Helen Watanabe-O'Kelly
Encyclopedia
Helen Watanabe-O'Kelly is the Fellow and Tutor in German
at Exeter College, Oxford
, and Professor of German Literature at Oxford University. She specialises in the early modern period
, and is a distinguished scholar in this field, and in the field of German literature
as a whole. She works in particular on European court culture in the early modern period and on German literature written by women or representing women; from 2005 to 2008 she co-directed the AHRC major research project at Oxford University entitled 'The Representation of Women and Death in German Literature, Art and Media, 1500–present'.
She took her BA
and MA
at the National University of Ireland
, [University College Cork], and her doctorate
at the University of Basel
. She taught at the University of Reading
until 1989, whereupon she was appointed to the German fellowship at Exeter College, Oxford
: a post she still holds. In 2007 she was the Mellon Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Illinois
.
Her father was Professor Michael J. O'Kelly
, Professor of Archaeology
at University College, Cork, who discovered the midwinter illumination of Newgrange
in 1967.
German literature
German literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
at Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
, and Professor of German Literature at Oxford University. She specialises in the early modern period
Early modern Europe
Early modern Europe is the term used by historians to refer to a period in the history of Europe which spanned the centuries between the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, roughly the late 15th century to the late 18th century...
, and is a distinguished scholar in this field, and in the field of German literature
German literature
German literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
as a whole. She works in particular on European court culture in the early modern period and on German literature written by women or representing women; from 2005 to 2008 she co-directed the AHRC major research project at Oxford University entitled 'The Representation of Women and Death in German Literature, Art and Media, 1500–present'.
She took her BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and MA
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
at the National University of Ireland
National University of Ireland
The National University of Ireland , , is a federal university system of constituent universities, previously called constituent colleges, and recognised colleges set up under the Irish Universities Act, 1908, and significantly amended by the Universities Act, 1997.The constituent universities are...
, [University College Cork], and her doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
at the University of Basel
University of Basel
The University of Basel is located in Basel, Switzerland, and is considered to be one of leading universities in the country...
. She taught at the University of Reading
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a university in the English town of Reading, Berkshire. The University was established in 1892 as University College, Reading and received its Royal Charter in 1926. It is based on several campuses in, and around, the town of Reading.The University has a long tradition...
until 1989, whereupon she was appointed to the German fellowship at Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
: a post she still holds. In 2007 she was the Mellon Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
.
Her father was Professor Michael J. O'Kelly
Michael J. O'Kelly
Professor Michael J. O'Kelly was an Irish archaeologist who excavated and restored Newgrange, a Late Stone Age passage tomb in the Boyne Valley, County Meath, Ireland, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. P. R...
, Professor of Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
at University College, Cork, who discovered the midwinter illumination of Newgrange
Newgrange
Newgrange is a prehistoric monument located in County Meath, on the eastern side of Ireland, about one kilometre north of the River Boyne. It was built around 3200 BC , during the Neolithic period...
in 1967.
Select bibliography
- 1992: Triumphall Shews: tournaments at German-speaking courts in their European context, 1560-1730, Gebr.Mann Verlag (English) ISBN 3786114900
- 1997: (as editor) The Cambridge History of German Literature, Cambridge University Press ISBN 0521434173
- 2000 (with Anne Simon): Festivals and Ceremonies. A Bibliography of Works relating to Court, Civic and Religious Festivals in Europe 1500-1800, Continuum ISBN 9780720121827
- 2002: Court Culture in Early Modern Dresden, Palgrave Macmillan ISBN 033398448X
- 2004 (as editor with J.R.Mulryne and Margaret Shewring): Europa Triumphans. Court and Civic Festivals in Early Modern Europe, Ashgate ISBN 0754638731. Now available from Ashgate as an e-book.
- 2009 (as editor with Sarah Colvin): Women and Death: Warlike Women in the German Literary and Cultural Imagination since 1500, Camden House. ISBN 9781571134004
- 2010: Beauty or Beast? The Woman Warrior in the German Imagination from the Renaissance to the Present, Oxford University Press ISBN 9780199558230
External links
- German at Oxford: Professor H. Watanabe-O'Kelly – biography; includes selected publications
- Professor Helen Watanabe-O'Kelly – biography at website of Exeter College, Oxford