After beginning my BA as an American history major, on a whim I enrolled as an English major at the end of my second year. Plagued with disinterest in my area of study, a required course which introduced me to the works of medieval and early modern writers jolted me from my detachment. On another (very calculated) whim I altered the course of my History major to reflect my interest in early modern literature, wanting a historical spine to support what I finally wanted to study.
With this, I also slightly shifted my career and academic aspirations; initially I had wanted to pursue a PhD in history, though I realized early into my major that graduate work in this field would not suit me. Graduate work in literature, however, would.
I am now towards the end of my Master’s degree, and could not be happier with my decision. My drive to study early modern literature has only grown, and I am now beginning to write my thesis and prepare for PhD programs.
My areas of interest revolve primarily around the relationship of history and literature, and how they reflect and complement each other. Far more recently, I am also beginning to familiarize myself with disability studies and portrayals of “non-normative” or even “monstrous” bodies both as they are relevant now and in the early modern period.
My thesis is a thrilling marriage of these interests. I am writing on disability and the “normative body” in early modern England, as it pertains to Milton and his works Paradise Lost and Samson Agonistes, tentatively.
In my free time, you may find me stressing about writing, and telling my puppy, Mocha, “no.”