Carla Arnell

Carla Arnell serves as Professor of English at Lake Forest College, where she also holds the administrative roles of Associate Dean of the Faculty and Director of the Office of Faculty Development. Her academic focus bridges classical and medieval literary traditions with modern ethical inquiry, particularly through the lens of religious and philosophical frameworks.

Dr. Arnell's educational background includes:

• PhD in English, Northwestern University
• MA in English, Northwestern University
• AB in English and Classics, summa cum laude, Augustana College (Rock Island, IL)

Her research spans Classical and Medieval Literature, History of the British Novel, Medievalism in British Literature, Religion and Modern Fiction, the Oxford Inklings, Nineteenth-Century Russian Novel, and Literature and Ethics. She examines how literary traditions engage with spiritual questions across historical periods, with particular attention to the intersections of faith, storytelling, and moral formation. Her work reveals consistent patterns connecting medieval narrative structures to contemporary literary expressions, especially in works exploring mystical experiences and ethical dilemmas.

Professor Arnell's publication trajectory demonstrates deepening engagement with spiritual dimensions of literature, culminating in her forthcoming book project on twentieth-century mystical novels. Her recent scholarship increasingly analyzes connections between medieval literary forms and modern explorations of faith, particularly through the lens of writers associated with the Oxford Inklings and Victorian-to-Edwardian mystical fiction.

Her notable recognitions include:

• Bird Award (2016) for intellectual fervor and commitment to college community
• William Dunn Award (2007) for teaching and scholarly promise
• Lake Forest College Hotchkiss Fellowship (2006)
• Augustana College Research Foundation Award (1991)
• Phi Beta Kappa membership (1991)

In pedagogical leadership, Professor Arnell has championed literature as a transformative liberal art through faculty development initiatives and scholarship on teaching. Her Hotchkiss Fellowship supported dedicated research time for scholarly projects, while her writings on 'teaching for life' reflect commitment to education that cultivates wisdom and delight. She has delivered numerous invited lectures at academic conferences and contributed to public discourse through publications in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Professor Arnell is currently completing Divine Representations: The Rise of the Mystical Novel in Twentieth-Century England (forthcoming SUNY Press, 2026), which examines the fiction of George MacDonald, A.E. Waite, Robert Hugh Benson, Evelyn Underhill, and Arthur Machen.