Linda-Susan Beard

Linda-Susan Beard (Ph.D., Cornell) negotiates between and among the worlds of African American, South African, and post-colonial literatures. She teaches courses on post-apartheid literature, literary and historical reimaginings of transatlantic slavery such as Toni Morrison and the Art of Narrative Conjure, as well as introductory courses in English and African literatures which examine the dynamics of canon formation. She is editing the first comprehensive volume of the letters of Bessie head, about whom she has written essays and given conference papers for 25 years. She is also involved in the new area of contemplative intelligence, having been in the first group of Contemplative Fellows chosen by the ACLS and funded by the Cummings and Fetzer Foundations. King's College recently awarded her an honorary doctorate for her work in integrating contemplative and intellectual ways of knowing. She served for five years as Faculty Coordinator of the Mellon Scholars Program and chair of the Africana Studies Program.

Courses Taught:

246 - Scribbling Sisters: Pan-African Women Writers

250 - Methods of Literary Study
262 - African-American Literature
263 - Toni Morrison: The Art of Literary Conjure

         (crosslisted w/Feminist & Gender Studies)      
362 - The African-American Writer: Speaking in Tongues
379 - The African Griotte: Bessie Head

101 North Merion Ave | Bryn Mawr, PA 19010-2899 | Phone: (610) 526-5306 | Fax: (610) 526-7477