I am the English Subject Lead for the University of Oxford's Astrophoria Foundation Year, and am the Lecturer in Medieval English at Corpus Christi College for the 2025/6 academic year. I am also the co-Executive Officer of the Society for the Study of Medieval Languages and Literatures (SSMLL). I am predominantly interested in three areas of research: perceptions of late medieval material texts, medievalism and craft, and medieval folk horror. Along with Dr Laura Varnam and Dr Kristen Haas Curtis, I founded the Guild of Medievalist Makers, which supports and connects creative-critical medievalists.
I studied for my undergraduate degree in English Literature at Royal Holloway, before completing an MPhil in Medieval Literature at Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge. My DPhil, 'References to the Material Text in Late Medieval English Religious Literature' was funded by an AHRC-DTP, supervised by Professor Daniel Wakelin, and awarded in 2022.
Publications:
Trade Press Books
- Book Curses (Oxford: Bodleian Library Publishing, 2024)
Positively reviewed in the TLS and The Spectator, and selected as a ‘Star Pick’ by Publishing Weekly
Select Articles and Book Chapters
- ‘Cut, Pasted, and Pocketed: J. L. Carr’s Chaucer Pocketbook’, Inscription: The Journal of Material Text, 6 (forthcoming June 2026)
- ‘Late Medieval Book-Craft Recipes and Perceptions of the Book’, in Recipes and Book Culture in England 1350-1600, ed. by Carrie Griffin and Hannah Ryley (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2024), pp. 135-154.
- Marion Turner et al., ‘‘Chaucer’s World’ Study Days in Oxford for Post-16 Students: Enhancing Learning and Encouraging Wonder’, New Chaucer Studies: Pedagogy and Profession 3 (2023) 70-78
- 'Metaphors of Textual Materiality in Late Medieval Middle English Sermons’, Studies in Philology, 118 (2021) 631-665
I passed the Teaching Recognition Scheme to become a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2024.
I have taught across Oxford, and at other institutions, on the following papers/ units:
- Prelims Paper 1a (Introduction to English Language)
- Prelims Paper 2: Literature in English 650-1100)
- FHS Paper 2 (Course II, Paper 3): Literature in English 1350-1550
- FHS Course II, Paper 1: Literature in English, 650-1100
- FHS Course II, Paper 2: Medieval English and Related Literatures, 1066–1550
- Course I, Paper 6: Texts in Motion (Graduate Teaching Assistant)
- Astrophoria Foundation Year, HUMS 1 (Fame); English: Methods; Option Paper: The Body and the Book
- EN1001, Medieval Literature (Royal Holloway, University of London)
I have supervised dissertations on, and am available for undergraduate dissertation supervision, on the following subjects:
- Late medieval drama
- Medievalisms and folk horror
- Medieval textual materiality; early print culture and materiality
- Pragmatic/ instructional medieval literature
- Late medieval lyrics/ affectivity
- Medieval craft practices and literature
I was the English Faculty's Teaching and Careers Officer for the year 2019/2020.
I have significant experience in working in university access provision both at a senior administrative and delivery level. I have devised and led sessions for exhibitions and study days at Oxford and Cambridge.
I am particularly interested in projects which incorporate academic or public engagement as a key component. I have worked on several projects like this, including:
In my spare time I enjoy making medieval and folk-horror inspired linocut prints.
I would be delighted to hear from you if you would be interested in teaching, supervision, or collaboration. Please do contact me at eleanor.baker@conted.ox.ac.uk
