Alekszandra Rokvity

Alekszandra Rokvity

Alekszandra Rokvity, PhD Candidate in English and American Studies (Cultural Studies) at the University of Graz

I am a PhD student at the University of Graz, majoring in Cultural Studies. I have completed my BA at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia where I obtained a degree in English Philology, with a focus on Anglophone Literature. During this time I was awarded the prestigious JoinEU-See scholarship which led me to the University of Graz, where I eventually settled and completed a Masters program in English and American Studies, with a focus on culture. During my studies, I've taught English as a second language in private language schools, as well as preparatory classes for the graduation exams in American Literature at the University of Graz.

In my research I aim to present my understanding of the notion of the postmodern condition, thus inserting myself into the decade-long discussion about the nature of the state of affairs in contemporary Western society labeled postmodernism. In order to illustrate the effects so-called late capitalism has had on our perception of and relationship with reality, ourselves, other living things, and objects, and the way that the peeking of consumer culture within the age of technology has essentially changed what it means to be human, I'm turning to one of man's oldest cultural artifacts - the fairytale. More concretely, I am conducting a case study of the fairy tale of Snow White and its long and vivid history, paralleling the journey of the text - from orature, to literature, to visual culture, from art to entertainment and finally to commodity - with the development of Western society and its final slippage into the ever-fluid postmodern condition.

Outside of the academia, I'm an avid volunteer and (academic) mobility advocate. I am a member of one of Europe's largest NGOs - The Erasmus Student Network - and very proudly one of the founders of its local branch in my country.

Contact

E-mail: rokvity@ualberta.ca
Telephone: 780-492-6390
Address:
University of Alberta
Wirth Institute for Austrian and Central European Studies
300-F
Arts & Convocation Hall
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada T6G 2E6