Richard Frohock
Interim Dean, The Honors College
Professor, English Department
PhD University of California, Santa Barbara
MA, University of California, Santa Barbara
BA, Colorado College
Areas of Interest & Expertise
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Early American Literature
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Early Caribbean Literature
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18th-Century British Literature
Recent Courses Taught
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Caribbean Literature and Culture (Honors Seminar)
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Witches, Murderers, Pirates, and Thieves: Early American Crime (Honors Seminar)
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Bad Arguments (Honors Course)
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Berlin-as-Text (Honors Travel Course)
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Island as Text: The Caribbean Nation of Grenada (Honors Travel Course)
Selected Publications
Monographs:
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Buccaneers and Privateers: The Story of the English Sea Rover, 1675-1725. Newark: University of Delaware Press, 2012; paperback edition in 2014.
- Heroes of Empire: The British Colonial Protagonist in America, 1596-1764. Newark: University of Delaware Press, 2004.
Articles and Book Chapters:
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“From Hawkins to Jenkins: Interpreting Violence in English Piracy Narratives.” Atlantic Studies 20.3 (2023): 381-399. DOI: 10.1080/14788810.2022.2033094
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“The Early Literary Evolution of the Notorious Pirate Henry Avery.” Special issue on Pirates in English Literature. Guest editors Claire Jowitt and Manushag N. Powell. Humanities 9, issue no. 1, article 6 (2020): online format (13 pp.).
Selected Conference Presentations
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“Pirates, Race, and Ethnicity.” Western Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies. Los Angeles, CA. February 2022.
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“Pirates on Madagascar: Civil Society, Self-interest, and Exploitation.” Society of Early Americanists Conference. Virtual format (due to Covid-19); originally scheduled for Atlanta. March 2021.
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“Captain Avery and the Indian Princess.” South Central Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies. St. Augustine, FL. February 2020.
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“Henry Avery: The Atlantic World Pirate and the Construction of Civil Society.” Society for Early Americanists. Eugene, OR, February 2019.
Professional Appointments & Professional Service
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President, Phi Beta Kappa, Gamma of Oklahoma Chapter, Fall 2019-present
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Member at Large, OSU’s Phi Kappa Phi chapter, Fall 2020-present
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Vice-President of OSU’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter, Fall 2014-Fall 2019
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President, Early Caribbean Society, Spring 2017-Spring 2019
Awards and Recognition
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International Education Administrator’s Fulbright Fellowship, Germany (2021—awarded but canceled due to rising Covid cases in Germany)
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Oklahoma Humanities Council Grant (2013)
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Mellon Foundation Fellowship for study at Harry Ransom Center (2006)
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American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies Teaching Award (1999)
Current Research
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Piracy and Privateering
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Early Caribbean Literature
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Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century Atlantic World History