Professor
My teaching and research interests focus on medieval literature and language. I'm particularly interested in social anxieties associated with change and variation in the history of English, also in the ways in which language uses in literature and everyday settings relate to one another and also in the relations between the disciplines of linguistics and literary studies. To this end, I regularly teach courses on Chaucer, Old English, and the history of the English language. My most recent book is Language Anxiety: Conflict and Change in the History of English (Oxford, 2009).
Teaching Fields
- English Linguistics
- Medieval Literature
- Old Norse Literature
Office Hours
Spring 2013
- Mon 10:00-12:00
- Wed 10:00-11:00
Teaching Schedule
Spring 2013
- 2931/101, Topics: Antique Origin of Engl Lit, MWF 8:00-8:50, LL310
- 4130/101, History of the Engl Lang, MWF 9:00-9:50, DS469
Research Interests
- Medieval Literature
- Linguistics
Selected Publications
- Vafþrúðnismál, 2nd ed. Toronto, 2008.
- Chaucer's 'Boece.' Carl Winter, 2007.
- Sources of the 'Boece.' Georgia, 2005.
- English in the Middle Ages. Oxford, 2003.
- Textual Criticism and Middle English Texts. University Press of Virginia, 1994.
- English in Its Social Contexts: Essays in Historical Sociolinguistics. Ed. with Charles T. Scott. Oxford, 1992.
- Medieval Literature: Texts and Interpretation. Ed. Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, 1991.
- Vafþrúðnismál. Durham Medieval Texts, 1988.
-
Techniques of Translation: Chaucer’s “Boece.” Pilgrim Books, 1985.
Honors/Awards
- British Academy travel grants
- Jo Ann Boydston prize, the Association for Documentary Editing,
- Summer Faculty Fellowships (Marquette)
- American Council of Learned Societies travel grants
- National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship for University Teachers
English Department
