Dr. Paul Gagliardi

Dr. Paul GagliardiMarquette University

Marquette Hall, 252

MilwaukeeWI53201United States of America(414) 288-3474paul.gagliardi@marquette.edu

Teaching Assistant Professor

English

Paul Gagliardi earned his BH and MA from Penn State-Harrisburg and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Currently he is working on a book manuscript for Temple University Press entitled All Play and No Work: American Work Ideals and the Comic Plays of the Federal Theatre Project. His manuscript explores how many comic plays produced by the federal government during the Great Depression subverted cultural and social norms of work. His research interests include theories of work, economic history, and confidence artists, as well as modern American literature and theatre. He has also written an essay on the confidence artist in the television series Fargo and is currently working on an analysis of business practices on Mad Men. He has published two articles on the Federal Theatre Project and has also written essays about contemporary theatre productions and local theatre companies.

In his teaching, he emphasizes understanding the historical, social, and cultural context of texts, but also how our contemporary readings problematize literature. He also fosters interdisciplinary dialogue between all fields in his courses.

Courses Taught

• American Literature
• Rhetoric/Composition
• Drama
• Cultural Studies

Research Interests

• American literature, theatre, and culture, 1865-1945
• Economic history
• Confidence artists
• Theories of work / Labor, Speculation

Publications

• "Salesman of the Year: Season One of Fargo and the Legacy of the Confidence Artist in the Midwest.” Middle West Review. Volume 5, Number 2, Spring 2019. 

• "The Illusion of Work: The Con Artist Plays of the Federal Theatre Project.” Journal of American Drama and Theatre. Volume 30, Number 1 (Fall 2017).
• "No Security In Acting: A Moral Entertainment and the Conflict Over Theatrical Labor in the Federal Theatre Project.” LATCH: A Journal for the Study of the Literary Artifact in Theory, Culture, or History. Volume 8, Number 1 (2015 to 2016).
• "The Feast of Crispian: Shakespeare with Veterans.” HowlRound. February 15, 2018.
• "It Happened Here: Looking Back on Revivals of Sinclair Lewis’s Play During the 2016 Election.” HowlRound. February 19, 2017.

Additional Information

Office Hours

Spring 2023

• TuTh 12:30-2:00

Teaching Schedule

Spring 2023

• 3740/101 TuTh 2:00-3:15 Lalumiere Hall 332
  • Film Studies: Classical Hollywood Cinema
• 3740/102 TuTh 3:30-4:45 Lalumiere Hall 332
  • Film Studies: Classical Hollywood Cinema
• 4736/101 TuTh 9:30-10:45 Cudahy Hall 118
  • Fiction: The Lost Generation
• 4736/102 TuTh 11:00-12:15 Cudahy Hall 118
  • Fiction: The Lost Generation