Mareike Spychala

Dr. Mareike Spychala is a researcher and lecturer at the University of Bamberg's Faculty of Humanities and Cultural Studies. Her work bridges war literature, gender studies, and speculative fiction, with a focus on the Iraq War, Arab American literature, and queer theory. She co-organizes conferences like 'Speculative Fiction and Ethics' (2021) and serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Gender-Sensitive Research (2025). Her editorial roles include the journal Current Objectives in Postgraduate American Studies (2024–present).

• Key Research: War trauma, speculative fiction ethics, and environmental justice.
• Teaching: Specializes in American literature, gender studies, and post-9/11 narratives.

Publications include monographs on military femininity and chapters in anthologies addressing queer representation in Star Trek, ecojustice in Beasts of the Southern Wild, and gendered trauma in Iraq War memoirs. She has presented internationally, from Dartmouth College to the University of Rostock, and contributes to open-access journals and conferences.