Karen Raber

Karen Raber is a Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Mississippi, affiliated with the Department of English in the College of Liberal Arts. She also serves as Executive Director of the Shakespeare Association of America. Her research focuses on posthumanist theory, ecostudies, animal studies, gender studies, and early modern literature, particularly Shakespeare's works.

• Education: BA in English from Yale University (1983), PhD in Literature from the University of California-San Diego (1995)

Her research explores the role of nonhuman entities (animals, objects, machines) in early modern texts and materialist/posthumanist frameworks. Notable publications include Shakespeare and Animals, A Dictionary (2022), Shakespeare and Posthumanist Theory (2018), and Animal Bodies, Renaissance Culture (2013). She has co-edited collections such as The Routledge Handbook of Shakespeare and Animals (2022) and Performing Animals (2017).

Dr. Raber’s work bridges interdisciplinary scholarship, integrating gender studies, ecocriticism, and early modern drama. Her contributions include over forty journal articles, book chapters, and edited volumes, reflecting her commitment to redefining human and nonhuman agency in literary contexts.