Willa Cather panels

The theme for the 2012 Society for the Study of American Women Writers conference is ‘Citizenship and Belonging.’  The Cather Project (UNL) and Cather Foundation (Red Cloud) are proposing  two panels, on the themes of ‘Insiders’ and ‘Outsiders’, which will address  these themes. For full details of the conference (10/13/2012: Denver, Colorado), please go to the following site: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/call.htm

Ann Romines  (George WashingtonUniversity) and Guy Reynolds (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) will chair these panels.

 

‘Cather’s work provides some of the most direct treatments of citizenship and belonging in American fiction. A chronicler of immigrant lives, transplanted communities and lost societies, Cather was the quintessential novelist of ‘belonging’ and ‘not belonging.’ The Cather Foundation and the Cather Project (UNL) hopes to sponsor two sessions at SSAWW which will develop thinking about these themes in two broad directions: ‘insiders’ and ‘outsiders.’  
How do Cather’s  novels represent and narrativize stories of affiliation and connection and belonging, on the one hand, or exclusion/estrangement/exile on the other? We seek papers that will examinerepresentations of citizenship  within the manifold contexts suggested by her work – from colonial-era French America through to late-Victorian and modernist  cultures. Papers might deal with themes such as migration, cultural,  racial and gender difference, trans-nationalism, transatlanticism and cosmopolitanism in Cather’s writings (the major novels, but also the shorter fiction, and Cather’s journalism/critical writings). Papers might well address Cather through the prism of recent critical and theoretical developments in American literary studies: the ‘anthropological turn’ of recent criticism, say, or New Historicist approaches. The organizers are particularly interested in revisiting some areas of Cather scholarship that have not received full exploration in recent years. How do debates around citizenship shape themselves in Cather’s historical fictions, in works such as Shadows on the Rock? Do Cather’s less-known texts, such as Lucy Gayheart, mark a break from this constellation of interests? And how do Cather’s manifold interests in an American and European variety of cultural practices (such as her life-long devotion to and fascination with opera) relate to the themes of this conference?’

 

Please send 200-300 word abstracts and a one-page CV to Guy Reynolds at greynolds2@unl.edu. Deadline: 2/6/2012.

Updated Call for Papers

SSAWW Triennial Conference
October 10-13, 2012; Westin Tabor Center, Denver, Colorado
Call for Proposals

Use the printable forms for submitting your proposal.

Individual papers and panel proposals form

Affiliated Societies form

Key dates:
Monday, February 6, 2012: Proposals due to ssawwconf@gmail.com; see page 2 for directions.
May 2012: Acceptance notifications sent
June 30, 2012: Program schedule announced

Note: Presenters must be members of SSAWW by the “early/discounted” date for conference registration in the fall of 2012.
Participants presenting one formal academic paper may also appear on the program in additional ways (e.g., as a respondent, on a roundtable, or in a “professionalization” session.)

Theme: Citizenship and Belonging
For the fall 2012 Conference of the Society for the Study of American Women Writers (SSAWW), we are issuing a special invitation for session and paper proposals linked to the theme of “Citizenship and Belonging.” As in the past, the conference organizers will welcome proposals on any topic related to the study of American women writers, broadly conceived. However, we are also eager to capitalize on the conference opportunity to promote conversations—both “in the moment” and sustained—around a shared theme.

Why “Citizenship and Belonging”?
Historically speaking, these have been concerns of American women authors from their earliest writings, published and unpublished, and they remain concerns today. Long before the 1848 Declaration of Sentiments, women writers raised questions about how they could participate in the leadership of new American communities; similarly, contemporary women respond to the day’s political events and social trends in many forms of the written word. Just as women of all backgrounds considered the parameters of “Americanness”—its inherence or its acquisition, its stability or fluidity, its necessity or its superfluity—their contemporary counterparts are using both old-fashioned forms and cutting-edge technologies to reimagine the United States and its people for the 21st century. Whether one thinks of Harriet Jacobs pondering her own “sale” in 19th-century New York, Jhumpa Lahiri imagining connections across seas and generations in her short fiction, or young writers seizing the potential of the internet and social media to create their own publishing worlds, women writers have always, and perhaps always will, wrestle with what it means to belong.

Citizenship—how to claim it, how best to exercise it, and where its boundaries lie—is at the heart of much women’s writing. Citizenship can be constructed in many ways, both legally and culturally, and can be explored in terms of race, class, ethnicity, family, sexuality, economics, religion, place, and region—in short, from multiple perspectives and through multiple lenses. It can also be investigated as a question of form and genre: what kinds of writing “belong,” and to what realms or entities do they claim entry?

We hope our fall 2012 conference will provide an array of opportunities for examining these interrelated themes of “Citizenship and Belonging,” even as we continue to honor the many other topics and organizing principles that have made our field so dynamic. So, as we build a strand of theme-related sessions, we encourage SSAWW members to consider these two terms—citizenship and belonging—either together, in dialogue with each other, or individually, as productive lenses for exploring the heritage, current work, and future promise of American women writers.

Directions for Completing and Submitting Your Proposal

Use the printable forms for submitting your proposal.

Individual papers and panel proposals form

Affiliated Societies form

Note: Please use TIMES NEW ROMAN 12 POINT for all your information. Also, due to the increasing cost of AV equipment in conference settings, we urge all presenters to use alternative approaches such as handouts. If AV is essential to your presentation, you need to include a note to that effect at the end of the proposal.
If you need any other type of special accommodations in the room where your session is scheduled, provide that request with your proposal as well.

Email your proposal in a single attachment to ssawwconf@gmail.com no later than February 6, 2012. Please make sure your file name includes your last name—e.g., Smith-ssaww2012.

Questions about the conference? Contact Sarah Robbins (s.robbins@tcu.edu) or Maria Sanchez (mcsanche@uncg.edu), conference co-chairs, or Deb Clarke, SSAWW President (Deborah.Clarke@asu.edu). We hope to see you in Denver in October, 2012.

SSAWW Awards

THE SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF AMERICAN WOMEN WRITERS
2012 AWARDS

Printable .pdf version of this announcement

The Society for the Study of American Women Writers was founded in 2000 to promote the study of American women writers through research, teaching, and publication. The following three awards were established in 2011 to honor the work and legacies of the Society’s founding members and to further SSAWW’s goal to support and broaden knowledge among academics as well as the general public about American women writers.

BOOK AWARD

The SSAWW Book Award is given every three years at the Society for the Study of AmericanWomen Writers’ conference to recognize excellence in the field. The award recognizes the monograph’s significant contribution to scholarship related to American women writers published during the preceding three years before the submission deadline.

EDITION AWARD

The SSAWW Edition Award is given every three years at the Society for the Study of American Women Writers’ conference to recognize excellence in the recovery of American women writers. The award recognizes an edition published during the preceding three years before the submission deadline.

KAREN DANDURAND LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT MEDAL

The Karen Dandurand Lifetime Achievement Medal is given every three years at the Society for the Study of American Women Writers’ conference to recognize a scholar’s career achievement in the study of American women writers. The award recognizes the individual’s commitment to the field as demonstrated in his/her teaching, mentoring of students, scholarship and service. The award is named in honor of Karen Dandurand, who passed away in 2011. She was one of the founding editors of Legacy and was an active member of SSAWW, serving as Vice President of
Development (2004-2009).

See complete award information on our website and on Facebook.

SSAWW 2012 Conference “Citizenship and Belonging”

Westin Tabor Center in downtown Denver, Colorado: October 10-13, 2012
SSAWW Website: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/index.html
Conference Website: http://ssaww2012.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Society-for-the-Study-of-American-Women-Writers/324215233870

See complete information at http://www.ssaww.org or http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/ssawwbookaward.htm

SSAWW 2012 Panel Calls for Papers

The Call for Papers page at the SSAWW site has a number of calls for proposals from author societies and others seeking to put together a panel: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/call.htm.

SSAWW 2012 Conference Logo Contest

Call for Submissions
Your Logo Here!
The Society for the Study of American Women Writers (SSAWW) is holding its 5th International Conference in the Fall of 2012 in Denver, Colorado. Our conference theme is “Citizenship and Belonging.”

We invite student submissions for a conference logo to be used in printed and digital (online) materials for the event—e.g., in advertisements, on the conference program. The winning entry will secure a prize of $100 for its designer(s). Copyright of the winning logo will be held by the SSAWW.

Criteria to be used in selecting the winning entry are the following:

• Effective link(s) to conference theme
• Compelling use of visual imagery
• Clarity and appeal in overall design
• Ability of the design to be reproduced in print and online formats

Entries should be submitted in digital form to sarahrobbins@gmail.com. The format should allow for enlargement while retaining a high quality.

For a full copy of the conference call for presentation proposals, including an explanation of the “Citizenship and Belonging” theme, google “SSAWW.”

The conference theme information is posted in the “Calls for Papers” section of the website, under “SSAWW Triennial Conference.”
http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/call.htm#ssaww2012

Deadline for submissions for this LOGO contest: November 15, 2011

Proposal Forms

You can read the proposal forms at this site or download them in Word format here:

Individual/Panel Proposals: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/individual.doc
Author Societies and Regional Study Groups: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/ssaww/affiliate.doc

SSAWW Triennial Conference, Denver,CO, on October 10-13, 2012

SSAWW Triennial Conference October 10-13, 2012

Westin Tabor Center, Denver, Colorado

Call for Proposals
Key dates:

Monday, February 6, 2012: Proposals due to ssawwconf@gmail.com
May 2012: Acceptance notifications sent
June 30, 2012: Program schedule announced

Note: Presenters must be members of SSAWW by the “early/discounted” date for conference registration in the fall of 2012. Participants presenting one formal academic paper may also appear on the program in additional ways (e.g., as a respondent, on a roundtable, or in a “professionalization” session.)

Theme: Citizenship and Belonging

For the fall 2012 Conference of the Society for the Study of American Women Writers (SSAWW), we are issuing a special invitation for session and paper proposals linked to the theme of “Citizenship and Belonging.” As in the past, the conference organizers will welcome proposals on any topic related to the study of American women writers, broadly conceived. However, we are also eager to capitalize on the conference opportunity to promote conversations—both “in the moment” and sustained—around a shared theme.

Why “Citizenship and Belonging”?

Historically speaking, these have been concerns of American women authors from their earliest writings, published and unpublished, and they remain concerns today. Long before the 1848 Declarations of Sentiments, women writers raised questions about how they could participate in the leadership of new American communities; similarly, contemporary women respond to the day’s political events and social trends in many forms of the written word. Just as women of all backgrounds considered the parameters of “Americanness”—its inherence or its acquisition, its stability or fluidity, its necessity or its superfluity—their contemporary counterparts are using both old-fashioned forms and cutting-edge technologies to reimagine the United States and its people for the 21 st century. Whether one thinks of Harriet Jacobs pondering her own “sale” in 19 th-century New York, Jhumpa Lahiri imagining connections across seas and generations in her short fiction, or young writers seizing the potential of the internet and social media to create their own publishing worlds, women writers have always, and perhaps always will, wrestle with what it means to belong.

Citizenship—how to claim it, how best to exercise it, and where its boundaries lie—is at the heart of much women’s writing. Citizenship can be constructed in many ways, both legally and culturally, and can be explored in terms of race, class, ethnicity, family sexuality, economics, religion, place, and region—in short, from multiple perspectives and through multiple lenses. It can also be investigated as a question of form and genre: what kinds of writing “belong,” and to what realms or entities do they claim entry?

We hope our fall 2012 conference will provide an array of opportunities for examining these interrelated themes of “Citizenship and Belonging,” even as we continue to honor the many other topics and organizing principles that have made our field so dynamic. So, as we build a strand of theme-related sessions, we encourage SSAWW members to consider these two terms—citizenship and belonging—either together, in dialogue with each other, or individually, as productive lenses for exploring the heritage, current work, and future promise of American women writers.

Questions about the conference? Contact Sarah Robbins (s.robbins@tcu.edu) or Maria Sanchez (mcsanche@uncg.edu), conference co-chairs, or Deb Clarke, SSAWW President ( Deborah.Clarke@asu.edu). We hope to see you in Denver in October, 2012.