italian-studies: Scholarly discussions in any field of Italian studies
Dear colleagues,
I have been asked by a colleague to draw the call for papers below to
your attention. Serenella Iovino, Professor of Ethics in the Dept. of
Foreign Languages, Literatures and Modern Cultures of the University of
Turin, is inviting contributions to a Special Focus issue of the on-line
journal [log in to unmask] European Journal of Literature, Culture and
Environment' in Fall 2013. The subject is 'Mediterranean Ecocriticism'.
Would anyone interested in contributing please read the CFP pasted below
this message. It is also available on line at:
http://ecozona.eu/index.php/journal/announcement/view/11.
Please note the deadline for submission of proposals is 31 October 2012.
---------------
Call For Papers: Autumn 2013
In his book Traces on the Rhodian Shore (1967), Clarence J. Glacken, one
of the forerunners of ecocriticism, demonstrated the importance of the
Mediterranean environmental vision for the development of a literary
imagination closer to natural cycles and ecological dynamics. The very
concept of 'inhabited world' (in Greek, oikouméne) as 'the world known
to be peopled and to be capable of supporting life' (17) was concretely
shaped, Glacken maintained, in association with the Mediterranean lands,
their climate, and their ecology. In the decades following the
publication of this important book, the theoretical and thematic
developments of ecocriticism have enabled a discourse which encompasses
multiple ecological levels and aspects: from society to science, from
biology to history, from economics to religion, from politics to
literature, from ethics to ontology, semiotics, linguistics, and
phenomenology.
Considered in this framework, the Mediterranean reality has, for many
reasons, a crucial meaning. In fact, besides being a crossroad of
cultures, connecting East and West, North and South, and producing
traditions and visions that have endured and evolved over the millennia,
it is a landscape criss-crossed by geopolitical dynamics and forces, a
set of conflicts and migrations, and a territory that, like other
symbolically and strategically charged places of the world, requires
constant observation and re-conceptualization. The imagination connected
to these lands and sea is also rich, multifaceted, and problematic.
Besides speaking of an often romanticized flourishing past, in fact, the
Mediterranean basin speaks of the future, too: a problematic future, in
which millions of migrants will be forced to leave their countries due
to the ecological consequences of climate changes and political
upheavals. The Mediterranean is therefore a border and a bridge, a place
of treasures and disasters, of persisting traditions and endangered
cultures and ecosystems, an Arcadian paradise and a prison for the
thousands of people who cross and die in its waters every year, escaping
from conflicts and poverty. All these aspects are important for
ecocriticism, especially in consideration of the emerging attention paid
to materiality, marine landscapes, and 'oceanic ecocriticism'.
This special focus section of Ecozon@ is intended to explore the
complexity of issues, narratives, visions, cultural and conceptual
approaches that can inspire Mediterranean ecocriticism as a distinct
field of study. We will try to define its theoretical bases and thematic
spectrum, to discuss its geographic borders, and to envision its
possible applications and future developments in the expanding horizon
of ecocriticism.
We invite contributions coming from all ecocritically relevant
perspectives, practices, and fields. Topics will include but not be
restricted to:
* Mediterranean literatures and film studies, also in comparative
perspective
* Material ecocriticism and oceanic ecocriticism
* Mediterranean nature writing and travel literature
* Environmental literature, with a focus on Mediterranean ecology
and biodiversity
* Environmental literature, with a social, geopolitical, or economic
focus
* The Mediterranean basin and its narratives in national,
transnational, or bioregional perspective
* Mediterranean postcolonialism and postcolonial literature
* Women and gender in Mediterranean cultures and literatures
* Animals in Mediterranean cultures and literatures
* Mediterranean cultural landscapes and place theory, also in a
comparative perspective
* The literary imagination of the Mediterranean flora and fauna
* Mediterranean environmental history
* Mediterranean religion and spirituality studies
* Mediterranean anthropology, ethnology, ethnography, and
environmental sociology
Please direct questions to Serenella Iovino at
<[log in to unmask]>.
Completed manuscripts (6,000-8,000 words) must be submitted via the
journal platform no later than February 28, 2013. Authors must comply
with the guidelines indicated on the platform, including 2 abstracts
(English and Spanish), keywords (English and Spanish) and MLA style
citations. Articles will be accepted in English, German, French,
Spanish, and Italian. Deadline for abstract submission: October 31, 2012.
--------------------------------------------
Dr Adalgisa Giorgio
Senior Lecturer in Italian
Italian Language Convenor
Coordinator: Year Abroad in Italy, Assistantships Abroad, Incoming Erasmus
and Visiting Students.
Coordinating Committee Gender & Sexuality Research Network
Chair Equalities & Diversity Network
Department of Politics, Languages and International Studies
University of Bath
BATH BA2 7AY - UK
Tel: 0044 (0) 1225 386171
Fax: 0044 (0) 1225 386099
email: [log in to unmask]
Office number: 1WN 2.14
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