This year’s Comparative Literature Conference is asking for students to contribute to the discussion of this year’s theme, “The Artist and War.” The conference will take place on April 30.
Typically, only submissions from faculty members are accepted for the annual conference. But this year the Associated Students of Comparative Literature (ASCL) is strongly encouraging students to join and believes that the theme should attract more student submissions.
Michael Veremans, a senior comparative literature major and vice president of the ASCL, said it was the organization’s social responsibility to choose this year’s theme.
“America’s been at war for eight years; we’re still in Iraq, we’re still in Afghanistan … it’s not like we’re living in a peaceful world where war is something in the past,” Veremans said.
All submissions received will be included in the conference as long as they effectively relate to the theme. There are several topics on artistry and war for students to choose from in the submission guidelines. The deadline is April 16.
Students are encouraged to submit papers and art that “engage real and surreal concepts of armed struggle.”
“Artists are more sensitive to [these] things,” Veremans said. “They have a certain amount of responsibility to reflect it [and] that is why we chose artist and war because they depict it all the time.”
The artist and war theme is not specifically meant to attract only art students. Veremans said the comparative literature department is one that has drawn other departments into it and hopes to do the same with students for the conference.
Mary Sotnick, senior comparative literature major and secretary of the ASCL agrees that comparative literature embodies other facets.
“We compare everything,” Sotnick said.
The comparative nature of this conference is exemplified by the request for academic papers, creative writing and art submissions.
“We compare literature to a painting … to a film [because] comparative literature is more than just books,” Sotnick said.
Veremans expects submissions on current and past conflicts.
“Hopefully [the conference] informs people and gets [them] to think more critically about the ongoing conflicts … in the world through art interpretations,” Veremans said.
Sotnick stated her expectation for the conference is to provide an open forum for people to discuss war and politics.
“It’s very difficult [to talk about war and politics] because there are only so many places [one] can talk about something like that,” Sotnick said.
The categories for the conference will be determined after the submissions are turned in Thursday, April 16. The location for the conference is still to be determined but further information will be provided once one is chosen.
For more information about the 2009 CSULB Comparative Literature Conference and to submit papers and/or art for the conference, e-mail [email protected].