Hollie Harder

Hollie Harder is a Professor of French and Francophone Studies at Brandeis University, serving outside the tenure structure. She directs the French and Italian Language Programs within the Department of Romance Studies. Her research focuses on 19th- and 20th-century French literature, particularly Marcel Proust and Émile Zola, with interdisciplinary interests in women's studies and literary pedagogy. She leads the Proust Reading Group at the Boston Athenaeum and teaches at the Brandeis Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (BOLLI).

Education: Ph.D. from Boston University, M.A. and dual B.A./B.S. from the University of Kansas.

Research interests include narrative structure in Proust’s works, gender representation in Zola’s novels, and the intersection of food symbolism with literary creation. Her publications analyze characters like Françoise and Albertine through psychoanalytic and cultural lenses.

Received the Dr. Hollie Markland Harder Book Fund from the Boston Athenaeum in 2013. Active in academic leadership roles, including curriculum development for language programs and public engagement through reading groups.