Dear all,
Please find attached and also pasted in below the Call for Papers for the
7th biennial conference of the Association for Low Countries Studies, to be
held Jan 4-5 2008 at the University of Nottingham. Included towards the end
is information about our three plenary speakers, which may be of interest,
especially the paper by Lila Gobardhan-Rambocus (Instituut voor de
Opleiding van Leraren Universiteitscomplex): ‘The status of Dutch in
Surinam’.
Best wishes,
Nicola McLelland
Call For Papers
7th ALCS Biennial Conference: Beyond Borders: The Dutch-Speaking World in
Times of Globalization and (Trans)Nationalism
University of Nottingham, January 4-5, 2008
The ALCS 7th Biennial Conference will explore the past, present, and future
of the Low Countries and the wider Dutch language area in a changing
cultural, historical and political setting, in the face of globalisation on
the one hand and the (re)construction of the nation or the region as a
bearer of cultural identity on the other.
In the Netherlands and Flanders, diversity, globalization and (trans)
nationalism are again looming large in cultural and political debate.
Linguistic, religious and ethnic dividing lines are becoming both more
permeable and more visible, giving rise both to celebration and insecurity.
History is being rediscovered as a major player in nation building.
Language is changing too, with new sociolects and MTVication. At the same
time, the Dutch language is going global, witness the accession of Surinam
to the Nederlandse Taalunie in 2004 as an associate member.
We invite papers that investigate how boundaries have been or are being
moved, redrawn or confirmed; how have literary texts, histories, cultural
artefacts or language responded to or helped shape the self-understanding
of the Dutch language area, and/or how do they continue to do so today?
Suggested themes/topics:
What is the role of literature and historiography in addressing national,
regional, or transnational identities?
How are cultural artefacts (re-)interpreted as part of discourses
contesting identity?
Can 'outsiders' within or outside of The Low Countries provide answers to
some of the questions the Low Countries are faced with?
How do we construct and understand our geographical, historical, cultural,
and linguistic regions?
What is role of language in social segmentation and/or cohesion?
There will also be three plenary papers:
Lila Gobardhan-Rambocus (Instituut voor de Opleiding van Leraren
Universiteitscomplex): ‘The status of Dutch in Surinam’
Prof. Rudi Visker (KU Leuven): ‘The Philosophy of Multiculturalism’
Dr Jeremy Wood (University of Nottingham): ‘Rubens in Spain: The diplomatic
gift to the duke of Lerma’
Submission of proposals:
Please submit abstracts, preferably as a Word file attached to an email, to:
Dr Nicola McLelland, Department of German Studies, University of Nottingham
NG7 2RD
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Deadline for submission of proposals (300 words maximum) by 31 July 2007
Dr Nicola McLelland
Associate Professor, Department of German
(Room C32, Trent Building)
University of Nottingham, NG7 2RD
Tel. 0115 951 5822
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