To anyone intending to attend the GEMCS conference next fall:
A Session on Alternative Sexualities in the Early Modern Period:
I am soliciting proposals for a roundtable discussion session on ways to
reconceive the theoretical, cultural, and/or literary implications of
Michel Foucault's now-paradigmatic description of the history of
alternative sexualities as the transition from their characterization as
"sodomy" in the 16th and 17th centuries, to being categorized as
"homosexuality" by the mid-19th. By this view, the "long" 18th century
becomes problematic, since while there must have been changes occuring in
the traditional views of sodomy, modern notions of homosexuality did not
apply either. Foucault, however, had little to say on this topic, and to
date, few scholars have addressed this issue, most proceeding as though the
same concept of sodomitical practice persisted until the Victorian period,
or as though the modern concepts of sexuality were already functional. As
a result, the 18th century seems to pose a gap or perhaps a historical
incongruity in Foucault's schema, or equally important, in the work of
scholars employing it.
I am looking for panelists who can focus on specific examples--texts,
practices, or institutions--that provide ways for specifying, reimagining,
or shelving the Foucauldian perspective regarding "other" 18th-century
sexualities. I will consider proposals as late as April 10th, so I can
submit the final list by the deadline. Anyone with questions should feel
free to contact me via email, or to call me at my home address below.
Rick
Richard Barney
Research Fellow, William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
2520 Cimarron St.
Los Angeles, CA 90018
323/731-8529
Email: rbarney@ou.edu
Home:
3673 Roseview Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90065
323/226-1526
===============================================
From the Literary Calls for Papers Mailing List
CFP@english.upenn.edu
Full Information at
http://www.english.upenn.edu/CFP/
or write Erika Lin: elin@english.upenn.edu
===============================================
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Wed Feb 09 2000 - 13:50:26 EST