Department of NELC at the Ohio State University
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SABRA J. WEBBER
Associate Professor
Division of Comparative Studies in the Humanities
Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures
Department of Anthropology
The Ohio State University, Columbus OH
EDUCATION:
BA (English Literature) Occidental College, Los Angeles, 1966
MA (Folklore) University of California, Berkeley, 1975
Ph.D. (Anthropology, Folklore) University of Texas, Austin, 1981
PROFESSIONAL HISTORY:
U.S. Peace Corps, Tunisia. Volunteer, 1967-69 and Training Staff Member, 1974
Educational Testing Service, Berkeley. Assistant to Professional & Academic Testing Consultant, 1970-75
University of Texas, Austin. Teaching Assistant, 1976-78
University of Texas, Austin. Instructor (Center for Middle Eastern Studies/English
Department), 1976-1982.
The Ohio State University. Assistant Professor, 1983-90
The Ohio State University. Associate Professor, 1990-
Division of Comparative Studies in the Humanities Chair, 1990-95
HONORS:
NDEA/NDFL Fellowships, 1976-78 and Middle Eastern Studies Center Fellowship, 1980-81, University of Texas.
Fulbright-Hayes Dissertation Research Abroad Fellow, 1978-79
National Endowment for the Humanities Independent Research Fellow, 1982-83
CASA III Fellow, Cairo. Summer, 1985
American Research Center in Egypt Fellow, 1986-87
Rockefeller Residency Fellow, Washington University. 1988-89
Albert Hourani Prize. Honorable Mention for Romancing the Real (University of Pennsylvania, 1991). One of four best scholarly books about the Middle East, any discipline, written in English, published between 1991 and 1993. (95 works submitted)
Fulbright Senior Regional Research Fellow (Tunisia and Morocco) 1997-98
Social Science Research Council Fellow (Tunisia) Six month fellowship, 1998
SCHOLARSHIP
- Books and Monographs
Books:
1969. Lisagharina (For Our Children). Tunis: National Publishing House.
1991. Romancing the Real: Folklore and Ethnographic Representation in North Africa. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press
- Articles
1977. Four Tunisian Lullabies. Middle Eastern Muslim Women Speak. E. Fernea and B. Bezirgan, eds. Austin: University of Texas Press. pp. 87-93. The Middle East and North Africa (with E. Fernea and .Malarkey).History of the Family and Kinship: A Select International Bibliography. G.L. Soliday, ed. Millwood, NY: Kraus International Publications. Pp. 195-210.
1984. Ramadan Observed. Religion in the Modern World. Papers in Comparative Studies. Marilyn Waldman and Hao Chang, eds. 3: 183-192.
1984. Between Two Folklores, In Connaissances du Maghreb: Sciences sociales et colonisation. Paris: CRESM pp. 291-307
1985. Women's Folk Narratives and Social Change, In Women and the Family in the Middle East. Elizabeth Fernea, ed. Austin: University of Texas Press, pp. 310-316
1987. The Social Significance of the Cairene Nukta: Preliminary Observations ARCE Newsletter 138 (summer): 1-10
1988. Living Proof: A Structure for Male Storytelling Events in a Mediterranean, Tunisian Town. Edebiyyat: II(1-2) 41-76.
1990. Les fonctions communicatives des devinettes de Kelibia, (Tunisie). (A sociostructural analysis of Tunisian Riddles.) Journal of the Institute des Belles Lettres Arabes (IBLA). 53(166): 1-21
1993. Canonicity and Middle Eastern Folk Narrative. Edebiyyat. NS 4:35-48
1996. Comparative Cultural Studies: Irony, Collusion and Scholarly Practice (with Margaret Lynd) Fantasy or Ethnography Papers in Comparative Studies 8: v-xix.
1997. Romancer le reel: histoires populaires racontees a Kelibia, Tunisie. In Espaces Publiques, Paroles Publiques au Maghreb et au Machrek. Hannah Davis Taieb, Rabia Bekkar, Jean-Claude David, eds. Paris: Editions L’Harmattan pp. 221-230. (with Hannah Davis Taieb)
1998. Middle East Studies and Subaltern Studies In Middle East Studies Association Bulletin 31(1): 11-16.
1999. "Tunisian Storytelling Today." Traditional Storytelling
Today: An International Sourcebook. Margaret Read MacDonald ed. London/Chicago:
Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. pp. 356-364.
Accepted (pending revisions). "’Inshallah Khir’: Narrative Theory
and the Story of a Dream." (in French and Tunisian Arabic). Revue de
l’Institut des Belles Lettres Arabes (IBLA), Tunis, Tunisia.
In Contract. ‘Oral Traditions in North Africa’ (8000 words) The
Cambridge History of African and Caribbean Literature.
- Reviews
1980. A Review of Pierre Bourdieu’s Outline of a Theory of Practice. Middle East Research in Anthropology. L.O. Michalak, edition ed. IX(3): 12-14.
- Bourdieu’s Reply and Webber’s Comment. Middle East Research in Anthropology. L.O. Michalak, edition ed. X(3): 6-7.
1983. Book Review: Folktales of Egypt. (El-Shamy). Journal of American Folklore 96(379): 70-72. Book Review: The House of Si Abd Allah: The Oral History of a Moroccan Family (Henry Munson, Jr.). Ethnohistory. 34(3): 324-325.
1989. Book Review: Veiled Sentiments. (Lila Abu-Lughod). Middle Eastern Studies Association Bulletin.
1990. Book Review: Merchant of Art. (Susan Slyomovics). Journal of the American Association of Teachers of Arabic 23:165-170.
- Scholarly Editorial Work
Faculty Editor: Middle East and South Asia Folklore Bulletin 1990-present.
- Encyclopedia Articles
Invited Lecture: A Sociostructural Analysis of Riddling in the Maghrib. Presented to Faculty and Students at the University in Meknes, Morocco.
TEACHING
- Classroom Performance
Sabbatical Year–No Teaching
Student Testimony–See Attached
- New Course Development
Development of Two Courses in progress (see attached copies)
-History of Folklore Studies
-Contemporary Folklore in the Arab World
- Additional Contributions
The following are graduate students with whom I have worked actively during the last four quarters:
PhD Committee Member:
-Sylvia Wing Onder, PhD candidate, One-of-a-Kind in Turkish Folk Medicine
-Vladimir Marchenkov, PhD candidate, One-of-a-Kind in Musical Mythology, completed generals examinations late spring, 1997.
Director for MA in Comparative Cultural Studies
-Terry Eisle, Masters candidate, Comparative Studies (oral history and personal experience narratives)
Co-Director for Ph.D.
-Georgious Anagnostu, One-of-a-Kind in Greek-American Folklore/Festival. (Co-director of Dissertation.
SERVICE: OSU
FLAS Fellowship Committee, Spring 1997. Read approximately 30 applications and ranked graduate student candidates for summer and year FLAS fellowships.
CIVIC
Participant in campaign for school tax levy, Columbus City Schools.
Italian Village Reinvestment Committee: Secretary (assisted in writing two successful grants proposals for neighborhood school improvements) and Member of two subcommittees (Traffic and Safety and Social Services).
Volunteer Tutor: Ecole Kenwood Elementary School.
Guest Speaker: The American Cooperative School in Tunisia. Advised high school students about university opportunities in the United States, particularly those at OSU.
HONORS
Successfully obtained with my co-chair a Presidential Fellowship for our student, Georgious Anagnostu. (This is the second student for whom I have obtained this fellowship.)
1997-98 Fulbright Senior Regional Research Scholar (Tunisia and Morocco)
1998 Social Science Research Council Fellowship (Tunisia)
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