ROMANISTIK I

 Academic Education

  •  1983 Promotion (PhD): University of Mannheim: Metapher als Erfahrungs- und Erkenntnismitte. Die metaphorische Wirklichkeitskonstitution im französischen Roman des XIX. Jahrhunderts, Tübingen: Narr 1985. 
  • 1991 Habilitation: University of Mannheim: Mexiko jenseits der Einsamkeit. Versuch einer interkulturellen Analyse, Frankfurt: Vervuert, 1994.

Teaching Experience

  • 1982-1991 Assistant Professor, University of Mannheim.
  • 1992-1998 C 3-Professor (associate professor) Hispanic Literature at Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf.
  • Since 1998 C 4-Professorin (full professor) Romance Languages and Literatures (French, Italian and Spanish) at Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf.

Fellowships and Honors

  • 1985-1986 Research Fellow of the Humboldt Foundation (Rice University and University of Texas at Austin).
  • 1998 Offer from University of Duisburg: C 4-Professur, full professor, Romance Philology and Cultural Theory.
  • 1998-2002 Dean of the Humanities (Philosophische Fakultät), Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf.
  • 2003-2007 Vice-President for International Affairs, Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf.
  • 2005 Successful Nomination of Giorgio Agamben (Award of the Humboldt Foundation for Researches at the Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf). 
  • 2005: Cavaliere Ufficiale della Repubblica d'Italia.
  • Since 2007 Member of the Board of Trustees (8 members), Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf.
  • Since 2006 Director of the graduate program "Interculturality and Communication" with the University Triest, Italy. 
  • Since 2009 Director of the graduate program "European Cultural Studies" with the University of Palermo, Italy.
  • Since 2009 Member of the Steering Comittee of UC-Intercampus Research Group on Mexican and Cultural Studies
  • Since 2011 Member of the DFG (German Research Foundation) Research Training Group 1678 "Materialität und Produktion".
  • Since 2011 Member of the DFG Review Board for Literatures of Europe and America.

Research Fellow and Visiting Professor in several universities in USA (Stanford, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, Texas A&M), Mexico, Argentina, Spain, Italy. 

Research fields and Articles:

  • Philosophy of life and politics of literature.
  • Mexican Literature and Culture.
  • Cultural Theory (transculturality) and Visual Cultures.
  • Migration and Writings.
  • Theory of memory and media.
  • Topology und Literary Topographies.
  • Baroque and neobaroque in Latin America.
  • Latin American Studies (Columbia,Venezuela, Argentina); Transamerican and Transatlantic cultural processes.
  • Literature and history (Nueva novela histórica).
  • 19th and 20th century Romance literatures (French, Spanish and Italian culture and literature).

Recent publications:

  • das andere denken, schreiben, sehen.(The other thinking, writing, seeing). With an introduction of Bernhard Waldenfeld. Bielefeld: transcript, 2008; Vittoria Borsò et al.
  • Transkulturation. Literarische und mediale Grenzräume im deutsch-italienischen Kulturkontakt. Bielefeld: transcript, 2007.
  • Benjamin Agamben. Politics, Messianism, Kabbalah. Würzburg: Königshausen & Neumann, 2010.
  • Die Macht des Populären. Politik und populäre Kultur im 20. Jahrhundert. Bielefeld: transcript, 2010.

Editorship

  • Co-editor of the series „MEDIAmericana“, Vervuert (Madrid/Frankfurt) (with Walter Bruno Berg)
  • Member of the editing committee of the HUMBOLDT magazine (Goethe-Institut)