Emergency and Emergence

USC Cinema and Media Studies Graduate Conference

Los Angeles, CA

October 19-20, 2018

BOOM! #*@&! Splat: Comics and Violence

“Happy are those ages when the starry sky is the map of all possible paths—ages whose paths are illuminated by the light of the stars. Everything in such ages is new and yet familiar, full of adventure and yet their own.” Georg Lukács wrote those words in his Theory of the Novel in developing the point that art is no longer merely a copy of the world, but rather, an imagined totality. Though he favored realism, we can, perhaps borrow his point to explain the value of science fiction in today’s world. Few other genres exceed science fiction’s ability to portray the expansive space of the imaginary.

The Department of English at King’s College London is hosting a two-day conference on 7th and 8th June 2018 celebrating the work of the Honourable Sylvia Wynter OJ. The conference will include keynote presentations by Denise Ferreira da Silva (University of British Columbia) and Alexander G. Weheliye (Northwestern University), and a response by Paul Gilroy.

Editors Brian Duchaney and David Silverman are seeking submissions of individually and co-authored chapters on the topic of animation and subversion for a project that is currently under contract with McFarland publishers. The collection will explore the rise of the animated platform as a means to comment on and criticize social constructs. Special attention will be paid to prime-time animated television shows and streaming content that directly targets adult audiences. 

Henry James occupies an unusual position in the literary categories of English language fiction. Claimed by both the British and the Americans, as well as by both the 19th century and the 20th, James’ fiction crosses many of the artificially imposed borders our field has created, yet his stories often deal explicitly with the social changes and their consequences that caused the borders to be established in the first place. As we live through yet another period of social upheaval, is James still relevant? What can his short fiction offer a 21st century reader? How might we convey this to our students, many of whom initially find his content dated and his prose challenging?

Amanda Anderson /PAMLA

deadline for submissions: 

DEADLINE EXTENDED! JUNE 27 2018.

PAMLA Conference

 Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington

Children's Literature

November 9-11, 2018