Elise Wang, assistant professor of English, comparative literature and linguistics
Newswise — Cal State Fullerton Assistant Professor of English, Elise Wang, is Writing a Book on How Conspiracy Theories Shape Belief Systems
It is easy to find conspiracy theories even when you’re not looking for them, says Elise Wang, a Cal State Fullerton assistant professor of English, comparative literature and linguistics. To better understand the polarized political climate, Wang is studying historical literature and plans to write a book that explains why conspiracy theories are popular and tend to spread.
Wang, an expert in medieval literature, says conspiracy theories can be traced back to the Middle Ages. Wang’s upcoming book titled “That’s What They Want You to Think: Identifying Dangerous Conspiracy Theories” will look at miracle stories in medieval texts and more recent theories, including ones about 9/11 and government scandals involving powerful politicians.
She was one of 28 United States scholars selected for the 2024 Andrew Carnegie Fellows Program, which supports high-caliber scholarship and research in the social sciences and humanities. Researchers earn a $200,000 stipend to complete a two-year project. Wang is using it to write her book.
Wang says that once people find a theory that fits their perspective, it can be extremely difficult to dissuade them, and radicalization of those beliefs can lead to increased violence. Earlier this month, Wang discussed her other book “The Making of Felony Procedure in Middle English Literature” and the term “felon” with the New York Times.
“The more out of control we feel in our personal lives, in our work and in our world, the more we seek patterns to compensate,” says Wang. “This preference for patterns over noise is so strong that if the facts don’t match our experience of things, we will find a story that does.”
Wang can be reached for an interview at [email protected] and 847-323-9294.
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