CFP: Panel and Roundtable at 2018 ALA in San Francisco
The Philip Roth Society is currently inviting submissions for a panel and round table at the upcoming ALA conference in San Francisco, which will take place May 24-27, 2018. See below for further information:
PANEL
The Philip Roth Society invites papers for a panel entitled “Philip Roth and Sports” at the American Literature Association conference in San Francisco, CA from May 24-27, 2018.
Sports play a variety of roles in the fiction of Philip Roth, sometimes figuring centrally into his plots, and sometimes hovering in the background or at the periphery of his narratives. As early as Goodbye, Columbus, sports and athleticism factor into the relationship between Brenda Patimkin and Neil Klugman. Moreover, while baseball is featured most notably in The Great American Novel, it also makes its way into Portnoy’s Complaint and Nemesis. The Swede in American Pastoral is known for his athleticism, most particularly as a high school basketball star. Additionally, boxing figures into both The Human Stain and Exit Ghost. This panel aims to address the function of these references across Roth’s body of work. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: the role of sports in character development; the symbolic nature of sports; the relationship between sports and national identity; and athleticism and masculinity.
Proposals (not exceeding 300 words) for 15-20 minute papers should be emailed to the Roth Society Program Chair, Maggie McKinley, at mmckinle@harpercollege.edu by January 25, 2018. Please include institutional affiliation and full contact details. To present a paper as a part of a Roth Society panel, participants must be members of the Philip Roth Society in addition to registering for the conference. For membership information, please see the Society’s website at http://rothsociety.org.
ROUNDTABLE
The Philip Roth Society seeks participants for a roundtable entitled “Philip Roth’s Nonfiction” at the American Literature Association conference in San Francisco, CA from May 24-27, 2018.
In September 2017, the Library of America published the final volume in its series covering the complete works of Philip Roth. This volume, entitled Why Write?: Collected Nonfiction 1960-2013, includes Roth’s political and cultural commentary, literary criticism, essays, interviews, reviews, commentary and open letters. In coordination with Philip Roth Studies, which is currently inviting scholars to submit essays on Roth’s nonfiction for a forthcoming issue, the Philip Roth Society is currently seeking individuals interested in participating in a roundtable discussion on this topic. This roundtable may address a range of topics, including (but not limited to): the relationship between Roth’s non-fiction and fiction; Roth’s comments on the craft of writing; Roth’s literary relations with other authors; Roth’s role as a public intellectual; Roth as literary critic; and Roth as interviewee and interviewer.
In lieu of formal papers, this roundtable will largely be devoted to discussion among panelists and attendees. However, participants are encouraged to prepare brief talking points or introductory remarks to providing entry points for conversation. Those interested in participating should send a brief (100-150 word) abstract that provides an overview of their intended contributions to discussion—questions, specific focuses, texts, etc. Please send these abstracts, along with a brief biographical statement, to Maggie McKinley at mmckinle@harpercollege.edu by January 25, 2018.
To present a paper as a part of a Roth Society panel, participants must be members of the Philip Roth Society in addition to registering for the conference. For membership information, please see the Society’s website at http://rothsociety.org.
