Outside of reading and writing, I love playing board games and video games with friends, as well as baseball and basketball (when it's not raining...). I am an unhealthy fan of the Blue Jays.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO COME TO SFU?

I chose to do my MA at SFU because of the amazing faculty, opportunities to pursue my area of interest, and a very friendly and supportive group of fellow English students.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR RESEARCH OR YOUR PROGRAM TO A FAMILY MEMBER?

I am interested in the ways medieval English authors, like Chaucer, interacted with medieval Italian literature: the works of Dante, Boccaccio, Petrarch, and others. I am particularly interested in how this literary interaction dealt with ideas of authority and knowledge, especially in the dream vision (with works like Pearl and Dante's Commedia) and whether these authors believed that dreamers could in fact "know" the transcendent truths they claim to see. I am also trying to determine how this literary activity intersects with historical traumas in the fourteenth century, such as the Black Death.

WHAT ARE YOU PARTICULARLY ENJOYING ABOUT YOUR STUDIES/RESEARCH AT SFU?

I have found the course offerings fulfilling and challenging, and the opportunities to work my own interests, both research specific but also more general, into my course-work has been rewarding.

HAVE YOU BEEN THE RECIPIENT OF ANY MAJOR OR DONOR-FUNDED AWARDS? IF SO, PLEASE TELL US WHICH ONES AND A LITTLE ABOUT HOW THE AWARDS HAVE IMPACTED YOUR STUDIES AND/OR RESEARCH.

BC Graduate Scholarship

Contact Jacob: jgoldbec@sfu.ca