Literature Welcomes Professor Marah Gubar

On July 1, 2014, Marah Gubar will join the Literature faculty as an Associate Professor with tenure. Prof. Gubar comes to MIT from the University of Pittsburgh where she was the Director of Children’s Literature. For the Fall semester, Prof. Gubar will be teaching Reading Fiction: Imagining Alternative Worlds where students will study fantasy narratives that invite readers to immerse themselves in enchanted alternative realms or magical worlds enmeshed within the realm of everyday life. Prof. Gubar recently had an article published on the website, Public Books. In the article, Prof. Gubar addresses the writings of E.L. Konigsburg. “The Mixed-up Kids of Mrs. E.L. Konigsburg” begins “Imagine that you are a children’s book editor. An unproven writer who has only recently sold her first story sends you her second effort. The manuscript opens with a rich old lady’s note to her lawyer; she is sending him a story, she explains, to help him understand why she wants to change her will. The climax of this narrative involves two children hunting for an archival document in a row of filing cabinets….” Read the full article at Public Books.