About
Kirsten Twelbeck grew up in Southern Germany and South Africa. She studied American Studies and Theater & Drama in Erlangen, Berlin, and Bloomington (IN). She received her Ph.D. from the Free University, Berlin (John F. Kennedy Institute), focusing on cultural (self) representations of Korean Americans in the United States (No Korean is Whole, Wherever He or She May Be, 2002). She then worked, for over a decade, as assistant professor at the University of Hannover, where she did her habilitation (second book project) on the fears and desires of white Americans from the northern states (Beyond the Civil War Hospital, 2017). Since 2014, she has held visiting professorships at various German universities, where she lectured and taught many courses in American Studies and in the Environmental Humanities. She joined the WZU as coordinator of the Environmental Humanities section and as researcher in October 2019.
CV
Education
2014
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Habilitation (2nd book project) in American Studies (Leibniz University, Hanover). Title: “Transcending the Civil War Hospital: Northern Reconstruction Writing and the 'Rules of the Democratic Game' (1861-1882).” Advisors: Prof. Dr. Ruth Mayer (Hanover), Prof. Dr. Heike Paul (Erlangen-Nuremberg). |
2000
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Ph.D. in American Studies (John-F.-Kennedy-Institute, Free University Berlin). Title: “No Korean Is Whole - Wherever He or She May Be: Konstruktionen von Korean America seit 1965.” Advisors: Prof. Dr. Winfried Fluck, Prof. Dr. Heinz Ickstadt (JFK, FU Berlin). |
1992
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Magistra Artium in American Studies (John-F.-Kennedy-Institute, Free University Berlin). Title: “Autobiographien von Immigrantinnen Perspektiven für einen multikulturellen Pluralismus?” Advisors: Prof. Dr. Ulla Haselstein, Prof. Dr. Winfried Fluck (JFK, FU Berlin). |
1990 |
American Studies and Theater & Drama at Indiana University, Bloomington (IN). |
1987-1992 |
American Studies (JFK, FU Berlin) and Theater & Drama. |
1985-1987
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English and American Studies, Theater & Drama, Spanish, Political Science (Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nuremberg, B.A.) |
Professional Experience
2019 |
Coordinator of Environmental Humanities and Researcher at the WZU, Augsburg University. |
2018-2019 |
Guest Professorships at the Universities of Augsburg and Regensburg |
2016-2018 |
Student Life Director and lecturer at CIEE Global Institute Berlin. |
2014-2016 |
Guest Professorships at the Universities of Göttingen, FU Berlin, Hanover. |
2009-2014 |
Assistant Professor at Hanover University. |
2006-2009 |
Researcher at the John-F.-Kennedy-Institute, Grant by the German Research Foundation. |
2002-2006 |
Assistant Professor at Hanover University. |
2000-2002 |
Assistant Professor (50%) at the John-F.-Kennedy-Institute, Free University, Berlin. |
Furthermore:
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Radio journalism, Walter de Gruyter Publishing, head of the department of Asia-Berlin-relations at Berlin Partner. |
Publications

Kirsten Twelbeck
Beyond the Civil War Hospital:
The Rhetoric of Healing and Democratization in Northern Reconstruction Writing,
1861-1882 438 pages, transcript
Bielefeld, 2018
49,99 € (paperback or e-book)
ISBN: 978-3-8394-3465-9
Additional information about this publication can be found here: