Dr. Kevin R. Poole came to the Department of Languages in 2006 with an M.A. in Hispanic Literature from the University of Kentucky and a Ph.D. in Spanish Literature and Culture from the Ohio State University. His main areas of specialization are Medieval Spanish cultural studies and visual culture. His doctoral dissertation focused on visual narrative in the illustrations of the tenth-century Gerona Comentarios al Apocalipsis written by Beatus of Liébana.
Dr. Poole has given conference presentations and published on various areas of Medieval and Renaissance visual narrative and is currently working on a series of essays regarding the use of illustrated apocalyptic texts as forms of propaganda during the Spanish Reconquest, the Crusades, and in the court of Ferdinand and Isabella. He is also working on a book project entitled Obsession with Madness: Depicting Juana la Loca in Modern Literary and Performing Arts, which takes as it main point of focus the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella and the mythification of her insanity.
Also of interest to Dr. Poole’s research are the field of medievalism (the appropriation of medieval imagery and concepts in modern literature and film) and the adaptation of literary works to film.