Benjamin Lefebvre

Deadlines: 15 November 2009, 1 February 2010

This proposed collection of essays seeks to address the interplay between nationalism (or nationalisms) and cultural memory in a range of texts for or about young people, including books, periodicals, films, television series, games, tourism sites, websites, and archives. The overall collection will be concerned with the ways in which cultural memory is shaped, contested, forgotten, recovered, and (re)circulated, sometimes in opposition to dominant national narratives, featuring young characters and/or targeting young readers who are often assumed not to possess any prior cultural memory. Submissions that examine the circulation of such texts across national borders are particularly welcomed.

Possible topics include:

• Texts for children and/vs. texts for adults (as well as crossover texts);

• Transnational co-productions or co-publishing ventures;

• Textual transformations (adaptations, translations, abridgments, retellings, parodies, fan/slash fictions, authorized or unauthorized sequels and prequels);

• Depictions of the past and the future (including history/biography, revisionist histories, science fiction and futurism);

• The circulation of colonial and postcolonial discourses (from empire to colony, or from former colony back to empire);

• Depictions of war and conflict, particularly contentious historical and political conflicts;

• The role of food, dress, and festival in the transmission of cultural memory;

• The cultural production of texts, including branding, genre, and assumptions about gender, race, class, sexuality, religion, and nationality;

• Reception of texts, either by critics/scholars or by young people.

The collection of essays will be edited by Benjamin Lefebvre, a Leverhulme Visiting Fellow at the University of Worcester. Deadline for 200-word abstracts and bionote: 15 November 2009. Deadline for 20- to 25-page chapters: 1 February 2010. Please direct abstracts to the editor by e-mail: ben@roomofbensown.net. Authors whose work is selected for inclusion in the volume will be invited to present part of their work in progress at a one-day symposium to be held at the University of Worcester in April 2010. Queries are welcomed at any time.

Adolescence in Canadian Literature / L’adolescence dans la littérature canadienne (deadline: 30 April 2010)

La version française suivra.

Studies in Canadian Literature / Études en littérature canadienne, published at the University of New Brunswick since 1975, invites submissions to a special issue focusing on depictions of adolescence in Canadian literature, to be edited by Jennifer Andrews, John Clement Ball, Heidi Butler, and Benjamin Lefebvre.

As a transitional stage between childhood and adulthood, adolescence has been deployed as a complex metaphor in the literature of numerous countries, including Canada, which has often been depicted as an adolescent (or emerging) nation. The editors welcome original submissions on Canadian texts from pre-Confederation to the contemporary moment for and/or about adolescents, including literatures from all regions, time periods, and types, including depictions of adolescence that extend the range of thirteen to nineteen in either direction. Interdisciplinary approaches are also welcomed.

Possible topics include:

• Generic and ideological distinctions between literature for adolescents (the “YA novel”) and literature about adolescents

• Adolescent perspectives and family dynamics, including narration/focalization

• Adolescent voices and the shaping of cultural memory

• Adolescent rebellion and cultural citizenship

• Adolescence and war, crisis, risk, politics/activism, nationhood/nation-building

• Peer groups’ effects on adolescent maturity

• Colonial and postcolonial discourses of adolescence

• The contemporary bildüngsroman and künstlerroman

• Global vs. local, rural vs. urban adolescences

• Adolescence and/as performance

• First Nations, racialized, gendered, queer, and trans adolescences

• Adolescence in English and French Canadas

Submissions should not be longer than 7,000 words and should conform to the MLA Handbook, 6th edition. Please submit electronically via Word attachment to scl@unb.ca. Deadline for submissions is 30 April 2010, with publication scheduled for late 2010 or early 2011. We welcome submissions in English and in French. For more information, visit the journal’s website at http://journals.hil.unb.ca/index.php/SCL/ or contact Heidi Butler at Heidi.Butler@unb.ca.

Publiée à l’université du Nouveau-Brunswick depuis 1975, la revue Studies in Canadian Literature / Études en littérature canadienne vous invite à soumettre un article pour un numéro spécial portant sur les diverses représentations de l’adolescence dans la littérature canadienne. Ce dossier sera dirigé par Jennifer Andrews, John Clement Ball, Heidi Butler et Benjamin Lefebvre.

À titre d’étape transitionnelle entre l’univers des enfants et celui des adultes, l’adolescence fait figure d’une riche et complexe métaphore dans de nombreuses littératures nationales, incluant la littérature canadienne. Notons que cette dernière est souvent dépeinte comme une nation adolescente (émergente). Les éditeurs souhaitent recevoir des textes originaux portant sur des œuvres canadiennes allant de la période pré-Confédération jusqu’à l’époque contemporaine. Les œuvres à l’étude doivent être destinées aux adolescent.e.s ou encore doivent porter sur ceux-ci ou celles-ci. Par ailleurs, les œuvres privilégiées doivent animer des personnages âgés de treize ans à dix-neuf ans et peuvent provenir de toutes les littératures régionales, toucher à toutes les époques ainsi qu’à tous les genres. Les approches interdisciplinaires sont aussi acceptées.

Parmi les pistes de réflexion possibles, on notera, à titre indicatif, les suivantes :

• Distinctions génériques ou idéologiques entre la littérature pour les adolescent.e.s et jeunes adultes et la littérature portant sur les adolescent.e.s.

• Perspectives des adolescent.e.s et dynamique familiale, incluant narration/focalisation.

• Voix adolescente et élaboration de la mémoire culturelle.

• Révolte des adolescent.e.s et citoyenneté culturelle.

• Adolescence et guerre, crise, risque, politique/militantisme, identité nationale, construction de la nation.

• Influence du groupe de pairs sur la maturité des adolescent.e.s.

• Discours coloniaux et post-coloniaux sur l’adolescence.

• Bildünsgsroman et künstlerroman contemporains.

• Adolescence globale vs locale, rurale vs urbaine.

• Adolescence et performance ou adolescence comme performance.

• Adolescences et Premières Nations.

• Adolescences et identité (race, gender, sexualité).

• Adolescence au Canada anglais et au Canada français.

Les soumissions doivent se conformer au MLA Handbook, 6e édition et ne pas dépasser les 7 000 mots. Veuillez soumettre votre texte par courriel en format Word à l’adresse électronique suivante : scl@unb.ca. Date limite d’envoi des articles : le 30 avril 2010. La date de publication est prévue pour la fin 2010 ou le début 2011. Votre soumission peut être rédigée en anglais ou en français. Pour de plus amples détails, veuillez consulter le site de la revue à http://journals.hil.unb.ca/index.php/SCL/ ou entrer en communication avec Heidi Butler à Heidi.Butler@unb.ca.