About

THE MEDIEVAL KINGFISHER PROJECT

The site name – The Medieval Kingfisher – refers to the collective community of medievalists at Yale-NUS College. Members of the college are affectionately called “Kingfishers”, a nickname coined after the college mascot, Halcyon. The site name is also a nod towards the Arthurian legend’s Fisher King (and a play on his name), known as the wounded keeper of the Holy Grail.

This project is dedicated to all past, present, and future Yale-NUS medievalists. Here, we commemorate everyone’s creative and intellectual journey through the medieval literary and artistic traditions. It is a celebration of our budding community’s outstanding work, and an expression of our heartfelt gratitude to you for being a part of this tapestry of an experience. 

CONTRIBUTING YALE-NUS MEDIEVALISTS

ASHLEY SIM SHUYI (’22)

Ashley is a Literature major who is drawn to the potentialities of stories to uncover what is hidden, untold or unsaid. During her time at Yale-NUS, she has studied Latin, explored the beauty of Latin American Literature, recited the first stanza of The Canterbury Tales, and much more. Inspired by her childhood love of fantasy and sci-fi young adult fiction, she is currently working on understanding escape and movement in trans novels. Outside of school, you can find her making theatre, crafting, or playing with her corgi, Loki.

ASHLEY TAN (’25)

Ashley is a law and liberal arts student at Yale-NUS. Her interests include literature and arts. She enjoys reading and writing for Yale-NUS publications.

CLAIRE ZHAI HUAN TING (’24)

Claire Zhai Huan Ting is an avid enthusiast of the arts, and enjoys learning about different genres of literature. Her first introduction to English Literature was as a subject in secondary school, followed by A-Level literature. In college, she has been determined to continue pursuing her interest in the subject by taking diverse literature courses. The Medieval Romance module marks her first foray into the world of medieval literature, and she has greatly enjoyed learning about the rich literary traditions and historical contexts that this genre draws upon. 

EMILY DALTON

Dr. Emily Dalton specialises in English, French, and Welsh literature of the twelfth to fourteenth centuries, and is particularly interested in the philosophy of language, translation, romance, and insular multilingualism. Her research seeks to uncover the connections between bodies of material not often studied together (such as Welsh and English writing, or literature and the philosophy of language) in order to contribute to a more nuanced literary history of medieval Britain.

JEREMY TSANG (’25)

Jeremy enjoys exploring Global Literature and has developed an interest in understanding how intellectual thought has shaped cultural imaginations across various social contexts. With an open mind and love for learning, Jeremy considers himself blessed to be a student of Literature.

MAX HAN (’24)

Max Han (he/him) is an Environmental Studies major at Yale-NUS College – and yes, the major stereotype is true in this case: Max does love nature and is a proud plant dad. Max has always been a huge fan of contemporary literature, and recently medieval literature, after taking a medieval literature class and trying his hand at medieval eco-criticism. He also enjoys writing, so you can probably spot him gazing at the sky trying to wordsmith the poetics of his visual reality.

OSHEA REDDY (’24)

Oshea has always been fascinated by the memorialization of grief. Taking Professor Dalton’s “Death, Mourning, and Memory in Medieval Literature” during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic remains one of her most rewarding and introspective intellectual experiences at college thus far. When she is not returning to the four lined poem “Earth upon Earth” to consider what it means to exist, she can be found swinging (aggressively) on the Elm courtyard swing or in the Art studio in the middle of the night.

SAHANA BALASUBRRAMANIAM (‘22)

Sahana is a Literature major who finds herself intrigued by the relationships between language, self-preservation and power across literary cultures and traditions. During her undergraduate studies, she explored the world of Greco-Roman classics, realism movements of the 20th century and the literary voices of the Global South. Her current research surrounds the redefinition of female power in Medieval European and South Asian literature. Sahana is also passionate about contemporary South Asian and Latin American literature. Having taken Spanish at Yale-NUS and dabbled in translating texts (both in her mother tongue Tamil and Spanish), she hopes to be able to explore the cultural and literary similarities in indigenous oral traditions and storytelling from both regions. She enjoys dancing, taking long walks and indulging in a good cup of tea in her free time.

SIDDARTH PRAVEEN (’21)

Sidharth loves interacting with texts of all mediums. A proud generalist, you can find him dabbling in 2D animation, sampling basslines from songs, and reading up on DeFi. He seeks to amplify and project unheard narratives, unseen spaces, and inaccessible knowledge through his art.

TAMANE HARATA (’24)

Tamane Harata is a Literature major interested in French, English, and Japanese literature of the 18th-19th centuries, mainly curious about the intersections between the supernatural and realism, as well as between literary/social theory and legal studies. She has also been intrigued by the narratives of magic and the supernatural from Medieval Europe and she is interested in further exploring the transitions of such narratives from medieval times to the contemporary world.

TOH HONG JIN (’23)

Hong Jin is a Literature major curious about the intersection of the supernatural, the past, and places. He is mainly interested in exploring these concerns within the East Asian context (Classical Chinese, Japanese), but also finds the Western Medieval and Gothic traditions equally alluring. Outside academic work, Hong Jin is an aspiring author and a chorister (tenor), and enjoys Harry Potter, drawing, swimming, and watching anime during his free time. He is a co-builder of this site along with Dr. Emily Dalton.

VIVIEN SIM (’24)

Vivien is a student in the Law and Liberal Arts Double Degree Programme who enjoys experiencing pieces of literature and art that move her deeply. She counts her many blessings both within and beyond her academic life. One blessing, easily, was diving headfirst into Prof Dalton’s medieval literature class as her first elective in her freshman year, and she is grateful for Prof Dalton as she allowed her to join the class even though she had yet to complete the prerequisite Common Curriculum courses. In class, Vivien uncovered a new fascination in the sheer humanness that surrounds our perception of death — whether this perception be one that demonises or humanises death –, cherishing ephemeral life and the irresistible indulgence in the possibility of a life after death. When she’s not trying to make sense of her many law readings, you might find her stuck in the drive-through queue at midnight for a single vanilla cone from McDonald’s, reading good poetry and writing some okay ones, practicing floral art, and learning how to golf.

YAP JIA YI (’21)

Jia Yi has always been intrigued by how language is used to portray the human condition. Driven by her keen fascination with the workings of form to represent consciousness, she has written about how the marginalized self moves within narrative forms in a bid to preserve and heal the self. She hopes to further pursue her narratological understanding and research on the Self in relation to Death, Mourning, Memory, whether through academic writing or in fiction. When she is not busy dying at her day job, Jia Yi can be found to be either typing maniacally away in desperate hopes of finishing the first draft of her novel, playing the guitar and singing haphazardly, or simply cackling at (literary) memes.

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