From Disney films to historical cosplay to young adult fantasy novels to webtoons to viral TikToks, contemporary media continues to shape how younger generations view the medieval world. This panel welcomes papers that discuss contemporary media depictions of the medieval world—whether fictional or historical—aimed at youth audiences and examine ways in which these depictions might shape how younger audiences understand “the medieval.”

Possible topics might explore how these texts could be used within the classroom or analyze how an individual text presents aspects of the medieval world or how different texts fictionalize and/or romanticize a sense of the medieval. Proposals should not feel limited to engaging only with more traditional media forms such as novels and films but feel welcome to explore emerging forms of media. Chosen texts might be enjoyed by a range of audiences but should either 1) be marketed toward a younger audience of middle schoolers and/or high schoolers or 2) demonstrate a known audience within this demographic even if not directly marketed toward it so as to center a discussion about how these media portrayals affect understanding of the medieval world. For example, a paper might discuss a book series originally marketed as young adult but now is marketed as adult.

This panel will be held in person during the period of May 9-11 2024. Information for the International Congress on Medieval Studies as well as information on how to submit your proposal can be found here. If you have any questions, please contact Amelia Lehosit at alehosit@uw.edu.

Deadline: September 15, 2023

** Submissions for ICMS are made through the ICMS online Confex submission portal found here as well as instructions and information about ICMS and how to submit a proposal.