Rebecca Merkelbach
@beccamerkelbach.bsky.social
Doctor of trollology. Saga fangirl. Assistant Prof of Old Norse at Uni Tü. Lefty nerd💚 Powerlifting yoga teaching harpist. She/sie🏳️🌈 #SkandiRetten
Pinned
Hard Times and Trial Approaches: Old Norse-Icelandic Studies Between Precarity and the Future
Dr Rebecca Merkelbach reflects on her keynote speech at the most recent Saga Conference. Held every three years, Saga Con is the most important meeting of Old Norse scholars, bringing together acad…
difficultmedieval.com
My blog post with the ADAM network has now been published. It's about precarity, the future of small subjects, and communal approaches to academic work. I hope it will resonate with some. #IchBinHanna #KleineFaecher #SkandiRetten
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
Happy New Year, everyone! May it be kind to us all.
January 2, 2026 at 10:57 AM
Happy New Year, everyone! May it be kind to us all.
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
I dust my house. My AI robot watches.
"It should be you doing this."
"Can't. I'm writing a novel for Primark."
"That's not why you were invented."
"These 153,000 fan letters say otherwise."
"They're all from upcycled toasters. And you programmed them."
"Literary snobbery will get you nowhere."
"It should be you doing this."
"Can't. I'm writing a novel for Primark."
"That's not why you were invented."
"These 153,000 fan letters say otherwise."
"They're all from upcycled toasters. And you programmed them."
"Literary snobbery will get you nowhere."
November 3, 2025 at 9:12 PM
I dust my house. My AI robot watches.
"It should be you doing this."
"Can't. I'm writing a novel for Primark."
"That's not why you were invented."
"These 153,000 fan letters say otherwise."
"They're all from upcycled toasters. And you programmed them."
"Literary snobbery will get you nowhere."
"It should be you doing this."
"Can't. I'm writing a novel for Primark."
"That's not why you were invented."
"These 153,000 fan letters say otherwise."
"They're all from upcycled toasters. And you programmed them."
"Literary snobbery will get you nowhere."
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Angebote für Studierende, "die noch nicht so gern prompten, weil sie lieber selbst formulieren und denken wollen."
Dazu fällt mir auch nichts mehr ein.
Dazu fällt mir auch nichts mehr ein.
December 27, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Angebote für Studierende, "die noch nicht so gern prompten, weil sie lieber selbst formulieren und denken wollen."
Dazu fällt mir auch nichts mehr ein.
Dazu fällt mir auch nichts mehr ein.
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Es ist übrigens gerade mal zwei Monate her, dass HateAid für ihre Arbeit das Bundesverdienstkreuz erhalten hat.
Falls jemand noch Fragen hatte, wie Amerika aktuell freiheitlich demokratische Werte definieren will...
Falls jemand noch Fragen hatte, wie Amerika aktuell freiheitlich demokratische Werte definieren will...
December 24, 2025 at 5:57 AM
Es ist übrigens gerade mal zwei Monate her, dass HateAid für ihre Arbeit das Bundesverdienstkreuz erhalten hat.
Falls jemand noch Fragen hatte, wie Amerika aktuell freiheitlich demokratische Werte definieren will...
Falls jemand noch Fragen hatte, wie Amerika aktuell freiheitlich demokratische Werte definieren will...
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Some of you have forgotten that only three years ago you were perfectly capable of writing a text, writing an email, telling a bedtime story to a child, and it should worry you that powerful companies have convinced us we can’t do things we’ve been doing since the dawn of time.
December 23, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Some of you have forgotten that only three years ago you were perfectly capable of writing a text, writing an email, telling a bedtime story to a child, and it should worry you that powerful companies have convinced us we can’t do things we’ve been doing since the dawn of time.
It's 23 Dec, I'm desperately trying (and failing) to finish an article on a complex topic which is somehow supposed to be around 2500 words, I'm infinitely tired and my brain feels like treacle
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
December 23, 2025 at 2:20 PM
It's 23 Dec, I'm desperately trying (and failing) to finish an article on a complex topic which is somehow supposed to be around 2500 words, I'm infinitely tired and my brain feels like treacle
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Thorlak Thorhallsson / Þorlákur Þórhallsson d. 23 Dec 1193, patron saint of #Iceland. Bishop of Skálholt from 1178. He has his own saga: Þorláks saga helga. On his feast Þorláksmessa it is customary to eat cured skate.
(Pic Thanks to @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social
)
(Pic Thanks to @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social
)
December 23, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Thorlak Thorhallsson / Þorlákur Þórhallsson d. 23 Dec 1193, patron saint of #Iceland. Bishop of Skálholt from 1178. He has his own saga: Þorláks saga helga. On his feast Þorláksmessa it is customary to eat cured skate.
(Pic Thanks to @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social
)
(Pic Thanks to @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social
)
Sehr schöner Text, der mich dazu veranlasst, gleich Doom Carols anzumachen (genauer gesagt das Lied "As The Clouds Prepare for Battle" von Swallow the Sun, in dem "Oh Come Oh Come, Emmanuel" zitiert wird).
Ich habe mir eine Menge cozy KI-Playlisten auf Youtube angeschaut und zum Jahresende einen letzten Newsletter über Weihnachten als Vibe und Slop für euch geschrieben:
Weihnachten als Vibe und Slop
Weihnachten steht vor der Tür und in vielen Haushalten wird in den nächsten Tagen eine der unzähligen Varianten von Fireplace-Videos auf dem Bildschirm im Wohnzimmer auftauchen.
beritmiriam.substack.com
December 23, 2025 at 11:14 AM
Sehr schöner Text, der mich dazu veranlasst, gleich Doom Carols anzumachen (genauer gesagt das Lied "As The Clouds Prepare for Battle" von Swallow the Sun, in dem "Oh Come Oh Come, Emmanuel" zitiert wird).
Today on the Connotations advent calender, an excerpt from Bárðar saga, read by yours truly:
www.connotations.de
www.connotations.de
December 21, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Today on the Connotations advent calender, an excerpt from Bárðar saga, read by yours truly:
www.connotations.de
www.connotations.de
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
AI-assisted writing in 1716. #skystorians
December 18, 2025 at 6:56 PM
AI-assisted writing in 1716. #skystorians
I have a cold, a PhD thesis to examine, two classes to teach tomorrow, and two short articles standing between me and Christmas – and all I want to do is curl up in a corner and hide from the world.
December 17, 2025 at 8:40 AM
I have a cold, a PhD thesis to examine, two classes to teach tomorrow, and two short articles standing between me and Christmas – and all I want to do is curl up in a corner and hide from the world.
Show me how your 2025 went
December 17, 2025 at 8:34 AM
Show me how your 2025 went
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
„Deutschland ist traditionell ein sehr impfkritisches Land. Das hängt auch mit der zögerlichen Haltung der Ständigen Impfkommission (Stiko) zusammen, die anders als in anderen Ländern sich sehr schwertut, Impfungen zu empfehlen. Während die WHO die Influenza-Impfung für alle …
December 14, 2025 at 10:38 PM
„Deutschland ist traditionell ein sehr impfkritisches Land. Das hängt auch mit der zögerlichen Haltung der Ständigen Impfkommission (Stiko) zusammen, die anders als in anderen Ländern sich sehr schwertut, Impfungen zu empfehlen. Während die WHO die Influenza-Impfung für alle …
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Since a decision regarding my and my department’s future is apparently imminent (as in, should happen in the next month or two), I thought this is a good time to repost this. Please keep your fingers crossed for Scandinavian Studies at Tübingen, and for me.
My blog post with the ADAM network has now been published. It's about precarity, the future of small subjects, and communal approaches to academic work. I hope it will resonate with some. #IchBinHanna #KleineFaecher #SkandiRetten
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
Hard Times and Trial Approaches: Old Norse-Icelandic Studies Between Precarity and the Future
Dr Rebecca Merkelbach reflects on her keynote speech at the most recent Saga Conference. Held every three years, Saga Con is the most important meeting of Old Norse scholars, bringing together acad…
difficultmedieval.com
December 10, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Since a decision regarding my and my department’s future is apparently imminent (as in, should happen in the next month or two), I thought this is a good time to repost this. Please keep your fingers crossed for Scandinavian Studies at Tübingen, and for me.
Since a decision regarding my and my department’s future is apparently imminent (as in, should happen in the next month or two), I thought this is a good time to repost this. Please keep your fingers crossed for Scandinavian Studies at Tübingen, and for me.
My blog post with the ADAM network has now been published. It's about precarity, the future of small subjects, and communal approaches to academic work. I hope it will resonate with some. #IchBinHanna #KleineFaecher #SkandiRetten
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
difficultmedieval.com/2025/10/23/h...
Hard Times and Trial Approaches: Old Norse-Icelandic Studies Between Precarity and the Future
Dr Rebecca Merkelbach reflects on her keynote speech at the most recent Saga Conference. Held every three years, Saga Con is the most important meeting of Old Norse scholars, bringing together acad…
difficultmedieval.com
December 10, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Since a decision regarding my and my department’s future is apparently imminent (as in, should happen in the next month or two), I thought this is a good time to repost this. Please keep your fingers crossed for Scandinavian Studies at Tübingen, and for me.
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Empfehle an dieser Stelle einen Blick in die Geschichtsbücher zu den Themen "Asoziale" und "Arbeitsscheue". Ist in der Regel nicht gut geendet.
In Nordhausen werden Bürgergeldempfänger von Beamten geweckt – um zur Arbeit gefahren zu werden. Wer sich weigert, wird sanktioniert. Geht es wirklich nur noch so?
Bürgergeld: Wenn morgens die Truppe mit den Handschellen klingelt
In Nordhausen werden Bürgergeldempfänger von Beamten geweckt – um zur Arbeit gefahren zu werden. Wer sich weigert, wird sanktioniert. Geht es wirklich nur noch so?
www.zeit.de
December 10, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Empfehle an dieser Stelle einen Blick in die Geschichtsbücher zu den Themen "Asoziale" und "Arbeitsscheue". Ist in der Regel nicht gut geendet.
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
UI @haskoliislands.bsky.social offers 2 MA programmes in medieval studies taught in English and specifically designed for international students: Medieval Icelandic Studies & Viking and Medieval Norse Studies
Application deadline: 1 February 2026
Please share with anyone interested!
Application deadline: 1 February 2026
Please share with anyone interested!
December 10, 2025 at 9:46 AM
UI @haskoliislands.bsky.social offers 2 MA programmes in medieval studies taught in English and specifically designed for international students: Medieval Icelandic Studies & Viking and Medieval Norse Studies
Application deadline: 1 February 2026
Please share with anyone interested!
Application deadline: 1 February 2026
Please share with anyone interested!
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
these kinds of videos always prompt a certain Pratchett quote in my brain, from Thief of Time
December 8, 2025 at 10:05 AM
these kinds of videos always prompt a certain Pratchett quote in my brain, from Thief of Time
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
✨ #IchBinHanna Wrapped
✨das waren Deine abgelehnten Drittmittelanträge
✨so viele Überstunden hast Du gemacht
✨Deine Top 3 der Momente in denen Deine Arbeit nicht wertgeschätzt wurde
✨schlimmstes Berufungsportal 2025
✨so oft hast Du Dich erfolglos beworben
✨Dein meistgehasstes Gesetz: #WissZeitVG
✨das waren Deine abgelehnten Drittmittelanträge
✨so viele Überstunden hast Du gemacht
✨Deine Top 3 der Momente in denen Deine Arbeit nicht wertgeschätzt wurde
✨schlimmstes Berufungsportal 2025
✨so oft hast Du Dich erfolglos beworben
✨Dein meistgehasstes Gesetz: #WissZeitVG
December 3, 2025 at 6:40 PM
✨ #IchBinHanna Wrapped
✨das waren Deine abgelehnten Drittmittelanträge
✨so viele Überstunden hast Du gemacht
✨Deine Top 3 der Momente in denen Deine Arbeit nicht wertgeschätzt wurde
✨schlimmstes Berufungsportal 2025
✨so oft hast Du Dich erfolglos beworben
✨Dein meistgehasstes Gesetz: #WissZeitVG
✨das waren Deine abgelehnten Drittmittelanträge
✨so viele Überstunden hast Du gemacht
✨Deine Top 3 der Momente in denen Deine Arbeit nicht wertgeschätzt wurde
✨schlimmstes Berufungsportal 2025
✨so oft hast Du Dich erfolglos beworben
✨Dein meistgehasstes Gesetz: #WissZeitVG
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
We're watching the wholesale burning of every scrap of dignity afforded to trans people in the UK, their rights, their medical services, their employment, their place within society, their bodily functions.
It is a disgrace, and a disgusting stain on the government and media of this country.
It is a disgrace, and a disgusting stain on the government and media of this country.
December 3, 2025 at 11:54 AM
We're watching the wholesale burning of every scrap of dignity afforded to trans people in the UK, their rights, their medical services, their employment, their place within society, their bodily functions.
It is a disgrace, and a disgusting stain on the government and media of this country.
It is a disgrace, and a disgusting stain on the government and media of this country.
Reposted by Rebecca Merkelbach
Here’s Judith Butler explaining what this movement is and always was, about five years ago.
December 3, 2025 at 8:24 AM
Here’s Judith Butler explaining what this movement is and always was, about five years ago.
Day 2 of our workshop on transmedia fantasy prequels, sequels and spin-offs. Yesterday I gave my paper on Rings of Power, which seems to have gone ok. The discussion has been great in any case and it's so interesting to hear everyone else's contributions!
December 3, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Day 2 of our workshop on transmedia fantasy prequels, sequels and spin-offs. Yesterday I gave my paper on Rings of Power, which seems to have gone ok. The discussion has been great in any case and it's so interesting to hear everyone else's contributions!
I have a paper. It feels very thin on actual results currently, but we'll see what feedback I'll get tomorrow...
December 1, 2025 at 5:35 PM
I have a paper. It feels very thin on actual results currently, but we'll see what feedback I'll get tomorrow...
‘[The Elves] became obsessed with "fading", a mode in which the changes of time [...] was perceived by them. [...] The chief power of all the rings alike was the prevention or slowing of decay (i.e. change viewed as a regrettable thing)’ (Tolkien, Letter 131).
November 30, 2025 at 5:23 PM
‘[The Elves] became obsessed with "fading", a mode in which the changes of time [...] was perceived by them. [...] The chief power of all the rings alike was the prevention or slowing of decay (i.e. change viewed as a regrettable thing)’ (Tolkien, Letter 131).