Updated Calendar Now Online

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Chris

We’re happy to announce that the Medieval Academy’s Conference Calendar is now up and running is a new, dynamic and interactive format. Membership Coordinator Chris Cole has been busy over the past two weeks customizing an online Google calendar for the MAA and transferring all existing calendar posts to the new format.

Please click through to this link: http://www.medievalacademy.org/calendar/calendar_conferences.htm

You’ll notice views arranged in Agenda format and in Weekly and Monthly calendars. Clicking on each entry will being up a separate window with details of the event, including complete information, hyperlinks where available, and a Google Map link. You can search the calendar with a standard web browser search command and once inside the event window you can click a “copy to my calendar” link to move the event to your own computer’s or handheld’s calendar.

We’ll now be fine tuning the Calendar and adding your conferences, events, lectures, exhibitions and other information as promptly as you send them on to us. Please have a close look and let us know if there’s anything else we might be able to offer in the Calendar or if we can make any corrections to your posts. We look forward to hearing from you and posting your future notices. Please email these to the MAA at ccole@medievalacademy.org

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Call for Papers – Medieval Sessions at Northeast MLA 43rd Annual Convention

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Chris

Call for Papers

Medieval Sessions at

Northeast Modern Language Association 43rd Annual Convention

Rochester, New York

March 15-18, 2012

Deadline for abstracts Sept. 30, 2011

 

Please consider submitting an abstract for NeMLA 2012 in Rochester.  In addition to the sessions below, the Russell Hope Robbins library at the University of Rochester is rapidly becoming one of the most acclaimed research libraries for medievalists and is one of the headquarters of the TEAMS project.  The Robbins Library has recently acquired a significant stained glass and research collection as well.

Continuities in English Literature between the Norman Conquest and Reformation Too often, students of medieval English literature unnecessarily categorize Old and Middle English as completely disconnected, highlighting Beowulf and Chaucer as the exemplary markers, with little in between. This panel seeks instead to explore moments of interaction across the spectrum of earlier and later medieval English literature. Send paper abstracts to Pamela Longo (pamela.longo@uconn.edu) or Brandon Hawk (brandon.hawk@uconn.edu).

New Approaches to Old Texts: Studying Medieval and Early Modern Women and Gender This panel seeks to elicit new interpretations and approaches to studying women and gender in medieval and early modern Europe. Submissions on how to re-evaluate new or existing texts about/by/for medieval and early modern European women are especially welcome as are works that intend to use new technologies such as the internet. Please submit abstracts to Lyn Blanchfield, Department of History, SUNY Oswego, Oswego NY 13126 or lyn.blanchfield@oswego.edu.

Representing Identity and Power in Medieval and Early Modern Spain This panel will explore the construction of identity and its relationship to power in medieval and early modern Spanish literary texts. Submissions are invited that interrogate both the representation of different subject positions and their connection with the constantly shifting discourses of power that characterize the socio-cultural landscape of these periods. Send 250-300 word proposals to Ryan Prendergast, University of Rochester (pdst@mail.rochester.edu).

Teaching Medieval German Literature and Culture Share successful models of undergraduate courses that focus on medieval German topics (e.g., from Hero to Knight, medieval heroes/ heroines and villains), of courses that approach modern themes from a medieval perspective (e.g., gender studies), or that offer a major German medieval component (Crossroads of Medieval Cultures and Literatures) for crosslisted courses. Abstracts to Rosemarie Morewedge at rmorewed@binghamton.edu

The Notion of Friendship in Dante and Medieval Italian Writers The representation of friendship and its theoretical background (as found in works by Aristotle, Cicero, Augustine and others) has not yet been sufficiently probed in the field of Italian literature. This panel seeks to foster critical discussion on friendship in Dante and other medieval authors. Abstracts to Francesco Ciabattoni fc237@georgetown.edu

Using and [Re]Fusing The Bible: Revision and Parody in Medieval Britain What was the value of The Bible in medieval Britain? The study of biblical paraphrase, expansion of biblical narrative, and the creation of literary parodies of biblical material provide possibilities for understanding how cultural context shaped the uses of this text, the decentralization of political or religious power, public and private performance of devotion, and the development of notions about artistic ownership. Please submit 250-500 word abstracts about the uses of The Bible in medieval Britain to David Pecan at david.pecan@ncc.edu.

Representations of the Wound in French and Francophone Literature This panel seeks papers on the representation of wounds and physical injury in French/Francophone literature and film. From the Middle Ages to the present day, this topos has challenged the limits of representation. To what degree can the wound qua corporeal inscription be read as a master metaphor for text? What are its implications for our understanding of the relationship between the artwork and its audience? Please send inquiries or abstracts to Kathryn Rose (kgrose@fas.harvard.edu) and Ian Thomas Fleishman (ifleishm@fas.harvard.edu).

For more information on the Convention, visit www.nemla.org and VisitRochester.org

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Call for Papers – 18th Annual Postgraduate Medieval Studies Conference

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Chris

CALL FOR PAPERS

18th Annual Postgraduate Medieval Studies Conference

24th-25th February, 2012

Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Bristol, UK

 

Identity and Image

The University of Bristol hosts the longest-running international medieval postgraduate conference in the UK. This annual event offers medievalists the opportunity to present their research and discuss ideas in an interdisciplinary setting. The conference is now in its 18th year, and proposals are invited for papers from postgraduates and early career scholars on the theme of Identity and Image.

The aim of this year’s conference is to explore how identity was formed, expressed and understood in the Middle Ages. We are interested in the way individuals and groups constructed images of themselves and others, and how identity was affected by religious, racial, political and other social factors on an international, national or local scale. The theme ‘Identity and Image’ invites consideration of how, and if, we can interpret medieval notions of identity from the textual, visual, musical and material sources that have survived to the present day. We welcome a wide range of discussion from issues of religious and artistic patronage, devotional practice, language choice and material culture to considerations of how the self or the other is presented in literary and visual culture.

Topics may include but are not limited to:

  • Religious identities
  • National identity
  • Linguistic choice or identity
  • Autobiography and biography
  • Representation of outsiders
  • Artistic and religious patronage
  • Architecture
  • Material culture
  • Images of the self and others

Papers must be no more than 20 minutes long
Abstracts of 250-300 words should be sent by email (by preference) to:

Hannah Walters (hannah.walters@bristol.ac.uk)
Or to Hannah Walters, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Bristol, Graduate
School of Arts and Humanities, 7 Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1TB, UK

Deadline for receipt of abstracts: 10th December, 2012
Registration deadline: 21st January, 2012
For further information please visit our website:

www.bristol.ac.uk/medievalcentre/postgraduate-conference

Bursaries may be available for travel.

 

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A Message From the New Executive Directors

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Chris

Dear Fellow Members of the MAA:

We wanted to take this early opportunity to introduce ourselves to you all again and to say that as of Thursday, September 1, we have officially taken up our joint duties as Executive Director and Editor of Speculum.

We are delighted to assume our new posts and the responsibilities and opportunities for growth that they entail both for us personally and for the Medieval Academy as a learned society. Being in Cambridge once again is a delight (Harvard Square is decidedly not 42nd and 3rd in Manhattan!) and though we will miss our former colleagues at ACLS, the Medieval Academy has been most welcoming from the time our appointment was confirmed back in January. We are now here with the Academy staff: Associate Director and Associate Editor of Speculum for Articles, Jacqueline Brown; Associate Editor of Speculum for Reviews, Mary-Jo Arn; Assistant to the Directors, Sheryl Mullane-Corvi;  and Assistant to the Directors for Communications and Membership Coordinator, Chris Cole. We are most happy to be working with these long-time veterans of the Academy, and we look forward with them to serving the needs of the membership and the larger scholarly community in the years ahead. We thank Director Emeritus Paul Szarmach for his gracious welcome and advice during our transition period this past summer.

Our three priorities for the coming five years are really extensions of the mission that has been entrusted to us by the Executive Council: the reorganization of the Medieval Academy offices, our finances, and our workflows and responsibilities; the digitization of the scholarly communication that the Academy produces: everything from Speculum, to our various publications programs, to a revived newsletter, blog, and calendar as part of a general review of the MAA’s web presence; and finally the further internationalization of the Academy’s efforts: everything from the coverage of articles in Speculum to our international collaborations with fellow medievalists around the globe. All this must be accomplished without diminishing the very high standards set by our predecessors as executive directors and editors of Speculum and by the MAA staff.

If you were at the annual meeting in Tempe and heard Treasurer Gene Lyman’s report, you will already know that there are serious challenges directly ahead of us for the Academy, chief among them being the MAA’s finances and operations, the reorganization of our journal and publications to meet the needs and reader expectations of the 21st century, and the immediate need to improve and increase the Academy’s services and benefits to its members. Any learned society is, after all, established and given its powers of self-governance so that it can create and spread useful knowledge not only among its professional members but also for the public good. In addition, given the challenges to higher education in general and the humanities in particular in the years ahead, a learned society must insure the transmission of skills and knowledge to the next generation of younger scholars who will succeed us.

It is our hope that we ourselves and the entire Academy office will help serve the President, the Executive Committee, the Council, the various committees and you, the members of the Medieval Academy of America, to reach the goals that you have established for this, your society.

This will be the first of many communications from us to you on news and issues that concern all of us as members of the Medieval Academy. We also look forward to hearing from you, to having your ideas and advice, to chatting with you at our various meetings and conferences, to receiving your news and calendar listings, your book proposals and submissions to Speculum, and to working together with you in the years ahead.

Our best regards,

Eileen Gardiner
Ron Musto

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Jobs for Medievalists

Posted on August 19, 2011 by Chris

Inaugural Curator of the Schoenberg Institute of Manuscript Studies.

In April 2011, The University of Pennsylvania Libraries was the recipient of an extraordinary gift—the Lawrence J. Schoenberg Collection of Manuscripts. Mr. Schoenberg’s collection is widely known in manuscript circles and he has generously provided physical and digital access to scholars around the world for over a decade. The Schoenberg Collection documents through its many fine exemplars the transformation of knowledge through the lens of pre-early modern, hand-copied books in a variety of languages and scripts which document the evolution of the study of science, medicine and mathematics, among other subjects. Please visit http://sceti.library.upenn.edu/ljscollection/index.cfm to learn more about the Schoenberg initiatives at UPenn.

In recognition of the Schoenberg gift, the University of Pennsylvania Libraries is pleased to announce the creation of the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS). The new institute will form one of the cornerstones of the new Special Collection Center now being constructed. The two year renovation project will transform the former Rare Book and Manuscript Library into a 21st Century scholarly hub for the study of material and digital texts.

To provide leadership for the Schoenberg Institute, the UPenn Libraries is seeking an experienced and qualified manuscript studies scholar to serve as the Institute’s inaugural curator. For a complete job description and access to the online application, please follow the link to the University of Pennsylvania’s job site: http://www.library.upenn.edu/hr/professional/curator.html

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience. Includes a generous benefits package—additional information available at http://www.hr.upenn.edu/jobs/benefits.asp.

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By-Laws Revisions

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Chris

At its meeting of April 14 the Council of the Medieval Academy

reviewed and discussed proposed by-laws revisions as crafted by by-laws committee

co-chairs Charles Donahue and Janet Loengard and members Renate

Blumenfeld-Kosinski, Carmela Vircillo Franklin, and John Magee. After the language

of the changes met with unanimous approval, Council referred the document to

the Fellows, who had to cast their vote by June 27. The Fellows voted overwhelmingly

(59-5) to approve the revised by-laws.

The office staff is currently updating the website and other documents

to reflect the changes.

Prof. Paul E. Szarmach,

Executive Director, The Medieval Academy

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Graduate Student Mentoring at Leeds

Posted on June 15, 2011 by Chris

The Graduate Student Committee of the Medieval Academy of America invites those attending the IMC in Leeds to participate in the MAA-sponsored graduate student mentoring program. The program facilitates networking between graduate students and established scholars by pairing a student and scholar according to discipline.

The mentorship exchanges are meant to help students establish professional contacts from whom they can receive career advice. The primary objective of this exchange is that the relationship be active during Leeds, although mentors and mentees sometimes decide to continue communication after a conference has ended.

If you would like to volunteer as a mentor, please submit the online form by Monday, June 27: http://medievalacademygsc.org/gradstudents/form.html

Best,
Sarah C. Parker, on behalf of the Graduate Student Committee

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ARC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE FOR THE HISTORY OF THE EMOTIONS (EUROPE 1100-1800) POST-DOCTORAL RESEARCHERS

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Chris

The Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions in collaboration with The University of Western Australia, The University of Adelaide, The University of Melbourne, The University of Sydney and The University of Queensland, seeks to appoint nine exceptional postdoctoral researchers to contribute to research projects in the history of emotions in Europe, c. 1100-1800.

The Centre addresses big questions: to what extent are emotions universal? How, and to what extent, are they culturally conditioned and subject to historical change? What are the causes and consequences of major episodes of mass emotional experiences? How are emotions created and conveyed through the arts? How does Australia’s emotional heritage influence today’s social and cultural patterns?

The Centre draws on advanced research expertise at five nodes in Australia (the universities of Western Australia, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Queensland), plus research partnerships in the UK, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden. Our approach is strongly interdisciplinary, with researchers spanning the fields of social and cultural history, literature, art history, museology, Latin studies, history of medicine and science, musicology and performance practice.

These prestigious research positions (with additional $16K pa research support) offer an exciting opportunity for innovative and enthusiastic scholars with demonstrated track records in medieval and/or early modern studies and a capacity to engage in interdisciplinary research.

Benefits include 17% superannuation and generous leave provisions. Some relocation allowance for successful applicants will be considered. These and other benefits will be specified in the offer of employment.

The University of Western Australia

· Research Associate (Interpretations and Expressions of Emotion) (Ref: 3449)

For position information go to: https://www.his.admin.uwa.edu.au/jobvacs/external/academic/ads.htm

CLOSING DATE: 29 APRIL 2011

The University of Adelaide

· Research Fellowship in Medieval or Early Modern Europe, (Position number 16567),

· Research Fellowship in the Emotional History of Law, Government and Society in Britain, 1700-1830, (Position number 16568),

For position information go to: http://www.adelaide.edu.au/jobs/current/

CLOSING DATE: 21 APRIL 2011

The University of Melbourne

· Research Fellowship in Emotions and Sacred Sites

· Research Fellowship in Texts describing Emotions

For position information and to apply online go to: http://www.hr.unimelb.edu.au/careers

CLOSING DATE: TBA

The University of Queensland

· Research Fellowships: Reason and the Passions in English Literature, 1500-1800 (2 positions)

For position information go to: http://www.seek.com.au/JobSearch?AdvertiserID=852832

CLOSING DATE: 21 APRIL 2011

The University of Sydney

· Postdoctoral Research Associate in Emotions related to Suicidal Impulse (Ref 160/0111)

· Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Emotional Responses to Public Death (Ref 161/0111)

For position information and to apply online go to: http://usyd.nga.net.au/cp/index.cfm

CLOSING DATE: 1 MAY 2011

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Reframing the Middle Ages: New Ideas and Conceptions of Geography, Chronology, Gender, and Ideology

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Chris

The fiftieth annual meeting of the Midwest Medieval History Conference will be held on the campus of the University of Missouri – Kansas City on October 28–29, 2011.

This year’s meeting is centered on the theme of “Reframing the Middle Ages.” Although traditional conceptions of the middle ages have been challenged in recent years, especially in regard to issues such as gender and religion, other areas have been untouched. This conference will reach beyond traditional definitions of the middle ages in a broad variety of areas, including geography, chronology, gender, and ideology to attempt to create a new way of conceptualizing what it means to be medieval.

The conference will commence on Friday afternoon with graduate student papers. Saturday will feature scholarly papers on a range of topics, as well as a keynote address by Joel T. Rosenthal, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, SUNY Stony Brook.

Please send an email to the Program Chair (Christian Raffensperger – craffensperger@wittenberg.edu) with your name, affiliation, one page CV, and an abstract of no more than 300 words for your proposed paper.

The deadline for submission of abstracts will be April 1, 2011.

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Medieval Academy 2011 Election Results

Posted on February 4, 2011 by Chris

I am pleased to announce the results of the 2011 election of officers, councillors, and nominating committee members:

1. Presidential Officers:
President: Alice-Mary Talbot
First Vice-President: Maryanne Kowaleski
Second Vice-President: Richard W. Unger

2. Councillors:
Susan Boynton
Bonnie Effros
Cary J. Nederman
Martha G. Newman

3. Nominating Committee:
Olivia Remie Constable
Thomas Dale

There were 984 ballots cast, an all-time record.

Paul E. Szarmach, Executive Director

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