Thomas H. Ford

Dr. Thomas H. Ford is an ARC Future Fellow and Senior Lecturer in the Department of English & Creative Writing at La Trobe University in Australia. With a PhD from the University of Chicago, he has established himself as a significant scholar in literary history, particularly focusing on colonial Australian literature, Romanticism, and the intersections of literature with climate change.

His educational background includes a PhD and MA from the University of Chicago, a BA (Hons) from the Australian National University, and a Graduate Certificate of University Teaching from the University of Melbourne. These diverse academic experiences have informed his interdisciplinary approach to literary studies.

Dr. Ford's research interests span several interconnected fields including colonial Australian literature, Romantic poetry and its relationship to climate, Indigenous literatures, and the history of expertise. His work often explores how literature engages with environmental concerns, particularly through his current ARC-funded project "Parched: cultures of drought in regional Victoria" which examines drought narratives in Australian culture. He has made significant contributions to understanding the relationship between poetry and atmospheric conditions, as evidenced in his award-winning book "Wordsworth and the Poetics of Air."

His recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on how literature interacts with historical, legal, and environmental frameworks. Ford has examined the poetics of terra nullius in colonial Australia, the concept of tone in literary criticism, and the relationship between Romantic literature and contemporary climate concerns. His scholarly output reveals a trajectory moving from British Romanticism toward increasingly focused studies of Australian literary history and its environmental dimensions.

• Walter McRae Russell Award for best book on Australian literature (2023-24)
• British Association for Romantic Studies prize for best first book (2017-18)

Dr. Ford is actively involved in research supervision and is currently seeking to fill a funded PhD position focused on colonial, Australian, and/or Indigenous literatures. His ARC Future Fellowship supports his ongoing research into Australian literary history and environmental narratives. He collaborates extensively with other scholars, particularly Justin Clemens, with whom he has co-authored significant works on Barron Field and Australian literary history.