Professor Kei Miller.

Professor Kei Miller to give his inaugural lecture, ‘In Praise of Volume’.

A professor in the Department of English, Kei Miller is an essayist, poet and novelist and has written several books. He has been awarded numerous prizes throughout his career including winner of the 2014 Forward Prize for Poetry, named as one of the Next Generation Poets, and shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers First Book Prize.

Kei’s latest novel, Augustown, was published last year to wide acclaim, being described as ‘Truly panoramic’ by the Sunday Telegraph and ‘Richly nuanced and empathetic…a vivid modern fable’ by the Guardian.

In this lecture Kei will begin with Simon Gikandi’s thesis that the 18th century world of politeness, manners and aesthetics was intimately entwined with and informed by the institution of slavery. He will explore the idea that if current ideas of beauty and excellence in Creative Writing are informed by such culturally biased ideas rooted in race and the anxieties it provokes, is Creative Writing, as a discipline now situated within the academy, ethically obliged to reflect on these and challenge them?

Speaking ahead of the lecture, Professor Andrew McRae, Head of English at the University of Exeter, said: "We are excited to welcome Kei Miller to the English Department at Exeter. Kei is one of the most exciting writers of his generation, rapidly producing a formidable body of work in both poetry and prose. Anyone who has read his work or heard him read himself will have been seized by the power and quality of his writing. Kei’s appointment as Professor last autumn, followed by Vesna Goldsworthy who joined us in January, represents a major investment in creative writing at Exeter. We believe that we now offer some of the very best creative writing teaching in the UK, at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels".

Kei's particular research interests are in genre theory, the Postcolonial Caribbean, and creative writing projects across a range of genres that are intellectually rigorous.

To book a place at the lecture please contact: humanities-deans-office@exeter.ac.uk or tel: 01392 726315/4231.

 

Date: 13 March 2017

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