I graduated from the National University of Singapore (NUS) in 2019 with a BA (Hons, Highest Distinction) in English Language and Gender Studies. My undergraduate thesis (now available as an article with Gender and Language) explored the metapragmatic reflections of gay men in Singapore on their process of coming out.
I then enrolled as a PhD student in English Language and Linguistics under a Joint Degree Programme with NUS and King’s College London (KCL), supervised by Mie Hiramoto (NUS) and Alexandra Georgakopoulou-Nunes (KCL) and generously funded by an NUS Research Scholarship. My doctoral research focused on neo-homophobic discourses in Singapore, where I examined multimodal products produced by a Christian organisation and ethnographic interviews with sexual minorities who previously or currently are religious. I argued that the Christian idea of metanoia – spiritual transformation – can be discursively channeled as a form of neo-homophobia that coaxes change and transformation in queer individuals. I graduated with my doctorate in September 2023, and I now work at The University of Hong Kong.
Outside of academia, I enjoy smiling at dogs in public until they notice me, casual and occasional doodling, and patronising the local gymnasium. I lived a bit in London, city of the loudest subway trains, and presently in Hong Kong, in search of the best bolo bun.
Please mail me electronically at pak.vincent@gmail.com if you’d like a copy of any of my publications, or if you’d like to chat about anything.
dr vincent pak 