Bridging the Divide: Literature and Science
3rd June 2016 hosted at the University of Kent
Organised by the Universities of Kent and Sussex
Keynote speaker: Dr Pamela Thurschwell – Sussex

Website: https://literatureandscience2016.wordpress.com

‘Science and literature are not two things, but two sides of one thing’ – Thomas Huxley

The relationship between literature and science has been a perennial subject of debate. Is there a divide between these two fields, or are they in fact two sides of one thing? The Universities of Kent and Sussex present a one-day conference on the 3rd June 2016, aimed at interrogating discourses around this subject.

Over the centuries, scientific inquiries have influenced writers, artists and theorists. Literary representations of science can record developments and changes, speculate as to future discoveries or challenge contemporary theories. Bridging the Divide welcomes submissions which span the range of literary studies from the classical to the medieval, from the early modern to the digital age, encompassing creative writing and interdisciplinary approaches.

Topics might include, but are not limited to:

Medical humanities and ethics / The environment and ecocriticism / Science fiction, speculative fiction and myth / Digital and computational humanities / Psychoanalysis, sexology and identity / Post-, trans- and antihumanism / Technologies of gender, cyber- and technofeminism / Evolutionary theory, social Darwinism, eugenics / Climate change, urbanisation and the anthropocene / Animal studies / Technologies of writing and material culture

This call is open to MA and PhD students from all institutions, including those who have completed PhDs in the last two years. We welcome abstracts for 20-minute papers, short creative pieces, and readings from postgraduate students by 1 April 2016 to be sent to kentconference2016@gmail.com. Abstracts should be no longer than 300 words. The conference will conclude with a wine reception.

Please include details of your current level of study and home institution. For creative readings, please send a short example of your work.