My research focuses on franchise studies, genre studies (especially science fiction, fantasy, and horror), American literature and culture, and media studies.
keywords
Franchise studies, genre (especially science fiction, fantasy and horror), 20th and 21st-century American literature, history, culture, media and technology studies, late capitalism
ENGL 1001 - Writing, Reading, Culture
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2018
This course provides training and practice in writing and critical thinking with a focus on literary and cultural studies. We will emphasize reading, the writing process, the fundamentals of composition, and the structure of arguments. There will be varied writing assignments with opportunities for revision.
ENGL 1220 - From Gothic to Horror
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2019
Explores literature in the Gothic mode and aesthetic and critical theories related to modern "horror" genres or their precursors. Introduces literary-critical concepts (such as notions of abjection, repression and anxiety) that developed alongside this branch of literature. Students read canonical works in British and American traditions while reflecting on notions of popular or marginalized literature.
ENGL 2026 - Popular Culture, Critical Reading
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2022 / Fall 2022 / Fall 2023 / Fall 2024
This course engages with forms of popular culture (for example, franchises, graphic novels, genre fiction, video games, trashy books) and considers how we can analyze these cultural forms critically. Students read a range of criticism written by amateurs, fans, journalists, social media, critics, and scholars, and will consider how the production of these cultural forms are shaped by different audiences.
ENGL 2112 - Introduction to Literary Theory
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2018 / Spring 2021 / Spring 2023
This course introduces students to a wide range of critical theories essential to the study of literature. Critical theories have broad applications because they provide ways to interpret all cultural products, including visual arts, music, and writing. We will investigate some of the major movements relevant to literary studies, which may include, for example, cultural studies, structuralism, feminisms, ecocriticism, critical race theories, postmodern theory, media theories, etc.
ENGL 2212 - Science Fiction
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2024
This course examines science fiction novels, short stories, and movies, paying close attention to what they teach us about our world. How do these works speculate about the future and alternative realms, and how do they portray our hopes and fears for the promises and limits of technology? Science fiction thinks about ways in which bodies, individuals, and societies might be different, and imagines ways of being and living other than our present.
ENGL 3060 - Modern and Contemporary Literature for Nonmajors
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2018 / Summer 2018 / Fall 2018 / Spring 2019
Close study of significant 20th-century poetry, drama, and prose works. Readings range from 1920s to the present.
ENGL 3246 - Topics in Popular Culture
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2020 / Spring 2024
Studies special topics in popular culture; specially designed for English majors. Topics vary each semester. May be repeated for a total of 6 credit hours for different topics.
ENGL 3377 - Literatures of Race, Multiculturalism, Ethnicity
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2021
Race-related controversies are constantly in the news, and college is when many of us form opinions on these topics. Exploring the literatures of race, multiculturalism, and ethnicity alongside and beyond traditional classics can help us become more informed members of society. This course will help students understand how reading literary and cultural texts and media consumption can shape our assumptions of shared belonging or unbridgeable differences. Topics vary each semester. Check department description for details. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours for different topics.
ENGL 3856 - Topics in Genre Studies
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2022
Studies special topics in genre studies; specially designed for English majors. Topics vary each semester. May be repeated for a total of 6 credit hours for different topics.
ENGL 3930 - Internship
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2021
Provides academically supervised opportunity for upper-division students to work in public or private organizations on projects related to students' career goals and to relate classroom theory to practice. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours. Department enforced prerequisite: 3.0 GPA and faculty supervision.
ENGL 4039 - Capstone in Literary Studies
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Fall 2021 / Spring 2023 / Fall 2024
Topic varies by section, but all sections include small seminar discussions and focus on an individualized research project related to the topic. This course will draw on skills from previous courses in critical reading, thinking, and writing and will culminate in high-level discussions and in the final project. May be repeated up to 9 total credit hours.
ENGL 4830 - Honors Thesis
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Spring 2022 / Fall 2022 / Spring 2023 / Fall 2023
Students accepted to English Departmental Honors are enrolled in this course.
ENGL 5019 - Survey of Contemporary Literary and Cultural Theory
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Fall 2021 / Fall 2022
Introduces a variety of critical and theoretical practices informing contemporary literary and cultural studies. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours.
ENGL 5529 - Studies in Special Topics 1
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2020 / Fall 2023
Studies special topics that focus on a theme, genre, or theoretical issue not limited to a specific period or national tradition. Topics vary each semester. May be repeated up to 9 total credit hours.
