Dr. Pearl Brilmyer

Associate Professor

Build a Statement of Purpose

Generate a tailored SOP for Dr. Pearl Brilmyer. Improve your application with a focused, well-structured draft.

Biography

S. Pearl Brilmyer is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania, where she also serves as the Associate Chair. Her research lies at the intersection of history, philosophy, science, and literature, with a focus on the nineteenth-century English novel. Brilmyer explores theories that drive nineteenth-century German philosophy and science, studying prominent figures such as Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Freud, and Reich. Her areas of interest include the history of sexuality and both old and new materialisms. She has held fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and several prestigious institutions including the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science. Her book, "Science Character: Human Objecthood Ends Victorian Realism," published by the University of Chicago in 2022, develops a literary-theoretical approach to the history of science and discusses the role of characters, both human and non-human, in shaping our understanding of reality. Her work has been recognized with the Sonya Rudikoff Award for Victorian Studies. Brilmyer has co-edited special issues on significant topics and is currently working on a book project titled "Queer Rigidity," which examines the tendency of desire to follow established patterns. She is a core faculty member in the Program in Gender, Sexuality & Women's Studies and in the Program in Comparative Literature & Literary Theory.

Research Interests

19th-Century English Novel Nineteenth-Century German Philosophy History of Sexuality Materialism Queer Theory

Courses

ENGL 5841.401 Environmental Literature Media ENGL 4097.301 Honors Thesis Seminar ENGL 1300.401 Queer Politics, Queer Communities ENGL 8000.301 Pedagogy ENGL 0160.401 Introduction to Queer Theory ENGL 0333.401 Queer History and Theory ENGL 0573.301 BFS: 19th-Century Novel: Eliot ENGL 7052.401 Form, Figure, Metaphor ENGL 1300.950 Sex and Society ENGL 598.401 Sex and Human Sciences ENGL 016.302 Science and Sexuality ENGL 051.001 Life? ENGL 016.301 Queer History and Theory ENGL 105.001 Queer Politics, Queer Communities ENGL 800.301 Pedagogy ENGL 560.401 Queer Studies ENGL 108.001 Literature and Science ENGL 560.401 Subject? ENGL 094.401 Intro to Literary Theory ENGL 601.401 History of Literature and Theory ENGL 051.001 19th-Century British Literature ENGL 560.301 Victorian Materialism ENGL 108.001 Literature and Science: Scientific Aesthetics ENGL 268.301 Literature and Science: Norms, Forms, Deviations ENGL 311.301 English Honors Program ENGL 290.401 Queer Attachments ENGL 556.301 George Eliot and Science ENGL 108.001 Literature and Science: Norms, Forms, Deviations

Requirements for University of Pennsylvania

Doctorate Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.6
GRE General
Verbal
Required:162
Quantitative
Required:162
Overall
Required:162
GMAT
Total Score
Required:728
Overall
Required:728
TOEFL
Total
Required:115
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree or equivalent Strong quantitative background
Application Checklist
  • Academic Transcripts
  • Letters of Recommendation (2-3)
  • Resume/CV
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Essays
Specialization Notes

Wharton Doctoral programs cover fields like Finance, Marketing, Management, and Operations, Information and Decisions.