Networks, broadly defined, share tasks and information between nodes through a unique spatial constellation which allows them to distribute power evenly and, in the process, eliminates the need for a concentrated source of directives. For this reason, they have been looked at within various disciplinary communities as harbingers of negative and positive possibilities in the 21st Century. What are networks capable of, and how does literature address the significance of networks, both locally and globally? Are authors working to alter, exploit, or combat modes of power through their portrayal of various networks? This standing session invites papers from all fields, but has a particular interest in papers that address the local and global.

For centuries Italy and East Asia have been at the center of numerous economic, political, and cultural exchanges. Studies have mostly focused on the relationship between Italy and China. As Zhang (2018) points out, in the last decade this topic has piqued the interest of a number of scholars on Italy-China issues. In addition to the special issues of the Journal of Modern Italian Studies (2010) and in the Journal of Italian Cinema and Media Studies (2014), books have been published on Italian-Chinese relations such as Marinelli and Andornino (2013) and Chinese migration to Italy (Pedone 2013).

Although Utopia literally means no-place, in some utopias the location definitely has some cultural significance. If utopia is in the sun or under the earth, it is probably not the case. Thomas More put his Utopia in the South Atlantic, but the imaginary geography of the island does not seem to have any importance for social construction. More’s Utopia does not seem to have anything South American. However, the geographical and temporal orientation of Chinese and European utopias seem to be different in many aspects, which carry a politico-cultural significance. The special issue of World Literature Studies will explore two questions about the location of utopias: