 from Radcliffe College in 1951 and a Ph.D. in English from Rutgers University in 1974.Her thesis focused on English Tragicomedy in the Renaissance.From 1952 to 1978 Fussell taught courses in English Literature, specializing in Shakespeare and the literature of comedy, drama, and film at a variety of colleges and universities, including Connecticut College, Douglass College, Rutgers University, and the New School University.