Debra Rosenthal
Professor
Background
I received my PhD from Princeton University in 19th-century comparative literature and have published many scholarly books and articles in my field. At JCU I teach a wide variety of courses on American literature, and am most passionate about teaching and writing about climate change literature in order to strengthen students' capacity to understand, communicate, and collaborate on climate solutions. I also love teaching literature and generating ideas through tabletop board games. I am a trained facilitator in the Climate Fresk and in the Lego Serious Play methodology. I am currently writing a monograph called Root Economy: Climate Change Fiction and Class Politics. I was a Visiting Scholar at both Oxford University (2005-06) and at King's College London (2021-22). In 2016 I won the Lucrezia Culicchia Award for Teaching Excellence, and in 2019 I won the Curtis W. Miles Award for Faculty Service.
Areas of Expertise
- American literature
Research Interests
I actively research, write about, and present papers on many aspects of American literature, particularly the novel.
Education
Ph.D., Princeton UniversityB.A., University of Pennsylvania
Courses Taught
EN 2635 Literature of Climate ChangeEN 2750 Alcohol in American Literature
EN 1710 Poverty in American Literature
Publications
Cli-Fi and Class: Socioeconomic Justice in Climate FictionTeaching the Literature of Climate Change
Performatively Speaking: Speech and Action in Antebellum American Literature
The Serpent in the Cup: Temperance in American Literature
Mixing Race, Mixing Culture: Inter-American Literary Dialogues
Routledge Sourcebook on Uncle Tom's Cabin
Forthcoming: Teaching Energy Humanities
