Benjamin Ferguson is currently a Humanities teacher at Carolina Academy in Greenville, South Carolina, USA. He was previously Maître de langue at École normale supérieure de Lyon in France and Secretary of Media Diffusion / Webmaster for SELVA (Société d'étude de la littérature de voyage du monde anglophone).
Benjamin received his PhD from Université Paris-Saclay / Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines in November of 2020, entitled "Rethinking the Last Frontier: Anglophone travel literature about Alaska in the 20th and 21st centuries – writing, ethics and environmental responsibility." His thesis is focused on the responsibilities required of writers moving through Alaska, how they choose to discuss environmental themes and Native peoples, and the ethics of choices to omit those themes. The primary writers discussed are Peter Matthiessen, John McPhee, Barry Lopez, Tom Lowenstein, Jonathan Raban, and Nancy Lord. Benjamin's Arctic-themed publications are: "Alaska Native Animal Love, in Nancy Lord's Beluga Days," "Ethics of Last Frontier Foodscapes: Creating Environmental Solidarity in Alaska's Diverse Communities through its Culinary Habits, in Julia O'Malley's The Whale and The Cupcake," and "Kaleidoscopic Cook: shifting legacies explored in Barry Lopez' Horizon."
A comprehensive list of his publications can be found at his personal web site: http://benjaminkferguson.weebly.com. Benjamin's research interests are Arctic Studies, Travel Writing, Environmental Studies, and Native Studies.
Benjamin Ferguson is Assistant Editor of the book series “Arctic Humanities” published by Brill.
List of publications
Peer-reviewed articles in international scientific journals:
- Benjamin Ferguson, “Frederick Law Olmsted: a pragmatic exception to Transcendental writing”, Studies in Travel Writing, 24(3), 2020, pp. 283-297.
- Benjamin Ferguson, « Alaska Native Animal Love and Nancy Lord’s Beluga Days », Caliban, 64, 2020. Read here
- Benjamin Ferguson, « Kaleidoscopic Cook: shifting legacies explored in Barry Lopez’ Horizon », Astrolabe, Captain Cook after 250 years: Re-exploring The Voyages of James Cook (Avril 2020), mis en ligne le 25/04/2020, Read here
Book Chapters:
- Benjamin Ferguson, “Ethics of Last Frontier Foodscapes: Creating Environmental Solidarity in Alaska’s Diverse Communities through its Culinary Habits, in Julia O’Malley’s The Whale and The Cupcake,” in Françoise Besson (eds.), World's Travel Literature and Environmental Awareness, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2023.
