Indigenous Literary And Cultural Studies

A Different Kind of Reading: Storylistening with Dr. Alexa Manuel

A Different Kind of Reading: Storylistening with Dr. Alexa Manuel

Dr. Alexa Manuel (Syilx and St’at’imc Nations) completed her doctoral studies in March 2024. This September, she joins the Department of English Language & Literatures as a Postdoctoral Fellow and sessional instructor. Read this Q&A to learn about Manuel’s research, her experience in academia, and her hopes for Indigenous futures in the literary realm.  

10 Texts by Indigenous Authors of BC to Read for Orange Shirt Day 

10 Texts by Indigenous Authors of BC to Read for Orange Shirt Day 

This September, UBC English Language & Literatures partnered with X̱wi7x̱wa Library to spotlight 10 texts written by local Indigenous Authors to observe Orange Shirt Day. Read this booklist, complete with notes from X̱wi7x̱wa librarians, to centre Indigenous experiences and perspectives in reconciliation.

Dr. Alice Te Punga Somerville Shortlisted for Top New Zealand Book Award

Dr. Alice Te Punga Somerville Shortlisted for Top New Zealand Book Award

Congratulations to Dr. Te Punga Somerville (Māori – Te Āti Awa, Taranaki), whose brilliant first poetry collection, Always Italicise: how to write while colonised, has been shortlisted for the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry as part of the prestigious Ockham New Zealand Book Awards!

Prof. Daniel Heath Justice | In Danielle Smith’s Fantasy Alberta, Indigenous Struggle is Twisted to Suit Settlers

Prof. Daniel Heath Justice | In Danielle Smith’s Fantasy Alberta, Indigenous Struggle is Twisted to Suit Settlers

Alice Te Punga Somerville smiles in front of a red background covered in white triangles arranged into hexagons. She has brown hair that passes her shoulders, and wears purple meta-framed glasses, dangling earrings with printed green and red colours, and a black shirt with a zipper in front.

From the Centre in Widening Circles: Alice Te Punga Somerville on Poetry, Humour, and Not Being All the Things

To mark the publication of her first book of poetry, Always Italicise: How To Write While Colonized, Dr. Alice Te Punga Somerville reflects on poetry, relationality, and building networks beyond academia to help one overcome the incapacitating fear of individual failure.  

Know Your Profs with Dr. Dallas Hunt

Know Your Profs with Dr. Dallas Hunt

In this instalment of Know Your Profs, Dr. Dallas Hunt shares with us how sometimes, the most beautiful moments in a class can come out of the cacophony of conversations yet to be had.

Alice Te Punga Somerville smiles in front of a red background covered in white triangles arranged into hexagons. She has brown hair that passes her shoulders, and wears purple meta-framed glasses, dangling earrings with printed green and red colours, and a black shirt with a zipper in front.

UBC Department of English Language and Literatures Welcomes Dr. Alice Te Punga Somerville

Professor Te Punga Somerville (Māori – Te Āti Awa, Taranaki) is a scholar, poet and irredentist. At its heart, her research and teaching engages texts to de-centre colonialism by centering Indigenous expansiveness.