Deadline for submissions: January 20, 2017
Full name / name of organization: William Faulkner Society
Contact email: wfsociety@gmail.com
William Faulkner Society
2017 American Literature Association Conference
Boston, MA, May 25-28
Reading Faulkner in the Age of Trump(ism)
The past year and a half has seen the rise of the anti-Progressive, anti-establishment, and pro-authoritarian movement embodied in the person of Donald J. Trump. Many have speculated that even if Trump had not won the presidential election, the movement known as “Trumpism” would continue to thrive, but with his election this movement is now fixed in history as deeply connected with its champion. Although the duration and full impact of this movement remain to be seen, it seems appropriate and important to begin discussing the questions the age of Trump brings and what exactly is the relation of literature and literary criticism to it. This panel invites papers that consider the role of Faulkner scholarship in the age of Trump(ism). Does Faulkner’s writing shed light on the dynamics of the current political and cultural moment? How does this moment reorient or reintroduce critical lines of inquiry? Are the responsibilities, techniques, and/or positions of Faulkner scholars altered? Please send 250-word abstracts for papers that address these and other questions to Ted Atkinson (wfsociety@gmail.com). Deadline: January 20, 2017.