Modernist Nationalisms Conference

St John’s College, University of Oxford

Thursday 10th September 2026

Since the turn of the millennium, the study of modernist literature has expanded at an astonishing rate to accommodate more global perspectives. Reflecting changing priorities across the humanities, modernist writing is also now increasingly read in relation to broadly multicultural and/or cosmopolitan political values. Influential accounts such as Jessica Berman’s Modernist Fiction, Cosmopolitanism and the Politics of Community (2001), Rebecca L. Walkowitz’s Cosmopolitan Style (2006) and Peter J. Kalliney’s Modernism in a Global Context (2016) have usefully drawn out the nation-transcending political implications of modernist writing, both canonical and lesser-known. The significant historical relationship between modernism and nationalism, however, has consequently become increasingly overlooked.

Focusing on the late-nineteenth and twentieth century, this one-day conference will therefore renew attention to the now-underestimated place of nationalist thinking in the history of modernist writing. We do not, however, define nationalism in overly narrow terms. While its extreme end conjures spectres of fascism (one is reminded of Ezra Pound here), nationalism comes in many varieties. One should not forget that we still live in a world composed (almost) entirely of nation-states. We equally do not assert any narrow definition of modernist literature and part of the hope of the conference is to expand existing ways in which modernism is conceived.

Keynotes: Professor Andrzej Gasiorek (University of Birmingham) and Dr Andrew Dean (University College London)

Workshop: Professor Peter D. McDonald (University of Oxford, St Hugh’s College)

Organiser: Dr Leo Kadokura (University of Oxford, St John’s College)

Steering Committee: Professor Patrick Hayes (University of Oxford, St John’s College) and Professor Peter D. McDonald

We invite scholars working in literary studies, modern literatures (of any language), media studies, cultural studies and modern history to submit proposals on the relationship between modernist writing and topics such as, but not limited to:

• Nationalism, patriotism and fascism
• Anti-colonial nationalism
• Imperialism (together with its strange relationship to nationalism)
• Pan-nationalism
• Regional identities/formations
• Liberal nationalism and democracy
• Nationalism and war

The conference will take place in person at St John’s College, University of Oxford. Presentations should be given in English and under 20 minutes. Note that a fully peer-reviewed journal special issue will be organised and published after the conference.

Submission Info:

Please send the following to modernistnationalisms@gmail.com by 8th May 2026.

• an abstract of 250 words
• a short bio (up to 100 words)
• your contact details and affiliation
• indication of your interest in submitting a paper for the later special issue

We will aim to notify you by 22nd May.

Bibliography:

Berman, Jessica. Modernist Fiction, Cosmopolitanism and the Politics of Community. Cambridge UP, 2001.

Kalliney, Peter J. Modernism in a Global Context. Bloomsbury, 2016.

Walkowitz, Rebecca L. Cosmopolitan Style: Modernism Beyond the Nation. Columbia UP, 2006.