Durham academic receives prestigious fellowship

Professor Pat Waugh from Durham University's Department of English Studies has been elected as a Fellow of the British Academy in recognition of her outstanding contribution to research. Election to this prestigious body is a mark of distinction as only a very small number of scholars in any field are elected. Here Professor Waugh talks about literature as a vital ingredient in our understanding of the world around us and being an ambassador for Durham. Can you tell me about your main areas of expertise? I have written on many aspects of modern literature and intellectual culture, on relations between literature, science and medicine, on aesthetics, politics and cultural theory. However, a fascination with the way the human mind creates, substantiates and negotiates worlds, imaginary and historical, has always been at the forefront of my interests. I am currently writing a book, as part of Durham's Hearing the Voice project , on Virginia Woolf's voices: exploring relations between the 'inner voices' of creative thinking, the formal construction of 'voice' in narrative and Woolf's own experience of psychosis and 'hearing voices'. What does it mean to you to be a Fellow of the British Academy? I am deeply honoured to be elected to a Fellowship of the British Academy and I look forward to engaging with other Academy Fellows.I was given the honour of being invited to give the Academy's inaugural public lecture in 2014 but was completely taken aback to receive my recent letter of congratulations informing me of the Fellowship! I hope, above all, to be a true ambassador for Durham University, which already has wonderful relations with the Academy.