About me
I was educated at the University of East Anglia (BA Hons First Class in English & Philosophy) and wrote a D.Phil at Wadham College, Oxford. I was subsequently a Research Fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge. Since joining the department of English, Linguistics and Cultural Studies at Westminster I have taught in a number of areas, including Shakespeare and the Renaissance, American Literature, and a third year option module on the history of witchcraft. My research interests are in Renaissance cultural and intellectual history, particularly Shakespeare, the history of scepticism, and the intellectual revolution of the 17th century.
Teaching
I have taught on a number of modules for the department, including Shakespeare, Renaissance Literature, American Literature and a third year option module on the literature of witchcraft and demonology in the Renaissance. My present teaching includes Renaissance Literature and Culture, and I am also module leader for Early Modern Identities - concerned with representations of early modern selfhood - and Postcolonial literature.
Research
My research concerns the history of epistemology in the early modern period, particularly in terms of how a combination of social, cultural and religious history can provide a popular as opposed to a 'top-down' account of the rise of scepticism. Linked to this is an interest in writers that transgress literary and philosophical boundaries, such as Shakespeare and Montaigne. I have written a book about Montaigne (Faber, 2011), and am currently engaged in a study of the language of scepticism in the Renaissance.
Publications
For details of all my research outputs, visit my WestminsterResearch profile.