Hilary Emerson

Hilary Emerson is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Italian at the University of Rhode Island, where she serves as Coordinator of the Italian Program and faculty advisor for the Italian Club. Her teaching focuses on Italian language, literature, and film, with specializations in Italian language and society, modern/contemporary literature, and film/media studies.

• Education: PhD in Italian from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; BA in Italian Studies & International Relations from Wheaton College (MA), summa cum laude.

Her research explores the intersection of avant-garde cinema, feminist theory, and ecofeminism, particularly the works of Lina Mangiacapre. She is currently working on a book project analyzing Mangiacapre’s feminist films, focusing on narrative and societal boundaries, and the emancipatory potential of experimental media.

Her selected publications highlight trends in Italian cinema, media history, and feminist reinterpretation of medieval texts. These include collaborative works and translations that bridge academic and pedagogical approaches to film and literature.