I have been a member of the Scandinavian Studies department since 1995. When I first came to Madison, I was the Norwegian lecturer, and in 1997 I became an Assistant Professor.  

My research interests include Henrik Ibsen, contemporary Scandinavian drama and performance art, feminist/gender theory, Scandinavian film, and postmodern literature.

 

To contact me, send email to thresher@facstaff.wisc.edu. 
 
EDUCATION

University of Washington, Seattle 1993 - 1998
PhD in Scandinavian Language and Literature and Critical Theory. Dissertation: "Seductive Strategies for Female Subjects: How Contemporary Scandinavian Women Dramatists Represent Women on Stage."

University of Oregon, Eugene 1992 - 1993
Studied Comparative Literature at the Doctoral level.

University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom 1985 - 1989, 1991 - 1992
Master of Arts in European Literature. Dissertation: "Cecilie Løveid: Dis-covering a Literary Tradition."
Bachelor of Arts with Honors. Thesis: "Lars Saabye Christensen: En Oversikt."

University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway 1989 - 1991
Conducted research in Contemporary Feminist Theory and Norwegian Literature.

International Summer School, Oslo, Norway 1988
Studied Norwegian Language, Trinn IV.

University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany 1987
Studied German language and literature.

Nansenskolen, Lillehammer, Norway 1986 - 1987
Prepared for Examen Philosophicum.
 

PUBLICATIONS

"Kristina Lugn." Twentieth Century Swedish Literature: Dictionary of Literary Biography. Detroit: Bruccoli Clark Layman. Forthcoming.

Review of Lars Sund’s Lanthandlerskans son in World Literature Today. Forthcoming.

"Suzanne Brøgger." Twentieth Century Danish Literature: Dictionary of Literary Biography. Detroit: Bruccoli Clark Layman. Forthcoming.

Review of Bergliot Hobæk Haff’s Skammen in World Literature Today. Autumn 1997: 813.

Review of Norman Rhodes’ Ibsen and the Greeks; The Classical Dimension in Selected Works of Henrik Ibsen as Mediated by German and Scandinavian Culture in Scandinavica. 36.1 1997: 90-91.

"Knut Hamsun," "Hunger," "Pan," and "Sigrid Undset" in Encyclopedia of Literary Translation into English. Ed. Olive Classe. London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1996.

Translation of an excerpt from Gerd Brantenberg’s Favntak for Contemporary Norwegian Women Writers. Ed. J. Garton. Norwich: Norvik Press, 1995.

Contributor to European Culture: A Contemporary Companion. Ed. J. Law. London: Cassell, 1993 (18 entries on Scandinavian authors.)
 
 
CONFERENCES/PAPERS

"Staging Postmodern Feminsims: Cecilie Løveid in Performance" May 1998.
Delivered to the annual SASS conference, Tempe, Arizona.

"Busting the Brawn? Kristina Lugn’s Tant Blomma" May 1997
Delivered to the annual SASS conference, Champaign, Illinois.

"Re-Acting Gender: Suzanne Brøgger’s Efter orgiet" May 1996
Delivered to the annual SASS conference, Williamsburg, Virginia.

" Ingmar Bergman’s Persona: (A)Voiding Identity" June 1995
Delivered at the annual AASSC Fourteenth Annual Meeting, Montreal, Canada.

"Consumer Pandemonium: De-Panopticising Pan’s Panorama" April 1995
Delivered to the annual SASS conference, Pullman, Washington.

"Monkey Business: (G)Aping Sexual Identity in Isak Dinesen’s ‘The Monkey’" March 1995
Delivered at the Chimaera second annual graduate and professional research forum, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.

"Womb Words: The Jouissance of Motherhood in Cecilie Løveid’s Barock friise" August 1994
Delivered at the International Association of Scandinavian Studies Conference, Reykjavik, Iceland.

"Oppo-sites Attract: A Feminist Reading of Isak Dinesen’s ‘Deluge at Norderney’" April 1994
Delivered at SASS annual conference, Rock Island, Illinois.

"Den særegne klangen av knust språk: Cecilie Løveid’s Sug" Winter 1994
Delivered at Departmental Colloquium, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.

"Sug and écriture féminine" April 1992
Delivered at symposium of the Nordic Literature Group of Great Britain.

 
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Assistant Professor in Norwegian, University of Wisconsin, 1997 – present

Courses taught:
SCAN 101/102 First-Year Norwegian.
SCAN 251 Readings in Norwegian.
SCAN 276 Scandinavian Life and Civilization.
SCAN 401 Contemporary Scandinavian Languages (Norwegian section.)
SCAN 425 Knut Hamsun and the Twentieth Century Norwegian Novel.
SCAN 428 Twentieth Century Scandinavian Drama and Film.

Lecturer in Norwegian, University of Wisconsin, 1995 - 1997

Courses taught:
SCAN 201/202 Second-Year Norwegian.
SCAN 251/252 Readings in Norwegian.
SCAN 401 Contemporary Scandinavian Languages (Norwegian section.)
SCAN 420 The Woman in Scandinavian Literature.
SCAN 422 The Drama of Henrik Ibsen.
SCAN 425 Knut Hamsun and the Twentieth Century Norwegian Novel.
SCAN 710 Listening to Other Voices: Contemporary Scandinavian Women’s Writing.

Academic Director Camp Norway, Sandane, Norway, Summer 1996
Developed and supervised all language courses for the camp and taught a culture class.

Teaching Assistant, University of Washington, 1993 - 1995
Courses taught: NORW 201/202/203 Second-Year Norwegian.
Lead Teaching Assistant.

Graduate Teaching Fellow, University of Oregon, 1993
Courses taught: NORW 201/202/203 Second-Year Norwegian.

English Language Instructor and Consultant, Språkskolen, Oslo, Norway, 1990-1991

 
ACADEMIC SERVICE

Undergraduate Advisor, Scandinavian Department, University of Wisconsin, 1997 – present

TA Coordinator, Scandinavian Department, University of Wisconsin, 1997 - present

 
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Guest Lecturer, St. Olaf College, June 1997
" Samtaler med fortidens forfatterinner. Cecilie Løveid og Sissel Lie."

Guest Lecturer, University of Wisconsin, October 1995
" Ludvig Holberg and the Danish Theater."

Guest Lecturer University of Washington, 1995/1994
" Cecilie Løveid’s Sug" in Scandinavian Women Writers Course.

Guest Speaker, Daughters of Norway, Kirkland, Washington, May 1995
" Camilla Collett and Sigrid Undset: Sisters in Arms."

Guest Speaker, Daughters of Norway, Des Moines, Washington, June 1994
" Camilla Collett: Norway’s First Feminist Writer."

Guest Lecturer, University of Oregon, 1993
" Cecilie Løveid" in Women’s Writing Course.

 
SCHOLARSHIPS/AWARDS

Norwegian Government Travel Scholarship 1994.
Norwegian Commercial Club of Seattle Scholarship 1994.
NAVF Scholarship 1989 - 1990.
Postgraduate research work at the University of Oslo.
International Summer School Scholarship 1988.

 
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Association of Nordic Theater Scholars, since 1998.
Board Member of Scandinavian America Club, Madison, since 1997.
Norwegian Teachers Association of North America, since 1994.
Nordmanns-Forbundet, since 1994.
Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies, since 1993.

 
LANGUAGES

Norwegian - high proficiency.
German - high proficiency.
French - strong reading and speaking proficiency.
Danish - reading proficiency.
Old Norse - reading proficiency.
Swedish - reading proficiency.

Courses I teach

SCAN 251/252 Readings in Norwegian Literature. 
SCAN 420 The Woman in Scandinavian Literature 
SCAN 422 The Drama of Henrik Ibsen  
SCAN 425 Knut Hamsun and the Twentieth Century Norwegian Novel 
SCAN 428 Twentieth Century Scandinavian Drama and Film 
SCAN 710 Listening to Other Voices: Contemporary Scandinavian Women'sWriting.