Society for Utopian Studies

http://www.utoronto.ca/utopia/meetings.html

THE SOCIETY FOR UTOPIAN STUDIES
2008 CALL FOR PAPERS
33rd Annual Meeting
October 29-November 2, 2008
Holiday Inn by the Bay
Portland, Maine

To Register

Please go to Registration Page to register for this upcoming conference.

The Society for Utopian Studies invites you to submit abstracts for any of the following:

* a paper (between 15-20 minutes)
* a panel (usually of 3 papers)
* an informal panel on a topic (e.g., 3 presenters, or a presenter and 2 or 3 respondents)
* a presentation or performance of creative work on any topic related to utopian studies.

Scholars and artists from all disciplines are encouraged to present on any aspect of the utopian tradition--from the earliest utopian visions to the utopian speculations and yearnings of the 21st century, including art, architecture, urban and rural planning, literary utopias, dystopian writings, utopian political activism, theories of utopian spaces and ontologies, music, new media, or intentional communities. We also welcome papers that engage with topics related to the conference location, such as island or maritime utopias, tourism and utopia, the Shakers, environmentalism and utopia/dystopia, or the Back to the Land Movement.

Please send a 100-250 word abstract by June 1, 2008 to our Program Chair:

June Deery,
Department of Language, Literature and Communication, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180-3590

Or by email:

For email submissions, please attach your proposal as a Word or PDF file.

As you submit your abstract, please indicate if you have

A) any scheduling restrictions
B) audiovisual needs (data projector; VHS player)—to help keep costs down, please request AV only if essential to your presentation
C) need for a written letter of acceptance, or whether an e-mail will suffice.

Changes in the time and date of your panel will not be possible after panels are scheduled; requests for AV will not be honored unless you submit them with your original abstract.

For information about local arrangements, please contact Co-Chairs:

Naomi Jacobs,
English Department,
University of Maine
Orono, Maine
04469-0122

OR

Shelton Waldrep,
English Department,
University of Southern Maine
Portland, Maine
04104.

About the Society

Founded in 1975, the Society for Utopian Studies is an international, interdisciplinary association devoted to the study of utopianism in all its forms. Scholars and practitioners representing a wide variety of disciplines and endeavors are active in the association and approach utopian studies from such diverse backgrounds as American studies, architecture, the arts, classics, cultural studies, economics, engineering, environmental studies, gender studies, history, languages and literature, philosophy, political science, psychology, sociology and urban planning. The Society encourages participation from those involved in communal living and other utopian arrangements.

The Society publishes a journal, Utopian Studies , and a newsletter, Utopus Discovered . The latter contains information on upcoming conferences and workshops, as well as a bibliography of recent publications in the field. For more information or to join, see our website at

http://www.utoronto.ca/utopia

Annual meetings of the Society are ideal occasions for intellectual interchange in a cooperative, non-competitive, congenial, and convivial environment. At each meeting, the Society presents the Arthur O. Lewis Award for the best paper by a junior scholar given at the previous annual meeting and the Eugenio Battisti Award for the best article in each volume of Utopian Studies.

Membership includes announcements regarding the annual meeting, as well as subscriptions to Utopian Studies , and Utopus Discovered . Please go to Join the Society for full detail.

About Portland

A restaurant-lover’s mecca, Portland was chosen as one of three finalists for “Delicious Destination of the Year” by the Food Network in 2007 and praised as one of “50 Cities that Sizzle” by the National Restaurant Association.

It’s also been designated #7 among “100 Best Art Towns in America,” one of the “10 Great Adventure Towns” by National Geographic , and one of “America’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations” by the National Trust for Historical Preservation.

The Inn by the Bay is located downtown within easy walking distance of the Portland Museum of Art, the Old Port district, Casco Bay ferries, many historical attractions, and an array of restaurants, shops and watering holes. The hotel offers a free shuttle service from the Portland Jetport and free parking for registered guests. Make reservations on-line at http://www.innbythebay.com/ or call 1-800-345-5050. Be sure to mention the Society to receive the conference rate of $125 (single or double).

For more information on the city, go to

We hope to see you there!