Leah Middlebrook

Leah Middlebrook is a Professor of Comparative Literature and Spanish in the School of Global Studies and Languages at the University of Oregon, where she also serves as Director of the Oregon Humanities Center. Her academic career spans over two decades with significant contributions to early modern literary studies and poetic theory.

Her educational background includes:

• B.A. in Spanish Literature from Columbia University (1989)
• M.A. (1991) and Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Berkeley (1998)

Professor Middlebrook's research centers on poetry and poetics, comparative modernities, and critical race studies, with particular focus on early modern literature of Spain, the Spanish Americas, France, and Great Britain. She examines how lyric poetry intersects with political formations, translation practices, and constructions of subjectivity across temporal boundaries. Her work challenges conventional periodizations by revealing continuities between 'early' and 'late' modernities through mythological frameworks like the Amphion legend. She emphasizes the materiality of poetic production and its relationship to labor, voice, and cultural power.

Her recent publications demonstrate a cohesive trajectory exploring the Amphion myth across five centuries, connecting ancient mythology to contemporary poetic practices. This body of work reveals how poetic forms negotiate political realities while maintaining transcendent possibilities, particularly through transatlantic adaptations and reinterpretations of classical motifs.

She has received significant recognition for her teaching excellence:

• Herman Award for Distinguished Teaching (2016)
• Ersted Award for Distinguished Teaching (2007)

Her pedagogical philosophy centers on inclusion, respect, and humility, creating supportive learning environments across introductory to advanced courses in Comparative Literature, Spanish, and the Honors College.

As a Fulbright scholar (1994-95) and Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow (1998-2000), she secured prestigious research funding before joining the University of Oregon in 2002. Currently directing the Oregon Humanities Center, she fosters interdisciplinary humanities research and public engagement initiatives across campus and the broader community.