Larry Bouchard
Professor Emeritus
- BA, Texas Christian University
- MA, University of Chicago
- PhD, University of Chicago
Research Interests:
My research looks for intersections between religious thought (including theology, philosophy of religion, and ethics) and imaginative literature, especially prose fiction and drama. This work necessarily entails forays into interpretation theory or "hermeneutics" (especially that of Gadamer, Ricoeur, and Derrida). In recent years I have been trying to re-conceptualize relations of selves and their "integrity" in ethics and theology, as refracted through studies of theatrical drama. I remain interested in "tragedy" (Greek and modern) as a lens for interpreting suffering, contingency, and evil in scripture and religious thought. Future projects are likely to explore views of "ambiguity," "indeterminacy," and the like in narrative art and literary theory, with the aim of envisioning possibilities for Christian "kenotic" ethics and theological hermeneutics.
Teaching:
- Religious, Theological, and Ethical Studies of Imaginative Literature
- Interpretation Theory, Hermeneutics, and Criticism
- Tragedy and Modern Drama
- Sin, Suffering, and The Religious Imagination
- Uses of Narrative in Christian Theology and Ethics
- Conceptions of Integrity in Theology and Ethics
- Images of Medicine in Film, Drama, and Fiction
- The Thought of Paul Ricoeur
Mailing Address:
Department of Religious Studies
PO Box 400126
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4126
Area(s) of Study:
Christian Theological Perspectives
Comparative Scripture, Interpretation, and Practice
Modern and Contemporary Religious Thought