Elliott J. Brandsma
Credentials: Scandinavian Studies
Position title: Graduate Student
Email: ejbrandsma@wisc.edu
Address:
Languages: Icelandic, Swedish, Finnish
Area(s) of Study: 20th Century Icelandic and Swedish Literature, Nordic Literature of Decadence, the Baroque
Pronouns: he/him/his
About Me: I am a Ph.D. Candidate in the Nordic section, specializing in modernism’s relationship to Swedish and Icelandic literature. Writers of interest to my research include Halldór Laxness, Gunnar Gunnarsson, Harry Martinson, Eyvind Johnson, Verner Von Heidenstam, Selma Lagerlöf, Erik Axel Karlfeldt, August Strindberg, and Pär Lagerkvist. I attended the University of Iceland from 2013-2016, where I completed an M.A. and spent a year studying in the Icelandic as a Second Language B.A. program. I am a former public school teacher, journalist, Fulbright scholar, and AmeriCorps National Service Program volunteer, and I aspire to a career in academia or the Foreign Service.
Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliott-brandsma-511676119/
Education:
– M.A., English, University of Iceland, (First-Class)
– B.A., English and Art, Texas State University (Summa cum laude)
Courses Taught:
– Miami Dade College: Freshman Composition I and II
– University of Wisconsin—Madison: First-year Swedish
– University of Wisconsin-Madison: The Vikings: Summer Session
– University of Wisconsin-Madison: The Writings of Hans Christian Andersen
Awards:
- Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship to Sweden, U.S. Dept. of Education, 2023-2024
- Writer-in-Residence, Villa Martinson, Jonsered, Sweden, University of Gothenburg, June 2023
- Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Summer Fellowship to Finland, U.S. Dept. of Education, 2023
- Swedish Institute Travel Grant to Stockholm, Örebro and Uppsala, March 2023
- University of Wisconsin Graduate School Fellowship, Spring 2023
- Dr. Herbert E. Harper, Jr. Memorial Scholarship, San Antonio Area Foundation, 2020
- Näbbeboda Fellowship, Olofström, Sweden, Harry Martinson Society, 2019
- University of Wisconsin Graduate School Fellowship, 2019-2020
- University of Wisconsin Graduate School Welcome Scholarship, 2019-2020
- Institute for Regional and International Studies Training Fellowship, 2019-2020
- Teach for America/Americorps Fellowship, Miami-Dade, 2016-2018
- Research Fellow, Skriðuklaustur Cultural Center in Egilsstaðir, Iceland, 2013
- Fulbright Research Grant, Iceland, 2013-2014
- Icelandic Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture Fellowship, 2013-2014
- Finalist, Lyndon Baines Johnson Outstanding Senior Award, Texas State University, 2013
Selected Publications:
- Translation: “Why Can’t We Fly?”
- “Recovering a ‘Lost Europe:’ The Decentering of Master Narratives in Eyvind Johnson’s Natten är här.”
- “Seeing the Unseen: A Reflection on Harry Martinson’s ‘The Inner Light.’” http://harrymartinson.se/manadens-martinson/manadens-martinson-juli-2020-3-av-elliott-brandsma/
- “Turning Wonder into Compassion: A Meditation on Harry Martinson’s ‘Visit to an Observatory.’” http://harrymartinson.se/manadens-martinson/manadens-martinson-juli-2019-av-elliott-brandsma/
- “Exploring the Legacy of Halldór Laxness: Contemporary English-language Perspectives on Iceland’s Greatest Twentieth-Century Writer.” https://skemman.is/handle/1946/24808