Doris
Kadish Wins Creative Research Medal
The
University of Georgia honored outstanding faculty and graduate
students April 3, 2002, at its 20th annual research awards banquet.
Sponsored by the non-profit University of Georgia Research Foundation,
Inc., the event recognized exceptional accomplishments in UGA
research and scholarly endeavors. Five Creative Research Medals
were given to UGA faculty for outstanding research or creative
activity on a single theme performed while at UGA in the past
five years. Among the recipients was Doris Kadish, Professor of
French and Women’s Studies.
According
to the University press release, “Dr. Kadish is generating
new interest in the emerging field of French slavery studies through
her research. Slavery in France and its overseas colonies is one
of the least understood components of 19th century French studies.
Bringing together such diverse fields as drama, history, journalism,
linguistics and literature, Kadish is highlighting the need for
19th century scholars to recognize the integral role of colonialism
and slavery in French literary history. Her work focuses on the
experiences of women in slavery, the writings of 18th century
French women and the works of contemporary women who write about
slavery. These studies enable scholars to make connections between
literary texts and the social issues that underlie them.”
Among
the publications resulting from her research are a collection
of articles from a 1997 conference she organized, Slavery
in the Caribbean Francophone World: Distant Voices, Forgotten
Acts, Forged Identities, UGA Press, 2000.
Her
award letter described the creativity of her research as threefold.
“First, it is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing upon
scholarship in the diverse fields of drama, history, journalism,
linguistics, and literature. Second, it includes a significant
highlighting of the roles of women, whose relation to slavery,
especially in the field of slavery in the Francophone world, has
been seriously overlooked. Third, it restores a historical dimension
to one of the most vibrant and popular fields of inquiry in French
departments today….”
