Jordan McCullough

Bringing together the fields of literary studies, medical humanities, death studies and bereavement studies, my PhD project examines the role of literature, and particularly the act of writing, in providing insights, from maternal and paternal perspectives, on the traditionally unspoken experience of child loss. Focusing on the récit de deuil as an increasingly important genre in contemporary France, my thesis examines how literature generates knowledge of bereavement and loss, how writing impacts upon the healing process, and what all of this tells us about ongoing shifts in French literary production.

Contemporary French Literature

Critical Medical Humanities

Cultures of Palliative Care

Death and Bereavement Studies

I have previously taught on the core French language module FRH1101: French 1 and have contributed to the Liberal Arts module LIB1001: Understanding Now (Understanding Pandemics). I have also been involved in delivering the Level 3 optional module FRH3036: Ideologies of Death in Modern French Literature.

I am currently the principal tutor on FRH1121: Beginners French Studies and teach on the Level 2 core language module (FRH2101: French 2).

I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) and am also involved in teaching and assessment in the post-primary and FE sectors.

In 2018, I received a BA, with first class honours in French and Spanish, from Queen's University Belfast. I then completed an MRes in French Studies, with a literary dissertation examining the role of religion and spirituality at the end of life, as presented in works of autobiography and autofiction. The dissertation examined writing by terminally-ill patients and their families. I was awarded my MRes, with distinction, in December 2019.

I am currently in the third year of my PhD study. My doctoral research, funded by the AHRC, through the Northern Bridge Consortium DTP, examines the role of writing in the grieving and healing processes of those who have lost children through terminal illness or sudden, unanticipated death (suicide, road traffic accidents, terrorist attacks). The project involves an ongoing collaboration with ERRSPP in Brittany.

Email: jmccullough37@qub.ac.uk