| Calls for Papers
Warrior or Peacemaker?
The Battle over Canada's Identity, 1914-2014
39th Annual British Association for Canadian Studies Conference
British Library Conference Centre, London, 25-26 April 2014
2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, a conflict in which several hundred thousand Canadians participated and 60,000 lost their lives. Governments around the world, including Canada's, will be actively looking to commemorate key battles and other moments of the war. In the Canadian case, these efforts follow after an extensive campaign by the government of Stephen Harper to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812.
Controversy, criticism and contestation have abounded over not just the specific commemoration of the War of 1812, but around the place of war and the military within dominant definitions of Canadian identity. Emphasizing Canada's military heritage and involvement in past conflicts directly challenges a strong element within a version of the Canadian identity that has emerged since the 1950s. In this identity, Canada is viewed as a "peacekeeping nation" involved in ending conflicts and ensuring peace, not participating in conflicts. Are these identities fundamentally in conflict with each other or is there room for both to coexist? And do internal conflicts such as the October Crisis or the Oka Crisis fit within either dominant definition?
The British Association for Canadian Studies for its 39th annual conference in London invites papers with direct relevance to the conference theme or the wider field of Canadian studies. Potential topics could include the politics around commemoration and identity, the history of commemoration in Canada, the relationship between Canadian identity and Canada's foreign policy, gender and constructs of national identity, differences in perceptions of national identity between Quebec and English-speaking Canada or First Nations and non-indigenous Canadians, the impact of multiculturalism on definitions of Canadian identity, literature and cultural depictions of war, peace, and identity, spatial depictions of conflict and identity, and comparisons of Canada with other nations in terms of how conflicts are commemorated.
The conference will take place in London over three days beginning with an opening evening reception and keynote address. The second and final days will feature additional keynotes and panels related to the conference themes or to the wider field of Canadian studies.
The deadline for paper or panel proposals is Tuesday 31 December 2013.
Proposals (panel and individual) and deadline:
Email abstract(s) of 200-300 words and brief CV (please do not exceed one side of A4) which must include your title, institutional affiliation, email and mailing address by 31 December 2013. Submissions will be acknowledged by email. Postgraduate students are especially welcome to submit a proposal and there will be a concessionary conference fee for students. BACS regrets that it is unable to assist participants with travel and accommodation costs.
Enquiries and proposals to:
Jodie Robson - jodie@canadian-studies.org
Conference website
BACS Literature Group call for papers
Discourse & Dynamics: Canadian Women as Public Intellectuals
16-18 October 2014, Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick
Keynote speakers: Margaret Atwood, Nicole Brossard, and Siila Watt-Cloutier
Women as Wives and Workers: Marking Fifty Years of The Feminine Mystique
Saturday 30th November 2013 at Royal Holloway University of London
2013 marks the fiftieth anniversary of The Feminine Mystique's publication. From the outset, Betty Friedan's text had an enormous influence on academic and popular audiences, selling millions and shaping feminist discourse about the housewife throughout the Western world. Yet at the same time, full-time housewifery was becoming both a less common experience and a cultural battlefield. Since the 1950s, levels of employment amongst married women (notably white women) have risen enormously. Women have increasingly been confronted with the 'superwoman' paradox, which Friedan herself encapsulated: writing about 'the zombie housewife' and 'the problem that has no name' whilst being a working wife and mother. Many other women likewise negotiated domesticity and paid work, but their experiences were by no means uniform and were shaped by various other factors including race, age, sexuality and socio-economic status.
This conference aims to draw these themes together by offering an opportunity to explore The Feminine Mystique alongside discussions of women and employment. Areas of consideration may include but are not limited to:
* Women's paid employment
* The Feminine Mystique, its impact and critiques, for example with regards to race
* The international impact of The Feminine Mystiqu
* Domesticity and the figure of the housewife: experiences, rights, cultural portrayals
* Discourses of motherhood and fatherhood
* Evolving notions of family
* Gender and education
* Notions of 'having it all' and being 'Superwoman'
* The National Organization for Women: its impact, legacy and critics
* The development of women's organisations and networks since the 1960s
We invite papers that address these topics either broadly or specifically. While papers with a particular emphasis on mid-twentieth century America may be given priority, we also encourage scholars to present work with a comparative perspective (across time and/or space) or looking at other geographical areas. Panel submissions are also welcome. A special issue of History of Women in the Americas based on the conference papers is planned, subject to the usual peer review procedure.
'Women as Wives and Workers: Marking Fifty Years of The Feminine Mystique' is the sixth annual conference of the Society for the History of Women in the Americas (SHAW) and is being co-organized with The Bedford Centre for the History of Women at Royal Holloway University of London. The conference organisers are Helen Glew (University of Westminster), Jane Hamlett (RHUL), Sinead McEneaney (St. Mary's University College) and Rachel Ritchie (Brunel University).
A 250-word abstract and a short biography should be emailed by Monday 14th October 2013. Please use the same email address for any other enquiries about the event.
Association of Italian Canadian Writers (AICW)
15th Biennial Conference
Montreal, May 1 to 4, 2014
The Association of Italian Canadian Writers (AICW) is accepting proposals for its 15th biennial conference to be held in Montreal, May 1 to 4, 2014. The conference seeks readings and papers that illustrate the building of bridges (generational, linguistic, cultural, literary styles, etc.) and encourage discussion between Italian-Canadian writers and other literary, artistic, cultural and academic communities across Canada and beyond.
Academics and researchers, writers and artists from all disciplines - both inside and outside the Italian-Canadian sphere - are invited to submit proposals to present new works in English, French, or Italian. Graduate students are encouraged to participate. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: Italian Canadiana and literary criticism, youth fiction, literary education, film, media, the short story, autobiography, religion, history, translation studies and cultural hybridity.
Individual papers (20 min.) that discuss recent publications by Italian-Canadian authors or which give a comparative analysis of Italian-Canadian writing and other literatures. Send a 100-word abstract and a 60-word biography.
Panels: send a title for the panel, 100-word abstract for each paper, as well as 60-word biography for each panelist, and contact information for all panelists (maximum three) and chairperson.
Literary readings (15 min.): send 60-word biography, a 200-word excerpt of the text to be read (prose or play) or four poems (max. 40 lines). Preference will be given to readings (and performances) of new works.
Please note that once a proposal has been accepted, a conference registration fee ($65.00) will be requested for all presenters who are not AICW members in good standing.
Please send submissions and queries by email.
Deadline: October 15, 2013.
Indigeneity and French Canada 16 and 17 May 2014
A bilingual and interdisciplinary conference organised by the Centre for Quebec and French-Canadian Studies, Institute of Modern Languages Research, Senate House, University of London, UK.
Confirmed keynote speakers: Bruno Cornellier, Maurizio Gatti, Yves Sioui Durand.
The relationship between the cultures and languages of indigenous peoples and those of the French, French-Canadians, and modern Québécois represents an extremely rich vein for intellectual enquiry and research. This conference, as well as attending to the urgent political issues which have accompanied this reality and these histories, is particularly concerned with questions of conceptual, cultural, literary, and identitarian importance which are provoked by the encounters, conflicts and hybrid interactions between these groups over the centuries.
Papers, in English or in French, are invited on any relevant topic in the form of a title and a maximum 500-word summary by 1 December 2013 to Bill Marshall.
20th Atlantic Canada Studies Conference 1-4 May 2014 Images of Atlantic Canada: Past and Present
The landscape of Atlantic Canada is changing rapidly as outport communities lose people to the oil fields, as towns shutter mills and businesses, and as urban centres grow. People from diverse fields are struggling to make sense of the rapid changes: writers, Indigenous leaders, scholars, activists, musicians, film makers, and public policy advisers and makers. The 20th Atlantic Canada Studies Conference will explore the shifting images of the region over the last half millennium, but with a special emphasis on the last half century. The conference will be held in Fredericton on the adjoining campuses of the University of New Brunswick and St. Thomas University.
Proposals for individual papers, sessions, and workshops are welcome, and presenters are encouraged to use formats that include diverse media. Submissions may be made in English or French. Professionals from all fields concerned with "Images of Atlantic Canada" are welcome. As in the past, papers presented at the Atlantic Canada Studies Conference may be considered for publication in Acadiensis.
Hosted by The University of New Brunswick - Fredericton Campus and St. Thomas University
Please send proposals electronically by 30 September 2013 to Dr Denis McKim, Conference Coordinator, Department of History - UNB
Enquiries: Dr Elizabeth Mancke, Department of History - UNB or Dr Michael Boudreau, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice - STU. |
