Calls for Papers

American Literature Association Conference — Washington, D.C., May 22-25, 2014

The James Fenimore Cooper Society will host two panels at the 25ᵗʰ Annual Conference of the American Literature Association, to be held in Washington DC at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill from May 22-25ᵗʰ, 2014.

Panel 1: James Fenimore Cooper and Politics

Throughout his full range of writings, James Fenimore Cooper was a keen observer of national politics and government. This panel will consider issues of government, governance, and/or politics in Cooper’s fictional and non-fictional writings and/or Cooper’s own engagement with the political. Please submit a 250-word abstract, a brief CV (2-3 pages), and an indication of whether or not the paper may be published in the Miscellaneous Papers by January 6, 2014. Please also indicate any audio-visual requirements. All proposals should be both pasted into the text of the email and included as attachments (Microsoft Word files or Adobe PDFs preferred).

Panel 2: James Fenimore Cooper’s International Dimensions

Papers may consider Cooper’s international reputation, reception, and commentary, including his engagement with and representations of foreign affairs, cultures, and nations in both his fictional and non-fictional works. Papers may also consider his reception by foreign writers and critics as well as his status as an internationally popular writer. Please submit a 250-word abstract, a brief CV (2-3 pages), and an indication of whether or not the paper may be published in the Miscellaneous Papers by January 6, 2014. Please also indicate any audio-visual requirements. All proposals should be both pasted into the text of the email and included as attachments (Microsoft Word files or PDFs preferred). Please submit abstracts and accompanying materials to Luis A. Iglesias (Luis.Iglesias@usm.edu).

General Instructions

Papers should be a maximum of 20 minutes (6-8 pages) in length. Brief discussion will follow the presentations. Presenters need not be members of the James Fenimore Cooper Society, though we certainly hope they will choose to join. Please note that as per ALA guidelines, no one may present more than one paper at the conference.

Papers presented at the conference will, with their authors’ permission, be published in the James Fenimore Cooper Society Miscellaneous Papers series and made available online at the Cooper Society website. Papers may be mildly revised for publication.

Send all proposals and/or questions to: Luis.Iglesias@usm.edu

Luis A. Iglesias

Associate Professor

Department of English

University of Southern Mississippi

118 College Drive, #5037

Hattiesburg, MS 39406