CFP: ACIS West Annual Conference
The Human, the Non-Human, and the Posthuman in Irish Studies
ACIS-West 2018
October 11-13, Wort Hotel, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
The 34th annual meeting of the American Conference for Irish Studies-Western Regional (ACIS-West), sponsored by the University of Wyoming, will be held from October 11-13, 2018 at the Wort Hotel in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Jackson Hole is nestled at the foot of the Teton Mountain Range and is the gateway to both Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park. This beautiful town—its gorgeous fall colors on display in early October—is a hub of Wyoming cowboy culture. The Western-themed Wort Hotel, a National Register of Historic Places property, is one of the state’s finest hotels.
ACIS-West is an interdisciplinary conference that welcomes papers from all disciplines, including literature, history, politics, law, music, religion, language, culture, theater, film, dance, visual arts, sociology, economics, diaspora studies, peace and conflict studies, and comparative studies. We invite papers on any topic, and are especially interested this year in those related to our conference theme: The Human, the Non-Human, and the Posthuman in Irish Studies. This theme encompasses a wide variety of issues, such as ecocriticism, animal studies, affect, science and technology, human rights, and social movements, to name a few.
The conference will feature keynote addresses from Kathryn Conrad (English, University of Kansas), Myles Dungan (History, RTÉ Dublin), and Charlotte Headrick (Theater, Oregon State University), as well as a plenary panel with Noah Novogrodsky (College of Law, University of Wyoming), among others titled “Tuam and the Search for Historic Justice.”
The annual meeting of ACIS-West will also feature the Donald E. Jordan, Jr.–Willard C. Potts, Jr. Award, which recognizes exceptional work by emerging scholars in Irish Studies. It is awarded annually to the ACIS-West member judged the most meritorious emerging scholar (current graduate students and scholars within three years of having received a PhD). The recipient is chosen by a committee of ACIS, West members appointed by the organization president, and the award will be presented at the conference’s closing banquet. The award is accompanied by a $500 honorarium. For more information about the award and the generous donors who have made it possible, see https://aciswest.wordpress.com/awards/.
Please submit your proposal by July 1, 2018 to https://acisweb.org/regionals/western/submissions/. Individual paper and panel submissions (3-4 participants) are welcome, as are proposals for live performances, dramatic readings, poster presentations, or exhibits. Individual proposals should be 250- 500 words in length and should include a brief biographical statement for the submitter (50 words). In the case of panel proposals, live performances, dramatic readings, posters, or exhibits, please submit a rationale (250-500 words), as well as biographical statements for each of the presenters. In addition to faculty, graduate students, and independent scholars, we also encourage exceptional undergraduate students to submit paper proposals. Please direct queries to: Matthew Spangler (Professor of Performance Studies, San José State University): matthew.spangler@sjsu.edu.