Grace Elisabeth Lavery is an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a position ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

critical theory Critical theory is a social, historical, and political school of thought and philosophical perspective which centers on analyzing and challenging systemic power relations in society, arguing that knowledge, truth, and social structures are ...

and

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

and

women's studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on Feminism, feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining Social constructionism, social and cultural constructs of gender; ...

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

, whose research focuses on the history of language and

aestheticism Aestheticism (also known as the aesthetic movement) was an art movement in the late 19th century that valued the appearance of literature, music, fonts and the arts over their functions. According to Aestheticism, art should be produced to b ...

in 19th century Victorian English society, along with topics involving the language and literature of

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

and

Early life and education

Lavery was born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, England. She graduated from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

and the

University of Sussex The University of Sussex is a public university, public research university, research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the ...

. Under advisor Paul Saint-Amour, she completed her English

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in 2013, with a thesis titled "Empire in a Glass Case: Japanese Beauty, British Culture, and Transnational Aestheticism".

Career

As a first publication, Lavery released ''Quaint, Exquisite'' in 2019 on a subject connected to her post-doctoral research: Victorian era sensibilities in relation to Japan as viewed through a

queer theory Queer theory is a field of post-structuralist critical theory that emerged in the early 1990s out of queer studies (formerly often known as gay and lesbian studies) and women's studies. The term "queer theory" is broadly associated with the study a ...

lens. One major focus of the book is on the idea of

orientalism In art history, literature, and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects of the Eastern world (or "Orient") by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. Orientalist painting, particularly of the Middle ...

and how that colored English understanding of Japan as the "Other Empire". A 2022

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based on the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autob ...

titled '' Please Miss'' was her second published book and covered a wide range of topics beyond her own life and background. An introspection on being trans through a wide variety of genres and non-sequitur asides, the book psychoanalyzes the trans experience and aspects of life that represent it. Lavery's third book, ''Pleasure and Efficacy'', was released in 2023 and discussed the meaning of being transgender and how transitioning works in relation to how the topic is discussed in various genres of literature. The book also includes philosophical views of writers from the 19th century and how understanding of "transness" is complicated and nuanced, unlike how it can commonly be portrayed in current times. ''Pleasure and Efficacy'' was announced as a finalist for the 2024

National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism The National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism, established in 1975, is an annual American literary award presented by the National Book Critics Circle The National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) is an American nonprofit organization (501 ...

. In 2024, ''Closures'', her fourth book, was published on the topic of the American

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

and its usage of heterosexuality to define the

nuclear family A nuclear family (also known as an elementary family, atomic family, or conjugal family) is a term for a family group consisting of parents and their children (one or more), typically living in one home residence. It is in contrast to a single ...

and cause conflict and issues that reinforce the scenario. Lavery explains how the storylines in sitcoms use "external agents" to create strife that ultimately promotes the

heteronormativity Heteronormativity is the definition of heterosexuality as the normative human sexuality. It assumes the gender binary (i.e., that there are only two distinct, opposite genders) and that sexual and marital relations are most fitting between peo ...

seen in the nuclear family value system. She received a $125,000 advance from

Substack Substack is an American online platform that provides publishing, payment, analytics, and design infrastructure to support subscription-based content, including newsletters, podcasts, and video. It allows writers to send digital content directl ...

to publish a newsletter on their platform.

Personal life

In 2018, Lavery officially began transitioning and noted in later interviews that she was happy to have done so before the publication of her first book and her bid for

tenure Tenure is a type of academic appointment that protects its holder from being fired or laid off except for cause, or under extraordinary circumstances such as financial exigency or program discontinuation. Academic tenure originated in the United ...

, as it allowed her to enter the academic space with her chosen name. Lavery married Daniel M. Lavery in 2019 and they moved from California to New York. In 2020, they formed a throuple with Lily Woodruff and they had a son in 2024.

Bibliography

* * * * Reviews for ''Quaint, Exquisite'': * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavery, Grace Living people 21st-century American women academics Academics from Birmingham, West Midlands Alumni of the University of Oxford Alumni of the University of Sussex American women literary critics American literary critics American LGBTQ academics American transgender women British LGBTQ academics British women literary critics English transgender writers Transgender academics Transgender women writers People educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham University of California, Berkeley faculty Writers from Birmingham, West Midlands Year of birth missing (living people)