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Call for Papers
Conference 'The Gentler Sex. Responses of the women's movement to the First
World War 1914-1919'
8th and 9th September 2005, Institute of German and Romance Studies, Senate
House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU
Organisers: Ms Ingrid Sharp, Department of German, University of Leeds
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Department of European Languages and Cultures, Lancaster University
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Deadline for abstracts: 15th February 2005
The First World War marked a crisis for the burgeoning women's movements in
Europe and in the United States. The outbreak of the war forced those active in
the women's movement to make a choice between supporting their own country in a
time of crisis or remaining true to the dominant vision of the natural pacifism
and international sisterhood of all women. The call to arms polarised women in
every nation, often dividing those who had worked closely together, with some
rallying unproblematically to their nation's flag, others suspending their
struggle for women's advancement and turning their backs on their international
contacts 'for the duration of the war', while yet others remained (or became)
staunchly pacifistic, developing and refining their ideological position as the
war progressed.
This two-day conference aims to bring together scholars with an interest in
gender and the First World War, working in the fields of feminist/gender
studies, women's history and women's writing, to explore from an international
and interdisciplinary perspective the impact of war on early feminist thought
and activism. The national and international speakers will discuss cases from
many of the combatant countries, including Britain, the US, France, Germany,
Russia and Belgium as well as offering a comparative perspective.
Papers will examine women's writings produced during the war and its immediate
aftermath by women active in the women's movements. Topics will include
discussions and conflict over the interpretation of a specifically 'womanly'
response to war, women's relationship with state and nation, the reality and
status of women's wartime service (nursing, charity work, munitions and factory
work, women taking on 'men's' work); women's role as mothers in wartime;
sexuality; attitudes to peace and war; guilt and responsibility.
The conference will be held at the IGRS in London on Thursday, 8th and Friday
9th September 2005. The organisers will bring out a volume of selected essays,
either as a book or as a special issue of a suitable journal, soon after the
conference has been held. The focus of this volume will be on writing produced
by women active in the women's movement in the various countries during the
period 1914-1919, although we could include diaries, letters and other material
published at a later date. By bringing together contributions from scholars
working on women from different combatant nations as well as those who offer a
comparative approach, we hope to make a distinctive and worthwhile contribution
to this area of studies.
Please send us proposals, including working title and brief description of your
paper, by February 15th 2005.
Ingrid Sharp,
University of Leeds
Tel: 0113 343 3508
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