Researching the Archive
The Yearlong Dissertation Seminar co-directed by Carole Levin and Alan Stewart

This monthly seminar focuses on the wealth of archival material available for the study of the history, culture, society, and literature of early modern Britain and Europe. Seminar participants will explore a variety of printed and manuscript sources relevant to both English and History Ph.D. candidates and will learn (with the assistance of Folger staff) some essential research skills. Throughout, the goal will be to foster interdisciplinary scholarship while considering broad methodological and theoretical problems relevant to current work in early modern studies. Preference will be given to applicants who have completed course work and preliminary exams; they should be preparing a prospectus or beginning to write chapters and be ready to make significant use of the Folger’s collections as part of their monthly visits. Applicants should consult with their dissertation directors before applying to ensure that their work is at a stage that would benefit from the seminar, and their directors should certify that this is the case in their recommendation letters. Those whose dissertations are substantially complete will not be competitive applicants.

Directors: Carole Levin is Willa Cather Professor of History at the University of Nebraska. She is the author of a number of books including The Heart and Stomach of a King: Elizabeth I and the Politics of Sex and Power (1994); Dreaming the English Renaissance: Politics and Desire in Court and Culture (2008); and (with John Watkins) Shakespeare’s Foreign Worlds: National and Transnational Identities in the Elizabethan Age (2009). Alan Stewart is Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. He works on early modern literature, history, and culture, with particular interests in life-writing, manuscript studies, letters, and the history of sexuality. His recent books include Shakespeare’s Letters (2008), volume 1 (2012) of The Oxford Francis Bacon, and volume 2, Early Modern (2018), of The Oxford History of Life-Writing.

Schedule: Friday afternoons, 1:00–4:30 p.m., 28 September, 19 October, 16 November, 14 December 2018; 25 January, 22 February, 8 March, and 26 April 2019.

Apply: 11 June 2018 for admission and grants-in-aid. This seminar is limited to consortium affiliates only. Applications should be submitted through our online portal: https://www.folger.edu/application-information-and-guidelines

 

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