Call for Papers

 

The 21st Summer Meeting

of the Nathaniel Hawthorne Society

June 2-5, 2016

The Stoweflake Inn at Stowe, Vermont

      During an extended period of self-imposed isolation following his graduation from Bowdoin, Hawthorne embarked on a tour of New England and the Hudson Valley. In 1832, he visited Burlington, Vermont, where he enjoyed the town square and Lake Champlain, and made observations about the locals, especially the Irish laborers. In the December 9, 1835 edition of New England Magazine, Hawthorne published an anonymous account of his visit to Burlington, titled “The Inland Port.” In the following years, he would make several more references to Vermont in various sketches. Pursuing these lesser-known but fruitful connections, the Nathaniel Hawthorne Society is pleased to host its next summer meeting in Stowe, Vermont.

      While we eagerly welcome papers inspired by or in the spirit of this tour, we also invite proposals for papers on any topic related to Hawthorne and his circle. Fully developed sessions, with three speakers and their abstracts and a chair, may also be submitted. Below are some suggested subjects:

Immigration and Emigration
Early American Nationalism and Nation-building
Travel, Tourism and Transportation
New England
Ethnicity and Race
The Irish
Gender and Sexuality
Isolation
Anonymity
Nature Writing and The Environment
19th-century American Periodicals
The Family
Religion
Crime
Transatlanticism
Reading
Literary Influence
Early Hawthorne (Hawthorne in the 1830s, Fanshawe, published work that predates Twice-Told Tales)
Approaches to Teaching Hawthorne (we will hold a roundtable)

We would also like to encourage faculty to consider submitting proposals that include qualified undergraduate scholars.

You need not be a member of the NHS to submit a proposal, but all presenters must be members of the society.

Send proposals to Sam Coale at samcoale@cox.net

by December 11, 2015.