In early modern England, travel has the disruptive potential to alter the female traveler as well as to question, defy, and change the shape, rules, and parameters of her social space. Physical journeys open up opportunities for more impalpable travel, including but not limited to social, political, and internal journeys. As Rosi Braidotti has said, “some of the greatest trips can take place without physically moving from one’s habitat. It’s the subversion of set conventions that defines the nomadic state, not the literal act of traveling” (Nomadic Subjects, 5).
This panel seeks to draw a connection between the physical act of traveling itself and the variety of figurative journeys that ensue because of a woman’s movement in the world. We will discuss travel as including the more subtle movements through immaterial social and hierarchical boundaries. Early modern texts are full of narratives, both fictional and real, of these journeys into prohibited places and spaces.
This panel will explore the transformative effects of travel on women. In what ways does physical movement permit other immaterial types of movement and create a space for subversion? How does movement within society, across its social and hierarchical boundaries, challenge existing beliefs and practices? How do intangible journeys alter the landscape of power in which women operate?
Please send 300 word abstracts to Andrea Fabrizio or Ruth Garcia at FabrizioGarciaabstracts@gmail.com by September 30, 2011.
Please include with your abstract:
- Name and Affiliation
- Email address
- Postal address
- Telephone number
- A/V requirements (if any; $10 handling fee with registration)
Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA)
March 15-18, 2012
Rochester, New York – Hyatt Rochester
Host Institution: St. John Fisher College
Keynote speaker: Jennifer Egan, 2011 Pulitzer Prize winner
The 43rd annual convention will be held March 15-18th in Rochester, New York at the Hyatt Regency Hotel downtown, located minutes away from convenient air, bus, and train transportation options for attendees. St. John Fisher College will serve as the host college, and the diverse array of area institutions are coordinating with conference organizers to sponsor various activities, such as celebrated keynote speakers, local events, and fiction readings.
Interested participants may submit abstracts to more than one NeMLA session; however, panelists can only present one paper (panel or seminar).
Contact Information:
For inquiries: FabrizioGarciaabstracts@gmail.com
For submissions: FabrizioGarciaabstracts@gmail.com
Website: http://www.nemla.org
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