Professorship for English Literature

Organisational unit: Professoship

Organisation profile

In the English Literature section, our research and teaching focusses on a wide range of topics from a broadly Cultural Studies perspective. Areas of particular interest in our research include narratology, image studies, literary translation and adaptation, transnational phenomena, Irish literature, children’s literature as well as literature of the Romantic period and eighteenth-century literature situated at the interface of literature and music. In our teaching we offer courses in the Bachelor and Master programmes in Teacher Education and Cultural Studies. Seminar topics range from a general Introduction to English Literature to literary translation, transmedia storytelling, contemporary Irish short stories, children’s literature, the picturebook and other multimodal texts, literary nonsense, specific writers such as Oscar Wilde or genres such as eighteenth-century travel. We explore how literature works between and beyond the book covers in research-based seminars and project seminars in cooperation with partners in literary institutions, in theatre excursions and through guest lectures by contemporary authors and translators as well as by representatives of publishing houses and from the local theatre. Committed to our teaching, we employ different didactic approaches and methods, including blended learning, and use a variety of teaching materials specifically tailored to our students’ needs and interests.

Main research areas

Areas of research are comparative literature, translation studies, image studies, children's literature and literature in the classroom (intercultural aspects and children's literature in foreign language learning and teaching).

  1. Published

    The Same But Different. Ambivalent Internationalism in Early Twentieth-Century Children's Books.

    O'Sullivan, E., 01.01.2011, In: The Princeton University Library Chronicle. 72, 3, p. 683-712 29 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearch

  2. Published

    Toward a Production-Oriented Imagology

    Köhler, U. K., 01.11.2022, New Perspectives on Imagology. Edtstadler, K., Folie, S. & Zocco, G. (eds.). Leiden: Brill Verlag, p. 93-111 19 p. (Studia Imagologica; vol. 30).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

  3. Published

    Translating children’s literature: what, for whom, how, and why. A basic map of actors, factors and contexts

    O'Sullivan, E., 25.07.2019, In: Belas Infiéis . 8, 3, p. 13-35 23 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  4. Published

    Translating picturebooks: Key topics

    O'Sullivan, E., 2025, The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Young Audiences. Borodo, M. & Diaz-Cintas, J. (eds.). Taylor and Francis Inc., p. 309-323 15 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  5. Published

    Translating Pictures: the interaction of pictures and words in the translation of picture books

    O'Sullivan, E., 2006, The translation of children's literature: a reader. Lathey, G. (ed.). Clevedon [u.a.]: Multilingual Matters , p. 113-121 9 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch

  6. Published

    Translating pictures (1999)

    O'Sullivan, E., 2008, Considering children's literature: A Reader. Schwenke Wyile, A. (ed.). Peterborough, Ontario [u.a.]: Broadview Press, p. 117-126 10 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch

  7. Published

    Translation

    O'Sullivan, E., 2006, The Oxford encyclopedia of children's literature: Vol. 4: Smad - Zwer. Zipes, J. D. (ed.). Oxford [u.a.]: Oxford University Press, p. 107-108 2 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  8. Published

    Translation

    O'Sullivan, E., 12.01.2021, Keywords for Children's Literature. Nel, P., Paul, L. & Christensen, N. (eds.). 2. ed. New York: New York University Press, p. 184-187 4 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  9. Published

    Translation

    O'Sullivan, E., 20.11.2023, The Routledge Companion to Children's Literature and Culture . Nelson, C., Wesseling, E. & Wu, A.M.-Y. (eds.). New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, p. 327-339 13 p. 27. (Routledge literature companions).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  10. Published

    Träume: Jahrbuch der Gesellschaft für Kinder- und Jugendliteraturforschung | GKJF 2020

    von Glasenapp, G. (Editor), O'Sullivan, E. (Editor), Roeder, C. (Editor) & Tomkowiak, I. (Editor), 2020, Frankfurt am Main: Gesellschaft für Kinder- und Jugendliteraturforschung. 193 p. (Jahrbuch der Gesellschaft für Kinder- und Jugendliteraturforschung; vol. 2020)

    Research output: Books and anthologiesSpecial Journal issueResearch