Professor Avril Horner
Faculties, departments and locations
- Kingston School of Art
- Department of Humanities
- School of Creative and Cultural Industries
- Penrhyn Road
Emeritus Professor of English
- Email:
- [email protected]
About
Before joining Kingston University as Professor of English in 2002, I was Associate Dean Research and Director of the European Studies Research Institute at the University of Salford. I have been a member of the AHRC panel in English Language and Literature and Visiting Professor at the universities of Toulouse le Mireil (now Jean Jaures) (France) and Zaragoza (Spain). I was co-president of the International Gothic Association (2005-9) and am a member of the Advisory Board for the journal Gothic Studies and also a General Editor for the 'International Gothic' series, Manchester University Press. I was awarded a Leverhulme Trust Emeritus Fellowship for 2012-2014. I have given plenary lectures in the UK and abroad and have acted as External Examiner for UG, MA and Ph.d level work at several universities, including Cardiff, Leeds and Greenwich. As an Emeritus Professor, I no longer teach but I still research and publish.
Qualifications
- Ph.d., Manchester University
- M.A., Salford University
- P.G.C.E., Swansea University
- B.A. Hons., Sussex University
Domains
My research interests focus on women's writing and Gothic fiction. I have co-authored several books and many articles with Sue Zlosnik, including Daphne du Maurier: Writing, Identity and the Gothic Imagination (1998); Gothic and the Comic Turn (2005) and Women and the Gothic (2016). I have also written several articles with Janet Beer, with whom I co-authored the book Edith Wharton: Sex, Satire and the Older Woman (2011). My edited books include European Gothic: A Spirited Exchange (2004) and (with Anne Rowe), Living on Paper: Letters from Iris Murdoch, 1934-1995 which was published by Chatto & Windus in 2015 and by Princeton University Press and Viking Press (paperback) in 2016. I am currently writing a biography of the twentieth-century author Barbara Comyns.
Publications
Barbara Comyns : a savage innocence
Horner, Avril (2024). Manchester, U.K.: (Manchester University Press)
Comic Gothic : an Edinburgh companion
(2024). Edinburgh, U.K.: (Edinburgh University Press)
Living on paper : letters from Iris Murdoch 1934-1995
(2016). London, U.K.: (Vintage)
Women and the Gothic : an Edinburgh companion
(2016). Edinburgh, U.K.: (Edinburgh University Press)
Living on paper : letters from Iris Murdoch 1934-1995
(2015). London, U.K.:
Living on paper : letters from Iris Murdoch 1934-1995
(2015). Princeton, NJ, U.S.: (Princeton University Press)
Iris Murdoch: texts and contexts
(2012). Basingstoke, U.K.: (Palgrave Macmillan)
Edith Wharton: Sex, Satire and the Older Woman
Horner, Avril and Beer, Janet (2011). Basingstoke, U.K.: (Palgrave Macmillan)
The heroine or adventures of a fair romance reader by Eaton Stannard Barrett. 1813
(2011). Kansas City, U.S.A.: (Valancourt Books)
Iris Murdoch and morality
(2010). Basingstoke, U.K.: (Macmillan)
Le Gothic: influences and appropriations in Europe and America
(2008). Basingstoke, UK: (Palgrave Macmillan)
Gothic and the comic turn
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2005). Basingstoke, UK: (Palgrave Macmillan)
European Gothic: a spirited exchange 1760-1960
(2002). Manchester, UK: (Manchester University Press)
Body matters: feminism, textuality, corporeality
(2000). Manchester, UK: (Manchester University Press)
Daphne du Maurier: writing, identity and the gothic imagination
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (1998). Basingstoke, UK: (Macmillan Press)
Landscapes of desire: metaphors in modern women's fiction
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (1990). Hemel Hempstead, U.K.: (Harvester Wheatsheaf)
The legend and the crazy novelist : Graham Greene's role in Barbara Comyn's writing career
Horner, Avril, 2021, TLS : The Times Literary Supplement, 6149, pp 10-11
'The great panorama': Edith Wharton as historical novelist
Beer, Janet and Horner, Avril, 2015, Modern Language Review (MLR) (110), 1, pp 69-84
Women, power and conflict: The Gothic Heroine and "Chocolate Box" Gothic
Horner, Avril, 2010, Anglophonia: French Journal of English Studies (27), pp 319-330
'Myself when Others: Daphne du Maurier and the Double Dialogue with "D"'
Zlosnik, Sue and Horner, Avril, 2009, Women: A Cultural Review (20), 1, pp 9-24
Wharton the 'renovator': Twilight Sleep as Gothic satire
Beer, Janet and Horner, Avril, 2007, The Yearbook of English Studies (37), 1, pp 177-192
Skin chairs and other domestic horrors: Barbara Comyns and the female gothic tradition
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 2004, Gothic Studies (6), 1, pp 90-102
Dead funny: gothic, gender and the comic turn
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 2004, Anglophonia: French journal of English studies (15), pp 185-198
"This isn't exactly a ghost story": Edith Wharton and parodic Gothic
Beer, Janet and Horner, Avril, 2003, Journal of American Studies (37), 2, pp 269-285
Agriculture, body sculpture, gothic culture: gothic parody in Gibbons, Atwood and Weldon
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 2002, Gothic Studies (4), 2, pp 167-177
Dead funny: Eaton Stannard Barrett's The heroine as comic gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 2000, Cardiff Corvey: reading the romantic text (5), 2
'Releasing spirit from matter': comic alchemy in Spark's The Ballad of Peckham Rye, Updike's The witches of Eastwick and Mantel's Fludd
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 2000, Gothic studies (2), 1, pp 136-147
A "disembodied spirit": the letters and fiction of Daphne du Maurier
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue, 1996, Prose Studies: History, Theory, Criticism (19), 2, pp 186-199
'Those curious, sloping letters': reading the writing of du Maurier's Rebecca
Horner, A. and Zlosnik, S., 1996, Barcelona English language and literature studies (7), pp 105-115
Geoffrey Hill, John Cowper Powys, and 'The laurel axe'
Horner, Avril and Lindop, Grevel, 1991, Notes and Queries (38), 3, pp 347-348
'Linnaean Pentecosts': Geoffrey Hill's 'An apology for the revival of Christian architecture in England'
Horner, Avril, 1990, Literature and Theology (4), 1, pp 84-103
Geoffrey Hill, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and 'Christmas trees'
Horner, Avril, 1989, Notes and Queries (36), 2, pp 209-210
Hill's 'Asmodeus'
Horner, Avril, 1987, The Explicator (46), 1, pp 50-53
Daphne du Maurier : sex and death the Italian way
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2020). In: Newton, Michael, (eds.) and van Leeuwens, Evert Jan, (eds.), Haunted Europe : continental connections in English-language Gothic writing, film and new media. Abingdon, U.K.: Routledge, pp 107-122
Gothic and surrealism : subculture, counterculture and cultural assimilation
Horner, Avril (2019). In: Punter, David, (ed.), The Edinburgh companion to Gothic and the arts. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press, pp 148-158
Introduction
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2016). In: Horner, Avril, (eds.) and Zlosnik, Sue, (eds.), Women and the Gothic : an Edinburgh companion. Edinburgh, U.K.: Edinburgh University Press, pp 1-14
No country for old women : gender, age and the Gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2016). In: Horner, Avril, (eds.) and Zlosnik, Sue, (eds.), Women and the Gothic : an Edinburgh companion. Edinburgh, U.K.: Edinburgh University Press, pp 184-198
Southern hauntings : Kate Chopin's Gothic
Beer, Janet and Horner, Avril (2016). In: Castillo Street, Susan, (eds.) and Crow, Charles L., (eds.), The Palgrave handbook of the Southern Gothic. London, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 95-107
Apocalypses now: collective trauma, globalisation and the new Gothic sublime
Horner, Avril (2014). In: Nadal, Marita, (eds.) and Calvo, Monica, (eds.), Trauma in contemporary literature: narrative and representation. London, U.K.: Routledge, pp 35-50
Gothic configurations of gender
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2014). In: Hogle, Jerrold E., (ed.), The Cambridge companion to the modern Gothic. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, pp 55-70
The apocalyptic sublime: then and now
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2014). In: Germana, Monica, (eds.) and Mousoutzanis, Aris, (eds.), Apocalyptic discourse in contemporary culture: post-millennial perspectives on the end of the world. London, U.K.: Routledge, pp 57-70
'The Dark Knight': fear, the law and liquid modernity
Horner, Avril (2013). In: Byron, Glennis, (ed.), Globalgothic. Manchester, U.K.: Manchester University Press, pp 175-187
Comic Gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2012). In: Punter, David, (ed.), A new companion to the Gothic. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley-Blackwell, pp 321-324
Introduction
Rowe, Anne and Horner, Avril (2012). In: Rowe, Anne, (eds.) and Horner, Avril, (eds.), Iris Murdoch: texts and contexts. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 1-9
Victorian Gothic and national identity: cross-Channel "mysteries"
Horner, Avril (2012). In: Smith, Andrew, (eds.) and Hughes, William, (eds.), The Victorian Gothic: an Edinburgh companion. Edinburgh, U.K.: Edinburgh University Press, pp 108-123
The 'wondrous necessary man': Canetti, 'The unicorn' and 'The changeling'
Horner, Avril (2012). In: Rowe, Anne, (eds.) and Horner, Avril, (eds.), Iris Murdoch: texts and contexts. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 163-176
Introduction: Art, morals and 'The discovery of reality'
Rowe, Anne and Horner, Avril (2010). In: Rowe, Anne, (eds.) and Horner, Avril, (eds.), Iris Murdoch and morality. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 1-14
'Refinements of evil': Iris Murdoch and the gothic
Horner, Avril (2010). In: Rowe, Anne, (eds.) and Horner, Avril, (eds.), Iris Murdoch and morality. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 70-84
Comic gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2009). In: Mulvey-Roberts, Marie, (ed.), The handbook of the gothic. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 109-109
Daphne du Maurier
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2009). In: Mulvey-Roberts, Marie, (ed.), The handbook of the gothic. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 26-27
Edith Wharton and modernism: The mother's recompense
Horner, Avril and Beer, Janet (2009). In: Morley, Catherine, (eds.) and Goody, Alex, (eds.), American modernism: cultural transactions. Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K.: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, pp 69-92
Keeping it in the family: incest and the female gothic plot in du Maurier and Murdoch
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2009). In: Wallace, Diana, (eds.) and Smith, Andrew, (eds.), The Female Gothic: New Directions. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 115-132
Introduction
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2008). In: Horner, Avril, (eds.) and Zlosnik, Sue, (eds.), Le Gothic: influences and appropriations in Europe and America. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 1-11
Kate Chopin, choice and modernism
Horner, Avril (2008). In: Beer, Janet, (ed.), The Cambridge companion to Kate Chopin. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, pp 132-146
Glimpses of the dark side
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2007). In: Taylor, Helen, (ed.), The Daphne du Maurier companion. London, U.K.: Virago, pp 242-248
Barbara Comyns
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2006). In: Hammill, Faye, (eds.), Sponenberg, Ashlie, (eds.) and Miskimmin, Esme, (eds.), Encyclopedia of British Women's Writing, 1900-1950. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan
Daphne du Maurier
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2006). In: Hammill, Faye, (eds.), Sponenberg, Ashlie, (eds.) and Miskimmin, Esme, (eds.), Encyclopedia of British Women's Writing, 1900-1950. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan
Female gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2006). In: Powell, Anna, (eds.) and Smith, Andrew, (eds.), Teaching the gothic. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave Macmillan, pp 107-120
'Small female skull': patriarchy and philosophy in the poetry of Carol Ann Duffy
Horner, Avril (2003). In: Michelis, Angelica, (eds.) and Rowland, Antony, (eds.), The poetry of Carol Ann Duffy: 'Choosing tough words'. Manchester, U.K.: Manchester University Press, pp 99-120
Introduction
Horner, Avril (2002). In: Horner, Avril, (ed.), European Gothic : a spirited exchange. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, pp 1-16
'Moving pictures': family portraits, gothic anxieties and Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2002). In: Smith, Andrew, (eds.), Mason, Diane, (eds.) and Hughes, William, (eds.), Fictions of unease: the gothic from Otranto to The X-files. Bath, U.K.: Sulis Press, pp 170-182
Unreal cities and undead legacies: T.S.Eliot and gothic hauntings in Waugh's A handful of dust and Barnes's Nightwood
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2002). In: Beer, Janet, (eds.) and Bennet, Bridget, (eds.), Special relationships: Anglo-American affinities and antagonisms 1854-1936. Manchester, U.K.: Manchester University Press, pp 224-241
A detour of filthiness: French fiction and Djuna Barnes's Nightwood
Horner, Avril (2002). In: Horner, Avril, (ed.), European Gothic. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, pp 230-251
Dame Daphne Du Maurier
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2001). In: Clark, Robert, (ed.), The Literary Encyclopedia. Norwich, U.K.: The Literary Dictionary Company Limited
Strolling in the dark: gothic flanerie in Djuna Barnes's Nightwood
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2001). In: Smith, Andrew, (eds.) and Wallace, Jeff, (eds.), Gothic modernisms. Basingstoke, U.K.: Palgrave, pp 78-94
Comic gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2000). In: Punter, David, (ed.), A companion to the gothic. Oxford, U.K.: Blackwell, pp 242-254
Daphne du Maurier and Gothic signatures: Rebecca as vamp(ire)
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2000). In: Horner, Avril, (eds.) and Keane, Angela, (eds.), Body matters: feminism, textuality, corporeality. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, pp 209-222
Daphne du Maurier: the French connection
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (2000). In: Todd, Richard, (eds.) and Flora, Luisa, (eds.), Theme parks, rainforests and sprouting wastelands: European essays on theory and performance in contemporary British fiction. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Rodopi, pp 173-184
Deaths in Venice: Daphne du Maurier's 'Don't look now'
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (1999). In: Glennis, Byron, (eds.) and Punter, David, (eds.), Spectral readings: towards a gothic geography. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 219-232
'Extremely valuable property': the marketing of Rebecca
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue (1998). In: Simons, Judy, (eds.) and Fullbrook, Kate, (eds.), Writing: a woman's business: women, writing and the marketplace. Manchester, U.K.: Manchester University Press, pp 48-65
Heroine
Horner, Avril (1998). In: Mulvey-Roberts, Marie, (ed.), The handbook to gothic literature. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 115-119
Transgression
Horner, Avril (1998). In: Mulvey-Roberts, Marie, (ed.), The handbook to gothic literature. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 286-287
Unheimlich (the uncanny)
Horner, Avril (1998). In: Mulvey-Roberts, Marie, (ed.), The handbook to gothic literature. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan, pp 287-288
"The poet's true commitment": Geoffrey Hill, the computer, and original sin
Horner, Avril (1995). In: Salyer, Gregory, (eds.) and Detweiler, Robert, (eds.), Literature and theology at century's end. Atlanta, U.S.: Scholars Press, pp 159-176
Cernunnos arisen: the Celtic element in Geoffrey Hill's Mercian hymns
Horner, Avril (1994). In: Thomas, Neil, (ed.), Celtic and Germanic themes in European literature. Lewiston, U.S.: Edwin Mellen Press, pp 47-59
Virginia Woolf, history, and the metaphors of Orlando
Horner, Avril (1991). In: Easson, Angus, (ed.), History and the novel. Cambridge, U.K.: D.S. Brewer, pp 70-87
Walpole, the Gothic, and surrealism
Horner, Avril(2013). In: Gothic : culture, subculture, counterculture, 08-09 Mar 2013 :Twickenham, U.K.
Edith Wharton : sex, satire and the older woman
Horner, Avril and Beer, Janet(2012). In: Oxford Literary Festival, 24 Mar - 01 Apr 2012 :Oxford, U.K.
Apocalypses now : collective trauma and global gothic
Horner, Avril(2011). In: Beyond Trauma: Narratives of (impossibility), 31 Mar - 02 Apr 2011 :Zaragoza, Spain
Global gothic
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue(2010). In: Kingston Reader's Festival, 08 May 2010 :Kingston upon Thames, U.K.
The gothic heroine : the reins of power and the conflicted self
Horner, Avril(2009). In: Women, conflict and power, 15-17 Oct 2009 :Toulouse, France
The Gothic heroine revived
Horner, Avril and Zlosnik, Sue(2009). In: Kingston Reader's Festival, 23 Apr - 22 May 2009 :Kingston upon Thames, U.K.
Daphne du Maurier and the double dialogue with D
Horner, Avril(2007). In: The spirit of the age: debating the past, present and future of life writing, 04-06 Jul 2007 :Kingston Upon Thames, U.K.