Associate Professor of English

Director, Honors Program

University of Maine at Presque Isle

Presque Isle, ME 04769

207-768-9416

ricer@polaris.umpi.maine.edu

Ph.D. English, University of Connecticut, Storrs. May, 1998.

Specializing in English Renaissance, and in Rhetoric and Composition Theory.

Dissertation: The Politics of Gender in John Marston’s Plays.

This dissertation studies the representation of gender in Marston’s dramatic works as performative acts that qualify the construction of stable sexual categories. I contend that, in psychoanalytic terms, Marston represented the sexed body as the Real, a "hole" or inconsistency in the symbolic order that enacts a powerful disruption of an individual’s symbolic mooring to "reality." During the course of his career, in plays from Antonio and Mellida (1599) to The Insatiate Countess (1609), women in Marston’s works invariably threaten to puncture the illusion of symbolic continuity that their patriarchal culture labors to sustain: his "Dutch courtesan," "Insatiate countess," and even Sophonisba, "woman’s right wonder," all refuse to surrender their materiality, their difference, to the alienating gender definitions of their society. Furthermore, through their dialogue with various contemporary writings on the place and purpose of the theater, Marston’s plays explore the expanding Jacobean divide between symbolic practices and the material world. Although other playwrights engage these issues, Marston’s work is unusual for the thoroughness with which it examines the constitution of the gendered subject.

Committee: Richard S. Peterson, Matthew N. Proser, Lynn Z. Bloom

M. A. English, University of Connecticut, 1992.

B. A. English and Latin; secondary school certification (PA), Dickinson College, 1989.

Renaissance dramatic and non-dramatic literature to 1660, including Shakespeare; Marxist theory and materialist critical approaches to literature; Psychoanalytic theory; Postcolonial theory and literature; Composition and Rhetorical Theory and Practice; the British novel.

Modern Language Association of America

National Council of Teachers of English

Scholars of Early Modern Studies

Shakespeare Association of America

Assistant Professor of English, Department of English, Communication and Fine Arts, University of Maine at Presque Isle, September 1997 to present.

English 101: Composition and Literature I

English 102: Composition and Literature II (replaced with English 151)

English 151 (Honors): Introduction to Literature

English 201: Advanced Writing: Material Culture

English 343: The English Neoclassical Tradition

English 257: World literature I

English 258: World literature II

English 309: Studies in the Novel (the Rise and Fall of the British Empire; Heroes and Quests; Science Fiction and Philosophy)

English 355: Studies in Earlier English Literature

English 360: Literature of the Sea

English 367: Shakespeare I

English 368: Shakespeare II (Early English Drama)

English 376: Native American Narratives

English 378: African-American Literature (Harlem Renaissance – Present)

English 388: Literary Theory and Critical Practice

Journalism 201/ English 212: News Reporting and Writing

FYS 100 (Honors): First Year Seminar

Philosophy 151: Introduction to Philosophy

Honors 300: various Honors seminars, including "Peace and War," "Ecodemia," "Reinventing the University," "Marx, Revolution, and the Spaghetti Western," and "Film Noir, Pulp Fiction, and American Postwar Anxiety"

Numerous independent studies, including "Marxism and Literature," "Renaissance Drama," "Utopian Literature," and "Teaching of Writing" (for English Secondary Education majors)

Teaching Assistant, Department of English, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 1991 to 1997.

English 105: College Composition in Computer-Networked and Traditional Classrooms

                          English 109: Literature and Composition

                          English 212: Modern Novel (teaching assistant)

English 249: Advanced Expository Writing

Adjunct Faculty, Humanities Department, Three Rivers Community-Technical College, Norwich, CT, 1993 to 1997.

English 103: Word Processing Lab for College Writing

                          English 108: Reading/Writing Connection (preparation for English 111)

                          English 111: College Composition

                          English 112: Literature and Composition

English 221: Special Topics: Literature and the Modern Cinema

English 221: Special Topics: Shakespeare and Film

New London County Opportunities Industrialization Center (urban outreach program of Three Rivers Community-Technical College), New London, CT, 1995 to 1997.

                          English 111 and 112

Instructor, Red Land Area High School, Lewisberry, PA, September-December 1990.

Latin I-IV; Responsible for curriculum development and textbook adoption.

Instructor, Middletown Area High School, Middletown, PA, 1989-1990.

Sophomore English

Latin I-III

 

Faculty Writing Award from The Maine Scholar (interdisciplinary journal of the University of Maine system) ($1000), for ""Politically Conscious: Towards a Redefinition of (Global) Literary Studies" (Spring 2003).

Distinguished Teaching Award Finalist, UMPI, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003.

Finalist, Gant Scholarship Award for Outstanding Graduate Student Scholarship, University of Connecticut, 1994.

Predoctoral Fellowship, University of Connecticut, 1993.

Aetna Graduate Critical Essay Prizes, University of Connecticut, 1993.

Awarded for the following papers:

"An "Inconstant" Woman: Criseyde, Bakhtin, and the Politics of Discourse"

"(Re)Constructing the "Self": Bakhtinian Dialogics in Woolf's To the Lighthouse"

Director, Honors Program, 1999-present.

General Administrative Responsibilities:

Liaison between UMPI Administration, university Programs, and Honors Program Committee:

Chair, Honors Program Curricular Advisory Committee;

negotiate teaching and scheduling of honors courses;

negotiate faculty compensation for additional stipends;

coordinate with VP of Academic Affairs and VP of Student Affairs;

coordinate assistantships and student coordinator position;

coordinate program changes and curriculum development.

Liaison to National and State Organizations:

maintain regular contact with Maine State Honors Directors;

maintain regular contact with National Honors Organizations;

serve as contact for state, regional, and national honors conferences and The Maine Scholar;

reviewer and contributor to The Maine Scholar.

Manager of Honors Program budget:

negotiate and facilitate budget requests with recommendation of committee;

arrange transportation for conferences;

award honors project funds;

coordinate convocation awards;

oversee grant proposals.

Recruitment and Admission:

serve as contact person for all students and faculty;

draft and send welcome/acceptance correspondence to new and prospective students;

coordinate Honors Program representation during summer orientation sessions;

monitor student standing within the program;

maintain database of students in program;

maintain files/portfolio for all Honors students;

monitor faculty and student mentoring programs.

Coursework Coordination:

facilitate Honors Program Seminars (offered every semester, open to all students):

coordinate faculty/staff/administration involvement;

aid development of semester topics;

advise level of student involvement in course (optional 1-3 credits);

coordinate connections between seminars and Annual Honors Program Conference

facilitate Honors Senior seminars:

supervise approximately 5-6 students per semester (based upon past seminar enrollment);

facilitate weekly meetings with students and assigned mentors (includes progress reports, group discussion, and peer critiques);

coordinate formal public presentations of Honors Seniors Seminar projects;

coach students in preparation for formal public presentations;

evaluate student projects (by means of written work, oral presentations, peer evaluations, and students self-reflective essays/logs).

Coordinator, Annual Honors Conference Weekend (UMPI campus, November 16 and 17, 2001):

disseminated general Call for Papers

organized conference presenters and participants

solicited plenary speakers (Dr. Judith Swazey, Dr. Gordon Fellman, Dr. Matthew Hatvany)

maintained a $7000+ conference budget

Faculty coordinator for Undergraduate National and Regional Conferences

coordinate student submissions and participation at the National Undergraduate Literature Conference (Weber State University, Ogden, Utah), April 2001, 2002, 2003

coordinate students submissions and participation in the annual University of Maine System Honors Program Weekend (conference), April 1999, November 2000, November 2001, April 2003

Advisor to undergraduate student interdisciplinary journal, Changing Minds (est. 2002-03)

direct independent study in editing/formatting/producing a journal

maintain annual budget for journal

provide cohesion between annual student journal staff

Faculty representative/coordinator of Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship nomination coordination

publicizes scholarship program on UMPI campus

solicits recommendation for potential nominees

conducts review to determine best qualified nominee

prepares selected nominee for nationwide competition

forwards institution’s official nomination

Invited faculty participant, Faculty Summit of the Strategic Plan of the University of Maine System, July 2004. Member, ad hoc Faculty Shared Governance Committee. Responded to Strategic Plan (draft); drafted proposal for institutionalized shared governance principles and procedures within the UMaine System.

Faculty Advisor, Maine Policy Scholars Program (2001-present). Oversees a student researcher (Rita Williamson [2001], Dawn Schillinger [2002], Jessica Loranger [2003]) pursuing a rigorous program of study and applied research in the area of Maine public policy. The student receives a $1000 scholarship plus $1000 towards expenses; the faculty overseer receives a $1000 stipend. Both are required to attend several statewide progress meetings; the student is required to give a brief presentation of his or her research. Final copies of student policy projects are submitted to each of the University of Maine campus libraries.

Panel member, "Censorship on the Internet." UMPI Tech Fair 2003 (April 2003). Invited faculty member to panel discussion of recent internet censorship legislation and initiatives.

"University Day Planning Committee." Coordinator (Spring 2004) and Faculty committee member (Spring 2002). Coordinated planning, scheduling, and execution of first annual "University Day" event (April 2002 and 2004); included over 30 presentations, breakfast and lunch setups, and first performance of The Taming of the Shrew.

Department of English and Communication: Participated in overall revision of the English program, evaluation of the first year writing sequence (including a study of English 102 with Karen Hamer and Stanley Scott), developing and maintaining departmental web pages, and initiating a WAC program including first-year as well as upper division courses.

Chair, University Diversity Curriculum Sub-Committee, 1999-2000.

Speaker: Dr. Ed Neal, UNC Chapel Hill, April 2000

Directed faculty workshop: "Diversity and the Curriculum," May 2000

Center for the Study and Prevention of Hate Violence: Campus Civility Project: attended and successfully completed training workshop at Bethel, ME, August 2000.

Member, Voices of the North Country Conference planning committee, Summer and Fall 2000. (Karen McCosker, Chair)

President, AFUM, UMPI chapter, 2003-2005 terms.

President, University Senate, 2002-2003 term.

Vice-President, University Senate, 2001-2002 and 2003-2005 terms.

Chair, Library Committee of the University Senate, 2002-2003 and 2004-2005.

Faculty Senator, University Senate, 1999-present.

Faculty advisor, University Times, 1998-present.

Member, University Diversity Committee, 1998-2000, 2002-2003.

Member, Professional Development Committee, 1998-2000.

Member, Student Life Committee, 1998-2000.

Faculty representative, Student Technology Fee Budget Committee, Spring 1999.

Faculty advisor, WUPI, 1998-99.

Member, Adjunct Faculty Evaluation Committee, 1998. (William Davidshofer, Chair)

Conference Coordinator. Computers and Community: Bridging Boundaries, Spanning Disciplines. (Karen Hamer, Conference Director). November 14-15, 1997.

Computer Classroom Administrator, University of Connecticut, 1994 to 1997.

Designed curriculum; trained graduate student instructors; organized conference presentations; coordinated, upgraded, and developed budgets for maintaining technical (Macintosh networked computer classroom) facilities.

Committee member, Graduate Student Teaching Award Committee, University of Connecticut, 1994 to 1997.

President, English Department Graduate Student Association, University of Connecticut, 1993-1994.

Humanities Department Steering Committee member, Three Rivers Community-Technical College, Norwich, CT, 1996 to 1997.

Elected as adjunct faculty representative. Responsibilities include oversight of curriculum development, job search procedures, faculty development, networked computer-classroom initiatives, and general departmental policy.

 

ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP AND PRESENTATIONS (items in bold are publications)

"Times Out of Joint: Revisiting the Act of the Revenger’s Madness." Currently being reviewed by Shakespeare Quarterly.

"Language as ‘Houshold stuffe’—or—Re-Historicizing Celia in Marston’s What You Will." Currently being prepared for publication.

" ‘Enjoy’ Your Symptom: Feuding and Transgression in Romeo and Juliet." Currently being prepared for publication.

"In Search of "Affirmative Desire": Reading the "Otherness of the Other" in Wong Kar-wai’s In the Mood for Love and 2046." Presented at the PCA/ACA annual conference. San Diego, March, 2005.

"News Too Much for Christian Understanding"—or—How Imperialism, Colonialism, and the Patriarchy Can Reinvigorate Your Shakespeare Class, Too." Presented at the PCA/ACA annual conference. San Antonio, March, 2004. Currently being revised for publication submission.

"Cannibalism and the Act of Revenge in Jacobean Drama." Studies in English Literature. Spring 2004.

"Politically Conscious: Towards a Redefinition of (Global) Literary Studies." The Maine Scholar, Spring 2003. Recipient of Award for Outstanding Faculty Essay.

Review. The Drama of John Marston: Critical Re-Visions, ed. T. F. Wharton (CUP, 2000) for Early Theatre . Spring 2002.

Panel chair of session: ""The Brim of Full Revenge": Representing the End(s) of Vengeance in Popular Renaissance Drama" at the 32^nd Annual National Conference of the Popular Culture Association (Elizabethan and Renaissance Area). Delivered a paper entitled: "From Hamlet to Hannibal: Revisiting the Act of the Revenger’s Madness." Toronto, March, 2002.

"Recreating the Academy: Re-Inventing the University Student Style." Roundtable discussion member. Association of American Colleges and Universities, 88^th Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C. January, 2002.

"Politically Conscious: Redefining the Cultural Logic of ‘The British Novel’ in (Global) Literary Studies." COPRED Annual Justice and Peace Conference, Evergreen College. October, 2001.

"‘Never Lose Control’: The Technology of Postmodern Masculinity." The Maine Scholar. Autumn 2000.

Reviews of Edward II, Chimes at Midnight, and Othello. Critical essays of film adaptations (by Derek Jarman and Orson Welles, respectively) appearing in Video Versions: Film Adaptations of Plays on Video . James Welch, editor. January 2000.

Panel coordinator and presenter at the Annual Conference of Maine System Honors Programs. Fort Kent. October 1999.

"‘Wee are not currant till wee passe from one man to another’: Domestic Anxiety and Theatrical Success in the Ho! Plays." Sixth Annual Meeting of the Group for Early Modern Cultural Studies. Newport, RI. November 1998.

"Never Lose Control: The Postmodern Sexual Politics of Neil Labute’s In the Company of Men." Annual Literature/Film Association Conference. Towson University, MD. November 1998.

"Antonio’s Rite of Passage: (En)Gendering Community in Marston’s Antonio Plays." Paper; also served as panel organizer and chair. Sixteenth-Century Studies Conference. Atlanta, GA. October 1997.

"Cultural Exchanges: Nations, Classes, and Genders in the Early Modern Period." Massachusetts Center for Renaissance Studies. Amherst, MA. November 1996.

Following morning paper presentations, participated in a five-person two-hour workshop discussion led by Arthur F. Kinney and entitled "Cultural Transactions: Exchanging Literary Form."

"Discourse Communities, Discursive Conventions: Interrogating Academic Discourse(s)." "Writing Across…Disciplines, Genres, Cultures": Seventh in a series of biennial conferences in Composition. University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. October 1996.

"Coming to Terms with Interpretive Vertigo: Incorporating Visual Technologies in the Composition Classroom." 31st Annual Northeast Regional Conference on English in the Two-Year College. Rochester, NY. October 1996.

"Theory in Practice or Practical Theory: Encouraging Divergent Voices in the Introductory Literature Classroom." 30th Annual Northeast Regional Conference on English in the Two-Year College. Portsmouth, NH. October 1995.

"Composition and the Networked Computer Classroom." Coordinated presentations and demonstrations. Annual High School Writing Program Cooperative, English Department, University of Connecticut. April 1995.

"Fashioning the "Self": Reflective Dialogics in Freshman Writing." Paper; also served as panel coordinator. Computers and Teaching in the Humanities Conference. Glasgow University, Scotland. September 1994.

"Student-Centered or Technology-Centered? The Uses and Abuses of Computers in the Basic Writing Classroom." Tenth Annual Computers and Writing Conference, University of Missouri. Columbia, MO. May 1994.

"Criseyde's "Slydynge" Discourse: (Re)Negotiating Gender in Chaucer's Troilus." 29th International Congress on Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University. Kalamazoo, MI. May 1994.

"Re-evaluating Chaucer's Criseyde." Plenary speaker, Twelfth Annual Graduate Student Medieval Studies Conference, University of Connecticut. April 1993.

"Critical Fashioning or Fashionable Criticism: Reexamining the Text, the Critic, and the Discipline." Paper; also served as panel chair. Medieval-Renaissance Conference VII, Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia. September 1993.

"(Re)Fashioning the Self: Bakhtinian Dialogics in To the Lighthouse." Third International Virginia Woolf Conference, Lincoln University. Jefferson City, MO. June 1993.

"Three Teachers in Search of a Self." Brown University Writing Fellows Conference, Brown University. April 1993.

"‘Dancing Through Minefields’: Identity, Postmodernism, and Bakhtin in Woolf’s To the Lighthouse." Women’s Studies Conference, University of Connecticut. April 1993.

"An ‘Inconstant’ Woman: Criseyde, Bakhtin, and the Politics of Discourse." 11th Annual Graduate Medieval Studies Conference, Yale University. April 1993.