Lisa O’Connell

Lisa O’Connell is an Associate Professor of English Literature at the Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University (ACU), where she is a fully accredited HDR supervisor. She is also an Honorary Associate Professor of Literature at the University of Queensland (2022–2025) and affiliated with the ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions. Her work spans British literature of the long eighteenth century, the history and theory of the novel, Enlightenment thought, gender, sexuality, and postcolonial studies.

Her research interests focus on the intersections of literature, politics, religion, and secularization in the 18th century. She explores how literary forms such as the marriage plot reflect broader cultural transformations, including the secularization of social institutions and the impact of colonialism on Anglo-European literary culture. Her work engages deeply with theories of gender, affect, and political theology, offering nuanced interpretations of canonical and marginalized texts.

The trends in her recent publications reveal a sustained engagement with Enlightenment discourses, particularly around liberty, marriage, religion, and colonial encounters. Her articles span interdisciplinary fields including literary theory, cultural history, gender studies, and postcolonial criticism, often centering on how literature mediates philosophical and political ideas. She frequently collaborates on special journal issues that reframe key themes in eighteenth-century studies.

• Visiting Research Scholar, Humboldt University, Berlin (2019)
• Australian Visiting Research Scholar, Freie Universität Berlin (2016)
• Faculty Research Fellow, University of Queensland (2012)
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins University (2004–2007)

Lisa O’Connell has been a Chief Investigator on multiple Australian Research Council Discovery Grants, including projects on secularization and irregular marriage in British colonial contexts. She actively mentors postgraduate students and contributes to academic leadership as Vice-President of the Australian and New Zealand Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies. Her public engagement includes media appearances, public lectures, and cultural panel discussions, particularly around Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, and sustainability narratives.

She is affiliated with research teams such as the ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions (UQ node) and collaborates internationally through networks like the Society for Novel Studies. Her scholarly activities are embedded in both institutional research centers and transnational academic communities.