Welcome!

I am a Lecturer in Comparative Literature and a writer, with interests spanning Dante Alighieri, ancient Persian queens, and anything 19th-century France related.

On this website, you'll find an overview of my various projects. If you want to learn more, why not listen to my interview on The Extra Half Podcast? We cover everything from life as a British-Italian from Brussels, to my research and screenwriting projects. You'll find me under Episode 11 'Parallels and Common Grounds.'

I try to update the section below with any major news, but you can also follow me on Twitter for more frequent updates.

Julia

News

7/7/2021
Joining Rana Mitter, Ali Ansari, and Ina Sarakhani Sandmann on BBC Radio 3's 'Free Thinking' to discuss Iranian art in the West. You can listen to the episode here.

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13/4/2021
My feature screenplay 'Arseholes', about Arthur Rimbaud & Paul Verlaine is now a semi-finalist in the BlueCat Screenwriting Competition !


2/4/2021
Another review of my book is out, this time from Speculum:
'A scholar who grew up in a trilingual family (English, Italian, French) and who therefore can slip smoothly from one linguistic world to another, Julia Caterina Hartley performs an exquisitely comparatist analysis in Reading Dante and Proust by Analogy. Hartley’s conclusions are quite unexpected and shed new light on two authors who share more than one might think: Alighieri, as a medieval writer who anticipates modernity, and Proust, as a modern writer who engages with the weight of the past... In sum, this book is a meticulous comparative work at its best.’ 

18/3/2021
Proud to announce I am one of 2021's ten BBC New Generation Thinkers! You can listen to my first broadcast on BBC Sounds.

19/10/2020
My drama series 'Persia' has made the shortlist for the C21 screenwriting competition.

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17/9/2020
And the first review for Reading Dante and Proust by Analogy is out!
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Thomas Pavel writes: "Hartley’s erudite, persuasive, and reader-friendly book is a powerful debut, an irresistible invitation to love literature. I confidently look forward to her future work."