Profile
Volker Schröder studies early modern literature and culture, with a special focus on the reign of Louis XIV (1660-1715). He received his doctorate in French literature from the University of Tübingen (Germany) and has previously taught at the University of Salzburg (Austria) and Duke University. His publications include a monograph on Jean Racine’s tragedy Britannicus, an essay collection entitled Présences de Racine, a critical edition of Marie-Anne Barbier’s tragedy Cornélie, mère des Gracques, as well as articles and book chapters on a variety of topics. In his research and teaching, he aims to highlight the complexity and dynamism of the French “classical age” by exploring its artistic, intellectual, and ideological conflicts and debates, many of which remain relevant today. In recent years, he has become increasingly interested in the material aspects of early modern media (especially printed books, manuscripts, and prints), and in the ways in which digital tools can facilitate the discovery, presentation, and understanding of literary and cultural heritage.
Teaching Interests
Current Projects
Volker Schröder is currently working on a book-length study of the satirist Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux and (in collaboration with Delphine Reguig and Jean Lesaulnier) preparing a critical edition of Boileau’s correspondence. Other projects include research on the fairy-tale authors Charles Perrault and Marie-Catherine d’Aulnoy, as well as editions of unpublished manuscripts in American collections.
Recent Publications
“Sur quelques éditions monstrueuses: les premiers recueils des Satires de Boileau.” Histoire du Livre, Société bibliographique de France, 2021
"Visages chagrins, visages joviaux: les premiers portraits gravés de Boileau." In: La Figure de Boileau. Représentations, institutions, méthodes (XVIIe-XXIe siècles). Ed. Christophe Pradeau & Delphine Reguig. Paris: Sorbonne Université Presses, 2020, p. 67-89
"«Le grand nom de LOUIS mêlé à mes ouvrages»: la place du roi dans les Poésies de Mme Deshoulières." In: Morales du poème à l'âge classique. Ed. Alain Génetiot. Paris: Classiques Garnier, 2019, p. 95-117
"Ein weiteres Reinschriftfragment von Kants Entwurf Zum ewigen Frieden.“ Kant-Studien 110, 2 (spring 2019), p. 189-210
“Les Contes de Perrault dans tous leurs états.” Histoire du Livre, Société bibliographique de France, 2018
“Beyond Words: Visual and Material Culture,” part of “Etat Présent: The Study of Seventeenth-Century French Literature in North America.” The French Review 91, 2 (December 2017), p. 13-34
“Royal Prints for Princeton College: A Franco-American Exchange in 1886.” Princeton University Library Chronicle, vol. LXXVI, nos 1-2 (autumn 2014-winter 2015), p. 13-50 [special issue to accompany the Firestone Library exhibition Versailles on Paper]