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General news

Comparative Literature 100 "Crossing Borders" class hosts Author Maya Arad

October 1, 2024

On October 1st, we had the immense pleasure of hosting renowned writer Maya Arad for an intimate conversation in the Comparative Literature 100 "Crossing Borders" class. The discussion centered her 2018 novel, The Hebrew Teacher, which was recently translated into English by the one and only Jessica Cohen. Our conversation explored matters of translation, hyphenated identities, and the role of literature in presenting history and politics as much more murky and complex than one might expect. It was a true pleasure.

Professor Mario Telò on bringing “antiquity” into steady dialogue with the "now"

October 27, 2023
Lucille Lorenz, Comp Lit '26
Mario Telò is a Professor of Rhetoric, Ancient Greek & Roman Studies, and Comparative Literature; participating member in the Critical Theory DE. To start us out, how did you first come to study classics and comp lit? And are there any interests you enjoy outside of academia that you see informing your studies?

I took Greek and Latin in high school. In some European high schools—in England, in France, in Italy—Latin and Greek are not just offered, but are actually mandatory. You have to take four or even five hours of Greek and Latin every week. I learned Greek and Latin when...

Mohamed Wajdi Ben Hammed joins the Department of Comparative Literature as Assistant Professor

August 2, 2023

UC Berkeley’s Division of Arts & Humanities is pleased to welcome professor Mohamed Wajdi Ben Hammed as of July 1, 2023. Ben Hammed is an assistant professor in the Department of Comparative Literature and specializes in modern Arabic literature, with a particular focus on how pre-modern Islamic concepts of time negotiate postcolonial transformations within the region’s political economy.

Having attended University of Tunis with Arabic as his first language, Ben Hammed’s research explores literary and cinematic depictions of the rise of neoliberalism in...

Assistant Professor Roni Masel Joins Department of Comparative Literature

March 3, 2023
Stella Kotik

UC Berkeley’s Division of Arts & Humanities welcomes Roni Masel as of Jan. 1, 2023. Masel, an assistant professor in the campus’s Department of Comparative Literature, concentrates on Hebrew and Yiddish literatures.

Masel studies Hebrew and Yiddish literatures, particularly in the context of modern Jewish history and culture in Eastern Europe; the history of reading and the book; and queer and postcolonial theory. She is currently working on Bad Readers: Misreading, Mistranslation, and Other Textual Malpractices in Hebrew and Yiddish, a book manuscript that...

From DeCal creator to Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship — an interview with undergraduate student Fabiola Vazquez Espinoza

September 23, 2023
Lucille Lorenz, Comp Lit '26

This next interview is very exciting for us, because it’s our first interview with an undergraduate student! I personally met Fabiola Vazquez Espinoza through a literary magazine we’re both editors for: Vagabond Multilingual Journal. But Fabiola is an extremely active part of the arts and humanities community here on campus and is a part of several other incredible organizations that we will be speaking more about.

Fabiola, I would love to hear you introduce yourself! What are you majoring in, and do you have any goals, or things you hope to achieve,...

"My solitude is gladdened by this elegant hope" an introduction from the Editor of "What is Humanities Research?"

September 6, 2023
Lucille Lorenz, Comp Lit '26

Dear readers,

As with many things in my life, this column was partially inspired by aspects of my personal life, partially inspired by literature. And because this column is designated to highlighting the arts and humanities, I thought it would be fitting to begin by introducing the wonderful short story that partially inspired me in this process: “The Library of Babel” by Jorge Luis Borges.

“The Library of Babel” is about a (possibly infinite) library, filled with 410-page books which make up every combination of letters in the universe. The...

2020-21 Outstanding GSI Awards Announced!

November 24, 2024

We are delighted to announce ... this year's Outstanding GSIs in Comparative Literature: Matthew Gonzales, Max Kaisler, and Laila Riazi! Congratulations to Matt, Max, and Laila on your excellent teaching, and thank you for all you contribute to our community.

At the Crossroads of the Senses: The Synaesthetic Metaphor Across the Arts in European Modernism

November 1, 2024

Congratulations to Ph.D. Alum Polina Dimova (2010), who has just received tenure at the University of Denver. Her book, At the Crossroads of the Senses: The Synaesthetic Metaphor Across the Arts in European Modernism, will be published by Penn State UP in November.

First-Year Angel Reyes Wins FLAS to Study in Tblisi, Georgia

November 24, 2024

Angel's passion towards her major, Comparative Literature, lies in how she embraces the intersection of literature, history, and philosophy. Her Filipino background and culture cultivated her interests in Slavic classics, postcolonial theory, theology, and the revolutionary past.

This summer, Angel will be studying Russian in Tbilisi, Georgia with the American Councils of International Education under their Russian Language Area Studies Program (RLASP). This will be funded by the Foreign Language Area Studies Fellowship (FLAS). In this 8 week long program, she will be in full...

Lucille Lorenz ('26) Wins Scholarship to Yeats Int'l Summer School

November 24, 2024

Comp Lit Sophomore, Lucille Lorenz ('26) has been awareded a full scholarship to the Yeats Society International Summer School Programme in Ireland. During her fully funded week, Lucille will attend lectures and cultural events as well as a week-long seminar of her choosing. Lectures are offered by leading Yeats scholars including Dr. Eric Falci of UC Berkeley.