cfp.english.upenn.edu

Children's Literature Association 34th Annual Conference

Newport News, Virginia

June 14 - 16, 2007

On May 13, 1607, three small English ships under the command of Captain
Christopher Newport arrived on the shore of the Virginia Peninsula to found
Jamestown, the first permanent British colony in the Americas. The
mythology of American history, as taught to countless generations of
schoolchildren, starts with that moment, as the colonists begin the work of
transforming the American "wilderness" into "civilization." Fifteen miles
northeast of Jamestown, 174 years later, General George Washington defeated
the British army commanded by Lord Cornwallis at the Battle of Yorktown,
thereby effectively ending British rule of the thirteen colonies and thus
making possible American self-governance.

ChLA 2007 will be hosted at Christopher Newport University in Newport News,
VA. The conference theme, "Anniversaries, Histories, and Colonialisms,"
reflects the historical character of the local area and the 400th
anniversary of the founding of nearby Jamestown, the first permanent
English-speaking settlement in the Americas. This anniversary of the genesis
of Anglo-American culture in 2007 offers a perfect opportunity to consider
the constructions of history and colonialisms in relation to children's
literature.

Paper topics might include connections

between children's literature or culture and:

The ties between history and national or regional identity

The experiences or representations of immigrant peoples

The experiences or representations of indigenous peoples

Cultural clashes and meldings

Power and land

Dispossession and displacement

Wilderness vs. civilization

Representations of the past

Pocahontas as history and/or myth

Colonialist children's literature from around the world

Post-colonial views of children's literature

Adult attempts to colonize childhood

The desire to commemorate (or critique) past events

For questions about the conference, please contact the conference
coordinators:

Kara Keeling (757-594-7952) kkeeling_at_cnu.edu

Jennifer Miskec (757-594-7973) jennifer.miskec_at_cnu.edu

Send panel proposals or paper abstracts (250-550 words) by e-mail to:

Kara Keeling: kkeeling_at_cnu.edu (no attachments, please!)

or by regular mail to:

Kara Keeling, English Department, Christopher Newport University, 1
University Place, Newport News, VA 23606

Deadline for proposals and abstracts: November 30, 2006

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Received on Tue Mar 28 2006 - 09:32:46 EST