About the Journal

Into the Magic Circle (IMC) is an online, peer-reviewed interdisciplinary journal on the cultural and social theory of the play-element of society, politics, culture, arts, and everyday life. The journal welcomes all relevant approaches of the social sciences and humanities domain to reflect on the phenomenon and philosophy of game and the problem of play in times of modernity, and related topics. The title refers to the theory of the Dutch historian Johan Huizinga, who wrote the first ground-breaking essay on the importance of game and play in every aspect of our lives: Homo Ludens.

Besides journal articles, IMC also translates and (re)publishes highlights from the historical reception of Homo Ludens, in order to make important reflections on game and play accessible for a world-wide audience. These texts are labeled Capita Selecta: The Homo Ludens Reception, and one of them can be found in every new issue. 

Current Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024): Into the Magic Circle
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