Raphael Falco

Raphael Falco is Professor of English at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), specializing in English Renaissance literature, myth, colonial/postcolonial literature, and 20th-century American poetry with particular expertise in Bob Dylan studies. Named the 2012-2013 Lipitz Professor of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at UMBC, he participated in the Fulbright Scholars Program in 2017, lecturing at Astrakhan State University in Russia.

Education:

• Ph.D., New York University
• M.A., Columbia University
• B.A., Columbia University

Falco's research bridges literary studies with anthropology and cultural theory, exploring charismatic authority in early modern English tragedy, cultural genealogy, and the literary techniques of Bob Dylan. His teaching encompasses Renaissance humanism, sixteenth-century courtliness, colonialism and literature, myth studies, John Milton, modern poetry, and Bob Dylan. As a creative writer and member of the Authors Guild, he publishes plays, short stories, and poetry alongside his academic work.

His scholarly output reveals consistent thematic connections between literature, history, and cultural theory, with particular focus on Renaissance/early modern periods and contemporary cultural analysis. His groundbreaking work on Bob Dylan places the artist within historical literary traditions of imitation (imitatio), challenging post-Romantic views of Dylan as purely avant-garde. His research on charisma demonstrates how myth systems survive through charismatic group dynamics across historical contexts.

Scientific Awards and Recognition:

• Lipitz Professor of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (2012-2013)
• Fulbright Scholar (2016-2017)
• Folger Institute Fellowship (2005)
• Dresher Summer Faculty Fellowship (2018)
• CAHSS Dean's Research Fund Fellowship (2015)
• Elizabeth Agee Prize in American Literature

Falco serves as Founding Editor of the Dylan Review and book review editor of Soundings: An Interdisciplinary Journal. His research has been supported by multiple prestigious grants including the Fulbright award. He has established himself as a leading authority in both Renaissance studies and Bob Dylan scholarship, creating interdisciplinary connections between historical literary practices and contemporary cultural analysis.