For over a century, studies of the medieval epic in romance languages have focused on questions of genesis, transmission, themes, symbols, and motifs, but the contributions from the non-human—but very real—natural world to this literature remains under-represented. These epics bear witness to a profound understanding of the inter-relatedness of all life forms and to the consequences of its denial. This session invites scholars from diverse disciplines to reconsider medieval romance epic traditions that reaffirm the bond between the human and non-human, and that address any human eclipse due to the discounting of the natural world.

Methodology is open, but studies connecting to and drawing from the broad field ecocriticism will be favored. Keywords: Chansons de geste, Ecocriticism, Human/non-human and Romance Epic For questions, contact session organizer Norval Bard (nlbard@noctrl.edu). Please submit your papers by the deadline to the conference website: https://icms.confex.com/icms/2024/cfp.cgi