Alfie Howard
- Email: pt17ajh@leeds.ac.uk
- Thesis title: Animal speech and perceptions of threat in human-animal narratives from Kipling (1894) to Kivirähk (2007)
- Supervisors: Graham Huggan, Dr Diane Nelson
Profile
I joined the University of Leeds as an undergraduate in 2017, undertaking my BA with the School of Politics and International Relations. After graduating in 2020, I began an MA by Research with the School of English, which I completed in 2021, before starting my current PhD project.
Research interests
My PhD thesis examines anthropomorphism and representations of animal speech in fiction, with an emphasis on threats both to and from power. By analysing a range of texts, I explore different systems of power, including colonialism, class, patriarchy and human-animal relations. My project is part of the Leverhulme-funded Extinction Studies Doctoral Training Programme, and I am working across both the School of English and the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies.
My MAR thesis examined the wendigo, a malevolent spirit in traditional Algonquian belief systems, and its representations in literature and popular culture, looking at the works of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous storytellers.
Qualifications
- MA by Research (Distinction) English
- BA (Hons) Economics and Politics
Research groups and institutes
- Environmental Humanities Research Group