cfp.english.upenn.edu

Many cultures, literatures, and philosophies have systematically stressed the intimate relation between the human and the animate or inanimate “other.” The present threat to our planet and the species inhabiting it demands that we (re)consider, (re)construct and (re)assess the structural connections and biological ties that exist between human beings, their natural surroundings and art forms or genres. What are the links between literature and ecology? Is ecocriticism a new “ism,” or has it always existed? What structural elements, themes, and associations allow for the conception of notably “green” artistic forms (however “greenness” is defined)? Can we read literature of the past through “green” lenses? Can “green” aesthetics in literature and art forms contribute towards the conservation of our planet? We welcome papers that address, but are not limited to, these themes: literature, aesthetics, and ecocritism; ‘Self’ and ‘Other’ through ecocritism; politics, cosmopolitanism, globalization, activism, literature and ecology; gender, race, sexuality, the body and ecology; the natural landscape as a lesbian genre; translation, colonialism, postcolonialism and ecocriticism; comparative literature, world literature, and ecocriticism.

Abstract deadline November 23, 2009.

http://www.acla.org/acla2010/?p=1063