MLA Convention: Genre Talks

The MLA Convention in Vancouver, BCis coming up in a few weeks. While it's not an SF/F focused conference, there are quite a number of related papers and topics. On the off chance any fen watching this blog are attending, here's some you may want to check out.

Thursday 1/8:

• Symbiology: Literature in the Niche of Nature, Culture, and Technology
  • 12:00 noon–1:15 p.m., 118, VCC West
  • Program arranged by the Division on Anthropological Approaches to Literature
  • Presiding: Regenia Gagnier, Univ. of Exeter
  • 1. "Postcolonial Science Fiction: Adventures in the World System," Upamanyu Pablo Mukherjee, Univ. of Warwick
  • 2. "Symbiology, Serpent Wisdom, and Margaret Atwood's Ecofiction," Everett Hamner, Western Illinois Univ.
  • 3. "Beyond Species," Ursula K. Heise, Univ. of California, Los Angeles

• Artifactual Interpretation: Practices of the Material Turn

• 3:30–4:45 p.m., 202, VCC West
• Presiding: Grant Wythoff, Columbia Univ.
• 1. "Toward a Media Archaeology of the Phonautogram and Its Playback," Richard Menke, Univ. of Georgia
• 2. "Data Visualization and the Gibson Anthologies," Stefania Forlini, Univ. of Calgary; Uta Hinrichs, Univ. of Saint Andrews
• 3. "Arguing through Archival Objects: A Z-Axis Method for 3-D-Printed Interpretation," Alexander Christie, Univ. of Victoria
  For abstracts, visit http://wythoff.net/artifactual_interpretation/.

• Science Fiction, Fantasy, and the Concept of Culture
  • 5:15–6:30 p.m., 217, VCC West
  • Program arranged by the Discussion Group on Science Fiction and Utopian and Fantastic Literature
  • Presiding: Eric Aronoff, Michigan State Univ.
  • 1. "Cultured Appreciation of Modern Music and H. G. Wells's Critique of Max Nordau and Degeneration Theory in The Wonderful Visit," Rosanna Nunan, Univ. of California, Irvine
  • 2. "Constructing Futuristic Cultures, One Epigraph at a Time," Leif E. Sorensen, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins
  • 3. "'Sword and Sorcery' and the Anthropological Landscapes of Race and Culture," Mark Jerng, Univ. of California, Davis
  • 4. "The Heirs of Ishi: Recovering an Icon of American Anthropology in the Science Fiction of Gerald Vizenor," Andrew Uzendoski, Univ. of Texas, Austin

• Retrofuturism and Critical Theory
  • 7:00–8:15 p.m., 205, VCC West
  • Presiding: Leeann Hunter, Washington State Univ., Pullman
  • 1. "Steampunk Recursions and Computational Retrofutures in Bioshock Infinite," Roger Whitson, Washington State Univ., Pullman
  • 2. "Practice-Based Research in the Media Archaeology Lab: Past Solutions for Present Problems," Lori A. Emerson, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder
  • 3. "Hands On: Restoring a Scene of Early Word Processing through Tape and Type," Matthew Kirschenbaum, Univ. of Maryland, College Park

Friday 1/9:

• Diffusing Memories: Writing the Past in the Present
  • 8:30–9:45 a.m., 16, VCC East
  • Program arranged by the Division on East Asian Languages and Literatures to 1900
  • Presiding: Monika Dix, Saginaw Valley State Univ.
  • 1. "Rewriting Female Silence: The 'Invisible Scream' and Modern Japanese Women's Poetry," Janice Brown, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder
  • 2. "Unspeakable Confessions: Kirino Natsuo's Joshinki," Raechel Dumas, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder
  • 3. "Institutional Memory in Postsocialist China: Mo Yan's Cancerous Collectivity," Darwin Tsen, Penn State Univ., University Park
  • 4. "Transmediation and Late Qing Chinese Utopian Science Fiction," Shaoling Ma, Penn State Univ., University Park

• From Siberia to the Planet Mars: Russian Science Fiction
  • 8:30–9:45 a.m., 7, VCC East
  • Program arranged by the Discussion Group on Science Fiction and Utopian and Fantastic Literature and the Discussion Group on Slavic Literatures and Cultures
  • Presiding: Eric Aronoff, Michigan State Univ.; Rebecca Jane Stanton, Barnard Coll.
  • 1. "To the Sun! Andrei Bely's Argonavty," Amanda Lerner, Yale Univ.
  • 2. "The Telescope and the Bioscope: Astrocultural Geographies of Early Soviet Cinema," Anindita Banerjee, Cornell Univ.
  • 3. "Tarkovsky's Terrain Vague: The Transforming Power of Interspecies Relations in Stalker," April Durham, Univ. of California, Riverside
  • 4. "Blood, Gore, and Shit: The Role of Disgust in Post-Soviet Science Fiction," Bradley Gorski, Columbia Univ.
  • For abstracts, visit mlaslavic.blogspot.com.

• Narratives of Reproductive Rights in American Literature
  • 12:00 noon–1:15 p.m., 223, VCC West
  • Presiding: Beth Widmaier Capo, Illinois Coll.
  • 1. "Disability, Reproduction, Economy: Edith Wharton's Novels as Case Studies," Karen Weingarten, Queens Coll., City Univ. of New York
  • 2. "What Can Alien Abduction Teach Us about Family Planning? Race and Reproduction in Octavia Butler's Dawn," Aimee Armande Wilson, Florida State Univ.
  • 3. "The Utopian Minivan: Intimate Publics in Online Narratives of Assisted Reproduction Therapy," Layne Craig, Texas Christian Univ.
  • For abstracts, visit aimeeawilson.com after 1 Dec.

• Folklore and Science Fiction: From Fandom to Film
  • 1:45–3:00 p.m., 219, VCC West
  • Program arranged by the American Folklore Society
  • Presiding: John Laudun, Univ. of Louisiana, Lafayette
  • 1. "Hyperglossing Fandom," Sarah Carpenter, George Mason Univ.
  • 2. "'If We Chum, They Will Come': Science, Fiction, and Folklore in Shark Week's Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives," Benjamin Panther, Univ. of Oregon
  • 3. "Supernatural Brides, Selkies, and Spike Jonze's Her," Jessica Campbell, Univ. of Washington, Seattle
  • 4. "Monolith and Monomyth: Folk Motifs in 2001: A Space Odyssey," James Deutsch, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
  • Responding: Alexandria Gray, Univ. of Washington, Seattle

• Transnational Science Fiction behind the Iron Curtain
  • 5:15–6:30 p.m., 9, VCC East
  • Presiding: Anindita Banerjee, Cornell Univ.
  • 1. "Translating the Future: Rendering Names in English Versions of Polish and Russian Science Fiction," Sibelan Forrester, Swarthmore Coll.
  • 2. "Breaking Open Utopia: Science Fiction as Transnational Critique in the German Democratic Republic," Carl Gelderloos, Cornell Univ.
  • 3. "Transnational Science Fiction Comedy: Making Space for Time Travel," Sonja Rae Fritzsche, Illinois Wesleyan Univ.

• African Sci-Fi and Horror
  • 5:15–6:30 p.m., 8, VCC East
  • Program arranged by the Division on African Literatures
  • Presiding: Moradewun Adejunmobi, Univ. of California, Davis
  • 1. "Afronauts, Mutants, and Nuclear Destruction: Technological Speculation as Alternative Histories for the Present," Magalí Armillas-Tiseyra, Univ. of Mississippi
  • 2. "'Let All Human Beings Mutate Together': Jujutech and Digital Critique in the Late Novels of Kojo Laing," Ian MacDonald, Columbia Univ.
  • 3. "Snake Girl, a Ghanaian Juju Horror: Warning Off a Dark Future through the Child Victim," Esther de Bruijn, Univ. of Lethbridge
  • 4. "'Very Different to Other Humans': Gothic Revisions in Yaba Badoe's True Murder (2009)," Tamara Moellenberg, Univ. of Oxford, Brasenose Coll.

Saturday 1/10:

• Genre, Temporality, and Racial Imaginaries in Contemporary Fictions
  • 8:30–9:45 a.m., 115, VCC West
  • Presiding: Katherine Sugg, Central Connecticut State Univ.
  • 1. "'I Awoke in Darkness': Channeling Historical Emergence through Vampire Time in Octavia Butler's Fledgling," Habiba Ibrahim, Univ. of Washington, Seattle
  • 2. "Latino Futurity: Speculative Fictions of Masculine Subjection," Katherine Sugg
  • 3. "Indigenous Writers and the Novel in Mexico," Gloria Chacon, Univ. of California, San Diego
  • 4. "Techno-Orientalism and the End of History in Gary Shteyngart's Super Sad True Love Story," Stephanie Li, Univ. of Rochester
  • For abstracts, visit ksugg.wordpress.com/ after 20 Dec.

• Names in Works of Fantasy and Science Fiction
  • 10:15–11:30 a.m., 15, VCC East
  • Program arranged by the American Name Society
  • Presiding: Luke Maynard, Univ. of Western Ontario
  • 1. "The Ring Only Serves Onomaster: Reconciling the Dual Naming Traditions of Tolkien's Middle-Earth," Luke Maynard
  • 2. "Ayn Rand's Anthem: Self-Naming and Individualism," Shoshana Milgram Knapp, Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ.
  • 3. "Speak His Name and All Is Done: Tribe Names, Soul Names, and Kennings in Wendy and Richard Pini's Elfquest," Kayla Kreuger McKinney, West Virginia Univ., Morgantown

• Science Fiction and Science Studies: The Example of Isabelle Stengers
  • 5:15–6:30 p.m., 220, VCC West
  • Presiding: James J. Bono, Univ. at Buffalo, State Univ. of New York
  • 1. "Science Fiction and Stengers on Science Fiction," Colin Milburn, Univ. of California, Davis
  • 2. "American Literature and Stengers on Science Fiction," Joan T. Richardson, Graduate Center, City Univ. of New York
  • 3. "Philosophy and Stengers on Science Fiction," Margret Grebowicz, Goucher Coll.
  • 4. "Stengers on Whitehead and Stengers on Science Fiction," Nicholas Gaskill, Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick
  • Responding: Isabelle Stengers, Free Univ. of Brussels
  • For a description of the forum, visit english.artsci.wustl.edu/litsci after 1 Nov.
  • This session examines how science fiction has functioned in literature and science as a model area of inquiry in the light of a recent essay by Isabelle Stengers concerning science fiction's role in her own distinctive admixture of science studies and philosophy of science. The speakers supply differing, complementary contexts for the essay, and Stengers then responds to their remarks.

Sunday 1/11:

• Extremist Latinos/as 

• 12:00 noon–1:15 p.m., 10, VCC East
• A special session
• Presiding: Eric Vazquez, Carnegie Mellon Univ.
• 1. "Casualty Reports: Revolutionary Violence in Gloria Vando and Edgardo Vega Yunqué," Jason Baumann Montilla, Pratt Inst.
• 2. "Latino/a Science Fiction and the Future of Solidarity," Matthew Goodwin, Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst
• 3. "Malignant Exiles: Cultures of Death Squads and Refugees," Eric Vazquez
• Responding: Ariana Vigil, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

• Postapocalypse, Post-American
  • 12:00 noon–1:15 p.m., 210, VCC West
  • Presiding: Paula M. L. Moya, Stanford Univ.
  • 1. "Utopian Bodies: The Postapocalyptic Politics of Perversity and Miscegenation in Margaret Atwood and Octavia Butler," Cam Awkward-Rich, Stanford Univ.
  • 2. "What Does Data Want? Racial Demography and Political Imagination in Colson Whitehead's Zone One," Maria Bose, Univ. of California, Irvine
  • 3. "Racial Swarms and the Subjectivation of Climate: Barbara Kingsolver's Flight Behavior (2012) and Ian McEwan's Solar (2010)," Derek Woods, Rice Univ.
  • 4. "I Want to Suck Your DNA: Genomic Vampirism in the Work of Octavia Butler and Richard Powers," Lesley Larkin, Northern Michigan Univ.

• Comics Theory Roundtable
  • 12:00 noon–1:15 p.m., 214, VCC West
  • Program arranged by the Discussion Group on Comics and Graphic Narratives
  • Presiding: Martha B. Kuhlman, Bryant Univ.
  • Speakers: Michael A. Chaney, Dartmouth Coll.; Hugo Frey, Univ. of Chichester; Jared Gardner, Ohio State Univ., Columbus; Fabrice Leroy, Univ. of Louisiana, Lafayette; Barbara Postema, Ryerson Univ.
  • This roundtable analyzes interdisciplinary approaches to studying comics. Comics theory includes semiotics, film theory, linguistics, visual studies, and narrative theory, among other disciplines. The scholars examine to what extent these discourses are in conversation with one another and seek connections among them.

• Guilty Pleasures: Late Capitalism and Mere Genre
  • 1:45–3:00 p.m., 222, VCC West
  • Presiding: Benjamin J. Robertson, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder
  • 1. "Familiar Fantasies: Fantastic Genre after Postmodernity," Ryan Vu, Duke Univ.
  • 2. "Humanity's Zoë: Young-Adult Science Fiction and the End(s) of Neoliberal Imperialism," Rebekah Sheldon, Indiana Univ., Bloomington
  • 3. "Sentient Daggers, Trips to the Moon: The Weirdness of Dragonlance and the Death Knell of Fantasy," Benjamin J. Robertson
  • Responding: Gerry Canavan, Marquette Univ.