LEWISTON – Bates College professor and dog-devotee Lavina Shankar will present “Dogs and their Humans: Bonds and Boundaries” at this month’s Great Falls Forum.

It will be held from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, March 19, in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library.

Shankar has been a member of the Bates English Department since 1996, and is an accomplished scholar within the realms of British and Asian American literature and feminist literary criticism. Three years ago, she endured the loss of her German shepherd Phoebe to cancer and was moved by the experience to create a course using literature as a lens through which to examine the unique relationship between canines and humans.

Drawing on texts which range from fiction and poetry to psychology, philosophy, religion and environmental studies, Shankar explores issues such as animal rights, evolution, interspecies communication and the healing power of pets.

Though she conceived of the course as a means of coping with her grief, Shankar now refers to it as “Phoebe’s gift,” as the endeavor taught her important lessons about humanity, mortality and spirituality.

Researching and teaching the class has allowed her to “open up emotionally as a human being and to spiritually connect not only with my students but with multiple populations, across differences such as gender, race and social class,” she said.

“I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts and experiences with the local community of dog lovers at the Great Falls Forum and listening to others’ stories of love, loss and joy,” she said.

A question and answer session will follow the presentation. Admission to the event is free, with attendees invited to bring brown-bag lunches. Bottled water will be available.

Attendees may also take advantage of the forum’s partnership with Guthries cafe and request a sandwich to be delivered to the library in advance of the talk. Orders should be placed by calling Guthries at 376-3344 no later than 7 p.m. on the day before the event. The menu is available at www.myspace.com/guthriesplace.

Partnering with the library as cosponsors of the Great Falls Forum series are the Sun Journal, Bates College and St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center.

The library is at 200 Lisbon St. at the corner of Pine Street. More information on Thursday’s lecture or other events in the Great Falls Forum series is available by contacting the Lewiston Public Library at 513-3135 or www.LPLonline.org.