CALL FOR PROPOSALS
THE UNCANNY IN CONTEMPORARY HORROR FILM & LITERATURE
*** DEADLINE FOR ABSTRACTS/PROPOSALS: OCTOBER 13TH ***
I am seeking abstracts for 20-minute presentations for a panel on the
Uncanny, to be held at the 1997 International Conference of the
Fantastic in the Arts (March 19-23, 1997). The deadline is October
13, 1996...VERY SOON! Please forward a copy of this call to
interested parties, or post publicly.
FRAMEWORK:
Freud's essay on psychological terror and the arts, "The Uncanny" (das
Unheimliche), is a landmark text in critical and psychoanalytical
approaches to literature and media. While the Uncanny has often been
discussed in relation to the traditional iconography of the horror
genre, I am seeking theoretically-informed essays which extend these
analyses and deeply explore the Uncanny's manifestation in
contemporary works in the genre (horror fiction or film, post-1945).
I am generally interested in appraisals and revisions of the Freudian
Uncanny as a theoretical approach to literature and the media. The
panel will entertain multivalent perspectives and schools of thought.
In other words, in my paper selection process, I am seeking a wide
variety of critical approaches to the aesthetic Uncanny both within
and without the domain of psychoanalysis (such as cultural studies and
narrative theory), in relation to the genres of horror and the
Fantastic.
POSSIBLE TOPICS:
. Contemporary horror's doubles, dopplegangers, and clones
. History and memory in horror narrative, especially uses of deja vu
and the flashback
. New conceptions of the "return of the repressed"
in horror narratives
. Issues of repetition-compulsion, mastery, the
death drive, or the primal scene in today's horror fiction and film
. The Uncanny and its relation to theories of the Fantastic
. Representations of Woman as Uncanny object in horror texts
. Connections between Postmodern Intertextuality and theories of the
Uncanny
. Feminist and/or postmodernist revisions or reflections on
Freud's Uncanny (Cixous)
. Contemporary gothic narratives and the Architectural Uncanny (Vidler)
. Readings of the Abject in relation to the Freudian Uncanny (Kristeva)
. The Uncanny and the "anxiety of influence" (Bloom)
. Any close reading of the function of the Uncanny within a contemporary
horror text
RECOMMENDED/RELATED TEXTS:
Although not limited to psychoanalytic inquiry, panelists will be
expected to have a general working knowledge of Sigmund Freud's essay,
"The Uncanny" (das Unheimliche). Other key texts worth considering
include: . Cixous, Helene. "Fiction and Its Phantoms" . Freud,
Sigmund. "Beyond the Pleasure Principle" . Kristeva, Julia. Powers
of Horror: An Essay on Abjection . Rank, Otto. The Double . Vidler,
Anthony. The Architectural Uncanny
NOTES:
. While you must be a member of the IAFA to present a paper, you do
not have to be a member to submit to this panel. If your essay is
accepted, however, you must join the International Association of the
Fantastic in the Arts by December 15, 1996. Accepted panelists will
receive information on how to acquire a membership. Annual membership
dues are $50. Registration for the conference is $75 ($45 for
students with ID).
. ALL PAPERS PRESENTED AT THE CONFERENCE ARE ALSO
CONSIDERED FOR PUBLICATION.
. Submissions from graduate students are especially welcome. There is
an opportunity for grad students to win a CASH AWARD of $250 for
accepted work, if the complete essay is submitted early. (If this
opportunity interests you, please inquire along with the submission
of your abstract.)
. I can accept no more than three abstracts for this panel. But
considering the deadline for submissions (a little more than a week
from the day you receive this), your odds of acceptance may be
quite strong. I recommend avoiding purely theoretical discussions:
include examples from at least one primary text from the genre under
discussion. If you intend to use video media for your presentation,
please indicate this intention in your proposal, and keep in mind
the 20-minute time limit for paper presentations.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
. Paper proposals should be written as abstracts. They must be at
least 250 words in length and must demonstrate a clear thesis or
analytical statement, a coherent argument, a knowledge of scholarship
in the fantastic, and relevance to current study of the fantastic.
. Your proposal for this panel must be received by Sunday, October 13th,
1996, at 5pm.
. E-mail proposals are especially encouraged (because of the deadline).
No faxes or phone call pitches, please. Use overnight
mail services if necessary (but realize that the deadline falls on a
Sunday).
. Submit proposals and/or questions by 10/13/96 to:
Michael A. Arnzen
Department of English, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Office Phone: (541) 346-1518
OTHER DEADLINES:
. To be listed in the conference program, accepted panelists must join
the IAFA by December 15, 1996.
. All participants must also
preregister for the conference by February 15, 1997.
. PAPERS MUST BE COMPLETED BY THE CONFERENCE:
March 19th, 1997
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
ICFA open call for papers:
http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/iafa/icfa18.papers.html
or: http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/iafa/icfa18.papers.nofr.html
The IAFA home page: http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/iafa/iafa.home.html
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