May Witwit

Dr. May Witwit is a literature studies expert affiliated with the University of Bedfordshire's Research Institute for Media, Arts and Performance (RIMAP). Her research focuses on Victorian literature, translations of ancient Arabian poetry, Victorian anti-suffrage movements, and the representation of Arab women in 19th- and early 20th-century British press. She holds a PhD from the University of Bedfordshire (2012) on 'Anti-Feminist Attitudes in Selected Victorian Professional Women,' followed by a three-year Leverhulme Trust-funded Post-Doctorate Research Fellowship.

Co-authoring Talking About Jane Austen in Baghdad: The True Story of an Unlikely Friendship (2010, Penguin), she recounts her personal journey escaping Iraq and explores cross-cultural literary dialogues. Her work bridges historical literary analysis with contemporary socio-political contexts, particularly examining imperial narratives and gender dynamics in British colonial discourse.

At RIMAP, Witwit contributes to interdisciplinary research projects such as 'East Youth Dance Development' and 'The Bedfordshire Choreographic Development Project,' reflecting her engagement with both literary and performance studies.