Melville and Religion
We invite essays for an edited book collection on the topic of Melville and Religion. Suggested approaches might include any of the following topics in relation to Melville's writings: nineteenth-century religious culture or the culture of skepticism and agnosticism; the Bible and patterns of biblical reading and interpretation; comparative religion and mythology; national religious denominations (Unitarianism, Presbyterianism, Catholicism) or ideologies (Calvinism, Evangelicalism); the contemporary missionary enterprise; religiously oriented movements such as Transcendentalism or Spiritualism; world religions (Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism); Darwinian evolutionism and the conflict of science and religion; comparative treatments of Melville in relation to major literary or religious figures among his contemporaries. Essays are expected to demonstrate a high level of engagement with Melville's own body of work and the long-term trajectory of Melville criticism. For first consideration, 500-word proposals should be received by September 1, 2012. We will need to have completed essays of approximately 8,000 words in hand by July 1, 2013. Please copy proposals and queries to both Brian Yothers at byothers@utep.edu and Jonathan Cook at jcook@middleburgacademy.org.