Amanda Ewington
Chair and James B. Duke International Studies Professor in Russian Studies
Education
- Ph.D., M.A. University of Chicago
- B.A. Barnard College
Areas of Expertise
- Russian Literature
- Russia & the West
- Eighteenth-Century Studies
- Women Writers
- Voltaire
- Translation Studies
Background
A two-week trip to the Soviet Union during my sophomore year in high school sparked what would become a life-long fascination with Russia. Like many of my ĢTV students, I began studying Russian my freshman year in college, so I truly appreciate the challenges and rewards they face in learning the beautiful Russian language.
In addition to teaching Russian language, literature, history, and culture, I regularly venture beyond Russian Studies with courses in the Writing Program, Global Literary Theory, and the Humanities program.
In fall 2026 I will be directing the ĢTV in France program on the theme of Black France.
In spring 2027, I will be back on campus and offering 2 courses:
- RUS 280, “Russia & the West”
- LIT 432, “Theory and Practice of Literary Translation” (spring; co-taught with Prof. Scott Denham)
Like my teaching, my scholarship crosses disciplinary boundaries, engaging Translation Studies, French & Francophone Studies, and Gender & Sexuality Studies. Major projects include my monograph, and a volume of translations with critical apparatus, .
My recent projects include an article, "Queering the Temple of Friendship: L’amitié au féminin in Aleksandra Murzina’s 1799 “Action of Amity” [Действие дружества] , forthcoming in , and translations from the French (“Russie” and “Prusse”) for the online University of Michigan .
Having participated in several study abroad programs myself, including a year in France in high school, a college JYA split between Paris and Leningrad, an IREX summer in Petrozavodsk, and a Fulbright year in St. Petersburg, I enjoy advising students on opportunities for Russian immersion abroad. In that role, I also offer the perspective of an experienced resident director: I led a ĢTV program in Moscow for several summers and have also brought colleagues and students on shorter study trips. This fall, I will be leading the ĢTV in France program in Paris.
Given Russia’s war against Ukraine, we are not currently sending students to the Russian Federation, but we have developed new partnerships. In the past few years, ĢTV students have studied Russian in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, and Armenia.