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New Duke English Faculty Members

This fall, the Duke English department will have three new additions to its faculty. The department welcomes Professors Marguerite Nguyen, Associate Professor of English; Professor Richard Jean So, Associate Professor of English; and Professor Timothy Heimlich, Assistant Professor of English.Associate Professor of English - Marguerite Nguyen Professor Nguyen, a Duke English alum, joins the department from Wesleyan University. Her studies have focused on American… read more »

'25-26 Visiting Blackburn Artist-in-Residence, Camille Bordas

Novelist, short story writer and academic Camille Bordas will join Duke English as the '25-26 Visiting Blackburn Artist-in-Residence. Bordas will be the department's third Visiting Blackburn Artist-in-Residence. She has taught at the University of Florida and written for notable publications, including The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Tin House, Chicago Magazine, and LitHub.Each Blackburn Artist-in-Residence selection is an author who also has teaching experience, at least one published book, has other… read more »

Looking South for the Roots of the Harlem Renaissance: Jarvis McInnis Examines “Afterlives of the Plantation”

Jarvis McInnis, associate professor of English, is an interdisciplinary scholar of African American and African Diaspora literature and culture. His first book, “Afterlives of the Plantation: Plotting Agrarian Futures in the Global Black South,” was released by Columbia University Press in May. In it, McInnis rethinks the plantation in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a repurposed site of agrarian worldmaking and a critical space for the reimagining of Black futures.We caught up with McInnis to find… read more »

The Risk of Serialized Reality: On Big Fiction and The New Seriality

When David Lynch died, the internet filled with quotes from him. I usually cringe at these sudden and predictable proliferations of soundbites that become nearly meaningless in their ubiquity. The point in moments like this is to show that you are the kind of person who posts a David Lynch quote, the quote itself is secondary at best, you might as well just post a square with the words “David Lynch Quote.” This time though, there was one quote that made its way through to me, that stuck in my brain, looping. “Ideas are like… read more »

How Should We Think About the Renaissance?

All historical periods are created twice: first in their own age, and again in the work of their interpreters. But this truism applies in a special sense to the Renaissance, an era whose intellectuals developed a new orientation to history, before becoming the whetstone on which one generation of historians after another honed their ideas. It is this double story that Ada Palmer tells in Inventing the Renaissance: The Myth of a Golden Age, a quirky, meandering, and cumulatively brilliant popular history of the… read more »

A Man Uncovers His In-Laws’ Twisted Secrets in Amin Ahmad’s "A Killer in the Family"

Marrying into a wealthy family that also comes with a job opportunity sounds pretty great — until a dark secret comes to lightThat's the premise behind Amin Ahmad's mystery A Killer in the Family, PEOPLE can exclusively announce. The book is forthcoming next year from Henry Holt and Company, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers.Muslim bachelor Ali Azeem thinks he’s made it big when he joins an arranged marriage with Maryam Khan, the daughter of one of New York’s wealthiest tycoons. Ali leaves his hometown of… read more »

Eight Trinity College of Arts & Sciences Faculty Honored With Named Professorships

Eight faculty in Duke University’s Trinity College of Arts & Sciences have been honored with named professorships, effective July 1.These endowed positions recognize leadership and commitment to excellence in scholarship and research. Their recipients are outstanding teachers, mentors and researchers whose contributions are invaluable to the College of Arts & Sciences, as well as their students and colleagues.“Trinity is defined by the strength of its faculty, and we are extraordinarily fortunate to count these… read more »

Lizzie Apple, 2025 Stephen Horne Award for Excellence in Teaching Winner

Duke English proudly announces that Lizzie Apple, a fourth-year Duke English PhD candidate, has received the 2025 Stephen Horne Award for Excellence in Teaching. Candidates in consideration for this award are nominated by their students, and the Director of Graduate Studies in conjunction with the DGS Advisory Committee selects the winner. Six students in Apple’s English 90S “Literature and Medicine” course taught during the Fall ’24 semester nominated her for this honor.Her course description shared with interested… read more »

Trinity Faculty Join New Projects to Deepen Engagement and Improve the Faculty Experience

The Office for Faculty Advancement has awarded seed grants to six new projects led by Duke faculty members. The theme for this grant cycle is “Deepening Engagement and Improving the Faculty Experience.”Faculty were invited to propose creative approaches to strengthening faculty communities and relationships; innovative initiatives to improve the culture in departments, centers and schools; and new faculty groups that deepen engagement on topics relevant to the faculty experience.The seed grant program will provide financial… read more »

English 208: Philosophy of Modern Song Radio Show

This Spring, Professor Taylor Black taught English 208: Philosophy of Modern Song Radio Show, a course, he noted in its description, “for people who listen to music seriously and are interested in expanding their powers of critical reception.”  To conclude the class, students submitted their final portfolio, which consisted of writing pieces that had been workshopped during the semester, reflecting on how they related to critical texts the class had surveyed. Below are links to the… read more »

Class of 2025 Honors: Exploring the Big Questions

Undergraduate research is one of the cornerstones of a Duke education. More than half of the undergraduates leave Duke after doing an honors project, independent study or other faculty-mentored research.“At Duke, undergraduate research is more than an opportunity — it’s part of our culture,” said Deb Reisinger, dean of undergraduate education. “From their very first year on campus, students are encouraged to explore big questions, test ideas, and engage directly with faculty mentors across every discipline. Whether in an… read more »

“The Fiction Fix” Workshop Series

“The Fiction Fix” Workshop SeriesThis Spring semester, Duke English Professors JP Gritton and Mesha Maren, in conjunction with Duke Arts and the Writers Collective, hosted a series of writer's workshops featuring local writers who provided insight on how to work through elements of one's writing. From January to April, monthly workshops were held to showcase the talents of local writers and discuss a specific aspect of writing.The series started with Professors Maren and Griffon leading a workshop… read more »

Class of 2025 Honors: Exploring the Big Questions

Undergraduate research is one of the cornerstones of a Duke education. More than half of the undergraduates leave Duke after doing an honors project, independent study or other faculty-mentored research.“At Duke, undergraduate research is more than an opportunity — it’s part of our culture,” said Deb Reisinger, dean of undergraduate education. “From their very first year on campus, students are encouraged to explore big questions, test ideas, and engage directly with faculty mentors across every discipline. Whether in an… read more »

A Celebration of Senior Theses at Undergraduate Distinction Day

Each year, the Duke English Department proudly showcases the exceptional work of its graduating seniors during Undergraduate Distinction Day. This special event honors students who have gone the extra mile to graduate with distinction—through completing a senior honors thesis crafted with tireless dedication, insight, and creativity. Here is a glimpse into the works presented by the first panel:Drew Temel "The detective simply asked about Eric's history. Keegan had no… read more »

A Talk by Nadia Davids: The Chronicling of Memory in District 6, Cape Town

On March 25, I attended a talk by Nadia Davids entitled “Performance in the Aftermath: Mourning and memorializing District 6. Davids spent her childhood in District 6, Capetown, and following its demolition, has written several plays and novels in efforts to keep its memory alive. “An Imperfect Blessing”, her debut novel, was shortlisted for the Pan-African Etisalat prize for literature, and her most recent novel, “Kept Fever,” will be published in 2025. I knew nothing about the subject before attending, but was entranced… read more »

Bridging the Divide: The Intersection of STEM and the Humanities

Some of the most influential scientists of all time, including Albert Einstein, recognized the necessity of the Humanities as a counterpart for scientific inquiry. However, this opinion is not widespread. Many believe subjects within the STEM field to be more “real-world-applicable” than their Humanities counterparts– a perception reflected by the upward trend of STEM degree paths among undergraduate students. And as the interest gap between the Sciences and the Humanities widens, some academics are beginning to wonder if… read more »

Fostering Mentorship: Graduate-Student Taught Courses

Having completed two semesters worth of college classes, I’ve encountered my fair share of professors– all with differing backgrounds, levels of experience, instruction strategies, and areas of focus. This diversity is one of Duke’s greatest strengths. But perhaps the most intriguing student-teacher dynamic that I’ve observed is one in which an instructor is able to relate to their pupils on a fundamental level. Fostering these unique relationships are none other than the 500 or so graduate students who double as professors… read more »

Top 5 for 2025: English Classes for Incoming Freshman

With First-Year registration for Fall semester quickly approaching, it can be difficult to navigate the plethora of classes offered by Duke. In my own experience, balancing the excitement of choosing from such a diverse selection of subject matter and the logical instinct to fulfill degree requirements has been no easy feat. As an English major about to begin my second year of undergraduate education, here are the top five English classes that I think incoming freshmen could benefit from adding to their shopping carts:… read more »