A photo of Clara A.B. Joseph. She has short black hair and wears a patterned navy-blue shirt, against a background of bookshelves.

Dr. Clara Joseph

PhD

Positions

Professor

Faculty of Arts, Department of English

Adjunct

Faculty of Arts, Department of Classics and Religion

Contact information

Email

cjoseph@ucalgary.ca

Phone number

Office: +1 (403) 220-4232

Preferred method of communication

cjoseph@ucalgary.ca 

Background

Educational Background

Doctor of Philosophy English Literature, York University,

M.A. English Lang & Or Literature, University of Toronto,

Biography

I am a professor in the Department of English, as well as an adjunct in the Department of Classics and Religion, and my teaching and research are centered primarily around South Asian Religion, Literature, and Culture; Christianity; and Literary and Cultural Theory. I am also a creative writer, and have taught courses in poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. I am the author of Christianity in India: The Anti-Colonial Turn (2019) and The Agent in the Margin: Nayantara Sahgal’s Gandhian Fiction (2008), as well as the poetry volumes M/OTHER (2024), Dandelions for Bhabha (2018), and The Face of the Other (2016). My most recent scholarly publication, India’s Nonviolent Freedom Struggle: The Thomas Christians (1599–1799) (2024), offers a fresh perspective on the Indian freedom struggle, focusing on the Thomas Christians, a group of Christians in South India who waged a nonviolent struggle against European colonization during the politically volatile period of 1599–1799. In addition, I was a co-editor for the collections Global Fissures: Postcolonial Fusions (2006, with Janet Wilson) andTheology and Literature: Rethinking Reader Responsibility (2006, with Gaye William Ortiz). 

Research

Areas of Research

South Asian Religion, Literature, and Culture, Christianity, Literary and Cultural Theory, Creative Writing -- Poetry, Fiction, Nonfiction Prose

Participation in university strategic initiatives

Human dynamics in a changing world

Courses

Course number Course title Semester
ENGL 25303 LEC 01 01 Novel 2020
ENGL 25303 TUT 01 T01 Novel 2021
ENGL 491 LEC 01 01 Advanced Studies in Global Lit 2020
ENGL 51730 SEC 03 S03 Adv Topic Thrt'l Cultr'l Study 2021
ENGL 60773 SEC 02 S02 Topics Thrtc'l/Cltr'l Studies 2020
ENGL 376 LEC 01 01 Indigenous Lit Turtle Island 2021
ENGL336 CREATIVE WRITING AND READING LIKE A WRITER Winter 2023

Awards

  • Standard Research Grant, SSHRC. 2010
  • ASPP Scholarly Book Prize, SSHRC. 2009
  • Standard Research Grant, SSHRC. 2004
  • Honorable Mentions in Poetry, Royal City Literary Arts Society (RCLS) Write On! Contest. 2017
  • Students' Union Teaching Excellence Award, Students' Union, University of Calgary. 2012
  • Honorable Mention (Placed Fourth) in the category of History for Routledge, 2019., 2020 Book Awards, CPA, US and Canada. 2020
  • Insight Research Grant, SSHRC. 2019

Publications

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