Deborah Steinberger

Deborah Steinberger is an Associate Professor of French and Comparative Literature at the University of Delaware, affiliated with the College of Arts & Sciences. She joined the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures in 1994 and serves as Associate Chair. Her research focuses on early modern French women writers, 17th/18th-century theater, and the cultural impact of Le Mercure Galant, one of France’s first newspapers. She is a contributor to the digital humanities project Les Nouvelles Nouvelles and holds grants from the NEH and French Government.

• Education: PhD (French Literature, NYU), MA/BA (Comparative Literature, UC Berkeley/Yale)
• Grants: NEH Summer Stipend (2023), French in Higher Education Grant (2024)
• Teaching: Courses include French literature, language, and the French Theater Workshop, culminating in annual student productions.

Her research explores how Le Mercure Galant shaped early modern media, blending fact/fiction to promote Louis XIV’s regime. Recent work emphasizes feminine narratives and anti-Protestant propaganda in periodicals. She collaborates internationally on digital humanities projects preserving early modern texts.

Publications include edited volumes (e.g., Mineurs, Minorités, Marginalités au Grand Siècle), articles on Donneau de Visé’s pedagogy, and analyses of gendered narratives in early modern France. She serves on the Society for Interdisciplinary French 17th-century Studies (SE17) leadership.