Karin Lesnik-Oberstein
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+44 (0) 118 378 6741
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Professor
- Director of Postgraduate Studies for the Department of English Literature
Areas of interest
I am the Director of the Graduate Centre for International Research in Childhood: Literature, Culture, Media (CIRCL) and Director of the CIRCL M(Res) in Children's Literature and Convenor of its core module on 'Theory of Children's Literature' and its option module 'Myth and Folktale and Children's Literature'; I undertake the supervision of seven MA students from the CIRCL MA every year.
My primary research interest is inter- and multi-disciplinary Critical and Literary Theory. I also have a research interest in those areas in which I teach, particularly anything relating to constructions of identity (gender; national, cultural, ethnic identity etc). I continue to have a strong interest in the construction of childhood in culture, including in non-literary disciplines such as anthropology, psychology, sociology, and philosophy.
Postgraduate supervision
Present PhDs:
- Ian Mulholland (part-time, from 2013, University of Reading Regional Bursary funded)
- Alexander Hellens (part-time, from 2016; Wilkie Calvert Fund bursary
- Soma Das (part-time; from 2018; University of Reading Regional Bursary funded)
- Hanne Kouwenberg (part-time, from 2019; Prins Berhard Culture fund partial funding)
- Kristina (Krissie) Hunt (full-time, from 2019)
- Natthavimol (Sai) Wangsittikul (full-time, from 2019)
- Katy Corderoy (part-time; from 2020)
- Natalie England (full-time; from 2021)
- Xiaoyu Hou (full-time; from 2021)
- Lex Nicholls (part-time; from 2021; University of Reading Regional Bursary funded)
Completed PhDs:
- Dr Neil Cocks (1997-2000; full-time)
- Dr Susan Walsh (1998-2001; full-time; part UoR bursary funded)
- Dr Yuko Ashitagawa (2002-5; fully ORS funded for second and third year)
- Dr Hannah Smith (2002-5; full Reading Studentship funded)
- Dr Louise Tondeur (2002-6; full Reading Studentship funded)
- Dr Helen Ainslie (2006-9, full Graduate School of Arts and Humanities funded)
- Dr Catrin Edwards (2007-10, full AHRC funded)
- Dr Kirsty Pennicard-Wood (2004-2010, part-time)
- Dr Yu-Kuan Chen (full-time, 2007-12)
- Dr Evdokia (Kia) Michalopoulou (2006-13, part-time)
- Dr Christopher Milson (2011-2016; part-time)
- Dr Kristina West (2012-2016; part-time).
- Dr Bonnie McGill (2015-18; full University of Reading Studentship funded)
- Dr Anindita Roy (2014-18; full Felix Scholarship funding)
- Dr Yuna Nam (2017-20; full-time)
- Dr Rebecca Lindsay (2016-20; part-time)
- Dr Elizabeth (Liz) Harris (2015-21; part-time)
Research centres and groups
I am the Director of the Graduate Centre for International Research in Childhood: Literature, Culture, Media (CIRCL)
I am a member of IRSCL (International Research Society Children's Literature) and PLACIM (The Platform for a Cultural History of Children's Media).
Research projects
I have recently published articles on neuroscience and on childhood and gender and sexual identity.
I am consulting editor for the Korean Research Institute for Asian Women's (RIAW) journal of women's studies, Asian Women and an article and book manuscript reader for a wide range of academic peer-review journals and University presses. I am currently working on the critical theory of ecocriticism and eco-activism.
Awards and honours
- 2003: Nominated as one of twelve 'lecturers of excellence' at the University of Reading.
- 2004: Nominated as one of ten 'lecturers of excellence' at the University of Reading.
- 2006: Nominated for the Student Awards for Outstanding Contributions to Teaching.
- 2010: Awarded the student-nominated Faculty Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teaching and Learning.
- 2012: Nominated for a Reading Student Union 'Gold Star' award.
- 2015: Awarded University of Reading Student Union 'Outstanding Academic Tutor Excellence Award'.
- 2016: Nominated for a University of Reading Student Union 'Teaching Excellence Award'
- 2018: School ‘Celebrating Success’ Award
- 2019: School ‘Working Together’ Award
- 2020: Nominated for the Reading Student Union ‘Teaching Excellence Award for Arts, Humanities and Social Science’
- 2022: School ‘Rewarding Excellence’ Award
- 2022: Nominated for the Reading Student Union ‘Teaching Excellence Award for Arts, Humanities and Social Science’
- Full member of the Institute for Teaching and Learning (ITL)
Publications
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Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2023)
Literature, literary pedagogy and extinction rebellion (XR): the case of Tarka the Otter.
In:
Parham, J.
, (eds.)
Essays and Studies on The Literature and Politics of the Environment.
Essays and Studies on The Literature and Politics of the Environment
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Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2023)
Children's literature and theory.
In:
Wesseling, L.
,
Nelson, C.
,
Wu, A.
, (eds.)
Routledge Companion to Children’s Literature and Culture.
Routledge
, London.
-
Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2021)
Childhood, children’s literature and (trans)gender identity in current western discourse.
In:
Zhu, Z.
and
Xu, D.
, (eds.)
New International Perspectives: A Collection of Lectures on Children's Literature.
Tomorrow Publishing House
, Jinan, China.
-
Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2021)
Why and how to claim ‘intertextuality’? With special consideration of the influence of children’s literature on adult literature.
In:
Zhu, Z.
and
Xu, D.
, (eds.)
New International Perspectives: A Collection of Lectures on Children's Literature.
Tomorrow Publishing House
, Jinan, China.
-
Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2021)
Children's literature, animals and the environment.
In:
Zhu, Z.
and
Xu, D.
, (eds.)
New International Perspectives: A Collection of Lectures on Children's Literature.
Tomorrow Publishing House
, Jinan, China.
-
Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2021)
From psychobabble to neuro-nonsense: cognitivism, neuroscience and children’s literature.
In:
Zhu, Z.
and
Xu, D.
, (eds.)
New International Perspectives: A Collection of Lectures on Children's Literature.
Tomorrow Publishing House
, Jinan, China.
-
Lesnik-Oberstein, K.
ORCID: 0000-0002-4970-0556
(2021)
Gender, childhood and children’s literature: the CIRCL approach.
In:
Zhu, Z.
and
Xu, D.
, (eds.)
New International Perspectives: A Collection of Lectures on Children's Literature.
Tomorrow Publishing House
, Jinan, China.
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2019) The case of 'The Case of Peter Pan or the Impossibility of Children’s Fiction': deconstruction, psychoanalysis, childhood, animality. Oxford Literary Review , 41 (2). pp. 238-257. ISSN: 1757-1634 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.3366/olr.2019.0281
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2018) Revisiting "The 'Philosophical Investigations’ children". Wittgenstein Studien , 9 (1). pp. 227-247. ISSN: 1868-7458 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1515/witt-2018-0011
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. and Cocks, N. (2017) Back to where we came from: evolutionary psychology and children’s literature and media. In: Wesseling, E. , (eds.) Reinventing Childhood Nostalgia: Books, Toys, and Contemporary Media Culture. Studies in Childhood, 1700 to the present Routledge , London. pp. 318-336. ISBN: 9781472474124
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2017) Children’s literature, cognitivism and neuroscience. In: Dinter, S. and Schneider, R. , (eds.) Transdisciplinary Perspectives on Childhood in Contemporary Britain: Literature, Media and Society. Studies in Childhood, 1700 to the Present Routledge , London. ISBN: 9781138232105
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2017) The object of neuroscience and literary studies. Textual Practice , 31 (7). pp. 1315-1331. ISSN: 1470-1308 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0950236X.2016.1237989
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2016) Children’s literature: sexual identity, gender and childhood. Breac: A Digital Journal of Irish Studies , 6 ISSN: 2372-2231
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2016) Gender, childhood and children’s literature: the CIRCL approach. Asian Women , 32 (2). pp. 1-26. ISSN: 1225-925X | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.14431/aw.2016.06.32.2.1
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2015) The case of pre-natal diagnosis. In: Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , (eds.) Rethinking Disability Theory and Practice: Challenging Essentialism. Palgrave Macmillan , Houndmills, Basingstoke. pp. 6-19. ISBN: 9781137456960
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , eds. (2015) Rethinking disability theory and practice: challenging essentialism. Palgrave Macmillan , Houndmills. pp 216. ISBN: 9781137456960
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2015) Motherhood, evolutionary psychology and mirror neurons or: ‘Grammar is politics by other means’. Feminist Theory , 16 (2). pp. 171-187. ISSN: 1741-2773 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1464700115586514
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2012) Reading Derrida on mathematics. Angelaki: Journal of the Theoretical Humanities , 17 (1). pp. 31-40. ISSN: 1469-2899
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , eds. (2011) Children in culture, revisited: further approaches to childhood. Palgrave pp 248. ISBN: 9780230275546
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2011) Afterword: reading history and/as vision. In: Mangham, A. and Depledge, G. , (eds.) The Female Body in Medicine and Literature. Liverpool University Press pp. 216-223. ISBN: 9781846314728
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2011) Voice, agency and the child. Children in Culture, Revisited . Palgrave Macmillan pp. 1-17. ISBN: 9780230275546
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2010) Childhood, queer theory and feminism. Feminist Theory , 11 (3). pp. 309-321. ISSN: 1741-2773 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1464700110376281
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2009) Essentials: what is children's literature? What is childhood?. In: Khosronejad, M. , (eds.) In Quest for the Centre, Greats of Children's Literature Theory and Criticism. Shiraz University Centre for Childrens Literature Studies , Shiraz University, Iran. pp. 293-323.
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2009) New perspectives on children's literature criticism: the view from Reading. ID EST , 2 pp. 19-26.
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2009) New perspectives on children's literature criticism: the view from Reading. Literatuur Zonder Leeftijd , 78 pp. 68-82. (ISBN 9054838388)
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2008) Children's literature. The Literary Dictionary Company
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2008) On having an own child: reproductive technologies and the cultural construction of childhood. Karnac Books , London. pp 224. ISBN: 9781855755451
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , eds. (2007) The last taboo: women and body hair. Manchester University Press , Manchester. pp 256. ISBN: 9780719083235
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2006) 'Holiday house': grist to 'The mill on the floss', or: childhood as text. Nineteenth-century literature criticism: excerpts from criticism of the works of nineteenth-century novelists, poets, playwrights, short-story writers, & other creative writers. , 172. Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism , 172 pp. 9-20. ISBN: 9780787686567
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2006) The psychopathology of everyday children's literature criticism. In: Hunt, P. , (eds.) Children's literature. Critical concepts in literary and cultural studies , 2. Routledge , London. pp. 305-323. ISBN: 9780415372282
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2005) Reproductive technologies: the owned child and commodification. New Antigone , 1 (1). pp. 20-27. ISSN: 1832-7680
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , eds. (2004) Children's literature: new approaches. Palgrave Macmillan , Basingstoke. pp 256. ISBN: 9781403917379
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2003) On 'wanting' a 'child', or: an idea of desire. In: Segal, N. , Taylor, L. , Cook, R. , (eds.) Indeterminate bodies. Palgrave Macmillan , Basingstoke. pp. 22-35. ISBN: 9780333949696
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (2003) The Philosophical investigations' children. Educational philosophy and theory , 35 (4). pp. 381-394. ISSN: 1469-5812 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1469-5812.00036
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. , eds. (1998) Children in culture: approaches to childhood. Palgave Macmillan , Basingstoke. pp 280. ISBN: 9780333711484
- Lesnik-Oberstein, K. (1994) Children's literature: criticism and the fictional child. Clarendon Press , Oxford. pp 249. ISBN: 9780198119982