Mary Helen Dupree

Mary Helen Dupree is an Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of German at Georgetown University’s College of Arts & Sciences. She holds a Ph.D. in German Literature from Columbia University (2006) and previously served as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Rice University. Her research focuses on 18th- and early 19th-century German literature and culture, with specialties in performance studies, sound/media theory, and feminist literary history. She is currently investigating the theory and practice of literary declamation in Germany from the mid-18th century to the present.

Education: Columbia University (Ph.D., M.Phil, M.A. in German) and Swarthmore College (B.A. in English).

Research emphasizes intersections between gender, vocal performance, and historical literary practices. Recent work explores how sound and declamation shaped cultural narratives during the Enlightenment and Romantic periods.

Publications span topics like J.M.R. Lenz’s plays, Goethe’s print culture, and intermedial performance. She serves as Vice President of The Lessing Society and is affiliated with Georgetown’s Intercultural Center.