Events

Staff and Postgraduate Research Seminar: 'Metkovic to Mostar: Pynchon and the Balklans,' by Dr. Sam Thomas (Durham University)

Before arriving at Durham, Sam completed his doctorate at the University of Sussex in late 2005. He worked at Sussex as an associate tutor in English and Cultural Studies for a total of 4 years. His research interests are primarily focused around models of resistance and political legitimacy in the modern and contemporary novel, especially the work of Thomas Pynchon. His first book, entitled Pynchon and the Political, was published by Routledge in 2007. In addition, he has strong research interests in Critical Theory (esp. the Frankfurt School and Slavoj Žižek); in the representation of trauma and terrorism in contemporary fiction and film; and in the relationship between literature and current ideologies of nationalism and multiculturalism (esp. in light of the break up of Yugoslavia and the changing status of Islam in the West). He has published review articles for Textual Practice and made a significant contribution to the popular collection 1001 Books to Read Before You Die (with entries ranging from Melville to Ballard). He has also worked as an editor for the Cypriot poet Andreas Georgallides and has an article appearing in a forthcoming special edition of Pynchon Notes. He is currently in the early stages of researching a new comparative project, provisionally called Resistance and Geopolitical Change in Contemporary Fiction.

Contact ulrika.maude@durham.ac.uk for more information about this event.

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