Assistant Teaching Professor
Ph.D., The University of Connecticut, American Literature, 2024
M.A., American Literature, Ball State University, 2018
B.A., English (Creative Writing), Taylor University
B.S., Professional Writing, Taylor University
Discourses of race and diversity in contemporary middlebrow reading practices
Representations of resistance and political action in contemporary American
musicals
American studies
Dr. Paula Weinman studies the evolving way that contemporary readers (particularly those from historically underrepresented communities) respond to and evaluate representations of their experiences in contemporary American literature and musical theatre. In her dissertation, Hooked on a Feeling: How Representation Matters, she traces the affective and political expectations that inform how contemporary readers responded to major works of contemporary American musicals by and about marginalized artists and marginalized communities. In much of her work, she traces the way that contemporary readers (particularly readers informed by middlebrow literary contexts) believe art functions as a tool for social or political change. She currently teaches ENG 102.