American Captivity Scholar
Nationally recognized in the field of Early American Studies, Dr. Zabelle Stodola has been described as “the premier scholar” in this field. Her research of American women writers has evolved into a focused study of the captivity narrative. A colleague stated: “Dr. Stodola’s work . . . her many presentations, articles, and books made possible the tremendous explosion in thinking and writing about American captivity that has occurred over the past two decades.”
Dr. Stodola’s monograph, The War in Words: Reading the Dakota Conflict through the Captivity Literature, has garnered an impressive array of positive reviews from scholarly publications, including the American Literature and American Indian Culture and Research Journal. She is co-editing a narrative for a new book that will be published next year.
A professor of English, her skill and persistence in pursuit of excellence in her research field are thoroughly integrated with her teaching and service scholarship. She has chaired both the campus-wide and college-level Undergraduate Research Committees, served as director of the William G. Cooper Jr. Honors Program in English, and served on editorial boards for prestigious journals.
A founding member of the Society of Early Americanists, Dr. Stodola received both a Ph.D. and an M.A. degree from Pennsylvania State University and a B.A. degree from the University of Kent at
Canterbury, England.