Department of English Studies and Centre for Canadian Studies, University of Tartu, Estonia
Estonian Association for Canadian Studies with the assistance of Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of Tartu and Embassy ofCanada
8-9 October 2022, at the University of Tartu, Estonia
Deadline: September 10, 2022
Fifty years ago, Margaret Atwood’s Survival: A Thematic Guide to Canadian Literature was published. This critical work became an introduction to Canadian literature for a wider reading public at home and abroad. While Atwood’s conceptualisation of Canada and Canadian literature in terms of survival has been contested, it has made an important contribution to the debates that have facilitated a better understanding of both. Today, the concept of survival remains productive, and it can be expanded, also considering Atwood’s 2022 essay collection Burning Questions, to address all living things a s well as tackle urgent cultural, social, environmental, political , and economic issues. With this conference, we seek to explore survival from multiple inter/ disciplinary and theoretical perspectives of the humanities and social sciences. The conference also marks the 30th anniversary of the institutionalisation of Canadian Studies in Estonia with the establishing of the Estonian Association for Canadian Studies and the Tartu Conference tradition in 1992. “Survival” as the conference theme is related to the “Arts of Survival,” the artistic concept of the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024. While addressing the conference theme, the contexts of the issues in the papers may be current or historical or combine both. We welcome case studies and theoretical papers as well as comparative analyses of Canada and other countries.
The topics of the contributions may include but are not limited to: representation of survival in literature and other art forms; survival of individuals and communities; survival of languages and cultures; survival of organisms and life forms; sustainability of habitats and environments; geo/political and economic survival; local and global challenges; Indigenous Peoples; migration and multiculturalism ; Baltic diasporas in Canada; means, resources and technologies of survival; Aboriginal Studies, Quebec Studies and Canadian Studies; concepts, theories, and research methodologies to deal with the topics.
The working language of the conference is English; however, presentations can be made either in English or French. The length of the presentations is 20 minutes plus 10 minutes for discussion. We hope for the participants to be able to be present in person, however, we are planning a hybrid conference to ensure the possibility of online participation.
Contributors are expected to submit an abstract of 250 words as well as a biographical note of 100 words (including title and institutional affiliation) by September 10, 2022 .
Please send abstracts and biographical note s as well as possible enquiries via e – mail to Eva Rein (eva.rein@ut.ee).
Conference committee: Eva Rein and Ene – Reet Soovik