Please see the call for papers below for a panel session, sponsored by the Dante Society of America, at the 48th International Medieval Congress on Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, May 9-12, 2013.
It is well known that the concept of nature is
central to Dante's thought and poetry. It is also commonly known
that for Dante the laws which regulate the natural order were to
be imitated in human society and in artistic productions. But such
commonplaces threaten to deflect attention from deeper and more
complicated questions: For Dante, what is nature, and why should it
be the basis of human society and human production? The situation is
complicated in part because of the number of philosophical, theological, and
literary traditions which could have informed Dante's notion of
nature. Furthermore, the "laws of nature" seem to have different
applications in the various fields of human society and production:
politics, law, ethics, and poetics. Thus, there is justification to call
for further exploration of the seemingly straightforward association of Dante
and the law of nature.
This panel will explore the intersections between the
natural world and human society in Dante's work, with a view to bringing these
two spheres into productive dialogue. We would welcome presentations concerning
natural issues, socio-legal issues or a combination of the two in any of
Dante's works. Topics on which papers might focus include: cosmology, creation
and generation, the pastoral/bucolic, human relations with the natural world,
human nature, natural law, law and ethics. Papers discussing Dante's intertextual
reference to prior authors' evocations of these themes, or the reception of
Dante's own legal and natural allusions are also encouraged.
Those wishing to propose a paper for this session should send the Participant Information Form (link), together with an abstract of no more than 300 words, via e-mail to Laurence Hooper ([log in to unmask]) or Jason Baxter ([log in to unmask]). Proposals should be received no later than August 31, 2012.*
Please note that the Council of the Dante Society has determined that those who present papers in sessions organized under the auspices of the Society must be members in good standing by the time of the congress.
Kind regards,