Ann Martinez

Ann Martinez’s research follows the two tracks that echo her split teaching focus. One track of her research is dedicated to the ongoing examination of medieval authors’ depictions of nature and employment of marginalized figures in literature, as well as how echoes of these characterizations resound in later literary periods. Her focus on the environment, women, and the monstrous in medieval literature has led her to employ a wide variety of critical approaches in her scholarship. Her research straddles the border between the literary text and historical context, examining both literary and cultural attitudes toward nature. In doing so, she situates her work within historicism, feminism, and ecocritical theory. The other track of her research is dedicated to Shakespeare in performance and in popular culture appropriations. Martinez explores audience engagement with live performances, digital “live” relays of performances, and film adaptations, as well as the constant incorporation of Shakespeare into various facets of popular culture. 

Articles in Journals (Peer reviewed)

“Elvencentrism: The Green Medievalism of Tolkien’s Elven Realms.” Studies in Medievalism vol. 26 (June 2017): 31-41.

“Bertilak’s Green Vision: Land Stewardship in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” Arthuriana: The Journal of Arthurian Studies 26.4 (Winter 2016):114-129.

Articles in Edited Volumes (Peer reviewed)

“Insects in Literature and Language: From Shakespeare to Shelley.” A Cultural History of Insects in the Age of Enlightenment, Vol. 4. Ed. Matthew S. Lehnert. (London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2024).

“Insects in Literature and Language: From Chaucer to Shakespeare.” A Cultural History of Insects in the Renaissance, Vol. 3. Ed. Sherilyn G.F. Smith. (London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2024).

“May the Bard Be with You: Shakespeare’s Cultural Capital Investment in SciFi/Fantasy Adaptations.” Shakespeare and Geek Culture. Ed. Andrew James Hartley and Peter Holland. (London: Bloomsbury Publishing / The Arden Shakespeare, 2021).

“Shakespeare at a Theatre Near You: Student Engagement in Northeast Ohio.” Shakespeare and the ‘Live’ Theatre Broadcast Experience. Ed. Pascale Aebischer, Susanne Greenhalgh, and Laurie Osborne. (London: Bloomsbury Publishing / The Arden Shakespeare, 2018).

Articles in Edited Volumes (Invited)

“Of sondry folk: What I Learned After My First Year as the Lone Medievalist on Campus.” The Ballad of the Lone Medievalist. Ed. by Kisha G. Tracy and John Sexton (New York, NY: Punctum Books,         forthcoming May 2018).

Reviews in Journals (Invited)

Review of Writing the North of England in the Middle Ages: Regionalism and Nationalism in Medieval English Literature, by Joseph Taylor (Cambridge University Press, 2023). Arthuriana 34.1, Spring 2024.

“The Green Knight’s Monstrous Nature,” in “David Lowery, The Green Knight: A Review Cluster,” Gothic Nature: New Directions in EcoHorror and the EcoGothic, Iss. 4, Spring 2023.