Mary Oates is a first-year doctoral student from Milwaukee, WI. She received her BA in Classical Studies and English literature from Marquette University in 2025 and her MA in English from Marquette University in 2026. While at Marquette, Mary’s research focused on women in Old English poetry (from Beowulf to the Old English Judith) and modern conceptions of medieval women.

Currently, Mary is interested in expanding her research to include later medieval texts. She aims to follow the development of monstrous imagery throughout medieval literature and explore how it reflects societal anxieties. Mary wants to help make knowledge, especially regarding the medieval, accessible to audiences beyond academia.