Burcu Alkan

Burcu Alkan is an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of English and American Studies at The University of Manchester. She holds a PhD in English and American Studies from the same institution (2009), supervised by Terry Eagleton and Howard Booth. Her research spans intellectual studies, Faustian narratives, psychoanalysis, and medical humanities, particularly focusing on the intersection of literature and psychiatry. Previously, she held academic roles in Turkey and Germany before returning to Manchester in 2020.

Alkan’s work interrogates cultural materialist and postcolonial perspectives on intellectuals, with early studies on the 1970s Turkish novel. Her current research bridges literary analysis with mental health discourse, examining how literature engages with psychological themes. She has contributed to comparative literature, Turkish studies, and gender performance analysis, as seen in her publications on labor migration, gender fluidity, and narrative memory.

• PhD: The University of Manchester, 2009

Her publications include analyses of Turkish literary figures like Füruzan and Sevgi Soysal, alongside comparative studies with international authors such as Umberto Eco. Alkan’s work emphasizes transcultural and interdisciplinary approaches, reflecting her commitment to medical humanities and critical literary theory.