Lectures on Tap - "The Surprising Link Between Comics and Empathy"
About this Event
📍 Location: Exact address given in confirmation email
🧠 Lecture: "The Surprising Link Between Comics and Empathy"
🎤 Speaker: Dr. Keegan Lannon
Join us for a fascinating evening as Dr. Keegan Lannon explores how comics can actually help us become more empathetic humans. Recent neuroscience research suggests that reading—especially fiction—strengthens our ability to empathize by activating the same neural pathways we use when we relate to others in real life.
Between 2023 and 2025, Dr. Lannon conducted an experiment with several sections of his introductory comics course to examine how reading comics might shape empathy. In this talk, he will unpack the neuroscience of empathy and reading, share data and insights from his study, and highlight reflections from students who participated in the experiment.
Dr. Keegan Lannon is a senior lecturer at the University of Illinois Chicago, where he teaches courses on comics, rhetoric, and writing.
Come discover how panels, speech bubbles, and visual storytelling might be quietly rewiring our capacity to care about one another.
Get a drink, connect, and learn at Lectures on Tap! 🙌
Agenda
6:30 PM – Doors open: find a seat (open seating!), order food & drinks, and expect a bar line—arriving early is key.
6:55 PM – Host introduction
7:00 PM – Lecture begins
7:45 PM – Audience Q&A
8:00 PM – Have 1:1 time with the speaker, mingle with fellow guests, and order another round
8:30 PM – Wrap up.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 39.19
