Doaa Omran, PhD Candidate for British and Irish Literary Studies, has received the Graduate Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship, a year-long, full-time fellowship intended to provide one year of financial assistance to students nearing completion of a terminal (PhD, EdD, or MFA) degree. Her dissertation is on female hero archetypes-an area that haven’t been explored in great detail, with a focus on two medieval comparable genres: the Arabic sira, and its European counterpart, the romance. She compares the different versions of Arthurian romances from England, Germany, and France with the Arabic siras of Sayf Bin Dhi Yazan and The Princess of High Resolve, which are two works that haven’t been completely translated into English. Through her comparison, she is able to broaden the scope and analyze nine prominent archetypes that constitute female heroism in both traditions. In doing so, Omran ultimately aspires to offer an explanation on how female heroism functions and whether it is just another face of male heroism. Her research theorizes the two problematic terms: archetype and motif. Moreover, Omran believes that her research will place her findings within the more prominent studies of Joseph Campbell, Lord Raglan and S. Thompson.
Doaa Omran Receives Graduate Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship
