“I am interested in certain [sites] that have the curious property of being in relation to all other sites, but in such a way as to suspect, neutralize, or invert the set of relations that they happen to designate, mirror or reflect. These spaces, as it were…are linked with all others, which however contradict all other sites” —Michel Foucault [1]

Michel Foucault’s theoretical oeuvre reaches far and wide and the study of space is arguably one of the fields most prominently impacted and informed by his work. Specifically, Foucault’s theory of heterotopias, introduced during his 1967 lecture, “Of Other Spaces,” affords a means of countering the basic, societal truths of the realms we occupy while “suspect[ing], neutraliz[ing], and invert[ing] the set of relations they happen to mirror, or reflect.” With this in mind, this panel seeks to examine heterotopic spaces, whether—and by no means limited to—physical, geographical, literary, cyber, social, or cultural, in order to illuminate and perhaps even complicate their cultural implications. Furthermore, papers may seek to answer larger, theoretical questions about heterotopias, the benefits of such theoretical applications, and Foucault’s effects on theories of space, more generally.

I encourage and invite abstracts from all disciplines. Please send a 300-word abstract by March 1, 2011 to Ashley Reis at AshleyReis@my.unt.edu. Deadline for panel proposals is March 18, 2011.

[1] Foucault, Michel and Miskoweic, Jay. “Of Other Spaces.” Diacritics Vol. 16, No. 1 (Spring, 1986): 22-27.

Via UPenn Call for Papers

As an aside, it would be an interesting exercise to address book awards in our reading list. For instance, taking a set of winners  of a particular award (National Book Award say or the Booker) as a case study for a term. Probably logistically impossible due to length, but an intriguing prospect. Thoughts?

Women Writers & Psychoanalysis.

Literature & Trauma Studies.

Call for Submissions
Please feel free to forward this to any organizations, individuals, or mailing lists that might be interested.

At century’s end and after, a dystopian mood – what Peter Fitting calls “the sense of a threatened near future” – has been evident in daily life and, of course, national literatures. Seeking to explore literary iterations of that mood, the editors of After NAFTA: Contemporary North American Dystopian Literature encourage submissions about a variety of literary genres – novels, short fiction, or graphic novels (written in English or translated) – published by Canadian, American, and Mexican authors between 1994 and 2010.

The editors of After NAFTA have an agreement for publication with Wilfrid Laurier University Press.

Topics/approaches that might be taken into consideration:

· Ecology, environment, rural/urban
· Sexuality and gender
· Geo-politics, governmental structure, ideology, knowledge
· Community, ethnicity, race, territory, class structure
· Spirituality, religion, mythology, history
· Technology
· The body, post-humanism, cybernetics, genetics
· Consumerism, media, popular culture

Please send a brief query and/or a 300-word (maximum) proposal to dystopian.anthology@ubc.ca by March 30, 2011 and include a brief bio/bibliographical note.
Accepted essays will be due September 30, 2011 and should be between
4000 and 6000 words.

Brett Josef Grubisic, Tara Lee, Gisèle M. Baxter, eds. After NAFTA:
Contemporary North American Dystopian Literature

Department of English, University of British Columbia

397-1873 East Mall, Vancouver, BC CANADA V6T 1Z1

Via: UPenn’s call for papers database.

Edward Docx makes a case for literature against the prominence of authors like Stieg Larsson and Dan Brown in the Guardian. Perhaps a good follow up to our discussion of Larsson last summer.

The title to the post comes via Chelsea who commented that given the tendency to run a good thing in the ground, Larsson’s heroine was likely to run into more mundane problems in the future.