Call for Papers, NECBS Annual Meeting, 27-29 September, 2024
The Northeast Conference on British Studies (NECBS) will hold its 2024 annual meeting from Friday to Sunday, September 27-29, at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. We are delighted that this year’s conference will feature a plenary session with keynote speakers Brendan Kane (UConn), Asheesh Kapur Siddique (UMass) and Lucy Curzon (U. of Alabama), as well as a featured lecture with Elizabeth Elbourne (McGill). We encourage in-person attendance but aim to have one hybrid (in-person and virtual) session per time slot for those unable to attend in person.
We solicit the participation of scholars in all areas of British Studies, broadly defined. Although most NECBS participants are historians working on post-1400 topics, we welcome multidisciplinary papers on Britain, the British empire, and the legacies of British rule, from the ancient past to the present. This includes, for example, literary and cultural perspectives, and histories of the Caribbean, Africa, North America, and South Asia. Given the timing of this year’s conference, we would particularly welcome a panel that explored Canada’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation from a British Studies perspective.
Proposals for entire panels on a common theme will be given priority, although individual paper proposals will also be considered if several of them can be assembled to create a viable panel. Proposals for roundtable discussions of a topical work, on current issues in the field, or pedagogical practices with respect to the teaching of particular aspects of British Studies are also encouraged. The typical ninety-minute panel will include three papers (each lasting for roughly twenty minutes) and a chair. In the interest of allowing greater audience participation in Q&A, the position of “moderator/comment” is optional. Roundtables may have a looser format.
Individual paper proposals should be submitted electronically using this form. Each paper should have a title, 200-300-word abstract, and a short bio paragraph of the presenter.
Panel proposals should be submitted electronically using this form. For panel or roundtable proposals, please designate a main contact person to submit the proposal. Each proposal should include a general description of the panel or roundtable (including an overall title), a 200-300 word abstract for each paper to be presented, and a brief bio paragraph for each participant. Please include the address, phone number, and e-mail address of all participants (including the chair and, if applicable, moderator) in the proposal, and indicate whether the paper(s) will be delivered in-person or virtually.
The NECBS is committed to running an inclusive and accessible conference. With the support of our host institutions, we endeavour to keep conference registration fees affordable, and to offer small stipends to unfunded speakers, as our budget allows. Graduate students, please note: Each year the NECBS Executive Committee awards the David Underdown Memorial Prize to the best graduate student paper presented at the conference. (See details here.)
All submissions must be received by May 15th, 2024 (final decisions will be announced in June 2024). Questions about proposals can be directed to Mary Conley, NECBS Vice-President and Program Chair at mconley@holycross.edu.