The English Department Reading Series is thrilled to present poet Marianne Chan in a virtual reading and Q & A on March 29^th at 5 pm.

Sarabande Books notes, “Whether rewriting the origin story of Eve  - “I always imagined that the serpent had the legs of a seductive woman in black nylons” – or ruminating on what-should-have-been-said “when the man at the party said he wanted to own a Filipino,” Chan paints wry, witty renderings of anecdotal and folkloric histories, while both preserving and unveiling a self that dares any other to try and claim it.” Critic James Kimbrell notes “All Heathens is a debut of the highest order, an exuberant and eye-opening ride across centuries and continents that will leave its reader bedazzled, befriended, and grateful for this vital new voice.” And poet, Rick Barot writes, “When the outsiders, barbarians, and heathens finally tell the complicated truths of their experiences, the result is poetry like Chan’s  -- brash and wise, piercing and transformative.”

Marianne Chan grew up in Stuttgart, Germany, and Lansing, Michigan. She is the author of All Heathens (Sarabande Books, 2020), which was the winner of the 2021 GLCA New Writers Award in Poetry and the 2021 Ohioana Book Award in Poetry. Her poems have appeared in New England Review, Kenyon Review, The Cincinnati Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, and elsewhere. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Creative Writing and Literature at the University of Cincinnati.

Link to reading: 5pm-6pm

Comfort Udah, ‘13, is a former UMBC English student who earned her PhD in English at UCLA. Udah is completing a postdoctoral fellowship at Dartmouth College before she begins starting a position as an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. Read about her experience at UMBC and her journey through graduate studies below:

When I first arrived at UMBC in 2010, I was unsure of what major to pick. I knew that I wanted to be an educator and a teacher, but I was stuck between English and Psychology for a while. Then, the choice became easy once I got familiar with the English Department. I remember taking my first few English department classes, like ENGL 301, with Professor Falco and another one that introduced me to the world of critical theory taught by Professor Berman. Those first classes were a revelation for me. I enjoyed them very much, even though, and especially, because I found much of it challenging but fascinating. Both Dr. Berman and Dr. Falco set me on the course that has led to where I am today. They were very engaging and encouraging even when I had a hard time believing in my abilities. Today, I am a Postdoctoral fellow at Dartmouth College, preparing to take up a position as an Assistant Professor at The University of Toronto. I honestly cannot say that I would be here this early in my life, without the nurturing environment of this English department.

I found that there was a very high degree of investment in students in the English Department at UMBC. The story of how I became an English Honors student exemplifies this investment. I remember being in the old Department offices in the Fine Arts building. Having been too shy to attend office hours by myself, I had tagged along with a much more outspoken friend. On our way out, Dr. Falco stopped me to ask if I would be attending the information session on the Honors Program. I did know that this event was taking place, but I had not considered that I would be a candidate for it and I told him as much. I ended up not only attending but applying to the program because of my conversation with him that day. Once I was in the Honors Program, I began to see, through the close mentorship of Dr. Berman, that my goals were in fact within reach. I have wanted to be a professor since I was in secondary school, but I also always assumed that I could only pursue and achieve that goal much later in life. Thankfully, Jessica Berman quickly disabused me of this notion. Having the opportunity to work on an independent project, closely mentored and encouraged by my professors, was the boost I needed to pursue a doctoral degree. I have since earned my MA and PhD in English at UCLA.

Although I had to overcome a lot of personal obstacles–from my shyness, to the cultural shock of being an international student in the US, and so on–the people in this department made it all feel feasible. There were always people who made themselves available to me and other students, thus contributing to our growth and confidence as scholars and as individuals. I really could go on about every single one of them, but instead, I would just like to especially thank Lindsay DiCuirci, Michelle Osherow, Jean Fernandez, and, of course, Rafael Falco and Jessica Berman for all their support and the work that they put into making the department a fecund ground for nurturing young minds into well-rounded individuals.

At UCLA, I wrote a deeply interdisciplinary dissertation titled, “Unwritten Spaces: African literature and Charismatic Spatiality,” in which I focused on literary representations of Nigerian urban spaces and objects, using the concept of charisma as a fulcrum. As a Postdoctoral Fellow, I am working on a couple of smaller adjacent projects, still concerned with the idea of charismatic spatiality and storytelling agency. I will also begin work on a book manuscript based on my dissertation before I move to Toronto in 2022.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Sharon Tran for winning the Career Enhancement Fellowship from the Citizens and Scholars Institute! Dr. Tran's scholarship current book project, Minor Forms: The Affective and Aesthetic Economies of Asian Girlhood, explores Asian girlhood and anti-Asian racism. To read more, follow this link: https://news.umbc.edu/umbcs-sharon-tran-receives-a-career-enhancement-fellowship-for-writing-on-asian-girlhood-and-anti-asian-racism/

When I started my undergraduate studies at UMBC, I was pursuing a degree in the Computer Science track. It seemed like a good career option and fit with the ideas and aspirations I had for myself at the time. I had always loved English and writing, but I never considered studying it until after a full year of realization that Computer Science wasn’t meant for me.

At the beginning of my sophomore year, I changed tracks completely to pursue dual degrees in English and Psychology, even though I still wasn’t sure that those subjects were what I really wanted to study. It wasn’t until my second semester that year, when I took my first class in medieval literature, that I truly started to become passionate about my English degree. From classes on the poetry of World War I and William Blake, to seminars focused on the portrayal of food in medieval literature, I found myself exposed to a breadth of different subjects and works from all sorts of authors and time periods.

The professors I met here continuously encouraged me to advance my abilities and research into topics of my choice. I took a number of classes with Dr. McKinley, and her encouragement helped me to pursue topics I found interesting, providing me with insights and guidance along the way. The enthusiasm she and all the other professors showed for their subjects meant they kept themselves open to discussions both in and outside of class and provided the utmost support to the students studying with them. Now, I work for the federal government, utilizing the critical thinking and writing skills I gained in pursuit of my Bachelor’s degrees every day. Working at our headquarters office means handling a fast-paced and ever-changing environment, as we assist with the administrative tasks that allow for our nationwide offices to continue their own work in support of our mission. While I do sorely miss my time at UMBC with
the English department, my hope is to continue in this line of work and eventually pursue a graduate degree. Whether I stay with my current job or decide to change tracks again, I hope to carry the passion nurtured here with me along the way.

Guest artists visits for English 416/616: Shakespeare: Text and Performance

Instructor: Prof. Osherow

                                                     Sept. 7                  

        Paige Hathaway, Set Designer (A Midsummer Night's Dream)

                                                     Sept. 21                

             Matt Nielson, Sound Designer/Composer (Pericles)

                                                     Oct. 5                

         Devon Painter, Costume Designer (Measure for Measure)

                                                     Oct.12              

                     Aaron Posner, Director (Measure for Measure)

                                                     Nov. 2                

                         Casey Kaleba, Fight Director (Coriolanus)

                                                     Nov.16                 

                         Rosa Joshi, Director and Artistic Director

                                         Tyler Fauntleroy, Actor

                                             (Henry IV, Part 1)

                                                      Nov. 30              

                           Kate Eastwood Norris, Actor (Macbeth)

These artists will join ENGL 416/616 via zoom at 7:30 PM on the date of the event.

They will discuss their work staging Shakespeare, usually with attention to a specific text being read in ENGL 416/616.  

Please contact Dr. Osherow for a zoom link by 5PM on the day prior to the event: <mosherow@umbc.edu>. 

All interested students and faculty are welcome to attend. 

These guest visits are sponsored by the Dresher Center for the Humanities and the Department of English.