Dr. Sophie Van Den Elzen

Biography

Sophie van den Elzen is an Assistant Professor at Utrecht University, where she specializes in Modern and Contemporary Literatures in English. She is currently developing a project focused on modern free speech culture and has a keen interest in the intersection of literature and public debate. Her work includes co-editing the volume 'Edinburgh History of Radical Press, 1780–1914' with Owen Holland as well as the monograph 'Slavery and the International Women’s Movement, 1832−1914: Memory Work and Legacy Abolitionism', published by Cambridge University Press. Her postdoctoral research was part of the ERC project 'Remembering Activism: The Cultural Memory of Protest in Europe', which examined the 'protest lexicon' of social movements and how activist memory is shaped and transmitted through language. She has co-edited volumes such as 'Memory, Language, and Contention' with Ann Rigney and is set to release another volume titled 'Language and Memory: Interactions and Mediations' with Natalie Braber and Thomas Van de Putte in 2025. Her research articles have appeared in journals like Memory Studies, Language and Communication, and Historica. She is also actively involved in the Utrecht Forum on Memory Studies, the Memory Studies Association, and the Slow Memory COST Action, and serves on the boards of the European Society for Periodical Research and the editorial boards of the Journal of European Periodical Studies and the Yearbook of Women's History.

Research Interests