Biography
I am a PhD candidate in Theology and Religious Studies (Hebrew Bible/Old Testament) at Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge. My thesis, supervised by Prof. Katharine Dell, explores the formation of collective memory within the Book of Lamentations and the interrelationship with 'memory' and 'history' in the book. My research interests are in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament topics regarding poetics, memory, history, trauma, community, embodiment, and land/place, particularly in Lamentations as well as the Megilloth and the broader poetic texts of the Hebrew Bible.
Publications
Melton, Brittany N., and Megan D. Alsene. ‘Harmony between Humanity and the Natural World in the Song of Songs’. Pages 113–25 in Human Interaction with the Natural World in Wisdom Literature and Beyond: Essays in Honour of Tova L. Forti, ed. Mordechai Cogan, Katharine J. Dell, and David Glatt-Gilad, LHBOTS. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2023. https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/human-interaction-with-the-natural-world-in-wisdom-literature-and-beyond-9780567701213/
Teaching and Supervisions
Supervisions:
- A1a Elementary Hebrew
- B1a Intermediate Hebrew
- B2 Israel in Exile
Other Professional Activities
Selected Papers/Presentations:
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‘Unifying a Community through Lament: The Cultural Trauma Narrative of Lamentations’. Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. San Diego, CA, November 2024.
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‘Lamenting Placelessness: The Deconstruction of People and Place in Lamentations’. Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. San Diego, CA, November 2024.
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‘Reader as Participant in the Book of Lamentations: A Rhetorical Study’. International Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. Amsterdam, Netherlands, July/August 2024.
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‘Reconsidering Alphabetic Acrostics in Biblical Hebrew Poetry.’ Paper to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. San Antonio, TX, November 2023.
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‘Harmony between Humanity and the Natural World in the Song of Songs’. Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. San Antonio, TX, 16 November 2023.
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‘Unity in Diversity: Lamentations as Cultural Trauma’. Annual Conference of the European Association of Biblical Studies. Siracusa, Sicily, 11 July 2023.
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‘The Hope of Place: Placedness in Lamentations and Song of Songs’. Annual Conference of Tyndale Fellowship, Old Testament Study Group. London, England, 29 June 2021.
