Jenna’s research focuses on the changing face of contemporary conflict and its impact on cultural identity (especially American and Iraqi identities in Persian Gulf and Iraq War narratives). It specifically focuses on trauma and the psychological effects of contemporary warfare, women’s roles in the military, the refiguring of masculinity, the reshaping of national identity, and perceptions of the ‘Other.’ Her research examines a range of narrative forms including novels, memoir, poetry, film, and television series. Jenna’s research also involves studies of exile narratives and new media forms (including blogs and video games).

Jenna’s current research projects include a monograph which explores the complexities of technology and identities in Persian Gulf and Iraq War narratives, and an anthology of Persian Gulf War poetry resulting from her archival research in the United States.

Grants and Funding

2012: Peace and Conflict Studies Program Travel Bursary, Colgate University, New York State, US (£1000 to participate in the Wars Beyond War workshop).

2007: British Association for American Studies/ US Embassy Short Term Travel Award (£750 to conduct archival research into Persian Gulf War and Iraq War literature in the US).

2006: Nottingham Trent University Vice-Chancellor’s Award Doctoral Studentship.

Publications

Article

J. Pitchford-Hyde, ‘When the “Homeland” is a Warzone: Iraqis Writing from Positions of Exile and Displacement’, (forthcoming, special edition of Critical Studies on Security, 2014).

J. Pitchford, ‘From One Gulf to Another: Reading Masculinity in American Narratives of the Gulf and Iraq Wars’, Literature Compass 9:5 (2012), 357-70.

J. Pitchford, ‘The “Global War on Terror,” Identity, and Changing Perceptions: Iraqi Responses to America’s War in Iraq’, Journal of American Studies, 45: 4 (2011), 695-716.

S. Mukherjee and J. Pitchford, ‘“Shall We Kill the Pixel Soldier?”: Perceptions of Trauma and Morality in Combat Videogames’, Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds, 2:1 (May 2010), 39-51.

Book Section

J. Pitchford, ‘The American “Other” in the Gulf War Novel: Writing Race and National Identity in Christopher John Farley’s My Favourite War (1996)’, Writing America into the Twenty-First Century: Essays on the American Novel, ed. by Elizabeth Boyle and Anne-Marie Evans (Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2010), pp. 56-75.

Research Groups

In 2012, Jenna worked with colleagues on the Peace and Conflict Studies Program, Colgate University (NY), to establish an international interdisciplinary research network of scholars which challenges simplified definitions of contemporary conflict. The ‘Wars Beyond War’ research group is currently working on an online project addressing the future of warfare. The aim of this research is to engage the public in interdisciplinary discussions about the impact of contemporary warfare in sociological, political, and cultural terms.

Jenna’s teaching interests include twentieth and twenty-first century British and American literature, especially postmodern literature; post-World War II conflict narratives, especially Vietnam, Cold War, and 9/11 literature; gender and masculinity studies; queer theory; critical theory.

Jenna has previously taught across a wide range of subject areas including Literature, American Studies, History, Cultural Studies, and Journalism.

• Jenna is currently running a new postgraduate training course, ‘Taking Academia into Schools’, which facilitates PhD students in developing workshops for primary and secondary school students. These workshops introduce school students to academic ideas and research in a fun and accessible way. The course provides the opportunity for PhD students to learn more about outreach, receive training on how to develop outreach taster workshops, and make an active contribution to UEA’s valuable work in raising aspirations and academic attainment amongst young people.

• Jenna is currently working with colleagues in the Faculty to develop Outreach activities across the Humanities. These activities are aimed at widening participation in Higher Education, and specifically, at UEA. She is developing a range of projects, including themed visit days, collaborative inter-institutional residential visits, on-going projects in local schools, and projects with local community groups. Jenna has also developed an outreach training programme for PhD students, and provides support for UEA’s existing students in the Faculty of Humanities.