bibliography and history of the book

Consuming Cultures and Manuscript Evidence

at the Midwest Modern Language Association Conference

15-18 November, Kansas City, Missouri 

The Research Group on Manuscript Evidence, in keeping with the M-MLA conference’s theme of “Consuming Cultures,” is sponsoring panels on the consumption of manuscripts.  This consumption can be both literal—for example, the destruction wrought by bookworms, fires, and biblioclasts—or metaphorical—where “consuming” can mean textual transmission and reception more broadly.  We invite all approaches, including textual, art historical, codicological, and paleographical as well as all periods.

This panel welcomes all proposals that address the conference theme of consumption in texts in Old and Middle English. Of particular interest are proposals that address consumerism in all forms, material or immaterial. Examples of material consumerism might include but are not limited to the presence, use, or thoughts of food, goods, bodies, or land, while examples of immaterial consumption might consider ideas, beliefs, values, labels, or practices. Abstracts of no more than 300 words should be sent to Dr. Kathleen Burt at kathleen.burt@mga.edu by no later than April 5, 2018. 

The LLC 16th-Century English Forum of the Modern Langage Association is organizing a panel on Flattery.

The panel will be on the program for the 2019 MLA conference in Chicago, IL.

We are seeking new research on political, poetical, rhetorical, literary, hypocritical, artificial, dramatic, erotic, sniveling, strategic, or otherwise noteworthy examples or discussions of flattery in English texts, c. 1500-1600.

Please send Abstracts of 150-200 Words to Adam Zucker (azucker@english.umass.edu) by March 15th.

The WMS is seeking submissions for the following session, co-sponsored with The Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing, for the 2019 MLA Convention. Please note that this session is not guaranteed (and is subject to approval by the MLA):

This session seeks new perspectives on publishing William Morris and his circle. Topics might focus on Morris as publisher, on illustrations, on printing, or on the physical format of the book. We especially welcome papers that address publications outside of the Kelmscott Press, and/or that feature book history or digital humanities approaches. 

MARIA EDGEWORTH 250

6-8 December 2018, Long Room Hub, Trinity College Dublin

Call for Papers

Miss Edgeworth is at Abbotsford, and has been for some time; a little, dark, bearded, sharp, withered, active, laughing, talking, impudent, fearless, outspoken, honest, Whiggish, unchristian, good-tempered, kindly, ultra-Irish body. I like her one day, and damn her to perdition the next. She is a very queer character; particulars some other time.

John Gibson Lockhart, quoted in Christopher North: A Memoir of John Wilson.