Page 12 - Keble Review 2014

Upcoming Events Dr Ian Archer will be giving the London lecture on ‘The Transformation of London 1550-1700’ on 20 November. In 2014-15, the Cluster will host two senior research visitors. Professor John Watkins (University of Minnesota) will be completing a book on pre-modern interdynastic marriages and collaborating with me on my ‘textual ambassadors’ research network. We are also co-hosting Professor Andy Beeby (University of Durham) with the Imaging Cluster. Professor Beeby will be working with illuminated manuscripts in the Bodleian Library and at Keble, using Raman spectroscopy to elicit data on the materials, provenance and date of the texts. I am also planning two larger events: a colloquium on gender and a conference on early modern diplomats. To find out more, visit the ASC website www.keble-asc.com.
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The Keble Review 2014
keble is unusual as a College in having a dedicated research cluster in
the Humanities. Our Medieval and
Renaissance Studies Cluster brings together scholars in Byzantine studies, English, History, Modern Languages, and Theology whose individual research interests cover a wide range of areas. Although we are not all asking the same set of questions and often work on very different sets of material, we do share several common areas of interest. We have shared research interests in the study of religion and belief, the role of gender in the human experience, cultures of textuality and the history of the book, and interdisciplinary approaches to our subject. The Cluster
gives us a unique opportunity to discuss these issues from a range of disciplinary perspectives and across broad chronologies and wide geographies. Importantly, these discussions cross the traditional medieval/ early modern boundary. This helps us to encounter ideas from beyond our own research area which can encourage us to challenge the subject-specific canons and assumptions within our individual fields.
My challenge as leader of the Cluster is to find profitable activities that draw out the common themes across individuals’ research, to find ways to develop these interests collectively, and to organise events that will benefit members of the Cluster. This was a core rationale behind a recent initiative setting up a ‘Cluster work in progress’ seminar. This sees the fellows, lecturers and graduate students working in medieval and Renaissance studies get together once a term for lunch while one of our members gives an informal presentation on their current work, which we then discuss. To date, we have heard from
Dr Boyd Brogan, Dr Diane Purkiss, and Dr Ian Archer; next term we will hear about Karl Kinsella’s doctoral research on ecclesiastical architecture.
The Cluster has also hosted numerous public events. Our regular lecture series serves
a dual purpose: to provide talks that are accessible to a broad constituency within the College and alumni and to create opportunities for Cluster members to discuss shared research interests with scholars from other institutions. It has been especially pleasing to see undergraduates attending several of these lectures.
In 2013 we held a colloquium on ‘Textual Cultures in Early Modern Europe’, which explored the production, dissemination and reception of texts in England, France and Italy. Several members of the Cluster gave papers on their research as did a Senior Research Visitor, Dr Heather Dalton (University of Melbourne) and we were joined by academics from across the UK. The event attracted an audience drawn from 15 different universities. In 2014 we have provided financial assistance to Professor Dame Averil Cameron’s workshop on ‘Dialogue and Debate from Late Antiquity to Byzantium’, a collection of essays from which will be edited by Professor Cameron.
I have been keen for the Cluster to utilise the College’s other unique resources. Consequently, I organised an afternoon workshop earlier this year on medieval illuminated manuscripts that featured talks by three experts – Drs Julia Walworth, Helen Smith and Lynda Dennison – on manuscript production, illumination and reception and the ways in which illumination can help us
to explore narrative voice. Thanks to Keble’s librarian Yvonne Murphy and her staff, Dr Walworth illustrated her talk by showing us Keble MS 17 and delegates were able to view several items from Keble’s manuscript collection following the discussion.
The Cluster is dedicated to making events accessible not only to current and former members of Keble, but also to the public. We have recorded a number of our lectures which are available from the Keble podcasts webpage. The ASC website also hosts short summaries of events and interviews with
visiting scholars which aim to make what we do accessible to broader audiences. Cluster members also give public lectures and school talks, bringing their research to local and school communities.
Several members of the Cluster are actively engaged in what the government calls ‘impact’, that is in making the results of their research accessible to the general public and policy makers. For instance, last summer Dr Diane Purkiss and Dr Anna Caughey helped to curate a Bodleian Library exhibition ‘Magical Books – From the Middle Ages to Middle Earth’, which explored the influence of medieval literature on children’s books. They also both gave public lectures linked to the exhibition. Dr Archer has featured on two TV programmes in recent years, Dr Purkiss has contributed to several radio programmes and Dr Sarah Apetrei has been involved in the ‘Faerie Queene Now’ project.
My own experience of impact has been enjoyable, even if I have been on a steep learning curve! As Principal Investigator on
a project examining diplomatic culture in the early modern period, I also have a website that publishes overviews of our events, a regular blog and ‘webexhibits’ or short, accessible articles that briefly communicate some of our research findings. In the last year I have also been involved in events on History and Policy, have spoken at a workshop at the Foreign Office and several other workshops that have brought together practising diplomats and civil servants with academics, and have begun working with the Young Diplomats programme at Oxford’s Department for Continuing Education. Medieval and Renaissance research can have resonance with contemporary
issues and talking to practitioners has been educational!
Dr Tracey Sowerby
Career Development Fellow in Renaissance History
Leader of the Medieval & Renaissance Studies Reseach Cluster
Medieval & Renaissance Studies Research Cluster
The Keble Advanced Studies Centre