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Representing Self and Other: Gender and Sexuality in the Fantastic
International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts 28
March 14-28, 2007
Wyndham Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel
Fort Lauderdale, Florida

The focus of ICFA-28 is on issues of gender and sexuality, long a concern of the fantastic in literature, film, and other media. Given the oft-marginalized status of science fiction and fantasy in relation to mainstream literature and culture, it’s not surprising to see fantastic works considered in the light of queer theory and feminist approaches. The hero doesn’t have to be a guy, but it’s just as rewarding to examine the construction of the masculine hero in space opera, sword-and-sorcery, and superhero comics. In graphic novels, book cover illustrations, and art, the gendered Other is the BEM, the elf, the alien, the vampire. Awards such as the Tiptree and the Lambda, and the success of WisCon, speak to the importance of this theme to the communities of the fantastic.

We look forward to papers on the work of this year’s guests:

Guest of Honor Geoff Ryman, author of the Tiptree Award-winning Air as well as Was; The Child Garden, winner of the Campbell Award; The Unconquered Country, winner of the World Fantasy Award; The Warrior Who Carried Life.

Guest Scholar Marina Warner, award-winning critic and fiction author. Her scholarly work includes Alone of All Her Sex, From the Beast to the Blonde, Monuments and Maidens.

Special Guest Writer Melissa Scott, winner of the Lambda Award, author of Trouble and her Friends; The Kindly Ones, Dreaming Metal, and with Lisa Barnett, Point of Hopes and Point of Dreams.

Suggested topics include, but are by no means limited to:

· Childhood in Geoff Ryman’s works
· Boyhood and violence
· Revising gender roles in traditional children’s literature
· Mothers & Fathers
· The "hard" man vs. the "soft" man in film and other media
· the representation of gay men and women in SF/H/F
· changes or patterns in the representation of the feminine in 21century films
· Gender blending and bending
· The Other as love/sex object
· Vampires/werewolves as the "first" transsexuals
· Tiptree award winners
· Gender stereotypes in the 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, etc
· Alien sex
· Slash fan fiction
· 1st, 2nd, or 3rd wave feminism and sf
· Judith Butler and gender performativity
· Donna Haraway and cyborg feminism
· Anthropology and gender
· gender cues in anime art
· performing gender in Role Playing Games
· female protagonists in action games for video and computer
· the exaggeration and stereotyping of sexual characteristics in comic art

A more complete list of suggested topics, frequently updated, is available on the website.

As always, we also welcome proposals for individual papers and for academic sessions and panels on any aspect of the fantastic in any media, even outside the conference theme.

Submit 500 word abstracts for proposals and panel sessions, including contact information and A/V requests, to the appropriate Division Head (full mailing information is available on the website):

(CYA) Fantastic in Children’s & Young Adult Literature & Art: Joe Sutliff Sanders, dr.joess_at_gmail.com

(FE) Fantastic Literatures in English: Charles W. Nelson, cwnelson_at_mtu.edu

(FM) Fantastic in Film & Media: Susan A. George, sageorge13_at_sbcglobal.net

(CC) Communities & Culture in the Fantastic: Barbara Lucas, barbedwriting_at_yahoo.com

(VPA) Visual & Performing Arts in the Fantastic: Stacie Hanes, shanes1_at_kent.edu

(H) Horror: Stephanie Moss, smoss_at_cas.usf.edu

(IF) International Fantastic Literature: Dale Knickerbocker, knickerbockerd_at_mail.ecu.edu

(SF) Science Fiction Literature & Theory, svint_at_stfx.ca

The deadline for submission of proposals for papers or panels is November 30, 2006, although Division Heads will accept proposals at any time before that date.

You can review all conference information at the IAFA website: www.iafa.org. Bookmark the site to keep checking back for updates.

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Received on Tue Jul 18 2006 - 17:43:31 EDT