Ruth Gehrmann

Dr. Ruth Gehrmann is a postdoctoral researcher at the DFG CRC 1482 “Studies in Human Differentiation” at the University of Mainz, working under Professor Mita Banerjee's project on “Successful Aging: Best Agers at the Intersection of Age and Performance Differentiation.” She holds a PhD in American Studies from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU Mainz), an M.A. in American Studies from the University of Augsburg, and a B.A. in British and American Studies from the University of Konstanz.

Her research focuses on the representation and construction of age and aging in lifestyle contexts, particularly in pop cultural realms such as the Twilight series, The Boys TV show and comic series, and social media. She has explored intersections of age and gender, and her work often bridges medical humanities and literary analysis through a new historicist lens.

Dr. Gehrmann has undertaken international academic stays at the National University of Ireland, Galway, and Columbia University, New York. She has also taught at York University in Toronto. Her interdisciplinary interests span Aging Studies, Speculative Fiction, and Medical Humanities, with a particular emphasis on how narratives shape and challenge societal perceptions of aging.