English and Linguistics, University of Otago

English and Linguistics, University of Otago The official page of English and Linguistics at the University of Otago

Congratulations to Lesley den Toom, who today submitted her PhD thesis, “'To live and lie reclined': The Influence of Ep...
29/05/2026

Congratulations to Lesley den Toom, who today submitted her PhD thesis, “'To live and lie reclined': The Influence of Epicureanism on British Nineteenth-Century Literature.“ By closely examining works by Tennyson, Bulwer-Lytton, Oscar Wilde, and others, Lesley argues that Epicureanism "offered an alternative model of the good life amid industrial acceleration, religious doubt, and shifting ideals of morality and masculinity." She has been supervised by Professor Thomas McLean and Associate Professor Grace Moore. Well done Lesley!

Yesterday, students in ENGL354 Monsters and Monstrosity in Medieval Literature presented their research in the Humanitie...
27/05/2026

Yesterday, students in ENGL354 Monsters and Monstrosity in Medieval Literature presented their research in the Humanities Common Room. The day included a medieval-themed afternoon tea, some spontaneous dressing-up, and a lot of really fantastic posters produced by the 50 students in the paper.

Our final seminar for Semester 1 will be held on Friday 29 May at 4pm in Burns 4 and online via zoom. Linguistics PhD st...
26/05/2026

Our final seminar for Semester 1 will be held on Friday 29 May at 4pm in Burns 4 and online via zoom. Linguistics PhD student Sukma Septian Nasution will present on his research into incorporating translanguaging practices into the English teaching classroom – title and details are below. Please do come along and support student research in the English & Linguistics Programme!

22/05/2026

The English & Linguistics Programme at Otago invites applications for a limited number of fixed-term tutoring positions in Semester 2, 2026. Applicants typically will have completed at least a 4-year degree in English or Linguistics or a related field. Papers that may require tutors are:

ENGL128: Essentials of Communication (Michael Cop)
ENGL131: Controversial Classics (Jacob Edmond)
ENGL219/391: Poetry and Music (Jacob Edmond)
ENGL220: Creative Writing: Reading for Writers (Liz Breslin)
ENGL228: Writing for the Professions (Josie Carter)
ENGL230: Creative Writing for Games and Interactive Media (Lisa Blakie)
ENGL335: Romantics, Revolutionaries, and the Imagination (Thomas McLean)
ENGL353: Reading Minds: Literature and Psychology (Simone Drichel)

LING140: Language, Brain and Being Human (Hunter Hatfield)
LING230/330: Interaction and Identity in Context (Minh Nguyen)

Please send a brief email cover letter stating which papers you would consider tutoring to [email protected]
*Applicants who have not tutored in the last 12 months must include a CV along with your cover letter.

Applications should be received by Monday 22 June 2026 at 5PM.

We hope to have most positions confirmed by Monday 29 June. The availability of tutoring positions for any paper is dependent on confirmed student enrolment numbers for that paper.

One of our current PhD candidates in the English and Linguistics programme, John Prins, has had some major success. At l...
19/05/2026

One of our current PhD candidates in the English and Linguistics programme, John Prins, has had some major success. At last week's Ockham Books Awards, John’s book of short stories, Pastoral Care (Otago University Press, 2025), was awarded the Hubert Church Prize for Fiction Best First Book. John’s book is the second title in OUP’s newly established Landfall Tauraka Short Story series.

The Ockham judges wrote, ‘Funny, assured, thoughtful, of the moment and of this place, Pastoral Care is a grand debut.’ The collection follows characters navigating work, family, identity and contemporary life in Aotearoa – from a youth group leader seeking solace from an AI chatbot to brothers divided over the future of the family bach. Congratulations John and Otago University Press! https://oup.nz/library/pastoral-care/

The 2026 Otago English and Linguistics Seminar continues Wednesday with a presentation from Professor Simone Marshall ti...
18/05/2026

The 2026 Otago English and Linguistics Seminar continues Wednesday with a presentation from Professor Simone Marshall titled "The Life of Chaucer in New Zealand." See below for a description of the talk. The seminar meets Wednesday 20 May at 1pm in Burns 4 and online via Zoom. Please contact [email protected] for the Zoom link. All are welcome!

Congratulations to our own Lisa Blakie who, as co-director of Atawhai Interactive, received a Pavs Game Award for Toroa:...
11/05/2026

Congratulations to our own Lisa Blakie who, as co-director of Atawhai Interactive, received a Pavs Game Award for Toroa: Skycall, which won the Diverse Delight award for excellence in representation. The game allows players to soar and glide as an albatross across islands and ocean as they find their way home to Pukekura/Taiaroa Head. Toroa: Skycall is available on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2003490/Toroa_Skycall/

Despite a gloomy weather forecast, Saturday turned out to be a lovely, sunny day for our May graduation festivities. Con...
10/05/2026

Despite a gloomy weather forecast, Saturday turned out to be a lovely, sunny day for our May graduation festivities. Congratulations to all our Humanities graduates! We especially congratulate PhD recipients Louise Wallace and Xiaoxi (Eileen) Yu. Well done postgraduates!

And ka pai to all our English and Linguistics BA recipients: Hannah Armstrong (BASc), Eli Graham, Zoë Jonson, Kyna Kelly, Juliette Lidgard, Laila Lockington, Moss Pelvin (BASc), Caitlin Proctor, and Joshua Toomath (BASc).

English and Linguistics also want to congratulate Liz Lammers, who graduated yesterday with a BA in Classics. Liz was our wonderful administrator for many years, and we couldn’t be prouder of her academic success ❤️.

Please keep in touch—it’s been a pleasure to be part of your lives, and we love to hear about your achievements.

Applications are now open for Round One of the Division of Humanities Performing Arts Fund! The fund fosters performance...
05/05/2026

Applications are now open for Round One of the Division of Humanities Performing Arts Fund! The fund fosters performance-based initiatives in the Arts by students, staff and other members of the Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka - University of Otago community. This includes comedy, dance, theatre, film and music. Applications close on Friday 15 May. Guidelines and application forms are available here: https://www.otago.ac.nz/humanities/about/performing-arts-fund

The 2026 Otago English and Linguistics Seminar continues Friday with a joint presentation from Associate Fellow Dr John ...
05/05/2026

The 2026 Otago English and Linguistics Seminar continues Friday with a joint presentation from Associate Fellow Dr John Hale and Associate Professor Paul Tankard entitled "Giving Voice: Some Reflections on Reading Aloud and Literary Pedagogy." See below for a description of the presentation. The seminar meets Friday 8 May at 4pm in Burns 4 and online via Zoom. Please contact [email protected] for the Zoom link. All are welcome!

Thanks again to everyone involved in Otago Open Days 2026!
04/05/2026

Thanks again to everyone involved in Otago Open Days 2026!

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