Brian Gastle

Professor Brian Gastle is a full Professor in the Department of English, College of Arts and Sciences, at Western Carolina University. His career is distinguished by nationally recognized research on late-medieval literature and a passionate commitment to innovative teaching.

Education:

• Ph.D., English Language and Literature, University of Delaware
• M.A., English Language and Literature, University of Delaware
• B.A., English Language and Literature, SUNY College at Buffalo

Research Interests:

Professor Gastle’s scholarship centers on later medieval literature, especially the works of Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower. He examines how the lexicon of nascent market economies, mercantile culture, and proto-capitalist thought influenced fourteenth- and fifteenth-century literary explorations of identity, power, gender, sexuality, and social relationships. His interdisciplinary approach blends economic history, gender studies, and close textual analysis.

Teaching Interests:

Dr. Gastle teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on medieval literature, Chaucer, Gower, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Margery Kempe, medieval and classical literature in liberal studies, graduate research methods, technical and professional writing, and first-year writing. His classroom is celebrated for integrating medieval manuscripts, popular culture artifacts, and hands-on research skills.

Honors and Awards:

• University Scholar Award, Western Carolina University (2018)
• John Hurt Fisher Award, John Gower Society (2020)
• Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award, Western Carolina University (2022)
• Excellence in Teaching Liberal Studies Award, Western Carolina University (2024)

Personal and Professional Life:

Brian Gastle lives in Cullowhee, NC with his wife, poet and WCU English Education faculty member Dr. Catherine Carter, their cat, and an ever-changing menagerie of critters. His office is an eclectic museum of medieval manuscripts, Tolkien posters, vintage pulp paperbacks, salvaged disco balls, and whitewater kayaking memorabilia—reflecting the same curiosity and joy he brings to scholarship and teaching.