Willow White, PhD

Area of Study / Keywords

English Literature Eighteenth Century Feminism Women Writers Critical Indigenous Studies

About

I am a feminist literary historian with an interdisciplinary research approach that traces the theatrical and literary contributions of both Indigenous and English women. I am the author of Feminist Comedy: Women Playwrights of London (University of Delaware Press, 2024), and co-editor of A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison (Broadview Press, 2022), the as-told-to biography of an eighteenth-century Seneca woman. My current project, funded by a SSHRC Insight Development Grant, investigates the influence of Indigenous women of North America on English performance culture of the long eighteenth century.

I am a proud member of the Métis Nation of Alberta with ancestral ties to Red River through the Inkster, Sutherland, Cook, and Anderson families. I welcome emails and meetings with all Indigenous students at Augustana. You can learn more about resources for Indigenous students at Augustana here.

Research

Books

• Feminist Comedy: Women Playwrights of London, 1750-1800. University of Delaware Press,  2024. 

Edited Volumes

• A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison by James Seaver. Edited by Tiffany Potter and Willow White. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 2022. ISBN: 9781554815777.

Journal Articles and Chapters

• “Ancestors in the Archives: Decolonizing Archival Research.” ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640-1830, forthcoming.
• “Feminist Sensibilities: The Feud of Elizabeth Inchbald and Mary Wollstonecraft.” Eighteenth-Century Studies 55, no. 3 (2022): 299-315. DOI: 10.1353/ecs.2022.0019
• “Comic Collusion: Frances Burney’s The Witlings and the Mentorship of Arthur Murphy.” Women’s Writing 28, no. 2 (2021): 368-383. DOI: 10.1080/09699082.2020.1847823
• “An Extra-Illustrated Edition of Hannah More’s Florio.” In Many Women, Many Voices: Stories from the McGill Collections, edited by Nathalie Cooke et al., pp. 13-14. Montreal: ROAAr, 2018. ISBN 978-1-77096-224-8 

Book Reviews and Entries

• Review of British Enlightenment Theatre: Dramatizing Difference by Bridget Orr (Cambridge UP, 2019). Restoration Journal 48, no. 2 (2024), pp. 111-113.
• The Mogul Tale by Elizabeth Inchbald.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Romantic-Era Women's Writing. Palgrave Macmillan, 2024.
• “The Witlings by Frances Burney.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of  Romantic-Era Women’s Writing. Palgrave Macmillan, 2024.
• “Inchbald (née Simpson), Elizabeth.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Romantic-Era Women's Writing. Palgrave Macmillan, 2023.
• “The British Theatre by Elizabeth Inchbald.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Romantic-Era Women's Writing. Palgrave Macmillan, 2023.
• Review of The World of Elizabeth Inchbald: Essays on Literature, Culture, and Theatre in the Long Eighteenth Century, ed. Daniel J. Ennis and E. Joe Johnson (UP Delaware). Eighteenth Century Fiction, 2023.
• Review of Lothario’s Corpse: Libertine Drama and the Long-Running Restoration 1700 – 1832 by Daniel Gustafson (Bucknell). Theatre Journal, 2023.

Teaching

My teaching philosophy is shaped by my identity as a Métis woman and Indigenous ways of learning grounded in recognition, listening, and respect. I embrace a relational pedagogy and accordingly, my classes tend to emphasize active participation and experiential learning outside the classroom. Since starting at Augustana in 2022, I have developed several courses in English and Indigenous literatures. While I use traditional assessment modes like tests and essays, I am always seeking to incorporate fresh, unique, and dynamic assignments and experiences. I am eager to show students that the study of literature can be diverse, inclusive, and exciting.

In 2023, I was awarded the U of A Provost's Award for Early Achievement of Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.

AUENG 102 - Critical Reading, Critical Writing

English 102 has two objectives. The first is to train students in the practices of analytical reading and critical thinking. To that end, we will read engaging literary texts in several genres. The second objective is to help students develop effective communication skills, particularly their writing abilities. To develop writing techniques, we will workshop grammatical skills which will provide the necessary building blocks for university-level writing. Prerequisite: ELA 30-1 or AUENG 101.

AUENG 240 - Restoration and Eighteenth Century Literature and Culture

Literature - poetry, prose, drama and fiction - of the period between 1660 and 1800. The course is taught chronologically with a focus on the major cultural shifts of that era. Topics include satire and the public sphere, print culture, consumerism, the politics of gender and ethnicity, globalization and subjectivity. Prerequisites: 3 units in English at the 100-level. Note: Credit may be obtained for only one of AUENG 240, AUENG 241 (2018), AUENG 243 (2018), AUENG 341 (2018) and AUENG 343 (2018).

AUIND 101 - Introduction to Indigenous Studies

An introduction to historical and modern relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in Canada. This course investigates how Canada's history of anti-Indigenous policies (such as residential schools and the Sixties Scoop) have negatively impacted First Nations, Métis, and Inuit into the present. The course further highlights the resilience of Indigenous peoples through community organization, artistic and cultural expression, and the fight for self-determination. Note: Credit may be obtained for only one of AUIND 101 and AUIND 201 (2023).

AUIND 399 - Theories in Indigenous Studies

A senior level course dealing with the theoretical basis of indigenous studies with a focus on major theories and theoreticians found and/or used in indigenous studies, postcolonial studies and subaltern studies. Credit may be obtained for only one of AUIND 399 and 499. Prerequisites: One of AUIND 101, 201.

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