Call for Papers Literature and Ecology New perspectives in literary and cultural studies XVI.

Conference of the German Association of General and Comparative Literature (DGAVL) Saarland University, Saarbrcken, June 10th-13th 2014 Organization: Prof. Dr. Christiane Solte-Gresser, Dr. Claudia Schmitt There can be little doubt that, in recent years, ecology has become one of the central discourses in the western world. Ecological issues are especially important in the social and natural sciences, who assume social and political responsibility by addressing urgent ecological problems and developing practicable and visionary solutions for them. From the perspective of cultural history, this begs the question which functions, concepts and paradigms of the relationship between nature and society can be found in literature and other forms of art, which relations those works bear to social reality and how this perspective in general can be successfully applied to our understanding of ecology. Certain parameters are already addressed in ancient literature, e.g. the opposition between human needs and the respect for the environment or the treatment of possible changes within nature, whose effects cannot easily be foreseen. Since then, these questions have undergone important historical changes, while at the same time remaining closely connected to their respective cultural and national contexts. In addition, one can observe that literature absorbs non-fictional discourses on ecology. The potential of new perspectives in literary and cultural studies on these issues becomes apparent if one applies Ettes concept of Literature as Knowledge for Living, i.e. the notion that literature can precisely because of its fictional character develop, test and mediate different ecological constellations and concepts. After all, the critique of civilization, the dichotomy of nature and culture and the threat posed by forces of nature have always provided material for cultural debates on nature. These observations result in a set of questions: Which functions, which manifestations and which aesthetical treatments of connections between organisms can be found in literature and culture? How are ecological and economic concerns connected? What are the conflicts, what are the opportunities? How has the treatment of ecological issues in literature and art changed throughout history? How are current problems such as climate change addressed in literature and art? These are questions that will be raised and discussed at the XVI. Conference of the DGAVL. Thus, the goals are, firstly, to draw on existing research from the field of ecocriticism, secondly, to define and develop these approaches within a comparative perspective and, lastly, to discuss how our understanding of literature will change when discourses from literary criticism merge with those of other sciences. The term ecocriticism was first introduced by William Rueckert in his much-cited article Literature and Ecology. An Experiment in Ecocriticism. Since then,

ecocriticism has been a continually growing but also very divergent field in literary and cultural studies. Interest in nature and the relationship between mankind and nature or mankind and environment can be regarded as the common ground of these approaches. They have been well established in the English-speaking world for over 20 years now: The University of Nevada introduced the first chair for Literature and Environment as early as 1990. The US-American ASLE (Association for Study of Literature and Environment) was founded in 1992, its European counterpart EASLCE (European Association for the Study of Literature, Culture, and Environment) in 2004. In Germany, ecocriticism is well established most notably in English studies, but it is also grows in popularity in German studies, although here still rather isolated: Research mainly focused on concepts of nature in certain literary periods and on studies of works of one single author. It is striking that a distinctly comparative perspective has not been developed yet. It is the goal of the DGAVL-Conference in Saarbrcken to fill this gap. For this purpose, it can draw on current concepts of the newly DFG-funded network Ethik und sthetik in literarischen Reprsentationen kologischer Transformationen (Ethics and Aesthetics in literary representations of ecological transformations) under the direction of Evi Zemanek (Albert-Ludwigs-Universitt Freiburg). The conference will focus on an intercultural, intermedial, and interdisciplinary perspective on the connection between literature and ecology. Literature and Ecology possible fields of interest for a comparative ecocriticism The following areas can be studied either from a diachronic/historic perspective or from a synchronic/systematic one and might constitute the main branches of a comparative approach to ecocriticism. Concepts of nature, environment, and space: The aesthetics, perception and experience of nature, nature as metaphor and its realization in literary texts constitute important aspects of a literary and cultural ecocriticism. The discursive treatment of environment (in its very basic concept of space surrounding the human) proves to be an important category, as well, because it can be constructed either as wilderness, desert, or eternal ice, among others. And yet ecocriticism is not limited to ostensibly natural surroundings, but includes rather seemingly farfetched spaces as well, e.g. the city, private spheres, mental spaces or outer space worlds. Theory and methodology of ecocriticism: Ecocriticism emerged as a new branch of literary and cultural theory and builds on varying schools of theory such as gender studies (e.g. ecofeminism), postcolonial studies, post-structuralism, discourse analysis or systems theory. Beyond these, ecocriticism obviously is open for an interdisciplinary collaboration with other disciplines such as the natural sciences, economics and theology, among others. The selection of papers presented at the conference ought to reflect this diversity of methodological concepts and interdisciplinary issues.

Concepts of period and genre: Certain literary periods, like Romanticism for instance, have been classified by national philologies as the heydays of the aesthetic involvement with nature. To validate such issues of periodization from an ecocritical perspective proofs to be a productive area for current comparative research. But also the study of certain eras that counteract concepts of nature, e.g. futurism, can be reexamined from an ecocritical perspective. But new insights can also be won if one addresses the question of genre: A comparative ecocritical approach will broaden and highlight generic definitions such as utopias/dystopias, Robinsonade, science fiction, postapocalyptic fiction, idyllic or pastoral poetry, nature writing, or childrens literature. An ecocritical perspective will also allow new insights for comparatists who investigate themes and motifs, thus determining new ones such as waste, climate change or environmental protection. Alterity Thinking the Other: Reflecting about the other within the thematic scope of the congress highlights first and foremost the intercultural perspective of possible research topics: Every concept of nature and environment is tied to its respective cultural context and can hardly be fully understood without taking it into consideration. Beyond that, texts that transcend the dominant anthropocentric perspective, i.e. by focusing on animals (animal studies) or by using other living creatures as narrative point of view, constitute important research topics for an ecocritically elaborate concept of alterity. Humans and nature from a media-crossing perspective: One field of interest that has become increasingly important over the last couple of years in comparative literature can be regarded as especially fruitful for ecocriticism: Intermediality. On the one hand, the number of possible works of art which can be taken into consideration, e.g. movies, music (song and opera among others), visual arts, comic, computer games, theatre productions, grows immensely. On the other hand, one can expect important new insights into the question, which aesthetic practices (textual, graphic or performative) shape our understanding of the relationship between humans and the environment, and in which way they do it. Please send your proposal (no longer than one page, including a short, selective bibliography; Times New Roman 12, 1.5 line spacing) via email to the following addresses: c.schmitt@mx.uni-saarland.de solte@mx.uni-saarland.de Deadline: May 30th 2013 Congress organization: Prof. Dr. Christiane Solte-Gresser and Dr. Claudia Schmitt FR 4.1 Germanistik/Allgemeine und Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft Universitt des Saarlandes Campus 66123 Saarbrcken