Speaking at a drinks reception in February with our Head of Department, Professor Tim Allen, I began to realise where lines can cross between early modern studies and the fields of international development and social anthropology. … More Unexpected Conversations: Professor Tim Allen
My recent work on Marvell and ekphrasis explores several ways in which the poet negotiates the transition between text and visual object to advance his personal and political poetics. Here, I consider how we might view ‘The Gallery’ in light of recent ekphrastic debates. … More A Brush with Ekphrasis: Marvell’s ‘The Gallery’
The acknowledgements to my doctoral dissertation, submitted 26th September 2013, as they read. … More “Born more than for myself”: Acknowledgements
This week marked the fourth anniversary of Writing Privacy. Time for a long-overdue makeover, I thought. And perhaps more importantly, time for a change. … More Time For A Change
At the time of the year when we are drawn to reflect upon companionship, a look at seventeenth-century poet Andrew Marvell’s way of coming to terms with its absence. … More Epic Fail: Andrew Marvell’s Definition of Love
Writing the final chapter of my thesis has been traumatic. The internal negotiations that Marvell faced and the impossibility of choice he so often found himself with leave him trapped in a life that offers so little solace. … More Broken Dreams: Marvell’s Poetics of Privacy
New material on Marvell’s ‘Horatian Ode’ excites me more than any other subject, I would wager. It is one of the iconic poems upon which every Marvellian faces his or her own judgement day. … More Reading the Small Print: Marvell’s Horatian Ode
I’ve often thought that Andrew Marvell’s life and my own show distinct traces of overlap, and it’s never escaped me that this may be one of the reasons why I identify so closely with his writing. … More Writing Lives: Marvell and Biography
The Fairfax 400 Conference took place at the Centre for English Local History, University of Leicester, on June 30th and July 1st, commemorating the 400th anniversary of the birth of Thomas, Lord Fairfax (1612-1671). … More The Fairfax 400 Anniversary Conference
Andrew Marvell’s ‘The Character of Holland’ was composed, though not published, in early 1653. So who was it written for, and why? A brief exploration. … More Resourcefulness: Marvell’s ‘The Character of Holland’
Writing Privacy 