Felipe Valencia

Felipe Valencia is Associate Professor of Spanish at Utah State University, where he teaches courses in Hispanic literature, culture, and literary analysis. He is also President of the Society for Renaissance and Baroque Hispanic Poetry, a leading academic organization in his field. His academic appointments include prior positions as Assistant and Visiting Associate Professor at Utah State, Swarthmore College, and Cornell University.

• Ph.D., Brown University, 2013
• A.M., Brown University, 2010
• Lic. (B.A. equivalent), Complutense University of Madrid, 2006

Valencia's research centers on early modern Spanish literature, with a focus on lyric poetry, feminist and gender studies, melancholy, and sexual violence in literary discourse. He explores the intersections of poetry, identity, and cultural history, particularly in the works of Luis de Góngora, Cervantes, Sor Juana, and María de Zayas. His scholarship draws from critical theory, cultural studies, and interdisciplinary methodologies to interrogate canonical texts and their legacies.

His recent and forthcoming publications reveal a strong thematic focus on the sublime in Góngorism, emotional frameworks in solitude and melancholy, and the representation of gendered violence. His work spans lyric theory, epic poetry, pastoral literature, and dramatic forms, often connecting historical poetics to contemporary feminist and queer readings.

Valencia has received significant recognition through positive scholarly reviews of his monograph The Melancholy Void: Lyric and Masculinity in the Age of Góngora (2021), which has been praised in Hispanic Review, Revista de Estudios Hispánicos, Calíope, and others for its groundbreaking integration of gender studies and its critical re-examination of canonical poetic traditions.

He is actively involved in academic mentorship, public engagement, and collaborative research. He has co-edited projects on Mary M. Gaylord and sexual violence in early modern literature, advised graduate students, and participated in public forums on #MeToo and sexual violence. He collaborates with scholars such as Ricardo Padrón and Elizabeth Rhodes and contributes to major reference works like The Oxford Handbook of Spanish Golden Age Literature. He is also engaged with digital humanities through the Cancionero de abril y mayo.

Valencia is affiliated with several academic organizations, including the Modern Language Association (MLA), Renaissance Society of America (RSA), and the Society for Renaissance and Baroque Hispanic Poetry, where he serves as President. He has been active in public intellectual life, participating in radio broadcasts, film screenings, and podcasts, including an interview on the New Books Network.