Call for Papers, 2007
American Religion and Literature Society
At the 18th Annual American Literature Association Conference
Boston, MA, May 24-27, 2007

Americanizing Faith, Scripture, and Iconography

ARLS will sponsor two sessions at ALA:

1. Catholicism and the American Imagination

Roman Catholicism has been an inescapable presence in America since
the inception of the nation, yet for a large part of American
history, that presence has been seen as marginal, even
problematic. We seek papers addressing any aspect of Catholicism and
its representations in American literature, whether by Catholic,
non-Catholic, or ex-Catholic authors. Topics might include, but are
not limited to:
    * Catholicism represented as exotic, foreign, or menacing
    * Traces of Catholicism in secular literature
    * Representations, translations, or revisions of Catholic
doctrine in literature
    * Catholic women authors
    * Catholicism as a mark of ethnicity or marginalization
    * Disputes and encounters between Catholicism and other religious
and philosophical traditions in American literature.

2. Reconfigurations of the Supernatural

American authors, like authors from other cultures before them,
integrate spiritual and supernatural phenomena into their literary
representations. At times there are conflicts between human agency
and such phenomena, at other times cooperation. We seek papers
exploring the effects of authorial re-renderings of religious texts
and icons and/or the integration of supernatural forces or images in
a single work or a series. Religious texts and icons are not limited
to Christianity. Topics might include, but are not limited to:
    * Presentations of scripture, art, iconography
    * Fictive re-tellings of religious stories, modernized or historically set
    * Translations of scripture, fictive re-renderings of scriptural stories
    * Appearances of mythological, supernatural, or fantasy elements
    * Rituals (syncretic or affiliated with a single religion),
animism, magic.
Founded in 1997, the American Religion and Literature Society (ARLS)
is a member society with the American Literature Association. ARLS
explores the mutual influence of religion and literature in American
culture. We welcome a variety of scholarly approaches and
methodologies that will place the traditional religion and literature
canons in conversation with new texts and perspectives. Literary
artifacts may include print texts such as novels, short stories,
poetry, and non-fiction prose from any period of American history.

Please send a 500-word abstract and contact information to:
srushingadams_at_verizon.net by December 15. Notification of acceptance
will be sent by January 15. Address questions to Catherine Rogers at
rogersc_at_savstate.edu or Susan Rushing Adams at
srushingadams_at_verizon.net. Those presenting papers are required to
be current members of ARLS.

ARLS also accepts short articles, book reviews, and poetry for its
scholarly newsletter; society membership encouraged. Submit
materials to Deshae Lott at Deshae.Lott_at_lsus.edu.

Membership: Kathleen Smith, ksmith_at_lsus.edu
ARLS Website: www.arlshome.org
Conference details: www.americanliterature.org

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Received on Thu Oct 12 2006 - 11:20:09 EDT