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Ellen Walker

Ellen Walker

Email [email protected]

Internet Folklore- Sociocultural Implications of Folk Narratives and Characters in Contemporary Online Communities

My thesis positions the study of online community rituals and behaviours within the theoretical framework of folklore studies, whilst moving across other registers of academic discourse in digital studies, namely transmedia studies, posthumanist philosophy and media anthropology. I propose the following question – How do processes of dissemination and community ritual that have structured traditional folk narratives influence cultural expression on contemporary social platforms? Complementing this theoretical framework is the rhetorical use of comic illustrations, which punctuate the analyses by visually representing the dialogue between image and narrative as it manifests in folklore. The approach of using comics to present scholarly analysis is demonstrated in this thesis as a culmination of previous studies which have highlighted the format as valuable for engaging in pedagogical and academic contexts.

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Gallery

  • The Falling Man

    The Falling Man

    Ellen Walker

  • "The Karen Meme"

    The Karen Meme

    Ellen Walker

  • Capybara comic

    The Capybara

    Ellen Walker

More about Ellen

Ellen is an award-winning illustrator, cartoonist and writer based in the UK. She is currently studying for a PhD in Communications at the Royal College of Art in London. Her debut graphic novel UNREAL is scheduled to be published by Little, Brown Ink in 2026. She has written for multiple publications including WIRED magazine, History Today and JSTOR Daily.

MA Visual Communication, Royal College of Art, London, 2019–21

BA (Hons) Illustration, Falmouth University, 2015–18

Merit Award- iJungle Illustration Awards (2017)

Emerging and Established Award- Cheltenham Illustration Awards (2019)

Highly Commended- Cheltenham Illustration Awards (2019)

Merit Award- iJungle Illustration Awards (2019)

Merit Award- iJungle Illustration Awards (2021)

Runner Up- Creative Quarterly 70 (CQ70) (2022)

Silver Award (Comics)- iJungle Illustration Awards (2022)

Falmouth University BA Illustration Degree Show (2018)

New Designers (2018)

D&AD New Blood (2018)

Bridgnorth Open House Arts Trail (2019)

Bridgnorth & District Art Society Exhibition (2019)

Cheltenham Illustration Award Winners Exhibition- Museum in the Park, Stroud (2019)

RCA WIP Show (2021)

RCA MA Visual Communication Graduate Show (2021)

Black Botanicals - The Root of Caribbean Medicine (2022)