Elyce Rae Helford, Ph.D.
Professor of English
Affiliate Faculty in Women's Studies
Middle Tennessee State University
Office: Peck Hall 361
Office Phone: 615/898-5961
Email: ehelford@mtsu.edu
Teaching and Research Areas:
Twentieth-Century American Literature, Film, and Television
Cultural Studies
Women's / Gender Studies
Courses:
ENGL 1010, 1020, and 2030
ENGL 2020 (Jewish American Identity in Literature and Culture): Course Information
ENGL 3880 (Women and Film): Course Information
ENGL 3885 (Gender and Film): Course Information
ENGL 6/7310 (Popular Culture Studies): Course Information
ENGL 6/7450 (Contemporary Women's Literature)
ENGL 6/7500 (Feminist Literary and Film Theory): Course Information
WMST 2100 (Introduction to Women's Studies, classroom and correspondence study versions)
WMST 3500 (Women in the Media)
I have in past also taught ENGL 3720 (Twentieth-Century Women Writers) and ENGL 3840 (Science Fiction) -- and may someday again!
Why I Teach: A Brief Statement
Current Research Project:
Gender in the Films of George Cukor: I am currently writing a book on the films of Hollywood's only "out" gay studio director, with emphasis on gender performance. The book addresses representations of masculinity and femininity, sexuality and desire, heteronormativity and queerness. Chapter themes include sexual politics and the alcoholic male, bisexuality and the romantic comedy genre, images in "blackface" and marking racial difference, female-to-male drag and the limits of gender performance, and excess and the Hollywood musical.
Most recent update: October 2008