Lorna MacBean
PhD Researcher
l.macbean.1@research.gla.ac.uk
After gaining an MA Hons (1st) in Scottish Literature and English Language at the University of Glasgow, I completed a College of Arts-funded MPhil (Res) in English Language (2013) before embarking on an AHRC-funded DPhil in Scottish Literature which examined the relationship of verse and prose in the work of William Lithgow (1582 – c.1645). In 2020, I helped organise the first Symposium on Seventeenth Century Scottish Literature which is now an annual and international event. Outwith academia, I work as a musician and literacy tutor. In 2018, I composed music for a UK tour of Victoria McNulty’s ‘Confessionals,’ funded by Creative Scotland. I am currently working as Lead Reader at HMP Barlinnie with Open Book Reading.
This year, I received the GMHN ECR award to work on the personal library of R.D. Laing, held in Archives and Special Collections, University of Glasgow Library.
Research and Teaching Interests
My work in medical humanities is currently led by my interest in the personal library of R.D.Laing. I am examining his library for evidence of marginalia and speaking to academic and creative responders to his corpus. Ultimately, my project asks ‘What was R.D. Laing reading, and why are we reading R.D. Laing?’ Beyond this project, I am interested in the intersects between Scottish literature, medical humanities, and existentialism.
Keywords:
17th Century Scottish LiteratureDecolonising TheoryLiteracyMarginaliaTextual Editing