2008-09 MARIA ELISABETH JESSEN
Elisabeth Jessen is a theologian. Cand. Theol. with the rare distinction of having been awarded a Gold medal by Copenhagen University for her masters dissertation.
She will be exploring how the imagery of the Bible impacts on art and literature with special reference to the poetry and artworks of William Blake.
From Elisabeth's report:
Working on Blake it was natural for me to choose England as the place to do my D.Phil. Here, I can easily access relevant publications and manuscripts, be a part of a Blake research network, and attend museums and exhibitions that display Blake's work; the Blake-world is just bigger here than in Denmark. My reason for choosing Oxford was mainly that the supervisor I wanted to work with was here, but also because of the immense library and the very special and inspiring academic environment. On a more general level, I felt that doing my whole D.Phil here would prepare me for doing academic wrok almost anywhere in the world and thus open up job possibilities for me that I would not have seen had I stayed in Denmark.
My research is mainly being carried out in the Bodleian Library in Oxford with regular meetings with my two supervisors, one a professor in theology, the other a lecturer in romantic studies. I regularly attend some of the highly specialized seminars that run in term time and are attended by both graduate students and academic staff. Currently I am attending seminars on modern history of religion (this covering c. 1650-present), romanticism, and the reception history of the Bible. These seminars provide me with an invaluable network of like-minded researchers not only from theology, but also from history and English literature. With my project lasting another two years, it is still a bit early to conclude what I have gained overall from being in Oxford, but for now I can definitely say that not only working closely with two highly qulalified and inspiring supervisors, but also the interdisciplinary and international research environment in these seminars have been of extreme importance for my work.
Student life in Oxford is traditionally centred more around the college than the department. This is especially true for undergraduates, but also to a certain degree for graduate students. In my college we are only three theologians out of c.500 students, and one professor. This means always being questioned on, and getting inspiration for, one's research from students and tutors from other research areas. Interdisciplinarity is, so to say, built into the system in Oxford. It is an interesting, rewarding , and challenging sytem, and something that was very new to me - who would have thought that a graduate student in microbiology sitting next to you at a college dinner would actually be the one asking those crucial questions, that make you take the next important step forward in your research? It was a welcome surprise for me that Oxford considers interdisciplinarity as well as specialization the academic foundation of the university, and I know it will make me a better and more rounded academic with time, always being challenged not only to explain my research project in specialized terms to specialists, but also in general and understandable terms to non-specialists in my feld.
I would like to thank you for your kind and generous support. I have had a productive and wonderful year and am looking very much forward to the coming two years. I am also happy to inform you that the Danish Research Council has agreed to pay for the rest of my time in Oxford. Without your financial help my first year would have been a great deal more stressful, but being financially helped by you meant being able to focus on my studies instead of worrying about money. I am very grateful for your help and support and will strongly encourage others to make use of this possibility.
