Caitlin Davies

I am so thankful for the support and contribution from the James Pantyfedwen Foundation towards my postgraduate studies. In what has been a truly challenging academic year impacted by COVID-19, being aided by the foundation has enabled me to face such challenges with confidence. I have truly appreciated their regular communication, patience, and encouragement throughout this year.

Having enjoyed the interdisciplinary nature of English and American studies at the University of Leicester as an undergraduate, I wanted to continue pursuing this subject at postgraduate level. I decided to continue my studies at the University of Nottingham, completing an MRes in American Studies.

My thesis explored the portrayal of gender and sexuality in contemporary US graphic memoirs. I demonstrate that my chosen texts reflect a recent shift in American attitudes, using the theoretical lenses of Life Writing, Comics Studies, Gender Theory and Queer Theory. With the help of my supportive supervision team, I have received regular feedback, pastoral support, and encouragement to grow as a writer. I have also contributed to the department’s Panoptic Journal as assistant editor and represented my course at the Learning Community Forum.

My MRes studies have enabled me to develop valuable communication and editing skills, which I hope to use in a career in publishing. Given that my research topic remains an under researched area of this field, I feel encouraged that I could return to PhD studies in the future.