session as well as the eventual recording of the webinar will be made available in the customer’s HHL account under “My Courses” with lifetime access.
Description
Join Addison Hornstra on October 29th for a discussion of the ghost story tradition and why it matters.
Perhaps the ghost story gives us a vital insight into what it means to be human living in the prison of Time.
Discover why it is that ghost stories are not told to scare us, but to give us courage.
The Literary field in the West saw a remarkable number of ghost stories published from the late 19th century well into the 20th. Authors like Charles Dickens, Walter de la Mare, W.B. Yeats, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Walter Scott (to name only a few) all tried their hand at tales of the weird and the supernatural. Any of the ghost stories with which we are most familiar, undoubtedly come from this period of time.
But, this literary movement was not a new presence in the world of story. The ghost story as a genre has existed for hundreds of years, not just in the West, but all over the world. It can be seen in the East going back to the Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio and beyond. With such a tenacious presence throughout time, we are forced to confront the impossibility that there is nothing more to these tales than an attempt to scare ourselves. If that was true, why would so many authors think them important enough to tell them? What is the ghost story trying to tell us?
The ghost story is not a random anomaly amid the conversation of literature, but a voice contributing an essential part to the chorus of all Story. What happens when the unseen dimension of our lives suddenly becomes visible and the otherworld that normally remains on the periphery of our existence confronts us head on? We find ourselves in a ghost story. The essence of the Ghost story is not to bring a fresh horror into our perspective, but to make visible a supernatural reality that has always existed alongside us.
Learn why it is that the ghost story is the second half of the detective story, bridging the gap that lies between worlds seen and unseen because, in the words of Northrop Frye, death is all that makes sense of life in time.
Instructor: Addison Hornstra
Meet Time: This webinar will stream live on October 29th, 2026 at 7:00 PM ET with a runtime of approximately 90-120 minutes. The recording will be made available with lifetime access the next day in your HHL customer account.
Individual Price: $18 (Non-Refundable)
Family Price for 3 or more students: $50 (Non-Refundable)
Recommended Age: This webinar can be enjoyed by ages 12 and older. HHL middle school students regularly enjoy the webinars and mini-classes, but it depends on the individual 12-year-old.
How to access the class: After purchase, the link to the live session as well as the eventual recording of the webinar will be made available in the customer’s HHL account under “My Courses” with lifetime access.
Additional information
| Number of Students | One Student, Two Students, Three or More Students |
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