28th – 29th October 2015 – MERL, University of Reading
Abstract Deadline: 8th June 2015
Keynote Speaker: Dr David Tucker (Chester University)
The Beckett at Reading Postgraduate group is pleased to announce a new postgraduate and Early Careers two-day conference with the theme of Beckett and Europe. We will be hosting two on-site archival workshops on manuscripts and performance during the conference. There will also be a public lecture on Happy Days by Professor James Knowlson. This will be followed by the Beckett International Foundation Seminar on 30th October.
We invite postgraduates and Early Career Researchers to submit abstracts under the general theme of ‘Beckett and Europe’. The aim of the conference is to engage postgraduates and ECRs in research exchange with an interdisciplinary and cross-media focus. Born in Ireland in 1906, Beckett wrote in English, French and German and directed his own theatrical work in London, Berlin and Paris. The span and influence of Beckett’s work in 20th Century Europe is essential to many questions that inform Beckett scholarship: How do we frame Beckett nationally/internationally and has this changed? What influence did Beckett have on European artists, writers and thinkers? How has Beckett’s work entered the European tradition?
All disciplines are welcome including philosophy, linguistics, theatre and performance, archival research, art, science, cultural studies, politics, history, music, theology and literature. We also invite submissions that contest and interrogate a Eurocentric focus on Beckett. Issues to consider may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Beckett, History and the Politics of Europe
- Beckett and World War II
- Beckett’s European Legacy
- Beckett and the City
- Beckett and European Theatre: Performance and Practice
- Beckett and the Archive
- Beckett, Nation and Translation
- Beckett and Culture: e.g. Music, Art, Architecture
- Beckett and European Philosophy
- Beckett and Traditions: Prose, Poetry, Drama
- Different modes of Beckett criticism in the various European traditions
Please send abstracts, in English, of 300 – 500 words to barpconference@gmail.com with a short bio of no more than 150 words before 8th June 2015.