PhD Degree Awarded to Ms. Alimah Ibrahim Mohammed Al-Selwi

Ms. Alimah Ibrahim Mohammed Al-Selwi ‎ was awarded a PhD degree for her dissertation titled: The Impact of Greek and Roman Myths on Shakespeare’s Selected Tragedies‎, which was submitted to the Department of English, Faculty of Arts and Humanities – Sana’a University. The dissertation defense was held on Saturday‎, February 14, 2026.

The PhD Viva-Voce Committee, which was formed based on a resolution issued by the Graduate Studies and Scientific Research Council, consisted of the following:

# Committee Members Designation Position
1 Prof. Muneer Ahmed Dahan Ghaleb Al-Aghbari ‎ External Examiner Chair
2 Prof. Iman Abdullah Yahya Al-Mahdi ‎ Main Supervisor Member
3 Associate Prof. Mohammed Ahmed Hussein Sharaf Al-Deen‎ Internal Examiner Member

The dissertation aimed to:
 Identify the myths used by William Shakespeare in his plays Hamlet, Macbeth, and ‎King Lear.‎
 Analyze and examine how these myths were employed.‎
 Compare the use and function of mythological concepts in the Greek and Roman eras, ‎Shakespeare’s era, and the modern era.‎
The study yielded several key findings summarized as follows:
 ‎Shakespeare used ancient myths as a tool to explore enduring human questions across ‎different ages.‎
 In Hamlet: the search for truth in a confusing world mirrors the proliferation of fake ‎news and rumors that leave individuals uncertain.‎
 In Macbeth: the cost of ambition when it turns into greed reflects many modern ‎economic and political scandals driven by avarice.‎
 In King Lear: the themes of family conflict and social justice resonate with ‎contemporary issues in family relationships—especially those concerning the ‎elderly—as well as economic injustice in modern times.‎
The dissertation defense was attended by a number of academics, researchers, and specialists, students, colleagues, and the researcher’s family.