CFP: [American] Re-Imagining the Legacy of Paul Laurence Dunbar (ALA 5/21-5/24)

full name / name of organization: 
Thomas Morgan

At the time of his death, Paul Laurence Dunbar was the most famous poet in
America. A century later, his literary reputation rests upon many of the
same terms used to initially locate Dunbar as a writer of dialect poetry,
even as many of these terms have themselves been dismissed or subsequently
marginalized by contemporary criticism. Because of this, Dunbar's
reputation as an author practicing a form of literary assimilationism in
his work remains his central contemporary legacy. This panel seeks to
challenge and revise this picture of Dunbar's legacy by reexamining
Dunbar's careful negotiation of nineteenth century literary mores. In
doing so, this panel is interested in modernizing Dunbar's literary
reputation to better reflect the complexity and nuance of Dunbar’s
narrative strategies.

We invite paper proposals on any aspect of Dunbar's career, or that focus
on any part of his literary output: his poetry, novels, short stories,
song lyrics, correspondence, or essays. Proposals on any of Dunbar's
relationships with other authors, editors, or critics are also welcome.

Please send a brief 500 word abstract and a 1 page CV by January 10, 2009
to Tom Morgan at morgantz_at_notes.udayton.edu. Mailed versions can be sent
to:

Tom Morgan
University of Dayton
Department of English
300 College Park
Dayton, OH 45469-1520

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Received on Mon Nov 17 2008 - 12:16:43 EST

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