Rey Chow

Rey Chow is the Andrew W. Mellon Distinguished Professor in the Humanities and Professor of Literature at Duke University, affiliated with Trinity College of Arts & Sciences. She holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University (1986), an M.A. from Stanford (1982), and a B.A. from the University of Hong Kong (1979). Her research focuses on cultural theory, film studies, postcolonialism, and literary criticism, with a particular emphasis on East Asia, Europe, and North America.

Chow’s work interrogates intersections of modernity, postcoloniality, ethnicity, and sexuality through interdisciplinary analyses. Notable publications include Entanglements (2012), Sentimental Fabulations (2007), and The Protestant Ethnic (2002). She has taught courses on Hitchcock, Chinese cinema, and comparative theory.

Her awards include membership in the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (2016), Guggenheim Fellowship (1992), and Radcliffe Institute Fellowship (2005). She has held leadership roles, including Director of Duke’s Program in Literature (2014–2020) and interim leadership in Gender, Sexuality & Feminist Studies.

• Key Themes: Cultural critique, media studies, Foucault, poststructuralism
• Recent Work: Focus on liberal democracy, sound studies, and global cultural politics