Profil

Dr. Schäfer-Althaus joined the department in 2014. Before coming to Koblenz, she studied literary, cultural, and media studies/language and communication at the University of Siegen (B.A.) as well as English and American literary & cultural studies at the University of Paderborn, where she received her master’s degree (2010) and Ph.D. (2015). Her publications include the monograph The Gendered Body: Female Sanctity, Gender Hybridity and the Body in Women’s Hagiography (2016) and three edited collections on Transient Bodies in Anglophone Literature and Culture (2020), Medicine and Mobility in Nineteenth-Century British Literature, History, and Culture (2023), and Traveling Bodies: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Traveling as an Embodied Practice (2024). She is currently working on a book project provisionally entitled Passionate Encounters: Desire and Shame/-lessness in Eighteenth-Century British Literature and Culture, 1660-1830 and a monograph on Aquatic Matters in Nineteenth-Century British Literature, History, and Culture. Dr. Schäfer-Althaus’ research interests include medieval and eighteenth/nineteenth-century literature and cultural studies, gender and sexuality studies, body theory, medical and blue humanities, and children’s literature. She also completed the RLP Certificate for University Didactics, is a certified Writing Coach and Career Development Coach, and was nominated for the RLP State Teaching Award of 2018, 2022, and 2024. In addition to her role in our department, she is also active in our International Day events and is responsible for several of our international cooperations with higher educational institutions in the United States.

For a short CV and further info - see her LinkedIn profile

Faculty and Departmental Commitment and Responsibilites

• Module Appointee: M4 (B.Ed. English), M2.3 and M3 (2FBA)
• Committee Member: Fachausschuss Studium und Lehre, Faculty II
• International Coordinator: Fisher College (USA), Winona State University (USA), Summitt Elementary School Texts (USA), GET-Exchange (Scotland)
• Committee Member and Co-Organizer: International Day Uni Koblenz
• Mentor: IFGPZ mentoring programs, ERC-Mentoring Program German Association for the Study of English (Deutscher Anglistikverband e.V.) and for MentorMe Germany

Research

Digital Identifiers:

• ORCID: 0000-0003-2581-8389
• Scopus: 58646836300

Research Areas:

• British literary and cultural history from the 17th century to the present with focuses on the 18th and 19th centuries.

• Medieval literature up to 1500.

• Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Body Theories
• Medical Humanities with focuses on literary and cultural constructions of birth, pregnancy, and motherhood (1700-Present) as well as the intersections of medicine and mobility in the 19th century
• History of Emotions
• Children’s Literature and Young-Adult Fiction
• Amatory Fiction
• Erotica and Pseudo-Erotica (17th-18th century)
• Blue Humanities
• Gothic, Mystery, and Crime Fiction

Research Projects (Ongoing):

• Umbrüche. Transformationsprozesse in Europa vom Spätmittelalter bis zur Gegenwart (gemeinsam mit Dr. Michaela Bill-Mrziglod, Universität Koblenz). The project proposal can be downloaded here: https://www.hsozkult.de/event/id/event-97357

• Passionate Encounters: Negotiating Desire and Shame/-lessness in Eighteenth-Century British Literature and Culture

• Embracing Diversity: Literary, Cultural and Didactic Perspectives (gemeinsam mit Dr. Sarah Strauss, Universität Paderborn)

• Aquatic Matters in Anglophone Literature, History, and Culture

Publications (Most Recent/Forthcoming):

Teaching

Term Papers (M5-M6):

Students enrolled in my classes who need to fulfill the LN/Prüfungsleistung requirement are expected to produce a critical and innovative paper. This paper should have a strong focus on literature or culture, either centered on one of the texts studied in class or exploring questions and ideas that arose during the semester. Given the diverse range of time periods, genres, and phenomena covered in my courses, students are encouraged to pursue research projects aligned with their individual interests.

To initiate this process, students must submit a brief proposal (minimum 300 words, one page) outlining their chosen research topic for approval by the instructor before proceeding. Additionally, all students undertaking term papers in my courses must schedule at least one in-person meeting with me to discuss their projects.

The term paper itself should adhere to specific guidelines: it must be between 4000-6000 words unless otherwise specified in the respective "Prüfungsordnung" for your degree program. Furthermore, written work must follow the formatting guidelines outlined in the MLA Handbook (9th Edition) for accurate quotation and citation, as well as adhere to the style sheet available on the department's website. Finally, a minimum of eight secondary sources must be included in the Works Cited section of the term paper.

Deadlines Winter 2024/25

• M 4.1 Literatures in English: 10 March 2025 (portfolios)

• M 4.3 Writing Skills: 10 March 2025 (portfolios)

• M 6.1: 13 January 2025 (abstracts), 10 March 2025 (term papers)

Note: Students have to submit an abstract of 300 words including a working title (electronically, docx.-format), thesis statement, and at least three references before writing their M5, M6, or M8 papers. The deadline is in accordance with the deadline listed above (see M6) for the respective semester which means that students from prev. M5-M8-seminars who plan to write their paper with me need to submit their abstracts by the same date.

Supervision

I welcome discussion about possible bachelor/master thesis projects from students interested to engage with topics in accordance with my research areas (s. Research). If you plan to write your bachelor's or master's thesis with me as your first reader, please schedule an appointment for individual consultation about your topic idea ahead of time. Before I sign any official documents for the HPA, you will have to submit a research proposal about your topic (ca. 2 pages), in which you outline your project idea (preliminary arguments, scientific relevance, research question, primary sources) and, most importantly, your working thesis. Your proposal should be accompanied by a time frame for the project and a list of sources (primary/secondary) you intend to use. Only proposals meeting all of these requirements will be accepted - if I feel that your thesis abstract is too vague, unanswerable or lacks a clear focus/thesis you will have to revise and resubmit.

Please note: I work only part-time for the University of Koblenz. Thus, I can only take on 1-2 B.Ed. theses or 1 M.Ed. thesis as first reader per semester. For 2024/spring 2025 I have no more capacities.

Thesis Writing Mastery (OLAT-Course) for my thesis candidates (password needed)